A/N - This chapter, Lucas challenges the Poplar City Gym and the outcome is not one he expected. Hope you enjoy!
Lucas and Summer exited the Pokémon Center and started following the directions to the Poplar City Gym that Nurse Joy had given them. As they walked through the dirt roads, passing a few mud huts, in silence, Lucas thought to himself.
"This Gym is gonna be easy, just you wait, Summer." As he thought this, a smirk crept across his face. They eventually found the Gym building, identified by the symbol that was now familiar to the two. As they entered the building, the environment was much different from the previous Gyms. The ground on which the battlefield lay was made up completely of earth and mud and there were bumps in the battlefield, making it uneven. They looked around and saw that the walls of this Gym were a sandy colour. As Summer made her way to the bleachers, a manly voice came from nowhere, as a referee stepped onto her podium.
"I'm Gaius, the master of Ground types." the voice introduced as a man stepped forward. He had a mop of dirty blond hair, brown eyes and was wearing a black T-shirt with a donkey-like Pokémon emblazoned on it, blue skinny jeans and black sneakers. "You need to be tough if you wanna get past my defenses." Gaius continued. The referee spoke up.
"This will be a three-on-three battle between Gaius, the Gym Leader, and Lucas Young, of Enevca Town. The battle will be over when all three Pokémon on either side are unable to battle. Do you accept these rules?" she asked, after announcing the rules.
"Yes!" Lucas affirmed.
"Now, let's battle!" Gaius yelled as he threw a Poké Ball. The Pokémon that emerged from the device was bipedal. Most of its underside was light yellow with a white underbelly. It also had a narrow muzzle, almond-shaped blue eyes, and a thick tail. Its back was mostly covered in brown, sharp quills formed from its tough, dry hide. It also had two large claws on its paws and feet. Lucas took out his PokéDex.
"Sandslash, the Mouse Pokémon." it stated, an image of the Pokémon on its screen. "Its claws and spikes can both break off and are shed regularly, but grow back quickly. It can curl into a large ball to protect its white underbelly." it continued. "In this position, it can roll to attack or escape and protect itself from heatstroke. Sandslash is also adept at climbing trees, and is prone to ambush its enemies from above." it finished.
"Bunnelby, I choose you!" Lucas called out as he threw his own Poké Ball.
"Bun." it snapped as it emerged from the device, flexing its ears and narrowing its eyes.
"Sandslash, start with Swift!" Gaius commanded. Sandslash then rolled into a ball and spun, shooting yellow stars from its quills at Bunnelby.
"Avoid it with Dig!" Lucas yelled. Bunnelby dug a hole in the ground and jumped into it, the stars passing over it. As Lucas was about to issue another command, the stars turned around and followed Bunnelby into the hole.
"How?!" Lucas exclaimed in shock that his strategy didn't work. At that moment, Bunnelby shot up from under the ground and started plummeting towards the ground.
"Spin and use Take Down!" Lucas commanded, snapping out of his shock. Bunnelby's body then became shrouded in a golden aura and became surrounded by a light bronze energy before it started spinning like a drill, which caused streaks of gold and bronze to trail behind it. It slammed into Sandslash as the ground type stopped spinning, forming a crater in the ground. Sandslash and Bunnelby got out of the crater, Sandslash looking healthy. Blue sparks then appeared around Bunnelby and the Pokémon slumped forward.
"Bunnelby is unable to battle!" the ref called.
"Bunnelby, return." Lucas said with a sigh. "Cyndaquil, fire up!" he yelled as he threw his second Poké Ball.
"Cynda!" the Pokémon cheered.
"Smokescreen, let's go!" Lucas commanded, throwing his right arm to the side. Cyndaquil released a cloud of thick, black smoke across the battlefield, obscuring everyone's vision. "Follow up with Quick Attack!" he called. Cyndaquil shot forward in a burst of speed, white streaks trailing behind it, and went into the cloud.
"Crush Claw!" Gaius countered. Cyndaquil was sent soaring through the air, out of the cloud and crashed into the wall behind Lucas.
"Cyndaquil is unable to battle!" the ref announced.
"Cyndaquil, return." Lucas said, withdrawing his second Pokémon. "You battled hard." he praised. "Snorunt, it's time to chill!" he shouted, throwing his final Poké Ball.
"Sno!" it cheered as it was released.
"Snorunt, let's give it our all." Lucas proposed to the Pokémon.
"Sno." the Pokémon replied, a fierce look on its face.
"Sandslash, use Swift!" Gaius commanded.
"Icy Wind!" Lucas countered. As Sandslash spun and shot out the yellow stars, Snorunt released a blue, sparkling powder across the field, freezing the stars in place. "Now send 'em back!" he followed up. Snorunt took a deep breath and expelled the air which had pieces of frost following the air current, and blew all the stars towards Sandslash.
"Use Crush Claw to destroy them!" Gaius yelled in desperation. Sandslash's claws glowed blue and the Pokémon started destroying the ice stars.
"Ice Shard." Lucas said confidently. Snorunt opened its mouth and formed multiple shards of ice and shot them at the pre-occupied Sandslash. Each one slammed into the Pokémon and the attack finished to reveal a fainted Sandslash.
"Sandslash is unable to battle!" the ref announced.
"Sandslash, return." Gaius said. "Diggersby, you're up next!" he shouted, throwing his second Poké Ball. A large Pokémon was revealed as the blue light dissipated. It resembled a portly rabbit. It had two ears, which were each crowned with a massive, muscular forearm, complete with three-fingered paws. The ears were furry and mostly grey in colouration, with a pink inner pinna, whereas the paws at the ends of the ears were brown. Three spots of brown fur surrounded each of the ear-wrists. The other four limbs growing from its round, grey torso were small in comparison to the ears. The fur of the upper paws was white, while the feet were brown. A sash-like band composed of thicker, woolly fur surrounded its waist, where it tucked its paws in. This sash was sectioned brown on its sides and yellow at its front and back; its short tail was also yellow, protruding from the back section of the sash. Its face was dominated by a large brown muzzle, resembling stubble. Two large front teeth protruded from its wide mouth and three whiskers decorated each cheek. Its eyes were perpetually squinting and it seemed to favour a slightly furrowed brow. Lucas took out his PokéDex again.
"Diggersby, the Digging Pokémon, and the evolved form of Bunnelby." it stated, showing Lucas an image of it. "Diggersby can easily lift a boulder weighing over a tonne with its powerful ears." it continued.
"Snorunt, can you go on?" Lucas asked.
"Sno." it confirmed as it breathed heavily.
"Diggersby, use Mud Shot!" Gaius yelled. Diggersby's mouth opened and started to glow orange. It then fired multiple balls of mud at Snorunt.
"Icy Wind!" Lucas countered. Snorunt opened its mouth and just as it sent out the sparkling blue powder, the balls of mud slammed into it, and it rolled to Lucas' feet.
"Snorunt is unable to battle!" the ref called. "Therefore, the winners of this round and the match are Gaius and Diggersby!" she declared.
"Snorunt, return." Lucas said sadly.
"I'll be ready for a rematch anytime!" Gaius called as Lucas and Summer walked out of the Gym.
"I hate to say 'I told you so', buut…" she said to Lucas.
"I don't understand…" he sighed. "I should have won, I was powerful enough to beat the other three…" he continued.
"Look, there's no point dwelling on the past." Summer interrupted. "With some training, I'm sure you'll get 'em next time." she assured.
"Thanks, Summer." he replied.
"No problem." she said with a smile.
A/N - Yep, Lucas finally had his first loss to a Gym Leader; anyone who read the chapter title probably saw that coming. Guess he should have listened to Summer, right? Next chapter, Lucas and Summer meet someone new while searching for a Pokémon for Lucas' rematch. Who is this new person? Are they friend or foe? And what Pokémon will Lucas catch? Find out next, as the journey continues…
Lucas' Team: Snorunt (Lv. 17) - Avalanche, Leer, Double Team, Frost Breath, +Ice Shard, +Icy Wind
Cyndaquil (Lv. 17) - Tackle, Leer, Smokescreen, Double Kick, +Ember, +Quick Attack
Bunnelby (Lv. 17) - Agility, Take Down, Mud Slap, Quick Attack, +Double Slap, +Dig
Summer's Team: Eevee (Lv. 15) - Tackle, Sand Attack, Shadow Ball, Endure, +Hyper Voice, +Quick Attack
Deerling (Lv. 15) - Tackle, Growl, Headbutt, Double Kick, +Synthesis, +Leech Seed
Sunkern (Lv. 15) - Leech Seed, Growth, Endure, Grassy Terrain, +Grass Whistle, +Mega Drain
Cherubi (Lv. 15) - Morning Sun, Tackle, Growth, Leech Seed, +Rollout, +Razor Leaf