Chapter 11
"Friend And Foe Alike"
I stepped out into the stadium. For the first time, Pikachu wasn't with me.
I miss you, Pikachu…
"And now folks!! Here he is! The one you've all been waiting for! Ash Ketchum!!"
Pikachu……I'll……I'll win this battle……for you…
The referee walked into the spotlight after giving me a…strange…glance.
"This will be a three-on-three battle! No time limit! Begin…now!"
…Which Pokémon should I use…?
I froze as I realized I didn't know the answer.
Richie did though.
"Happy! Go!!"
Happy? I…I should use something strong against it…unless I want to lose………Do I want to lose?
I blinked.
"Come on, Ash! You have to send out a Pokémon!" Richie called out.
He's right…
"Send out a Pokémon, immediately!" said the ref.
I should choose a Pokémon…
"Uh……I…….I uh…I choose…….um…………Oh! I know! Magnemite! Go!"
"Mmmaggnemittte!!"
"Happy! Confusion!!"
"Magnemite!! Tackle attack!"
"Mmmmmite!"
Magnemite slammed into Happy, who then began flapping its wings and flashing brilliant colored light, which started to confuse Magnemite.
"…Magnemite! Thundershock!"
"Happy! Whirlwind!"
Happy whirled its wings and blew Magnemite backwards.
"Tackle attack!"
"Magne…Mite!!"
Magnemite Tackled Butterfree, knocking it backwards a little.
"Happy! Poison Powder!" shouted Richie.
"Thundershock!" I said.
"Magne…!"
"Fffrrreeeee!!!"
Happy released a sparkling green powder over Magnemite, and it was poisoned.
"No…" I breathed.
"Mag……" Magnemite gasped. I could tell that it was really hurting.
"Come on…" I whispered.
"Magne…Magne…!"
"Psybeam!" shouted Richie.
"Magnemite!!!!!!!!"
Magnemite suddenly shocked Happy with a powerful Thundershock. Happy was stunned for a second, as electricity still flowed through its body, then it fell to the ground.
"Magne," Magnemite sighed.
The referee examined Happy, then he raised the green flag.
"Butterfree has been eliminated! The battle goes to Magnemite!"
Richie held out a Pokéball. "Happy! Return!" He put Happy back on his belt, then took out another Pokéball. "Zippo! I choose you!"
"Magne, mite…" Magnemite sighed weakly. It was starting to hover lower and lower.
The poison…
"Char!!"
"Zippo! Flamethrower attack, now!!"
"Char…Chaaaarrrrr!!!!!!!!!"
Zippo breathed out a huge breath of fire, and when Magnemite became visible, it was clear it wasn't going to be able to complete the match.
"Mag…ne…" it squeaked, then fell to the ground with a clang.
"…Magnemite has been eliminated! The battle goes to Charmander!"
"Char, char!" Zippo cheered.
"……Magnemite! Return!"
"Both trainers are now down to two Pokémon each! What Pokémon will Ash choose to battle Richie's Charmander?" the announcer said.
I wish I knew… I thought to myself. Which Pokémon would be best against Charmander?……Sandshrew, probably, but if it loses…then I'll have to rely on Taper……It's best to use it now and get it out of the way… I decided.
"Taper! I choose you!!"
I threw its Pokéball, and Taper appeared from inside.
"Drowzee, drow…" it said.
"I'm counting on you, Taper," I whispered.
Taper looked back at me quizzically.
"Drowzee?"
I wish I could understand you…
Why wouldn't you be able to understand me?
I yelped and glanced around in confusion. What had just happened?
It's me, Ash. Taper. You can hear me, can't you?
I stared at it. I nodded fearfully.
Then…why wouldn't you understand me?
"I…can't understand you when you're talking normally," I whispered.
Taper looked thoughtful.
"Drow zee, drowdrow?"
'Can you understand me now?'
I nodded.
"Drowzee!"
'Then let's finish up this battle!'
"…Yeah…"
"Zippo! Slash attack!"
"Char…Man!!"
Zippo started running towards Taper.
It's strange to be fighting against the trainer that caught me…
I gulped.
That's because you're not supposed to be mine…
"Drow…zee…"
'So…should I counterattack?'
"Uh…yeah, that'd be a good idea…Um…Taper! Uh…"
"Zee?"
'Pound attack?'
"…Sure."
"Manderrr!!!"
Zippo Slashed Taper viciously, and Taper was only able to block with its arms, which resulted in them getting very cut up.
"Now!"
"Drrowzee!"
Taper punched Zippo in the head.
"Ch-ar, mander!!" Zippo yelped in pain.
"Zippo! Fire Spin!!" shouted Richie.
"Char…….MANDER!!!!"
Zippo breathed out a tornado of fire which quickly engulfed Taper and burned it.
"Taper!" I gasped.
…That hurt.
"I'm sure it did…!"
Things weren't looking so good. I needed a way to win.
Maybe it's time for another attack?
"Uh…Yeah, that sounds good."
"…Who are you talking to, Ash!?"
I glanced back to see Misty, Brock, and Billie staring at me. It was Misty who had asked the question though.
"Um……Taper…Who else?"
"Did Taper say something to you?" she asked.
"Uh…Of course! I wouldn't have been talking to it if it didn't!"
I turned my attention back to the battle, now that that was out of the way.
"Flamethrower! Now!!"
"Taper! Disable attack!"
"Drowww…"
Before it could say 'zee', Zippo breathed out and overcooked Taper.
"…zee…"
'…ow…'
"…Taper! Return!"
I held out its Pokéball, and Taper went back inside. I took out Sandshrew's Pokéball.
I'm counting on you, Sandshrew…You're my last hope.
"Sandshrew! Go!"
I tossed the Pokéball, and Sandshrew popped out eagerly.
"Sandshrew!"
"No…" Richie gasped.
"This is a surprise, folks!" the announcer commented, "In this battle, Ash Ketchum has used none of the Pokémon that we've all become so familiar with from his earlier battles! Looks like things are heating up for Richie!"
…Something like that.
"Sandshrew! Poison Sting!"
"Ssand!"
Sandshrew jumped forward, then stung Zippo, poisoning it.
"Urgh…Zippo! Flamethrower attack!!"
"Chaaaaarrr!!!"
I held my breath
"…Sandshrew! Sand-Attack!"
"Sand!!!"
Sandshrew just absorbed the flames and kicked sand up into Zippo's eyes. Zippo abruptly stopped its attack and rubbed at its eyes.
"Char…man…Charmander!"
"Zippo!" Richie cried.
"…Sandshrew! Fury Swipes!"
"Sand, shrrrewww!!"
Sandshrew slashed at Zippo over and over again with its sharp little claws. Finally, Zippo couldn't take it any longer.
"…Charmander has been eliminated!" announced the ref, "The battle goes to Sandshrew!"
"No……Zippo, return!"
The only other Pokémon he can use is a Pikachu… I realized suddenly, It's gonna be hard for him to win……That's not good…
Richie took out one last Pokéball. He stared at it soulfully for a long moment, then gripped it tight and stared out at me. I could see it in his eyes. He was still going to try his best and not give up till the end. He wasn't going to break his promise.
I shouldn't have thought about breaking mine…
"Sparky, go! I'm counting on you!"
"Pika…!"
"Pikachu…" I whispered.
"Sssand…" Sandshrew growled.
"Sparky! Quick Attack!"
"Pika, chu!"
Sparky dashed through Sandshrew, hurting it. That's when I realized that I hadn't told Sandshrew to do anything.
"Sandshrew! Scratch attack!"
"Sand, shrew!!"
It scratched Sparky on the head, leaving a small mark.
"Pika…" Sparky said.
"Sparky!! Swift attack!"
"Pikachu!!"
Sparky jumped over Sandshrew and released some tiny stars from the tip of its tail. They hit Sandshrew and hurt it more.
I need to use stronger attacks, I realized.
"Fury Swipes attack!"
"Saaand…Shrew!"
"Sparky! Agility!!"
Sandshrew jumped at Sparky, but Sparky dashed out of the way just before Sandshrew had a chance to Swipe at it. Sandshrew crashed into the ground. It picked itself up to see Sparky doing circles around it, making it impossible to land a decent attack.
I can't believe I'm on the receiving end of this…
What attack could I use to even touch Sparky, let alone hurt it?
"Sparky! Quick Attack!"
Sparky broke out of its circle just long enough to dash attack Sandshrew, then it resumed its running mode.
I gritted my teeth. I needed to think of something…fast.
"…Ash!" someone said.
I turned around. Billie had stood up.
"You know all of Sandshrew's attacks, right?"
"Uh…Yeah, I think so," I said, "…Why?"
"…You do know that Swift never misses, right?"
Swift never misses? No, I didn't know that.
"Um…Of course I did! I was just…letting Richie get a little head start. He's gonna need it, you know."
"Well, you've already given him too much of a head start!" Misty retorted, "He's way ahead of you now! Poor Sandshrew's getting all beat up!"
I turned around. She was right. Sandshrew was visibly weakening. We needed to start our comeback. Right now.
"Sandshrew!! Swift attack!!" I shouted.
"Sand…Shrew!"
Sandshrew fired about a dozen tiny yellow stars that made Sparky slow down in its tracks. It wasn't enough to stop it though.
"Sparky! Quick Attack!"
Time for our next move.
"Sandshrew! Earthquake!!!"
"Piika!!"
Pikachu dashed into Sandshrew again, but this time, Sandshrew hardly even noticed. It was too busy digging its claws into the ground.
"Saaaannnd……" it murmured.
Suddenly, the ground around Sandshrew started trembling, and Sparky was knocked out of rhythm.
"Pi!…Ka!!" it cried.
There was a low rumbling sound, and Sparky fell to the floor. But Sandshrew's attack wasn't over yet. The earth shook more and more, and every time Sparky tried to get up, it was just knocked down again, and hurt some more.
Richie stared in horror.
"S…Sparky!…Try to counterattack!" he said.
Sparky tried, but to no avail. The match ended soon after.
"Pikachu has been eliminated! The victory goes to Ash and Sandshrew!!"
The crowd went absolutely wild. I guess they were sort of hoping for me to win. After all, the entire tournament had been put on hold because of me. It would have been really disappointing if they had gone through all that trouble just to have me lose this match.
I guess it was a good thing I didn't forfeit.
"Sand………Sandshrew!?"
'Whew………Huh!?'
I stared at Sandshrew. It had started to glow.
"…Sandshrew…" I whispered.
Sandshrew grew taller, and its back split into rows of hard, spiky quills. Its front claws became huge, tearing weapons. It blinked at me through big, black eyes.
"Sssand…slash!"
"……Sandshrew…you…I mean…You're a Sandslash now!"
"Ssand, slash!!"
I laughed. I always felt this surge of joy when one of my Pokémon evolved. It was pretty cool, really…Except for…um…Charmander…
"Sandslash! Return!" I said, and Sandslash went back into its Pokéball.
I grunted in surprise as Billie and Misty both tackle-hugged me at the same time. I was somehow able to break loose.
"Geez!" I said, "Are you guys nuts or something?"
"Ash, are you kidding? You just won the fifth round! There's only one more round left to becoming a Pokémon Master!" Misty exclaimed.
"Yeah…Well…"
I looked over my shoulder. Richie didn't look too good.
"…Sparky…return."
Sparky went back in its Pokéball. Richie stared at his feet for a long while.
Without a word, I left my other friends and walked up to him.
"…Richie?"
He jumped.
"Ash!…Hey…Congratulations, buddy."
"Thanks……You did a really great job."
"……Thank you."
"………I mean that! I was getting really worried when you had Sparky running all around Sandshrew……That's something I……" I trailed off.
…That's something I usually have Pikachu do…
"…That's something you…what?" he asked.
I blinked.
"That's……something…I think is a really smart move," I finished, "…If we didn't have to compete against each other…I'm sure you could have made it into the final round." I grinned nervously.
Please don't take that the wrong way…
He laughed, much to my relief. "You got that right, Ash! Then we'd both be Pokémon Masters!"
"Hey, I didn't win the last round yet," I reminded him.
He shrugged. "Yeah, but you're going to. I….just have a feeling."
"……You never know."
We smiled. It's really good to have good friends…I just wish I had all of them with me.