Part Three

You stand there. He does the same. For what seems like hours, you are statues, being hit by the oncoming torrents of snow. The boy finally looks back. Jet black hair, a backpack to carry potions and Poké Balls, and a large cap... in a way, he kind of looks like you. This idea crumbles in your mind, however, when you lock eyes. They look... dead. They're intimidating. But not as intimidating as his silence. He hasn't said a word to you, and isn't surprised by you at all, almost as if he expected you to appear. His stance changes, and he reaches for his bag. It's a Poké Ball. He presses the button on the red device, and it expands. You realize what you must do. You take out a ball and press the button. Wind howling, the both of you toss the twin spheres simultaneously, and the battle begins.

You send out Sudowoodo, the Imitation Pokémon that's been your friend since you watered it on Route 36. To your surprise, he sends out a mere Pikachu. It strikes you as odd, seeing such a small Pokémon in the possession of this legendary trainer, but you decide to strike first, just to be safe. Sudowoodo uses a Rock Throw, hurling a massive boulder towards the electric mouse, but the Pikachu quickly evades this attack. 'It's fast...' you think. Before you have time to think, the mouse strikes Sudowoodo with a Volt Tackle. Just then, however, you spot something. It appears to be wearing a necklace of some sort. You quickly realize what it is. 'A Light Ball!' you realize. It's an item able to increase the power of Pikachu significantly. After Sudowoodo is hit by a super effective Iron Tail, you realize you have to switch. You recall Sudowoodo and send out Ampharos, a Pokémon you've raised since it was just a small Mareep. The Pikachu sends a Thunderbolt towards it, but it has no effect. You smile. Your hypothesis was correct, this trainer knows hardly anything about Johto Pokémon. However, the silent trainer doesn't so much as grimace. Ampharos is able to keep up with the Pikachu, so it runs towards the mouse and strikes it with a Strength attack. The electric mouse Pokémon gets knocked out, and the trainer recalls it. You decide to recall Ampharos as well.

Expression unchanging, the boy chucks a Poké Ball. Out comes a Snorlax. This behemoth of a Pokémon is normally quite lazy, but this one looks eager to fight. Determined, you reach into your bag for a ball and you throw it. You unleash Espeon, the Sun Pokémon that evolved from the Eevee you got from Bill. Because Snorlax is so slow and Espeon is so agile, you thought you'd be able to use guerilla tactics to inevitably take down the Sleeping Pokémon. This tactic works for quite a while, and you manage to get off quite a few Psybeams on the massive beast. However, the Snorlax then stomps on the ground, creating vibrations in the ground akin to an earthquake, and, just then, a wave of hail and bitter cold snow begins to envelop your side of the battlefield. 'He must have used a TM to teach it Blizzard...' you think to yourself, covering your mouth, closing your eyes and covering your mouth with your arm. When the blizzard subsides, Espeon is struggling to stand. One final crunch attack from the opposing Pokémon is enough to wipe out your purple cat. You grimace and recall Espeon. You ponder the current situation, and decide to reach for your next ball. You grab and toss it, and the Jubilee Pokémon Togekiss that you raised from an egg comes soaring out into the sky. The Snorlax starts another Blizzard, hoping to wipe out the Togekiss with its ice weakness, but luckily it was able to navigate the freezing torrent of cold and reach the Snorlax, releasing an Aura Sphere attack and taking down the giant Pokémon.

Not skipping a beat, the trainer grasped another Poké Ball. Lobbing it, the Shell Pokémon Blastoise is released. You decide to recall your Togekiss and you pull out your Ampharos. It still seemed a little tired from dealing with Pikachu, but you figured its advantage over Blastoise's water type as an electric type would end the match quickly. However, it seemed the opposing trainer had a countermeasure for this. Every time Ampharos would use an electric attack, the Blastoise would parry it using its shell. Eventually, the giant turtle withdrew into its shell. 'Oh no,' you thought to yourself. "Ampharos, get out of there!" you exclaim, but it was too late, and Blastoise jumped forward, unleashing a powerful Skull Bash attack. Ampharos was knocked out, and you recalled the Light Pokémon. You ponder your current situation. 'Two of his Pokémon have been knocked out, and I'm aware of his third… whereas two of my Pokémon are knocked out, and he's aware of two others,' you mused. You release Sudowoodo, who seems to have recovered from the spar with the electric rodent. You realize you're going to have to avoid the opposing Blastoise's water attacks at any cost. "Don't stop moving, Sudowoodo!" you command, hoping Sudowoodo evades any water blasts this way. However, as your Sudowoodo battles, it begins to develop quite a predictable strategy, that being one of using Karate Chop when the Blastoise gets close, then running away and using Rock Throw. The Shell Pokémon takes advantage of this, and unleashes a massive Hydro Pump onto Sudowoodo, seemingly defeating it. However, the Imitation Pokémon stands back up, much to the Blastoise's surprise. 'Heh, Sturdy came through,' you thought to yourself, grinning. Because of the opposing Pokémon's shock, Sudowoodo manages to land a Low Sweep attack, catching the turtle off its feet. The Blastoise was defeated.

'We're halfway there, team,' you thought to yourself, 'three more and we win this.' The trainer called back the Blastoise and summoned another water type Pokémon, this one being Lapras, the Transport Pokémon. Hoping to get off at least a few more attacks with Sudowoodo, you do not switch. However, the Lapras' Ice Beams are quite destructive and, while you were able to get off a Rock Throw or two onto it, the Sudowoodo is inevitably K.O.-ed. You recall it and release your Togekiss. Still somewhat weak from navigating Snorlax's Blizzard, it's somewhat slower than usual, but that doesn't matter, as its powerful Aura Sphere attacks are able to take the Lapras down a few pegs. Eventually, though, the Lapras manages to use an Ice Beam on the Jubilee Pokémon, almost knocking it out. However, it hangs on to the few points of HP it has, and uses Metronome. Crossing your fingers for something useful, the Pokémon shakes its wings, and then cuts through the Lapras, using an extremely powerful attack that seemed to cut through space itself. The Lapras faints, and your Togekiss emerges victorious.

Not appearing angry in the slightest, the trainer sends out his fifth Pokémon, that of Venusaur, the Seed Pokémon. You decide to try your luck with Metronome again, seeing if the Jubilee Pokémon still has any remaining luck. Suddenly, Togekiss begins to emit a very odd light. This light becomes blinding in time, and the Jubilee Pokémon self-destructs, creating a massive explosion. You recall the knocked out Pokémon and release Typhlosion, the Pokémon that's been with you since you started this journey. It roars with excitement, its back erupting in flames, and then charges towards the Venusaur. Grimacing, it attempts to use a Vine Whip attack to keep the Volcano Pokémon at bay, but this is to no avail. Typhlosion grabs the vine that was attempting to attack him and uses a Flamethrower attack on it, turning it to cinders. It manages to catch up to the Seed Pokémon and begins to whale on its face using a myriad of Slash attacks. Once the Venusaur was damaged enough, you decide it was time to execute the most powerful attack in your arsenal. "Blast Burn!" you cry out, unleashing an eruption of lava and flames from under the Seed Pokémon. It chars the plant Pokémon to a crisp, defeating it.

Your heartbeat gets faster and faster. 'One more…' you think. The Venusaur returns to its Poké Ball, and the trainer reaches for his final fighter. He tosses it, and the Flame Pokémon, Charizard, is released. 'Fitting for a trainer named Red,' you thought to yourself. Typhlosion tries to keep the carnage going, but Charizard's ability to fly makes that difficult. In time, Charizard soars into the sky, its twin talons grabbing the Volcano Pokémon. It spins around several times in a circle, and then drops Typhlosion, knocking it out with a Seismic Toss. You grimace. 'It's a one v. one now…' you think to yourself. Luckily you saved your trump card for last. You reach for the lone Master Ball in your bag. Throwing it passionately, the Guardian of the Sea, Lugia, is unchained from its Poké Ball prison. Releasing a booming battle cry, it takes to the skies to battle with Charizard. Flames and gusts of wind clash constantly during their battle, slashes and headbutts dealing heavy blows to both sides. After a Psychic attack damages the opposing lizard, you decide this battle is over. "Lugia, Aeroblast!" you exclaim, and the Diving Pokémon roars blaringly, creating a massive gust of wind that catches the opposing Charizard. This attack leaves the Flame Pokémon plummeting to the ground, unconscious. You've defeated Pokémon Trainer Red.

You stare at the former champion. He's still unfazed. 'What could have happened to him…?' you ponder. He chucks a Revive at the unconscious Charizard. It springs to life and flies off. The trainer then walks towards the edge of the mountain, not breaking eye contact with you, his expression still straight as can be. He dramatically jumps off the mountain, without any hesitation. You panic and run towards where he fell. 'D-did he just…?' you question. Just then, the Charizard emerges from below, carrying the trainer on its back and flying off, away from Mt. Silver.

"It was a pleasure fighting you," you say to yourself, "Champion Red."