I'm sorry this took so freaking long. I suck at deadlines. It's just that I wasn't allowed to write until after graduation and then my new summer job has just left me exhausted every night and I just couldn't muster the strength to write at night. However, none of that is a good enough excuse for making you all wait this long. I'm really sorry about that. I hope you all enjoy this chapter and I'll do my best to make sure that the next one doesn't take this long.
Chapter 13
"...And that's my story. So is your dad in, Brocko? I really want to get my first champion badge already."
Brock rubbed his temples. "Yeah, he's in, but wow, Ash, that's quite a story. I'm surprised you didn't run into any legendaries though. You usually attract them like moths to honey."
Ash and Cynthia's faces both paled. "We did- ran into a Raikou. Don't want to talk about it," Ash said, shuddering slightly at the memory.
Brock frowned. "Okayyy..." he said, confused, but at the same time very curious. He shook his head slightly; deciding now wasn't the time to find out, he smiled. "Well whatever, ready to get your badge, Ash?"
The young teen's face immediately brightened. "You bet I am! And we're going to win, right Pikachu?" He turned to face the pokemon on his shoulder.
"You bet, Ash!" cried Pikachu; although to Brock all he heard was, "Pika, PikaPi!" but he worked out the meaning nevertheless.
Brock grinned at his reaction. "Same old Ash, you haven't changed a bit, have you?" Ash rubbed the back of his neck and grinned sheepishly. Brock clapped his hands together and stood up. "Well come on then, my dad's waiting!" Brock started walking to the gym. Ash and Cynthia smiled at each other before standing up to follow him.
"Hey Dad! You've got a champion badge challenger!" Brock called out as he walked inside the darkened Pewter Gym.
"Already? But the tournament was just announced today!" replied a gruff voice that sounded mildly irritated. The lights turned on and revealed the gym's interior. The outline of the battlefield was engraved in white while the ground was littered with bunches of rocks of varying shapes and sizes. One the side of the battle room- the only part where there were no rocks- were a couple rows of bleachers. A man that looked eerily identical to Brock, only older, walked over to him. "Who's the challenger?" he asked.
"That would be me," said Ash. "Long time no see, Flint."
It was then that Flint noticed that more people than just him and his son were present in the room. He frowned as he took in his new challenger, trying his best- but ultimately failing- to recognize him. "I'm sorry, but who are you?" he asked apologetically.
Ash chuckled. "The challenger."
Cynthia tried, but failed, to hold back a giggle as Flint frowned at Ash. The man then turned to locate the source of the poorly concealed giggle and his eyes widened when he realized that the Sinnoh Champion was standing right in front of him. "Cynthia?! What are you doing here?" His face paled and he took a step back. "Y-you're not here to ch-challenge me too, a-are you?" he asked.
Ash started laughing. Seeing a grown man terrified at the mere possibility of battling against a blonde teenage girl less than half his age was hysterical! So what if she was one of the strongest trainers in the world? It was still funny!
"No. I'm ineligible to compete. I'm just here to cheer on my boyfriend," Cynthia said as she laced her fingers with Ash's, causing the latter's face to flush as he stopped laughing and rubbed the back of his neck.
Flint's jaw dropped. "Boyfriend? You- but you're- what- who is- huh?" His eyes darted back and forth between the two teens, trying even harder now to figure out who his challenger was. Then he remembered something his son had told him a little while ago and it clicked. He stared at his challenger for a few more moments. "Ash? Ash Ketchum?" he guessed.
Ash smiled and offered his free hand. "That's me."
Flint frowned. "But where's your Pikachu?"
Ash laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "He's at the Pokemon Center, getting some rest. It's good to see you again, Flint." He offered the older man his other hand.
Flint shook it. "Good to see you again too, Ash." He let go of Ash's hand then chuckled. "You know, the media's gonna have a field day when they find out about this, right?" he asked, smirking. Cynthia instantly let go of Ash's hand as the young couple's faces instantly paled.
"Oh Arceus! I completely forgot about the media!" said Ash.
"Me too," admitted Cynthia. The two gulped and shared a worried look.
"Don't worry guys; my father won't snitch on you two," assured Brock. "Isn't that right, dad?" He gave his father a death glare.
Flint raised an eyebrow at his son then laughed. "Don't worry you two, you're secret's safe with me. Besides you came here to battle, not to fret about the media, didn't you Ash?"
A feral grin appeared on Ash's face as he remembered all about the battle, simultaneously forgetting all about the media. "Yeah, that's right!" He made a fist and pointed it at Flint. "I challenge you for a champion badge!" he declared. Cynthia rolled her eyes at Ash's antics with an affectionate smile on her face. Typical Ash.
Flint smirked. "I accept your challenge. But do you really think you can win, Ash? You were the one who tried to fight Brock's Onix with a Pikachu all those years ago."
Ash grinned back. "I've gotten a little better since then. I think me and my team can handle it."
"He's not kidding dad, Ash has gotten a lot stronger," warned Brock. "If he put Pikachu up against Steelix now it would be a slaughter. Steelix wouldn't even last a minute."
Flint's confident grin faded and he cocked an eye at Ash in surprise. "Is that so? Then I expect a battle to remember from you, Ash. But be warned, this battle will be harder than any gym battle you've ever had. The league requires me to use my best Pokemon for this fight instead of the weaker ones we have to use for regular gym battles. We have to treat each CB (A/N: Champion Badge) challenger as if they are an actual champion and battle them accordingly- at our best, with our best. No holding back, whatsoever. Still think you can handle it?"
The feral grin on Ash's face grew wider as he clenched his fists in anticipation. "Of course! We can handle anything you throw at us!"
Flint gave him a cocky smirk and walked over his side of the battlefield. "We'll see about that," he said. "Brock, can you referee?"
"Yeah, no problem dad." He walked over to the referee area.
"Take your position Ash, and we can begin," said Flint.
Ash was about to jump on to the field, but stopped when he felt Cynthia tugging on his arm. She smiled at him, then pecked him on the cheek. "Good luck Ash," she said sweetly.
Ash smiled. "Thanks Cynth." He pecked her back then took his place on the field.
"You two really are together, huh?" said Flint. "Man, who would've thought Cynthia would actually have a boyfriend?"
"What do you mean?" asked Ash, confused.
"She sat for an interview this one time where she- nevermind, we're here to battle, not gossip about your girlfriend, Ash." He enlarged a pokeball and threw it. "Golem, let's rock and roll!" he shouted, as the large, dual rock and ground was released from his pokeball and let out a mighty roar.
Brock groaned at his father's obligatory pun.
Ash enlarged and threw a pokeball of his own, the feral grin reappearing on his face. "Sceptile, let's start off our champion challenge with a bang!" he cried, as the grass type emerged and crossed his arms in an attempt to look cool.
"Show me whatcha've got!" challenged Golem, motioning with his fingers to 'bring it.' Sceptile smirked and flipped his twig at him in response.
Flint turned towards his son and nodded. Brock nodded back. "This will be an official three-on-three champion badge battle between Gym Leader Flint Stone of Pewter City and the challenger Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town. As this is not a gym battle, but a CB battle, substitutions are allowed on both sides. Are both participants ready?"
"I'm ready."
"You bet!"
"Very well then. The challenger has the first move. Golem vs. Sceptile, begin!" Brock raised his arm to Ash's side, signaling the start of the match. Cynthia snickered at Brock's officialness.
Ash quickly surveyed the battlefield for something that might give him the advantage before giving his first command.
"Energy Ball!"
Sceptile grinned in anticipation of the battle. He charged a green ball of grass type energy in his mouth, then fired it at Golem.
"Use Rollout to dodge!" countered Flint. Golem curled into a ball and easily dodged the Energy Ball as he circled around the battlefield. "Good job! Now keep circling Sceptile until you max out your speed, then attack!"
Ash smirked. "That's not going to work, Flint! Sceptile, Leaf Blade his head once he gets close!" Sceptile nodded and crouched. His arm blades glowed green and he narrowed his eyes, watching for the right time to strike.
"Golem, he's bluffing! There's no way he can pinpoint where your head is while you're using Rollout, stick to our strategy!" Golem continued spinning around Sceptile for a while until Flint decided it was finally enough. "Now Golem!" he cried.
"You know what to do!" called Ash. Sceptile smirked, his eyes never leaving his opponent. Right before Golem was about to run him over, Sceptile swiftly dodged to the right and slammed his Leaf Blade down hard. It collided with Golem's head and sent him sprawling on to the ground, sending dirt everywhere. When the dust cleared, Golem was revealed to be unconscious. Flint's jaw dropped.
"Golem is unable to battle, Sceptile is the winner!" declared Brock, holding his arm up to Ash's side, completely nonplussed at Sceptile's one-hit KO win. "Leader Flint, please sent out your next pokemon!"
"Woohoo! Go Ash!" cheered Cynthia.
Ash and Sceptile looked at Golem and blinked simultaneously.
"Is that it?" asked Ash in disbelief.
"I didn't even hit him that hard," said Sceptile, disappointed.
They shared a look.
"Damn! Sceptile, I knew you'd gotten stronger, but this is just ridiculous," said Ash, rubbing the back of his neck. Sceptile shrugged in response and Ash rolled his eyes playfully. "Well, who's next?" he asked Flint as his feral grin came back.
He didn't get an immediate response. Flint was still in shock that his Golem had lost so quickly. It took Ash calling his name a few times of to get his attention.
"Flint! Flint! Hey, Flint, you there?"
Flint blinked. "Huh?"
"We still battling or what?" asked Ash, sounding slightly disappointed.
"Leader Flint, please send out your next pokemon," repeated Brock.
That finally snapped Flint out of his stupor. He looked at Golem before hastily returning him to his pokeball and enlarging another. "Sorry about that, I just can't believe that strategy of yours actually worked! Talk about unexpected!"
Ash rubbed the back of his neck again. "Yeah, I get that alot."
Flint smiled. "Well it's clear you've trained your Sceptile well; Golem hasn't lost that fast since I battled Lance. But I can guarantee he won't have such an easy time beating my next pokemon! Rhyperior, let's rock and roll!" He threw the pokeball into the air and his Rhyperior landed on the battlefield with a heavy thud.
Ash grinned at the new, powerful looking opponent. "This one looks like more of a challenge! You ready, Sceptile?"
"Of course!"
"Rhyperior vs. Sceptile, begin!" announced Brock, holding his arm up to signal the start of the battle.
"Rhyperior, let's take him out quickly! Rock Blast!" cried Flint. Rhyperior roared and started blasting rocks out of his horn like bullets.
"Sceptile, use quick attack to dodge and get in close!" ordered Ash. Sceptile's legs glowed white as he used his superior agility to avoid each rock. "Follow up with Leaf Blade!" he yelled, once Sceptile had gotten close enough.
"Take it!" commanded Flint, knowing that Sceptile was far too close for Rhyperior to dodge. Sceptile arm blades glowed green again as he swiped at Rhyperior four times then quickly jumped out of the way. When the dust settled, Rhyperior looked perfectly fine. He roared, letting Ash and Sceptile know this battle was far from over.
Ash blinked, surprised that attack combo didn't do more damage. "But how did he- wait, he has solid rock, doesn't he?" accused Ash.
Flint smirked. "That's right! Solid rock- an ability where a pokemon only takes a quarter of the damage done from super effective moves."
"I know what the ability does Flint, I'm not a beginner trainer anymore!"
Flint scratched his cheek apologetically. "Sorry about that, Ash. But regardless, your Sceptile doesn't stand a chance now!"
Ash grinned in response. "We'll see about that!" He turned his attention back to Sceptile. "You ready, buddy?" Sceptile smirked at his trainer. "Time for round two!" announced Ash. "Leech Seed!" Sceptile took his twig out, then spat out a green seed from his mouth that landed on Rhyperior's face before putting his twig back in.
"That was gross," stated Rhyperior, as he wiped the saliva off as best he could before the Leech Seed sprouted and released vines that quickly wrapped around Rhyperior's body. The vines glowed red as they sucked out some of Rhyperior's energy and transferred it to Sceptile.
"Rhyperior, no!" cried Flint.
"Quick, Leaf Blade again!" ordered Ash. Sceptile darted forward, his arms glowing green once again.
"Not this time!" Flint yelled. "Use Ice Punch!" Rhyperior's arm glowed blue as he dealt Sceptile a devastating, super effective move to the gut. The green glow on Sceptile's arms faded as his eyes widened in pain. "Now follow up with Rock Wrecker, Rhyperior! Send him flying!"
"Toxic!"
Sceptile spat a blob of purple goo at Rhyperior's face, poisoning him, before he was bashed in the side by a huge rock twice his size, and was sent hurtling towards the other end of the field.
"Sceptile, use Synthesis now, while he can't move!" instructed Ash. The bulbs on Sceptile's back began to glow and he started to get back on his feet as he felt the sun's energy replenish his own. The vines on Rhyperior glowed red again, siphoning more energy from him and transferring it to Sceptile, helping him recover even more.
Flint grit his teeth. "Rhyperior, stone edge!" he commanded. Rhyperior grunted and fired a barrage of stones straight at Sceptile.
"Transfer the extra energy from Synthesis and use it to power a Solar Beam! Blast those rocks to dust!" countered Ash. The bulbs on Sceptile's back continued to glow as he charged a white beam in his mouth. "NOW!". Sceptile roared and fired the powerful grass type attack. The stones crumbled to bits and Ash was pleasantly surprised when the attack kept going and hit Rhyperior.
Flint gritted his teeth again as his pokemon took even more damage. Just what was it going to take to knock out this Sceptile? "Megahorn!" he ordered. Rhyperior's horn glowed as he charged in once more.
"Match it with Aerial Ace! Then use Leaf Blade once more!" Sceptile grinned as he rushed forward, his left arm glowing white and his right one glowing green. Rhyperior tucked his head in and tried to stab Sceptile with his Megahorn, but Sceptile surprised Flint once again by parrying the attack with his one-armed Aerial Ace then slashing at Rhyperior with his other-armed Leaf Blade, drilling Rhyperior painfully into the ground.
"NO!" screamed Flint. He had been outplayed again! Ash smirked at the gym leader, who clenched his fists as he tried to devise a strategy for taking out Sceptile that would actually work. He glanced at his panting pokemon, who was doing his best to get up. He slowly managed to stand, only to fall to one knee as he took more damage from the poison and Leech Seed combo. Flint gritted his teeth again. "Rhyperior, we need to end this quick! Earthquake! Then, while he's off balance, use Rock Wrecker, full power!" he commanded. Rhyperior roared in pain as the poison drained even more of his energy. But he ignored it and slammed his foot on to the ground, hard. The entire battlefield shook, consequently causing Sceptile to stumble and lose his footing.
"'NOW! DO IT!" roared Flint.
"It's over!" shouted Rhyperior, as he launched the most powerful rock type attack at Sceptile once more.
"I don't think so, Flint! Sceptile, use Detect!" The forest pokemon's eyes glinted as he dodged Rhyperior's attack, moving so quickly it could've been mistaken for teleportation. The Rock Wrecker attack sailed past him and crashed into the ground, leaving a huge crater in its wake. Ash pumped his fist into the air. "Now use Leaf Storm! Finish this!"
"Now it's over!" corrected Sceptile, as he fired his heavy barrage of sharp-edged leaves.
"Rhyperior, dodge!" cried Flint desperately. But it was too late. Rhyperior couldn't move after using Rock Wrecker, and the Leaf Storm hit home. The poison and Leech Seed combo struck again, this time finally proving to be too much for the drill pokemon to handle. With a heavy thud, he fell to the ground, unconscious.
"Rhyperior is unable to battle, Sceptile is the winner!" declared Brock, lifting his arm up to Ash's side. "Leader Flint, please send out your final pokemon!"
"Woohoo! Go Ash!" cheered Cynthia. Ash smiled at her.
Flint returned Rhyperior to his pokeball in a flash of red light and enlarged another. "Well Ash, that Sceptile of yours is very strong, but with the damage he's taken, he won't win this round." He threw the ball into the air. "Let's rock and roll, girl!" A Tyranitar emerged and let out a huge roar.
Ash chuckled. "Sceptile, as much as I'd love to prove him wrong, I think it's time we let the others have some fun, ok?"
"Fine, but I'm battling in the next gym too, right Ash?"
"If I need a third battler, then yes."
Sceptile groaned and crossed his arms. "You know you're not going to need a third battler! Pikachu's in that one!"
Ash laughed. "He's only in it if I need a second battler."
Sceptile groaned again. "So not fair."
"Sorry buddy," Ash said as he returned the grass type to his pokeball. He then enlarged another one. "Floatzel, let's go!" he cried, as the Sea Weasel pokemon was released in a flash of white light.
"Finally!" yelled Floatzel as he materialized on to the field. He glanced at his opponent. "A Tyranitar? Hell yeah! This is gonna be awesome!"
Tyranitar looked offended. "Please refrain from such vulgar language in front of a lady."
Floatzel blinked. "What're you talkin' about?"
Tyranitar sighed. "Wonderful, this one has no manners either. As if I don't get enough of that kind of behavior from Golem." She adopted a fighting stance. "Let's make this battle quick; I have things to do."
Floatzel's look of confusion changed to a feral grin at the word 'battle.' "I have no idea what you're talkin' about woman, but if it's a battle you want, it's a battle you'll get! Let's do this, Ash!"
"Yeah!" cried Ash, pumping his fist in the air.
Tyranitar sighed again. "Boys," she muttered. Cynthia giggled.
"Tyranitar vs. Floatzel, begin!" announced Brock, lifting his arm once more to signal the start of the battle.
Ash cupped his hands to his mouth and called out to his pokemon. "Floatzel, my blood is still boiling from the last two battles. Do me a favor and cool me off with Rain Dance?"
Floatzel grinned. "No problem Ash, but don't blame me if you catch a cold." He lifted his paws to the sky and more and more rain clouds started forming around the battlefield until they burst and it was suddenly raining indoors.
Ash grinned. "Thanks buddy, but I think Tyranitar is still a little too hot. Why don't you be a gentleman and cool her off with Water Pulse?"
"It would be my pleasure!" said Floatzel. He bowed to Tyranitar, who rolled her eyes at him. Floatzel then charged a sphere of water in his paws and fired it at her.
Flint had no idea what the pokemon were saying, but he knew that the Water Pulse would be trouble. "Ignore the banter; focus on the fight, Tyranitar!" he admonished. "Dodge that Water Pulse, then use Stone Edge!" Showcasing surprising mobility for someone of her size, Tyranitar avoided Floatzel's attack then immediately proceeded to pelt him with stones.
Ash clenched his fists together in excitement as a happy smile spread on to his face. He loved using this technique. "Countershield!" he said giddily.
"Counter what?" said Flint, confused. He had never heard of that move before.
Suddenly, Floatzel began to spin on the floor while using Hydro Pump, sending water flying everywhere, dissipating the stones, and damaging Tyranitar all at the same time. The dual rock and dark type let out a roar of pain as the super effective move hit home over and over again.
"No, Tyranitar!" cried Flint. He grit his teeth and clenched his fists in frustration. In all his years of battling, he had never encountered someone like Ash before. It was just one crazy strategy after another with this kid! How the hell was he supposed to win like this?!
"Tyranitar, try and use Earthquake to unbalance him!" he pleaded. Tyranitar ignored the torrent of water repeatedly crashing into her and slammed her foot down on the floor, causing the Earth to crack and crumble. Thrown off balance, Floatzel could no longer continue to spin and the stream of water stopped.
"Finally! Now, use Thunder Punch!" cried Flint, hoping to finally shift the momentum in his favor. Tyranitar rushed up to Floatzel, fist crackling with electricity.
"Floatzel, Ice Aqua Jet!" ordered Ash.
"Wait! Ice what?" said Flint, confused again.
Floatzel quickly stood up and his right paw started to glow with the Icy blue energy of an Ice Punch while the rest of his body was enveloped in water. He rocketed forward in a normal Aqua Jet before starting to spin again. He then punched the water around him, freezing it solid. The result was that Floatzel was surrounded in a beautiful spinning icy Torpedo headed straight for Tyranitar.
The armour pokemon punched the spinning Floatzedo with her Thunder Punch. The two were momentarily locked in a power struggle, before Floatzel broke through and overpowered Tyranitar. His Ice Aqua Jet painfully slammed into her chest and sent her hurtling backwards.
Flint growled as Tyranitar slowly stood back up, panting heavily. The sight of his pokemon struggling to stand, while Ash's bounced on its feet, motioning for him to 'bring it' was slightly infuriating. Ash was supposed to be the challenger, not him!
"No more messing around! Thunder!" Tyranitar roared and sent a huge arc of electricity at Floatzel. Ash's smirk disappeared for the first time that round.
"Agility to dodge, quick!" he said, seriously. Floatzel noticed the change in his trainer's tone and his legs instantly became surrounded in white energy as he bounded out of the way. The grin on his face was gone and was instead replaced by an intense look of concentration. "Now Hydro Pump, on the ground!" Floatzel didn't even hesitate to comply with the weird command and instantly fired a torrent of water at the floor.
Flint growled again. He knew Ash had to be planning something, but he had no idea what kind of harebrained scheme he was cooking up to this time. "Tyranitar, use Dark Pulse as cover to get in close for a Thunder Punch!" Tyranitar fired the three pronged beam of dark energy then rushed in at Floatzel, fist once again crackling with electricity. However, she only got about halfway before she tripped in the newly created mud and fell to the floor, face first.
"They fell for it!" whooped Ash. "Floatzel use Hydro Pump! Then follow it up with a dual Brick Break!" Floatzel fired the powerful blast of water at Tyranitar then rushed in closer, spinning his two tails to help him maneuver through the mud more quickly.
"No! Tyranitar, get up and dodge, hurry!" cried Flint. But it was too late. Just as she stood up, she was nailed in the face with the Hydro Pump. She closed her eyes as she fell painfully back into the mud.
When she opened them, Floatzel was directly above her, his paws glowing white. She looked into his eyes, already knowing the outcome of the battle. He smirked at her before delivering two powerful Brick Breaks to her gut.
"Finish it with Sonicboom!" Floatzel jumped back and fired a sonic shock wave at Tyranitar before landing on his feet and waiting for the dust to clear. When it did, it showed an unconscious Tyranitar.
"Tyranitar is unable to battle, Floatzel is the winner! Which means the victory goes to the challenger, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!" announced Brock, raising his arm on Ash's side for the final time to signal his victory.
Again, I'm really sorry this took so long to come out. I'll do my best to make sure the next chapter comes out much sooner. Hope you all enjoyed this one and don't forget to leave a review!