BZRich64
The Mustachioed Machamp
- 146
- Posts
- 11
- Years
- Gresham, Oregon, U.S.A.
- Seen Jun 8, 2021
Chapter 77
Spoiler:
After walking all morning, Daisy and Giselle found themselves entering a small town.
?What is this place?? Giselle wondered aloud.
?Well, according to my map this should be? Mossgreen Village.? Daisy said as she held out her Town Map while trying to keep Cleffa held up with one of her arms.
?Never heard of it.? Giselle placed her hands behind her head as they continued walking.
?Well, this doesn?t look like a particularly important place.? Daisy stuffed her map back in her bag. ?Let?s just keep going.?
?Hold up.? Giselle suddenly stopped and held her arm out in Daisy?s way. ?Do you see what I see?? She pointed to a large building at the other side of the village.
?What?? Daisy asked before taking a look at the building Giselle was pointing towards. Wait, is that a Gym??
?It sure is. Come on, let?s go.? Giselle suddenly started running towards the Gym, forcing Daisy to have to try and keep up with her.
?Slow down! Running like this will be bad for Cleffa!? Contrary to Daisy?s claims, Cleffa was squealing gleefully, clearly enjoying itself a lot.
?Come on, already!? Giselle yelled back to her. ?You?ll never get anywhere if you keep going at that pace!?
* * *
Giovanni walked into a dark room and moved his hand against the wall, looking for the light switch. When he found it, he flipped the switch and the lights came on, illuminating the room. White sheets covered all of the furniture and contrasted heavily with the black walls, carpet and ceiling. He walked over to the center of the room and pulled the sheet off of a desk chair, and then another off of the desk in front of it. He sat down at the chair and looked around at his old office. It had been a long time since he had made us of it, but he had no choice now that he had lost Saffron City.
The lights flickered, irritating Giovanni. He would have to get the bulbs replaced, not that it was much of a surprise. They would need to make a lot of renovations to get this old base back into working order. If only he hadn?t lost that battle.
?How did I lose?? Giovanni whispered to himself. ?He was just a child who hasn?t even been a Pok?mon Trainer for more than a few months at most. I should have been able beat him easily. I know I wasn?t exactly using my best team, but still??
?You wanted to see us, Sir?? Asked James, as he Jessie and Meowth stood at the entrance into Giovanni?s office.
?Yes.? Giovanni motioned for them to come in. ?I have your next assignment. I want the three of you to meet up with the Iron-Masked Marauder and investigate a cave north of Cerulean City. It is known as the Cerulean Cave, though the locals sometimes refer to it as the Unknown Dungeon. I?ve already briefed the Marauder and he will be able to fill you in on the details of the mission. Now go!?
?But what about the others?? Jessie asked.
?Agent Masque, Butch and Cassidy are running surveillance around the base in order to check for possible security breaches. Attila and Hun haven?t reported in since we relocated here this morning. If they don?t show up soon then they will be considered AWOL and will be punished accordingly when we finally find them Now, I believe I told you three to go.?
The trio exited Giovanni?s office and stopped at the other end of the hallway.
?What kind of punishment do you think Giovanni has in mind for them?? Jessie asked.
?Isn?t it obvious?? Meowth asked. ?The sames as whats happensed ta da others. Make ?em dark or whatever it is thats they dids ta dem.?
All three shuddered at the thought of it.
?Something about them just doesn?t feel right anymore.? James said. ?It?s almost like they aren?t even human anymore.?
?I know what you mean.? Jessie agreed. ?Which means we should focus on our new assignment so that he doesn?t have any reason to do it to us.?
?Whys do yas think we?s going ta some old cave?? Meowth asked.
?I don?t know, but we?re going to find out soon enough.?
* * *
Professor Oak sat at the desk in his study sorting through old research papers when the phone started ringing. He put down the paper on sleeping disorders in Snorlax that had been written by an old colleague of his known as Professor Xalrons and answered the phone.
?Hello??
?Is this Professor Oak of Pallet Town?? Oak didn?t recognize the man?s voice.
?Yes, now who?s calling??
?My name is Looker. I was wondering if I could set an appointment to meet with you.? Oak felt like he had heard that name before, but couldn?t think of where it was from.
?What about?? The Professor asked.
?I wish to discuss one of your former students. A boy by the name of Ash Ketchum.?
?Why?? Professor Oak?s voice carried his concern. ?Has he done anything wrong??
?No, he has not done anything wrong. In fact, it is quite the opposite. If we could set up a meeting, I will explain what?s going on.?
?Hold on a moment?? Professor Oak said. ?I think I know where I?ve heard you?re name before. You?re an agent for the International Police, aren?t you??
?Yes, I am.? Looker answered. ?And I have a lot I wish to discuss with you in regards to my current investigation. I will fill you in on the details when we meet.?
Professor Oak sighed and checked the calendar he had sitting on his desk. ?It looks like I?m free tomorrow. Stop by anytime you want.?
?Thank you, Professor. I?ll see you tomorrow.?
Professor Oak heard the phone hang up and placed it back down again. He turned his chair around and stared out the window at the clear blue sky.
?What have you gotten yourself into, Ash?? He wondered aloud.
A glimpse of silver reflecting the sun?s light caught the Professor?s attention and he immediately stood up and headed for the door. He ran outside.
?Get out of here!? He yelled as he ran up to a large silver and gray Pok?mon. ?Go on, get going!?
?Aggron!? The towering Steel-type bellowed as it turned around and rushed back to the way it had come.
?I swear.? Professor Oak muttered to himself as he watched the Aggron flee. ?That thing just keeps showing up and trying to break into my breeding grounds. Where did it even come from, anyway? Aggron don?t even live anywhere near here.?
* * *
Giselle reached the front door of the Gym and waited for Daisy to catch up to her. Once Daisy was there, Giselle reached for the door and tried to open it, only to find that it was locked.
?Hey, what gives?? Giselle yelled as she tried to force the door open.
?I guess they?re not open right now. I guess you can?t really expect the Gyms to be open all of the time.?
?Well, they should be! Trainers could show up at any time, you know. Like right now.?
?Hold on, hold on!? Came a woman?s voice from off in the distance. Daisy and Giselle both looked over to see a young woman with dark green hair running up to them. When she reached the Gym, she stopped to catch her breath, panting heavily as she clutched her knees. ?Sorry about that.? She said at last as she reached into her pocket and fumbled around for something. She pulled out a small white keycard and held it up to the door.
The door unlocked with a small beeping noise and the woman opened the door, walking inside and motioning for the girls to follow her. Together they walked into the Gym?s interior which looked like the Gym had not been properly maintained in a long time. Moss and weeds were growing around everywhere.
?I?m so sorry about that.? The woman said as she turned to face Daisy and Giselle. ?I was at a meeting. Anyway, my name is Cassandra and I?m the Gym Leader here. I?m guessing one of you wants to challenge me??
?Both of us, actually.? Daisy said.
?Okay then. So who wants to go first??
?Me!? Giselle reached her hand high into the air reflexively. ?I?ll go!?
?What is this place?? Giselle wondered aloud.
?Well, according to my map this should be? Mossgreen Village.? Daisy said as she held out her Town Map while trying to keep Cleffa held up with one of her arms.
?Never heard of it.? Giselle placed her hands behind her head as they continued walking.
?Well, this doesn?t look like a particularly important place.? Daisy stuffed her map back in her bag. ?Let?s just keep going.?
?Hold up.? Giselle suddenly stopped and held her arm out in Daisy?s way. ?Do you see what I see?? She pointed to a large building at the other side of the village.
?What?? Daisy asked before taking a look at the building Giselle was pointing towards. Wait, is that a Gym??
?It sure is. Come on, let?s go.? Giselle suddenly started running towards the Gym, forcing Daisy to have to try and keep up with her.
?Slow down! Running like this will be bad for Cleffa!? Contrary to Daisy?s claims, Cleffa was squealing gleefully, clearly enjoying itself a lot.
?Come on, already!? Giselle yelled back to her. ?You?ll never get anywhere if you keep going at that pace!?
* * *
Giovanni walked into a dark room and moved his hand against the wall, looking for the light switch. When he found it, he flipped the switch and the lights came on, illuminating the room. White sheets covered all of the furniture and contrasted heavily with the black walls, carpet and ceiling. He walked over to the center of the room and pulled the sheet off of a desk chair, and then another off of the desk in front of it. He sat down at the chair and looked around at his old office. It had been a long time since he had made us of it, but he had no choice now that he had lost Saffron City.
The lights flickered, irritating Giovanni. He would have to get the bulbs replaced, not that it was much of a surprise. They would need to make a lot of renovations to get this old base back into working order. If only he hadn?t lost that battle.
?How did I lose?? Giovanni whispered to himself. ?He was just a child who hasn?t even been a Pok?mon Trainer for more than a few months at most. I should have been able beat him easily. I know I wasn?t exactly using my best team, but still??
?You wanted to see us, Sir?? Asked James, as he Jessie and Meowth stood at the entrance into Giovanni?s office.
?Yes.? Giovanni motioned for them to come in. ?I have your next assignment. I want the three of you to meet up with the Iron-Masked Marauder and investigate a cave north of Cerulean City. It is known as the Cerulean Cave, though the locals sometimes refer to it as the Unknown Dungeon. I?ve already briefed the Marauder and he will be able to fill you in on the details of the mission. Now go!?
?But what about the others?? Jessie asked.
?Agent Masque, Butch and Cassidy are running surveillance around the base in order to check for possible security breaches. Attila and Hun haven?t reported in since we relocated here this morning. If they don?t show up soon then they will be considered AWOL and will be punished accordingly when we finally find them Now, I believe I told you three to go.?
The trio exited Giovanni?s office and stopped at the other end of the hallway.
?What kind of punishment do you think Giovanni has in mind for them?? Jessie asked.
?Isn?t it obvious?? Meowth asked. ?The sames as whats happensed ta da others. Make ?em dark or whatever it is thats they dids ta dem.?
All three shuddered at the thought of it.
?Something about them just doesn?t feel right anymore.? James said. ?It?s almost like they aren?t even human anymore.?
?I know what you mean.? Jessie agreed. ?Which means we should focus on our new assignment so that he doesn?t have any reason to do it to us.?
?Whys do yas think we?s going ta some old cave?? Meowth asked.
?I don?t know, but we?re going to find out soon enough.?
* * *
Professor Oak sat at the desk in his study sorting through old research papers when the phone started ringing. He put down the paper on sleeping disorders in Snorlax that had been written by an old colleague of his known as Professor Xalrons and answered the phone.
?Hello??
?Is this Professor Oak of Pallet Town?? Oak didn?t recognize the man?s voice.
?Yes, now who?s calling??
?My name is Looker. I was wondering if I could set an appointment to meet with you.? Oak felt like he had heard that name before, but couldn?t think of where it was from.
?What about?? The Professor asked.
?I wish to discuss one of your former students. A boy by the name of Ash Ketchum.?
?Why?? Professor Oak?s voice carried his concern. ?Has he done anything wrong??
?No, he has not done anything wrong. In fact, it is quite the opposite. If we could set up a meeting, I will explain what?s going on.?
?Hold on a moment?? Professor Oak said. ?I think I know where I?ve heard you?re name before. You?re an agent for the International Police, aren?t you??
?Yes, I am.? Looker answered. ?And I have a lot I wish to discuss with you in regards to my current investigation. I will fill you in on the details when we meet.?
Professor Oak sighed and checked the calendar he had sitting on his desk. ?It looks like I?m free tomorrow. Stop by anytime you want.?
?Thank you, Professor. I?ll see you tomorrow.?
Professor Oak heard the phone hang up and placed it back down again. He turned his chair around and stared out the window at the clear blue sky.
?What have you gotten yourself into, Ash?? He wondered aloud.
A glimpse of silver reflecting the sun?s light caught the Professor?s attention and he immediately stood up and headed for the door. He ran outside.
?Get out of here!? He yelled as he ran up to a large silver and gray Pok?mon. ?Go on, get going!?
?Aggron!? The towering Steel-type bellowed as it turned around and rushed back to the way it had come.
?I swear.? Professor Oak muttered to himself as he watched the Aggron flee. ?That thing just keeps showing up and trying to break into my breeding grounds. Where did it even come from, anyway? Aggron don?t even live anywhere near here.?
* * *
Giselle reached the front door of the Gym and waited for Daisy to catch up to her. Once Daisy was there, Giselle reached for the door and tried to open it, only to find that it was locked.
?Hey, what gives?? Giselle yelled as she tried to force the door open.
?I guess they?re not open right now. I guess you can?t really expect the Gyms to be open all of the time.?
?Well, they should be! Trainers could show up at any time, you know. Like right now.?
?Hold on, hold on!? Came a woman?s voice from off in the distance. Daisy and Giselle both looked over to see a young woman with dark green hair running up to them. When she reached the Gym, she stopped to catch her breath, panting heavily as she clutched her knees. ?Sorry about that.? She said at last as she reached into her pocket and fumbled around for something. She pulled out a small white keycard and held it up to the door.
The door unlocked with a small beeping noise and the woman opened the door, walking inside and motioning for the girls to follow her. Together they walked into the Gym?s interior which looked like the Gym had not been properly maintained in a long time. Moss and weeds were growing around everywhere.
?I?m so sorry about that.? The woman said as she turned to face Daisy and Giselle. ?I was at a meeting. Anyway, my name is Cassandra and I?m the Gym Leader here. I?m guessing one of you wants to challenge me??
?Both of us, actually.? Daisy said.
?Okay then. So who wants to go first??
?Me!? Giselle reached her hand high into the air reflexively. ?I?ll go!?