PokéBall Z the Series: Vol. I: Green

Chapter XVII: Bill

Riviére hummed happily as she ate her breakfast of a cheese omelette and crescents. She had awoken early that morning, afraid that everything had been a dream. To her joy, she found Alexander already making breakfast for them. Hanako and Tatsu joined them shortly after. Tatsu also ate a cheese omelette while Hanako ate her regular meal of assorted berries.

Alexander had finished cleaning the dishes before he grabbed his plate off the counter with his breakfast. "My, you're cheerful today," said Alexander happily as he sat down at the table. "Have your headaches gone away?"

"Why wouldn't I be happy?" she asked before taking a sip of her coffee. "Not entirely, but the coffee helps. I can't remember anything since Mt. Moon, but I'm glad I can remember everything since last night," she said cheerfully.

Alexander looked at his pocket watch. "If we leave within forty-five minutes, we'll reach the Shell Cottage by lunch."

"Kay," said Riviére as she, Tatsu, and Hanako finished up her breakfast.

Precisely forty-five minutes later, Tatsu had returned the house to the PokéCaps and began their journey through Route 24. Together, they walked over the river on Nugget Bridge, the very bridge that Louis had prevented them to cross yesterday. The sun warmed them with its glow as they walked through the remainder of the Route. Entering Route 25, the mountains completely blocked access to the north. The river pooled in the opening, creating a large lake. The lake had many cabins and cottages around the lake. A small town was nestled beside the lake to provide supplies to those who found a home at this lake.

"There it is!" said Riviére excitedly as they reached a top of the hill.

At the top, they could look over the entire lake and the cabins and cottages that dotted along it's shore. Boats, jet skis, and multiple Water-type Pokémon could be seen on the lake's surface. Riviére ran down the hill towards a two story cottage covered with decorative sea shells that sat along a small stretch of beach. Beside the cottage was a large oak tree that towered over the cottage. It's large branches provided shade from the sun and tied on the lowest hanging branch was a tire swing.

"Wow, that's a beautiful cottage," said Hanako as she, Tatsu, and Alexander began their walk down the hill.

"The Shell Cottage has been in the Bleu family for generations," explained Alexander. "This was Riviére's favorite vacation home when she was a child. I don't know why I didn't think that she'd be here after the accident."

Riviére approached the shore of the lake and reached into her purse. She withdrew her two blue Poké Balls and grinned widely. Hanako had told her that her Magikarp had evolved into Gyarados in Mt. Moon and fought off the entire force of Team Rocket soldiers to defend her. With a grin on her face, she tossed her Poké Balls into the lake. "Come on out! Gyarados! Wartortle!"

At her command, Gyarados and Wartortle materialized in the water after the Poké Balls popped open. Gyarados' massive serpent body was barely in the water due to his massive size. He leaned his head forward and nuzzled Riviére, who giggled at the Atrocious Pokémon's affection. Wartortle withdrew into his shell and floated lazily in the lake water.

"Go on and have some fun. Relax!" she said happily as she nuzzled Gyarados' scaly cheek. Gyarados hissed softly before retreating his head and turned towards the lake. The Atrocious Pokémon slithered into the depths of the lake, whether to feast or socialize with other Gyarados is unknown. Wartortle merely floated along the surface of the lake, withdrawn in his shell.

"Riviére has the right idea," said Tatsu as he reached into his bag. "We should let our Pokémon stretch their legs."

"That's a good idea," said Hanako as she went into her purse and withdrew her Poké Balls. "Go, Ivysaur! Exeggcute!"

"Charmeleon, Growlithe!"

Charmeleon, Growlithe, Ivysaur, and Exeggcute materialized on the grassy lawn beside the cottage. The Exeggcute jumped onto the neck of Ivysaur as he walked toward the oak tree for shade. Growlithe barked happily as he ran around Tatsu, while Charmeleon also joined Ivysaur and Exeggcute at the oak tree to take a nap.

"Well, I should start making lunch," said Alexander as he started to walked towards the Shell Cottage when a yell was heard.

"Help!" called a voice from the neighboring cabin. "Help!"

"Where's that coming from?" said Hanako as she and the others looked around for the source.

"There! The cabin next door!" said Tatsu.

The four of them rushed to the nearby cottage. They stopped at the door and Tatsu opened it with haste. Just as he burst in, an extremely large Kabuto stood in the center of the living room, struggling to stand and move around. "Ack!" shrieked Hanako from the surprise of seeing the giant Kabuto.

"Whoa, look at the size of that Kabuto!" shouted Riviére excitedly as she reached into her purse for a Poké Ball and threw it. "I'm not going to miss out on a Kabuto!" However, the Poké Ball merely bounced off the Kabuto's head. The force of the Poké Ball caused the giant Kabuto to topple over. The claws wiggled as the Kabuto tried to roll over.

"Help!" said a muffled voice from the Kabuto. "I'm in a Kabuto suit!"

"Oh...," said Riviére, sweat dropped from the side of her face as Alexander and Tatsu helped the Kabuto to his feet. "Well, now I just feel silly."

"Thank you," said the man in the suit as Alexander and Tatsu pulled him up. "I was at a costume party last night and I passed out wearing my costume. I've been trying to get out of this suit all morning. Could you help me get out? The zipper is on the side...," Tatsu pulled down the zipper and the front of the costume fell over. A sweaty thin man with mousy brown hair, wearing only boxers, fell out of the Kabuto Suit. He took a deep breath as he laid sprawled out on the floor. "Oh thank Arceus! That suit was toasty!"

"Not bad looking," said Riviére as the thin man stood up and went to his bedroom to change. Hanako had looked away modestly while Alexander and Tatsu moved the Kabuto Suit off to the living room.

The man returned a few minutes later, wearing a lab coat over a blue button shirt, green tie, and khaki pants. "I can't begin to thank you enough for your assistance! Please, join me for dinner tonight. My treat! My name is Bill," he said as he shook their hands.

"Thanks for the offer," said Riviére as she shook his hand. His lab coat drew her curiosity. "Sorry for asking, but are you a scientist?"

"Well, sort of," he said as he rubbed the back of his head. "I'm a Pokémon Researcher. I just graduated from Silver University about a month ago. I helped create the Storage System many trainers use for storing their Pokémon online while I was in Silver Academy. I want to become the lead Professor in the Kanto Region, like Professor Oak. I'm still pretty green though, and I'm looking to make a big impression for Professor Oak with my research. Most researchers start with a single Pokémon or species and do their research on them when they start fresh from the university," he said. He cleared his throat. "I've been thinking about how I could do that, so I was thinking about doing a research paper on the three Legendary Birds; Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres."

"The three Legendary Birds," repeated Alexander as he traced his jaw. "Those Pokémon haven't had a confirmed sighting in nearly three dozen years."

"Precisely," said Bill. "Everything we have about them are outdated and myths. The last living Articuno in captivity died many years ago, when Tojoh was still one united country. A living Zapdos hasn't been seen in nearly fifty years; the last one seen during the Great Storm that nearly blew Vermilion City off the map. The last Moltres recorded was when the Pokémon League was formed and the flames of Moltres taken as ceremonial fire. If I could get proof that they still exist...," Bill leaned against his wall, crossing his arms. "I have no idea where I'd start looking."

Riviére turned towards Hanako. "Hey, you know your Legendary Pokémon. Got any idea where he could find them?"

Hanako blinked in surprise. "Um, well," she said as she reached into her purse and rummaged through it before she withdrew an old leather bound book. The binding was so old, it looked like it'd fall apart at the lightest touch. On the face of the book was "The Ancient Pokémon of Tojoh" title in bold letters. With the utmost care, she opened the book as she walked to the dinner table and carefully set it on the surface. Bill and the others swarmed around her as she carefully turned the pages. Illustrations of various Legendary Pokémon were illustrated with details of the legends behind them.

She found Articuno, the Freeze Pokémon's page first. One the left side was a detailed hand drawing of an Articuno. She leaned over, her hair sliding down the side of her face, and read aloud, "Articuno is a legendary bird Pokémon that can control ice. The flapping of its wings chills the air. As a result, it is said that when this Pokémon flies, snow will fall.The magnificent, seemingly translucent, wings of this legendary bird Pokémon are said to be made of ice. It can create blizzards by freezing moisture in the air. It is said to appear to doomed people who are lost in icy mountains." Hanako turned the page and found Zapdos, the Electric Pokémon with an illustration of a Zapdos. "Zapdos is a legendary bird Pokémon that has the ability to control electricity. It usually lives in thunderclouds, creating savage thunderstorms by flapping its glittering wings. The Pokémon gains power if it is stricken by lightning bolts. It is said that this Pokémon appear from clouds while dropping enormous lightning bolts. It was Zapdos that gave inspiration for man to capture electricity for power." She turned the page once more, she read Moltres, the Flame Pokémon's page with a majestic drawing of Moltres in a pit of flames. "Moltres is a legendary bird Pokémon that has the ability to control fire. If this Pokémon is injured, it is said to dip its body in the molten magma of a volcano to burn and heal itself. Every flap of its wings creates a dazzling flare of flames. It is said that its appearance indicates the coming of spring, and that spring will soon arrive if Moltres shows itself. Those who see it are overwhelmed by its orange wings that seem to be on fire."

"Those sound like some powerful Pokémon," said Tatsu as he eyed Moltres' page. "I'd give just about anything to have a Moltres on my team."

"You and everyone else," said Hanako. "Back in the day, a lot of people tried to get their hands on these birds. Very few ever caught any. When Poké Balls were introduced, I can only recall a handful of trainers catching any of these. When the trainer died, they all specified in their wills to have the Pokémon released."

"So, where would a trainer look for them?" asked Bill eagerly.

"Hm," Hanako rubbed her chin in thought. "Well...Moltres can be found near an active volcano. Going anywhere near a volcano could be hazardous. I wouldn't recommend going near one unless you're prepared. It's rumored that the Office of the Pokémon League has a Moltres. As for Zapdos, that will be the hardest to find. You'll have to chase a storm. I suggest looking up weather reports and predicting where a thunderstorm would show up. The odds are slim, but you might be able to find one. Articuno on the other hand, you'll have to find a cold environment or look in the Tojoh Mountains," she paused and looked towards Bill. "You're just going to research them...right?"

Bill nodded. "Yes. I'm no trainer so I wouldn't capture them. Not unless you count on film or in photographs for research purposes."

Hanako looked at him thoroughly before turned back to her book. "All right. I think I know of one place where you could find an Articuno."

"Really?" asked Bill.

"Yes," said Hanako as she closed the book and carefully put it in her purse. She straightened up and turned towards Bill. "There's an island in the Seafoam Islands with a cave that's covered in ice. In the bowels in that cave, it was rumored to be a refuge to Ice-type Pokémon. You may find an Articuno or two there."

"I didn't even think about the Seafoam Islands," said Bill happily. He grabbed Hanako by the hand suddenly. "Hanako, would you and your friends be willing to join me on an expedition there?"

"H-huh?" stuttered Hanako.

"Why would you want us to join?" asked Tatsu.

"It's typical for expeditions to have Pokémon Trainers on their team," said Alexander. "It's a safety measure."

"I think we should," voted Riviére happily. "How often does anyone get a chance to see an Articuno?"

"You do have a point," said Tatsu with a shrug of his shoulders. "Sure, count me in."

"If Riviére is going, then I am bound to go as well," added Alexander.

Hanako looked around to her friends then back at Bill. "Well, I can't be the odd one out. I'll join you as well." she said as she rubbed the back of her head.

"Great!" said Bill. "Within a month, we'll depart from Vermilion City!"

That night, the five of them and their Pokémon feasted out by the lake. They joked and told stories well into the night. The lake was alive with festivities. Every worry they had were expelled. Riviére was the center of attention; the life and soul of the party. Alexander served drinks and food to them in between discussing with Bill and his research and Hanako. Tatsu, not much for social occasions, would sit on the sidelines with his Charmeleon until he was dragged into the center with Riviére and danced.

As they danced, a dark, shadowy figure with a white fog-like hair that billowed like smoke hovered at the top of the Shell Cottage and overlooked the party below. With it's blue eyes fixed on Riviére and Tatsu dancing before it turned it's gaze to Hanako, the Pokémon crossed his arms. "Good move, Hanako Mori. You've adverted my plans for now. Don't think you've won," said the Darkrai as he hovered backward and began to fade away. "I'll be back for you."