by Alex Polan
But us? he thought, glancing at his teammates. It’s like we’re moving backward with every step we take.
Marco pedaled as fast as he could, trying to keep up with Logan, but he kept daydreaming—his mind drifting to the zip line.
Riding bikes feels like flying. Except I’m not scared, he realized, because I’m a whole lot closer to the ground. Why does that zip line have to be so high up, anyway?
He thought about asking Nisha if she could rig up another zip line—one just above the water. He imagined his toes skimming the lake as he crossed to Crescent Isle. His friends would be waving to him from the island, but he wouldn’t be in such a rush to get there. He’d just lean back in the harness, raise his face to the sun, and enjoy the ride… .
“Earth to Marco.”
Logan’s voice brought the zip line ride to a screeching halt. He had slowed down so that Marco could catch up with him.
“Yeah?”
“What’s the matter? Are you wishing you had a bike like mine?” asked Logan.
Marco glanced at his friend’s bike. “Our bikes are exactly the same.” Everyone had rented bikes from the Rydel’s Cycles stand behind the Poké Mart. They were all blue. All shiny. All new.
“Actually,” Logan insisted, “mine’s an Acro Bike, like in the Pokémon video game. I’ll bet yours can’t do this.” He pulled back on the handlebars and did a wheelie—a small one, but when he brought his front tire back down, he looked pretty proud.
“Yeah, you’re right,” said Marco, because it was easier than arguing. “Mine can’t do that.” I’ll leave the wheelies to Logan, he thought. And the zip line, too.
“Really? Wheelies?” said Nisha, who was riding just behind them. “After what happened with the canoe?” She still seemed pretty grumpy about that. “Maddy, hurry up!” she called over her shoulder. “Do you have your Night Goggles with you?”
“Yup,” Maddy responded as she pedaled up to the rest of the group. “I can’t wait to use them to find Zubat!”
“Find who?” asked Logan, circling back on his bike.
“Zubat!” said Maddy. “He’s like a purple bat. I’m pretty sure he’ll be one of the Pokémon we get to find in the cave—because bats live in caves, you know.”
“Um, yeah, I know,” joked Logan. He circled the group again on his bike and then said, “Luckily, I’m riding my Acro Bike, which is faster than any old Zubat. Wanna see?”
He took off on his bike—in the opposite direction.
“Logan!” cried Marco. “We’re already late! What are you doing?”
“Showing you my bunny hop!” came Logan’s response, muffled by the wind.
“His bunny what?” asked Maddy. She was all ears for anything that had to do with animals.
“His bunny hop. It’s a bike trick,” Marco explained. “You use it to hop over something.” But he couldn’t believe Logan was showing off his trick right now.
Logan turned around again and raced past them, aiming his front tire for a puddle in the road. Just before he reached it, he pulled up his handlebars so that the tire cleared the puddle. He tried to pull up his back tire, but it crashed down into the puddle with a splash. When Logan circled back to the group, the backs of his legs were splotched with mud.
“Good job!” said Maddy clapping.
“I didn’t actually do it,” Logan grumbled. “Let me try again.”
“But we’re running late,” said Marco. “Don’t you want to get to the cave?” For some reason, Logan didn’t seem all that worried about being on time for the competition.
“Just one more try,” said Logan, pedaling away before anyone could talk him out of it. This time, he aimed for something in the road behind them.
When Marco saw what it was, he did a double take. A broken branch! “Logan, don’t—!” he started to say.
But it was too late. Logan’s front tire cleared the branch easily, but his back one came down way too soon. The branch cracked, twigs flew, and Logan’s bike skidded off the path—taking Logan with it. He disappeared into the ditch.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Marco dropped his bike and sprinted toward the ditch. Logan hadn’t screamed. Or yelled. Or laughed. Or anything. He was quiet—way too quiet.
“Logan!” Marco cried as he half-ran, half-tripped into the ditch.
Then he spotted him, sitting up in the grass beside his tipped bike.
Marco blew out the breath he’d been holding. “Are you okay?” He squatted in the grass beside his friend.
Logan just sat there, dabbing at the blood trickling from his elbow. Finally he turned toward Marco, as if noticing him for the first time. “Yeah, I’m okay,” he said in a tiny voice.
“Are you sure?” asked Marco. “You don’t look so great.”
Logan shrugged. Then he slowly pushed himself up to standing. “I’m okay.” He reached for his bike.
“Do you still want to go to the cave?” asked Nisha, sounding doubtful.
“You can wear Night Goggles!” chimed in Maddy. “Nisha made two pairs.” She stood close to Logan, as if she feared he’d topple over at any moment.
He smiled at Maddy’s offer.
“We’ll find the Pokémon for sure,” said Maddy. “Especially Zubat!”
Suddenly, Logan’s smile faded, and he looked down at his ankle. “Actually, my ankle is starting to hurt. I think I might have sprained it.” He rolled down his sock and rubbed the spot.
“Can you walk on it?” asked Marco. “Should we take you to the Health Center?” Logan was usually so tough. He must be really hurt, thought Marco, wishing he knew what to do.
Logan hesitated. “I think I can ride my bike there,” he said.
“Okay, I’ll go with you,” said Marco quickly. “And Nisha and Maddy can go to the cave.”
“What? No!” said Maddy. “I’m going with Logan, too.” She crossed her arms as if to say, “Don’t even try to talk me out of it.”
Nisha sighed. “You two take Logan to the Health Center. And I’ll ride to the cave so that one of us is there when they start the orienteering. Wish me luck.”
As Marco helped Logan onto his bike, he tried not to worry. But what if Logan was really hurt? What if he couldn’t explore the cave?
It was only halfway through the competition, but between Maddy’s seasickness and Logan’s sprained ankle, it seemed the members of Team Treecko were dropping like flies.
“When do you take a Pokémon to the doctor?”
Maddy didn’t answer. She just stared at Nurse Joy.
Marco stared, too. The nurse didn’t have pink pigtails like Nurse Joy in the Pokémon cartoons, but when the light shone on her hair, he could see faint streaks of pink. The only thing more interesting than her hair was the clock on the wall, which ticked forward much too quickly. Is Nisha exploring the cave yet? he wondered.
“How about you?” the pretty nurse said to Logan as she examined his ankle. “Can you guess? When do you take a Pokémon to the doctor?”
“I—I don’t know,” said Logan, squinting into the light above the exam table.
“When its Bulb-is-sore,” said the nurse, smiling. “Get it?”
Maddy giggled. “I get it. You know, Logan—Bulbasaur, like the Pokémon.”
His mouth twitched a little.
“Jokes make everything hurt less, don’t you think?” said the nurse. “Laughter is the best medicine.”
Usually, Logan was all about jokes. But right now, he seemed so quiet. Is his ankle hurting that much? Marco wondered.
When the nurse asked Logan to move his foot up and down, he did, wincing a little.
“Hmm,” she said, gently pressing against his skin. “It doesn’t look bruised or swollen. Can you stand on it?”
Logan did, but when she asked him to take a few steps, he could only limp. Nurse Joy helped him back to the exam table.
“You might have a minor sprain,” she said. “Let’s wrap your ankle and get you an ice pack. And you should stay off it for a while.�
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“Wait … what?” said Marco, louder than he’d intended. “But we’re supposed to explore the cave!” He waited for Logan to protest, too, but he didn’t.
Maddy didn’t seem all that impressed with the nurse’s diagnosis. “Don’t you have any Heal Powder?” she asked, eyeing up the glass jars and silver canisters on the nurse’s shelf.
Nurse Joy smiled. “Nope, I’m fresh out of that.” She started wrapping Logan’s ankle with a pinkish bandage.
“Well, how about Potions?” asked Maddy. She had her hand on her hip, as if she were quizzing Nurse Joy.
The nurse shook her head. “No Potions either,” she said. “However, I do have an ice pack in the freezer—and maybe a few Poké Puffs in there, too.”
Marco watched Maddy’s eyes light up. Nurse Joy had said the two magic words that could cure Maddy from any funk: Poké Puffs.
“You keep your Poké Puffs in the freezer?” asked Maddy.
The nurse nodded. “I like to eat mine cold,” she said. “Want to see?”
Maddy nodded and followed Nurse Joy out of the room.
“Well, at least Maddy’s happy now,” said Marco as he sat down next to Logan. “Are you okay?”
Logan shrugged as he examined his wrapped ankle. “I guess you’ll have to explore the cave without me.”
Marco bit his lip. He wanted to shake Logan. Where’s my friend who always laughs things off? he wondered. The one who gets right back up and keeps on going?
But he said nothing, because the truth was, he wasn’t just worried about Logan. He was also worried about himself. A new fear had started to creep into his thoughts: What if Logan has to stay off his ankle tomorrow too?
When the nurse came back in with an ice pack and a pair of crutches, Marco’s heart sank. Things weren’t looking good.
“Hey, Marco,” said Maddy, swallowing a bite of chocolate Poké Puff. “Which Pokémon always sneezes?”
“Huh?” he said, furrowing his brow.
“I’m telling a joke!” said Maddy. “Which Pokémon always sneezes? Do you know the answer or not?”
Marco shook his head.
“Pik-ACHOO!” Maddy said gleefully, laughing her head off.
Marco forced a smile. “Good one,” he said. But there was something he had to ask Nurse Joy, and this was no joke. He pointed toward Logan’s wrapped ankle. “How long does he have to stay off it? I mean, can he do the, um … the orienteering tomorrow?” He couldn’t bring himself to say the words zip line.
Nurse Joy shook her head. “If Logan’s ankle is as sore as he says it is, zip lining would be a bad idea. I’ll write a note for Professor Birch excusing him from the competition, okay?”
No! Marco wanted to scream. Not okay!
Because there was no way he could face the zip line without Logan by his side.
No. Way.
CHAPTER NINE
When Marco’s cheek started to quiver, he turned away. He didn’t know if he was going to cry or totally go off on Logan for bailing on him.
He didn’t actually bail on you, Marco reminded himself. He got hurt—that’s different. And Maddy and Nisha will still be there tomorrow.
So he took a deep breath and faked his best cheerful voice. “Maddy and I had better get to the cave. Are you going to be okay, Logan?”
“I’ll make sure he gets back to his cabin safely,” said Nurse Joy kindly. “Maybe after a Poké Puff?”
Logan’s eyes lit up, but Marco’s stomach twisted at the thought of eating at a time like this. He tried to smile as he hurried out the door, practically dragging Maddy behind him.
Team Treecko—or what was left of it—made it to the cave in record time.
Marco was relieved to see Officer Jenny standing just outside the cave, which meant they hadn’t totally missed orienteering today. But in her blue vest and police officer cap, she looked especially stern. She tapped her watch. “You’ve got twenty-five minutes left. And Nisha has your team map. See if you can find her right away.”
Marco swallowed hard as he reached down to set his stopwatch. It was tough enough to find Pokémon with a full hour. How were they going to find any in just twenty-five minutes?
“Wow, it’s dark in here,” Maddy said from inside the cave. As he followed her in, he felt the temperature drop—and was almost grateful that Officer Jenny had made them change out of their wet clothes.
The cave was definitely dark. Marco could barely see his hand in front of his face. As his eyes adjusted, he heard Maddy fumbling around in her backpack.
Then, with the click of a switch, he was blinded all over again—this time by a bobbing bright light.
“Let me guess. Night Goggles?” he asked, shielding his face from the glare.
“Yup,” said Maddy happily. “Hey, look at that staircase. It’s just like Granite Cave!”
Marco couldn’t see the stairs. He couldn’t see anything except the shining light that Maddy had become, so he carefully followed her glow up the rock steps.
Eventually, he could see the cave walls around them. This did look like Granite Cave from the Hoenn region. He felt like a player in a video game!
They were entering a torch-lit cavern with lots of cracks and crevices. A team of kids explored a corner of the cave, but in the shadows, Marco couldn’t tell what color their shirts were.
“Let’s see if Nisha is over there,” he said to Maddy.
As they got closer, Marco saw the flash of a camera. Kids laughed and scurried away from the wall, as if they’d just struck gold.
“Did they find a Pokémon?” asked Maddy as they rushed toward the wall. “Do you see it?”
“No,” he answered. “Without the map, I don’t even know what we’re looking for!” He searched up high while Maddy got down on her hands and knees to explore the rocks down below.
“Here!” she cried. “Oh—ha! Look what the counselors did!”
Marco knelt down and spotted it, too. The poster of a rock-like Pokémon had been wrapped around a boulder to make it round and bulging, like a real Pokémon. “Is that Geodude?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” she said. “Nisha will know, though. She always knows.”
“That’s true,” said Marco. “She’s like a walking Pokédex. Well, let’s get a picture—quick.” Then it hit him like a rockslide.
We can’t take a picture.
They couldn’t take a picture, because they didn’t have the camera. Logan still had the camera.
Marco sunk down on a rock and buried his face in his hands.
“What’s wrong?” Maddy asked, shining her light on him as if he were a Pokémon she’d just discovered.
“Logan has the camera,” he said, his voice muffled by his fingers. “And I’ve got the compass. And Nisha has the map. But if none of us are together, what good are all those things? We can’t capture any Pokémon!”
“Oh.” Maddy’s voice sounded small in the darkness. “Well, we could still keep looking for them. I’ll bet Zubat is in here somewhere… .”
Marco shook his head. How could Maddy be cheerful at a time like this? But when he felt her hand on his arm, his frustration started to melt away. If Maddy’s not going to quit, then I can’t either.
He stood up and brushed off the back of his shorts. “Okay, Maddy,” he said. “Lead the way.”
She did, right out of the cave and into a dark connecting tunnel. “So what does a Zubat look like, anyway?” he asked as they walked.
“Duh. It’s a bat!” she said, giggling.
“A Zubat is a Poison- and Flying-type Pokémon, to be exact,” added a deep voice.
Marco jumped about a mile high. “Who’s there?” he asked, spinning in a circle.
Professor Birch stood just a few feet away, shielding his eyes from the light of the Night Goggles. “It’s me,” he said. “Your favorite counselor. But the real question is, what in the land of Hoenn are you wearing on your head?”
Maddy took off the Night Goggles and showed them to him w
hile Marco tried to calm his racing heart.
“Ah, interesting,” said Professor Birch. “We tried to light up most of the rooms in the cave, but these glasses will come in handy in some of the darker spots. You never know which Pokémon might be hiding there.” He winked at Maddy as he handed back her Night Goggles.
“We don’t even know which Pokémon to look for,” Maddy confessed, “because we don’t have the map—Nisha does.”
“Or a camera,” Marco added bleakly. He explained what had happened to Logan’s ankle.
Professor Birch stroked his goatee thoughtfully. “Well, I’m sure we can find a solution,” he said. “Keep searching for Nisha, and if your team can show me where you found the Pokémon, I’ll make sure you get the points for them.”
Maddy bounced forward and gave the counselor a quick hug. Marco felt like hugging him, too, but tried to control himself.
“Alright now, you don’t have much time,” said Professor Birch, holding up his hand to block any future hugs. “Get going, and remember to keep an eye out for glittery rocks.” He stepped aside so that they could pass by.
“Glittery rocks must be the hidden item,” Maddy whispered. “He gave us a clue!”
“Yup,” said Marco. “But he also said that we don’t have much time. C’mon!”
He could already hear voices from the end of the tunnel, which opened into another cavernous room. Kids were scattered around, poking their heads into tunnels that led from the cave to who knows where.
“Wow,” said Maddy, taking it all in. “Do you see Nisha?”
“No,” said Marco, but he wasn’t really looking for her—because his eyes had spotted artwork on the walls. “Check it out,” he said. “This really is like Granite Cave!”
Above each tunnel was a chalked Pokémon figure. As Maddy looked up and shone the light of her Goggles on the wall, Marco recognized one of them. “Hey, I think that’s Grimer,” he said, pointing to the blob-like Pokémon.
“Gross,” said Maddy. “I don’t like him.”
“What?” said Marco. “I thought you never met a Pokémon you didn’t like.”