Chapter 28: Aiming to Become the Pokémon Master!

Black clouds hung low, heavy with rain. The little Charmander remained curled upon that rocky ledge.

"Awoo..."

It panted heavily, its expression weary, still clutching a lotus leaf that swayed in the wind. But the leaf was merely symbolic; the torrential rain continued to drench its body. The flame at the tip of its tail flickered incessantly, as if it might extinguish at any moment.

"Awoo-roar..."

Seeing Ash and his friends approach, the Charmander forced itself up, letting out a weak, threatening growl. Yet, its voice was even feebler than it had been that afternoon.

"There's no time left. We have to take it to the Pokémon Center by force!"

Ash did not hesitate. In this crisis, he couldn't worry about the Charmander's consent. He lunged forward, stripped off his own raincoat, and draped it over the Pokémon. Summoning his strength, he hauled the Charmander up.

"Charmander, find your resolve! Don't you dare close your eyes!" Ash roared, trying to spur the creature on.

"Awoo...?"

Although the tone was rough, the Charmander looked into the boy's fervent eyes, feeling a sense of bewilderment. It had never experienced such warmth from a trainer before.

Brock and Misty rushed forward to help support the Charmander, and the three of them hurried toward the Pokémon Center. Just then, a voice echoed out of nowhere in Ash's mind. It sounded cold and detached.

"The flame on its tail is the flame of life..."

Ash instinctively looked back and realized the Charmander’s tail flame was indeed exposed outside the raincoat. As the rain fell, the fire grew dimmer. He quickly switched places with Brock, letting him lead the way while he shielded the tail flame against his chest, ensuring not a single drop of water touched it.

Once that was done, Ash’s expression darkened, and he replied silently in his thoughts.

"Thank you, Mr. Red."

Hearing the words suddenly resonate in his mind, Red paused, then fell back into silence. *So, this kid has been aware of my presence all along...?*

...

Soon, the three arrived at the Pokémon Center.

"Leave the rest to me!" Nurse Joy had the emergency room ready and immediately took over, beginning treatment on the Charmander.

Damian and his group had already departed, leaving Ash with a sense of frustrated emptiness. He could only watch helplessly as the bright red emergency light hung above the door.

...

Beep!

Thirty minutes later, the red light turned green, signaling the end of the emergency treatment. Seeing the door slide open, Ash rushed forward.

"Nurse Joy, how is Charmander?"

"It's going to be fine. It’s out of danger. It just needs a good night's rest to recover; Pokémon are remarkably resilient, you know."

Nurse Joy didn't say much more, ushering the three toward the guest rooms and signaling that they needed rest as well. She didn't want the humans collapsing after the Pokémon was finally safe.

"As long as Charmander is okay, I can finally relax..."

With a sigh of relief, the heavy weight lifted from their hearts. Yawning, they headed to their room to wash up and sleep.

...

Yet, lying in bed, Ash couldn't fall asleep quite so easily. He remembered something, tapped his chest, and whispered, "Hey, hey, Brother Red, I'm bored. Come out and chat."

Ash sent the voice request.

Red: "..."

After hesitating for a long time, Red finally accepted the connection.

"When did you find out I was here?"

"Duh, I'm not some dense kid," Ash replied with a touch of smugness.

Red furrowed his brows. *So you aren't, huh...?*

...

Now that Charmander was out of danger, Ash had returned to his usual optimistic and cheerful self. For a while now, strange voices had been popping into his mind. He had mysteriously gained a round-faced Pikachu whose trainer was named Red. On top of that, when he sent his three Squirtle to Professor Oak's lab yesterday, he had accidentally noticed a new option below "Ash's PC": "Red's PC."

A normal person might have been paranoid, thinking they were haunted, perhaps even hiring a Jynx to perform an exorcism. But Ash, being thick-skinned, had quickly accepted the situation. *It doesn't matter. As long as your will is strong and your heart is righteous, you don't need to fear gods or demons!*

Red: "..."

"Tell me, Brother Red, are you trying to possess me?" Ash asked with great interest. "Because I think we could go a few rounds."

Red: "..." *No thanks. Your willpower is on par with Arceus...*

"Hey, Brother Red, are you dead?"

"..."

Red chose not to respond and unilaterally cut off the voice communication. The title "Brother Red" made his eyebrow twitch violently.

"Brother Red? Why did you stop talking? I can only see three ellipses now."

Red: "..."

...

Early the next morning, the three woke up early. Ash didn't even brush his teeth before rushing into Charmander's room, only to find it empty.

"It’s already gone..." Ash felt a sudden, inexplicable sense of loss.

"It probably went back to that rocky ledge, Ash." Nurse Joy walked over, gently patting his shoulder. "Don't miss this opportunity. Go and see it."

As a Nurse Joy, her duty was to care for all Pokémon without bias, but she was no robot; she had her own feelings. She felt that no one was better suited to be that Charmander's trainer than Ash—certainly more so than that arrogant punk from before.

"I understand!"

Ash’s spirits lifted. He called Brock and Misty, and the three returned to the rocky plateau. From a distance, they saw the Charmander standing there, looking vibrant and full of energy. The flame on its tail burned brightly.

"Awoo-roar!!"

It suddenly threw its head back and roared, spitting a massive, dark-red fireball into the air.

Boom!

The flames exploded, sending a scorching wave of heat outward. The near-death experience had doubled its combat potential!

"That's Flamethrower—a high-level move for a beginner. Most Charmander wouldn't be able to master that," Brock noted, surprised.

"Flamethrower?" Ash’s eyes lit up, and he quickened his pace. "Charmander..."

Before Ash could finish, a voice called out from the other side.

"Charmander, looks like you've gotten stronger. I'm here to take you back as promised."

Damian had appeared on the other side of the plateau, holding up a Poké Ball with a smug expression. *Damn it, I almost misjudged it. It’s actually a Charmander with incredible potential? Haha, I’m getting a free Charmander that knows Flamethrower!* Damian thought, feeling quite pleased with himself.

Ash ran up and shouted, "Don't listen to him, Charmander! This guy is no good—he abandoned you!"

"Awoo...?"

The interruption left the Charmander conflicted, looking back and forth.

"What are you doing? I'm your master!" Damian was furious. First, he’d been punched, and now this kid was meddling with his Pokémon. "Get back here right now!"

Damian threw the original Poké Ball at the Charmander.

"ROAR!!"

That action was the final straw. The Charmander’s gaze hardened, the flame on its tail flared, and it swiped its claw, smashing the incoming Poké Ball in mid-air.

Clatter!

The Poké Ball shattered. That signified the final bond between Charmander and Damian was severed forever.

"You, you, you..." Damian was so angry he couldn't speak. Seeing the Charmander prepare to unleash another powerful blast, he turned pale and fled, cursing under his breath.

...

"Dummy, what are you waiting for?"

"Go on, Ash," Brock and Misty urged, giving him a push.

Ash took a deep breath, walked forward, and slowly pulled out his own Poké Ball. "Even though your last trainer was a scumbag, not all humans are like that. Charmander, would you like to travel with me?"

He had always longed for a cool Charmander.

"Awoo!!"

The Charmander’s stern eyes suddenly softened into a genuine, innocent smile. It reached out its claw and tapped Ash's Poké Ball. A red light flashed, the Charmander was drawn inside, and the ball clicked shut without a single shake.

"I... I caught a Charmander!!"

Ash couldn't contain his excitement. He held the Poké Ball aloft, spinning and dancing with joy. He had finally collected all three Kanto starters!

...

"Beep. Data updated. Congratulations to the trainer for unlocking the achievement: 'Gatherer of the Kanto Longevity Trio'."

The Pokédex on his belt chimed, playing a celebratory, jaunty tune.

"Longevity Trio?" Ash asked, confused, pulling out the device. "Explain?"

"Beep. The Pokédex includes an achievement recording system. Complete specified tasks to unlock achievements," the device replied stiffly.

The three of them became intrigued, all reaching out to examine the device.

"Oh, Ash, you've completed three achievements already. Let me see..."

"Wow, Pikachu has an 'Actor's Path' achievement; you've just unlocked 'Junior Trainee'."

"Pidgeotto and Caterpie have a 'Food Chain' achievement: 'Bird and Bug'."

"Century-old Charmander + Millennium Squirtle + Ten-thousand-year-old Blastoise—this is the 'Kanto Starter Longevity' achievement."

Ash frowned. What kind of nonsense was this? He held the Pokédex up and shouted, "This is all just fancy window dressing! Pokédex, delete this achievement system for me!"

"Beep. Deletion in progress... Deletion failed. Cannot delete. Everything is to help the trainer achieve their life goal!"

After a high-frequency whirring of its CPU, the Pokédex let out a rousing, inspirational chime.

"The goal is to help Trainer Ash become the Pokémon King!"

Ash: "?"

*Is my accent acting up, or did your circuits get flooded?*