Northwest of Pewter City, next to an unknown volcano.
After leaving Viridian Forest, Xia You had been wandering around this massive volcano for two full days.
Originally, he had planned to challenge the Pewter Gym directly, but after hearing that Charmander were active nearby, he temporarily changed his mind and made capturing a Charmander his primary goal.
The reason for his urgency was not only because Charmander's final evolution, Charizard, was very powerful, but primarily because its appearance was incredibly cool, and he had loved it since his previous life.
Unfortunately, apart from some Diglett, Zubat, Geodude, and Cubone, he had searched half the volcano and found no trace of Charmander.
As the sky grew dim again and night was about to cover the land, just as Xia You put down his backpack and prepared to set up camp, Eevee, who had gone ahead to scout, suddenly rushed back from a distance.
Upon seeing Xia You, Eevee ran up to him and cried out anxiously a few times.
Although Xia You didn't understand the meaning of its Growl, remembering the task he had given Eevee, he immediately perked up.
"You found a Charmander!?"
Eevee nodded, then turned and gestured for Xia You to follow.
Xia You didn't hesitate, grabbing his backpack and following Eevee, bypassing a vast expanse of rocky ground, until he finally discovered dozens of lights within a mountain crevice.
These lights were especially noticeable at this time, and upon getting closer, he could clearly see that it was a tribe composed of Charmander and Charmeleon, and when Xia You looked up, he could even vaguely see several Charizard flying and soaring among the clouds.
And those lights were the flames of life that constantly burned and emanated from their tails.
After all this trouble, Charmander, I finally found you!
However, how could he capture it without alarming the Charmeleon and Charizard?
It was well known that Charmander's temper was relatively mild within its family, but Charmeleon and Charizard would clearly not allow Xia You to openly capture a Charmander.
Lying in the dense forest, Xia You looked around, inadvertently lowered his head, and saw the backpack beside him, his eyes lit up, and he had a good idea.
He opened his backpack, pulled out a flashlight, and tore off a few small pieces of tape, sticking them to the front of the flashlight, leaving only a small circular hole.
Then he took out a can of rations, opened the lid, and placed it behind a large rock large enough to hide behind.
After doing all this, he waved his hand and signaled his Pokémon to hide around.
"This time, we're pressed for time, so there's no need for a formal battle. Once we lure the Charmander here, everyone attack together. Try to finish the battle before the Charizard discover us. Understand?"
"Squirtle, Squirtle!"
Seeing his Pokémon nod, Xia You, alone, returned to the tree where he had just been hiding and began to observe carefully.
Charmander's appearance is somewhat similar to a carnivorous dinosaur, its body is orange, and its belly and the underside of its tail are cream-colored. The most prominent feature is the flame on its tail.
That flame can reflect its health and mood changes: when energetic, the flame is strong; when lacking motivation, the flame is weak; when happy, the flame flickers; when angry, the flame burns fiercely.
It is said that when the flame on its tail goes out, Charmander's life also ends. However, as long as it is healthy, even if it is completely soaked, the flame on its tail will burn very strongly.
At this moment, these Charmander were still playing leisurely, unaware of Xia You's arrival. After a long selection, Xia You finally focused his gaze on a somewhat special Charmander.
Although this Charmander was also playing and roughhousing with its companions, perhaps because of its somewhat careless nature, it sometimes used too much strength and didn't know how to control it, always making its companions angry and causing them to roar and scold it.
Seeing its somewhat clueless expression, Xia You's heart settled. Good, you're the one!
Taking out the flashlight, Xia You turned on the switch and aimed it at it.
The thin beam of the flashlight, with a few quick flashes, shone on that Charmander's face, but because it didn't spread to the surroundings, it didn't attract the attention of the other Charmander.
Initially, Charmander didn't pay attention to the dazzling light, only blinking and turning its head away. But when the light slowly moved with its head and shone on its face again, it finally caught its attention.
?
A large question mark appeared above its head. Charmander looked left and right, then curiously walked towards Xia You's hiding place.
Seeing the target take the bait, Xia You slowly retreated and hid behind the large rock.
And when Charmander, guided by the flashlight's beam, arrived there, it suddenly found the light had disappeared, replaced by a strange, fragrant food placed in the open space.
It sniffed hard with its nose, and had only taken two steps forward when it suddenly heard a signal to attack. Several figures rushed out from all directions simultaneously. Before it could react, in a flash of lightning, it was struck by Water Gun, Confusion, Vine Whip, and a Headbutt, instantly collapsing to the ground, its vision blacking out, and completely losing consciousness.
"Excellent!"
Seeing Charmander fall, Xia You sprang out from the side, quickly pulled out a Poké Ball, and threw it.
With a flash of red light, Charmander was drawn into the Ball, and without even a wobble, it was successfully captured.
Staring at that Poké Ball, Squirtle was slightly stunned. An uncomfortable memory surfaced, and it felt as if this capture scene seemed somewhat… familiar?
"What are you waiting for!" Xia You tapped its head, and the smile on his face, even in the dim night, made Squirtle feel very bright. "It's been successfully captured. Let's leave here quickly before the big guys discover us!"
Late at night, at the Pokémon Center in Pewter City.
In the empty restaurant, Xia You leaned back in a dining chair, legs crossed, drinking vegetable juice, a relaxed expression on his face.
As of today, he had finally achieved a milestone: all of the Kanto region's royal three families had been collected by him!
Beside him, four of the five Pokémon were eating, only the recently captured Charmander was staring blankly at its unfamiliar surroundings.
Its memory was somewhat fragmented, like sleeping and waking up to find the world had changed.
It didn't even know why it was here.
And how did this human suddenly become its Trainer?
And how did these Pokémon suddenly become its companions?
Seeing Charmander sitting there blankly, Xia You pushed food in front of it with a look of concern.
"Eat more. What? Still a little fuzzy? Don't worry, after today, I think you'll get used to it very quickly!"