Pokémon - The Journey Begins
Chapter 21: Bugged Out
Matt, Lizzie, Squirtle and Jordan, who recently joined up with the two trainers again, were peddling on their way to Fuchsia gym. For Matt who had just won a badge against Erika in Celadon City and had a very intense battle with Arrmun; he felt ready to face the leader of Fuschia gym. After peddling for an hour, they decided to stop for a while to look for some Pokémon to add to their collection.
Matt spotted one in the bushes. "Hey, I found one! Hey! It's a bird Pokémon!" He opened the Pokédex and analyzed it.
"Farfetch'd. A bird Pokémon. The green onion it holds is its weapon. It is used much like a metal sword. However, fewer of these Pokémon are seen since they are now an endangered species," the Pokédex explained.
"Wow, this is the first time I've actually seen this type of Pokémon! Well, I'll just capture this and we'll be on our way. Pikachu, let's go!" Matt released Pikachu from its Pokéball. "Let's make this quick. Thundershock!"
Pikachu charged up its cheeks and launched forth electricity towards the bird Pokémon. The Farfetch'd managed to block most of it with the onion it was holding, but did take some heavy damage. It let out a squawk and struck Pikachu with its onion.
"This one isn't ready to quit. Pikachu, Quick Attack!" Matt commanded.
Pikachu regained its stamina and quickly launched forward, striking the Farfetch'd. Matt, with a Greatball in hand, tossed it at the Farfetch'd for a capture.
"All right, there's another one!" Matt yelled. The Greatball then transported itself back to Professor Oak's laboratory.
"Pika!" Pikachu replied in victory.
When Matt returned to their temporary resting spot, he found both Lizzie and Jordan returning from their Pokémon hunt as well. "Hey! What did you manage to get?" Matt asked.
"I managed to find some bug Pokémon!" Lizzie said. "I grabbed a Beedrill and a Kakuna."
"I only found Pokémon that I already have. Are you two interested in fishing for certain Pokémon?" Jordan asked.
"Yeah. But we don't have any fishing rods," Matt replied.
"Well, when we get into town, we should think about getting some," Lizzie replied, picking up her bike which was resting against the tree and hopping on. Matt and Jordan placed up the kick-stands from their bikes as they also hopped on.
"Okay, Zenigame is properly placed, let's go!" Matt started to peddle as everybody followed behind him.
"Oh...I still feel guilty," Lizzie began. "I mean, I was ready to fight her, but her claiming that her Pokémon alone wouldn't beat me just sounded like a way of getting out of it."
"Hey. If you're feeling so bad about it, why don't you face Fuchsia's leader first? And Jordan, how much further do we have to go?" Matt asked.
Jordan looked ahead. "We're almost there! We can slow down a little bit, because I remember there being a large hill that slopes down. But we'll have to go one at a time because it's rather steep but very narrow!"
"All right. I'll go first!" Lizzie said, peddling ahead of Jordan and Matt. "I'll know it when I see it..."
In just a few minutes, the long slope was revealed. Instead of slowing down, Lizzie decided to increase the speed of her peddling as she zoomed down the hill at an incredible speed and slamming her hands on the brakes near the bottom as she stopped, nearly crashing into the gym's walls.
At the top of the hill both Matt and Jordan slowed down and looked at Lizzie, who was just getting off her bike. "Lizzie, are you insane?! At the speed you were going, slamming your brakes you would have flown completely off your bike had it been a little steeper! That wasn't very smart," Jordan said.
"You guys are a bunch of wusses! Now hurry up, I'm getting lonely down here."
Matt rolled his eyes as he slowly descended down the hill and met up with Lizzie. Jordan was next to go as he easily came to a stop. Everybody set their kick-stands as the bikes would stand on their own, yet they leaned them against the building in case they fell.
Lizzie looked around. "Is THIS all that Fuchsia is? A gym? I don't see a town here!"
Matt pulled out his map and looked. "Fuchsia...Fuchsia, ah! Found it! Yeah, there's supposed to be a city here, but the gym is actually on the outskirs, which is where we are now. I'm not sure, should we face the leader right away, or make a pitstop at the Pokémon Center to drop off our bikes?"
"I don't think anybody would want to steal bikes like these. Let's just go inside..." Jordan said, starting to move ahead.
"Hey, if we lose these bikes, we'll have to walk constantly, come on! We'll take them with us," Lizzie suggested.
"Hmm..." Matt looked around the corner before returning. He noticed that the gym looked like a classic dojo; thin wooden walls, with monuments, and a decorative roof. "Where's the entrance to this place?"
Lizzie looked around the corner and pointed. "It's this way. Let's go." Lizzie walked towards the entrance as Jordan followed. Matt picked up Squirtle and followed Jordan into the building.
As they entered, they saw an empty room with very few windows. After looking around a little bit, Matt got confused. "There's nobody here. Perhaps the gym leader's out to lunch or something?" Matt asked.
"Now I remember!" Jordan yelled. "I remember that one of these gyms has hidden rooms and invisible walls. I think this is it. Why else would it look so huge, outside?"
Matt pushed a small part of the wall as it turned. "Guys! I found a secret room!"
Everyone ran to him. Matt began to walk forward. There was then a loud bang as he jumped back and grabbed his nose.
"OUCH! Damn it, that hurt!" Matt rubbed his nose.
"Didn't I tell you to watch out for invisible walls?!" Jordan exclaimed.
"Shut up, shut up! By speaking that quickly and with that tone of voice, ANYBODY is entitled to forget!" Matt stopped rubbing.
"God, you're acting like such a baby! Is there any way around this wall?" Lizzie asked.
Matt put out his hands and slid along the wall. "No, unless there's another secret door around here, we won't be able to go anywhere."
Jordan started to push a wall. "I found another one!" He pushed it down as they were all hit with a beam of sunlight.
Lizzie shielded her eyes. "Ack! What's that?!"
Matt took a peek. "It's a trap! Nobody move!"
As everybody let their eyes settle to the light, they all got a good look around them. What was ahead of them was a great view above the rest of the forest, and all of Fuchsia City. However, one step down would lead to one's death; as it was a straight drop.
"A cliff?! Here?!" Lizzie jumped back, leaning against the opposite wall.
"Is this guy insane?! People could get killed! It frightens me to think about how many have actually fallen off here!" Jordan shouted, taking a few steps back.
"Okay, now we know where NOT to press for secret entrances," Matt said. He then looked to make sure that Squirtle was nearby. He was right by his feet, as he was the entire time they've been inside the gym.
Matt, Jordan and Lizzie continued to look around the dojo, which now received a little bit of lighting with the wall leading to a drop being pushed away. They searched everywhere that they could, trying to avoid the wall which Jordan searched.
Lizzie tapped a wall. "Hmm, this one seems loose..." she started to bang on it with her shoulder a couple of times, when finally, the wall collapsed, and Lizzie falling with it.
"Lizzie!" Matt attempted to grab Lizzie just before she fell, however he missed. "Are you all right?"
Lizzie pulled herself to her feet and dusted herself off. "Phew! Yeah, thanks!" She smiled.
"Good job!" Jordan said as he walked forward slowly into the large room which was just recently opened.
"Another large room?" Matt asked, somewhat perplexed.
"Careful!" Jordan yelled. "There could be invisible walls or trap doors here!"
The trio began to walk slowly through the room, extending their arms to prevent from banging into invisible walls. Strangely enough, there were none.
"None. Well, that's kinda what I was expecting..." Lizzie said. "It seems to me like this itself could be the battlefield, unless I'm mistaken."
"Keep checking the walls for other rooms," Jordan said, as Matt and Lizzie spread out. "If this certainly was the battlefield, the gym leader would have been here, without a doubt."
Matt moved to one corner of the room, which had a layout exactly the same as the other rooms. He tapped on the walls gently, until suddenly, a wall collapsed right in front of him, along with a huge, round ball which looked similar to an extremely large Pokéball. It had two very big, very mischievous-looking eyes.
"Vol-torb..." the Pokémon screeched.
"GEEZ!" Matt jumped back, completely surprised and startled by the sudden entrance of the Pokémon. His landing was rough, he lost balance and landed roughly on the wooden floor. "What the...what the hell is that thing?!"
"Matt! Careful! That's a Voltorb; they can explode!" Jordan yelled.
"WHAT?!" Matt jumped to his feet and began to run towards the entrance of the room. The Voltorb followed him, which caused Matt to panick. "Somebody stop this thing! It's following me!"
"If it's wild, you can catch it! Use your Pokédex!" Lizzie yelled.
Matt turned around, backing away from the Voltorb as he took out his Pokédex and pointed it at it.
"Voltorb, an electric Pokémon. These Pokémon are usually found in power plants. They are also often mistaken for a Pokéball, therefore, they have injured many people," the Pokédex explained. Matt pressed some buttons, trying to find its original trainer. "Original Trainer, Koga."
"How in the hell could you confuse something that big for a Pokéball?" Jordan asked. "I tell you, some of the information they put on that Pokédex is weird."
"Koga? Is this the gym's leader?" Matt asked, continuously backing away. He was then backed into a corner, with the Voltorb continuing to approach him, starting to release some sparks from its circular body. "Get away! Damn it, can one of you help me here?!"
"Articuno, go!" Lizzie released Articuno. "Ice Beam attack!" she yelled.
Articuno charged a freezing energy blast within its beak, then launched its head forward, stricking the Voltorb perfectly. There was a slight bang, as Matt shielded his eyes. When he removed them, the Voltob was completely sealed in a large block of ice.
Matt then let out a deep sigh and fell, with his back leaning against the wall, on the floor, taking deep breaths. "That was scary...." He then pulled himself up. "Thanks, Lizzie."
"Hey, we're even now..." Lizzie called back Articuno back inside his Pokéball.
"Even? You mean you would have let me suffer on my own?"
"No, I would have done it anyways! Sheesh, have a little faith in me!"
"Are you two together yet?" Jordan teased, laughing. Matt and Lizzie both suddenly started to blush. He laughed again. "Heh, I guess leaving you two on your own was the best idea I've ever had!"
"We got separated, you idiot!" Matt shouted. "You didn't plan this, or are you saying you're part of Team Rocket?"
"Whoa! Whoa! Slow down! Can't I tease?"
"Oh...so we DO have company..." a deep voice echoed from somewhere. Everybody looked around, but nobody could find the source of the voice. "Wow, you're the first group to find this room so quickly in a long time. Another one was several years ago, who used to be a member of the Elite Four. I don't know where he is now."
"Must I get mentioned wherever I go?" Jordan muttered.
"Not you," the voice replied, suddenly entering the room. He was dressed in a long, blue gi, with gloves which left his fingers and open palms bare. A small red scarf covered his neck. His face was stern, with cold, black eyes. His hair was tall, spiky and black. "I'm talking about Lilaine. She is one level higher than you, is she not?" he asked.
Jordan turned red suddenly and grew angry. "Do not speak of that name in my presence. Please, this is all I ask. I wish to hear nothing more from that cheater."
"Sour grapes?" Koga asked, in a mocking tone. "Regardless, I assume that you three came because some of you wished to challenge me. Which one of you will be first?"
Matt whipped out a Pokéball. "Me--" he then stopped. "No wait...I promised that Lizzie could go first!"
"No, I'll go next, don't worry about it," Lizzie replied.
"Are you sure?" Matt asked.
"Yeah. You seem all ready to fight him; look at you, you're all pumped, you're ready, and anxious to get it over with. You're always the one who wants to jump into battle right away."
"Uh..." was all that could come out of Matt's mouth. He wasn't sure whether to be flattered by that remark, or insulted. He continued to stare at Lizzie, almost waiting for some kind of explanation.
"Just go, already."
"Very well. This will be a two on two match. We'll make it nice and quick. Let's start out with...Venonat!" Koga released his Pokéball., suddenly a small, dark, bushy Pokémon with two big red bug-eyes and small antennae appeared onto the battlefield.
"A bug Pokémon, eh? Bugs hate fire." Matt pulled out a Pokéball from his belt and enlarged it, throwing it onto the battlefield. "Charmeleon, you seem to be getting a lot of battle experience lately, so this shouldn't be too tough for you. Let's go!"
Both Pokémon stared at each other on the battlefield. Charmeleon was pleased; it never had this many opportunities to battle previously.
"Fire Pokémon; how predictable. Venonat! Confusion!"
"Charmeleon! Careful!" Matt yelled out.
The Venonat bounced around, and released very bizarre waves around Charmeleon. It wasn't certain how to react, so it took the attack head on. When the attack was finished, its mind was altered, and it became baffled.
"This is bad. Charmeleon, try a Flamethrower!" Matt asked.
Charmeleon spun around several times and began firing random streams of fire; none of them even close to striking distance of its opponent. The Venonat then saw an opportunity to strike, and clung itself onto Charmeleon's back, sinking its teeth deep into it. It absorbed the remainder of its energy, as Charmeleon collapsed hard onto the gym floor, and was not moving.
"Damn it. Charmeleon was my best chance. Whatever, return!" Charmeleon was called back inside its Pokémon. "It looks like I'll have to try another Pokémon. Let's go, Zenigame!"
"Squirtle!" Squirtle jumped into the battlefield.
"Zenigame, Water Gun!" Matt commanded.
Squirtle fired a stream of water, which struck the Venonat, irritating it slightly, however doing no other major damage.
"Venonat, Stun Spore!"
"Zenigame! jump into your shell!"
Venonat jumped around, sending forth some strange, purple-coloured powder. Matt's quick reaction allowed Squirtle to jump and hide from inside its shell. It avoided the attack this way, and remained safe for the time being.
"Ha! Zenigame, Skull Bash!" Matt commanded.
Squirtle popped out of his shell and launched itself forward from the gym floor. Its hard head connected directly with the Venonat, sending it tumbling and crashing hard into the gym floor. It was not moving.
"Good job." Koga called back his Pokémon and took out another Pokéball. "Voltorb, go!" He released the Pokéball from his hand as Voltorb appeared.
"Oh, God, this can't be good," Matt muttered. "If...if I call back Zenigame, I'll lose. But,if Zenigame gets struck by the Pokémon blowing itself up, the match will be called a draw. I don't want to risk that, but what am I going to do?"
TO BE CONTINUED.
Chapter 21: Bugged Out
Matt, Lizzie, Squirtle and Jordan, who recently joined up with the two trainers again, were peddling on their way to Fuchsia gym. For Matt who had just won a badge against Erika in Celadon City and had a very intense battle with Arrmun; he felt ready to face the leader of Fuschia gym. After peddling for an hour, they decided to stop for a while to look for some Pokémon to add to their collection.
Matt spotted one in the bushes. "Hey, I found one! Hey! It's a bird Pokémon!" He opened the Pokédex and analyzed it.
"Farfetch'd. A bird Pokémon. The green onion it holds is its weapon. It is used much like a metal sword. However, fewer of these Pokémon are seen since they are now an endangered species," the Pokédex explained.
"Wow, this is the first time I've actually seen this type of Pokémon! Well, I'll just capture this and we'll be on our way. Pikachu, let's go!" Matt released Pikachu from its Pokéball. "Let's make this quick. Thundershock!"
Pikachu charged up its cheeks and launched forth electricity towards the bird Pokémon. The Farfetch'd managed to block most of it with the onion it was holding, but did take some heavy damage. It let out a squawk and struck Pikachu with its onion.
"This one isn't ready to quit. Pikachu, Quick Attack!" Matt commanded.
Pikachu regained its stamina and quickly launched forward, striking the Farfetch'd. Matt, with a Greatball in hand, tossed it at the Farfetch'd for a capture.
"All right, there's another one!" Matt yelled. The Greatball then transported itself back to Professor Oak's laboratory.
"Pika!" Pikachu replied in victory.
When Matt returned to their temporary resting spot, he found both Lizzie and Jordan returning from their Pokémon hunt as well. "Hey! What did you manage to get?" Matt asked.
"I managed to find some bug Pokémon!" Lizzie said. "I grabbed a Beedrill and a Kakuna."
"I only found Pokémon that I already have. Are you two interested in fishing for certain Pokémon?" Jordan asked.
"Yeah. But we don't have any fishing rods," Matt replied.
"Well, when we get into town, we should think about getting some," Lizzie replied, picking up her bike which was resting against the tree and hopping on. Matt and Jordan placed up the kick-stands from their bikes as they also hopped on.
"Okay, Zenigame is properly placed, let's go!" Matt started to peddle as everybody followed behind him.
"Oh...I still feel guilty," Lizzie began. "I mean, I was ready to fight her, but her claiming that her Pokémon alone wouldn't beat me just sounded like a way of getting out of it."
"Hey. If you're feeling so bad about it, why don't you face Fuchsia's leader first? And Jordan, how much further do we have to go?" Matt asked.
Jordan looked ahead. "We're almost there! We can slow down a little bit, because I remember there being a large hill that slopes down. But we'll have to go one at a time because it's rather steep but very narrow!"
"All right. I'll go first!" Lizzie said, peddling ahead of Jordan and Matt. "I'll know it when I see it..."
In just a few minutes, the long slope was revealed. Instead of slowing down, Lizzie decided to increase the speed of her peddling as she zoomed down the hill at an incredible speed and slamming her hands on the brakes near the bottom as she stopped, nearly crashing into the gym's walls.
At the top of the hill both Matt and Jordan slowed down and looked at Lizzie, who was just getting off her bike. "Lizzie, are you insane?! At the speed you were going, slamming your brakes you would have flown completely off your bike had it been a little steeper! That wasn't very smart," Jordan said.
"You guys are a bunch of wusses! Now hurry up, I'm getting lonely down here."
Matt rolled his eyes as he slowly descended down the hill and met up with Lizzie. Jordan was next to go as he easily came to a stop. Everybody set their kick-stands as the bikes would stand on their own, yet they leaned them against the building in case they fell.
Lizzie looked around. "Is THIS all that Fuchsia is? A gym? I don't see a town here!"
Matt pulled out his map and looked. "Fuchsia...Fuchsia, ah! Found it! Yeah, there's supposed to be a city here, but the gym is actually on the outskirs, which is where we are now. I'm not sure, should we face the leader right away, or make a pitstop at the Pokémon Center to drop off our bikes?"
"I don't think anybody would want to steal bikes like these. Let's just go inside..." Jordan said, starting to move ahead.
"Hey, if we lose these bikes, we'll have to walk constantly, come on! We'll take them with us," Lizzie suggested.
"Hmm..." Matt looked around the corner before returning. He noticed that the gym looked like a classic dojo; thin wooden walls, with monuments, and a decorative roof. "Where's the entrance to this place?"
Lizzie looked around the corner and pointed. "It's this way. Let's go." Lizzie walked towards the entrance as Jordan followed. Matt picked up Squirtle and followed Jordan into the building.
As they entered, they saw an empty room with very few windows. After looking around a little bit, Matt got confused. "There's nobody here. Perhaps the gym leader's out to lunch or something?" Matt asked.
"Now I remember!" Jordan yelled. "I remember that one of these gyms has hidden rooms and invisible walls. I think this is it. Why else would it look so huge, outside?"
Matt pushed a small part of the wall as it turned. "Guys! I found a secret room!"
Everyone ran to him. Matt began to walk forward. There was then a loud bang as he jumped back and grabbed his nose.
"OUCH! Damn it, that hurt!" Matt rubbed his nose.
"Didn't I tell you to watch out for invisible walls?!" Jordan exclaimed.
"Shut up, shut up! By speaking that quickly and with that tone of voice, ANYBODY is entitled to forget!" Matt stopped rubbing.
"God, you're acting like such a baby! Is there any way around this wall?" Lizzie asked.
Matt put out his hands and slid along the wall. "No, unless there's another secret door around here, we won't be able to go anywhere."
Jordan started to push a wall. "I found another one!" He pushed it down as they were all hit with a beam of sunlight.
Lizzie shielded her eyes. "Ack! What's that?!"
Matt took a peek. "It's a trap! Nobody move!"
As everybody let their eyes settle to the light, they all got a good look around them. What was ahead of them was a great view above the rest of the forest, and all of Fuchsia City. However, one step down would lead to one's death; as it was a straight drop.
"A cliff?! Here?!" Lizzie jumped back, leaning against the opposite wall.
"Is this guy insane?! People could get killed! It frightens me to think about how many have actually fallen off here!" Jordan shouted, taking a few steps back.
"Okay, now we know where NOT to press for secret entrances," Matt said. He then looked to make sure that Squirtle was nearby. He was right by his feet, as he was the entire time they've been inside the gym.
Matt, Jordan and Lizzie continued to look around the dojo, which now received a little bit of lighting with the wall leading to a drop being pushed away. They searched everywhere that they could, trying to avoid the wall which Jordan searched.
Lizzie tapped a wall. "Hmm, this one seems loose..." she started to bang on it with her shoulder a couple of times, when finally, the wall collapsed, and Lizzie falling with it.
"Lizzie!" Matt attempted to grab Lizzie just before she fell, however he missed. "Are you all right?"
Lizzie pulled herself to her feet and dusted herself off. "Phew! Yeah, thanks!" She smiled.
"Good job!" Jordan said as he walked forward slowly into the large room which was just recently opened.
"Another large room?" Matt asked, somewhat perplexed.
"Careful!" Jordan yelled. "There could be invisible walls or trap doors here!"
The trio began to walk slowly through the room, extending their arms to prevent from banging into invisible walls. Strangely enough, there were none.
"None. Well, that's kinda what I was expecting..." Lizzie said. "It seems to me like this itself could be the battlefield, unless I'm mistaken."
"Keep checking the walls for other rooms," Jordan said, as Matt and Lizzie spread out. "If this certainly was the battlefield, the gym leader would have been here, without a doubt."
Matt moved to one corner of the room, which had a layout exactly the same as the other rooms. He tapped on the walls gently, until suddenly, a wall collapsed right in front of him, along with a huge, round ball which looked similar to an extremely large Pokéball. It had two very big, very mischievous-looking eyes.
"Vol-torb..." the Pokémon screeched.
"GEEZ!" Matt jumped back, completely surprised and startled by the sudden entrance of the Pokémon. His landing was rough, he lost balance and landed roughly on the wooden floor. "What the...what the hell is that thing?!"
"Matt! Careful! That's a Voltorb; they can explode!" Jordan yelled.
"WHAT?!" Matt jumped to his feet and began to run towards the entrance of the room. The Voltorb followed him, which caused Matt to panick. "Somebody stop this thing! It's following me!"
"If it's wild, you can catch it! Use your Pokédex!" Lizzie yelled.
Matt turned around, backing away from the Voltorb as he took out his Pokédex and pointed it at it.
"Voltorb, an electric Pokémon. These Pokémon are usually found in power plants. They are also often mistaken for a Pokéball, therefore, they have injured many people," the Pokédex explained. Matt pressed some buttons, trying to find its original trainer. "Original Trainer, Koga."
"How in the hell could you confuse something that big for a Pokéball?" Jordan asked. "I tell you, some of the information they put on that Pokédex is weird."
"Koga? Is this the gym's leader?" Matt asked, continuously backing away. He was then backed into a corner, with the Voltorb continuing to approach him, starting to release some sparks from its circular body. "Get away! Damn it, can one of you help me here?!"
"Articuno, go!" Lizzie released Articuno. "Ice Beam attack!" she yelled.
Articuno charged a freezing energy blast within its beak, then launched its head forward, stricking the Voltorb perfectly. There was a slight bang, as Matt shielded his eyes. When he removed them, the Voltob was completely sealed in a large block of ice.
Matt then let out a deep sigh and fell, with his back leaning against the wall, on the floor, taking deep breaths. "That was scary...." He then pulled himself up. "Thanks, Lizzie."
"Hey, we're even now..." Lizzie called back Articuno back inside his Pokéball.
"Even? You mean you would have let me suffer on my own?"
"No, I would have done it anyways! Sheesh, have a little faith in me!"
"Are you two together yet?" Jordan teased, laughing. Matt and Lizzie both suddenly started to blush. He laughed again. "Heh, I guess leaving you two on your own was the best idea I've ever had!"
"We got separated, you idiot!" Matt shouted. "You didn't plan this, or are you saying you're part of Team Rocket?"
"Whoa! Whoa! Slow down! Can't I tease?"
"Oh...so we DO have company..." a deep voice echoed from somewhere. Everybody looked around, but nobody could find the source of the voice. "Wow, you're the first group to find this room so quickly in a long time. Another one was several years ago, who used to be a member of the Elite Four. I don't know where he is now."
"Must I get mentioned wherever I go?" Jordan muttered.
"Not you," the voice replied, suddenly entering the room. He was dressed in a long, blue gi, with gloves which left his fingers and open palms bare. A small red scarf covered his neck. His face was stern, with cold, black eyes. His hair was tall, spiky and black. "I'm talking about Lilaine. She is one level higher than you, is she not?" he asked.
Jordan turned red suddenly and grew angry. "Do not speak of that name in my presence. Please, this is all I ask. I wish to hear nothing more from that cheater."
"Sour grapes?" Koga asked, in a mocking tone. "Regardless, I assume that you three came because some of you wished to challenge me. Which one of you will be first?"
Matt whipped out a Pokéball. "Me--" he then stopped. "No wait...I promised that Lizzie could go first!"
"No, I'll go next, don't worry about it," Lizzie replied.
"Are you sure?" Matt asked.
"Yeah. You seem all ready to fight him; look at you, you're all pumped, you're ready, and anxious to get it over with. You're always the one who wants to jump into battle right away."
"Uh..." was all that could come out of Matt's mouth. He wasn't sure whether to be flattered by that remark, or insulted. He continued to stare at Lizzie, almost waiting for some kind of explanation.
"Just go, already."
"Very well. This will be a two on two match. We'll make it nice and quick. Let's start out with...Venonat!" Koga released his Pokéball., suddenly a small, dark, bushy Pokémon with two big red bug-eyes and small antennae appeared onto the battlefield.
"A bug Pokémon, eh? Bugs hate fire." Matt pulled out a Pokéball from his belt and enlarged it, throwing it onto the battlefield. "Charmeleon, you seem to be getting a lot of battle experience lately, so this shouldn't be too tough for you. Let's go!"
Both Pokémon stared at each other on the battlefield. Charmeleon was pleased; it never had this many opportunities to battle previously.
"Fire Pokémon; how predictable. Venonat! Confusion!"
"Charmeleon! Careful!" Matt yelled out.
The Venonat bounced around, and released very bizarre waves around Charmeleon. It wasn't certain how to react, so it took the attack head on. When the attack was finished, its mind was altered, and it became baffled.
"This is bad. Charmeleon, try a Flamethrower!" Matt asked.
Charmeleon spun around several times and began firing random streams of fire; none of them even close to striking distance of its opponent. The Venonat then saw an opportunity to strike, and clung itself onto Charmeleon's back, sinking its teeth deep into it. It absorbed the remainder of its energy, as Charmeleon collapsed hard onto the gym floor, and was not moving.
"Damn it. Charmeleon was my best chance. Whatever, return!" Charmeleon was called back inside its Pokémon. "It looks like I'll have to try another Pokémon. Let's go, Zenigame!"
"Squirtle!" Squirtle jumped into the battlefield.
"Zenigame, Water Gun!" Matt commanded.
Squirtle fired a stream of water, which struck the Venonat, irritating it slightly, however doing no other major damage.
"Venonat, Stun Spore!"
"Zenigame! jump into your shell!"
Venonat jumped around, sending forth some strange, purple-coloured powder. Matt's quick reaction allowed Squirtle to jump and hide from inside its shell. It avoided the attack this way, and remained safe for the time being.
"Ha! Zenigame, Skull Bash!" Matt commanded.
Squirtle popped out of his shell and launched itself forward from the gym floor. Its hard head connected directly with the Venonat, sending it tumbling and crashing hard into the gym floor. It was not moving.
"Good job." Koga called back his Pokémon and took out another Pokéball. "Voltorb, go!" He released the Pokéball from his hand as Voltorb appeared.
"Oh, God, this can't be good," Matt muttered. "If...if I call back Zenigame, I'll lose. But,if Zenigame gets struck by the Pokémon blowing itself up, the match will be called a draw. I don't want to risk that, but what am I going to do?"
TO BE CONTINUED.
