LIKE WATER OFF A PSYDUCK'S BACK

By A. Jeung

Author's note: This story takes place during the Orange Island Adventures.

Need a disclaimer? OK. Pokémon and its characters are copyrighted by Nintendo/Game Freak/Creatures Inc. and are used here without permission. The author is making no profit from this fanfiction.

PROLOGUE

The rain came down hard, wet but warm, as was typical in the Orange Islands at this time of year. The little convoy of three police vans made its way carefully through the dark night, their windshield wiper blades pushing aside rivulets of water as they moved rhythmically back and forth.

Jack was the driver of the middle van. He kept alert as he steered his vehicle along the winding, wet road. Not only was driving difficult in these dark and rainy conditions, but the two prisoners in the back of the van made him nervous. Jack had carted many prisoners along this route before, but these two were calm and cold, with looks of defiance he had never seen before in a prisoner. He felt as if their stares were going right through the little reinforced window that separated him from them and drilling straight into the back of his neck.

Jack fidgeted in his seat and tried to reassure himself. What could possibly happen? he thought. They're locked up in the back and handcuffed to boot. He forced himself to relax. Still, he would be relieved when they finally made it to the high-security prison at the other end of the island.

A stoplight turned from green to red, and the convoy stopped at the intersection.

In the black of the night, the drivers had no chance of seeing the three shiny Pokémon half buried in the ground beneath them. Their first indication of the impending attack was the exclamation they heard from beneath one of the vans.

"Volt - orb!!" the Pokémon shouted, just before powering up to a glowing white heat.

The ground underneath all three police vans exploded all at once, knocking two of them over and filling the rear one with smoke. Jack was thrown against the door and, shaking his head to clear it, he found his van on its side, driver's side down. He quickly scrambled up to open the passenger side window, and he peered out into the darkness while trying to keep most of his body under cover in the van. He and the other police drivers frantically looked in all directions for an attacker. In the darkness and rain, they could see nothing at all.

Like a white, lightly falling snow mixed in with the rain, a sparkling powder suddenly began to fall on them. Jack didn't even notice the powder until he had inhaled a little of it. Instantly he became drowsy.

"It's Sleep Powdurrrrhhh..." he tried to warn the others, but his words became slurred at the end as the powerful dust took effect. His warning came too late, and he saw the other police drivers fall over unconscious just before succumbing himself.

A single Ivysaur appeared out of the darkness. There were no police left awake to oppose it, and it calmly lumbered up to the middle van and sliced open the lock with a knife-edged leaf. The two prisoners, a man and a woman, jumped out of the back of the van, covering their mouths and noses with their sleeves to avoid inhaling any residual powder. A couple more leaves took care of the handcuffs, and the now freed prisoners ran off into the rainy night. The Ivysaur, having completed its mission, shuffled off in another direction, leaving the police vans and their unconscious inhabitants still in the road. The overturned and smoking vans remained, silent and unmoving, and the incessant pelting of rain was the only remaining sound as the stoplight quietly turned from red back to green.

*

The two escaped prisoners ran until they found a public videophone. The woman dialed a number, and the two of them waited attentively, the rain soaking their orange prison garb, as the line connected. On the screen appeared the face of Giovanni.

"So," said the Team Rocket leader, "the escape plan went smoothly. Good. Rest up tonight. I'll expect you two back in service first thing tomorrow."

"We'll need some kind of equipment to replace what we lost," said the woman. It was a bold request, considering how much Giovanni had done for them already, but it was a risk she was willing to take.

If Giovanni was angry at the woman's impertinence, he showed no signs of it. He merely petted his Persian as he calmly replied, "Very well. You may have the prototype amplifier since the other was destroyed."

"The prototype? The one that requires transceivers to operate?" inquired the man in a raspy voice.

"Yes," was the reply. "There are two silver transceivers and one gold available."

"And a psychic type Pokémon?" the woman asked.

"We have something," said Giovanni. "It's not primarily a psychic type, but it will have the abilities you require. Anything else?"

"Is there a spare voice modulator?" she asked.

"There is one," replied the Team Rocket boss. "You may use it." Before the man and woman could speak again, Giovanni leaned into the screen and looked at the two of them sternly. "I went through a lot of expense and effort to get you two free," he declared. "Do NOT fail me again."

"Yes, sir," the two said in unison.

The Persian gave a playful yowl as the Team Rocket leader announced, "Giovanni, out." The woman disconnected the call, and the two escapees made their way into the dark night.

CHAPTER 1

The sunlight reflected playfully off the waves as the waters parted before the Lapras and its three human riders making their way through the seas of the Orange Islands. One of the humans, a boy in a red and white baseball cap, was sitting next to a Pikachu and was busy polishing a set of shiny objects, while another, slightly older boy wearing a green shirt and pink headband was occupied sketching a Psyduck. Between them was a redheaded girl, basking in the tropical sunshine and cradling a Togepi in her arms.

"Ash, are you going to be polishing those badges of yours all day?" the girl asked, looking at the boy with the Pikachu.

"I'm almost done, Misty," Ash replied absently without looking up, as he carefully put a beautiful shine on the Jade Star, his newest badge. Finally satisfied with its appearance, he placed it down carefully next to the other three badges, already polished and blindingly brilliant in the bright sunshine.

As Ash and Pikachu looked admiringly at the four shiny medals, Misty turned to the other boy and inquired, "By the way, Tracey, where are we headed?"

"Satsuma Island," the older boy replied, his back towards the others. He was fully engrossed with sketching Misty's Psyduck, and he didn't even bother to turn around to answer her question. "It's the last stop before we get to Pummelo. Here, you can look at the map if you want." He thrust the map behind his back at Misty, still not taking the time to turn around. As she did not take the map right away, he shook it in her face impatiently, waiting for her to take it so that he could get back to his drawing.

Misty took the map and folded it in her lap. She glanced expectantly back to Ash and Pikachu, but, seeing that they were still preoccupied with the gym badges, she merely sighed to herself and didn't try to say anything else to them. She turned instead to the baby Pokémon in her arms, declaring, "Well, at least Togepi has time to pay attention to me."

"To - ge - brrrrrrrriiiii!" the egg Pokémon responded happily.

Tracey hardly noticed what she said. He was completely engaged trying to capture the outlines of Misty's Psyduck and depicting the unique shape of its beak. The beak was more rounded than in other Psyducks he had seen before, and he wanted to get it down accurately on paper so that he could compare it to his earlier drawings.

He felt that his art had taken on a new dimension since their encounter with Dr. Quackenpoker, the Magikarp expert on Rind Island. Tracey had been drawing Pokémon for as long as he could remember and called himself a Pokémon watcher, but he had always considered it a mere hobby, something he would eventually have to give up when he got older. But Quackenpoker had told him that he had a great future ahead of him, and he started to wonder if he really could work with Pokémon as more than just a pastime. He had originally joined Ash and Misty in the hopes of merely meeting his idol, the famous Professor Oak, but his horizons had expanded considerably since then. And, as impossible as it was for him to believe, he was actually contemplating something that he never thought an amateur such as he would dare do: he was considering asking the renowned professor for an assistant's job when he finally made it to Pallet Town. Of course, he had not mentioned this to Ash and Misty. He did not dare jinx his chances by mentioning the idea out loud; besides, he was afraid that they might laugh at him if they knew.

A strong passing wave suddenly knocked Lapras sideways a few inches. Ash had the presence of mind to snatch up all his badges before he lost any to the sea, but unfortunately, Psyduck was not so prepared.

"Psy - psy - psy - psy - psy - psy!" the duck quacked in a panic, as it flailed its tiny wings in a futile attempt to keep its balance. It fell over backwards, landing in the water with a large splash. Still quacking frantically, it sank into the water like a stone.

"Psyduck!" cried Misty, as Ash whipped out a pokéball.

"I choose you ... Squirtle!" Ash shouted. The little turtle materialized in a flash of light and instantly dived into the depths to retrieve the sinking Pokémon. It a few seconds, Squirtle reemerged, carrying the nearly drowned duck in its front paws. "Squirtle!" it called out in success.

Spluttering and gasping for air, Psyduck plopped face down on Lapras' shell. The bright sunlight reflected off each of the tiny drops of water as they beaded up on Psyduck's oily back and rolled off, barely wetting its skin.

Misty glowered at her feebleminded duck sternly. Tracey knew that she was just worried about Psyduck, but she made it seem as if she were irritated at it instead. "You stupid Psyduck!" she hollered, clenching her fists. "Whoever heard of a water-type Pokémon that can't swim? One of these days, I'll show you what a headache is really like!"

"Relax," said Tracey, soothingly. "Psyduck is just fine." He put his drawing material away; he would have to finish his sketch later. He added, "And with that natural coating on its skin to keep the water out, it should be dry in no time."

"That's good," replied Ash, as he pointed to the tall, white buildings of an island that was looming in front of them, "because we're almost there."

It was no more than a few minutes later when Lapras pulled up to the shore on Satsuma Island. Extending out into the water was a large wooden pier, onto which Ash, Misty, Tracey, and Pikachu climbed up before Ash recalled Lapras to its pokéball.

"This place is beautiful!" Misty exclaimed.

They looked. Immediately to the right of the pier, numerous rows of pristine bleachers were set up along the shore. The bleachers were arranged so that they were facing directly towards the ocean, and they made an odd appearance until one realized that they were probably arranged for some kind of water show. Beyond the bleachers was a large and inviting tourist beach that seemed to stretch along the coast for miles. The beach was not too crowded and had only a few dozen sun worshipers, stretched out on the clean white sand or strolling along the water's edge. Behind the beach lay a large boardwalk, on which a number of empty booths adorned with brightly colored flags and pennants had been set up. And on their left side, they could see a rather imposing marble building with a distinctive classical architecture behind a small park.

"Let's go visit the beach after we stop at the Pokémon Center," Tracey suggested. The others agreed.

Satsuma City was surprisingly metropolitan for an island city, but also very well kept and clean. It seemed as if the white, gleaming buildings reflected the dazzling tropical sunlight everywhere they looked.

Before long, the little group arrived at the Pokémon Center, near the center of town. It was full of people and very noisy when they entered.

"This is weird," Ash declared. "Pokémon Centers aren't usually this busy."

They pushed their way through the boisterous crowd, eventually making it to the front desk, where they found Nurse Joy. "Welcome," she greeted them. "Are you here for the Water Pokémon Festival, too?"

Misty's aqua eyes lit up instantly. "There's A WATER POKÉMON FESTIVAL?!" she squealed in excitement.

"Take a look at this," Tracey said. He was holding a bright pink flyer that he had picked up from the front desk. The large print on the top of the flyer read:

COME TO THE FIFTH ANNUAL
ORANGE ISLANDS WATER POKÉMON FESTIVAL
SATSUMA ISLAND BEACH BOARDWALK
FEATURING OUR SPECIAL GUEST
THE FAMOUS WATER POKÉMON TRAINER
ALISTAIR CYMPELTON III

Ash read the flyer with a look of confusion on his face. "The guy's name is 'Simpleton'?!" he asked incredulously.

"It's pronounced 'Cym-PEL-ton'," Misty corrected, purposely exaggerating the accent on the second syllable. "Don't you know anything? He's one of the leading water Pokémon trainers in the world!"

"According to this," Tracey said, as he looked at the details on the flyer, "the festival will begin this afternoon with a water show at the pier featuring Cympelton's prize Blastoise. And there's an public reception tonight at the Satsuma Island Convention Hall, next to the pier, where we can get a look at his one of a kind Shiny Magikarp!"

"The convention hall must be the big building we saw on our way in," Ash mused.

Tracey continued to read the flyer. "The water show isn't for a few hours," he said. "That means we have some time..."

"...to go and have some fun on that beach we saw!" Ash completed the sentence triumphantly.

"Pi - ka!" rejoined Pikachu in agreement.

"Wait a minute, you guys," Misty called to the other two as they started to depart. "We should really have our Pokémon get their checkup from Nurse Joy first." Looking around at the crowds, she added, "And maybe we should reserve a room at the center, if there still are any ... ?" She glanced up at Nurse Joy quizzically.

Nurse Joy smiled. "You're in luck," she replied. "The last three beds are still available."

"Great! We'll take them," replied Ash, handing Dexter to Nurse Joy as identification to secure the reservation. As Nurse Joy began processing the reservation, Ash turned grinningly to the others, saying, "It'll be really great to take it easy and enjoy the festival for a few days before the league competition."

Misty had to agree. After all, it was less than a week ago that she had been running around frantically looking for Stun Spore antidote because Ash and Tracey had stupidly fallen into a giant Vileplume. After an adventure like that, she thought she deserved a few days of stress-free rest and relaxation.

*

In another part of town, two humans and a Meowth were making their way down the street.

"It sure was a good t'ing dat we made it ta dis island before dat battery on da Magikarp sub gave out completely," the Meowth remarked.

"Yes," agreed one of the humans, a woman with long curling red hair. "That new battery attachment to power the submarine propulsion with is the best thing we ever stole."

The other human, a man with oddly bluish hair, added, "I've almost forgotten what it was like to have to pedal the thing."

"Well, we'll have to start pedaling it again until we can get our hands on a new battery," the woman replied. She turned to her companion. "Why didn't we steal a battery on the last island, James?"

"Don't you remember, Jess?" James answered. "I spent all the time trying to fix the drive shaft, and had barely finished when we encountered the twerps again. We got blasted off before we ever got a chance."

Jessie scowled at the memory. She was sick and tired of their constant stratospheric launchings at the hands of that twerp and his Pikachu. After over a year of continuous blastings, she didn't know why she suddenly chose this moment to be angry about it, but for some reason the mere thought of being shot into the air again made her livid.

"That's IT!" she shouted in rage. "I've had it with being blasted off!" She whirled around to her startled companions. "I want it known right here and now that things are going to change around here," she growled fiercely. "I refuse to be blown away by the twerps ever again! Satsuma Island, right here, this is where things are going to change!"

"For the better, you mean?" James asked doubtfully. That's what it sounded like Jessie was saying, but he found the whole proposition very unlikely.

"It could hardly be woise," Meowth pointed out.

Jessie seemed not even to hear them as she turned determinedly back in the direction they had been going and pressed on at a rapid pace. James and Meowth trailed behind, looking quizzically at each other.

"It looks like Jessie's decided ta really take the Tauros by da horns dis time," a perplexed Meowth remarked.

"Yes," James agreed, still skeptical of where his partner's newfound initiative would lead them. "I just hope we don't all get gored by them in the process."

*

After a few hours of fun on the beach, Ash, Misty, and Tracey made their way to the pier for the water show. After a brief search, they managed to find enough space on the now crowded bleachers for the three of them to sit together. Pikachu sat on Ash's shoulder, and Togepi nestled in Misty's lap, as usual. They had just barely sat down when the show started.

The show began with an appearance by the mayor of Satsuma Island. He was a rotund, fat, middle-aged man with brown hair and thick round glasses. "Ladies and gentlemen," he called out. "I welcome you one and all to the Fifth Annual Orange Islands Water Pokémon Festival!" At this, the crowd burst out in applause. The mayor continued, "To kick off our annual celebration of water Pokémon, I would like to introduce to you our very special guest. He was the winner of the Orange League for six consecutive years, and has been featured on the covers of such magazines as Wartortle Magazine and Pokémon World Monthly. I present to you the famous Alistair Cympelton III!"

Alistair Cympelton came out and greeted the audience to enthusiastic cheers and applause. He was a portly, balding man with a carefully groomed mustache, and he was dressed in a fine light blue jacket over a gold-rimmed waistcoat. He basked in the applause from the crowd for quite some time before raising his hand for silence. Cympelton then turned towards the ocean and dramatically called out, "Blastoise, emerge!" At his call, the Blastoise rose dramatically out of the ocean where it had been hiding. With one push of its powerful legs, the Blastoise hurled itself out of the water, flew twenty yards through the air, and made a perfect landing right next to its trainer on the sand near the water's edge. Ash was astonished. This was truly a very well trained and powerful looking Pokémon. Ash wasn't sure if he had ever seen a Blastoise that looked so strong.

Cympelton held out his hand for attention, and the crowd grew silent. He announced, "And now, the highlight of this afternoon's show. This year at the festival, I have only received one challenge for a Pokémon battle that I consider worthy of my mettle. You, the people of Satsuma Island, are privileged to witness this battle right here at this show!"

The audience began buzzing with excitement.

Cympelton called out, "Will the challenger come out please!"

A man in his late twenties, with tanned skin and dark curly hair came out to face Cympelton.

Ash was enthralled by the proceedings and kept his eyes fixed on the challenger as he asked Tracey, "Do you recognize that guy?"

"You bet," Tracey replied. "His name is Sergio, and he won the Orange League Trophy two years ago."

Ash nodded, and then turned his attention back to the match.

"I choose Blastoise," Cympelton declared.

Sergio regarded his opponent calmly. If he was nervous at facing Cympelton's Blastoise, he showed no sign of it. He pulled out a pokéball and threw it, shouting, "Alakazam, go!"

The pokéball burst open, and the psychic Pokémon materialized. It faced its opponent with a composed, detached look.

Sergio took the first move. "Alakazam, Psychic attack!" he called. The psychic Pokémon concentrated, and the Blastoise was immediately enveloped in a pale blue light. Slowly, the giant tortoise was lifted off the ground as the Alakazam focused its telekinetic power.

Cympelton seemed unconcerned. "Blastoise, Hydro Pump!" he ordered.

Enormous jets of water came barreling out of the Blastoise's twin mounted cannons. The sudden force of the escaping water propelled the giant turtle out of the Alakazam's psychic grasp. The psi Pokémon blinked in confusion as its focused telekinetic cloud dissipated into thin air, its energy expended on empty space. The Blastoise flew through the air and landed nimbly on its hind legs.

Cympelton gave a nod of approval. "Good work, Blastoise, now Bubble attack!" he commanded. Thousands of watery bubbles began pouring out of the giant turtle's twin cannons. The bubbles immediately swarmed around the Alakazam and began popping with explosive force all around it. To Ash, it looked like a multitude of watery firecrackers surrounding the unfortunate psychic creature. The Alakazam went reeling, trying desperately to escape the powerful aquatic barrage. Finally, the last bubble finished popping, and the psi Pokémon staggered away. "Alakazam!" it called out. It was still able and willing to battle, but obviously weakened.

Sergio was not willing to give up yet. "Alakazam, use Psybeam!" he yelled. A prismatic spray of energy erupted from the psychic Pokémon's forehead and drove straight for the enormous turtle.

"Blastoise, Protect," Cympelton called out without hesitation.

The Blastoise complied, instantly retracting its head and legs inside its armored shell. The Alakazam's iridescent energy beam hit the shell and sprayed harmlessly off it, doing no damage.

Cympelton grinned in anticipation. "Now, Blastoise, Water Gun!" he ordered. The Blastoise immediately popped its head and extremities back out of its shell and prepared for its attack.

"Alakazam, Reflect!" Sergio shouted in consternation.

The Blastoise firmly planted its left foot in the sand and shot off a torrent of water with the force of a dozen fire hoses. The Alakazam barely had time to set up its defensive screen before the Blastoise's water jet came blasting down on it. The psychic force field held out the water at first, but the powerful jet slowly started penetrating, little by little. Ash could see that the Alakazam was straining desperately to maintain the psychic shield, while the Blastoise looked as if it could keep up its barrage of water indefinitely. Finally, the strain was too much for the psychic Pokémon, and the water blasted through its shield and struck it directly in the chest. The Alakazam was knocked down hard by the force of the water, and it struggled back onto one knee as it attempted to rise.

"Now," said Cympelton, "use a Skull Bash."

"Get up, now!" Sergio yelled to his Pokémon. As the Alakazam struggled painfully to its feet, the Blastoise lowered its head for the attack. Using its powerful legs, the giant tortoise launched itself head first powerfully in the air, heading straight for the Alakazam like an oncoming missile.

"Alakazam, Teleport..." Sergio called, but it was too late. The Blastoise slammed into its psychic opponent, smashing its reinforced skull right into the Alakazam's midsection. The psi Pokémon doubled over, then collapsed on the ground, where it lay still.

The crowd cheered wildly while Sergio recalled the unconscious Alakazam to its pokéball. Cympelton, meanwhile, was bowing ostentatiously to the audience, grinning and taking in the applause as if he had defeated the Alakazam personally.

Tracey turned to the others and said, "That was a sensational battle!"

Ash agreed, "It was. That Mr. Simpleton is really good. I bet I could beat him though."

"It's Cym-PEL-ton, remember?" corrected Misty. "And I doubt you could beat him, Ash," she added skeptically. "Look how easily he beat Sergio. And didn't you hear what the mayor said? He won the Orange League Trophy several years in a row."

"I bet I could," Ash insisted stubbornly. "But we'll find out."

Misty looked at Ash suspiciously. "What do you mean by that?" she asked.

Ash grinned confidently. "I'm going to challenge Alistair Cympelton to a Pokémon battle when we meet him at the reception tonight!"