Pokémon Indigo League
Episode 25: The House of the Dig Master
Over the Pokémon centre's PA system came the voice of Nurse Joy.
"Ash, Misty and Brock, your Pokémon are fully healed and ready to go."
The trio approached the front desk and retrieved their pokéballs with polite thanks.
"Oh, and by the way Ash," continued Nurse Joy. "There was someone in here a few days ago looking for you. His name is AJ He thought that you would be coming through here and wanted to battle you."
"Really, AJ wants to battle?" asked Ash excitedly, remembering the trainer they had met while taking part in the Pewter City Battle Club Tournament. "Where can I find him?"
"He lives with his parents on the outskirts of Cerulean City. You can't miss it as there are always a lot of holes in their garden."
"Why?" asked Misty.
"AJ's father is known as The Dig Master. He specialises in the technique Dig and teaches it to all of his Pokémon."
"We better get over there," said Ash. "It's been a while since I had a good battle."
They found the house exactly as Nurse Joy said it would be. The house itself was actually a log cabin with all its rooms on a ground floor. The grass around the house was pockmarked with many holes of varying sizes, shapes and depths.
As they approached the house they noticed two Pokémon digging separate holes. One was a Geodude and the other was…
Sandslash, the Mouse Pokémon. It is the evolved form of Sandshrew. It uses its sharp claws to attack opponents and to dig tunnels. If these claws are broken they can grow back within a day. When threatened, it will curl itself up into a ball, pushing out the sharp quills on its back, making it impossible for a predator to bite it. It will then roll at the opponent to drive it away.
"Looks like AJ's Sandshrew must have evolved," observed Brock as Ash pocketed his Pokédex.
"Not yet," said a voice behind them. "That Sandslash is my dad's."
They turned around and saw that AJ had approached them, his trusty Sandshrew at his side.
"So I take it Nurse Joy gave you my message?"
"She sure did," replied Ash. "And I'm ready to battle if you are."
"You bet I am," said AJ "It's been too long since I had a decent opponent. I figured that you would be coming this way sometime soon, and since we such a good battle back in Pewter City I couldn't think of anyone better to issue a challenge to."
"Three-on-three okay with you?" asked Ash, taking out his first pokéball.
"Fine with me," said AJ as he took out a pokéball of his own and throwing it. "Let's go, Rattata!"
The pokéball snapped open and a small purple mouse appeared, bearing its long front fangs.
"A Rattata, huh?" said Ash, with a tone of surprise evident in his voice. In truth he had been expecting something a little bit stronger from AJ
"Yeah, I only just caught it a few days ago," explained the other trainer. "I'm trying to toughen it up a little. I figured it couldn't hurt to open up the battle with it."
"Well, if that's the case I'll use my most recent capture too," said Ash, quickly switching the pokéball in his hand for another and throwing it "Krabby, I choose you!"
The pokéball snapped open and the red body of Krabby appeared on the impromptu battlefield, snapping his pincers and producing bubbles from its mouth.
"A Krabby, huh? Alright then. Rattata, start things off with a Quick Attack!"
With a cry, Rattata began sprinting forwards towards Krabby, intending to land a high speed tackle.
"Oh no you don't," said Ash. "Krabby, use Harden!"
Krabby rested itself against the ground and drew in its legs and pincers. A glint appeared over the solid shell that covered his body as the shell hardened.
Rattata charged into Krabby at full speed, but the water type took hardly any damage.
"Now Bubble," commanded Ash.
Krabby stood to his legs, opened his pincers away from his face and spat a stream of bubbles at Rattata, who took the hit full force and staggered back from the blow.
"Now use Stomp," ordered Ash.
Krabby jumped into the air and landed feet first on top of Rattata, the little normal type squealing from the impact. After a moment the squealing stopped and Krabby crawled off of Rattata.
Brock, acting as referee for the battle declared "Rattata is unable to continue battling."
"Ha ha!" cheered Ash. "Nice job Krabby."
Krabby just bubbled at the mouth.
AJ recalled Rattata to it pokéball and commented "Guess it was too soon to send you out. Never mind. You'll only improve."
He tucked Rattata's pokéball back into his pocket and took out another before throwing it. "Let's go, Arbok."
The pokéball snapped open and a large purple snake with a large hood on its neck and a set of intimidating fangs appeared opposite Krabby.
Ash immediately took out his Pokédex.
Arbok, the Cobra Pokémon. It is the evolved form of Ekans. The ferocious warning markings on its hood differ from area to area. So far studies have confirmed six different patterns. Once it finds prey it coils its body around them and uses its fangs to poison them.
"Ash, you're going to have to be very careful around this one," said Misty.
"I know, I know," replied Ash as he pocketed his Pokédex. "Krabby, start things off with a Bubble attack."
As before Krabby unleashed a stream of bubbles from its mouth.
"Not a chance," said AJ "Arbok, use Dig!"
With an intimidating hiss Arbok reared up and then threw itself at a patch of loose soil, burrowing underground before Krabby's attack had a chance to hit.
Suddenly the ground beneath Krabby broke apart and Arbok reared up, sending soil, grass and Krabby flying.
Krabby hit the ground and Arbok slithered around in a circle, closing Krabby in.
"Grab its tail in a Vicegrip!" shouted Ash.
Krabby launched itself at Arbok, one pincer extended, and latched onto Arbok's tail.
"Just what I wanted," commented AJ "Now Arbok! Use Body Slam!"
The huge serpentine Pokémon swung its powerful tail through the air and crushed Krabby against the ground.
"Krabby is unable to continue battling," declared Brock.
"Nice job Krabby," said Ash as he recalled his Pokémon to its pokéball. He took out another. "Well, it's its brute strength you're going for then I'll go for this one. Nidorino, I choose you!"
"Ah, so you're little Nidoran evolved," said AJ as Nidorino appeared on the battlefield. "I remember you using him in the first round of the Pewter Battle Club Tournament."
"He did well then and has only gotten stronger since," said Ash. "Nidorino, Horn Attack."
"Arbok, Take Down!"
Both Pokémon charged at each other and collided hard in mid-air before crashing to ground.
"Double Kick!" shouted Ash.
"Dodge then use Wrap!"
Nidorino jumped at Arbok, aiming to kick hard. One sway of its upper body was enough for Arbok to get out of the way. Nidorino landed successfully, only for Arbok's tail to coil around him.
"Bide!" yelled Ash and Nidorino was wrapped up by Arbok's serpentine body.
As Arbok began to squeeze Nidorino in a tight grip, an orange glow enveloped Nidorino's body for a brief moment before fading.
"Come on Arbok, take it out!" shouted AJ, prompting his Pokémon to squeeze harder.
"Almost there…" muttered Ash. Nidorino snorted and the orange glow flared once more.
"Double the damage!" shouted Ash.
Nidorino burst out from Arbok's grip and swung around to hit Arbok with everything he had, knocking the serpentine Pokémon across the battlefield.
"Come on, Arbok! Get up!"
Arbok's eyes snapped open and the Cobra Pokémon got up off the ground, but Ash and Nidorino were already moving.
"Horn Attack!"
Arbok turned just in time for Nidorino to slam into it at full force.
The large snake fell over backwards and Nidorino snorted as Brock called it.
"Arbok is unable to continue battling."
"Nice going, Nidorino," said Ash as Nidorino pawed at the ground and roared, eager for more.
"That was a nice strategy, Ash," said AJ as he recalled Arbok to its pokéball. "However, you should realise that Bide is a dangerous attack. Taking so much damage before dealing anything back is very risky, especially when your opponent has another Pokémon left. Sandshrew, you're up."
From its spot on the side lines, Sandshrew bounded forward.
"I've got faith in Nidorino." said Ash. "He won't go down easy. Horn Attack!"
Nidorino gave a roar and charged forward.
"Dig!" ordered AJ
Clawed arms working fast, Sandshrew burrowed into the ground, disappearing before Nidorino could land a hit. Seconds later it burst out of the ground beneath Nidorino and sent the larger Pokémon tumbling.
"Nidorino is unable to continue battling," declared Brock.
"No way!" exclaimed Ash in shock at his Pokémon's defeat.
"I told you that Bide is a risky move," retorted AJ "Obviously you underestimated just how much damage Arbok did to Nidorino. Add in that poison types are weak to ground type attacks…"
"Yeah, I get it," grumbled Ash as he recalled Nidorino to its pokéball. "Thanks Nidorino, you fought well."
He took another ball and sent it into battle. "Mankey, I choose you!"
In a flash of light the fighting type appeared on the battlefield.
Then there was another flash of light, this one forming around Sandshrew.
Even through the brightness of the light it was easy to see Sandshrew's body changing shape, the claws on its front limbs getting longer, the armour plates on its back becoming long spines.
"Well, well," said AJ "Looks like I got me a Sandslash. You still up for this battle, Ash?"
"I'm not giving up just because your Pokémon evolved." retorted Ash, "Mankey, use Karate Chop."
Mankey leapt at Sandslash, left arm drawn back to deliver a blow…
"Sandslash, let's see a Slash attack!"
Sandslash drew its arm back, claws raised. Both Pokémon struck at the same time, both taking damage. Mankey obviously came off worse.
"Try a Low Kick!" ordered Ash.
Mankey swung around and kicked at Sandslash's leg, causing the larger Pokémon to face-plant against the ground.
"Now Karate Chop again," said Ash.
Mankey leapt at Sandslash's fallen form, but then…
"Fury Swipes!"
Sandslash was on its feet, claws up.
Mankey swung and missed.
Sandslash swiped once, twice, three times, four times, five times.
Mankey hit the ground.
"Mankey is unable to continue battling," declared Brock. "As Ash has used all three of his Pokémon, AJ and his team are the winners."
Sighing in defeat, Ash recalled Mankey to his pokéball. "Thanks Mankey, you fought well."
"That was a great battle Ash," said AJ as he came forward, extending his hand. "Best I've had in a long time."
"Thanks," replied Ash. "I haven't fought this hard since I battled for the Cascade Badge."
"You're collecting badges?" asked AJ.
"Yeah. I already have two of them. Look." Ash opened his jacket to show AJ the two gym badges that he had collected.
"So that's the boulder badge," commented AJ, pointing to the grey, hexagon-shaped badge. "And that's the cascade badge." he added, pointing to the blue one shaped like a water droplet.
"Sure are," said Ash. "It was hard work getting both of them, believe me."
"I'm surprised that you aren't collecting badges, AJ," commented Misty.
"Yeah, I've been meaning to," said AJ. "But I never feel like I'm good enough to start."
"Well maybe you should start now," said a voice behind them.
They turned to find a man standing there in a white shirt and blue dungarees. He had a pleasant smile on his face and didn't seem to mind the fact that his clothes were covered in dirt.
"Oh, hey dad," said AJ. "How long have you been home?"
"I arrived just as you sent out your Rattata but I didn't want to put you off. So, who are your friends?"
"Oh, right. Dad, these are Ash, Misty and Brock. Guys, this is my father, Arnold. You might of heard of him by his nickname; The Dig Master."
"Yeah, Nurse Joy mentioned that name," said Misty. "If it's not too rude to ask, where did such a nickname come from?"
"A long career of utilising Pokémon that know the Dig technique," replied Arnold. "You see, I'm in the building trade and Pokémon are as useful there as they are for trainers. While some builders use fighting types like Machop and Machoke to carry timber and steel girders and others utilise electric types like Magnemite and Magneton to power their tools, I use Pokémon like Geodude and Sandslash to carry out excavation work."
"I get it," said Brock. "So you and your Pokémon excavate the foundations for buildings."
"That's a big part of our work," said Arnold with a nod. "We also do a fair bit of landscaping work, constructing ponds and rock gardens, that sort of thing. And of course we do dig the odd grave or two…"
"G-graves?" asked Misty with a stutter.
"Oh yes. It's not the most cheerful thing to do, but when called upon my Pokémon and I make sure that we do the best job possible."
"I notice that AJ makes good use of this move as well," observed Ash.
Arnold chuckled and replied "Dig is an excellent technique to utilise in battle, my boy. Having your Pokémon burrow its way underground to avoid the attacks aimed at it before coming up to strike your opponent from below… oh yes, very useful. We made sure that AJ's Arbok and Sandslash could both use the move perfectly, and I daresay that once Rattata evolves into a Raticate we'll make sure it learns the technique as well."
"Do you think you could teach my Mankey how to use Dig?" asked Ash.
"Of course, of course," said Arnold. "Come right this way. After your battle I daresay that your Mankey will appreciate a reviving potion before we try and teach him a new battle technique."
Arnold led them all into the log cabin house.
Once Mankey was feeling better they were all back out in the garden. AJ and his Sandslash were standing on the left, Arnold and his Sandslash on the right and Ash and his Mankey were standing between them.
"For this first step, Mankey will just need to observe," said Arnold. "AJ, after three I think?"
AJ nodded and, after a three count, they both commanded "Sandslash, use Dig!"
In response both Pokémon threw themselves at the ground and began frantically scraping away at the soil.
"Observe their arms," said Arnold. "See how they move them one at a time instead of both together?"
"I see it," said Ash while Mankey nodded.
"This is the most efficient motion. Swinging the right arm forward as the left one pulls the soil back helps provide momentum to the backwards movement, and it's the same when the right arm pulls back and the left one swings forward. It's a similar concept to the Fury Swipes attack. Does Mankey know Fury Swipes?"
Ash nodded, not taking his eyes off of the two digging Pokémon. Already both Sandslash had dug substantial holes and their spiny backs were disappearing from sight.
"I think that will do for now you two," said Arnold, prompting both Pokémon to stop digging and come back to the surface.
"Now then, Ash, Mankey, it's your turn. I have chosen this area as the soil is more sand-based, which means it should be relatively easy to shift about. As Mankey perfects the technique, we can move on to clay soils and then eventually rock."
Ash nodded in understanding and called out "Alright Mankey, use Dig!"
With as much vigour as the pair of Sandslash, Mankey dove at the ground and began swiping away, first with its right arm and then with the left. Arnold was right, the motions involved were a lot like how Mankey utilised Fury Swipes.
The sandy soil proved to be easy for Mankey to manipulate and pretty soon he had dug a hole similar to the two already produced by the pair of Sandslash. Unlike the two ground types, Mankey was allowed to disappear from sight until Arnold had Ash call for Mankey to come up.
This part was not as easily done. There was no exploding out of the ground as AJ's Arbok and Sandslash had done during their battle. In fact, the amount of time it took Mankey to break through the soil would allow any opponent amble opportunity to get out of harm's way.
"Yes, the resurfacing is always the trickier part," said Arnold. "Try again."
Ash ordered Mankey to try again and quickly the fighting type buried its way underground. When Ash called for him to surface, Mankey managed it a little quicker than before, but not by much.
In total, Mankey practiced ten times in the sandy soil, digging down again and again and on the sixth attempt he broke through like a proper battler. Attempts seven, eight, nine and ten were to make sure that Mankey learned the lesson thoroughly.
After that, AJ suggested that they take a break and grab some lunch. Everyone agreed and Brock quickly took over the kitchen inside the log cabin, making up some sandwiches for everyone.
As they ate, talk quickly turned to the possibility of AJ taking on the gyms.
"I honestly do not see what you are waiting for son," said Arnold. "You have three very strong Pokémon in Sandslash, Arbok and Gloom, and Rattata is well on the way to becoming a forceful ally."
AJ shrugged his shoulders and said "I don't know. I want to take the challenge but I never felt like I was ready."
"After seeing you battle at the Pewter Battle Club and fighting you today, I'd say you're ready," said Ash.
"He's right AJ." said Misty. "We battled at the Pewter Battle Club, remember? That was a tough fight."
"I won because my Gloom had a type advantage over your Staryu," pointed out AJ.
"True, but part of becoming a great trainer is realising that type advantage doesn't necessarily mean that you will get a win," said Brock. "A novice will take a fire type Pokémon and teach it Flamethrower, Fire Spin, Fire Blast and Ember. A great trainer will take a fire type Pokémon and teach it a variety of moves in order to overcome its weaknesses. A Charizard is weak to a Golem. Teaching that Charizard to use Earthquake evens the battlefield."
"Yeah," said Misty. "One day I would ideally like to teach my Staryu Ice Beam to cover its grass type weakness, but until then I use moves like Tackle and Swift to keep the upper hand against trainers who are expecting a Water Gun. Sometimes it works and sometimes, like when I battled you and your Gloom, it doesn't."
"Exactly," said Arnold. "Take Ash. His Mankey certainly isn't weak to fire, electric or poison types, but none of a Mankey's normal moves are overly effective on those types either. By teaching his Mankey Dig he alters that and one day it will turn a battle to his advantage. And it's the same thing with your Arbok."
"So you're saying that it's not all about type advantages?" asked AJ.
"Type advantages are a big part of it," said Brock. "What we're saying is that a good trainer acknowledges where their Pokémon are weak and come up with strategies to counter that weakness. That was Misty's strategy when going up against your Gloom – you went in there expecting her Staryu to be firing Water Gun after Water Gun. Her use of Tackle and Swift caught you off guard. But you were able to recover and turn the tide back."
"And it's one of the most important lessons to learn," said Ash. "And besides, there is another reason why you need to start collecting gym badges."
"Oh yeah? And what reason is that?"
"So I can beat you when we get to the Pokémon League."
AJ laughed at that and nodded "OK, you win. I'll start challenging the gyms, though I heard the one in Cerulean City is currently shut down…"
"It certainly is," said Ash. "Hey Misty, want to explain why."
"Not really," replied Misty turning away with a blush on her cheeks, getting chuckles from Ash, Brock and Pikachu.
"Guess I'll have to start in Pewter City then," said AJ, not getting what was so funny. "Hey Brock, weren't you in charge of that Gym?"
"I was but I'm taking a break." replied Brock. "My father is in charge now. He won't go easy on you."
"Good," said AJ. "I would expect nothing less from a Gym Leader."
After lunch they all went back outside where Mankey began to practice digging in a different kind of soil. Unlike sand, clay held together and as such was much harder to get through. This time it took five attempts before Mankey could even get a decent way underground without tiring and a further twelve attempts before he could break through the surface again with anywhere near the same amount of force as he had perfected in the sandy soil.
"That'll do for now," said Arnold. "Ash you'll have to keep practising on your own. For now I think we need to move onto rocks."
Ash and Mankey agreed and followed Arnold and AJ to the opposite side of the house where the grassy covered soil gave way to rock. Both Sandslash demonstrated the digging techniques again.
"Did you see the force they put into the first strike?" asked Arnold. "For the attack to work the first hit must weaken as much of the rock structure as possible."
"For Sandslash the amount of power behind the first hit is equal to its Slash attack," put in AJ. "For your Mankey it's probably best to rely on a strike like Karate Chop."
Even with that advice, it still took seven attempts for Mankey to even put a dent in the surface of the rock. In the end Ash and Mankey worked well into the night, even after everyone else, including Pikachu, had called it quits and retreated into the cabin to get some sleep.
As the first rays of the sun came up over the horizon, Misty stepped out of the front door and looked around. She didn't see Ash or Mankey anywhere.
She stepped forward, looking out for any holes that were hard to see in the dim light. Eventually she found both trainer and Pokémon in a dug out area that resembled a sand bunker on a golf course. Both were fast asleep.
Shaking her head, she nudged them both awake and asked "Why didn't you come inside?"
Ash shrugged and replied "We decided to take a break and lay down to look up at the stars. We must have fallen asleep."
"Boys…" muttered Misty with a roll of her eyes as Ash got to his feet.
"Well, did you have any luck?" she asked.
"We got the technique figured out, didn't we Mankey?" asked Ash, prompting the fighting type to nod in agreement. Ash turned back to Misty "We just need to keep practicing as we go to get the speed needed."
After a decent breakfast, Mankey treated them all to his new digging skills. He still wasn't as fast through rock as a Sandslash, but he was much better than before.
"Excellent," said Arnold. "Well, Ash, that's about all I can do for you. Perfecting the technique will be down to you and your Pokémon."
"I know," replied Ash. "Thanks for taking the time to teach us."
"My pleasure. Now you had better get going. The day is still young you know. If you hurry I expect you'll get to the end of Route Five before sundown.
Ash, Misty and Brock thanked him again and began gathering their things.
"I'm gonna head out too, Dad," said AJ, slinging a travel bag over his shoulders. "I wanna get to the base of Mount Moon before sundown."
Arnold smiled and grasped his son by the shoulders. "Take care of yourself my boy. I know you'll make me proud."
Ash, Misty, Brock, Pikachu and AJ make their way from the house together but soon came to the point where they had to part ways.
"Well, guess this is where I leave you," said AJ. "Thanks again for the battle Ash. I look forward to a rematch."
"Same here," replied Ash. The pair shook hands and parted ways.
Mankey now had a new battle technique at his disposal and Ash had a new rival to keep him on his toes. All in all, a trip to The House of the Dig Master had been well worth it.
So apparently I haven't updated this story since early October. All I can say is that I am sorry and wonder where the hell the last almost six months went…