Rampardos

"Dunsparce, use Mud Shot!"

With momentum on his side, Bai Shi ordered Dunsparce to keep attacking.

Dunsparce opened his mouth, aimed at Onix's head, and fired a barrage of brown mud pellets.

"Onix, block them with your tail!"

Onix raised his tail to shield his eyes and blocked the mud pellets.

That kept the mud from obscuring his vision.

"Onix, use Iron Tail!"

Roark grinned and gave Onix a second command in quick succession.

A dazzling white light wrapped around Onix's raised tail. It whipped down toward Dunsparce with a fierce whistle.

"Dunsparce, use Dig!"

Seeing the danger, Bai Shi called out to Dunsparce.

At his command, Dunsparce used Dig again.

He burrowed underground just in time, leaving Onix's swift strike to hit nothing but air.

"The same move won't work on me twice!"

"Onix, keep using Iron Tail! Strike the ground!"

Onix lifted his glowing tail and lashed it against the ground like a whip.

A tremendous force surged into the earth.

The impact shook Dunsparce out of his hiding place, exposing him to Onix.

Dunsparce hadn't expected that.

Face-to-face with his opponent again, he fell into a panic.

"Onix, finish him with Dragon Breath."

Roark wasn't about to miss an opening like this.

Onix opened his mouth and unleashed a powerful stream of green breath.

"Dunsparce, calm down! Use Rollout to dodge!"

Still panicking, Dunsparce reacted far too slowly.

By the time he tried to dodge, it was too late.

Onix's breath engulfed him head-on, dealing a devastating blow.

His vision went black, and he collapsed, unable to battle.

"Thanks for the effort, Dunsparce."

"Get some rest in your Poké Ball."

Bai Shi recalled Dunsparce and spoke softly to his Poké Ball.

Dunsparce's mistake at the end had cost him the battle.

Even so, he had worn Onix down considerably.

After Dunsparce's hard-fought effort, Bai Shi was confident he could defeat Onix in the next round.

"Staravia, I'm counting on you!"

With his back against the wall, Bai Shi pushed every distracting thought aside.

All he could think about was how to take down Onix.

Without hesitation, he sent out Staravia.

"Staravia? Another Normal-type Pokémon."

"Does he want to specialize in one type, like me?"

"A Normal-type specialist. You don't see many of those."

Seeing Bai Shi's final Pokémon, Roark grew thoughtful.

Bai Shi was an orphan, if he remembered correctly.

He had only just set out on his journey, yet he'd already chosen his path. That was impressive.

"Staravia!"

Taking the field last, Staravia let out a ringing cry, his fighting spirit plain to see.

He clearly couldn't wait to have a proper battle with Onix.

"Staravia, use Quick Attack!"

The moment Bai Shi spoke, Staravia became a white streak and shot straight toward Onix.

"He's fast! Onix, use Dragon Breath!"

Roark cried out and hurriedly gave Onix his command.

Onix opened his mouth and breathed a stream of green energy at the approaching Staravia.

But Staravia abruptly changed direction in midair.

He swept around Onix's breath and appeared behind and to one side of him.

"Staravia, use Wing Attack!"

Staravia spread his wings and glided toward Onix's head.

The strike caught Onix off guard and landed cleanly.

It dealt Onix a solid hit.

"Staravia, use Aerial Ace!"

Bai Shi pressed his advantage, urging Staravia to keep up the assault.

Staravia burst forward at astonishing speed and slammed into Onix with a sharp rush of air.

Onix had nowhere to dodge and took the Aerial Ace head-on.

He crashed to the ground and lost consciousness.

"You've done an excellent job so far."

"Now let me show you the power of an ancient Pokémon!"

"Go, Rampardos!"

Bai Shi had stirred Roark's fighting spirit. Roark sent his ace onto the field.

A gray dinosaur Pokémon with blue stripes across his body and a hammer-shaped skull came into Bai Shi's view.

"Staravia, use Gust!"

Bai Shi clenched his fists and shouted to Staravia.

He poured all his attention into the battle.

High above the field, Staravia beat his wings hard, sending a strong current of air toward Rampardos.

But against a pure Rock-type like Rampardos, it barely scratched him.

"Rampardos, use Flamethrower!"

At Roark's command, Rampardos counterattacked at once.

He opened his mouth and spewed scorching flames at Staravia in midair.

"Staravia, use Quick Attack!"

Staravia accelerated past the oncoming flames.

After changing direction several times, he dove from above and charged at Rampardos.

"Rampardos, use Headbutt!"

Unfazed, Roark ordered Rampardos to meet him head-on.

Rampardos thrust his hard skull toward the incoming Staravia.

They collided and remained locked together for several seconds before breaking apart.

Neither Pokémon had gained much ground in that exchange.

"Staravia, use Aerial Ace!"

After pulling away, Staravia circled through the air and attacked again.

He flew at Rampardos with incredible speed.

"Rampardos, use Zen Headbutt!"

Roark refused to give ground and ordered Rampardos to meet the attack.

Blue light enveloped Rampardos's skull as he drove it toward Staravia.

The two fierce Pokémon collided again.

This time, the stronger Rampardos had a clear advantage.

Staravia was knocked away in an instant and slammed hard into the ground.

Sheer Guts got him back on his feet, but he was barely hanging on.

"Rampardos, finish him with Head Smash!"

Roark pressed his advantage, giving Bai Shi no chance to recover.

Rampardos lowered his body into a sprinter's stance, gathering his strength in his skull.

Then he charged at Staravia in long strides, like a heavy tank.

"Staravia, dodge!"

Bai Shi shouted, his eyes wide with alarm.

Staravia gritted his beak and flapped his wings, only to find he could no longer fly.

He could only watch as Rampardos drew closer and closer.

Thud!

The dull impact sent Staravia flying like a rag doll.

He fell in front of Bai Shi, defeated and unwilling to yield.

"Staravia is unable to battle! Rampardos wins! The winner of this match is Gym Leader Roark!"

The Referee at the edge of the field announced the result.

Bai Shi had no Pokémon left able to battle.

His first Gym battle ended in defeat.