Chapter 181: Regice
At the end of the entrance lay an ice cavern. Frigid air poured out from within. A Pokémon made entirely of ice sat on a throne, slowly awakening. On its head, seven yellow dots formed a cross pattern.
[Pokémon: Regice]
[Level: 80 (Leveling halted.)]
[Talent: Legendary]
[Friendship: ---]
[Ability 1: Clear Body]
[Ability 2: Ice Body]
[Gender: Genderless]
[Moves: Icy Wind (120%), Charge Beam (120%), Blizzard (120%), Superpower (120%), Lock-On (---), Hyper Beam (120%), Explosion (120%), Curse (120%), Ice Beam (120%), Amnesia (120%), Snowscape (120%), Ice Spinner (120%), and more...]
[Description: It is one of the legendary giants. It slumbered beneath the ice for thousands of years. Its body is wrapped in sub-zero temperatures of -200°C, making it impossible to melt even in magma. Anything that approaches it will easily freeze. It has no emotions and acts purely on instinct.]
"Gah-chee—!"
Regice rose from its throne, the seven cross-shaped dots on its head flickering as it floated low toward Rio.
"Articuno, Registeel, Regirock, Annihilape, Red Gyarados, Charizard—this battle is yours." Rio released five Poké Balls in quick succession. He didn’t release Greninja or Eevee this time to avoid another unexpected Explosion catching him off guard. With this lineup, even waltzing right in front of Giovanni would be a breeze.
"Fuu~"
"Charr~"
"Jee... jee..."
"Annih~"
"ROAR!!!"
"Roaar~"
The six Pokémon charged at Regice. Under their combined assault, Regice stood no chance, crying out "Gah-chee!" repeatedly. Among them, Articuno was clearly having the most fun—beating up a legendary Pokémon was a joy it had never experienced before. Those fools Moltres and Zapdos would never get the chance.
But just like Registeel, when Regice was pushed to its limit, it seemed to lose its temper. With a final "Gah-chee!" its body began to glow white—it, too, used Explosion.
"Registeel—Protect me!" Rio, now prepared, shouted to the nearest Registeel while quickly recalling Charizard. Two seconds later, the deafening explosion echoed through the ruins.
"Sigh—why do they always resort to this?" Rio sighed as the world shook around him. "I’ve been through Explosion before. Aside from the Red Gyarados, who actually enjoys it, you won’t hurt any of my Pokémon."
A few minutes later, the chaos subsided. Registeel straightened up at Rio’s command, letting him see again. As he predicted, all his Pokémon—except the Red Gyarados—were unharmed. Well, except for one other.
Rio stared in disbelief at Regirock, once again reduced to a broken state. "Regirock—didn’t you use Protect?"
"Charr~" This time, Regirock had lost a leg.
"This one’s an idiot," Articuno scoffed, flying over Regirock’s head. "If you don’t give it a direct order, it won’t use Protect on its own—it just tanks everything with its body. Rocks may be tough, but they sure are slow-witted."
Face, meet palm. Rio was caught off guard by the irony. He let out a helpless laugh and told Regirock to go repair itself again.
"Charr~" Regirock went off to dig for rocks, all alone.
"Registeel—dig Regice out from under the rubble."
"Jee... jee..." Registeel went to work. While it searched, Annihilape dragged the Red Gyarados—once again wearing that blissful expression—over to Rio.
"They’re all a handful," Rio muttered, feeding the Gyarados another Revival Herb.
After the Red Gyarados recovered, Regice was unearthed. This time, Rio got lucky—he caught it on the first try. A single ball, one successful capture. He couldn’t help but laugh.
"Not bad, not bad." He tucked Regice’s Poké Ball into his bag.
Just then, his phone buzzed. It was a message from Secretary Kuroda at the Devon Corporation: The fossil revival is nearing completion. You should be able to see the Pokémon inside by tomorrow.
Rio replied with a quick acknowledgment, then recalled his Pokémon, climbed onto Charizard, and took off.
"I hope Steven isn’t too disappointed when he gets here looking for the three Regis."
Above the collapsed island, Rio smiled, already picturing the young heir’s confusion upon finding three empty ruins.
By the time he reached Rustboro City, night had fallen. Instead of going to the Devon Corporation, Rio headed straight to his hotel. He was exhausted. Capturing the three Regis had drained him completely, so he decided to sleep in.
He slept all the way until the following evening.
"Your Pokémon has awakened from the fossil. It’s waiting eagerly to meet you," Secretary Kuroda said with a smile, leading Rio to the Fossil Research Lab.
Inside, he met Iron, the lab’s head.
"Your Pokémon is right in there. Go ahead and open the door," Iron said with a grin. "But I should warn you—it’s a bit aggressive. It might attack you. You’re probably better off catching it through a battle."