The positive part of James and Jen's long trek back to Ecruteak City was that it didn't rain again. That was the only positive part of the trip. The weather remained oppressively hot, and on some days the heat prevented them from training or advancing along the route. Mercifully, the heat seemed to drive away any wild Pokémon that lived along the route, so the pair were left alone during their frequent stops. Even Typhlosion was feeling the effects of the heat; his fire-resistant fur may have protected him from his own flame bursts, but didn't do him any favours when the summer heat really kicked in.
As they reached the junction for Route 38, the weather cooled enough for them to make quicker progress. Before long, the Ecruteak gatehouse came into view, and the youngsters gratefully dashed through and hurried to the Pokémon Centre to rest and prepare for the hardest part of their journey.
----------------------------------------
“So...Mount Mortar.” James spread a map out over the small table in their room. “It's really treacherous, really dark...”—he shuddered visibly at this— “and full of nasty Rock-types. We're gonna have to be extra careful when we get in there.”
“Good thing we have Tentacruel now. Last time we went through a cave, we didn't have any Pokémon that could knock off a Rock-type.”
“That's true,” James answered as he tapped a pencil on the map. “Okay, once we get clear of Mount Mortar, there's a trail that leads to Mahogany Town and the next gym.”
“What kind of gym?” Jen asked with a yawn. “I hope it's one we can handle easily.”
“Ice, I think,” James replied, seeing a small snowflake next to Mahogany Town's map point. “Shouldn't be too much trouble for us, given the teams we have.” Jen yawned again.
“Don't get too confident. Remember Chuck?”
“How could I forget? I only faced him three times.” James folded the map, then pulled his sleeping bag out of his pack. “You can have the bed, I'll sleep on the floor.” Jen didn't answer; she had already pulled the covers over her head and fallen asleep. James shook his head, then dove inside his own sleeping bag and drifted off.
----------------------------------------
Mount Mortar proved just as dangerous as James had predicted. Typhlosion and Magmar did their best to light the way for their trainers, but the long shadows and various noises echoing through the caves did nothing to ease anyone's nerves, especially James'.
“I hate caves,” he muttered for the eighth time as they reached another dead end. “Whose idea was it to put a giant labyrinth between cities anyway?”
“Nature's,” Jen groaned. “C'mon, it could be worse. We could be lost and have no effective way to defend ourselves.”
“Some comfort.” James motioned Typhlosion closer, peering around a corner. Typhlosion's flame lit the near wall, where a small sign had been hung. “What's this?”
“What's what?” Jen looked at the sign in confusion. “It says 'Left, left, right, left'. Maybe it's the way out, but we should send somebody to find out first.” She let Golbat out, and motioned Magmar over. “Follow the directions, Magmar. Golbat, if you guys reach the exit, fly back alone. If it's not, bring Magmar with you.” The two Pokémon indicated their understanding, then headed off in the direction they were told. A few minutes later, Golbat came back by himself, and Jen smiled.
“Wow. That's real convenient,” James said, watching Jen recall Golbat. “Too convenient. Who goes to that kind of trouble?”
“Oh, stop complaining already. I'll take ridiculous convenience over being lost for hours in this cave.” Typhlosion dashed forward, motioning to the pair, and both James and Jen followed him until they met Magmar at the cave exit.
----------------------------------------
As they entered Mahogany Town, both youngsters felt strange about the atmosphere. The town was even smaller than Cherrygrove City, and many of the buildings were old and run-down. There was no Poké Mart, and the Pokémon Centre was at the far edge of town. As the group entered the Centre, however, they received the usual warm welcome from Nurse Joy.
“You must be resourceful to have traveled all this way,” the Pokémon Nurse said as she handed them a room key. “Mount Mortar is a dangerous place to work through.”
“It's the darkness that makes it tough,” James said, slipping the key into his pocket. “It would be easier if the cave was lit.”
“Funny,” Joy answered. “It usually is.”
“Huh?” Jen asked, stunned. “We didn't see any lights in there.”
“They installed a lighting system a few months ago, because people kept complaining about accessibility. It was a state-of-the-art system, too, so it doesn't make sense that it failed so easily.”
“Weird.” Jen looked at the clock. “Well, we're going to go turn in now. Thanks, Nurse Joy.” As they headed down the hall, she turned to James. “So I guess we ran into some bad luck, huh? We made it through Union Cave okay because it was lit.”
“Union Cave is a lot less treacherous, too. There's a lot more traffic through there.” He yawned. “Anyway, before we go to sleep, where should we go in the morning? Head right for the Gym, or check out the lake first?”
“Lake?” Jen asked.
“The Lake of Rage is a couple of miles north of town. It's kind of weird because of all the Gyarados that live there.”
“And you know this how...?”
“My dad's told me a few wild stories about it. Apparently he and his friends used to hang out there when he was younger.”
“Well, I want to practice a little before we hit the Gym, and I do want to see a few places too. Okay, we'll head to the lake in the morning. I wouldn't mind seeing a Gyarados up close.”
“Just not too close.” Jen gave James a light push, and they headed into their room to rest and regroup.
----------------------------------------
The next morning, on the way to the Lake of Rage, the gatehouses were unusually empty. James and Jen took little notice, since it was still fairly early. As they passed through the second gatehouse, however, James noticed something strange.
“Hey, take a look at this,” he said, pointing to something small next to the guard station. Jen walked over and saw what James was indicating: a small plastic card with a strange emblem on it.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“What is that? And why do I feel like I've seen it before?” she asked, as she turned the card over. “It looks like a bird's...foot...” She turned to James, whose eyes had narrowed. “James, you don't think...”
“It's them. They're at the lake.” Typhlosion growled low in his throat, prompting James to put a hand on his head. “Easy, pal. We can take these guys, we just have to stay calm.” Jen snapped up, alarmed.
“We can what? James, you're not thinking of taking them on again, are you? Remember what happened last time you went after that Kabutops?”
“I remember. It's not gonna happen this time.”
“I know it won't, because we're going back to town. I'm not going to let you and Typhlosion get hurt again.”
“Jen...” James looked at her, then sighed. “All right. We'll go let somebody know what's going on...”
“No. Triassic isn't worth the trouble. Whatever they're getting up to, it's not going to make any...”
“Any what?” a voice asked behind Jen. Typhlosion growled in surprise, and Jen jumped about a foot in the air as she turned to face the speaker, an elderly man in a blue winter coat. A long white scarf hung around him, and he carried a gnarled walking stick in his hand.
“Um, who are you?” Jen asked as she recovered. The old man raised an eyebrow.
“I should ask you the same question. It is rather early in the morning for someone as young as you and your friend to be exploring the lake.”
“I'm, uh...” Jen looked at James, who shrugged. “I'm Jennifer, and this is James. We're from Violet City, and we're...um...we were going to train by the lake before we take on the Mahogany Gym.”
“The Mahogany Gym?” The man smirked. “Ah, I see, you are both taking the League challenge.” He looked intently at both of them. “But that discussion is secondary at the moment. Exactly what do you believe is happening at the lake?” Jen gave James a worried look.
“Well, we think there's a gang of really bad people up there. They're called Team Triassic, and they want to use prehistoric Pokémon to change the planet back to how it was when dinosaurs were alive.”
“An odd goal," Pryce murmured. "Most people like the world as it is.” The man's grip on his walking stick tightened a little. “Well, they say the Ice Age finished the dinosaurs...”
“Ice Age?”
“Never you mind. Just an old man's musings.” The man walked towards the gatehouse door. “I will accompany you two to the lake. Perhaps we can put a stop to whatever this Team Triassic is doing.”
----------------------------------------
As the two youngsters moved towards the lake with the old man, they spotted Triassic's distinct black and desert camouflage uniforms from a distance. The old man eyed them coldly.
“What could they possibly want here? There have been no fossil discoveries in this area for decades...unless they...”
“Unless they what?” James asked. “Why do you keep cutting off before the important part?”
“No time to explain. We need to find out what they want and what they intend to do here. Stand back and allow me to do the talking.” James opened his mouth to say something, but the old man shot him another cold look. “I mean it. If they are as dangerous as you say, I do not want them to be provoked by youthful brashness.”
“I am not...” James began, but Jen elbowed him to shut up.
“Enough. We are wasting time.” The man ambled towards the Triassic grunts, and James and Jen followed cautiously behind him. As they approached, the Administrator, in his grey jacket, turned from the edge of the lake.
“We have ascertained all we can from the Lake of Rage,” he said, as the grunts turned to him. “The experiments run here were impressive, but the equipment was rendered inoperative after the Rockets abandoned their hideout. We will therefore move on to...” The Admin stopped as he spotted James and the others. “Ah, our young interlopers have caught up with us. Here to try and stop us again, are we?”
“Not them.” the old man answered, stepping forward. “I am.”
“And you are?” the Admin asked, a smirk crossing his face. The old man maintained his scowl.
“Such a flippant tone will get you nowhere. I am Pryce, the leader of the Mahogany Town Gym.” James' eyes widened, and Jen stifled a shout. “You would do well to show some respect.”
“Respect for what? An old man with a fancy title poses no threat to me.”
“Are you willing to back up your words, son? Or are words all you know how to use?” The Admin's eyes narrowed, and he reached into his jacket.
“Very well, Gym Leader. I will show you that I am not to be trifled with. A one against one battle will suffice to decide this.”
“If you insist.”
----------------------------------------
“Kabutops, combat situation!” James started as the vicious-looking crab emerged, and Typhlosion growled. Jen put one hand on James' shoulder, and the other onto Typhlosion's head, holding them both back from their past adversary. The fossil Pokémon swung its wickedly curved blades in anticipation of the fight. Pryce took a Pokéball from his coat pocket and tossed it out.
“Go, Piloswine!” A creature with thick brown fur and a pair of short tusks emerged in front of Pryce. Its fur obscured much of its body, including its eyes and legs. Jen took out her Pokédex to scan it.
“Piloswine, the Swine Pokémon. This combination Ice- and Ground-type is extremely sensitive to sounds, and because its eyes are always covered by its fur, it will continuously charge blindly at its opponents.”
“We will use that blindness to our advantage. Kabutops, Slash!” Kabutops darted to Piloswine's left and aimed a curved blade at its flank.
“Mud-Slap!” Piloswine used its front paw to fling a glob of mud into Kabutops' face. The fossil creature abandoned its attack and tried in vain to clear the slurry from its face, but failed. “Now, Take Down!” Piloswine spun quickly and slammed into Kabutops, knocking it back.
“Do not relent! Slash again!” Kabutops swung wildly, missing its mark.
“Another Mud-Slap, Piloswine.” More mud flew at Kabutops, who slashed at it, spraying it everywhere. Grunts and youngsters scattered to avoid being hit by the mud. “Follow up with Icy Wind.” A chilling breeze struck Kabutops, whose movements looked slowed after the attack. The Admin snarled as Kabutops continued to search for its target.
“It is to the right, Kabutops! Aqua Jet!” Kabutops' body was surrounded by water, and slammed hard into Piloswine. The boar shied from the super effective attack, and Cade sneered. “It looks like we have a winning strategy now. Another Aqua Jet!”
“Turn to face, Piloswine.” Pryce calmly watched as Piloswine shuffled its feet, squaring up to Kabutops. As the attacker neared, Pryce slammed the point of his cane to the ground. “Powder Snow!” A fine, sparkling white dust burst from Piloswine's tusks. Kabutops Water attack froze around it, and it crashed to the ground just in front of Piloswine.
“Get it!” James shouted from the side. Pryce shot him a sideways look, and James immediately went silent.
“Finish this contest, Piloswine. Stone Edge.” Piloswine generated a set of pointed stones, and fired them at Kabutops. The sound of shattering ice was followed by dull thuds as the stones hammered into the Shellfish Pokémon. After the last stone broke, Kabutops' eyes looked dazed. The Admin recalled Kabutops with a furious expression.
“You may have won this battle, Gym Leader, but it means nothing! We will revert this planet, and there is nothing you and these interfering children can do about it!” He composed himself, and raised an arm, closing his hand into a fist. “Triassic, form up. We advance to our next objective.” The grunts slid into formation with practiced ease, then followed the Admin into the gatehouse. Pryce recalled Piloswine with a sigh.
“Well fought, Piloswine. Have some rest.” James and Jen walked over to him, and Typhlosion growled his approval.
“That was...awesome.” James said. “You really took that Kabutops apart.”
“It was nothing I could not handle, son,” Pryce answered. “I could tell that that Administrator was unprepared for a situation where he did not have the upper hand. Such tactics leave an opponent easy to defeat.” He turned to the Violet pair. “So, with that out of the way, to business. I assume you will both attempt to win my Gym Badge?”
“That's right,” Jen said, scratching Typhlosion's ears.
“So which of you will oppose me first?” James and Jen looked at each other, then Jen timidly raised a hand.
“I guess I will,” she said. Pryce nodded.
“Very well. I will await your challenge tomorrow.” When Jen gave him a puzzled look, Pryce continued. “I'm afraid another challenger is waiting for me this afternoon. I suggest you use the rest of today to practice and work on a strategy. Rushing into battle only hastens defeat.” With this strange farewell, Pryce walked towards the lake. James and Jen watched him until he turned into a small clump of trees and disappeared.
“So...let's go train?” James asked after a few moments.
“Y-yeah. Let's.”