The beautiful water city, Cerulean City, had finally been reached by Mark. Without lingering, he headed straight toward the Cerulean Gym. The badge wouldn't be hard for him to earn, but—
"The gym's closed? Why?" Mark couldn't believe it when he arrived at the gym, only to hear the bad news from the staff.
"There's nothing we can do. Today, the beautiful trio of sisters from Cerulean Gym is performing a water ballet show, so the gym is closed."
There was nothing else to do. Since that was the case, Mark decided to go find them directly. After asking where the show would take place, he headed toward the venue. By the time he arrived, the performance seemed to be reaching its peak. Three stunning young women danced gracefully in the water like mermaids. The eldest, Daisy, was sensuous and alluring; the second sister, Violet, gentle and elegant; the youngest, Lily, youthful and lively. No wonder so many people had come to watch! Even if he couldn't earn the badge today, just seeing such a captivating show made it worth it.
When the performance ended, Mark arrived early at the backstage exit to wait for the trio. Soon, the three beautiful girls walked out.
"Oh my, a handsome young man is waiting here! Could you be here for autographs?" teased Lily, the naughtiest of the three.
"Uh… I'm Mark from Pallet Town, and I've come to challenge the Cerulean Gym!" Mark said, embarrassed but earnest.
"Pallet Town again? That's the fourth one already! Are all the trainers from Pallet so competitive? Yesterday one, today another!" sighed Violet.
"Well then, the day after tomorrow, we'll accept your challenge," Daisy stepped forward.
"The day after tomorrow? Can't it be today… or even tomorrow?" Mark asked anxiously.
"No, we're exhausted today and need proper rest. Plus, we already have a battle arranged for tomorrow with another trainer from Pallet… what's his name… Kage! Tomorrow's going to be against him. So you'll have to wait a bit longer," Iris explained.
Kage—that must be the one who chose Chamander! He must have arrived a day earlier than me. There was nothing to be done, Mark thought. "Fine then. The day after tomorrow it is. But I have one more request. The Cerulean Gym is famous as a water-type gym… do you happen to have any skill machines like Scald or Surf? Even if they're one-time use, it's okay. If you do, could I buy one?"
"Of course we have them! But there aren't many left. These are our gym's treasures—how could we easily give them away?" Daisy declined. Skill machines were either permanent or one-time use. Clearly, while the gym had some, they weren't for casual distribution.
"I'm willing to trade something even more valuable. How about this?" Mark pulled out the rare Moon Stone gifted by clefable. Compared to a one-time-use skill machine, the Moon Stone was far more precious.
"Wow! What a beautiful Moon Stone! It's the first time I've seen such a rare evolutionary stone!" Lily exclaimed excitedly.
"You can take it back. Even though it's precious, it's useless for us. We don't have any Pokémon that evolve with a Moon Stone," Daisy replied.
"Exactly! Even if we had one, we wouldn't care much! If it weren't for our parents suddenly going on a trip, we wouldn't even be stuck managing the gym! We're only temporary caretakers. We have a younger sister—the strongest among us—and once she's ready, we'll hand the gym over to her and tour everywhere performing water ballet. Just thinking about it excites us!" Lily said.
Haha… with this attitude, it's no wonder this gym is considered the weakest, Mark thought with a sigh.
"We actually keep all our skill machines for our friend, Kaya. Sorry," Violet came forward apologetically.
"Then it's fine. I'll just come back to challenge you the day after tomorrow. Goodbye!" Though disappointed, Mark didn't want to force the issue. He'd find another way later.
"Wait! If you agree to one request, we'll give you a skill machine," Daisy suddenly said.
This unexpected turn made Mark turn around immediately. "What's the condition? Tell me!" As long as it was something he could handle, Mark wouldn't mind helping.
"Violet, Lily, do you remember that trainer from Pallet Town who came yesterday?" Daisy asked.
"Of course! He called us the weakest gym in Kanto and said he wouldn't even brag if he took our badge! He claimed we waste our time with water ballet and disgrace all gym leaders! Who is he to say such things?" Lily fumed.
"I have an idea," Daisy smirked. "This Mark fellow is from Pallet too. He doesn't look weak. Why not have him battle that Kage, teach him a lesson, and give Cerulean Gym some face?"
"Agreed!" both Lily and Violet nodded.
"You heard it! What do you say? Will you fight for us? If you win, we'll give you a skill machine," Daisy challenged.
"I'm ready! I accept the battle!" Mark said seriously, though inwardly he scoffed. Compared to the Moon Stone, face and pride mattered more? He really couldn't understand the way girls' minds worked.
The battle would take place tomorrow. Mark bowed to the Cerulean sisters and headed to the Pokémon Center.
"For tomorrow's battle, we're counting on you. We need to win for the sake of Feebas! Don't let us down!" Mark encouraged Grovyle and the others. He'd have to disappoint Kage for the sake of Feebas' skill machine! Besides, Kage had said some things that were way out of line—teaching him a lesson wouldn't be wrong. Standing up for beautiful ladies must be a boy's duty, Mark told himself before falling asleep.
The next morning, Mark arrived early at the gym. The three sisters were already waiting.
"Are you ready? We've put all our trust in you! If you lose today, don't blame us—we won't just withhold the skill machine; we'll reject your challenge entirely!" Lily growled.
"Don't worry. I'll give it my all. I won't lose," Mark said confidently. Both Grovyle and Scyther had already reached elite high-level strength. While early training gains were relatively quick, it was unlikely that Kage's team—just out of Pallet a month ago—could surpass them with proper training.
"Hey! Is there a rookie trainer from Cerulean here? I've come to challenge as agreed!" A cocky voice rang out—it was Kage.
"Hmph, we're here, but you're not battling us. Today's opponent is him! He's also from Pallet, you know him! If you beat him, you'll still get the badge,"Daisy replied coldly.
"Oh! It's Mark! When did you become a hitman for Cerulean Gym?" Kage sneered.
"I'm just helping out. This battle's a three-on-three format—you're the challenger, free to swap Pokémon as you like. The side that loses all three Pokémon loses the battle. No problem, right?"
"Sure! I've been hearing about you back in Pallet—' Pallet Professor', 'Rising Star' and all that nonsense. I don't buy it! Today's the day—I'll show you how to defeat you!" Kage bragged.
"Then let's get started," Mark said.
Both sides took their positions. The battle was about to begin.
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