Sorry that I'm rushing this chapter a bit, but I'd like to get to the end of this story. This chapter is probably the shortest I've done and I plan for the rest of the Elite Four chapters to be around this length. Don't worry, the champion fight will be full length, I just want to get through these ones quickly. I've also released it a few days early so I can get them done within my short holiday. Either way I hope you enjoy this chapter.
The entrance door closed behind Joe and Ralph as they entered the challenge, leaving behind their friends, family and past for now. Ahead of them was a short red walled hallway. They walked up it, not afraid or flinching at what was ahead of them. The plastic floor squeaked under the boy's footsteps. The unlit roof was invisible, but ahead they could see light. When they reached it they found themselves standing in a small waiting room. Two massive red coated metal doors stood ahead of them. A dimly lit bulb hung from the ceiling, illuminating the room enough to see by. No light or sound escaped through its thick foam covered lining. It seemed immovable by hand. Joe kept well away from it. Even though he knew it was perfectly safe he couldn't help but remember the last door he'd tried to open. Luckily for him Terranius was destroyed, and this was not some part of it they'd missed. Joe sat down at the red metal bench at the edge of the room, as Ralph joined him. They waited patiently for the door to open.
When it finally did it made a loud metallic creak, like an ocean liner going under. Light burst desperately through the tiny crack as slowly the doors pushed themselves open. The light was followed by a quickly rising round of furious applause. There was already a crowd watching, and it sounded like a large one as well. Joe stood up from his seat.
"Come on Ralph." He said, taking a step forwards. "It's time to face the music." Ralph scratched his head, wondering what he was talking about. This was a battle, not a dance. Where was the music coming from? Pokémon tended to not be too good with metaphors. It was more of a human thing. Ralph did indeed follow his trainer as the duo stepped through the doorway and into the light.
As their eyes got used to the area around them they saw the stadium itself, unique in its vibrant mixture of bright and dark pink. A white outline for the battle area was laid out at its centre, the trademark pokeball sketch marking the middle line. Around the arena a large white marble wall outlined its circumference. Behind that wall the rows of stands filled up the rest of the room, rising up to the roof so those at the back had the highest view. Practically every seat was taken by someone, be it trainer, child, adult or furious fan. Joe was a little surprised by just how many people had shown up. There had been a lot last year, but even then he'd been able to pick out people he'd known from that crowd. This time there were so many people that picking any single one out was an impossible task because they all moved too much to tell who was who. It was a little nerve-wracking, not to mention slightly dizzying to watch. There was a crackle of static as the speakers booted up, and then suddenly a voice blasted around the room. In a smooth, excited and all around likable tone the announced began announcing.
"Wwwwwwwwelcome back, ladies and gentlemen, to the world famous Indigo Plateau!" The crowd cheered at his voice, waving their hands in the air. "And today in the league we have a very special reunion. The return of Kanto's most recent champion, back once more to take on the Johto League this time. Please put your hands together for the only trainer to ever refuse the rank of champion. Give it up for the one and only… JOSEPH GLENDE!" The crowd began to roar their approval. Joe felt a small wave of nerves hit him. He shook it off and waved back at the crowd. A few girls at the front began blowing kisses at him. He only hoped Winter didn't spot them, or god knows what she might do. He glanced to the door on the other side of the room. It was also pink, but a darker shade. Slowly it had begun to slide open. The Announced continued his show. "And now, ladies and gentlemen, we introduce todays Elite Four member." He stated. "All the way from the halls of the psyche, his IQ rates over one thousand and he refuses to let his style supress his skill." There was a loud pause for breath, then he continued. "He's the one man who can outwit an Alakazam at chess. Please, put your hands together for the best psychic in both Johto and Kanto!" The doors finished opening, white smoke flowing out from them. "Please welcome to the field the first member of the Johto Elite Four… WILL"
Will stepped out onto the field, the smoke floating around him as he walked, resplendent in his black waistcoat with gold buttons and white frill, dark pink trousers and long sleeved shirt, black boots and black eye mask. His hair was purple and moulded to a pointed over comb with overhanging sides. He looked like a slightly evil children's party magician, yet he walked with all the grace of a failed male fashion model. In fact Joe could have sworn from the sound his footsteps made that he was wearing high heels. As it turned out his shoes were only simple long black flats. The First member of the Johto Elite Four steppes up to his end of the battle field and eyed his opponent down mysteriously. The crowd cheered for him, but surprisingly not as much as they had for Joe. That was interesting. Clearly the boy had made a name for himself here. Will turned to the crowd and waved back. The movement of his hand seemed to be slightly feminine for some reason. After a few seconds of waving he put his hand down again and turned once more to Joe. There was a silence between them. Then Will spoke.
"So finally you show up to take on the Elite Four." He said with a smile. "We were wondering when you'd do that. It certainly took you long enough. But practicing outside for the last week was probably a good idea on your behalf." Joe didn't blink.
"You know I was doing that how?" He asked simply.
"I'm a psychic." Will reminded him. "I know quite a bit… like I know that you're the kid who stopped Team Rocket a few weeks ago." Joe was silent in response. Will smiled back. "Don't worry. You've made a lot of fans because of that." He told him. "You've even made fans out of us, which is something most trainers who challenge us can't seem to do. I'd say that makes you a cut above."
"Thank you for the appreciation." Joe said, unsure what he could actually say in response. Will nodded.
"You're welcome." He said. His eyes turned to the crowd once more. They were still clapping and cheering. "And now I think this conversation must stop." He stated modestly. "After all, what's the point of taking when we can battle?" His hand snatched a pokeball from his own belt without even having to grab it, small ripples of psychic energy reflecting of the shell as it moved quickly up to his hand.
Joe nodded in understanding. His own hand reached for his belt and unclipped one single pokeball to use. "My thoughts exactly." He said back. The crowd grew quiet suddenly, and then the announcer returned to commentate.
"Trainers, take your places!" He shouted through microphone and out his speakers. Neither trainer moved. They were already in place. The announcer coughed. "Yes, well…" He muttered. "Never mind that. Let's get on with this." There was the sound of arms raising in the air and a heavy intake of prepared breath. "Let the Battle… Begin!"
With the rising roaring cheer of the crowd Joe and Will released their first pokémon. As it was the first match up gave Joe the advantage over type. He had sent out Terrence, his newest team member. From the training he had found that Terrence was a heavy hitter, not a terribly fast one but his bulkiness made up for that. The large male Donphan landed on Joe's side of the stadium, causing it to shake a little with the force of his small impact. He raised his armoured trunk up and trumpeted once for a few seconds. And on Will's side of the field a weird green bird pokémon with a short rounded yellow beak, big eyes and long wings placed at the front of its humanoid body. It stood like a bowling pin on Will's side of the field, unmoving, only staring at its bulkier opponent. Will clenched a fist, then threw it out open towards the field in a demonstrational way.
"Xatu, use Psychic!" He called. His pokémon, Xatu, attacked, firing a blast of psychic energy at its opponent.
"Use Rollout, Terrence!" Joe commanded. Terrence curled up into a ball and sped at Xatu. He passed through the psychic attack, taking damage but not much, and struck his target. Xatu was thrown back, landing flat with its wings outspread.
From here on out the battle went quite smoothly for Joe's side. No matter what Xatu tried to do it couldn't seem to hurt Terrence much. Once it was back to its feet the next attack it tried to make was a quick attack. It hit and did damage, but the only real effect that came from this was that Terrence was surprised a little by its speed. Once that surprise had gone Xatu was left open for another attack. Terrence returned with Horn Attack, knocking the Xatu over again and this time sending it flying back further. It barely got a chance to get up a second time as Terrence came rolling in with another rollout.
"Evade." Will instructed. Xatu jumped aside as Terrence's attack sped past in a surprising burst of speed. Terrence came to a halt next to the bird. "Now confuse ray!" Will continued. Xatu blasted Terrence with a confuse ray, which sadly worked. The one thing Xatu didn't take into consideration however was how close Terrence already was. In a puzzled and desperate attempt to hit its opponent, the large grey skinned elephant began to thrash about, throwing its legs and trunk around wildly. It struck Xatu in the chest, winding it easily. Then, when Terrence realised he'd just hit his target, he attacked it once more, rushing in its direction. Within a minute Xatu was out cold, unable to fight back. It had tried to drill peck Terrence as he attacked, but his armour was too tough for the attack to do damage that quickly. Will withdrew his pokémon. On the scoreboard his number of pokémon dropped from five to four. Now it was reading 5:4 to Joe. Will didn't let this damped his spirits. He'd purposefully sent out his weakest pokémon first, as most members of the Elite Four in Kanto had done. He crossed his arm with a hidden smile.
"Okay, so you're strong enough to defeat Xatu." He said, his teeth shining in the light. "But you did have an advantage over me." His hand unclipped another pokeball. "Let's see how you do when that table turn." He released the pokeball, and onto the field appeared the very recognisable form of a Jynx. The ice type pokémon danced around its side of the field, its red dress skirt shaking like grass reeds in the wind. Joe remembered the last time he'd battle a Jynx at the Elite Four. This time he'd made sure to nail his feet firmly to the floor. He wasn't having that happen twice. He glanced over to Terrence who had returned to his place on Joe's side of the field. The bulky armoured elephant seemed nonplussed about the threat ahead. He just saw another target to attack. Joe admired that a little. At least he wasn't afraid of being badly hurt.
Battle quickly continued. This time it was Will who attacked first. He instructed Jynx to use Ice Punch, which Joe had predicted he would do. He instructed Terrence to use Earthquake, which Will had predicted he would do. Jynx jumped as Terrence's feet stomped the ground, causing it to crack and break apart into jagged shapes. Jynx swung its frozen fist, but Terrence took her by surprise and lashed up with his trunk as she fell in. The icy pokémon was knocked back a few metres. She quickly got back to her feet, ready to fight again. The next attack Will had her do was a long range psychic. Jynx fired and the attack hit, but Terrence took minimal damage duo to his tough body and stubborn mind. Joe made a command and Terrence rolled in to attack. He curled up and sped in a rollout towards his target. But Will was ready for this. He instructed Jynx to use another ice punch, which she did. The frosty strike hit Terrence in mid roll, right as his own attack arrived and impacted into Jynx's chest. The two pokémon were kicked back like light aired footballs struck by a massive boot. Terrence skittered across the dry floor like a loose checker, while jinks flopped to the ground like an abandoned drunk prom girl. The two pokémon rose unsteadily to their feet, getting tired. Jynx was not a terribly defensive pokémon so its tiredness was to be expected by this point. But Terrence's weariness was a bad sign. It meant he was reaching the limit of his defences. Joe would have to be a bit more careful from now on, but he knew that Terrence wouldn't be. It was part of his nature.
"Double Slap!" Will instructed. Jynx got back to her feet, fixed her dress with an angry expression and rushed at Terrence once more, her large gloved hands open and out. Terrence simply watched and waited for his trainers command. Jynx got closer, running surprisingly fast for something with no visible legs and in a dress.
"Mud Slap!" Joe commanded finally. Terrence sprayed a cluster of wet dirt into Jynx's face as she arrived. The dancing pokémon skidded to a halt, blinded by the muck. She tried to wipe it off, but as she did so she was struck in the chest by another attack. Terrence had used Horn Attack on her. The Jynx finally gave up. This time she stayed down. The pokeball opened, the pokémon was withdrawn and the scoreboard changed again.
Will looked a little impatient now. He'd clearly expected Jynx to win that one. But he took his lose sternly and prepared for his next pokémon. This time he had no witty comeback or comment. He simply sent out his next pokémon. The pokeball popped open and released a large and rather menacing exeggutor. Joe felt a small surge of concern pass up his body. Will had two pokémon with a type strength against his pokémon. But surprisingly Terrence still looked unconcerned by this. He just glared at his larger opponent, ready to fight on further. He knew he had a weakness against grass, he just didn't care. Will pointed his hand commandingly.
"Exeggutor, use egg bomb!" He yelled.
"Rollout!" Joe commanded. The two pokémon attacked. Terrence curled up and sped at Exeggutor like a rocky tank with the speed of a race car. The large sentient palm tree flung its head forwards, hurling a large egg into the path of the rolling boulder. It exploded a few centimetres to the right of Terrence. He had dodged aside when he saw it coming and had managed to avoid taking most of the damage. He came in for his own attack now and sped straight past Exeggutor, the large egg faced tree stepping aside at the last second and taking a scraping across the side of its leg. Terrence came back around for another attack, but this time Exeggutor had a better attack prepared. It lowered its body down till its leafy head was pointed straight at the incoming rollout. The centre began to grow green with light energy. Terrence didn't stop, nor did he move out of the way. In fact he couldn't see the attack till it was too late. When Terrence was barely one fourth of the field away from Exeggutor the massive tree fired its attack. A solar beam hit the armoured elephant square in the face. A second later he went flying backwards, uncurled from his rolling ball. He landed heavily at Joe's feet, smoking and glowing green. This time he wasn't getting back up.
Joe cursed under his breath and withdrew his pokémon. He probably should have withdrawn him from the field at the start of that fight, but Terrence had been so eager to continue. At least he'd get a chance to in the next battle. Joe clipped the pokeball back to his belt. On the scoreboard the numbers had changed again, now reading 4:3 to Joe. He was still winning, but who knew how long he could keep that up. From the crowd he heard a few cheers of encouragement for him. It still surprised him how many people were watching this fight for him. Was he really that well known? He turned back to the battle, ignoring the shouts as best he could. He shouldn't turn away from his fight. If he did that he was leaving himself open, and that was something you should avoid in pokémon battles. Will watched and waited patiently for him to send out his next pokémon. Joe stared back. His hand reached for his pokeball belt. He knew who he was going to send out. If Will wanted to play around with types then Joe was going to oblige. He unclipped a pokeball and released it. Quill appeared on his side of the field, roaring flame in excitement. Will smiled as he saw the pokémon appear. Joe couldn't figure out why. He didn't take a second longer to think about it.
"Flame Wheel!" He instructed. Quill curled up, ignited into a ball of flame, and rolled with a flaming trail of speed towards his opponent.
"Psychic!" Will instructed. Exeggutor fired a pall of psychic power. Quill passed through it harmlessly, taking a little damage but most of it extinguishing on his flames. He continued his attack until he struck his target. Exeggutor was knocked flat onto its back, its skin singing a little from the attack.
"Flamethrower!" Joe instructed. Quill stopped a few feet behind Exeggutor and lit it up with a breath of fire. Exeggutor was back to its feet and stumbling away already. It stared in horror at its burning body as its three heads tried to blow out the flames desperately. Eventually it did put itself out, but it looked worse for wares afterwards. It seemed to be flinching every few seconds. Will had had enough of this messing around.
"Hypnosis!" He instructed. Joe tried to call out to warn Quill, but it was already too late. Exeggutor had already pulled of the attack. Quill stared, then collapsed, snoring soundly. Joe sighed. One of the Elite Four from Kanto had done this before when he battled them. It was a cheap tactic, but it worked and it was legal. He groaned and withdrew Quill, thanking him for his effort. The scoreboard changed one more. Now it was tied 3:3. Will crossed his arms, seeming quite proud of himself. Joe decided he was about to change that. He unclipped another pokeball and released it.
"Go Leaf!" He commanded. His Meganium appeared on the field, ready to fight. Will had been surprised by this choice. Now it was a grass vs grass type battle. There were no weaknesses or strengths in play, just pure power, skill and ability.
"This battle looks like it could go either way, folks." The announcer butted in suddenly. "Our challenger's down to his third pokémon, but Exeggutor looks ready to collapse. Who will push forward first?"
As it turned out it was Will who attacked first.
"Egg Bomb!" He instructed. Exeggutor threw a large explosive egg shell at Leaf.
"Dodge!" Joe called. Leaf jumped aside, avoiding the attack. "Body Slam!" Joe continued. Leaf rushed in and slammed Exeggutor in the chest as it readied for another attack. The large tree tottered but didn't fall over. It kicked Leaf back, causing the giant flower necked pokémon to look quite surprised. Exeggutor charged another solar beam, right as Leaf used a secret move Joe had taught him during their practice. Leaf forced the ground under Exeggutor to turn purple and bubble. The pokémon looked down confused. The liquid seeped into its skin, causing the area it touched to blotch and scar. Stunned Exeggutor stepped back out of the attack, but it was already too late. Leaf had poised it with toxic. It had only seconds left to make an attack before the poison took it out. So it did the only thing it could. It used hypnosis. Both trainers groaned with annoyance. The two pokémon fell simultaneously. Leaf landing on his side with swirling eyes and Exeggutor landing on its back with purple bubbles coming out of its mouth. The two trainers withdrew their pokémon. The score dropped to 2:2. It was still anyone's game, and who knew who'd win. The crowd cheered as thing got a little more heated. Joe unclipped another pokeball and prepared to release it. Will did the same. The masked magician man gave his challenger a wicked smile as he unclipped his fourth pokeball. With a coinciding flick the two trainers sent out their pokémon.
"Go, Cyclone!" Joe called.
"Go, Slowbro!" Will called.
The two water types landed on the field, one large and thrashing, the other fat and yawning. The crowd cheered at the sight of a gyarados. They were always fun to watch, so long as they weren't destroying the stands they were watching from. Will seemed slightly amused. Again there was another type confliction going on today. The second of two. Cyclone roared impatiently, her gaping mouth hanging above the battlefield like an oncoming black hole.
"Waterfall!" Joe instructed. Cyclone didn't even wait for him to finish his command. She sped across the ground, wriggling like a dried work as she hurried across the field. It didn't take her long to reach her opponent, due to her long body being able to stretch out far. Slowbro just watched stupidly as she approached.
"Body Slam!" Will called. Slowbro slowly stood up. Cyclone was looming down on him now. She was getting ready to attack. With a slow starting waddle Slowbro stepped towards Cyclone. Then, when it was only twelve feet away, the large pink pokémon charged, ramming its whole body into Cyclone's unprotected belly. The large sea serpent screeched and hissed in surprise. She backed up, slithering away from the attacked. Slowbro smiled to itself and rubbed a sleepy eye. Will was also smiling. His pokémon had done as it was trained to. Cyclone glared at the fat pink creature ahead of her. She had her eyes targeted it like the crosshair of a gunsight.
Without needing a command from Joe she attacked, attempting to pull off her waterfall attack again. Slowbro continued to hold its ground, watching with dull uninterested eyes as its opponent tried to attack once more. With barely a movement it fired a psychic blast at the attacking snake. Cyclone managed to resist the attack, although it hurt her she pushed through it. This time she landed her own attack, sliding up and striking Slowbro with a rising spinning spiral. The much smaller pokémon was knocked back metres, landing on its side, its shell bitten tail tapping the ground behind it. Slowly it pushed itself up, looking surprisingly angry for something which was usually quite bored and uninterested. With a fit of anger the bulky pink pokémon rushed the much larger serpent. By Cyclone was ready for it. She lunged herself, diving with a mouth full of ice coated fangs. She bit down on the top of Slowbro as it rushed her, attempting to slam into her chest again. The big pink creature squealed as Cyclone bit into it, its head stuck somewhere in her mouth. The large serpent raised her head, shook it around a little, and then spat the pokémon out once more. Slowbro struck a few feet back, making a bulky thud as it did so. It sat up, wiping the saliva of its arms and body. It glared at Cyclone again. And then it charged once more, rage fuelling its surprisingly speedy legs. Cyclone prepared for another close range attack. But half way towards her the opponent took her by surprise, as Slowbro fired a psychic attack at her. The red gyarados recoiled as the attack struck her in her vulnerable head. And while she was recoiling Slowbro struck her once more in the chest. Cyclone fell, landing on her back in pain and writhing to get back up. Slowbro smiled to itself.
"Body Slam it again!" Will shouted. Slowbro nodded and rushed in once more to attack. But Cyclone hadn't given up just yet. Right when Slowbro was about to attack she acted, whipping her tail out and smacking the pokémon back across the field. Slowbro hit the far wall with such force that he cracked it. And then he fell down, the impact finishing him off. Will stared open mouthed. The climax to that fight had been so disappointing, but now he only had one pokémon left. Fortunately it was his strongest pokémon.
"Will is down to his last pokémon, folks." The announcer stated. The crowd roared with excitement. "Remember, this could still go either way. Like most great trainers he's saving his best pokémon for last."
Will withdrew Slowbro as Cyclone managed to roll back onto her front and rear up properly once more. The pokeball snapped shut, and Will placed it back on his belt. He looked at Joe. Joe looked back. He smiled sneakily. "Don't get too cocky." Will warned him. "Your victory isn't assured just yet." Joe smiled back. He wanted to say something witty in response, but he decided against it as it would probably be rude. Will unclipped his last unused pokeball. With a flick of his hand he released it. The pokeball sailed through the air, struck the ground and released a pokémon. "Finish this, Alakazam!" Will shouted. On his side of the field appeared a slightly elderly but very stern and strong looking Alakazam.
Joe groaned. He'd battled several Alakazam in his time as trainer, which hadn't been too long in itself. Each and every one had not only been very strong and capable fighters but they had also been cunning, quick and quite often unpredictable in their actions. And looking at Will's last pokémon Joe could tell this one wouldn't be any different, even if its moustache was sprouting grey strands. Memories of fighting Tom's Alakazam popped back into his mind. He'd been lucky in defeating him. Ralph had managed to just pull through. Hopefully it wouldn't get that bad this time. He turned to Cyclone. She was showing no signs of tiring, but then again she was a gyarados. She could be ready to collapse and she'd never show it. Joe only hoped she was strong enough to keep fighting. He didn't want to send Ralph out just yet. He had a type weakness to the psychic pokémon. Joe made a quick command as Will watched from his side of the field. "Alright, Cyclone." Joe pointed a finger to Alakazam. "I want you to use…" As it turned out he didn't need to make a command. Cyclone was already on the move. She slithered across the stadium field with a burst of found speed, rushing towards Alakazam. She lashed out before Alakazam could react and struck it with her full body. The psychic pokémon rolled backwards, landing with an 'oomph' on its chest. Joe raised a surprised eyebrow. "Or you could do that." He muttered, a little impressed. Cyclone breathed heavily, letting her internal rage vent out through her breath. It was safer than taking it out on the stadium and its occupiers. The tranquil ball taught her to do that somehow. It seemed to keep her in control of her rage, and thank god for it. If he didn't have it Joe would probably be dead already.
Alakazam flipped back onto its feet, as Will called a new battle command. "Reflect!" he yelled. Alakazam passed its spoons across the air in front of it, creating a thin clear shield of energy to weaken its opponent's physical attacks. "Now, use psychic!" Will continued. Alakazam blasted a psychic attack at his titanic opponent.
Joe smiled to himself. He turned to Cyclone who this time was waiting for his instructions. "You got this." He said simply. The red gyarados gave him a large grateful smile, then turned to face the attack.
The fight continued. Cyclone took the blow head on, but suffered little for it. She returned it with her own spiralling waterfall attack. Alakazam was washed by the strike, flying up and then falling back down again. It recovered quickly using Recover and fought back, blasting yet another psychic attack. Once again Cyclone resisted it. Alakazam seemed to be in a bit of trouble.
"Future Sight!" Will commanded. Alakazam sent an attack into the future to strike when Cyclone was least expecting it. Cyclone continued her controlled rampage. She released a plume of dragon fire onto the field, striking Alakazam full on, but the crafty psychic type recovered once more, regaining its lost strength. Once more Alakazam used psychic, which once again did very little to hurt Cyclone. Cyclone lunged at Alakazam with frozen teeth. She snapped her jaw shut as she reached the opponent, but Alakazam had already dodged backwards, avoiding her attack. Cyclone didn't need to move any further to pull off her next attack. She simply pushed herself forwards with a burst of speed, headbutting Alakazam within a simple movement and knocking it onto its back. She reared up to lunge attack again, but as she did so a psychic attack struck her in the back of the head. She recoiled forwards, screeching in surprise. The future attack had hit home, and it had actually done some damage. Will and Alakazam both looked very proud of themselves. The crowd cheered as the fight got more dangerous. Alakazam had just pulled of its first effective attack.
However this turned out to be a not so good decision on their behalf. Because now Cyclone was not only hurt. She was angry. She glared across the field at the two of them. Her very gaze was enough to strike fear into her opponent. Alakazam was said to have an IQ of over 5000. That apparently didn't stop it from being afraid. The great psychic pokémon took a few steps back. Cyclone lowered her head. She wasn't going to let it off so lightly. She readied herself to attack. Then, like a primed coil, she lunged, spinning in a long line of snake like a sideways tornado. Water swirled around her, turning her into a literal cyclone. Alakazam had no way of dodging her attack. It filled up the entire arena with water. He was sucked away under the current, as her massive long body impacted with its. A few seconds later the waters evaporated away, leaving the field as dry as a desert and the audience awestruck. Alakazam was found standing still on its side of the field. It groaned, tilted, tottered, and then fell onto its back. And that was the end. The fight was over.
Neither Joe nor Will could muster up something to say. Will's eyes were wide and stunned. He'd never seen a pokémon do that before. Joe's eyes were also wide, but with a different kind of stunned. Whereas Will was stunned with horror, he was stunned with amazement. There was several seconds of quite, from the trainers, from the announcer and from the audience. This was finally broken when someone began cheering.
"Go, Joe!" They yelled. A second later the entire audience was cheering it. A chorus rang out of chanting his name. Joe smiled a little to himself. Cyclone was sat in a coil in the middle of the field, recovering from the fight it seemed. She glanced at him with the kind of expression a dog would make if it were looking for its owner's approval. Joe smiled and nodded at her in a kind and encouraging way. To his surprise the large sea serpent smiled back. She then continued recovering in the middle of the field before Joe withdrew her, thanking her for her effort.
"I guess you didn't have to do anything to help this time, Ralph." Joe said with a smile, turning to his crobat friend. Ralph's mouth was hanging open. He had several expressions on his face. The main two seemed to be surprise at how Cyclone had won and disappointment that he hadn't gotten a chance to fight. Joe patted him on the back. "Don't worry." He said encouragingly. "You'll probably get a chance to fight in the next one." The speakers bleeped for half a second before the announcer's voice returned.
"Well, well, ladies and Gentlemen. It seems that our returning challenger has yet again defeated a member of the Elite Four. And he appears to have done so with a lot of style himself." The cheer grew a little louder as Joe was congratulated and Will was humiliated. "Our challenger will now go on to face the second member of the Elite Four in the next arena through the doorway. We'll see then if he really stands a chance at winning here today." Then there was a click as the microphone switched off. The audience continued to cheer his name as Joe stepped away from his stand. Will did the same. He approached the trainer after withdrawing his pokémon, a look of slight disappointment on his face. He held out a hand as he approached.
"Congratulations on defeating me." He said with a kind and respectful smile. "You really did a number on my team."
Joe smiled back. "Thanks." He said. "Sorry about Cyclone. She's a little too aggressive."
"Don't worry. They'll heal by themselves." Will told him. "They usually do. But good luck against the others."
"Thank you." Joe said.
"Seriously, you'll need it." Will continued. Next up is Koga. He's known for being a pretty tough guy to beat. You'll want to keep an eye open around him. Blink for a second and you're dead most likely." Joe took his hand and shook it warmly.
"Thanks for the advice." He said.
Will nodded. "Now get going already… and good luck." Joe nodded to the man. Then he and Ralph walked away, heading through the doors which Will and his pokémon had entered in through. They passed through the doorway as it closed shut behind them, cutting of the excited yells of the crowd. They were officially facing the league now. From here on out they could not lose or turn back. They'd just have to keep going until either they or the opponent wore out.
Johto Elite Four Battle 2 will be up soon.