Chapter 6: Arrival in Cerulean City
Somewhere in Mt. Moon, a group of four people plus one Pikachu were walking and chatting as they hurried along. Needless to say, it was our protagonist Brock and his companions.
"Brock, when are we gonna get to Cerulean City?! I can hardly walk anymore!" Ash said, looking very tired.
Hearing Ash, Brock took a map out of his backpack, looked at it, and said, "Don't worry, Ash, we still have some distance to cover before Cerulean City! If you're tired, let's rest for a bit!"
Ash nodded in agreement, "Okay!"
Hearing Ash's agreement, Brock announced to the group, "Let's rest here for a while, then we'll continue!"
Hearing Brock, Ash immediately found a large rock nearby and sat down.
Brock, Misty, and Seymour hadn't even found places to sit yet when they heard Ash cry out, "Ahh!"
They walked over to Ash's side and asked, "Ash, what happened?"
Ash replied with a disgruntled look, "I just got hit by a move from some Pokémon I don't recognize! It hurt, so I yelled!"
Hearing Ash, Misty asked, "Ash, where is the Pokémon you saw?"
While answering Misty, Ash pointed to the Pokémon's location, "Right there!"
Brock and the others looked where Ash was pointing. A pink, chubby, star-shaped Pokémon appeared before them. It had three fingers on each hand, two of which had something like claws. Its feet had only one toe each. It had a small tooth in its mouth and wrinkles near its eyes. Its ears were pink with brown tips. It had small wings on its back but couldn't fly.
Brock looked at it and said to Ash, "Ash, that's a Clefairy. It's a rare Pokémon. Clefairy's wings are small, and it can't fly, but it can float in the air by gathering moonlight. Clefairy's most distinctive ability is using Metronome through its fingers to randomly use moves. They are timid and shy by nature and rarely appear before humans. How did you even spot it?"
Hearing Brock, Ash replied, "I was just sitting on that rock! I didn't know a Clefairy would attack me!" Ash pointed to the rock he had been about to sit on.
Brock looked around the rock and said, "Ash, maybe the Clefairy was playing behind the rock. When you went to sit down, it probably thought you were going to crush it, so it attacked you."
Meanwhile, Misty saw the Clefairy, and her eyes started sparkling. "Even though I'm a Water-type Pokémon trainer, Clefairy is so cute I can't resist trying to catch it!" she said, already taking out a Poké Ball.
Hearing Misty, Ash protested, "Hey, Misty, I found it first! I should get to catch it!" He also reached for a Poké Ball.
As Misty took out an empty Poké Ball, she retorted to Ash, "Whoever catches it first gets it!"
The Clefairy glanced at the arguing Ash and Misty, then quickly darted into some small bushes and disappeared. Seeing the Clefairy vanish into the bushes, Ash and Misty grabbed their luggage and chased after it.
Seeing Ash and Misty chase after it, Brock also picked up his luggage and followed with Seymour. After a while, Brock and Seymour caught up to Ash and Misty, who were still arguing.
Misty complained to Ash, "Ash, it's all your fault you scared Clefairy away! I would have caught it already!"
Ash shot back, "No, it was you, Misty! You were talking so loud, you scared Clefairy away!"
Brock walked over and said, "You two, stop arguing! Clefairy already escaped; arguing is useless now. Where did you lose track of it?"
Ash and Misty replied together, "Right here."
Brock suggested, "Why don't you search around this area? Maybe you'll find a whole group of Clefairy, then you won't have to fight over one."
Hearing Brock, Ash and Misty actually started searching the vicinity.
Hearing Brock's suggestion, Seymour excitedly asked, "Mr. Brock, is there really a group of Clefairy here?"
Brock replied, "I was just saying it casually. But think about it, Pokémon like Clefairy are gregarious. If we can find where they live, there's bound to be a group of them."
Seymour considered Brock's words, found them reasonable, and nodded.
Brock thought to himself, _Although I don't clearly remember the plot details from watching Pokémon in my previous life, I do recall there being a group of Clefairy in Mt. Moon. I just don't know the exact location._
Seeing Seymour's excitement, Brock asked curiously, "Mr. Seymour, why are you so interested in Clefairy? What do you need them for?"
Seymour replied happily, "We researchers have always been interested in where Clefairy originally come from. If there's a group of them here, investigating them would become much easier."
Brock asked Seymour again, "Mr. Seymour, will your research affect the Clefairy's lives?"
Before Seymour could answer, Ash's shout interrupted them. "Brock! Misty! Mr. Seymour! I found a whole group of Clefairy! Come look, quickly!"
The group found Ash, who led them to the outside of a cave.
Misty asked, "Ash, where are the Clefairy? I don't see any!"
Ash replied, "I saw them go into this cave!" pointing to the cave right before them.
Brock checked his watch; it was almost evening. He said to the others, "Ash, Misty, Mr. Seymour, let's have dinner first, then go into the cave to look for the Clefairy, okay?"
Ash, Misty, and Seymour nodded in agreement.
---
By the time the group finished dinner, it was dark. They entered the cave. Because the cave was too dark to see the path clearly, Brock took a flashlight out of his backpack to illuminate the way. Deep inside the cave, they found a large group of Clefairy. The place where they found them had a large opening in the ceiling, through which the night moon was visible. Since the moon was full and bright tonight, the cave was well-lit, and the Clefairy didn't notice Brock and the others.
They saw the Clefairy gathered around a large rock. Each Clefairy held a Moon Stone. They placed the Moon Stones near the large rock. Then, as the moonlight shone down, most of the Clefairy evolved into Clefable. The light of evolution mixed with the moonlight, creating a scene so beautiful it was hard to believe unless seen with one's own eyes.
Brock and the others were mesmerized by the sight. Unconsciously, they all fell asleep right there. Brock's consciousness, however, entered his mindscape. Seeing his own body asleep, Brock's consciousness asked Bell (the System Spirit), "Bell, aren't I asleep? How did I get in here?"
Bell replied, "Host, the system has been upgraded. The Host can now enter whenever they wish."
Brock continued, "I didn't upgrade anything!"
Bell answered, "Host, I sent you a notification. Since you didn't respond within an hour, it was considered consent. So, I helped you upgrade."
Brock checked his notifications. There were two: one about the system upgrade, and another stating he had completed a random quest (presumably catching Meowth, which awarded 500 points).
Brock opened his points balance and saw his points: 0. He asked Bell, "Bell, didn't I complete a mission? Why don't I have any points?!"
Bell replied, "Host, I sent you a notification: upgrading the system costs 500 points." (Implying the reward from the quest was immediately spent on the auto-upgrade).
Brock asked Bell, "Bell, why does even upgrading the system cost points?"
Bell replied, "With the system upgrade, the Item Shop function is now active, requiring points for its use."
Brock then looked at the items available for purchase in the Item Shop. The dazzling array of items was so overwhelming that it made Brock feel drowsy even in his mindscape.
---
The next day, when Brock and the others woke up, the Clefairy and Clefable were gone, leaving only the large rock behind.
Seymour told Brock, Ash, and Misty, "Brock, Ash, Misty, I was captivated by the scene last night. I won't be going with you to Cerulean City. I've decided to stay here in Mt. Moon to protect the Clefairy and Clefable."
After eating breakfast, the trio of Brock, Ash, and Misty prepared to hurry on towards Cerulean City.