AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! Here is chapter 33 of the continuing adventures of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu as they continue their journey through the Johto region. The Onix Tunnel from the anime makes an appearance, and so does Taz from Tristan and Hillary's earlier adventures. Doesn't he know the meaning of the word "quit" yet? Anyway, please feel free to read and send responsible reviews at your leisure.
TEASER: The Onix cause problems and believe that Tristan and Hillary are responsible for flooding the Onix Tunnel, their home, with water. It looks rocky for Tristan and Hillary, but there may be another culprit that's responsible, and it's up to Tristan and Hillary to get to the bottom of it.
Chapter 33: TAKEN FOR GRANITE
(Music Cue: Route 29 (as heard at the beginning of "Forest Grumps"))
After getting a good night's rest at the Pokémon Center, our heroes continue their journey to Goldenrod City. But unsurprisingly enough, an obstacle lies ahead.
Tristan and Hillary, with Pikachu and Togepi, respectively, were walking on the road the next morning.
"According to what the Poké Gear says, there's a tunnel we can go through," said Tristan. "It's a shortcut that'll get us closer to Goldenrod City. It's called the Onix Tunnel."
"Why is it called the Onix Tunnel?" asked Hillary.
"It's where strong wild Onix are supposed to live," answered Tristan.
"Maybe we'd better not go through there," said Hillary nervously. "I don't like seeing big creatures in the dark."
"Aw, come on, don't be a scaredy cat," replied Tristan. "We can do it. I mean, what are the chances of Onix showing up in that tunnel and bothering us anyway?"
"How about a certainty?" answered Hillary. "We can't just blithely go through a dark tunnel without knowing what's inside, right?"
"But what about the Water Pokémon we have?" suggested Tristan. "They can help us out if the Onix attack us."
"Good point," smiled Hillary. "Why didn't I think of that? Okay, you convinced me. Let's go through the Onix Tunnel."
"That's the spirit!" said Tristan.
Hillary sighed. "I hate it when you make more sense than me, especially when I'm the one who tries to make sense around here."
"That's because I'm older and smarter."
"Who asked you?"
And they continued walking on the road.
Soon after, they came to the Onix Tunnel.
"I wonder how big this tunnel is," said Hillary.
"Who knows?" replied Tristan. "But no matter how big the tunnel is, we'll get through it." And Tristan, full of confidence, led Hillary and Pikachu into the Onix Tunnel.
The tunnel was full of stalactites and stalagmites, but it wasn't as dark as Tristan and Hillary feared.
Hillary was still nervous, however. "This place sure is quiet," she said. "Maybe a little too quiet."
"Don't worry, sis, as long as we leave the Onix alone, the Onix will leave us alone, too," replied Tristan.
They continued to walk through the tunnel, but there were no signs of any Onix anywhere.
"That's funny," said Tristan.
"What is?" asked Hillary.
"I was expecting the Onix to appear by now, but I don't see any."
Presently, they heard the sound of water.
"Listen," said Tristan. "Do you hear that?"
"All I hear is water dripping in the cave," replied Hillary. "But the sound of the water seems to be everywhere."
Then, there was a big rumbling sound.
"What was that?" asked Hillary, who by this time was getting very nervous.
(Music Cue: Raid!)
Presently, a trio of rocky snake-like Pokémon made their appearance and stampeded toward Tristan and Hillary at breakneck speed.
"Well, there are the Onix!" said Tristan.
"And they're coming right at us!" exclaimed Hillary.
There was nothing left to do but run for it, so they ran as fast as their legs could carry them.
"But why are they chasing us?" asked Tristan.
"I don't think they're chasing us, Tristan!" said Hillary. "I think something's chasing them!"
"How do you know that?" asked Tristan.
"Let's think about this logically later!" advised Hillary.
Just then, they saw an opening in the distance.
"Quick, over there!" cried Tristan. And he led Hillary and Pikachu to the opening in the cave just as the Onix closed in on them.
The Onix rolled in the other direction and right out of the cave without hurting Tristan and Hillary.
Just then, they saw a flood of water rushing into the cave in the direction of the Onix.
And as it did, the water grew higher and higher.
"Look, guys, water!" gasped Tristan.
"So that's what's been chasing the Onix," said Hillary. "But who or what could've done this?"
"We'll answer that question later, sis, but right now, we need to get outta here," said Tristan as he took out a Poké Ball. "Blastoise, I choose you!"
The Poké Ball opened and Blastoise emerged from the white light that shot out of it.
"Good idea!" said Hillary as she took out her Poké Ball. "Lapras, go!"
Her Lapras emerged from the white light that shot out of it.
Tristan and Hillary clambered on Blastoise and Lapras respectively.
"All right, Blastoise, let's get out of this cave before it's too late!" commanded Tristan.
"You heard him, Lapras, full speed ahead!" added Hillary.
Blastoise and Lapras swam for the entrance as fast as they could go as Tristan and Hillary held on tight.
As the water rushed out of the cave, so did Tristan and Hillary on Lapras and Blastoise.
Thanks to their quick thinking, they escaped the cave without injury.
"Phew!" said Hillary. "That was really close." She took out Lapras' Poké Ball. "Thanks, Lapras, you were perfect."
"You, too, Blastoise," added Tristan as he and Hillary returned Blastoise and Lapras to their Poké Balls.
"Now we just have to figure out what caused the flood to happen," said Hillary. "Any ideas?"
"Well, we could fly over the Onix Tunnel," said Tristan. "...if Charizard was here. And I'm sure Lugia would be here to help us out, but I don't think this is a situation where I would need its help that much."
"Well, what do you suppose we do?" asked Hillary. "We can't fly over it. And we don't have any Flying Pokémon that can help us scour the area. And we can't climb over it. It's too high for us to climb anyway. And if we slip, we'd be goners."
(Music Cue: A Formidable Opponent Appears)
Presently, the three Onix appeared out of nowhere again.
"It's the Onix!" gasped Hillary.
The Onix glared at Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu warily.
"They look kind of mad, don't they?" said Tristan.
"But why?" asked Hillary.
"Well, I'm not sure," replied Tristan. "They must think that we're the ones who sent that flood of water in the Onix Tunnel in the first place."
"No! But why?" gasped Hillary.
"You just asked that."
"Okay."
The Onix continued to glare at Tristan and Hillary and prepared to attack them.
"Hold on, Onix!" implored Tristan. "We understand that the Onix Tunnel is your home, your natural habitat. And we just wanted to get through. But I promise that we aren't the ones who flooded your cave!"
"Tristan's right, Onix!" added Hillary. "We'd never do anything to hurt you! Please believe us!"
The Onix continued to eye them warily.
Then one of them, which was the biggest of the three, slithered forward toward Tristan.
"I guess this one must be the leader," said Tristan to himself.
Then the Onix growled something to him.
"What's it saying?" asked Tristan. He couldn't understand Onix growls.
"I don't know, Tristan," replied Hillary. "But if I were to guess, I'd say that Onix wants to have a one-on-one battle with you."
"A battle?" Tristan couldn't believe his ears. He never knew that an Onix would challenge him to a battle.
"That Onix must want to challenge you to a battle to prove that we're no threat to them," explained Hillary.
"Is Hillary right, Onix?" asked Tristan. "Do you want to battle with me?"
The Onix nodded.
"All right, I accept!" said Tristan.
The Onix roared loudly and prepared to battle.
"Venusaur, I choose you!" shouted Tristan as he threw a Poké Ball.
(Music Cue: Rocket Powered Disaster)
Venusaur emerged from the white light that shot out of it.
"Good call," said Hillary. "Venusaur should be a good match for Onix. Its Grass-type characteristics should help it defeat the Onix with no problem."
The big Onix used its tail for a Slam attack.
"Venusaur, Razor Leaf attack!" ordered Tristan.
Venusaur shot a flurry of razor-sharp leaves at the big Onix.
The big Onix didn't seem to feel the attack at first, but it was doing some damage to it. However, that didn't keep it down, for it charged at Venusaur and used its tail in an attempt to wrap it around Venusaur.
"That Onix is using Bind attack!" gasped Hillary.
"Venusaur, Vine Whip!" commanded Tristan.
Venusaur shot multiple vines from the flower on its back and managed to stop Onix before its Bind attack could be executed.
The big Onix still wouldn't give up without a real fight, though, for it charged full-body style at Venusaur and scored a hit on it.
But Venusaur managed to stand strong.
Then the big Onix bashed against the rocky walls of the cave, causing the rocks to fall in a rock slide.
"That's a Rock Throw attack!" cried Tristan. "Dodge it, Venusaur!"
Venusaur managed to dodge the falling rocks just in time.
"Be very careful, Tristan," advised Hillary. "This is one very strong Onix that Venusaur's going up against."
"Fire Leech Seed, Venusaur!" instructed Tristan.
Venusaur fired a brown seed from its flower at the big Onix.
As the seed landed on the big Onix, it sprouted, and it began to shock Onix, causing it to lose energy.
"Perfect, Venusaur!" commended Tristan.
Venusaur nodded,
"Yeah, that was great!" said Hillary. "Leech Seed is making Onix weaker and helping Venusaur get stronger."
"All right, Venusaur, we got it on the run, so let's finish it off," said Tristan. "Get ready to use your SolarBeam attack!"
Venusaur nodded as the flower began to absorb light from the sun's rays in the sky as fast as it could.
I know it's risky, thought Tristan. But once Venusaur charges up for SolarBeam, we should be able to finish it off in one shot.
The big Onix, still under Leech Seed's effects, was struggling to maintain control of the battle. Soon, it charged in full-body style at Venusaur.
"Venusaur's in trouble!" cried Hillary.
But Venusaur had charged up enough energy in its flower to attack.
"No it isn't," said Tristan. "SolarBeam!"
Venusaur fired a blast of solar energy from its flower directly at Onix, scoring a huge direct hit and sending it careening into the ground.
The big Onix had been knocked out.
The other two Onix then realized beyond a doubt that Tristan and Hillary were telling the truth, and no longer glared at them.
"Hey, look!" gasped Hillary. "The Onix stopped being angry with us!"
"They must've realized that we weren't here to hurt it," added Tristan. He turned to Venusaur. "Thanks, Venusaur, great job."
Venusaur nodded.
"Hey, I just thought of something," said Hillary. "Why don't we use Venusaur's Vine Whip to see what the cause of the flooding in the cave was?"
"Good idea, sis," agreed Tristan. "I'm surprised I didn't think of it. Okay, Venusaur, let's..."
But before Tristan finished issuing his command, the big Onix managed to get back up and came to Tristan.
"What is it, Onix?" asked Tristan.
"I think it wants to help you to the top of the cave," replied Hillary.
"Is that true, Onix?" asked Tristan.
The big Onix growled and nodded. Then it lowered itself to the ground and allowed Tristan to get on its rocky head. Once he was on, the big Onix raised itself as high as it could.
But what Tristan saw on the other side of the Onix Tunnel gave him a big shock.
There stood a familiar man with a beard, and he had a blue bipedal Pokémon with muscular arms shooting a Hydro Punp inside the cave.
The Pokémon had a swirl on its chest and bulbous eyes, and it looked very mean.
(Music Cue: Desperate Situation 1997-1998 (as heard in "The Superhero Secret"))
"It's Taz," whispered Tristan to himself. "I should've known that he would be behind the flood in the Onix Tunnel."
"Hey, Tristan, do you see anything up there?" called Hillary.
"Yes, I do!" replied Tristan as the big Onix lowered itself to the ground, allowing him to dismount. "Some muscular Pokémon is intentionally flooding the Onix Tunnel, and Taz is with it."
"Taz again?" fumed Hillary. "Man, I've about had it with this guy!"
"There's only one thing to do, and that's to stop Taz," said Tristan as he took out Venusaur's Poké Ball. "Venusaur, return!"
Venusaur was returned to its Poké Ball instantly.
"Let's go get him!" said Hillary as she went into the Onix Tunnel.
"Wait up, sis!" called Tristan. He then turned to the three Onix. "You three should stay out here in case Taz and his Pokémon decide to flood the cave again.
The Onix nodded.
Then Tristan followed Hillary inside the Onix Tunnel.
On the other side of the Onix Tunnel, Taz was chuckling gleefully to himself. "Heh heh heh heh. Those Onix don't stand a chance against me thanks to Poliwrath's Hydro Pump. Soon they'll be mine! Go, Poliwrath, shoot another Hydro Pump inside that cave!"
Poliwrath unleashed a powerful blast of water from the center of its chest into the Onix Tunnel causing the water the flood the cave again.
Unfortunately, Tristan and Hillary didn't see the Hydro Pump coming and got blasted by it, causing them and Pikachu to hit the damp ground.
No one was hurt, but Hillary was most upset. "The nerve of that guy!" fumed Hillary. "Just wait until I get my hands on him!"
It was then that Tristan saw the blast of water coming into the cave. "So that's how the Onix got chased out of the cave. It's time to freeze his plans." And he took out his Poké Ball and threw it.
Blastoise emerged from the white light that shot out of it and awaited Tristan's directions.
"Blastoise, freeze that Hydro Pump with your Ice Beam!" commanded Tristan.
(Opening M01B 1997-1998)
Blastoise shot a powerful blast of cold energy from its mouth at the Hydro Pump, causing it to be frozen.
Unfortunately for Poliwrath, however, it found itself stuck to the frozen Hydro Pump attack.
Now it was Taz's turn to be upset. "Hey, what's going on here?"
Suddenly, Poliwrath found itself flying into Taz thanks to Blastoise's Skull Bash attack.
Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu then made their appearance.
"That's as far as you're gonna get, Taz!" said Tristan.
Taz managed to get back on his feet. "Just great, it's youse two again!" he fumed.
Hillary was surprised to see Poliwrath. "Who's that Pokémon?"
"Let's check it out," said Tristan as he scanned Poliwrath with his Pokédex.
"Poliwrath, the Tadpole Pokémon. Poliwrath is an excellent swimmer, and its powerful muscles make its attacks extremely effective."
"Ha!" laughed Taz. "So how do you like my new friend, kids? We were just soaking up a good time flooding the Onix Tunnel."
"You're gonna pay for disrupting the Onix's habitat!" shouted Hillary as she took out a Poké Ball. "Go, Sentret, I choose you!"
(Music Cue: Kanto Trainer Battle (as heard in "Tunnel Vision"))
Hillary's Sentret emerged from the white light that shot out of it.
"So that's how you wanna do it, huh? Fine by me," smiled Taz. "Poliwrath, take care of that pipsqueak."
Poliwrath charged into battle and prepared to attack.
"Sentret, use Tackle attack!" commanded Hillary.
Sentret charged full-body style towards Poliwrath.
"Poliwrath, use Water Gun attack now!" instructed Taz.
Poliwrath shot a powerful blast of water at Sentret, scoring a direct hit on it and sending it falling to the ground.
"Don't give in, Sentret!" encouraged Hillary.
Fortunately, Sentret managed to stand its ground and used its tail to stand itself back up.
"What's the matter?" taunted Taz. "Is your pipsqueak all wet? Well, let's see what another Water Gun attack does to you."
Poliwrath shot another blast of water from its chest at Sentret.
"Quick, Sentret, Defense Curl!" shouted Hillary.
Instantly, Sentret rolled into a ball and shielded itself from any more damage from Poliwrath's Water Gun.
"Looks like your little pipsqueak doesn't know when to give up," said Taz. "Give it a DoubleSlap!"
Poliwrath used its big hands to slap Sentret furiously over and over, giving it no time to counterattack.
"Sentret!" cried Hillary.
"This is bad!" exclaimed Tristan. "Sentret's getting pulverized by that DoubleSlap attack!"
"Now for the grand finale," smirked Taz. "Poliwrath, DynamicPunch!"
Poliwrath formed a huge fist using its hands. Then as its hands glowed white, it charged and struck the little Sentret hard.
"No!" cried Hillary.
"Now, another Water Gun attack!" ordered Taz.
Poliwrath shot another powerful blast of water from its chest at Sentret sending it careening into a tree.
The force of the attack was so strong that Sentret couldn't move.
"Sentret!" cried Hillary.
"Now, it's time for my star battler," said Taz as he took out a Poké Ball and threw it. "Electabuzz, I choose youse!"
Taz's Electabuzz emerged from the white light that shot out of it.
"Now that we have our water, Electabuzz, let's give it a real shock," said Taz. "Give it a Thunderbolt!"
Electabuzz focused its electricity and shot a powerful bolt of it in Sentret's direction.
Sure enough, the water from Poliwrath's Hydro Pump conducted Electabuzz's electricity and struck Sentret full force, shocking it.
"Sentret...this can't be," said Hillary to herself. She couldn't believe that two Pokémon would gang up on her little Sentret. She became very angry and shouted, "Hey, Taz, two against one's no fair!"
"I don't play fair, kid, I play to win," smiled Taz.
But suddenly, to everyone's surprise, Sentret was bathed in a bright white light.
(Music Cue: The Day is Conqured (as heard in "Grin to Win"))
The light was so strong and forceful that Electabuzz's Thunderbolt connection was severed, and Electabuzz was sent flying backward.
"Whoa, what's going on?" gasped Hillary.
Tristan knew what that light meant. "Sentret's starting to evolve!"
Sure enough, Sentret's body began changing from a little scout that could stand on its tail to a Pokémon with a slim body.
When the light stopped, Sentret had cream colored fur with dark brown rings around the length of its body.
Quickly, Hillary checked the new Pokémon on her Pokédex for information.
"Furret, the Long Body Pokémon, the evolved form of Sentret. It builds a nest to suit its long and skinny body. The nest is impossible for other Pokémon to enter."
"Awesome!" said Hillary excitedly. "Okay, Furret, let's show Taz and Electabuzz what we're made of!"
Furret agreed excitedly.
"Go get 'em, Hillary!" said Tristan as he and Pikachu watched.
"Go, Furret, Quick Attack now!" ordered Hillary.
Furret streaked toward Electabuzz with a white line trailing behind it, much faster than when it was a Sentret.
Tristan and Pikachu were surprised at Furret's incredible speed.
"Wow, that's fast!" said Tristan.
It certainly was, for Furret scored a direct hit on Electabuzz before it could react.
"Don't just lie there, Electabuzz, get up!" barked Taz.
Electabuzz struggled to its feet.
"Poliwrath, Electabuzz, go show that conceited pipsqueak that we mean business!" shouted Taz.
Poliwrath and Electabuzz charged in to attack Furret at once.
"You know what to do, Furret!" commanded Hillary.
Poliwrath used Hydro Pump while Electabuzz tried using Thunderbolt on Furret, but unfortunately, Furret was too quick for them as it dodged both attacks using Quick Attack.
"Guess I should've warned you, Taz," smiled Hillary. "Furret may look small and cute, but it's strong and fast, too."
Taz was seething in anger as Poliwrath and Electabuzz wore down by Furret's incredible speed.
"Now, Furret, show them what you can really do!" shouted Hillary.
Furret charged in and used its tail to slam Poliwrath and Electabuzz hard onto the ground.
"That was a hard Slam!" said Tristan.
"Furret, finish them off with Quick Attack!" ordered Hillary.
Furret streaked toward a defenseless Poliwrath, Electabuzz, and Taz with a white line trailing behind it, and it scored a direct hit on all of them sending them skyward.
"I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE!" screamed Taz as he and his Pokémon disappeared into the sky.
DING!
"Furret, way to go!" cheered Hillary.
Furret ran into Hillary's arms and embraced her.
"You were unbelievable," said Hillary.
Furret nodded as it and Hillary continued their hug.
"Awesome job, Hillary," commended Tristan.
"Thanks, Tristan," replied Hillary, "but the real thanks should go to my newly evolved Furret. Now that that's done, we can get the Onix back inside the Onix Tunnel where they belong."
"But how will we do that?" asked Tristan. "The other side of the tunnel must be far away by now."
"Show him, Furret," said Hillary.
(Music Cue: Route 26 (as heard in "Mild 'n Woolly"))
Furret nodded and dug a hole in the ground.
"Wait a minute, where'd Furret go?" asked Tristan.
"Trust me, it knows where it's going," replied Hillary.
On the other side of the Rock Tunnel, Furret emerged from underground and informed the Onix that it was safe to go back inside the Onix Tunnel.
In no time, the Onix slithered back inside the cave.
Tristan and Hillary felt the rumbling from the Onix's movements from their side of the Onix Tunnel a moment later.
"Well, here they come," said Hillary. "Just as Furret and I planned."
Sure enough, as the Onix came, the rumbling got more and more intense. They appeared on the other side of the tunnel in front of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu's eyes. They felt right at home back inside the Onix Tunnel.
Furret emerged from the hole it dug a moment later.
"Super job, Furret," commended Hillary as she stroked it on the head.
Furret nodded happily.
"That Furret of yours is pretty incredible," said Tristan.
"Thanks, Tristan," replied Hillary. "I did put a lot of hard work and effort into raising it, after all."
The Onix growled in gratitude toward Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu as they waved goodbye.
"Bye, Onix!" called Tristan and Hillary. "Take care!"
The Onix growled and replied back.
"Well, that was an adventure," remarked Tristan. "I'm glad that the Onix decided to trust us thanks to me."
"And I'm glad that Taz is gone thanks to me," added Hillary.
"Well, I guess it was another team effort, right?"
"Right," chuckled Hillary.
Pikachu and Togepi nodded in agreement.
And so, our heroes help out Pokémon in need of help and defeat the Pokémon poacher, Taz, in the process once again. Case in point, a trio of Onix. They've had many successful adventures so far. But will Tristan have as much success when he competes in the Johto League? We'll see, won't we?
► TO BE CONTINUED