Chapter XXIV Mindless Monsters Customers flooded into the store, browsing about for the right kind of perfume. They wwere attracted to the bottle Ash was grasping, which the latter and her partner knew was something not to be desired. The Cerulean Trainer knew that the customers would see the horrifying effects of the perfume, so she ordered, "One at a time!" Naturally, the two were disguised, and no one was wise. "Young man, how much is it?" Due to instructions from Giovanni, the boy answered, "It depends, sir. Do you have Poke`mon?" "A Poke`mon? Yeah, I have six with me." Ash and Misty smiled mentally with glee, for their job was to raise the price depending on how many Pocket Monsters there were. They faced the man, and stated the price in unison: "$18.00!" The man fumbled about in his suit pocket, and found the money. The perfume was exchanged for the money, and the excited man sprayed the bottle on himself to inhale the fragrance. Then, it happened. The trap was sprung, and then the trap was closed. The man was completely frozen, except for his mouth. "Ripoffs! What's the big idea?!" He demanded, raging. Since there was no time to shout their slogan, the two Rockets opened their jackets slightly, so the man could glimpse the emblem and identify who they really were. "Team Rocket?! I should've known! Rrrr.....I'll pulverize you with my Poke`mon! Growlithe, go!" Ash calmly produced his own Poke`Ball, and ordered quietly, "Blastoise, use your Water Gun!" The Growlithe was quickly vanquished, and the perfume around it soon took affect, symbolized by the yellow glow of it's eyes. "Growlithe, what happened?" The man was answered when his Puppy attacked him, in a fury or claws and teeth, leaving the man half-dead. "Good, Growlithe!" Misty shouted. "Now send out his other Poke`mon!" The furred monster placed its paw on the other five balls, and within a matter of moments, Ponyta, Magmar, Charmander, Vulpix, and Moltres were under the spell. They saluted their new masters and were confined to Poke`Balls, being loaded in a truck, along with the cheated customer. With that, Misty let another one in, who happened to be Mr. Fuji, who appeared dejected and distraught. Both salesmen caught sight of the man's Poke`mon in tow, a Marowak, apparently the only survivor of the Safari Zone fire. That Ground Type immediately took notice of Ash and Misty, and set up a long succession of cries, having recognized them from its homeland. "Maro-wak! Maro-Maro-Marowak! Wak! Wak!" Unfortunately, Mr. Fuji did not know what it was saying, for its speech was loud but blurred. It furiously shook its long bone at Ash and Misty, and caught Ash on the head, his colorful cap falling off. "Hey, watch where you're throwing!" Then Marowak raised its sharp white claws, and slashed the boy's face, and then proceeded to shred both of their jackets until only their white, black, and red uniforms showed. "We're in trouble.........." Ash moaned. Mr. Fuji's voice then was a fierce tone. "Ah, now I know what Marowak is trying to speak of! YOU are two of the misguided criminals that destroyed this Marowak's family. YOU are the ones that caused the tragedy! And thus, you must pay for your sin......Marowak, Bonemerang!" Ash reacted quickly, grabbing the bottle of perfume and spraying it on Marowak. As the effect blanketed its mind, Mr. Fuji trembled in horror when the Poke`mon he and his band of volunteers tried to help so much, turned around and flung its bone at him. Chapter XXV Mishap at the Corner As Ash and Misty was charged with running the scam at the perfume shop, Cassidy and Butch were charged with the Rocket Game Corner. Their present mission was to rig the machines so there was no chance at all at winning. Someone was bound to notice eventually, though, so their orders were quick extermination of those who dared to reveal their scheme to the police. All throughout the day, Cassidy yelled into a loudspeaker, "Welcome to the Rocket Game Corner! Get your coins here! Fifty for one-thousand dollars!" At once, several adults flocked toward the desk, their hands wrestling the money from their wallets. They continued to sell coins, until the pile of the latter was reduced to nothing, and the pile of money would almost be to the ceiling, if it wasn't in the cash register. Clanking of the slot machines filled the air, and the noise was music to Cassidy's ears. She added up the totals, and laughed, commenting about her partner: "Hm, I'd like to see Jess pull this off!" Suddenly, the door swung open. The red-haired Rocket stood in the doorway, accompanied by Meowth, the former growling savagely, "I heard that! Grr, since when did the Boss put YOU in charge of the Game Corner?!" "Yeah, he only puts da good membuhs heah!" Butch scanned the room, taking notice of the gamblers, and snapped, "Quiet! Those customehs might realize we'he bad!" "Who cares?" Jessie answered, staring at the clueless gamblers. "What can they do? They're too busy with the slot machines!" All then agreed, and resumed collecting money from excited customers, but then, just like Butch predicted, things went awry. Eventually, people there realized that the constant bad luck was somehow set, and one finally spoke out. "Hey, you cheats! These slots don't give any money out!" Another joined in. "Yeah, and why does it cost one-thousand dollars for only fifty coins? Is this a legal business?" Jessie frowned, then retorted. "Legal? You're the ones who are gambling! You come to us, we get your-----" Cassidy shifted her eyes to her rival, trying to mentally quiet her, but it was too late. The scam had been revealed, and the whole lot of angry adults had grouped into a mob, and started after them. "Now you really did it Jess! Now we're done for for sure!" They retreated from behind the counter, and found themselves surrounded on every side, trapped, with nowhere else to flee. Jessie gritted her teeth, glanced at the hoard of people, and then shouted, "I can get us out of this! Don't worry! Arbok, go! ATTACK!!!" At once, the Cobra Poke`mon charged toward the mass of people, biting and flailing its tail, and all sorts of erratic moves. The charge provided enough distraction for the members to make their escape, through a hidden door. Unfortunately, though, in their great haste, the snake was accidentally forgotten, and was left in the revengeful hands of the gamblers. Chapter XXVI Reptillian Rescue Thick clouds loomed over the city, and yet another downpour ensued. Jessie's first and most experienced Poke`mon had been twisted into a knot by the angered customers, and its lethal poison was travelling throughout its body, for the knot provided a route the posion could go. "Chaaaa------" It awoke with a hoarse hum, and frantically waved its long head, scanning the vast city for a sign of its master. "Chaaa-bok? Chaaa!!!!!" It started to wail, and its tears fell in unison with the rain. It realized that it was alone: with no one to help it, and no one probably wanting to. The snake lay its head back on the mud, and closed its eyes, wanting to shut out the feeling that struck terror into any domestic Poke`mon's heart: that it was abandoned. Arbok shook its head, thinking, No, Master would not abandon. Arbok's mind flew back to a time when it, who was still an Ekans, and James' Poke`mon, who was still a Koffing, were lost on an island, along with Meowth and four of their former enemies' Poke`mon. They fed that night, then were attacked by monstrous robotic Poke`mon, their Trainers suffering the same fate, and had no time to look for them, for they were probably preoccupied. However, when Ekans and Koffing had seen Jessie and James, they were still accepted. If they had been abandoned they would still be on that island. So, Arbok's mind returned to the present. Though it was a simple brain, it's heart felt that it wouldn't be abandoned this time. If not long ago, then not now. Jessie, Butch, and Cassidy stumbled into the doors of the Celadon City Gym, drenched, cold, and sneezing. Everything was the same as it had been before they left, much to their relief. Jessie, feeling mischievous, itched to teach Cassidy a lesson for insulting her on the way back to the Gym. She grabbed her Poke`Ball and shouted cheerfully, "Go, Arbok!" Then, something happened to send a chill down her spine. The Poke`Ball struck the ground, and opened, releasing only air. "Waaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!! I forgot! We left Arbok at the Game Corner with them!!!!!! I've got to go back for it!" To make things worse, Giovanni walked into the room, announcing, "It's time to take Saffron, too! Jessie, James, Butch, Cassidy--- leave fohr it. Take at least fifty men. Take Silph Co. first with half of them, then the Saffron City Gym and the othehr Gym with the othehr half. Leave immediately." Jessie's eyes drooped, and sadly responded, "Yes, Sir." When she thought things could not get any worse than they already were, they worsened. Brock approached her, chiding, "How could you forget your Arbok like that?! You must be really stupid to not notice that-----" "Put a sock in it, hot-head!" Yelled Jessie, tears cascading from her eyes. With that, she left along with her partner and rival, mumbling, as the glass doors closed, "I've got to get it back....." Brock stared at them, indignant at first, but then realizing how important a Poke`mon Arbok was to the Rocket. However badly she chided or even mistreated it occasionally, it would always be a prime Poke`mon she could never let go of. Brock knew that he had been a total incompetent, and decided, he could start reforming his personality to what it was once before, though it would take some time. Just then, Misty, who had returned home from the perfume shop along with Ash, walked toward Brock, and pulled the skin under her blue eye down, to show her vibrant defiance toward the Trainer. To her great surprise, instead of grabbing her by the throat or kick Togepi, he slowly struggled to turn away, and finally made it out of the door. Both Ash and Misty displayed their surprise at this turn of events. "Wow, he ignored me!" "Pikachu! Pika?" "Togepriiiii!!!!!!" "That's funny! I thought he was going to punch you so far that you would land on Erika!" "Pika-ha-ha-ha!" The latter mentioned by Ash growled silently, having the job of pulling weeds from the garden, while the Trainers below her trained her Grass Poke`mon, laughing with slight joy at the few instances Erika was doing jobs below her capability as a Gym Leader. Ash and Misty joined in laughing, for it was such a sight to see the somewhat feminine Gym Leader, who had pulverized his Bulbasaur and Charmander with a Weepinbell, Tangela, and Gloom, pulling weeds. They didn't rub it in, though, for Erika and her Trainers combined had a big foot, and since Ash and Misty were the only Rockets in the Gym presently, they would definitely lose control if they were beaten. So, they didn't push them. Brock stormed out of the Rocket Game Corner, his search unsucsessful. He called out several times Arbok's name, but there was no response. He searched passing Poke`mon Trainers' belts by force, even attempting Officer Jenny's Poke`Balls, nearly getting arrested in the process. He walked as far to the outskirts of the city, hoping to catch a glimpse of its purple body, but, no luck. Then he sent out Vulpix, hoping that her nose would be strong enough to smell the snake, but the smells of rain blocked it, and Vulpix shook her head. "You can't?" He sighed irritably. "It's--okay, Vulpix. You tried your best......" Brock froze. He hadn't heard himself say that to his Poke`mon for what seemed like an eternity. He frowned, realizing the error of his ways, and then recalled Vulpix with an attempted smile. Then Brock tried Golbat. It searched, unfortunately, from a high view, so it was impossible to spot, for the mist and rain was heaviest where Golbat was. He recalled his Bat, and then hoped that Arbok would be on the ground in plain sight, and dropped onto the swirling mud and proceeded to crawl across the ground. He crawled for what seemed like hours, and then stood up agian. "There's no way I can find it, now," the exhausted member firmly told himself, and he turned to walk back to Celadon City, when he heard a faint noise. "Chaa..." Brock recognized it, and dropped to the ground again, and felt about carefully. His gloved hand then caught ahold of Arbok's tail, and the latter screeched in pain. "Chaaaaaaaa-booooook!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" "There you are!!" Brock inched toward it, and saw its condition. "Hmm, I can get you out of this. Hold on." The Rocket grabbed ahold of Arbok's tail and stomach, and freed both from each other, setting Arbok's poison in the right direction. He then gave the snake antidote in case it had already been poisoned. Arbok's thin, sharp eyes grew soft. It looked deeply into its rescuer's closed ones, noting that this was not its master, but it was saved anyway. It cried and wailed in joy, trying to explain that this was one of the few times that it was cared for by another human besides Jessie. It's tongue whipped in and out in a friendly way, and Brock saw this, happy at the show of gratefulness. Then came the decision on where to put it: on his shoulder or in one of his empty Poke`Balls. The spiky-haired teenager remembered his days as a true Gym Leader, and whenever his Poke`mon was injured, he would try to make it feel better for a while before recalling it, after the battle was done. That's what he would do with Geodude and Onix, the latter a Rock Snake, so it was only fair to treat Jessie's Cobra the same way. So, he carefully slung it over his shoulder, and made the return journey. As he walked through town, he made quite an impression: even Jenny could not arrest him, for he was such a sight that she was totally dumbstruck. He made an equal impression when he passed the guard Poke`mon, and walked in the glass doors of the Gym, drenched with water, dripping mud across the white floor, his face unrecognizable, and the mud hiding the R, and Jessie's Arbok on his shoulder. "Waugh! It's a guy!" Screamed Ash. "Don't be dumb. It's only me." "Chaaaa?" "Brock? Oh, sorry, I didn't know it was you!" He spied the Arbok on his shoulder. "Hey, why do you have Jessie's Arbok?" Brock removed the purple snake from his shoulder, and handed it to Ash, while explaining, "Those guys at the Game Corner probably found it and were about to kill it. Here, take it to Jessie: she might need it." Ash stood puzzled, and his friend recalled it into one of her empty Poke`Balls. "Don't let anything happen to it," he warned with a sharp and deadly glare. "I'll watch Pikachu and Togepi for you," he added. Ash and Misty grew unimaginably nervous. The sweat was visible on their pale heads, and they had reason for it. Their "friend" was not what he used to be: trustworthy and honest. Who knows what might happen if Pikachu or Togepi had accidentally lit Brock's fuse. However, the latter was trying to improve, and he gave them his word that their Poke`mon would remain umolested. But, as Ash and his partner disappeared into the mist and strayed farther from the Gym, their faith in the Rock Trainer dwindled, and finally was exterminated completely. Chapter XXVII Silph and Saffron Downed! The rain had worsened. It was now accompanied by high swirling winds, blowing Ash and Misty's hair about their faces, all scrunched with worry at what would happen to them, and their prized Poke`mon back at Celadon. Often in his younger days, Ash had to ward off his former enemies with Pidgeotto using its air attacks, but he had rarely gone against those high winds, or such as high ones as this. The storm slowed their travel, and their boots dug into the mud, trying to grasp enough traction so they wouldn't slip. Incredibly, even their conversation struggled along with their persons. "Ash........we........can't......make........it!" "Don't......worry,...Misty.....we'll......make...it!" Suddenly, his brown eyes brightened. "I choose you, Venusaur!!!" The giant dinosaur-like Pocket Monster appeared, roaring at the savage winds as they roared back at him. "What...good........will......that........do?" Misty demanded quietly. "Ha! Now we can face anything!" Ash shouted exorbiantly. Venusaur had just plodded in front of them, shielding them from the ferocious winds from at least four directons. Then, Ash continued his plan by sending out his Blastoise. "Blastoise, go behind us!" "Blast! Oise? Blastoise!" The gigantic Shellfish Poke`mon heaved itself behind them, creating a sheild, and ending the pounding of winds on the Rockets' backs. "Go, Pidgeot! Make all those Pidgey and Pidgeotto you left behind proud!" "Pidgeot-o! Pidgeot-o!" The brown-and-white bird flashed above them, and suddenly, all was calm. The storm couldn't reach them. Ash's Poke`mon had formed a kind of a moving house. "Great idea, Ash! Now we'll go much faster!" Of course, the great weight of Venusaur and Blastoise prevented their travel being hurried, but at least the wind ceased to hinder them. Their route was straightfoward: east from Celadon to Saffron, and that meant traversing the Primeape-infested canyons, across several grass plains, and finally the gate to the shining city of Saffron, which would hopefully be crowded with their teammates. Ash and Misty entered the rocky canyon, which was now even more treacherous than before. The Primeape had multiplied, for no hunter would consider the hardy fighting Type as fair game, and there were few Poke`mon Trainers brave enough to capture one, for their was danger of personal injuries, plus injuries to Poke`mon. The Pig Monkeys had spread throughout the canyon, all with the desire to search for and destroy their prey. All on top of that, the rushing water had washed all forms of traction down the canyon, and leaving only a slippery surface to walk upon. Fortunately, Ash's heavier Poke`mon guided the former and his partner through the first half of the canyon. Then, during the second half, trouble started to ensue. "Prime-Prime?" Dinner so soon? I had lunch five seconds ago! "Grrrrrr......Primeape!" They're ours!!! "Primeape!!!" Yum! "Prime-Prime-Prime-appe!!!!!" Food...... "Blast! Blastoise? Blast-Blastoise!!! "Grrrrrrrrr......roarrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!" "Pidgeot-o? Pidg---" Ash sensed the trouble felt by his monsters, and asked, "What is it, guys?" "Blaaaaaas-toise!!!!!! Blaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!!" "Ash, I think you'd better look around!!!" Misty warned. The boy obeyed her, his wide eyes catching the terrifying sight of the enormous amount of Pig Monkey Poke`mon that had gathered, closing in upon them. Ash, not forgetting the past experience he had with Primeape, closed his eyes, and Misty did likewise. Then, the former ordered above the growling and indefinable calls of the Primeape, "Charizard, Flamethrower! Pidgeot, Quick Attack, Blastoise, Hydro Pump!" All three obeyed, throwing their attacks in all directions, cutting through the rain, and reaching their targets. Still, the onslaught of monsters continued, all bent on a meal. Each of Ash's Poke`mon tried to hold of the Primeape, but as soon as some fell, more replaced them: it was an endless supply. "Misty, you help too!" Ash ordered forcefully. Since there was no time to argue, the girl pulled out every single one of her Poke`Balls, and flung them onto the slippery canyon. Being on a wet surface aided Goldeen and Seaking, and the Primeape were further driven off. Eventually, though, one side would run out of energy, and that side was the Rockets. "Waugh, let's go!" "Right! Everyone, return!" Misty agreed. They fled as fast as they could in the driving wind and rain. Ocassionally, they slipped, providing Primeape much time to overtake and beat upon them with their heavy fists. But still the two ran, determined on beating all the odds to reach Saffron City. Halfway through the canyon, the wind worsened, and lightning struck in their area, shattering a gigantic boulder that crashed down the slope, and another bolt that destroyed it. The sight daunted the two somewhat, but they weren't about to give up, though Ash was more determined than Misty. Meanwhile, back within the safe glass doors of the Celadon City Gym, the Rock Poke`mon were stationed, for the rain had worsened back in that city, too, rendering the Rock Poke`mon useless outside. They stared at Pikachu, who was desperately trying to keep Togepi out of danger, who had ventured atop the guard Onix's huge stone head. "Pikachu-Pika!!" "Priii-Priiiii!!" "Pikachu-----Pikaaaaaaaaaa!" Brock heard his cry of despair, and answered, "What is it?" "Pika-Pika-Pika! CHUUUUUUUU!!!" The electric rodent frustratedly threw a lightning bolt at Onix's head, to scare Togepi. However, the latter had rolled down the reptile's segmented back. "Prriiiiiiiii!" it squealed happily. "PIKA!!!" Out from nowhere, Erika's Gloom appeared. "Gloom!" I can get it down. Thick green powder floated out of Gloom's gigantic flower, reaching Togepi, and causing it to fall, ailed. Pikachu caught it in his mouth, and wanted to discipline it, but it's convincing cry told him not to. Back at the road to Saffron, Ash and Misty were faring worse. They had slipped on the surface and tumbled down a steep hill, and there were scores of Primeape closiing in, narrowing the escape route, blocking the several ways out. "Ash, we're in trouble!!!" Misty cried, grasping onto his shoulder. The former grabbed onto his Poke`Ball, and shouted, with a determined flash in his eyes, "You're not going to get us, Primeape! Go, Venusaur! Use your Solarbeam!" "Venus!!!!!!" It shook it's massive head, raising it to the clouded sky. "Aw, I forgot! It's still raining." "Ash! What a great time to be dumb!" Screamed Misty. "I'm not dumb! I'll use another attack!" Ash deteminedly argued. He performed an old habit that he usually would do right before he sent a Poke`mon into battle, or tried to capture one. The boy grabbed the soaked brim of his hat, and turned it backward, and looked the Primeape almost in the eyes having to be reminded by Misty to not stare directly at them. However, the move gave Ash determination, and he ordered, "Venusaur, Razor Leaf!!!" "Venuuuuuuuuuuuuusssssssssssss!" At that, sharp leaves came storming out of the Grass/Poison Poke`mon's immense flower, cutting the Primeape repeatedly. This proved to be effective, and by the time Venusaur had run out of leaves, there were only three Pig Monkey left. "Oh, no! Now what do we do?" Misty wailed. "We could run?" Ash asked, unsure of himself. "We'd just get caught." "But we can't stand here and wait for them to get us!" The Primeape were readying to launch their Thrash, which was bone-breaking and deadly to both human and Poke`mon. The boy was about to give up. He couldn't see any way out. Either way, they were destined to be food for the Primeape. He leaned his tired arm on a large rock jutting out of the ground, with a round boulder at a precarious position.. Misty noticed him, then scanned up and down the rock, and her eyes shone with happiness at the idea. "A rock! That's it! Ash, use Venusaur to knock that rock down! It can roll down the hill!" "Great idea, Misty!" He shouted, eyebrows slanting in determination. "Venusaur, Vine Whip!!!" "Venus? Saur!!" Though of massive proportions, Ash's trusted Grass/Poison Type was intelligent enough to grasp Ash's meaning. It whipped the boulder, and the constant action of the vines smacking the boulder caused it to roll. One millimeter, two. Then centimeters. Now the Primeape had begun to barrel up the hill, dust flying. Then they were halted in their tracks when the enormous boulder finally reached the edge, bouncing down the hill, and crushing them beneath its weight. After the dust settled, only a miniscule heap of Pig Monkey could be seen, instead of the wild, raging, vivacious ones seen before. The two young members felt not regret. Their lives were being threatened and they had to put an end to the threat. Of course, long ago, that's not what the two Trainers would think. But that was the past, and this was the present. With a gaze at the sky that was now clearing up, they continued on their way. By the time they had reached the beautiful city of Saffron, the sun was glaring, beating beautiful reflections from the metal about the place. The two rejoiced, having completed their danger-filled journey. "Allright! We're here! Hey, let's go get some ice-cream!" Misty protested, noting the reason why they were there. "We've got to deliver Arbok to Jessie, first." "Oh, yeah, right........" Ash groaned, his illusions of nourishment crumbling. They walked around the city, without any threat, for it had been taken over, the mayor kept prisoner, the Silph Co. President hostage, and Sabrina and her Trainers suffering the same fate as Erika and hers. All over Saffron, there were Rockets. At stores, factories, and several ones walking around, enjoying the sights, and the pleasing sight of the native citizens cowering in their houses, as they had done several years ago. Chapter XXVIII Back and Forth Foils Go Richie had followed Ash and Misty, believing that they had their Poke`mon. He jumped out from behind an alley and surprised them, knocking the two down in their total unawareness. Richie glared down at them and demanded, "Ash, give me back Zippo, Happy, and Sparky........" "We don't have it!" "Liar!" Shouted Richie, tears rushing to his eyes. "You're part of Team Rocket! Why should I believe you?" "We used to be your friends........" "USED to be! Now you're rotten thieves! You took over Saffron City!" His anger rose, and it took all of his will to refrain from striking Ash and Misty, who were trying to pick themselves up from the sidewalk. Richie then softened his tone, to barely a whisper: "I just want my Poke`mon back. I won't turn you in if you give them back now." "Richie, we don't have them! You can search us! We don't have Sparky!" "Prove it, then, Ash, if you're such a good friend." "Okay!" The boy agreed. He proceeded to release each one of his Poke`mon. After he did that, though, Richie was still unsatisfied. He explained, "I gave you all those chances to give them back. Now I'll make you!" "What are you going to do?" Ash demanded, with little force. A patrolling officer strolled down the street, and Richie put his fingers in his mouth to signal him. That idea was halted once Ash grabbed the threatening boy and covered his mouth, the signal never being heard. Not wanting Richie to take a second oppurtunity, the two Rockets sped away, bound for the Silph Co. However, Richie would not let it end there. He too, headed in that direction, his eyes filled with the greatest contempt. In the Silph Building, a fuming Jessie stomped throughout the hallways, angered at the brutal treatment of Arbok, even though it was a constant failure. She growled at anyone who dared to annoy her, and she was labeled as something to avoid by the guarding Rockets. Just then, Ash and Misty stumbled through the doors into the building, releasing Arbok. "Chaaaa...." Jessie's blue eyes sparkled with joy, and she lifted her Cobra up and embraced it. "Arbok! Where did you find it? I thought that it was..." She halted her speech, choking with rare tears. With that done, Ash and Misty collapsed on the floor, filled with exhaustion. Jessie looked down at them, exclaiming, with a kind of hesitancy, habit having hammered into her to hate the two, "Uh......thank you! I thought it was gone!" "Waugh.......you're welcome," groaned Ash, his words muffled by the floor. "Anything for a teammate," agreed Misty. A passing member saw the Trainers, commenting, "What's with them? The lazy bums." That was sufficient enough to wake Misty, and she jumped off the floor and shouted in the man's face, "LAZY?! You have no idea what we just did, do you?!" "Oh, go wash your hair!" Came the careless reponse. That started a small verbal skirmish, and was stopped when Giovanni entered the hall. He took one glance at the black-clad member, and one thought filled his mind. There is that spy! How dare he! The Leader grabbed ahold of the man, and physically threw him out of the Silph Co. Building. He landed with a deep thud in the middle of the road. The angered man lifted off his cap to reveal a blue cap with a badge. Richie approached him, and fell into a state of despair. "Did you find them, officer?" "No, Richie. They probably have them and all their other ripped off Poke`mon really well-hidden. I'll have to enlist Officer Jenny's help on this one. Maybe even the whole Saffron force." Immediately after this was said, two Rockets ambushed them from the brush. The officer identified them as Jessie's Rival and her partner. Cassidy laughed maniacally, and produced some rope. "You aren't raiding this place as long as we're standing here. Butch tie them up." "Right." Richie plunged deeper into his despair, but the officer wasn't about to stay idle. He pulled his pistol from the holster by reaching between the ropes, and fired into the air, accidentally hitting a passing Spearow. The shot alerted Jenny, as well as Butch and Cassidy, and the two latter fled before Jenny arrived. She untied her comrade and Richie, and immediately asked, without any concern for either's safety, "Any way of getting into there? Or Saffron Gym and Fighiting Dojo?" "Silph? Nope. I tried dressing up as one of them and trying to find out a secret entrance or something, but, no-go. Your cousin from Celadon and her squads are trying to break in the Gyms with a battering ram." "Hmm, but no way into Silph?" "Nope. They've got everything blocked with Psychic, Ice, Fighting, Ghost, and Bug Poke`mon! They're really strategic this time! I wonder what's making them act so smart?" He tried to change the subject to lighten up Jenny's downcast spirits. "Oh, I found out that two of the thugs wanted from Safari Zone and at least five other places are holed up there." Despite that, Jenny still stared daggers. "I want that gang put away! They've caused enough trouble! And we won't put them away if we can't get in Silph! Are you sure there are no secret entrances?" "No, Officer! There's nothing!" Everyone was silent for a while, and then Richie spoke. "Ash and Misty aren't that smart. They can be bribed. Ash likes peach ice cream and he loves his Pikachu! Misty would do anything to keep her Togepi safe." "So.............Togepi and Pikachu? Where are they?" "I saw them leaving Celadon City Gym without them." "Celadon? Good. Then lets get over there! We've got some Poke`mon catching of our own to do."