Kayla's Journey
by Alyssa
Part 5
"I wanna be the very best, like no-one ever was!" Kayla sang.
"Your father already is the best."
"Shuddup and lemme sing. To catch them is my real test, to train them is my caause, I will travel across the land, searching far and wide, each Pokemon to understand, the power that's insiiiiide..."
"We're at Vermilion."
"Pokemon! Gotta catch--WE ARE?? BADGEBADGEBADGE!!" Kayla took off at warp speed into Vermilion. Taralon and Meowth sweatdropped.
"Sometimes, she scares me," Taralon told Meowth. He nodded in agreement. Human and Pokemon then entered the city.
-
"WHADDAYA *MEAN* I CAN'T COME IN???" Kayla screamed at the Gym guard.
"Someone broke in last night and stole Denki's Pokemon! He's not taking any more challengers until he gets them back!"
Kayla decided not to throttle the guy after all. Stolen Pokemon were a valid reason for not letting a trainer in. Deep in thought, she wandered off to a bench and sat down. Taralon and Meowth came up to her.
"What's up?" Taralon asked. "Didn't they let you in?"
Kayla shook her head. "The Gym Leader's Pokemon were stolen, so he won't accept any challengers until they're returned, so I can't get my Thunder Badge." She looked up at the blue-eyed boy. "We've gotta help Denki find his Pokemon, Taralon. On general principles as well as me wanting a badge."
Taralon shrugged. "'Kay." He sat down next to Kayla. "One question: how?"
Kayla grinned. "I used to watch detective movies sometimes. First thing - you go to the scene of the crime and look for clues, asking around for witnesses. Then you follow the info until you find the culprit. He *always* makes a fatal mistake that gives him away!"
"...Kayla, this is real life, not the movies," Taralon muttered.
"Don't bring her out of her little fantasy world," Meowth warned quietly.
"So!" Kayla said, not catching this exchange. "You guys with me?"
Taralon shrugged. "Sure."
"Of course," Meowth said.
"Cool, c'mon!" Kayla beckoned to her friends, heading towards the Gym. They followed.
-
Denki Surge was a young teenager with brown eyes and jagged blond hair. He was tall for his age, but rather slender. He wore yellow clothes, with a pendant in the shape of a lightning bolt around his neck. Kayla was playing the detective bit to the hilt, complete with Sherlock-esque clothes and gear. Taralon was ignoring her very hard.
"Is there anybody who might have any personal vendetta against you?" Kayla asked, holding a notepad and pencil.
Denki shrugged. "I dunno. Not unless one of the guys I beat was a sore loser. I don't have any enemies."
"No enemies that you *know about*, you mean!" Kayla pointed to a startled Denki with her pencil.
"Yeah, no enemies I know of. I get along with people, and when I fight, I'm honorable."
Kayla scribbled something down. "Okay. Was there anything left when your Pokemon were stolen?"
"An open window, that's all. I woke up from the cold, and then noticed that Jolteon, Electrode, and Raichu's Pokeballs were gone."
"Aha! The culprit must know you well, or else they wouldn't know where your house is!"
Denki stared blankly at her. "I live in the Gym."
"...oh," Kayla said. "I guess it could be anyone, then."
"Maybe one of our Pokemon could find the person's scent trail or something. Cubone might be able to, or Meowth..."
"I refuse!" the cat snapped. "Oh, for the love of...!" Kayla sighed exasperatedly. "Maybe Pikachu?"
"Maybe... if the trail's even still there," Denki said. "A Growlithe would be real nice to have right now."
"Well, let's see." Taralon had no idea when Kayla'd dumped the Sherlock costume, but it was off now. The redhead tossed her Pikachu's Pokeball.
"C'mon out, Pikachu!"
"Pika?" Pikachu asked as it was released, looking around.
"No battles right now, Pikachu. We need you to find somebody."
"Cha," the little Pokemon said, indicating that it was listening. Kayla quickly filled it in. Pikachu nodded and then ran off to execute its mission.
-
"Well, that didn't go too good," Taralon sighed as he, Kayla, and Meowth left the Gym, a dejected Pikachu in Kayla's arms. Kayla was not happy.
"Good try, Pikachu. Wasn't your fault the scent faded overnight."
"Kachu," the mouse Pokemon murmured. The only scent it had been able to find was Denki's scent.
"Meeeowth, what's goin' on over there?"
The other three looked where Meowth was pointing. There was a kid tossing three Pokeballs and bragging to a couple other kids.
"They're powerful Pokemon, I tell ya!" he gloated. "A Raichu, a Jolteon, and an Electrode! An' they're all mine!"
Kayla looked at Taralon. Taralon looked at Kayla. Meowth looked at both of them. Pikachu looked at Meowth. All of them looked at the kid, and then at each other. They nodded, heading over towards the kid.
"Excuse me," Kayla said sweetly. "Can we see those Pokeballs?"
The kid clutched them to his chest. "No!"
"I'm afraid we must insist," Taralon said through a forced smile.
"They're mine now! Mine!"
"GIVE those to me!" Kayla snapped, grabbing for one. The kid jumped away. Kayla ground her teeth. "Pikachu, teach 'im a lesson!"
"Ka-CHUUUUUUU!"
The kid, twitching after being fried to a nice golden brown, groaned, fell over, and dropped the Pokeballs. Kayla picked one up, and found some minute print on it.
"Raichu, property of Denki Surge," she read. "If lost, bring this Pokeball to the Vermilion City Gym."
"You *stole* those Pokemon, Jim?" one of the kids said, wide-eyed.
"Yeah," the kid identified as Jim groaned, still twitching and nicely paralyzed.
"We'll be taking these Pokeballs back to their rightful trainer now," Kayla said cheerfully. "Thanks for your *cooperation*."
-
Denki was VERY happy to have his Pokemon back. So happy, in fact, that he called them all out and hugged them, laughing with relief.
"Raichu! Electrode! Jolteon! I was so worried about you!"
"Raaai!"
"Jolt!"
"Electrode!"
Denki looked up at Kayla, grinning happily. "Thank you so much for finding them!"
Kayla curtsied. "You're welcome. Actually, though, the real reason I came here was for a challenge. Name's Kayla Ketchum, and before you even ask *yes* I'm Ash Ketchum's daughter.
Denki went straight from 'grateful' to 'idolizing'. "You're the daughter of the greatest Pokemon trainer alive?? I can't believe this!" The boy just about had stars in his eyes. "I never thought I'd be so honored as to be able to battle a Ketchum!"
A large sweatdrop made its way down Kayla's head. This guy was kinda starting to scare her. "...Uh, sure, whatever... how many Pokemon?"
"How many do you have?"
"...six," Kayla said, suddenly realizing something. A lot of her Pokemon wouldn't stand a chance. Lapras and Krabby would be fried in no time, Caterpie would get absolutely mauled, and Abra only knew three attacks, one of which was worthless. Meowth and Pikachu could stand a chance, though... come to think of it, Abra could hold its own fairly well, with that new TM Kayla'd taught it recently...
"How about two Pokemon each?" Denki suggested.
"Sounds good," Kayla said, rather relieved.
"Okay then... Raichu, susumu!"
"Meowth, let's go!"
The large mouse and the small cat leapt into the ring. Meowth had a gleam in his eyes. He was gonna fight, and he was gonna win. The day a cat loses to a mouse will be a dark day indeed.
"Raichu, Thunder Wave!"
"Meowth, dodge and use Bite!"
Meowth leapt out of the way of the electric bolt and bit Raichu good and hard.
"Raaaaaaaai!!" it cried out in pain.
"Aah! Raichu, Swift!"
"Giku," Kayla gulped. "Okay, no dodging this one... Screech!"
The Raichu crackled with almost-electricity as it charged up for the attack, and then the tiny little glowing stars of Swift flew from its cheek sacs, striking Meowth. He was knocked back across the mat, then let out an ear-piercing screech. Raichu wobbled.
"Meowth, use Bite again! Hurry, while it's dazed!"
"Raichu, Thundershock!"
The Raichu didn't have a chance that turn. Meowth bit it again, causing the Thundershock to go berserk. Meowth got mildly zapped, but not too bad. However, the mass of the power was turned back on the Raichu, hurting it badly and paralyzing it.
"It hasn't got a chance now... Meowth, finish it off with Scratch!"
"Raichu!" Denki pleaded. "Use Thunder!"
It was over. The Scratch finished up the Raichu. It tottered on the mat, then fell over in a faint. Denki looked impressed, and held out the Raichu's Pokeball.
"Raichu, kaeru! Susumu, Electrode!"
The Electrode was bristling with electricity as it entered the ring.
"Okay, Meowth, c'mon back. For this round... Abra, let's gooo!"
The small psychic-type was released from its Pokeball. Electrode scoffed at the little Pokemon.
"Abraaa..."
"Don't you know Abra only knows Teleport?" Denki blinked, then shrugged. "Electrode, start off with Tackle!"
"Abra, Confusion!"
"Abra!"
The Tackle hit home, but Abra was still fighting. A white aura surrounded it as it summoned the mental energy, blasting it out towards the electric-type. Electrode was injured and confused.
"Giku! Electrode, Thunderbolt!"
Unfortunately, Electrode was confused. The unused electric energy hurt it.
"Abra, use your new Mega Kick!"
Abra swung one of its large, awkward legs towards the Electrode, hitting it hard and knocking it back through the ring. That was all it took to defeat Electrode. Denki was stunned.
"Kaeru, Electrode," he said, calling back the Pokemon. "I thought Abra only knew that one attack?"
"Well, this one happened to also know its next attack, Confusion, when I got it. And I taught it Mega Kick so it would stand a greater chance in battle."
"Aaah, I see." Denki grinned, and took a badge from his jacket. "You're definitely a Ketchum, Kayla-sama. I think you'll do well. Here's your Thunderbadge."
Kayla accepted the badge, stared at it for a few moments, then screamed with happiness, jumping in the air.
"YATTA!" she cheered. "I got the Thunderbadge!"
-
Beating a Gym Leader can lead to a rollercoaster of emotions. There's the elation and pride when you get the badge, then once that wears off, you've got the utter boredom of waiting for your Pokemon to get healed at the Center. Kayla was fidgeting, unable to sit still as she waited for Meowth and Abra to get healed. Taralon was more calm and was sitting on a bench, eating from a snack-size bag of potato chips.
"I'm bored," she complained for the eightieth time.
"So start figuring out where we go next."
"Good idea." Kayla pulled out a map and sat down next to Taralon. "Lesse... a little ways east of here, there's a cave with a bunch of Diglett..."
"We're going there! I like ground-types, and I could use a Diglett."
"...so we'll go there and then come back here, where we can go to Celadon for the Rainbowbadge, then to Saffron - with a quick stop at Lavender for a Gastly - and then to Fuchsia, then to Seafoam, then to Cinnabar, then we go to Viridian again and head on to Pokemon League where I eventually become the next Pokemon Master." She folded up the map and stowed it in her jacket, then wondered why Taralon was looking at her like that.
"What's up, 'Lon?"
He shook his head. "It's just... geez, you've got your life all planned out, don't you? What happens when you do succeed your father?"
"Then I go back home, keep my Pokemon in shape, have fun, and defend my position when needed," she said, putting her hands behind her head and leaning against the wall.
Taralon was about to say something, but then there was a chime and Nurse Joy's voice called. "Meowth and Abra are fully healed, will Kayla Ketchum please come to claim them?"
Taralon decided he couldn't say anything to the Kayla-shaped puff of smoke, sighed, and stood up, throwing away his empty chip bag.
-
Kayla was humming a cheerful, triumphant tune as the small group headed towards Diglett's Cave. Meowth was running alongside her on all fours, with kittenlike enthusiasm. Even Taralon was feeling pretty 'up'.
"There it is!" Kayla squeaked, running towards the cave. Her friend and Pokemon followed her. Without a moment's hesitation, Kayla stepped into the cave, ready to capture a Diglett.