A Pokemon Tale, Part II: The Rise of Team Rocket

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Erika

 

Celadon City-

                     Blue woke up the next morning to find that Red wasn’t in his bed in the Pokémon Center’s room.  She took her time getting dressed and decided to make her way to the Gym, figuring that’s where Red had already headed.  To her surprise, he was right outside the Pokémon Center making sure his Pokémon were fit and ready to fight.

                     Pikachu was darting up and down the street, occasionally leaping into the air.  Machop was perfecting its stances and punching the air.  Pidgeotto flew at impressive speeds in the air, performing a loop de loop every now and then.  Meanwhile, Red shouted encouraging commands at his Pokémon, lifting their spirits.   Wartortle somehow got a hold of a whistle, and was using it to keep rhythm with the exercising Pokémon.  It was almost acting as a coach.

                     “Having fun?” Blue asked.  The Pokémon took a break as a Red handed each of them a Pokémon treat.  Wartortle struck a pose and nodded.  “When are you going to head to the Gym?”

                     Red recalled all his Pokémon.  “We were waiting for you to get up!  We’re going now!”  He smiled and pulled out a map of the city and started on his way.

                     “Well lead the way, sir,” she laughed.

                     They walked through Celadon as Red mumbled to himself, working out battle strategies and tactics.  Occasionally he would burst out in sweeping arm motion but Blue quickly learned to stand on his other side.  The city was one huge shopping center it seemed.  The people of Celadon lived in beautiful, medium sized apartment buildings while the streets were lined with gift stores and shops.

                     Eventually they came to the center of the city, one didn’t need a map to find it.  A fifty story hotel was in sight no matter where you were, even from the Pokémon Center.  As they rounded the magnificent hotel’s entrance, they came across a gigantic circular greenhouse.  Blue was puzzled, but Red simply walked inside.  As she crossed through the sliding glass doors, she made out a sign hidden under leafy vines that were creeping from the inside.

                     “Celadon Pokémon Gym,” she read.  “Well at least these places never get repetitive.”

                     It was as if they exited civilization as they knew it and walked into a jungle.  Impenetrable exotic plants and trees lined the neatly kept grassy pathway that ran sideways in front of them.  In front of them a great tree rose up and out of the roof of the gym itself.  At its base, an opening led down presumably to a lower level.  It didn’t take long before the two trainers were greeted by a small blue Pokémon, with four long orange leaves on its head underneath a large flower with spherical petals.

                     Red pulled out his Pokedex to identify the Pokémon as Gloom.  Apparently the little “drool” coming out of its mouth was a sweet sappy substance.  Gloom shook itself and little sparkly spores came out of the flower on its head as it smiled and sat down right on the pathway.   Blue didn’t know whether to be disgusted or fascinated.  The spores made their way down the hole in the tree, and a few seconds later Erika, the Celadon Gym leader emerged from it.

                     “Ah you are here,” she said as she gently poked and prodded the many ferns and flowers that surrounded the tree, inspecting them.  “Gloom let me know.”  She went over and sat on her knees as she massaged the little Pokémon’s flower petals.  Gloom greatly appreciated this as it smiled and even more sappy drool came out of its mouth.