Chapter 19: Great Battle with the Ferocious Gyarados
Southern Newmoon Forest.
Before the continuous mountain range that demarcated the forest, lay a massive, crescent-shaped lake. The lake water was clear enough to see the bottom. Various rocks of different sizes were scattered in the center of the lake. A little further off, a waterfall, like a pearl curtain hanging upside down, cascaded down from a cliff. The rushing water curtain heavily scoured several large boulders below, scattering into countless water droplets that sparkled under the sunlight before falling into the lake.
At this moment, on the largest rock in the center of the lake, a Pokémon with the features of a blue-green duck had its brow furrowed.
"Leader, according to the patrols conducted by my subordinates, Snorlax attacked Sunrise Valley, with whom it has a good relationship, not long ago. The reason is temporarily unknown. It was repelled by the Pokémon led by Sunrise Valley's Squirtle Boss and fled back into the forest. Your subordinate believes this attack incident is strange and recommends strengthening our guard in case Snorlax turns its attention to us," said a Poliwhirl, with its spherical body and white belly marked by a black counter-clockwise spiral, standing nearby.
"What's there to be afraid of!"
"Splash!" A dragon-shaped Pokémon suddenly emerged from the water beside the rock, its three cyan horns atop its head standing tall, a irritable/fierce expression on its ferocious face. "No matter how strong a Normal-type Pokémon is, it can't defeat me in a place full of Water-type energy, roar!"
"Gyarados, quiet."
The Golduck Leader glanced at Gyarados.
"Roar!" Gyarados still looked fierce, but under the Golduck Leader's imposing aura, it could only obediently shut its mouth.
"Lapras, what do you think?"
"I believe Snorlax's threat cannot be ignored; it's necessary to prepare our defenses. However, the most important thing right now is to go to Sunrise Valley to understand the details of this attack incident. I believe Snorlax wouldn't attack the Sunrise Valley, which it helped build, for no reason," Lapras, with its bumpy gray shell, resembling a plesiosaur, swam to the side of the rock and said softly.
The Golduck Leader pondered for a moment, its face regaining its calmness.
"You have a point. Poliwhirl, take a few Pokémon and go to Sunrise Valley to inquire about the situation. Lapras, you and Gyarados organize all Pokémon capable of fighting and strengthen the patrols in the surrounding area. If there's any abnormality, report back immediately."
Lapras nodded.
"Hmph, I alone can defeat Snorlax! Why bother with all this trouble!" The Gyarados nearby impatiently dived back into the lake.
"Leader, if it's about investigating the details of the Sunrise Valley incident, your subordinate believes it's no longer necessary," Poliwhirl said.
"Oh?"
"When your subordinate was returning, I heard that Sunrise Valley has already sent people out to investigate. According to my subordinate's deduction, they should first come here to Crescent Lake to request the Leader's assistance."
The Golduck Leader said thoughtfully, "Are they thinking of using that move? True, that is indeed a good method. However, do you know who is coming this time? Vileplume, or that battle maniac Scyther?"
"No, neither of them. It's said to be that Machop from outside the valley, who rarely leaves, and another unfamiliar Pokémon I've never seen before."
"An unfamiliar Pokémon? Don't tell me Squirtle picked it up again... Heh, interesting."
…
Rio and Machop, having left Sunrise Valley, decided to follow the stream that meandered out from the valley.
"Clack," Rio kicked a pebble on the bank, asking Machop with some curiosity, "Big brother, where are we going now?"
Machop took out a paper map from his backpack, observed it for a moment, and said, "Let's go to Crescent Lake in the south of the forest first. We can reach it by following this stream."
Looking at the large lake icon Machop was pointing to on the map, Rio asked, "Crescent Lake? Is that the territory of those Water-type Pokémon you mentioned earlier? What are we going there for?"
"The troublesome thing now is that we have no clues to track, and we don't know Snorlax's whereabouts either. Investigating is like not knowing where to start, so we have to ask for his help. Don't look down on him just because he's a Water-type; he has a very remarkable skill. You'll know when the time comes."
Machop said mysteriously.
Rio's curiosity grew. He recalled the description of Golduck:
"Golduck is a Duck Pokémon, the evolved form of Psyduck. It has webbed hands and feet, swims extremely fast in water, and can learn powerful Water-type and Psychic-type moves..."
Thinking of Misty's dopey Psyduck from the anime, Rio couldn't help but wonder what kind of Pokémon Psyduck's evolved form, Golduck, really was.
The stream gradually began to widen as the terrain changed. The land dipped, and the current became more turbulent, forming a river that rushed between the cliffs on either side.
Seeing the change in the surrounding environment, Machop's eyes lit up. "We're almost there."
Perhaps due to the forest's abnormality, Rio and Machop hadn't encountered a single other Pokémon along the way. Whether it was the usually ubiquitous Caterpie, Weedle, and other Bug-type Pokémon, or even the Goldeen, Tentacool, and other Water-type Pokémon that occasionally appeared in rivers, there was no trace of them.
Suddenly hearing Machop's words, Rio, who was about to yawn from boredom, instantly perked up.
"Splash, splash, splash—" The river beside them rushed even more vigorously. After passing through a patch of jungle that obscured their view, the crescent-shaped lake and the cascading waterfall appeared before Rio.
"Wow, truly magnificent!"
The suddenly expansive view made Rio exclaim in amazement.
Although he had visited once or twice before, the natural beauty still filled Machop's eyes with appreciation as well.
"Let's go," Machop said, coming back to his senses and beckoning.
The two Pokémon strolled to the edge of Crescent Lake, looking left and right.
Suddenly, a dragon-shaped Pokémon covered in blue scales broke the water surface, glaring fiercely. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
Gyarados! Seeing this majestic dragon-shaped Pokémon, evolved from the infamous Magikarp, Rio marveled internally: "This size, this aura, truly worthy of being one of the popular Pokémon."
In the games of his previous life, Gyarados was one of the most easily obtainable powerful Pokémon for ordinary players. Its pre-evolution, Magikarp, could be fished in almost any body of water. As long as you caught a decent Magikarp and endured the period before evolution, once it evolved into Gyarados, its base stat total nearly doubled, a true ultimate underdog story. Moreover, Gyarados not only had fewer type weaknesses due to its Water/Flying typing but could also learn powerful moves like Dragon Dance and Outrage. Paired with its excellent physical attack stat, it held a significant place in both story playthroughs and Pokémon battles.
Machop, beside Rio, stepped forward. "We are Pokémon from Sunrise Valley. We've come today to request an audience with Crescent Lake's Golduck Leader. We hope you can introduce us to your leader."
Gyarados looked down at the two Pokémon, still maintaining a fierce expression. "Even if you are from Sunrise Valley, you can only meet our leader by defeating me. Roar, come on, which one of you will fight me?"
As it spoke, its thick dragon tail slapped the water surface behind it, kicking up splashes.
Seeing Gyarados's unyielding stance, Rio and Machop knew this battle was unavoidable. They exchanged a glance, Rio's eyes clearly saying, "You go, boss, I'll cover you."
Machop smiled faintly, but his figure retreated instead of advancing, instantly moving back several meters. His voice followed, "Gyarados, if you want to fight, let my little brother here have a couple of rounds with you."
B-Boss, are you serious? Rio's face screamed "WTF." Facing the 6-7 meter tall Gyarados before him, his own height of about 0.8 meters made him look like a tiny speck.
"Big brother, Flying-type is super effective against Fighting-type! How am I supposed to fight?"
Rio complained.
But complaints aside, the excitement rising from facing a strong enemy still made Rio prepare for battle.
Seeing a fight was on, Gyarados instantly became excited. "[Iron Tail]!"
An [Iron Tail] was unleashed instantly. The dragon's body twisted, and its thick tail, covered in a silvery-grey luster, smashed down.
"A sneak attack! You have no martial honor..." Caught off guard, Rio could only brace himself, quickly crossing his arms above his body, gathering Fighting energy throughout his being.
"Bang!" The heavy, powerful tail, enhanced by Steel-type energy, slammed hard onto Rio.
"Umph," Rio grunted, his arms numb from the impact. The immense force even caused his feet to sink into the ground.
However, Rio didn't just take the hit for nothing. [Iron Tail] was a physical attack move, and Rio's [Counter] happened to be able to return physical damage to the opponent twofold.
"[Counter]!"
Rio stepped forward with a fierce shout, his right fist, enveloped in imposing energy, hammering hard against Gyarados's body.
"Aaargh!" Gyarados roared in pain, its body knocked backward.
Landing the hit, Rio quickly back-jumped to retreat, creating distance from Gyarados.
He had just taken an [Iron Tail] head-on, and his HP was already low. It was better to create distance first to be cautious.
Moreover…
Rio quickly opened his backpack, took out an [Oran Berry], and stuffed it into his mouth.
"Eating a Berry during a battle isn't out of the question, right?"
Seeing his HP fully restored, Rio nodded with satisfaction.
"Roaaar—" Gyarados stabilized itself, let out a dragon's roar, and charged forward, its body carrying surging Water energy.
"[Waterfall]!"
The fierce momentum, like splitting waves and cutting through billows, was enough to make any Pokémon directly facing the attack flinch and be unable to dodge.
However, Rio's ability was [Inner Focus], an ability that prevents flinching. Empowered by [Inner Focus], facing the rushing [Waterfall] attack, Rio's mind was instead completely calm.
"Even if I take this [Waterfall] with [Counter], it won't be easy to counterattack, so..."
"[Detect]!"
In an instant, time seemed to stand still. The splashes from [Waterfall], the dust flying in the air, the ferocious expression on Gyarados's face—everything became incredibly clear in Rio's eyes.
Even the move itself became traceable.
"There's an opening!" A glint flashed in Rio's eyes. His body twisted, dodging Gyarados's [Waterfall]. Immediately after, his claws also gathered silvery-grey energy, forming two sharp claw shapes, and he slashed towards Gyarados.
Gyarados was still rushing forward due to inertia. Seeing Rio's steel claws about to strike, it could only barely twist its body, rolling to dodge Rio's [Metal Claw].
"Roar, roar, you detestable brat! You've angered me!"
Seeing its own sorry state, Gyarados's face flushed red with anger. A deep red, ferocious glint surged in its eyes. Its dragon body began to writhe restlessly, and a terrifying energy rose up.
Feeling the fierce aura before him, Rio found it difficult to breathe for a moment and swallowed hard. "This couldn't be that super-strong move, could it? [Outrage]."
The blood-red color in Gyarados's eyes was about to overflow, and its aura began to reach its peak.
Machop, who had been watching the commotion with a smile, also stepped forward upon seeing this scene, placing himself in front of Rio, his expression utterly serious.
"Roar—"
Gyarados let out a savage, skyward roar. Just as it was about to launch an attack on the opponent before it, a comfortable and beautiful singing voice drifted over.
"Laa, la la la..."