Pokémon: Roots of Pallet - Episode 03: "The Hurt Pikachu"
As the sun slowly set behind the hills of Pallet Town, the sky turned shades of orange and pink, bathing the town in the silent beauty of twilight. By the side of the dirt road, surrounded by a small, well-tended flower garden, stood the cozy home of the Ketchum family.
It was a two-story house with a red roof and wide windows with white curtains that danced in the breeze. The sweet aroma of cake baking drifted from the kitchen, blending with the scent of the wooden porch. Outside, laundry hung on a clothesline, and a small tool shed stood at the back.
Inside, Ash Ketchum was in his upstairs bedroom.
His room was a capsule of dreams. The walls were decorated with posters of the three Kanto starter Pokémon — Bulbasaur, Charmander, and Squirtle — in heroic poses. On the bed lay a large Snorlax-shaped pillow, where Ash often napped on lazy afternoons. A Voltorb-shaped alarm clock blinked red lights on his nightstand, almost as if ready to explode with impatience.
At the wooden desk by the window, Ash was scribbling in a homework notebook, straining his memory to recall evolution types and Pokémon traits. But his mind wandered...
...back to the video he had watched earlier in the lab: a battle between a young Professor Oak and Agatha.
"That exchange of blows... the roar of the Kangaskhan... the Professor's focused gaze..."
Ash squinted, trying to remember every detail. It was as if he could feel the electricity of the battle through the screen.
A familiar voice pulled him from his trance:
— "Ash, sweetie! Could you put these tools away in the shed for me?"
It was Delia Ketchum, his mother, with that sweet and energetic tone that always made Ash comply, even when he was busy.
— "On it!" — he replied, closing the notebook and stretching. He grabbed the toolbox and left the room.
As he came downstairs, he passed the kitchen where Delia stirred a pot on the stove.
— "Thanks, honey. I'll make you some of that leek rice stew you love, okay?"
Ash smiled sideways, carrying the toolbox with some effort.
— "Thanks, Mom!"
As he stepped out the back door and crossed the garden toward the shed, a familiar voice called out from the road:
— "Yo, Ash!"
Ash turned and saw Gary Oak standing there, a fishing rod slung over his shoulder and Eevee trotting beside him. The little Pokémon was dazzled by the world outside the lab, sniffing everything from flowers to fresh air.
— "Hey! What are you doing here, Gary?"
Gary grinned with that typical look like he had the perfect answer ready.
— "I was just passing by and decided to visit my favorite duck before dinner." — he said, winking mockingly. — "You might lay an egg because you're so lost, right? And I also wanted to show Eevee how wild animals live outside the lab."
Ash laughed, adjusting the box in his hands.
— "You're just messing around, that's what."
Gary noticed the box Ash was carrying.
— "What's that?"
— "Tools. My mom asked me to put them away in the shed."
They both approached the small wooden structure at the back of the house. When Ash pushed the sliding door open, a sharp sound sliced the air — something between a squeal and a hiss. It sounded... like a Rattata's growl.
Both froze instantly.
— "Did you hear that?" — asked Ash.
— "I did..." — Gary replied, placing a hand on Eevee's shoulder, who stopped and lowered its ears, cautious.
Carefully, Ash opened the shed door fully — and what he saw made his heart race.
A small yellow Pokémon, covered in wounds, was devouring some berries stored in a straw basket. Its body trembled. Pointed ears, red cheeks, a lightning bolt-shaped tail.
— "It's... it's a Pikachu!" — Gary exclaimed in surprise.
Before Ash could speak, the Pikachu turned with wide, furious eyes and leapt straight at him with a wild cry!
— "Aaaah!" — he shouted, shielding himself with the toolbox as Pikachu scratched his face with frantic little paws.
Gary tried to intervene, but before he could act, the Pikachu collapsed to the ground, glared at them threateningly, and passed out.
Ash, panting, stared at him with wide eyes.
— "He's... really hurt. Badly hurt."
— "Ash!" — Gary said firmly. — "Take him to the lab! Now!"
Without hesitation, Ash knelt down and gently picked up the Pikachu, ignoring the scratches on his face. He didn't think. He just ran.
-0-0-0-0-0-0-
At Professor Oak's Laboratory...
In a room filled with medical equipment and monitors, the Pikachu lay on a diagnostic machine, perfectly sized for its small body. Wires were attached to its limbs and cheeks as data was displayed in real-time on the lab's screens.
Ash, his eyes red and hands dirty with soil, stood beside Professor Oak.
— "How is he, Professor?"
The Professor adjusted his glasses, carefully examining the graphs.
— "He's going to be okay. But..." — he paused — "He has two types of injuries: some caused by other Pokémon... and others, clearly caused by humans."
Ash and Gary looked at each other, shocked.
— "Why?" — Ash whispered. — "Why would someone do this to a Pokémon?"
The Professor sighed, taking off his glasses and setting them on the table.
— "This Pikachu was... abused by its own trainer. It was mistreated and then discarded. Probably abandoned near the Viridian Forest."
The silence weighed heavily on the room.
— "The Viridian Forest is one of the deepest areas where Pikachu usually live in the wild, in groups that help and protect each other." — continued the Professor. — "The scent of humans permeated it, and because of that, it was rejected by its own.
— Normally, wild Pokémon exclude from the pack those who no longer carry the scent of the pack — a way of protecting themselves and maintaining trust among themselves. But this is not always the case; sometimes, some manage to be accepted despite this.
— Probably, after suffering abuse, this Pikachu tried to return to its pack, seeking protection and support, but was rejected because it was marked by the human presence."
Gary clenched his fists.
— "That's sick..."
— "He didn't trust anyone anymore," — the Professor added. — "He had no choice but to flee... maybe he instinctively came to Pallet in search of food or safety."
Ash looked at the unconscious Pikachu, now wrapped in a thermal blanket. His hands trembled. He knelt beside the machine and gently touched the cloth covering the Pokémon.
— "No one... should ever be treated like this. Not even a Pokémon."
The Professor watched him in silence.
— "It'll take time for him to trust again. Pokémon are like us... they feel fear, sadness... abandonment."
Ash closed his eyes.
— "I want to help him."
— "It's a long road, Ash. He may never trust anyone again."
Ash nodded slowly.
— "That's okay. I can wait. Even if it takes years... I'll be here."
Gary, standing behind him, smiled quietly. For the first time, he said nothing snarky.
Maybe... in that moment, something had changed.
Ash didn't know it yet... but that small fallen spark in his arms would change his life forever.
To be continued...
Author's Note:
In this webnovel, the origin of the bond between Ash Ketchum and Pikachu is reimagined in a more dramatic and emotional way, inspired by the atmosphere of stories like the doujinshi Pokémon: Festival of Champions — the story of Red and Pikachu.
Instead of being assigned Pikachu by standard lab procedure, their relationship begins with a chance encounter marked by pain, broken trust, and mutual healing.
This reflects the central theme of this chapter:
"True strength is born from empathy."