Chapter 9
Standing on Lilycove beach, Setijin and Winona stood facing each other from a distance, both in a prone position, waiting for the encounter to begin. The sand was damp from the spray of the sea, the gentle winds from far off the coast forcing waves up onto the shore, or into the hundreds of rocks lining the cove. The sun still beat down on them, steadily dropping towards the horizon, preparing to rest for the night. Lucia stood back ready to referee.
"So how are we going to do this then?" Winona shouted to Setijin.
"Lets say three pokémon each, one after the other," he replied. Winona agreed, and Lucia began.
"This is an official pokémon league fight. You shall abide by the rules set and maintained by the pokémon league. Should Winona be the winner, she shall be awarded extra points for her Gym Leaders license, as per the rules of the pokémon league, however, should Setijin be the winner, he shall be awarded a Gym badge, as per the gym rules of the pokémon league. The match is a 3 vs. 3 fight, each trainer using but one pokémon at a time. On my mark, let the battle commence," Lucia reported. A small crowd of young trainers and locals had started to form behind her up on the cliffs. The wind began to pick up, wafting Lucia's long brown hair in the wind. Winona's purple ponytail was caught in the draft too, as was Setijin's long, light brown tuft of hair at the front, lifted by gel. Lucia lifted her arm in the air, and boomed, "Fight!"
Winona slung her first pokéball forward, releasing her Swellow. Setijin followed by unleashing his new Eevee. Winona grinned at the sight of his new pokémon.
"Been busy while we were shopping I see," she chuckled. Setijin stiffly nodded, before calling his Eevee to order.
"Eevee, use agility!" he yelled. The Eevee barked its name, as it blurred forwards, slipping in and out of vision, shooting around the large expanse of the beach.
"Swellow, use air cutter," Winona ordered, the bird pokémon lifting off of the ground using long slow beats of its large wings, and flew forward at top speed, slicing the air behind it. As it flew over Setijin, flicking sand up into the air, it decelerated and turned back to the battlefield. The Eevee was nowhere to be seen.
"Eevee, now use double edge!" Setijin called, Swellow looking up above it as the Eevee charged downwards, with both its forepaws outstretched, glowing with energy. The blow forced the Swellow down into the sand, knocking it unconscious, Eevee out cold itself, from the recoil of the attack. Both trainers returned their pokémon, and prepared for the next round of battle.
"Go Pelipper!" Winona said as she entered her second pokémon into battle. Setijin hurled a ball into water, and out shot Gyarados. Winona looked gob smacked as the legendary beast of the seas roared mightily. It curved its neck and dropped its head to Pelippers level. Pelipper sat frozen with fear. "Don't be afraid! Wing attack it!" she cried, as Gyarados lunged forward, aiming to take a bite out of the sea bird. It leapt backwards and simply fainted, collapsing into a small sand dune. Winona sighed as she recalled it and contemplated her next move.
"Great work Gyarados!" Setijin cheered, as Winona released her third and final pokémon.
"Graveler," it growled.
"Huh? Ground's weak against water...why has she..." Setijin pondered, as Graveler leapt into the air, and pulled its fist back, gathering energy from the air, before thrusting forwards and blasting Gyarados back with a Dynamic punch, the force of the attack exploding upon impact, hurling the beast back into the water.
"Nice work Graveler!" Winona congratulated, stopping as Gyarados emerged from the water and prepared for attack once again.
"Hang in there!" Setijin shouted. "Now Hydro pump it!" Gyarados reared its head, but in a state of confusion, simply roared at the top of its lungs, Graveler cowering back on the floor from the planned attack. As the roar peaked, then faded out, it opened its eyes, then rolled over to the rock formation at the end of the beach. Digging his large fingers in, it heaved the largest rock out from its bed in the sand, and hurled it directly at Gyarados, the blow crushing its face, pummeling it, and sending it falling backwards into the water once again, like a crumbling tower. This time Gyarados did not get up, forcing Setijin to return and release his final pokémon.
"This is one cool match!" a young trainer exclaimed to his friend standing next to him, in the crowd formed on the cliff.
"Who do you think will win?" the second boy replied.
"Winona of course!" he cried. "She's a gym leader, dummy!"
"But that other guys real good. He has cool pokémon too!"
"Yeah, but he'll never be able to beat us, right?"
"Right!"
"Quiet please!" The boys were silenced by an older trainer, with a red and black league jacket on, a black bandana, and white spiky hair, partially slicked to one side. His long black trousers had yellow bases, and his trainers had grown brown with wear and tear. "This is an interesting match. It'd be a shame if you missed the rest of it while chatting." The boys nodded and pushed their way to the front of the audience to observe the closing round of the fight.
"Medicham, cham..." he growled. Setijin and Medicham watched as Graveler charged forwards, preparing to punch once more. Medicham stood perfectly still as the rock pokémon came progressively closer.
"You know what to do, right Medicham!" Setijin asked, still standing way back from the action. Medicham slowly nodded, and waited, as the Graveler was right on top of him. It hopped into the air, its fist swinging towards Medicham at top speed, Medicham slinging forward his own hand, clasping Gravlers in his palm, and nullified the assault, all without flinching or moving from the spot, the magnitude of the attack propelling the sand around them back. Effortlessly, he pushed Graveler back into the air, and jumped forward, throwing a punch of his own. His fist connected with Gravelers rock solid body, and exploded in a flurry of ice, smashing him backwards and down into the floor. It fell out consciousness without a struggle, and Lucia announced Setijin as the winner.
"Wahoo! My first victory!" he screamed, Medicham turning to all of the applauding spectators and waving at them as fast as his spindly arms could move. Winona recalled her Graveler and walked up to Setijin, clapping herself.
"That was a great battle. You have a lot of strength in you and your pokémon. I am too happy to give this to you. She folds out Setijin's palm, and gently placed a Feather badge in it, along with a small Technical Machine, with a tiny number 40 imprinted on the face.
"Thanks Winona," he beamed, pocketing the TM and the badge. Lucia approached the pair, to join in the congratulations.
"So an Eevee and a Gyarados in 15 minutes. That's pretty incredible!" she said. Setijin nodded.
"Just an incredible stroke of luck!" he replied bashfully. "Still, I won my first battle! And I got a badge!" Winona rested her arm on his shoulder.
"I really look forward to battling your squad again once they're at full power!" she chuckled as they made their way across the sands and back up the steps into town. "Well, its almost nightfall, so I suggest finding somewhere to spend the night." A man stepped forward to talk to them.
"You need a place to stay? Well why not come with me? I run the hotel in town, just there, overlooking the sea," he explained. "For an entertaining spectacle such as that, I'll let you stay for $100 each!" Setijin, Winona and Lucia glanced at each other successively before unanimously accepting his offer. Setijin and Lucia followed the man, as Winona was beckoned back to the beach, by the young trainer in the pokémon league gear. The other two continued into the hotel.
Lucia leant back on her bed, against the wall, watching the small TV resting on the table in the corner of the room. The walls were papered with a warm yellow hue, and the two beds, both sat next to each other, we covered in a thick, furry terracotta quilt, and the pillows snow white and stacked on top of each other. A small bedside table placed between the beds, with an old fashioned alarm clock placed directly in the center, on top of an elaborately frilly doily laid underneath. As Lucia continued to flick through the almost endless selection of channels, Setijin burst into the room.
"Get a load of this new gear!" he exclaimed, posing to display his new clothes. He was still in his now slightly scruffy dark green jeans, but was now dressed in a red bomber jacket, a black shirt underneath, with a small pokéball emblazoned on it in the bottom left hand corner of it. His brown hair was still slicked forward, the front now resting on a thin black bandana with red trim.
"Not bad!" Lucia commented. "You've got a bit of 'new age trainer in there. Love the bomber jacket too!"
"Yeah, that dragged me in over to it in the shop too..." he replied, opening the right hand side of it, where his shiny new feather badge was proudly pinned onto the outside of the small pocket. "I finally have a belt for my pokéballs and stuff," he said, lifting up the bottom of his shirt to reveal it. As he finished modeling his new outfit and sat down on the bed next to Lucia to watch television, Winona walked in, with a solemn look on her face.
"I'm afraid this is where I get off guys..." she sighed. Lucia and Setijin looked thoroughly shocked.
"But what about that guy and all those pokémon?" Setijin spluttered.
"If you were planning on leaving so early, then why did do invite me along?" Lucia inquired. Winona looked down at the ground.
"I'm sorry, but trust me. It's for the best." She bid them farewell and left the room, and by the time Setijin and Lucia decided to follow, she was nowhere to be found outside.
"Well, it's just you and me now," Setijin said to Lucia.
"Yup...well, even though she's gone, I suppose we can't quit now. Tomorrow, we get across that see and get to Mossdeep Island!" Setijin nodded.
"We'd better make the most of this night," he began. "Out of curiosity, how do you suggest we actually get across the sea? No boats run from here to there, and now Winona and her birds are gone..."
"..."
"I guess this will be something to worry about in the morning," he finished, leading the way back into the hotel, the sun setting on the city of Lilycove, the serene waves crackling up the sheets of pebbles lining the beach, the deep orange sun making way for the moon, basking the earth in a awe inspiring red glow, the only person still outside in the form of the mysterious league trainer...
Standing on Lilycove beach, Setijin and Winona stood facing each other from a distance, both in a prone position, waiting for the encounter to begin. The sand was damp from the spray of the sea, the gentle winds from far off the coast forcing waves up onto the shore, or into the hundreds of rocks lining the cove. The sun still beat down on them, steadily dropping towards the horizon, preparing to rest for the night. Lucia stood back ready to referee.
"So how are we going to do this then?" Winona shouted to Setijin.
"Lets say three pokémon each, one after the other," he replied. Winona agreed, and Lucia began.
"This is an official pokémon league fight. You shall abide by the rules set and maintained by the pokémon league. Should Winona be the winner, she shall be awarded extra points for her Gym Leaders license, as per the rules of the pokémon league, however, should Setijin be the winner, he shall be awarded a Gym badge, as per the gym rules of the pokémon league. The match is a 3 vs. 3 fight, each trainer using but one pokémon at a time. On my mark, let the battle commence," Lucia reported. A small crowd of young trainers and locals had started to form behind her up on the cliffs. The wind began to pick up, wafting Lucia's long brown hair in the wind. Winona's purple ponytail was caught in the draft too, as was Setijin's long, light brown tuft of hair at the front, lifted by gel. Lucia lifted her arm in the air, and boomed, "Fight!"
Winona slung her first pokéball forward, releasing her Swellow. Setijin followed by unleashing his new Eevee. Winona grinned at the sight of his new pokémon.
"Been busy while we were shopping I see," she chuckled. Setijin stiffly nodded, before calling his Eevee to order.
"Eevee, use agility!" he yelled. The Eevee barked its name, as it blurred forwards, slipping in and out of vision, shooting around the large expanse of the beach.
"Swellow, use air cutter," Winona ordered, the bird pokémon lifting off of the ground using long slow beats of its large wings, and flew forward at top speed, slicing the air behind it. As it flew over Setijin, flicking sand up into the air, it decelerated and turned back to the battlefield. The Eevee was nowhere to be seen.
"Eevee, now use double edge!" Setijin called, Swellow looking up above it as the Eevee charged downwards, with both its forepaws outstretched, glowing with energy. The blow forced the Swellow down into the sand, knocking it unconscious, Eevee out cold itself, from the recoil of the attack. Both trainers returned their pokémon, and prepared for the next round of battle.
"Go Pelipper!" Winona said as she entered her second pokémon into battle. Setijin hurled a ball into water, and out shot Gyarados. Winona looked gob smacked as the legendary beast of the seas roared mightily. It curved its neck and dropped its head to Pelippers level. Pelipper sat frozen with fear. "Don't be afraid! Wing attack it!" she cried, as Gyarados lunged forward, aiming to take a bite out of the sea bird. It leapt backwards and simply fainted, collapsing into a small sand dune. Winona sighed as she recalled it and contemplated her next move.
"Great work Gyarados!" Setijin cheered, as Winona released her third and final pokémon.
"Graveler," it growled.
"Huh? Ground's weak against water...why has she..." Setijin pondered, as Graveler leapt into the air, and pulled its fist back, gathering energy from the air, before thrusting forwards and blasting Gyarados back with a Dynamic punch, the force of the attack exploding upon impact, hurling the beast back into the water.
"Nice work Graveler!" Winona congratulated, stopping as Gyarados emerged from the water and prepared for attack once again.
"Hang in there!" Setijin shouted. "Now Hydro pump it!" Gyarados reared its head, but in a state of confusion, simply roared at the top of its lungs, Graveler cowering back on the floor from the planned attack. As the roar peaked, then faded out, it opened its eyes, then rolled over to the rock formation at the end of the beach. Digging his large fingers in, it heaved the largest rock out from its bed in the sand, and hurled it directly at Gyarados, the blow crushing its face, pummeling it, and sending it falling backwards into the water once again, like a crumbling tower. This time Gyarados did not get up, forcing Setijin to return and release his final pokémon.
"This is one cool match!" a young trainer exclaimed to his friend standing next to him, in the crowd formed on the cliff.
"Who do you think will win?" the second boy replied.
"Winona of course!" he cried. "She's a gym leader, dummy!"
"But that other guys real good. He has cool pokémon too!"
"Yeah, but he'll never be able to beat us, right?"
"Right!"
"Quiet please!" The boys were silenced by an older trainer, with a red and black league jacket on, a black bandana, and white spiky hair, partially slicked to one side. His long black trousers had yellow bases, and his trainers had grown brown with wear and tear. "This is an interesting match. It'd be a shame if you missed the rest of it while chatting." The boys nodded and pushed their way to the front of the audience to observe the closing round of the fight.
"Medicham, cham..." he growled. Setijin and Medicham watched as Graveler charged forwards, preparing to punch once more. Medicham stood perfectly still as the rock pokémon came progressively closer.
"You know what to do, right Medicham!" Setijin asked, still standing way back from the action. Medicham slowly nodded, and waited, as the Graveler was right on top of him. It hopped into the air, its fist swinging towards Medicham at top speed, Medicham slinging forward his own hand, clasping Gravlers in his palm, and nullified the assault, all without flinching or moving from the spot, the magnitude of the attack propelling the sand around them back. Effortlessly, he pushed Graveler back into the air, and jumped forward, throwing a punch of his own. His fist connected with Gravelers rock solid body, and exploded in a flurry of ice, smashing him backwards and down into the floor. It fell out consciousness without a struggle, and Lucia announced Setijin as the winner.
"Wahoo! My first victory!" he screamed, Medicham turning to all of the applauding spectators and waving at them as fast as his spindly arms could move. Winona recalled her Graveler and walked up to Setijin, clapping herself.
"That was a great battle. You have a lot of strength in you and your pokémon. I am too happy to give this to you. She folds out Setijin's palm, and gently placed a Feather badge in it, along with a small Technical Machine, with a tiny number 40 imprinted on the face.
"Thanks Winona," he beamed, pocketing the TM and the badge. Lucia approached the pair, to join in the congratulations.
"So an Eevee and a Gyarados in 15 minutes. That's pretty incredible!" she said. Setijin nodded.
"Just an incredible stroke of luck!" he replied bashfully. "Still, I won my first battle! And I got a badge!" Winona rested her arm on his shoulder.
"I really look forward to battling your squad again once they're at full power!" she chuckled as they made their way across the sands and back up the steps into town. "Well, its almost nightfall, so I suggest finding somewhere to spend the night." A man stepped forward to talk to them.
"You need a place to stay? Well why not come with me? I run the hotel in town, just there, overlooking the sea," he explained. "For an entertaining spectacle such as that, I'll let you stay for $100 each!" Setijin, Winona and Lucia glanced at each other successively before unanimously accepting his offer. Setijin and Lucia followed the man, as Winona was beckoned back to the beach, by the young trainer in the pokémon league gear. The other two continued into the hotel.
Lucia leant back on her bed, against the wall, watching the small TV resting on the table in the corner of the room. The walls were papered with a warm yellow hue, and the two beds, both sat next to each other, we covered in a thick, furry terracotta quilt, and the pillows snow white and stacked on top of each other. A small bedside table placed between the beds, with an old fashioned alarm clock placed directly in the center, on top of an elaborately frilly doily laid underneath. As Lucia continued to flick through the almost endless selection of channels, Setijin burst into the room.
"Get a load of this new gear!" he exclaimed, posing to display his new clothes. He was still in his now slightly scruffy dark green jeans, but was now dressed in a red bomber jacket, a black shirt underneath, with a small pokéball emblazoned on it in the bottom left hand corner of it. His brown hair was still slicked forward, the front now resting on a thin black bandana with red trim.
"Not bad!" Lucia commented. "You've got a bit of 'new age trainer in there. Love the bomber jacket too!"
"Yeah, that dragged me in over to it in the shop too..." he replied, opening the right hand side of it, where his shiny new feather badge was proudly pinned onto the outside of the small pocket. "I finally have a belt for my pokéballs and stuff," he said, lifting up the bottom of his shirt to reveal it. As he finished modeling his new outfit and sat down on the bed next to Lucia to watch television, Winona walked in, with a solemn look on her face.
"I'm afraid this is where I get off guys..." she sighed. Lucia and Setijin looked thoroughly shocked.
"But what about that guy and all those pokémon?" Setijin spluttered.
"If you were planning on leaving so early, then why did do invite me along?" Lucia inquired. Winona looked down at the ground.
"I'm sorry, but trust me. It's for the best." She bid them farewell and left the room, and by the time Setijin and Lucia decided to follow, she was nowhere to be found outside.
"Well, it's just you and me now," Setijin said to Lucia.
"Yup...well, even though she's gone, I suppose we can't quit now. Tomorrow, we get across that see and get to Mossdeep Island!" Setijin nodded.
"We'd better make the most of this night," he began. "Out of curiosity, how do you suggest we actually get across the sea? No boats run from here to there, and now Winona and her birds are gone..."
"..."
"I guess this will be something to worry about in the morning," he finished, leading the way back into the hotel, the sun setting on the city of Lilycove, the serene waves crackling up the sheets of pebbles lining the beach, the deep orange sun making way for the moon, basking the earth in a awe inspiring red glow, the only person still outside in the form of the mysterious league trainer...