Disclaimer is on chapter one
(-o-)(-o-)(-o-)
Having just cast off barely an hour ago, Leonard nor Caesar were expecting to see many Trainers at the cruise ship's battle arena let alone a small crowd while what seemed to be a heated battle went under way.
"Wow. Guess I should have just made a Combeeline for here rather than the pool, huh?" Caesar joked surprised to see such a gathering so soon and noting several of the girls spectating.
"You're early. I'm actually impressed" The blonde from before commented apparently arriving just before or after them. "But just a little"
"I'm sure I can change that statement over the course of our battle- soon as the field clears" Caesar assured the motioning to the battle currently taking place. "Until our turn comes, why don't we-"
"Hey, Yulie's battling!" Leonard suddenly called out to the two managing to spot the purple haired Trainer through a gap between spectators.
Caesar cringed at his friend's impeccable timing. Sure the guy was an okay Trainer, but he had the tact and subtleness of a Tauros in a crockery store. The blonde however seemed to take interest pushing through the crowd to get a better view of the battle taking place and leaving Leonard and a dejected Caesar to follow after her.
"So, she made it also" The blonde smirked slipping off her shades revealing sharp, violet eyes that looked to cut through a man with just a glance. Those eyes immediately hardened when she saw just exactly who Yulie was facing off against. "Him? She's facing him?!"
"You know the red head?" Caesar asked staring at the red haired Trainer with a quirked eyebrow.
"Sid Thornton, also known as 'Eccentric Sid', 'Sid the Mad' and a slew of other names he's earned in the regions from Hoenn to Sinnoh as well as Unova. He's a fighting-type specialist with an uncanny knack of knowing when his pokémon will evolve" The blonde explained sourly. "He is also a skirt chaser, womaniser and self-proclaimed ladies' man, often tricking women into battles they can't win and having them wear embarrassing swimsuits"
"Discover that the hard way?" Caesar could not help but jibe earning a cutting glare from the blonde.
"He also makes you look like a gentleman until you become a decent Trainer yourself" She sniped trying to direct the conversation away from herself.
"I'll take that as a yes" Caesar chuckled until the blonde brought the heel of her stiletto shoes down on his foot.
His strangled cry caught the attention of Sid, whose eyes quickly homed in on the familiar blonde.
"Kara! Long-time no see! Still got that black two-piece I made you wear?" Sid inquired jovially.
His words had the blonde staring down at her feet her red face clashing horribly with her hair although whether it was in anger or embarrassment was anyone's call- anyone brave enough to hazard a guess and risk their life in the process, that is. Those standing around her seemed to sense the angry aura she was giving off and wisely gave her some room leaving no one bar Leonard and Caesar for a good ten paces.
While her opponent was currently distracted, Yulie was mentally berating herself for such a novice mistake. She could not believe she had made such a rookie move and in front of someone she considered to be her rival while on this leg of her journey to boot. Still, now that she knew of what kind of strategy Sid had for her, she could now come up with a plan of attack.
"Hey! Quit staring at other girls! I'm your opponent!" She called out to Sid palming another pokéball containing her next pokemon.
Blinking in surprise, Sid grinned as he turned back to face Yulie remembering that he was currently beating another girl who would soon be wearing a nice little swimsuit for him to drool over.
"You sure you wanna continue this, toots? I'm just a round away from winning after all. Why don't we just stop the battle and have you put on that two-piece I showed you?" Sid suggested sweetly sending chills up Yulie's spine at the thought at what was in store for her if she lost one more round.
"Be-Because this battle is just getting started!" Yulie yelled holding out her next pokémon as if brandishing a sword. "You've given me an opportunity to battle him and there's no way I'm gonna squander it for your pervish obsession!"
"Hey, I resent that!" Sid protested indignantly. "It's a hobby"
"It's unhealthy and going to be the death of him" Kara sighed before grinning darkly. "I just hope it's slow and painful"
"Wow. You're scary, you know that?" Caesar asked casually as if he was asking about the weather instead of the girl's personality.
From where he stood on the side-lines Alastor did not know whether to sigh in frustration or roll his eyes at the antics of the two battling Trainers. He could care less about the unhealthy hobbies of the red head but the girl who seemed determined to battle him he would rather not have met if possible and he highly doubted that she would stop pestering him regardless of the match's outcome until she had gotten her battle with him.
With the crowd around the arena now bigger than it was than when the match first started, the blue haired Trainer saw this as his chance to disappear to somewhere more quiet and out of the way. If he was lucky, today would be the last he saw of the girl, her opponent and anyone else wishing to challenge him until they arrived at the archipelago.
Sadly, Sid's Mienshao appeared to have other ideas appearing before Alastor before he could take five steps away from the side-lines and disappear from sight. Clearly, Sid wanted to make sure his bargaining chip did not pull a vanishing act at least until he had won his battle with Yulie first.
Seeing as there was no way out of this without causing a scene and drawing attention to himself, he could tell just by looking at the Martial Arts pokémon that it was powerful, Alastor sighed before turning his attention to the battle once again resigning to his fate and figured he might as well study both Trainers and see how they used their pokémon should he ever find himself against them in the near future which was looking to be a real possibility the longer things progressed.
"Round two then! Go get 'em Tyrogue!" Sid called as he threw out another pokéball that contained another Scuffle pokémon.
"Second verse, same as the first? That's lame!" Yulie smirked as she threw out her pokéball. "Go, Toxicroak!"
While she definitely sounded confident, Yulie was more focused and on track this time around quickly listening to her common sense and not just plunging in head first like last time. She could not afford to lose another round in this battle especially to this guy.
"Not exactly" Sid grinned as Tyrogue began glowing repeating what had happened during the first round only it was not the Kicking pokémon it evolved into. "Say hello and put up your dukes for Hitmonchan!"
"How did he know that was going to happen?!" Leonard gasped in surprise along with most of the crowd.
"He just does. It's won him quite the number of battles" Kara told him sourly evidently having lost to the Trainer in the past herself.
Usually, a pokémon evolving during a battle was a rarity often or not happening when a pokémon was on the verge of being defeated or after winning a battle. Yet, there were those like Sid's pokémon that evolved right before in the middle of a heated battle often affecting opposing Trainer's strategies or just generally surprising them long enough to be defeated. To actually know when his pokémon would evolve, there was clearly more to this Trainer than what he led people to believe about him.
"Now then. Let's kick things off with Bullet Punch!" Sid ordered.
Heeding his trainer's order, Hitmonchan sprung forward at his foe unleashing a straight jab that lived up to the move name. Even though Toxicroak got out of the way in time, the force of the blow still messed up Yulie's hair despite being further away.
(I say, old chap, that was rather unsporting, wasn't it?) Toxicroak proclaimed as he steadied himself. (A brief hello and such would not hurt beforehand, you know- even for an uncouth, barbaric pokémon well versed in pugilism such as yourself)
Hitmonchan's reply was a flurry of jabs, straights and hooks coming at Toxicroak at breakneck speeds almost too quick for the human eye to see.
"That's it! Dodge, block and evade! Keep it up!" Yulie told her pokémon. She knew if they could just hold out long enough, they would be in with a chance of winning this round.
(You make it sound so simple, Miss Yulie!) Toxicroak grunted just barely managing to block a left straight then avoid a rather lethal right hook from Hitmonchan that would have definitely been felt come tomorrow morning.
"Think your pokémon can last long enough? Fine, use Close Combat!" Sid called out to Hitmonchan.
Punching his boxing gloves together, Hitmonchan suddenly stepped in close to Toxicroak with a swift left and followed with a one-two straight then an uppercut. Only just managing to avoid the first barrage, Toxicroak had no choice but to shield himself as barrage after barrage of punches suddenly began to rain down on him.
"Hang in there, Toxicroak!" Yulie encouraged her pokémon as endured the seemingly endless flurry of fists that rivalled a tattoo a Machamp could unload in a single second.
Eventually, Hitmonchan's assault slowed to a halt unable to press its advantage any further due to the strain and fatigue that last attack had put on him. Noticing the lack of blows, Toxicroak lowered his aching arms relieved that it was finally over.
"Uh-oh!" Sid grimaced realising all too quickly what was happening. "Agility, quickly"
"Too late! Now it's our turn, Toxicroak!" Yulie grinned seeing her opening. "Poison Jab!"
(Nothing personal, old chap) Toxicroak grunted as he cocked one arm back, the reddish-orange claw glowing a poisonous purple. (But it's time to see if you can take as good as you give!)
Shooting forward despite the pain in his arms, Toxicroak's arm shot forward catching Hitmonchan square between the eyes and sending the punching pokémon skidding across the ground to its Trainer's feet not looking to get back up again any time soon.
"What just happened?" Leonard asked as the crowd cheered Yulie for her victory.
"Hitmonchan can only fight full tilt for three minutes. After that, it becomes extremely vulnerable especially after a move such as Close Combat" Zai explained from above the startled Trainer's head.
"Sheesh! Ever heard of personal space, big guy?" Caesar exclaimed surprised at how quiet and how close the researcher could get without ant anyone noticing. "Man, compared to you, a Liepard is as subtle as a Rhyhorn!"
"Sorry. Was too engrossed in studying their pokémon to say hi" Zai apologised referring to the now recalled pokémon of the battling Trainers.
Putting away his pokéball containing the fainted Hitmonchan, Sid frowned at his opponent. Yulie was the first girl in a while to actually have won a round against him- unless he let them to lure them into a false sense of victory which definitely was not the case here today. Still, it was only luck that got her the reprieve but it was merely delaying the inevitable.
"Okay, so you actually managed to win a round. Well done" He congratulated her.
"Thanks!" Yulie grinned before focusing her attention on Alastor and pointing at him confidently. "Better get your pokémon ready, Blue! This last round'll be over before you know it!"
A vein appeared on Sid's temple at the implications of her bold statement. Did she really think that she could actually beat him after one lucky round?
"You're grasping the pot too soon again, toots" He growled readying his third and final pokémon.
"I don't think so! This next round is in the bag" Yulie boldly argued throwing out her next pokémon. "Manectric! Front and Centre!"
Bursting from the pokéball, the electric blue and yellow canine sat ready at attention.
(Awaiting orders, Sir!) He barked proudly his red eyes focused clearly on Sid who was practically fuming at Yulie's audacity.
"Time to bring you down a peg or three- and into a swim suit while we're at it! Go Tyrogue!" Sid called out throwing out another Scuffle pokémon.
"Interesting…" Zai muttered as he watched the pokémon suddenly evolve into another pokémon no sooner had it materialised on the field. He really wanted to meet up with this fighting-type specialist after the battle now and find out how he had managed to learn how to know when a pokémon would be ready to evolve.
"Not really…" Leonard sighed. To him and the others, it was just a boring, one trick Ponyta.
Yulie on the other hand, could not help but grin as she recognised the pointy-headed handstand pokémon, Hitmontop. Her plan had rested on Sid calling forth another Tyrogue to evolve into the aforementioned pokémon and thankfully he delivered. Now she could deliver his defeat!
"Alright, no more Mr Nice-Guy for you! Hitmontop, use Rapid Spin!" Sid ordered unaware he was walking right into Yulie's trap.
"Stop it in its tracks with Roar!" Yulie ordered as the Hitmontop lived up to its title and began spinning like a top towards her Manectric.
(Roger wilco!) Manectric acknowledged taking a deep breath before unleashing a powerful roar that literally stopped Hitmontop in its tracks.
"Feh! You're just delaying the inevitable!" Sid snickered. No matter how loud and powerful the bark, it would have to end sooner or later, and when that time came…
"Actually, I'm just waiting for inevitable to happen!" Yulie grinned cryptically.
Before Sid could fathom what the Trainer could possibly mean by those words, his attention was caught by his Hitmontop who had suddenly exclaimed as it suddenly stopped spinning but remained upright as if stuck in place.
"Now! Strike with Wild Charge!" Yulie called out to her pokémon grinning at the knowledge that this battle was in the bag.
(Acknowledged. Commencing attack!) Manectric barked charging towards the surprised Hitmontop the friction of his movements building up the electric charge until it surrounded his body colouring him a bright electric yellow by the time he collided with his target creating a small explosion.
(Target: defeated. Mission: complete) He grunted skidding to a halt seemingly unaffected by the recoil effect of the move he just used while the sprawled and smoking Hitmontop looked like it had just been hit by a truck and lightning bolt simultaneously.
"Okay…can someone clue me in on what just happened?" Caesar asked as the crowds suddenly went wild with cheering for such a surprising outcome.
"I'm not sure but, I think Yulie used Hitmontop's own skill against it" Zai began slowly as he looked back over what had been a rather short final round.
Because Hitmontop spun at high speeds when upside-down, remaining in one place for too long would likely make the handstand pokémon become a living drill and burrow itself into the ground or at least the pointy protrusion on top of its head leaving it stuck in place and vulnerable to attack as Yulie and her Manectric just brilliantly demonstrated.
"Well, either way, have to give the girl points for her creativity" Caesar complimented. He doubted anyone here would have seen that coming.
"When Yulie is involved, you have to expect the unexpected" Kara remarked a slight smile gracing her features as she stared at the Trainer who was making her way towards the slumped and defeated Sid.
Too engrossed in his sorrow of being beaten a little cutie, the fighting-type specialist was surprised when he looked up to see the source of his woes standing there and smiling before him with her hand outstretched for him to shake.
"Thank you for the match" Yulie said sincerely. "I never expected someone like you to teach me a thing about pokémon and battling at the same time"
Despite himself, Sid cracked a wide grin as he clasped Yulie's hand.
"See what happens if you actually read passed the contents page of a book? Although, I guess I'll have to take my own medicine too after that whooping you gave me!" He joked looking as chipper as ever. "Don't think you're off the hook though. You'll still be wearing that swim suit when I beat you in the-YEEEOWWWCH!"
Those around Sid reckoned the Trainer must have jumped a good three, four feet into the air when Jin suddenly sank his teeth into his leg.
(Keep your filthy hands off my Master!) He barked standing firmly between the surprised Yulie and crippled Sid.
"Jin! Sorry about him. He's still having a hard time trusting others being near me" Yulie apologised picking up the puppy pokémon before he could take another bite out of Sid.
Sid merely grumbled as he nursed his injured leg before a light bulb went off inside his head.
"If you really want to make up for it, why don't you-huh?" Sid blinked in surprise when he suddenly noticed that Yulie had practically disappeared from sight as if by magic.
(Like a petal caught in the winds going wherever it takes her) Mienshao comforted his Trainer appearing by his side.
"I have no idea what you just said buddy" Sid sighed as he stood up wincing slightly as he put pressure on his injured leg. "Ah, well. At least there's one cutie I can look forward to recruit for my modelling career"
"And what makes you think you're going to live long enough to start it?" A familiar voice inquired directly behind the Trainer.
Turning round slowly, Sid gulped as he came face to face with an irate Kara whose red aura promised one thing in his near future for deeds past and present.
(-o-)(-o-)(-o-)
Review if possible & until next time
Watch this space & peace out!