Chapter 39: Diggin Up the Past
Another day, another adventure for the research fellows of Cerise Laboratory. This time, the trio were headed to an archeology dig just outside Pewter City led by their friend Professor Xander to look for some fossils. However, they weren't traveling alone this time.
"I'm surprised you decided to come with us, Chloe. Usually you stay clear of these kinds of trips."
"Usually, yes, but ever since I caught Eevee I've wanted to try and find my goal in life. So I figured going on one of your guys's trips might help me find it! Isn't that right, Eevee?"
"Evoi!"
"What about school? I've known you my entire life, and I've never seen you miss school for anything that isn't threatening."
"Oh, don't worry about that! I've talked to my teacher, and she said it's okay as long as I do a paper on the trip."
Goh just chuckled.
"Of course you'd be excited about having to turn this into a homework assignment."
"Hey, if it helps me find my goal in life, then I'm all for it!"
It didn't take long for them to reach the site. All around them, scientists were busy digging for fossils, checking equipment or working on restoring already found fossils. The Professor had just finished going over some reports when he saw the quartet and waved them over.
"Ah, welcome! And who might you be, miss?"
"I'm Chloe, Professor Cerise's daughter!"
"Ah, then welcome! Here we hope to bring the past back to life! Grab a hard hat and some tools and have fun!"
The quartet split up and got to work, excited to see if they could find any fossils. Ash and Pikachu got to work immediately, breaking open rocks and digging through the dirt carefully.
"Keep at it, buddy! There are fossils to be found, I can just feel it!"
"Pika Pika!"
Goh and Raboot were following the same pace, with Raboot kicking the rocks apart while Goh dug with a shovel.
"Great work, Robot! Keep at it and we'll have a fossil on our hands before lunch!"
"Raboot!"
Chloe and Lillie, however, were taking a slow and steady approach. Both of them were simply sorting through the dirt and rock, trying to find fossils but not getting their hopes up.
"No need to rush, Snowy. All that matters is that we have fun!"
"Vul!"
"Same here, Eevee! Just keep doing what you're doing!"
"Evoi!"
A few hours passed with no success. Ash was just about to give up when his pickaxe struck something.
"Huh?"
Leaning down, he found a fossil that he had never seen before. Etched into the rock was what appeared to be the bones of a fish head.
"This isn't any of the Kanto fossils. Wonder if-"
"Pika Pikachu!"
"What is it, buddy? Did you find something?"
Pikachu nodded, and pointed at the ground where he had been digging. Kneeling down, Ash picked it up to see the bones of what appeared to be a Dragon's body.
"Two new fossils in one day? Awesome! Come on buddy, let's go see what kind of Pokemon we'll get."
"Pika!"
Running back to the nearest restoration machine to see what the results would be. Lillie and Chloe were there, looking a little down hearted.
"Hey guys! Any luck?"
"No, none whatsoever. But we had fun, didn't we, Snowy?"
"Vulpix!"
"No luck here either. Ah well, can't win them all."
"Say Ash, what kind of fossils are those?"
Ash shrugged, as confused as they were.
"Honestly, I'm not sure, but I can't wait to find out what kind of Pokemon they'll be!"
Since the process would take a while, the three of them sat down to have some lunch. Goh joined them not long after, looking very happy. He'd found an Old Amber in a large rock and had put it in the other machine, and soon he'd have his very own Aerodactyl! Ash was just about to tell him that may not be such a good idea when they heard a loud ding!
"Oh, looks like it's finished! Come on, I can't wait to see what Pokemon I've got!"
But when they got there, they were in for a big surprise. Instead of two Pokemon, there was only one, and it looked rather…peculiar.
"Um…what is that?"
"Is it even a Pokemon?"
The mysterious new Pokemon was a rather strange oddity. It had the head of a fish, balancing oddly on the body of a Dragon.
"What is this thing?"
"Dracovish!"
"Um, I guess it's Dracovish?"
Before any more could be said, however, a large explosion was heard from the other side of the camp. Taking off running, the quartet found the remains of a reviving machine laying strewn about, a furious Aerodactyl flying about as the scientists ran for cover.
"We've got to do something before it destroys the camp!"
"Right! Raboot, jump up there and use Double Kick!"
"Powder Snow, Snowy!"
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"
Pikachu and Snowy went first, striking Aerodactyl with super effective attacks that made it cry out in pain, allowing Raboot to jump in and deal two swift kicks to its back, nearly sending it straight to the ground. But it righted itself very quickly and, angrier than ever, unleashed a powerful Hyper Beam that nearly took out half the camp, and dealt heavy damage to all of their Pokemon.
"This is bad, guys! If we don't do something soon, it'll take out the entire camp!"
"Yeah, but what?"
Ash looked at Dracovish, who had surprisingly managed to follow them all the way there despite his appearance. Maybe he could fight, but what moves could he use? He was obviously a Dragon Type, and looked like he could also be a Water type, so maybe…
"Dracovish, use Water Gun!"
Luckily, Ash's guess was correct and a burst of water escaped the Fossil Pokemon's mouth, striking Aerodactyl and diverting its attention. Even more enraged, Aerodactyl turned towards the mishmash Pokemon and let loose another Hyper Beam.
"Jump, then use Ice Fang!"
Dracovish jumped out of the way just in time, the recharge time forced by hyper Beam giving him ample time to clamp his jaws around Aerodactyl's head, encasing it in ice. With one mighty swing Dracovish sent it hurtling towards the ground, landing out cold in a crater. Seizing his chance, Goh tossed a Pokeball at it, capturing it easily.
"Ah yeah, my first Fossil Pokemon!"
"Aw, but I wanted to catch it!"
"Too bad, Ash. You snooze, you lose!"
Despite this, Ash couldn't help but grin and patted his own catch on the head.
"Oh well, at least I have a cool new Pokemon of my own! Isn't that right, Dracovish?"
Instead of replying, Dracovish began gnawing on Ash's head, much to his annoyance.
"Hey, cut that out! I mean it, my head is not a chew toy!"
Everyone laughed at the display. Overall, it had certainly been an interesting day.