In the frozen gym of Mahogany Town, Lance faces off against the gymleader known as Pryce. The old man pulls up a pokeball containing his lead pokemon. The referee, a man wearing a blue shirt and black pants, holds a pair of flags, a green one for Lance and a red one for Pryce.
Referee: The battle between the challenger, Lance of Blackthorn City, and the gymleader, Pryce, will now begin. Each trainer is allowed two pokemon with no substitutions. The first to defeat the opposong pokemon will be the winner. Let the battle begin!
Pryce throws the ball in his hand, releasing a white sea lion with a horn on its head.
Pryce: Dewgong, let's end this quickly!
Lance, however, looks a little worried. The challenge is to use two pokemon? He only has one. If his Dragonair can't beat two pokemon in a row, he'll have to go home. No, he can't lose. His grandfather's honor is at stake. He throws his pokeball, ready to fight.
Lance: Go, Dragonair!
The gymleader is surprised by the trainer's choice.
Pryce: You're using a dragon-type pokemon against an ice-type pokemon? It's only the first move and you're already at a disadvantage.
Lance: Dragonair is all I need.
Pryce: We'll see. Dewgong, Take Down attack!
The sea lion quickly skates across the icy floor and heads toward the blue dragon. Dragonair is caught off guard by Dewgong's speed. It's fast! Dewgong's attack connects with Dragonair, sending it flying across the gym.
Pryce: Do you really expect to beat me like that? You couldn't even dodge that simple attack.
Lance is amazed by Pryce's power. He has never faced such a strong opponent. But he can't give up yet. It's time to fight back. He orders his dragon to use its Twister attack. Dragonair summons a tornado inside the gym that pulls Dewgong into it.
Pryce: What do you expect to do with this?
Lance: I'm using this to stop your Dewgong's movements. Plus, it gives me an opportunity to attack it. Dragonair, Slam!
The blue dragon uses its tail and slams Dewgong into the ground with crushing force. Part of the ice becomes cracked as a result. Pryce is impressed by Lance's strategy.
Pryce: You may not be that bad after all.
Dewgong gets up again and uses Aurora Beam, firing a rainbow colored wave. Dragonair has trouble moving along the ice and is hit by Dewgong's assault.
Pryce: But you're still not good enough. I have another advantage over you in this gym. My pokemon can easily move on icy surfaces.
Lance knows that he's at a serious disadvantage. Firstly, he only has one pokemon where as Pryce has two. Second, his Dragonair is weak against ice-types, which is what the Mahogany gymleader specializes in. And lastly, Dragonair isn't as agile on ice as Pryce's pokemon. But he still has something in his favor. He calls out to his dragon.
Lance: Dragonair, take flight!
Pryce's eyes open wide in disbelief. Dragonair can fly? It's true. The blue dragon slowly rises into the air and gives Dewgong an intense look. It's using Leer, cutting the sea lion's defense. The old man knows that he has to defeat Dragonair quickly before it turns the battle around.
Pryce: Dewgong, Aurora Beam again!
Lance: Agility, Dragonair!
Lance's pokemon sharply raises its speed and easily evades the incoming Aurora Beam.
Lance: Now hit it with Dragon Rush!
Dragonair shoots through the air and rams into Dewgong with incredible power. With its defense lowered by the Leer attack, the white sea lion can't stand up to the Dragon Rush. It faints soon after. The referee raises the green flag.
Referee: Dewgong is unable to battle! The winner is Dragonair!
Pryce: Impressive, kid. Very few trainers have ever gotten past my first pokemon. But then again, I wasn't expecting Dragonair to fly. Let's just see how you fare against my strongest pokemon.
The gymleader calls Dewgong back into its ball and tosses out another one. It's Swinub. Lance is confused by Pryce's choice. That's his strongest pokemon? It hasn't even evolved yet.
Pryce: I sense that you're confused. Yes, this is my strongest pokemon, so don't take it lightly.
Lance decides not to let his guard down. He has to ready for anything.
Lance: Dragonair, paralyze it with Thunder Wave!
The young trainer figures that if his opponent is paralyzed, he might be able to win. The Thunder Wave hits Swinub, but it has no effect.
Lance: What happened?
Pryce: Swinub is also a ground-type along with being an ice-type. Electric attacks have no effect.
Lance is stunned by the discovery. This will make the battle even tougher now. Pryce is also deep in thought. Most of Swinub's powerful attacks are all ground-type attacks, but they won't any effect against a flying foe. But Swinub's ice attacks should be more than enough to take out a dragon pokemon.
Pryce: Swinub, Icy Wind!
The small pokemon blows a cold wind throughout the gym.
Lance: Dragonair, Twister!
Dragonair summons another tornado that blows away the Icy Wind. Pryce is amazed by Lance's quick-thinking. Maybe he is a worthy trainer after all.
Pryce: I'll admit that you're a strong trainer, kid, but this is where it ends. Swinub, use Blizzard!
His pokemon drastically drops the temperature around it and creates a strong blizzard. The powerful ice attack hits Dragonair.
Lance: Dragonair!
Lance looks in horror as his only pokemon is hit by such a strong attack. It suddenly collapses. The young trainer runs up to his dragon and hugs it.
Lance: Dragonair, please get up!
Pryce looks at Lance with cold eyes.
Pryce: Calm down, you still have one more pokemon to use.
Lance looks up at Pryce. Tears are building up in his eyes. That's when Pryce realizes that Lance only has one pokemon. He exhales deeply.
Pryce: Referee, end this match already. The challenger is out of pokemon.
Referee: Very well. Dragonair is unable to battle. The winner is Swinub...
Lance: No! Not yet!
Pryce: Give it up, kid. You're Dragonair is done for.
Lance: No...
Somewhere else, at the bottom of the deepest ocean, a large pokemon awakens. It's eyes light up in the darkness.
As Lance holds onto his pokemon, his eyes go from black to blue. Pryce sees this and is left shocked. What happened to Lance's eyes? They look familiar somehow. Lance suddenly exudes a gentle aura that rejuvenates Dragonair. What is he doing?
Lance: I won't lose to you. I just won't.
Dragonair flies into the air again. It is completely healed.
Pryce: What did that kid do?
Lance: Dragonair, Hyper Beam!
Dragonair launches a powerful beam that leaves a path of destruction in its Wake. Swinub is knocked out instantly. Pryce and the referee are left speechless for a while.
Referee: Uh...Swinub is unable to battle. The winner is Dragonair. The victory goes to the challenger, Lance of Blackthorn City!
Pryce calls back his pokemon and looks at Lance. The young trainer is happily hugging his Dragonair, unaware of what he did. But what exactly did he do? And what is that creature in the bottom of the sea? Is it somehow connected to Lance? The truth will soon be revealed.
