Chapter 9 – A Forrest Full Of Trouble

"I can't believe you dragged a Gym Leader out of his own Gym!" I said as April and I burst out in laughter, strolling through the streets of Pewter City.

As dusk arrived, the city began to show a certain noble beauty it didn't appear to have during the daylight hours; the cold, unwelcoming stone-grey of the buildings changed to a warm and comforting shade of amber. It seemed to be a magical time of day; the Pidgeys were making their final returns to the comfort of their nests for the day as the Hoothoots began to stir from theirs. It was strange, I suddenly felt so at home in this urban jungle, and yet, it was so different from the country life I was leading not too long ago.

Suddenly a voice began to echo through the city, projected through a network of microphones that seemed to be attached to all of the major buildings.

"Attention citizens of Pewter City. The Ceridian Curfew will be coming into effect shortly, please return to your houses and places of residence. This is for your own safety, the police force and I thank you for your cooperation. I repeat –"

"I didn't know there was a curfew… why do you think they put it in place?" April asked me.

I had completely forgotten about the curfew Jenny had informed me about. I felt more scared than I did before, knowing that who or whatever it was that was causing this curfew preyed on Pokémon trainers; and that I was now one of them.

"I know, but we should get back to the Pokémon centre first; it's not safe for us here." I said as I lead the way back.

After explaining the situation to April in our room, the thought of it and everything else completely left my mind, except for one thing; my gym battle.

'Am I really ready for this?' I thought. I wanted to train outside, after all we hadn't had much practice, but they were resting from today's battle with April. They'd need all their strength for a Gym battle, or would they?

'Forrest is much younger than me, would he really be that tough?' I thought again. 'He will be if I'm not ready, and I'm older than him but have less experience with Pokémon, does age really matter? What about types? Can I win with the Pokémon I have?'Too many thoughts rushed through my head, I needed to calm down.

Despite all my serious thinking I was still swinging my legs off of the edge of my creaky bed. I turned to April on the other side of the room. She was laying across her bed, with her head in her hands staring out of the window. The refracted moonlight was illuminating her face and her flowing brown hair, it was even shining in her eyes but she didn't seem to care. She seemed like she was in another world, or staring deep into a distant memory; I almost felt bad breaking her from it to ask her a question.

"April?"

"Huunh?" She mumbled as she turned to face me, her eyes glistening as she readjusted to the real world.

"Gym leaders specialize in a specific type of Pokemon don't they? Does Forrest use Rock-types?"

"Well that's the thing, I don't know. When Adam fought at the Gym, a man named Flint was the gym leader, and he was a rock-type trainer. But I do remember hearing that there was some kind of squabble after we left about who should be the rightful gym leader, and a new one was appointed. I just didn't realise it would be someone like him."

"Well that's useful… I have a gym battle tomorrow and no way of preparing a strategy." I said as I lay backwards, my head hitting the pillow.

"But it bugs me because I've defiantly heard Forrest's name before…" April said as she turned over doing the same thing I did.

"No 'Don't worry about it, you'll do great!' or 'Noone's a match for Ditto and Sandshrew!' then? Just the mystery of a name…" I said fishing for support.

April looked up at me smiling, "You know you'll do well anyway."

I glanced over to her and raised my eyebrows with a smile on my face.

April sighed and rolled her eyes before saying, "Don't worry about it, you'll do great! Noone's a match for Ditto and Sandshrew!"

"Well that sounded enthusiastic…"

It was here. The inescapable feeling; the pit in my stomach –judgement day.

The Gym doors stood in front of us, daunting as ever; everything seemed silent as April nudged me to open them. As I did the sunlight that shone through the rustling trees seemed to completely illuminate the inside, purifying the darkness.

I wondered if anybody could work in such a dark place, but it was nearly noon so people must've been at work by now.

"Where do you think Forrest is?" I asked, looking around the arena.

"Erm.. Over there!" April said as she pointed to two figures sitting in the stands.

Walking inside, every step could be heard vividly as its echo ricocheted throughout the large room. Every single thing could see seemed to be etched from stone; the floors, walls, ceilings and even the stands. The attention to detail that must've been paid was amazing.

As we reached the other side of the room we could see that Forrest was talking to an older man who looked remarkably similar, the same spiky brown hair, jaw line and distinctive eyes.

"Hey guys, thanks for coming!" Forrest said as he looked up.

"No problem, you ready for our battle?" I asked.

"Yeah sure, just gimme a sec to get ready. Dad, have you got my pokemon from upstairs?" He asked as he turned to the man next to him.

"Yep, just pick which ones you want to use." The man said as he held his hand out with four minimized pokeballs in.

"You have… two pokemon right Alex? So is a two on two battle okay with you?"

"Yeah su –"
"- Wait a minute… you're Flint aren't you!" April deduced.

"Why yes I am. Have we… met before?" Flint asked.

"Yeah my brother battled you not too long ago, his name was Adam."

"Ah yes, a remarkable trainer. He will do well taking on the Gym Challenge."

"Wait, If you're his father then –Aha! I knew I'd seen him before. Forrest was sitting in on Adam's battle with you."

"Yes, Forrest was always keen to learn new things about pokemon and battling, whenever I had a new challenger, he'd always be eager to watch just incase trainers would use any new pokemon he'd never seen before. His love of pokemon was what made him the best candidate to be the Gym Leader." Flint explained as he tussled Forrest's hair.

"Well the truth is, the Gym hasn't been having much business lately which is why I've been challenging trainers instead of them challenging me. But every time I do they always seem to lose. But you Alex, I think you'll give me a run for my money."

"Well I don't know about that…" I said as I ran my hand through my hair as I went slightly red.

"Sure you do, it'll be a match to remember." April said whilst smiling at me.

Suddenly I felt full of adrenaline; I was pumped for the battle.

"So, shall we get this show on the road? I'll be refereeing this match so everyone, positions please!" Flint said as he rose to his feet.

I quickly claimed the right-hand side of the arena while April took her place in the stands, eager to find the perfect viewing spot for the match.

"Now, this will be a two-on-two battle, with no substitutions." Flint declared as he flipped a coin into the air.

I personally couldn't see the benefit in starting first, I'd much prefer to see what pokemon my opponent sends out before I decide on mine. Flint caught the coin smoothly in midair and somehow made it look cool while declaring; "It's tails! – Alex to start!"

"…Crud." I whispered under my breath.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaand begin!"

'Why didn't I ask him what type of pokemon he uses?!' I thought in my head as I tried to figure out logically which Pokémon I should send into the fray.

"Well, here goes nothing! Come ooon out!" I cried as a gelatinous pink Pokémon appeared on the stone floor. Ditto seemed the most logical choice – Ditto could mimic whatever came its way and could find a way of exploiting the Pokémon's own weaknesses.

"Well in that case…" Forrest contemplated. "I choose Geodude!"

Forrest's pokeball seemed to leap from his hand into the arena to release a small Pokémon, similar to a rock with arms.

"Duuuuuuude!" The Geodude cried.

"Okay, Ditto, transform into Geodude!"
"-Geodude, Rock throw!" Forrest cried out.

Ditto was enveloped in a bright white light as its shape began to drastically change into the spitting image of Geodude. Meanwhile Geodude hopped over to one of the many boulders littered around the arena and picked it up almost effortlessly.

Looking down at my PokeDex I could see that I didn't have too many options for offensive moves – Geodude was clearly a defensive Pokémon. Ditto wouldn't survive the weight of a boulder being thrown on it, I had to act quickly.

"Ditto use magnitude!"

"Dude-o!" It cried in response while beginning to tense itself.
"Geodude throw it now!" Forrest commanded knowing what was about to happen, but it was too late.

The ground under us began to shake violently as Geodude lost its balance and fell face-first to the floor, dropping the boulder in front of it, it smashing into many smaller pieces with a thunderous roar.

"Yeaaaaaaaaaah! Go Alex! You're doing great!" I heard April cheer from the stands. I turned to see her cheering me on with Mankey sitting on her lap.
"—Tackle!" Forrest yelled as I turned around to see Geodude hurling himself into Ditto.

Ditto skidded across the adamantine surface and subsequently appeared to slightly struggle as it raised itself back upright. The tackle had hit hard.

"You always need to keep focused on the battle at hand; otherwise you may give your opponent an advantage." Forrest said with an underhanded grin.

I clenched my fist, annoyed that I'd gotten Ditto hurt so recklessly. I needed to start thinking more tactically.

"Rock Polish Ditto!" I commanded after consulting my PokeDex.
"-Tackle him again Geodude!"

Ditto briefly flashed a ceramic silver colour. "Yes, that's great! – Now dodge him!"

Geodude again thrusted its full weight at Ditto, but Ditto hopped to the side quicker than I'd ever seen it move before and Geodude crashed to the floor.
I let out a brief cry of joy before Forrest called out another order; "Mega punch!"
"-Catch his fist Ditto!"

Geodude's fist became engulfed in an amber glow as his arm stretched out towards Ditto. Ditto's speed had increased dramatically but if the timing was wrong the whole thing wouldn't work.

"Grab it now and spin him!" I yelled as Ditto grabbed Geodude's fist and used the force of the attack to spin him around as Geodude was raised further and further from the ground. "Now throw him Ditto!" Ditto did exactly as I asked and simply released Geodude at the right time near a boulder and let momentum do the rest.

"No, Geodude!" Forrest cried.

Geodude was hurled into a boulder as debris filled the arena, but didn't quite seem ready to give up just yet.

"Okay then, let's finish this with a Rock Blast!"

"Dude-o!" Ditto cried as it hopped over to a pile of debris from the boulder that Geodude dropped earlier and began launching barrages of rock upon rock at Geodude until there was nothing left to throw.

The onslaught had created a dust cloud that slowly began to clear as everyone in the arena leaned slightly forward, eager to see the result.

Flint's right arm was raised as the dust settled; "Geodude is unable to battle – the round goes to Alex the challenger!"

"Wooooooo Alex!"
"Yeeeeah!" April I cried out in Unison.

Ditto cried out its name joyfully as it jumped into my arms, reverting to its gelatinous form.

"Ditto you were amazing out there!" I said as I hugged it and withdrew it to its pokeball with April's chorus still ringing in the background.

"Wow, well done Alex that was impressive but the battle's not over yet!" Forrest said as he withdrew his fainted pokemon into its capsule home.

"Round two! Would trainers please choose their pokemon!"

"You know what my other pokemon is; Go get 'em Sandshrew!" I said as I released the little sand-mouse onto the battlefield.

"Next up for me is Crobat!" Forrest declared as he threw a rather aged pokeball into the air.

"Round two – Begin!"

'Crobat, the bat pokemon and the evolved form of Golbat. With its two additional wings, Crobat is able to fly much faster than Golbat; however this limits Crobat's ability to rest. Like its previous evolutions Crobat uses echo location to find its foe.'The PokeDex dictated to me.

Suddenly my head was filled with hundreds of possible battle tactics; one after another they hit me, like I was being smothered in an avalanche of ideas.

"I hope you're ready for this Alex! Crobat- Wing attack!" Forrest bellowed across the battlefield with sneaky glint in his eye, as if he had an ace up his sleeve.

But before I could even tell Sandshrew to dodge, Crobat had knocked him to the floor with one of its powerful wings, disorienting not only the pokemon, but myself as well. The Pokedex wasn't lying, Crobat's speed was nothing to be scoffed at - It appeared as no more than a blur in the corner of my eye as it sharply turned back towards its trainer.

"Sandshrew, you okay?" I called out to the little Pokémon as he reassuringly sprung to his feet. "Good, okay Poi-"
"—Astonish!" Forrest cried out as Crobat cried out an eerie noise that sounded as if someone was screaming while scraping their nails slowly down a blackboard – it shook me to my bones.

Sandshrew seemed frozen in his tracks with a look of terror in his eyes. As I took my hands away from my ears I could hear Forrest yell out an order for yet another move; "Air cutter!"
"Sandshrew, Defence Curl!"

Sandshrew remained motionless with a blank look upon his face.

"Defence Curl!" I cried again but to no avail as Crobat unleashed a barrage of shining scythe-like shapes as it cut through the very air above him. It reminded me of a plane bombing a city below, it was brutal, but the timing was just right.

Sandshrew was cut again and again as he was impacted by the scythes. One after another they came, battering him and the battlefield around him – I couldn't stand to watch, why wouldn't he listen to me and protect himself?

After I could no longer hear the pounding of air cutter against the rock covered floor, I brought myself to face the arena once again. Sandshrew was on the floor in a heap, but still with life in him as he tried to raise himself up again; his arms trembling as he did so.

"Sandshrew you don't have to fight anymore!" I cried out, not wanting to see the Pokémon suffer through another onslaught. "Just lay still and the battle will be over."

Sandshrew fell to the floor as Flint looked on, trying to figure out whether to call it or not. Sandshrew again began to raise itself upright, calling his name with a deep sense of determination until he stood proudly, if not a little shakily, ready to take on Crobat again.

"I'm impressed with your little Sandshrew Alex. Even after suffering through Astonish and flinching right into an Air Cutter attack, he's still standing. He cares for you a great deal to withstand all of that and get back up again."

Although Forrest's words made me feel as though Sandshrew and I had really bonded, I couldn't stop thinking about my next move and how we could get around Crobat's speed. And then I noticed that Sandshrew was standing around many pieces of rubble from a rock that was smashed earlier in the battle and a single idea flowed through my head – it had to work.

"This bond and love that trainer and Pokémon share is, in essence, what a good team is made up of. Some Pokémon can even evolve from this bond, like Crobat fo-"
"-Sandshrew use Rapid Spin on the spot!" I cried out, eager to set my plan into motion.

Sandshrew twisted itself around and then propelled itself in the opposite direction, spinning so fast, I couldn't make out his actual body shape. The rocks directly below him were propelled in many different directions at tremendous speeds, ricocheting off of walls, the ceiling and the floor causing the clashing of rock against rock to echo throughout the arena. Everyone began to cover their faces in protection of not being able to tell exactly where these pieces of rock were.

Crobat began to squint his eyes in pain as the noise overwhelmed his sensitive hearing as he flew erratically in the air.

"That's great Sandshrew, keep it up!" I cried as we finally had the upper hand.

Forrest stood opposite, seemingly lost for words and not quite knowing what to do.

Crobat looked as if he couldn't take any more as his erratic flying eventually had him crashing to the floor.

I couldn't help but smile as I let out my next command; "Okay Sandshrew, now's our chance – Use Rollout on Crobat!"

Sandshrew thrust a claw slightly into the rock and stylishly skidded to a stop before curling into a ball that showed just the yellow hide of the Pokémon and propelling himself towards Crobat.

"Crobat, no! Fly away – fly away!" Forrest yelled trying to get through to his Pokémon, but it was no use; Crobat had landed on its hind wings and couldn't lift itself off of the rocky ground below.

Sandshrew had picked up enormous speed and rolled straight into Crobat's face – both Pokémon were instantly thrown in opposite directions; One bounced away unharmed, the other felt the cold brunt of the stone gym in which it resided.

"You always need to keep focused on the battle at hand; otherwise you may give your opponent an advantage." I said as I caught Forrest's eye and winked at him.

Three sets of eyes all gave Flint their full attention as he raised a cerulean blue flag and declared; "Crobat is unable to battle, victory goes to Alex the challenger and Sandshrew from Cerulean City!"

I couldn't believe it, was this really true?
"…We won." I muttered under my breath. "Sandshrew we did it!" I yelled at the top of my voice as I grabbed my pokemon and threw him in the air before catching him again. He was happily chuckling and was as pleased as I was.

"I couldn't have done it without you, you know…" I said as I tickled his belly in my arms.

I suddenly was almost knocked over and deafened simultaneously as April decided to grab me and started to swing me in a strange kind of dance whilst letting out a high pitched squeal of glee - I figured it was an Orange Isles thing.

After our celebratory dance was over Forrest and Flint approached us holding a very official looking wooden box. It was varnished to give it a sleek sheen and had an open copper latch.

"Alex that was, without a doubt, the best match I've had in a long time. I can honestly say that no one deserves this more than you. I'm proud to present to you the first Boulder Badge I have ever given out." Forrest said as he pulled open the lid of the box to reveal a polished, brand new octagonal badge that looked somewhat like a valuable gem nestled in a bed of grey silk.

I stared intently at it, its brilliance enchanting me until April nudged me with her elbow whispering; "Well go on, take it" in my ear.

I picked it up in my hands as gently as I could as to not damage it – I didn't even want a mark on my new badge.

I looked up again to see Flint proudly put his hand on Forrest's shoulder as I looked over to April.

"You just want to scream don't you?"

"Yes… yes I do."

"Go for it." She said uttering a little chuckle.

"YEEEEESS! - I GOT A BOULDER BADGE!"