From: Jeff K. The Spoeank Fishstick (jk286@aol.cometPunch) Subject: [PW!] Was it worth it? Newsgroups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon Date: 2000/04/21 A dark alley in Celadon, a rare occurrence in the bright lights of Celadon city. There, a Pidgey that is carrying a man no more than 16 lands. "Birdie, back in the Pokéball," he yelled, with this, a flash of light enveloped the Pidgey, pulling it into the Pokéball. "Hello…?" the young boy yelled in the dark alleyway. "Anybody there?" He waited for a reply, but got nothing but the sound of silence, which could be deafening to some. "I guess not. Perfect." The boy lit a cigarette, the smoke curling up in the darkness, he knew these were going to kill him, but he didn't care. They calmed him; they seemed to be the only thing that calmed him. He almost forgot his policy; always have a lookout. "Pincher, go on lookout," with that, a giant bug came out of a Pokéball. The Pinsir turned and looked at his trainer. "Go!" Tom shouted. The Pinsir just looked at him with a blank look on his face, turned around, and went to sleep on a pile of garbage. "Why do I even keep you around?" Tom asked, returning Pincher to his Pokéball, and returned the Pokéball to his windbreaker. "Oh… what a day, what a day…" -Earlier that day- "Hey you, come back here!" The traveler yelled to Tom. Tom paid no heed, he had to run. The backpack he had just stolen "Just run. It seems that is all that I do anymore," Tom thought. "What am I doing, look at me, I'm useless." Tom hadn't noticed, but his legs stopped. His breath was heavy, as a result of his near constant smoking. The traveler approached, warily. He tapped Tom on the shoulder, and Tom was greeted with a gun barrel pointed straight at his nose. "Hello, care to explain that?" The man said, gesturing to the backpack. Desperately thinking, Tom pulled a name from his twisted past. "Oliver, it… isn't you?" "Who?" "You mean you aren't Oliver Closoff (Author's Note: hehe!)?" "No." The man was short on words, but long on intimidation. However, wouldn't anyone holding someone else at gunpoint be intimidating? "Oh, I'm so sorry sir, I thought you were one of my friends, I was trying to just play a harmless trick on one of my friends. I'm sorry, no harm done, right?" Tom BSed, handing over the pack. "No, none done, now go, before I make you go." The man cocked his gun. Tom turned and walked away, dejected. He let Chris out of his Pokéball. "Oh Chris, what is wrong with me?" Tom thought to Chris. "Maybe it is all those tobacco sticks you are constantly inhaling?" The Abra responded. "Yea, maybe," Tom said, his voice scratchy. "Maybe I should quit smoking then." "That might be a good idea," the little Abra responded. After a moment of silence, Tom burst out. "You know what? Forget it, I am getting that man's pack. I will not fail again!" With that, Tom unsheathed his small knife. "Gun or not, I'm getting that backpack." The man was headed the other way, returning to his campsite, his back to Tom, so this would be an easy theft for him. Tom silently and quickly snuck up behind the man, and held the knife to the man's throat. "We can do this the easy way, or we can do it my way." Tom sneered, unholstering the man's pistol, leaving him defenseless. "Here… take it," the man gasped, hand over the backpack to Tom. "Thank you, and this didn't happen," Tom whispered, making a throat slitting motion with his free hand, having slung the pack over his shoulder. "Now go, before I make you go," Tom demanded, mocking what the man had said earlier. The man turned to run, and Tom noticed it was getting dark. He needed to get off Route 1, away from Pallet, and back to the warm comfort of the cold buildings of Celadon. "Birdie, go." Tom threw a Pokéball. A Pidgey popped out. Tom boarded the Pidgey, and gestured towards the general direction of Celadon. "Go." The Pidgey was off. -Back to now- "Hmm… I wonder what the poor guy had in his pack." With that, Tom took the backpack off his shoulder and opened it. "What the…?" The backpack was filled to the brim with wonderful, useful, extravagant newspapers! "Newspapers?! I risked myself for newspapers?!" Tom yelled. Tom took the newspapers, and lit them one by one on fire. He then took the backpack, filled it with his Pokéballs, his knife, his bright shiny new gun, and his cigarettes, and hoisted it onto his shoulder. He threw his cigarette onto the ground, and stomped it out. He then turned and calmly walked to the nearest motel, where he would get a room from a couple of poor, unsuspecting people. -- Jeff K. - "How about I give you the finger, and you give me my phone call?" - Neo, The Matrix To all you Electrode haters... SCREW YOU! Electrode rocks!