As soon as Samurai disappeared into the trees on his way home, Ash and Yellow began heading north. Pikachu had climbed out of Ash's bag and nestled into Yellow's arms. She smiled and hugged him gently, Pikachu had always liked her, thanks to her Viridian Forest blessing.
They walked in silence for a while until they came across a clearing… and there, just ahead, were five Scyther.
Ash immediately motioned for Yellow and Pikachu to stay quiet, his eyes narrowing in thought.
"No way I can fight them all at once," he mused as he began to think, 'Scyther have base stats that rival fully evolved starters. My best bet is to either put them to sleep or isolate the weakest one and capture it before making a run for it. I could try convincing one to join me... but Scyther are naturally aggressive. I'm not looking to literally put my neck on the line today.;
Then inspiration struck, something he'd once seen as a kid. He quietly retreated behind some thicker trees and sent out Spearow, Pidgey, Bellsprout, and Oddish. Pidgey still looked drained, so Ash walked over and gently placed a hand on the bird, letting his Aura flow into him, healing his fatigue. He made sure Yellow could see him doing this, but said nothing.
Once Pidgey perked up, Ash gathered his team.
"Spearow, Pidgey, you two will carry Bellsprout and Oddish into the air. Once you're above the Scyther, Bellsprout and Oddish will release Sleep Powder. If you can, use Stun Spore too, but focus on Sleep Powder. Got it?"
The group nodded in unison.
"Also, Scyther can fly, but you two are faster. If they spot you, fly hard and fast out of there. Don't take any risks."
Another round of nods. Ash gave them a quiet thumbs-up. "Wait for my signal."
Spearow grabbed Bellsprout, and Pidgey picked up Oddish. The two birds took off, circling above the trees until they hovered silently above the Scyther pack.
Before signaling, Ash turned off the volume on his Pokédex and scanned the group. He needed to choose carefully.
—
[Scyther(M)]
Ability: Technician Hidden Ability: Steadfast
Current Moves: Quick Attack, Fury Cutter, Wing Attack, Double Team
—-
Ash nodded in satisfaction, then glanced at Yellow. "If this goes wrong, get ready to run. Fast, get on Dody and just leave, don't worry about me"
Yellow slightly flinched since Ash was basically telling her to abandon him, she didn't want to, she did like Ash, but she gave a small reluctant nod
Ash took a breath, then gave the signal.
The birds swooped silently over the Scyther pack, and Bellsprout and Oddish began scattering shimmering green Sleep Powder through the air. Confused, the Scyther looked up, only for the oldest one to sway… and fall. One by one, the rest began to collapse.
All except one, the one Ash had picked. He was still standing, but barely—drowsy and swaying on his feet.
Ash smirked. "This is the kind of anime logic that usually works."
He turned to Pikachu. "C'mon. Let's take him down the old-fashioned way."
Pikachu grinned and sparked with electricity.
The lone Scyther looked up, and was hit with a surprise Thundershock.
Meanwhile, up above, Bellsprout and Oddish began scattering Stun Spore—status moves stacked, and while most Pokémon could resist with enough buildup, these Scyther were asleep. They couldn't resist a thing.
Ash narrowed his eyes. "They won't be out for long. Pikachu, one more Thundershock!"
Pikachu fired another bolt of electricity. The Scyther tried to dodge, but he wasn't fast enough, he was hit cleanly again. Ash pulled out a Poké Ball.
"Now!"
He threw the Poké Ball, then quickly recalled all four of his airborne Pokémon. The Scyther was now paralyzed and exhausted, too slow to resist.
The ball shook... once... twice... ding!
Ash grabbed the Poké Ball just as some of the other Scyther started to stir.
"Time to run!" he shouted.
He dashed into the woods, Yellow close behind.
"They're paralyzed, thank Arceus," Ash said as they sprinted. "No way we're outrunning an angry Scyther swarm otherwise!"
"But where are we going now?" Yellow asked between breaths as they ran.
Ash began to slow down, not for him more for Yellow, "We're heading to Pewter City. We can rest there and I'll start training for the first Gym."
'I wonder what Team Rocket's up to,' Ash thought. 'Haven't bumped into them yet. Probably busy building some overly complicated trap again…'
—-
(Meanwhile...)
Team Rocket sat stiffly inside paper cocoons camouflaged among the trees, hidden by bushes near the roadside.
"Here's the plan," Jessie began, again. "As soon as the twerp steps on the tripwire, he'll drop the cocoon decoys. That's when we pop out! The cage under the leaves springs up, we grab him, and our giant magnet on the balloon pulls him out of the hole! Then, we demand Pikachu—or we make enough noise to attract a swarm of Beedrill!"
"We know," James groaned, "we helped build the trap. You've explained this, like, twenty-seven times. I don't think he's showing up."
"He has to pass through this path," Jessie snapped. "Unless he went off-trail… but why would he do that?!"
"Uh, guys?" Meowth interrupted, ears twitching. "Hate to butt in, but... we got a problem."
They all turned just in time to see an Oddish dart past, straight through the tripwire.
SNAP.
The mechanism triggered instantly, yanking the paper cocoons open and flinging the trio down into their own pit trap.
The next moment, the balloon's magnet activated on schedule, pulling up the trap—with Team Rocket stuck inside. They floated away helplessly.
"Any other brilliant ideas, Jessie?" James asked, just before she bonked him on the head.
—-
(A few hours later...)
Ash, Yellow, and Pikachu finally exited Viridian Forest, the sky painted in warm dusk hues.
Pikachu looked exhausted, draped over Ash's shoulder like a warm scarf, his eyes half-closed.
"Yeah, I get it, bud. I'm tired too," Ash said, gently rubbing behind Pikachu's ear.
"Pikaaa..." Pikachu sighed, leaning into the affection with a sleepy smile.
Yellow yawned, stretching. "Hey Ash, can we get something to eat? Then maybe crash at the Pokémon Center?"
"Yeah, I'm too tired to cook," Ash replied, folding his hands behind his head. "Any place in mind?"
Before she could answer, a deep voice cut in from nearby, "Pewter City is gray... the color of stone."
The voice belonged to a man sitting calmly on a large rock surrounded by smaller stones, each with a price tag on it.
"Uh... who are you?" Yellow asked, raising a brow at the stone collection.
"The name's Flint," the man said seriously. "And you two are standing on my merchandise."
Ash and Yellow looked down in surprise, sure enough, their feet were planted on two labeled rocks.
"What are you two doing coming out of the forest this late?" Flint asked, not moving from his rock.
"Well, I wanted to challenge the Gym," Ash said, "but we got delayed. We were just heading to the Pokémon Center."
Yellow nodded, holding up her tired Rattata like a baby. "We all need rest…"
Flint stood up, brushing off his pants. "Your Pokémon look beat. I'll lead you there."
Yellow tilted her head. "He seems... nice," she said quietly as she stepped off the rock, Ash doing the same.
But as they followed him, Flint turned back with a perfectly serious expression, "By the way... that'll be two Pokédollars for standing on my rocks."
Ash and Yellow nearly tripped over themselves in shock.
—
At the Pewter City Pokémon Center, Ash approached the counter and handed over his injured Pokémon to Nurse Joy.
"Thank you," he said, watching as she wheeled the tray of Poké Balls into the back.
Yellow had already gone up to her room for the night, so Ash made his way to the video phones and dialed Professor Oak.
The screen flickered to life, revealing the Professor mid-bite with a bowl of noodles.
"Hello, my boy! What can I do for you?" Oak asked, slurping up a noodle.
"Hey, Professor. I wanted to check in, have you received the Pokémon I've been sending over?"
"Oh yes!" Oak said with a grin. "You've caught quite an impressive batch. And I must say, finding two shinies already? That's no small feat."
Ash smiled, then nodded. "Thanks. I actually had a couple things I wanted to ask."
"Oh?" Oak raised an eyebrow. "Fire away."
"First, can you bring over the Oddish I sent? Her friends want to see her again."
Ash placed Bellsprout and Oddish onto his lap. The two Pokémon looked around curiously.
"Of course," Oak said, glancing off-screen. "She's right here, actually, been helping me calm down some of the rowdier Pokémon in the lab."
He reached out and picked up a very cheerful Oddish, placing her in front of the camera. The moment the three Grass-types saw each other, they lit up and began chattering rapidly, like old friends reunited after years apart.
Ash watched them with a grin. "While they're catching up, the second thing I wanted to ask is... would you be willing to let me carry more than six Pokémon?"
Oak leaned back in thought. "Technically, there's no official limit, trainers can carry as many as they like. I just set the automatic teleport system at six for convenience. It's the recommended amount for new trainers."
He paused, then smiled. "How about this: beat your first Gym, and I'll adjust the limit to eight. After that, we can talk about expanding it even more."
"That's perfect. I'll be in town for a few days before I challenge the Gym anyway. Let's let these three talk a bit longer," Ash said, gesturing to the happily chirping Grass Pokémon.
"Sounds good. Just hang up when they're done," Oak said as he walked off-screen, returning to his bowl of noodles.
Ash chuckled and leaned back in the chair, watching the small reunion. After what felt like far too long, filled with giggles, hops, and leafy hugs, the Pokémon said their goodbyes. Ash returned them to their Poké Balls and ended the call.
He headed to his room, got changed, and flopped down onto the bed with a yawn.
'Thankfully, with Oak's approval, I'll be able to disable the auto-teleport and manage my own party size..'.
He pulled out his Pokédex and scrolled through footage of Brock's past battles.
'He's using four Pokémon this time,' Ash thought. 'So I'll need to bring Oddish, Bellsprout, Poliwag... and keep Pikachu in reserve.'
'If things go sideways, I might have to rely on a little plot armor BS.' He shut the Pokédex, closed his eyes, and yawned again, 'Welp... that's tomorrow's problem. For now, I'll just sleep.'
And with that, he was out.