The pokeball opened and from its small confines materialized a truly massive beast. Even sitting down, Snorlax easily dwarfed the tallest human. Ash could literally fall on his knees and thank Arceus, Mew, and any other deities that saw it fit to smile down on him that he'd made sure to bring along one of his strongest battlers. Truth be told, the main reason why he'd brought Snorlax along was because professor Oak was rather... insistent on the matter.
Snorlax in the wild spent an inordinate amount of time foraging for food to sate their massive appetites. But in Oak's ranch, Ash's Snorlax did not have to bother with such trivialities as access to food was plentiful and at arm's reach and so unlike his wild brethren, Snorlax's exercise was near nonexistent. All that time laying idly by had caused Snorlax to pack on the pounds, now considerably more rotund than a normal Snorlax should be, even by their standards. It was because of this that Oak insisted Ash take Snorlax with him, to get the Normal type some exercise and stop the consumption of hundreds of pounds of Pokemon food a day, which had steadily been making a dent in the professor's wallet.
For his part, Snorlax did not seem to immediately register he'd been summoned, as his massive head tilted to stare at the furious dragon with curiosity. He brought a chubby paw to lazily scratch at his head. But Snorlax's hesitation did not linger, as it finally dawned on him he'd been sent out to battle. With a ponderous groan, the Normal type rose to his feet.
Just in time as Garchomp unleashed yet another Hyper Beam, much too fast for the lumbering Pokemon to dodge. Snorlax groaned as he was hit directly by the searing beam of energy. He stumbled backwards from the sheer force behind the attack.
Luckily, Snorlax was a trained Pokemon and even if it had been a while since he'd participated in a real battle, he recovered quickly. The great Pokemon's thick hide and layers of fat afforded him great protection from ranged attacks, and it seemed the additional poundage he'd packed on at Oak's ranch served to further reinforce his resistance to such attacks. While Garchomp's Hyper Beam had hurt, Snorlax, was not so worse for wear.
"Snorlax, are you alright?" Ash asked. Snorlax grunted an affirmative and nodded. His attention was now fully focused on the enraged Garchomp before him. "Alright, Snorlax. Counter with your own Hyper Beam!"
Snorlax gladly obeyed. His maw opened wide, and drawing on the immense reserves of stamina and energy he possessed, fired off a Hyper Beam with prodigious speed, catching Garchomp off guard.
"Charge in and use Ice Punch!"
With more speed that a massively rotund specimen should be able to achieve, Snorlax lifted his bulk, barreling to the stunned dragon as his fist became enveloped in frost. Lost in the haze of Attack Rage, it did not take long for Garchomp to shake off the effects of Snorlax's Hyper Beam. It took to the air just as Snorlax's fist crashed down where Garchomp had been a moment ago.
"Quick, Pikachu. Iron Tail!"
"Pika pi!"
The little mouse bolted forward with amazing speed, building up enough momentum to jump onto Snorlax and catapult himself to the retreating Garchomp, scoring a direct hit onto Garchomp's chest.
The dragon groaned, the force behind Iron Tail enough to break its concentration and sending it sprawling back down to the steel skeleton of Prism Tower. But Pikachu did not go unscathed. As Garchomp fell, its powerful tail flailed about wildly, smashing into Pikachu while he was still midair.
"Chaa!" Pikachu squeaked as he was hit, falling down an uncontrolled trajectory to the unforgiving metallic structure.
"Pikachu, no!" No sooner was Ash about to lunge forward to catch Pikachu that Froakie blurred forward into an explosion of movement, nearly matching Pikachu's speed and with pinpoint precision, caught the falling mouse in his webbed fingers, bringing them both safely down.
"Nice catch, Froakie," Ash said, flashing the Water type a thumbs up. He looked again to Garchomp, recovering from its hard landing and getting back up to its feet. He had to keep up the pressure on garchomp to break it out of Attack Rage.
When Dragonite slipped into this berserk state, it had taken the combined efforts of Ash's Pikachu, Charizard and Claire's Dragonair to snap it out of its battle haze and even then, the powerful dragon had remained more or less in tip top condition. An impressive specimen to say the least, easily older than all the Pokemon in Ash's team combined and with a power few could match.
The Garchomp before them was not nearly as daunting an opponent, but it was a Dragon nevertheless, and not to be taken lightly. Defeating it should prove considerably easier than Dragonite, but Garchomp would certainly make them work for it.
"Snorlax, go and use Body Slam!"
Looming over Garchomp, Snorlax spread his chubby arms and jumped a full six feet, all three tons of it bearing down on the dragon. Garchomp howled with pain as the sheer girth of the Normal type settled atop it. It tried to break free, squirming, thrashing, clawing and biting Snorlax's hide, not that he seemed to notice as his thick skin and layers of fat protected him from the dragon's futile assaults.
Squirming its neck free from under Snorlax's folds, Garchomp's head turned, its maw opened wide and shot a direct Hyper Beam right against Snorlax's unprotected side. Snorlax grunted, feeling the brunt of such a close ranged attack, powered with such ferocity that it tipped him over, freeing a very pissed off Garchomp.
With a bloodcurling screech, Garchomp struck the downed Snorlax with two Dragon Claws. Snorlax, gasped in pain but just as Garchomp was about to unleash a volley of attacks, it reared back, screaming in surprise as a thick, glue-like substance settled over its eyes.
Froakie had arrived to the rescue, using its frubbles to blind the enraged Garchomp. Garchomp backed several paces, furiously working to get the gunk off its eyes and no sooner did it succeed that it was met by a Mega Punch, courtesy of Snorlax. Garchomp was sent flying, crashing against the walls of Prism Tower. Garchomp supported itself as it regained its footing and Ash could see that their strategy was paying off. Powerful as Garchomp might be, firing off so many Hyper Beams was bound to put some strain on even the hardiest of Pokemon, and the damage it had incurred in their battle served to slow it down. Attack Rage or not, Garchomp's body had limits, which were rapidly approaching.
"Pikachu, Froakie. Get in there and distract Garchomp. Make an opening for Snorlax."
Pikachu and Froakie chorused their consent and dashed forward. Entering into Agility, Pikachu was hard to follow as his form dashed from here to there, hitting Garchomp's shins and unprotected sides, aggravating the dragon. Froakie' superior jumping abilities allowed him to keep pace, deftly keeping out of Garchomp's reach, firing off Bubbles here and there, further aggravating the Pokemon.
"Now's your chance, Snorlax. Finish this and use Ice Punch!" With a proud bellow, Snorlax lumbered forward, fist held high and covered in ice. Garchomp was so distracted by the two smaller Pokemon it failed to take in Snorlax until it was too late. The Sleeping Pokemon's fist smashed onto Garchomp's jaws with unbridled power. Garchomp howled as it was hit by a supremely effective move, the sheer weight behind the blow more than enough to send it to the ground.
"Good job, Snorlax. Now get ahold of Garchomp. Whatever you do, don't let it escape."
Nodding, Snorlax bent down and wrapped his chubby arms around Garchomp. Still dazed from the powerful blow, Garchomp shook its head, groaning weakly, not registering it was completely at the mercy of the huge Normal type.
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail and break off that collar!"
"Pika pi!" The small mouse hurtled forward, his lightning bolt tail brimming with power. With a well practiced jump, Pikachu took to the air and spun, his steel hard tail colliding with Garchomp's collar and breaking it loose.
Garchomp gasped, its body going limp as the wretched contraption's painful jolts ceased abruptly. For several moments, Garchomp lay idly by, breathing heavily as the haze of Attack Rage faded from its eyes. It opened its eyelids blearily, its massive neck turning from side to side as it observed its surroundings.
Ash walked on over to Snorlax, affectionately patting the Normal type's arms, still holding on tightly to Garchomp. "Good job, Snorlax. You can let go of Garchomp now."
Snorlax grunted and his grip slackened and backed away. Garchomp landed unsteadily on its feet, wobbling slightly and fell to one knee. Ash quickly moved in, supporting the large dragon's chest as well he could.
"Take it easy, Garchomp. You're all safe now."
Garchomp's half lidded eyes settled on Ash, and an uncertain growl escaped its maw.
"Don't worry, we're all okay now. Isn't that right, guys?" Said Ash, looking to Pikachu, Froakie and Snorlax, who nodded and murmured in consent. "We kinda had to battle you to break you out of it, so no hard feeling, right?" In response, Garchomp leaned forwards and gave Ash an affectionate lick on the cheek and nuzzled a perplexed Pikachu.
"Well, I guess that answers that," Ash chuckled, wiping the drool with his sleeve. "You're welcome. Now let's get going. I'm sure professor Sycamore wants to make sure you're okay."
Garchomp nodded, shakily standing on its feet. Aside from the rampart exhaustion and strain its body had endured, and the onslaught of rather potent attacks, Garchomp was no worse for wear. A good night's rest and treatment and it would be up and about in the morning.
Pikachu tugged at Ash's pants leg. "Pika. Pika pi. Pikachu," he chattered, one stubby paw waving down.
"You're right, Pikachu. Let's get off this tower."
Just then a reverberating rumble shook the tower and when Ash and the Pokemon looked, there was Snorlax, laying down and snoring peacefully.
"Heh," Ash muttered. "I guess that battle really wore out Snorlax." Professor Oak, it seemed, hadn't been kidding when he said it was due time Snorlax got some much needed exercise.
"Unbelievable," the reporter gushed enthusiastically. "If you are just tuning in, this is Vera, live from Lumiose city, where not moments ago, Garchomp went on a wild rampage throughout the city. Reports are still coming in, but eyewitness accounts say that Garchomp broke out of a lab belonging to professor Sycamore. Apparently, Garchomp was seen in a state of distress due to a mysterious device of some sort. We also learned that not minutes before Garchomp was sent into this rampage, Sycamore's lab had been broken into by a pair of robbers and their Pokemon. Are these people responsible for sending Sycamore's Garchomp in a rage? Authorities are working closely with the professor to determine the thieves' identities and bring them to justice."
The reporter, now on the ground and having disembarked the helicopter, adjusted her earpiece. "And... Jerry, Jerry! Over there!" The reporter waved urgently to a spot somewhere on her right and the camera swiveled to catch Ash, Pikachu and Froakie, all straddling the now peaceful Garchomp as it lowered steadily through the air, before landing on the ground. "And this is the person responsible for putting a stop to Garchomp's state of rage. This young trainer was seen using a Pikachu, Froakie and Snorlax as he bravely climbed Prism Tower to face off with a berserk Garchomp. Whoever he is, the people of Lumiose owe this young man a hearty thanks. Let's go now and see if we can get his name."
The reporter, along with dozens of others, swarmed the site like locusts just as Ash and the Pokemon had climbed off of Garchomp. Camera flashes popped off everywhere as reporters and onlookers alike snapped shots of the scene.
For his part, Ash was somewhat bemused, clearly not expecting the media frenzy that had sprung up around him. Pikachu and Froakie hopped onto his head and shoulders, clearly not amused at the dozens of bodies pressed against Ash. Reporters clamored over each other, shoving microphones or recorders to his face, seemingly forgetting about the massive Garchomp who moved off to the side in confusion, perking up as it spotted Sycamore making a beeline toward it.
"Well, only in Kalos..." Grace muttered as she watched the television set. Like Serena, she too had become entranced in the spectacle that just happened. Even now she still wasn't sure what she'd just seen was real. "That was something, huh, Serena?" Grace asked, looking over at her daughter.
"Serena?"
The young girl's eyes were enraptured by the image on the screen, avidly watching the brave young kid who'd stepped forward to quell Garchomp's rage. Here eyes darted rapidly over the screen, taking in his features, and as the seconds ticked, Serena's slight frown of concentration melted away, and a truly wistful, happy smile now graced her features.
"Ash, it really is you."