Episode: 353: On Olden Pond
On the next morning after the Silver Town Pokémon Contest, Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, and Angel were making the preparations to leave for their next destination.
"Well, let's get a move on," Sora said.
"Yes, let's," Kairi said.
With that said, Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, and Angel have taken their leave of Silver Town and continued on their travels. Sora exchanged Sandlash, Ariados, Ursaluna, Sudowoodo, Pelipper, Ursaluna, Donphan, Sceptile, Hitmonchan, and Hitmonlee for Charizard, Gliscor, Kleavor, Pidgeot, Espeon, Umbreon, Raticate, Sableye, and Kingler.
In the passing days, Sora has participated in more battles of the Pokémon Stadium Cup, earning his way up to victory. Sora has sent out his Kingler against an Exploud.
"Okay, Exploud! Use Focus Punch!" The Trainer ordered.
"Kingler! Crabhammer!" Sora ordered. Kingler swings his pincer while it's emitting water. Kingler slammed his pincer against Exploud, resuting in a knockout.
"Exploud is unable to battle! Kingler wins! The winner of the battle is Sora Ketchu from Pallet Town!" The referee announced.
"Great job, Kingler," Sora said. The Pincer Pokémon beamed from Sora's praise.
After earning his victory in the Pokémon Stadium Cup, Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, and Angel continued on their journey. Along the way, Sora and Kairi trained their Pokémon and practiced their Keyblades in case of trouble coming their way. They were training for a couple of hours before calling it a day.
"I could use a break, Sora. How about you?" Kairi asked.
"Well, we sure earned it," Sora said, wiping off some sweat.
"Pikachu," Pikachu said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"Sora, there should be a famous fishing spot around here, so I think we should go and check it out," Kairi suggested.
"Really? What's so famous about it?" Sora asked.
"There's a legend that actually goes around. The legend says there is a Dragonair that actually lives in the lake, and has lived in there for many, many years," Kairi said.
"A Dragonair, huh? After everything that we've dealt with up to now, I'd definitely believe it. And if there is a Dragonair that lives in the lake, then it gives us a reason to check it out," Sora said.
"Pikachu," Pikachu agreed.
With that said, Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, and Angel went off to the lake, unaware of them being watched by two men. One is wearing a gray overcoat over a white shirt and black pants, held by dark blue suspenders. He wore black shoes. He has black hair tied in a ponytail. The other man wore a dark blue cap and a red jacket, blue jeans, and brown shoes.
"Is that kid wearing what I think he's wearing around his neck?" The first man asked, with a cockney accent. He looks through his telescope. "He is. There's no doubt about it. It's the Ketchum family crest. And that's a blood descendant of the Crystal Maiden with him."
"Why does that fascinate you so much, Varney?" The second man asked.
"Well, to put it plainly, Claude, we gotta know who we're dealing with. The two of them are wielders of the Keyblade and they foiled our plans from left to right," Varney vented.
"Oh, boy, here we go," Claude said.
"Plans that we worked so bloody hard to make happen! So, unlike you, I actually did some digging on our enemies, just so we can exact our revenge on the two of them. I was one of Giovanni's top favorites until Team Rocket went under! I was a terror so frightening, I gave closet monsters a scare.I mean, those kids didn't have to make it so bloody hard! Those brats could have had some milk and cookies like good, little brats, but no! They had to stick their noses into our operations and foil it all!" Varney exclaimed.
"Varney, I'm going to simply explain to you. I don't care about any of that Ketchum family crest, Crystal Maiden, or Keyblade talk. None of those things are relevant for me. I'm only in this for one thing, and one thing only. Revenge. And as for you, you' were nowhere near being one of Giovanni's favorites. You were expendable, just like Jessie, James, and that talking Meowth. I never understood why Giovanni kept you around and gotten rid of you like he did with those rejects. I am going to avenge Giovanni and you're going to end up being more of a sad, pathetic, poor-excuse for a human being that you always were and always will be," Claude said, taking his leave.
"Whatever," Varney scoffed.
Sora, Kairi, Pikachu, and Angel arrived to the lake and they saw how deserted and dirty the water is.
"This is the place, Kairi? It looks a ghost town on water," Sora said.
"I thought it would look more picturesque than this. There was supposed to be some Pokémon swimming around," Kairi said.
"Pika," Pikachu said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"But I'm sure there is someone in the boathouse," Kairi said.
"It's worth a look," Sora said as he, Kairi, Pikachu, and Angel started to head for the boathouse, unaware of a mysterious creature watching them from underneath. They came to the boathouse, but it looked deserted.
"Hello! Anybody home?" Sora called out.
"Pika!" Pikachu said.
"Okay, this is weird. There's no answer coming from inside," Sora said. Kairi looked at the sign regarding the fishing poles.
"But the sign says it's okay to use the fishing poles," Kairi said.
"We might as well just use them. We can apologize for using them without asking them when we leave," Sora said. Sora and Kairi casted their fishing poles. "Nothing like fishing, huh, Kairi?"
"I'm having a blast," Kairi said.
The couple waited for a bite to come in, but so far, not a single bite was coming in. They waited for five minutes when Sora felt a tug.
"Kairi, I think I got a bite," Sora said. He almost fell in when the Pokémon in the water tried to pull him in. "Whoa! It feels like a whopper! It almost pulled me in!"
"Don't let it go, Sora!" Kairi said.
"Wouldn't dream of it!" Sora said, reeling it in. The Pokémon in the water fought hard against Sora's strength. "You're not gonna get away from me! I got you now!" Sora still held on, trying to pull it out. Kairi then gave her boyfriend a hand by holding on. The couple worked together to pull out the mysterious Pokémon which turns out to be a Crawdaunt. "What the? A Crawdaunt?"
"Crawdaunt!" The Crawdaunt said.
"Isn't it weird to see a Crawdaunt here of all places?" Kairi asked.
"Weird, how?" Sora asked.
"Well, for one thing, Crawdaunt can't be found in the Kanto region," Kairi said.
"Try telling that to Crawdaunt," Sora said, taking out his Pokéball. "Okay, Kingler! You're up!" Sora threw his Pokéball and Kingler emerged from inside, clamping his large pincer. Crawdaunt moves in with a Vice Grip. "Block that with Metal Claw!" Kingler blocked Crawdaunt's Vice Grip with Metal Claw. Both crustacean Pokémon held on, but they were evenly matched. Crawdaunt then came at Kingler with Crabhammer. "You use Crabhammer, too!" Kingler swings his pincer, also using Crabhammer, colliding with each other. The result was the same; they were evenly matched. Crawdaunt fired Bubble Beam right at Kingler. "Bubble Beam!" Kingler fired Bubble Beam, colliding with each other. "Mud Shot!" Kingler unleashed a Mud Shot at Crawdaunt, but dodged by jumping over the crab-like Pokémon and grabbed the fishing poles in its pincers.
"You put those down right now!" Kairi demanded.
"Eevee!" Angel added.
Crawdaunt did not listen and broke the fishing poles in half.
"Crawdaunt!" A young woman's voice shouted. Crawdaunt and the couple turned to see a young woman running towards them. She has fair skin, orange-red hair and blue eyes. She wore a purple shirt under a yellow mini-jacket, brownish-colored jeans, and red boots. "You can't just stay away, can you?" The Rogue Pokémon just taunts her and jumps in the water. "Are you two okay?"
"Yeah, we're fine. But I can't really speak for the fishing poles," Kairi said.
"Sorry about using them without asking you first," Sora apologized.
"That's alright. That Crawdaunt can be nasty. My name's Tiffany," Tiffany introduced herself.
"I'm Sora and this is Pikachu," Sora introduced.
"Pika, Pika," Pikachu said.
"I'm Kairi and this is Angel," Kairi introduced.
"Eevee, vee," Angel said.
"Don't take this the wrong way, Tiffany, but shouldn't you be opened by now?" Sora asked.
"Don't worry about me taking anything the wrong way, Sora. Besides, the store's out of business anyway," the young woman said.
"How did this happen? The lake used to be so beautiful. And there's a rumor of a Dragonair lives in the lake, too," Kairi said.
"It was until about a year ago. And you're right. The lake was alive, teeming with all kinds of Pokémon. But then, one day, people from Saridakis Industries arrived. They said they were gonna fill in the lake and turn into a luxury day spa, and told me to get lost or else. So I told him to get lost instead," Tiffany explained.
"Something tells me he didn't take it too lightly," Kairi said.
"Maybe. I couldn't sell it to anyone. This boathouse has been in my family for generations. And I love this place more than anything else in the whole wide world. And then, that awful Crawdaunt came and frightened the Pokémon and fishermen away. And this is the result. The fishermen and the Pokémon left and they're too afraid to come back to the lake," Tiffany said.
"So, the only way for everything to go back to how it used to be is to get rid of that Crawdaunt, right?" Sora asked.
"Yes, but easier said than done," Tiffany said.
"And we're the right team to battle against Crawdaunt. Isn't that right, Kingler?" Sora asked. Kingler nodded. "My Kingler's aching for a rematch. And I know Kingler is going to beat that Crawdaunt."
"I wouldn't be so sure, sonny," an elderly woman said, coming up behind Sora. She wore an olive green dress, a red scarf around her neck, a white apron, and brown shoes with white socks. She is holding a cane in her right hand.
"Who are you?" Sora asked.
"Someone who couldn't sleep with all that commotion going on," the elderly woman said.
"Oh, granny," Tiffany said.
"Granny?" Sora and Kairi asked.
"This is Galea, my grandmother," Tiffany said.
"Enough. Did I hear you say you're gonna battle Crawdaunt?" Galea asked.
"Yeah. And I'm using my Kingler for that battle," Sora said. She looked at the Trainer and Pokémon and she grinned.
"Those two can talk the talk, but can they walk the walk?" Galea asked in her thoughts.
A little later, Kairi, Tiffany decided to look for Crawdaunt by boat while Sora was going to search by the shore. Kingler and Vaporeon were let out to insist on the search.
"I know you're here somewhere," Sora said.
On the boat, the girls looked around for any signs of Crawdaunt.
"I don't see him anywhere," Kairi said.
"Crawdaunt is around here. Where else would he go?" Tiffany asked. She then spotted Crawdaunt swimming into a cave. Kairi quickly took out her Rotom Phone to call Sora.
Speaking of which, Sora answers it as soon as he hears the ringing.
"Yeah, Kairi?" Sora asked.
"Sora, Tiffany and I just found Crawdaunt. He was swimming in a cave," Kairi said.
"A cave?" Sora asked.
"Yes. I'm going to send Vaporeon over to you," Kairi said.
"Okay," Sora said.
Over to Crawdaunt, he comes out of the cave and walks through the grass where he is approached by a bald man wearing a gray business suit. He has gray eyebrows and pieces of a mustache on each side of his cheeks. He wore a yellow tie, a white shirt, and black shoes. He has a bowl of Pokémon food.
"Ah, Crawdaunt. Your dinner's waiting for you," the man said as Crawdaunt starts eating. Coming out from the shrubs, Sora, Kairi, Tiffany, and the Pokémon sees them together.
"Is that Saridakis?" Sora asked.
"That's him, alright," Tiffany said.
"And I have a feeling that's his Crawdaunt. I knew I was right about him," Kairi said.
"Yeah, you were," Sora said.
"So, let's have it. You had lots of time to come up with the Leisure Land plans," Saridakis said.
Two architects does a thorough view of the lake.
"You cannot rush art, Mr. Saridakis. It takes careful planning and concentration to make for visions to become realities," one of the architects said.
"Of course. You are the experts," Saridakis said.
"Crawdaunt, Craw," Crawdaunt said.
"Now, I'm thinking it's about time we took care of that boathouse," Saridakis said.
"You will do no such thing!" Tiffany said. Saridakis turned to see Tiffany and the couple angrily glaring at him. Saridakis was unphased by the angry looks.
"Oh, Miss Tiffany. Are these your reinforcements?" Saridakis taunted.
"I should have known it was your Crawdaunt!" Tiffany accused.
"What's the idea of you sending your Crawdaunt down to terrorize us?" Sora asked.
"Terrorize is such an ugly word. My Crawdaunt simply has a mind of his own, so I'm not responsible for his actions," Saridakis said, feigning innocence.
"We all know that's a lie," Sora said.
"I'm not lying. I just thought food would calm Crawdaunt down," Saridakis said.
"Yeah, well, it didn't even work. And your Crawdaunt just quit when he couldn't overpower my Kingler," Sora said. Kingler nodded. "So, I'm going to challenge you and your Crawdaunt to a battle."
"A battle, is it?" Saridakis asked. He chuckled. "Interesting."
"There's a condition you gotta keep. If I win, you hop back in that limo of yours, and don't even get any ideas about coming back. Not for any reason," Sora said.
"Fine. But if I win, I get the boathouse and the lake," Saridakis said, grinned, feeling confident.
"You got yourself a deal. And when I do win, you'll leave for good," Tiffany said.
Saridakis scoffed, "Ha! You mean if I win! You can finally say goodbye to this filthy lake of yours." Tiffany took offense to Saridakis's claim to the lake being filthy.
"It's not filthy!" Tiffany exclaimed.
"It is filthy! Your lake is a filthy, awful place!" Saridakis stated.
"Why are you even doing this? Why is taking this lake so important to you?" Kairi asked.
"I'll gladly explain. I used to come here when I was a boy. I used to love this lake more than anything, until one faithful day that changed my view of it forever. I was fishing out in the middle of the lake, and I had gotten a huge bite. It pulled me deep underwater. I got so tangled up in the fishing line, no matter what I did, I couldn't break free! With so much water in my lungs, I eventually blacked out. And when I woke up, I realized I somehow gotten back on shore. I couldn't believe it. It was a miracle I was still alive. But that awful experience affected my life. I never gotten over it. This lake would be much better place as Leisure Land. And the millions I make won't be bad, either," Saridakis said.
"So, that's how you deal with trauma? By getting rid of it?" Sora asked.
"That's not how you get rid of your fears," Kairi said.
"Save it for someone who actually cares. I'm looking forward to tomorrow. You and your Kingler will cry hard," Saridakis said, laughing as he walked and his staff walked off. Sora growled over Saridakis's selfishness.
Sora and Kingler began to train for the upcoming battle. Kingler managed to use his strength and wits for the surrounding area.
"Keep it up, Kingler. Taking on Crawdaunt head-on isn't going to help us, so we'll have to be smart about it, too," Sora said. Kingler uses the surrounding area as practice to overcome Crawdaunt.
On the next morning, Saridakis and his Crawdaunt arrived to the boathouse to begin their battle.
"There he is," Tiffany said. Saridakis looked directly at Sora and Kingler.
"Well, today's the day. The day that this lake is wiped from existence forever," Saridakis said.
"Don't count your winnings just yet, old man. You can try to run away as much as you want, but the memories will still be there rather if you want them to be or not," Sora said.
"Is that what you think? You're going to change your mind after today," Saridakis said.
"Okay, Kingler. How we practiced," Sora said. Kingler nodded.
"You have the honor of making the first move," Saridakis said.
"Kingler! Crabhammer!" Sora ordered. Kingler came at Crawdaunt with a Crabhammer.
"Crawdaunt! You use Crabhammer as well!" Saridakis ordered. Crawdaunt came at Kingler and they collide their Crabhammer, pushing each other. Saridakis grits his teeth in anger. "They're evenly matched?!"
"My Kingler isn't going down that easily. Bubble Beam!" Sora ordered. Kingler fired Bubble Beam in the water.
"You use Bubble Beam as well!" Saridakis ordered. Crawdaunt fired Bubble Beam, blocking Kingler's Bubble Beam.
"Kingler! Go in the lake!" Sora called out. Kingler jumped into the lake.
"No, they don't! Use Vice Grip!" Saridakis ordered. Crawdaunt went after Kingler.
"Dodge and use Mud Shot!" Sora ordered. Kingler dove underwater. Crawdaunt looked around for Kingler. The Pincer Pokémon came up from underneath and fired a Mud Shot, hitting Crawdaunt.
"What?!" Saridakis exclaimed.
"How do you like that?" Sora asked.
"Why you little! Crawdaunt! Use Vice Grip!" Saridakis ordered. Crawdaunt rushed at Kingler again.
"Block with Metal Claw!" Sora ordered. Kingler uses his pincers to block Crawdaunt while giving off a metallic glow. Kingler then gave Crawdaunt a toss like a rag doll. "Use Crabhammer!" Kingler came at Crawdaunt, landing a hit with Crabhammer. Saridakis was becoming frustrated by Kingler's strength.
"Get up right now!" Saridakis demanded.
"Way to go, Sora!" Tiffany cheered.
"You're doing great!" Kairi said.
"This isn't supposed to be happening. That kid is way better than I thought. I already come too far to quit now! There's no way in hell I'm going to lose to this spiky-headed brat!" Saridakis said in his thoughts. Crawdaunt gets back on his feet.
"That Crawdaunt isn't calling it quits. Neither are we," Sora said in his thoughts.
"Crawdaunt! Bubble Beam!" Saridakis ordered. Crawdaunt fired Bubble Beam at Kingler with Bubble Beam.
"Dodge and use Mud Shot!" Sora ordered. Kingler jumped in the lake again and fired Mud Shot, hitting Crawdaunt. "Great aim!"
"No! I won't let it end this way!" Saridakis exclaimed in anger.
"Listen, Saridakis, I can understand you had a bad experience with this place, but you shouldn't get rid of those bad memories because of that!" Sora said.
"This lake has been the bane of my existence for all these years! The only way I'm going to move on with my life is when I get it out of my life by building Leisure Land right on it!" Saridakis said.
"And punishing Tiffany, her grandma, and the Dragonair of this lake in the process?" Sora asked.
"There is no Dragonair in this lake!" Saridakis argued. He breathes heavily. "It's only a fairytale made up by the locals just to grab the attention of those stupid, ignorant fishermen. It's a hoax! It's a fantasy! It's nothing but a lie! And that legend is going to die here today!"
"I don't know what exactly happned to you when you were a kid, but destroying a lake isn't going to undo the damage that's already been done! Didn't you ever wonder once how you got back on the shore in the first place? You said you were tangled up in your fishing line, so there was no way you could have moved on your own! Someone had to be there to save your ungrateful life!" Sora said.
"Shut up! I heard enough! Crawdaunt! Use Crabhammer!" Saridakis ordered. Crawdaunt rushed at Kingler with Crabhammer.
"Mud Shot!" Sora ordered. Kingler fired Mud Shot, hitting Crawdaunt again. "Use Metal Claw!" Kingler gave Crawdaunt a slash with Metal Claw. "Crabhammer!" Kingler swings his pincer, landing a hit onto the Rogue Pokémon, resulting in a knockout. Saridakis could hardly believe it. He lost the battle. "Looks like the lake stays."
"No. No, it can't be. I refuse to believe it. I can't believe I lost to some brat," Saridakis said, falling on his knees. "Everything I worked up for my whole life is all for nothing. No. No! I don't care what the conditions are! I'm still going to build Leisure Land right here!"
"We had a deal!" Tiffany exclaimed.
"You can't do that!" Kairi said.
"Yes, I can! It's going to happen one way or the other!" Saridakis said.
"You just don't get it, do you?" Sora asked.
"You're the one who doesn't get it!" Saridakis exclaimed.
"That's enough!" Galea stated, finally putting her foot down. Sora, Kairi, Tiffany, Saridakis, and the Pokémon all looked at her.
"Granny?" Tiffany asked, surprised.
"Everything the youngster said is true. Getting rid of the lake won't change a thing," Galea said.
"How would you know?" Saridakis asked.
"I know because I'm the reason you're still even alive, you stupid boy," Galea said, hitting his head with her cane.
"Ow!" Saridakis yelped in pain.
"That serves you right," Galea said.
Saridakis then began to remember. He remembered seeing a serpentine Pokémon swimming in the lake. It was a Dragonair and he also just remembered Galea helping him out. He then realized that he was only focusing on the negative, he completely fogged out the positive; until this moment.
"Wait a minute. I remember now. It was you who saved me all those years ago. But, why did you do it? Why did you save me?" Saridakis asked.
"Because you were drowning," Galea said.
"Why didn't you say anything?" Saridakis asked.
"Well, what's to say? To tell the truth, I only did it because I love the lake. You should show gratitude to people who rescued you," Galea said, walking off.
Just then, a Dragonair emerged from the water to the amazement of Tiffany and the couple.
"Look at that," Sora said, awestruck.
"That's Dragonair. The one who is rumored to live in this lake," Kairi said.
"So, the legend really is true," Tiffany said.
"Dragonair. You saved my life all those years ago, and I never gotten the chance to thank you for what you did. Even though, it's late, thank you," Saridakis said. Dragonair nodded and returns to the lake. "It really is a miracle."
"You're still going along with it?" Sora asked.
"No. If I do that, I'd be taking away the home of the best friend I have ever had. There's no way I could ever do that. I was too focused on the bad experiences, it outweighed the fact I'm even here. The truth is I never once thought about how I made it back to the shore. I just can't believe it took me until just now to get it. Now, I know. And I get it. The Leisure Land project is hereby canceled," Saridakis said. Tiffany was relieved to hear he had a change of heart.
"Thank you, Saridakis!" Tiffany said.
Dragonair's cry can be heard echoing from underwater. The lake has become a beautiful, blue lake. Then, wild Psyduck, Poliwag, Poliwhirl, and Politoed came back to the lake as Magikarp, Goldeen, and Seaking are swimming back, knowing it was safe and clean for them again.
"The Pokémon are coming back," Kairi said.
"Eevee," Angel said.
"That's good. The Pokémon all has a place to call home again," Sora said.
"Pikachu," Pikachu added.
Those who love the lake can now rest easy. The journey continues as Sora and Kairi continues their quests for the Pokémon Stadium Cup and Kanto Pokémon Contests.
