AUTHOR'S NOTE: Greetings, readers! Here is the 40th chapter of the continuing adventures of Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu as they continue their journey through the Hoenn region. I decided to have Glacia of the Elite Four join the cast for this chapter, seeing how Drake was the only member to make an appearance in the anime. I want to try and have all four members of Hoenn's Elite Four make appearances. I hope you enjoy this action-packed chapter. Please feel free to read and review responsibly at your leisure.
TEASER: Tristan and Hillary find a nearly frozen Torchic in the Fiery Path after Taz and Poliwrath coldly leave it there! Can they find a way to warm it up? Plus, a woman named Glacia warmly lends a helping hand, but Taz issues a really big challenge!
Chapter 40: RUNNING OF THE TORCHIC
(Music Cue: The Moon Stone (full version as heard in "Enter the Dragonite"))
Our heroes are still on their way to Lavaridge Town, site of Tristan's fourth Gym Battle. But little do they know that things are about to heat up in a hurry.
"What is this place?" wondered Hillary as she and Tristan came to the entrance of a cave.
Tristan checked his PokéNav. "According to this, we're at the Fiery Path. Then it's just a matter of getting to Mount Chimney quickly. And after that, it's the Jagged Pass, and finally, we'll be in Lavaridge Town."
"Great," moaned Hillary. "Do we really have to suffer through all the intense heat?"
"Well, if we wanna get to Lavaridge Town by nightfall, then yes, we do."
Hillary groaned. "But I don't wanna be hot. I want to be in a temperature that's just right. Why do I have to sweat more and more just so we can..."
Presently, they heard something crying out feebly from inside the cave.
"What was that?" wondered Tristan.
"Beats me," replied Hillary. "But it sounds like it came from in there."
Togepi trilled anxiously.
Then the same crying was heard again.
"Let's check it out," suggested Tristan as he and Pikachu ran inside the Fiery Path.
"Oh, come on, Tristan, not in there!" complained Hillary. "I just told you, I don't wanna be hot." And she begrudgingly went after him and Pikachu.
Meanwhile, just out of sight, Taz was watching with his evil eyes focused on them. "Poifect. Those kiddies are walking right into my trap. Now I'm gonna stop them cold once and for all." And he gave an evil smirk as he silently slunk after them.
(Music Cue: Kanto Title Card)
Tristan, Hillary, and Pikachu ran toward the source of the crying as fast as their legs could carry them. Suddenly, they came to a small orange feathery Pokémon with a small beak and three feathers on top, lying on the ground, seemingly in pain.
"Tristan, look!" gasped Hillary.
The Pokémon seemed to shiver in fright.
"It's a Torchic," said Tristan as he tried to check it out, but to his surprise, it was freezing cold. He quickly blew on his fingers to warm them back up again.
"What's wrong?" asked Hillary.
"This Torchic's body temperature is way too low, even for a Fire Pokémon," explained Tristan. "We'd better find a way to warm it up, and fast." And he quickly covered Torchic in a blanket to try and warm it up.
"Could it have been Wayne's Torchic?" wondered Hillary.
"No, this Torchic is far too weak to be Wayne's Torchic," replied Tristan. "Judging by looks, it's a wild Torchic."
"But how could a Torchic be freezing cold when it's a Fire-type? Fire Pokémon almost never freeze solid."
"Of course! Torchic must've recently been thawed out after freezing solid. Something may have frozen it with an Ice-type attack or something. But I don't know of very many Ice-types who'd freeze a Fire Pokémon, let alone a Pokémon who knows an Ice-type attack."
"Would you like me to tell you of one then, kiddies?" cackled a maniacal voice.
(Music Cue: Desperate Situation: Kanto (as heard in "Two Hits and a Miss"))
Tristan, Hillary, Pikachu, and Togepi turned to see a familiar and evil adversary confronting them along with a familiar tough Tadpole Pokémon as Torchic shivered in fear and cowered in Tristan's arms.
"Oh, great, not you again!" groaned Hillary.
"It's Taz and Poliwrath, so yes," replied Tristan disdainfully.
"You got that right," smirked Taz. "Now hand over the Torchic...unless you'd like the same fate to happen to you. Right, Poliwrath?"
"Same fate?" repeated Tristan.
Poliwrath then produced an orb of ice-cold energy from its hands.
"Look out! Poliwrath's threatening to freeze us with an Ice Beam!" warned Hillary.
It was then that Tristan realized what had happened. "So you're the one who nearly froze that Torchic to death, aren't you?! You've always been despicable, Taz, but you've reached a brand-new low! Don't you have any regrets about what you've done?"
"Guilty as charged," chuckled Taz. "And no, I've got none."
"Even if Torchic is a wild Pokémon, Tristan, we can't allow Taz to take it away," whispered Hillary. "Who knows what could happen if he ends up catching and mistreating it?"
"You're right, sis," agreed Tristan. "We have to protect that Torchic and warm it up as soon as possible."
"Go get them, Poliwrath!" ordered Taz.
(Music Cue: Kanto Trainer Battle (as heard in "Beach Blank-Out Blastoise"))
Poliwrath unleashed its Ice Beam attack at Tristan, Hillary, Pikachu, and Togepi, who narrowly avoided it.
"So, you wanna play rough, huh?" grumbled Tristan. "Well, two can play at that game! Go get it, Pikachu!"
Pikachu charged into battle and awaited Tristan's instructions.
"Pikachu, give Poliwrath a Thunderbolt!" ordered Tristan.
Pikachu readied its attack as sparks crackled from its cheeks.
"No, wait!" warned Hillary. "If you launch a Thunderbolt in here, the walls of the Fiery Path could crumble! And who knows how many Pokémon could lose their natural habitats!"
Tristan and Pikachu realized that Hillary was right; they couldn't risk destroying the habitat so many Pokémon in the Fiery Path the Pokémon called home.
Taz laughed profusely. "Aw, what's the matter? Your rodent short on power? I think you're thoisty. Oh, Poliwrath, give it some water, will you?"
Poliwrath unleashed a Hydro Pump from its chest and scored a direct hit on Pikachu.
"Pikachu's in real trouble!" cried Hillary.
"Quick, come on out, Mudkip!" shouted Tristan as he threw his Poké Ball.
Mudkip emerged from the white light that shot out of it.
"Hurry, Mudkip, cover Pikachu with your Water Gun attack!" commanded Tristan.
Wasting no time, Mudkip unleashed a powerful blast of water from its mouth, blocking Poliwrath's Hydro Pump attack as best it could, thus allowing Pikachu to escape its seemingly dangerous blast.
"Oh, yeah? Poliwrath, Ice Beam, now!" ordered Taz.
Poliwrath unleashed an ice-cold beam of energy from its hands at Mudkip, scoring a direct hit.
"No, Mudkip!" cried Hillary.
Fortunately, Mudkip was able to dig in and hang on.
"All right, you two," said Tristan to Pikachu and Mudkip. "It's time to team up and attack together. Pikachu, Quick Attack! Mudkip, give Pikachu a boost with Water Gun!"
Pikachu streaked toward Poliwrath as a white line trailed behind it while Mudkip unleashed a powerful blast of water from its mouth to increase its speed.
The combined attack scored a direct hit on Poliwrath, causing it to fall onto Taz.
"Get off me, you fool!" strained Taz.
"All right, let's hurry and make a run for it," advised Hillary.
"Okay," agreed Tristan. "Pikachu, Mudkip, this way!" And he and Hillary quickly led the Pokémon away as they carried a still-weakened Torchic with them.
Taz was able to push Poliwrath off of him and get back on his feet just as they darted out of sight. "Don't just stand there, Poliwrath, go after them!" he ordered.
And an instant later, Poliwrath bore down on them like a muscled man.
Tristan and Hillary kept running as fast as they could until they saw another Ice Beam behind them, narrowly dodging the attack.
"Walrein, Sheer Cold!" shouted a voice.
Tristan and Hillary were surprised to hear the voice, but not as surprised to run into a blue walrus-like Pokémon with big tusks.
"Look, a Walrein!" gasped Tristan.
Quickly, Tristan and Hillary ducked for cover just as Walrein glowed in a light blue aura and unleashed a wave of absolute zero cold in Poliwrath's direction, instantly freezing it and knocking it out.
A woman with blonde hair wearing a purple dress appeared on the scene. "Hurry, kids, run this way!" And she quickly led them out of sight just as Taz arrived.
"No, Poliwrath!" cried Taz. "It's frozen solid!" And he growled profusely. "You're gonna be sorry, you lousy cheating kiddies! Mark my woids!"
A few minutes later, Tristan, Hillary, and the woman made it to a clearing a safe distance away from Taz.
"We should be safe out here for the time being," said the woman. "May I see that Torchic for just a moment?"
Tristan gently handed Torchic over to her.
Sure enough, Torchic was still cold to the touch.
"I was afraid of this. This Torchic is still freezing." And she gently handed it back to Tristan.
"Then we'd better take it to the nearest Pokémon Center as quick as we can," suggested Hillary.
"I'm afraid it isn't that easy," replied the woman. "The nearest Pokémon Center is in Lavaridge Town, and that's quite a journey from here. You won't be able to make it in time. Why don't you two come over to my place? It's just down the road, and we can have ourselves a warm meal. Maybe it'll help cure Torchic."
Tristan and Hillary looked at each other, then the woman. Then they said, "Sure, that'd be great!"
Pikachu and Togepi were delighted with the idea.
(Music Cue: Hope (full version))
They arrived at the woman's house just a few minutes later.
Everything seemed and felt cold at first glance, but seeing the warm cheery fire in the fireplace coupled with the delicious aroma of the woman's cooking that they forgot how cold it was.
"Where are my manners?" said the woman. "I was so busy helping that little Torchic that I forgot to introduce myself. My name's Glacia."
"Nice to meet you, Glacia," replied Hillary. "I'm Hillary."
"My name's Tristan," added Tristan. "We're from New Bark Town."
Pikachu and Togepi introduced themselves warmly.
"It's so nice to meet you both," smiled Glacia. "The soup is almost ready. But before we dig in, how about we help that Torchic first?" And she took a Berry from out of the wooden bowl on the table.
"What's that?" wondered Tristan.
"That is an Aspear Berry," answered Glacia.
"What's an Aspear Berry?" asked Hillary.
"This Berry defrosts Pokémon after being frozen solid," explained Glacia. "Fire Pokémon don't usually freeze, but it can happen. However, using certain Fire attacks like Flame Wheel should be enough to defrost them too."
"May I give the Aspear Berry to Torchic, Glacia?" asked Tristan.
"Be my guest." And she handed the Berry to Tristan.
"Here, Torchic, try eating this," said Tristan. "It'll help you warm up in no time."
Torchic, who was still shivering, shook its head.
This concerned Tristan, but Pikachu assured Torchic that it was okay.
So Torchic took a little taste, and slowly, but surely, it began to warm up. It was excited to be warm again and gobbled up the rest of the Aspear Berry. It got warmer and warmer, and it got so warm that steam began to hiss from the feathers on its forehead.
Of course, Tristan didn't notice that Torchic got redder and hotter until finally, it became so hot that the intense heat caused him to drop Torchic to the ground.
"Ow! Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot! Hot!" cried Tristan as he blew on his hands to try and cool them down.
Fortunately, a white light shot out of one of Tristan's Poké Balls, and Mudkip, seeing him in trouble, used a gentle Water Gun to cool them back down.
"Phew!" sighed Tristan. "That was close. Thanks, Mudkip."
Mudkip nodded happily.
"I think this would be a great time to have our warm bowls of soup," suggested Glacia. "Let's sit over by the fire so we can all enjoy it together."
And so they did.
That evening, Tristan and Hillary were telling Glacia their travel stories.
"And that's how I first got Beldum," finished Tristan.
"Wow, that's really cool!" smiled Glacia. "It's obvious to me that you both love Pokémon so much."
"We do," agreed Hillary. "Tristan and I have been through Kanto and Johto together and saw many different Pokémon and Trainers."
(Music Cue: A Future Hope (full version))
Torchic was so relaxed by the peace and calm that it decided to make itself comfortable on Tristan's lap and closed its eyes.
"Aw, poor little Torchic," said Hillary. "It's worn out from everything that's gone on today."
Tristan decided to give Torchic a gentle hug to help keep it and himself warm.
"Torchic seems to have grown fond of you, Tristan," remarked Glacia.
"Really?" Tristan was a little surprised and amazed, and it was true, for Torchic felt very comfortable sleeping on Tristan's lap and couldn't be moved. "It feels so warm, but it's not too hot for me to handle."
"That's because Torchic will be comfortable with someone it really trusts, especially if it can help warm someone else up," explained Glacia. "That's because it feels so warm when it's given a gentle hug."
"Then Torchic could be your own hot water bottle," chuckled Hillary.
Tristan had to let off a laugh.
So did Pikachu and Togepi.
"I think I'll find out more about Torchic," said Hillary as she scanned it with her Pokédex.
"Torchic, the Chick Pokémon. Torchic has a flame sac inside its body that burns, and feels warm when given a hug."
"You know, I'm feeling all the warmth from Torchic inside my heart," smiled Tristan. "I won't have to worry about freezing for quite some time."
Sure enough, Torchic felt very warm, causing him to feel warmer and happier than before.
"Well, why don't we all turn in for the night?" suggested Glacia. "I'm sure we could all use some shuteye after helping Torchic get better."
"Great idea," agreed Hillary.
"I'd love to get up, but I can't abandon Torchic," interrupted Tristan.
"There's no need to," replied Glacia. "You two can sleep comfortably by the fire without having to move an inch."
"You mean that?"
"Sure. I'm sure Torchic would love to have some company it knows it can trust."
And so it was decided: Tristan and Torchic would sleep in a comfortable spot close to the fire, so he got out his sleeping bag and settled in with Torchic and Pikachu.
Then everyone said goodnight and went to sleep.
The next morning, Torchic was the first to open its eyes. It looked all around. Then it got up to explore.
Tristan drowsed comfortably as the warmth from the fire spread through the room.
Pikachu's ears pricked up; then it opened its eyes and followed Torchic.
Tristan stirred a little. Then he opened his eyes and saw that Pikachu and Torchic had disappeared. "Pikachu? Torchic? Where'd you go?" he asked curiously. Presently, he heard happy voices coming from the kitchen. He got to the kitchen to see Pikachu trying to keep Torchic in line. "Good morning, guys! What are you two doing in there?"
Pikachu then pointed to a cupboard that was filled with Pokémon food.
"Oh, I see! You two must be hungry. Just a minute." He opened his backpack and got out two bowls of homemade Pokémon food; one for Pikachu and one for Torchic. "There you go. I'll bet you're hungry, right?"
Pikachu excitedly dug in.
Torchic, on the other hand, hesitated, but after taking a bite of the specialized Fire-type Pokémon food, it happily dug in as well.
Hillary, Togepi, and Glacia all came to the kitchen.
"Good morning, Tristan," smiled Hillary.
"Morning, sis," replied Tristan. "Sleep well?"
"Yes, thank you."
"Looks like Torchic is getting back up to speed," remarked Glacia.
Presently, a white light shot out of one of Tristan's Poké Balls and appeared next to Torchic; it was Bagon.
Tristan was surprised. "Bagon, why'd you let yourself out?"
(Music Cue: Wandering Togepi (as heard in the Japanese version of "Pikachu's Summer Vacation"))
Bagon took one look at Torchic's food and rushed to gobble it down.
Torchic gave a shriek of terror after seeing Bagon close in on it.
"No, Bagon, stop!" cried Hillary. "Tristan, do something!"
Fortunately, Tristan dug into his backpack and dug out a container of Dragon-type Pokémon food. Quickly, he opened it. "Hey, Bagon, catch!" And he tossed the food into the air.
Bagon, seeing the Dragon-type Pokémon food, jumped up and caught each morsel one by one. Feeling satisfied, it let out a small burp.
"Phew!" sighed Hillary. "That was close."
Torchic whimpered after nearly losing its food to Bagon.
"You know, Bagon, it wasn't very nice to scare Torchic like that," said Tristan firmly while trying to be as patient as possible.
"Now apologize to Torchic!" added Glacia coldly. "You're just lucky I didn't want to cool you off in ice."
"It's okay, Glacia," Tristan assured her. "I can handle it."
Glacia sighed. "I'm sorry. Whenever I see a friend in trouble, I tend to act as cold as ice to whomever offends them."
Bagon took one look at Torchic and saw it upset. It then slowly walked over and gently patted Torchic on the shoulder.
Torchic slowly turned toward Bagon, who gave a genuine smile. Then it looked at Bagon curiously.
"See? Bagon just wants to be Torchic's friend," smiled Tristan. "Isn't that right, Bagon?"
Bagon turned to Tristan.
"I know you weren't trying to be mean, Bagon. Torchic's just not used to you yet, especially when you get excited to meet new friends."
"Or food," added Hillary.
Bagon and Torchic looked at each other. Then they smiled and laughed.
"Aw, look at that," smiled Hillary. "Looks like those two are hitting it off."
Glacia turned to Bagon. "I'm sorry, Bagon," she said apologetically. "I misjudged you."
Bagon smiled and forgave her.
Tristan grinned. He could tell that Bagon's intentions were good, even though they were a little misguided at times.
Suddenly, there was a loud rumble outside the house.
"What's going on?" gasped Hillary.
"An earthquake?" replied Tristan.
Everyone rushed outside and found out the reason for all the shaking.
(Music Cue: Regirock, Regice, & Registeel Battle (full version))
There stood an enormous orange Pokémon ten times its original sizes, and it looked a lot more muscular.
"It's a giant Torchic!" exclaimed Glacia.
Then there was a familiar evil cackle as a familiar figure emerged from the top of it. "Hello, kiddies! I told ya you'd be sorry!"
"It's Taz!" gasped Tristan and Hillary together.
Pikachu and Togepi agreed disdainfully.
"Allow me to present to you my newest friend: Torchic, the Heavyweight Chicken of the World! It lives, it breathes fire, and is resistant to all Ice-type attacks. Now it's time to turn up the heat! Good luck beating this baby, for no amount of cold you unleash can stop it!" And he disappeared back inside the machine just as its eyes glowed white.
"We'll see about that!" retorted Glacia. "Walrein, knock it out with Sheer Cold!" And she threw her Poké Ball.
Walrein emerged from the white light that shot out of it. Then it glowed in a light blue aura and unleashed a wave of absolute zero cold at the huge Torchic.
Unfortunately, the heat that the Torchic machine produced proved to be a strong defense against it, thus blocking the attack.
"Sheer Cold didn't do a thing!" gasped Tristan.
"Time for my Torchic friend to strike back with a giant Ember attack!" said Taz as he pressed a button.
The mechanical Torchic's beak opened up, revealing a frightful sight.
"Hey, that's a cannon!" exclaimed Hillary.
But instead of a cannonball, it unleashed a giant ball of fire at the terrified group.
Unfortunately, it scored a direct hit on Walrein.
"Walrein, no!" cried Glacia. She then turned to the mechanical Torchic and shouted, "You creep! What have you done to it!"
"I just warmed up your Walrein a bit, that's all," smiled Taz, pretending to be innocent.
Sure enough, Walrein groaned in pain as steam hissed out all over its body.
"It's got a burn!" gasped Hillary.
"That giant Torchic's Ember attack must've been so strong that Walrein couldn't resist it!" added Tristan.
"That nasty fiend," growled Glacia. "There's no way I'll let him get away with this." She turned to Tristan and Hillary. "All right, kids, I need to help Walrein, but meanwhile, it's all up to the two of you to keep that jerk at bay until I get back I should only be a minute." And she hurried away.
"Right. Hey, sis, let's team up and attack it together with our Water Pokémon," suggested Tristan. "Water attacks should be super-effective against Fire Pokémon like Torchic, including Taz's big Torchic."
"Yeah!" agreed Hillary as she took out a Poké Ball and threw it. "Squirtle, come on out!"
"You, too, Mudkip, let's go!"
Mudkip and Squirtle emerged from the white lights that shot out of it and awaited their Trainers' instructions.
"Water Gun, now!" they commanded together.
Mudkip and Squirtle unleashed powerful blasts of water at the mechanical Torchic, but this, too, proved futile, for the machine's hot temperatures prevented the attacks from reaching it.
"Ha!" laughed Taz. "You should know by now that Water attacks aren't powerful enough to reach this thing...not when it's got plenty of steam left in it!" And he pushed the button.
The machine fired another giant Ember attack at Mudkip and Squirtle.
"Dodge it!" ordered Tristan and Hillary together.
Mudkip and Squirtle managed to evade the giant fireball just as it hit the ground.
Meanwhile, Glacia quickly reemerged with a blue berry in hand. "I'm back, kids, and I've got a Rawst Berry."
"A Rawst Berry?" repeated Hillary. "What's it do?"
"Oh, I know!" exclaimed Tristan excitedly. "That's a Berry that's used for healing burns!"
"That's correct," replied Glacia. "You know your stuff." She turned to her Walrein. "Here, Walrein, eat this. It's a Rawst Berry, and it will cure your burn."
Walrein snatched the berry with its mouth and consumed it. An instant later, all its burns had disappeared, much to Glacia's delight.
"That's great," smiled Glacia. "You're back to normal. Now we need to take care of that machine."
Suddenly, Torchic stepped forward, looking very upset.
"Wait, Torchic, what are you...?" began Tristan.
(Music Cue: Advance Adventure! (Orchestra & Guitar (full version as heard in "A Different Kind of Misty"))
Torchic didn't answer, for it unleashed a stream of little fireballs from its beak at the giant Torchic.
"Look, Torchic's using its Ember attack!" gasped Hillary.
But all it did was make Taz's big mechanical Torchic even hotter.
"Thank you, my little Torchic!" laughed Taz. "The more you hit me with your Ember attack, the more powerful my big Torchic gets! So feel free to keep powering it up!"
And it did.
Then suddenly, Bagon stepped forward.
"You wanna help, too, Bagon?" asked Tristan.
Bagon nodded excitedly.
"All right then, help Torchic with your Ember attack!" he commanded.
Bagon nodded and it, too, unleashed a stream of little fireballs from its mouth at the giant Torchic.
"I don't understand what they're doing," said Glacia worriedly, "but I hope they know."
"Aw, youse guys are too kind," smiled Taz. "This is the nicest thing youse ever dd for me."
Sure enough, the big mechanical Torchic kept getting hotter and hotter as Bagon and Torchic's Ember attack kept hitting it.
"Hey, sis, I've got an idea," suggested Tristan. "Let's combine Mudkip and Squirtle's Water Gun with Bagon and Torchic's Ember."
"Okay, let's try it," agreed Hillary. "Squirtle, Water Gun, now!"
"You, too, Mudkip, let's go!"
Mudkip and Squirtle unleashed powerful streams of water from their mouths at the machine and combined them with Bagon and Torchic's Ember attacks.
"You kiddies just don't know when to quit, do ya?" smirked Taz. "Your feeble barrage of Water and Fire attacks is no match for my beautiful Heavyweight Torchic!"
It was then that Glacia realized what Tristan, Hillary, and their Pokémon were doing. "Of course! Walrein, hit the machine with Blizzard!"
Walrein unleashed a powerful blast of snow and wind from its mouth at the mechanical Torchic, combining with Bagon and Torchic's Ember and Mudkip and Squirtle's Water Gun.
"Ha! It's useless!" laughed Taz confidently. "None of your attacks can reach me!" It was then that he heard a loud cracking noise. "Hey, what's that cracking sound? I don't remember adding no crackers to my victory meal."
But it wasn't crackers at all, for it was the sound of the body of the mechanical Torchic showing a large crack that began to develop on the outside from the combined attacks.
"Aah!" shrieked Taz. "My Heavyweight Torchic is cracking up!"
And as it did, the heat from the machine began to cool down, and slowly, but surely, the glow from the heat stopped.
"All right!" said Hillary. "Taz's machine finally cooled off! That what he gets for playing with fire...getting burned by our sheer brilliance!"
"By making that thing expand and contract, that big Torchic lost all its firepower!" added Glacia. "And now, we can let him have it right where it's cracked!"
"All right, Pikachu, finish it off with Thunder!" commanded Tristan.
Pikachu jumped up and unleashed a powerful yellow bolt of electricity, scoring a direct hit on the machine and giving Taz a huge shock.
The powerful surge of electricity caused a tremendous explosion that blew the machine to pieces.
BOOM!
"My Heavyweight Chicken Torchic...defeated by a bunch of kids," whimpered Taz. Then he yelled, "I'LL REMEMBER THIS!" as he blasted off into the sky.
DING!
"We did it!" cheered Tristan as he and everyone else celebrated their victory.
"And it was your hot idea, Tristan," reminded Glacia. "I'm very proud of you."
"Mine?" Tristan was a little puzzled at first.
"She's right, you know," smiled Hillary. "By combining our Water and Fire attacks along with Glacia's Ice attacks, we were able to put a dent in Taz's machine."
"You see, metal machines can't take the repeated pressure of repeating and alternating the combined might of hot and cold temperatures, making them expand and contract," explained Glacia. "And when it happens too much too fast, metal cracks, making it weaker and weaker until it's weak enough for other things to get through."
"Like Electric attacks?" asked Tristan.
"Precisely."
Tristan knelt down and gently picked up Torchic. Then he said, "Actually, I wouldn't have come up with the idea if it wasn't for Bagon, and our new light-as-a-feather future champion, Torchic."
Torchic was a little confused. Then it chirped happily and embraced Tristan.
"Hey, Tristan, it looks like that Torchic has gotten attached to you," smiled Hillary, "especially since it gives you such a warm and happy feeling."
"I think you're right," replied Tristan. "Thanks, Torchic, you're the hottest and the coolest."
Torchic gave a happy reply.
(Music Cue: Opening Selection B (2002-2005)
"Thanks for letting us stay here with you, Glacia," said Tristan later that day. "We had a lot of fun here, and Torchic's back to full strength."
"Yeah, it was a blast," added Hillary.
Glacia chuckled. "I'm just glad I was able to help you out."
"By the way, Glacia, that Walrein's Sheer Cold and Blizzard attacks were super-strong," said Tristan. "How'd you get it to be so powerful anyway?"
"Well, I am a member of the Hoenn region's Elite Four, after all."
Tristan and Hillary gasped in surprise. "You're in the Elite Four?!"
Pikachu and Togepi were just as startled.
Tristan got over his shock and made a declaration. "Well then, I'm gonna train extra hard and get even stronger! Right, Pikachu?"
Pikachu agreed enthusiastically.
"That's the spirit," smiled Glacia. "You can't lose with an attitude like that. And hopefully, someday soon, we can have a battle."
"You can count on it."
Torchic, who was standing beside Glacia, hopped up and down, and then suddenly, it nuzzled against Tristan's leg affectionately.
"What is it, Torchic?" asked Tristan.
Torchic didn't answer; it just kept nuzzling.
"I think that little Torchic wants to go with you on your journey," explained Glacia.
Tristan picked up Torchic and looked it in the eye. "Is Glacia right? Do you want to come with me?"
Torchic nodded and embraced him.
Tristan took out a Poké Ball and gently tapped Torchic with it.
Instantly, Torchic transformed into red energy and shot inside.
The Poké Ball wiggled as the button flashed. Then it stopped as a capture tone was emitted.
Tristan gently held up his Poké Ball high and proudly proclaimed, "I got a Torchic!"
"Pi-Pikachu!" added Pikachu.
"Before you go," said Glacia, "if you're looking to get to Lavaridge Town, the quickest way would be to go over Mount Chimney. There's a cable car station that'll take you up to the top. Then go down the mountain via the Jagged Pass. Once you're down there, Lavaridge Town is just a hop, skip, and a jump away."
"Thanks, Glacia, we'll do that," promised Tristan.
"See you soon, Glacia!" called Hillary as she and Tristan waved to her.
Glacia waved back. "Take care, you two! And have a safe journey!"
"We will!" replied Tristan.
Pikachu and Togepi said their goodbyes as well.
After an unexpected meeting with Glacia of the Elite Four and the addition of Torchic to Tristan's ever-growing family of Pokémon friends, our heroes continue their journey toward Lavaridge Town by way of Mount Chimney.
TO BE CONTINUED...