Battle for the zephyr ba.., p.1
Battle for the Zephyr Badge, page 1
I want to be the very best there ever was
To beat all the rest, yeah, that’s my cause
Catch ’em, Catch ’em, Gotta catch ’em all
Pokémon I’ll search across the land
Look far and wide
Release from my hand
The power that’s inside
Catch ’em, Catch ’em, Gotta catch ’em all Pokémon!
Gotta catch ’em all, Gotta catch ’em all
Gotta catch ’em all, Gotta catch ’em all
At least one hundred and fifty or more to see
To be a Pokémon Master is my destiny
Catch ’em, Catch ’em, Gotta catch ’em all
Gotta catch ’em all, Pokémon! (repeat three times)
Here’s the rest of the Poké Rap.
Dratini, Growlithe, Mr. Mime, Cubone
Graveler, Voltorb, Gloom
Charmeleon, Wartortle
Mewtwo, Tentacruel, Aerodactyl
Omanyte, Slowpoke
Pidgeot, Arbok
That’s all folks!
Words and Music by Tamara Loeffler and John Siegler
Copyright © 1999 Pikachu Music (BMI)
Worldwide rights for Pikachu Music administered by Cherry River Music Co. (BMI)
All Rights Reserved Used by Permission
Contents
Title Page
Chapter 1: The GS Ball Thief
Chapter 2: The Quagsire That Wouldn’t Give Up
Chapter 3: A Slippery Capture
Chapter 4: Luckiest Of All
Chapter 5: Pokémon Academy
Chapter 6: Bellsprout
Chapter 7: Trouble in the Tower
Chapter 8: Up, Up … and Away With Pikachu
Chapter 9: A Mysterious Rescue
Chapter 10: Chikorita vs. Hoothoot
Chapter 11: Pikachu vs. Dodrio
Chapter 12: Final Round
Sneak Peek
Copyright
“Thanks, Pikachu. We’ll have the best looking Poké Balls at the Violet City Gym,” said Ash Ketchum.
Ash and his yellow Electric-type Pokémon, Pikachu, were in the beautiful gardens of Cherrygrove City. Ash was polishing his Poké Balls beside a river. Pikachu was helping. As Ash set down the last of several gleaming red-and-white Poké Balls, Pikachu handed him one more ball.
It was different from the other Poké Balls. This special gold-and-silver Poké Ball was called the GS Ball. Professor Oak, a Pokémon expert, had sent Ash all the way to the Orange Islands to get it.
But Professor Oak couldn’t open the mysterious Poké Ball. So he sent Ash and his friends on another mission to the western territories. He wanted Ash to find Kurt, the man who designed the GS Ball. Professor Oak hoped Kurt could open the ball and find out what was inside.
Ash was glad for the opportunity. As soon as Ash arrived in the western territories, he headed straight to New Bark Town to sign up for the Johto League. He might as well test his skills and earn some badges as long as he was on a journey. If he earned eight badges at eight different Johto League gyms, Ash could compete in the Johto League Tournament, and show off his skills as a Pokémon Trainer. At the moment, Ash was on his way to the Violet City Gym to compete for his very first Johto League badge.
It seemed like ages ago since Ash had first got the GS Ball. And now they were way out west, far away from home and Professor Oak. Sunlight sparkled on the GS Ball as Ash polished it.
Ash’s friend Misty watched him work. “Ash, you need more than shiny Poké Balls to win at the Violet City Gym,” she teased. “You need to practice your skills as a Pokémon Trainer.”
Ash ignored the teasing. But he knew what Misty meant. Gym battles were the toughest competitions a Trainer could face. He had to be ready.
A delicious smell wafted through the air. “Brock’s cooking lunch,” Misty said.
Ash’s friend Brock was a former Gym Leader. He traveled with Ash and Misty.
Ash put the GS Ball on the ground and watched his friends. She had orange hair and carried around a small Spike Ball Pokémon, Togepi. Togepi’s tiny arms, legs, and head stuck out of the eggshell it had hatched from.
Brock was stirring something over a small fire. It smelled great.
“It’s ready,” he called, holding up his cooking pan. Misty and Ash raced to the campfire to join Brock. But their lunch was interrupted before it began.
“Pika!” From a spot on the riverbank, Pikachu let out a startled cry.
Ash whirled around.
“Huh?”
Pikachu pointed to something in the river. A shiny blue Pokémon had popped up from underwater. It had a big, thick tail, like a paddle.
Ash was always excited to run into a new breed of Pokémon. He hurried to the river and pulled out Dexter, his Pokédex. The tiny computer held information about all the world’s Pokémon. “What is that?” Ash asked.
“Quagsire. A Water-type Pokémon.” Dexter replied. “Quagsire inhabits pure-water lakes. Its skin is covered with a special slippery layer, making it very difficult to catch.”
Misty was excited, too. She was crazy about Water-type Pokémon. “With that slick look, Quagsire’s really cool!”
“Quagsire.” The Quagsire’s voice was soft and quiet.
“All right!” Misty shouted. “I’m going to catch it.” She pulled a Poké Ball from her backpack and threw it as hard as she could.
“Psyduck.” An orange Pokémon popped out.
Ash groaned. Instead of going after Quagsire, it just stood there and stared.
Misty raced over to Psyduck.
“This is useless,” Misty said. She scooped up the Pokémon in her arms.
As she lifted Psyduck, Misty accidentally kicked the GS Ball. It rolled down the river bank toward Quagsire.
“Quagsire!” Quick as a flash, the slippery blue Pokémon grabbed the GS Ball in its mouth and swam away.
Ash couldn’t believe his eyes. “Hey, hold on! Bring back the GS Ball!” Ash grabbed a Poké Ball and raced down the riverbank after Quagsire, with Pikachu right behind him. Puffing and panting, Ash tossed a Poké Ball into the river. “Help me out, Squirtle.”
Squirtle exploded from the ball. It had a blue body and a hard shell. It swam after Quagsire as fast as it could. When it was pretty close, Squirtle took a flying leap and landed on Quagsire’s back.
“Good work, Squirtle!” Ash called. “Now grab that GS Ball.”
Squirtle tried to get the ball out of Quagsire’s mouth. But Quagsire’s skin was too slippery. Squirtle couldn’t hold on.
Quagsire knew it had the advantage. It ducked down and threw Squirtle off its back. Squirtle flew high over Quagsire’s head. Splash! Squirtle landed on its back in the water. Quagsire raced on past.
“Are you all right?” Ash shouted.
“Squirtle!” The Pokémon flipped over and chased after Quagsire. It jumped into the air and tried to land on Quagsire again. But Quagsire used its thick tail to swat Squirtle. Once again, Squirtle flew into the air and splash-landed on its back.
“Squirtle, don’t give up!” Ash shouted. “Water Gun!”
Squirtle flipped over and squirted a huge jet of water at Quagsire’s head. Quagsire opened its mouth so it could return the attack. Out popped the GS Ball! The gold-and-silver ball sailed high into the air.
“Pika!” Pikachu reached over the water and caught the GS Ball.
Ash breathed a sigh of relief. “Nice work!”
In the river, Squirtle aimed another jet of water at Quagsire. The slippery Pokémon had a Water Gun attack of its own. It fired a stream right back at Squirtle. The two jets of water collided in midair.
Misty still wanted to capture Quagsire. She grabbed a Poké Ball from her backpack and got ready to throw. “Okay, Quagsire, you’re mi-”
The shrill sound of a police whistle cut off Misty’s cry. Ash, Misty, and Brock turned around. A blue-haired police officer was sitting on a motorcycle. She did not look happy.
Ash and the others recognized the officer right away. Every town Ash had visited had a police officer named Jenny.
This Officer Jenny dangled a pair of shiny silver handcuffs from her fingers.
“You’re all under arrest!” she said.
“Under arrest?” Ash asked.
“This area is a Quagsire preservation,” Officer Jenny said. “You can’t catch Quagsire here.”
Ash and the others tried to explain that they didn’t know about the preservation. Officer Jenny took them down to her headquarters so she could check out the story with Professor Oak. She called up the professor on a videophone. His face appeared on the screen.
Professor Oak explained, “The Quagsire in Cherrygrove City will only live in very clean waters. The townspeople are able to tell if local water is pure by whether or not Quagsire live there.”
Officer Jenny turned to Ash, Misty, and Brock. “From now on, you must not raise a finger against a Quagsire,” she said. “That means no capturing or even battling. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” Ash and his friends replied all together.
Ash said good-bye to Professor Oak and turned to Officer Jenny. “One thing still seems strange. Why did the Quagsire try to take this?” He held out the GS Ball.
“Because it’s round,” Officer Jenny said.
“Huh?” Her answer made no sense to Ash.
“The Quagsire of Cherrygrove City are said to live at Blue Moon Falls,” Jenny explained. “Quagsire begin to appear i
“They come back?” Ash was glad to hear it. He didn’t plan to lose the GS Ball again — but just in case.
“They come back carrying pure water and good luck with them,” Officer Jenny replied. “At least, that’s what we’ve always said here in Cherrygrove City. They say the last object to come floating back is the luckiest of all.”
Then Officer Jenny turned to the window. “What’s that?” she asked.
Something was rapping on the window pane.
“Quagsire!” Misty shouted.
The blue Water-type Pokémon stared at them through the glass.
“It’s the one we just saw,” Ash said.
“I’ll bet it’s still after the GS Ball,” Brock guessed.
“Pika,” Pikachu chimed in.
“Quagsire, quag, quag!” Quagsire was definitely staring at the GS Ball.
“No, you can’t have it,” Ash said sternly.
“Quagsire,” the Pokémon said. It slid down and disappeared below the windowsill.
Ash was relieved. He couldn’t risk losing the GS Ball again.
“We’d better get to the next town,” Ash said. Misty and Brock agreed. They said good-bye to Officer Jenny and headed out.
Soon they were crossing a bridge over the river. Ash looked down at the blue water.
“Pika.” Pikachu sounded worried.
Ash looked down at Pikachu. Quagsire was back! It was sitting right beside Pikachu on the bridge.
The Quagsire stretched its arms out toward Ash. “Quagsire.”
Ash couldn’t believe it. This Quagsire just wouldn’t give up.
Quagsire took a flying leap and landed right on top of Ash.
“Hey, knock it off!” Ash turned left and then right, trying to shake off Quagsire. But the Pokémon hung on tight.
“Somebody, do something!” Ash yelled.
Brock and Misty tried to pull Quagsire off Ash. But their hands slid right off Quagsire’s slippery back.
Finally, Ash managed to pull a Poké Ball from his backpack. He cocked his arm and tossed it past Quagsire.
“Chika!” Chikorita, a small Grass-type Pokémon, popped out. The light green Pokémon had a ring of dark green spots around its neck. Chikorita also had a long, pointy green leaf growing from the top of its head.
Chikorita glared at Quagsire. The leaf on its head began to spin like a propeller. Chikorita rose into the air and whirled toward Ash and Quagsire. The gust of wind it created blew Quagsire away.
The little Grass-type Pokémon landed gently in front of Ash.
Suddenly, Ash felt something behind him. Quagsire was back!
“Chika!” Once again, the Grass-type Pokémon used its propeller. It whirled toward Quagsire, trying to blow it away. Instead, it almost blew Ash right off the bridge. Ash’s backpack flew off his back.
“Quit it, Chikorita!” Ash said.
Ash’s backpack flapped open in the breeze. The wind picked up the GS Ball and sent it flying out of the backpack.
Quickly, Quagsire dove at the flying GS Ball. It caught the ball in its wide mouth. Quagsire leaped over the bridge’s railing and landed in the river. Then Quagsire swam away.
“Oh, no!” Ash yelled. “It’s got the GS Ball again!”
“Where could that Quagsire have gone?” Ash asked.
Ash, Pikachu, Misty, and Brock had raced along the riverbank until they were all out of breath. Now they were standing on a wooden bridge over the river. Behind them, the sun was setting. Quagsire was nowhere to be seen.
“Quagsire swam up the river,” Brock said. “It’s got to be here somewhere.”
Misty looked annoyed. “Don’t you think we’d be better off waiting back in town than wandering around aimlessly?”
Brock considered this. “Misty’s right. If we’re lucky, the GS Ball should come back downstream.”
“But what if we’re not lucky?” Ash asked. He remembered what Officer Jenny had said. The Quagsire were supposed to return all the round objects. But Ash wasn’t sure he trusted that story.
Then Pikachu started to jump up and down. “Pika! Pika pi!”
“What’s the matter, Pikachu?” Ash asked. He looked down at the river.
“Hey, it’s Quagsire!” he shouted. Not one, not two, but four of the slippery Pokémon were swimming past. All of the Quagsire were carrying round items. But none of them had the GS Ball.
That didn’t seem to worry Brock. “I’ll bet anything they’re going to meet their friends,” he said.
“All right, let’s go!” Ash took off in the direction the Quagsire were swimming. Misty and Brock trailed right behind him. They followed the Quagsire up the river.
After a while, the river ran into a large pool. Ash and the others hid in some reeds at the edge of the water. They parted the reeds and peeked out at the pool.
By now, night had fallen. Stars twinkled in the sky. The water in the pool was a deep, dark blue. Wow, Ash thought, what a beautiful sight.
“Look at all those Quagsire!” Misty whispered.
“I wonder if this is where they live,” Ash said.
Brock frowned. “But Officer Jenny said they live at Blue Moon Falls. I don’t see any falls around here.”
“Me, neither.” Ash looked around. He didn’t see any falls. But he did see exactly what he was looking for. One of the Quagsire was holding the GS Ball!
“There it is! That’s the one!” Ash grabbed a Poké Ball and got ready to throw it.
Misty looked alarmed. “Officer Jenny told you to leave those Quagsire alone!”
“Oh, yeah,” Ash said. “But …” How could he just stand there and do nothing when that Quagsire had Professor Oak’s GS Ball?
“Hey, what are those Quagsire doing?”
Misty asked. They all stared at the sky. “They’re looking up,” said Brock. “They must be waiting for something.”
“Up?” Ash asked, looking up himself.
A hot-air balloon floated in the sky above the pool. The white balloon was decorated with the face of a Meowth.
Ash knew that balloon. It belonged to Team Rocket. Jessie, James, and their Pokémon, Meowth, were Pokémon thieves. Right now, it looked like Team Rocket was out to capture the Quagsire. Two long, metal arms stuck out from the basket of Team Rocket’s balloon. Each arm had a claw at the end of it for grabbing things.
“Quagsire!” Ash shouted. But he was too late. The thieves used a claw to scoop up a Quagsire. They dangled it over the water.
“What’s going on here?” Brock asked. Team Rocket was ready with their motto. “Prepare for trouble,” said Jessie. The girl had long red hair that matched the R emblazoned on her white Team Rocket uniform.
“And make it double,” said James, a boy with purple hair.
Jessie, James, and Meowth launched into their motto. Ash tuned out. He had heard it a million times before. Besides, he was too busy watching the Quagsire Team Rocket had captured.
The slick little Pokémon slipped out of the clamp. It dove back into the water.
“That wasn’t supposed to happen,” James said.
“What are you guys doing here, anyway?” Misty called up to them.
“What does it look like?” asked Meowth. “We’re stealing all the Quagsire, of course.”
“And we’re trying to get back our Poké Balls,” Jessie added. “Those little thieves stole them.”
“Yeah, we’re the only thieves around here,” said James.
“Well, you’re not doing a very good job,” Misty retorted.
Meowth hit a button on a handheld remote control. “We’ll see about that!”
The metal arms moved into action. They tried to catch one Quagsire after another. But the Quagsire were too slippery to catch. They leaped and dove right through the claws on the ends of the arms. One Quagsire after another escaped from Team Rocket.
“Knock this off right now,” Jessie screamed at her teammates. “Meowth! Begin Plan B!”
Meowth groaned. “We should have started with Plan B!” The Pokémon pushed another button on the remote-control device.
The button opened a trapdoor on the bottom of the balloon basket. Out came a gigantic net. The Quagsire were too slippery to catch with the metal claws. But their slick skin could not help them to escape from a net.
