Fight to the end
A Pokemon fanfic
Ash POV
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon
Chapter 7
"You have trained here for the past several weeks. You are eight months into your journey, and we have taught you as much as we can. In just a few short months, you must be at the Indigo Plateau," the psychic master I fought when I first came here, named Marcus, says.
"I thank you for the instruction. I shall be leaving soon to combat Blaine," is my final words to him, then I slip through the fabric of the world to where my friends are. They look shocked when I appear, then crowd around me, welcoming me back. A new trainer joined us, by the name of Harold Blaze. I reforged myself, and I am now no longer the banked ashes of the fire, but the roaring inferno. I am the bane of my foes. I am Bane Inferno, a trainer who will destroy all who stand against him. The others have won their badge from the Cinnabar Gym, or at least one of them. Apparently a second gym opened here recently, a water type gym. They won there. I begin preparing to face off at that Gym. The rules are six on six. I select Electabuzz, Zapdos, Raichu and Magneton for my electric types, then I choose Weepinbell and Bulbasaur for my grass types. I head to the gym, ready for combat. When I arrive, I am shown onto the battlefield to find my former traveling companion, Misty. The referee announces the rules, which include no substitutions for either side. Misty sends out Starmie. I call out my battle cry.
"Electabuzz, stand by for battle!"
"Misty Waterflower against Bane Inferno! Battle begin!" The ref calls.
"Confusion, Starmie!"
"Break free and use Sunny Day!" Electabuzz breaks the attack and the sun brightens massively. Heat pounds down on us.
"Take Down, then use Hydro Pump!"
"Wait for it, wait for it..." I say as Starmie nears. Just as it is about to hit, I snap, "Solarbeam," and the massively hot, shining like a small sun beam of golden-white light smashes into Starmie, sending it into the wall.
"Starmie is unable to battle, Electabuzz is the winner!" The ref announces. That battle sets the pattern for the next four. Electabuzz beats Seadra, Wartortle, Vaporeon, and Tentacruel. Then Misty sends out her own Gyarados. It manages, with a quick Hyper Beam, to take Electabuzz down before it can use Thunder. Now this is personal.
"Gyarados, stand by for battle!" I cry. My teammates start criticizing me for a bad choice. But Misty's Gyarados can't move for a moment. "Giga Impact!" I call. The attack strikes without mercy, annihilating Misty's Gyarados.
"Gyarados is unable to battle, Gyarados is the winner! This battle goes to the challenger, Bane Inferno!" My companions crowd around me, providing a sort of guard. It isn't unusual for a trainee in a gym to have one of his pokemon attack a rogue, as we are called, to avenge the loss of their master losing to scum like us. We are seen as future criminals and show-offs because we carry all our pokemon and have no room for mercy against any foe of ours, or as weaklings because professors cast us away, and of course that would only happen to weak trainers. The prediction proves true. A Hydro Pump comes from the Wartortle of one of the trainees. Electric and Grass types flash into existence as rogues reach for pokeballs and release pokemon in one smooth, quick movement with an ease that speaks of long practice. Thunder and Solarbeam attacks powered by the Sunny Day Electabuzz used earlier flash towards the Wartortle. They smash through the Hydro Pump and take the Wartortle down with ruthless savagery. Thunder Punch follows from the Raichu
and Electabuzz that were released, bringing down the Kingler and Seadra, both of which were released by the same trainer. We return our pokemon and back away from the area, ready for battle again. We move in a sort of star, covering all angles. Time for Blaine now. I plan to go through Cinnabar's gyms in one day. I switch my six for the water gym with Golem, Dugtrio, Dragonair, Kingdra, Raichu, and Gyarados. That should cover it. After a few hours of trekking to the gym, and then almost an hour of watching my friends lose to Blaine, I prepare my pokemon.
"The rules for this battle are full six on six with no substitutions for either side. Leader Blaine of Cinnabar Gym against Rogue Bane Inferno! Battle begin!" The ref calls out. We nod. Blaine starts with Ninetales.
"Dugtrio, stand by for battle!"
"Very well. Ninetales, Sunny Day!" Knowing this will be followed by Solarbeam, I call out,
"Dugtrio, use Dig!"
"Solarbeam! Keep it going and sweep the field!" I see Dugtrio come up towards the surface just under Ninetales.
"Earthquake, then use Magnitude!" The attack strikes from underground, just where Ninetales stands is the epicenter. It goes down. Dugtrio surfaces and promptly gets taken out by the Solarbeam from the Arcanine Blainesends out. Dragonair avenges Dugtrio, but loses to Charizard as it takes Blaine's third pokemon down with it. Raichu and Kingdra fight hard, but Rapidash manages to win against them, though Kingdra brings Rapidash down. Gyarados beats his next pokemon, a Electabuzz obviously meant to take down water types, though loses to Magmar as it moves in the lava and strikes without warning.
"Golem, fight to the end!" I call. Golem is at home in molten stone. I send it into the lava and instruct to use the attack meant for grass types, Ice Beam. The lava cools and forms new rock, a platform and a larger shell for Golem. Blaine curses. We both know the battle is over. With that platform, Golem's ground attacks will transmit through the lava. Slowly, the platform is expanded, till there is nowhere for Magmar to hide. An Earthquake ends this battle. This was an extremely hard battle. Gyarados hasn't gone down in any fight except against Koga, but a fire type took it down. I need to work hard. I've been coasting on the power of the pokemon I caught wild, without strengthening them to their best level of power. I thought I had stopped coasting before, but now it really is time to stop coasting.
I throw myself into training for the next three months while every single one of us rogues prepares to face the last hurdle. Giovanni and his ground types. We catch grass or water types, save for myself, as I only fight every pokemon that comes my way. I find strong wild pokemon, battle them with types weak to them, and win as much as possible. Some wild pokemon do manage to win, and I then train my pokemon against each other, then challenge it again. My companions complain that I am making it difficult for them to find weaker pokemon, as wild pokemon grow strong to challenge me when I battle them. So my companions cannot find a weaker pokemon to raise to strength. I have to start catching pokemon for them, just to give them the types they'll need. Battle after battle goes by, as I start having to range farther and farther, looking for fights. After three months, I am ready for the challenge. We enter the gym to find the two Team Rocket members that annoyed me until I went rogue. Jessie and James. I groan and facepalm. We challenge them to a two on one battle, if our representative wins we all get the badge. I am chosen by lot from among us, and they get the first move. At least they have new pokemon.
"Rhydon, let's go!" Jessie shouts.
"Kangaskhan, you too!" James calls.
"Oh, very well. Kingdra, stand by for battle!" I call in an extremely bored tone.
"Rhydon, Horn Drill!"
"Kangaskhan, Thunder Punch!" The two pokemon charge. I wait until the last second, then snap.
"Blizzard!" Rhydon howls in agony as the super effective move hits, and Kangaskhan is frozen solid. When the storm clears, Rhydon is down, and Jessie screams in fury. "Now use Focus Blast to end this," I command. The strike puts Kangaskhan down for the count. The formalities are respected, we get the badge, then Team Rocket attempts to steal our pokemon. Raichu and Gyarados put an end to those plans. In other words, Team Rocket is blasting off again. Boring us to death. We find our badges and several poke balls that have pokemon in them, but no registered owners. We look at each other. We look at the poke balls. We look at each other again. Then we shrug and draw lots for who gets which. I draw the Omanyte, Kabuto, Snorlax, Tauros, Vulpix, Squirtle, and the extremely rare Articuno the Rockets had captured. Each of us takes seven pokemon, and are content with our choices.
Training begins immediately for my new pokemon, and I start roaming far from the group during the day, using Alakazam to teleport back at night. I am searching for the third of the legendary trio, Moltres. I go through every area it has been spotted at, blasting every pokemon in my way. I see it a few times, but it always escapes before I can corner it. Just when I bring it to ground, a group of trainers interferes. Brock is among them, as is Ritchie. There are three others, including Gary. One of them I think is Sabrina, but she looks different now. Finally I identify the other, who is Koga's daughter, Janine. They have cornered Moltres, and are attempting to capture it. I grit my teeth, groan in pain at dealing with them and letting my work in cornering Moltres go to waste, as it will escape once I deal with the pokemon attacking it, and call forth Gyarados, Zapdos, and Articuno. The six pokemon from Gary's group keep on attacking Moltres. A Arcanine from Gary, a Arbok from Janine, Sabrina's Kadabra, Ritchie's Pikachu, and Brock's Golem. Then there is the real insult, that made my mind up by interfering. A Gyarados from Gary.
"Zapdos, Thunder! Articuno, Blizzard! Gyarados, Earthquake!" I roar. Gary's group now notices me, just as the attacks strike. Thunder brings Gary's Gyarados down, Blizzard strikes and eliminates Golem, and Earthquake puts Arcanine, Pikachu, and Arbok down for the count. Then Gyarados uses Crunch to finish Kadabra. I turn to Moltres, hoping it hasn't yet escaped. It has and now I have to redo my work, only now it is going to be far more wary of me.
"Why did you do that? We almost had it!" Gary rages.
"I did that because I spent a long time tracking it down, leaving myself only a month before the League, two months until I turn eleven and must move to a new region as Kanto allows no rogue to stay there past their birthday if they have competed in its league or finished the business they came for. I will not have my prize, that which was born of the same clutch as my Zapdos and Articuno, go to trainers who overwhelmed it with numbers. The legendary birds are born in threes, one of each to a clutch. That clutch, that hatching, is always the one that works best together, and I am not having the Moltres from the clutch of my other two captured by anyone else. Understood?" I ask in a tone filled with no mercy, but promises of pain aplenty.
"You were the one who tired it out, then?" Ritchie asks. I nod, fury in my heart. "Sorry about going after it. You have rights to it, as you were the one who spent so long hunting it down. Now your work is ruined." I nod, not trusting myself to keep my temper under control, and when my temper blows up, so will Gyarados'.
"We don't have to listen to a rogue, Gary," Brock says. "They are just thieves, after all. They steal from those trainers who are actually good at what they do, who have sponsoring professors and families. Now let's go after Moltres," Brock ends.
"No. I knew this trainer when he was Ash Ketchum, and I know him now that he is a rogue. His pokemon brought down ours. Three against six. He is right about the trio, as well, and league rules state that any with two of the three must get the third from any who capture it. Rogues have the hardest time of it, with no sponsor, and I won't make his life harder. If you need help bringing Moltres to bay again, I'll help out," Gary says. I nod my head in acknowledgement of his offer.
"I am Bane Inferno, rogue trainer, with no place to call home or lineage to honor," I use the usual introduction for rogues. "I accept your aid, Gary Oak of Pallet Town, grandson of Samuel Oak. May honor be brought upon your name for this," and I bow slightly, one trainer to another, revealing the eight badges I have gathered. Gary reveals his six badges.
"It is an honor to aid such an accomplished trainer," are his words before he crosses to stand at my side. All but Brock follow him, and I thank them for their aid.
"You'll see, rogue. I'll capture Moltres, then we'll see who is better. You are not getting your hands on it," he spits out.
"Then I will welcome you to our ranks, for becoming a rogue is the punishment for withholding a pokemon from its owner by league laws," I say. Then I turn and leave while Brock is still sputtering in outrage. It takes two weeks to bring Moltres to ground again. Two weeks to find it, bring it to bay, and bring it to ground in a mountain. I motion for the others to just keep Moltres from escaping. I will deal with it alone. "Golem, let's go!" I call, and in a flash of light, Golem appears. Moltres uses Flamethrower to start.
"Rollout through the flames, then use Rock Slide!" I call. Golem goes through the flames, wrapping them around it and crashing into Moltres, then using Rock Slide as it comes out of Rollout, dispersing the flames. Moltres does not like being hit by rocks, and retaliates with an unexpected, and wholly unwelcome Solarbeam. "If Moltres wants to play 'who can use the most unexpected attack,' by all means, lets play. Surf, Golem!" Now it is Moltres' turn to be hit by an unexpected and unwelcome attack. But it manages to struggle into the air. With a curse I give the next order. "Thunderbolt, then keep your Ice Beam going until it is frozen solid!" I order. The Thunderbolt hits, but Ice Beam is countered by Flamethrower. No matter, that was just a screen. Golem knows this pattern. We expected Ice Beam to be blocked, but every attack puts Golem a little closer as it advances on Moltres, and drains the power from Moltres. "Sequence 12!" I snap. Golem starts using Rollout as it continues Ice Beam, creating a shield against Moltres' attacks as it spins in place, sending out waves of icy strength, freezing the walls, floor, and roof of the cave we're fighting in. Then Ice Beam is replaced by Thunderbolt, now that Moltres cannot land. The electricity reflects off the walls of the ice sphere Golem has made, through which none of my commands will be heard, but Golem knows how to continue. The Thunderbolt hits Moltres from all angles, paralyzing it, and then Golem comes out of Rollout and uses Surf. An ice cold wave hits Moltres, along with Golem, which moved back into Rollout once it got Surf going. It still can't start Surf while using Rollout. That combo is the end of sequence 12, and starts sequence 5. Golem uses Rollout to slingshot rocks from a Rock Slide, then once Moltres is properly battered by this, hits with Thunderbolt again and again. The sequence is completed with an Earthquake and Gravity combination, the Gravity attack bringing Moltres to earth, unable to fly, as Earthquake hits Moltres hard. The ice sphere breaks down under the Earthquake, and I catch Moltres in an ultra ball. It needs the extra strength to stay in the poke ball. The legendary took a beating during that fight. Brock enters just in time to see Moltres captured, and swears. Myself and my compatriots move together, a wall. He turns and leaves, furious.
My little group of rogues and trainers, as we all decided to work together for safety of numbers, eats one last meal together, then splits up. We rogues move quickly to the plateau, reaching there a week before it starts, and ten months, three weeks into my journey. We find rest at the Indigo Plateau until the tournament starts, a rarity for our kind. Team Rocket interferes several times on the way to the plateau, and get to blast off several times. Few rogues like Team Rocket. They give us a bad name, as they have former rogues among them. Those that join Team Rocket from the rogue ranks are their best, but any rogue who meets one will do their absolute best to eliminate them for good. In other words, end their life. We all hate them for the bad name they give us, and many have committed capital crimes. Anyways, for every rogue that joins them, the deaths rates for rogues due to being attacked by trainers with a sponsoring professor go up by nine percent. Already I have run into five such attacks, and stopped them each time. I now know why every rogue is so quick to go for their poke balls. They have to be ready, or they very well might die.
Sorry about the long delay in updating, I had writer's block again. Any complaints about how the story is written, I gladly accept and hope to use those complaints to make the story better. Enjoy reading.