~Boom~
Thick smoke drifted down from the hole blown in Pokémon Centre's roof. But soon after, a gust of wind swept the lobby as the smoke cleared and showed three figures standing side by side, striking a dramatic pose.
When his eyes landed on the trio, Daemon first noticed the woman with long magenta hair wearing a tight black skirt with a matching black top that showed her underbelly. On the front of her top, a blood red 'R' was printed that showed which criminal organization she belonged to.
Standing next to her was a man with light blue hair and a rose in his right hand. He too wore similar clothes.
And right in front of the duo was a Meowth, standing with its arms crossed.
"Prepare for trouble."
"Make it double."
"To protect the world from devastation."
"To unite all the people in our nation."
"To denounce the evils of truth and love."
"To extend our reach to the stars above."
"Jessie."
"James."
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light."
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight."
"Meowth! That's right!"
The few trainers in the Pokémon Centre looked at the trio with stunned silence, their dramatic performance having caught them off guard.
'It was...good?' Daemon thought to himself, despite the severity of the situation.
He knew who and what Team Rocket was; everyone in the Kanto Region knew of them. Novice trainers with no badges, like him, and even those with one or two badges were asked not get involved with them unless necessary.
They were the largest and most dangerous criminal organization in the whole region that was involved in every kind of illegal activity, including Pokémon poaching, being among the most famous of them all.
Now, with the three members of Team Rocket before them, the trainers, as well as Nurse Joy, knew the Pokémon were in danger. Moreover, most of the Pokémon of these trainers were either injured or too weak to fight off Team Rocket members.
"Wait." Suddenly, a voice cut through the silence and all eyes turned to an orange-haired girl. "That Meowth can talk?"
Daemon looked at the orange-haired girl and then at the Meowth. He had somehow let that slip his mind, and now that the girl had said it outloud, even he was shocked. How could a normal-type Pokémon speak the human tongue?
"We can answer all your questions, of course," Jessie spoke with her right hand on her hips. "But in turn, we demand all of your Pokémon."
"You can hand them over by yourself..." James added from the side as he smelled the rose.
"...Or we can take them from you," Meowth spoke in human tongue while showing off his sharp claws.
"I will never give my Pokémon to you."
A voice cut through the tension as a spiky-haired boy who was standing beside the orange-haired girl spoke with confidence.
"Pi Pika!"
The electric mouse on his shoulders jumped down and got ready to fight.
"Staryu, I choose you!" The orange-haired girl released her Pokémon as well, but Daemon noticed how she kept another Pokeball in her left hand, ready to release whatever was inside if things went astray.
"Hmph! Since you want a fight, then so be it." James took out a Pokeball. "Fight for me, Koffing. Use, [Smog]."
"Ekans, [Bite]." Jessie released her own Pokémon while Meowth charged towards the two trainers with [Fury Swipes].
All the trainers in the Pokémon Centre right now were novices who had just started their journeys and were thus frozen in terror. Jessie and James had noticed it too; they knew if they could take down the two putting up a resistance, things would progress more easily for them.
"Pikachu, [Thunder Shock] on the Koffing."
"Staryu, use [Water Gun] on the Ekans."
The two trainers gave their orders, but as the two Pokémon used their respective attacks, Meowth rushed forward.
"Shit." The orange-haired girl cursed when the normal-type came for her Staryu and was about to release the Pokémon inside her other Pokeball when a voice rang out from the corner.
"Alice, use [Mystical Fire]."
A torrent of fire was unleashed upon the Meowth, catching the latter off guard.
"Shit!" Meowth cursed, but it was too late.
~Bang~
The normal-type was sent flying back to the two from Team Rocket.
"Meowth!" James hurriedly rushed over to the normal-type. "You twerp! Koffing [Tackle]."
The poison-type ignored the electric mouse and charged at Ralts. Sadly, it was too slow.
"Use [Confusion]." Daemon ordered and watched as his starter released a wave of psychic energy at the incoming Pokémon. The super effective attack not only dealt a lot of damage, but also left the Koffing in the state of confusion. "End it with [Mystical Fire]."
Another wave of fiery energy left her tiny hands and slammed right into the confused poison-type.
~Bang~
Koffing was sent flying towards its trainer along with Ekans, who was taken care of by Staryu and Pikachu.
"Ralts!" The psychic-type dusted her hands before walking back to a magazine she had found in the lounge.
"We were defeated..." Jessie stepped back.
"...By three twerps," James said in shock. "Let's run."
"Not so fast!"
The moment the trio tried to run away, Officer Jenny rushed in with Growlithe by her side.
Events after that happened faster than Daemon could have imagined since he expected the members of Team Rocket to put up a fight, but they...surrendered?
They recalled their Pokémon except Meowth and allowed Officer Jenny to take them away, much to everyone's surprise. On the other hand, Nurse Joy was busy transferring all the Pokémon in her centre to the one in Pewter City since the facility was half-destroyed by the blast.
Daemon thanked the Arceus above that at least the dorms for the trainers were untouched.
He also spent some time recounting the events to Officer Jenny, who promised him and the other two trainers who fought back a cash reward for their help. Nurse Joy also said the same, but requested to postpone it for tomorrow.
Next, he decided to help Nurse Joy, who was short on staff who readily appreciated his help. He was soon joined by the same two trainers who fought the Team Rocket, but the trio was too busy with the work to even introduce themselves.
Once everything was settled after a few hours, Daemon walked over to the only area preserved in the Pokémon Centre, along with the dorms, the cafeteria. He was planning to have dinner when Team Rocket decided to blow up the place. Thankfully, the centre was still serving food, despite what it had been through.
He got his meal and found a quiet corner to eat by himself while Ralts was still busy reading the recent article posted by a professor about Pokémon genetics, while eating three scoops of Pokémon ice cream.
"Can we join you as well?"
Daemon looked up and saw the two trainers who had taken the initiative to fight Team Rocket.
"Be my guest." He pointed at the empty chairs around the table he was having his dinner on.
The duo settled down before the boy introduced himself. "I am Ash Ketchum, from Pallet Town. I want to be a Pokémon Master, and this is my partner Pikachu."
"Pika Pi."
"I am Misty." The orange-haired girl introduced herself. "Thanks for helping Staryu back there."
"Daemon. And that's Alice," he introduced himself as well as his Pokémon, but kept it short like the orange-haired girl. "And don't sweat it. I don't think the help was needed, though." His eyes landed on the Pokeball around Misty's neck, signifying it to be her ace. "You likely had it under control."
The girl sighed and shook her head. "Trust me, it's a rowdy one and might have done more harm than good, even if unintentionally."
"So, what brings you guys to Viridian?" Daemon asked, trying to further the conversation.
"I am going to challenge the Pewter City Gym. Met her while I was coming over to Viridian; now we are travelling together until I pay her off."
Daemon raised an eyebrow at the girl, who explained after a long sigh. Soon, he had learned under what circumstances they had met and how Ash owed Misty the money for the bike his Pikachu had burnt off.
"You are heading to Pewter as well?"
"Yeah, but I am gonna take my time in Viridian Forest and train before I challenge Flint. Maybe catch a bug-type if it meets my eye," Daemon said and saw Misty shiver at his words. "Afraid of bug-types?"
"Much worse than you can imagine."
"Good luck travelling through that forest then," the black-haired boy added with a chuckle.
The trio kept talking and shared a lot of information, especially Misty, who was a lot more knowledgeable about Pokémon than Daemon had expected. So, the latter decided to pick her brain and learn as much as he could.
Maybe it was not a topic the brown-haired boy was interested in? So Ash decided to call it for the night and left with Pikachu, who was already asleep in his arms.
"So, you are planning to be a Water Specialist?"
"Lorelei is my inspiration." Misty settled her face in her palms with her elbows fixed on the table. "I want to be the next Elite Four of Kanto."
"That's ambitious, but I know you can do it."
"You are the first person to not judge me for it."
"Hey, I am planning to be a Champion, trust me, it's much worse for me," Daemon said, and the duo let out a small chuckle.
"And the Ralts?" Misty asked. "Are you from Hoenn?"
"Ransei," Daemon answered. "I am sponsored by the league. Since it's the leagues of three regions we fall under the jurisdiction of, I was given a choice between her, a Nidoran and a Mareep."
"Yeah, you made the right choice." Misty gushed over the cute psychic-type.
"Ralts."
"I am beautiful, not cute." Daemon translated for Misty.
"And that just makes her cuter." The orange-haired girl chuckled, and the psychic-type just ignored her further comments.
The black-haired boy just shrugged before asking, "Any good places around here to catch water-types?"
"Hmm." Misty thought for a while before shaking her head. "Your best bet would be the Cerulean Caves. You can find some rare and strong water-type Pokémon there. Moreover, if you ask nicely for a battle, most of them will join if you defeat them."
"So Cerulean Caves, eh?" The black-haired boy took out his pokedex and made a note of it, making sure he did not forget.
"You can also fish some from the ocean at the end of route 25."
Daemon added that too to the notes. "Thanks."
"No need for that." Misty shook her head. "I enjoyed our conversation."
"Are you on Pokegram?"
"Let me put it in for you."
The duo exchanged their contact information and promised to keep in touch.
"It's getting late, we should head to bed as well." Daemon was the first to suggest, and Misty wholeheartedly agreed. With a long yawn, the orange-haired girl stretched her arms upwards, dragging the top she wore further upwards.
He tried not to stare, but it was hard not to. "See you in the morning?"
"See you in the morning, Daemon."