The air above the Water Field was thick and still.
Light from the overhead lamps bounced off the gently rippling surface, scattering into dazzling reflections.
Misty stood in her trainer's box.
Her eyes were locked onto the boy in the cap across from her.
"Rules are one-on-one. Single battle, one match only."
Her voice carried a faint tension, but in this empty arena it sounded very clear.
She was nervous. More than a little.
"Ash, send out your Pokémon!"
She sucked in a breath—
Then suddenly hurled her Poké Ball.
"Go! Gyarados!"
Red light exploded.
With a thunderous roar, a huge dark-blue shape crashed into the pool, throwing up a towering wall of water.
A cruel, serpentine head rose above the surface, red eyes blazing with feral fury.
Its massive, coiling body sprawled across the water between the floating platforms, radiating suffocating pressure.
It was that same monster that had haunted her childhood nightmares over and over again—
The embodiment of overwhelming power and terror.
Misty went pale.
She instinctively stepped back half a pace, her breathing going shallow.
She could hear her own heartbeat hammering in her chest—
Loud, frantic, like it might smash through her ribs at any moment.
The shadow of the past surged up like icy seawater, trying to drag her under.
Was she afraid?
Yes.
She was still afraid.
But this time—
She chose to face it head-on.
Across the field, Ash saw every flicker of fear and struggle cross her face.
The playful look on his own slowly faded.
His eyes darkened under the brim of his cap.
So that's how it is…
You're trying to climb over your past.
He slowly raised the heavier Poké Ball at his waist.
His voice dropped, solemn:
"My friend."
"No need for words."
"I have already seen your resolve."
"I can feel your will—your dominating intent."
"Cross the fear of yesterday—prove your strength here and now!"
"Answer her determination—come forth, Sea Ruffian!!"
Golden light burst forth.
The Pokémon that emerged was even more dazzling than Misty's Gyarados—
Even larger, even heavier, hitting the water hard enough to make the entire arena hum.
Golden scales rippled with light, and blood-red eyes glared down at the blue Gyarados opposite.
Two Gyarados.
One blue, one gold.
Facing each other across the Water Field.
Misty was stunned speechless by Ash's sudden, ridiculously dramatic speech.
Her cheeks heated.
She snapped:
"You don't understand anything, you jerk!"
She'd never told him she was afraid of Gyarados!
And what kind of speech was that?!
Are you treating me like a Pokémon now?!
And yet… somehow, that crushing fear inside her—
Really did feel a little lighter, blown apart by his absurd, over-the-top—but absolutely sincere—words.
Ash's lines might sound unreliable.
But the strength in them still reached her.
Misty shook her head hard, tossing away those thoughts.
She thrust her arm forward like a drawn blade.
"Gyarados! Hydro Pump!"
Almost the instant her command left her mouth—
Ash's voice cracked across the arena like a whip.
"Waterfall! Charge through!"
"ROOOAR!!!"
The blue Gyarados opened its jaws wide.
A massive, high-pressure column of water erupted forth, like a rampaging dragon, shredding the air as it blasted straight for the golden Gyarados's head.
The golden Gyarados answered with an even more savage roar.
Water surged and wrapped around its body like armor.
It didn't dodge.
Didn't flinch.
It hurled itself straight into the attack.
"BOOOOM!!!"
Hydro Pump collided with the charging golden form of Waterfall.
Water exploded outward in all directions like bullets, hammering the energy barriers and making them flicker with waves of light.
Relying on sheer brutality and physical power, the golden Gyarados smashed aside most of the Hydro Pump's force—
And slammed its head up under the blue Gyarados's jaw.
"ROAR!!" the blue Gyarados cried out, knocked backward, its head forced high.
"Now! Crunch!" Misty's command came fast and sharp, no hint of panic despite that early hit.
The blue Gyarados steadied itself, using the backward momentum to snap forward again.
Its huge jaws lit with Dark-type energy as it lunged for the golden Gyarados's exposed neck.
Ash's eyes narrowed.
"Aqua Tail!"
The golden Gyarados's thick tail snapped around like a golden whip, wrapped in surging water.
It came in from the side with overwhelming force and smashed into the blue Gyarados's flank.
Thud—
The impact was so heavy it made teeth ache.
The Aqua Tail slammed into the blue Gyarados, halting its Crunch mid-motion and body-slamming it sideways.
It skidded over the surface, plowing a deep trench through the water.
"ROOOAR!!!"
The blue Gyarados roared in fury, scales torn from the neck where Crunch had partially connected, streaks of blood mixing into the water.
Misty's heart clenched—
Not because it was hurt—
But because that explosive roar and monstrous presence were scratching at her nerves like claws.
Fear, cold and poisonous, tried to coil around her again.
She squeezed her eyes shut—
Then forced them open.
No backing down!
Absolutely not!
"Dragon Dance!" Misty's voice was thin with tension, but full of do-or-die resolve.
Dragon-type energy flared around the blue Gyarados.
Its speed shot up.
Despite its huge body, it began weaving and circling the pool with surprising agility, strength stacking higher and higher.
"Can't let you power up too much," Ash muttered, lips curling. "Dragon Rage!"
The golden Gyarados roared, energy concentrating in its maw.
Blazing orange-red light spilled from between its jaws, as if it were about to spit out a tiny, furious sun.
"Stop it! Ice Fang!" Misty knew better than to let that terrifying Dragon Rage fully charge.
Boosted by Dragon Dance, the blue Gyarados shot forward like blue lightning.
Its jaws crackled with icy power as it lunged for the golden Gyarados's head mid-charge.
"Too slow!" Ash's voice rang out, full of absolute confidence.
"Release it early!"
The golden Gyarados abruptly cut its charge short.
Instead of firing a fully formed Dragon Rage, it spat out that unstable mass of energy in a single explosive breath.
It wasn't a complete Dragon Rage—
But that out-of-control torrent of orange-red power was still terrifying.
At this close range, it roared straight at the oncoming blue Gyarados.
"Oh no!!" Misty's face drained of color.
The blue Gyarados reacted instantly, diving straight down.
BOOOOM—
The unstable energy wave scraped across its back fins and plunged into the pool behind it.
The explosion was like a bomb going off underwater.
A massive column of water burst upward, spray lashing down like a storm.
Both Gyarados vanished behind churning waves and mist.
Misty panted heavily, sweat beading on her forehead.
Her gaze never left the roiling surface.
The fear was still there.
But now there was something burning even hotter—
Her will to fight, side by side with her partner, and go all out.
Slowly, the water calmed.
Both colossal dragons resurfaced, facing each other across the arena, bodies marked with wounds, breath ragged, red eyes locked together.
Their killing intent only grew fiercer.
Misty looked at the golden beast across from her—
Still radiating crushing pressure even wounded—
Then at her own Gyarados, battered but refusing to retreat.
She suddenly smiled.
The fear hadn't vanished.
But now, she had the courage to stand in front of it.
"Gyarados!"
"Let it see—"
"Our full strength!"
"Use Giga Impact!!"
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