Celadon City Misadventures: John Archer

**"Celadon City Misadventures: John Archer"** is the eighteenth chapter of *Pokémon Reset Bloodlines.* After arriving in Celadon City, Ash learns to his chagrin that the gym is currently closed to male challengers, and ends up getting separated from Misty and Iris. Elsewhere, a Gardevoir who's held captive by a Pokémon smuggler flashbacks to her experiences with her trainer, John Archer.

## Plot

*A Gardevoir recalls her first meeting with her trainer, John Archer, two years ago when she was just a Ralts. She remembers having met him when he was traveling alone and asked about his parents, only to sense sadness from him. Their first encounter was when she had hatched from her egg three months prior and he was fourteen, and she was hiding in a hollow tree until her stomach growling gave her away. John introduced himself and asked to be her friend, which she accepted by taking his hand, and upon doing so she saw his eyes glowing mysteriously.*

In the present time, Ash and company arrive to the Celadon Pokémon Center. When Nurse Joy asks about them coming to challenge Erika, at Ash's nod she replies that Erika won't be accepting his challenge. Ash asks about it, and Nurse Joy clarifies that the gym is currently off-limits for male challengers. Joy explains that Erika has had issues with male challengers since she took over the gym five years ago, being a notable figure of the LGTB community in Kanto, and many of her challengers losing their battles form getting distracted by the girls in the gym being affectionate with each other, which didn't sit well with her. The last straw, however, came when an old man had his grandson challenge Erika as a distraction to set up a hiding spot to spy on a wedding between two of Erika's female employees. The old man was found out and it led to a huge scandal and even lawsuits, leading to Erika placing a temporary ban on male challengers to avoid major consequences, although she's still in hot water because of it and there will be a hearing within a month to sort things out, meaning that Ash won't have a chance to challenge it anytime soon.

At this situation, Iris tries to suggest they dress up Ash as female, bringing Ash bad memories of his "Ashley" disguise from The Old Timeline, but Nurse Joy immediately shuts it down, saying that Erika is pretty good to spot crossdressers. He can't help but think about Erika going into similar reactions to Brock in front of Elesa, Cynthia, Lucy and Jasmine.

*Gardevoir recalls a later day where she, still a Ralts, and John had just gone out of defeating Gym Leader Roxanne in Rustboro City, and were exploring a mountain range where supposedly many meteor showers have fallen before. A female voice interrupts them, informing that they're trespassing into Draconid territory, where "Sootopolitans" like himself aren't allowed, as well as Fairy-types like his Ralts. Despite John's attempt to be friendly, the girl angrily threatens to kill him off if he doesn't leave immediately, calling a Salamence and forcing them to flee by Teleporting away.*

*Sometime later, John caught a Swablu and they made it to Fallarbor Town, having come into possession of a rare meteorite. They run into a scientist named Dr. Shepard who is interested in the space rock, and is willing to pay a hefty sum for it, but John only asks for something to eat and a few Pokéblocks, much to the scientist's surprise, as well as information about the Draconids, which the scientist does by providing him of a book with some history about them. The book details about how the Draconids allied with the Ranger Nations during the Trainer-Ranger Wars in exchange for their cooperation against their enemies, with the conflict stemming from the fact that growing cities were perceived as a threat to their territory, and how both sides committed crimes against the other because of it. John wanted to go back and apologize to the girl he met before, but ultimately decided against it, saddened at the thought that they could never be friends.*

As soon as Ash and his group step out of the Pokémon Center, they end up getting caught by a mob of rushing people, causing Ash and Pikachu to separate from Misty and Iris and somehow end up near a building labeled as "Game Freak Headquarter". Ash decides that if he ever retires he will never move to a city as big as Celadon City. He decides to pick a path at random, to what Pikachu replies that, if they get lost again, Ash owes him a bottle of ketchup.

*Gardevoir recalls when* J*ohn challenged the Lavaridge Town Gym. The leader, Moore, asked him what he hoped to achieve in challenging the gyms, and John replied that he wanted to find friends, much to his surprise as he saw him travel alone. She however recalls that John had the ability to see the potential bonds between himself and other people, either platonic or romantic, though it would only manifest when his eyes glowed, and that was the reason why he wanted to see the Draconid girl once more. She then recalls how the battle between John and the gym leader went, the former using a Nincada and the latter a Numel, with Nincada winning, but then losing to a Torkoal and the leader pointing out that he was missing something in his battling style. John then called for his Trapinch, with the leader noticing that he might have traveled across the desert to find one of those, which he indeed did do, being unaffected by the weather effects. The battle continues and John ends up winning, though the gym leader seems a tad upset that he took advantage of his Torkal being stuck in a pit, shell first and helpless.*

Having gotten lost, Ash tells Pikachu what flavor he wants his ketchup, when they make it to a dark alleyway with a single locked door. The Pokédex detects a large underground gathering and warns Ash against entering, while Pikachu thinks it might be some MissingNo worshiping cult, but Ash finally goes in, hoping that somebody there could give him directions to return to the Pokémon Center.

*Gardevoir now thinks about the time John challenged the Dewford Town Gym, by then she already being a Kirlia. The leader, Brawly, commented that nobody had challenged him for a fifth badge in a long time, which John believed might have to do with a recent storm grounding the ferries. Brawly asked John if he knew something about Norman's wife, rambling about how lucky he is to be married to her. Brawly proposed a four on four battle, which John accepted. They started with a Breloom and a Shedinja respectively, but Shedinja quickly fell to Breloom's Effect Spore, forcing John to bring out his Swablu. Despite difficulties, Swablu won, and then Brawly brought out his Medicham, who once more turned the tide around defeating Swablu.*

*The battle continued with Brawly eventually bringing out a Machoke against John's Ninjask, who defeated it and got Brawly to use his final Pokémon, Hariyama. After Ninjask was defeated, she was forced to take over for the final round, with her noticing that her Trace made her feel pumped out to fight due to copying Hariyama's Guts. After a tough battle, she managed to win for her trainer.*

In the underground, Ash notices that it's pretty crowded and noisy, even more than Roxie's gym by his comparison, and full of large and muscular guys. It turns out to be an underground fight club, which Ash recalls is similar to the P-1 Grand Prix from The Old Timeline, and the latest challenger who's been defeated is none other than Anthony, the man who trained Primeape, who laments he couldn't win the big prize to help his daughter until he found a job. When the announcer asks if anybody wants to challenge the current champion, The Giant, for the big prize, Ash decides to step up to it, offering the prize for the man who just lost. The rules are explained: any Pokémon with hands and legs (or tail) can fight, but no moves are allowed, only physical attacks like punches, kicks or grapples. The Giant is using a Hitmonlee, while Ash calls Charmeleon, who isn't happy about not being able to use fire attacks, but still decides to take up the challenge.

*Many battles later, Gardevoir recalls their sixth gym battle, where John's Nosepass lost to the Gym Leader's Lanturn during a double battle, and she stepped in to defeat a Kingdra that anchored the team* *after John's Vibraba fell to it, with Ninjask and Shedinja winning the match overall for them. Later came their eight gym battle against Winona, whose Altaria defeated John's Flygon, forcing her to step in for the final bout, and the gym leader replied by using a Mega Evolution to begin what would be their toughest battle yet.*

Back in the present time, Ash's Pokédex is shocked that Ash's Charmeleon defeated his foe's Hitmonlee so easily. After giving the money prize to Anthony, Ash asks for directions to return to the Pokémon center, which Anthony happily provides before, aside from a couple of Eviolites he found and telling Ash to be careful out there in case he runs into hobos and gangs.

Elsewhere, Misty and Iris have also gotten lost themselves in the middle of the crowd. The two end up in a grassy field that seems unusually busy that day, and Misty quickly realizes the reason: Elite Four member Lorelei, whom she looks up to, is making an impromptu tag tournament offering any favor within her power as a prize. The tournament is also being watched by the local Gym Leader, Erika, who's holding a Leafeon on her lap to stay awake. Misty tells Iris they have to enter that tournament, reasoning that Ash would probably find his way to where battles take place and this could be their best shot.

They first face against two teenagers that call themselves the Invincible Pokémon Brothers, who use a Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan against them. Misty uses Poliwrath and Iris brings out Excadrill, who quickly make short work of their opponents, much to their shock.

The next round goes without much fanfare, with Emolga and Staryu defeating a Diglett and Doduo. The final round has them go up against a couple of girls named Assunta and Melissa Yoshiki, the latter of whom looks rather masculine and intimidating, and the two also mention in passing that Erika is watching the tournament, pointing at her, which seemingly gives Iris an idea. Melissa and Assunta bring out a Rhyhorn and a Clefable, causing Iris to flinch, but Misty says she'll handle it. However, before she can make her choice, her Psyduck comes out on his own, making her feel embarrassed in front of Lorelei, who seems amused. Iris brings out Axew, who's taken aback by Clefable but Iris cheers him on to battle, and he steels himself. The battle goes underway and the two of them manage to pull a win.

Erika congratulates them both, mentioning that she saw them at the Battle Dome and knows they won't challenge her. Lorelei then approaches them and as prize, before Misty can even say anything, offers her a Wooper, knowing about her goal to catch Water-types, and she's too shocked to even reject it. Iris on the other hand, seems more thoughtful, and asks Lorelei if she could convince Erika to battle their friend Ash, much to the surprise of Erika and Misty, who seems upset and disappointed in herself for not thinking about that to help Ash. Lorelei takes Erika for a talk, and offers her a swimsuit calendar she has that was made for Charles Goodshow who was recovering from an accident, with several attractive female gym leaders and Elite Four members including herself as the poster girls. Lorelei also points out that Erika can't keep the ban on male trainers much longer so she might start with Ash who by all means seems a decent boy. Erika agrees to do so and takes her leave, and so does Lorelei, leaving Misty and Iris on their own, the former still feeling bad for not thinking about helping Ash like Iris did.

Back with Ash and Pikachu, the two still continue to be lost, and somehow end up in a warehouse district, where Ash's Pokédex demands to be taken to where there's range of wireless connection. Suddenly, a telepathic voice calls out the name "John" in Ash's head, prompting him to follow it. After knocking out a guard to get inside, Ash enters a room full of Scatterbug locked in cages and looking miserable, and lots of crates full of Poké Balls and other items he does not recognize, and in the middle of the room, a man sitting on a red couch, who seems to have been waiting for him after being alerted by the guard. Unimpressed, the man notices that Ash is reacting as if hearing voices, which he reveals to be a Psychic-type Pokémon he obtained from a trainer who placed high in the last Ever Grande Conference, along with five more, and the Psychic type has probably been trying to contact for help. Upon hearing Ash's Pokédex ringing out, the man introduces himself as Felgrand and a black market dealer, as well as one of the Seven Brothers of Orre, declaring his intent to take Ash's Pokédex to add to his goods. Bringing out an Onix to attack Ash and Pikachu, the trainer communicates with his partner telepathically, telling Pikachu to break the Scatterbug and get the Poké Balls while he keeps him busy. Ash brings out Squirtle for backup, attacking it with water to quickly knock it out. Shocked at how easily his Onix was defeated, Felgrand brings out a Kangaskhan, which both Ash and Squirtle notice is missing an offspring. The Kangaskhan punches Squirtle away and is almost ready to attack Ash, but Pikachu has freed the Scatterbug who quickly use String Shot to ensnare Kangaskhan, prompting Felgrand to bring out a Rhyhorn to the fray. While Squirtle fights off the Rhyhorn, the Kangaskhan tries to punch Ash, who catches the attack and pushes it back. Then when it tries a Headbutt, Ash instinctively uses Counter to defend himself, cluing him that he's a Bloodliner and looking at him with hatred. Felgrand finally decides to cut his looses and recalls his Pokémon, before dropping a bunch of smoke balls to cover his escape.

After slipping away, Felgrand is angry at being defeated, but vows to return and get his revenge. However, as he plans to take a Wobbufett in a cage to start anew, he's attacked by the Team Rocket trio, who seize him and take him with them.

As Ash glances at the Scatterbug, he wonders what to do with them. The Pokédex informs him that, since they're not native to Kanto, they'll probably starve or become a pest, unless they get eaten by Pidgey swarms, so they can't just drop them off. The Pokédex suggests that it can hack the Poké Balls to register them to Ash's ownership so they can be used to catch the Scatterbug. They seem to agree on the condition that they're not forced to fight, barring one, and they end up sent to Oak's lab. Ash then approaches the six Poké Balls Felgrand had before, and the Pokédex reveals that the previous owner probably either died or got into legal trouble as they're no longer synced to them, and Ash could theoretically claim them as his own now. He decides to ask first, hoping to find the Psychic-type who called out to him before. One by one, Ash opens the Poké Balls, bringing out six Pokémon while his own also come out, ready to fight any time. Finally, he brings out a Gardevoir, who briefly mistakes Ash for her former trainer, John Archer, due to their physical resemblance. Upon mentioning the name John Archer, the Pokédex searches him up, revealing him as a trainer who looks a lot like Ash, and competed in the last Hoenn League, but was found dead several months before. The news immediately hit Gardevoir, as the Pokédex continues to elaborate that John was apparently killed in his sleep and by orders of someone called "The Emissary" and his Pokémon ended up sold in the black market, thus that was how they ended up here.

Ash finally returns to the Pokémon Center, where Misty and Iris are very worried about him. Afterwards, they drag him for dinner and they inform him they managed to get him a gym battle with Erika, lifting his spirits just a bit after all that happened to the point he even hugs them in thanks, much to their surprise. After eating, he decides to rest and deal with everything else tomorrow.

## Continuity

* First appearances of Lorelei and Felgrand. John Archer also appears via flashbacks of Gardevoir.
* The team Rocket trio captures Felgrand, and he's revealed to have been taken to Giovanni during the **"Poison War: Shadows of the World."**
* John Archer's Pokémon pass on to Ash's ownership, albeit this isn't confirmed until **"Family Stress (with a side of filler)."**

## Characters

### Humans

* John Archer (Flashback)
* Nurse Joy
* Ash Ketchum
* Misty Waterflower
* Iris
* Zinnia (Flashback)
* Dr. Shepard (Flashback)
* Moore (Flashback)
* Brawly (Flashback)
* Anthony
* The Giant
* Announcer
* Juan (Flashback)
* Winona (Flashback)
* Lorelei
* Erika
* Kim
* Kail
* Melissa Yoshiki
* Assunta
* Guard
* Felgrand
* Jessie
* James

### Pokémon

* Ralts (John Archer's; flashback)
* Pikachu (Ash's)
* Salamence (Zinnia's; flashback)
* Numel (Moore's; flashback)
* Nincada (John Archer's; flashback)
* Torkoal (Moore's; flashback)
* Trapinch (John Archer's; flashback)
* Kirlia (John Archer's; flashback)
* Breloom (Brawly's; flashback)
* Shedinja (John Archer's)
* Swablu (John Archer's; flashback)
* Medicham (Brawly's; flashback)
* Ninjask (John Archer's)
* Machoke (Brawly's; flashback)
* Hariyama (Brawly's; flashback)
* Hitmonchan (Anthony's)
* Hitmonlee (The Giant's)
* Charmeleon (Ash's)
* Nosepass (John Archer's; flashback)
* Lanturn (Juan's; flashback)
* Probopass (John Archer's)
* Altaria (John Archer's)
* Skarmory (Winona's; flashback)
* Altaria (Winona's; flashback)
* Flygon (John Archer's)
* Gardevoir (John Archer's)
* Mega Altaria (Winona's; flashback)
* Leafeon (Erika's)
* Hitmonchan (Kim's)
* Hitmonlee (Kail's)
* Poliwrath (Misty's)
* Excadrill (Iris')
* Clefable (Melissa's)
* Rhyhorn (Assunta's)
* Psyduck (Misty's)
* Axew (Iris')
* Wooper (Misty's)
* Scatterbug (Ash's)
* Onix (Felgrand's)
* Squirtle (Ash's)
* Kangashan (Felgrand's)
* Rhyhorn (Felgrand's)
* Wobbuffet (Jessie's)
* Yamask (James')
* Meowth (Team Rocket)
* Snivy (Ash's)
* Pidgeotto (Ash's)
* Butterfree (Ash's)

## Trivia

* Felgrand uses Onix, Kangaskhan and Rhyhorn against Ash, the same Pokémon Giovanni uses in the Rocket Hideout against the player in the Pokémon Red and Blue games.

## Links

1. ↑ https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Team\_Rocket\_Hideout
2. ↑ https://bulbapedia.bulbagarden.net/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon\_Red\_and\_Blue\_Versions