Memoirs of a Pokemon Master CHAPTER 5 The rock garden
"I think you're full of it." - Trey
I woke up the next morning to 200 volts of electricity from pikachu. I looked pikachu square in the eyes and said, "Of the three things I hate the most, I hate to be awakened before noon."
Pikachu merely smiled. I got out of bed and went into the lobby of the pokecenter. A young lad was sitting on a couch. I sat on the far end of the couch, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. The young lad moved to sit next to me.
"Hi." The lad said. "My Name is Seymor. I'm a student at Pewter city college."
"That's nice." I said groggily.
"Wanna hear my theory about pokemon?" He asked, but before I could answer he continued on. "I believe that pokemon came from outer space in the moon stone. I believe that the moon stone is a space ship from some far away galaxy where there is nothing but pokemon!"
He pulled out a small glittering rock. "See this? This is part of the moon stone. It makes certain pokemon evolve. But, according to my theory, it is also part of the space craft that brought the pokemon to this planet." He looked at me with a smile on his face.
I looked at him with a strange look on my face. Pikachu was even looking at him weird.
"You know what I think?" I asked. I picked up pikachu and stood up. "I think you're full of it." Then I walked out of the pokecenter. I set pikachu on the ground and we started to walk around town. All the while I was grumbling to myself, "Pokemon from outer space. I think he's from outer space!"
We walked around town until we found the Pewter city gym. It was a small building made completely out of heavy boulders. Around it was a rock garden that looked as though it was under great care of a master gardener. I had never really been interested in rock gardens but this one seemed to stand out from any I had seen. An old man was tilling some soil a little ways down the side of the building.
"I'm looking for the gym leader." I said to the old man.
"You like this rock garden?" He asked.
"I don't see what that has to do with the gym leader." I said.
"That has everything to do with the gym leader!" He said. "This garden belongs to him!"
"Well it is a nice garden." I said.
"Good I'm glad you like my work." The old man said.
"Huh?" I was startled. "You're the gym leader?!?!" I asked.
"Yup. I just wanted to get a youngun's opinion on my garden. Anyway, you're here for a badge right?" He asked.
"Uh... yeah." I said.
"Good. My name is Boulder. I am the gym leader of Pewter city gym. What is your name, for the record?" he said.
"I am Trey LaJaunie of Lavender." I said.
"Good, good. Let us go inside for our battle." He said. He then led me into the gym.
The gym was huge. It had a high ceiling and stands on each side. Some small children were sitting in the stands.
"Those are my grandchildren." The old man said. "My son is out trying to become a pokemon master. When he does return, he'll be the leader here. But if he doesn't..."
"You can't be that old." I said. Pikachu nodded in agreement.
"Heh heh. Flattery won't win this battle. I'm eighty-one years old. If my son doesn't return, well I don't know what will happen to these children. Their mother works very hard. But someone must take care of the gym. If I pass away I will end up leaving the gym to my eldest grandchild, Brock. That is if his father doesn't come back. A piece of free advice from a wise old pokemon trainer : always go back home." he said.
"Thanks for the advice. I'll keep it in mind." I said.
"Good. Let the battle begin!" He said. He hit a button. The arena floor was lit up by lights on the ceiling. The floor was a basic pokemon arena, except it had lots of boulders placed strategically around.
"This is my pride and joy. The very heart of my rock garden. My garden arena." He said as he produced a pokeball and threw it into the arena.
"Onix! GO!" He yelled.
The pokeball opened up and a bright blue light emanated from it. Then the light was replaced by the large rock-snake, onix. It roared as it appeared. The children began to cheer.
"Yeah! No one can stop onix!"
"Go onix go!"
"Yay onix!"
I smiled to myself. I needed that badge but I guess I would have to shatter their hopes. I grabbed bulbasaur's ball and threw it into the arena.
"Bulbasaur go!" I yelled. The children started booing me.
"Boo! Bulbasaur sucks!"
"Take him out onix!"
"Yeah! Make mince meat out of him!"
"Onix! Tackle attack!" The old man yelled.
The onix lumbered forward. But bulbasaur, being smaller and quicker, dodged the attack.
"Bulbasaur! Vine whip attack! Now!" I yelled.
Bulbasaur sent two vines speeding for onix's head. They made contact. I knew that grass types would hurt rock types easily. The onix roared in pain.
"Onix! Rock throw!" The old man yelled.
Onix grabbed one of the nearby boulders and hummed it at bulbasaur. Bulbasaur dodged. The boulder broke into a few pieces. On of the pieces hit bulbasaur. Bulbasaur rolled for a moment, but picked himself up.
"Bulbasaur! Leech seed!" I yelled.
The bulb on his back shot a seed at onix. The seed took root and began to grow vines. Bulbasaur threw his vines and tangled them in the other vines.
"Bulbasaur is sapping onix's strength and adding it to his own!" I yelled.
Onix was groaning in pain.
"Onix return!" The old man said as he called onix back into its ball. He then produced another ball and threw it. "Rhyhorn! Go!"
A large, rhino like creature materialized in front of bulbasaur. I had never seen a rhyhorn before so I pulled out dexter.
"Rhyhorn. The stone spikes pokemon. It's massive bones are one thousand times harder than human bones. It can easily knock a trailer flying. Although it is mainly bones it is considered a rock type pokemon." Dexter said.
That was all I needed to hear. "Bulbasaur! Vine whip!" I yelled.
Bulbasaur let loose with his vine whip attack. Just when they were going to make contact with the rhyhorn, KABOOOOM! The back wall of the gym had been blown open. Boulder, pikachu, and I went to check it out and all we found was a fainted voltorb.
"A voltorb!" Boulder said. "Who would do something like this?"
"I've got a pretty good idea who." I said.
"Pikachu." Pikachu nodded in agreement.
Another voltorb dropped next to us. Pikachu and I dived away as boulder dived in the other direction.
"VOOOOOOOLTORB!!!!" KABOOOOM!!! Another section of the wall fell. The children ran from the gym scared.
Boulder and rhyhorn went outside through the hole. Pikachu and I followed.
"Who's doing this!?" Boulder demanded.
I pointed up at the roof at the two figures standing on top of it. "Them." I said.
"Get down here! You two are in so much trouble!" Boulder said. I put my hand over my eyes because I knew what was coming.
"Trouble?" They both asked.
"Prepare for trouble!" Lilly jumped down.
"And make it double!" Kirby followed.
"To protect the world from devastation!" Lilly struck a pose.
"To unite all people within our nation!" Kirby also struck a pose.
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!" Lilly got in Boulder's face.
"To extend our reach to the stars above!" Kirby got in Boulder's face.
"Lilly!"
"Kirby!"
"Team rocket! Blast off at the speed of light!" Lilly struck her final pose.
"Surrender now or prepare to fight!" Kirby struck his final pose.
"Do you guys ALWAYS have to say that?" I asked sarcastically.
"Yes we do. It comes with the job description." Lilly said. "Now just hand over all your pokemon or else."
"Or else what?" Boulder asked.
Kirby pulled out another voltorb. "Or we'll turn this gym into rubble." He said.
Rhyhorn took up position next to Boulder. Bulbasaur and pikachu took up position next to rhyhorn.
"There's little chance that you'll be getting these pokemon today!" I said. "Pikachu! Thundershock!"
Pikachu shot a bolt of electricity directly at the voltorb that Kirby was holding, which promptly exploded. Kirby's face was charred black.
"Ooooh. That smarts." he said as he fell.
"You'll pay for that!" Lilly said as she released her beedrill. "Beedrill attack!"
The beedrill charged directly at Boulder. But bulbasaur and pikachu saw this and promptly did a double team attack of vine whip and thunder shock. The beedrill fainted. The rhyhorn charged at Kirby and Lilly. He hit them dead on. They were thrown into the gym.
"We may be defeated but we're still victorious!" Kirby yelled as he dropped a voltorb into the center of the arena. Where had I heard that line before? The rhyhorn was in a rage. He charged them at full speed. He hit them at full strength which sent them flying through the roof and into the sky. As they flew they cried, "Looks like team rocket's blasting off again!"
"Rhyhorn! Get outta there!" Boulder yelled.
But it was too late. The voltorb that Kirby had planted was already beginning to self destruct. The structural integrity of the gym was already weakened by the other two voltorbs. The voltorb exploded.
Nothing could have survived all that. And nothing did. It is a terrible thing to lose one's pokemon to death. Especially when the killers are team rocket. Boulder had sifted through the rubble of his gym and found the body of his rhyhorn. The funeral was a long procession as would any funeral for an honorable pokemon such as rhyhorn would be. But rhyhorn's story will be saved for another day. After the funeral, officer Jenny put up wanted posters and made an APB for the arrest of Lilly and Kirby of team rocket who were now wanted for an account of pokecide. Boulder and I stared out over the ruins of his gym.
"I'm too old for this." He said after a long while.
"What will you do now?" I asked.
"I'm going to have to start a new gym. Totally start over." He said. He reached into his pocket and produced a boulder badge. "Take this."
"But we never finished our battle." I said.
"We can't now. Besides, you're pokemon protected me from that beedrill. I am in their debt, and as you are their trainer, I'm in you're debt too." He pushed the boulder badge into my hand. "You cannot refuse me. Just take it and go. You'll find the next gym in Cerulean."
I took the boulder badge. A bittersweet victory. I looked down and saw that I was standing near an unharmed part of Boulder's rock garden. I was happy that at least something had survived that. I went to the pokemon center and called home. I told my dad to gather some stones and start a rock garden for me. He wondered why, but I told him it was something a friend of mine had showed me.
Andrew showed up as I hung up the phone. He put his pokeballs on the rejuvinator and we caught up on old times. I told him about the incident with team rocket. The next day Andrew went to see Boulder. Boulder accepted his challenge. He fought with only onix outside of the ruins of his gym. Andrew received the boulder badge. We went into the pokecenter to sleep. Andrew and pikachu slept well, but I stayed awake, unable to sleep. I made a silent vow to avenge Boulder's loss.
NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR : I never thought I would write something like this. It really suprised me when I wrote it because this just isn't what I normally write.