Chapter 13--On the Road Again
Matt had reached cold, snowy peaks early that morning. Not bothered by the steep, rugged mountains or the cold, he stumped ahead cheerfully, seeking a new town and another Gym. Matt had unknowingly bypassed the second Gym completely, and was now traveling toward the third.
He looked at the jagged, far-off peaks of the mountains all around him. Enjoying the beauty of the wintry day, Matt gazed at the crisp mounds of snow and treacherous, icy slopes around him. As the snow worsened to blizzard conditions, he smiled and trekked on, hoping to reach the next town around noon.
Being the amazing, super-human person that he was, Matt fulfilled his intention and strode into a small, ice-bound village just after lunchtime. Walking into the Pokemon Center, he saw only a few trainers, all wearing warm clothing of a rough, heavy material. He saw that, although the thermostat was kept high, it was still barely a comfortable temperature in the small, cozy room. It was certainly cold!
The Nurse Joy smiled at the sight of a new arrival. "Hello! You seem a little out-of-place here in Ice Falls. You must not come from the mountains. I suppose you're a trainer, hmm? Come to challenge Gillian? He's an excellent trainer, you know. Since you're not from around here, I'll give you little tip. I see you have a Vulpix. You may be tempted to use it in your match, since it's a fire-type and Gillian uses ice-types, but don't do it. Trust me--you'll be better off using a water or ice-type yourself. Just a bit of advice, trainer. Oh, my! You have a Caterpie! I must say, I don't see too many of them around here. You see, we don't have many bug-types in the mountains, and there are no Caterpies at all. He may come in handy for your match with Gillian. Good luck, and enjoy your visit to the mountains!"
Thanking the kindly nurse for her excellent advice, Matt departed. Stepping outside, he immediately recognized the Gym. It was a fitting tribute to the climate of Ice Falls, made of a shiny, ice-like material that shimmered in the sunlight. Tall, pointed spires rose into the air like icicles on a winter morn. Standing before the doors, Matt shivered. The structure was far too familiar for his liking. On the doors was a fancy engraving of a snowflake. Opening them, Matt stepped into the shadowy interior.
Inside, the Gym was unlit and pitch-black. Matt wondered if Gillian might not be present when a voice came from the back of the room. Stepping into the pool of light by the doorway, Gillian spoke.
"You must be a new challenger. Choose three Pokemon and get ready to battle!"
The Gym Leader was young, perhaps nineteen, with striking features in a fine-boned face. His dark hair shadowed his pale, ice-blue eyes, and he looked ready to battle. Matt carefully selected three Pokeballs. Still unable to see the field, he was forced to choose blindly. In the end, he selected Squirtle, Hurricane, and Caterpie. As he stepped into the arena, the lights flashed on. Matt gasped in awe and admiration.
The battle arena was a spectacular display of ice and snow. On one side of the field, a small pool of frigid water was bordered by drifts of soft, powdery snow. An ice field lay on the other side, dotted with frozen stalagmites. The center of the field contained large snow drifts and chill winds. It was an ice Pokemon paradise.
Gillian smiled at the amazement on Matt's face. "You like my Gym? My Pokemon and I worked hard to build it. I designed it to be not only a battle arena, but a home for them. My Pokemon are comfortable in this icy habitat. But enough chatter; let us begin. For my first Pokemon, I choose- -Siblizzia!" A beautiful tiger with thick, white fur, black stripes, and blue eyes the same shade as her master's appeared, tail twitching inquisitvely. "I captured my Siblizzia on a trip to Winter Isle. Long hours of training have made it one of my strongest Pokemon! All right, Matt--hit me with your best!"
Smiling, Matt drew out a single Pokeball. "In that case, I choose-- Squirtle!" The tiny turtle Pokemon appeared with a cry.
Gillian nodded to Siblizzia. "Let's show Squirtle why your kind are masters of the cold!"
Siblizzia crouched down, stalking slowly closer to Squirtle, her wide eyes taking in every detail of the arena. Siblizza's large, padded paws made almost no sound as they supported her weight in the thick snow.
Matt grinned cockily. "Squirtle, dodge when it attacks you."
Squirtle crouched down too as it prepared to leap out of the way. To their surprise, however, Gillian did not order an attack.
"Siblizzia, use Arctic Skies!"
Immediately, a fierce blizzard started. Matt found it difficult to see, and neither he nor Squirtle was prepared for Siblizzia's Body Slam. Squirtle was knocked backward towards the ice field. Matt, realizing this, decided that Squirtle might have the advantage on the ice.
"Squirtle, head to the ice field!"
Gillian shook his head. "Bad move, Matt. Squirtle may have been floundering in the snow, but he doesn't stand a chance on the ice. Siblizzia, duck and dodge!"
Uses the stalagmites dotting the arena to push off from, Siblizzia easily ran circles around poor Squirtle, who quickly became dizzy and confused. Finally, he slammed into one of the pillars while chasing Siblizzia and was knocked out.
Grimacing, Matt chose another Pokeball. Hurricane erupted onto the battlefield with a fierce cry. With its aerial advantage, it quickly exhausted Siblizzia.
"Siblizzia, return. You have done well; rest now. A cat on the ground, but a bird in the air, Matt. I found this Pokemon on one of my journeys to the Mystery Leagues. High in the mountains, I found a small nest. I took one of the five eggs, cared for it until it hatched, and raised it well. Now, I send my beloved ice bird into battle. Go-- Articuno!" A beautiful, ice-blue bird with a white-feathered belly and long, graceful wings appeared, clacking its short beak. A small crest of feathers sprouted from its forehead, and its tail was incredibly long, nearly twice the size of its body and very flowing.
Matt gasped in amazement. The legendary ice bird Pokemon gave a piercing cry and dove toward Hurricane. An aerial dogfight followed, the two birds swooping and diving at each other, now colliding, now slashing with their talons. Finally, both collapsed.
"Articuno, return! Matt, you have fought well. For my last Pokemon, I choose my first Pokemon! I met Silver when I was very young. As a boy, I became lost in the mountains one day. I would surely have frozen to death if not for Silver, who guided me home. Since that day, I have loved ice Pokemon, and have traveled the world to find them. I choose--Silver!" A delicate, silver-furred fox appeared before Matt, waving its brush tail and tipping its sharp muzzle sideways inquisitively.
Smiling, Matt also chose his last Pokeball. "Your best for my best, Gillian. Caterpie may not have been my first Pokemon, but he is certainly one of my most powerful. Let's do this, Caterpie!"
The bright green caterpillar Pokemon bounded out from Matt's backpack, to Gillian's interest. He had seen a Caterpie only once before, but had he seen a thousand Caterpies, he would not have found one like this.
"Silver, Quick Attack!"
Leaping into the air, Silver slammed Caterpie into a deep snow drift. Silence fell. Just Gillian as was about to declare Caterpie unable to battle, an enormous, moth-like Pokemon burst forth, shaking snow off its translucent wings. It was Locustod! Matt's Caterpie, an amazing special evolution Pokemon, was like nothing Gillian had ever seen. Caterpie was capable of temporarily evolving to a much more powerful form, then returning to its first form either when it chose to or when it ran out of energy.
"Locustod, use Psybeam!" A beam of iridecent, multicolored energy shot towards Silver.
Gillian clenched his fists. "Silver, use Ice Beam!" The fox Pokemon opened its mouth, and a beam of freezing air shot forth.
The two powerful attacks met explosively, sending clouds of snow and smoke over the field and the combatants. When the dust settled, Silver had fainted. Locustod flapped on for a few feet, then dropped as well, ready for a long rest as it reverted back to Caterpie form.
Gillian shook Matt's hand, smiling in admiration. "You have truly earned this Arctic Badge, Matt," he said as he handed Matt a clear badge fashioned to look like ice, in the shape of a many-pointed star. "You are a powerful and true-hearted trainer, and you will go far in our League. Good luck to you, Matt. The road to your next badge is in the west."
Matt set out after healing his Pokemon. Gillian had been a difficult opponent, but he was once again on his way. Having no idea of the traditional order Mountain League badges are earned in, he set off for the closest Gym--the fifth badge. Matt would earn his badges, no matter what order they came in. He never broke a promise to a friend.
-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-
In another town, Yuugi and Benjamin were also challenging a Gym Leader. Boris, leader of Stone Town and holder of the Slate Badge, grinned crookedly.
"Two each, kids. Now, who wants to go first?" Benjamin stepped forward. Boris's grin broadened. "In that case, I choose--Pinnacre!" Pinnacre was a large, stalactite-shaped mass of stone with two eerie, unblinking eyes.
Benjamin looked unconcerned. "Taru." Feraladile bounded forward.
"Dile dile!"
Benjamin smiled at it in a rare expression of affection. "Ready? Good! Don't forget to look up."
With that, the battle began. "Pinnacre, use Spike Smash!" Taru nimbly dodged this attack, retaliating with Hydro Jet. In response, Pinnacre headed to the ceiling, just as Benjamin had predicted. Looking like an ordinary stalactite, it began to spin.
"All right, Pinnacre--use Drill Slam!" Taru, dodging this as well, ended his battle with another Hydro Jet.
Boris looked frustrated. "All right, then--Graveler, attack now!" he said, as he threw forth another Pokeball. What looked like an enourmous, round, dark-gray boulder with legs, arms, and a small head of a lighter shade of gray appeared. It actually looked rather turtle-like, if turtles had boulders for shells.
Taru laughed uproariously before defeating Graveler with one well- placed Hydro Jet. Benjamin nonchalantly collected his triangular-shaped, slate gray Slate Badge from the astounded Boris before whispering some last- minute advice to Yuugi.
"All of your Pokemon are at a disadvantage against rock-types, although the field may affect that in one case. Yuugi, remember--support moves are like magic cards. Never think that battle is only attacking."
Yuugi stepped forward. "Somehow, I have a feeling this isn't going to be as easy as Benjamin's battle was..."
Boris selected two more Pokeballs. "Let's get this battle started! I choose--Sudowoodo!" A slim brown tree with a face, round balls rather than leaves at the end of its branches, and branches coming from its sides ending in "hands" with fingers made of three balls. Its roots spread into two bunches, making leg-like appendages.
Yuugi was confused. Sudowoodo appeared to be a tree, not a rock. Realizing that he wouldn't have known what to do no matter what it was, he sent out Luminaras. "Luminaras, attack!"
Boris stared at him. Was it possible that this trainer didn't even know his Pokemon's moves? The dark-haired boy had been so skilled--could this smaller child really be only a rookie? Boris had little time to wonder. Luminaras slammed into Sudowoodo.
"Umbre!"
Benjamin, like Boris, was bewildered. "Yuugi, Sudowoodo is a rock! Don't use physical attacks!" Turning to his Pokemon, he whispered, "He's such a skilled duelist and a powerful Summoner--how can he be such a poor Pokemon trainer?"
Yuugi thought about Benjamin's advice, as did his yami.
Luminaras used some type of mental attack in its first battle. Try that.
"Luminaras, do that thing you did last time we battled!"
From the sidelines, Benjamin helpfully called, "It's called Psychic!"
Luminaras did indeed use Psychic, although it had little affect; Sudowoodo had great stamina.
"Sudowoodo, use Earthquake!"
Yuugi was at a loss. He had no idea what was best to do, or even what was possible to do. Luckily, Luminaras was a much better battler than Yuugi. He slammed into Sudowoodo, knocking them both into the path of the Earthquake attack. When the dust settled, both Pokemon had fainted.
Boris shrugged. His next Pokemon would easily defeat this poor, pathetic rookie trainer. "I choose--Onix!" A giant gray rock-snake, made up of many boulders of increasing size from tail to head, appeared, the horn on its head nearly brushing the ceiling even though Boris' Gym was made to accomodate such a massive creature.
Yuugi was speechless with amazement and despair as he stared at the gargantuan rock-snake Pokemon. How could the Elocue he had decided to name Spark, his only remaining Pokemon, defeat this monster? Knowing this was the end, he sent out Spark.
Boris started to laugh. Although he tried to control himself, he laughed until tears rolled down his cheeks. "Hahahahahaha!!! Are--are you sure you won't just surrender? Your Pokemon...its attacks can't even hurt Onix!"
Yuugi sighed. Not only did he not know what attacks Spark knew, he now learned that they were all apparently useless.
Don't give up now! It's worth trying, even if it is hopeless. We have overcome more difficult circumstances than these in the past.
"But that was Duel Monsters! I don't know anything about Spark, and I have no way to find out what he can do."
If Kuribo could defeat the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, Spark can defeat this creature.
Yuugi took a deep breath. "Spark, attack!"
Spark blinked. "Elocue?" Unlike Luminaras, an experienced battler, Spark had no idea what Yuugi was trying to tell it to do.
Benjamin, seeing trouble, yelled, "Yuugi, use your Pokedex!"
Yuugi pulled the Pokedex out of his pocket. "Of course! Pokedex, what moves does Spark know?"
The electronic voice of the Pokedex began to elaborate. "Elocue's moves 1--Thundershock."
Further analysis was cut short, as Boris grew impatient with Yuugi's lack of knowledge and bizarre conversation with himself. "Onix, use Body Slam!"
Spark barely dodged Onix as it came hurtling by. "Spark, use Thundershock!" Spark did so, but it was to no avail. Onix was completely unaffected by the electric-type move. Yuugi, not knowing this, told Spark to continue, also to no avail.
At last, Yuugi consulted the Pokedex again. "Pokedex, why isn't Spark's attack working?"
The Pokedex beeped. "Electric moves do not affect ground-type Pokemon. Onix is half ground-type."
This was even more confusing to Yuugi. "Half ground-type? Why doesn't Thundershock affect Onix? That doesn't make any sense!" Yuugi fell silent for a moment. Then, he suddenly remembered. "Bandit Keith used machine-type monsters during Duelist Kingdom because they weren't affected by magical attacks! This is the same thing! I have to use physical attacks to defeat Onix! What physical attack moves does Spark know?"
What if it doesn't know any?
"It has to! Doesn't it?"
Try the Pokedex.
"Pokedex, what other moves does Spark know?"
The Pokedex opened once more. "Elocue's moves 2--Agility."
Yuugi looked panicked. "What else!?"
The Pokedex made an annoyed-sounding bleep. "Elocue currently knows no other moves."
Yuugi groaned. "Now what am I going to do? Agility doesn't sound like an attack. If it doesn't damage Onix, this battle is hopeless! Spark, use your Agility!"
Spark began to move quickly. Soon, it was moving faster than the eye could see clearly. Yuugi bit his lip, trying to come with a strategy, but he already felt defeated in his heart, making it much more difficult.
Yuugi's yami sensed his counterpart's despair. Don't give up yet! There must be some way that Agility can defeat this creature.
"How? It doesn't do any damage. Speed can't injure Onix!"
Never give up, Yuugi--there are always other options! the yami couldn't think of any at the moment, but he was confident that they must exist...right?
Yuugi thought about this. His yami was right--they couldn't give up while Vice was counting on them. As he watched the battle, he suddenly noticed something. "Wait--maybe agility can defeat Onyx!"
While Yuugi was contemplating the uses of Agility, Onix was chasing furiously after Spark. Because of Spark's enhanced speed, however, it repeatedly missed, crashing instead into the ceiling, the walls, and the floor.
"If I can force Onix to hit the walls, it may do damage to itself! Benjamin was right; support moves are like magic cards! Spark, stay still for a second!"
Spark paused in front of the wall. Onix came zooming forward, ready to crush Spark, but at the last possible second, Spark sped away with the help of Agility. At that point, the battle was won. Onix, after repeatedly slamming itself into the walls, finally reared up and prepared to squash Spark with a downward plunge. When its target disappeared, Onix roared with shock as its head became trapped in the floor.
Boris quickly returned Onix, smiling in spite of himself. "I took you for a rookie trainer at first, but I can see you've got real potential! Here--take your Slate Badge. You earned it, even if you are crazy!"
"Uh...thanks, I think," Yuugi said, smiling uncertainly. With that, he and Benjamin exited the Gym.
Because you kept talking to yourself.
"But I wasn't talking to myself," Yuugi said, surprised. "I was talking to you!" Yuugi paused for a moment. "Yami...thanks. I couldn't have done that without you."
It was your idea, his yami replied modestly. Hey...Yuugi...
"What is it?"
You're always calling me Yami. But, that isn't my name.
"I'm sorry...I needed to call you something, not just "spirit" all the time, and since you're kind of a dark spirit...yami means darkness...I won't if you don't want me to."
No, it's okay. I kinda like that name, actually.
"Oh. Well...okay then," Yuugi said mildly, not really sure where the spirit was going with this.
Um...I've been thinking...maybe...I could have that name? I mean, since I don't have one. I don't remember the one I used to have, if I had one, and I like Yami, so I just thought...you know...
"Of course, Yami," Yuugi said, smiling. Yuugi had always felt like yami was the spirit's name since that was how he addressed him, but thinking about it now, he realized that not having a real name would probably make you unhappy after a while. So, if the spirit wanted Yami to be his name, Yuugi was okay with that. "If it makes you happy."
....thanks.
Benjamin smiled slightly. Before meeting Yuugi, he had smiled very rarely; Darkling culture did not encourage smiling or any expression of joy or affection. Being around Yuugi, however, had brought out some of Benjamin's more human characteristics. Or maybe it just makes me happy, Benjamin thought to himself. It wasn't that he hadn't been happy before-- he just hadn't learned to show it. I guess it's true, Benjamin thought, that saying Yuugi's people have...what is it again? That's it...'you learn something new every day.'
Whatever challenges lay ahead, he and Yuugi would overcome them. Little did he know that an unexpected challenge would bring trouble of the hardest kind--the past.
