Chapter 16: Team Rocket's Machine Age
After an intense training session Ash, Nikki and their Pokémon were taking a much needed break inside the Pokémon Center. Things were looking up for Ash. With Torterra recently learning Earthquake he was beginning to formulate a battle strategy for his rematch with Clayton at the Lunick City Gym.
"Okay, with Torterra's Earthquake taking care of his Quagsire's Dig that's one less Pokémon we have to plan for," Ash said. "Now we just need to come up with a strategy for the other two."
"(But the only one we know of is his Gliscor,)" Pikachu pointed out.
"Gliscor's a Flying type as well as a Ground type, so Torterra would be at a serious disadvantage," Nikki said. "Onix, on the other hand, benefits from Gliscor's Flying typing because of his Rock typing, not to mention that he can use Rock Throw."
"In that case we'll need to work on his Rock Throw," Ash said. "That just leave us with Clayton's third Pokémon."
"(Well, without knowing what it is we can't plan for it,)" Pikachu stated.
"Even so we have to come up with plans for whatever it may be," Ash said.
"Well if you need any extra brainpower we'll be glad to help," Nikki offered.
"(That's right,)" Buneary agreed.
"Thanks, you two. Between all of us we'll have a winning strategy figured out in no time," Ash declared.
"Definitely," Nikki agreed. "So, what's first on the agenda?"
"Well, thinking is only one part of what we need to focus on. We also need to work on perfecting our moves," Ash stated.
"So I'm guessing a training session is in order," Nikki assumed.
"Yeah. After everyone's had a good rest we'll head out for some more training," Ash said. "In the meantime let's try and come up with a good battle strategy." With their Pokémon resting Ash and Nikki began to discuss possible battle strategies as Ash continued to prepare for his rematch with Clayton.
Elsewhere, the trio of Jessie, James and Meowth were moping after their most recent failure. Or, to be more specific, Jessie and James were. At the moment Meowth was nowhere to be found.
"Man, even with our new Pokémon the twerps still trounced us pretty bad," James groaned. As he wallowed in self-pity Tropius nudged his arm. James looked to his Pokémon and managed a slight smile.
"Do you want a rice ball?" he inquired. Immediately Tropius nodded his head. Reaching into his pocket James took out a rice ball and fed it to him.
"(Thank you,)" Tropius said after devouring the rice ball.
"You know, if that Tropius was as good at battling as he is at eating rice balls we may have defeated the twerps that last time," Jessie complained. Upon hearing her criticism of his Pokémon James quickly came to the Fruit Pokémon's defense.
"Don't you dare try to pin this all on Tropius! Your Magcargo wasn't exactly a battling expert back there either!" he countered.
"My Magcargo carried us through that battle! It's not his fault that he was paired with such a worthless Pokémon!" Jessie roared. Tropius cowered in fear.
"(I-I'm not worthless,)" he whimpered. James immediately comforted his Pokémon, hugging him tightly around his neck.
"No you aren't," he soothed. "You're not worthless, and I'm furious with Jessie for even insinuating that you are! How dare you speak of my Tropius in such a manner!"
"You're right! Maybe it's the trainer that's worthless!" Jessie spat.
"Says you! I don't know what's worse, your battling skills or your coordinator skills!" James countered. The two of them stared at each other, their eyes filled with anger. They remained that way until Meowth returned.
"Jeez, do you think you could be any louder? I could hear you two from a mile away!" he complained.
"Oh, save it!" Jessie said. "And besides, where have you been?"
"Yeah! We turn our backs for one second and you split on us!" James added.
"Well, while you two have been moping around I've been busy formulating our next course of action," Meowth stated.
"And that would be?" Jessie inquired. Meowth smiled before giving his answer.
"Going after the twerps with an overwhelming strength advantage!" he declared. While he was proud of his idea Jessie and James didn't share his optimism.
"I hate to break this to you, Meowth, but we've never had any sort of strength advantage over the twerps," Jessie stated.
"Jessie's right. No matter what we do the twerps always end up blasting us off," James agreed. Meowth simply smirked.
"Not this time," the Scratch Cat Pokémon declared. "This time the twerps have no chance of beating us."
"And what makes you so sure of that?' Jessie inquired. Rather than answer her Meowth motioned for her and James to follow him. After James returned Tropius to his Poké Ball he and Jessie got up to follow Meowth.
"Okay, where are you supposed to be leading us?" Jessie asked.
"You'll see." Truth be told both Jessie and James were skeptical about Meowth's idea to try and overwhelm the twerps with pure power. They had tried in the past and always failed, so they wondered what would make this time any different. They soon got their answer as Meowth lead them to a rather large clearing.
"Well, what do you think?" He stepped to the side and allowed Jessie and James to step into the clearing. At that moment they received the shock of their lives.
"Where in the world did you get these?" James gasped.
"I have my ways," Meowth replied. "So, what do you think of my plan now?" Almost immediately the two humans smirked evilly.
"I think the twerps had better prepare for trouble, because Team Rocket is back in business," Jessie boasted.
It was nearly an hour later before Ash and Nikki set off for their training session. All of the Pokémon were fully rested and eager to get back to work. They had decided to train in the woods on the outskirts of the town once again.
"So what's going to be the goal of this training session?" Nikki wondered.
"Well, we still need to come up with some moves that'll be effective against Clayton's Ground types," Ash explained. "Not only that but we need to work on perfecting the moves we know will come in handy, like Torterra's Earthquake and Onix's Rock Throw."
"Sounds like a good plan to me," Nikki commented.
"Thanks. Hopefully this will get me my first Gym badge," Ash said.
"The only thing you'll get is humiliated by us as we make off with your Pokémon!" Ash and Nikki froze in their tracks, startled by the unknown voice.
"Who's there?" Ash shouted. His question was answered when the ground began to shake. Moments later a massive tank in the shape of a Magcargo rolled into view.
"What is that thing?" Nikki shouted.
"I don't know, but I don't like it!" Ash answered. As they stared at the massive machine in front of them the ground began to shake again as a second tank appeared behind them, this one in the shape of a Meowth.
"Two of them?" Ash shouted.
"You'd better make that three!" Nikki corrected. Looking up they were surprised to see a third machine, this one in the shape of a Tropius, hovering overhead.
"Where did these things come from?" Ash shouted. As they stood there and waited to see what would happen the two tanks moved next to each other with the Tropius machine landing in to the right of the Meowth tank. Then, hatches opened on all three as familiar figures appeared, reciting an all-too familiar motto.
"Out of the sky, falling with grace.
A spark in the eye, arriving with haste.
Ready and willing to put twerps in their place.
Jessie!
James!
Meowth's the name!
Team Rocket, burning a trail!
Blazing a path!
Kickin' some tail!
Wobbu Wobbuffet!
Mime Mime Mime Mime!"
"Team Rocket!" Ash and Nikki shouted as the trio rose up from the hatches of their machines.
"What are you three up to this time?" Nikki demanded.
"The same thing we always want: your Pokémon," Jessie declared.
"And this time you're in no position to stop us!" Meowth bragged. "Behold, our triple-threat machine attack: the Rock 'em Sock 'em Meowth, the Mag-tank and the Tropius Sky Fortress!"
"With these three machines we'll snatch up your Pokémon in no time!" James declared.
"That's what you think! Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" With a loud cry Pikachu unleashed his trademark attack. Just when it looked like the attack would hit it was blocked by some kind of barrier.
"What the?" Ash shouted.
"Surprised? These machines utilize our Pokémon's attacks, including my Magcargo's Protect," Jessie boasted. Ash, Nikki and their Pokémon glared at them as they gloated.
"Now, we can do this the easy way or the hard way," Jessie said. "You can either hand over your Pokémon willingly, or we can take them by force."
"How about neither and you three just go away," Ash suggested.
"Sounds like they want to do this the hard way to me," James stated.
"Well then, let's get to work!" With that all three members of Team Rocket were lowered back into their machines.
"Meowth, why don't you give them a 'hand'," Jessie suggested.
"Good idea," Meowth said. Taking the controls of his machine Meowth swung one of its massive fists at Ash and Nikki.
"Watch out!" Ash, Nikki and their Pokémon jumped out of the way just in time to keep from being smashed.
"Are you alright?" Ash asked Nikki as he helped her to her feet.
"I'm fine," she said. "What do we do? There's no way we can take them head-on."
"As much as I hate to do this our only option is to try and get away," Ash said. With no other option the two trainers and their Pokémon took a few steps away from the machines, but before they could get too far they were cut off by a ring of fire.
"Where do you think you're going?" Jessie taunted, the mouth of her Mag-tank smoking from the blast of fire it just spat out. Ash and Nikki glared at them once again.
"You're not going anywhere until we've stolen your Pokémon," James declared.
"Now what? They've got us cut off," Nikki asked.
"Follow my lead," Ash instructed. Nikki nodded and awaited for him to make his move.
"Now, let's try this again. Hand over your Pokémon or else," Jessie demanded.
"Not a chance! Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash shouted. As soon as Pikachu launched his attack Ash turned to Nikki.
"Now, Nikki! Have Buneary use an attack!" he instructed.
"Right! Buneary, use Hidden Power!" Nikki shouted. Just as Pikachu had done Buneary launched her attack, multiple small orbs traveling alongside the bolt of electricity.
"Didn't you twerps learn anything from last time? That's not going to work!" Jessie gloated. Just like before the powerful barrier was put up, blocking the attacks. Both attacks caused an explosion, blanketing the area in a thick smoke cloud.
"James, blow all this smoke out of here!" Jessie demanded.
"Okay, okay," James said. "Would it kill you to politely ask once in a while?"
"Just hurry up and do it!" Jessie roared. James chose not to reply and just do as Jessie had wanted. He activated the jets on his Tropius Sky Fortress and blew the smoke away.
"Now, twerps. Let's get back to… what?" Instead of finding Ash and Nikki there wasn't anyone there.
"Those sneaky little… they used the smoke to cover their escape!" Jessie yelled.
"That's our move!" Meowth complained. "We should sue them for copyright infringement!"
"We can worry about that later! Right now we need to find them!" Jessie shouted. "James, see if you can pot them from the air!"
"I'm on it!" He activated the jets once again, this time lifting the massive machine into the air.
"Meowth, let's spread out and search. They couldn't have gotten far," Jessie said.
"With these babies we'll find them in no time. And then it'll be time to send a few gifts to the boss," Meowth declared. The three of them piloted their machines in three different directions as they searched for Ash and Nikki.
Just as Ash had hoped the smoke cloud gave them the perfect opportunity to get away undetected. Right now they were hiding amongst some thick bushes, trying to avoid detection.
"Do you see them anywhere?" Nikki asked. Ash stuck his head out of the bushes and looked around.
"No. We must have given them the slip," Ash said.
"(At least for now,)" Pikachu added. "(They're not going to stop until they find us, though.)"
"Pikachu's right. Unless we take them out we won't be able to get back to town," Nikki agreed.
"So then… we'll have to take them on anyway," Ash said. Though he knew this was the inevitable result he also knew that they didn't have the strength to take them head-on. If they wanted to defeat Team Rocket this time they'd need to come up with a plan.
"Okay, before we take them on we need to figure out how to approach them. Any ideas?" Ash inquired. After a few seconds of silence Nikki's eyes lit up.
"I think I may have an idea that's just crazy enough to work," she announced. Ash and the Pokémon all huddled around her as she explained her plan.
"So, do you think you can pull it off?" she asked once she was done.
"It'll be a stretch, but I'm sure we can get the job done," Ash said. "Right, buddy?"
"(You can count on me,)" Pikachu declared.
"Okay. Now all we have to do is lure them where we want them," Nikki said.
"That'll be easy," Ash announced. "All we need is the right bait…"
After searching for nearly an hour Team Rocket regrouped at their original location to see if any of them had any luck.
"Did you find them?" Jessie asked.
"Nope," Meowth reported.
"Not a twerpy sign anywhere," James added.
"Well they have to be around here somewhere! Keep looking!" Jessie ordered. Just when they were about to set off once again…
"(Hey bozos!)"
"(Over here!)"
"Who said that?" Jessie roared, outraged over the insult.
"Hey, over there!" Meowth shouted. Standing a few yards away from them were Pikachu and Buneary. The two of them had huge smiles on their faces as they taunted the trio.
"(Bet you can catch us!)" Pikachu taunted, sticking his tongue out at them. This only served to infuriate Team Rocket, especially Jessie.
"No one mocks us and gets away with it!" she screamed, her anger erupting like a volcano. "After them!" With Team Rocket enraged they began to chase Pikachu and Buneary as they ran through the forest, just as the two Pokémon had planned for them to.
"(That's right, dummies. Just keep coming,)" Pikachu said.
"(Do you really think they're dumb enough to fall for this?)" Buneary asked.
"(Trust me, they are. After being chased by them for as long as Ash and I have you tend to notice things like that,)" Pikachu explained. The two of them kept running, making sure to stay in sight of Team Rocket the entire time. Eventually they spotted their destination, a large clearing in the middle of the forest.
"(Okay, time to give them the slip,)" Pikachu announced. Right at the edge of the clearing both Pokémon split up, Pikachu going right and Buneary going left. Team Rocket, though, was slow to react as they charged right into the clearing, stopping in the center.
"Where did they go?" Jessie growled. "Did either of you see where they went?"
"I didn't see them," James said. "You don't think they're hiding, do you?"
"No way," Meowth interjected. "The only place they could be hiding is…"
"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"
"Shinx, Charge Beam!" Before Meowth could finish a pair of Electric attacks were fired at them, one a beam of electricity and another a bolt.
"Trying a sneak attack, huh? Well it won't work!" Jessie declared. She put up her Mag-tank's shield to block the attack, but what she didn't realize was that she wasn't the target. That was made clear when the two attack struck James and his Tropius Sky Fortress.
"T-That b-barrier d-didn't d-do m-me a-any g-good!" he stuttered. The huge amount of electricity flooding the machine caused it to short out. Within seconds the massive machine came crashing down to earth, landing on top of Jessie and Meowth's machines.
"Alright, it worked!" Ash cheered as he, Nikki and their Pokémon appeared from their hiding spot.
"I had a hunch that would work," Nikki bragged. Team Rocket came crawling out of the wreckage moments later. After gathering their composure they glared at Ash and Nikki.
"Do you have any idea how much those things cost us?" Jessie shrieked. At that moment James brought a hand to his chin in thought.
"Just how much did they cost?" he wondered.
"You don't want to know," Meowth sighed, a dejected look on his face. Rather than dwell on the price subject Jessie was preparing to do battle.
"Seviper, Magcargo, front and center!" she yelled. She threw out two Poké Balls, calling on two of her Pokémon. She then turned to James.
"Are you just going to stand there or are you going to help me?" she yelled. Her outburst startled James, causing him to almost drop his Poké Balls. He managed to hold on to them and throw them out.
"Tropius, Carnivine, time for a fight!" he shouted. His Pokémon appeared from their Poké Balls, but the ensuing actions weren't what he expected. Carnivine clamped down on James's head, wrapping his vines around the trainers body. At the same time Tropius tackled James to the ground and began digging around in his jacket for a rice ball.
"Oh, come on! I said 'fight', not 'bite'!" James whined. Jessie and Meowth sighed.
"And we thought he had it rough with just that Carnivine," Meowth said.
"Now his troubles are doubled," Jessie added. After a few seconds James was able to dislodge Carnivine from his head and give Tropius a rice ball, finally getting both Pokémon focused on the battle ahead. Across from them Ash and Nikki had Pikachu, Buneary and Shinx ready for battle. Ash also had a Poké Ball in his hand.
"Let's make the odds even!" he shouted. "I choose you, Gible!" Ash's Dragon type appeared from his Poké Ball, making the battle 4-on-4.
"Seviper, Poison Tail! Magcargo, Flamethrower!" Jessie ordered.
"Tropius, Magical Leaf! Carnivine, Bullet Seed!" James shouted. The four Pokémon launched their attacks.
"Pikachu, Iron Tail! Gible, Dragon Pulse!" Ash shouted.
"Buneary, Hidden Power! Shinx, Charge Beam!" Nikki added. Ash and Nikki's Pokémon launched their own attacks to counter the ones from Team Rocket's Pokémon. Pikachu's Iron Tail easily overpowered Seviper's Poison Tail while Dragon Pulse, Hidden Power and Charge Beam canceled out Flamethrower, Magical Leaf and Bullet Seed.
"Alright, try this on for size! Seviper, use Haze!" Before anyone could react Seviper spewed a thick Haze cloud over the field.
"Hey! I can't see!" Ash shouted.
"Neither can the Pokémon!" Nikki panicked.
"Which means they won't see this coming! Magcargo, Flamethrower!" Jessie ordered.
"Carnivine, Bullet Seed and Tropius, use Magical Leaf!" James shouted. The three Pokémon launched their attacks into the Haze cloud. Seconds later three explosions were heard, followed by three painful grunts. When the Haze cloud finally dispersed Pikachu, Buneary and Shinx were all see laid out.
"No, Pikachu!" Ash shouted.
"Buneary! Shinx!" Nikki cried.
"Aha! Looks like we've got you down for the count this time!" Jessie boasted. While she was feeling confident James noticed something was amiss.
"I may be no math expert, but by my count we seem to be one twerp Pokémon short," he stated.
"Jimmy's right! The twerp's Gible pulled a vanishing act on us!" Meowth yelled. As they looked around for the small Dragon type no one noticed the ground right beneath Seviper beginning to bulge. Seconds later Gible erupted from the ground, delivering a harsh uppercut to Seviper and knocking out the Fang Snake Pokémon.
"Ah, Seviper!" Jessie shrieked.
"Alright, Gible!" Ash cheered.
"He must have used Dig right when Seviper used Haze. That's why they didn't see him go underground," Nikki assumed. They were fortunate to have Gible still battle ready, but now the odds were 3-to-1 against them.
"Do you really think you stand a chance against us with just one Pokémon?" Jessie taunted.
"We won't know until we try," Ash replied. "Gible, Rock Smash!" The small Dragon type charged forward, his fist pulled back and glowing white.
"Stop him with Vine Whip, Carnivine!" James shouted. Carnivine whipped his vines at Gible's feet, tripping the Dragon type and making him fall right in front of Team Rocket's Pokémon.
"Now we've got him right where we want him!" Meowth declared.
"Quick, get out of there!" Ash shouted. Gible tried to get up, but before he could Tropius stomped down on him, pinning Gible under his foot.
"No, Gible!" Ash shouted.
"Now, let's make an example out of him! Bullet Seed!" James ordered. Carnivine glared down at the Land Shark Pokémon and prayed him with a barrage of exploding seeds.
"No, stop!" Ash demanded, though his words fell on deaf ears.
"We have to do something!" Nikki shouted. By then Pikachu and the other Pokémon were beginning to stir.
"Quick, Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Ash shouted.
"Shinx, Charge Beam! Buneary, use Hidden Power!" Nikki instructed. Seeing one of their fellow Pokémon in danger the three of them quickly fired their attacks.
"I don't think so. Use Protect," Jessie calmly requested.
"(Coming up,)" Magcargo replied. He moved in the way of the attacks and put up his Protect barrier, effectively blocking them.
"Now keep them at bay with a Flamethrower," Jessie said. Magcargo dropped the Protect and spewed a Flamethrower, forcing Pikachu and the other Pokémon to jump back to avoid being roasted. Meanwhile Tropius and Carnivine were continuing their assault on Gible with repeated Vine Whip and Stomp attacks.
"That's it! Keep it up!" James urged. With each attack Gible let out a painful grunt.
"There's got to be something we can do! Gible can't take much more of this!" Nikki said. Ash wanted nothing more than to get in there and save Gible, but every time they tried to get through Magcargo would cut them off with either Protect or Flamethrower. After what seemed like forever Gible was thrown across the battlefield, landing right in front of Ash and Nikki.
"Oh, Gible," Nikki gasped. His body was covered in numerous scrapes and bruises and he was breathing rather heavily.
"Well, do you have any other Pokémon we can defeat? We're just getting warmed up over here," Jessie taunted. At the moment it really appeared as though Team Rocket had them at a disadvantage. With a defeated sigh Ash grabbed Gible's Poké Ball.
"You did good, but they were just too strong for you," he said. "You go ahead and…" Before he could recall him Gible held a paw up, signaling for Ash to stop.
"(I… I'm not done yet,)" he panted.
"But Gible…" Before Ash could finish the Land Shark Pokémon glanced back at him, a look of determination in his eyes.
"(They… haven't beat me… not yet,)" Gible protested. From the look on Gible's face he was confident that he could mount a comeback. While Ash was considering leaving him in Nikki was against the idea.
"Come on, Gible. You did your best, but now it's time to let someone else pick up the slack," she said.
"No, Nikki. I think it's best if I let him finish this," Ash interrupted. Nikki looked at him, almost not believing what she just heard him say.
"You can't be serious! Gible won't stand a chance!" she argued.
"I think he will," Ash replied. "I… I've never seen him look that determined before. It's almost as if he knows he can't be defeated." Even though Nikki believed this was a bad idea she stood and watched as Gible walked out to battle against Team Rocket's Pokémon once again.
"Well now, a glutton for punishment, are you?" Jessie taunted. "James, oblige him."
"Gladly," James replied. "Vine Whip, Carnivine!" Carnivine obeyed and brought his vines down on Gible's head, driving the Dragon type face-first into the ground.
"Well, that was easy enough," Jessie commented. "Now, let's… huh?" To everyone's surprise Gible began to get back up, his eyes burning with determination.
"It'll take… more than that… to stop me,)" he panted. At that point Team Rocket was starting to get a bit rattled. Noticing this Pikachu rallied Buneary and Shinx.
"(Come on! Let's give Gible some back-up!)" Just as they were about to join Gible the Land Shark Pokémon stopped them.
"If it's alright with you guys… I'd like to do this alone,)" he said.
"(Are you nuts? You can't beat them by yourself!)" Shinx argued.
"(Shinx's right. We need to face them as a team,)" Pikachu agreed.
"(Please, everyone… let me do this,)" Gible urged, a bit more force in his voice. They would have argued further, but the look in Gible's eyes told them he had already made up his mind. Instead they just watched as he turned to face Team Rocket again.
"Persistent, aren't you," Meowth commented. "Well persistence will only get you so far in life, bub."
"Magcargo, roast that little pest," Jessie requested. The Lava Pokémon spewed another Flamethrower, this one aimed for Gible.
"(Not this time!)" Gible declared. He struck the Flamethrower with a Rock Smash, sending it hurtling towards Carnivine and Tropius.
"Get out of there!" James shrieked. Tropius took to the sky and dodged, but Carnivine wasn't as lucky. The Flamethrower hit him dead-on, knocking him out instantly.
"My Carnivine!" James cried. With a menacing glare Gible continued to advance on them.
"(You… won't… beat… me!)" At that moment the unexpected happened…
Gible began to glow.
"Oh no! Don't tell me!" Jessie begged.
"Gible's evolving!" Nikki gasped. His body grew taller, his arms became longer and now sported blades on each forearm. His tail also grew longer and had a fin on the end. He also had one on his back that had a small notch in it. His head now had two orb-like protrusions on each side. When the light faded Gible had completed his evolution.
"Alright! Gible's a Gabite now!" Ash cheered. While Ash was overjoyed Team Rocket had a different reaction to Gible's evolution.
"T-This doesn't l-look good," Jessie stuttered.
"I don't think I like where this is heading!" James panicked.
"Okay, Gabite! Let them have it with Dragon Pulse!" Ash shouted. As the newly-evolved Pokémon fired the Dragon Pulse everyone could see that it was a bit larger than usual. As the orb hit its target it drove the Pokémon back into Team Rocket, who themselves were sent crashing into their damaged machines. The Pokémon were knocked out, but Jessie, James and Meowth were still conscious, allowing them to see the next series of attacks.
"Okay, all together now! Gabite, Dragon Pulse! Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash shouted.
"Buneary, Hidden Power! Shinx, Charge Beam!" Nikki instructed. The four attacks flew towards their intended target. The Team Rocket trio panicked as the attacks hit home, causing the three machines to explode.
"Got any more brilliant plans, Meowth?" Jessie screamed.
"Next time I start thinking of a plan stop me!" Meowth yelled.
"If they're anything like this one just keep them to yourself!" James shouted.
"Team Rocket's blasting off again!" they cried, disappearing over the horizon.
"Alright! Great work, guys!" Ash cheered. While the Pokémon praised each other for a job well done Nikki took out her Pokédex and scanned Gabite.
Gabite, the Cave Pokémon and the evolved form of Gible. As it digs to expand its nest, it habitually digs up gems that it then hoards in its nest.
"That's one strong Pokémon you have there, Ash," Nikki commented.
"That he is, and I'm sure he'll win me some big battles in the future," Ash said.
"(You can count on me!)" Gabite bragged, flexing his arms a bit. The moment was interrupted when Pikachu and Buneary both tensed up and turned to the nearby bushes.
"What is it?" Nikki asked.
"(There's someone coming,)" Buneary replied. The trainers and Pokémon looked at the bushes, waiting for the mystery person to be revealed. Moments later a person came out of the bushes.
"Hey, it's Clayton!" Nikki said, instantly recognizing the Lunick Town Gym Leader.
"What are you doing here?" Ash asked.
"I was out training when I head an explosion," Clayton explained. "Do you know what it was?"
"We were just taking care of a few… 'problems' we were having," Ash said. "But everything's fine now."
"I see," Clayton commented. Pretty soon he spotted Ash's Gabite.
"Is that your Gabite, Ash?" he inquired.
"Yeah. He just evolved," Ash answered. Clayton walked over to Gabite to get a closer look at him.
"Hmm… I can tell he's been well trained," he commented. "Will you be using him in your rematch?"
"I'd like to, but in order to do that I'd have to take out one of the others who participated last time. Torterra, Donphan and Onix performed so well that I don't want to leave one of them out," Ash explained.
"That is quite the dilemma," Clayton commented. After thinking for a few seconds Clayton had a solution.
"How about I make our rematch a four-on-four. That way you can use your Gabite and won't have to replace anyone," he suggested.
"That'd be great!" Ash exclaimed.
"Okay, it's settled then. We'll have our four-on-four battle tomorrow," Clayton stated.
"I can't wait!" Ash shouted.
"That's great! Now you can see what Gabite can do in a Gym battle," Nikki commented.
Yeah," Ash agreed. "Until then, though, we've got some training to do!" With his Gym battle rematch looming on the horizon Ash got to work training his Pokémon so they could be as prepared as possible.
A tense encounter with Team Rocket results in the usual blast-off, but also gives Ash a new Pokémon in the form of Gabite. With this new Pokémon can Ash defeat Clayton, who has now made their Gym battle rematch a four-on-four affair? Find out in the next chapter of Search for Power!
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