I looked at the Town Map, Professor Oak had given us. Our first stop was gonna be Viridian City, which was 15 or 16 miles away. "Well, if we go through the forest, we can catch some Pokémon," I said, looking at the Bug Pokémon map, installed on my Pokédex. "I've always wanted to see if I could catch a Beedrill ... maybe I will on our journey." "I hate bugs," Jamie said. "Thanks to you I nearly got stung by a Weedle!" I shrugged. "Well, you shouldn't have kicked it." "It was an accident," Jamie protested. "Well, Pikachu here put up a pretty good fight. But unfortunately Weedle got away. Oh well. There are a lot more Pokémon out there to be captured. Right Pikachu?" "Pika," Pikachu said. It nodded. "Hey, look!" Jamie cried excitedly. "It says on the map there's a river right on the outskirts of Viridian City ... and around the Viridian Forest. We can catch some water Pokémon there." "Hey, do you smell smoke?" I asked. The scent of smoke filled the air, and all of a sudden I started feeling really warm, even though it was only supposed to be around 65 degrees outside. "Maybe you're having one of those things that old people get when they don't excercise," Jamie said. "A hot flash or something." I shook my head. "No, it can't be that." Jamie slowed down and sniffed the air quickly. "Yeah, I smell some smoke, too. Look!" I looked forward, ahead of us. I saw a big smoke cloud rising up from a little home development. We ran closer to see what was happening. "Hey, all those trees and that barn over there are on fire," I said. "It's illegal to burn down the trees in Pallet Town!" Jamie took a Pokéball from her pocket. "Squirtle can help put out the fire. Squirtle I ch--." "No, the fire is too big," I said. "Squirtle will just tire itself out." Jamie sighed. "I suppose you're right ... but we've gotta help. This is our hometown!" I nodded. "What's taking the fire department so long to get here?" Almost as if on cue, I heard sirens. Jamie and I turned around, to see a huge red firetruck speeding towards the dirt road. It went by us so fast, we felt the breeze. Dust surrounded the wheels as they rolled past. Jamie and I jogged behind it, trying to see what they were just planning to do. I knew if they blasted the trees with water, the trees would end up toppling over anyway. There were already about 15 people crowded around the area. Two firemen jumped out of the truck. One climbed the ladder on the back of the truck to see where the fire was burning the most, and the other one grabbed the hose. A tiny bell rang, and the hose sprayed with water. Another fireman the one with the hose spray down the fire. They actually were very careful with the situation. The trees weren't burned too badly, but the barn was totaled. When the hose was turned off, the firemen cleared the area. "Nothin to see here people. Go back to school, or work, or your house, or wherever you came from." Some people left, but some (including Jamie and I) stayed behind in interest. "Sir, what happened?" I demanded. "I thought it was illegal to tear down trees by using fire in Pallet." He nodded. "It is. Apparently, a Pokémon was really peeved, and ended up using its rage. It must have been a fire Pokémon, but nothing is for certain. And whatever it was, can't have gotten far away. Its footprints are still able to be pretty accurately traced. But for safety, we need you to back away." "What are you gonna do to the Pokémon when you've found it?" Jamie demanded, ignoring the fireman. "Well ... we'll catch it and see if it has rabies. If it does, either we give it a shot or we-- we erm ... put it to sleep, if you will." "What if it doesn't have rabies?" Jamie asked. The fireman shrugged. "We'll capture it in a Pokéball, and either train it ourselves, or give it a good trainer to raise it." Jamie nodded. "Okay then. C'mon, Dimmy." I followed Jamie and we walked down the street. "So, are ya hungry?" I asked. "I know a great salad place we can--." "Keep your voice down," Jamie said. "We can eat later, but right now we need to agree on something." "Um ... sure. What is it?" "We hafta find whatever Pokémon that started the fire before they do." I frowned, knowing that my friend, once again was putting the safety of a Pokémon's before our own, like she always does. "Jamie, what are the chances of us finding it? It could be any Pokémon. It coulda been a Quilava, a Vulpix, a Magmar ... it might not have even been a fire Pokémon. And even if we do manage to find it somehow-- what if it has rabies? How are we supposed to raise it? We can't just dump it off in Professor Oak's lab, or in a dumpster." "Would you stop thinking negative for a second?!" Jamie snapped. "Jeez, I just can't bear to think about what they'll do if something is wrong with that Pokémon!" I groaned. "Jamie, Jamie, Jamie, Jamie, Jamie, Jamie, Jamie. I can't believe you just snapped at me! I'm just telling YOU, that WE hafta mind OUR business!" For a second, Jamie was silent. She then shot me a dirty look. "This is our town. This is our business." I knew that look. Her eyes would be intense. Her mouth would be curled into a half smile. She would take tiny breaths, through her nose, and she didn't blink. That look, I could recognize from a mile away. That look meant that she wasn't going to change her mind, or take her opinion, lying down. "Fine ... fine," I gave in. "We'll do things your way. But if we don't find that Pokémon by the end of the day, you're on your own! I don't care if you spend a week looking for that thing. I will leave you here and move on by myself if you don't find it by the end of the day. Deal?" Jamie smirked. "Deal." "Yeah, we'll have two grilled chicken ceaser salads and Cokes," I said to our waitress. We had stopped at a place called "Tha Salad Shoppe". It had the best salads I'd ever tasted in my life. They were healthy, but they tasted great and didn't have that gross leaf taste. "That'll be ten dollars and fifty cents," she said. She looked down at Pikachu. "Oh my God, your Pikachu is so cute! Does it have a name?" I shook my head. "We just call it Pikachu. I don't believe in nicknaming my Pokémon. It makes me sound like I'm sucking up to them, and it gets too confusing. But I love em all the same." I patted Pikachu on the head. "Pikachu," it chirped. We finished our meals and walked outside, through the tree-covered area. "How are we supposed to find it exactly?" I demanded. "I don't know," Jamie admitted after a pause. "We know that its feet must be muddy. And it's gonna be in a bad mood, because it used a Rage attack..." "Kind of like that Growlithe over there?" I asked. I pointed to the dog Pokémon. It was clawing ferociously at the ground. Its paws were muddy and its eyes burned with Fury. "Yes!" Jamie said. "That has to be it! Use Pikachu to weaken it and then catch it!" "Um ... alright. Pikachu, use Thunderbolt." Pikachu glowed yellow and let off a charge of electricity. It zoomed through the air and smacked into Growlithe, knocking it onto its side. However, Growlithe hopped right back up and pounced on Pikachu. "Gnaw attack!" I commanded. Pikachu opened its mouth as wide as it could and bit into Growlithe's leg. Growlithe squealed in pain and limped backwards. "Now, use Thunder Jolt!" Pikachu shot a beam of electricity from its hand. It hit the ground and bounced back up, smacking Growlithe in the chin. Growlithe didn't go down, but it was definantly in pain. "HEY! STOP! THAT'S MY GROWLITHE!" A trainer, around 16 years old ran towards me, with a hand balled into a fist. He had black hair tied into a ponytail and angry eyes. "What do you think you're doing ya little punk?!" "I... she ... I thought--." "Ya know what, we're gonna fight!" he said, rolling up a sleeve. "No need for fighting. We can discuss in a calm and reasonable matt--." "We're gonna fight!" "Okay, then." Growlithe and Pikachu faced off against each other on the opposite sides of a battle field, on a blacktop playground of some sort. "Okay, this is a one on one Pokémon battle. One fall to the finish. Dimmy's Pikachu against Nick's Growlithe," Jamie said. "Begin!" Should I attack first, or would that be suicide? Nick asked himself. Should I attack first, or would he suspect that? I asked myself. "Tackle attack!" Nick and I commanded in unison. Growlithe and Pikachu charged at each other. "Agility!" I ordered. Pikachu jumped over Growlithe's head, very quickly and landed behind the dog Pokémon. Growlithe turned around and Pikachu hit him with a Tackle. Growlithe shook of the impact and braced himself for another. Pikachu ran at Growlithe for a Quick Attack, but Growlithe just waited for a command. "Growlithe, use the Shoulder Toss I taught you!" Nick cried. Growlithe lowered his head as Pikachu ran at him. Pikachu ended up jumping over Growlithe. Growlithe lifted up his head quickly, and Pikachu went flying about 10 feet in the air. It landed back down, right on its stomach. "Okay, now, go for an Ember," Nick said. Growlithe shot about 5 tiny fireballs at Pikachu. Pikachu, however rolled out of the way. Growlithe went for another Ember, but Pikachu went out of the way once again. "Thundershock!" I said. Pikachu's cheeks glowed yellow and sparks of electricity came out, traveling towards Growlithe. Growlithe curled into a ball. The electricity bounced right off of him, and Growlithe rolled towards Pikachu. "Great, Growlithe," Nick said. "Now use a Defense Curl into a Quick Attack!" Growlithe picked up speed and charged at Pikachu. "Pikachu, plant your feet," I ordered it. "What are you doing?" Jamie demanded. "Pikachu's gonna get flattened!" Growlithe rolled at Pikachu more, quicker, faster, savagely. It was only ten feet away. Not six. Now five. Now three. Now only a few inches... "Now, Pikachu! Jump!" Pikachu jumped into the air and landed on Growlithe. Growlithe rolled around, but Pikachu moved its feet as Growlithe moved, like a hamster on the outside of a cage wheel. "Thunderbolt!" I cried. Pikachu let off a charge of electricity and sent it into Grolwithe's body. Growlithe stopped rolling around and uncurled. It was wobbly. "Finish it off with a Headbutt!" "Pika, Pika!" Pikachu rammed its head into Growlithe's head. Growlithe flipped backwards and landed on its side. It tried to get up, but it fell back down. "And the winner is Pikachu!" Jamie said happily. "Good job guys." Nick returned Growlithe. "Good match. You hammered me. But the outcome woulda been different if Growlithe hadn't gotten shocked earlier." "Yeah ... sorry," I said. "I thought Growlithe was the Pokémon that burned the trees down. Guess we were wrong." "Yeah," Jamie said. "The firemen said that might hafta destroy the Pokémon if it had rabies. But they might just as well put it to sleep if it didn't. So we wanna catch it before they do." "I could help you out there," Nick said. "I think I know which Pokémon did it." Nick showed us his Pokédex. "It was this one." I looked at the picture. "You think it was a Charmander?" "Yep," he said. "I'm a fire Pokémon trainer and I wanna catch it too. So far I have a Torchick, a Growlithe and a Cyndaquil. If I can catch a Charmander, I could evolve it into the Charizard I always wanted." "Sounds good," I said. "However, Charmander would be a great edition to our team also." Nick smirked. "Why don't we have a bet, to see which one can catch it first?" "Guys, stop," Jamie said, coming in between us. Nick and I continued to stare down each other. "Stop," Jamie repeated. "You guys don't even know that it's a fire Pokémon, much less a Charmander. And you can't compete so often. You'll turn into enemies." "Well, we're sure not friends," Nick said. "You don't have to be," Jamie said, calmly. "But if we want to catch this thing, we've got to work together. Put personal stuff aside for a sec, alright?" "Yeah ... whatever," Nick said. "Our goal is to catch the Pokémon, take it to a vet if it has rabies. If not, raise it. Nick, you should come along with us on our journey. You could be a big help." "Tsk," Nick muttered. "No way. I go solo." "Suit yourself," I said. "Come on, Jamie. Let's go find that Charmander." "Wait," Nick said. Jamie and I stopped. "Wait ... I said I would help you find that Pokémon at least. Don't take it the wrong way." "Well, three heads are better than two," Jamie said. We walked through the fields, not knowing that to expect. Not knowing what we had to expect. We came across a few Metapods here and there, but nothing that we thought could start a fire. Team Rocket HQ "Well ... so they're almost out of Pallet Down," a tall man with black hair said. "Hah ... those idiots have no clue which Pokémon did this." "Yeah," a tall girl with long red hair said. "Magmar is great for starting fires. Wonder how long it'll take those dumb twerps to figure it out!" All the Rockets shared an evil laugh. "Let's go point it our for them, Lisa." "Whatever you say, Luke." "LAUNCH THE BOMBS!" "Listen, I'm sure that Pokémon is long gone," I told Jamie. "And if we can't find it, what makes you think that the police will? At this rate, it's gotta be clear out of Pallet. Come on." Before Jamie or Nick could say anything, I heard an explosion, literally from yards away. Jamie, Nick and I turned in the direction. "That must be the Pokémon!" Nick cried. "Look, it's a Magmar!" Magmar looked like a big orange Pokémon, covered in flames. It looked at us, as if it was just waiting for us to make a move, so it would have a reason to attack us. "Pikachu, g--." I couldn't even get a sentence out! There was another explosion. This time it was a smoke bomb. Grass and dust flew everywhere, mixing in with the smoke. I then felt a wave of heat wash over me and then I heard one final explosion. I was sent flying through the air. I had only went up about 4 feet, and then landed on my spine. Pikacchu and Nick landed next to me. I sat straight up, to see what happened to Jamie. She had planted her feet squarely into the ground and was facing the Magmar, with a Pokéball in hand. "I choose you, Squirtle!" Squirtle appeared in front of Jamie. "You little brats need to learn to mind your own business!" a girl said. A balloon lowered from the air and right behind Magmar. A girl with long red hair and a boy with spiky blue hair were in it. They both looked around sixteen years old. "To inflect your world with devestation." "To make you weep in every nation." "To bring out the evils in trouth and love." "To break your reach to the stars above." "Lisa." "Luke." "Team Rocket, blasting off at the speed of light." "Surrender now, cuz we'll bring you the fight." "Meowth! That's right!" A white cat Pokémon said, hopping onto the edge of the balloon. "Who are these jokers?" I demanded. They exited the balloon, each one standing next to Magmar. Together they seemed like an unstoppable team, but we could take it. "We're Team Rocket," Luke said. "You guys have been a big help, ya know. However, it was Magmar who started the fire." "Wait ... what do you mean, we helped you?" Nick asked. Team Rocket smiled. "Well, from our calculations, there is a ton of gold burried around here. And you led us right to it. Thanks a lot, twerps. Now you can leave." "Wait!" I snapped. "You try to burn down half of Pallet Town with your Magmar, you scare the death our of a lotta people, you drop bombs around us, and now you expect us to just hand you some gold? NO!" Lisa tapped her ear, as if she didn't hear us correctly. She laughed. "Excuse me, but did you just say 'no' to me?" "Yeah we did," Jamie said, getting right in Lisa's face. "What are you gonna do about it?" "This," Lisa said. She reached back a hand and slapped Jamie across the face. "Pikachu, Thundershock!" I cried out. Pikachu let loose a Thundershock from its body. It rammed into Lisa and knocked her backwards. "Magmar, use Flamethrower!" Magmar shot a beam of flames rushing towards us. I dove out of the way, but I'm not sure Nick was so lucky. I gasped as he was thrown into the air. His body went limp as he was slammed into a tree, and knocked helplessly to the ground. I turned back towards Magmar. It was coming at Pikachu with Fire Punches, but Pikachu rolled out of the way each time. Jamie had seen enough. She was ready for a fight. "Squirtle, use Bubblebeam!" Squirtle shot a stream of bubbles from its mouth. Magmar was hit right between the eyes. Pikachu then capatilized with a Thundershock, which knocked Magmar to one knee. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw suspicious movement. I then saw it. Luke was digging, furiously in one area. The dirt flew all around him. I knew he was looking for the gold. I didn't even want to think about what Team Rocket would do, had they found buried gold. I dove for Luke. He turned and tried to shield himself, but I tackled him into the dirt. We rolled around three times. I ended up on top and hit him with two punches to the head. He held his face in pain and I stood in front of the dirt pile. "You're not getting your hands on that gold!" "What's gonna stop me?" he asked with a smirk. He took a ball from his belt. "I choose you, Koffing!" Koffing came out of his Pokéball, hovering in front of me. It opened its mouth, preparing for a Sludge Attack. Before it could pull the attack off, an orange figure hit it from the side, knocking Koffing to the ground. I looked ahead of me and saw Nick's Growlithe. Nick was now to his feet. "No one ... attacks us ... and gets away with it!" Growlithe used Flamethrower and Koffing, knocking him backwards into Nick. I heard a scream and then realized the battle still going on with Magmar against Pikachu and Squirtle. I turned back around. Pikachu was lying motionless on the ground and Squirtle seemed to be out of breath. I looked around us. We were outnumbering them, but their Pokémon were much too powerful, and with Pikachu out of the equation, I'm not sure how Growlithe and Squirtle could work as a team and fare against Koffing and Magmar. "Magmar, use Ember on Squirtle!" Lisa ordered. Magmar shot fireballs at Squirtle. Squirtle fell onto its stomach. It was in pain. Koffing spit Sludge into Growlithe's eyes and tackled it in front of Magmar. "Finish that Growlithe off, Magmar!" Lisa said. Magmar bent down and picked up Growlithe. It lifted Growlithe above its head. "NO!" Nick pleaded. He tried to get to his Pokémon, but Luke grabbed his leg. "STOP RIGHT THERE!" a voice called. "YOU ARE UNDER ARREST!" Lisa and Luke needed no more motivation. "Let's get outta here!" Meowth cried, suddenly. He climbed out of his hiding place and into the balloon. They returned Koffing and Magmar. They jumped into their balloon, and let it float into the air. "You haven't heard the last of us!" Lisa cried. They vanished behind the clouds. Nick and Jamie looked around. "Hey, I thought there were policemen around here," Jamie said. "Who threatened to arrest Team Rocket?" I came out from behind a tree. "Haha. That was me," I said. Nick and Jamie looked like they were in shock for a few seconds, but then smiles broke upon their faces. "You scared them away! That was genius!" Nick said. I nodded. "And that way, no one got injured more than they had to." "Well, let's just hurry and dig up this gold," Jamie said. We pulled the chest out of the ground, after 15 minutes of digging. Looking at it, I saw it was old. It had a metal chain rusted off, hanging from it. I opened it up and gasped at what I saw. Nick, Pikachu, Growlithe, Squirtle, and Jamie gathered around the chest, peering inside. There were coins and jewlery. Crystals, gold, silver, sapphires and rubies! There were also pennies that were from the early 1920's. There were pearls and diamond rings, half dollars, and a few one dollar bills on it. "YOU ARE UNDER ARREST!" a voice called. Jamie rolled her eyes. "Dimmy, cut it out." I froze. "That wasn't me." Nick shook his head. "Me neither." We both looked up and saw a woman in a blue uniform above us. Officer Jenny! "Uh ... hi," I said. "You are all under arrest! I heard you talking about stealing gold!" I shook my head. "No, not us! That was Team Rocket. And we didn't steal this. We found it, honestly." Officer Jenny glared at us. "Prove it." "It has Dimmy's name on it," Nick said. I looked at him. "What?" He dusted off a golden plate on the side. In bolded letters it said: KETCHUM. Officer Jenny looked down at me. "Wait ... you mean Ketchum? As in Ash Ketchum?" I nodded. "Yeah. Ash is my grandfather. I don't know why is has my name on- -." "Follow me." Officer Jenny showed me around a museum. In it, there was a sculpture of Ash. Also sculpted in it were Tauros, Charizard, Lapras, Bulbasaur, Squirtle, and Pikachu. "He was the winner of the Orange League. He came in the semi-finals of both the Pokémon League and the Johto Pokémon League. Your grandfather is really famous." "Wow..." I was speechless. "I knew your grandpa was famous, but he was really, really, really famous!" Nick and Jamie said in unison. I smiled. "Yeah..." "You're not coming with us?" Jamie asked Nick. "Nope," Nick said. "I'm going solo. But I promise we're gonna meet again." He offered a hand. I shook it, and then Jamie did. "Bye," he said. "Can't wait to seeya again." We parted ways. But little did we know, we would meet again, in a very abrupt way. TO BE CONTINUED.