Early morning.
The four of them woke up in the Clefairy shop, acting as if nothing unusual had happened. The meteorite on the altar had been cleared away.
Azure stretched, yawning as she instinctively rubbed her shoulder. "Ow... why does my shoulder feel so sore?"
"Haha! That's just your weak constitution. Look at me—I'm the Night Watch Champion!" Ash was bursting with energy at the crack of dawn. He threw his arms up, a man whose stamina never seemed to wilt.
Azure still hadn't noticed the extra Clefairy sitting in her Pokéball. Once the sleep cleared from her head, she went right back to cursing Gary alongside Ash. Still no Clefairies. She was officially obsessed.
The group packed up and headed out, quickly reaching a crossroads at the edge of Mt. Moon. A signpost stood there, pointing one way toward Cerulean City and the other back toward Mt. Moon.
A line of small text was scribbled at the base of the post. Azure, in her obsessed state, leaned in to read it.
"From Gary the Great: Pig, is, read, to, came, backwards!"
What did that mean? She read it out loud, word by word: "Backwards... came... to... read... is... Pig!" (Reading it backwards meant: Anyone who reads this backwards is a pig!)
Azure realized the prank mid-sentence and snapped her mouth shut. Hmph, Gary thinks he's so clever. She smirked, thinking she'd outsmarted such a childish trap. But then, she saw an even smaller line of text below the first one:
"Surely no idiot would stop reading halfway through just to feel smart, right? Don't make me laugh, tee-hee."
Azure: "!!!"
Utter humiliation. Humiliation from head to toe!
A dark aura seemed to rise from the ground, Constricting her. Azure turned to Ash, her pretty face twitching. Her eyes were trembling, and she bit her lip hard to keep the tears back.
"Neighbor... I'm going on ahead." She squeezed the words out through her teeth.
Ash looked confused. "Huh? Aren't you traveling with us?"
"No. There's a flea dancing on a grave, and I need to go shove it back into the dirt!" She patted her Bulbasaur. "Get your Vine Whip ready, Saur!"
"Bulba! Bulba!" Bulbasaur responded with a war cry.
With a burst of speed, girl and Pokémon sprinted toward Cerulean City, vanishing from sight in seconds.
"What a spirited girl," the three remaining travelers remarked. They had no idea her soul was currently a void of bitter vengeance.
Ash didn't hold much of a grudge against Gary beyond wanting to thrash him in a battle, so the trio continued leisurely toward Cerulean. Since it was Misty's hometown, Ash wanted to scout the Cerulean Gym first. Know your enemy, and you're invincible.
But when he turned around, the only person behind him was a buff, squinty-eyed man.
"Wait, where'd Misty go?" Ash scratched his head.
Brock patted his shoulder. "Probably 'a visit from a relative.' Forget her. GKD (Gotta Keep Driving), let's hit the Gym!"
"As expected of the man with the Rock Will. You really get it." Ash nodded.
The two sprinted toward a building that looked suspiciously like an aquarium. A massive Dewgong icon sat on the roof, balancing a water bubble, surrounded by flashy ribbons.
"This is the Cerulean Gym? Why is it so... flamboyant?" In Ash's mind, a Gym should be hardcore, like Pewter.
"GKD! GKD!" Brock licked his lips and shoved Ash inside without another word.
They entered a narrow hallway lined with glass tanks filled with exotic fish Pokémon. Ash shook his Pokédex.
Pokédex: - "Beep-beep. Feebas, the Beautiful Pokémon. Common as dirt, zero value. Suggest releasing into the wild." - "Beep-beep. Magikarp, the Savage Pokémon. Terrible temper, all scales, inedible."
Yep, this thing is definitely broken, Ash thought. One was a legendary weakling, the other was an eyesore, yet it was lying through its digital teeth.
They pushed through the inner doors and found themselves in a spectator arena packed with people—mostly men. All eyes were on the center stage: a massive pool where three women were performing underwater ballet in skimpy outfits. Their elegant moves and the splashing water drew roars of approval from the crowd.
"WHOO-HOO!!" Brock joined in the cheering, his slit-eyes opening wider than they had in years.
"What's so good about this?" Ash asked, genuinely baffled. In terms of muscle, those three were skin and bones; one punch and they'd be crying for hours. In terms of power, they swam so slowly Ash could probably outpace all three of them combined.
"You don't have the Will of Rock, so you don't understand," Brock said solemnly, patting Ash's shoulder. "Rock Will is about resolve. Only when you observe the world from the perspective of a stone can you see its mysteries."
Ash nodded, feeling he'd gained a deeper understanding of Brock. "So this is the Rock Will." He looked at the cheering fans and shuddered. Cerulean City is terrifying. Everyone here has the Rock Will.
They found seats, and Ash tried his best to learn the "Rock Will" from Brock. Result: Utterly bored.
When the show ended, they snuck into the backstage area. The three sisters were walking toward them, hair wet, still in their swimsuits.
"Today's show was a smash hit~" they chatted.
Seeing the intruders, the blonde sister asked, "Looking for autographs? You'll have to talk to our agent first."
Ash straightened up. "No. I'm Ash, and I'm here for a Gym challenge."
Brock pulled out a bouquet from nowhere, his teeth flashing a brilliant white. "My name is Brock, and I possess—"
The blonde sister cut him off. "Oh! A challenger! I'm Daisy, the oldest of the Cerulean sisters."
"The man with the Rock—" Brock tried again. The blue-haired girl interrupted, "I'm Violet, the middle sister."
"I'd like to buy you din—" The pink-haired girl finished the cut-off, "And I'm Lily, the youngest. If you want a match, follow us."
Then she turned to Brock with a curious look. "Is the tan student looking for the cafeteria? Out the door and 300 meters to the right is the Gym-themed restaurant~"
Brock: "..." (It's fine. I'm fine.)