Ever since Ash walked out of the knot in his heart over temporarily releasing Butterfree, Red set out once again on a journey alone. Now, he was deep within the forest near Saffron City. As night fell, the woods were painted with an eerie, unsettling hue. The occasional cold wind and the rustling of branches made passing travelers feel a chill of fear.
At this moment, Red held a Pokémon Egg incubator in his arms. Inside was the Egg given to him by the ancient Dragonite at Bill's Lighthouse—an Egg capable of absorbing the power of its bloodline. A faint white glow now radiated from it, clearly on the verge of hatching.
"I can't wait for you to be born, little one!" Red smiled. As if understanding him, the Egg trembled slightly, pushing Red's anticipation to its peak.
Red's arrival also caught the attention of Sabrina, the Gym Leader of the Saffron Gym. Through her immense psychic power, she had been observing his journey all along. From Red, she sensed a mental force that subtly suppressed even her own. For someone who had always felt alone, that faint kinship brought her an unfamiliar warmth.
"You've been watching long enough. Time to show yourself."
Red's eyes glowed blue as he lifted a doll hidden in the shadows into midair with his psychic power. Yet the doll showed no fear, like a puppet under someone else's control. It merely stared at Red for a moment before vanishing.
"I look forward to your arrival..."
The eerie voice echoed through the forest. Red knew this was Sabrina's test. She often used dolls to frighten Trainers traveling through the area, perhaps to draw even the faintest flicker of amusement into her lonely heart.
...
When Red arrived at the gates of Saffron City, the largest and busiest city in the Kanto Region, the towering Silph Co. headquarters stood proudly at its center. In the northeastern corner of the city were two Gyms: the Psychic-type Saffron Gym and the renowned Fighting Dojo.
The two had once competed for the status of Saffron City's official Gym. However, due to the type disadvantage, the Psychic Gym prevailed and became the official Gym, while the former Fighting-type Gym was relegated to a dojo.
Though victory at the Fighting Dojo no longer awarded a League Badge, challengers could choose between Hitmonchan or Hitmonlee as their prize from the Karate King, Master Koichi.
In recent years, however, Sabrina's psychic power had spiraled out of control. Fearing her, the Fighting Dojo temporarily shut down. Though Saffron City was meant to be the commercial hub of the Kanto Region, at night it was eerily quiet—so silent that not even a single passerby could be seen on the streets.
Due to the late hour, Red decided to stay the night at the Pokémon Center. After registering at the front desk and receiving his key, he washed up briefly and lay down on the bed, gradually drifting into sleep. Beside him, the Egg he had been carefully protecting suddenly burst into light.
...
At precisely six in the morning, Red awoke. Still groggy, he felt something resting on him. When he opened his eyes fully, he found a shiny purple Dratini lying atop him, drowsy and drooling slightly—though Red quickly wiped the drool away with a tissue.
"Mini~"
Noticing Red was awake, the Dratini perked up, moved closer, and gently licked his cheek. It nuzzled against his chest playfully.
"Hold on a second, Dratini!"
Red gently pushed the eager newborn aside and took out his inspection equipment along with his Pokédex. He carefully scanned Dratini's condition. A full-body check was essential for a newborn Pokémon to prevent any hidden issues.
"As expected of a Dratini that absorbed the bloodline of an ancient Dragonite. Your physical stats are exceptional compared to ordinary Dratini!"
Though only just born and measuring about 0.6 meters in height, with careful training it would undoubtedly grow strong.
Hearing Red's praise, Dratini happily narrowed its eyes, yearning for more affection.
"You must have hatched in the middle of the night," Red guessed, stroking the small, adorable Pokémon. The sudden birth had caught him off guard. After some thought, he decided to leave Milotic temporarily at Professor Oak's Laboratory so that Beedrill could help train it and accelerate its growth.
"Little one, would you like to become my partner?"
Red took out a brand-new Poké Ball and asked.
"Mini?"
Though not fully understanding, Dratini willingly entered the Poké Ball to stay by Red's side, allowing itself to be captured without resistance.
After tidying up and finishing breakfast, Red left the Pokémon Center and headed toward the Saffron Gym.
Just as he was about to arrive, a middle-aged man pretending to jog stepped in front of him, intending to persuade him not to challenge the powerful Gym Leader.
"I don't know where that confidence of yours comes from, but let me offer you some advice. Sabrina's strength is no simple matter—far more frightening than any Gym Leader you've faced before. There are other cities in the Kanto Region where you can earn League Badges. Why insist on Saffron City?"
"Frightening? Do you mean Sabrina, whose psychic powers spiral out of control and who turns those who fail her challenge into dolls to torment them?" Red replied calmly. "Or the Sabrina who transformed her own mother into a doll and drove away her father, who once tried to save their family?"
"You?! Who exactly are you?!" the man exclaimed in shock—Sabrina's father.
"Just a passing Pokémon Trainer..." Red answered leisurely.
"If you insist on challenging the Saffron Gym, then let me tell you Sabrina's story."
The man sat down on a nearby bench. Red joined him.
"Sabrina wasn't always like this. Back then, by chance, she discovered psychic powers—or perhaps she had always possessed extraordinary talent and simply hadn't released it yet."
His expression grew sorrowful as he continued.
"When a child becomes obsessed with a favorite toy, they can't let it go. Sabrina was far worse. Once she grasped psychic power, she devoted herself entirely to training it, refusing to make friends, immersing herself in her own psychic world until she couldn't escape."
"Didn't her parents try to stop her?"
To avoid suspicion, Red chose to ask.
"We… her parents did try. But she drove us out with her psychic power. From that day on, Sabrina became someone who would lose to no one—powerful, mischievous, craving friendship, yet painfully lonely. Two personalities in one."
He took out an old family photograph of young Sabrina with her parents. In it, she wore a bright, happy smile—before she had sunk into obsession.
"The doll she always carries now… it's modeled after herself from before she became obsessed with psychic training."
"What a tragic story, Sabrina's father," Red said quietly.
"So you figured it out…" The man adjusted his hat. "Even the dullest person would realize by now that I'm her father."
...
Red was about to confirm it when Ash's goofy grin suddenly flashed through his mind. If his younger brother had heard the story, he would probably still think this man was just the neighbor living next door to Sabrina.
"Don't worry. I may use some underhanded methods, but I promise Sabrina will return to her original self. When the time comes, just act according to the situation."
With that, Red stood and walked toward the Saffron Gym not far away.
(That confident expression… that crimson figure… could he be?!)
The middle-aged man suddenly recalled a recent article from the League Weekly. It told of a ten-year-old boy who, single-handedly leading his Pokémon, defeated the colossal Tentacruel and a swarm of Tentacool that had threatened to destroy a city.
At the beginning of the article was a photograph—Red waving goodbye to the giant Tentacruel.
"I see… If it's that boy, perhaps Sabrina truly can regain her smile. But what exactly did he mean by 'act according to the situation'?"
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Pls Drop some Power Stones
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