- Joined
- Nov 8, 2005
- Messages
- 9,632
- Reaction score
- 2,364
- Pronouns
- She/Her
- Thread starter
- Staff
- #121
@Charles Legend @Mia Blaze
Episode 71a: A Ghost of a Chance! (part 1)
"Welcome to Ecruteak City...a historical city where the past meets the present." Brock read the signpost as the group rounded a bend in the road, with the city in the distance.
"I can see why!" Misty gasped as she admired the Oriental-esque buildings in the distance. "I've always wanted to see a live Gekijou theater performance!"
"I've always wanted to learn to play the ancient harp that was usually used by the narrator in a Gekijou play, the vina." Brock smiled. "Or any kind of harp, really--I've felt it would add a bit of a fantastic feel to my performances."
"You definitely wouldn't be a spoony bard by any stretch!" Misty smiled, giggling as she imagined Brock, as a minstrel, serenading her, as a princess, in a fantasy land.
"What's the name of that instrument that's always playing all these high trills and runs in traditional Kanto and Johto music?" Ash wondered as the group made their way into the city. "I know it's some kind of flute..."
"That's because it is." Brock explained before turning to the chapter on traditional music and the theater in the guidebook, specifically the section on the ancient instruments used in the Gekijou orchestra. "There were actually two different flutes used in the Gekijou orchestra--the end blown kidi which has a darker and more mysterious sound, and the instrument you're thinking of, the side blown bansi."
Ash looked over at the picture of an ornately decorated side blown flute in the guidebook. "Wow! I wanna learn to play one of those!"
"You sure?" Misty asked. "Not only would it take a ton of practice, you'd have to learn a new way to blow and new fingerings."
Ash just smiled. "I really want to learn...almost as much as I wanna battle for my next badge!"
Brock noticed that during their conversation, they had managed to discover what looked like one of several majestic towers that loomed over the city. "This must be the Gym..."
"Let's go!" Ash led the way inside.
---------
"This Gym isn't like any of the others we've seen before...." Misty mused as the group looked around the inside of the tower. It had clearly seen better days, if not outright damaged somehow, judging from the chaired doorframes and dusty tapestry on the walls.
"Maybe it's not a gym, but something else entirely?" Brock suggested.
"Or maybe we've walked into a dungeon straight out of Zelda?" Ash shuddered. "Maybe there's something you can hit with an arrow to show us the way!"
"If there is a switch I can shoot, where do you think it is?" Brock asked his companion. "I can't shoot at a target that's not there..."
Ash was about to suggest potential locations for a target when suddenly, a small blue flame flared up before him. 'WAUGH!"
"I think the dungeon guardians know we're here!" Misty agreed as more ethereal flames appeared around them. "They're obviously blue, so we need something hot to douse them..."
She looked over to see a gaggle of ethereal cloud Pokemon laughing at the group's fear. "Okay, so those flames were a bunch of Gastlies..."
Inspired, Ash heaved a Poke Ball skyward. "Aina, show us where all those Gastly are!"
The Machop materialized on the cracked wooden floor seconds later. [Doing a little Ghost Pokemon busting? Let me help you find them.]
The lightbulb went off in Misty's head as Aina's eyes glowed red, revealing many more Gastly in the room. "Oh, Machop can learn Foresight too, just like those Hoothoots we met before!"
"In some cases, Pidgeys--and by extension Pidgeottos and Pidgeots--can learn it too, but I'm not going into a long discussion about genetics here." Brock explained.
"Yes, let's have science class later." Misty nervously stammered, aware of the Gastly approaching them.
"Aina, now that you've revealed the Gastlies, start Tackling them!" Ash almost screamed as he jumped to avoid a blob of purplish black energy a Gastly had fired at him.
[You got it!] Aina called before ramming a Gastly, sending it tumbling backwards.
"Who knew that a Fighting type could do anything against ghosts?" Misty mused as she watched Aina ram Gastly after Gastly, making them disappear.
"Foresight must expose them, allowing physical moves to hit them!" Ash proposed as some of the remaining Gastlies flew off in terror.
The group swallowed hard when they saw the Gastlies return a few moments later with larger purple phantasms Ash remembered as Haunters. "They just left to get reinforcements..." Brock broke the uneasy silence some moments later.
Ash looked over at Tintri. "Get ready for a big fight, bud..."
[Which of these ghosts do I need to bust first?] Tintri asked as he charged a Thunderbolt.
Moments before Ash could command Tintri to fire his attack, he saw a large ghost that somewhat resembled a Clefable walk out onto the floor. [The boss! The boss is here!] he heard some Gastly say.
[Ah, the Gengar must be who all these other ghosts report to!] Tintri recognized the large ghost Pokemon floating in their direction.
"Then maybe if we defeat the boss, all the others will leave us alone!" Ash suggested.
"Stop." he heard a voice call. He whirled around to see a blond haired young man in a kimono-like outfit on a catwalk above them "You should understand that the Pokémon here were not trying to harm you guys, but merely trying to protect their home, because they felt threatened by your appearance." he explained as the ghosts, including the Gengar, circled around him.
"W-who are you?" Ash called up to the man, a note of fear in his voice.
After shooing away the Gastlies and Haunters, but shepherding the Gengar close to him, the man replied "My name is Morty, Leader of the Ecruteak City Gym. You seem to have met Rocko, my Gengar partner, already--the other ghosts here consider him the leader."
"No wonder the Gastlies and Haunters were calling him 'the boss' before..." Misty smiled, a little relieved that the ghost Pokemon meant them no harm.
After taking a minute or two to collect himself, Ash motioned for Tintri to climb back on his shoulder. "I am Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town...I come to challenge you for the badge you hold."
Morty just smiled, bemused in Ash's politeness. "As much as I would love to battle you in an official Gym battle, we can't do that here. This place was and has been confused as the Ecruteak City Gym by many different trainers that pass through the city."
"So, just what exactly IS this place?" Brock was intrigued.
"It used to be a place of brightness and hope; now it's a place of darkness." Morty replied as he came down to the ground floor to meet the group. "That's why so many Ghost Pokémon have come to live here."
A sick feeling welled up in Ash's stomach. "Now I feel bad for attacking them..."
"Poor ghosts..." Misty agreed.
A faded plaque on a nearby wall depicting a familiar phoenix-like bird piqued Ash's attention. "What's this?" Ash asked as he hurried over to get a better look at the bird on the plaque.
"The Pokemon depicted on that plaque before you is Ho'oh, one of many ancient legendary Pokémon." Morty replied.
Ash balked at this. "It may be legendary, but I saw one!"
He proceeded to tell Morty all about how he had met Ho'oh some years before--in an attempt to outrun some Spearows, he had lost Misty in an attempt to get away, and had made the decision to sacrifice himself for both him and Tintri. Tintri, however, did not wish to see his trainer die, and had unleashed a huge Thundershock to save them both. When they had some to moments later, Ho'oh flew overhead as a rainbow appeared in the sky.
Morty raised an eyebrow at Ash's story. "Are you SURE that it was Ho'oh you saw? She has not been seen for three centuries, when a great hero used the Swanna Song to call her directly."
"Are you saying you don't believe me?" Ash gasped.
"No, but I'm going to need more evidence to back up your claim than just one account." Morty assured Ash. "There's a tower that was rebuilt not too far away from the burned out building we're in right now. The tower is a copy of this one."
"Well, what happened to the original tower?" Ash asked.
"To answer your question, we need to go back many years ago..." Morty began as Rocko conjured a series of paintings that told the story of the burned tower.
---------
"Long ago, this tower was built to promote understanding between humans and Pokémon, and allowing people to unlock the legendary power of Mega Evolution." Morty explained, referring to a painting depicting a female trainer receiving a ring, then her singing some gibberish runes, inducing a Venusaur to Mega Evolve. "My ancestors protected it for generations." he smiled, showing the group a portrait of who Ash assumed was either Morty's father or grandfather.
Morty then showed Ash the next painting, depicting Ho'oh and the tower. "Over the decades, the Tin Tower became a special place for another reason. It was the only place in the world where, as well as learning the secrets of Mega Evolutions and Z-Moves, Ho'oh, the rainbow phoenix, made contact with humans. Ho'oh's visits were a sign of peace, but she would only appear to a select few--only those guarding the tower and those proven worthy to see her."
"Oh..." the group replied as Morty showed them the next painting, depicting a ninja ambush.
"Then, one day, invaders came who sought to use Ho'oh's power for evil!" Morty announced, displaying the next painting of the tower ablaze. "In the ensuing battle, the Tin Tower was set ablaze! Ho'oh fled... she stopped visiting humans... and she has never returned."
He showed the next painting of a crowd of people around the charred remains of the tower. "Some wanted to rebuild the tower, but my ancestors insisted that it be left as a witness for future generations of man's brutality -- but they also decided to build a new Tin Tower."
Morty then displayed the last painting of the current Tin Tower. "Their hope was that Ho'oh might return, to a new place of peace, and the people of Johto could once again have a place to learn to master Mega Evolution and the mysterious Z Moves. So far, these hopes have been in vain....we've waited so long that some people say that Ho'oh was a legend that never really existed."
Ash contemplated Morty's tale for a moment. "I know I saw Ho'oh that day... it isn't just a legend."
---------
With Ash occupied defending himself, Tintri spotted Ami heading for a hole he noticed only small Pokémon like Marill would be able to fit through. Uh oh...I've known Ami is very curious, and loves to explore, but this isn't a good place to do it--I'd better do something before she gets hurt!
He jumped from Ash's shoulder and bounded over to stop the curious Marill. [Ami! I know you like exploring, but--!] he started before he ended up accidentally pushing Ami and squeezing himself through the hole at the same time!
Misty noticed Tintri and Ami had squeezed through the hole. "Uh oh...where did Tintri and Ami get to?"
"They went through a hole that leads to the upper part of a room in the basement." Morty assured the group. "The room in question is not far from where you first enter the basement."
Ash swallowed hard as he followed Morty to a stairwell. Tintri...I hope you and Ami don't get into too much trouble!
To Be Continued...
Episode 71a: A Ghost of a Chance! (part 1)
"Welcome to Ecruteak City...a historical city where the past meets the present." Brock read the signpost as the group rounded a bend in the road, with the city in the distance.
"I can see why!" Misty gasped as she admired the Oriental-esque buildings in the distance. "I've always wanted to see a live Gekijou theater performance!"
"I've always wanted to learn to play the ancient harp that was usually used by the narrator in a Gekijou play, the vina." Brock smiled. "Or any kind of harp, really--I've felt it would add a bit of a fantastic feel to my performances."
"You definitely wouldn't be a spoony bard by any stretch!" Misty smiled, giggling as she imagined Brock, as a minstrel, serenading her, as a princess, in a fantasy land.
"What's the name of that instrument that's always playing all these high trills and runs in traditional Kanto and Johto music?" Ash wondered as the group made their way into the city. "I know it's some kind of flute..."
"That's because it is." Brock explained before turning to the chapter on traditional music and the theater in the guidebook, specifically the section on the ancient instruments used in the Gekijou orchestra. "There were actually two different flutes used in the Gekijou orchestra--the end blown kidi which has a darker and more mysterious sound, and the instrument you're thinking of, the side blown bansi."
Ash looked over at the picture of an ornately decorated side blown flute in the guidebook. "Wow! I wanna learn to play one of those!"
"You sure?" Misty asked. "Not only would it take a ton of practice, you'd have to learn a new way to blow and new fingerings."
Ash just smiled. "I really want to learn...almost as much as I wanna battle for my next badge!"
Brock noticed that during their conversation, they had managed to discover what looked like one of several majestic towers that loomed over the city. "This must be the Gym..."
"Let's go!" Ash led the way inside.
---------
"This Gym isn't like any of the others we've seen before...." Misty mused as the group looked around the inside of the tower. It had clearly seen better days, if not outright damaged somehow, judging from the chaired doorframes and dusty tapestry on the walls.
"Maybe it's not a gym, but something else entirely?" Brock suggested.
"Or maybe we've walked into a dungeon straight out of Zelda?" Ash shuddered. "Maybe there's something you can hit with an arrow to show us the way!"
"If there is a switch I can shoot, where do you think it is?" Brock asked his companion. "I can't shoot at a target that's not there..."
Ash was about to suggest potential locations for a target when suddenly, a small blue flame flared up before him. 'WAUGH!"
"I think the dungeon guardians know we're here!" Misty agreed as more ethereal flames appeared around them. "They're obviously blue, so we need something hot to douse them..."
She looked over to see a gaggle of ethereal cloud Pokemon laughing at the group's fear. "Okay, so those flames were a bunch of Gastlies..."
Inspired, Ash heaved a Poke Ball skyward. "Aina, show us where all those Gastly are!"
The Machop materialized on the cracked wooden floor seconds later. [Doing a little Ghost Pokemon busting? Let me help you find them.]
The lightbulb went off in Misty's head as Aina's eyes glowed red, revealing many more Gastly in the room. "Oh, Machop can learn Foresight too, just like those Hoothoots we met before!"
"In some cases, Pidgeys--and by extension Pidgeottos and Pidgeots--can learn it too, but I'm not going into a long discussion about genetics here." Brock explained.
"Yes, let's have science class later." Misty nervously stammered, aware of the Gastly approaching them.
"Aina, now that you've revealed the Gastlies, start Tackling them!" Ash almost screamed as he jumped to avoid a blob of purplish black energy a Gastly had fired at him.
[You got it!] Aina called before ramming a Gastly, sending it tumbling backwards.
"Who knew that a Fighting type could do anything against ghosts?" Misty mused as she watched Aina ram Gastly after Gastly, making them disappear.
"Foresight must expose them, allowing physical moves to hit them!" Ash proposed as some of the remaining Gastlies flew off in terror.
The group swallowed hard when they saw the Gastlies return a few moments later with larger purple phantasms Ash remembered as Haunters. "They just left to get reinforcements..." Brock broke the uneasy silence some moments later.
Ash looked over at Tintri. "Get ready for a big fight, bud..."
[Which of these ghosts do I need to bust first?] Tintri asked as he charged a Thunderbolt.
Moments before Ash could command Tintri to fire his attack, he saw a large ghost that somewhat resembled a Clefable walk out onto the floor. [The boss! The boss is here!] he heard some Gastly say.
[Ah, the Gengar must be who all these other ghosts report to!] Tintri recognized the large ghost Pokemon floating in their direction.
"Then maybe if we defeat the boss, all the others will leave us alone!" Ash suggested.
"Stop." he heard a voice call. He whirled around to see a blond haired young man in a kimono-like outfit on a catwalk above them "You should understand that the Pokémon here were not trying to harm you guys, but merely trying to protect their home, because they felt threatened by your appearance." he explained as the ghosts, including the Gengar, circled around him.
"W-who are you?" Ash called up to the man, a note of fear in his voice.
After shooing away the Gastlies and Haunters, but shepherding the Gengar close to him, the man replied "My name is Morty, Leader of the Ecruteak City Gym. You seem to have met Rocko, my Gengar partner, already--the other ghosts here consider him the leader."
"No wonder the Gastlies and Haunters were calling him 'the boss' before..." Misty smiled, a little relieved that the ghost Pokemon meant them no harm.
After taking a minute or two to collect himself, Ash motioned for Tintri to climb back on his shoulder. "I am Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town...I come to challenge you for the badge you hold."
Morty just smiled, bemused in Ash's politeness. "As much as I would love to battle you in an official Gym battle, we can't do that here. This place was and has been confused as the Ecruteak City Gym by many different trainers that pass through the city."
"So, just what exactly IS this place?" Brock was intrigued.
"It used to be a place of brightness and hope; now it's a place of darkness." Morty replied as he came down to the ground floor to meet the group. "That's why so many Ghost Pokémon have come to live here."
A sick feeling welled up in Ash's stomach. "Now I feel bad for attacking them..."
"Poor ghosts..." Misty agreed.
A faded plaque on a nearby wall depicting a familiar phoenix-like bird piqued Ash's attention. "What's this?" Ash asked as he hurried over to get a better look at the bird on the plaque.
"The Pokemon depicted on that plaque before you is Ho'oh, one of many ancient legendary Pokémon." Morty replied.
Ash balked at this. "It may be legendary, but I saw one!"
He proceeded to tell Morty all about how he had met Ho'oh some years before--in an attempt to outrun some Spearows, he had lost Misty in an attempt to get away, and had made the decision to sacrifice himself for both him and Tintri. Tintri, however, did not wish to see his trainer die, and had unleashed a huge Thundershock to save them both. When they had some to moments later, Ho'oh flew overhead as a rainbow appeared in the sky.
Morty raised an eyebrow at Ash's story. "Are you SURE that it was Ho'oh you saw? She has not been seen for three centuries, when a great hero used the Swanna Song to call her directly."
"Are you saying you don't believe me?" Ash gasped.
"No, but I'm going to need more evidence to back up your claim than just one account." Morty assured Ash. "There's a tower that was rebuilt not too far away from the burned out building we're in right now. The tower is a copy of this one."
"Well, what happened to the original tower?" Ash asked.
"To answer your question, we need to go back many years ago..." Morty began as Rocko conjured a series of paintings that told the story of the burned tower.
---------
"Long ago, this tower was built to promote understanding between humans and Pokémon, and allowing people to unlock the legendary power of Mega Evolution." Morty explained, referring to a painting depicting a female trainer receiving a ring, then her singing some gibberish runes, inducing a Venusaur to Mega Evolve. "My ancestors protected it for generations." he smiled, showing the group a portrait of who Ash assumed was either Morty's father or grandfather.
Morty then showed Ash the next painting, depicting Ho'oh and the tower. "Over the decades, the Tin Tower became a special place for another reason. It was the only place in the world where, as well as learning the secrets of Mega Evolutions and Z-Moves, Ho'oh, the rainbow phoenix, made contact with humans. Ho'oh's visits were a sign of peace, but she would only appear to a select few--only those guarding the tower and those proven worthy to see her."
"Oh..." the group replied as Morty showed them the next painting, depicting a ninja ambush.
"Then, one day, invaders came who sought to use Ho'oh's power for evil!" Morty announced, displaying the next painting of the tower ablaze. "In the ensuing battle, the Tin Tower was set ablaze! Ho'oh fled... she stopped visiting humans... and she has never returned."
He showed the next painting of a crowd of people around the charred remains of the tower. "Some wanted to rebuild the tower, but my ancestors insisted that it be left as a witness for future generations of man's brutality -- but they also decided to build a new Tin Tower."
Morty then displayed the last painting of the current Tin Tower. "Their hope was that Ho'oh might return, to a new place of peace, and the people of Johto could once again have a place to learn to master Mega Evolution and the mysterious Z Moves. So far, these hopes have been in vain....we've waited so long that some people say that Ho'oh was a legend that never really existed."
Ash contemplated Morty's tale for a moment. "I know I saw Ho'oh that day... it isn't just a legend."
---------
With Ash occupied defending himself, Tintri spotted Ami heading for a hole he noticed only small Pokémon like Marill would be able to fit through. Uh oh...I've known Ami is very curious, and loves to explore, but this isn't a good place to do it--I'd better do something before she gets hurt!
He jumped from Ash's shoulder and bounded over to stop the curious Marill. [Ami! I know you like exploring, but--!] he started before he ended up accidentally pushing Ami and squeezing himself through the hole at the same time!
Misty noticed Tintri and Ami had squeezed through the hole. "Uh oh...where did Tintri and Ami get to?"
"They went through a hole that leads to the upper part of a room in the basement." Morty assured the group. "The room in question is not far from where you first enter the basement."
Ash swallowed hard as he followed Morty to a stairwell. Tintri...I hope you and Ami don't get into too much trouble!
To Be Continued...
Last edited: