Pokémon Adventures: Gold

The Adventure Begins

     The boys find Beck standing outside the Pokemon Center, her Cyndaquil curled into a ball at her feet, sleeping. She is facing the sky, a faraway look in her eyes, her hands in her pockets as she leans against the building. They approach.

     "Sorry it took so long," Ethan starts, "but Barry here thought it'd be cute to get in a fight with some poor old lady."

     "Woah woah woah," Barry defends. "That was no 'poor old lady.' That was an evil old hag."

     "Did you have to call her smelly to her face?"

      "She's the one with the poison breath trying to hog all the antidotes because the liquid 'looks pretty.' She doesn't even have a Pokemon!"

      "What are we gonna do with him, huh Beck," Ehtan asks, shaking his head at Barry. "Beck?"

      "Hmm?" Beck looks back at the now obviously concerned boys. "When did you guys get here?"

     The boys look at each other, then Barry speaks. "Uh, did something happen to you? Why are you here anyway?"

     "Yeah," Ethan says. "Weren't you going to wait by the entrance to route 29?"

      "Let's just go. C'mon Cyndaquil." Beck walks slightly ahead of the group, but when they make it to the route, she lets the boys take the lead. Though they had previously taken turns with the wild Pokemon that appeared, Beck asks more than once to be skipped. The first time, Barry eagerly obliges with a "more for me" attitude, but by the third time, he insists she battles.

      "What's wrong with you?" Barry demands.

     "Nothing."

     "Then why are you two battling like that?" Beck's previously unrelenting offensive strategy is now extremely defensive. She has become more cautious than Ethan had been. Still, much to Barry's chagrin, she denies that anything has changed. "Seriously, Beck, what-

     "Let's drop it for now, okay," Ethan offers, attempting to keep the peace. "We can talk about it when we make it to town."

New Bark Town: Elm's Laboratory

     Just outside of the laboratory stand a congregation of police officers. One of them is talking to an aide of Professor Elm. As the trio approach, they can hear the aide giving her testimony.

      "There was a n-noise..." she says between sobs. "The window was shattered, glass everywhere!" She waves her arms out as she speaks. "We all went to look. Oh why didn't one of us stay with them!" The aide breaks down, falling to her knees as the officer taking her testimony looks around frantically for someone to help him console her.

      "Stay with them? Who's them?" Ethan thinks aloud.

     "The Pokemon," Beck answers as she tries to walk into the lab.

      "Hold on, kid." One of the officers blocks her path. "This is a crime scene. You kids can't enter."

      "We're friends of the professor," Ethan says. "He asked for us. Can you tell us what happened here?"

      "Oh, yeah. Elm did say there were some trainers on their way here. I guess it wouldn't hurt." He straightens his cap. "Well, it looks like the perpetrator came in through a broken window. By the time everyone ran outside and around the building, he had made off with two Pokemon. Might have taken more if he thought he had time. One of the aides got a glimpse of him. They say he had long red hair and looked pretty young." He shakes his head. "First Team Rocket and now this. What kind of scum steals Pokemon?"