"What?! Are you serious?! Ash, you actually caught a Jigglypuff?!" Brock nearly fainted. No one was more traumatized by the pink puffball than him. After all, ever since he helped it regain its voice back in Kanto, that Jigglypuff had knocked their group out countless times!
"Wait, Ash—how did you resist Jigglypuff's Sing attack?" May asked curiously.
Ash sighed and scratched his head. "Well… I've awakened Aura powers."
"WHAT?!" The whole group was stunned. Aura?! As in Lucario's kind of power?!
Ash nodded, trusting them enough to share his secret. In return, everyone promised to keep it safe.
With Mauville City as their next destination, Ash and friends finally arrived!
After dropping off their Pokémon for a quick check-up at the Pokémon Center, they made their way to the Mauville Gym, excited for Ash's next badge challenge.
Ash gently pushed open the heavy double doors—CRASH! They fell forward like they were held up by a string!
"Guess that was the Gym's way of saying 'come on in,'" Ash muttered.
Suddenly, the ground shifted beneath them. Handles popped up on both sides of the floor—
"WHOOAAA!" The entire group screamed as they were launched into a high-speed roller coaster ride through the Gym.
By the time they arrived at the battle arena, Max was grinning ear-to-ear.
"That was awesome! Who knew challenging a Gym came with a free roller coaster ride!"
May, on the other hand, was pale and dizzy. "I… never want to do that again."
Brock chuckled nervously. "Well, that was one unique entrance."
Ash looked ahead. "It's not over yet."
♦(•'╻'• ) "What now?!"
Ahead of them stood a hulking, tiger-like beast—Raikou?!
"A Legendary Pokémon?!" Max shouted.
"No," Ash said calmly, "It's just a mechanical replica. But wow… that craftsmanship is amazing."
As expected, the mechanical Raikou fired a blast of electricity at them!
"Pikachu, Thunderbolt! Reflect it!"
"Pika—CHUUU!" Pikachu countered with a surge of electricity, overloading the Raikou bot and causing it to explode in sparks.
A hidden door opened, and an elderly man with a huge beard strolled out alongside a man in glasses.
"Hahaha! Splendid, splendid! You beat my Raikou Robot No. 2! No need to worry—I won't ask for compensation!" the old man laughed.
"Welcome to the Mauville Gym," the younger man added.
Ash and the others blinked.
"So… this really is the Gym?" May asked slowly. "Not an amusement park?"
The old man grinned. "Indeed! I'm Wattson, the Gym Leader. This is my assistant, Watari!"
After introductions, Ash explained he had come to challenge the Gym.
"Excellent!" Wattson clapped. "It's been too long since I met a challenger with such spark! You remind me of a good Thunderbolt—bright and full of energy!"
With that, the group followed Wattson to the official battle arena.
"The Mauville Gym battle will now begin!" Watari announced. "Each side may use three Pokémon. The match ends when all of one side's Pokémon are unable to battle."
"I'll be using my trusted partners: Electrode, Magnemite, and Magneton!" Wattson declared.
"I'll go with Phanpy, Lairon, and Pikachu!" Ash responded confidently.
Wattson smiled. "A great lineup! Let's get started! Magnemite, I choose you!"
"Go, Phanpy!" Ash called.
Magnemite – Stage: AdvancedAbility: Sturdy
"Magnemite, use Swift!"
"Phanpy, counter with Stomp!"
Shooting stars collided with stomping ground waves in a brilliant flash!
"Now, Confuse Ray!"
"Dig and dodge it—then use Earth Power!"
Phanpy dove underground, re-emerged under Magnemite, and slammed it with a super-effective Ground move. Magnemite barely hung on.
"Sturdy saved it," Ash muttered.
"Magnemite, Flash Cannon!"
A silver beam charged at Phanpy—when suddenly…
"Paooo~!"
A blue-white light burst out from Phanpy's body—it was evolving mid-battle!
"Whoa, it's evolving!" May and Max shouted.
Phanpy's body grew, tusks emerged—Donphan had arrived! The Flash Cannon struck, but Donphan barely flinched.
Donphan – Ability: Sand VeilStage: Advanced PeakMoves: Earthquake, Fire Fang, Thunder Fang, Sandstorm…
Ash pumped his fist. "Perfect timing! Donphan, Earthquake, full power!"
"DONNN!!"
The ground trembled as a massive quake engulfed Magnemite—knocking it out.
"Magnemite is unable to battle—Donphan wins!" Watari called.
"Haha! You're strong, Ash! But I'm not done yet. Go—Electrode!"
Electrode – Stage: Gym Leader Tier
Ash nodded. "Donphan, return! Lairon, you're up!"
"Start with Metal Sound!"
A grating metallic screech filled the field, lowering Electrode's special defense.
"Electrode, Thunderbolt!"
"Use Iron Defense, then counter with Earth Power!"
Lairon braced itself and withstood the electric blast. Then it unleashed a tremor of Ground energy toward Electrode.
But Wattson smirked. "Electromagnetic Levitation!"
Electric currents sparked beneath Electrode as it floated into the air—dodging the Ground move completely.
"What?! It can fly now?!" May gawked.
"It's a technique that makes Electric-types float—negating Ground-type attacks!" Brock explained.
"Electrode, Electro Ball barrage!"
Three glowing orbs flew at Lairon.
"Charge in! Heavy Slam!"
Lairon bulldozed through the orbs and landed a crushing blow—Electrode was knocked out!
"Electrode is unable to battle—Lairon wins!"
"Great job, Lairon!" Ash said.
But Lairon staggered slightly—its armor sparked.
"Looks like Static activated…" Brock noted.
"Haha! That was thrilling, Ash! Now for my final partner—go, Magneton!"
Magneton – Stage: Gym Advanced Tier
Ash recalled Lairon. "I'll leave the rest to you, Pikachu!"
"Pika pi~!"
"Thunderbolt!" both Trainers shouted.
Twin bolts clashed mid-air in a dazzling explosion!
"Magneton, Lock-On!"
A red targeting ring locked onto Pikachu.
"No way—he's setting up Zap Cannon or Hyper Beam!" Ash thought. "Pikachu, interrupt it! Quick Attack + Iron Tail!"
"Pika—CHAAA!" Pikachu zoomed in and landed a glowing steel tail right into Magneton, canceling its charge. The Sturdy Ability barely saved it.
Wattson's expression changed. "Alright then… Tri Attack!"
Magneton launched a triple-colored beam of Electric, Steel, and Normal energy.
"Pikachu, now! Full power Thunderbolt!"
"PIKA—CHUUUU!!!"
A massive surge of electricity blasted through the beams, striking Magneton head-on!
BOOM!
"Magneton is unable to battle—Pikachu wins! The winner is Ash from Pallet Town!"
"Yeah! Ash won!" Max and May cheered.
"Hahaha! That was electrifying!" Wattson approached, beaming. "You've earned this—the Dynamo Badge!"
Ash took the badge and held it high.
"All right! I got the Dynamo Badge!""Pika pi~!"
Ding! Acquired Dynamo BadgeReward: +1000 Points
To be continued...