EPISODE 31: Fooled!*

From Rustboro, me and Logan heads straight to a route located in the east. Neither the president nor his two assistants dared to join or even at least help us. One of their excuse was their Pokemon was finally knocked out from battling the said grunts. If it wasn't for those two organizations, Team Aqua and Team Magma, I'd be walking the streets of the city.

Searching for the grunts, Logan walks in front while I follow his footsteps from the back. There are a lot of opportunities for me to escape and ditch the whole side-quest but Logan would frequently turn his head around which makes me pout. It is as if he knows I plan to escape from him.

The route is quite peaceful and relaxing. The sounds of the babbling brook, the birds who soar to the sky, the slippery and dangling vines, the cries of Pokemon all contribute to the great music of nature. It has been a long time since I've witnessed such a thing. If I remember correctly- I can't remember correctly.

You can really feel the music having the perfect pitch every musician long for. It is the most serene sound you can hear, as if nature speaks to your heart rather than the mind. The wind, so subtle and free. Its passionate movement can turn any downhearted look the other way around.

From the delicate music of nature comes footsteps not synchronized to ours. It makes the ground tremble as if someone was running around us. As an agent, I know how to detect when someone is stalking or hiding somewhere. Hearing those sounds, I ask Logan to halt for a moment so I can further observe the situation we're in.

"Is there anything wrong?" He beseeches as we hear a rustle from a nearby grass patch. Keeping my observation towards the surroundings, I decided to ignore him for a while.

Continuous rustling is present, hinting someone is hiding behind a patch of grass or perhaps a bush. My ears are sensitive, and I can sense anything that may seem suspicious or threatening. In this case, the rustle is both.

"Misdreavus, deploy!"

"Electrike, you too!"

For extra safety, we call out our Pokemon. Electrike is looking stronger than usual since the first time we met. Perhaps this is the result of Logan's excellent training or maybe he just left it in a day-care center and left it for a day or two.

As the rustling intensifies, a Pokemon jumps out. Short wings, violet body, who could it be but a little ol' Zubat! No visible eyes, mouth constantly open, and ears that detect vibration from afar, these are some of Zubat's features in which you can catch in every single cave in the world.

<Zub! Zub! Zubat!> It flaps its wings like a newborn chick trying to fly with the wind. Even without eyes, I can feel like it's trying to be hostile towards us since it is constantly staying still while facing us. They depend on echolocation but when it evolves, they usually rely on their eyes.

From Zubat comes its trainer, a man with a tan complexion. He fits the descriptions of the president and his three assistants. He wears a blue uniform with a beanie covering his hair.

"Oi! What ya doin' here?" The grunt entreated.

"Team Aqua! Surrender now or prepare to fight." I warn with a ferocious glare.

"Return the Devon Goods this instant."

"Ho! Ho! Ho! I am Aquarius, Elite Operative of Team Aqua. If ya wish to fight then so be it. Devon Goods is rightfully ours. Zubat return to your Pokeball! Come out now Persian and Dugtrio!" he substitutes Pokemon, releasing two to make this battle a tag.

"Elite Operative? They're the skilled agents of an organization right?" queries, Logan.

"There are also weak ones like this guy over here," I reply sarcastically, insulting Aquarius.

"What was that mate? Ya think Team Aqua is a bunch of scums? Hahaha! We've got the brains and the brawn put together. There is no way you can defeat me. Persian, use fury swipes! Dugtrio, use Sand Tomb!"

From the skies, large boulders of rock head straight for my Misdreavus as Persian heads for a direct hit towards Electrike. Unable to counter, my Pokemon was hit by the powerful move. As for a trainer like Logan, he uses fury swipes too in order to counter Persian's attack.

"So you two are trainers after all eh? Alright then. Have a taste of my Pokemon's nightmares. Fissure(Dugtrio) and Quick Attack(Persian)! Full power." Aquarius commands his Pokemon with determination. For that set of moves, I remain safe and calm knowing Misdreavus is a ghost type. Levitation avoids any ground moves like fissure from hitting the foe. As for Persian, it's headed to Electrike anyway.

"Why were you just standing there?"

"Misdreavus is a ghost-type."

"I know but you could've asked it to protect Electrike."

"Sorry. This is my first time to experience a tag battle, excluding the previous one." I utter with an embarrassed expression. Although Misdreavus was safe, Electrike was badly damaged by both moves. Fissure works on both Pokemon except if each or both has an ability to dodge. In my case, I have levitate.

"Hahaha! Ya'll will walk the planks! Dug-" Someone suddenly interrupts his words by throwing a stone directly at him but missed. It was able to gather his attention alongside ours, however.

"What the?" Seeing another grunt hanging above the trees, Aquarius was completely alerted. I could not quite see the looks of her face(Magma Grunt) because of the hood and the perfect angle which makes her look like she's cloaked with shadows.

"Shiver me timbers! I'm out of here. See ya!" says, Aquarius, quickly returning his Pokemon to his Pokeball and running as far as possible from the girl wearing red.

As for her, she drops down the tree, finally revealing her true identity and unfurling her hood. Logan was surprised while my heart throbs.