Chapter 13:
Blade versus Drill: The Battle Underground
Burole Town
After another day of traveling through Seabreeze Way, the group had finally arrived at Burole Town, which once again welcomed them with a sign.
Welcome to Burole Town
City of Caves. Take our word, don't travel west.
Checking information on her tablet, Serena explained that the "City of Caves" moniker came from the fact that Burole Town started out as a mining town that dug out iron and copper. Eventually, the mines ran out of ore, but the town remained.
They took a good look at the town as they set a foot on it, they could see that Burole Town could be described as a happy medium between Moki Town and Nowtoch City. It was closer to Moki Town in both extension and size of the buildings, but unlike the rural Moki and its rustic wooden houses, Burole had a more urban feel to its design, with more buildings made of metal and concrete.. And unlike Nowtoch, which was surrounded by rocky terrain and had a few trees here and there, Burole was sandwiched by a small mountain range to the north, and dense greenery to the south, east and west.
"Why don't they want us to travel west?" Bonnie had asked.
"Yeah. We come from the west, right?" Ash asked.
"Why, you ask?" a new voice said. The group turned to the direction of the voice, and saw a bunch of teeneage girls a couple years older than them sitting on a bench. "Why, because the towns to the west are a bunch of backwards places full of dumb hillbillies."
"That's a very awful thing to say," Serena replied, eyeing the teenage girls disapprovingly.
"You're not from here, are you?" another teenage girl asked, though it sounded more like a statement. "Well, if you only saw Moki and Kevlar, you probably think that Tandor must be quite the awful place. But don't worry, now that you're here, you can enjoy what a REAL Tandorian town has to offer!"
"Yeah, let's hope you have a fun time here!" a third teen girl said. "I know this is not exactly Bealbeach City, but compared to Moki and Kevlar, it may be!"
The rest of the teenage girls laughed as Ash and his friends continued their journey into the former mining town.
"Boy, I hope that not all people from this place are so arrogant," Ash sneered. "Or else our stay here is not going to be very pleasant."
"I think it's best if we forget about them," Serena advised, as she continued to check her tablet. "So, we're quite ahead of schedule. Contest-wise, I mean. There are still four days until the contest held in this town."
"Should we go to the Gym then?" Clemont suggested, looking at Ash.
"Eh, there's no hurry," Ash said, shaking his head. When he saw the other three raising their eyebrows in surprise, Ash decided to elaborate. "I think I could use a day or two to give my Pokemon a bit more training. You already saw Maria in action, so I'm sure whoever is the Leader here will be just as tough."
Serena nodded in approval, happy that Ash didn't let the excitement to fight a new Gym Leader get the best of him and go ill prepared. "In that case, let's go to the Pokemon Center First."
…
The group arrived at the Pokemon Center, and booked two rooms, one for the boys and another for the girls, for four days. Then, after having a nice lunch, they headed to the battleground next to the Center in order to train, which, thankfully, wasn't being used at the time. Or better said, Ash, Clemont and Bonnie went there; Serena claimed she had a new idea for a performance involving Pancham and Minicorn, but she needed more space tha half a battleground.
So now, it was just Ash training his Pokemon, with Clemont and Bonnie watching and trying to help their friend with whatever they could. Right now, Colarva was sparring with Birbie, and Dunsparce was sparring with Greninja, much to the latter's chagrin, while Pikachu oversaw both sparring sessions, though he was more focused on Colarva and Birbie.
"Okay Colarva, show me what you can do!" Ash told the Snow Mite Pokemon.
"Co!" Colarva happily said, before he turned towards Birbie and prepared to attack. From his tiny mouth, Colarva fired a sticky string towards Birbie, which the Eden Bird Pokemon skillfully dodged.
"So, you know String Shot? That can be useful," Ash said. "What else?"
"Co, co!" eager to prove himself, Colarva used another move, and blew a a chilly gust of powdery snow at Birbie. This time, Birbie was unable to dodge the move, and the blue bird was covered in frost and shivering on the spot.
"And that's Powder Snow!" Clemont pointed out.
"What else can you do, Colarva?" Bonnie asked, eager to see what the little bug could do.
"Co...?" Colarva asked, looking between confused and uncomfrotable.
"Don't you know more attacks besides those two, Colarva?" Ash asked, sounding a little underwhelmed.
Sensing his trainer's disappointment, Colarva slumped a little. "Larva..."
Pikachu and Birbie –the latter still covered in snow– quickly went to comfort the newest member of Ash's team, with Ash himself joining them as well.
"Hey, don't worry, pal. If you don't know that many attacks, that's okay! There will be time to learn more," Ash said, gently patting Colarva's spiky shell. "Say, for the time being, how about you focus on getting a little stronger? Birbie, help Colarva spar. Be gentle with him, okay?"
"Bir, birbie!" Birbie enthusiasthically nodded, letting Ash know he could be trusted with Colarva.
"Ash, you weren't planning to use Colarva against the Gym Leader, right?" Clemont asked.
"Of course not. Colarva still needs more training before he can get good enough to match the Pokemon of a Gym Leader," Ash said, looking at Colarva confidently. "And I know he will get there, sooner or later."
"What's wrong with Ash using Colarva?" Bonnie asked. "Ash used Dunsparce against Maria shortly after catching him."
"I did train Dunsparce before fighting Maria," Ash reminded the younger girl. "Though, it's not the same situation. Dunsparce is cut from a different cloth. Dunsparce was a Pokemon that knew how to battle well and was hardened by the place he lived in. Colarva was forcefully taken away from his home and was kept in awful conditions by those traffickers."
Ash then looked where the aforementioned Dunsparce was sparring against Greninja. Or better said, it was Dunsparce attacking and Greninja defending, since Ash doubted Dunsparce would be able to take more than a couple blows from the Ninja Pokemon without fainting, not with his current strength.
"Duuuuuun..." Dunsparce began, as he summoned a ring of golden marble-sized orbs above him. The orbs then began to increase in size, turning into glowing golden chunks of rock, before hurling all of them at Greninja. "PARCE!"
"Gre!" Forming a blade of pure darkness between his webbed hands, Greninja parried the attack with several strikes of Night Slash, destroying the golden rocks, which shattered into hundreds of tiny pebbles that in turn disappeared into tiny sparkles.
"Well done, Dunsparce! You're getting the hang of Ancient Power!" Ash praised.
"Parce," Dunsparce dismissively replied, as if Ash had underestimated him.
Seeing Richard's Dunsparce in action has shown Ash the sheer range of attacks the Land Snake Pokemon could learn. And given that all of Dunsparce's attacks were contact moves, Ash thought Dunsparce could learn one or two ranged attacks. Dunsparce appeared to have some affinity for Ancient Power, and for the past few days, he had been trying as best as he could to master it.
Right then the back door from the Pokemon Center opened, and Serena walked into the battleground.
"Hey guys!" Serena happily greeted them. "Still training hard?"
"You know it!" Ash excitedly said. "How about you? Are you done with that new performance?"
"Not yet, but we're on the right track. Just one or two more days of training," Serena said, as she glanced at Ash's Pokemon. "I decided that Pancham and Minicorn already trained enough, so I wanted to train my other Pokemon for the contest battle. Ash, are you up for a sparring double battle?"
"You don't need to ask!" Ash quickly promised. "Birbie, Colarva! Are you up for a tag team battle?"
"Birb!"
"Co!"
"Awesome! Let's go then!"
And thus Ash helped Serena train for her upcoming contest. They kept training until the sun began to set in the horizon.
…
After two days of training at the Burole Pokemon Center, Ash decided his Pokemon were ready, so he and his friends were heading towards the Burole Town Gym. According to the town map, it was in the northernmost part of the town. However, they began to doubt if the map's accuracy when they realized they were heading into the mountains and out of the town.
"Are you sure this is the right direction?" asked Bonnie, as she looked at the last bunch of houses the group left behind. "We're leaving the town."
"Yeah... normally, most Pokemon Gyms tend to be in the middle of their city or town, so people can find them easily," Ash said, as he scratched his temple. "Maybe we took a wrong turn somewhere?"
"Actually, we're on the right track," Serena said. "Look."
Serena was pointing to a nearby sign. Despite the distance, the big, bold letters on the sign made it easy to read.
No, you didn't take a wrong turn. Burole Town Gym straight ahead.
"Wow, that sign guessed our thoughts. Do you think the Gym Leader is a psychic?" Bonnie asked.
Her question was left unanswered. Trusting the sign, the group continued walking forward, until they found something: the entrance to what appeared to be a mine, blocked by a sturdy-looking steel gate. Above said entrance was the logo of the Pokemon League, which identified the place as an official gym. Ash walked towards the door, and seeing a button next to it, he pressed it down. For a few seconds nothing happened, but after that, the gates began to move aside, making a low pitched screech.
"This has to be weirdest gym I've ever seen," Clemont said, as he inspected the entrance.
They entered the gym, and as expected, it was a pure rock tunnel, albeit with many lamps hanging from each walls in order to keep it well-lit. There were rail tracks on the ground. They tentatively followed the tunnel, which eventually led to a large, well-lit chamber. Said chamber had four other exits, as well as many other railtracks that went in and out of them. And just as they arrived, a man entered the place from another of the entrances.
"Oh, hey there!" the man said. "Welcome to the Burole Town Gym!"
The man in question was somebody in his late thirties. He had fair skin, black hair, and a thin moustache under his nose. He was wearing a black long sleeved shirt and long pants of the same color. Over the shirt, he was wearing a green sleveless jacket with many pockets. On his head there was a helmet of the same color with a lantern on it. He was also wearing an utility belt with many tools attached to it, such as a small shovel, a pick, a flashlight, and many more.
"Uh... are you the Gym Leader?" Ash hesitantly asked.
"The one and only! Name's Davern, by the way," Davern introduced himself, before chuckling. "I know what you're thinking: I don't look much like a Gym Leader, do I? But as the old saying goes, looks can be deceiving."
"Oh, I see," Ash said, his disposition lightning up, seemingly trusting this man. "Well, my name is-"
"Ash Ketchum. And you're here to challenge me for my badge, don't you?" Davern interrupted, much to Ash and his friends' surprise. The Gym Leader smiled and rolled back his sleeve to show a Pokegear. "Maria told the rest of us about your victory over her, as well as the fact that you'll challenge my gym next."
"Heh, it seems you're starting to make a name for yourself in the region, Ash," Serena giggled, making Ash blush a little.
"No kidding! I mean, Maria sounded so excited after your fight... and boy, if you can get Maria like that, that means you're somebody worth taking seriously. Anyway, we can talk more while we head towards our battleground. Everybody, follow me!"
Davern then walked towards another of the chamber's exits, and the group of teens followed him.
"Don't take offense, Mr. Davern, but this is quite the... odd place to put a Pokemon Gym," Clemont observed.
"None taken, kid. And yes, I know most people may think like that. I mean, a Gym inside a cave? What kind of idiot does that?" Davern asked.
"Well, at least you didn't build your gym inside an active volcano," Ash pointed out.
Bonnie gasped. "You fought a Gym Battle inside a volcano!?" she asked, sounding as if that was the most awesome thing ever.
"Oh, you're talking about Blaine, aren't you? Of course you know him, you're both from Kanto," Davern said with a good natured chuckle. "I don't know how the Pokemon League let him do that. That Gym is a tragedy waiting to happen."
"Well, the Gym's battlefield was destroyed when the volcano almost erupted," Ash explained. "Thankfully there were no victims."
"Tsk, tsk, that Blaine..." Davern said, as he led the group towards a spacious shaft elevator.
When all of them got inside, Davern closed the doors manually, pulled a lever, and the elevator began its slow descent.
"You see, since I was a kid, there's nothing I loved more than caves. They were so spooky and mysterious, and I wanted to explore all of them. And of course, to study and befriend the Pokemon that lived there," Davern began to explain. "When I became the new Gym Leader, the old Gym that inherited from my predecessor was in shambles, so I had it demolished. But I didn't like the idea of being all day cooped between bricks and mortar. So instead of rebuilding it, I decided to use one of the empty mines as the place for the new Gym. Much cozier and welcoming for both me and my cave-dwelling Pokemon, don't you think?"
"Wow. This guy's such a caveman," Bonnie deadpanned.
"Bonnie!" Clemont chastised her.
Davern, however, didn't seem to pay her any mind. "Tandor has a lot of wonderful caves. Did you have the privilege of seeing at least one?" Davern asked.
"Well...we've been in Passage Cave," Serena pointed out, shivering a little when she remembered the violently territorial group of Pokemon that inhabited that place.
"Oh," Davern said, his enthusiasm seemingly decreasing. "As far as caves go, Passage Cave is kind of meh, so I don't blame you if you didn't enjoy it much. Don't let that experience color your opinion on Tandor's wonderful caves."
That moment, the elevator shaft reached the bottom, and Davern opened the doors, letting them out. They were now inside an extremely large underground cavern. Like the rest of the mine/gym, it was illuminated by many lamps hanging from the walls and the ceilings. There was a battleground with many rocks scattered around it. On one side, there were some seats for the spectators to take.
"Don't worry about possible cave-ins. This place has been reinforced to ensure maximum stability, and has the seal of approval of the Pokemon League," Davern explained. "No natural disasters to be afraid of either."
There was also another man dressed like Davern, holding a small flag on each hand. They guessed he was the judge.
"Good luck, Ash," Serena said, as she Bonnie and Clemont headed towards the seats, while Ash took his place on one of the sides of the battlefield and Davern took the opposite side.
…
Serena, Clemont and Bonnie sat on the empty bleachers, Serena on one side, Clemont on another, and Bonnie on the middle. Looking at Ash, Serena could see that her friend has been itching for a good Gym Battle. It's been quite some time since they left Nowtoch City. She hoped Ash could channel all that pent-up energy to victory.
"Are you ready, Ash?" Davern asked.
Ash smirked confidently. "Do you really need to ask?"
Davern nodded at the referee, who nodded back, and raised both flags. "This is an official Gym Battle between the Gym Leader Davern, and Ash Ketchum. The battle will be single format with no time limit, and each trainer will use up to three Pokemon. The battle will be over when one side has no more Pokemon remaining. Only the challenger may make substitutions. Trainers, select your first Pokemon."
"Alright, time to shine Dearewl!" Davern said, sending his first Pokemon.
From the pokeball emerged a four-legged, equine-looking Pokemon with metallic-like brown skin, a helmet-like piece of metal over its head with a string of curly metal wire coming out of its top, another that looked like a saddle over its back, and a round, light gray metallic plate on each on its thighs.
"Dearewl, huh? It looks similar to..." Ash began, as he pulled out his Pokedex.
"Dearewl, the Iron Horn Pokemon, and Barewl's evolved form. Rock/Steel. It is a stubborn Pokémon that will always stand its ground, even against a much larger opponent. It uses its horn to dig for metal ore." The Pokedex droned.
"Barewl's evolved form, huh? No wonder it looked familiar," Ash said, as he unclipped a pokeball from his belt. "Well, in that case, I shall beat your cave Pokemon with one of my own! Dunsparce, I choose you!"
Ash tossed the pokeball forward, releasing the most obnoxious member of his team. Everybody hoped he wouldn't try to pull the same stunts he was so used to do.
"Oh, you have a cave Pokemon too! Oh boy, Maria was right! This match is going to be incredible!" Davern exclaimed.
The referee lowered both flags in a chopping motion. "Begin!"
~Challenger Ash (Dunsparce, ?, ?) VS Gym Leader Davern (Dearewl, ?, ?)~
"Dunsparce, start with Rollout!" Ash commanded.
"Dearewl counter it with Headbutt!" Davern called.
Dunsparce quickly curled into a ball, and spun towards Dearewl, leaving a trail of dust behind. Dearewl, meanwhile, charged towards the incoming Dunsparce, lowering its head. The two Pokemon clashed, and Dearewl managed to stop Dunsparce's momentum and send him backwards, cancelling the Rollout. Though, by the way Dearewl shook its head, it was obvious it didn't get out of the clash unharmed.
"Rock Slide!" Davern called.
"Avoid it with Dig!" Ah replied.
Dearewl conjured multiple large rocks above Dunsparce, which quickly fell down once gravity took a hold of them. As this happened, Dunsparce leaped into the ground while spinning his body, turning himself into a living drill, burrowing underground just as the rocks buried the spot he was on a moment before.
"Dearewl, quick, get on top of one of the rocks!" Davern said.
"De!" Dearewl agreed, and quickly climbed on top of a nearby boulder.
Ash gritted his teeth as he saw how Dearewl avoided a sure hit. There wass no way Dunsparce would be able to pierce that much rock.
And indeed, Dunsparce emerged from underground on a spot next to the rock, while launching himself towards Dearewl. But thanks to the high ground, the Iron Horn Pokemon had a safe way to easily avoid and counter the attack.
"Now, use Headbutt!" Davern ordered.
Dearewl's iron-hard head smashed against the incoming Land Snake Pokemon, neutralizing his attack and sending him crashing against the ground.
"A really smart way to avoid an attack," Clemont commented. "Davern really knows how to use the irregular terrain of his Gym's battleground to his advantage."
Serena grabbed her blue ribbon. "That's just a setback for Ash. He has already fought on weird battlegrounds before," she said, her eyes fixed on the battle. "Ash also knows how to take advantage of the terrain."
"Now, Dearewl, use Metal Whip!" Davern commanded.
"Metal Whip?" Ash repeated, part confused and part tense. That was an attack Serena had never heard before, and judging by Ash's reaction, neither had he.
The wire sticking out of Dearewl's organic helmet began to glow with a silvery sheen as it quickly enlogated into a proper whip, which was wrapped around Dunsparce's body, immobilizing the Land Snake Pokemon.
"Oh no!" Ash cried. "Dunsparce, try to break free!"
"Parce, dunsparce!" Dunsparce cried, as he tried to futilely resist against the constricting force of the Metal Whip.
"Your Dunsparce can fight back all he wants, but he won't break free of Metal Whip," Davern stated. "Come on Dearewl, apply more pressure!"
Dunsparce cried even louder as the metallic wire squeezed him even tighter. As Ash debated what to do, he realized Dunsparce now had one more weapon to his arsenal, which might help him now.
"Dunsparce, use Ancient Power!" Ash called.
Fighting off the pain, Dunsparce concentrated, and summoned a circle of golden orbs that spun around his body. The orbs grew in size, taking the forms of large golden boulders, before said boulders shot towards Dearewl, smashing against its face repeteadly. Dearewl flinched each time a rock smashed into its face, and even if it didn't release Dunsparce, the Metal Whip loosened.
"Hang on, Dearewl!" Davern encouraged his Pokemon.
"Great job, Dunsparce! Ancient Power again!" Ash called.
Dunsparce summoned another ring of golden rocks, and threw them at Dearewl. This time, the Iron Horn Pokemon couldn't take it anymore, and released Dunsparce from the Metal Whip. The Land Snake Pokemon then glowed with a golden aura for a couple seconds.
"Huh? What was that?" Bonnie asked.
"I think that was the additional effect of Ancient Power," Clemont explained. "It has a chance to increase all the capabilities of the Pokemon that uses it."
"Well, Ash got lucky if the effect was triggered after just two times," Serena noted, before she remembered something that happened during the second battle against Maria. "Wait, didn't you say that Dunsparce has an ability to increase the chances of such effects triggering, right?"
"Exactly, Serene Grace," Clemont confirmed. "Ash was indeed very smart for teaching Dunsparce such a move. Its additional effect will be a great boon."
Serena looked at Dunsparce, who didn't look any stronger than he normally used to. Then again, she knew very well that appearances could be deceiving.
"Dunsparce, Rollout!" Ash ordered.
"Stop it with Rock Slide!" Davern replied.
Once again, Dunsparce curled into a ball and rolled towards Dearewl, leaving an even bigger trail of dust behind, while the Rock and Steel-type Pokemon summoned more boulders to drop on top of Dunsparce. The Land Snake Pokemon, however, was able to roll past the falling rocks before they could hit him thanks to his increased speed, and slammed against Dearewl with greater force then he did before, sending it hurling backwards against one of the battleground's boulders.
"Yes! Direct hit!" Bonnie cheered.
"Let's do it again, Dunsparce!" Ash shouted, looking how Dearewl got back to its feet, or better said, hooves. "Rollout before it has time to recover!"
Dunsparce rolled towards Dearewl once again, who looked at the incoming sphere of destruction not knowing what to do.
"Dearewl, jump!" Davern commanded.
The Iron Horn Pokemon did as it was told, and leaped over Dunsparce, who smashed himself against the same boulder Dearewl was slammed against. Dunsparce unfurled his body, and shook his head to get rid of the dizziness from the hit.
"Now, Rock Slide!" Davern called.
"Avoid it with Dig!" Ash replied.
Once again, Dearewl tried to bury Dunsparce under a rain of boulders that the Land Snake Pokemon averted by drilling underground.
"Dearewl, get on top of that boulder!"
And once again, Dearewl climbed a place from which Dunsparce wouldn't be able to land a clear hit. However, Ash had something planned already.
"Dunsparce, keep digging tunnels under that boulder!" he ordered, much to everybody else's confusion.
Everybody could hear Dunsparce as he dug under the boulder Dearewl was perched on. Then, the ground started to shake, and much to the onlookers' surprise, the boulder began to sink into the battleground. Dearewl looked around, confused, before jumping out of the sinking boulder.
"Wait, no-"
"Now, Dunsparce!" Ash called.
Dunsparce burst from underground right beneath Dearewl, smahing his head under the Iron Horn Pokemon's underside, sending it flying into the air, before it fell down on the ground with a loud thud. Dearewl didn't even make an attempt to get back on its feet.
The referee raised a flag in Ash's direction. "Dearewl can't fight anymore! The winner is Dunsparce!"
Ash and his friends cheered for his victory, as Davern recalled his Pokemon, and thanked it for its efforts before putting it away.
"Nice trick there, turning the battleground against me." Davern praised Ash, as he unclipped another pokeball from his utility belt. "You might have an early lead, but this battle is far from over. Tofurang, time to shine!"
Davern tossed his second pokeball, releasing a large, purple colored, four legged Pokemon Ash had never seen before.
"Rang!" Tofurang cried.
"Tofurang, Tofurang...oh, I remember! Clemont said he had to fight against one on passage cave," Ash said, as he pulled out his Pokedex to scan it. "Evolution of Tonemy? Huh, I wouldn't have guessed it, with how different they look. Dunsparce, can you continue fighting?"
"Parce!" Dunsparce cried energetically.
"Very well then," Ash said.
"Dunsparce versus Tofurang, begin!" the referee shouted.
"Dunsparce, Rollout!"
"Dun!" Dunsparce said, before turning once again into a ball and rolled towards the purple-skinned behemoth.
Davern merely smirked. "Tofurang, Toxic Spikes!"
Tofurang opened its jaws, forming a dark purple energy orb between them. It then launched the orb into the air, which exploded into smaller, spike-shaped purple energy darts that sunk across the entire battlefield. Once the move was done, Dunsparce slammed into Tofurang.
Ash clenched his fists and gritted his teeth as memories of his battle against Paul during the Sinnoh League returned to mind. This time, Ash didn't have a Pokemon with the right skills to clear the spikes out of the field. Despite landing a good hit, Davern had made the rest of the battle significantly harder.
"Rollout again!" Ash commanded.
Dunsparce rolled towards Tofurang again, leaving an even bigger trail of dust behind as his rolling speed increased. But Davern was prepared.
"Tofurang, use Payback!" Davern said.
Tofurang's body started to glow with a red blood aura. The moment Dunsparce slammed into it, said aura glowed even brighter.
"RANG!" Tofurang roared, as it slammed into Dunsparce, sending the hapless Land Snake Pokemon crashing backwards.
"Dunsparce!" Ash cried.
"Sludge Bomb!" Davern added.
Tofurang opened its jaws, and released a barrage of purple sludge globs towards Dunsparce, all of them finding their mark, making Dunsparce cry in pain with each hit. When the attack was over, Dunsparce was lying on his back on a puddle of purple sludge, completely immobile his mouth agape.
The referee raised a flag in Davern's direction. "Dunsparce can't fight any longer! The winner is Tofurang!"
Ash sighed in defeat, as he recalled Dunsparce and thanked him for doing his best.
"Clemont," Bonnie asked. "What's that move Tofurang used at the beginning? It didn't do anything to Dunsparce, but given the way Ash reacted..."
"Toxic Spikes isn't a move to defeat your current opponent, but to cripple the opponents to come," Clemont began to explain. "Right now, any Pokemon Ash sends to battle will take damage and will be poisoned."
"But... that's super unfair for Ash! Now all of his Pokemon are going to end up worse before they can do anything!" Bonnie protested.
"I know, but that's how things are. Ash will have to find a way to fight around the Toxic Spikes... or fight and hope that he can win the battle before the poison whittles down his Pokemon's vitality," Clemont said, looking intently at Ash, as if trying to guess what Pokemon would he use next.
Ash didn't take long to answer. "Birbie, I choose you!"
The pokeball opened the moment it touched the ground, releasing Ash's first Tandorian Pokemon, already flapping his wings to keep himself mid-air.
"Birbie, try to stay airborne as much as possible! If you touch the ground, you'll be poisoned!" Ash warned the bird.
"Bir, birbie!" Birbie acknowledged.
"Of course! Toxic Spikes are useless if the Pokemon never touches the ground!" Serena beamed, feeling her hope for Ash returning. "That was such a smart choice!"
"Perhaps, but not the most ideal choice," Clemont countered. Upon seeing Serena's questioning look, he elaborated: "I can tell from experience that Tofurang is a very bulky Pokemon that can take a lot of punishment before going down. And Birbie... well, he's fast and swift, but a small Pokemon like that lacks the power needed to take down Tofurang."
"Ash isn't somebody who takes down opponents through sheer brute force, so Birbie's still a choice that suits him," Serena replied.
"True. Ash probably wants to use Birbie's superior speed to run circles around Tofurang and tire it out, but..."
"But?"
"Well... I think that's something Davern already took into account. Payback is a move that becomes twice as powerful if the user has been hit before," Clemont explained. "And Birbie isn't the kind of Pokemon who can endure powerful hits without going down."
"This isn't the first time Ash had to face a challenging situation. He will find a way," Serena told Clemont, her hope in Ash unshaken. "Come on, Ash and Birbie! I know you can do it!"
"Bir!" Birbie happily chirped, grateful for the encouragement.
"Yeah, we can't let them down, can we?" Ash asked, as he smiled confidently.
"Birbie versus Tofurang, begin!" the referee said.
"Birbie, let's begin with Air Cutter!"
"Birbie!" Birbie chirped, as he took some altitude, and began flapping his wings, releasing crescents of compressed air towards Tofurang.
"Tofurang, counter that with Sludge Bomb!" Davern called.
The Cave Beast Pokemon opened its jaws wide, releasing a stream of purple colored globs. Both attacks clashed, resulting in an explosion of sludge that splattered the battleground in grime. However, Tofurang's attack packed much more power than Birbie's, and was able to push through the Flying-type move.
"Birbe, get out of the way!" Ash called.
Birbie didn't need to be told, and making use of his superior speed, he was able to avoid all the projectiles by increasing the altitude of his flight.
"You won't be able to avoid the next move, Ash," Davern confidently said. "Tofurang, use Smog! Cover the entire battleground!"
"Rang!" Tofurang cried, and took a deep breath, its body puffing up almost like a balloon, before exhaling from its mouth a torrent of purple, poisonous gas towards Birbie. The gas traveled in a wide cone, making dodging much harder.
Fortunately for Ash, he already had enough experience with that kind of attacks to know that there were alternatives.
"Birbie, push it back with Gust!" Ash commanded.
"Bir-bir-bir-bir...!" Birbie chirped franctically as he flapped his little wings as fast as he could, creating a powerful gust of wind that appeared to push the toxic miasma back.
"Push back, Tofurang! Don't let that bird get the best of you!" Davern encouraged his Pokemon.
The poisonous gas started to come out of the Cave Beast Pokemon's mouth with greater pressure, as Tofurang tried to overpower Birbie's Gust. Birbie, meanwhile started to flap his wings with even more energy, creating more powerful winds. In the end, it would be a battle of endurance decided by what would give in first: Birbie's wings or Tofurang's lungs.
"Tofu-ACK! COF! COF!" Tofurang began to cough, interrupting the stream of smog, which allowed Birbie to push it back.
"Well done Birbie!" Ash praised the little bird. However, his joy lasted little, as he saw how winded the Eden Bird Pokemon was from holding up a Gust for so long against a such a persistent attack from a purely stronger Pokemon. Birbie looked exhausted, and beads of sweat ran down his round body. His wing flaps were slower and slower, and it was obvious he wanted to touch the ground in order to rest for a bit.
Davern's knowing smirk made Ash realize that that wasn't a coincidence. Though the man thought he could play Ash like that, he had another thing coming.
"Birbie, if you need to rest, alight on one of the larger rocks!" Ash told him.
Birbie flew towards the nearest rock in the opposite direction from his foe, and perched on it, thankful that his body could get a reprieve, small as it was, from having to be airborne all the time. Both Birbie and Ash knew that the reprieve would last as long as Tofrang took to catch his breath.
"Tofurang, you okay?" Davern asked.
Tofurang coughed a couple times, releasing some puffs of purple smoke that quickly vanished in the air, before loudly clearing his throat. He was okay now.
"With how much you tired that Birbie, he won't be able to fly so fast right now," Davern concluded. "Tofurang, use Poison Fang!"
"Tofurang!" the Cave Beast Pokemon roared, as it charged towards Birbie with a deceptively fast speed, its jaw opened, showing rows of sharp teeth that glowed witch a sickly purple aura.
"Get out of there, now!" Ash called.
Birbie managed to take off before Tofurang could crush the Eden Bird Pokemon between its jaws, biting solid rock instead. However, everybody couldn't help but notice that Birbie's speed was much lower than it had been beginning of the fight.
"That was quite smart on Davern's part," Clemont spoke all of sudden. "The wings are the most important part of any Flying-type Pokemon, especially birds like Birbie. This fight has become much harder for Ash."
"Come on Birbie, you can do it!" Bonnie cheered, as if trying to offset what Clemont had said.
Serena gripped her blue ribbon harder, rememebring Clemont's earlier words about Tofurang's superior bulk and offensive power being a bit too much for Birbie to overcome with skill and speed. Still, Serena wasn't going to give up on her faith that Ash could overcome any odd that was thrown in his way.
"You can do it Birbie!" Serena joined Bonnie in her cheers. "Never give up until it's over!"
Still, those cheers did little to reassure Birbie. Tofurang continued its relentless chase on him, the poor Eden Bird Pokemon being unable to do anything but to run away from the much larger Poison-type, whose pursuit, while not very fast, didn't slow down, and was gradually closing the distance between the two of them.
"Keep going, Tofurang! He's almost yours!" Davern encouraged his Pokemon.
And indeed, Tofurang almost appeared to catch Birbie. It opened its jaws menacingly, ready to sink its poison-coated fangs onto the tender flesh of the Eden Bird Pokemon...
"Birbie, Turn around and use Flash!" Ash quickly shouted.
Birbie did as he was told, and fighting the dread induced by the horrid visage that was Tofurang with its jaws wide open, Birbie's chest crest began to glow with a faint blue light, before it exploded into a flood of white searing light.
"RAAAAAAAAANG!" Tofurang cried in pain as it was blinded by the sudden burst of light, interrupting its attack. It closed its eyes shut, a few tears of pain trickling through the closed lids, and took a couple step backwards, while it whined for its lost eyesight.
"Tofurang!" Davern shouted, caught just as off-guard as his Pokemon by the attack.
"Now's our chance, Birbie! Fly around and use Air Cutter!" Ash commanded.
His resolve and energies renewed by this unexpected second wind, Birbie nodded and once again took into the air, and flapping his wings as fast as he could, he began to pelt Tofurang with multiple Air Cutters launched from different directions, in order to stop the Cave Beast Pokemon from telling where Birbie was.
"Yes! Such a great counter from Ash!" Clemont beamed, no longer carrying the same cautious pessimism from before. "Cave Pokemon are naturally used to the dark, so their eyes can't stand bright lights!"
"I knew that Ash could do it!" Serena cheered, her faith in him validated.
"Now let's hope Birbie can cause enough harm to Tofurang before the latter recovers," Clemont added, as his eyes focused on the Cave Beast Pokemon.
"Continue the assault, Birbie! You almost have it!" Ash shouted.
"You don't need your eyes to fight, Tofurang! Rely on your hearing!" Davern said.
Tofurang tried to calm down and ignore the pain of the constant barrage of the blades of compressed air. His wing-like ears twitched as it tried to locate Birbie's position. Then he sensed it, a current of air beginning to form. He quickly turned into said direction.
"Well done, Tofurang! Sludge Bomb!" Davern said.
Tofurang spat a barrage of purple globs towards Birbie, just as the Eden Bird Pokemon was about to launch another Air Cutter. The two attacks met, and like it happened before, Torufang's overpowered Birbie's. This time Birbie didn't have the chance to dodge, and the poisonous missiles smashed into his little body with such force, they made him fall down against one of the rocks.
"Good job, Tofurang! One more hit, and this fight will be yours!" Davern cheered.
Ash looked at Birbie, who had luckily fallen on top of one of the boulders scattered around the battleground, rather than the ground. Thankfully, Birbie could still move, and tried to get back on his feet, but such a direct attack had made a number on him.
"Come on Birbie! I know you can do it!" Ash desperatedly encouraged his Pokemon.
Gathering what little strengh he still had, he stood up and shook the grime off of his feathers. Thankfully, the attack hadn't resulted in poisoning, or else he would have been done for. Though, despite Birbie's resolve to keep fighting was admirable, everybody could see that his strength didn't match it.
Ash took very little time and effort to earn Birbie's loyalty. The little bird Pokemon was eager to learn, and Ash had much to teach. And in return, Birbie would fight for Ash to the best of his ability, and win for him. This was an important battle, and if Birbie lost, he'd let Ash down, or that's what he thought, at least. And such thing was unthinkable in the Eden Bird Pokemon's mind.
"Biiiiiiiiir... biiiiiiiir..." Birbie began, breathing heavily, as he eyed Tofurang, who was starting to slowly blink, his eyes overcoming the effect of Flash.
"Birbie...?" Ash asked worriedly.
There was a crackling sound, and Birbie's body began to glow white and blue. Birbie then began to grow and change. When the light disappeared, in Birbie's place there was a completely different Pokemon.
"Aveden!" the new Pokemon whistled.
"Whoa, look at that! Birbie just evolved!" Bonnie excitedly said.
Serena pulled out her Pokedex, and scanned the new Pokemon.
"Aveden, the Bliss Bird Pokemon, and Birbie's evolved form. Normal/Flying. The blue feathers on its chest reflect light. They use flashes to communicate with one another in the forest canopy."
While he retained the same color scheme, Aveden couldn't be more different from Birbie: Aveden had still mostly dark blue feathers and beady light blue eyes, but his body was no longer a sphere with tiny wings, as he had now a slim, svelte body with a small head connected to it by a neck. The feathers on the head flared upwards towards the end, and there was a golden crest above the eyes that made him look like he was wearing glasses. His wings had grown considerably, and a yellow tail extended from the rear end of his body.
"Yes! Awesome!" Ash cheered, pumping his fist into the air. "Well done, Aveden!"
"Av, av!" Aveden whistled, just as happy.
"Amazing. Your Aveden's determination to win was so strong, he broke through his limits in order to evolve and gain more power," Davern said, half shocked and half amazed by the development. "Though, that won't change the outcome of this fight! Tofurang, Sludge Bomb again!"
"Tof!" Tofurang cried, as he assaulted Aveden with another barrage of sludge missiles.
Before Ash had any time to call four a counter, Aveden opened his beak, and fired a greenish-silvery beam of light that pretty much tore through the globs of grime as if they were mere water, before impacting Torufang in the face, resulting in a brief flash of silvery light, causing the Poison-type to cry in pain once again, forcing him to close its eyes shut.
"Blinded again!?" Davern asked, incredulous.
"That was Mirror Shot! Not only did you evolve, you learned a new move!" Ash said, his excitement so big his body was shaking. "Now, let's finish this, Aveden! Lift Tofurang from the ground with Gust!"
"Av, aveden!" Aveden whistled, as he began to flap his wings, blowing air in Tofurang's direction.
A tornado quickly formed around Tofurang, which began to lift it from the ground. The poor blinded Pokemon began to kick with all its four legs, as confusion and fear took hold of his mind.
"Now finish it with Quick Attack!" Ash called.
Aveden stopped flapping, and dived towards the airborne Tofurang, leaving a trail of fading white light in his wake. Aveden's body smashed against Tofurang, and the Cave Beast Pokemon was sent crashing down against the ground, landing with such force, it opened a crater.
Tofurang made no attempt to get back to his feet. The referee raised a flag in Ash's direction.
"Tofurang can't fight anymore, Aveden is the winner!" the referee declared.
Davern's face was that of shock, but he quickly chuckled, shook his head, and recalled his fallen Pokemon. "Good work, Tofurang. Take a good rest."
"Yes! Way to go, Ash and Aveden!" Bonnie cheered, as she bounced up and down excitedly. "Just one more Pokemon to go!"
"If Ash plays his cards right, I'm sure he can win this," Clemont confidently said. "Davern is down to his last Pokemon, and was clearly counting on wearing Ash's Pokemon down with Toxic Spikes, but Ash was able to fight his way around such a handicap."
"Yeah. This battle going much better than his first match against Maria," Serena said, though she didn't allow herself to feel relieved. It was obvious that whatever Pokemon Davern saved for last, it would be far from a pushover. Maria had already proved that her strongest Pokemon could match Ash-Greninja, and she was sure that Davern would be no different.
Davern unclipped his last pokeball from his belt. "Well, so far, you managed to do pretty well against me. Maria didn't praise you for nothing. You've proved to be a pretty excellent trainer. Let's see if you're good enough to defeat my last Pokemon. Drilgann, time to shine!"
The capture device opened up, releasing Davern's last Pokemon, which landed on the ground with a loud thud.
"Dril!"
Drilgann was a large, four legged Pokemon with brown fur, except its legs, which were purple. It had a long snout like a mole, with two yellow tusks ended on drills sticking out of it. Its eyes were covered by a star-shaped purple mask. There were three yellow drill-shaped claws at the end of each leg, and its tail was a large, conical yellow drill.
They couldn't help but notice a silver ring on one on its tusks, which had a small black and purple gemstone embedded on it.
Both Ash and Serena pulled out their Pokedex to scan this new Pokemon:
"Drilgann, the Drill Pokemon, and Modrille's evolved form. Ground/Dark. Often used as beasts of burden, a Drilgann can tunnel many miles in a single day without getting tired. Their claws can be spun individually to drill with precision."
All of them remembered the Modrille that the Rangers had temporarily tamed to clear the rocks blocking Owten Nook. Though since they didn't saw them fight, they didn't know what to expect from their evolved form.
"Aveden versus Drilgann, begin!" the referee shouted.
"Aveden, begin with Mirror Shot!" Ash commanded.
"Oh no, you're not blinding us again! Counter with Dark Pulse!" Davern replied.
Birbie fired yet another greenish silvery beam of energy towards Drilgann, while the Drill Pokemon casted a stream of dark and purple energy from its mouth towards Aveden. Both attacks clashed, and struggled to push the other back, resulting in a small explosion when either of them failed to overpower the other.
"That Drilgann is indeed strong. But we're stronger! Aveden, Air Cutter!" Ash called.
"Ve, ve!" Aveden whistled, as he flapped his wings, releasing mutliple blades of compressed air towards the Drill Pokemon.
"Drilgann, avoid them with Dig!" Davern called.
Drilgann jumped into the ground as if it were diving into water, and sunk just as easily. The drills on its claws and tusks easily allowed the Drill Pokemon to burrow underground much faster than any other Pokemon.
"Aveden, stay alert! Try to keep enough altitude from the ground do it can't reach you!" Ash told the Bliss Bird Pokemon.
"That won't be of any help. Rock Slide!" Davern shouted.
Suddenly, the ground below Aveden exploded, and multiple large rocks were fired upwards, as if they were propelled by some underground geyser. The startled Aveden did everything he could to avoid them, but one of them hit him in the wing, causing him to spiral down towards the ground.
"Aveden, no! Try to gain more height!" Ash pleased.
"Drilgann, use Dragon Claw!" Davern ordered.
This time, it was Drilgann itself who burst from underground, one of its claws rised and glowing with green energy. The Drill Pokemon's claws smashed against Aveden, and the poor Bliss Bird Pokemon was sent crashing against a nearby rock, before it slid to the ground.
"Aveden!" Ash cried again.
Aveden had both his wings and legs sprawled open, hiss beak also opened and his eyes rolled into his skull. It was obvious he wouldn't be fighting anymore.
The referee raised a flag in Davern's direction. "Aveden can't fight any longer, the winner is Drilgann!"
Ash sighed in defeated, and recalled his regional bird. "You did your best, buddy. Now let others pick up the slack."
"What a pity," Clemont said. "I was hoping on Aveden softening Drilgann for Greninja before going down, but he wasn't able to land a single hit."
While somebody would ask why Ash would choose Greninja, it was obvious it was Ash's only good option left: Colarva was too weak and lacked training, and as strong as Pikachu was, it was better to go for as much advantage as possible against such a powerful Ground-type.
Ash unclipped his last pokeball, reared it back, and weirdly enough, took a couple seconds to toss it, as if he was calculating its trajectory.
"Greninja, I choose you!" Ash said.
The pokeball landed next to a large rock, and released Greninja right on top of it. Davern couldn't help but smirk.
"Clever. Really clever, Ash," the Gym Leader chuckled.
"Greninja, try not to touch the ground! You'll be poisoned if you do!" Ash warned his Kalosian starter.
"Gre," Greninja said, looking at the ground around him warily.
"And there he is. Your famous Greninja," Davern began. "Maria gushed a lot about that Pokemon. I can't wait to see what is he capable of."
"I'm sure you won't be disappointed," Ash stated.
"Greninja versus Drilgann, begin!" the referee said, starting the deciding match.
"Alright Drilgann, let's test this Greninja's might with Rock Slide!" Davern commanded.
"Quickly, dodge them!" Ash told the Ninja Pokemon. "Remember not to touch the ground!"
Drilgann raised its head and growled, and several large boulders appeared above Greninja, who quickly hopped from the rock he was standing on to another. Drilgann generated even more boulders, forcing Greninja on the defensive. However, Greininja had no trouble avoiding the attack, hopping from one rock to another with so much grace, he almost looked as if he was floating.
"Get close to it and use Aerial Ace!" Ash shouted.
"Gre!"
"Defend with Dragon Claw!" Davern replied.
Greninja continued to jump from one rock to another, until he managed to reach Drilgann. The Drill Pokemon had raised on its hind legs and rose one of its forelegs to prepare the Dragon-type move, but Greninja was much faster, and struck it in the face with a white glowing arm, before landing on another rock, causing the Dragon Claw to hit nothing but air.
"Drilgann, use Dark Pulse!" Davern shouted.
"Deflect it with Night Slash!" Ash shouted back.
Turning towards the Ninja Pokemon, Drilgann opened its mouth and fired yet another black and purple beam of dark energy. Greninja, meanwhile, generated a sword of the same color between his hands, and used it to parry the beam, who split into multiple, smaller beams that flew in different directions, leaving the Kalosian Pokemon untouched.
"Great! And now, Water Shuriken!" Ash said, thrusting a punch forward.
"Drilgann, dodge them with Dig!" Davern shouted.
Greninja leaped in an arc above Drilgann, and formed two watery stars on each hand, before tossing them at Drilgann below. The Drill Pokemon once again dived into the ground, but it wasn't fast enough to dodge the Water Shuriken. Both liquid projectiles hit it while it was burrowing underground, producing a blast of water that interrupted the move and pushed Drilgann backwards, leaving it soaked. Meanwhile, Greninja landed on one of the nearby rock formations.
Davern let out a sigh. "Man, Maria wasn't exaggerating when she told us about what a beast your Greninja was," the Gym Leader said, scratching his forehead. "My Drilgann has power, but the difference in speed between our Pokemon makes that power useless. Not to mention that, with the type advantage, your Greninja hits hard too. If this match were to continue as it is, you'd defeat me easily."
"Thank you for your kind words," Ash replied, before he smirked at Davern. "Though, I have the feeling you aren't saying this because you want to concede, are you?"
Davern smirked back, as he pulled a pickaxe from his utility belt. "Of course not. What kind of Gym Leader I would be if I folded so easily? Plus, I said you'd defeat me if this match continued as it is," Davern emphasized the last four words, as he lifted his pickaxe to his eye level. Ash and his friends could see that there was something embedded at the top of the pick, something round with many colors.
"Is that...?" Bonnie began.
"Yes. A Keystone," Clemont said.
"Well, remember what Maria said: Mega Evolution is pretty big in Tandor," Serena reminded them.
Davern touched the Keystone with two fingers. "Now, Drilgann, dig deep within your being, and bring out all your hidden power to the surface! Mega Evolve!"
The Keystone and the Mega Stone on Drilgann's fang began to glow, and both of them fired bolts of light towards each other. The beams clashed, merging into a single one, and Drilgann began to change its form, as the Mega Evolution helix flashed in front of it. Once the light went out, they could all see Drilgann's new appearance.
"So that's a Mega Drilgann..." Ash said, narrowing his eyes at the Ground and Dark-type Pokemon.
Mega Drilgann's body was now more human-shaped, standing on two large and very stocky legs. Its body was also stocky and round shaped, with two yellow triangle marks with purple trims above a third mark that looked a like a purple grin, making it appear as if it had a face on its belly. Two large conical, yellow drills grew from its shouders.
"Drill!" Drillgan roared, making his shoulder drills spin menacingly.
Ash, however, wasn't intimidated. "Your Drilgann surely looks like a tough challenge, I'll give you that. But there's no challenge touch enough for Greninja and I working together! Come on Greninja!"
"GRE-NINJA!"
A spinning tower of water formed around Greninja, as he morphed into his advanced form. Once the metamorphosis was complete, all the water condensed into a shuriken that stuck to the Ninja Pokemon's back.
"You're about to learn why Drilgann is the king of the caves of Tandor!" Davern excitedly said, as he waved his pickaxe at Ash. "Drilgann, Sandstorm!"
"Gann!" Drilgann crossed his arms in front of its face, before spreading them outwards, and a sandstorm formed around him, spreading to encompass the whole battleground.
"G-Gre!" Greninja braced himself as he felt the damaging effect of the sand pelting his body.
"Don't you love sand? It's soft, smooth and soothing. And it can get everywhere!" Davern said.
"You'll need more than mere sand to defeat us! Greninja, Water Shuriken!" Ash said, thrusting a hand forward.
Greninja jumped into the air, took the large shuriken stuck to his back, and tossed it towards Drilgann. Davern merely watched as the watery star flew down towards his Pokemon.
"Dodge it," he simply said.
Then, much to everybody else's shock, Drilgann vanished from the spot, moving so fast it turned into a brown, yellow and purple blur, and the Water Shuriken missed its mark.
"What?" Ash asked, dumbfounded. Davern smirked at his reaction.
"Drilgann, use Dragon Claw on Greninja before he can land on one of the rocks!" Davern commanded.
Drilgann leaped towards Greninja, both claws already cloaked in green draconic energy, and before the ninja Pokemon could parry or block, Drilgann delivered a brutal slash, sending the Kalosian starter crashing towards the ground with such force, he opened a crater.
"Greninja, no!" Ash cried, his body wincing as fe helt the pain Greninja was subjected to.
Shaking off the pain, Greninja managed to jump back to his feet, but winced in pain as a flash of purple washed over his body.
Davern crossed his arms, and his smirk widened. "Sorry, but no more playing The Floor is Lava for Greninja."
"What? What did just happen?" A confused Bonnie asked. "Drilgann was super slow before, and now it can keep up with Greninja!"
"Did Mega Evolution increase its speed that much?" Serena asked, studying Mega Drilgann with her eyes. "It doesn't seem much faster now than it was before."
"If you ask me, I'd say Mega Drilgann's ability is Sand Rush. It's an ability that boosts a Pokemon's speed during a sandstorm. Hence why Davern ordered Drilgann to summon one the moment it Mega Evolved," Clemont explained. "Most cave Pokemon aren't known for being fast, and Ash had been using his Pokemon's superior speed to his advantage. And now Davern threw a wrench to that strategy."
"And Greninja is now poisoned..." Bonnie said worriedly.
"Yes. Between the sandstorm and the poison chipping away his health, Greninja is now on a time limit to defeat a Pokemon that's both fast and hits hard," Clemont summarized. "Ash and Greninja have a very uphill battle ahead of them..."
Serena held her hands worriedly as she looked at Ash and Greninja. Still, her faith didn't waver. "Come on Ash and Greninja, I know you can do it..."
"Drilgann, Drill Run!" Davern ordered.
"Drilgann!" Drilgann said, as it dashed towards Greninja like a rocket, shoulder drills already spinning, ready to pierce Greninja with one of them.
"Greninja, parry it with Night Slash!" Ash replied.
Once again, Greninja formed a black and purple sword of energy between his hands, and used it to parry one of the drills. The spinning drill grinded against the sword of darkness, producing a shower of purple sparks in every direction.
"Get rid of him with Aerial Ace!" Ash commanded.
Greninja's legs started to glow with a white light, and once he pushed Drilgann's backwards, he jumped and delivered a double kick to the bipedal mole's face, pushing him even further back.
"Now Water Shuriken!" Ash added.
Another shuriken of water formed on Greninja's back just as the frog Pokemon reached to grab it, and tossed it towards the still reeling Drill Pokemon.
"Dodge it with Dig!" Davern countered.
Once again, Drilgann dived into the ground, this time much faster than before, and was completely burrowed in by the time the Water Shuriken reached its position, which harmlessly passed over him.
"Greninja, be careful, it can't come out from-"
Ash didn't even have time to warn his Pokemon as Drilgann burst from underground in front of Greninja, and buried one of its shoulder drills onto Greninja's exposed belly. Ash doubled over upon feeling the same pain Greninja was experiencing, but forced himself to endure it.
"G-Greninja, Double Team!" Ash ordered, clutching his abdomen.
Greninja winced in pain, and his body flashed purple, suffering the effects of the poison and the sandstorm, before he summoned a myriad of copies of himself across the battleground, much to Drilgann's confusion. However, the sandstorm took little time to dispel those copies.
"Double Team is also useless?" Ash growled, as he clenched both fists.
"Drilgann, Rock Slide!" Davern ordered.
Drilgann rose its arms and conjured a multitude of boulders above Greninja –this time, far larger and in bigger numbers– before motioning its arms down, letting gravity take hold of the giant boulders. Ash didn't need to tell Greninja to dodge, as the Ninja Pokemon quickly began to run away, as the boulders landed with deafening noises. Some of them fell on top of each other, forming small mounds.
"Greninja, try to get close to it and use Water Shuriken!" Ash commanded.
Greninja nodded, and fighting off the pain of the sandstorm and the poison, moved towards Drilgann as he ran away from the falling boulders. He reached back as a watery star formed on his back, took it, and tossed it at Drilgann.
"Drilgann, avoid it with Dig!" Davern shouted.
Once again, Drilgann disappeared underground before Greninja's attack could reach him. This time, however, Ash knew what to do to avoid the attack. His eyes drifted to a pile of rocks that had formed from Drilgann's Rock Slide. The window of opportunity was small but Ash had faith Greninja could do it.
"Greninja, jump on top of that mound of rocks!" Ash ordered. Greninja nodded, and quickly leaped to the top of the pile, before Drilgann could emerge and attack from underground. Davern had used such strategy to avoid Dunsparce's underground attacks, so why couldn't it work for Ash as well?
"GANN!"
The answer came in the form of Drilgann bursting from under the pile of rocks, grinding them to peebles with its powerful drills on its shoulders and claws as if they were clay, and slamming into the surprised Greninja.
"Not a bad plan. But as you can see, there's no obstacle my Drilgann can't drill through," Davern proudly said, before he adjusted his mining helmet. "The match appear to be going my way, Ash. I know you aren't going to surrender but... seeing what your Greninja can do, and his current state, I just can't imagine what you guys can do to turn the tides of the battle."
"Don't count us out yet!"Ash said, gritting his teeth. "This is pretty bad! I can feel every strike Greninja takes, and that Drilgann hits like a truck! And with the sandstorm and the poison, Greninja doesn't have much time yet. And that speed! Not only it's fast moving, it's also fast to dig underground and then attack from below! Greninja doesn't have any attack that can stop this sandstorm or to force Drilgann out in the open. Not that he'd be able to use it, given that it attacks so fast that... hey, wait a minute, tha's it!"
"Drilgann, Dragon Claw!" Davern ordered.
"Greninja, parry it with Night Slash!" Ash replied, sounding far more confident than a couple moments ago.
Drilgann barreled towards Greninja, its rotating yellow claws glowing with green energy. Greninja blocked the first strike with his sword of dark energy, the countered with a thurst that was also blocked, followed by a claw swipe from Drilgann which was dodged.
"Greninja, Aerial Ace!" Ash shouted. "Use both arms and legs!"
The sword of darkness disappeared, and all four of Greninja's limbs started to glow with a white light. Dodging the next claw swipe, Greninja delivered a series of slaps, slashes and kicks to Drilgann's face and body, pushing it backwards.
"Now, Water Shuriken!" Ash said.
"Drilgann, Dig!" Davern said, sounding almost exasperated. "You already tried that tactic many times, why do you think it's going to work now?"
And indeed, Greninja's Water Shuriken once again missed Drilgann, who had burrowed underground rather quickly. Ash smirked, knowing that the enemy had taken the bait.
"Greninja, jump into the air and toss another Water Shuriken down!" Ash shouted.
Davern opened his eyes wide. "What? Wait, Drillgan-!"
It was too late. A second after Greninja jumped into the air and formed another Water Shuriken, Drilgann emerged from that same spot, ready to slash Greninja with its claws, but they only hit thin air. Greninja then tossed the water projectile downwards, hitting Drilgann this time. The Water Shuriken exploded into a torrent of water that blasted the Drill Pokemon backwards, and left it completely soaked.
"YES! Now Greninja, more Water Shuriken!"
Beads of sweat ran through Greninja's body as he could hear his heart beating faster and faster. He knew that his body was running on fumes, but he was also close to victory as well, so he continued pelting Drilgann with Water Shuriken, throwing and generating them as fast as he could. With each hit it took, the Drill Pokemon was more and more disoriented.
"Aerial Ace!" Ash said, making a chopping move with his arm.
"Block with Dragon Claw!" Davern ordered.
All four of Greninja's limbs glowed white, as he dashed towards the Mea Evolved Pokemon. A slash to the face, a kick to the sides, dodge Drilgann's Dragon Claw, then deliver more chops and punches to the sides, finishing with a powerful roundhouse kick to the face that ended up launching the large Ground and Dark-type Pokemon towards a large rock with such force, it was completely shattered.
"Drilgann...!" Davern cried.
The sandstorm subsided. Drilgann's body flashed for a second, as it reverted back to its original form. The Drill Pokemon lied there, not making any attempt to get back on its feet or even move.
The referee raised a flag in Ash's direction. "Drilgann can't fight any longer! The winner is Greninja! And since Davern has lost three Pokemon, the winner of the match is Ash!"
"YES!" Ash cheered.
"Pika!" Pikachu joined as well.
"G-Gre..." Greninja wheezed, as he reverted back to normal, and fell to one knee.
"Greninja!" Ash shouted, as he rushed towards his barely standing Pokemon. "You're on your last legs, aren't you? Between the poison and that sandstorm..."
"...ninja," Greninja said, shaking his head, as if trying to downplay the situation.
"You wanted to fight until the very end, don't you? Thanks a lot, Greninja. You're everything a trainer could ask for," Ash said, before pulling out Greninja's pokeball. "Take a rest. We'll take you to the Pokemon Center as soon as possible."
"Gre..." Greninja said, as he allowed the pokeball to suck him in.
Meanwhile, Davern walked towards his fallen Drilgann, and returned it to its pokeball as well. "Thank you, Drilgann, for such a memorable fight."
"Ash!" Serena shouted, completely elated, as she, Clemont and Bonnie ran towards him. "You won! Congratulations!"
"Yeah! It was such an amazing battle!" Bonnie added.
"There were times where I thought you were going to lose, but I knew that you would somehow come out on top," Clemont said.
"Thanks a lot, guys," Ash said, before scratching his cheek and chuckling a little. "Though, I have to admit, it was a close one! I also thought I was going to lose quite a few times myself, hehe..."
"Pika," Pikachu said, shaking his head.
"But you didn't," Davern said, as he walked towards him. Despite losing, the Gym Leader looked rather happy, oddly enough. "Not only did you keep fighting, but managed to keep a cool head in order to find a way to counter my tactics and grasp victory. Maria certainly wasn't exaggerating when she showered you in praise."
"Uh, thank you," Ash said, reddening a little. "I'm glad I was able to make a good impression on you guys."
"Though, I'm sure you didn't come here seeking flattery, did you?" Davern chuckled, as he reached into a pocket of his utility belt. "For defeating me in an official match, I hereby give you the Bright Gem Badge."
Davern extended his open hand at Ash, letting Ash pick the badge on his palm. Ash looked at the badge: it was an hexagonal ruby with silvery borders.
"Thanks a lot, Davern," Ash said, before dramatically raising the badge over his head. "I won the Bright Gem Badge!"
"Pi-Pikachu!"
"And that makes two badges," Clemont said.
"Yep! Only six more to go," Ash said, as he placed the Bright Gem Badge on his badge case, next to Maria's Normal Badge.
"Given that you came from the west, I guess you're going north?" Davern asked.
"Yeah, though we aren't going to leave Burole just yet," Ash clarified. "There's going to be a contest soon, and Serena is going to take part on it."
"But yeah. Once we're done with that, we're heading towards Bealbeach City," Clemont added.
"Clemont has been hired to work on that new power plant," Bonnie proudly supplied.
"Bealbeach, huh? In that case, I'll give Cali a call and tell her to expect you," Davern said. "I was going to suggest you go to Amatree town, but you'll have to take a detour, and I imagine you don't want to take too long to reach the new power plant. Guess you can always go to Amatree later."
The match finally over, Davern walked the group of kids towards the exit of his gym.
"I wish you the best of luck fighting the other Gym Leaders. And good luck to your friend on her contests as well," Davern said, before a thought dawned upon him that made him turn all giddy. "Oh, that reminds me! If you guys are going north, that means you'll have to cross Comet Cave! Oh, you guys are going to love it! Trust me, it's nothing like Passage Cave!"
"Er... sure, thanks for the... recommendation," Clemont awkwardly said.
"Though, now that I won my second Gym Badge, Serena needs to win her second Ribbon!" Ash said, as he turned towards her. "Come on Serena! We need to train a lot if you want to be ready!"
"Y-Yes!" Serena agreed, as she and the rest of the group returned to the Pokemon Center.
Author's Note: And that makes two badges Ash has! Yay!
Gotta say, I enjoyed writing this battle far more than the one against Maria. I love when battles have heavy strategic components such as non-damaging moves, and between the Toxic Spikes, Sandstorm, and the irregular battleground, this allowed for a battle that was much more than an exchange of attacks with a dodge or two thrown in. This is a standard I'll aim to keep for future Gym battles.
This battle also marks the first time one of the newly caught Pokemon evolves, and as it couldn't be otherwise, it was Birbie, Tandor's very first capture. I know a lot of people have a justified dislike of Ash's Pokemon evolving mid-battle and then winning, myself included, given that it makes luck into a much bigger factor for victory. Though, I hope the fact that Aveden didn't win the final, decisive battle somewhat alleviates it.
Speaking of the final battle, another concern I'm pretty sure some of you are having is Greninja, given that this is the second time that Ash uses him to defeat the Gym Leader's ace. Sadly I didn't have much of a choice, since at this point Greninja is still his most reliable option. There is Pikachu, but I really can't see Pikachu winning against a Mega Evolved Ground-type, while also dealing with Toxic Spikes and Sandstorm. I mean, Greninja barely won, and he had type advantage. But yeah, I promise you that by the time we reach the third Gym, Ash's other Pokemon will be strong enough so he won't have to rely on Greninja all the time to win.
Thanks to Fox McCloude, Guest #1, Viroro-kun, hirowriter, DryBonesKing, Jay and Guest #2 for reviewing. Also special thanks to Viroro-kun for his help on this chapter (as well as every past chapter), whose edits and suggestions made it so much better (also, the joke of Bonnie calling Davern a caveman comes from him).
Now that Ash has his second badge, it's time for Serena to compete for her second ribbon, which we'll see the next chapter. In the meantime, don't forget to leave a review on this chapter. Remember, reviews are the food of the fanfiction writer, so don't be afraid to share your thoughts with me, no matter how short.