by Howard Dewin
“Ash is falling!” screamed Misty.
But Lapras swooped down with its big neck and snatched Ash out of midair.
“Nice catch, Lapras!” Ash said.
Cissy was rounding the marker. Ash had to catch up before she got too far ahead. He and Lapras rounded the marker and sped up behind Cissy.
“You’re better than I thought you’d be!” she shouted.
“So are you!” Ash shouted back. They were neck and neck.
“Look out!” Misty’s scream cut through the air.
“Cis-sy!” her kid brother shouted, panicked.
Cissy and Ash turned to see a huge tidal wave rising behind them. Ash knew it would crush them in a matter of seconds. He braced for the impact.
Then Lapras turned to face the enormous wave. It opened its mouth and sent out a glowing orb of light. The orb hit the water and the water froze instantly. Ash was safe!
“Ice Beam! Nice work, Lapras,” Ash said.
But the water behind Cissy didn’t freeze fast enough. It came crashing down on her. She and Blastoise hurled through the air.
“Ciisss-sssyyy!” Her brother was terrified.
Blastoise crashed down into the waves seconds before Cissy. Its large shell rose up out of the water just in time for Cissy to land on it.
“You saved me, Blastoise!” she said. Blastoise didn’t miss a beat. It raced up next to Lapras and toward the finish line.
“See ya at the finish line!” Cissy yelled to Ash as she pulled farther ahead.
“You gave me an idea, Lapras,” Ash told the Pokémon. “Aim an Ice Beam straight to the shore!”
Lapras opened its mouth and shot another golden orb across the water to the beach. A frozen path rose up from the water.
“Now get on top of the ice, Lapras!” Ash commanded.
Lapras leaped onto the ice. They took off at an amazing speed. Gliding on the ice was ten times faster than swimming. Ash and Lapras sailed closer and closer to Cissy. Finally, they passed her! Skating at top speed, Ash and Lapras slid straight across the finish line and didn’t slow down until they crashed onto the beach!
Pikachu jumped into Ash’s arms.
“I guess we won it,” Ash said proudly.
Cissy jumped off Blastoise. “Great race, Ash,” she said. “Pretty smart, using Lapras’s Ice Beam.”
“Yeah,” chimed in her brother, “that was really cool.”
“I think you’re gonna do pretty well in the Orange League.” Cissy smiled at him.
Ash beamed. He felt great.
Cissy held out her hand. She held a pink coral shell with a sapphire blue stone in the middle.
“This is the Coral-Eye Badge of the Mikan Gym,” Cissy said. “It’s proof that you’ve won your match.”
“It looks like a shell,” Ash said.
“All the Orange League badges are shells,” Cissy said.
Ash took the badge from Cissy. He let out a cheer and shouted triumphantly, “I won the Coral-Eye Badge!”
“It feels like we’ve been out on the ocean for days!” Ash moaned. Riding on Lapras was fun, but he wanted to get to his next battle.
“We should see Navel Island any time now,” Tracey said, scanning the horizon.
“Pika!” Pikachu jumped up and down. Then it pointed. In the distance, partly covered in clouds, a volcano-like mountain rose up from the ocean.
“There it is,” Tracey said. “Navel Island, home of the Sea Ruby Badge.”
“The Sea Ruby Badge,” Ash said dreamily. He could already picture it being handed to him. “Step on it, Lapras!”
Soon they pulled up onto the beach. Ash spotted a small village in the distance.
“Let’s see if anyone’s there,” he said.
They walked along the beach. Then a voice came out of nowhere.
“I bet you guys are looking for a gym battle!”
Ash spun around. A tall, athletic young man stood on the beach. He smiled at them.
“Uh … yeah,” said Ash.
“Well, you came to the right place! Nice to meet you. I’m Dan.”
“Hi. I’m Ash,” Ash replied. He shook Dan’s hand. “And these are my friends, Pikachu, Tracey, and Misty.”
“Misty?” Dan repeated when Ash introduced her.
“Yeah,” she said, shyer than usual.
“That’s a very pretty name,” Dan said. Misty blushed a little.
“Can you just take us to the gym?” Ash asked anxiously.
“My pleasure,” Dan answered. “Follow me.”
“Who is he?” Tracey asked as they followed Dan down a long, stone path.
“Beats me.” Ash shrugged his shoulders. “He must be here to challenge the Gym Leader, too.”
They hiked on for a while. Then Ash caught sight of an enormous stone wall. It looked like it was built directly at the base of the huge mountain that they’d seen earlier.
“What’s that?” Ash asked, pointing up ahead.
“That’s the entrance to the gym,” Dan told him.
They walked through two giant steel doors. Standing on the other side of the wall, Ash found himself looking straight up the biggest, steepest mountain he’d ever seen.
“I don’t get it,” he said softly. “Where’s the gym?”
Misty pointed to a cable car that ran all the way to the top of the mountain. “I guess we have to take that cable car to the top. Maybe the gym is up there.”
Tracey was already reading a nearby sign that said WELCOME, POKÉMON TRAINERS. Then he stopped and gave Ash a funny look.
“What?” Ash was getting annoyed.
Tracey continued to read. “All challengers to the Navel Gym must first climb to the top of the mountain. Trainers must climb using their power alone. Any Trainer who uses a Pokémon will be disqualified.”
Ash’s eyebrows furrowed as he tried to understand what Tracey had just read.
“Climb?” he asked in disbelief.
Slowly, he turned his focus upward toward the mountain. A long, thin, winding path moved ever higher to the top of the mountain. At least he thought it did. The mountaintop was so far up that it was hidden in the clouds!
“It also says,” Tracey continued, “that those who accompany challengers should use the cable car.”
“Whew,” Misty sighed in relief.
“So,” Ash swallowed hard. “What you’re saying is — I have to climb it … alone.”
“Not completely,” said Dan. “I’ll be climbing too!”
Ash stared up at the mountain. It didn’t seem possible to climb such a steep slope, especially without the help of his Pokémon.
“Pika pi!” Pikachu clung to his shoulder, giving him a look of total confidence.
“You’re right, Pikachu, I can do it. I can do it if I try,” Ash said.
“Good luck, Ash!” Tracey shouted to him from the cable car. He and Misty were already headed to the top.
“Be careful, Dan!” Misty yelled out.
“Hey! What about me?” Ash yelled back.
“You be careful, too,” Misty said.
Dan started up the mountain. Ash took a deep breath and followed.
“Pika pi!” Pikachu climbed ahead, calling back encouragement to Ash. They climbed and climbed until the mountain got so steep that Ash was clinging to its side, scaling it inch by inch. He made the mistake of looking down and suddenly he felt very dizzy. It was a straight drop down! There were already clouds swirling around him.
Ash closed his eyes and took a deep breath. One step at a time, he told himself as he reached out for the next little rock he could grip.
But that rock wasn’t strong enough to hold him. Suddenly Ash was falling backward through the sky!
“Help!” he shouted. His arms and legs scrambled to find something to grab. Then he crashed against a rock ledge. He grabbed the ledge and clung with all his might.
Ash reached for a Poké Ball.
“Bulbasaur!” he choked out, “ … use your vine … ”
“Ash!” Dan shouted to him from up above. “Don’t do it!”
Ash remembered. If he used his Pokémon, he’d be disqualified.
He summoned up every bit of strength in his body and slowly crawled up onto the ledge. Then he began to climb, step by step, back up the mountain to where Pikachu waited. Finally, he and Pikachu caught up with Dan. They rested on a plateau big enough for the three of them. Ash was panting, exhausted and relieved.
“Thanks, Dan,” he said, “I would have been disqualified without you.”
“No problem,” he said cheerfully. “Ready to finish our climb?” Dan asked.
Ash nodded and the three headed upward once again.
The steep mountain gave way to a more gradual incline but now there was snow everywhere. Bitter cold wind lashed at Ash’s skin. He buried his face in his collar.
“Pika … pika … aaaa — ”
Ash spun around. Pikachu was facedown in the snow.
“Pikachu!” Ash cried. How could he have let his Pokémon get so tired? “Are you all right?”
Pikachu looked up at him, too frozen to speak. Ash ripped off his vest and quickly wrapped it around the Pokémon.
“This should help,” Ash said. “Don’t worry. I’ll hold you close and you’ll get warm. No mountain’s going to beat us!”
“Pika.” It looked up at Ash with great admiration.
Ash suddenly stopped feeling sorry for himself. It was up to him to get them safely up the mountain. He picked up Pikachu and marched straight past Dan, a brand-new determination in his step.
“Ash!” He heard Tracey’s voice before he saw him.
“Great job, you guys!” Misty was wrapped in a bright red blanket, waving at them as they reached the top.
“I told you we’d make it!” Ash said as if he’d never doubted it.
He stopped and looked around. It felt like they were standing at the top of the world with a beautiful blue sky and crisp clear air. But where was the gym?
“Congratulations, Ash!” said, coming up from behind. “It was quite a test and you passed!”
“Huh? I passed?”
“I knew it!” Misty said, looking at Dan and smiling.
“Yeah,” chimed in Tracey. “I figured it out when we got to the top and nobody else was here.”
“What are you guys talking about?” Ash stared at his friends, puzzled.
“Dan’s not here to win a badge, Ash,” Misty said. “He’s the Gym Leader!”
Ash spun around and stared at Dan.
Dan grinned. “It’s true! I’m the Navel Island Gym Leader. Are you ready for our match?”
Ash was stunned but he quickly recovered. “Of course I’m ready! Aren’t we, Pikachu?”
“Pika!”
“Great!” Dan exclaimed. “We’ll decide the winner in three rounds. If you can win two out of three, you’ll get the Sea Ruby Badge.”
Danny held out a beautiful white shell with a red stone in its middle. Inside the red stone was a green emeraldlike gem.
“Wow,” was all Ash could say.
“First,” Dan announced, “the geyser!”
He stepped back and revealed one bare patch of ground surrounded by snow. Suddenly two huge fountains of water erupted from that spot. They sprayed high up into the sky. Hot steam filled the air.
“Whoever can freeze this water first, wins,” Dan explained.
Ash had to think quickly. How could he freeze boiling water? He was going to lose this match even before it started!
“Nidoqueen! I choose you!” Dan shouted. He hurled a Poké Ball into the open sky. An incredibly strong-looking Pokémon appeared. Its body was covered with blue plates that looked like armor.
Ash stared at Nidoqueen and realized what he needed. “Ice attacks!” he said under his breath. “Lapras! I choose you!”
Lapras stood next to Nidoqueen. Ash was sure it had the power to win.
“Ice Beam attack!” Ash and Dan shouted at the same time.
Both Pokémon shot glowing orbs of ice-beam light toward the powerful geysers. The geysers were beginning to turn into clear crystals of ice from the bottom up.
Nidoqueen’s beam seemed to race up the geyser.
Lapras’s beam was strong, but it moved more slowly.
“Hang in there, Lapras!” Ash shouted. “I know you can do it!”
“Nidoqueen, full power now!” Dan commanded. Nidoqueen’s beam moved even faster, almost to the top. Lapras’s beam was barely halfway up the geyser.
“Lapras — !” Ash shouted, but it was too late.
Nidoqueen’s geyser was frozen solid.
“Pika!” Pikachu was amazed. Finally, Lapras finished. Both geysers stood frozen in midair.
“Looks like I win the first round!” Dan stated.
“Good job, Lapras,” Ash said. He knew Lapras had done its best.
Dan and his Pokémon now carefully lowered the frozen geysers to the ground.
“In the second round,” Dan explained, “we’ll compete in ice sculpting. The first one to carve an ice sled out of the frozen geyser — using only three Pokémon — wins.”
Ash stared at the frozen columns of ice.
“So, Ash,” Dan turned to him. “Do you know which three you want to use?”
Ash studied the ice slabs. “Yes, I know exactly which three!”
Misty looked at him, anxious to hear what he’d decided.
“Pikachu!”
Pikachu jumped to attention, happy for the challenge.
“Bulbasaur!”
A combination Grass- and Poison-type Pokémon with a bulb on its back appeared. Misty and Tracey leaned in, waiting to hear Ash’s third choice.
“Charizard!” he shouted. The Fire-type Pokémon stood in line with Pikachu and Bulbasaur. Charizard looked like a big dragon, and its personality was as fierce as its appearance.
“Not Charizard,” Tracey and Misty moaned in unison.
“Yes, Charizard!” Ash said proudly. “It’s got the fire power to carve ice.”
“But Charizard never does anything you ask!” Misty reminded him.
Ash ignored her. He was sure that, this time, Charizard would listen to him.
“I’m using Machoke, Scyther, and Nidoqueen,” Dan said.
“Pika!”
“Bulba!” Ash’s little Pokémon eyed the larger opponents nervously.
Charizard yawned.
“Let’s go!” Dan shouted. It was time for the second round to begin!
Pikachu and Bulbasaur sprang into action. Pikachu sent one electrical blast after another toward the ice, chipping it away tiny piece by tiny piece. Bulbasaur’s vines whipped around, slowly making dents in the rock-hard ice. Charizard lay on its side, yawning and ignoring the crowd.
“Charizard, come on!” Ash pleaded. “I can’t win without you.”
Dan’s sled was already taking shape. Machoke carved the ice with swift karate chops. Scyther’s sharp claws acted like saws, making big clean slices. Nidoqueen shaped the ice by pounding it with raw strength.
“Charizard! Just this once,” Ash pulled the tail of the giant dragon, trying to move it to action. Charizard snorted, a tiny flame shooting from its nose. It yawned.
Misty hung her head. “That Pokémon never listens.”
Dan’s sled was starting to take on some detail. Pikachu and Bulbasaur worked feverishly, but they were far behind. Ash pulled and pulled on Charizard’s tail but it wouldn’t budge. It shot an annoyed look at Ash and closed its eyes. Then, without even standing up, Charizard turned its head in the direction of the column of ice and let out three roaring blasts of fire.
Pikachu and Bulbasaur were thrown into the snow from the fury of Charizard’s flame. Everyone was silent. They couldn’t believe what they saw. Ash’s shapeless block of ice was now a perfectly carved ice sled!
“Yeah, Charizard!” Ash leaped into the air. “We did it!”
Tracey and Misty shouted in disbelief, “Way to go!”
“Well, I don’t kn
ow how,” Dan shook his head, “but you won the second round, Ash!”
“Yes!” Ash shouted to his Pokémon. “Pikachu … Bulbasaur … Charizard! Thank you so much!”
Pikachu and Bulbasaur looked happily at Ash. Charizard snorted and went back to sleep.
“The third round,” Danny said, “is a sled race. The first team to the beach wins.”
Dan led them to a new location. Ash strained to see the beach from where they stood. They were on the edge of a clifflike drop-off. It was a very long, steep slope that fell all the way down to the ocean. Down near the water was a red flag. Ash gave his Pokémon a confident nod.
“This will be fun!” Ash said as he slid into the sled. Pikachu, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur wedged themselves in behind him.
“We’ll meet you at the bottom!” Tracey said. He and Misty ran to the cable car.
“It’s all downhill from here, Ash!” Misty joked. She turned to Dan. “Good luck, Dan!”
Ash shot her a dirty look. He couldn’t believe she would root for his opponent!
“Ready,” said Dan, “GO!”
The two sleds hit top speed in a matter of seconds.
“Right … now left!” Dan coached his Pokémon as they steered the sled.
“Left … I mean … right!” Ash shouted. Bulbasaur used its vines as rudders. Faster and faster, everything was starting to blur as they whooshed along at incredible speed.
Even so, Dan’s sled whizzed past them. Soon Ash couldn’t even see his opponent. They were so far behind, Ash wasn’t sure how they’d ever catch up.
Then, suddenly, Dan and his sled appeared. They had crashed!
“Are you okay?!” Ash shouted, screeching his sled to a halt.
“I think so,” Dan said, a little shaky. “But that was no accident. Somebody dug that hole.” He pointed to a ditch dug right in the middle of the course.
Ash didn’t even have to look at the hole to know what had happened.
“Team Rocket!” he said furiously.
“Good guess!” Meowth screeched as it popped out from behind a snowbank.
“But wait until you see the real hole!” Jessie and James popped out next.
