James looked through the transparent window to the treatment room in the Pokémon Centre, watching as Nurse Joy and her Chansey tended to Cyndaquil. Jen stood next to him, shifting her gaze between the Fire-type and his trainer, her face full of concern for both. Cyndaquil's injuries from his battle with Kabutops at the Ruins of Alph were bad, but she was worried about James; he had been visibly shaken by the defeat, and his strong bond with Cyndaquil had made it worse. She knew he needed to calm down before they did anything else, and she was willing to stay with him until he did.
Nurse Joy left the treatment room, the automatic door closing behind her as she did so. She walked over to the two youngsters and smiled warmly.
"You have nothing to worry about, James. Your Cyndaquil is going to be fine. However, since his injuries were fairly serious, I'm afraid he's going to have to stay in the treatment room overnight. Don't worry." she added as James looked even more concerned. "We'll monitor his condition the entire time, and he should be good as new in the morning. I'll check you both into a room so you can stay the night here."
"Thank you, Nurse Joy," James said gratefully. Nurse Joy bowed to them and walked towards the reception area. As she left, he turned to Jen. "So, what do you want to do?"
"Well, it's already late afternoon, and we've been through a lot today already. Let's just relax and get something to eat before we make any more plans."
"Alright, then. If you want to go look around the area, go ahead. I'm going to stay here and keep an eye on Cyndaquil."
"Okay. I'll meet you downstairs later." Jen walked away, leaving James to watch over his friend. James felt his fist clench as he watched the Fire-type sleep.
"I should never have sent you out there, buddy," he said to himself, bitterness infecting his voice. "I should have known about a Pokémon like Kabutops, and I should never have gotten involved. You got hurt, all because I couldn't just leave things as they were...but now, I promise, we're going to train hard and beat that Kabutops someday. We're going to become the most powerful Pokémon and trainer the world has ever seen! We'll never lose like that again!" Tears began to leak from his eyes, and he turned away, unable to look anymore, crushed by the fact that his impetuousness had gotten his friend hurt. Wiping his eyes, he headed for the reception area to inquire about their room so he could collapse for a while.
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About an hour later, James met Jen in the basement cafeteria, and the pair sat down at a table in a less-trafficked corner. Jen was, by her own admission, burned out by the day's events, and attacked her food with vigour,. James, for his part, just stared at the table, his mind still on Cyndaquil. Jen sensed this and looked at him with concern.
"Still worried about Cyndaquil?" she asked, and James nodded sadly. "Don't worry, Nurse Joy will take good care of him. That's why she's here."
"I'm not worried about him being taken care of, Jen. I shouldn't have sent him out against that Kabutops. He was completely outmatched, and I feel really bad about it."
"Don't. You thought you were doing the right thing, and Cyndaquil was ready to go. You couldn't know that that guy would pull a move like that. So don't worry so much. You're Cyndaquil's trainer, and you're also his friend. Don't dwell on stuff like that, concentrate on the good things that happen." James looked at her, blinked, then a small smile crossed his face.
"You're right, Jen. I guess I've just been feeling sorry for myself, and I've let myself think I don't deserve to lose. We're just going to have to learn from our mistakes and move on, huh?"
"Exactly. You're not going to get everything right first time out, James, and neither am I. This is why we're going on this journey, to grow stronger with our Pokémon. You care a lot about Cyndaquil, and that's going to strengthen the bond you two share. We've only just begun, so let's make things better from now on, okay?"
"Okay," James answered, and they proceeded to finish their meals and head back to their room.
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Before they went to bed that night, the two youngsters read over a map of the area and planned their next move.
"Alright, so the Union Cave is over here, not too far from the Pokémon Centre." James checked his Pokégear and marked the location, then turned back to the map. "Then, it'll probably take us most of the day to get through the cave, and we'll exit here, at Route 33."
"Okay, so once we get out of the cave, we should camp nearby, depending on how late it is, then make a push for Azalea." Jen folded the map and stowed it in her bag. "Before we leave, we should have Nurse Joy give our Pokémon a once-over just to be safe. You've got to collect Cyndaquil anyway, so it can't hurt for her to check the rest of them, right?"
"Right." James turned off his Pokégear and then jumped into the lower bunk in the room's bed; he had let Jen pick which half she wanted, and she'd elected to take the top half. The two youngsters wished each other a good night, then fell asleep, waiting for the next part of their adventure to begin.
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The next morning, James was dressed and ready before Jen even woke up, so he hurried over to the treatment room to check on Cyndaquiil. The little Fire-type was asleep, so James pulled up a chair and sat down, waiting for Nurse Joy to come along and let his friend out. Eventually, she arrived and opened the treatment room, and came out with Cyndaquil right behind her.
"Cyndaquil is completely back to normal, James. We've run every test necessary, and he's good as new."
"Thank you so much, Nurse Joy." James smiled as he looked as his starter Pokémon, who jumped into his arms in response. "Oh, man, it's great to have you back, buddy!" Cyndaquil nuzzled his cheek affectionately; all was forgiven between trainer and Pokémon.
"It looks like Cyndaquil's happy to see you again." Jen had walked up behind him, and was smiling widely.
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"Jen? How did you..?"
"I had a feeling you'd head straight here as soon as you got up. I know you, James, and I figured you were itching to see Cyndaquil again."
"Well, it's good to see that Cyndaquil's got such a caring trainer. I can tell you two share a very strong bond."
"We do." James answered, and Cyndaquil squeaked in agreement. "Actually, Nurse Joy, can you give our Pokémon a quick check-up before we go? We're heading to Union Cave next, and we want to make sure we're all set to head out."
"Absolutely. Just give me your Pokéballs and I'll check on them for you." James and Jen handed over their Pokémon, and Nurse Joy ran them through the scanner. "All set, you two. Be careful, Union Cave is a long cavern, and there are a lot of strong Pokémon in there."
"We will, Nurse Joy. Thanks again for all your help." With that, the two youngsters hurried back to their room to pack and get set to leave.
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To James' relief, Union Cave was better-lit than Dark Cave, so his nerves were calmed; no grouchy Pokémon were going to jump out at him unexpectedly this time. Jen, for her part, thought the lighting was too good, since to her, the darkness was part of the cave's thrill. But they were finally on the move again after their ill-fated trip to the Ruins, and neither could wait to get through to Azalea Town and the next Gym.
The trek through the cave proved as long as they had thought back at the Pokémon Centre. The ground was terribly uneven, and it was tough going. To make matters worse, wild Geodude and Onix kept charging after them, causing a few scares; they still didn't have any Pokémon that were strong against Rock-types, and Togepi's Metronome was too unreliable to use against them. At a junction in the path, the two youngsters stopped to rest and figure out how to progress further.
"Man, I didn't know traveling through a cave could be this difficult!" James panted, dropping down onto a nearby boulder. "When we said it would take a while, I didn't think it would be this bad."
"Well, we're about a third of the way through the cave. Let's stop here and regroup, then get moving as soon as we're ready."
"Having trouble there, kids?" James jumped, startled by the sound, and looked for the source of the voice. The voice belonged to a large man dressed like a miner or mountain climber. The man had walked over to them during their conversation, and grinned at them through his beard. "It looks like you two don't have much experience traversing caves, am I right?"
"We haven't been through many caves to be honest, sir." Jen answered. "This is only our second time traveling through one, and the first time was just a quick exploration, if you know what I mean."
"I understand. I had a lot of trouble when I first started exploring caves, but I got used to it eventually. My name's Russell, by the way. Nice to meet you kids."
"Back at you." James told him. "I'm James, and this is my traveling partner Jen."
"Beginning trainers, huh? Well, everyone has to start somewhere, right? Hey, I've got an idea. While we're standing here doing nothing, how about a quick battle? You two look like you've got some potential; I'd love to take one of you on."
"Sounds like a plan. James, do you want to battle?"
"Actually, Jen, how about you go? I'm still recovering from that battle with Kabutops, and you haven't gotten to really battle anyone besides Falkner yet."
"Alright, then, I'll go, Russell. How many Pokémon should we use?"
"I'd say just one. It's not that big a space, and if we knock out too many of each other's Pokémon, it'll be more difficult to defend ourselves later on."
"Okay, one Pokémon each it is. I'll use Togepi, she needs the battle experience." Jen tossed out a Pokémon, and the Spike Ball Pokémon emerged, squealing in delight at being picked to battle.
"A Togepi, huh? An unusual choice. Alright, go Pokéball!" A Geodude popped out, clenching its fists in anticipation of the coming fight.
"Oh, boy, this could be trouble," James muttered under his breath. "Unless Jen's planning to use Metronome until the right move comes up, Togepi doesn't have any moves that can stop a Rock-type."
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"Alright, Jen, ladies first!" Russell called, indicating that Jen should take initiative.
"Gotcha! Togepi, use Charm!" Togepi smiled widely at Geodude, trying to put it off its game. Geodude ignored the look, and simply stood waiting for orders.
"Alright, Geodude, Tackle!" Geodude crashed into Togepi, who fell backward and skipped away, still as happy as ever. "Now, Defense Curl!"
"Togepi, Charm again! Keep going!" In response, Togepi tried the move, and then her body shone with a blue glow. A small ring of blue light surrounded her, then dissipated. "Wait, is that a new move?"
"It sure is. That's Safeguard, it'll protect your Pokémon from any status effects. Not that we're in a position to inflict any. Now, Geodude, use Rollout!"
"Togepi, Metronome!" Jen didn't care that Metronome was random, nor that it wasn't very reliable. She just needed to blunt the Defense Curl-augmented attack. Togepi waved her finger back and forth, then unleashed a thunderous squeal that shook the cavern. "Wait, Hyper Voice? That's the move it picked?"
"Seems like it worked, Jen!" James watched as the rapidly spinning Geodude was thrown back by the shockwave, then rolled hard into a nearby stalagmite. The impact shook the cave floor, and Jen leaped up in surprise.
“That's one powerful hit! Okay, Geodude, Rollout again!” Geodude curled up and started spinning forward again. This time, the attack hit home and sent Togepi flying through the air.
“Togepi, hang on!” The Spike Ball Pokémon landed on her side, and got up slowly. “We've got to use Geodude's momentum against it. But if Metronome doesn't come good, we're in bad shape.” Togepi smiled, and Jen followed suit. “Gotta keep going, though. Metronome!”
“Get back after it, Geodude!” The rolling rock stopped quickly, then spun back into action. Jen watched its turn, then laughed.
“I've got it! Geodude's got such a wide turning circle, it's vulnerable while it changes direction. Togepi! Jump up and use Metronome when Geodude turns around!” Togepi began wagging its fingers and leaped up as Geodude rolled by. “Unless it's an electric move, it should do something.” Togepi glowed briefly, and then shot a rainbow beam at the spinning rock. “Hold on, what...?”
“That's some kind of Ice-type move, I think. We're in trouble. Geodude, get back at it!” The beam hit the ground just in front of Geodude, and it flipped up and slammed into the cave ceiling.
“Look out!” Jen readied herself to pull Togepi back if the cave collapsed. Russell stood firm, but watched as Geodude hit the ground and struggled to get back up.
“Geodude! Can you keep going?” Geodude didn't respond, but its eyes became unfocused and dazed. "Well, look at that. Geodude's finished. Wow." Russell couldn't believe the ease with which he had lost, then he let out a booming laugh. "Hahaha! I'll tell you, I haven't battled someone like you in a long time. You've got talent, kid, and a lot of it."
"Thanks, Russell." Jen answered as she recalled Togepi. "Way to go, Togepi, you really battled well."
"Way to go, Jen." James said as he walked over. "I would try to figure out a different way of winning, though. One of these days Metronome is going to go wrong, and I don't want to see you lose because of that."
"Aw, cut her some slack, kiddo. She's got her own way of battling, just like you've got yours and I've got mine. If she wants to keep things exciting like that, let her. It's all part of growing as a trainer."
"Good advice, Russell, thanks. Could you advise us as to how to get out of this cave? We're headed for Azalea Town, and we don't know how to get through here."
"Of course! Here, I'll give you one of my maps of the cave. It's got the best trails marked, so you should be able to get out of here quickly."
"Thanks a lot, Russell. Good luck with your hiking."
"And good luck with your training. I get the feeling you two are going to be really great trainers someday."
"You're a good guy, Russell. See you around." With that, the two youngsters chose a path and hurried down it, waving goodbye to their new Hiker friend as they left.