Chapter 34: The Electric Tale of Torrcat
Ash was up bright and early, and he, Ilima, Lillie, and Kukui met Molayne and Sophocles at the Observatory.
"Hey Ash, you ready for the trial?"
"You bet, Sophocles! I'm pumped up and raring to go!"
"Great! I'll show you to the elevator. Big mo, please take our other guests to the viewing room."
"Sure thing, Softy. Come on, everybody."
"Good luck, Ash. You'll do great."
"Thanks guys, see ya later!"
"Pika!"
With that the two groups departed, Ash and Sophocles disappearing into the elevator.
After what seemed to be an endless trip downwards, the elevator doors opened to reveal a massive maze of walls and passages that seemed to go on forever. Ash's jaw dropped at the massive marvel.
"Woah. You did all of this by yourself?"
"Sure did, and it took me all week. It's a good thing we haven't got any challengers before you. Now, let me explain my trial. Somewhere in this massive maze is the Totem Pokemon of Mount Hokulani. But to get to it, you must open the path. Along the way, you'll find little puzzles to solve. Get them right, and the wall will pull back and you can continue. Get it wrong, and you'll get a very nasty surprise. Are you ready, Ash?"
"You know it! Right, Pikachu?"
"Pika!"
"Then let the trial begin!"
With that, Ash made his way into the maze. At first, it was easy going, making the occasional left or right turn but for the most part it was straight forward. But the deeper he got into the maze, the more complicated it became, with three or even four-way intersections.
"Man Pikachu, this maze is making my head spin."
"Pika."
Their luck soon changed, however, when they came up to a console backed up against a wall.
"Hey, maybe its one of those puzzles we need to solve. What do you think, Pikachu?"
"Pika?"
"Well, only one way to find out."
On the console was a silhouette, with a question above asking "Who's that Pokemon?" With three options below: Litten, Popplio, or Rowlett.
"Puh, that's easy. The answer is Rowlett."
After making his selection, Ash took a step backward as the wall slide open, revealing a new passage.
"Alright, one down and three to go!"
After another 10 minutes of left and right turns, Ash came to another console. This one showed a picture of a Rhydon using Protect and asked "What move will allow you to damage this Pokémon? With his choices being Dig, Leer, and Feint. Ash grinned, knowing the answer from experience.
"The answer is Feint!"
After making his selection, the wall slid open to reveal his next passage.
"Alright, just one more to go. Come on, Pikachu, the Totem Pokémon awaits!"
"Pika Pikachu!"
It took them a while, but at last they came to the last console. Instead of having a question, this one showed an assortment of mixed up pictures arranged randomly.
"I bet this is a puzzle of some sort. If I arrange them in the right way, they ought to show a picture."
He began mixing the pictures around, trying to find a pattern. It took him a minute or two, but eventually each of the blocks were arranged to reveal a picture of a Porygon, opening the wall.
"Alright, Z Crystal here I come!"
Ash stepped through the wall to reveal not another series of passages, but a large nearly empty room. Some discarded machinery was pushed off to the side, and in the center was a large, very mad Togedemaru.
"MARU!"
"I guess that's the Totem Pokémon. Go, Torrcat!"
"Torr Torrcat!"
"Torrcat, use Flamethrower!"
Torrcat's burst of fire barely singed Togedemaru, who ran right up and hit him with a nuzzle, paralyzing him.
"Don't let up, Torrcat! Use Flame Charge!"
But despite his best efforts, Torrcat couldn't move, allowing Togedemaru to hit him with a Thunderbolt.
"Try it again, Torrcat! I know you can do it!"
This time Torrcat managed to pull it off, repelling Togedemaru's Zing Zag attack and sent it flying into a wall, although it recovered quite quickly.
"Way to go Torrcat! Now lets finish it off with an Inferno Overdrive!"
Despite the pain, Torrcat soldiered through and hit Togedemaru with its Z Move, sending the Totem Pokemon flying off into the darkness, winning Ash the trial.
"Alright, way to go Torrcat!"
"Pika!"
"Torr!"
Then, right before their eyes, Torrcat began to evolve, growing into a bipedal stance. When the light settled down, an Incineroar stood before them.
"Roar Incineroar!"
"Woah, Torrcat evolved! Do your stuff, Rotom."
"You got it, Ash! Zzzt, Incineroar, the Heel Pokémon, and the final evolution of Litten. When its fighting spirit is set alight, the flames around its waist become especially intense."
"Alright, awesome. Way to go Incineroar!"
Incineroar high fived Ash before he was returned to his Pokeball. Just then, the door in front of Ash opened to reveal Sophocles, Molayned, and his friends.
"Way to go, Ash! We were all watching from the control room."
"To think a trainer could beat a Totem Pokemon so soundly is quite remarkable."
"Thanks guys, but the real credit should go to Torr-I mean Incineroar."
"Well regardless, the Electrium Z is yours."
Ash's grin widened as Sophocles handed him the yellow Z Crystal proudly.
"Alright, I just got an Electrium Z!"
"Pika!"
Later that evening, Ash and his friends were ready to head back to Malie City, but not before saying goodbye to their new friends.
"Good luck, Ash. We know you'll do great on the rest of your Island Trial."
"Thanks, Sophocles. Keep up the good work here."
Ash, Ilima, Lillie, and Kukui made their way back to the bus stop, Sophocles and Molayne waving until they were out of sight.
