Disclaimer: I do not own nor am I affiliated with Pokémon or any of its parent companies. I am merely a humble storyteller. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy this journey with me.
Note: I am English, so some of the wording, spellings, and expressions will be those commonly used in England.
Chapter Thirty-Three: A Bit of a Shock!
Before Red stood proudly the Vermilion Gym, a building whose outward appearance was that of a warehouse. It was not as rustic as Pewter's nor was it as majestic as Cerulean's, simply a plain building with plain windows and plain automatic doors. However, it had the aura of something special; Pikachu's cheeks sparked.
This was it. Badge number three. Red took a deep breath and entered.
Now, the Pewter Gym had a rocky field which perfectly encapsulated what type the Gym best represented, likewise with Misty's.
But this one… Red could not even see a battlefield. All he could see were a bunch of people exercising or just standing here and there, the latter wearing camo, a heck of a lot of dustbins, and at the other side of the room a glowing gate of blue electricity.
The people eyed him shrewdly but said nothing to him, instead going about their respective business. With more than a degree of nervousness, Red marched towards the electric gate.
It hissed and spat at him, ordering him to clear off and not come back.
Well, this was all fine and dandy, wasn't it? The Gym Leader was obviously waiting past this ludicrous gate, but how in the name of all things Pokémon was Red meant to breach it? Pikachu could, but it was not as if he could battle the Gym Leader – Lt. Surge – without a Trainer present.
Maybe the people around could aid him? They would have to know something if they worked at the Gym after all. Now, who could he ask…
Ah! There was a gentleman minding his own business in the corner. No doubt he would be of help.
Forcing confidence to consume and surround him, Red strode up to the man, an elderly fellow whose many years of a tough life were evident in his eyes and the lines of his face.
"Er… hi," Red said.
The man nodded at him, but his lips remained sealed. Instead, his eyes hovered over Pikachu.
"Er…" Red said again. "Yeah, um, I was wondering if you could help me? You see, that electric gate thing is in my way and I guess the Gym Leader is behind it. How do I get rid of it?"
"You have a Pikachu," the man said, disregarding Red's query.
"Yeah?"
"Pikachu's a good Electric-type."
"Mine is for sure."
The man's eyes found Red; Red flinched at how sharply they locked onto him.
"Do you think you've got what it takes to defeat Lt. Surge?" he asked.
"What?" Red said, taken aback. He recovered. "Yeah, I do. I've got two Badges. That should prove I've got what it takes."
Red held the man's stare for as long as he could before the latter turned his attention back to Pikachu.
"From its appearance alone, your Pikachu seems to be powerful. You can trust my eye or anyone else's at this Gym when it comes to Electric-types.
"But none more so than Lt. Surge. Great man. He and his Pokémon got us through the war, put their lives on the line all the time."
Red found himself unable to respond and simply allowed the man to continue:
"We're his Gym Trainers. We want only the best challengers here." His lips contorted into something that might have been construed as a smile. "As I said, your Pikachu looks like it can compete with the best. Logic dictates the other members of your team are equally top level."
"Er…" Red said, scratching his chin. "Where are you going with this?"
"That I believe Lt. Surge will have a great battle with you. I will tell you how to get through the gate –"
"Awesome!"
"– after you defeat me in battle."
"Huh?"
"Gym Trainers battle too," the man explained. "We don't just sit around doing nothing all day. I take it you didn't battle Gym Trainers at the Gyms you won at it? Pity. I suppose this will be your debut battle with a Gym Trainer should you accept it. Or you could try finding your own way through the gate."
What to do, what to do. This was unexpected. No doubt about it. But Red had a few Potions, so what was the harm? Still, it was a risk, so he would need to use someone who was not going to participate in the Gym Battle. Who would that be…?
"What's your decision?" the man said, his fellows crowding around.
"I'll battle you," Red said. "Of course, I will. I'll never stand down from one."
The man nodded. "Excellent. We'll begin right away. By the way, my name's Gregory."
"And I'm Red. I'm the guy who's going to beat you and then Lt. Surge."
A murmur of chuckles spread throughout the surrounding crowd and even Gregory joined in. "You've got guts, Red. Lt. Surge will like that. Now, let's battle."
And who did Gregory choose. Well, it was not a Kantonian Pokémon that's for certain; Red's Pokédex was evidence of that. It was a woolly, quadruped Pokémon with a blue face, blue legs, conical ears and a tail, both of which were striped. At the end of its tail was an orange sphere.
"Let's see if you've got enough to defeat my Mareep," Gregory said.
Red was positive he did. He had just the girl for the job. "You're up, Beedrill."
Beedrill materialised from out her Poké Ball and hovered before her Trainer, baring her stingers at her opponent.
It was on.
"Headbutt!" Gregory called out to his Mareep.
With the most war cry-sounding bleat Red had ever heard, Mareep charged towards Beedrill…
… who merely floated over it, almost lazily.
"Hit it with Twineedle!" Red shouted.
With a devilish glint in her scarlet eyes, Beedrill dove at Mareep, ready to drive her stingers into her wool. Which she did. It was a pity that it was more wool than she expected as Mareep cried out at her Trainer's command and became engulfed in even more wool, taking the Twineedle quite comfortably.
"Press on, Beedrill!" Red called. "Try Poison Jab!"
The end of Beedrill's stinger took on a purplish hue as she prodded Mareep, who took it easily once more, the Cotton Guard doing wonders for its defence, the Poison Sting's damage drastically reduced. A second Cotton Guard left its defence so high it left the atmosphere.
"This match is already over," Gregory said. "Mareep may be a base form Pokémon but those Cotton Guards have –"
"Fury Attack!"
Beedrill's flurry of jabs were absorbed by the wool, bouncing off almost ineffectually.
"Maybe I was wrong," Gregory said. "You can't get over such a simple strategy? Are you sure you're ready for Lt. Surge?"
"I am, I totally am!" Red snapped.
"If you say so," Gregory said, shaking his head. "Mareep, Shock Wave."
"Dodge it."
Mareep's wool hummed with electricity and glowed bright yellow. It bleated and unleashed a wave of electricity at Beedrill, who flew above it.
Or tried to.
The electricity seemed to have a mind of its own, changing direction and pursuing Beedrill until it coursed through her body. Poor Beedrill did manage to shake it off, but her wings were beating a tad slower.
"What the…?" Red muttered to himself. "Wait, is Shock Wave one of those moves Mitsuharu said never misses? Darn it."
Off his guard, Red failed to give Beedrill a command and she took a fierce Headbutt from Mareep. Pikachu kicked Red in the shin and gave him a right telling off.
"Ouch! Ah, sorry, Beedrill!" Red cried. "Can you get back up?"
Of course, she could. She was not going to get taken down by a mere Mareep. But that defence was something else. Only a critical hit would win them a battle… oh! Would it work? Beedrill forgot String Shot the previous day for a reason after all. Could it work here? They had not tested it, but it had to be simpler to perform than Poison Jab, didn't it?
"Use Focus Energy, Beedrill," Red said.
Beedrill closed her eyes and took a deep breath, clearing her mind, forgetting the pain, forgetting everything. At that moment, it was just her, in a quite place, emptiness her everything.
She left her realm of oneself as quickly as she entered it, calmer than ever, lighter than air, muscles tense and supple simultaneously. She buzzed a declaration of imminent victory at Mareep and Gregory.
Did it work? Did Beedrill get it right? She seemed to, and they had the most ideal move to test it out…
"Fury Attack!" Red shouted.
As quick as a flash, Beedrill darted towards Mareep and rained a flurry of strikes on the poor, woolly creature.
Some did negligible damage to it, but others caused Mareep to cry out and get knocked around, the effects of Cotton Guard ineffectual against the Focus Energy-boosted Fury Attack. Mareep collapsed onto its side and stayed down.
Victory. It was not the Gym Battle, but it was something, a bout to get their blood pumping and hype them for the main course. Although, Red did find it prudent to use a Paralyze Heal to heal Beedrill after the battle was declared theirs, just in case; those multiple hits from Fury Attack meant the chances of getting affected by Mareep's Static was practically inevitable.
"You fought well," Gregory said. "I guess I'll tell you how to get past the gate."
"I'm all ears," Red said, his body still high with adrenaline.
Gregory gestured to the bins. "There are two switches in the garbage cans. Press them both and you can go through."
Red's face fell. "You're joking, right?"
"You'd better get going," Gregory said, tapping his wrist, his fellows sniggering at Red. "Someone else could come along and challenge Lt. Surge instead."
Red scowled at Gregory and the other Gym Trainers. Was this a joke? An elaborate prank? Maybe. But what other choice did he have? Reluctantly, he set about searching for the two switches.
It was tedious. It was irksome. And it did not help that Pikachu simply watched him from the sidelines, not willing to assist him, yawning every now and then.
It would have been simpler to chalk this off as a stupid prank on a young challenger and leave and return another day, but Red pressed on and was rewarded by finding the two switches – in the last two bins he checked! With unnecessary force, Red pressed the final switch and the electric gate flickered and died, cursing him with its final breath.
Finally, he would have his third Gym Battle (technically fourth but let's not ruin the moment).
With the swagger of a Pokémon League Champion, Red sauntered down the hallway that the electric gate failed to protect and found himself in a new area, which one would expect if they were to move from one place to another. Before him was a spacious battlefield, more like the standard one he saw in the preliminary rounds of last year's League. A muscular man with spiky blonde hair was at one end, doing press-ups alongside a Pokémon he recognised as a Raichu. Pikachu narrowed his eyes.
"Uh, excuse me," Red called out to him.
The man and his Pokémon carried on with their press-ups.
Red walked nearer. "Excuse me," he said, louder.
The man carried on with his press-ups; Raichu looked up.
Red stamped nearer. "Excuse me!" he shouted.
The man carried on with his press-ups; Raichu got up off the floor.
Red inquired to Raichu wordlessly as to what was going on. Raichu grimaced and tapped his Trainer on the top of his head.
"What is it, Raichu?" he said gruffly. "Why've you stopped –"
His shocking blue eyes found Red. "I get it."
He leapt to his feet. "I'm Lt. Surge, Vermilion Gym Leader. I take it you're here for a battle?"
"That's right," Red said, trying to gaze at the man's face like trying to catch sight of a mountain's summit from the ground. "I'm on two Badges right now."
"Two?" Lt. Surge said. "Okay, then. Let's get down to battling."
"Just like that?" Red asked.
"Yeah. You're the challenger, I'm the Gym Leader. What else are we meant to do?"
Lt. Surge did have a point. What else was Red expecting? Maybe it was because he had already met and befriended Brock and Misty before their Gym Battles that it now felt strange to encounter Lt. Surge for the first time inside his Gym, ready for the battle. It felt kind of empty in a way.
Lt. Surge marched to one end of the battlefield, Raichu in tow, but as he did so, Red could not help but feel something was off with him, an aura of vulnerability cloaking him. Odd. When Red took on Brock and Misty, even though he had formed a rapport with them, the moment their battles began, their very being seemed to morph into something fierce and mighty.
But it would have been rude to mention it to the Vermilion Gym Leader. Instead, Red made his way to his end of the field, formulating a strategy to, with any luck, ensure his victory.
Gregory appeared, taking on the role on referee, declaring it to be a three-on-three fight.
Then it was finally time.
"Voltorb!" Lt. Surge bellowed, throwing out a Poké Ball with a needless amount of force.
From the Poké Ball came another Poké Ball, but with eyes and an angry expression.
"Isn't Voltorb a pure Electric-type?" Red murmured to himself. "In that case, I'll choose…"
Charmander emerged in a flash, tail swishing, claws scraping the floor. He exhaled embers from his nostrils. He was ready.
"The battle will commence!"
"Use Rollout!" Lt. Surge ordered.
"Flame Charge!" Red countered.
Voltorb rolled across the Gym floor, so fast it was simply a red and white blur, as a fire shrouded Charmander rushed out to meet it. They collided with each other and both recoiled from the impact, the living Poké Ball flung further away.
An Ember attack followed up the Flame Charge, raining down upon Voltorb, who screeched and tried to roll out the way.
"It's good," Lt. Surge growled. "You're good, Voltorb. Use Sonic Boom!"
Now, while rolling was all well and good, spinning for Voltorb was still top-notch, which it proceeded to do. And when it spun, a shock wave of sound erupted from its body and travelled across the field, blowing Charmander away.
"Charmander! Are you okay?" Red asked, his peripherals staying on Voltorb.
Charmander got back up, a little dishevelled but no worse for wear. He glared at his opponent.
"Spark!" Lt. Surge roared, determined not to give Red a chance to think.
Voltorb's spherical body crackled his electric sparks (surprise, surprise) and it charged at Charmander, bouncing across the battlefield at lightning speed.
But was 'lightning speed' enough? Unfortunately for the Electric-type, it was not. Charmander nimbly jumped out the way of Voltorb's attack and responded with a strong, albeit not very effective, Metal Claw.
Lt. Surge clenched his fists so tightly veins popped up along his wrists. "Keep using Spark! Don't give that Charmander time to breathe!"
Oh, how determined Voltorb was to obey its Trainer, how desperate it was to land a hit on the fiery lizard. But it was simply an effort in futility, that Flame Charge more of a nuisance to it than it would ever know. Yet it still tried, fighting through the pain of Metal Claws and Embers, going through with its Trainer's order until he would issue another one.
Or would he? Lt. Surge watched as his Voltorb failed to land a single hit on Charmander, shouting 'Spark!' over and over again, a mantra that was detrimental to his chances of victory in this battle. But he could not think. It was his first battle since the call with Lyn, and he could not concentrate. Why could he not? He had been to war! He had had to come to split second decisions surrounded by enemies and his potential death. Why was he thrown so much?
Something hit him in the leg. It was Raichu. He was shouting at him, pointing towards Voltorb, smacking his tail into the ground.
Raichu was right; he had to get over it and win, or at least fight to the best of his ability. Should he return Voltorb? No, Voltorb was on the brink, and the fault was his. If that was the case, then he may as well take out the Charmander and have them on equal footing for the next round…
"Self-destruct," he called out to Voltorb.
At his command, Voltorb set itself into place and hummed.
"Self-destruct?" Red said, his blood going cold.
The humming grew louder, the tempo increased, Voltorb's body began to shake, and its eyes rolled back into its head. Charmander's legs quaked and the flame on his tail dimmed.
Lt. Surge watched on, stone-faced. It was a last resort, yes, but it was still a strategy. He would get back into the battle.
He saw Red's lips move, a single syllable word, unable to hear it over the ear-splitting humming.
A burst of light.
A deafening explosion.
A cloud of dust.
Silence.
He waited for the call, for Gregory to announce it as a tie, for the battle to begin anew as a two-on-two battle.
He waited.
Then the call came: "Voltorb is unable to battle, Charmander wins."
"What?"
The dust cloud dispersed, taken away by the Gym's ventilation system.
Lt. Surge's jaw dropped.
In a crater was his unconscious Voltorb. And sticking his head out of a hole was Charmander, untouched by the blast.
