Chapter 14

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=100 BGCOLOR="#CCCCFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="14800640egdysm.jpg"> <div> <A HREF="mim1.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 1"><U>Chapter 1</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim2.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 2"><U>Chapter 2</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 3"><U>Chapter 3</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 4"><U>Chapter 4</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim5.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 5"><U>Chapter 5</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim6.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 6"><U>Chapter 6</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim7.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 7"><U>Chapter 7</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim8.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 8"><U>Chapter 8</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim9.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 9"><U>Chapter 9</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim10.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 10"><U>Chapter 10</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim11.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 11"><U>Chapter 11</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim12.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 12"><U>Chapter 12</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim13.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 13"><U>Chapter 13</U></A>   |   <B>Chapter 14</B>   |   <A HREF="mim15.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 15"><U>Chapter 15</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim16.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 16"><U>Chapter 16</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim17.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 17"><U>Chapter 17</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#000066" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/oldnews.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Old News</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/zrfic/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>My Fanfics</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/zrart/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>My Fanart</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/a-j/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Authors A-J</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/k-z/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Authors K-Z</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/art/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Fanart List</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/ffsubmit.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Submit a Fanfic</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/fanart_submit.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Submit Fanart</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://pub46.ezboard.com/beeveesmb" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://pub46.ezboard.com/beeveesmb"><U><B>Message Board</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/links.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Links</B></U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=380 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>Chapter 14</I></div> <div> <B>A Master in the Making: Chapter 14: Escape From Echo Caverns</B></div> <bR> <div>     Zeth checked his map again.  "Yep, this is it, Echo Caverns," he said to the Growlithe beside him.  "Looks kinda spooky, doesn't it?"  The entrance was nothing more than a thin crack in the rock, almost like a sideways mouth, ready to swallow up any travelers that came that way.</div> <bR> <div>     Blaze shook his head, watching a flight of Zubats fly out of the entrance.  {Nah, caves are cool.  I ought to know, since I used to live in one.}</div> <bR> <div>     "That wasn't a cave, it was a volcano.  I know what you mean, though.  This should be kinda fun.  Maybe we'll find some interesting pokémon in there."  Zeth pulled off his backpack, and rummaged around for his flashlight.  Checking to make sure he had an extra set of batteries in case of emergency, Zeth turned on the light, and stepped into the cave.  "Come on, Blaze.  Let's explore."</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div>     "The target has been sighted.  He's just entered the Echo Caverns."</div> <bR> <div>     Kat scowled at the figure on her videophone screen.  She had been waiting for this call for three hours, and was not very happy at the delay.  "Are you all in position?"</div> <bR> <div>     The other Rocket nodded once.  "We are ready to proceed."</div> <bR> <div>     "Then proceed already!  I want that kid out of the picture, understand!" Kat growled.</div> <bR> <div>     "Yes, ma'am." The other Rocket signaled to someone out of the vidphone's range.  A loud roaring suddenly filled the speakers, and Kat smacked the mute button.  She turned the sound back on when her operative continued talking. "... should take care of the kid.  We just got a signal from the other side.  They've sealed off the other end.  Now that kid will be wandering around the inside of the Granite Mountains for the rest of his short life."</div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div>     Zeth and Blaze were thrown to the ground as the ground shook suddenly.  They were plunged into blackness as Zeth dropped the flashlight.  "What was that?!" Zeth exclaimed, trying to find his companion in the darkness.</div> <bR> <div>     {It sounded like an explosion or cave-in.  We'd better be careful, it might happen again.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Yeah, but I'm hoping we can get out of here before that happens.  Blow a little bit of fire, will you?  I can't see a thing."  Blaze obliged by blowing a stream of fire into the air, narrowly missing Zeth.  "Aah!  Watch where you're aiming."  Zeth grabbed his fallen flashlight and turned it back on.  The light flickered, but stayed on.  Zeth noticed that he no longer felt the draft from the passage back the way they had come.  "I'm not totally sure, but I think the way back is blocked.  Let's keep going."  The Growlithe nodded agreement, and the two set out again.</div> <bR> <div>     They continued to follow the marked trail for an hour, but when they neared the exit to the cave, they found it to be totally blocked.  "This can't be from the cave-in we felt, can it?  That was way back at the other end of the cavern."</div> <bR> <div>     {I don't think it could have been, but caves can do strange things with sound.  Maybe there was more than one cave-in.  All I know is that we can't get out this way.}</div> <bR> <div>     "Let's stop here then.  We'll have lunch while we try to find a way out of here."  Zeth released his other five pokémon, and handed out a small can of Norse Joy's poké-food to each of them.  "Ok, guys, I could use some suggestions on how to get out of here.  Florio, Blaze, do you think we could dig our way out?"</div> <bR> <div>     Florio studied the huge mess of rocks blocking the way out.  {I don't know, there's an awful lot of rocks here.  I might be able to smash through them if I used Solarbeam, but I don't know if that would work or not.  And, unless Blaze here knows Sunny Day, there's no way for me to charge up a Solarbeam anyway.}</div> <bR> <div>     Blaze winced, {Sorry, no sunshine here.  And I'm not too good at digging through solid rock.}</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth thought for a minute.  "Well, that rules that out.  What about you, Aqua?  Could you teleport us out?"</div> <bR> <div>     The Shellder was facing the rocks making high-pitched squeaking noises.  Realizing that Zeth was talking to him, he skillfully spun himself around with a quick jet of water.  {Sorry, but I don't think I can.  It's hard to teleport to somewhere you can't see.  We might appear inside the rocks, and I don't think you'd like that.  I've been scanning to find a clear spot with supersonic, but all these rocks just reflect it back.  None of my attacks will work on that wall either.  It would take me years to erode our way out with Water Gun, and I don't think you want to try something nasty like Explosion in a cave.}</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth grimaced, "That would be pretty messy, wouldn't it.  My vidphone won't work in the cave, so we can't even call for help.  I guess we'd better try to find another way out."  Pulling out his pokédex, Zeth asked for a map on the Echo Caverns.</div> <bR> <div>     The pokédex immediately started spouting out facts about the cave. "Information: Echo Caverns.  These caves were first discovered by Daniel Gessler almost 1,000 years ago.  They were named for the large caverns that were found in many parts of the cave system.  The Echo Caverns have been noted as being one of the largest cave systems in the world, and there are still many unexplored side tunnels.  No maps available."</div> <bR> <div>     "Wonderful... Looks like we have some exploring to do."  Zeth pulled out a large ball of string and tied it to a large rock column.  Picking up Aqua, he issued orders.  "Ok, I need everyone to stay together.  We'll unwind the ball of string as we go, so we can find our way back if we get lost."</div> <bR> <div>     If Zeth had been less worried about finding a way out of the caves, he would have stopped to appreciate all the beautiful rock formations in the cave.  There were huge pillars of stone and long, thin stalactites that would break if they were touched by anything at all.  There were large murky pools of water, and sparkling crystals on some of the walls.  The entire place was like a different world.  Not only that, but there were lots of pokémon as well.  A Paras scuttled away into the darkness as they entered one room.  A Geodude rolled right past them, almost knocking into Florio, who shot a flurry of leaves at the offender.</div> <bR> <div>     Turning a corner, they were suddenly cast into darkness as Zeth dropped the flashlight again.  The airborne Talon smacked into a stalactite, and complained loudly.  {Why'd you turn the light off?!} Suddenly there was a high-pitched squeaking sound all around them.</div> <bR> <div>     "It's a bunch of Zubats!" Zeth yelled.  "They knocked the flashlight out of my hands!  Blaze, use Flamethrower, but remember to aim up!"  The cave was instantly filled with fire, revealing hundreds of Zubats.  The angry bats attacked the travelers, pummeling them with Supersonic attacks.  They were not alone.  Further inside the room, the Zubats were assaulting a helpless Sandshrew.  The poor creature was already unconscious, and the Zubats were starting to crowd around it.  <I>Those things suck blood!  That shrew needs help!</I></div> <bR> <div>     "Attack at will!  Don't let them confuse you, or you'll end up as lunch!"  Realizing that he was still holding Aqua, Zeth suddenly had an idea.  "Forget that, retreat!  I'll catch up in a minute!"</div> <bR> <div>     Eva tried to run after Zeth, but Florio grabbed her with one vine and ran back down the passage, guided by Blaze's fire.  The Eevee yelled in Florio's ear, {We can't just leave him!  Those Zubats will tear him apart!}</div> <bR> <div>     With a flash of light, Zeth was in front of them, leading the retreat back down the passage.  The Zubats decided not to follow.</div> <bR> <div>     Blaze finally ran out of fire, and the travelers were plunged back into darkness.  "Well, that was exciting," commented Zeth, "but now my flashlight is broken."  His remark was met with groans.  "Come on guys, it could have been worse.  The Zubats could have managed to get us."</div> <bR> <bR> <div>     The team managed to find their way back to the main exit with the string, but they still had no way to escape.  Zeth turned on his pokédex's screen, giving them just enough light to make out each other's outlines in the dark.  The pokémon were surprised to find that Zeth had managed to rescue the Sandshrew while the rest of them were escaping the bats.  When the shrew regained consciousness ten minutes later, Sting immediately started firing off questions at it.  {Who are you?   Do you know a way out?  Why were you in there with all those Zubats?}</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth came to the rodent's rescue a second time.  "Sting, let the poor pokémon rest, he's been through a lot."</div> <bR> <div>     Hearing a human's voice, the shrew tried to jump up and run away, but he was too weak to stand.  Florio gently wrapped him up in one vine.  {Relax, no one is going to hurt you.  We just saved you from those Zubat back there.}</div> <bR> <div>     {Really?  Why?}</div> <bR> <div>     {Because Zeth is crazy enough to try something like that,} Florio answered, releasing the other pokémon.  {Why?  Do we need a reason to save someone?}</div> <bR> <div>     {I guess not.  It's just that the last humans I saw threw stuff at me and told their pokémon to attack me.  I barely managed to get away.  Then they made the ceiling fall down, and all those Zubats attacked me, and now I'm here.}  The Sandshrew peered around at the dimly lit surroundings.  {Right back where I started....}</div> <bR> <div>     "Sounds like we're in the same boat." Zeth remarked.  "We're trying to find a way out, but so far we haven't had any luck."</div> <bR> <div>     {Yuck... I hate boats...} the Sandshrew muttered.  {I can probably find a way to get you out of the caves, though.}</div> <bR> <div>     "You can?"</div> <bR> <div>     {Sure, but there's a problem, as usual.  The Digletts and Dugtrio living further in the caves could easily unblock the exit, but we'd have to go back through those Zubats to get to them.}</div> <bR> <div>     Zeth thought it over.  "I'm not sure I like that idea, but it's probably our best way out.  Once everyone is rested up, we'll try it."</div> <bR> <bR> <div>     This time, the team had a plan.  They set out with Zeth and Aqua in the lead, followed by the Sandshrew.  As they neared the Zubat chamber, Zeth signaled the others to hang back.  Rounding the final corner, Zeth yelled "Now!"</div> <bR> <div>     Aqua froze all the nearby bats with a rapid-fire Aurora Beam, which was quickly followed by a flurry of sand from the Sandshrew.  A few seconds later, Blaze and Sting rushed in, filling the room with flames and poisonous needles.  The Zubats, taken by surprise, rushed to escape, flying down any side passages they could find.  When Eva, Florio and Talon joined the fray, the majority of the bats was already gone.</div> <bR> <div>     With the caves clear of trouble, the Sandshrew led Zeth and company through a few more tight passages, into what seemed to be a large cavern.  "Is this it?" Zeth asked.</div> <bR> <div>     {Yes,} replied the shrew, {this is it.  You'd better let me talk to the Digletts.  They might not trust you.}</div> <bR> <div>     "I understand." The Sandshrew nodded and rushed into the darkness.  A few minutes later, he returned with over a dozen Digletts and six Dugtrio.</div> <bR> <div>     {I managed to convince a few of them to help you.  They'll have the entrance cleared for you in no time!}</div> <bR> <div>     The moles were amazing.  Within fifteen minutes they had broken through the rock, and in another fifteen minutes, they had half the rubble moved away. Zeth returned his pokémon to their pokéballs and climbed over the remaining boulders.  "Thanks for helping us, Sandshrew!" he called, waving goodbye as he slid down the other side.  "I hope we see each other again sometime!"</div> <bR> <bR> <div>     Vince was the kind of Rocket who never took chances.  Although the other Rockets were satisfied that their target would never escape the Echo Caverns, Vince knew from past experience that a situation could go from good to bad in an instant.  As a result, he had come back to the cavern to check the trap.  When he arrived, however, he found the entrance totally cleared.  Cursing, he ran back the waiting helicopter. His superiors would not be happy.</div> <bR> <bR> <div>     Duke jumped as Kat barreled into his office, and slammed the door behind her.  The house of cards he had been working on immediately fell down in a heap.  "Kat, what is it?!"</div> <bR> <div>     "That little wretch escaped.  Not only that, but the Dragons are causing more trouble in Amethyst City and Garnet Town.  I've had to assign operatives away from that pesky kid to deal with it.  Now my revenge is delayed again."</div> <bR> <div>     "Look on the bright side.  Project Genesis is proceeding as planned.  The Boss is pleased with our progress.  We have dozens of new recruits.  One annoying kid isn't going to stop us!"</div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>