Arctic vs. Thaw
Chapter 2 - Hiring
Ox had slowly made his way to Serian City, somehow the weather had gotten even
worse than it was. He had found the building where he basically lived. It wasn’t his
home but he stayed there nearly all the time.
He changed into some dry cloths while the storm continued outside. He then sat down
at his desk and started to think. He was trying to remember what Xatu had shown him,
he struggled at first but then everything came back to him in a sudden flash.
Xatu had told his the names of the 5 Gems and which region each one was located. He
quickly scribbled them down in his note book.
‘The 5 Gems
The Topaz Crystal - Kanto
The Jade Orb - Johto
The Opal Pebble - Hoenn
The Amethyst Rock - Sinnoh
The Garnet Slate - Remlia’
He looked down at his notes, tapping his pen on the side of the table. They were all big
regions, it would take a while to find them. He then closed his eyes again and tried to
think of the names of the 5 Collectors. They came to him one by one. Xatu had also told
him which Gem they had to collect and the Pokémon they were closest to. He then bent
down and wrote the names down.
‘The 5 Gems
The Topaz Crystal - Kanto (Tom - Chickorita)
The Jade Orb - Johto (Edd - Aipom)
The Opal Pebble - Hoenn (Stephen - Hoothoot)
The Amethyst Rock - Sinnoh (Will - Alakazam)
The Garnet Slate - Remlia’ (Alex - Psyduck)’
He looked at the new list of names. He then picked up the phone and dialled a number.
“Hello, this is the Celadon City Gym”
“It’s Ox, I need to talk to Erika”
*****
After Ox had persuaded his friend Erika to help search for the 5 Collectors, he switched
the TV on to see the news. A report was underway as he tuned in.
“-Tower has collapsed into the sea after being struck by lightning.” A young news
reported said, he was reporting from outside being battered by a strong wind and a sheet
of rain.

Ox thought back to what Glain had said. The weather would destroy the locations of
The Gems first. All he had heard was ‘Tower’ though.
The news reported continued. “Earlier today, sea levels had a sudden rise around the
Orange Islands, they have all completely disappeared. Most of the civilians made it
away alive, however, some are still missing and we are urging the public to step
forward if they have any informa-”
Ox switched the TV off and quickly grabbed the phone. It rang five times until it was
finally answered. Ox let out a sigh of relieve.
“Danny, you’re ok.”
“Ox? Yeah, of course I’m ok, not getting rid of me that easily”
Ox let out a strained laugh and relaxed slightly.
*****
He had now gotten both Erika and Danny on board with him, he had also phoned his
closest friend Carl who also agreed to help. He then looked through the name of the
Collectors and then thought back to remember there current locations.
He quickly worked out that Tom was the closest to where he was now. He would go
after him first then ask Erika to look for Stephan and Danny to search for Alex. Once
they had hired those three, they could move onto the final two. He had another idea for
Carl.