ON THE ROAD

By Aesop

I didn't create pokemon and don't own the ideas, but the main character is mine. I don't profit by this. The story is just for fun.

"Hmm. Is that necessary?" Reese asked.

"I'm afraid so," Nurse Joy replied sympathetically. "The League rules are quite clear. Trainers can keep six pokemon with them at any one time, because that's the number they're allowed to use in League competition. I can arrange for your pokemon to be placed at professor Oak's lab in Pallet Town. It's a very nice place and they'll be well looked after until you need them. I can teleport them now if you like."

"Actually I think I'd like to meet this professor Oak. I've read a few of his papers, and I think I would like to see his facility for myself. I'll take them myself. It'll give me a chance to get some extra training in on the way and recruit some additional pokemon." That decision made he set off for the train station. He decided to travel part of the way by train before crossing the Safari Zone and Veridian Forest on foot.

The train pulled out of the station on schedule and made good time from Celedon to Pewter. He used the time to plan a route that would allow him to skirt the Pokemon Preserve and still make good time to Veridian City and from there to Pallet Town. From the edge of the city he set out along the road that would lead to the Safari Zone. He suspected that Starmie would be offended by his decision not to stop in Pewter for a badge, but Reese didn't think they were quite ready. More practice, and a few more water or plant pokemon were needed first.

He let out his current group and regarded them proudly for a moment. They were all strong and healthy, and they had, for the most part, met or exceeded his expectations in their training. He told them what he had in mind.

"We're on our way to a research facility run by a professor Samuel Oak. It's a place where some of you will be able to rest and recuperate when not competing. League rules only allow me to keep six of you with me at a time." They didn't look terribly happy at this, but no one objected. "I want us to look over the facility and see what this professor is like. We're about two weeks hard traveling from his lab. We'll be using the time to gather and train new pokemon. The area we pass through will be full of wild pokemon and you'll each have the chance to test your skills. Any questions?"

"Carp, carp, carp," Magicarp jumped out of the river they were standing near. Starmie moved over the water and dipped one point into the water while grunting.

"The river parallels our course for a while, and there are other bodies of water along the way. You'll get to spend plenty of time outside your pokeball," he assured the fish pokemon. "Lets get moving." It was a good day for hiking and Reese set a brisk pace along the river, checking his map every few miles to keep track of their route. They saw a few pokemon in the distance but none that he believed they could reach before they fled. It was Magicarp that found their first challenge. A commotion from the river drew Reese' attention.

"What's up Magicarp?" The fish pokemon was too busy to answer. It was trying to avoid the attacks of a rather territorial Goldeen who kept charging at it. "Broadside tackle," Reese called but to little avail. Goldeen had it on the defensive and Magicarp couldn't respond properly. "She's fast," Reese nodded. "Magicarp let her get closer. Evade, then broadside." He wasn't sure if his pokemon heard him or not at least not until the Goldeen passed within inches of it and was suddenly slammed from the side. It floundered for a moment and Reese called out again, "tackle attack."

The Goldeen tried to slip aside but couldn't avoid Magicarp entirely. She was sent spinning. "Again," Reese called. This time the attack worked and Goldeen was cast up on the bank to flop helplessly. Reese quickly called it into a pokeball. "Good work," he called. Magicarp responded with weak enthusiasm and Reese recalled it. Letting the Goldeen out, he made his standard offer. She accepted, although Reese doubted if she really cared one way or another where she was. He called her into her pokeball and took the chance to cut away from the river and save a few hours of walking by not following a bend in the river.

Sundown found them near the river again as the meandering waterway turned back to intercept their course. No promising Pokemon had presented themselves, and the group settled down. Their progress had only been marginally slowed by races, tree climbing contests, and other training opportunities that presented themselves. After dinner, he called most of them into their pokeballs but set Tauros as a guard for the first part of the night. "Just wake Dukes when you get sleepy, and he'll relieve you." Dukes didn't care much for his pokeball and preferred to sleep in the open.

***

Reese wasn't sure how long he'd been asleep when he was awakened by Tauros' bellowing. He sat up, or tried to. Something was sitting on his chest. "Huh?" A Caterpie had apparently chosen his blanket as a place to sleep. Tauros was stomping about the clearing with something covering its eyes and the Caterpie was chattering indignantly. The indignation turned to alarm when Reese sat up, spilling the creature onto the ground. It began to wriggle away and Reese grabbed an empty Pokeball and threw it. The Caterpie disappeared, but reappeared a moment later as it struggled out of the ball. It gave him the insect equivalent of a rasberry and started away. A lucky kick from Tauros knocked out Caterpie and almost knocked out Reese as the bug pokemon was hurled through the air, past his head and into a tree. Reese tried the pokeball again and this time Caterpie stayed put.

It took a moment to get Tauros calmed down and peel away the sticky string Caterpie had used to blind it. "I think you've had enough for one night," Reese said and turned to call to Dukes. The Machop was sitting on a low branch rocking back and forth with silent laughter. Tauros snorted angrily, something which only made Dukes laugh harder.

"Since you have so much energy," Reese observed, "you've got the watch for the rest of the night." Dukes stopped laughing. Reese recalled Tauros and went back to sleep, deciding he could deal with the Caterpie in the morning.

***

The next morning they followed the river until they found a bridge marked on the map. The road would lead eventually to Veridian City. Their course would allow them to follow it for a while, but many wild pokemon avoided man made constructions. Reese would have to travel some distance into the wilderness to find what he was after.

Then again, he reflected, there were plenty that didn't mind humans at all. The Primeape watching them was a fine example. It was eyeing his breakfast hungrily. As good an introduction as any.

"Hungry?" he called. "Join me for breakfast." He pulled out a journey ration like the one he was eating and tossed it over to the primeape. It hesitated then came closer and picked up the snack. It spotted the pokeballs on his belt and began to retreat. "Nothing to worry about," Reese assured him. "I'm not going to try to capture you. That's not how I do things." The primeape eyed him quizzically. Reese explained what he meant and the primeape listened with some interest. Reese suspected it was the food more than anything else which interested him. He had gobbled down the journey ration as if it tasted good, something Reese couldn't understand at all.

"You up for a battle?" Reese asked finally. "I want to test your skills." He called out a now rested Tauros.

The battle began in a straightforward way with a full speed charge that Primeape dodged easily. His attempt to tackle Tauros was less than successful. Primeape rebounded and hit the ground while Tauros barely seemed to feel the assault. Turning quickly, the wild bull pokemon caught Primeape with his horns and tossed him high into the air. The pig-monkey pokemon came down through a tree, striking several branches and one pidgey on its way to the ground.

"Oops." The primeape was unconscious, but basically unharmed. The pidgey was another matter. "Take it easy! Take it easy! I think your wing is broken." Suddenly the medical training he had picked up from watching Nurse Joy came in very handy. He managed to calm the injured bird and set its wing.

"I'm sorry this happened. It wasn't intentional, but I will take care of you till your wing gets better." He let out the rest of his pokemon and set up camp. Mixing a medicine he had acquired at the Pokemon Center, he gave some to the pidgey and the rest to Primeape when it woke up. He allowed the two to rest for remainder of the day. Twice during the day he had troubles with Rattata sneaking in to steal food. Primeape caught the second one and presented it to Reese, dangling it by its tail. It was chittering and squealing angrily. Reese had Primeape release him and offered him some food. Rat wandered by and snorted indignantly at Reese' newest recruit. Rattata accepted the offer and joined in a training session with Rat and Slowpoke. He didn't do well, but he wasn't deterred either.

Reese returned from the session to find Primeape, who was supposed to be sleeping, holding another pokemon down. "He was at the journey rations huh?" Primeape nodded and chattered at the odd looking creature who squirmed frantically. Reese looked at it curiously for a moment and then pulled out a pokedex that he had gotten at the pokemon center.

"Aipom. The long tailed pokemon. It is found in forests and occasionally steals food from campers."

"Y'know, I just don't understand this attraction to those rations. If you can make yourself useful I can get you those on a regular basis. You want a trainer?" Like Primeape, Aipom seemed more interested in the food, but he also showed potential. Reese watched a short while later as he whipped his tail around two of Rat's legs and turned his charge into an uncontrolled tumble.

"Not bad. With work you'll make a fine addition to the group." Testing of their unexpected acquisitions took up the rest of the day and they settled down for a night's sleep, well and truly exhausted.

A ROCKY INTELUDE

A quiet day followed a quiet night. There were no more attempted thefts, and no new pokemon came within range. Reese had set the group a new goal. To reach the nearby village where some professional help could be had for Pidgey and where they could obtain more supplies.

There was no pokemon center, but there was a small apothecary. He recalled those who were out stretching their legs and made his way there. Pidgey had refused a pokeball and was riding on his shoulder, despite the fact that the jostling must have hurt his wing. Pidgey was stubborn.

When they reached the apothecary he found an old woman behind the counter working with a mortar and pestle. She turned to look at him and looked him up and down. "Well now. What have we here?"

"I have a wounded pidgey. His wing is broken."

"Match get out of hand?"

"Not exactly. He was an innocent bystander. Is there someone in the village that can treat him?" She nodded.

"This isn't a pokemon center sonny, but I do know a thing or two about pokemon." She looked at him speculatively. "Now then, about payment..." She trailed off looking thoughtful.

"How much?" She shook her head.

"Not money. We've got a problem. A problem a skilled trainer might be able to solve." This was unexpected, but he nodded for her to continue. "We've been having problems with a group of rock type pokemon. They come around every few days, causing problems. They break windows, cause ground tremors, terrify the village pets. Some of the pets fight back, but they're not strong enough."

"I'll look around and see what I can do." He wasn't sure what he could do, but it was a worthwhile cause. He didn't know much about rock pokemon, at least nothing specific that would help him. All he really knew was that pokemon, like humans, usually had a reason for what they did. If he could discover that reason he might be able to solve the problem.

He went to the head of the village, mayor Smiley. He didn't live up to his name. The mayor was a harried looking little man who kept wringing his hands while he told Reese about the problem.

"We don't know why they're doing this. The monsters keep coming around, tormenting our townspeople. There's an Onyx that has knocked over three barns. The Geodude in the group likes to break windows. We can't get rid of them." Reese nodded.

"Do you have any idea what's upsetting them?"

"No. We've never done anything to them." He continued to pace and wring his hands. "We would be very grateful if you could clear this up for us." Reese nodded and promised to see what he could do. He asked a few more questions then began moving about the village.

Reese spent the rest of the afternoon asking questions. He learned that the rock types had always come from and retreated to, the north. There was a canyon to the north that, based on what he had learned in his training preparations, was perfect for rock types.

When his pokemon were ready he headed north sending out pokemon as scouts. It didn't take long for Primeape to report back. Something was going on toward the north end of the canyon. He moved along the western edge of the canyon, not wanting to get caught in such a narrow place if things turned ugly. This was only recon. He had no intention of getting close until he had some idea of what was going on. The canyon widened after a time and opened onto a rocky plain that bordered a large lake fed by a wide stream.

Reese looked out at two geodudes that were making there way along the shore. They seemed to be keeping a safe distance from the water and looked very nervous. Reese frowned in puzzlement. What was going on? He didn't have to wait long. A jet of water emerged from beneath the surface and soaked the two rock types thoroughly. They cried out in alarm and tried to retreat. The water was having the desired effect though. They were weakening rapidly, and soon reduced to dragging themselves away from the water. A polywraith emerged from the lake followed by two squirtles. Reese and his pokemon watched, baffled, as the two rock types were beaten back. The ground began to rumble, and an Onyx emerged from the ground and began to drive the water types back with a rock throw attack.

The attack stopped when they reached the water. Reese watched as the three rock types retreated into the canyon and made their way to a cave. He spotted what appeared to be a third geodude standing guard outside. Curiouser and curiouser. "I need another perspective on this," he mused and turned to Starmie. "Go circle around the lake and enter from the north. See if you can learn anything from the local water types. I'm going to stay here and watch for a while. If I learn anything while you're gone I'll head back to the village. You can hook up with me there." Starmie grunted in the affirmative and headed off. Reese recalled the others accept for Rat and Aipom whom he sent north and south along the edge of the canyon to watch for activity. That done, he settled down to watch and wait.

Approximately half an hour later something happened. A group of rock types came rushing out of the cave, angry as a swarm of beedrills. They headed for the edge of the lake and began hurling rocks and boulders into the water. All of them were apparently furious over something.

The response from the lake was overwhelming. Water types of all varieties emerged, responding to the attack with water gun attacks and the occasional ice beam. The rock types were badly outgunned and it didn't take long for them to see the futility of the attack and retreat. They were still very angry though, and as they headed up the canyon they bypassed the cave and continued south. Toward the village.

Reese recalled Rat and headed south as fast as he could, collecting Aipom on the way. He managed to outdistance the rock types and warn the villagers. He then released his pokemon and established a defensive line just north of the village.

A small group of four geodudes was the first to arrive with three sandshrews. They moved toward the village obviously bent on taking out their bad mood on the human population.

"Cinder! Make a firewall." The small fire type raced across the path of the advancing rock types setting the grass on a small berm afire. It had been tried by the villagers before with little success, but Reese had more resources. All he needed to do was delay them.

Positioning the others took only a little time, and the firewall bought them the extra breathing room they needed. The fire was extinguished by a literal wave of dirt created by a large Onyx. As the smaller types moved into the field beyond, Gloom and Caterpie struck. Two of the sandshrew found themselves stuck together, by Gloom's sticky nectar and immobilized. A geodude was blinded by Caterpie's stringshot. All three were sent flying into those behind them by Tauros' charge.

"Primeape, take the graveler. Tantrum. Rat, double team!" The graveler was down and out before it knew what hit it. The geodude who had been blinded was nearly free of the sticky string that Caterpie produced, but the bug pokemon had been busy. Three more of the attackers were in the same predicament. The entire mob had been thrown into confusion. Which had been Reese' intention. "Okay Slowpoke, let's see that confusion attack. Focus on the onyx." The onyx was the biggest problem. It wasn't slowed by the nectar, and it was fast. Caterpie had been unable to hit it. The only thing that kept it from proceeding was the chaos caused by the unexpected resistance.

Slowpoke focused its mind, something it rarely did as far as Reese could tell and began the psychic attack. The onyx reared up roaring and began to lash out at friend and foe alike. Some of the villagers had begun to move out with their own pokemon. There were a couple of Pikachus and three Growlithes. Pets, Reese realized. They weren't trained to fight.

"That onyx has been our biggest problem," the mayor said as he approached Reese cautiously. "It's knocked over buildings and ruined fields where we grow food. If you can capture it we would have a much easier time." Reese didn't like it, but he saw the sense in the mayor's request, at least until the situation was resolved. It might slow or even stop the attacks. He nodded decisively.

"Slowpoke, water gun." It was a fairly weak attack as water guns went, but it further weakened the enraged and confused onyx who had nearly decimated its own forces with its thrashing about. He turned to Gloom next. "Gloom, sleep powder."

The impact of the falling onyx shook the village. Reese quickly called it into a pokeball and had his pokemon drive off the rest of the group. There was a small sandshrew left behind unable to retreat and Reese picked it up and carried it to the apothecary where Pidgey was being treated.

"I have another patient for you," he announced as he came through the door. The old woman eyed the sandshrew with barely concealed hostility, but examined it and gradually brought it around.

"Shrew!!" it screamed and lashed out. Reese struck it on the head with his fist, knowing he wouldn't hurt it. The blow did catch the creature's attention though.

"Calm down. No one is going to hurt you." It eyed him suspiciously. "I could have simply left you out there where you fell. Instead I brought you here for medical attention. I'm not your enemy and neither are the people in this village." The sandshrew began to calm and look about. It examined a place on its foreleg where a crack in its rocky hide had been treated and dressed.

"Shreeew?"

"We'd prefer to live in peace with you, but you're not making that easy. Care to explain why you attacked the village?" The creature gave a defiant growl and looked away.

"I think that's a no," the old woman opined sarcastically. Reese nodded.

"So it would seem." He walked to the door. Opened it and gestured for Sandshrew to go. Both it and the old woman stared at him. "You're not a prisoner. If you don't want to tell me why you're having problems with the water types to the north, that's your decision. If you want to tell me what this feud is about I'll see if I can help end it. Until then you're free to go." Sandshrew hesitated for only a second before it jumped from the table. It paused at the door and pointed at his belt where Onyx' pokeball rested, and made accusatory noises.

"Onyx has caused too much damage. When this is sorted out I'll let him go."

"San," the creature scoffed and rushed out the door, heading north.

"What did you do that for?" the old woman demanded. "You were supposed to capture them all."

"You asked me to solve the problem. That's my intention." He turned to face her. "The way I solve it has to be left to me."

"Pi-pi," Pidgey interrupted from his perch. Reese glanced over.

"I could use some help, an 'eye in the sky' if you're up to it." Pidgey spread his wings and flapped them, causing a small gust to rattle bottles on the shelf across the room. "Good. I sent Starmie to scout the lake. Fly north above the canyon. See what you can see." He presented his arm and Pidgey stepped from the perch to Reese' wrist. Together they went outside. The bird pokemon launched himself into the air. Reese watched him leave and then headed for the mayor's home.

"I don't understand what you're doing," the man protested. "Why let the sandshrew go?"

"An act of good will." The mayor snorted in disbelief. "Have a little faith."

"What do you want to do next? Invite them over for dinner?"

"Actually, I need to make a phone call. The behavior of these two groups is confusing. I need to consult with someone who can tell me more."

***

Professor Oak looked up from the computer screen when the phone rang. "Why is it that that thing always rings at the most inconvenient times?" He rose reluctantly, casting a longing glance back at the psyduck evolution rate data he was reviewing and picked up the phone. When the screen lit up there was a young man he didn't recognize waiting to speak to him. "Hello. Who might you be?"

"Apologies for the interruption Professor Oak. My name is Reese. I'm a trainer out of Celedon City. I need to consult with you on a rather urgent matter. From what I've learned of you sir, you are well versed in pokemon behavior patterns even though it is not your primary interest."

"True. You have a problem you say?" Reese nodded.

"I do. I was passing through a small village about 90 km South-West of Pallet Town when I got caught up in a very unusual situation." He proceeded to tell the professor of the attacks on the village and of what he had learned about the pokemon involved. Oak at first looked astonished then intrigued, and finally thoughtful.

"That is strange. There is no indication of the source of this friction?"

"No sir. It would be very helpful if I could get a closer look at the cave where the rock types live, but at this point I doubt they'd welcome me. I hope to learn more when my Starmie returns from the lake."

"Well, this is very strange. I'll need to know more about the situation before I can help you though." He thought for a moment. "I'll see if I can find any reference to similar behavior, and I'll see if there's anything unusual about that region in particular. Where can I reach you?" Reese gave him the mayor's number. "Excellent. I'll be in touch."

Oak signed off, and Reese went to look for Starmie. He had reached the northern edge of the village when the water pokemon appeared through the trees. "Starmie? What news?" It made a series of sounds that Reese only caught part of. "Something's wrong with the lake?"

Starmie put one point into the dirt and drew a circle. "The lake?" Starmie grunted affirmative. It then began making marks inside the circle. "Water pokemon?" Another affirmative. "Looks crowded. Is that the problem? Overcrowding?" Again, he had guessed correctly. "Why?"

This baffled Starmie for a moment, but then it drew a line leading away from the lake to the northwest. It curved a couple of times and Reese suddenly realized what it was. "The river entering the lake. What about it?" Starmie considered a moment and then drew two lines across the river about six inches from the circle representing the lake and then made as series of short jagged back and forth motions along the river from whatever the lines represented to the lake.

"Something… has been built upstream and is causing problems in the river," Reese surmised. "What though? A dam? A factory?" Starmie managed to shrug. Since the limbs didn't move Reese wasn't sure how the impression was conveyed, but it was definitely a shrug. He puzzled over that for a moment and then dismissed it.

"Well, it's a good place to start." He considered briefly. "We'll head out there and see what we can learn. After that last attack we can't wait until we hear from Prof. Oak. He may find some information for us, but we can't put off a personal look." He considered briefly, then brought out all of his pokemon. "Dukes, Aipom, and Rattata will come with me. The rest of you will stay and defend the village in the event of another attack. You'll take your lead from Starmie."

"You can't be serious." Reese turned to find the mayor watching him. He had been attracted by the large group of pokemon. "You're leaving one of your pokemon in charge while you go…?"

"To find out why the lake is overcrowded. If I'm right the problem may be population pressure. The water types are frustrated. They take out their irritation on the rock types who can't fight back as effectively, being weak against water. The rock types turn on you to vent their frustrations. I see signs that they're moving south toward the village, abandoning the cave in the canyon." He frowned thoughtfully. "They're not going peacefully though. We need to find out what's going on up there." The mayor opened his mouth to protest, but Reese raised a hand to stop him. "Don't worry. Starmie and the others can handle the defense themselves. Just stay out of their way."

The mayor did not look pleased, but he didn't have much choice. He gave instructions to the people of the village and Reese and his small party headed for the north end of the lake with a few pieces of borrowed equipment. It took almost a full day to skirt the lake find the river. It was wide and fairly shallow where it entered the lake. It occurred to him that the river could be polluted. The water looked fine, but he knew he was no judge of such things.

He moved along the river, eventually having to stop for the night. He let out the pokemon that had accompanied him and set out dinner. He warned them away from the river though, not sure that there wasn't something wrong with the water.

Dukes took the first watch and managed to stay awake long enough to wake Aipom for the second watch. Rattata was on duty when Reese woke up.

They moved on up river. Along the way they passed several areas where the river widened and slowed, almost like miniature lakes, but there was no sign of water pokemon living in those areas which should have been ideal for them. After two days of travel, they reached the area Starmie had indicated. It looked to be a mining complex. The entire area was fenced off on both sides of the river. Reese frowned at the barrier, a high chain link fence topped with barbed wire. There was a sign on the fence that warned that it was electrified.

"Someone is serious about keeping people out of there. Let's find a gate."

Dukes, the only one out of his pokeball at the time, nodded. He pointed through the trees away from the river. In the distance Reese could see what looked like a road. They started through the underbrush and soon reached a gate with a road curving away from the river. A guard at the gate glowered at them.

"Cho-op," Dukes rumbled dangerously, taking an instant dislike to the man.

"Excuse us," Reese stepped forward, taking a more diplomatic approach. "What is this place?"

"TR Inc. mining facility," he answered shortly. "No trespassing."

"How large is the… facility? How long will it take us to go around?"

"Find out," the man answered shortly. "Be careful not to touch the fence. It's electrified."

"I'll be careful." Reese turned and headed away from the river along the fence line. As long as the man thought he was just a trainer with no interest in the mine then he would quickly forget about Reese.

They moved a half-mile along the fence until they were certain they were out of sight of the gate. "This is good. Dukes, can you get over the fence?" Dukes nodded. "I need someone to get a look inside and tell me what's happening in there. Snoop around and find what's going on. Take Aipom with you, to get closer if you spot something interesting."

"Chop," he answered shortly and picked up Aipom, who looked less than happy at the prospect. Reese took a look around, but there were no trees overhanging the fence or any growing close enough to make a jump possible. The fence was eight feet high, which made another approach impossible.

"Up on my shoulders. You can jump from there." Machop looked dubious, but he was willing to try. Reese slung the equipment bag over Dukes' shoulder and braced himself as best he could. The Machop made the leap easily, and Reese faded back into the trees to watch and wait.

Dukes moved toward the crest of a hill inside the fence and dropped to his belly to look down on the complex. There was a lot of activity. People and machines were coming and going, and Dukes didn't understand any of it. Then he saw something he did recognize. Or rather, someone. Quietly, he followed opening the equipment Reese had given him as he did.

Reese waited patiently for nearly two hours before his pokemon returned. Dukes tossed the bag and a surprised and indignant Aipom over the fence and then did something that surprised Reese. He started to climb. He stopped just below the barbed wire, apparently none the worse for wear and crouched as best he could.

Pushing off with his legs, Dukes somersaulted over the wires and landed neatly on his feet before moving to join Reese in the trees. "What did you learn?"

Dukes pulled the small hand held video camera borrowed from a villager, out of the bag. Reese winced when he remembered the bag hitting the ground and hoped the device still worked.

It worked well enough to show, on the small display screen, a familiar face or three. "What are they doing here?" He wondered aloud. Then it hit him. "Oh. TR Inc. Team Rocket. They're not getting any points for imagination. Hmmm." The video went on to show them at the far side of the mining facility turning back a group of pokemon trying to drink from the river. The fence did a good job of keeping most pokemon and people out, but some weren't as easily deterred.

Reese watched as Jesse and James used their pokemon to drive away a group of thirsty pokemon. This baffled him until he saw pipes leading from the ore processing sheds to the river. Something was being dumped there.

By the end of the video, Reese had seen all he needed to see. The fence didn't go all the way around the facility. The mountain that was the source of the river provided a natural barrier, at least to people. The mountain was also the source of whatever was being mined there.

"So they're dumping the waste from the operation into the river. I guess they're trying to keep the pokemon out because the Safari Zone rangers would probably notice if pokemon started turning up sick. We're right on the edge of the zone here." He thought a moment. "We'll need to get a water sample and take this to the police."

The journey back took nearly two days, and there was a message waiting for him when he arrived, from Professor Oak. The message confirmed what he already knew. A company called TR Inc. had set up a mining operation at the source of the river. There was very little information on the owners. Oak suggested it was possible the operation was disrupting the water pokemon's natural habitat, driving more and more of them downstream into the lake.

Reese placed a call to the Professor and told him what they had learned.

"Oh dear. That can't be allowed. They must be poisoning the water with the waste from their operation. You have the evidence?" Reese nodded.

"I also have water samples from inside the facility and from two points down stream from there. I intend to head for the ranger station in the Safari Zone and turn the evidence over to them. They should be able to get the samples analyzed. Then we'll know exactly what they're dumping, although I think I have a fairly good idea already."

"Excellent Reese. I'll put in a call to the station and let them know to expect you."

It moved quickly from that point forward, or seemed to for Reese. Officer Jenny, three of them actually, which Reese found confusing in the extreme, descended on the mine with a dozen officers and shut it down after confirming that there was mercury in the water.

A few employees were captured, but Jesse, James, and Meowth were long gone. Jenny promised that they would see that the river was cleaned up so the water pokemon could return home.

Starmie carried the news to the water pokemon in the lake and Onyx was released to speak to the rock types. Reese stayed in the village three more days until the matter was resolved. He then prepared to leave.

"Well," mayor Smiley admitted. "It wasn't what I expected, but you certainly got the job done."

"I was happy to help," Reese assured him, looking over his group. "Everyone ready to go?" There were positive responses from all but the pidgey, which he had expected. "Can I convince you to come along Pidgey? Could really use you." The bird pokemon looked away and made a noise that required no translation. "No need to be rude," Reese chided. "I'll just wish you well then."

Pidgey looked back at him, startled to see Reese getting the others moving. Some returned to their pokeballs, others preferred to hoof it. After a moment's silence Pidgey made a conciliatory noise. Reese glanced back and nodded. Satisfied with that, Pidgey took to the air and headed east.

Reese waved good-bye before turning toward the road for Pallet Town and Professor Oak's lab.

THE END