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	=Pokemon: Eevee Strikes Back!=
	=By A-kun=
	=Chapter 1: Vermillion City Boogaloo=
	Anything between * and * is translated Pokemon speech.
	Anything between [ and ] is thought.
	Anything between // and \\ is projected thought.

	In a quiet forest, a glowing stone was resting.  The stone was higher on the forest floor  than even some of the taller Pokemon.  Most trainers would recognize it as a Thunder Stone, which could evolve some electric Pokemon.  The Pokemon in the area reverred the stone for it's shiny surface and it's gentle glow.  However, on this night, as the rain fell from the sky, a stray lightning bolt struck the stone, sending chips of Thunder Stone everywhere.
	The rain continued it's gentle fall until morning.

	Ash woke bright and early.  Well, early.  He was so exhuasted from the last few days and trying to get things in order that he hadn't had much time to actually sleep.  He was currently attempting to get together enough energy to finish breakfast, but the need for sleep was waging a slightly better war than the need for food.  Sleep would've won had Misty not interfered and splashed Ash with some really cold water.
	"GYAH!" Ash exclaimed.
	"That woke you up." Misty commented, grinning evilly.
	"Hmph." Ash answered, getting together enough energy to begin eating.
	"What happened to 'leaving tomorrow'?" Misty asked.
	"Give me a break.  I had an exciting night." Ash responded.
	"Yeah, getting an Eevee and a Charmander was nice.  Although, I think _my_ Eevee and Poliwrath were even better." Misty responded as she sat down next to Ash.
	"What did Jessie get?" Ash asked, looking around for the tall redhead gdy.
	"I think it was another Eevee and a Squirtle." Misty replied.
	"Lotsa Eevees going around for something that supposed to be a 'rare' Pokemon." Ash commented to himself.
	"_I_ got a Rapidash and a Bulbasaur." Shelly said, sitting down on the other side of Ash.
	"It's not a competition, you know.  We're all trying to get Pokemon." Ash said.
	"Hey, since we've heading to Vermillion City, maybe we'll find a Thunder Stone.  I heard there was a large one in the forest." Misty commented.
	"Thunder Stone?" Shelly asked.
	"Oh yeah, those things.  They allow certain Pokemon like Pikachus and Eevees to evolve into stronger Pokemon, but they say that your Pokemon's personality changes as well." Ash explained.
	"It all depends if you find a good Thunder Stone or not.  Sometimes the Pokemon's personality doesn't change at all." Misty argued.
	"That's if you get a cheap Thunder Stone.  Not all Stones are equal." Ash responded.
	"That sounds _SO_ perverted, Ash." Misty informed him.
	"......." was Ash's reply.
	"And why are we heading to Vermillion City?  Isn't Cerulean City closer?" Shelly inquired.
	"Yeah, but Cerulean City bikes are SUPER-expensive.  It's because the only bike store in town is only selling those new Super Bikes that are supposedly resistant to any Pokemon's attack." Misty responded.
	"You mean the one that has the commercial where they have that Gyarados Hyper Beam the bike and then the owner gets on and rides it?" Shelly inquired.
	"Yeah, that's the one." Misty said.
	"Wouldn't it be cool to have one of those bikes?" Shelly asked.
	"Definitely." Misty agreed, nodding.
	"But they cost $50,000 EACH." Ash informed them.
	They all sighed in despair.  A Super Bike sounded really cool, but the cost was waaay too high.
	"Hi everyone." Jessie said, entering and abruptly cutting off the conversation without intending to.
	The trio stared at her.
	"What?" Jessie inquired.
	"You cut your hair..." Shelly commented.
	Jessie's once meteor-shaped hair was no longer styled in her usual special manner.  It went straight down.  And it only came down to just below her shoulder blades, so it was also a lot shorter.
	"Yeah, I figured that it was just too much maintenance for it's own good.  I was probably going to lose all my money on shampoo for it anyway." Jessie responded.
	"It's just that.... you look almost normal." Ash commented.
	"Eh." Jessie answered.
	"Well, let's get going after breakfast." Misty commented.
	Jessie paused, confused.
	"That's right, Vermillion City." Jessie mumbled to herself, reminding herself of the plan.
	They all nodded.

	The wild Eevee and Ben were restless as they looked at the Rhydon which was blocking the exit.  They had been brought to what would be rather bare training room with three pillows laid out in a triangular pattern in the center of the room and then the Rhydon just started blocking the door that had entered through.  Ben sat fuming.  He knew he had forgotten something, but for the life of him, he couldn't remember what it was.  That strange dream of floating in a tank of liquid.  Now that he thought about it, it was beginning to seem like reality, but he couldn't understand why.
	Finally, the Pokemon that had been imitating Giovanni slithered into the room from behind the Rhydon.  The Rhydon looked a tad unnerved, but replaced it with hardcore boredom after a few seconds.  Obviously it wasn't exactly excited to be here.
	[Who would think that a slimeball like that fake Giovanni could really be a-] Ben began to think.
	"*I trust you two are well?*" the Pokemon which had just entered and had been imitating Giovanni inquired.
	"*Quite.*" Ben responded.
	"*Yes.*" the wild Eevee responded.
	"*Good.  I wouldn't want either of you to be... uncomfortable.*" the Pokemon replied.
	Ben eyed the Pokemon with suspicion.  The fake wanted something from him and he wanted to know what that was so that he could blatantly refuse to provide it.  The Pokemon took a seat on one of the pillows and motioned the two Eevees to do likewise.
	"*I take it that there's some big and important reason you've called us here?*" the wild Eevee asked.
	"*Indeed there is.  Not too long ago, it came to my attention that a group of humans were making artificial Pokemon...*" the Pokemon who had posed as Giovanni answered.
	"*What's 'R-T-fish-L'?*" the wild Eevee inquired, clearly not understanding the word.
	"*Artificial is... unnatural.  Fake.  A great disturbance to things.*" the Pokemon related.
	The wild Eevee still seemed a tad confused.
	"*You know how a Ditto can take your appearance?  That's an 'artificial' appearance." the Pokemon explained.
	"*Aaaaaahhhhhh....*" the wild Eevee responded, now comprehending what the other Pokemon was trying to say.
	"*As I was saying, these humans have made numerous artificial Pokemon.  I was going to capture these Pokemon and be rid of them, but some interuptions...,*" the poser Pokemon said, glancing in Ben's direction, "*...made that impossible.  Now, I must wage war to rid our world of these monsters.  I am asking for your cooperation.*"
	"*Yeah, right.*" Ben snorted.
	"*You mean he is not telling the truth?*" the wild Eevee asked.
	"*I'm not sure he's telling us everything to this.  One of these artificial Pokemon is no doubt part of some evil plan of his to control us all.*" Ben growled.
	"*Yes, you DO have those 'Rocket' people doing strange things.*" the wild Eevee agreed.
	"*As much as I may be enjoying my game with those humans, I _AM_ still a Pokemon.  I fear that these artificial Pokemon may be plotting our demise at this very moment.*" the Pokemon that was proposing the offer spoke.
	The wild Eevee began to agree.  Ben didn't want to believe what the Pokemon was saying, but decided to let the subject fade.
	"*Hmmmm, I shall consider it.  In the meantime, I will take this Eevee with me back to my village.*" the wild Eevee responded.
	Nodding, the Pokemon who was Fake Giovanni agreed, "*Very well.  But, I must inform you that we must act soon.  While my information is relatively good, I do not read minds and these artificial Pokemon may strike soon.  I'd rather strike them first.*"
	The Rhydon stood up and stepped out of the way of the door, allowing Ben and the wild Eevee to finally exit.  The wild Eevee started for the door first, but stopped and turned back to the Pokemon who was the host of the meeting.
	"*But, Dratini, I warn you not to be underhanded with us.*" the wild Eevee said, before turning again and leaving.
	"*And you're just going to let me leave with her?*" Ben inquired.
	"*Yes.  You need to see some things with your own eyes.  Then maybe you'll begin to understand what my true mission is.*" the Dratini told him.
	Ben gave the Dratini and the Rhydon a glance before deciding to just accept good fortune and exiting after the wild Eevee.  They waited until the two Eevees had left the building before they began to exit the room themselves.
	"*You really gonna let 'em go?*" the Rhydon inquired.
	"*I need the support of the Pokemon clans in order to even begin challenging the PokeGod's power.  And my informants have told me that the President of Silph Co. has given the three Masterballs away.  Besides, I have ways of ensuring that they will join, one way or another.*" the Dratini answered.
	The Dratini squeaked out a laugh as it slithered out of the room.  The Rhydon rolled it's eyes and followed.
	"*Dammit all.  I wish I had a pinky so I could raise it upturned to the corner of my mouth...*" the Dratini murmurred.
	The Rhydon groaned.  Another project that would probably result in the Rhydon taking on all sorts of weird machines.  Last time it had involved pistons and strange walking machines.  The Rhydon shuddered involutarily.  It still couldn't listen to banjos without reliving that horrible six hour episode.
	"*Boss, please, can we not start another project yet?  I'm still getting over that whole walking-multi-armed-robots-with-banjos-and-optional-piston-operated-rock'em-sock'em-arms episode.*" the Rhydon asked.
	"*Oh FINE.*" the Dratini responded.
	The Dratini pouted, then secretly began plotting another project.

	Ash sighed as they began walking down the extremely long road to Vermillion City.  It seemed like he was always at the beginning of some road.  And by the time he reached the end of the road, he was at the beginning of another.  His life had gone from relaxing vacation from home to a runaway train going the wrong way on a one way track.  Despite his desire to keep high hopes, depression was going to hound him until Ben was out of the Fake Giovanni's hands.
	Pikachu, Zappy, Fox, Jessie, Shelly and Misty were in higher spirits at least, even if Scyther was gloomily hanging in the back.  Misty was plotting their trail because apparently, there were six roads leading to Vermillion City from Saffron City and all six were seriously messed up.  There were points where the roads almost intersected, then parted to go in radically different directions.  So, Misty was plotting the best path to Vermillion City which would cut normal travel time to Vermillion by a full day and a half.  This was a lot better than to three days that was projected.
	"We should get there by nightfall tomorrow." Misty declared, rolling up the map.
	"Really?" Shelly asked.
	"Yep.  You guys are going to LOVE Vermillion City!  At night, they have the most beautiful light displays." Misty commented.
	Shelly thought for a minute.
	"Hey, what's today?" Shelly inquired.
	"Tuesday." Ash answered.
	"I mean the DAY as in the NUMBER." Shelly responded.
	"It's the fifteenth, I think... or is it the seventeenth?" Misty asked.
	"My Pokedex oughta know." Ash said, pulling out a Pokemon marked, "SHELLY".
	He handed it to Shelly, blushing with embarrassment, "I forgot to give this back to you."
	Shelly blinked, "I knew I was missing something."
	"Missing what?" Jessie inquired.
	"Her pokedex." Misty informed her.
	Shelly took her pokedex back and looked at the calendar inside.  Suddenly, she stopped and gasped.
	"What is it?" Misty inquired.
	"It'll the ninth by the time we get there!" Shelly said.
	"So?" Misty asked.
	"Silly!  It's the June!" Shelly said, bouncing.
	"That means... Electric Day!" Misty said.
	Shelly nodded vigorously.
	"Uh, am I missing something?" Ash inquired.
	"I must be missing it too." Jessie added.
	"Every year on the ninth of June, Vermillion City has an old fashion festival while the electric teams check all of the electrical lines in the city." Misty told them.
	Ash nodded, then turned to Shelly.
	"So how do you know about Electric Day and I don't?" Ash inquired.
	"Mama grew up in Vermillion City, so we always go to see the lights." Shelly replied.
	"Makes sense to me." Ash responded.
	"Pika." Pikachu agreed, nodding.
	Behind them, the Scyther rolled it's eyes.
	"Actually, I heard the last few years, they've been holding a tournament before the display." Misty stated.
	"They do.  In fact, it's so popular that there's a tribe of random Pokemon that enter the city to participate.  No one is allowed to catch a Pokemon under the penalty of being banned from the city AND all of the tournaments and gyms in the Indigo League." Misty said.
	"Ouch!  That's harsh." Jessie commented.
	"The reason is because the random Pokemon that live nearby don't disturb the city in exchange for being allowed into the tournament.  And they'll prevent other Pokemon in the area from attacking helpless humans." Shelly said.
	"A rather complex relationship, I'd say." Ash noted.
	"Yeah, well, the tournament is supposed to be about fun, not winning or losing." Shelly told him.
	They continued on the way, discussing Vermillion City and it's peculiar relationship with the Pokemon tribe that lived nearby it.

	Ben was amazed at how fast they were going.  Eevees couldn't use Agility like Pikachus and other super-fast Pokemon, but they were quite agile nonetheless.  Or at least he felt really agile.  The wild Eevee was chosing a very fast path through the forest.  He still wasn't sure where they were, but one thing was sure, if it were near a civilized place, he might still find Jessie.  That's when he noticed a nearby road.  He was curious as to where it lead, but curiousity had to wait.  They continued their incredibly fast pace through the forest.  It wasn't long before the Wild Eevee stopped at yet another road.  Ben slowed and stopped a few feet behind her.
	"*Traffic is low for this time of year.  Strange.  And we should have run across at least two more Eevees by now.*" the Eevee commented.
	"*Um, may I ask a question?*" Ben ventured.
	The wild Eevee nodded as they raced across the road.
	"*You said before that you had a name, but you wouldn't tell me it.  Since I figure that I've earned enough of your trust to be given the honor of following you, maybe you could provide me with your name?*" Ben inquired, using abstract knowledge of the situation in hopes of being to call the wild Eevee something over than "Hey you".
	"*..... it is fitting since you've told me your name.  I am called Tulia.*" she responded.
	Tulia didn't sound like pretty name, but then again, if they only went by names that sounded good, people wouldn't be called Esmerelda or Gretchen.  It was a fine name, Ben admitted.  Nothing overly flowery, but it also wasn't descriptive like Ripper or Jagged.
	They continued on, crossing more and more roads as they went.

	Ash blinked as he looked at the road in front of him.  It almost looked like something had darted across the road, but it had been too fast for him to tell what it was.  Suddenly, a young man stepped out of the forest.   He was about five feet tall and a pink mohawk that added another foot and a half to his height.  The black shades he was wearing kept his eyes from sight.  Ash instantly recognized Joyrock, from the Cerulean City Gym.
	"Joyrock?  What are you doing here?" Ash inquired.
	"Huh?  Hey, you're the jerk who made me ripped down my poster!  I'm going to get you back for that!" Joyrock growled, pulling out three pokeballs.
	"The name is Ash Catch'em, remember it." Ash said.
	Joyrock's face paled to a deathly shade of white.
	"ASH?!?!!  AAAAAH!  I'M SORRY!!!  I HAD NO IDEA!  AIIIIEEEEE!!!" Joyrock cried, spinning around and running away.
	Ash blinked.  He would've asked why he had warranted that reaction, but unfortunately, Joyrock was out of sight.  Ash would've thought Joyrock would've at least stayed to battle.
	"What wasss that all about?" Scyther inquired.
	"No clue." Ash asked.
	"Ash, are you some sort of psychotic killer that we should be afraid of?" Misty inquired.
	"No, I've known him somewhat since Elementary.  Assuming, that is, that he _IS_ Ash Catch'em..." Shelly said, looking Ash over suspiciously, "...and not a pod monster from Mars here to suck our brains out and eat them while making more pod monsters to replace us!"
	Ash buried his face in his hands and sighed.

	Ben stared in awe as he looked at the village.  The biggest reason it had not been found by humans was the fact that it was underground.  It was incredibly well-built and yet, simple as well.  Numerous intricate series of caves and paths allowed room for just about any Pokemon to hide down here and leave whenever they liked.  Light was provided by cleverly placed holes, by psychic Pokemon or by flame Pokemon.
	"*Digletts and Dugtrios made these caves for us.*" she said to his unspoken question.
	They began to descend into the cavern as Tulia continued to answer the questions that just popped into his head, "*The main reasons for this village is to provide a sanctuary against humans and to create a haven for injured or abandoned Pokemon.*"
	He glanced to his right where a pink egg-shaped Pokemon that had an egg pouch on it's stomach was tending to a bleeding bug Pokemon that resembled the Scyther he had met near Cerulean City.
	"*And the last reason is because we cannot show our full might to the humans.*" Tulia said, stopping.
	Ben stopped as well and looked at what had to be the largest collection of Eevees.  The room was as big as a miniature football stadium and was mostly full of Eevees with the remainder being made up of various other pokemon.  There was no way there could ever be more Eevees in the world than this.
	"*Hmmm, it seems half our hunters are gone and quite a few healers too.*" Tulia murmurred.
	Ben nearly facefaulted.  The fact that this huge gathering wasn't even the whole size of the village was disturbing.
	"*Tulia!*" a Flareon cried, running up to Ben and Tulia.
	"*Xander, what is it?*" Tulia asked the Flareon.
	"*Our god has sent us a wonderful new gift!*" Xander replied.
	"*What?*" Tulia and Ben asked in unison.
	Xander noticed Ben.
	"*Who's he?*" Xander asked, motioning to Ben.
	"*His name is Ben, but he's an abandoned Pokemon.*" Tulia said.
	Ben glared at Tulia.
	"*I was _NOT_ abandoned!*" Ben growled.
	[Or was I?  DAMMIT!  I can't remember!] Ben thought to himself, struggling to remember something that was just beyond his memory.  Now that he thought about it, everything before meeting the Pokegod was gone and the rest was choppy and confusing.
	"*Hey, no reason to get angry.  It happens to a lot of Pokemon.*" Xander responded.
	"*It does?!*" Ben demanded.
	"*Enough.*" Tulia told him before turning her attention to Xander, "*Where is this gift?*"
	Xander recalled why he had come running over.
	"*Oh yeah, the hunters and the healers are bringing it in now!*" Xander said.
	It was then that Ben realized that the cavern was getting brighter.  And brighter and brighter.  Then, he saw the cause.  A fairly large stone was about the size of Xander, Tulia and himself combined was being carried in by troop of Eevees and a few Machops.  The Machops were acting primarily as balancers while the Eevees provided most of the lifting power.  Ben had seen a Thunder Stone, but it was obvious from the incredibly bright light the stone emitted that it was not an ordinary Thunder Stone.
	"*Behold, the next evolution of Electric Pokemon!*" a proud Eevee spoke as the group neared a clear space in the cavern and slowly lowered the stone to the floor.
	"*A new evolution?*" Tulia whispered.
	"*And the first Electric Pokemon to be evolved by the new stone!*" the Eevee declared, gesturing to a Jolteon that had a different color scheme from the others.
	With flash of lightning, the Jolteon appeared on the other side of the massive cavern.
	"SHOCKEON!" the altered Jolteon cried.
	"*At last, the time draws near.*" Xander said, his eyes ablaze with flame (figuratively, not literally).
	"*Time?  Time of what?*" Ben demanded.
	"*You'll understand soon enough.  But first, tonight is the night we go to the city for the festival.  Tulia will fill you in.*" Xander told him, as the Flareon turned and left.
	"*Come, we have many things to do.*" Tulia told him.
	Ben followed as it was the only way he'd get any explanations.

	The Dratini that posed as Fake Giovanni look into the fluid-filled tank before it and grinned.  It had been right about it's assumption on that Eevee that it had captured in Saffron City and this just went to prove it.  Slowly, the tank was drained and the form inside lay on the ground.  After a few minutes, the figure opened it's eyes.
	"Wha... what's.... going on?" the figure asked as the tank opened.
	"The operation was successful, dear friend." the Dratini began.
	"Operation?  What operation?  Where am I?  _Who_ am I?  And how can you speak human?" the figure asked.
	"All that will become clear in the very near future.  Right now, you're no doubt very hungry." the Dratini said.
	The figure's stomach rumbled, causing it to wince.
	"Follow me." the Dratini told the figure.
	The figure managed to climb out of the tube, grabbed some nearby clothing and followed after the Dratini.

	Ben followed Tulia down one of the many tunnels.  He wasn't sure where they were going.
	"*Now what is this about going to the city?*" Ben inquired.
	"*Easy, we go every year to compete in the tournament that the humans set up.  The deal was made with us by one of their important figures and so far they haven't broken their word yet.*" Tulia answered.
	"*Really?*" Ben asked.
	Tulia nodded.
	"*So, everyone competes?*" Ben inquired.
	"*No, not everyone.  Just those who choose to.  There are many among the village who would rather not fight at all.*" Tulia said.
	"*Oh....... can I join?*" Ben requested.
	Tulia nodded again.
	"*However, if you are going to join, you'll have to get the Marker's symbol.*" Tulia responded.
	As they continued, a strange thought struck Ben figuratively.
	"*You know, I've been thinking: If you and the humans are at such odds, why are you going to compete in their tournament?*" Ben asked.
	"*To prove to the humans that we Pokemon deserve more respect than they give us.*" Tulia told him.
	"*But there are plenty of humans who respect or even worship Pokemon!*" Ben complained.
	"*SILENCE!*" Tulia snarled, spinning around.
	Ben fell silent.
	"*If humans respected us at ALL, they wouldn't go around collecting us like vegetables and keeping us locked away in their 'pokeballs' as you call them.  If humans were our friends, they wouldn't NEED those stupid pokeballs!*" Tulia growled.
	Tulia's glare stung.  Ben lowered his head and thought.
	"*Tell me, Tulia, do you know what would probably happen if the humans were to stop using their pokeballs?*" Ben inquired.
	"*Peace would break out?*" Tulia asked sarcastically.
	"*They would die.*" Ben answered.
	"*I think you're being a little-*" Tulia began.
	"*Harsh?  Not at all.  Tell me, what human could REALLY stand up to the full force of a Hyper Beam?  Or even a Toxic attack?  How about a Solar Beam?  Or a Fire Blast?  I'll tell you.  Almost none.  Humans are wily creatures, but that's because they can avoid fights.  Were it to come down to raw fighting power or skill, pokemon would win eight times out of ten.*" Ben told her.
	"*.....*" Tulia responded.
	"*A pokeball may contain a pokemon, and in the wrong hands, it may very well be enslavement, but in the right hands, pokeballs can be used to move pokemon around safely.  What if you were poisoned?  A pokeball could carry you to a pokecenter where you could be cured of the poison.  What if you were in a cave-in?  A pokeball could allow you to survive until help arrives.  What if the environment became poisoned and this entire tribe had to leave?  Pokeballs could help in the transference to a new location without anyone passing out or dying along the way.*" Ben told her.
	"*That's still-*" Tulia began.
	"*And how many friendships between humans and Pokemon were begun by the pokeballs?  How many 'domesticates' would there be if the pokeballs had never existed?  Not many.  And those would be far too weak to protect the humans from wild Pokemon attacks.  You even have an elaborate deal with the humans about protecting them from wild Pokemon.  Think about it, if they were so powerful, wouldn't that part of the agreement be rather stupid to put in?*" Ben asked.
	Tulia's eyes fell to the ground beneath her.
	"*Yes, pokeballs may have some bad uses, but they also have good uses.  Just like there are good and evil humans and pokemon.  We can't judge something just because we only see one side of the issue.  That's why I wasn't believing that Dratini.  It was only presenting what it heard from people who may or may not be reliable sources of information.  We have to look at everything with our eyes open.*" Ben told her.
	Tulia raised her head and turned around, her expression neutral.  She continued down the path.  Ben waited a bit before following.
	"*Ben?*" Tulia inquired.
	"*Yes?*" Ben responded.
	"*I'll make you a deal.  If we win the tournament, I'll think about what you said.*" Tulia responded.
	"*What's the tournament got to do with this?*" Ben demanded.
	"*If you really are telling the truth about humans and pokeballs, you'll be able to defend your ideals,*" Tulia said, before glaring back at him and adding, "And if we don't win, then you'll listen to our side.*"
	"*....fine.*" Ben told her.
	They continued on their way to wherever they were going.  Finally, they came to a cavern where there was an Abra sitting in some colored mud.  Ben blinked.  The mud resembled a rainbow, only it was made out of mud rather than light particles refracted off mist at a high altitude.
	"*Rin, how are you?*" Tulia inquired.
	The Abra raised it's head and spoke through their minds, //I am well.  However, I sense that you two are not well.  A conflict of ideals, from the feel of it.\\
	"*Stop that!  I told you that my mind is NOT for peeping!*" Tulia growled.
	//You try being able to reading the thoughts of everyone within a mile and see if YOU can stop the habit.\\ Rin the Abra responded.
	"*Why are you reading the thoughts of everyone within a mile?*" Ben asked.
	Tulia was about to tell him when she was interupted.
	//I am the watcher of the village.  I have to read the thoughts of everyone in the area so that I can warn the village in case of an attack or a fire among other things.\\ Rin told him.
	"*We're here to be marked.*" Tulia told him.
	//Duh.  You don't have any food and you didn't seem like you wanted a conversation.  No one visits otherwise either because they're afraid I'll read their minds or because they don't want to distract me.\\
	"*Doesn't it get lonely?*" Ben inquired.
	//Sometimes, but it's an important job.  And Tulia, that was one weird thought about Xander and Ben.\\
	Tulia's face grew as bright red as Xander's fur.
	"*What thought about us?*" Ben inquired.
	//Oh, just a little fantasy where you and Xander-\\
	Rin's message was cut off briefly as Tulia yelled, "*SHUT UP!*"
	Abras usually had a bored or a sleepy look, but Ben witnessed one of the few moments when an Abra grinned widely.  Tulia's face stayed a bright red for quite a while.  Ben decided he had missed whatever Rin was talking about and that missing it was a very good thing indeed.
	//By the way, Ben, I'd like to speak with you after the festival.\\
	"*Uh, sure.*" Ben responded.
	//Well, time to get to work.\\
	Without further ado, Rin's body flared with a faint blue aura and the mud rose in delicate streams and sped towards the two Eevees.  The mud seemed to paint on their fur as if by an artist doing elaborate body paint.  When the process was done, Ben noted that the mud had touched each individual hair rather than clumping the hair together.  The effect was quite impressive.

	Greg Oaks was not well-known for his patience.  In fact, he once yelled at a pokeball for taking too long to reach it's target.  The limits of his patience were always tested, even at fastfood resturaunts where your food is served in about two minutes.
	After a jailbreak, one would think that someone with such a short fuse would be even more nervous and/or anxious that they'd be caught in minutes.  However, he was managing some patience as his new 'friends' managed to scrounge together their own Pokemon.  It took a while, but they finally got their personal pokemon as well as one for Greg.
	"What is it?" Greg asked as he took the Pokeball offered to him.
	"An Eevee, stupid.  We're from a Eevee plantation after all." Tim replied.
	"Soooo, what can it do?" Greg asked.
	"You really _are_ stupid, aren't you?" Rick demanded.
	"We explained the advantages to you before we broke out, remember?" Tim asked.
	".......guess I forgot in all the excitement." Greg responded, just beginning to recall the conversation.
	"What now?  We're on the lamb, your Rocket buddy ditched us and we've got four Pokemon between us, and we have no money." Rick grumbled.
	"You each have a Pokeball, eh?" Greg inquired.
	"Yeah, so?" John asked.
	"I got an idea from James..." Greg began.
	Greg grinned at the three Eevee brothers, motioning them into a huddle before pulling a self-made knife out of his pocket.  Minutes later, Greg laughed as he pocketed three more Pokeballs and headed off into the wilderness.  The bodies of the Eevee brothers would be found days later by police.
	"James did teach me well.  But, the student has become the master." Greg told himself, still smiling.
	Laughter echoed throughout the forest, startling young Pokemon, who clutched to their parents.

	Ben found waiting for nightfall rather boring.  Eevees were interesting and all, but most were stuck on the idea that he was an abandoned Pokemon, thus limiting conversations as they either felt sorry for him or told him to rest after his taxing day.
	"*So, do you have any battle experience?*" Xander asked as he trotted up to where Ben was laying.
	"*Yeah, I've got a bit.*" Ben responded.
	"*How about a small match, then?  Just to get ready for tomorrow, of course.*" Xander suggested.
	"*Why with me?*" Ben asked as he stood up and flexed to get the lethargy out of his muscles.
	Xander neared Ben's left ear and spoke in a hushed tone, "*To tell ya the truth, everyone else is a wimp.*"
	"*Why's that?  I thought there were other Pokemon here willing to fight.*" Ben inquired in the same tone.
	"*Everyone's afraid of my flames.  I mean, I can't even get a sparring partner with the Water Pokemon.*" Xander responded.
	Ben began to worry about the implications, but decided to test himself.  His battle prowess was uncertain, even to himself.  They both headed for the center of the stadium/hall where the proclaimed Lightning Stone was still resting.  Xander took up an aggressive stance as Ben merely got ready.  Hushed whispers began circulating about the duo.
	Xander flared with a powerful red aura before launching at Ben.  Ben rolled forward and unleashed a technique that he had learned while watching the Fighting Dojo's Hitmonlee.  Xander was sent reeling backwards at the double kick struck him in the face.  Ben tackled him from the side before following it up with a full Take Down, which sent the flame Pokemon flying.  Xander hit the ground a good twenty feet away, but got up.
	"*You're good, I'll give you that.  But I'm the only Flame Pokemon to learn this attack by myself!*" Xander said, spitting a solid stream of flame that formed into a shape that resembled an underlined V that was turned upside-down.
	Ben knew enough about flame attacks to know that it was a Fire Blast and that he was in deep doo-doo if it even came near him.  The sight of the powerful attack left his legs frozen, unwilling to move, despite his attempts.  He realized it was because the ground beneath him had turned to a thick mud that was evaporating as the intense attack neared.  Desperate, he tried to tap into the chaotic attack that he thought was Metronome, but he was unable to even try before the blast neared him.
	Suddenly, two solid streams of water struck the Fire Blast.  While the jets of water couldn't even begin to stop the flame, they were holding it back long enough for Ben to escape the flame's path.  Ben looked up to see who his rescuers were.  A Poliwhirl and a Vaporeon.
	"*Xander, you know quite well you aren't supposed to use a Fire Blast.*" the Vaporeon scolded.
	"*I know that and I was going to stop it before you two interfered.*" Xander responded, dissipating the Fire Blast with his will before it got too far.
	The Vaporeon glared down at the Flareon.
	"*You're just angry because of the burn wounds I gave you last year.*" Xander told the water Pokemon.
	The Vaporeon abruptly left while the Poliwhirl merely sat down to watch the fight.
	"*Impressive.  No fire Pokemon has ever learned Fire Blast on it's own to my knowledge.*" Ben complimented, readying himself again to fight.
	"*I guess I'm unique.*" Xander answered.
	"*Funny, just like everyone else.*" Ben commented.
	The two rushed each other, intent of finished the fight and coming out the victor.  White light exploded from Ben's body as red light exploded from Xander's.  The two collided, rebounded off each other's heads' and collapsed about five feet from each other.
	"*Ooowwww!*" Ben whined.
	"*Where the hell did you learn my secret technique?!*" Xander demanded, his head throbbing with pain.
	"*Your secret technique?  I learned that move before I even came here.*" Ben answered.
	"*Boys, boys.  Just rest until tomorrow.*" Tulia said, walking between them before muttering, "*Macho idiots.*"

	Vermillion City was one of those places that was 90% electronics, 10% power plants.  It was the perhaps the third busiest hub in the world, the only two cities beating it out were Celadon and Saffron.
	A passive observer would find that half of the people in the city were information or techno junkies.  They would also notice that there was very little in the way of unemployement.  As the city grew larger, the need of line maintenance crews, customer representatives as well as construction workers and machine operators went up.  If you couldn't do the construction, you could be taught people skills.  If you didn't have people skills, you could be taught construction.  If you could do neither, they'd find a job for you somehow.
	The city's establishers saw the need for checking electric lines every so often, especially since there was so many electronic businesses.  On Electric Day, no one in the city was allowed to use electronics, so people tended to either enjoy the old fashion festival that the city set up or sleep the day away.
	In recent years, the city desired to have a spectacular finish to the festival.  And what better way to draw in Pokemon trainers than to have a massive Pokemon tournament featuring the local Gym Leader and his Pokemon.  Naturally, it was up to the Gym Leader if they were going to give out a Thunder Badge or not.
	This event never failed to draw the attention of humans and Pokemon alike, and because it was on such a constant timetable, wild Pokemon would enter the city to challenge their domesticated brethren.  This was one of few events where wild and domesticated Pokemon got along.  Competitions were universally left to the Pokemon themselves.
	Because of this, no pokeballs were allowed.  The truce was simple.  The wild Pokemon got to compete and no one tried to catch them.  In return, the wild Pokemon would not attack the city, which was a constant threat to any city.
	Those who didn't know (a rarity as you were told the rule before you were allowed entrance into the festival) or didn't respect the no-capture rule would be punished by the wild Pokemon and the police.  In otherwords, you'd get a sound pounding from the Pokemon, then you'd spend a day or two in jail.  If you actually caught a Pokemon, it was released and the pokeball that it had been caught in was destroyed.  And you were forceably ejected from the Indigo League as well as the city.  So, it was just for the best that you didn't try and catch any Pokemon that entered the city for the competition.  You'd wind up losing either way.
	Since the wild Pokemon did not have any money and there was no way of knowing if a vendor had actually sold something to a Pokemon or not, the city had basically set up a system where the vendor reported their inventory to the city before and after the festival.  The city then paid the difference, thus inviting the vendors to come to the festival despite the fact that they wouldn't get their money right away.  The city didn't really care, they got all the money back and more when the time came for businesses to pay for their commercial licenses, license registration for vehicles, vending of liquor or fuel, rail taxes, pollution control taxes, etc.
	It was early in the morning when Ash and company entered the city.  All of them were surprised that they had gotten to the city so early.  As they entered, the first thing that assaulted them was neon colors from the signs.  Once they had gotten the color of Neon Moss Green spots out of their vision, they continued only to get Neon Red, Neon Gray, Neon Sepia, and Neon Pink spots in their eyes.  Finally, they managed to stumble into a diner and recovered.
	"Okay, Jessie, Shelly, Zappy, Pikachu and I will check out the Pokemon Gym.  Misty, I'd like you to take Fox and get us a room at a local hotel." Ash said.
	"Okay.  Don't take too long." Misty warned him.
	"Let's get going." Ash began.
	The group stood up and left to complete their tasks.  It wasn't long before Ash, Jessie, Shelly, Zappy, Pikachu and Scyther stood outside of the Vermillion City Gym.  A young man seemed to be lounging in front of it, but he was in a yellow outfit with the words "ELECTRIC TRAINEE" emblazoned on the front.
	"Um, is the Gym Leader in?" Ash asked.
	"Yeah, she's in." the trainee answered.
	"She?  I thought the Gym Leader was a guy." Ash commented.
	"Oh, he decided to go mountain-climbing this year, so Psycho-Samantha is taking her place." the trainee answered.
	"Uh, well, let's go in." Ash said.
	"Hold it, are you ALL going to challenge Samantha?" the trainee asked.
	"I'm not." Scyther added helpfully.
	"Then I'm afraid that only one of you can enter at a time.  New League Rule passed down from the Elite Four and the Headmaster of the League." the trainee told them.
	"Ash, why don't you go first?" Jessie suggested.
	"WAI!" Shelly cheered.
	"Okay..." Ash replied, as Pikachu hopped onto his shoulder.
	He walked up the three stairs that separated the Electric Gym from the ground and entered.  Inside the Gym, two trainees were facing their Pokemon off.  The first boy vaguely resembled Brock at younger age, only with a lighter colored hair and with his hair standing straight up instead of Brock's spiky style.  The second looked like a newbie as he had a bowl-cut hairstyle under a Electric Gym hat.  Ash took out his Pokedex and scanned the Pokemon, wondering what they were.
	The taller tiger-striped pokemon's picture came up along with the following entry: "Electabuzz, an Electric Pokemon.  It is known to live near and inside Power Plants.  They are usually annoyances to Power Plants as they can cause massive blackouts, so many Pokemon Trainers are regularly called in to battle them off.  Not much else is known."
	Ash wondered why the pokemon resembled the ten year old back in his hometown who dressed up like Chewbacca, then spray-painted his costume yellow with jagged black lines and put the bouncing alien-antennae on top of his head.  No one knew what the kid had been trying to dress himself up as except the kid himself.
	The smaller Eevee-esque pokemon's picture had a different entry: "Jolteon, an Electric Pokemon.  Jolteons gather negative ions in the atmosphere and can unleash 10,000 volt blasts into their opponent.  One of the three known evolutions of the Eevee."
	The Jolteon looked like what would happen if you took an Eevee and connected it to a powerline.
	Ash watched as both Electric Pokemon attacked each other quickly while doing as much damage as possible before backing off and circling each other.  The Electabuzz had the advantage in height and strength, but the Jolteon was getting in far more strikes and was avoiding a few of the Electabuzz's attacks.  The Electabuzz could avoid none of the Jolteon's attacks.
	"Amp!  Pin Missile!" the Jolteon's trainer, the first one, cried.
	"JOLT!" the Jolteon answered.
	Suddenly, the Electabuzz had over eighteen pin-like hairs in it's hide.  The Electabuzz fell to it's knees.
	"Amp!  Double Kick!" the Jolteon's trainer ordered.
	"Ultra!  Thunder Punch!" the Electabuzz's trainer cried.
	The Electabuzz drew it's fist back, and threw it at it's opponent, but the Jolteon struck first, sending the Electabuzz to it's back.
	"YES!  Toldja my Jolteon was better than your stupid Electabuzz." the Jolteon's trainer said smugly.
	"RAIIII!" came a sudden cry from the Jolteon's right.
	The Jolteon was sent flying with electric sparks trailing behind it.
	"Never believe that your Pokemon is better than any other because sooner or later, there will be a better Pokemon." came a female's voice.
	Out of the shadows, a young girl with a long dark ponytail stepped out of the shadows, followed by a brown and black-furred Raichu (imagine a larger and pudgier Pikachu with a longer tail).  She was taller than either of the trainee and was wearing a tank top with cut-off shorts.  Her blue eyes had a viciousness in their powerful glare.  The Jolteon's trainer returned his pokemon to it's pokeball, as did the Electabuzz's trainer.
	"Sammy, I wish you wouldn't do that.  My Jolteon's had to get intensive healing twice this week." the Jolteon trainer grumbled.
	"Both of you, go visit the Heal-room in back." 'Sammy' told them as she noticed Ash.
	Both trainees nodded before noticing Ash and realizing that he was a challenger.
	"Heh.  Hope he's got his Pokemon's health insurance paid up." the Electabuzz trainer commented.
	"Let me guess," Sammy began as the trainees left, "You want to battle me for a Thunder Badge."
	"Yeah!" Ash said, enthusiatically.
	"Well, you're going to have to fight your way through another Pokemon Trainer first.  I don't fight anyone who hasn't proven that they mean business." Sammy told him.
	Sammy turned and whistled.  A young girl even taller than Sammy raced over from... somewhere.  She had brown hair and a ponytail as well, but her brown eyes and face made her look different enough that he could tell them apart from about fifteen feet away.
	"Makoto, please take this young man and see if he has what it take to beat me." Sammy told her.
	"Right, boss!" Makoto said, leading Ash down a fairly long hallway to another fighting arena.
	"Hey, if I have to fight a Junior Trainer to be able to fight Sammy, then why can only one trainer come inside to battle?" Ash inquired.
	"It's the dumb rules that Headmaster comes up with.  Of course, he's always around Slowpokes, so it's not wonder he comes up with the dumbest ideas." Makoto replied as she lead Ash to the main ring.  It was about the size of a soccer field, only without the nets at either end.
	"What's a Slowpoke got to do with anything?" Ash inquired.
	"They say that you're around a Slowpoke too long, it begins to drain away any will to fight, but I think it just sucks out your brain." Makoto answered before asking, "What's your name, anyway?"
	"I'm Ash." Ash answered.
	Makoto took up the spot on the farthest side while Ash took the nearest spot.
	"Okay, since I don't want to go for a long fight, let's limit this to two Pokemon each." Makoto offered.
	"Gotcha." Ash responded.
	"Voltage, go!" Makoto called, releasing a Pikachu.
	"Pikachu, you feeling ready?" Ash asked.
	"PIKA!" Pikachu answered, hurrying into the ring.
	Ash idly wondered if he should ask Fox to try and teach Pikachu how to talk, but pushed it aside for the time being.
	"Pikachu, Quick Attack!" Ash commanded.
	"Voltage, Thunder Wave!" Makoto cried.
	The two electrical members of the rodentia family collided in mid-air.  Voltage's attack was easily shaken off by Pikachu, but Pikachu's series of cute-looking punches and kicks sent Voltage to the ground.
	"AAAAH!  Voltage!" Makoto yelped.
	Voltage's eyes had transformed into swirlies, showing that the electric mouse was unconscious.  Makoto withdrew the Pikachu and held up another Pokeball.
	"Lifeline!" Makoto commanded, releasing a Magnemite.
	The best way to describe a Magnemite was this: Take rounded ball of lead, make an eye on one side, drive a bolt through the top of the ball, put a screw in the front on the left and right sides of the eye, and add a magnet on the left and right sides.
	"Huh?  What in the world is that?" Ash wondered, drawing his Pokedex.
	"Magnemite.  It uses anti-gravity to stay suspended in the air.  Appears without warning and uses Thunder Wave and similiar moves." the Pokedex proudly announced.
	"Now, Magnemite, Sonicboom!" Makoto told him.
	The explosion of sound sent Ash and Pikachu reeling.  Pikachu shook her head, then leapt at Magnemite.
	"Magnemite, Tackle!" Makoto instructed.
	"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered.
	The Magnemite was caught off-guard as Pikachu unleashed an incredibly powerful blast of lightning, sending the living magnet-thingy to the ground.
	"Okay, I'll admit it.  You're good enough by far.  You trashed me almost as well as Samantha did when _I_ first came here." Makoto told Ash, as she withdrew the Magnemite.
	"You've fought Samantha?" Ash inquired.
	"Yeah, it was when I first came here.  I was trying to win a Thunder Badge from Surge and Samantha was just a Junior Trainer like I was.  She still beat me, even back then.  Now, my Pokemon aren't nearly as tough as hers are." Makoto said.
	"Haven't you been training since then?" Ash asked.
	"Of course, but it's like starting a race when your opponent is three-fourths of the way done.  Anyway, I'll call Samantha and let her know you beat me." Makoto said, leaving the room.
	As soon as Makoto was gone and Pikachu had gotten off the ring, stadium lights turned on, increasing the brightness of the room to an almost painful degree.  Soon, the lights dimmed to reveal that Samantha and her Raichu were both in the room.
	"You were good enough to defeat Makoto.  That's impressive.  She's gone through over eighty-nine battles without losing even once." Samantha told him.
	"Thanks, I guess." Ash responded.
	"But I'm afraid my Raichu is too strong for us to go one on one.  So, I'll let you use three Pokemon while I only use Raichu.  If you can still beat Raichu, I'll give you a Thunder Badge." Samantha announced.
	"All right." Ash replied, before scanning Raichu to come up with some sort of plan.
	"Raichu, the evolved form of Pikachu.  It's long tail serves as a ground to protect itself from it's own high voltage power.  This particular Raichu is of the magnitude where it can bypass many of the natural defenses that some of the natural enemies of electric pokemon have develop, but it is still unable to defeat Ground Pokemon." the Pokedex informed him.
	Samantha and Raichu took their positions in the room as Ash considered his possible strategies.
	[Well, that doesn't help.  I have no Ground Pokemon, just Rock Pokemon.  Better try another Pokemon other than Pikachu.  If this thing is as tough as it looks, Pikachu won't even be able to hurt it.  Maybe a fire Pokemon would be good.] Ash thought to himself.
	"Growlithe, go!  Ember attack!" Ash commanded.
	His Growlithe appeared and spat a gush of flames at Raichu, who avoided the attack.
	"Give it a Thunder Shock." Samantha told Raichu.
	"RAAAIIII!" Raichu yelled.
	Ash blinked and Growlithe was flying back at him, sparkles of energy following it to create an almost surreal scene.  Ash caught the puppy Pokemon and fell to his rearend.  The Flame puppy was out cold.  Ash drew it back into it's pokeball.
	[Flying Pokemon like Beedrill, Butterfree and Pidgeyotto would be cannon-fodder against that Raichu.  Vulpix can't handle it if Growlithe can't.  I could try Onix, but I haven't used it since I caught it, so I'm not sure if it'll follow my orders.  And Geodude wouldn't be able to stand up to something that tough.] Ash decided.
	"Pikachu, let's go for broke." Ash told her.
	"PIKA!" Pikachu answered, charging into the ring to face Raichu.
	"Raichu, give it a taste of your Thunder Bolt." Samantha commanded.
	"RAAIIIII!" Raichu growled, sending massive amounts of lightning at Pikachu, who barely avoided becoming charred from the inside out.
	"PIIIIKAAAA!" Pikachu answered, unleashing a full Thunder attack.
	Raichu shook as the massive Electrical attack hit it and stumbled backwards.  Raichu shook it's head and unleashed another Thunder Bolt.
	"Pikachu, Agility, then Swift!" Ash ordered.
	"PIKAAA!" Pikachu responded, flaring with the nervous kinetic energy necessary to increase it's speed before unleashing a series of star-shaped blasts made of electrified hair at the Raichu.
	The Raichu attempted to dodge, but the Swift attack seemed to attract itself to the Electric Pokemon.  The Raichu fell to it's rearend, stunned that it was losing.
	"Agility again, then Quick Attack!" Ash told Pikachu.
	"RAAAIIII!" Raichu growled, sending a massive lightning bolt Pikachu's way.  Pikachu slid off to one side and struck Raichu like a torpedo.  The large electric mouse wavered, then collapsed.
	"YEEEAAAAHH!" Ash cheered.
	"PIIIIKAAAA!" Pikahcu cheered.
	Samantha withdrew her Raichu into it's Pokeball.
	"Well, Ash, you deserve this Thunder Badge." Samantha said, handing him a shiny Thunder Badge.
	Ash grinned as he took it.
	"Your Pikachu is remarkably well trained.  I wouldn't be surprised if it's strong enough to take on some of Lt. Surge's personal Pokemon." Samantha responded.
	"Thanks, I think." Ash replied.
	"Surge trained his Pokemon since he was a boy.  His Raichu is far stronger than mine, but mine'll be just as strong once I finish training him." Samantha told him.
	"Uh, that's great." Ash said, wondering why everyone seemed to want to tell him their life stories.

	Ben waited for the other Pokemon to assemble.  There were only eighteen Pokemon going to the city, so they'd break up into three groups.  The other Pokemon that were going were: two Nidoran females, a Pidgeyotto, a Butterfree, two Charmanders, a Squirtle, Ben, Tulia, Xander, the newly evolved Shockeon, a Vaporeon (not the one from the battle between Xander and Ben), a Jolteon, a Magnemite, two Magnetons, a Raichu, a Voltorb and an Electrode.  It was kind of a disappointment that most of the tribe had to remain behind so that the humans never got an accurate count of the Pokemon in the area, as Ben felt that a larger tribe would gain a LOT more respect from humans, but it was for the best.
	It was rather surprising to find out that the pokemon had already started an underground agricultural society, but in light of what had already been discovered, it was not so surprising as a tribe as large and healthy as this one required numerous available food sources.
	The night before had been boring because the warriors needed to be at their strongest, as Xander explained.  Ben has asked the Flareon why the stupid flame pokemon had challenged him if they all needed to be at top strength.
	"*To be sure you were good enough.*" Xander had responded before ignoring all further curses, comments and questions by falling asleep.
	Which brought them up to the present, waiting for the straggling members of the groups to arrive.  All had arrived save the most important member.
	"*Where is Shockeon?*" Tulia inquired.
	"*Last I saw, she said something about taking a cruise.*" Xander answered.
	"*THAT IDIOT!*" Tulia snarled.
	"*Like, what?*" Shockeon inquired, appearing behind Tulia.
	Tulia jumped a bit and spun around before landing.
	"*DON'T DO THAT!*" Tulia growled.
	"*Anyway, should we start heading to the city?  The sun's starting to set.*" one of the two Charmanders suggested helpfully, stopping the argument that was about to ensue.
	With that, the eighteen Pokemon ascended to the surface through the route closest to the city and began the hour-long march to Vermillion City.

	Misty met Ash, Jessie, Pikachu, Zappy, Shelly and Scyther at the hotel entrance.
	"So, not much of a challenge, huh?" Misty inquired.
	"Not really." Ash said.
	Shelly, of all of them, looked down.
	"What happened?" Misty asked Ash in low-tone.
	"She didn't do so well against Raichu.  Most of her Pokemon are in the Pokecenter recovering." Ash responded.
	"So, what's our room number?" Jessie asked.
	"Actually, the only available room was the Continental Suite.  I managed to get it 'cause of my Gym Leader status." Misty responded.
	The elevator finally came to a rest at the top floor and opened.  Save Misty, everyone gasped at the sheer size.
	"That's no suite, it's a SPACE STATION!" Jessie said.
	Misty glared at her.
	"It's _HUGE_!" Ash commented.
	"Pika!" Shelly, Zappy and Pikachu said in unison, Shelly having temporarily forgotten that she was a member of the human race and not the Pikachu race, much to her displeasure.  After all, she wanted to be a Pikachu.  It was one of the things she strived for.  Well, that and defending Truth, Justice and the Pokemon way.
	The ceiling was thirty feet from the floor at least and there was a move than spacious area around them and each wall was sixty feet from the opposing wall, allowing plenty of room for an Onix or a Gyarados to relax and there would still be plenty of room for a party.  Scattered across the room were couches, plush chairs, a table, a jacuzzi which Fox was enjoying and a fully stocked wet bar.
	"I have not ssseen sssuch a large room sssince I wasss in college.  And that wasss an auditorium!" Scyther added.
	"Your rooms are over there.  I suggest putting your stuff away, 'cause we don't wanna miss the festival." Misty told them.
	"You... go ahead.  I'll ssstay here." Scyther said, hurrying over to the jacuzzi and wet bar.
	"WAI!  Jacuzzi!" Shelly cried as she and Zappy hurried over after Scyther.
	Meanwhile, at the east entrance to Vermillion City...
	"*Whoa.  That's an old lighting display.*" Ben commented as the pokemon group entered the city.  The giant paper-laterns that were holding giant candles to illuminate the entire city block.  They were greeted by Police Officer Jenny Lucky, third-removed cousin of Officer Jenny in Viridian City.
	"Aye'n'aye.  Sur'n ya be on yer bes' behav'or.  Or we'll lock up the lot'o ya." Officer Jenny told them.
	"Don't worry, we'll be good." Ben responded in human dialect out of pure instinct.
	The group and Officer Jenny stopped and stared at Ben.
	"What?" Ben asked.
	"*You're speaking human.*" Xander told him.
	Ben blinked, then shook his head.
	"So I am.  Well, sonovagun.  Well, let's get going." Ben said, entering the city and trying his best to ignore the stares of his teammates.
	"Well, bless me pot'o'gold, an Eevee tha' can speak human.  Sur' as me name be Jenny tha' be the strangest thing aye ever did see." Officer Lucky said as she watched the Pokemon group enter the city behind Ben.

	Ash, Misty, Jessie and Pikachu exited the hotel, they noticed that the crowd had parted as if let by a parade.
	"What's that?" Ash inquired as he noticed the small procession of Pokemon walking into the city.
	"Those are the Pokemon who enter the city every year.  Hmmm, they must've had a good year.  Last time, they only had tweleve Pokemon." Misty commented.
	Ash took note that quite a few seemed to be of the Electric type.
	"I guess they decided that electric Pokemon would be best.  Especially since some of the trainers from the Electric gym enter the tournament." Misty noted.
	The four were about to head towards the resturaunts when they heard a familiar voice saying, "Hey, watch it.  Move over buddy.  Yeah, stop staring.  You heard me.  Get.  Shoo.  Lllleave!"
	"BEN!" Ash, Misty and Jessie exclaimed in unison, hurrying over to the street and managing to push their way through.
	"Ben!" Jessie cried as soon as she broke through.
	The aforenamed Eevee turned his head from yelling at some gawkers and looked at Jessie before his eyes got wide and sparkly.  He leapt in her arms as Misty, Ash and Pikachu finally broke through the human barrier.
	"*Guess he was telling the truth about him not being abandoned.  She wouldn't be this tearful if she hated him.*" Xander commented.
	"I don't understand, how did you get away from Giovanni?" Misty inquired.
	"Why would I have to get away from the Viridian Gym leader?" Ben asked as he and Jessie finally calmed down.
	"Well, the imposter Giovanni kidnapped you." Ash said.
	"Imposter?  Oh.  I'll tell you later." Ben responded, trying to get away from the fact that he didn't remember an imposter Giovanni.
	Before Misty, Ash or Jessie could ask any more questions, Tulia and Xander walked over.
	"*Ben, are you coming with us or what?*" Tulia demanded.
	"*Uh, yeah.*" Ben answered before turning to Jessie, "Listen, I've got some stuff to do, like be in the local tournament and stuff.  How about I meet you here in a day or so?  I've gotta clear up some stuff."
	"Um, okay, I guess." Jessie responded, realizing that Ben had obviously been busy since she had last seen him.  After all, to get accepted by wild Pokemon was quite a feat for most domesticated Pokemon.
	"Hey, you cut your hair." Ben commented, noticing it for the first time.
	"Yes, I did." Jessie answered, almost chuckling at his ability to take note of the fairly obscure.
	"Looks nice." Ben told her.
	She smiled and told him, "I'm glad you're safe."
	"*Hey, come on, you two.  Get a bush or something.*" Xander laughed.
	Tulia utilized an underrated move.  History books would recall it as the origin of the devastating technique, Groin Kick.  Himonlees would worship a statue of Tulia for decades to come.  Xander, naturally, would not appreciate the statue as it was made to show him with his eyes crossed while clutching himself.
	After some quick explanations of what he was going to and some memorization of where the hotel Jessie and company were staying at, Ben continued on with his fellow Pokemon to the tournament.

	Ben noticed something as he awaited his match.  The tournament was a two Pokemon elimination tournament, so the tournament would not bore the crowd.  A trainer was allowed the choice of all of his/her available Pokemon.  As for the wild Pokemon, the break up was as such: Tulia, Ben, Xander, Shockeon, a Charmander and a Raichu made Team 1; Magnemite, both Magnetons, the other Charmander, the Voltorb and the Butterfree made Team 2; and the Squirtle, Pidgeyotto, the Nidoran females, the Vaporeon and the Electrode made Team 3.
	"*Say, how does this work?*" Ben inquired.
	"*Easy, our team chooses a single fighter per round.  If our fighter wins, we advance.*" Tulia began.
	"Okay." Ben responded.
	"*It creeps me out when you speak human.*" Xander told him.
	"Sorry, it's just a habit that I picked up while I was traveling." Ben responded, trying to remember where he had picked it up.
	"*Actually, I think it's cool that he can speak human.*" Tulia said.
	"*Huh?*" Xander asked.
	"*Think about it.  The biggest problem we've had with the humans was translating.  We know what they say, but we can only mime back what we say.  Or we have to speak to another Pokemon.  If Ben can just flat out speak to them, then it's a huge advantage.*" Tulia answered.
	She turned to Ben, "*And that's why I'd like for you to reconsider leaving.*"
	"*Actually, I'm not the only Pokemon that can speak human.  In fact, I know of at least two more Pokemon that can speak human.*" Ben told her, recalling Fox and the speaking Scyther.
	Tulia's eyes sparkled.
	"*Can they teach us?*" Tulia asked.
	"*Probably.  One of them taught me and the other learned on it's own.*" Ben responded.
	"*Look, let's talk about this after we win.*" Xander interupted.
	The first round of the tournament was easy.  Through a staring contest, it was decided that the Raichu would go first.  The first Pokemon the opposing trainer chose was a Poliwag, so the battle was heavily in Raichu's favor.
	A good description for a Poliwag was a circle with a spiral design covering it's entire torso.  Add two flipper-like feet at bottom, then put a tiny beak on at top, near it's two eyes.  Then put on a silly-looking tail and give it some power over water.  Anyone who knows about electricity knows that water conducts electricity.  One mighty Thundershock from Raichu and the Poliwag went down.
	The team advanced, and Ben was sent in the next fight.  The next opponent was trickier.  It was a Sandshrew.  Take an ordinary mouse and cover it in a tough armadillo-esque skin and you've got the basic Sandshrew.  This was a problem as the Sandshrew was a Ground-type Pokemon and thus immune to Raichu's electric attacks.  Raichu tagged out and Ben entered.  Ben charged the Sandshrew, which suddenly curled up into a ball.  Ben stopped and stared at it.  The Sandshrew kicked out of it's rolled up position, elongated it's claws and slashed at Ben, who leapt back and out of the Sandshrew's range.  The Sandshrew rolled up into a ball again.  Ben kicked the balled-up Sandshrew, causing it to roll backwards away from him.
	It rebounded off the ropes and rolled back towards him.  The Sandshrew attempted to repeat it's actions of kicking out of it's defensive curl and attacking, but Ben interupted it with an abrupt Take Down, which sent the Sandshrew out of the ring.
	Needless to say, the Tribe Pokemon group 1 had advanced to the next round.

	Jessie, Ash, Misty and Pikachu managed to find a seat to watch the tournament.  It wasn't front-row or even within the first fifteen rows, but they were some good seats.  Of course, Misty didn't mind having to sit on Ash's lap as there were two seats available, nor did Pikachu mind sitting in Jessie's lap.  Ash frowned as he watched the battle between Ben and the Sandshrew.
	"Something wrong, Ash?" Misty inquired.
	"Yeah.  I don't recognize that pokemon." Ash said, motioning to the Pokemon Tribe's resting area.
	"Which one?" Misty asked.
	"The one that keeps zipping back and forth between the walls." Ash commented, drawing his Pokedex.
	Jessie realizing that she was still carrying her own Pokedex, drew it.  Both Pokedexes scanned through the obvious pokemon before they came to the unknown one and announced cheerfully, "This is a brand new Pokemon.  Scanning for data..."
	Ash and Jessie exchanged glances.  Misty blinked.  Pikachu coughed. (Okay, now that we've got all the USELESS information out of the way...)
	The screen displayed the message, "Please Wait..." for a minute and a half before finally declaring, "Electric Type Pokemon.  Seems to be an evolved form of Jolteon.  However, more data is required to find out the name and method of evolution."
	Suddenly, a box appeared in the upper-left corner of both screens.  Curious, Ash pressed it.
	"A few scientists have found that some elemental evolution stones can be amplified to achieve a higher effect.  It may be possible that the unknown Pokemon found an evolution stone that was severely amplified.  If so, this may begin a whole new generation of evolution for Pokemon, allowing numerous Pokemon to evolve to an even higher level." the Pokedex suggested.
	"A whole new generation?  WOW!" Ash exclaimed.
	"Hey, Ash." came a familiar voice.
	Ash turned to see Gary back one row and two seats to the left.
	"Gary, what are you doing here?" Ash inquired.
	"I'm taking it easy.  All that fuss in Saffron got me pretty high-strung." Gary responded.
	"By the way, he's done there." Jessie added.
	Gary looked at the older girl with confusion for a few seconds before catching the meaning of her words.
	"He is?" Gary inquired.
	"He got away somehow.  He said he'd tell us later." Misty finished.
	Filling Gary in on the details of where they were going to meet Ben, they all returned to watching the trainers and Pokemon battle.
	The other wild groups didn't do so well in the second round.  Team 2's Voltorb lost to a Sandshrew.  The Squirtle was defeated by a Bulbasaur.
	"*Wow, they suck.*" Xander commented before one of the Nidoran female poked him with a venomous stinger.  Xander decided to shut up rather than get poisoned.
	The third round allowed the last wild Pokemon team to stay in as the Shockeon defeated a Gastly, thus allowing the wild team to move into the final round.  In the final round, two fighters were allowed, because of the fact that the battles had been going too fast.
	The opposing trainer had black hair that was fanned out in wildly.  He wore a red cap, blue jeans, a white t-shirt and a red vest.  He stood confidently in the ring, awaiting his opponent.  Ben could swear he knew the trainer, but couldn't place the look.  The staring contest ended with Xander being sent into the ring first.
	"Damn allergies." Xander murmurred.
	The opposing trainer grinned and unleashed a strange yellow bird.  It looked like a bird that had been shoved into a power generator.  The look resembled that of a Jolteon, but, of course, alter for a bird.
	"Zapdos'll take you down." the trainer said, grinning confidently.
	The Zapdos flew no more than six feet off the ground as it evaluated Xander's strength. Lightning shot at Xander.  The Flareon rolled out of the way and was about to attack again when the Zapdos unleashed another burst of lightning, catching the Flareon off-guard and sent him hurdling out of the ring.
	"Who's next?" the trainer asked the wild pokemon.
	"*Xander, you okay?*" Tulia asked.
	"*...glaaaaaa....*" Xander responded.
	Ben glanced at the Shockeon, who was looking at Xander with tears forming in the corner of her eyes.
	"*I can't believe it!  Xander...*" the Shockeon began crying, before loosing the weepy look for a 'super-angry' look, "*_I'LL_ _KILL_ _HIM_!!*"
	The Shockeon glared at the Zapdos, which began sweatdropping.
	"SHOCKEON!" the hyper-evolved Jolteon cried, leaping into the ring.
	Energy flared around the Shockeon at a level that even the Zapdos had never seen.  It's fur extended as if the edges of the Shockeon's image were being tugged.  Then, lightning came from the Shockeon's body, striking the Zapdos and sending it flying backwards past it's trainer's head.  The trainer barely had time to dodge as the Zapdos rocketed against the arena wall and stayed there.  Everyone stared at the Shockeon, except the Shockeon, because if it could stare at itself, that would just be silly.  The reason was this: electric pokemon don't do much damage when using electric attacks against other electric pokemon.  And the fact that the Shockeon had just K.O.ed a Zapdos with a technique no one could quite identify was a tad astounding.
	"ZAPDOS!  That's it!  GOLEM!  Kill that thing!" the trainer snarled, unleashing a boulder-shaped pokemon.  The only difference between a real boulder and a Golem was the fact that most boulders didn't have a snake-like head or functioning arms and legs.
	The advantage most Golems have over electric pokemon is that fact that while rock _can_ conduct electricity, they're also part ground type, which makes them well nigh-invincible to all normal lightning pokemon.
	However, when the Golem was blasted away, much like the Zapdos, everyone came to the same conclusion.  The Shockeon was not a NORMAL electric pokemon.  Seeing that both of it's foes were defeated, the Shockeon turned and was about to return to it's corner in victory, when the roar of an Onix filled the arena.  The giant rock snake lunged at the Shockeon, the intent to kill was obvious.
	With a mighty blast, the Onix was sent to the ground, completely defeated.  The opposing trainer had not given up, even though the rules stated that the fight was finished.
	"I DON'T CARE IF YOU'RE A SOME KIND OF GOD POKEMON!  I'LL-" the kid began.
	Before the kid could unleash any more Pokemon, three Bulbasaur's wrapped their vines around him, tying his arms to his torso to prevent him from grabbing any more Pokeballs from his belt.
	"And it seems the three time winnning champion, Ash 'Crash' Ketchum has finally been defeated by the wild pokemon tribe!" the announcer declared.
	"Did he say-" Ash and Misty began in unison.

===============================================================================================

	Who is the mysterious Ash 'Crash' Ketchum?
	How did he get to be a ranking champion with those sloppy tactics?
	Who is the young man the Dratini was talking to?
	What is the secret of the new evolutions?
	How many more new evolutions will there be!?
	What can Professor Oak give Ash that'll help?
	Where will Ash and company go to next?
	And will Gary or Ben join them?

	For possible answers to these questions, read the next chapter of Pokemon: Eevee Strikes Back!, coming sometime in the future.

	Author's note: GYAH!  I didn't know I'd promised so much!  I thought I could wrap up all these scenes rather simply, but they just evolved... sorta like Pokemon!  Anyway, I've been focusing on evolutions and it'll be the way for a while.  I don't see evolutions as a dead end or simply as a power-up, but more of a alteration in the views.  For too long, various Pokemon have had the weakness of the evolution stones.  Look at the stats for a Pikachu when it evolves into a Raichu.  Sure, it gets tougher and you can use TMs to give it more techniques, but the problem is that the Raichu is an evolutionary dead end.  It'll get stronger on it's own and that's about it.  Whoop-tee-doo-dah-day.  The Lightning Stone is just one of many new alterations I have for the world of Pokemon.

	Answers to some questions that might be asked.

	Q: Why make Pikachu a girl?
	A: Originally, if you look at Pikachu in the anime, you'll note that it has some... well, personality attributes commonly found in anime girls (getting mad easily, getting embarrassed, hitting/zapping people).  Not to mention that too often, people make Pikachu into a male, whether by accident or intention, and that's just not right.  'sides, almost every Pokemon in the Anime is given a MALE persona, so why not make a few females?

	Q: You've got a HUGE cast.  How are you dealing with it?
	A: S'not easy, so I'll find some hopefully CONVINCING plot devices to get rid of some of them.  Plus, rather than have them just roam, Ash'll be getting a plot device that appears in one of the two kinds of Manga.  I know, I hate to rip it off, but it's pretty much what I had planned for this series anyway.  The problem was that I needed to find time to fit it in.


	======
	OMAKE! - more silly and weird this time!
	======

	Sleep would've won had Misty not interfered and splashed Ash with some really cold water.
	"GYAH!" Ash exclaimed.
	"That woke you up." Misty commented, grinning evilly.
	"Hmph." Ash answered, getting together enough energy to begin eating.
	"What happened to 'leaving tomorrow'?" Misty asked.
	"Give me a break.  I had an exciting night." Ash responded.
	"Give you a break?" Misty inquired.
	"Yeah," Ash began before singing, "%Gimme a break!  Gimme a break!  Break me off a piece of that Kit-Kat Bar!%"
	Misty joins in, and they sing, "Gimme a break!  Gimme a break!  Break me off a piece of that Kit-Kat Bar!%"
	The rest of the cafeteria leaps into the song, "Gimme a break!  Gimme a break!  Break me off a piece of that Kit-Kat Bar!%"

	"Ah'll send ya ta anutter dimension!  MEOWTH!" Fox cried, looking a bit weird in his Vegeta costume.  Even odder was the enormous battle aura Fox was emitting.
	"Stick it where the sun don't shine!" Misty said in her ChiChi costume.
	"PIIIIII-KAAAAAA-PIIIIIII-CHUUUUU!!" Pikachu cried in her Goku costume.
	* - Translation: Ka-ma-ha-me-HA!