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Fanfiction Pokemon Lightning Yellow
Discussion in 'Literature Library' started by WavePearl, May 10, 2022.
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Episode 14a: The School of Hard Knocks (part 1)
"...since we couldn't see any other colors, It has to be a Shiny Fearow!" Misty countered as the group made their way down a back road leading to Cerulean Cape some days later.
"Oh yeah? How many Shiny Fearows do you know that make rainbows as they fly?" Ash shot back. "That's why I'm sure it was Ho'oh we saw!"
"It wasn't Ho'oh, it was a Shiny Fearow!" Misty retorted.
"It WAS Ho'oh!" Ash pleaded. The argument continued like this for a while:
"No, it wasn't!"
"Oh, yes it was!"
"Was not!"
"Was to!"
FWEEEEEEEEEEET!!!!
"Okay!" Brock interjected before pocketing a black referee's whistle. "Let's review just what happened in the storm before we saw that odd Pokémon..." Brock began.
In the group's memory, Brock called to Ash and Misty to join him in a small alcove covered in foliage. "In an effort to get out of the rain last night, and get away from some more Spearows, I found a small cave, and called to you both to join me inside." Brock explains via voiceover as the Ash and Misty in the flashback hurry towards the alcove, with a Spearow flock hot on their heels. "Try as you might to run, you and Misty were separated in the chaos, and the Spearows tried to attack you." Brock continues via voiceover as the Ash in the flashback desperately tries to deflect the Spearows as he and Misty are separated at a fork. "All the attacks eventually caused you to trip on a small embankment." Brock continues as this happens in the flashback. "Battered, beaten, wet, and cold, you decided to sacrifice yourself to the Spearows, in hopes Tintri, Misty, and me could live." Brock continues as Ash weakly gets up and yells something into the rain as the Spearows approach. "But Tintri decided to attack the Spearows to save us all." Brock continues as we see Tintri leap off Ash's shoulder and fire a massive Thundershock at the Spearows as Misty watches from a rock, and Brock watches from the cave.
When the group emerges from their safe spots some time later, Ash spots a majestic bird-like Pokémon flying towards the rising sun. "Once we finally collected ourselves, we saw that Pokémon. It was too far away for Ash's Pokédex to analyze it, so that started what you guys were fighting over." Ash and Misty start arguing as the scene swirls back to the present...
"You both have strong cases for what you think that Pokémon was, but I'm going to have to tentatively--key word here!--side with Ash based on his description of what he could see of that Pokémon." Brock explained. "Hopefully, we will see the Pokémon again so we can have definitive proof as to what it is."
"That's fair." Misty replied as Brock started building a makeshift camp near a clearing. "Maybe next time it will be close enough for Ash's Pokédex to analyze it."
Brock nodded in agreement. "Ash...can I trust you and Tintri to go get some wood for a campfire? It's getting too hot to travel, so may as well rest from last night, and have some lunch."
"Leave it to us!" Ash smiled back as he welcomed his now recovered Pikachu on his shoulder. "Be back shortly!" he called as he hurried off into the forest.
[Here's a stick...] Tintri smiled as he gave Ash another piece of wood some time later.
Some male voices in the distance snapped Ash to attention. "...the Terastal phenomenon?"
"A mysterious transformation from the far away Paldea region that transforms Pokémon into a jewel-like appearance, and may change their type." a nervous voice replied.
"Name one of the two attacks that the card Tauros the Fury of the Jungle has."
"Rampage."
Piqued, Ash and Tintri followed the voices to a large grove, where a group of boys in elegant navy and red outfits that Ash assumed were school uniforms were quizzing a brown haired boy running on a treadmill:
"In the play 'Braviary Warrior of the Flowers', what is unique about the daeva Scarlet Braviary?"
"He has Braviary talons."
"Name one of the two Grass type moves Abra can learn, and for extra points, what their Contest types are."
Finally, the boy sputtered "I don't know!", more out of exhaustion than anything else. "Abra...is supposed...to..."
This was as far as he got before one of the boys sped up the treadmill, making the brown haired boy attempt to run even faster. "10 more miles an hour!" one jeered. "Get a few right, and we might slow it down!"
That poor boy's going to be ran to death if I don't do something! Ash thought as he summoned Mina. "Mina, take the wood I've gathered back to camp, then bring Misty and Brock here."
After finding the treadmill's power switch, Ash turned the treadmill off, making the brown haired boy collapse in exhaustion. "What were you trying to do to your...classmate? Run him to death?"
"He flunked his latest exam, so we were putting him through Power Training." one boy explained.
"We're students of the Pokémon Technical Institute or PTI, for short." another boy explained before motioning for the other uniformed boys to leave, taking the treadmill with them. "Do to Joe as you like--we've got class in a few minutes."
Misty and Brock arrived with Mina as Ash did his best to assess the brown haired boy's condition. "We heard everything from Mina." Brock explained before addressing the boy. "Joe, right?"
"Yes...water...please.." Joe wheezed.
As Brock gave Joe a bottle of water, Misty spread out a large cushion for Joe to lie on. "What were you doing on that treadmill answering questions?" Misty asked as Joe gingerly climbed on the cushion to finally rest his throbbing legs.
"It's Giselle's so called 'Power Training'." Joe explained in between gulps of water. "She claims it's supposed to strengthen your body and your mind, but all it ever does is exhaust those that do it, and makes them do worse on the exams. Then they're sent to do it again, in a viscous cycle."
He took another gulp of water. "I sometimes pretend to know less than I really do because the questions--and the Power Training--get so much harder..."
"But that's no way to learn anything!" Ash protested. "Learning should be enjoyable and engaging, not torture!"
He asked "Who came up with this torture? I'll be happy to give them a piece of my mind!"
Joe showed Ash a picture of a dark wavy haired girl in a similar uniform to the boys. "Here she is...this is Giselle."
Ash balked at the picture. "Whoa...pretty and powerful!"
"Yeah, she looks like a movie star!" Brock agreed as he admired the girl's picture.
Misty, meanwhile, was annoyed by Ash and Brock's reaction to the picture. "If you guys wanna see stars, I'll be more than happy to show you some!" she snapped, preparing to knock some sense back into the boys with a massive mallet.
Ash noticed the large mallet looming over him and Brock. "Okay, okay! We'll behave if you don't bonk us!" Even Joe found Misty's threat hilarious, and giggled over Ash's panic--the first time he had laughed all day...
Episode 14b: The School of Hard Knocks (part 2)
"Wow..." the group gasped as they arrived onto the beautiful campus some time later. "Where do we begin in touring this place?" Misty asked as the group went inside one of the academics buildings.
Ash balked when he saw a portrait in a hallway depicting some familiar faces and a familiar Meowth. "WHAT??? Team Rocket once studied here?"
"School legend has it that Jessie and James both epically flunked the entry exam, achieving the worst score in its 150 year history." Joe explained. "No one has ever tied them or even topped it in all that time. But I don't know how true that story might be."
"So why would they get a portrait in this hallowed hall if they did so terrible?" Brock wondered.
"As a reminder of their failure, and a warning to the students not to be like them." Joe replied. "They were eventually allowed in on provision, as the story goes, and they were kicked out before they ever graduated. I could tell you what I've heard about them for hours."
He turned business-like again. "If memory serves, Giselle should be in one of the study yards by now. Here at PTI, it's overall skill as a trainer, not any one battle, that determines success. Even though I am is the weakest student in the class, I like to think I'm still better than someone with two Badges."
"How can that be?" Misty gasped. "You don't even have a single Badge to your credit!"
"I'm very familiar with Cerulean Gym--when I get a minute with my Game Boy Color, I can easily clear it on Trainer's Quest Blue and Trainer's Quest Yellow." Joe replied.
"I might be a pushover in a video game, but I'm more than a match for you in the real world!" Misty vowed. "Let's head for the training yards, and have a real battle!"
"I dunno, you were pretty easy in Trainer's Quest..." Joe smiled as he led the way to a training yard.
"Pearl, let's go!" Misty called, summoning her faithful Starmie on the Red side of an outdoor arena.
"Venus, come on!" Joe summoned a pitcher plant-like Pokémon onto the Blue side of the arena.
Ash, meanwhile, decided to read up on what Joe had summoned:
"Weepinbell, the flycatcher Pokémon. It is a Pokémon that appears to be a plant. It captures unwary prey by dousing them with a toxic powder."
No matter what Joe may try, Misty has a counter for. Ash thought as Pearl and the Weepinbell traded attacks. Joe may have the advantage against a Water type, but Starmie is part Psychic too, taking advantage of the fact that Weepinbell is also part Poison. Joe needs to be careful here...
"Pearl, use Ice Beam!" Misty's call and a frozen blast snapped him back to reality.
"What???" Joe gasped as he hurried to collect his frozen and swirly eyed Weepinbell. "I thought I could beat you because Venus is a Grass type!"
"Didn't I tell you that real life is very different than a video game, Joe?" a familiar girl with thick brown wavy hair began as she arrived in the yard. "Since the real Pearl has real world battle experience, she won't go down as easily as her Trainer's Quest counterpart!"
She sighed. "I don't know why the administration keeps you here--you are a total embarrassment to the school! If I were the one in charge, you would've been expelled a long time ago..."
Brock winced as Giselle continued to rant. "She may be beautiful, but she literally rules the school like a queen!"
"Yeah...the Queen of Hearts from 'Alice in Wonderland'..." Ash shuddered in agreement.
A threat from Giselle snapped the boys to attention. "...If you don't shape up, Joe, I will personally force you to study alone, without any help!"
"Now wait a minute!" Misty interjected, stopping Giselle mid rant. "A true friend would not walk away from a friend in need of help! You may be beautiful outside, but inside, your heart is as ugly as a witch!"
Giselle said nothing "You're just jealous, Redhead, because you're too plain for me. I would flatten you with a Graveler to prove I can beat a Pokémon with a disadvantage, but I don't know if you're worthy enough to fight me."
"Graveler?" Ash looked to Brock as Misty and Giselle continued arguing.
"If I may borrow your Pokédex for a second?" Brock asked.
After pressing a few buttons, he showed Ash an image of a large rugged rock being Pokémon on the Pokédex screen. "A Graveler is this guy..." he explained as he gave the Pokédex back to Ash to study.
"Graveler, the rock Pokémon. They descend from mountains by tumbling down steep slopes. They are so brutal, they smash aside obstructing trees and massive boulders with thunderous tackles."
Ash swallowed hard at the entry. "I can see how a trained Graveler could possibly beat a trained Water or Grass type..."
"...Besides, weak Pokémon can still win if they are better trained." Giselle told Misty with a smug smile, aware of the growing crowd of students watching the argument out of concern.
A podium overlooking the yard got Ash's attention. A podium! Maybe I can tell the students that there's more to training than all these stats and numbers--and Giselle is wrong!
After dashing to the podium and gently tapping the mic to make sure it worked, Ash addressed the crowd. "Everyone...there is so much more to training Pokémon than levels, stats, natures, EV's, IV's, special formes, and special evolutions. It's about getting to know your Pokémon for the unique creatures they are, bonding with them, learning with them and from them, and being there for them through thick and thin. There's no such thing as strong or weak Pokémon--even the weakest Magikarp can become a mighty Gyarados with enough love and care."
He proudly showed off the Boulder Badge and Cascade Badge he owned. "Even though I have only been on the road for two short months, I already have two badges!"
Giselle was unimpressed as the huge crowd of students gasped in awe and chattered with excitement. "So you beat two weak Gym Leaders with the power of love...big deal."
"Hey..." Misty growled.
"Come a little closer and say that..." Brock agreed, striking a fighting pose. "I happen to know Raikou style kung fu, if you want me to defend Ash's honor!"
Giselle ignored Misty and Brock, and approached the podium. "I'm amazed you haven't even taught your Pikachu how to return to its Poké Ball! So are you training your Pokémon, or are they training you? Hm?"
Ash summoned Wings and Mina for Giselle to see. "Tintri, Wings, and Mina are my friends!"
"Really? Most beginners should have a full team of six Pokémon by the time they get two Badges, and you only have half of that!" Giselle gasped. "Maybe those two Badges are beginner's luck!"
She went on "I'm surprised that you chose Pikachu as your starter, as they are known to be hard to handle. Guess you wanted to try and tame a 'shocking' personality!"
[YOU TAKE THAT BACK!!!] Tintri screeched as Giselle howled with laughter.
"Okay, if I'm so terrible at Pokémon training, then let's duel!" Ash snapped back. "Let's see whose style of training is better!"
Episode 14c: The School of Hard Knocks (part 3)
Previously, on "Pokémon Lightning Yellow"...
"Really? Most beginners should have a full team of six Pokémon by the time they get two Badges, and you only have half of that! Maybe those two Badges are beginner's luck!
"Okay, if I'm so terrible at Pokémon training, then let's duel!" Ash snapped back. Let's see whose style of training is better!"
In the arena, Giselle summoned a brown reptilian Pokémon with a skull for a helmet. "Lagrima, let's go!"
"Piqued, Ash read up on his opponent:
"Cubone, the lonely Pokémon. If it is sad or lonely, the skull it wears shakes and emits a plaintive and mournful sound."
"Tintri, try Seismic Toss!" Ash called. Tintri's electricity would be useless--Cubone is a Ground type, according to the Pokédex!
He gasped in shock as the Cubone wriggled free from Tintri's grip! "WHAT???"
"Lagrima, lower the Pikachu's defense with Leer!" Giselle called.
Tintri, meanwhile, was unfazed at the Cubone's glowing red eyes, and opted to make some funny faces. [Nya-nya, nya-nya-nya! Nya-nya, nya-nya-nya!]
The crowd watched for a moment as both Cubone and Pikachu stared each other down. Giselle broke the silence some moments later. "Lagrima, use Bone Club!"
Ash winced as the Cubone bonked Tintri with a bone. That had to hurt... he thought as Tintri came stumbling back to him with Pidgeys spinning around his head.
Giselle's next call made him gasp. "Lagrima, let's finish this with Bonemerang!"
Ash heaved a relieved sigh as Tintri mananged to jump over the large bone headed for him! "No fair making a vicious attack on an already battered Pokémon!"
"If I did it once, I can do it again to unplug your precious Pikachu!" Giselle shot back. "Lagrima, use Bonemerang again!"
"Tintri, show this bully who's boss!" Ash called. "You've got this!"
[Yeah!] Tintri nodded before jumping over the Cubone and shoving its skull down over its eyes, rendering it unable to see. The crowd then watched in amazement as Tintri bit the Cubone, then darted away, allowing the Cubone's own Bonemerang to knock it out!
Giselle wasn't sure what to make of her swirly eyed Cubone. "I can't believe it...your Pikachu won without a single bolt of electricity...." she began as she recalled her fainted Pokémon. "The textbook didn't say anything about this..."
In the crowd, Misty, Brock, and Joe watched in amazement as Tintri took a bow for the crowd. "Wow! Ash took Giselle down like a tough boss in Trainer's Quest!" Joe gasped. "I think that's the first time that Giselle has ever lost that I can remember!"
"Ash's victory was not a fluke..." Misty assured Joe. "He won because he believes in his Pokémon, and in return, they believe in him.
As the crowd dispersed, Giselle took a moment to reflect on what had just taken place. "Maybe the most important lessons can't be found in a book..." she mused. "Maybe you were right when you said that the key to being a successful trainer is love and trust."
She looked over at the group and Joe. "I'm not going to run the school like a prison anymore--I'm gonna try and follow Ash's example of loving and trusting the students and their Pokémon. No more Power Training, and no more drills of facts and figures! While numbers are only part of the equation, you have to love each Pokémon too--even the weakest of Magikarp!"
The school erupted in relieved cheers when the students saw that their top student and leader had changed for the better. "What's next for you, Joe?" Brock asked. "Are you gonna stay here now that Giselle and the students won't harass you anymore?"
"Actually..." Joe began. "While I wish Giselle and PTI the best, I think I'm gonna withdraw and go on an adventure like you guys. You've shown me that real world experience is way better than any textbook when it comes to Pokémon."
Ash smiled. "Well...no matter where your new journey takes you, Joe, I hope we meet again one day."
Joe smiled as he linked pinkies with Ash. "Let's meet again one day!"
#23 Nov 1, 2022
Episode 15a: Bulbasaur and the Hidden Village (part 1)
"...I'm SURE Vermilion City is this way!" Ash announced as the group made their way down a path a few days later.
"Then why are we going north?" Misty shot back, shoving a map of Kanto in Ash's face. "Vermilion City is to the south--not the direction we're going!"
"But according to my guidebook, we have to go north a little ways to reach the road going south..." Brock interjected, showing Misty a picture in the guidebook.
"Let me see that!" Misty snatched the guidebook away, then raised an eyebrow at the diagram. "Huh...maybe we do have to go north a little. Most maps of Kanto I have say you need to go due south to reach Vermilion..."
A breeze and some trembling made Misty realize where the group was--a rope bridge! "Great--we've somehow walked onto one of those rickety rope bridges that have to show up somewhere in every adventure movie we've ever watched..."
Ash tensed up as he hard a snap. "Knowing our luck, the bridge is gonna snap right about..."
Just then, a gust of wind made the bridge snap in two! "NOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWW!!!!" Ash screamed as he, Misty, and Brock went tumbling down into the water below.
Brock was first to surface. "Everyone okay?" he managed to sputter before coughing up some water.
"Aside from being soaked and cold, I'm fine." Misty replied as she surfaced. "Now all that's left is to see if Ash is okay..."
Ash surfaced some moments later. "Well, I don't see anyplace we can come ashore..." he mused as he wrung out his cap. "What if no one finds us? What if we're washed out to sea and shanghaied by pirates?"
Misty sighed as the trio drifted along the current. "Just how many episodes of 'Pirate Hunter Queen' do you watch a day?"
Some moments later, the three come ashore, where a blue haired girl with a red headband was waiting for them. "Well! It's not very often that I see travelers out this way...my name is Melanie."
"Pleased to meet you...I'm Brock, a traveling storyteller." Brock replied as Misty and Ash climbed onto dry land. "These two are my companions, Ash, and Misty."
Melanie looked over the group as she draped towels over them. "You three don't look at to be troublemakers at all--so if you'll come with me, I'll take you to the Hidden Village. I know all the safe ways there, away from all the traps and deterrents."
"Hidden Village? Traps?" Ash was intrigued.
"You'll see when we get there, okay?" Melanie assured Ash as she lead the group through the brush, away from various pitfalls, ropes, and other traps.
"Okay...good thing my guitar's okay, and survived our little misadventure." Brock mused when he saw his guitar was none the worse for wear.
"Fiddle's fine here, somehow..." Misty reported.
After blowing out some water from his two whistles, Ash tried a few notes on the silver D whistle, only for them to sound clean. "Both whistles are okay!"
He looked up from inspecting his instruments to find that the group had arrived in a large flower filled village filled with Pokémon. "Wow..."
"Are all these Pokémon yours?" Misty gasped in amazement at the many Pokémon going about their daily routines.
"The Hidden Village is a place for abandoned or injured Pokémon to rest and relax." Melanie explained. "If they are injured, I do my best to care for them until they are better, and then they go to seek their own fortune. Granted, I'm nowhere near as skilled as a Pokémon Center nurse, but I do pretty well."
"What about the abandoned ones?" Now Ash was curious.
"The abandoned ones stay here for as long as they like--or until they feel they are ready to leave here." Melanie explained. "I set all the traps around the village, including the rope bridge, to prevent troublemakers from reaching the village and protect the Pokémon from being captured."
Brock nodded to show he understood. "You have our word that we won't catch any of the Pokémon that live here in the village--not unless they make the choice to go with us."
"Trainer's honor!" Misty smiled, making the three fingered scout sign for emphasis.
"Are the traps we saw on the way to the village going to be enough to keep thieves and rogues away?" Ash wondered, concerned. "I'm not sure pitfalls, nets and ropes will deter the more determined thieves..."
"Sure, I'm sure...no troublemaker has yet made it in to the village without encountering the traps first." Melanie explained as a small reptilian Pokémon with a large bulb on its back joined her. "If they did make it in, this Bulbasaur chased them off."
Bulbasaur...that's one of the three starters of this region! Ash remembered before retrieving his still dry Pokédex:
"Bulbasaur, the seed Pokémon. The seed on its back is filled with nutrients. The seed grows steadily larger as its body grows."
A blinking MORE icon got Ash's attention. "Bulbasaur's final form, Venusaur, is capable of Mega Evolution should the trainer have an awakened Heart Song."
[I don't care what kind of superpowered song you know...] the Bulbasaur growled. [You're not laying a finger on my charges!]
"But what if they ask to come with me?" Ash replied.
[If they make the decision for themselves, I'll respect that.] the Bulbasaur explained. [But I will not tolerate you making that decision for them!]
"Okay! I'm not going to catch anyone--all I ask for is food and a bed for tonight, at least." Ash assured the Bulbasaur. "In exchange for some entertainment, maybe?" he asked as he located one of his two whistles.
The Bulbasaur glanced at Melanie. [How bout it, Melanie? Should we let these humans stay for a while?]
"They look like trustworthy people, so I see no harm in letting them stay." Melanie replied. "They've promised not to catch anyone many times over."
Interlude: Planting the Seeds of Trust
"Wow..." Ash gasped as the group arrived in the cabin some time later. "This is beautiful!"
[This is the Council House of the Hidden Village.] the Bulbasaur explained. [It is where we gather for both important meetings, as well as celebrations. Guests also get to stay here, as well--there's plenty of room for you and your companions.]
"The flowers and vines are beautiful..." Misty agreed as she admired the many roses, chrysanthemums, geraniums and other flowers interwoven between the cabin's logs. "Did you plant them from your bulb?"
The Bulbasaur nodded. [Every last one was one of my seeds. Each one has a special meaning to us, but I would need all night to explain all their meanings.]
Brock knelt down to the Bulbasaur's level. "I make my keep as a traveling storyteller--would you like me to share some of the stories I've found with everyone?"
[Please do!] the Bulbasaur smiled. [It would make perfect entertainment for our dinner tonight!]
Once Melanie and some Pidgeys had delivered dinner to the residents of the village, they turned to a stage at the north end of the room. "In a certain village lived an artisan who made his keep making paper flowers to sell as decorations." Brock began as a spotlight appeared on him. "He had a daughter named Hikari, who was as equally skilled as her father. One day, as Hikari was walking in a field looking for new ideas for flower designs, she found a Beautifly trapped in an Ariados web, and set it free moments before it could become the Ariados' dinner."
Relieved murmurs filled the room. "Back at home, Hikari told her mother about the trapped Beautifly, and how she had freed it." Brock went on. "Her mother only smiled and said that a good deed does not go unrewarded."
He went on "Hikari soon became famous for her paper flowers, and many people came from far and wide to request one--whether it was a noble or a commoner, all who bought Hikari's flowers raved that they were so realistic, you almost couldn't tell they were just paper."
Even the Bulbasaur gasped in amazement at this. "Now, at that time, there was a law in the land that said no Pokémon--not even a Venonat--could be killed, injured, or otherwise forcefully struck for any reason, not even in self defense." Brock interjected, quieting the chatter. "This meant that herders could not protect their Tauros and Mareeps from Mightenas, and summers were all the more miserable thanks to endless Venonat bites."
Laughter filled the room as Brock feigned scratching imagined Venonat bites for a moment. "One day, as Hikari and her father were in town selling their paper flowers, a wild Growlithe surprised Hikari." Brock explained. "It would have bitten her had her father not brandished a stick as a warning. The magistrate saw the whole thing, and arrested Hikari's father for attempting to harm the Growlithe, when he had in fact never laid a finger on the Growlithe to begin with."
[That's not very nice!] the Bulbasaur gasped, brandishing her vines as if the magistrate in Brock's story was there.
"It didn't help that some magistrates, like the one in the town, tried to game the system because of the law." Brock went on. "They arrested people when they in fact did nothing wrong; all in an attempt to gain the bounties for people that actually had broken the law."
More angry murmurs filled the room at this. "Hikari calmly told the magistrate that her father had only brandished a stick at the Growlithe to warn it away, and nothing more." Brock assured his antsy audience. "The magistrate then proposed a test for Hikari--if she could pick out a paper flower from a lineup of four other real ones, he would trust her claim, and set her father free."
He next revealed his twist in the tale. "As Hikari studied the lineup of flowers, she saw the Beautifly from before. It sipped nectar from all the flowers except for the second one."
Cheers filled the Council House at this. "The magistrate was stunned that Hikari had passed the test, and asked Hikari how she could tell that the second flower was only paper." Brock went on. "Hikari told the magistrate about the Beautifly, and how it had passed over the second flower, but gathered nectar from the real flowers."
He concluded. "So Hikari's father was set free, and his crime forgiven, thanks to the Beautifly."
Cheers filled the Council House as Brock took a bow. [Bravo!] the Bulbasaur cheered as she "applauded" with her vines. [Your friend is indeed as skilled as he claims to be!]
"Thank you..." Brock smiled to the cheering Pokémon and Melanie. "Ash, Misty, come help me with this next tale--I'll need your instruments for this one."
Once Ash and Misty had joined Brock on the stage, Brock started his next tale. "Once a boy was wandering through a forest one night, on his way home from a hunt. It was late that night, and there was no moon to light his way."
Melanie swallowed hard, but Brock had other ideas. "Suddenly, he heard a scream way off in the distance, and a mage dashed through some nearby bushes. A pack of Mightyenas pursued him. The boy readied an arrow and fired at the biggest Mightyena, killing it. The rest of the Mightyenas fled in terror."
The Pokémon cheered at this. "The mage was grateful, and promised his deliverer whatever he wished in return for spending the night with him." Brock went on.
"I would desire nothing more than a night's rest--I have been hunting all day, and have lost my way back home." Ash jumped in the role of the boy.
"The mage took the boy to his cabin that lay in a clearing." Brock continued. "No sooner had the boy arrived, did he lie down and fall into a deep sleep. After some time, the mage's servant girl was interested in how the boy saved her master. She asked him to tell her about the encounter. Once the boy had finished his tale, the servant girl instructed him..."
"If my master asks if you desire a reward for saving his life, request the third Ponyta that in the stable." Misty fills in the girl's dialogue.
"Some time later, the mage returned with a grand haul from his hunt, and the three of them sat down to a great meal together." Brock continued. "Besides the meat, there was fruit of all kinds, the finest cheeses, and fresh water unlike any other. When the meal had ended, the mage asked the boy..."
"I must thank you again for saving my life--do you desire any reward?" he asked in character as the mage.
"I only want the third Ponyta in the stables." Ash replied as the boy.
"The mage tried again and again to talk the boy into reconsidering his offer, but the boy insisted on the Ponyta." Brock went on as the group retrieved their instruments. "Finally, the mage relented, and also granted the boy three magic instruments--a guitar..."
He strummed a slow G chord for effect. "...a fiddle..."
Misty stroked a few notes for effect. "...and a flute...."
The Bulbasaur giggled as Ash played a high trill on his own whistle for effect. "The boy was told that should he ever be in danger, to play the guitar first." Brock explained. "If no help came, he was to play the fiddle, and if still no help came, to play the flute."
"Remember those instruments--they'll be important later!" Ash reminded their small audience...
..."You would think by now, the groom would know to leave the boy alone, but no..." Brock intoned as he approached the story's climax. "Some time later, the groom appeared before the king a third time. He said that he had overheard the boy saying that he wished to have the throne for himself. Once again, the groom was lying through his teeth, but the king was angry enough to believe him."
"NO!!!!" Melanie gasped.
"The king was so angry, he didn't even bother to give the boy a trial, and ordered the boy killed right away." Brock continued. "The day of the execution came, and the boy was asked if he had any last requests. The boy nodded, and asked if he could play one last tune on the guitar. Leave was granted, and no sooner had the boy touched the strings, the executioner found himself dancing in spite of himself."
Tintri led the clapping as Brock proceeded to play "The Bluk Berry Flower" on his own guitar. "By the time the boy had finished, the executioner was so tired, he delayed the execution for a day." Brock continued when the applause quieted. "The story of the miracle guitar spread like wildfire. The next morning, a huge crowd had turned out to witness the execution. When asked if he had any last requests, the boy asked if he could play one last tune on the fiddle. No sooner had the bow met the strings, not only did the executioner dance, but so did everyone else in the crowd."
Melanie led the clapping as Brock and Misty launched into a guitar and fiddle rendition of "The Trainer's Cap". "By the time the boy finished, it was dark out, and so the execution was delayed another day." Brock went on. "On the third day, when the boy was asked if he had any last requests, he asked if he could play one last tune on the flute. The king refused him at first--he had bad memories of dancing away another day. But the princess interceded, saying that it was his last request, and a prisoner's last request was not to be denied. So the king plugged his ears with wax, and the groom tied himself to a tree to protect themselves. But no sooner had the boy blown one note, did the rest of the crowd dance again, barring the king and the groom."
Ash started the tune "The Meowth's Call" for effect. "After a few minutes, the mage appeared to the boy in a rush of wind and light." Brock narrated when Ash had finished the tune.
"What sort of danger are you in, that you have called for me?" he asked as the mage again.
"Someone present here has spoken a lie against me, and now the king wants to put me to death. The executioner is waiting for me to finish my song." Ash explained in character as the boy.
"The mage, meanwhile, charged some red light in his hands and called..." Brock narrated before calling in character. "Out of the ground, raze all greenery with flame! Fire!"
He played a mystical flourish with Misty to mimic the spell. "No sooner had the mage spoke, did a fireball come flying from the mage's hands, setting the gallows ablaze."
"And who was it that brought a false charge against you?" he asked as the mage again.
Ash points at an imagined person as Brock narrated "The boy pointed out the groom--who was still bound to the tree-- and the mage charged another ball of light, this one blue, and called..."
"Scatter your chilly sharp blades! Ice!"
Inspired, Tintri batted the bells at the house's entryway to mimic the spell. "Icicles came flying from the mage's hands, and they sliced up the tree and the groom to little pieces." Brock went on. "The king then realized that the boy was innocent, and that his groom had been lying to him all along."
"Thank Arceus..." Melanie was relieved the boy would be all right.
"So he ordered the boy freed, and offered the princess' hand in marriage as an apology. Brock concluded. "And so the boy and the princess were married. But the boy kept the three instruments and his Ponyta with him, just in case he needed their power again."
More cheers filled the house as the group took a bow. But Ash noticed the Bulbasaur's stern look was now an enthusiastic smile. I hope our performance is enough to convince the Bulbasaur to trust us!
#25 Nov 15, 2022
Episode 15b: Bulbasaur and the Hidden Village (part 2)
"A little scrub over here, and we're done!" Brock smiled as he finished polishing a Staryu's jewel the next morning.
"Come on in, the water's fine!" Ash called to the Staryu, waving in the direction of a pond.
Misty smiled as the Staryu dove in the pond. "Maybe you two could dry the excess water off this Oddish after I'm done watering him?" The tiny sprout Pokémon giggled happily as the water ran down its skin and was absorbed.
[Oh, Sprout will let you know when he's had enough.] a familiar voice assured Misty.
"Huh?" Misty whirled around to see the Bulbasaur watching her. "Oh, good morning!"
[Caring for the residents, I see?] the Bulbasaur smiled. [One less seed for me to tend, then--carry on!]
Melanie watched the Bulbasaur walk off. "Bulbasaur's main job is to watch over the village, but she will assist anywhere there is a need."
A thwack of a Vine Whip snapped Ash to attention. [Back, back, you rogues!] he heard the Bulbasaur growl as she lashed a boy in delinquent's torn and faded clothing. [Don't lay a finger on these Pokémon!]
"Relax, Miss Bulby, we're not gonna do that..." one delinquent sneered before turning on a massive vacuum cleaner. "We're gonna pick'em up all at once, then give them out as trophies to the gang!"
"Where'd you get that?" Ash demanded as he, Misty, and Brock joined the Bulbasaur in staring down the delinquents.
"Some tough types in an R uniform, why?" one delinquent replied as he watched the vacuum power up. "Just try and stop us, hat-boy!"
As the large vacuum roared to life, Brock realized what was about to happen. "Everyone! Back to the Council House, quickly!"
As the various Pokémon followed Melanie and the group towards the Council House, Ash balked in horror as the Oddish was caught up in the suction! "Oh no!"
[Sprout! Catch!] the Bulbasaur called before lashing a vine for the Oddish to hold onto. [There...I have you, now don't let go!] she assured the Oddish.
Ash ran into the rapidly intensifying suction and braced himself against a tree, creating a human shield to block the wind. "There...I'm gonna try to hold off the suction for as long as I can--get the Oddish to safety!" he instructed the Bulbasaur.
The Bulbasaur nodded. [Such a brave human...I'll be back to help shortly!]
The delinquents snickered as they watched the Bulbasaur dash off to the Council House. "Their little safe zone is gonna be not-so-safe here in a moment..."
The Bulbasaur balked in horror as she watched the delinquents start to move the vacuum directly over the cabin! [My duty is to protect this place, or die trying!] she vowed.
She fired a vine at the vacuum hose. [HAAAAH!!!!]
Ash arrived moments later, just in time to see the Bulbasaur battering the vacuum hose. Say...if I can fight wind with wind...
He heaved a Pokémon skyward. "Mina, lend the Bulbasaur a wing, and help protect this village!"
[Know this, punks! The Pokémon here are not yours for the taking!] Mina screeched over the vacuum. "You think you're so powerful with a vacuum? Then feel my hurricane of fury!]
Ash and the Bulbasaur watched as Mina fired off a massive Gust, tossing the delinquents and their vacuum into the sky with a ping. "Good bye, and good riddance, punks!" Ash grinned.
[Okay, everyone! The intruders are gone!] the Bulbasaur called to the village residents.
Melanie smiled as the Pokémon emerged from the Council House, cheering for the humans that had saved them. "Well done, Ash--your courage and quick thinking saved the Hidden Village from being blown away!"
[Melanie...I think its time I left the village to go with these travelers.] the Bulbasaur replied. They are all clearly very talented, but I feel I could learn a lot from this young man's courage and kindness. There are no shortage of candidates for a new guardian, so I trust you will find some that will do as good a job as I did]
"Okay...Melanie smiled as she hugged the Bulbasaur one last time. "Since I never thought to name this Bulbasaur, I will let you give her a name, as a sign she is yours now." she told Ash.
Ash nodded. "I have just the name for her...Saria!"
"Oh, Link's friend in the upcoming Zelda game!" Misty remembered. "I've been hearing that 'The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time' is gonna be amazing when it comes out!"
Brock smiled as he watched Ash and the Bulbasaur snuggle together. "If you want, I can teach you some stories to tell to your new guardian and the residents..."
"It's all right..." Melanie assured Brock. "I think you'll learn even more stories to tell us if you continue on your way."
Ash shepherded his new companion at his side. "Well, welcome to the team, Saria...the seeds of adventure will grow into flowers of memories!" Everyone laughed in agreement as they departed from the village...
#26 Dec 13, 2022
Episode 16: Charmander, the Stray Pokémon
"Great...we're lost again..." Misty grumbled as the group arrived back at a fork in the road for what felt like the umpteenth time. "Just how hard is it to go due south to Vermilion City?"
"Actually, the trail we're on intersects Route 24, which in turn leads straight south to Vermilion City." Ash explained, proudly showing Misty the map, with their planned route marked in green.
"This is why I made sure to mark the route." Brock agreed as he accepted the map from Ash and put it away. "So it would minimize the chance of our getting lost."
"If you say so, oh mighty leader..." Misty sighed, not looking forward to taking the long way to Vermilion City.
A large shadow snapped her from her frustration. "Funny--is there supposed to be an eclipse going on--or something?"
"Not to my knowledge...look over there!" Brock called, pointing out a tiny orange lizard Pokémon with a flaming tail sitting on a rock in the distance. "That was what was causing the shadow."
Ash recognized the tiny lizard Pokémon. That's a Charmander--another of Kanto's starters!
The Pokédex confirmed his thoughts:
"Charmander, the lizard Pokémon. The flame on its tail shows the strength of its life force. If it is weak, the flame also burns weakly."
Brock noticed that the Charmander's tail flame was flickering, and not the hearty blaze it needed to be. "Look there...there's barely any flame on this Charmander's tail at all! I don't know how it got here, or why, but we need to help it before its fire goes out!"
[Let me ask our Charmander how it got there, and if we can help it at all.] Tintri suggested as he hopped on the rock."
Misty watched as Tintri and the Charmander talked. "Can't we just reignite its tail flame? Or does reigniting it require some specialized procedure?"
"You can reignite a Charmander's tail flame with a match, but it would only be a temporary strength boost." Brock explained. "You'd have to treat the underlying problem before its fire burns brightly again."
About then, Tintri addressed the group. [Okay...our Charmander says he is waiting for someone to return for him--he didn't say who, but I presume it is his master.]
Brock noticed Ash's dejected look. "I know...you wanted to help that Charmander. But if he belongs to someone else, it is probably for the best to leave him be for now."
"Okay..." Ash sighed as the group turned to leave. "I hope his master comes and gets him soon."
Later that afternoon, the group hurried inside a Pokémon Center just as rain started pelting the windows. "Whew...we made it to shelter before the heavens opened up!" Misty smiled, relieved that the group did not have to brave the rain.
Brock noticed the glum look on Ash's face as he made himself comfortable on a couch overlooking the front desk and the hall leading to the on site lodge. "Still thinking about that Charmander?"
"Yeah...part of me wonders just how long he's been waiting out there." Ash explains. "Or if he is waiting for a master who will never come."
Laughter snapped the boys to attention. "You just left your Charmander to the elements, Damian?" a dull blond haired boy asked a blue haired boy in a pink, red, and brown outfit.
The blue haired boy smirked. "That little lizard was was so weak, I left him on a rock out in the middle of nowhere...and I have no plans to come back for him whatsoever!"
Ash balked as the boys laughed again. "Wait a minute...the Charmander we saw before, and the Charmander that this Damian guy is talking about...they are one and the same!"
"Stay put for right now...I'm gonna go give our 'friend'--although judging from his behavior, he doesn't deserve to be called a friend--Damian a piece of my mind..." Brock growled, a note of anger in his voice.
Misty approached the red couch Ash was seated on as she watched Brock try to calmly talk to Damian. "Wow... this is the first time I've seen Brock mad before."
"Considering that he's had to deal with nine other kids in the house, he is trying to find a solution that benefits everyone without resorting to yelling." Ash explained. "Although you can hear the anger in his voice. If this were my dad, he would be a little louder, but not flat out yelling."
"THEN WHY DID YOU JUST LEAVE A Pokémon TO DIE?" the group heard Brock yell, bringing all the activity in the Pokémon Center grinding to a halt. "NO DECENT TRAINER DOES THAT!!!! Go back and get him, and treat him with the love and respect he deserves, NOW!!!!"
Seconds seemed to tick by like hours before Damian finally responded. "If you want him, you go get him."
"All right, I will." Brock growled as Damian and his friends departed. "My companions and I plan to give him more love, care, and respect than you ever could."
He noticed Ash and Misty looking at him, concerned. "Come on, guys--let's go back and rescue that Charmander before the rain puts out his fire. His 'trainer' never loved him from the beginning, so let's give him the love he longs for by saving his life."
"Yeah!" Ash agreed as he led the way into the rain. Arceus, I hope we're not too late to save that Charmander!
As the group dashed through the rain, thunder and wind, Misty found a gaggle of Spearow diving at the rock, trying to desperately peck at a leaf shield the Charmander had made. "There! I see him!"
"Tintri, drive off those Spearow with a Thundershock!" Ash called. "Be careful not to hurt the Charmander!"
[HAAAAAAAAH!!!!] Tintri cried as he fired a huge thunderbolt, sending the Spearow fluttering away in panic.
[You risked your life for me?] the Charmander weakly smiled as he braced himself from a wind gust. [Thank you!]
"I couldn't leave you here to await a watery fate." Ash explained as he gently scooped up the Charmander in a fireproof blanket. "You're safe with me, okay? We're gonna do everything we can to help you."
Once sure the Charmander was secure in the fireproof blanket, Ash watched as Brock lit a weatherproof emergency match, then touched it to the Charmander's dim tail flame. "There...this should give it the strength to make it to the Pokémon Center. After that, he's in Arceus' and Nurse Joy's hands."
Misty nodded in agreement. "Let's go--we need to move quickly if we're gonna save this little guy!"
"...and we found out its trainer just left it there to die." Ash explained to Nurse Joy some time later. "Is there a way you can save him?"
"He's very weak from being out in the elements for so long." Nurse Joy explained as she examined the Charmander. "There is a chance we can still save him--you did the right thing by bringing him here. But the procedure to save his life will take a while, so go get some rest for the night. We will do everything we can to save this Charmander, okay?"
Tears welled up in Ash's eyes. "Okay...thank you."
Misty noticed Ash's tears as she led the way to a room in the lodge are. "I know you're scared for that little Charmander--Brock and I are too. But I trust Nurse Joy and her team know what they're doing."
As the group arrived in their room, Ash felt a Super NES controller land in his lap. "Let's get our minds off the Charmander for a bit--you, me, 'Super Mario Kart'?" Brock suggested, the TV showing that he had already chosen Luigi for a 2 player Grand Prix.
"Yeah!" Ash smiled as he immediately moved the 2P icon over to Yoshi...
The next morning, Misty noticed Ash was still fast asleep, despite the sun now streaming in the window. "Did he stay up all night gaming, or worrying about the Charmander?"
"I know just the thing to wake him up...it's almost 10 AM." Brock smiled before finding his referee's whistle and blowing it hard, startling Ash and sending him scrambling to not fall on the floor. "Good morning, sleepyhead!"
"Mm...can we not do any more whistle wake up calls?" Ash yawned as he steadied himself. "I am hungry, though..."
"They're changing over to lunch at the buffet, so get dressed and we'll get a little bite to eat." Misty assured Ash.
Nurse Joy met the group as they emerged in the Pokémon Center's main hall. "Good morning, you three...your Charmander made it through the night, and should be just fine."
Relieved sighs filled the air at this. "Can we go see him yet?" Ash asked.
He smiled as a Chansey wheeled out the now healed Charmander on a gurney. [Here he is--he is quite the fighter!]
"Since this Charmander was officially abandoned by its old trainer, I am releasing him to your custody." Nurse Joy explained. "All you need to do is give him a name, and he is now yours."
Ash studied the Charmander, who smiled at him happily. "Let's see...he looks like a Blaze to me. How does Blaze sound for a Charmander name?"
[I like that!] the Charmander smiled as he embraced his new master...
#27 Jan 10, 2023
Episode 17a: Here Comes the Squirtle Squad! (part 1)
Brock grinned as Ash and his new Charmander Blaze snuggled each other. "After we rescued Blaze, he hasn't wanted to leave your side since then."
"Considering his old trainer likely didn't give him much attention, I can understand why he wouldn't want to leave my side." Ash agreed as he gently stroked his Charmander's head with a finger.
He did not, however, notice a hole in the middle of the road. "Don't worry, Blaze--you and I will be friends forever, no m-WHOA!"
Gravely laughter snapped Ash to attention as five small turtle Pokémon wearing sunglasses watched him ease himself to his feet. [Lost in your sweet nothings to Fire-lizard, eh, hat boy?] one taunted, to more laughter.
"Come a little closer and say that!" Ash shot back as he climbed out back onto solid ground again.
After dusting himself off and feeling around him for injuries, Ash located his Pokédex to read up on the five turtles howling with laughter at him:
"Squirtle, the tiny turtle Pokémon. The shell is not merely used for protection. The shell's rounded shape and the grooves on its surface help minimize resistance in water, enabling this Pokémon to swim at high speeds."
Not how I wanted to meet Kanto's last starter, but these guys need to be taught a lesson! Ash thought as he pocketed the Pokédex. I need to keep them out of water, so I'll just engage them on land--just a static jolt to scold them!
He looked over at Tintri. "Tintri, use a static jolt to shoo these Squirtles away!"
[Got it!] Tintri smiled before firing a tiny bolt. But he gasped when he saw one Squirtle jump to shield a Squirtle with more elaborate sunglasses than the others. [What the? That Squirtle has to be the leader, or something!]
Ash heaved a relieved sigh as he heard an approaching police siren. Maybe Officer Jenny knows about these Squirtles...
"Go on! Out!" Officer Jenny scolded, sending the Squirtles hurrying into the brush. "Go on, shoo!"
She noticed Ash still wincing in pain from his tumble into the hole before. "Are you okay?"
"I think so..." Ash replied as Blaze looked up at him in concern. "Just who were those Squirtles?"
"They call themselves the Squirtle Squad, and they like playing pranks on people, often leading to millions of credits in damage." Officer Jenny explained. "I'll show you their profile at the station."
At the police station, Officer Jenny finished writing down the group's statements, then pulled out one particular Pokémon dossier from a filing cabinet. "Your statements are just one more entry on these Squirtles' rap sheet. While they have caused trouble all over town--and the law says that they should answer for their crimes--they never were taught right from wrong. Their trainers abandoned them, so all they do is run wild and play pranks on everyone."
"Is there like, a jail for Pokémon?" Misty wondered.
"There is, but they haven't committed something bad enough to warrant time in there." Officer Jenny replied. "The best we can do for them is community service, so they can win back the townsfolk's trust."
"Do they have names?" Brock wondered. "If they were all owned at some point, they may recognize their names."
"We know four of the five have names--Eddy, Chill, Mellow, and Tear." Officer Jenny explained. "The leader we're unsure about--it has never told us its name, but judging from its voice, it may be a female or a young male--since it never takes off its glasses, we can't know for sure. The only way to confirm its gender is to look at its eyes--females have rounder and longer eyes than males."
She addressed the group. "Now that I have statements from you three, you are free to go. If you manage to spot the Squirtle Squad--or have information about its leader-- let us know."
Ash nodded. "I promise, Officer--I'll make sure they learn that playing pranks isn't nice."
The whiz of a fishing rod snapped Blaze to attention as Misty cast her line into a river later that day. [Can I roast whatever Magikarps you catch?]
Misty smiled. "Sure--you can help roast some Magikarp for dinner if I get any bites."
"Magikarp with Nomel seasoning pairs wonderfully with rice and vegetables, or fruit and nuts." Brock agreed. "Also makes a good soup in the wintertime."
"That sounds amazing..." Ash smiled as he watched the clouds roll by from a small hill.
He was about to doze off with Tintri when a splash and a scream got his attention. The Squirtles!
He got up from the grass and stormed over to the riverbank, where the chief Squirtle was laughing at Misty dripping wet. "Okay, Squirtle! You have some explaining to do!"
[I don't have to explain anything to anyone!] the Squirtle shot back. [Ms. Redhead was taking all the good Magikarp for herself!]
[I think YOU'RE the one hogging the Magikarp!] Tintri cried as he charged at the Squirtle. [Take THIS!]
He did not expect the Squirtle to withdraw into its shell and tackle him, knocking him into the water and getting poked by an angry Goldeen! [OW! Ow-ow-ow!]
Ash watched in horror as Tintri was jabbed by the Goldeen's Horn Attack again and again. "Tintri! Try to swim to shore, if you can!"
Episode 17b: Here Comes the Squirtle Squad! (part 2)
Ash's heart pounded as Tintri tried his best to outswim the Goldeen. I know Pikachu can be good swimmers in a river or a lake, but the sea is a bit of a challenge! Even then, they're headed for a fairly big lake...
He gasped in horror as he saw a familiar tiny yellow form go flying out of the water! "Oh no...Tintri!"
"He landed over there, near where the river meets the lake--come on!" Brock motioned for Ash to follow him.
Ash nodded, and followed Brock through the grass, where he found Tintri with various scratch and jab marks dotting his yellow and brown fur. "Tintri...you okay?'
[I think so...I just hurt everywhere...] Tintri replied, wincing from the wounds all over him.
"It's a miracle Tintri's even alive...that Goldeen gave him a beating back there." Brock explained as he got out the first aid kit. "I'll clean and dress as many of these wounds as I can, but he's gonna need medicine to prevent these from getting infected."
Ash noticed the gaggle of Squirtles was watching him and Brock carefully washing, cleaning and dressing Tintri's wounds. "Squirtles...will you at least let me go to town and get medicine for my companion?"
The Squirtles huddled for a moment, before the chief Squirtle heaved some credits in Ash's direction. [We may be punks, but we're not so heartless as to let a fellow mon suffer.] one commented.
[Have some cash to help ya friend--on us!] another agreed. [Not like us Squirtles can spend it...]
"Thanks..." Ash smiled. Maybe there's some good in these Squirtles after all.
"There...I have Tintri cleaned up, now go take him to town." Brock began as he gently gave Ash the bandaged up Pikachu. "If you have the money, some over the counter meds at a Pokemart will do just fine. Otherwise, there's always the Pokémon Center."
Ash nodded. "Hang in there, Tintri--I'll go get you some help!"
Some time later, Ash stumbled into town, just as battered and beaten as his companion was. "I think I'm gonna need to share your medicine..." he groaned. "First we went tumbling into a river off another rope bridge...then I got attacked by more Goldeens..."
He sighed as he spotted the Pokemart in the distance. "With all the trouble I went through to get you here...what's next?"
He did not expect Gary to slam the Pokemart's main entry door into him! "Ow..." was all Ash could say as he slid off the door into an accordion-like pile.
Gary, meanwhile, was oblivious that the vaguely humanoid "accordion" bobbing by the roadside was his sworn rival. "Huh...someone just left an accordion lying here...let's see if it still sounds any good."
With that, he proceeded to perform a few measures of a Pokémon League commercial jingle before having second thoughts. "Who am I kidding? Accordions are for geeks." With that, he tossed accordion-Ash aside, finally popping him back into 3D...
"...and then Gary had the nerve to 'play' 'Gotta Catch'em All' on me like an accordion!" Ash finished telling Misty and Brock about the chain of unfortunate events a few days later. "But the good news is, both Tintri and me are just fine after resting at the Pokémon Center."
The ringing of an alarm snapped Misty to attention. "There! Some punks are holding up the Pokemart!" She pointed out a group in delinquent clothing hurrying away from the Pokemart with various Pokémon supplies.
Ash was never more relieved to hear a police siren when various police cars and Officer Jenny arrived to begin processing the break-in. "There you are! I managed to locate the hideout of our Squirtles...so I'll let the Leaf Team handle the Pokemart break-in while we deal with the Squirtles."
"So where is the Squirtle hideout?" Ash wondered as he, Misty, and Brock climbed in the motorcycle's spacious sidecar.
"They made their home in a cave in the mountains not far from here." Officer Jenny explained as she gave the group helmets. "But with the rope bridge being repaired, we'll have to take the long way around."
"That's fine..." Ash replied as he traded his cap for the helmet. "I just wanna teach them that it's not nice to play pranks on everyone!"
"I know you're in here, Squirtles..." Ash called as he crawled through the cave. "If you guys want to talk to me, we can work on you guys regaining the townsfolk's trust..."
He jumped when he heard several loud pops behind him as he emerged into an open area of the cave. "Huh? The delinquents followed us here?"
#29 Jan 24, 2023 at 11:04 AM


Some of the ski areas are already closed (Les Houches, La Flégère, Vallorcine, Megève, Saint Gervais).
Areas still open are Balme/Le Tour, Brévent, Contamines (until 22/04) and Argentière/Lognan (until 01/05 then the weekend 4/5 May). The Aiguille du Midi cable car and the Montenvers train remain open. More information on the CMB website.
Not much has changed since the last update. Access is either by the Balme chairlift and the Col des Autannes or from Lognan and the Col du Passon.
A bit of walking is necessary to reach Trient village. All the cols are being done and are in condition. The Couloir de la Table is tracked, (the gully in the lower band is OK), as is normal route on the Aig du Tour, (by the E ridge and the col between the two summits.) A party has done the Table ridge.
It is still just possible to ski all the way to La Tour, but expect some walking at the boardercross area soon.
Depending on the chosen route one can get onto the Argentiere glacier by the return route (Passon, Chardonnet) or by the Col des Rachasses (Glacier du Milieu, Argentière hut, Col du Tour Noir etc).
- The Lognan hut closed on the 14 April.
- Col des Cristaux is in good condition, cramponning for the last 150m.
- Cols d'Argentière/ Tour Noir/ Passon are OK.
- The Flèche Rousse ridge in good condition.
- Aiguille d'Argentière by the Glacier du Milieu: good ski conditions up to the bergschrund, ski depot. then cramponning to the summit and back.
- Col du Chardonnet: rock hard snow in the couloir on the Saleina side. More information in the OHM route book.
Little change here, one can find the latest information in the hut blog.
Due to the dry conditions there has not been much ice climbing, (Chéré and Contamine-Grisolle on the Triangle du Tacul, Gabarrou-Albinoni and Pas d'Agonie 1 have been done).
It is forbidden by a council order to enter the Glacier Rond area from 17th to 20th April due to work there on a pylon.
The Valley Blanche, Brèche Puiseux and Capucin couloir are still being skied.
The normal route on the Tacul was tracked on skis the 13/04 exitting by the Shoulder. The old ladder has been repositioned in order to cross the impressive bergshrund.
The Cosmiques ridge is in condition for the moment. The rockfall area before the abseil is delicate but has a fixed rope for security. A 40m or 50m ripe suffices for the abseil.
Pointes Lachenal are still bare ice.
The Mallory on the Aig du Midi N face is tracked in ascent.
Rochefort Ridge was done on 13/04 in good conditions. The party turned back below the Aiguille due to snow on the slabs.
Approach to the Grands Mulets hut: The best option is probably to start from the Plan de l'Aiguille. (Rock hard snow in the Cosmiques couloir and Glacier Rond, also they are forbidden until 19/04, see above). Take the lower path, (as shown on the IGN map) to cross the Jonction. The higher path leads to an impassable crevasse.
Higher up conditions remain complicated. The N ridge of the Dôme du Goûter is bare ice for 250m, (foresee 2 axes + ice screws for 50m pitches.). This makes progress very slow and has been enough to deter most parties attempting this way to the summit.
A party climbed Mont Maudit in bad conditions ("rock hard snow") but no further information.
The remaining way to summit Mont Blanc is to ascend by the Plateaux, (good track keeping as far left as possible.) This route is exposed to serac fall. The decision to risk it or not is entirely up to the individual!
The N face is not in condition for the moment, ski depot at the Vallot.
Two skiers descended by the Corridor, (a rope was used to pass an ice cliff and at the bergschrund).
Little has changed since the last update.
For the hut approach one needs to carry the skis as far as Nant du Tour, (circa 1 hour).
Mont Tondu is in good condition.
SW Couloir of the Aiguille de la Bérangère has been skied in good conditions.
There has been nobody on the N faces, which are bare ice, the foehn wind of 15/04 having stripped away the snow.
It is necessary to remain at the lower altitudes. Higher up there is a serious risk of falling.
Due to work replacing the Flegere cable car, access to this sector, including the way to Lac Blanc, is blocked this year. Lac Blanc remains accessible from the Col des Montets. The paths leading up to Flégère have been closed by order of the council.
The Curala via ferrata (Plateau d'Assy) opened on the 15th April. The Gorges de Bonnant (Saint Gervais) opened on the 10/04, starting from the 2nd escape, known as "Maurice Lenoir".
The descents down to Trient are in good condition (the snow being firstly frozen then crusty then spring snow). It is possible to ski all the way to the ski du fond pistes, (then a further 15 minutes of walking to reach the village).
The Col du Pissoir is good (no ice), as is the Col Supérieur du Tour (hard snow but a good track, carrying the skis for the last 5m.) The Col du Midi des Grands was very dry but should have improved with the latest snowfall.
No information for the normal route on the Aiiguille du Tour which should now be in good condition. The lower part of the Table Couloir is very dry, (a rocky narrow passage of 15/20m) but the upper part has plenty of snow, feasible in ascent.
It is still possible to ski all the way down to La Tour.
Argentière Sector (5 cm of fresh snow this morning, Thursday).
Average amount of snow for the time of year, (crusty).
Nobody on the N faces, except for the Col des Cristaux.
Ski tourers on all the usual cols, (Passon, Chardonnet, Tour Noir, Argentière).
The return by the true left bank of the Argentière glacier remains good.
There has been nobody on the Whymper since the last snowfall, (party foreseen for Friday12/04). The way across the bergschrund, which had collapsed, looks to have filled in again and is should go on the true right.
The south facing slopes are in good condition, (e.g. col des Droites). The snow is crustier on other aspects.
The Valley Blanche is still in reasonably good condition Some treacherous crevasses in the cwm before the Requin hut and on the traverse to the Salle à Manger. The snow quality is variable, with the crusty snow on the slopes exposed to the sun, (e.g. Grand, Moyen & Petit Envers). The classic route has better conditions.
The Cosmiques couloir (60m abseil then hard snow for 200 m) and the Rond glacier (rope useful at the start) are being done daily, (30 minutes of walking from the old station passing by La Para).
For the Tour Ronde, it is still necessary to go via the Col Freshfield. The Gervasutti couloir is being done. No news for the N face which looks to be feasible.
The rocks on the Dent du Géant are covered in snow. Before this last snowfall, the Aiguille de Rochefort was tracked and in good condition.
Goulotte Valeria (Petit Capucin) was done on 10/04, conditions very dry!
Mont Blanc was done on 09/04 by the Plateaux. Conditions on the N du Dôme ridge have improved but there is still ice just below a layer of fresh snow. The Bosses ridge is OK, (avoiding the ice with short detours). The N face has been skied on the true left, (good skiers only; 5m of ice in the funnel, rope useful).
Generally good conditions in this sector except for the N faces, (they are holding some snow but not yet enough to fully cover the ice.) About 12cms of snow fell on Wednesday.
It is still possible to start skinning from Plan (30 minutes of walking then again for some short sections.) However, the snow is rapidly melting up as far as Nant du Tour.
Very good conditions for the Dômes de Miage traverse. There are some, avoidable, ice sections to reach the ridge and on the descent to the Col de la Bérangère. The ridge is snow.
Good skiing on the Armancette, walking for 15 minutes above the lake then possible to ski again almost to La Frasse.
Pleasant ski touring on all the classics, (variable snow quality). Still possible to ski down the Berard valley all the way to Buet. Some ski carrying is needed for Loriaz, Bel Oiseau and Pointe Ronde.
The recent snowfalls have improved conditions though the snow cover is still poor, expect to carry skis at the start.
As Spring arrives the snow is disappearing in the valley up to 1500m on the S slopes and 1200m on the N slopes. There is still plenty of snow in the mid altitudes. The snow quality varies with the aspect. It is still possible to find some powder, (albeit rare,) in some N facing, wind protected pockets. On the other hand, the snow is likely to be very hard in the morning on those S facing slopes exposed to the wind. The snow softens quickly with the sun and the large, daily range of temperatures at all altitudes.
Still in generally good condition, though some treacherous crevasses are beginning to appear. There snow is starting to disappear on the descent down to Chamonix meaning several ski carrying sections and a 30 minute walk at the end.
Parties on the Aig Entrèves et Marbrées traverses: overall good conditions.
The Loriaz hut shuts on Sunday evening 31 March.
Goûter route: Some parties on this route, no further information.
3 Monts route: The route does not look to be in condition and is not being done; impressive bergschrunds on the Tacul and Maudit.
Glacier du Milieu: Near the summit take care, the ice is just below a thin snow cover.
The rock routes behind the hut are dry.
The hut opens this weekend.
Couloir SW de l'Eboulement (26/03): Crossing the bergschrund went OK but the party turned back because the couloir was not in condition for skiing., (narrow, icy).
An hour of carrying the skis at the start of the hut approach. The traverse of the Dômes de Miage is overall in good condition. There is a track on the ridge, but some short sections of ice require good crampons. The Armancette glacier is in condition, (the snow runs out just above the lake but then it is possible to ski again shortly afterwards, almost down to La Frasse).
The Bérangère, Pain de Sucre, Col des Glaciers are being done.
N Face – Lesueur route: OK dry tooling – not much snow – start by the Alain Leninger route then the classic. Descend by the North Couloir on abalakovs and in-situ abseil points on the route.
Thank you to all those who posted their information in the online Route Book.
The weather has improved this week allowing for an increase in activity in the mountains, especially ski touring. In general, the snow cover is good up to 3500m, (with powder on the north facing slopes,). Above this, conditions remain dry for both the mixed climbs and the high mountain routes e.g. Mont Blanc.
All the classic ski routes are tracked and in good condition.
The climb up to the Col des Autannes and the descent to Trient is OK.
Col du Passon is tracked, with good conditions for the descent to Le Tour. The Albert 1er hut opens this weekend.
The N faces remain very dry. Due to the progressive melting of the Verte summit ice cap, the Couturier couloir is now threatened by a serac. Also, there is a crevasse that is very difficult to cross. It has not been tracked and is not really to be recommended. If attempted, then the "classic" exit straight up would appear to be the best option.
There has been no activity on the Droites or both the N face and NE of the Courtes. For the latter, the latest information is that the bergschrund is awkward but does go on the left, and the snow is rock hard on the upper part.
A track on the SW couloir of the Amône, no further information.
The Cols d'Argentière and Tour Noir are in good condition. Take ski crampons as the snow is icy in some sections.
It is no longer feasible to exit in safety onto the Mer de Glace from the Pas de Chèvre.
There has been no more information about the Whymper couloir since the good weather period last February but it looks to be feasible. The S facing classics in this area also look feasible.
Brèche Puiseux (50 m abseil), Couloir du Capucin (60 m abseil), Tacul Shoulder (30 m abseil) and Col du Tacul (there and back), are all been done regularly and are in very good condition.
Valley Blanche is generally in good condition. There is a short passage of ice to reach the start of the climb back up to the Mottets which needs care and a good skiing ability. It is still possible to ski down to Chamonix with two short walking sections and then a final 15min walk. Care is needed to control one's speed.
The Glacier Rond (2x 15m abseils from the summit), Couloir des Cosmiques (60 m abseil then icy snow for 200m) are being done. It is possible to ski to the tunnel, either by the Para slope or the Combe des Glaciers.
The Laurence and Cosmiques ridges are tracked. The traverse of the Pointes Lachenal not recommended; bare ice.
Some ropes have been on the Vent du Dragon and the Chéré Gully. Some of the other gullies appear to be feasible but are still very dry (e.g. Modica-Noury, Gabarrou-Albinoni.) This makes these routes harder than their given grades; take short screws and rock protection.
The Trappier couloir is being skied regularly.
The main ski descents on the Italian side are in good condition, (Marbrées, Toule Glacier, Col d'Entrêves, Brenva). There is some walking in order to reach the base of the valley.
The Tre la Tete hotel and the Conscits hut both opened on Wednesday. The skis can be used after the Rocher des Plans, (30 to 45mins of walking first.) The Mauvais Pas has a section of icy snow and there is also a risk of falling ice blocks. It is recommended to pass it between 10am and noon. The glacier has a good track. Some parties left today, (Thurdsay) for Mont Tondu and the Dômes de Miage, (hoping to descend the Armancette glacier).
The gorge leading to the to the Combe Blanche looks to be OK in descent.
All the Aiguilles Rouges classics are in condition. There is some walking above La Flatière for the Aiguillette des Houches. The Bérard valley is in good condition, (icy snow lower down on the path by the true right bank of the river). It is possible to reach the Loriaz chalets from Couteray, either by ski or snow shoe. The Col de la Terrasse is tracked. The exit from the Très les Eaux valley is complicated, as a build up of snow prevents bypassing the stream bed at one point, meaning wet feet, (abseil). Not much snow near Granges and what there is risks being heavy.
The valley paths are possible with good footwear and hiking poles. Snow shoes are only useful once one has gained some height. Examples are: using the Prarion lift for the loop there and the Vallorcine lift for the Aiguillette des Posettes.
It is still just possible to find some climbing on the true left bank of the Argentiere glacier or the Patri sector at Cogne.
No information for the beginner ice climbing areas.
A quick update following the return of the sun this weekend.
The recent weather fronts brought with them not only snow but also strong winds. This makes it very difficult to estimate the amount of new snow, (on average 50 to 80 cms above 1800/2000m). A small amount of snow fell at the valley level which has temporally improved conditions there. At mid and higher altitudes, the snow depth has been significantly increased but is not stable. The avalanche risk, both natural and provoked, has been high since Friday with numerous and large windslabs breaking away. Today, Saturday, the rapid rise in temperatures has resulted in the snow sliding off the sun affected slopes. Caution is needed over the coming days. BERA has put out a warning for this Sunday: "the snow pack remains treacherous at altitude".
It is also difficult to assess the snow quality. Chamoniarde has not received many reports. The snow has been compacted and affected by the wind and the variations in temperatures together with the sun this Saturday. The snow conditions are very variable. They are generally good on the northern slopes above 2000m but crusty below this. They are less good on slopes affected by the sun, as the snow has not yet transformed and therefore crusty and with slide/avalanche debris in places.
The Trapette ski tour track at Argentiere was reported to be good condition on Saturday.
Following the recent weather, the conditions have completely changed. Activity in the mountains is slowly picking up as of this weekend. The forecast is for more clement for next week.
Enjoy your outings, take care and let Chamoniarde know about them, (online at OBS-ALP , or the cahier de course, or by telephone, or a message on the Chamoniarde Facebook page.) Thanks in advance.
After a long period of good weather, two days of bad weather, (1st and 4th of March,) have resulted in some 40cms of new snow at 2000m. Strong winds, (gale force at altitude,) have caused severe drifting, stripping away the snow in some areas and probably creating windslab conditions in others. The amount of snow will vary depending on aspect and altitude.
There is not sufficient snow for snow shoeing below 1100m, north facing, 1400m south facing. The signposted paths in the valley floor are, however, good for walking with the correct footwear and sticks.
Better weather this morning (5th) has seen the return of mountaineering in the range.


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Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman
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Cheshire East Council (18 014 114)
Category : Transport and highways > Traffic management
Decision : Not upheld
Decision date : 13 Mar 2019
The complaint
The Ombudsman's role and powers
How I considered this complaint
The Ombudsman's final decision:
Summary: Mr C complained about the Council's handling of parking issues in a street adjoining his own, which affected him particularly due to disability. The Ombudsman has discontinued investigation of this complaint as Mr C has died.
The complainant, Mr C, complained about the Council's handling of parking issues in a street adjoining his own, and how it dealt with correspondence about the matter.
We investigate complaints about 'maladministration' and 'service failure'. In this statement, I have used the word fault to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as 'injustice'. If there has been fault which has caused an injustice, we may suggest a remedy. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 26(1) and 26A(1), as amended)
We can decide whether to start or discontinue an investigation into a complaint within our jurisdiction. (Local Government Act 1974, sections 24A(6) and 34B(8), as amended)
I considered the information provided by Mr C about his complaint. He had complained that the Council had not given due consideration to his needs as a disabled person. He needed to be able to access his car, and this was made difficult at his home address due to parking issues in the area. He wanted the Council to consider the introduction of parking restrictions.
I issued written enquiries to the Council, but during my investigation the Council advised me that it had been informed that Mr C had died. It provided evidence of records to support this.
As Mr C has now died, and there is no merit now in pursuing the matter further, I have discontinued my investigation of his complaint.
Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman
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Science Fair Project Ideas for Kids, Middle & High School Students ⋅
What Do Calcium Chloride & Baking Soda Make?
••• mothy20/iStock/GettyImages
How to Make Bromine Water in the Chemistry Lab
By Chris Deziel
Combining calcium chloride and baking soda -- sodium bicarbonate -- in a sealable plastic bag is a favorite high school chemistry experiment. It produces a gas, so if you seal the bag after combining the chemicals, the bag will blow up like a balloon. Another reason high school chemistry teachers love this experiment is that the combination produces heat, so it's an excellent example of an exothermic reaction. Wear goggles and rubber gloves when combining these two compounds, because one of the byproducts of the reaction is hydrochloric acid, which is corrosive enough to burn your skin.
TL;DR (Too Long; Didn't Read)
Combine sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), calcium chloride and water and you get calcium carbonate (a chalky precipitate) plus carbon dioxide gas, sodium chloride (table salt), hydrochloric acid and a fair amount of heat.
What Are the Reactants?
Virtually everyone is familiar with sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3), because it's the baking soda you use to deodorize your refrigerator. Fewer people are familiar with calcium chloride (CaCl2), but they should be. Like sodium chloride, it's a salt, and it's hygroscopic, which means it absorbs moisture from the air. Putting a dish of calcium chloride in your closet is a good way to protect your clothes from mold. Calcium chloride helps dust control and works as a food additive, because it can make foods like pickles taste salty without actually adding sodium chloride.
A Two-Part Reaction
The reaction between sodium bicarbonate and calcium chloride must occur in solution, so water is always a part of the reaction. Both reactants dissolve readily in water, so that isn't a problem. You can dissolve one in water then add the other, or you can keep both in opposite corners of a plastic bag and place a vial of water between them so that, when you shake the bag, they combine with the water and each other.
When you combine the reactants, two things occur. The first thing is that they combine to form calcium carbonate -- a compound found in limestone, chalk, marble and the shells of snails and sea creatures -- along with sodium chloride and hydrogen ions. The hydrogen ions turn the solution acidic, and they combine with leftover sodium bicarbonate to produce carbon dioxide gas, water and sodium ions. They also combine with chlorine to make hydrogen chloride.
The release of carbon dioxide gas blows up the bag, and because the gas is produced in an exothermic reaction, the temperature of the solution goes up.
The Chemical Equations
In the first reaction, the reactants combine to form calcium carbonate, sodium chloride and hydrogen ions. The equation for this reaction is:
CaCl2 + 2 NaHCO3 ---> CaCO3 + 2 NaCl + H+
The hydrogen ions then combine with unused sodium bicarbonate to form carbon dioxide, water and sodium ions.
H+ + NaHCO3 ---> CO2 + H2O + Na+
Sodium chloride dissociates into Cl- and Na+ ions in water. Some of the free chlorine ions combine with hydrogen ions to form hydrogen chloride.
H+ + Cl- ---> HCl
A simplified equation for the overall process is:
NaHCO3(s) + CaCl2(s) + H2O(l) ---> CaCO3(s) + CO2(g) + NaCl(aq) + HCl(aq)
What Makes CO2 Soluble in H2O?
How to Make CO2
How to Dissolve Calcium Chloride
What Is Sodium Hydrogen Carbonate?
How to Mix Vinegar & Baking Soda in a Bottle Rocket
How to Mix Calcium Chloride and Water
What Happens When You Mix Pool Chlorine & Break Fluid?
Hazards of Sodium Carbonate
How to Make Homemade Glow Sticks
How to Use Elimination to Solve the Linear Equation
What Happens When You Add Ammonium Nitrate to Water?
How to Extract Pure Caffeine From Coffee
Why Do Pop Rocks Explode When Mixed With Soda?
Classic Science at Home: Elephant Toothpaste
What Are the Reactants & Products in Neutralization?
How to Make Sodium Nitrate
How to Make Fenton's Reagent
Baking Powder Science Projects
What Is Sulfate?
MSDS Online: Calcium Chloride Safety Tips
SoftSchools: Calcium Carbonate Formula
University of Regina: Heat in a Bag
Elmhurst College: Reaction in a Plastic Baggie
Chris Deziel holds a Bachelor's degree in physics and a Master's degree in Humanities, He has taught science, math and English at the university level, both in his native Canada and in Japan. He began writing online in 2010, offering information in scientific, cultural and practical topics. His writing covers science, math and home improvement and design, as well as religion and the oriental healing arts.


QUESTION: I am trying to set up a map coordinate space for an image that has been gridded into polar stereographic map projection with a latitude of true scale of 70 degrees. I'm using Map_Proj_Init to set up my polar map projection, but for some reason the TRUE_SCALE_LATITUDE keyword is causing problems for me.
% Parameter TRUE_SCALE_LATITUDE not allowed for projection: Polar Stereographic.
Can you show me how to set this map projection up properly?
ANSWER: The true scale latitude is also sometimes called the standard parallel. You will find the terms used interchangably. But no matter what you call it, you are correct that the TRUE_SCALE_LATITUDE keyword is not allowed for the polar stereographic projection, even though almost all polar stereographic projections are defined with such a latitude of true scale.
Here is what is happening. Normally, the CENTER_LATITUDE and CENTER_LONGITUDE keywords define the origin of the map projection. (The CENTER_LONGITUDE can also be thought of as the longitude that is pointing down on the map projection from the map origin. This is its usual definition.) However, in IDL the CENTER_LATITUDE keyword does not define the latitude at the center of the map projection, since this latitude is, by definition, either 90 or -90 degrees. Rather, it is used to define the true scale latitude.
You can see this is so if you take the time to step though the Map_Proj_Init code in an IDL editor. For a polar stereographic projection, the value passed into the program via the CENTER_LATITUDE keyword is quietly and ever so discreetly moved from the latitude of the map projection origin field in the map projection parameter variable over to the true scale latitude position in the projection parameter variable before the projection parameters are passed to the underlying GCTP map projection code.
If you remember that CENTER_LATITUDE means TRUE_SCALE_LATITUDE for polar stereographic map projections, you will have no trouble setting up a map projection space for these images.


Last week I posted about doing a rebuild of my laptop so that I could run Leopard, Vista x64 and Windows Server 2008 x64 in a triple boot fashion, as well as run Vista virtually in Leopard via VMWare Fusion. I really like doing presentations & demos of SharePoint natively off the bare metal for performance reasons. However the challenge was having a reliable imaging solution. Thankfully I found something with the help of my friend Dan Holme: the Windows Installation Automation Toolkit.
The WIA has a free imaging application called ImageX.exe. This guy makes it super easy to create an image of my D: partition that contains Windows Server 2008 and reapply it from Vista. I tried it a while back but had a problem in that Vista put the bootloader on the D:, not the C: where Vista is. The rebuild fixed that as I didn't create the Windows 2008 partition until AFTER Vista was installed.
Open the Windows PE Tools Command Prompt... something you get with the WIA (think of it like the Visual Studio Tools Command Prompt... just sets some variables and loads some stuff for you).
Type the following to image the D: partition into a file called "FreshWin2k8.wim" on an external drive H: > imagex.exe /capture d: h:\FreshWin2k8.wim "Fresh Windows Server 2008 instal"
When I turned A/V off and used a USB2 5400RPM connected drive it took about 20m to capture a 15GB partition (resulting in a ~3GB WIM file). Yet it only took about 9-10m to apply the image. Nice!
ImageX.exe also allows you to do things like mount the image as a logical drive to make changes and such. According to the documentation, you can also create bootable media to apply the image. These WIM files are the same kind of files Vista & Windows 2008 backup create so you can use them in your normal backup process!
[Updated 12/7/2008 @ 4p] Updated the WIA download link... thanks Spence!


Place all the ingredients except the nectarine and the cinnamon into a saucepan and bring to the boil.
Simmer for 5-6 minutes until the milk has been absorbed and the rice/quinoa flakes are cooked.
Top with nectarine and cinnamon.
So, the mornings are getting a little cooler and I've been getting a bit of a hankering for some warm, wholesome porridge. After a little experimentation I've come up with this delicious blueberry and almond butter porridge. Don't get me wrong, I still love my Nutribullet smoothies, but sometimes you need something a little more substantial of an autumn morning.
Sadly I can't tolerate oats anymore, and so I have been playing around with different grains to create a tasty gluten free porridge that is also packed with nutrients.
In this recipe for blueberry and almond butter porridge, I used a combination of brown rice flakes (Big Oz) and quinoa flakes (Amisa) which give a good consistency and the flavour of the quinoa is not too overpowering, whilst still providing a good source of protein. I used some frozen blueberries, but you can use any fruit you have in stock or in the freezer.
You can use any milk you like to cook the porridge but I'm a fan of Koko non-dairy coconut milk. For extra protein and creaminess as well as essential fats, I added a good dollop of almond butter and I used coconut palm sugar for caramelly sweetness, which won't give you the sugar highs and low of regular sugar, honey or agave.
And I topped it all off with a chopped nectarine and a sprinkle of blood sugar-balancing cinnamon.
All in all, a pretty damn good breakfast! Enjoy.


The Salaam Baalak Trust City Walk is an English guided tour of almost 2 hours conducted by kids who used to live in the streets of Delhi before joining our Trust. Our guides are adolescents who have been fully trained as local guidea and who want to improve their communication and speaking skills. City Walk gets the children's stories heard, gives people a view of their world through their eyes. Those who take the City Walk tour through the streets of inner city of Paharganj and the area around New Delhi railway station, led by a child who was once living and working on the streets will experience special tour far from the tourist main attractions. City Walk is an example of how a volunteer's creativity can translate into a unique and enduring programme, which is both popular and economically viable. Over the last seven years, thousands have taken the Walk and empowered a number of children, helping them to join mainstream life.
"Our friends have already done the Walk in the past years. They suggested us to do it if we are in Delhi. It was a great experience to be on the Walk . Hearing the personal story , from someone who had been in a shelter was great."
"City Walk was nice experience as it describes the whole journey of the Trust till date. Also it helped me to look at street children from a different point of view."
"Meeting the kids and hearing about the good work the charity is doing , making a real difference to the lives of the street kids."
You want to know more about our guides? Please follow this link to view their profiles .