Jason Creight awoke at the base of Cinnabar Island's volcano.
Automatically, he began to squirm and stretch. He rolled his eyes when he realized his legs weren't stretching.
*I hate reflex reactions. Of course they won't stretch,* he thought. He began to push himself off the ground, but it became extremely difficult when the nerves in his legs wouldn't fire.
*I really shouldn't be sleeping on the ground anymore,* he thought. *Tonight I'll just stay in the chair.*
He finally managed to push himself into a sitting position, a position he stayed in just long enough to unfold his wheelchair. With greater difficulty than getting himself to sit up, he managed to push and shove his way into it.
*Yeah, definitely should stay in the chair.*
"You know, you shouldn't be sleeping on the ground," said Kelly from inside her tent.
"Yeah, I know," Jason muttered. "So I learn a couple things the hard way." Then he slapped his legs. "But hey, today's a special occasion!"
"I hear there are stairs leading to the actual gym," said Kelly.
Jason shrugged. "Well, either you can push me, or one of my Pokemon can."
"Hmm." Jason could see Kelly's silhouette dressing. "It might be fun to just stand back and shove you off."
"I'd make sure I took you with me," Jason answered, donning his shirt, watch, and bike gloves.
"I'm sure." Kelly finished dressing and got to work on collapsing her tent.
Jason grinned.
It seemed as if it had been only a couple of weeks ago that he'd faced down his brother in Pallet Town. Of course, he knew better than that; it had been a little over two months, and if he needed anyone to confirm it, he needed only to ask someone the date.
He looked down at his useless legs.
*Thirteen years old and I'm crippled for life. Spectacular.*
Then he looked up at the volcano. "I sincerely hope the gym isn't up there."
"I heard the backup gym is there, but I don't know where the real one is. Of course, no one wants to tell me. All that strange guy said was, 'Your challenge lies not in the leader, but in the volcano.' What the heck's that supposed to mean?"
Jason considered the words for a moment. "What did that strange guy look like?"
"Like a hippie. He had a flowered shirt, long brown hair, sunglasses... I think the hair wasn't really brown, though."
"Why?"
"His mustache was white. Isn't that weird? You'd think if he wanted to dye his hair, he'd have dyed his mustache, too."
Jason thought about this. *Blaine? Possibly... if he was wearing a wig. The books said he's bald. His hair must've been singed off or something. And he's been known to speak in riddles.*
And then he thought about the words a bit more. *Maybe he wasn't talking about our internal conflict, so much as he was talking about my battle...
In the* volcano*?
Or * in * the volcano?
That's it!*
"That's it!" he exclaimed, causing Kelly to jump in surprise. "He didn't mean what the challenge was! He meant *where* the challenge is supposed to be!"
"What?"
"In the volcano, Kelly! The gym is inside the volcano!"
She smiled, a measure of skepticism showing. "Then I suppose you know who the strange guy was, right?"
"Yeah! It was Blaine, the gym leader here! He speaks in riddles to trainers looking to challenge him, I suppose to check their logic skills or something. Now all we need to do is find the entrance to the gym! Let's go!"
Jason wheeled off with such speed that Kelly needed to run to keep up.
***
They had gone all the way across town, circling the base of the volcano, when Kelly finally found what they were looking for: a cave, set right into the base.
"Yeah, I'll bet this is it. Let's go on in," said Jason.
"What if it isn't and you get stuck?" asked Kelly.
"Then I'll bring out Electabuzz to help."
Kelly sighed as she watched Jason wheel himself inside. "Impossible man."
She followed him in.
***
"You convinced now?" he asked.
"I guess so. Want me to push you down?"
"Yeah. Nice and easy, if you please," said Jason.
"No problem." Kelly was tempted to rock Jason backward as hard as she could, but her self-preservation instinct kicked in and she chose otherwise.
Jason exaggerated each bump, no matter how minuscule. "Oof! Uff! Oy!"
"You know, you're impossible to please," said Kelly.
"No, I'm not. I'm just giving you a hard time. You're doing great, really."
When they reached the bottom of the stairs, they beheld a pair of gargantuan titanium-copper alloy doors. They could both feel the intense heat emanating from it. Kelly reached out and was about to touch it with her finger when Jason slapped her hand away. "Don't touch that or your finger'll burn straight off your hand."
"Well, then, what do you suggest we do about it?"
Jason enlarged a Poke ball. "Think physics."
He tossed the ball, and Staryu appeared a moment later.
Kelly looked down at Jason. "Why Staryu?"
"Why not?" he replied. "It can open a door, I think. And besides, I don't want to go bursting in there with my big guns there for him to see."
She shrugged. "Suit yourself."
"Thanks, I will. Staryu, water gun, right on the handle."
"Hyah!" Staryu aimed its top point--*head?* Kelly wondered--at the handle and fired a powerful blast of cold water at it. The initial blast turned to steam instantly, but after a few seconds, the water was cooling the door to such an extent that Jason and Kelly could hear the metal constricting around the handle.
Jason pushed his brake levers into position, reached into the water flow, gripped the handle, and shoved the door open.
Beyond the door, they saw the gym.
"Whoa," said Jason, as he recalled Staryu.
The immense gym floor was carved from stone, and its four corners were each held up by titanium chains, each of the links no smaller than an Onix's head. The floor was suspended directly above a boiling lava pool about a hundred feet below.
The heat was almost unbearable.
"So, you figured it out."
Jason and Kelly looked up and saw a Charizard hovering twenty feet above them. Riding the Charizard was a bald man with a long white mustache and sunglasses. His white lab coat clashed with his otherwise tropical-style clothing.
Jason's eyes hardened. *Blaine.*
"I wasn't expecting a trainer in a wheelchair," the old man grinned. "Hopefully, your Pokemon are a little more agile than you are, my boy."
"Ouch, that hurts," Jason responded, sarcasm dripping from his voice. "But out here, it doesn't matter. Because my Pokemon can still beat yours, whether their master is paralyzed or not. That said, I challenge you to a battle."
Blaine laughed. "Very well, young trainer, but you will not defeat me. And I will be three thousand credits richer."
"We'll see about that."
Blaine's Charizard landed on the other side of the floor and stayed there just long enough for the gym leader to dismount. Then it took flight again and landed on the titanium chain behind and to the left of Blaine. Blaine enlarged a Great ball. "Prepare to be burned!"
He threw the ball.
A Ninetails came into existence a moment later and began spitting fire in random directions.
"You're all washed up!" Jason responded, and he enlarged and threw a Great ball of his own.
"Cl-l-l-loyster!" Jason's Cloyster floated up to the center of the floor.
"Ninetails, fire blast!"
"Cloyster, reflect!"
Blaine's Ninetails conjured what looked like a stick figure of fire towards Cloyster, but Cloyster had heard Jason's order in time and reacted to it instantly by closing its shell completely and conjuring a mystical "mirror barrier." The flames were reflected straight back at Ninetails a moment later. Of course, the attack didn't harm it much, but it showed Blaine that Jason knew what he was doing, and that he meant business.
"Cloyster, auorora beam!"
Cloyster reopened its shell and its grin widened as it gathered energy and expelled it in one concentrated, powerful burst. Ninetails was still reeling somewhat from the reflection of its own attack, and so was unprepared for the next one. It was struck by the beam just below the neck, and it made a squealing bark in protest.
"Ninetails, another fire blast!"
"Cloyster, hydro pump!"
Another conjured figure of flame rocketed toward Cloyster, only to be extinguished by Cloyster's hydro pump. A lot of the water steamed at the contact point, but a lot also made it through and drenched Ninetails, who stumbled and fell back from its opponent's attack.
"One more hydro pump, Cloyster!"
As Ninetails was still trying to get up, Cloyster sprayed it with another intense blast of water. Ninetails hit the ground again and was pushed almost all the way back to Blaine's box.
Blaine grimaced and pulled out his Great ball. "Ninetails, return." He looked up at Jason. "You're pretty good, but you're no match for this one." He threw another Great ball. "Go, Flareon!"
"Bring it on!" said Jason, and he threw a Poke ball. "Take it to him, Vaporeon!"
Kelly snorted at the situation; Blaine and Jason had just called for two radically different evolutions of Eevee to fight each other.
"Flareon, sand attack!"
"Vaporeon, surf attack!"
Just as a storm of sand began to form, it was turned to mud by Vaporeon's unavoidable attack, causing Flareon to stumble and fall. The water of the attack ran over the edge of the gym floor, of course, and turned to steam in the extreme heat of the lava pool below.
"Vaporeon, mud slap!"
Vaporeon used the pasty sand on the floor to simulate mud and splashed it into its opponent's eyes. Flareon stumbled around, trying desperately to see past the wet sand.
"Okay, Vaporeon, bubblebeam!"
Vaporeon sucked in a breath, its underside growing to near-impossible proportions, and then it released its breath in an explosive burst of water- heavy globules. They splashed against Flareon's exposed side and knocked it over yet again.
It didn't get up this time.
Blaine recalled Flareon and growled. "Okay, then. Perhaps I should stop talking and just battle."
"Yeah, maybe you should," Jason shot back. "Call your next Pokemon."
"Very well. Charizard!"
Blaine's Charizard took to the air yet again and landed on the gym floor. It had been watching the battle the entire time, inspecting Jason's style, and now waited patiently for him to call his next Pokemon.
Jason pulled out an Ultra ball and tossed it. "Let's see you shine, Lapras!"
Kelly knew what Jason was doing. He was holding Gyarados in reserve, since it was his best water type. She guessed he was suspecting Blaine of withholding his best Pokemon to the very end, and Jason was holding to the same strategy so as not to tire his best one fighting the smaller guns.
*But if a Charizard isn't his best Pokemon, what is?*
"Charizard, wing attack!"
Charizard wasted no time; it flapped its reddish-orange wings, and gusts of wind blew with the force of a slap in the face. Lapras was stung for a moment, but it quickly absorbed the rest of the impact. It was, for all intents and purposes, immobilized on the gym floor.
"Lapras, hydro pump!"
"Charizard, dodge it!"
A spray of super-pressurized water gushed out of Lapras' mouth, but its efforts were in vain; Charizard was managing to dodge all the blasts.
"Now fly, Charizard!"
*Uh-oh,* thought Jason. Lapras didn't have an attack that could hit Charizard in the air...
"Lapras, counter!"
Lapras' body began to glow an electric blue just as Charizard crashed into it.
Lapras didn't budge an inch.
Charizard was blasted across the gym by the force of its own attack. It finally came to a rest... having made a Charizard impression in the crater's wall.
"Hydro pump!"
Lapras again blasted an incredible amount of water from its mouth, this time striking Charizard squarely between the wings.
"Why not go for the tail, boy? Squeamish?" Blaine sneered.
"I'm not interested in killing your Charizard, only in taking it out of the fight," Jason responded. "One more, Lapras, it's still moving!"
Another blast of water, and Charizard dropped out of the dent it had made toward the lava below. Blaine's recall came just in time.
"I don't suppose you want to forfeit?" asked Jason, recalling Lapras.
"Not for an instant!" Blaine snapped, as he brought out his last ball. "Take him down, Magmar!"
"A Magmar!" Kelly breathed. She knew they were rare; she hadn't dreamed she'd see one, much less one that was trained.
She saw the half-grin on Jason's face and knew he'd expected this. But then again, what did she expect of *him*? She knew perfectly well that he was in the habit of researching the gym leader he was going to face next.
And she saw him pull out Gyarados' Poke ball.
"How about you, boy? You gonna surrender?" Blaine barked, not having noticed the ball.
Jason scoffed, then enlarged the ball and threw it, revealing Gyarados to Blaine at long last.
"Does that answer your question?" Jason returned.
Gyarados and Magmar stared each other down for a moment.
Jason and Blaine issued their orders in the same instant.
"Gyarados, surf attack!"
"Magmar, fire punch!"
Magmar sprinted up to Gyarados with incredible speed and slugged it across the jaw with a flaming fist. Gyarados was taken down by the hit, but it managed to get back up under the merciless gaze of Magmar.
Then it conjured what little moisture there was within the gym and filled it with torrents of water, which all streamed onto Magmar from all directions. Magmar withered under the bombardment, but stood its ground.
"Hydro pump, quick!"
"Magmar, quick attack!"
Magmar hit Gyarados yet again before Gyarados managed to carry out its last order.
*Man, that thing's fast!*
And Gyarados flinched.
*Ugh, not good news.* "Gyarados, tail whip!"
"Magmar, another quick attack!"
Magmar beat Gyarados to the punch yet again and uppercut it on the chin.
But before Gyarados could go down, it arched its tail up to its head, turned itself into a tire-like shape, and rolled toward Magmar. Magmar became confused. What kind of tactic was this?
Gyarados lengthened out and smashed its tail straight into Magmar's head. Magmar began to reel.
*Creative.* "Gyarados, hydro pump, right now!"
Gyarados blasted Magmar with another spray of water, this one more powerful than its surf attack. The attack knocked Magmar to the ground.
It got back up, but stumbled.
"One more!"
Magmar was downed yet again.
And it stayed down.
Blaine scowled so deeply that Kelly and Jason thought his face would fold in on itself. "Magmar, return."
Magmar was sucked back into its Poke ball, which was then returned to Blaine's belt.
"Our battle's finished, Blaine," said Jason, after he had likewise recalled Gyarados.
"It is, indeed." Blaine's scowl softened. "Pehaps I was a little harsh."
"It's all part of the game. I didn't come here to earn an apology, only a badge."
"You've earned both. Next time, I will be more considerate of trainers who challenge me. Obviously, your training skills have not been hampered, and they have proven superior to mine." Blaine bowed low, then pulled a small velvet bag out of his lab coat and threw it across the gym. It landed neatly in Jason's lap.
"Inside, you will find your badge and winnings. Now, please take your leave; I wish to be alone."
Jason bowed his head, wheeled around, and exited the doors he'd entered. He turned the chair back around and brought his Electabuzz into existence.
"Take me upstairs, Electabuzz."
Kelly grinned at him. "What, you're not gonna even consider asking me?"
Jason returned the smile. "Do you seriously want to lug my weight all the way up the steps?"
Kelly shook her head and followed Jason and Electabuzz.
***
When Jason and Kelly found out that the Indigo League Championship was going to be in a mere five days, they were understandably in a hurry to get there. Jason chose to forego the water route and instead readied his Fearow and Charizard for flight.
"Why two flyers instead of just one?" asked Kelly.
"Because if one of us falls, I don't think the other one should have to go through the traumatic experience of going after the one."
"By that argument, you could have used two flyers when we went to Viridian City."
"That was before I became paralyzed. It's more likely now that it could happen to me."
She smiled sarcastically. "You're protecting me. How sweet of you."
"Yeah, I know."
She shook her head. "So, which one do I get?"
"Which one you want?"
"I think Fearow, since I've flown on it before."
"Suit yourself." Having changed his team to include Gengar, he brought it out and asked, "Would you be so kind as to lift me onto Charizard's back, please?"
Gengar was only too happy to help its master out. Once Jason was safely on, he turned back to Gengar. "Want to ride along? It'll give you some time out of that ball."
"Gengar!" It nodded and hopped on behind Jason.
"Okay, then. Let's get going. Off to Viridian City. We'll ride Rapidash to Indigo Plateau from there."
***
The flight was uneventful, and few words were exchanged. There wasn't much to say. They'd both gotten used to the ocean; though seeing it from the sky was momentarily breathtaking, it soon became commonplace.
Jason didn't tire during the flight, and even less when they finally made it back to the ground; if anything, the entire thing spurred him on. Once they had landed, Jason recalled Charizard and Fearow and brought out Rapidash. He kept Gengar out of its ball, though. It provided him with a sense of security. If either he or Kelly were about to fall off Rapidash for whatever reason, Gengar would be there to catch them.
Jason was more worried about himself falling than Kelly, of course. His disability allowed for considerable leeway in that area.
Kelly, on the other hand, was quite tired by the time they landed; somewhere in the evening, just as the sun was setting. Since Jason's accident, she'd been getting used to shorter days and longer nights, and now that they were on the road again, it was catching up with her. Still, she was awake enough to get onto Rapidash's back and cling for dear life to Jason's as he spurred his Pokemon toward their final destination for this journey.
***
They had been riding Rapidash for some time when Kelly fell asleep on Jason's back.
Jason chuckled. "Hey, look at that, Rapidash. You're running so smoothly you put Kelly to sleep. How about that, huh?"
Rapidash whinnied in response and continued to run.
Jason couldn't kick Rapidash in the sides to spur it.
But he didn't need to.
All he needed were words of encouragement.
He saw the kicking as something rather rude and cruel to do to an animal that had done no harm to its master. So he had never once kicked Rapidash in the sides for anything. He spurred it by encouraging it.
*That's all they really need. Right, Gengar?*
"Gengar."
Jason grinned. He knew Gengar had been probing his mind. He turned to his mischievous ghost Pokemon and asked, "What are you looking for?"
Gengar glanced at Kelly, then back at Jason.
*Kelly...*
Just thinking about her was starting to make Jason feel something he'd not felt since... since...
The memory failed him.
And suddenly, he knew what Gengar was invading his mind for.
He turned back to Gengar, grinned again, and said, "Ohh, no. You ain't getting that from me."
Smirking, Gengar swung its arm and snapped its claw-like fingers in mock frustration.
*We'll be at Indigo Plateau soon. I can only wonder as to how strong trainers there will be.
But I can do it. I have faith. Faith in myself, and faith in my Pokemon.
And when I have faith, where can I go wrong?*
Astride his Rapidash...
Jason Creight raced on.
To Be Continued
Automatically, he began to squirm and stretch. He rolled his eyes when he realized his legs weren't stretching.
*I hate reflex reactions. Of course they won't stretch,* he thought. He began to push himself off the ground, but it became extremely difficult when the nerves in his legs wouldn't fire.
*I really shouldn't be sleeping on the ground anymore,* he thought. *Tonight I'll just stay in the chair.*
He finally managed to push himself into a sitting position, a position he stayed in just long enough to unfold his wheelchair. With greater difficulty than getting himself to sit up, he managed to push and shove his way into it.
*Yeah, definitely should stay in the chair.*
"You know, you shouldn't be sleeping on the ground," said Kelly from inside her tent.
"Yeah, I know," Jason muttered. "So I learn a couple things the hard way." Then he slapped his legs. "But hey, today's a special occasion!"
"I hear there are stairs leading to the actual gym," said Kelly.
Jason shrugged. "Well, either you can push me, or one of my Pokemon can."
"Hmm." Jason could see Kelly's silhouette dressing. "It might be fun to just stand back and shove you off."
"I'd make sure I took you with me," Jason answered, donning his shirt, watch, and bike gloves.
"I'm sure." Kelly finished dressing and got to work on collapsing her tent.
Jason grinned.
It seemed as if it had been only a couple of weeks ago that he'd faced down his brother in Pallet Town. Of course, he knew better than that; it had been a little over two months, and if he needed anyone to confirm it, he needed only to ask someone the date.
He looked down at his useless legs.
*Thirteen years old and I'm crippled for life. Spectacular.*
Then he looked up at the volcano. "I sincerely hope the gym isn't up there."
"I heard the backup gym is there, but I don't know where the real one is. Of course, no one wants to tell me. All that strange guy said was, 'Your challenge lies not in the leader, but in the volcano.' What the heck's that supposed to mean?"
Jason considered the words for a moment. "What did that strange guy look like?"
"Like a hippie. He had a flowered shirt, long brown hair, sunglasses... I think the hair wasn't really brown, though."
"Why?"
"His mustache was white. Isn't that weird? You'd think if he wanted to dye his hair, he'd have dyed his mustache, too."
Jason thought about this. *Blaine? Possibly... if he was wearing a wig. The books said he's bald. His hair must've been singed off or something. And he's been known to speak in riddles.*
And then he thought about the words a bit more. *Maybe he wasn't talking about our internal conflict, so much as he was talking about my battle...
In the* volcano*?
Or * in * the volcano?
That's it!*
"That's it!" he exclaimed, causing Kelly to jump in surprise. "He didn't mean what the challenge was! He meant *where* the challenge is supposed to be!"
"What?"
"In the volcano, Kelly! The gym is inside the volcano!"
She smiled, a measure of skepticism showing. "Then I suppose you know who the strange guy was, right?"
"Yeah! It was Blaine, the gym leader here! He speaks in riddles to trainers looking to challenge him, I suppose to check their logic skills or something. Now all we need to do is find the entrance to the gym! Let's go!"
Jason wheeled off with such speed that Kelly needed to run to keep up.
***
They had gone all the way across town, circling the base of the volcano, when Kelly finally found what they were looking for: a cave, set right into the base.
"Yeah, I'll bet this is it. Let's go on in," said Jason.
"What if it isn't and you get stuck?" asked Kelly.
"Then I'll bring out Electabuzz to help."
Kelly sighed as she watched Jason wheel himself inside. "Impossible man."
She followed him in.
***
"You convinced now?" he asked.
"I guess so. Want me to push you down?"
"Yeah. Nice and easy, if you please," said Jason.
"No problem." Kelly was tempted to rock Jason backward as hard as she could, but her self-preservation instinct kicked in and she chose otherwise.
Jason exaggerated each bump, no matter how minuscule. "Oof! Uff! Oy!"
"You know, you're impossible to please," said Kelly.
"No, I'm not. I'm just giving you a hard time. You're doing great, really."
When they reached the bottom of the stairs, they beheld a pair of gargantuan titanium-copper alloy doors. They could both feel the intense heat emanating from it. Kelly reached out and was about to touch it with her finger when Jason slapped her hand away. "Don't touch that or your finger'll burn straight off your hand."
"Well, then, what do you suggest we do about it?"
Jason enlarged a Poke ball. "Think physics."
He tossed the ball, and Staryu appeared a moment later.
Kelly looked down at Jason. "Why Staryu?"
"Why not?" he replied. "It can open a door, I think. And besides, I don't want to go bursting in there with my big guns there for him to see."
She shrugged. "Suit yourself."
"Thanks, I will. Staryu, water gun, right on the handle."
"Hyah!" Staryu aimed its top point--*head?* Kelly wondered--at the handle and fired a powerful blast of cold water at it. The initial blast turned to steam instantly, but after a few seconds, the water was cooling the door to such an extent that Jason and Kelly could hear the metal constricting around the handle.
Jason pushed his brake levers into position, reached into the water flow, gripped the handle, and shoved the door open.
Beyond the door, they saw the gym.
"Whoa," said Jason, as he recalled Staryu.
The immense gym floor was carved from stone, and its four corners were each held up by titanium chains, each of the links no smaller than an Onix's head. The floor was suspended directly above a boiling lava pool about a hundred feet below.
The heat was almost unbearable.
"So, you figured it out."
Jason and Kelly looked up and saw a Charizard hovering twenty feet above them. Riding the Charizard was a bald man with a long white mustache and sunglasses. His white lab coat clashed with his otherwise tropical-style clothing.
Jason's eyes hardened. *Blaine.*
"I wasn't expecting a trainer in a wheelchair," the old man grinned. "Hopefully, your Pokemon are a little more agile than you are, my boy."
"Ouch, that hurts," Jason responded, sarcasm dripping from his voice. "But out here, it doesn't matter. Because my Pokemon can still beat yours, whether their master is paralyzed or not. That said, I challenge you to a battle."
Blaine laughed. "Very well, young trainer, but you will not defeat me. And I will be three thousand credits richer."
"We'll see about that."
Blaine's Charizard landed on the other side of the floor and stayed there just long enough for the gym leader to dismount. Then it took flight again and landed on the titanium chain behind and to the left of Blaine. Blaine enlarged a Great ball. "Prepare to be burned!"
He threw the ball.
A Ninetails came into existence a moment later and began spitting fire in random directions.
"You're all washed up!" Jason responded, and he enlarged and threw a Great ball of his own.
"Cl-l-l-loyster!" Jason's Cloyster floated up to the center of the floor.
"Ninetails, fire blast!"
"Cloyster, reflect!"
Blaine's Ninetails conjured what looked like a stick figure of fire towards Cloyster, but Cloyster had heard Jason's order in time and reacted to it instantly by closing its shell completely and conjuring a mystical "mirror barrier." The flames were reflected straight back at Ninetails a moment later. Of course, the attack didn't harm it much, but it showed Blaine that Jason knew what he was doing, and that he meant business.
"Cloyster, auorora beam!"
Cloyster reopened its shell and its grin widened as it gathered energy and expelled it in one concentrated, powerful burst. Ninetails was still reeling somewhat from the reflection of its own attack, and so was unprepared for the next one. It was struck by the beam just below the neck, and it made a squealing bark in protest.
"Ninetails, another fire blast!"
"Cloyster, hydro pump!"
Another conjured figure of flame rocketed toward Cloyster, only to be extinguished by Cloyster's hydro pump. A lot of the water steamed at the contact point, but a lot also made it through and drenched Ninetails, who stumbled and fell back from its opponent's attack.
"One more hydro pump, Cloyster!"
As Ninetails was still trying to get up, Cloyster sprayed it with another intense blast of water. Ninetails hit the ground again and was pushed almost all the way back to Blaine's box.
Blaine grimaced and pulled out his Great ball. "Ninetails, return." He looked up at Jason. "You're pretty good, but you're no match for this one." He threw another Great ball. "Go, Flareon!"
"Bring it on!" said Jason, and he threw a Poke ball. "Take it to him, Vaporeon!"
Kelly snorted at the situation; Blaine and Jason had just called for two radically different evolutions of Eevee to fight each other.
"Flareon, sand attack!"
"Vaporeon, surf attack!"
Just as a storm of sand began to form, it was turned to mud by Vaporeon's unavoidable attack, causing Flareon to stumble and fall. The water of the attack ran over the edge of the gym floor, of course, and turned to steam in the extreme heat of the lava pool below.
"Vaporeon, mud slap!"
Vaporeon used the pasty sand on the floor to simulate mud and splashed it into its opponent's eyes. Flareon stumbled around, trying desperately to see past the wet sand.
"Okay, Vaporeon, bubblebeam!"
Vaporeon sucked in a breath, its underside growing to near-impossible proportions, and then it released its breath in an explosive burst of water- heavy globules. They splashed against Flareon's exposed side and knocked it over yet again.
It didn't get up this time.
Blaine recalled Flareon and growled. "Okay, then. Perhaps I should stop talking and just battle."
"Yeah, maybe you should," Jason shot back. "Call your next Pokemon."
"Very well. Charizard!"
Blaine's Charizard took to the air yet again and landed on the gym floor. It had been watching the battle the entire time, inspecting Jason's style, and now waited patiently for him to call his next Pokemon.
Jason pulled out an Ultra ball and tossed it. "Let's see you shine, Lapras!"
Kelly knew what Jason was doing. He was holding Gyarados in reserve, since it was his best water type. She guessed he was suspecting Blaine of withholding his best Pokemon to the very end, and Jason was holding to the same strategy so as not to tire his best one fighting the smaller guns.
*But if a Charizard isn't his best Pokemon, what is?*
"Charizard, wing attack!"
Charizard wasted no time; it flapped its reddish-orange wings, and gusts of wind blew with the force of a slap in the face. Lapras was stung for a moment, but it quickly absorbed the rest of the impact. It was, for all intents and purposes, immobilized on the gym floor.
"Lapras, hydro pump!"
"Charizard, dodge it!"
A spray of super-pressurized water gushed out of Lapras' mouth, but its efforts were in vain; Charizard was managing to dodge all the blasts.
"Now fly, Charizard!"
*Uh-oh,* thought Jason. Lapras didn't have an attack that could hit Charizard in the air...
"Lapras, counter!"
Lapras' body began to glow an electric blue just as Charizard crashed into it.
Lapras didn't budge an inch.
Charizard was blasted across the gym by the force of its own attack. It finally came to a rest... having made a Charizard impression in the crater's wall.
"Hydro pump!"
Lapras again blasted an incredible amount of water from its mouth, this time striking Charizard squarely between the wings.
"Why not go for the tail, boy? Squeamish?" Blaine sneered.
"I'm not interested in killing your Charizard, only in taking it out of the fight," Jason responded. "One more, Lapras, it's still moving!"
Another blast of water, and Charizard dropped out of the dent it had made toward the lava below. Blaine's recall came just in time.
"I don't suppose you want to forfeit?" asked Jason, recalling Lapras.
"Not for an instant!" Blaine snapped, as he brought out his last ball. "Take him down, Magmar!"
"A Magmar!" Kelly breathed. She knew they were rare; she hadn't dreamed she'd see one, much less one that was trained.
She saw the half-grin on Jason's face and knew he'd expected this. But then again, what did she expect of *him*? She knew perfectly well that he was in the habit of researching the gym leader he was going to face next.
And she saw him pull out Gyarados' Poke ball.
"How about you, boy? You gonna surrender?" Blaine barked, not having noticed the ball.
Jason scoffed, then enlarged the ball and threw it, revealing Gyarados to Blaine at long last.
"Does that answer your question?" Jason returned.
Gyarados and Magmar stared each other down for a moment.
Jason and Blaine issued their orders in the same instant.
"Gyarados, surf attack!"
"Magmar, fire punch!"
Magmar sprinted up to Gyarados with incredible speed and slugged it across the jaw with a flaming fist. Gyarados was taken down by the hit, but it managed to get back up under the merciless gaze of Magmar.
Then it conjured what little moisture there was within the gym and filled it with torrents of water, which all streamed onto Magmar from all directions. Magmar withered under the bombardment, but stood its ground.
"Hydro pump, quick!"
"Magmar, quick attack!"
Magmar hit Gyarados yet again before Gyarados managed to carry out its last order.
*Man, that thing's fast!*
And Gyarados flinched.
*Ugh, not good news.* "Gyarados, tail whip!"
"Magmar, another quick attack!"
Magmar beat Gyarados to the punch yet again and uppercut it on the chin.
But before Gyarados could go down, it arched its tail up to its head, turned itself into a tire-like shape, and rolled toward Magmar. Magmar became confused. What kind of tactic was this?
Gyarados lengthened out and smashed its tail straight into Magmar's head. Magmar began to reel.
*Creative.* "Gyarados, hydro pump, right now!"
Gyarados blasted Magmar with another spray of water, this one more powerful than its surf attack. The attack knocked Magmar to the ground.
It got back up, but stumbled.
"One more!"
Magmar was downed yet again.
And it stayed down.
Blaine scowled so deeply that Kelly and Jason thought his face would fold in on itself. "Magmar, return."
Magmar was sucked back into its Poke ball, which was then returned to Blaine's belt.
"Our battle's finished, Blaine," said Jason, after he had likewise recalled Gyarados.
"It is, indeed." Blaine's scowl softened. "Pehaps I was a little harsh."
"It's all part of the game. I didn't come here to earn an apology, only a badge."
"You've earned both. Next time, I will be more considerate of trainers who challenge me. Obviously, your training skills have not been hampered, and they have proven superior to mine." Blaine bowed low, then pulled a small velvet bag out of his lab coat and threw it across the gym. It landed neatly in Jason's lap.
"Inside, you will find your badge and winnings. Now, please take your leave; I wish to be alone."
Jason bowed his head, wheeled around, and exited the doors he'd entered. He turned the chair back around and brought his Electabuzz into existence.
"Take me upstairs, Electabuzz."
Kelly grinned at him. "What, you're not gonna even consider asking me?"
Jason returned the smile. "Do you seriously want to lug my weight all the way up the steps?"
Kelly shook her head and followed Jason and Electabuzz.
***
When Jason and Kelly found out that the Indigo League Championship was going to be in a mere five days, they were understandably in a hurry to get there. Jason chose to forego the water route and instead readied his Fearow and Charizard for flight.
"Why two flyers instead of just one?" asked Kelly.
"Because if one of us falls, I don't think the other one should have to go through the traumatic experience of going after the one."
"By that argument, you could have used two flyers when we went to Viridian City."
"That was before I became paralyzed. It's more likely now that it could happen to me."
She smiled sarcastically. "You're protecting me. How sweet of you."
"Yeah, I know."
She shook her head. "So, which one do I get?"
"Which one you want?"
"I think Fearow, since I've flown on it before."
"Suit yourself." Having changed his team to include Gengar, he brought it out and asked, "Would you be so kind as to lift me onto Charizard's back, please?"
Gengar was only too happy to help its master out. Once Jason was safely on, he turned back to Gengar. "Want to ride along? It'll give you some time out of that ball."
"Gengar!" It nodded and hopped on behind Jason.
"Okay, then. Let's get going. Off to Viridian City. We'll ride Rapidash to Indigo Plateau from there."
***
The flight was uneventful, and few words were exchanged. There wasn't much to say. They'd both gotten used to the ocean; though seeing it from the sky was momentarily breathtaking, it soon became commonplace.
Jason didn't tire during the flight, and even less when they finally made it back to the ground; if anything, the entire thing spurred him on. Once they had landed, Jason recalled Charizard and Fearow and brought out Rapidash. He kept Gengar out of its ball, though. It provided him with a sense of security. If either he or Kelly were about to fall off Rapidash for whatever reason, Gengar would be there to catch them.
Jason was more worried about himself falling than Kelly, of course. His disability allowed for considerable leeway in that area.
Kelly, on the other hand, was quite tired by the time they landed; somewhere in the evening, just as the sun was setting. Since Jason's accident, she'd been getting used to shorter days and longer nights, and now that they were on the road again, it was catching up with her. Still, she was awake enough to get onto Rapidash's back and cling for dear life to Jason's as he spurred his Pokemon toward their final destination for this journey.
***
They had been riding Rapidash for some time when Kelly fell asleep on Jason's back.
Jason chuckled. "Hey, look at that, Rapidash. You're running so smoothly you put Kelly to sleep. How about that, huh?"
Rapidash whinnied in response and continued to run.
Jason couldn't kick Rapidash in the sides to spur it.
But he didn't need to.
All he needed were words of encouragement.
He saw the kicking as something rather rude and cruel to do to an animal that had done no harm to its master. So he had never once kicked Rapidash in the sides for anything. He spurred it by encouraging it.
*That's all they really need. Right, Gengar?*
"Gengar."
Jason grinned. He knew Gengar had been probing his mind. He turned to his mischievous ghost Pokemon and asked, "What are you looking for?"
Gengar glanced at Kelly, then back at Jason.
*Kelly...*
Just thinking about her was starting to make Jason feel something he'd not felt since... since...
The memory failed him.
And suddenly, he knew what Gengar was invading his mind for.
He turned back to Gengar, grinned again, and said, "Ohh, no. You ain't getting that from me."
Smirking, Gengar swung its arm and snapped its claw-like fingers in mock frustration.
*We'll be at Indigo Plateau soon. I can only wonder as to how strong trainers there will be.
But I can do it. I have faith. Faith in myself, and faith in my Pokemon.
And when I have faith, where can I go wrong?*
Astride his Rapidash...
Jason Creight raced on.
To Be Continued
