From: Spawn <nmvds@aol.computers> Subject: [PW!] Recovery Date: Monday, June 21, 1999 6:51 PM Recap: When we last saw Steve and Karen, they were attending a magic show of Marvin the Magician. During the show, Team Rocket hired their new member/weapon, the TR-BOT, to attempt to steal Marvin's genetically enhanced Dittos. After a long fight scene, Steve was hurt severely as well as all of his Pokemon and several of Karen's Pokemon were also harmed. The TR-BOT was eventually defeated through a signal glitch, but chances are that it will return. ************** Steve Fugues was tired. He was hungry. The battle against the TR-BOT took a lot out of him. Karen Oak was helping him try to recover and walk back to his car. It had been a long and grueling battle, and he was beaten up pretty severely. The two of them were stopping at the Pokemon Mart buying supplies. "You hungry?" she asked him. "Starving," he replied as he went through the items. "Repel, $350," he observed. "That sounds nifty." Then he saw a sign for Pokesoft brand rare candies arriving soon. "God dammit, he shouted. "Why can't anyone recognize this company this company as the destructive force it is?" "Hey, they invented rare candy that would make your Pokemon grow faster!" someone next to him said. "That's not destructive." "No, they didn't!" Steve yelled. "Why does everyone attribute innovations to Pokesoft even though the only thing they know how to do is copy?" "Well, I'm sure their version of rare candy is better," the person continued. "I hear that not only does it not work well, but it is almost sure to give Pokemon cancer," Steve responded. Finally, the person gave up. "Well... uh... stop ragging on the Gil Bates just because your jealous he makes more money than you!" he shouted in frustration. "If you don't like success, go back to a communist country." "I have no problem with success," Steve told him, "I have problems when people are lacking in business ethics." "Hey pal, you want to take this outside?" he asked. "Any time," said Steve. "Steve, stop!" Karen shouted. "Why don't we stop by Brock's Diner and get a bite to eat or something?" ************ "This is a nice place," Karen told Steve. "Yeah, although there's a rumor that Brock is starting a new guarantee in the future," he told her, "Free steak if Brock flirts with your girlfriend/daughter/sister/whatever." "Then he would go out of business," Karen smirked. Just then, the pizza they ordered arrived. Steve took one bite and nearly gagged. "My god, this is nothing like what America has taught me pizza tastes like!" he shouted as he reached for a menu. "Three cheeses? THREE cheeses? What's wrong with one? My god, this is terrible! Where are the manufactured frozen ingredients? Where's the 'we made this while in a hurry' condition?' Where's the taste of indifference and insensitivity that made our restaurants great?" "First time with gourmet foods?" Karen asked. "Ack," Steve said. "I'll stick with the breadsticks. It's not as good as say, Wonderbread or something like that, but it's still tasty." The waiter was listening in on the conversation. "You want any spam with that?" she asked. "Nah, I'm fine," Steve answered. Karen began eating her salad. "So Karen," Steve asked, "what was your childhood like?" "You mean before I got stuck with a crazy person who will probably get me killed?" she asked. Steve nodded. "Well, probably the same way you'd expect life to be when you're Gary's cousin," she answered, "shadowed. This guy was a real attention freak, and I really hate tha--" Steve began to look down on the table. "Oh, not like that!" she apologized. "You're nice. Gary was a jerk. Anyway, after he became Pokemon Champion for his five or so minutes, grandpa wanted me to be a well known figure when it came to Pokemon too. Of course, I was the never too aggressive, so he enrolled me into Pokemon Tech so I could at least study with Pokemon Masters." "That's deep," said Steve. "And what about your childhood?" Karen asked. "You mean before Gil Bates hit me with an Alakazam and made me lose my memory?" Steve asked. "Oh, right," Karen apologized as she resumed eating. "Karen, why don't you ever try to win badges?" Steve asked. "I'm not good enough," she answered. "I don't believe that for an instant," Steve told her. There was an uncomfortable silence. "So, you ready to leave?" Karen asked. "I haven't had a nice place to stay since Pallet Town." "I think there's a hotel around here," Steve said. "Do you want to check out the desert menu first? I'm guessing they don't have the type of food I like." "I hear that Brock makes donuts here," said Karen. "I hear that they're really rice balls, they just call them donuts so as not to make Americans feel alienated," Steve responded as he glanced at a nearby waiter. "Check please!" Steve reached into his pocket and handed some money over to Karen. "I'm going to warm up the car," he said as he walked up to leave. Karen quickly finished the last of her salad and began to calculate how much to tip before she glanced out the window. "#$%&," she whispered as she hurriedly put some cash on the table. Steve was outside being harassed by the person who he met earlier that day in the store, who was now wearing a giant "R" on his shirt. Steve, in his battered condition and with all his Pokemon at the local center, was in no position to fight. TBC? Note: Who will be in Cerulean City over the next few days? I'm thinking of adding a few background characters to a PW story of mine. Yes, the Charlie Brown parody I've been talking about for weeks. -Spawn To reply, remove "puters" from the e-mail address.