Chapter 25: The Torrential Masked Master
Managing to break through the sludge that was Route 212, Rose and I arrived at a peaceful little field surrounding a large mansion. On approach, we discovered a sign that read Visitors Welcome. Deciding that was enough to let ourselves in, we investigated the mansion itself. What I had expected to be a grand home with many guests and trainers to battle. What I got was a rather large, empty house that was entirely dedicated to one man, the owner. Meeting the man himself, a short round gentleman in a red coat, we were forced to sit through a long lecture about how wonderful he was and how his lovely house was open to the public in order to spread his greatness to the world.
After we escaped from his rambling, Rose and I left through the nearest exit, finding ourselves in a nice garden. Trees and bushes flanked small pathways, but other than that there was absolutely no sign of a human presence. You could have thought you were in some weird forest.
"Hmph. Guess that guy isn't all bad if he can have a garden like this." Rose said, walking among the flowers. I nodded in agreement, admiring the plants around me. A small noise caught my attention and I peered through some bushes. A small yellow mouse was the source of the noise, a little Pichu. It's large ears were tipped black, as was its entire tail. It looked really young, like she was recently hatched. She peered up at me with large eyes, not scared, but curious.
"Hey there little one." I whispered, not wanting to scare her off. "You seem pretty lonely here. Why don't you come with me." I held a pokeball out, cautiously.
"Uh, you sure that's a good idea? You know what might happen to her." Rose warned, having come over to see what I was doing.
"I know that." I muttered. "But she's just so adorable, I can't leave her here." The Pichu sniffed the pokeball carefully before squeaking and tapping the button lightly with a paw. The red light shot out and engulfed her, capturing the electric mouse.
Rose rolled her eyes. "Well it's not like you're gonna use another electric-type with Mufasa on the team, so I guess it's okay."
By the time night had rolled around, everyone had been trained up and ready to face the Pastoria gym. We were back at the PokeCenter, getting ready to go to sleep, everyone talking amongst themselves.
"Honestly, it's starting to piss me off." Cerberus was saying loudly to anyone who'd listen. "He captures me, says he's gonna make me a big tough pokemon, then refuses to use me at the next two gyms! It's insulting!"
Sora shook her head, sighing. "Cerb, we've been over this. Maylene was a fighting-type trainer and Wake is a water-type expert. What do both of these types have in common? You're weak against them!"
Cerberus huffed, turning away. "Just because I'm weak to something doesn't mean I'm gonna lose." he sniffed.
"You should keep that in mind next time you feel like insulting me." Rose said. Cerberus growled, but let the comment slide.
I was sitting on the floor, my back to the bed while I scratched Mufasa behind the ears. The lion was typically against any kind of contact, but he didn't object when I sat down next to him. "I caught a Pichu today." I told him. He just nodded, not feeling the need to say anything. I decided to continue. "Rose was kinda against it. She didn't want me to endanger a young pokemon like that with the challenge. It's not like I plan on using her, I've already got a strong electric-type."
Mufasa glanced up at me with one golden eye. "Isn't that what you said when you caught Rose?" he asked.
I paused in my scratching for a moment before resuming. "I know, I know. It's just, I want to keep believing that no one is gonna die, that no one is gonna need to be replaced. But I'm not an idiot. I know I can't protect everyone forever. I guess what I'm saying is, I'm preparing for the worst." I looked down at him. "If it comes down to it and you lose, I now have someone who can take your spot on the team. Not replace you exactly, just fill the holes, restore the balance."
Mufasa nodded solemnly. "A smart person plans for every outcome. A wise person, does so while hoping for the best." I chuckled and gave him a quick scratch on the chin.
The next day I was excited to get to the Marsh before heading to the gym. A certain blonde had other plans for my day.
"Nick! Let's battle! I need to figure out if I'm strong enough to challenge Wake!" Barry declared in the middle of town, drawing a few eyes our way.
I sighed. "Okay Barry, fine. Let's get this over with so I still have time to go to the Marsh." I sent out Lola while Barry called his Staravia, William.
"Okay Will, use Double Team!" Barry shouted. The bird quickly sped around, making numerous clones of itself.
"I feel like we've seen this before, have we seen this before?" I asked sarcastically. Lola giggled and jumped up, not even waiting for my order. Her fist glowed white as she used Return, knocking the large gray bird to the ground in one go.
"Dammit! I thought you got lucky last time, wouldn't do it again." Barry groaned. "Whatever, I'll just use George." He sent out his Monferno.
"Lola, come back. Come on out Sora." I said, releasing the Staraptor and recalling the bunny. Barry eyed Sora enviously. "Man, you're Staravia evolved? You're so lucky, Will won't evolve yet for some reason."
"Look, can we get this over with? Sora, Aerial Ace." I ordered. She charged ahead, wings glowing as she slammed into George, one-shotting the starter pokemon.
"Erik!" Barry cried, now starting to get mad. The Buizel struck its signature pose, spinning its tails and puffing up the neck ring. Rose, who I had sent out in place of Sora, was not amused. "Quit making a fool of yourself, people are watching." she snapped. She sent out a Magical Leaf attack that knocked the foolish Buizel down, out cold.
"That's it! Henry! Finish them off!" Barry roared. Henry glared across the field, looking for his opponent. Instead of his daughter, he found a large Houndoom waiting for him.
"Hi. You know, I've been wanting to beat up someone that looks a lot like you for a long time now. So thanks for that." Cerberus said. He opened his maw wide, snapping his jaws shut around Henrys torso. Fire erupted from between his teeth in a critical Fire Fang attack. He let go and Henry fell to the ground, fainted.
"Oh come on!" Barry whined. "How can you beat me so easily? Dammit, I have to train more." Barry stalked off, returning his wounded pokemon.
"Well, that takes care of that." I said. "Come on Cerberus, we've got to get to the PokeCenter and heal up. God only knows what other nutjobs want to battle us."
Cerberus chuckled. "You need your brain checked man. None of us took any damage. We sweeped him."
I gawked and quickly looked at my PokeTech. Sure enough, according to the little device, everyone was at full health. "Huh. Well look at that." I said. "Okay then, on to the Great Mar-"
"Well what do ya know!" A booming voice rang. I turned to see who it was and was grabbing in a headlock, held under the arm of Crasher Wake. "Someone came by the gym, said there was a strong trainer out here battling some blonde kid. I come over to check it out and it's the little whelp from Veilstone! How ya doin' kid?" he asked excitedly.
"Can't...breath..." I wheezed. He laughed heartily, releasing me from his grip. I gasped for air while Cerberus chuckled behind me. I recalled him to his pokeball and glared up at Wake. "Look, Wake, it's nice seeing you again. In fact, I was planning on challenging you later today. But I really want to go to-"
"You want to challenge me? Well why didn't you say so, come on boy!" Wake yelled, grabbing my arm and dragging me away, towards the gym. I watched the Great Marsh fade away in the distance. Well. It's not like it's going anywhere today either I thought.
After finally arriving at the gym, which was a good thing too since my arm was about to give out, Wake made his way inside. "I'll be waiting at the back. I suspect I'll be seeing you soon."
The trainers weren't that much trouble. The most annoying part about Wakes gym was the puzzle. Thankfully, it was the same as it was in the game, a simple maze with three levels that you can access with floating bridges and adjusting the water level. After moving all around the gym, I stood at the back, a large pool with platforms between me and Wake. "About time kid, I was starting to get worried!" Wake taunted. He tossed a pokeball in the air as I did the same.
Armstrong appeared on one of the platforms, the Machoke showing off his powerful muscles. His opponent was unfazed, however, as a powerful Gyarados rose out of the water, roaring defiance at the purple humanoid. It might have been my imagination, but the battle-hungry Armstrong actually seemed to flinch at the roar. This thing has to be pretty strong if it's putting Armstrong on edge I thought.
"Gyarados! Let's get things rolling with a Waterfall!" Wake roared. Gyarados dived under the water, quickly disappearing in the dark depths. Armstrong remained alert, watching the surface for any sign of movement. Suddenly, Gyarados surged out from under Armstrong, destroying most of the platform and knocking the Machoke into the water.
"Amrstrong, quick get out of the water!" I cried. I knew that he was at a major disadvantage against the water-type while in its element. Armstrong quickly swam towards the nearest platform with smooth, powerful strokes.
"Not so fast lad! Gyarados, use Waterfall again!" The Gyarados wasted no time, diving under once again. I prayed that Armstrong would make it to the platform, but the more logical side of me knew it wasn't going to happen. Gyarados sprang up again, this time hitting Armstrong directly from the water. Armstrong flew through the air, falling towards the artificial lake below.
"Amrstrong, use Seismic Toss! Grab its whiskers!" I called. Wake blinked in surprise as the Machoke did exactly as I said. While falling, he twisted in the air to grab hold of Gyarados' long blue whiskers. Pulling the serpent down with him, Armstrong landed on the platform below. He turned without hesitation, hoisting the large creature over his shoulder and tossing him away, throwing Gyarados completely out of the pool. As it crashed into the opposite wall, I noticed Armstrong was weary, breathing heavily. He's not going to last much longer I thought.
Wake's laughter broke through my thoughts. "I have to admit boy, that wasn't one I saw coming. It's not going to be enough to beat me though. Gyarados! He should be weak enough, use Brine!" Wake called. Gyarados reared up and let loose a large stream of water from its mouth, aimed straight at Armstrong. Before the move could hit him, there was a flash of red light and Sora flew through the air, intercepting the attack with her own body.
"Great job Sora!" I called as I returned Armstrong. "Now use Fly, get up out of his range!" I urged. Sora gave me a smirk, probably referencing what I said about not having her use the move in-battle, and rose up in the air, hovering near the ceiling.
Wake's booming laughter echoed throughout the arena. "Boy, if you think just flying up in the air is enough to get away form us, you're in for a shock. Gyarados! Use Waterfall" he barked. The serpent slithered back down into the water. For a few tense seconds, there was no real sound. Then suddenly, Gyarados burst out of the water directly under Sora. He flew into the air, reaching heights I didn't think possible for a pokemon that size. He opened his maw and bit down on the terrified Sora. As I watched, Gyarados twisted in the air, coming back down full force, Sora set up to take most of the impact. I remember yelling something, but my ears weren't working properly. I couldn't hear myself talk, but I could hear Sora. Right before she hit the water she smiled at me. "Take care of the others." she said.
The impact was incredible. Water launched up in the air, raining down on Wake and me. I watched, dumbfounded as Sora's body floated to the surface. Her feathers were mangles, bent and twisted. As I watched, the tell-tale blue glow enveloped her, matching the color of the water. She flew off into the sky, looking no worse than she did this morning, her spirit sailing into the clouds.
The first thing I remember hearing again was Wake laughing. I looked up and saw his Gyarados next to him on the other end of the pool. "Now that's what I'm talking about! What's the matter boy, I thought you were going to be a challenge! Bwahahahaha!" he laughed.
I dropped my bag on the shore and dove into the water, ignoring my already drenched clothes. I swam over to Sora's body and pulled it back to shore, making little progress at first. Then something nudged me and I looked down to see Wakes Gyarados pushing me through the water. At first I didn't want to acknowledge the murderous water-type. Then Cynthia's words from Eterna came back to me. "How do you think your challenge affects other trainers Nick? Don't you think killing another trainers pokemon would upset them?" I guess it was the same for their pokemon too. Sure, Wake was an asshole, who didn't seem to notice or care that Sora was gone, but that doesn't mean Gyarados isn't upset about what happened.
"It's okay. I don't blame you." I said to the serpent as we reached the edge of the pool. He seemed to understand, swimming back to Wakes side as I got out. After handing Sora over to some gym workers, I took my place back at my end. "Okay Wake, you want me to get serious? Fine. It's something I should have done in the first place." I tossed a pokeball, releasing Mufasa.
"Oh dear. That's gonna make things more difficult." Wake muttered, fishing out a Hyper Potion from god only knows where and spraying Gyarados with the medicine. "Don't think we're out of the fight just because you've got an advantage lad." he called.
"I don't think. I know it. Mufasa, Spark." I ordered. Mufasa lunged forward, leaping from platform to platform as electricity spread across his body. Gyarados didn't even try to dodge the attack, perhaps still feeling guilty about Sora. Nonetheless, Mufasa's attack hit home, shocking the large serpent into unconsciousness.
"There's plenty more where that came from! Floatzel!" Wake shouted. The large weasel pokemon stood taller than Mufasa. The yellow ring that had grown around its neck as a Buizel had since moved, now framing his back. The small blue fins on his arms had become long paddles. Other than that, it looked like a grown Buizel, two tails and everything. "Use Bite!" Wake ordered.
Floatzel charged forward, jumping over the gap between platforms and latching itself onto one of Mufasa's legs. Mufasa didn't even flinch, merely taking the hit and staring intently at the orange pokemon. Floatzel seemed pretty creeped out by Mufasa's lack of reaction. "Mufasa, finish it. Spark." I called. The electricity ran over Mufasas fur once again, only this time, it spread to the attached Floatzel. The water-type released Mufasa with a howl of pain before collapsing, fainted.
"Damn electric-types. I know how to handle you." Wake cursed. "Quagsire! Teach this little cat a lesson!" The pokemon appeared, an odd-looking thing. It was a pale blue otter-like pokemon that had no fur, only smooth skin like a dolphin. A purple ridge lined either side of its back, and a large paddle-like tail sat on his rear. Quagsire had a calm, almost dumb look on his face, staring off into the distance.
Regardless of the way it looked, I knew Mufasa wasn't the one to go up against it. Returning him, I chose a much better opponent. "Rose, let's win this. Use Magical Leaf!" I called. Rose emerged from her pokeball, shooting multicolored leaved from her flower-hands. They imbedded themselves in Quagsire's body, though the slow pokemon didn't seem to even notice. It did, feel the effects, falling over onto its side, fainted.
Wake stared for a minute at his fallen pokemon before bursting into laughter. "Bwahahaha! I should have known better than to rely on him! Always a little slow on the upkeep, this one! Very well lad, you've bested me. Here's the Fen badge! And a TM for your troubles." He added, crossing the platforms easily and handing me the badge and disc. "And before you go, I truly am sorry for your loss. I know it didn't seem like it at the time, but I knew going in that this you were a Nuzlocker and that there would be greater risks in the battle." I scowled at him. "Don't give me that look, what was I supposed to do? Hold back, let you win? No, especially not after you insulted me by leading with a fighting-type. In the situation you're in, you need every advantage you can get. Don't hold yourself back when so much is on the line. Understand?" I nodded. "Great! Now go on and get out of here, I'm sure you've got other plans."
I nodded and left, snatching my bag up. Exiting the gym, I turned towards the Great Marsh in the distance. I'm soggy, down a friend, and more determined than ever to win this. Let's got to the Great Marsh! I declared mentally, stepping towards the building.
Which promptly, exploded.