The final part of the Rustboro gym challenge.

Last chapter saw Richard defeat Roxanne and earn himself the Stone Badge. It's now finally Nicola's turn to have a crack at defeating the gym leader.

Upload Date: 25th May 2017

Chapter 14: A Rock-Hard Attack! (Part 3)

Rustboro City, Hoenn

2:32pm, 14th April 2006

"Stay calm. Stay calm. There's nothing to worry about."

As she reached the bottom of the stairs down from the stands, Nicola took a deep breath before continuing to mutter reassurances to herself. She rubbed the tip of her left thumb against the side of her left index finger – an old habit that she'd picked up when she was younger that helped to reassure her when she was nervous or upset.

She rounded the corner into the passageway leading towards the arena and immediately bumped into something.

"Ah!"

"Oh, sorry, Nicola!"

Nicola looked up to see Richard smiling apologetically.

"Try watching where you're going," she muttered, her mind elsewhere.

"Same to you," Richard replied, raising an eyebrow, though his smile remained. He placed his hand on her shoulder as he moved past her. "I know that you're nervous. Try not to think of it as a gym battle – imagine it's a practice battle like the ones you have with James and me all the time." He lifted his hand as he reached the lobby and turned the corner. "Good luck!"

Nicola glanced over her shoulder as he disappeared from sight. She let out a long sigh.

"But…I always lose our practice battles…"

Richard's useless reassurances aside, Nicola walked up to the main arena feeling marginally more comfortable than she had in the lobby. After having seen the scale of the battles James and Richard had fought, she didn't think she'd be able to overcome Roxanne on her first try. But she already knew that the other three would help her train for a rematch. She didn't need to be afraid of losing.

She took a deep breath to steady herself as she looked across the battlefield at the gym leader. How had James and Richard felt as they'd stood in this same spot, looking over at the same person. Did they get nervous as well? From the way they'd been talking, the fact that Roxanne had known their strategies beforehand seemed like more of an inconvenience than a major threat. Privately, she hoped she'd become as impervious to nerves someday.

"Good to see you again, Nicola!" Roxanne called over cheerfully. "You're the one I've been looking forward to battling the most!"

"Huh? Really?" Nicola cried in surprise. "Why?"

"You're the one I know the least about," Roxanne replied with a grin. "That means I've got to learn how you fight while we're battling. It's much more interesting that way!"

"Hey! We didn't force you to watch us battle yesterday!" James shouted from the stands.

"Touché!" Roxanne grinned. "You know, I would have gone easy on you if you'd asked!"

"That jab would have annoyed me if I didn't already have this!" James waved his Stone Badge in the air.

"Anyway." Roxanne turned back to look at Nicola. "There's no records of any previous gym victories on your trainer card. Is this your first gym battle?"

"Yes." Nicola nodded.

"Then don't worry about what you saw in the last two battles!" Roxanne grinned reassuringly. "A gym leader's job is to help trainers improve, so I won't be as hard on you as I was on those wannabe veterans!"

"She's insulting us again," James sighed as Roxanne started explaining the gym rules to Nicola. He looked over to his right to see Richard approaching. "What was that, Richard?"

"Huh? What do you mean?" Richard asked, giving him a confused look.

"Your strategy in that battle was exactly the same as the one you used against me yesterday!"

"It was?!"

"You attacked. Then you defended. Then you went for an all-or-nothing attack," James replied. "You're lucky Naro was able to dodge that last attack."

"Hah! You're one to talk!" Richard grinned as he sat down next to him. "I seem to recall Charka having a lucky escape at the end of your battle!"

"Well, wouldn't you say luck is a part of being a trainer as well?" Will asked, looking around at the two of them. "I mean, you can't always predict every factor in a battle."

"Fair point." James shrugged. "But you still need to diversify your tactics, Richard."

"I'll be in your hands, Master!" Richard laughed. He looked down at the battlefield. It appeared that Roxanne was finished with her explanation and the battle could finally begin.

"This is an official Hoenn League gym battle between the gym leader, Roxanne, and the challenger, Nicola Hewitt from Littleroot Town!" the referee announced.

Richard wondered what pokémon Roxanne was going to use this time. If they were following her current 'pattern', then she'd start with a nosepass (but not the same one as he'd fought) and follow with a second, unknown pokémon. Mind you, it was going to be a completely different battle to the ones he and James had fought anyway, so they might see something completely different.

"Begin!" the referee shouted.

"Go, Geodude!" Roxanne called, throwing out her first poké ball.

"This seems familiar," James murmured as Geodude burst out of the ball.

"Go, Mushy!" Nicola threw her poké ball.

Mushy let out a cry as she materialised. A scattering of spores puffed out from the top of her head.

"Alright, use Rock Tomb!" Roxanne called.

Geodude reacted instantly, hauling up a cluster of boulders and hurling them towards Mushy. Though Nicola was inexperienced and was slow to react to the incoming attack, the shroomish proved adept enough to predict the impact area and darted clear before the attack landed.

"U-Use Leech Seed!" Nicola cried as soon as she'd processed what had happened. She gave her head a shake as Mushy fired a cluster of seeds towards Geodude. She needed to focus. Mushy was counting on her leadership!

Geodude was hit by the seeds, which immediately sprouted and started leeching the rock type's energy. He quickly retaliated though, firing himself forwards and ploughing into Mushy directly.

"Are you alright, Mushy?" Nicola cried as the shroomish landed with a crash.

With a determined cry, Mushy flipped herself back up and glanced over at Nicola, waiting for her next order.

"Got it!" Nicola nodded. "Use Absorb!"

Mushy fired a green beam of energy towards Geodude, only for him to leap up into the air to avoid it. As he landed, he kicked up another cluster of boulders and hurled them at Mushy, this time scoring a direct hit.

Okay, stay calm, Nicola. Nicola bit her lip as she thought. Mushy was already picking herself up, but she needed a new plan. At the moment, she was just throwing attacks around and that wasn't going to win a battle against an experienced pokémon like Geodude. If only there was a way to stop him from bouncing out of the way of Mushy's attacks…

"Great work, Geodude!" Roxanne grinned. "Now use Tackle!"

Geodude shouted in approval and charged towards Mushy.

"That's it!" Nicola cried. She looked over at Mushy and nodded. "Use Stun Spore!" she shouted the instant Geodude was within range.

The rock pokémon immediately tried to change course, but Mushy had already sprung forwards. There was a small sound, not unlike that of a piston, as the shroomish fired a cloud of spores from the top of her head. Geodude was engulfed by the spores. Coughing, he dropped to the ground.

"Use Absorb!" Nicola ordered.

Mushy fired a green beam at Geodude as he attempted to get away. There was a loud cry as he was hit directly and more of his energy had been drained.

"Geodude, use Rock Tomb!" Roxanne shouted.

Geodude, fighting through his paralysis, fired a cluster of boulders towards Mushy, who was caught off-guard by the sudden counter attack. Though she was thrown back by the force of the impact, she was quickly back up again.

Feeling confident, Nicola issued her next order. "Finish up with Absorb!"

Mushy fired a final green beam of energy at Geodude, who made a feeble attempt to dodge before being struck. He cried out as more of his energy was drained out before slumping to the ground.

"Geodude is unable to battle!" the referee announced. "Shroomish is the winner!"

"We did it, Mushy!" Nicola cheered.

"Great work so far, Nicola!" James called down from the stands.

"Yeah, keep up the good work!" Richard added.

"Geodude, return!" Roxanne recalled her fallen pokémon. She pulled out her next poké ball and threw it. "Go, Nosepass!"

"I knew it," Richard sighed as the ball popped open and Nosepass materialised. "Reckon it's a different one again?"

"No, I think it's the same one you fought," James replied.

"Roxanne healed him up with a potion while you and Nicola were switching," Will explained.

"Is that part of her going easy on Nicola, I wonder?" Richard frowned.

"It could be," Will replied. "But don't forget that even you had trouble dealing with him. Nicola's going to have to fight hard if she wants to win."

"Use Stun Spore!" Nicola called.

Mushy immediately charged towards her new opponent, lowering her head to prepare to fire. As she got close, however, Nosepass quickly hurled a cluster of boulders in her direction, sending her flying back.

"Are you okay, Mushy?" Nicola cried.

Mushy pulled herself unsteadily back to her feet and nodded.

Okay, I need to think this through. Nicola frowned as she looked across the battlefield. She'd let herself get too carried away after beating Geodude. For Nosepass, it was going to be a case of trying to get around his defences. Stun Spore was too short-ranged and Tackle would be useless. That left her with Leech Seed and Absorb.

"Use Tackle!" Roxanne called.

Nosepass surged forwards, almost mechanically, and slammed into Mushy.

"Use Leech Seed!" Nicola shouted as she registered what was happening.

Mushy, as she was flung back from Nosepass, fired a cluster of seeds which attached themselves to the rock type and started sprouting to drain his energy.

"Now use Absorb!" Nicola called.

While Nosepass was distracted by the seeds, Mushy regained her composure and fired a green beam at him, scoring a direct hit. Suddenly, the beam flashed an even deeper shade of green, Nosepass letting out a metallic groan in pain.

"A critical hit?" Will wondered aloud.

"No, it's a different move," James replied.

"Mega Drain, right?" Richard asked him.

"I think so." James nodded. "It looks different to Giga Drain."

"Still, this is good – Nicola might be able to win this after all!" Richard grinned.

Nosepass, however, recovered from the attack. Following Roxanne's orders, he fired a cluster of boulders towards Mushy, who dodged them by scurrying to one side.

"Use Block!" Roxanne ordered.

Nosepass quickly took aim. With several precise throws, he hurled large rocks at Mushy, two catching either side of her and a third trapping her from the front. As she attempted to back out, a fourth boulder landed behind her. As she struggled to try and break free, Nosepass hurled another cluster of boulders at her.

"Mushy!" Nicola cried in alarm as she was buried under the cascade of debris.

"Finish up with Tackle!" Roxanne called.

Nosepass nodded and dove towards the pile of rocks, smashing into them with a loud crash that sent debris flying everywhere. Mushy was flung helplessly out of the chaos, landing with a thud.

"Shroomish is unable to battle!" the referee announced. "Nosepass is the winner!"

"Guess you spoke too soon," said Will.

"She's still got Kipa left," Richard replied. "I'm sure she'll do fine."

"At least Mushy was able to set up Leech Seed," James added, watching as Nicola recalled the shroomish. "It'll continue draining Nosepass's energy for the rest of the battle. All Kipa really needs to do is hold out."

"I suspect that that thought hasn't crossed her mind!" Richard grinned.

"She'll try and win by defeating Nosepass outright with Kipa." Will nodded. "Still, it'll be more skilful that simply holding out for an attritional victory."

"Yeah, and I guess Roxanne's not going to take defeat lying down either," James sighed as Nicola sent out Kipa. "Either way, it should be good."

"Use Water Gun!" Nicola ordered.

Kipa immediately fired a blast of water towards Nosepass, only for him to nimbly dodge to the side and charge forwards to use Tackle. Standing his ground, Kipa kicked up spray of mud, covering Nosepass' face and obscuring his vision. However, the mudkip was still struck and thrown back.

"Use Water Gun again!" Nicola called.

Kipa fired another jet of water at Nosepass, just managing to score a hit. As Nosepass was forced back, He kicked up a cluster of boulders and hurled them back towards Kipa. Reacting to Nicola's warning, he darted clear just in time.

A third jet of water went wildly off target, only managing to provoke Nosepass into launching another attack, slamming into Kipa once again.

Nicola gritted her teeth, subconsciously rubbing her left thumb against the side of her index finger as Kipa once again pulled himself to his feet. Nosepass was proving to be a tough opponent. She could've sworn that he hadn't been that fast during the battle with Richard. Though the fact he was continuing to dodge Kipa's attacks was frustrating, she was reassured to remember that Leech Seed was still at work. If she could just get in another good hit…

"Use Water Gun!" she ordered.

Kipa, some of his injuries starting to heal thanks to Leech Seed, fired a jet of water towards Nosepass. However, the compass pokémon raced clear, easily avoiding it.

"Use Block!" Roxanne called.

Nosepass immediately threw a smaller cluster of rocks, pinning Kipa in place before he or Nicola could react.

"Ah!" An idea popped into Nicola's head as she tried to think of what to do next. "Kipa!" She attracted his attention and quickly and discreetly mimed what she wanted him to do.

Kipa, his eyes lighting up in understanding, nodded. Nosepass's attack smashed into him, but he stood his ground valiantly.

"Not going to strike back?" Roxanne had a puzzled look on her face. "Well, that's your choice I guess." She nodded at Nosepass. "Use Tackle!"

Nosepass charged forwards and slammed into Kipa again. Once again, though, Kipa stood his ground. He grimaced in pain as he held on.

"What's she…oh!" Richard exclaimed.

"You've worked it out too?" James grinned at him.

"That's a pretty good tactic." Will nodded with approval.

"Yeah, but it's not one I'd have expected from Nicola!" Richard replied. "She's doing pretty well after all."

As Nosepass dove in to tackle Kipa again, the mudkip's body suddenly lit up with a blue, watery aura. With a shout, he shot forwards and slammed into Nosepass with all his might, striking back with all the energy he'd stored up while taking his attacks.

"Use Water Gun!" Nicola shouted as Nosepass was thrown back.

Kipa fired a powerful jet of water from his mouth, the watery aura still surrounding him. It struck Nosepass on the nose and blasted him down to the rocky arena below. There was a crash as he landed, throwing a cloud of dust into the air. Kipa landed softly, staggering slightly as he did. The dust cleared tantalisingly slowly. Nosepass was lying flat on his back. He was out of the battle.

James, Richard and Will cheered as the referee made her announcement. "Nosepass is unable to battle! Mudkip is the winner! Both of the gym leader's pokémon are unable to battle, so the winner of this match is the challenger, Nicola Hewitt from Littleroot Town!"

"We won, Kipa! We won!" Nicola gasped. She walked slowly over to him, the relief of the end of the battle making her legs feel a little weak.

"That was a great battle," Roxanne said, walking over to meet her, recalling Nosepass on her way. "I could really see the bond between you and your mudkip in that fight."

"Th-Thanks!" Nicola replied as she returned Kipa to his poké ball.

"Here." Roxanne placed the Stone Badge in her hand. "You're not a greenhorn trainer anymore!"

"My first gym badge…" Nicola marvelled at it for a couple of seconds. She pulled out her badge case and tucked the badge safely inside. "Umm, is it okay if I ask you something?" She turned back to Roxanne.

"Sure. Fire away!"

"This more out of curiosity, but why don't you nickname your pokémon?" Nicola asked.

"Huh?" Roxanne seemed surprised by the question. "Where did that come from?"

"It was something I was thinking about after James' gym battle in Petalburg City," Nicola replied. "It just felt a bit…odd."

"I can't speak for all gym leaders, but I do nickname my pokémon," Roxanne replied. "We just have to be a bit more impersonal and professional when we're acting as gym leaders."

"I see." Nicola nodded in satisfaction. "Thanks for the battle. I really learned a lot from it!"

"So did I!" Roxanne grinned. "Good luck in your remaining gym battles!"

2:49pm, 14th April 2006

Nicola felt like she could finally let out a sigh of relief and let her victory sink in as she walked back out into the lobby.

"Great work, Nicola!"

"Yeah, congratulations!"

She looked around to see James, Richard and Will walking down the stairs from the stands to join her.

"Thanks, guys," she replied. "I still can't quite believe that I actually won!"

"It was pretty tense for a while, but I'd say you handled yourself pretty well!" James grinned.

"The way you used Bide at the end of the battle was brilliant," Richard said, sounding genuinely impressed. "The way you were able to communicate it to Kipa without speaking really showed how well you've bonded!"

"And the way you used Bide to take Nosepass's attacks to allow you to launch a powerful counter-attack while simultaneously activating Torrent to power up your last attack was amazing!" Even Will sounded impressed. "I'm going to take note of it so I can use it in the future!"

"Th-Thanks!" Nicola grinned awkwardly. I actually wanted him to use Water Gun…

"So, what now?" Richard asked, looking around at the others.

"We need to work out where the next gym is," James replied. "It's a bit late to set off today, so how about we head back to the pokémon centre and heal our pokémon. We can spend the afternoon discussing where to go next."

"Sounds good to me." Richard nodded.

"Same!" Nicola agreed.

"Let's get moving then." Will started walking towards the door.

The other three followed him, each reflecting on the badges they'd just earned and the battles that had gotten them there.

So, here we are then – the end of the first 'back-to-back' gym battle project. If you have any feedback on how this went, then feel free to let me know.

Anyway, other than that I hope that these last three chapters have been enjoyable and that each individual battle still felt unique. Regular uploads resume on Sunday with Chapter 15.

Until next time!

Team Listings:

James Burton:

Active:

Charka (Charmeleon): male, naïve, often scatters things, likes sweet food, fire type, Blaze ability, knows Fire Spin, Smokescreen, Flamethrower and Metal Claw.

Kacha (Pikachu): male, modest, sturdy body, likes dry food, electric type, Static ability, knows Thunderbolt, Agility, Slam and Thunder Wave.

Nulin (Wingull): male, impish, highly persistent, likes sour food, water-flying type, Keen Eye ability, knows Growl, Water Gun, Supersonic and Wing Attack.

Richard Winter:

Active:

Naro (Nidoking): male, mild, sturdy body, likes dry food, poison-ground type, Poison Point ability, knows Horn Attack, Megahorn, Poison Sting and Double Kick.

Chena (Poochyena): male, docile, capable of taking hits, eats anything, dark type, Run Away ability, knows Tackle, Howl, Sand Attack and Bite.

Dish (Lotad): female, gentle, capable of taking hits, likes bitter food, water-grass type, Rain Dish ability, knows Astonish, Growl, Absorb and Nature Power.

Nicola Hewitt:

Active:

Kipa (Mudkip): male, quiet, somewhat vain, likes dry food, water type, Torrent ability, knows Tackle, Bide, Mud Slap and Water Gun.

Mushy (Shroomish): female, calm, likes to relax, likes bitter food, grass type, Effect Spore ability, knows Mega Drain, Tackle, Stun Spore and Leech Seed.

Will Burton:

Active:

Toya (Squirtle): male, modest, very finicky, likes dry food, water type, Torrent ability, knows Tackle, Tail Whip, Water Gun and Withdraw.

Turkey (Taillow): male, mild, alert to sounds, likes dry food, normal-flying type, Guts ability, knows Peck, Growl, Focus Energy and Quick Attack.