Inside Professor Oak's lab, Rex and Daisy stood anxiously outside the experimenting room, their eyes locked onto the unconscious Druddigon through the glass wall. The tension in the air was thick, and neither of them spoke as they watched Professor Oak and Nurse Joy of Pallet Town carefully examining the weakened Pokémon. Electrodes and monitoring devices were attached to Druddigon's body, tracking its vitals as it lay motionless on the table. The once terrifying creature now looked pitiful — weak and vulnerable.
Daisy bit her lower lip nervously, her hands clasped together in front of her chest. Rex's arms were crossed, his jaw tight as his gaze was locked on the dark bruises visible beneath Druddigon's scales, suggesting wip marks.
A few tense minutes later, Oak and Nurse Joy emerged from the room, their expressions serious. Daisy immediately stepped forward, her eyes filled with worry.
"Can Druddigon be cured?" she asked urgently.
Nurse Joy sighed softly, holding up a small glass vial filled with a strange, purple liquid that shimmered ominously under the lab's lights. Her expression darkened.
"I've removed all traces of this from Druddigon's system," Nurse Joy explained. "This substance was responsible for driving it berserk — it forced rapid healing and immense power boosts… but at a terrible cost. Pain and uncontrollable rage."
Rex's fists clenched at his sides. "Team Rocket…" he growled. "They drugged it?"
Nurse Joy nodded gravely. "Yes. The good news is that Druddigon is no longer under the influence of the drug. But…" Her face twisted with sadness. "Its body is severely weakened. The strain from that unnatural strength has left it in a fragile state. It'll take at least two months before it's back to full health."
Rex's eyes darkened. His hand shot out and slammed against the wall with a loud BANG, causing Daisy to flinch. "Dammit!" he hissed through gritted teeth. "How could they do this?!"
Oak's face was unusually hard as he adjusted his glasses. "I've examined the drug's composition," he said. "I'm calling it a Rage Enhancer. It's designed to push a Pokémon's strength and healing factor beyond natural limits — at the cost of unbearable pain and eventual death." His eyes narrowed. "It's cruel. And whoever engineered this knows exactly what they're doing. As long as the Pokemon is not knocked uncounciois, they will be locked in their berserk state and will die."
Rex's head snapped toward Oak. "You mean they're making more of it?"
Oak's lips thinned into a grim line. "It's likely. Team Rocket wouldn't test something this dangerous unless they were prepared to mass-produce it."
Nurse Joy stepped forward, her hands tightening around the vial. "I'll begin working on a counter-agent immediately," she said with quiet determination. "And I'll contact my clan for assistance. We might be able to neutralize the substance before it can cause more harm to the Pokemon instead of knocking it out for the treatment to begin."
Oak nodded approvingly. "Good. I'll help where I can."
As Oak and Nurse Joy left to begin their work, Rex's gaze drifted back toward Druddigon, who lay behind the glass, breathing shallowly. Its chest rose and fell weakly, no longer twisted by pain and rage — but it was clearly still suffering. Rex's hand pressed against the cool glass, his eyes softening with quiet anger.
Daisy stepped up beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Rex…"
"I'm fine," Rex said quietly. He let out a slow breath, trying to calm the storm of emotions swirling inside him.
Daisy shook her head. "You've been up all night. You need to rest."
Rex's eyes lingered on Druddigon for a moment longer before finally turning away. "I will," he said. 'But…'
He glanced down at the Poketrix attached to his left wrist and curled his hand into a tight fist. 'Team Rocket… you messed with the wrong man.'
With Daisy following close behind, Rex walked out of the lab. His eyes gleamed with fierce determination. He was going to stop Team Rocket — no matter what it took.
The scene shifted as three days had passed.
While Professor Oak was busy in the lab, conducting experiments on the Rage Enhancer to find a cure, he hadn't stopped his other research projects. As part of their fieldwork training, Oak had sent Rex and Daisy to handle some important research assignments.
Currently, both Rex and Daisy were traveling in Professor Oak's jeep, with Daisy at the wheel. Since Daisy already had her license, it made sense for her to drive — even if Rex occasionally questioned the safety of that decision. The jeep rumbled along a dirt road, kicking up dust as it sped toward Pewter City.
Their mission was twofold: first, Oak needed samples of fossils from the Pewter City Museum to aid in his research on ancient Pokémon genetics. Second, there had been unusual activity reported near Diglett Cave — the Diglett population had spiked unnaturally, and Oak wanted them to investigate the cause.
Rex leaned back in his seat, feeling a mix of excitement and nervousness. After all, this was his second official field assignment — and now, he finally had his own Pokémon partner as well! After 5 years of studying in the Pokemon research school for 5 years! Though he could have gotten one if he wanted to, but Rex had decided that he will postpone his starter Pokemon till he get's a job because he knew how much it will cost to raise a Pokemon.
And since Rex was an orphan, he was only able to come by with the allowance from the league. Now that he was working with professor Oak, everything was fine.
Curled up in his lap was his starter Pokémon — a Zorua! The small, dark fox Pokémon lay comfortably across Rex's legs, its fluffy black and red fur brushing against his hands. Zorua's blue eyes were wide as it curiously watched the passing scenery, its head tilting slightly whenever a tree branch whipped by.
Professor Oak had requested a Zorua from the Pokémon League for research purposes, but due to the delay in Rex's starter assignment, Oak had ultimately decided to gift it to Rex. Rex couldn't have been happier — Zorua was mischievous and playful, but already loyal.
Rex smiled, stroking the soft fur on Zorua's head. The Pokémon let out a soft purr and nuzzled his hand.
"You're gonna help me with the fieldwork, right?" Rex said, smirking.
"Zoru!" Zorua barked, its tail wagging happily.
Rex glanced toward Daisy, who was gripping the steering wheel with a little too much force. He decided to distract her. "Hey, Daisy," Rex said, his tone casual. "How's Gary doing?"
Daisy's eye twitched at the mention of her little brother. "Gary?" she echoed, her tone strained.
Rex nodded. "Yeah. He started his journey two days before I started doing fieldwork, right? He left with that other kid… Ash Ketchum?"
Daisy's grip on the steering wheel visibly tightened, her knuckles going white. Rex noticed the jeep swerve slightly on the road.
"Um… Daisy?"
Daisy let out a forced laugh. "Yeah… Gary's probably way ahead by now."
Rex raised an eyebrow. "You sure? Maybe we'll run into him in Pewter City."
Daisy sighed. "He's probably already gone. Gary likes to stay ahead of Ash, so he wouldn't hang around."
Rex frowned slightly. "You sound… tense."
Daisy's expression twitched as a bead of sweat ran down her temple.
"Well…" she began carefully. "Gary… sort of… took one of Dad's cars when he left."
Rex's mouth dropped open. "He what?!"
Daisy sighed. "Yeah. Took the keys and everything. Drove off like a big shot."
Rex's shock only deepened as Daisy rubbed her temple. "But that's not the worst part."
"What could possibly be worse than grand theft auto?!"
Daisy's smile turned strained. "He also… uh… purchased about ten girlfriends before he left."
Rex's eye twitched. "Girlfriends?"
Daisy coughed. "Gold diggers," she clarified.
Rex's jaw slackened. "Seriously?! Gary's ten years old!"
Daisy nodded grimly. "Yeah, but Dad has money."
Rex stared at her in disbelief. "Wow… and I thought Team Rocket was crazy."
Daisy's grip on the steering wheel tightened again, the leather creaking under her fingers. "It's fine," she muttered darkly. "I'm totally calm."
Rex squinted. "You sure? 'Cause it looks like you're about to tear that steering wheel off."
Daisy smiled sweetly — the kind of smile that usually preceded violence. "I'm fine," she said, voice laced with quiet menace.
Rex slowly leaned back, glancing at Zorua, who had tilted its head curiously at Daisy.
'Note to self: never mention Gary while Daisy is driving.'
Zorua snickered softly. Rex sighed. This was going to be an interesting trip.
After two hours of straight driving, they finally arrived in Pewter City. Daisy stretched her arms, letting out a satisfied sigh as she pulled the jeep into the city's parking lot. The city was lively, with trainers walking alongside their Pokémon, and the distinct rocky terrain that Pewter was known for giving the place a rugged charm.
Daisy glanced at Rex and smiled. "Alright, here's the plan. First, we'll visit the museum for the fossils, then we'll grab some lunch, and after that, we'll head to Diglett Cave."
Rex nodded. "Sounds good."
From his shoulder, Zorua let out a soft growl and began nibbling on Rex's hand, its small, sharp teeth pressing lightly into his skin. Rex chuckled and patted Zorua's head.
"Alright, alright. I get it. You're hungry too, huh?"
"Zoru!" Zorua barked, its tail flicking in irritation.
"Just hang tight for a few minutes, buddy. We'll get some food soon."
Daisy parked the jeep and stepped out, adjusting her jacket. Rex followed, Zorua perched comfortably on his shoulder. The small dark-type Pokémon balanced itself with ease, its red-tipped ears twitching as it surveyed the bustling streets.
As they walked toward the museum, Daisy pulled out a small notebook and began flipping through it.
"Gramps gave me some notes about the prehistoric Pokémon that used to live in Kanto," she said, holding the book open so Rex could see.
Rex peered over her shoulder. The notes were neatly written in Professor Oak's clean handwriting, complete with small sketches of the Pokémon.
"There were five main prehistoric Pokémon in Kanto before they went extinct," Daisy explained. "Kabuto, Kabutops, Omanyte, Omastar, and Aerodactyl."
Rex's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "I wonder if the Poketrix has an ancient Pokémon transformation…"
Daisy chuckled. "Maybe. Gramps did say that once you get the hang of the watch, it'll slowly unlock more transformations. Who knows? Maybe you'll end up turning into an Aerodactyl one day."
Rex smirked. "That'd be pretty cool."
Soon, they arrived at the entrance of the Pewter City Museum — a large, stone building with massive fossil sculptures lining the path toward the entrance. Daisy walked up to the counter, pulling out a paper with both the League's official stamp and Professor Oak's signature.
The attendant, a middle-aged man with glasses perched on the edge of his nose, glanced at the paper and hummed thoughtfully as he scanned it. After a moment, he nodded and disappeared behind the counter, returning with a sealed parcel wrapped in brown paper. He handed it to Rex.
"Everything looks in order. Here's what you came for."
"Thanks," Rex said, tucking the parcel under his arm.
Daisy pulled out some money from her wallet and bought two tickets for entry into the museum.
"Since we're here, why don't we look around a bit before lunch?" she suggested, handing Rex one of the tickets.
"Sure," Rex replied, though he could feel Zorua shifting impatiently on his shoulder. The little fox let out a disgruntled huff, clearly unhappy about the delay in food.
"Patience," Rex said, scratching behind Zorua's ear.
"Zoru…" Zorua grumbled, but relaxed slightly under Rex's touch.
Daisy smiled. "Alright, let's see some fossils."
Rex followed her inside, wondering if maybe — just maybe — the Poketrix held the secret to an ancient transformation waiting to be unlocked.
While Rex, Zorua, and Daisy were checking out the museum, the scene shifted to one of the older buildings in Pewter City. The building was run-down, with cracks running along its weathered walls and a faded board out front announcing its scheduled demolition. Dust and debris littered the floor inside, but hidden within the shadows stood three figures — two humans and a Pokémon.
The two humans were dressed in white uniforms adorned with a bold red "R" on the front — unmistakable symbols of Team Rocket. The dim light from a flickering bulb above cast eerie shadows across their smug faces.
A tall man with slicked-back blue hair crossed his arms. "Meowth, the machine's circuits are fixed, right?"
Standing nearby was a Meowth — but not just any Meowth. This one stood upright and spoke in perfect human language.
"All systems are checked and ready to go! The mechanisms are runnin' at 100% efficiency!" Meowth said, rubbing its paws together with a wide grin.
A pink-haired woman with long, flowing hair tossed her head back and let out a haughty laugh. "Excellent! Let's see how that little twerp plans to stop us from stealing his precious Pikachu this time!"
The three of them erupted into laughter, the sound echoing through the hollow walls of the building. In the background, looming ominously behind them, was a massive robot — its metallic frame glinting in the dim light. A large red "R" was painted across its chest, marking it unmistakably as a weapon of Team Rocket.
"Prepare for trouble…" Jessie purred, a dangerous glint in her eyes.
"And make it double!" James added with a sinister smile.
Meowth's sharp grin widened as it raised a paw toward the robot. "This time, we can't lose!"
Their laughter filled the room as the robot's eyes flickered to life, glowing ominous red.