" Ash..... are you sure this thing is a Pokemon?" Misty huffed as she leaned on the rock wall, holding a picture.

" Professor Oak said so." Ash replied as he and Pikachu read the signs, trying to figure out where to go.

" Should we call Professor Oak?" Misty asked. " And ask if there's any more data?"

Ash nodded. " Yeah.... just as soon as we find a Pokemon center."

Misty fell anime style. " You mean you don't know where it is?"

Ash, unfazed, shook his head.

Misty groaned dramatically as she pushed herself off the ground. "Ash, let me get this straight: we're in the middle of nowhere, chasing after a maybe-it's-a-Pokémon, and you don't even know where the nearest Pokémon Center is?"

Ash scratched the back of his head, laughing nervously. "Uh... not exactly, but I'm sure we'll find it soon. Right, Pikachu?"

"Pika pika," Pikachu replied with a hesitant shrug.

Misty facepalmed. "Unbelievable. Do you ever plan ahead?"

"Of course I do!" Ash protested, holding up the map he'd been carrying. "See? I've got this!"

Misty snatched the map from him and unfolded it, her eyes narrowing. "Ash, this isn't even a map of this region! This is from Johto!"

Ash blinked, tilting his head. "...It explains why everything looked so familiar."

Misty let out a long, exasperated sigh. "Great. Just great. We're lost, hunting a Pokémon that may or may not exist, and we have no idea where to go. This is just classic Ash Ketchum!"

Ash crossed his arms defensively. "Hey, Professor Oak wouldn't send us out here for no reason. He said this was an important research opportunity."

Misty rolled her eyes, waving the picture of the supposed Pokémon in front of him. "Right. Researching this? It looks like someone's drawing practice gone wrong!"

The picture showed a blurry silhouette of what appeared to be a Pokémon, with spiky fur and glowing red eyes. It was hard to tell if it was intimidating or just... weird.

"Hey, weird or not, it's still a Pokémon!" Ash said stubbornly. "And I'm gonna catch it!"

"Catch it?!" Misty exclaimed. "We don't even know if it's dangerous! For all we know, it could be some kind of—"

A sudden low growl echoed through the rocky canyon, cutting Misty off mid-sentence. Both she and Ash froze, turning toward the source of the noise.

"...Uh, Misty?" Ash whispered, clutching his Poké Ball.

"Yeah?" Misty replied, backing up slowly.

"Please tell me that was your stomach."

Misty glared at him. "Does my stomach sound like that?!"

The growl came again, louder this time. From the shadows of the canyon emerged a pair of glowing red eyes, just like the ones in the picture. A massive, spiky creature stepped into the light, its fur bristling and its fangs gleaming.

Ash's eyes widened. "It's the Pokémon from the picture!"

Misty took a step back, holding Togepi close. "Ash, that thing doesn't look like it wants to be caught!"

The creature roared, slamming its claws against the ground and sending a shower of pebbles flying. Pikachu sparked its cheeks, ready for battle.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded.

"Pika-chuuu!" Pikachu unleashed a bolt of electricity that struck the creature dead-on. But when the smoke cleared, the creature barely looked fazed. It roared again, its red eyes glowing even brighter.

"Ash, I think we should run!" Misty yelled, tugging at his arm.

"Run? But I haven't caught it yet!" Ash protested.

"Ash, now!" Misty snapped, practically dragging him.

Reluctantly, Ash turned and bolted, Pikachu leaping onto his shoulder as they fled. The creature gave chase, its heavy footsteps echoing through the canyon.

As they ran, Misty shouted, "So, what's the plan, genius?"

Ash panted, glancing back at the rampaging Pokémon. "Uh... find the Pokémon Center?"

"You don't even know where it is!" Misty shouted, her voice rising in panic.

"Details!" Ash yelled back.

"Pikaaa!" Pikachu added, pointing ahead.

In the distance, they spotted the familiar red roof of a Pokémon Center. Relief flooded Misty's face as they sprinted toward it.

"Finally!" she cried. "Let's hope Nurse Joy has a plan for this!"

The roaring grew louder as the creature gained on them. Ash, Misty, and Pikachu burst through the doors of the Pokémon Center just as the creature lunged. The automatic doors slid shut, locking with a satisfying click.

The creature skidded to a halt outside, snarling in frustration. After a few moments, it turned and disappeared back into the canyon.

Inside, Nurse Joy and Chansey stared at the disheveled group. "Welcome to the Pokémon Center," Nurse Joy said calmly, though her expression betrayed mild concern. "Can I help you?"

Ash, gasping for breath, held up the picture. "Do you... know what this is?"

Nurse Joy studied the picture, then smiled. "Oh, that's the rare Canyon Beast Pokémon. It's known for being extremely territorial. Did you happen to see it?"

Misty's eye twitched. "See it? It tried to eat us!"

"Well, you're lucky it didn't," Nurse Joy said cheerfully. "Most trainers who encounter it end up climbing trees to escape!"

Ash looked at Misty with a sheepish grin. "See? Told you it was real."

Misty groaned, collapsing onto a bench. "Next time, we're calling Professor Oak first."



Ash fumbled with the videophone, still panting from the mad dash to the Pokémon Center. His hair was a mess, and he could barely keep his head upright as he slumped over the console. Pikachu sat on the counter, equally out of breath, its tail drooping.

The screen flickered to life, and instead of Professor Oak's kind, familiar face, Gary Oak appeared, smirking as always.

"Well, well, Ashy-boy!" Gary said, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed. "What's with the heavy breathing? Did you lose to another Caterpie?"

Ash groaned, too tired to argue. He rested his forehead against the console and muttered, "Gary... not now..."

Gary raised an eyebrow. "Wow, you look worse than usual. Did you get into a battle, or did Misty finally lose it and chase you with a mallet?"

Misty, who was seated on the bench behind Ash, snapped her head up. "Gary, I swear, if you don't put Professor Oak on the line—"

"Relax, Red," Gary interrupted with a wave of his hand. "Gramps is busy, so you're stuck with me. Besides, I'm way more entertaining. So, what's the emergency? Lose Pikachu again?"

Ash lifted his head just enough to glare at Gary. "We didn't lose anything! We were chased by some... big... spiky Pokémon..." He trailed off, too exhausted to finish.

Gary leaned closer to the screen, his smirk widening. "Chased? By what? Your own shadow?"

"An Ursaring on steroids," Misty muttered from the background. "And Ash thought he could catch it."

Gary laughed. "Of course he did! Classic Ash—always biting off more than he can chew. So, where's this 'big, scary Pokémon' now?"

"It's outside the canyon," Misty snapped. "And if you don't stop gloating, I'll personally send it to Pallet Town to chase you instead!"

Gary raised his hands defensively. "Whoa, no need to get all fiery, Misty. You're supposed to be the 'calm and collected' one, aren't you?"

Misty's eye twitched. "Put Professor Oak on now, Gary."

Gary chuckled, clearly enjoying himself. "Fine, fine. I'll let Gramps know his favorite loser needs help. Try not to hyperventilate before he gets here." With that, he disappeared from the screen.

Ash groaned, burying his face in his arms. "Why does it always have to be Gary?"

Misty crossed her arms, glaring at the now-empty screen. "Next time, I'm making the call."

The screen flickered again, and Professor Oak's face appeared, looking mildly startled. "Oh, Ash! Misty! What seems to be the—"

Before he could finish, both Ash and Misty started talking at the same time, their voices overlapping into a chaotic mess.

"Professor, we were in this canyon, and this Pokémon—"
"Professor Oak! Ash didn't know where we were going, and then this monster—"
"—with glowing red eyes, it chased us, and Pikachu had to—"
"—and he had the wrong map, and then it roared, and I told him we should run—"

"STOP!" Professor Oak finally shouted, holding up his hands. "One at a time, please!"

But instead of calming down, Ash and Misty turned on each other.

"Well, maybe if you weren't always nagging me, we wouldn't have been lost!" Ash huffed, crossing his arms.

"Nagging you?! Maybe if you actually listened for once, we wouldn't have ended up in that mess!" Misty snapped, jabbing a finger in his direction.

"Oh, so now it's my fault? You were the one holding the map upside down!"

"Because you gave it to me that way!"

"Pikaaaa..." Pikachu sighed, facepalming on the counter.

"Children, children!" Professor Oak interjected, looking increasingly exasperated. "I can't help you if you keep arguing like a pair of Spearow!"

Ash and Misty stopped mid-argument, both glaring at each other before reluctantly turning back to the screen.

"Okay, fine," Misty muttered. "Ash, you tell him."

Ash huffed, then looked at Professor Oak. "There's this Pokémon—big, spiky, red eyes—it chased us in the canyon. Pikachu hit it with Thunderbolt, and it just shrugged it off. Do you know what it is?"

Professor Oak stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Big, spiky, red eyes, and resistant to electricity? Hmm... it sounds like you may have encountered a Ferocibear."

"Ferocibear?!" Misty and Ash said at the same time, wide-eyed.

"Yes, it's an extremely rare and territorial Pokémon," Professor Oak explained. "It's known to guard its habitat fiercely. It's not commonly seen, so you were quite fortunate to encounter it."

"Fortunate?!" Misty exclaimed. "We almost got mauled!"

Ash perked up, his competitive side kicking in. "So, it's rare? Does that mean I should go back and catch it?"

"Are you insane?" Misty yelled, throwing her arms up. "We barely escaped with our lives!"

"Hey, this could be my big chance! A Ferocibear would look awesome on my team!" Ash argued, turning to Misty.

"Or it could eat you for breakfast!" Misty shot back.

Professor Oak rubbed his temples. "Oh dear... I'm starting to understand why Gary always says you two argue like a married couple."

"WE'RE NOT A COUPLE!" Ash and Misty shouted in unison, turning red.

Pikachu let out a tired "Pika pika," clearly done with the whole situation.