Rise From The Ashes (A Pokemon Rewrite)

A Bone To Pick

Ash: Yeah, and... I still have problems trying to get to Saffron. There was the St. Anne, but....

Lt. Surge: Yeah, I heard. No worries, we have a way for people to get to Saffron without that old dinghey. *points over* Over that way is Route 6. If you keep going straight in that idrection, yo'll be in Saffron in no time.

Green: *sighs* That's a relief.

Ash: Thank you, Sir.

Lt. Surge: *chuckles* Any time, runt.

The man ruffled the boy's hair, making him frown at the gesture before a worried trainer approached them, a brown duck Pokemon in his arms as the duck feebly clutched onto a thin onion.

Trainer: You guys! Do any of you know where the Pokemon Center is?!

Gary: *points over* Right there.

Trainer: *relieved* Oh, thank Arceus. You're gonn be okay, Farfetch'd!

Lt. Surge: What happened to your Farfetch'd, son?

Trainer: At the Rock Tunnel, I... I saw it. This huge... weird.... *runs off* It was Old Kabu!

Serena: *confused* Old Kabu?

Lt. Surge: Oh great. He's at it again.

Cobalt: Something tells me we should check out this so-called "Old Kabu".

Ash led the way as he, Gary, Serena, and the two Pokemon made their way to the entrance to the Rcok Tunnel, which was on the edge of town.

Serena: Nothing huge and weird I can see.

Green: What about that?

Right by the entrance of the Rock Tunnel stood a Pokemon, a mostly eptilian one with brown kin and a cream stomach. Its head resembled that of a skull with red eyes and a bone was perched under its arm, the Pokemon leaning on it in order to prop itself up.

Ash: A Marowak? What's a Marowak doing here? I thought only Cubone and Diglett live here?

Serena: *takes out Pokedex* Marowak?

Pokedex: Marowak, the Bone Keeper Pokemon and the evolved form of Cubone. A Ground type. With a hardened spirit and relentless determination, Marowak overcame its sorrow to become stronger in honor of its parent. Marowak thump their bones rhythmically to communicate among themselves, with there being nearly 50 different rhythmic patterns.

Gary: So..... That's Old Kabu?

Suddenly, Surge walked up behind them, having been listening to the conversation.

Lt. Surge: Indeed he is. But unfortunately, he wasn't always like this.

Ash: What do you mean?

Lt. Surge: You see, a few years ago, a Trainer like you challenged my gym with a spindly little Cubone. He lost since he didn't train it and as such, that guy abandoned the poor whelp here at the Rock Tunnel. *sympathetic* Since then, he's marked it as his territory, training himse to the very limit. And any trainer foolish enough to ander too close gets their Pokemon dominated by the now evolved "Old Kabu"...

The group grew much more sympathtic towards the Marowak, with Ash being the most impacted. After all, one of his best friends was abandoned by his trainer, which actually sounded like Damian.

Lt. Surge: That little literal dirtbag has been nothing but trouble for any travelers that come in through route 11. It's about time we end this fued.

Gary: But don't you usually use Electric-type Pokemon, which are weak to Ground-types?