Pokémon Ultra: Spark yellow

Well, here I am... I’m finally in Lavender Town. I know I should be happy to arrive in the next town, but... There was something that seemed a bit... Off about this town. I don’t know what it was, but I felt an eerie chill with this place, and it didn’t help that the town was almost empty, only having a few people walking around outside. It was a smaller town though, not having much in it that was noticeable, besides a huge tower, but... The town still felt strange to me...

I don’t know, maybe I was still just feeling anxious about what happened in the Rocky Tunnel earlier... I really need to calm down. Explore the town a bit, then I’ll head off to the next town when I’m done, since this town has no gym in it...

“Pika...” Pikachu also had an unsettled look on his face, as he looked around the town.

“You nervous too, Pikachu? Glad it’s not just me...”

“Hey...You...” I heard a soft voice speaking to me, nearly getting spooked as I suddenly saw a little girl standing next to me. “Do you... Believe... In ghosts?” She asked.

“Me? Umm... I think so... Why do you ask?” The little girl didn’t respond to me, only smirking as she chuckled a bit.

“Heh... You are a believer then, I knew it.” The little girl says. “Guess that white hand on your shoulder is pretty real after all.”

“W-white hand?! What?!” I quickly turned around, looking at my shoulders and seeing nothing, but when I turned back around, that little girl was already gone, and I had no idea where she went. “Wha...What?” Feeling more unsettled now, I started fast walking back to Pokémon center, but... As I was walking, I had a weird sinking feeling, like someone was following me... But when I turned around, I didn’t see anyone.

“Man... The sooner I get out of this town, the better.”

Sometime later...

I made my way back to the Pokémon center, which even felt a bit empty as well, besides Nurse Joy and a couple other trainers...

“Hey, your Pokémon your all healed now!” Nurse Joy called to me, as I ran up to her, collecting Pikachu and my Pokeballs.

“Thanks! Um, miss, if you don’t mind me asking something...” I paused, looking at the huge tower out the window. “What’s up with that gigantic tower? What’s it used for?”

“Oh, that? It’s called Lavender Tower.” Nurse Joy responds. “That tower is where trainers bury their Pokémon that have passed away.”

“Whoa, really? Wow, that’s sad... Does that mean that tower is filled with... Ghosts, then?”

“Yes, this whole town always has ghost sightings in it. Of both people and Pokémon.” Nurse Joy states. “A lot of them aren’t very friendly as well, as there’s constant reports of ghosts attacking people... There’s a lot of people who avoid this whole town as a result. And it doesn’t help that most of the ghost Pokémon don’t reveal themselves to people. You need something called a Silph Scope to see them...”

“Huh... I wonder if I could catch one...” My eyes were still fixated on the tower outside, thinking of all the cool ghost type Pokémon I could find in there.

“I wouldn’t exactly recommend it, those towers can be pretty dangerous at times...” Nurse Joys says. “But, if you really wanna go there, I guess I can’t stop you... Just, be careful is all.”

“I will. Thanks, nurse.” I waved goodbye, as I exited the Pokemon center, starting to make my way over to Lavender Tower. Those ghost Pokémon don’t... Scare me. I ain’t afraid of no ghosts! And I’m gonna... Um... Catch one. To prove that I’m not scared! Or, atleast I hope I can catch one...

....But while I was walking though, I felt that... Same presence behind me, again. I turned around a lot quicker this time, but still saw nothing. What the heck? Was someone following me around or something?! This is all way too spooky for my tastes... Anyways, I started walking a bit faster, quickly arriving at the tower, as I walked in, and... Man, this place didn’t make me feel much better. Despite being a pretty big room that we entered in, it was pretty empty, not having much furniture besides a few couches and a counter. The few people that were in here seemed pretty gloomy, a bunch of the people sobbing in the corners and such, which I’m guessing we’re all mourning some lost loved ones... The dark presence in this room made in instant chill go up my spine.

“Pika pi...” Pikachu squeaked uncomfortably, clutching onto my pant leg nervously.

“I-it’s alright Pikachu...” I say, trying to hide my worry as I held Pikachu up, who clutched onto my chest. “W-well be fine, as long as we stick together...” I walked towards the stairs, gulping nervously as I made my way up... The first room we arrived in was full of nothing but gravestones, the room empty of people... It was a bit foggy in the room, making it hard to see, as I carefully walked around... Oh, please don’t let anything sneak up on me right now...

“WAAAAUUUGHHH!!” Suddenly from a far distance away, I heard someone screeching, the screaming sounding like it was getting closer... Until I suddenly saw Blue bolting down the stairs, running towards me as he screeches to a halt, barely avoiding crashing into me.

“Whoa! Blue, what’s going on?!” I quickly asked him.

“Sam?! Urgh...” Blue whimpered quietly, looking behind him in a panicked frenzy, before looking back at me. “It’s n-nothing you should be concerned with! Not like I was running away from ghosts or anything...” I could tell Blue was freaking out, but clearing hiding it, having a forced smirk on his face, as his eyes twitched uncomfortably. 

“Um, okay then...”

“Whoa, wait a minute... What’s up with your Pikachu?” He pointed to Pikachu’s nervous form, trying to change the subject. “Did one of your Pokémon die or something? Is that why you’re here?!”

“What?! No! Why would you ask me that?!”

“Man, chill out, I was just curious!” Blue says, giving a casual shrug, as he lifts up one of his Pokeballs. “But hey, I can still atleast make them faint! Come on, let’s have a Pokémon battle right now!” 

Hmm... Normally I’d be annoyed by Blue trying to change the subject so quickly, but hey... A battle could definitely calm my nerves, and help my team’s strength right now!

“Alright, Blue... You’re on!”

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BATTLE... BEGIN!!

Blue: “Go, Pidgeotto!”

Sam: “Lets go, Pikachu! Use Thunder Wave!”

Blue: “Dodge it, and use Whirlwind!”

Sam: “Dodge it, Pikachu!”

I guess Pikachu’s nerves must’ve thrown him off his game, cause he completely failed to dodge, the wind sending Pikachu flying out of bounds... As one of my Pokeballs suddenly clicked open, sending Jigglypuff onto the battlefield.

Blue: “Pidgeotto, use Quick Attack!”

Sam: “What the... Jigglypuff, use Mega Punch!”

Blue: “Keep using Quick Attack, Pidgeotto!”

Sam: “Jigglypuff, counter it with more Mega Punches!”

Despite Jigglypuff’s attacks doing more damage, Pidgeotto was attacking more rapidly, making it hard for Jigglypuff to land most of her attacks.

Blue: “Finish em off with Gust!”

Sam: “Dodge it, Jigglypuff!”

Jigglypuff couldn’t dodge fast enough... Getting slammed to the ground as she fainted. 

Sam: “Urgh, come on... Let’s go, Pikachu! Use your most powerful Thunderbolt!!”

Pikachu let out a furiously powerful Thunderbolt... Instantly fainting Pidgeotto!

Blue: “Alright... Let’s go, Growlithe! Use Roar!”

Sam: “Pikachu, use Thunder Wave!”

Luckily Pikachu landed his Thunder Wave, but not before he got knocked out of the battlefield again... But this time, Ivysaur popped out of her Pokeball.

Blue: “Growlithe, use Ember!”

Sam: “Ivysaur, use Tackle!”

Blue: “Keep using Ember!”

Sam: “Keep up with your Tackles too, Ivysaur!”

Despite Ivysaur attacking pretty well, I could tell that the Embers had burned her, and were doing a lot of damage... Oh no, it’s too late for her...”

Blue: “Finish Ivysaur off! Use Bite!”

Growlithe attacked... Fainting Ivysaur. Man, what was I doing?! I really should’ve switched out Ivysaur there... Ugh, gotta focus. Get my head in the game...

Sam: “Let’s go, Squirtle! Use Water Gun!”

Blue: “Use Roar!”

Sam: “Quick, dodge it! Then use one last Water Gun!”

Luckily Squirtle was obeying me today, perfectly dodging as he quickly fainted Growlithe.

Blue: “Let’s go, Gyarados!”

Whoa... Gyarados was huge! Gyarados towered over Squirtle, who looked up at it with a nervous look, slowly backing away.

Sam: “Stay calm, Squirtle... Use Bite!”

Blue: “Use Thrash, Gyarados!”

Gyarados’ attack did a ton of damage to Squirtle, just the one attack making him struggle to stand up... Ugh, but now Gyarados was still thrashing around, making it hard for Squirtle to even get close now...

Sam: “Hang in there, Squirtle! Use Water Gun!”

Squirtle’s attack didn’t do much... As the thrashing Gyarados instantly fainted Squirtle. Stay calm Sam, you still got this...

Sam: “You’ve got this, Pikachu! Use Thunderbolt!”

Pikachu’s attack nearly fainted Gyarados, but it still wasn’t enough, as Gyarados’ thrashing fainted Pikachu.

Sam: “No... Let’s go Nidorino, you’ve got this! Use Horn Attack!”

Gyarados continued thrashing around, the attack nearly fainting Nidorino, who struggled to stand... But luckily Nidorino landed his attack afterwards... Finally fainting Gyarados.

Blue: “Let’s go, Kadabra! Use Confusion!”

Sam: “Quick, use Poison Sting!”

Despite Nidorino’s Poison Sting landing, and poisoning Kadabra, I knew this was over for him... Nidorino was already weakened, and weak against psychic type attacks... So of course he fainted. No no no, I’ve only got one Pokémon left...

Sam: “It’s all up to you now, Charmeleon! Use Dig!”

Blue: “Use Confusion!”

Charmeleon dodged the attack by digging, doing a lot of damage to Kadabra. With the poison, Kadabra wasn’t gonna last much longer, I could tell...

Blue: “Quick Kadabra, use Disable!” 

Sam: “Finish em off with Scratch!”

Charmeleon’s attack fainted Kadabra. He couldn’t use Dig anymore though...

Blue: “Let’s go, Eevee! Use Sand Attack!”

Sam: “Use Ember!”

Blue: “Keep using Sand Attack!”

Man, I have just about HAD IT with this stupid Sand Attack strategy! Ugh, now Charmeleon can’t see, and his attacks keep missing... Oh no...

Blue: “Now, keep using Quick Attack!”

Sam: “Keep using Ember, Charmeleon!”

There was nothing else I could do in this moment... Eevee was landing all of his attacks, and Charmeleon was landing little-to-none of his... Then, there it happened. Charmeleon fainted.

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“What... I lost? But how...” I mumbled, unable to process what just happened.

“Whoa...” Blue blinked in confusion, almost seeming just as shocked by this outcome, before a cocky smirk formed on his face. “Hah! Knew I would win. That’s what happens when you’ve been training like crazy...” Blue turned around, looking around for a bit, before walking away. “Well, that was fun... Smell you later, Sam!” He shouts, before leaving the room. 

I felt so... Horrible. I thought I’d been training well lately, but... I somehow still managed to lose to Blue, for the second time. Was I... Doing something wrong? I don’t know anymore... Either way, I didn’t feel like being in this tower anymore. I’ll catch a ghost Pokémon some other time... 

“I... I’m sorry, everyone.”

Sometime later...

After heading back to the Pokémon Center, I didn’t really have any idea on what to do next, only just sadly trudging through the town, wondering what to do next... Ugh, but I’m starting to feel that same presence following me around again... What’s going on here?!

“Ugh! Whoever’s following me, would you just leave me alone already?! I am NOT in the mood for this!” I stopped, turning around to yell at whatever was still following me... Honestly, at this point, I was too frustrated and sad to even be scared anymore...

“Pika pi!” Pikachu stopped, tugging at my pant leg, as he pointed up at a building, that was labeled: Lavender Town Daycare Center.

Hmm, wait a minute... This place sounded familiar to me... Oh, I remember now! This is where Meredith works! That girl that gave Ivysaur to me...

“Whoa, good job spotting this place, Pikachu! Let’s go in...” We both happily walk into the daycare, first seeing a few different people taking care of different Pokémon... And in one corner, I quickly spotted Meredith, who was taking care of an unfamiliar Pokémon.

“Hey, Meredith!” I quickly called to the girl, who looked up at me with an excited expression, as I ran over to her.

“Oh my gosh, hi Sam! It’s so nice to see you!” Meredith giggles happily. “Your journey must be going well if you’re already here, heh... Ooh, how’s Bulbasaur doing?”

“Uh, pretty well actually. Um, look...” I released Ivysaur from her Pokeball, Meredith squealing with excitement.

“Oh my Arceus, she’s already evolved?! That’s amazing! Hello, Ivysaur...” Ivysaur ran up to Meredith happily, Meredith petting Ivysaur on the head. “You must be training your Pokémon really well, Sam...”

“Um... I don’t know anymore Meredith, I...” My voice trailed off, feeling the stinging pain of my loss once again. “Earlier today, I... I lost a battle. To my rival. It’s the first time I’ve lost a battle since the day I started my journey...”

“Aw, come on, Sam! That’s no reason to be sad...” Meredith says. “We all have our off days, you can’t be sad because of one loss... Don’t worry, I can tell your Pokémon still believe in you!”

“Really... You guys aren’t mad at me?” I looked down at Pikachu and Ivysaur, who both gave reassuring smiles at me. 

“Cubone! Bone!” The Pokémon Meredith was taking care of squeaked happily.

“Meredith, what kind of Pokémon is that?” I asked her.

“Oh, this little guy? It’s a Cubone...” Meredith responds. “Poor little guy became an orphan after some Team Rocket members killed his mother...”

“Aw, really? Poor little guy...”

“Yeah, we’ve been taking care of him ever since... But you know what? I can tell his spirits still not broken yet!”

“Heh, I can tell...” I smiled, kneeling down to pat Cubone on the head... But then, I started feeling that same presence behind me, once again...

“Urgh, I’m sick of this! Whoever you are-“

I turned around, but was suddenly shocked seeing a floating Pokémon right in front of my face, catching me off guard as I stumbled away.

“Gastly! Gassst!” The Pokémon chuckled, smirking playfully.

“Whoa, that’s a Gastly! I’m surprised it’s showing itself around you, though...” Meredith says.

“Whoa... Gastly, are you the one that’s been following me around this whole time?” I asked, the Gastly nodding yes.

“That Gastly must like you... I think it wants you to catch it!” Meredith says. Gastly then gives me a nod of approval, as I pull out a Pokeball, chucking it...

...1 shake...

...2 shakes...

...3 shakes...

...Click!

“Whoa, amazing... Guess I got to catch a ghost Pokémon after all then!” I pick up Gastly’s Pokeball, smiling at everyone as I felt a new sense of happiness.

“You know what, Meredith? You’re right! I can’t let one loss take me down...”

From now on... I’m not gonna mope around anymore. The next time I lose...

...I’ll just have to get stronger!