Fit To Be Tide
Mikan Island was larger than the islands that Ash and his friends previously visited in the Orange Archipelago, though a good amount of the island was taken up by a large forest and mountain untouched by man. Finding the Gym wouldn't be too much of a difficult task as there was only one settlement on the island, a fairly decent sized city.
"Thanks for the lift Lapras, now return and rest up for a bit. We might need you later," Ash offered his Pokemon an appreciative look while returning him to his Pokeball.
"Laaaaa!" Lapras uttered out a melodic tune as he disappeared back into the Pokeball.
Brock took a quick glance into his bag. "Alright, we've still got plenty of supplies so we could head straight there to the Mikan Gym."
"Alright, I can't wait to see what they have in store!" Ash clenched his fists while a look of excitement flashed across his face. "I wonder what battling style they'll have..." Lance did say that they utilized Triple, Rotation and Sky battles but didn't call out which Gyms did that specifically. If it happened to be a Sky Battle, then he'd simply head back to the Pokemon Center and pick up Pidgeot and Charizard. "Man there's got to be an easier way to switch Pokemon..." Ash muttered out.
"I'm sure that somebody's working on that." Chloe spoke while taking hold of his hand as the group began making their way into the city. "It'll just take awhile figuring out the right way, you don't want to be lugging around a large computer on your back do you?"
"Science has come pretty far, I'm sure somebody will figure something out before long." Brock gave a soft nod in agreement to Chloe's words.
"Just don't expect it anytime soon." Tracey added on.
The four walked across the city but couldn't locate the Gym anywhere causing Brock to approach a local in order to ask for directions. "Excuse me, sir but do you happen to know where the Mikan Gym is?"
"Hm? Oh, why it's just outside the city! Follow the trail for a mile or so along the coast and you'll eventually find it. Not hard to miss, it's the only building out there."
True enough the local man was correct, the Gym stood about a mile out from the city and sat not far off from the island's coast. The group began making their way towards the Gym while Team Rocket watched their approach from the safety of their Magikarp sub.
"It looks like the twerp is about to challenge a Gym Leader." James noted.
"Ugh, I thought he was done with those..." Meowth muttered.
"Well then we'll just wait for him to finish and strike later." Jessie sighed out.
"Hello? Anyone home? I'm here to challenge the Gym Leader!"
"Pika pika!" Ash and Pikachu shouted upon entering the Gym. The Gym Leader wasn't within view just yet but a large pool stood at the Gym's center, indicating that the Gym Leader favored Water types as there wasn't any sign of a standard battlefield. Silence greeted them for a short while but the backdoor would soon open to reveal an attractive women that appeared to be close to Brock's age. Hearts instantly filled Brock's eyes while he made a mad dash towards the attractive Gym Leader.
"Oh wow!"
"Oh, challengers? Hello there, my name's Cissy and I'm-"
Cissy went quiet as Brock dropped to a knee while holding his hand out to her. "Cissy, what a lovely name. You know, I'm something of a Gym Leader myself! I used to run the Pewter Gym and kept it in great shape! I left it behind me but I'd be interested in helping you run this Gym or even just give you some pointers if you'd do me the honor of going out with me!"
"Croa..." Croagunk's hand glowed a bright purple color as he prepared to jab Brock's backside.
"Huh?" Cissy blinked before shooting a bright shade of red. "I-I'm flattered Brock but I'm not actually looking to date right now, just got over a bad breakup."
"Ugh!" Brock face faulted while Croagunk laughed.
"Croa croa croa!" Croagunk croaked while grabbing hold of his trainer's leg before dragging him away from Cissy.
Cissy nervously sweated at the sight before turning her attention towards the others. Her gaze briefly flickered towards Tracey. "I've seen you around these parts before, you don't seem the Gym Challenger type so I'm guessing your friends are here to challenge me?"
"I'm not but my boyfriend is!" Chloe hastily shook her head while pointing towards Ash who gave Cissy a quick wave.
"Hello there, my name is Ash Ketchum and I've come to challenge you to a Gym battle!"
"Pi Pikachu!"
"Tox tox!"
"Well Ash, I'd be happy to accept your challenge!" Cissy grinned while tilting her head to the side. "Though based on the way you and your friends are dressed, I'm guessing you aren't from these parts." Ash, Brock and Chloe were wearing their usual attire while Tracey was more suitably dressed for the warmer climate. "Do you know what a Triple Battle consists of?"
Ash, Brock, Chloe and Tracey all quickly shook their heads.
"No but I'm always up for a challenge! Can you explain it to me?"
"Pika pika?"
"Well a Triple Battle is a special type of battle where each trainer sends out three Pokemon at once, though unlike a Rotation Battle all of the Pokemon are consistently involved and in danger of getting hit so you've got to plan your moves carefully while trying to hit multiple targets as whoever loses a Pokemon first is at a massive disadvantage!" Cissy warned before offering him a light smile. "You understand all that?"
"So no Earthquake..." Ash muttered to himself. Electric attacks would also be off the table for the duration of the battle as everyone within the pool would get hurt. "Yeah, I think I'm ready." Ash gave off a light nod while feeling thankful that he switched out his team before leaving Valencian Island.
"Alright, let's get this battle started! I need a distraction from my thoughts!" Cissy excitedly leaped towards the opposing side of the battlefield and quickly reached for her belt. "Seadra, Blastoise, Mantine let's party!"
"Seadra!"
"Toise!"
"Mantine!"
"Whoa, who's that Pokemon?!" Ash exclaimed as a large dark blue manta ray Pokemon burst out alongside Seadra and Blastoise.
"Mantine the Kite Pokemon, if it builds up enough speed swimming, it can jump out above the waves and glide for over 300 feet."
"Water/Flying, just like Gyarados..." Ash clenched his fists lightly before grabbing hold of his own set of Pokeballs. "Kingler, Lapras, Kabutops I choose you!"
"Cookie!"
"Laaaaa!"
"Kabutops!" Kabutops and Kingler landed atop the pool's floating battle platform while Lapras landed in the pool itself.
"Lapras start off by freezing the pool with Ice Beam!"
"Laaaa!" Lapras fired a beam of ice towards the water beneath him, the water slowly began freezing up making it quite awkward for Seadra who quickly leaped from the freezing water shortly before it froze up!
"Seadra..." The Pokemon uttered a sigh of relief.
"Clever, Ash took advantage of Lapras' Ice type status!" Chloe remarked. "Lapras shouldn't have any trouble maneuvering across the ice but Seadra and Blastoise might!" Kingler on the other had was much too slow for the ice to affect his movements while Kabutops practically flew with how quick and rapid his attacks were. Mantine was flying safely above the pool but could be dealt with later.
Cissy smirked while stretching her hand towards the air above. "Blastoise use Surf!"
"Blastoise!" A large wave of water formed beneath Blastoise, Seadra and Mantine safely rose alongside their teammate as the wave grew larger, riding alongside him as the wave came crashing down upon Kabutops, Kingler and Lapras. The three were knocked back but weren't left in critical condition.
"Now Mantine, follow up with Bullet Seed!" Cissy exclaimed while pointing towards Kabutops. "Seadra use Dragon Pulse!" Cissy cried while pointing towards Kingler.
"Man... tinetinetinetine!" Mantine repeatedly cried while firing off a barrage of seeds as if he was part machine gun. The seeds shot towards Kabutops and repeatedly blasted him causing him to grunt out as he pushed back against the ice.
"Sea!" Seadra fired off a multicolored dragon shaped energy beam towards Kingler, the attack exploded upon contact and pushed Kingler back.
"K-Kingler..." Kingler grunted out while shaking off the attack.
"Alright Lapras, use Blizzard!"
"Laaaaaa!" Lapras sung out as a fierce blizzard of snow and ice swept towards his opponents, temporarily obscuring their view as they were pelted by the attack.
"Kabutops use Night Slash, Kingler use Guillotine! Let's take advantage of the cover!"
Kabutops' scythes glowed a dark-purple color as he raced towards Mantine before leaping up to slash across the manta ray's body!
"Tine!" Mantine screeched out.
"Kingler!" Kingler pinched his large pincers in a menacing fashion as he approached his target before lashing out, his pincers sank directly into Blastoise's chest causing the large tortoise to cry out before keeling over in defeat as swirls formed within his eyes.
"Alright, we got one!" Ash cheered.
"Way to go, Ash! You can do it!"
"Eevoi!" Chloe and Eevee cheered.
Cissy formed a light frown as she returned Blastoise to his Pokeball. 'He got lucky, if Blastoise was able to see he'd have avoided that.'
"Mantine use Agility, then follow up with another Bullet Seed!"
"Mantine!" Mantine cried while twirling in place before firing off another barrage of seeds towards Kabutops. The seeds were too fast for even Kabutops to avoid as they flew like bullets before piercing his rocky hide.
"T-Topss!" Kabutops hissed out before dropping onto his side as swirls began forming within his eyes.
"Poor Kabutops..." Chloe frowned. The quadruple weakness to Grass attacks definitely didn't help his odds.
"Kabutops return, you were great out there and deserve a long rest. We'll take it from here!" Ash smiled at Kabutops' ball as the prehistoric Pokemon returned to it. "Alright Lapras, use Hyper Beam to knock Mantine from the sky! Kingler use Crabhammer on Seadra!"
"Cookie!" Kingler's pincer glowed a bright white color as he shot across the icy field before slamming his pincer down against Seadra's face! Seadra grunted out and Kingler soon followed his example as a purple tint spread across his face. "Cookie..."
"Oh no, Kingler!"
"Pika pi!"
"Poison Point!" Chloe snapped her fingers. "I forgot Seadra could have that ability!"
Ash was silent for a moment as he wondered how Seadra had that ability considering that it wasn't a Poison type like his Nidoking.
Mantine fell towards the icy ground after Lapras' Hyper Beam made contact with him, the manta ray crashed against the ice which soon cracked and broke apart beneath him causing him to fall directly into the freezing water! "M-Mantine..." Mantine shivered.
"Laaa..." Lapras panted out as he began recharging.
"Laser Focus then follow up with Dragon Pulse!" Cissy exclaimed while pointing towards Kingler. "Mantine use Psybeam!"
"Mantine!" Mantine fired a multicolored beam of telekinetic energy towards Lapras while Seadra locked his gaze onto Kingler before firing off another beam of dragon shaped energy. Lapras was pushed back by the attack and uttered out a light grunt while Kingler immediately collapsed as a result of the critical blow!
"C-Cookie..." Kingler groaned out as his body hit against the ice, swirls spiraled around his eyes as he fell into a state of unconsciousness.
"Kingler return, you were amazing out there and deserve a long rest." Ash returned Kingler to his ball while fixating his gaze upon Lapras.
"Lapras is the only one left, you think he can handle Seadra and Mantine on his own?" Tracey questioned.
"Who knows, we don't really know how powerful Lapras is just yet." Brock shrugged.
"Okay Lapras, let's use Sing!" Now that Kingler and Kabutops were off the table, Ash didn't have to worry about them potentially falling under Lapras' spell.
"Laaa laaaa laaaaa!" Lapras cried out in a melodic tune. Seadra and Mantine's eyes slowly began drooping shut before fully closing as light snores emitted from their throats.
"Tine..."
"Dra..."
"Now let's hit them with Blizzard!"
"Laaa!" Lapras sang out while a fierce blizzard of snow and ice shot across the field, pelting against Mantine and Seadra. Both Pokemon shot wide awake and yelped out at the sudden cool air, Mantine dropped from the sky shortly after and into the icy water with a defeated groan while Seadra remained wide awake and eager to finish this!
"Mantine come back!" Cissy swiftly returned Mantine to his ball before stretching out her arm to call out the next attack. "Alright Seadra, Laser Focus then hit them with Hydro Pump!"
"Sea..." Seadra locked his gaze onto his opponent while a powerful geyser formed within his snout.
"Lapras counter with Hyper Beam!"
"LAAAA!" The orange-yellow light flashed within Lapras' mouth before shooting out towards the incoming geyser. The two attacks impacted against each other and began pressing against the other as the Pokemon fought for control. Sweat poured down Seadra and Lapras' foreheads as they put all they had into the attack, knowing that whoever dealt the blow would likely come out the victor. The two pressed on for several minutes before a change in balance occurred as Seadra began tiring out.
"S-Sea...Dra!" He exclaimed upon slipping up, despite the moment being ever so brief it had been just enough for Lapras to took control of the situation.
"LAAAAA!" The orange-yellow beam overwhelmed the water geyser and burst through, causing it to splatter apart as the Hyper Beam flew towards Seadra. Seadra grunted and cancelled the attack in an attempt to make a break for it but to no avail, a loud explosion sounded off as the attack made contact with Seadra's body, sending the seahorse flying into the air before he'd fall down and crash against the ice while laying in a defeated slump.
"Dra..."
"Alright Lapras, you did it!"
"Pikachu!"
"Toxel, tox tox!" Ash and his Electric types cheered.
Lapras looked back and flashed his newfound family an appreciative smile. "Laaaa!"
Cissy couldn't help but smile as she returned Seadra to his ball. 'That boy certainly is powerful, maybe he has what it takes to take down Drake!' The older man had held the Orange League Champion title for about twenty years. She reached into her pocket and produced a pink coral shaped badge that had an eye shaped gemstone attached to it, she then took a deep breath before approaching her challenger.
"That was a great battle, Ash. I can certainly see why that girl of yours likes you so much, it's clear that you've taken good care of your Pokemon and raised them right while proving yourself to be quite the strong trainer. You're definitely worthy of the Coral-Eye badge!" She exclaimed while holding the badge out in offering to Ash.
Ash thanked Cissy as he took hold of the badge before quickly performing his usual victory pose. "Alright, we just got the Coral-Eye badge!"
"Pi Pikachu!"
"Toxel tox!"
"Laaaaa!" Pikachu, Toxel and Lapras posed and cried out alongside their trainer.
Cissy couldn't help but giggle at the sight before continuing. "Once you've earned the other three, you'll be able to face our Champion."
"Thanks Cissy," Ash was about to turn to head back towards his friends before freezing in place as Cissy spoke up once more.
"And if I may make a suggestion? You should ahead for Navel Island next, it's all the way across the Orange Archipelago but it's pretty much a straight line from here. You should be able to make the journey in a day or two if you don't get sidetracked." Cissy advised with a friendly smile.
"That short of a journey? Well alright then, sounds like we're heading to Navel Island next!" Ash grinned.
"Pika pika!"
The group soon said their goodbyes and left the Mikan Island Gym behind them as they made their way towards the island's Pokemon Center in order to heal up their Pokemon and rest up for the night. But what of Team Rocket? The four were fast asleep inside their Magikarp submarine as they grew tired from waiting for Ash to exit the Gym.
"Zzz... looks like... Team Rocket... is snoozing away... again..."
"Wobbu..."
And there you have it, Ash had his first Triple Battle experience and earned the Coral-Eye badge! If you know the layout of the islands, you can probably guess what Ash is meeting next time as it's literally the next island over :)
I love Mantine so that's why I added it onto Cissy's team, it was simply that simple haha. I don't intend on doing the Gyms in a row, having a gap between them is nice considering the Indigo League wasn't that long ago, and some of the Silver League Gyms are literally right next to each other haha. Nice to have a breather