Chapter 8: Ruby vs. Dawn
The first round of the quarter-finals began an hour after the winners had been announced.
There were eight rounds with two coordinators battling in each of them and the winners of each round would progress to the second quarter final stage which only had four rounds. The winners of those four rounds would then progress to the semi-finals, which would happen tomorrow along with the final. Ruby, Emerald and Dawn were relieved to see that neither of them would be facing each other for the quarter-finals as they all had their own opponents to battle. Neither of them were against Avery either as he too had his own opponent. That suited them just fine as hopefully he would lose his match and crash out while they continued to advance. Ruby imagined that Nessa had deliberately set things up this way with the hopes that she, Emerald and Dawn would at least make it to the semi-finals. She knew Nessa wanted them to succeed as much as they did, so why risk having any of them go out early by pitting the trio against each other?
The girls waited for their turns to come, using the time they had to themselves to mentally prepare themselves for the battles to come. This was no longer a performance round and they had to remember that. It was Contest Battles from here on out and that was going to be a true test of their abilities. Ruby was the most nervous as she wasn't convinced she'd be able to do it. She was still more used to the traditional Pokémon battles and worried she'd slip up.
"Knowing me, I'll probably aim for a knockout and get disqualified as the contest doesn't allow knockouts." Ruby muttered.
"If you're still reminding yourself of that fact, then you won't forget!" Emerald noted helpfully, "Believe me Ruby, you'll do fine!"
"If you believe so, then maybe I can." Ruby said doubtfully, "I'll still give it my all, and I suggest you do too Em. Although between us, I think you have the best chance given how quickly you've adapted to the coordinator style." she said supportively.
"Aww, thank you!" Emerald said graciously, "And you better believe I'm going all out for this one! Nobody's going to stop me from reaching the final!"
"They sure won't!" Dawn cried encouragingly.
Two rounds passed before it was time for one of the girls to go up next. To Emerald's surprise, it was her battle that was coming first out of her, Ruby and Dawn.
"Oh heck, it's me next?" she blurted, "I'm so used to going last out of us three that I thought that'd be the case again! Oh well, time for me to win this Contest Battle!"
"You'll win this no problem!" Ruby declared.
Avery just rolled his eyes in annoyance as Emerald made her way out into the stadium. Did those girls ever get sick of so much overbearing encouragement? He wished so much that he could see them back of all three of them for how sickeningly sweet, happy and obnoxious they were! With any luck, neither of them would make it to the top four!
Emerald took her place in the stadium while her opponent stood opposite her. For the Contest Battles, the stage had been taken down and now they were using the traditional Gym arena markings to carry them out. Nessa felt it made more sense given Hulbury Stadium's usual operations as a Gym and it also gave the coordinators and their Pokémon more room than the stage would've. A huge electronic board hung over the arena, displaying Emerald and her opponent's picture with a circle underneath them. As the battle went on, the circle would grow shorter and shorter as the opponents deducted points from each other. The opponent who had the biggest circle by the time the match was over would be the winner. Each contest battle only lasted five minutes so the coordinators would have to make the most of that time. Emerald eyed up her opponent with interest. He was a young boy dressed in a brown leather jacket and fedora, a Lion King t-shirt and jeans. The fedora had a brown and white feather in the band. Emerald remembered that his name was Scott and she also remembered that he was a coordinator to watch out for. He'd passed all his performance rounds with ease and now she was about to face him for a spot in the next round of the quarter-finals. This wasn't going to be an easy match but she was determined to win it. Scott gave Emerald a friendly smile.
"Hey, may the best coordinator win. And don't worry about losing, I'll let your friend have the money like I said." he said kindly.
"I remember." Emerald said gratefully, "But I still intend to win anyway. Let's give it our all and have fun while we're at it!"
"Ha, ha, let's do just that!" Scott agreed, whipping out his Pokéball, "Raichu, standby for battle!"
He threw his Pokéball and brought out his ever faithful Raichu. It still made Emerald smile to see that Scott also had a Raichu like she did. She remembered Scott saying that Raichu was his favourite Pokémon so she wasn't surprised to see him using it. She had just the Pokémon to go up against it.
"Kerchak, let the fun begin!" Emerald hollered, throwing her own Pokéball.
Kerchak materialized into the arena and pounded his chest heavily. He was as ready for action as Scott's Raichu was. This was going to be quite a battle, especially as Grass-types weren't effected much by Electric-types so it seemed Emerald may have the advantage. But in a contest, it's not type-advantage that matters the most so it could be anyone's match and both Emerald and Scott knew it. The crowd watched eagerly as Nessa was about to give the signal to go.
"Pokémon Coordinators ready…and go!" Nessa announced.
"Alright Raichu, let's start off with Thunderbolt!" Scott cried.
Raichu charged up as much electricity as it could and then fired directly at Kerchak. The grassy gorilla just stood there waiting for Emerald's response.
"Use Darkest Lariat!" Emerald ordered.
Kerchak spun around like a top, his body coated in dark energy as he whirled around and around. He ploughed straight through Raichu's Thunderbolt attack and then began to spin furiously around Raichu, almost as if he was taunting him by saying "Ha, ha, can't catch me!" Raichu just watched him helplessly, unsure what to do next. Several points were deducted from Scott's score as Kerchak had successfully blocked his attack while showing off his moves to impress the audience. The boy in the fedora just smiled.
"I thought you'd intercept that." he said matter-of-factly, "Seeing your Pokémon's performances told me that you'd be a skilled coordinator. But you're not the only skilled one! Raichu, trip him up with Iron Tail!"
Raichu's long tail hardened as metallic energy formed around it and then he swiped at Kerchak, timing his attack just as the spinning simian passed by him again. He hit Kerchak and brought him down heavily onto his back with a single strike to the legs. Emerald winced, feeling the impact of Kerchak's fall herself and she was tempted to rub her own back in response. That deduced some of Emerald's points for Raichu had displayed toughness and cleverness at the same time in bringing his opponent down.
"Good shot! Now use Focus Blast while he's down!" Scott ordered.
Raichu formed a huge sphere of energy between his paws and hurled it straight towards Kerchak. Emerald knew she had to act fast or the sphere would hit and she'd lose more points. At the moment, she and Scott were equal but that could change very quickly! She would call a move and hope Kerchak could react in time to carry it out.
"Quick, use Drum Beating to knock it away!" Emerald called.
Kerchak grabbed his drum and quickly began pounding on it. It would take him too long to get back on his feet and play the drum so he felt playing it while he was still down would save time. He just made it as the huge thorny vines shot up from the floor and blocked Raichu's Focus Blast. The audience cried out in amazement at that quick recovery. Blocking the move had also deduced a few more points off Scott's board. Emerald cheered happily.
"Great blocking Kerchak! Now fight back with U-turn!" she commanded.
Kerchak got back to his feet and shot forwards at blinding speeds. But Scott was ready for her.
"Block it with Iron Tail!" he commanded.
Raichu did so and his strong tail stopped Kerchak's attack, but not without effort. Kerchak pushed Raichu back a few feet before coming to a stop and the electric mouse Pokémon knocked him back with a flick of his tail. Kerchak landed on his feet and skidded to a halt. Once again a display of toughness from Raichu left Emerald with a few more points deducted from her score. This battle was looking closer than anyone would've expected as now Scott and Emerald were equal again. Talk about going either way! Emerald quickly glanced over at the scoreboard. There were two minutes left of the fight, two precious minutes left for her to take the lead. It was going to be tough, but she was confident she could pull it off.
"OK Kerchak, use Drum Beating again!" Emerald yelled.
Kerchak banged his drum and conjured up thorny vines that snaked their way towards Raichu again. Before they could get anywhere near him, Scott ordered Raichu to use Focus Blast to destroy the vines. But that was when Emerald sprang her surprise. She ordered Kerchak to use the vines from Drum Beating to catch the Focus Blast! Two vines shot up and clamped around the energy sphere like a pair of tweezers and then, just to show off to the audience, Kerchak made the vines juggle the Focus Blast from one to the other. Scott was left speechless as his Pokémon's attack was left reduced to a juggling act. He never would've guessed Emerald was this crafty!
"No way, you caught my Focus Blast and now it's just your little toy!" he exclaimed.
"Contest Battles are about showing off and using your Pokémon's attacks to enhance your own so that's what I'm doing!" Emerald crowed.
"Not for long…" Scott declared, "Raichu, destroy it with Thunderbolt!"
Raichu took aim and hit the Focus Blast sphere with Thunderbolt. As soon as he hit it, the Focus Blast broke apart into a shower of sparkling energy that made the audience ooh in wonder. With that done, Emerald and Scott ordered their Pokémon to clash together with Brick Break and Iron Tails respectively. Both Pokémon swung at each other, tail and fist colliding together in an awesome display of strength and determination. They kept this up for another minute before Emerald pulled off another surprise by getting Kerchak to use Drum Beating to catch Raichu off guard. The vines shoot up from underneath Raichu and sent him flying through the air. Then just like what he'd done with Raichu's Focus Blast earlier, he had the vines juggle Raichu from one to the other. The poor electric mouse could only cry out helplessly as he was thrown from one vine to the other with no real way to fight back. It was too late anyway as all of a sudden, Nessa gave out the signal to stop. Time had run out and it was time to announce the winner. Everyone looked at the scoreboard and as they could see, it was no contest. Emerald had the most amount of points left so she would be progressing to the next round.
"And the winner is Emerald Silverlock!" Nessa cheered, "She progresses to the second round of the quarter finals!"
"Yippee! I won, I won, I won!" Emerald squealed with joy.
She ran over to Kerchak and threw herself into his arms while Scott just patted Raichu on the head softly.
"Ah well, we tried." he said casually, "You did a great job, buddy. But we both know Emerald deserves that win more than we do."
Raichu nodded agreeably. Scott returned him to his Pokéball and walked over to Emerald so he could shake her hand.
"Great battle out there! You smashed it, Emerald!" he said brightly.
"Thank you! I didn't do too bad for my first try!" Emerald said graciously, "You were awesome too."
"Cheers." Scott replied, "Still, you deserve to go on more than me so you had to have that win. Next time you see Tony, tell him I hope he recovers soon."
"Oh I will. He'll really appreciate it." Emerald said kindly, "Thanks once again and I hope we can battle again in the future!"
Scott just smiled and made his way out of the arena. Emerald returned backstage to a very ecstatic Ruby and Dawn as they celebrated her victory.
"You totally earned that win, Emerald!" Dawn cried, "You were so amazing out there!"
"Too right. You've caught on well to how a Contest Battle works compared to an ordinary battle." Ruby complimented, "I knew you could do it!"
"I'm so proud of myself that I could just burst!" Emerald exclaimed excitedly, "It was so fun out there and now I'm still in the show, I can continue to enjoy myself!"
"You sure can." Ruby agreed, "And with that kind of performance, I think you'll be making your way to the top. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. You've still got one more fight before you can get to the finals and me and Dawn are yet to go."
"I think you might be next." Dawn guessed, "Me or you have gotta be next after Emerald I'm sure."
And she was right. Ruby was the next coordinator to battle after this fight had concluded. The Champion quickly made her way out into the arena so she could have her battle. Emerald and Dawn just give her their best luck wishes as she left the waiting room. The audience cheered for Ruby as she made her way out into the arena. She took her place and looked ahead as her opponent arrived opposite her. She was a young girl with long black hair and dazzling green eyes. Her attire suggested she was very proud of her body and loved to show it off as she wore an orange crop-top that exposed her midriff, small blue shorts that provided a generous view of her legs and knee-high boots. Ruby remembered her from the other performances. Her name was Jessica Farrell and she was also Scott's girlfriend. She was going to be a very tough opponent with how well her Pokémon performed in the previous stages. Ruby knew that she was going to be in for possibly the toughest battle of her life.
"I'll admit, I was hoping I'd get to challenge you." Ruby said with determination, "If anyone's going to test my attempts at being a coordinator instead of a trainer, it's you."
"Pleasure's all mine." Jessica purred, "I'm kinda nervous that I'm up against the Champion herself. Of all people to be up against, it had to be the biggest one there is! But I'll give you an honourable battle, Ruby. And don't worry if you lose, I'll still let Emerald have that cash prize if I win. I'm a woman of my word."
"And I'll hold you up to it." Ruby said with a smile, "For now, let's battle! Raven, you're up first!" she cried, throwing her Pokéball.
"Butterfree, go for it!" Jessica yelled, throwing her own Pokéball.
Raven the Gengar and Jessica's Butterfree both made their appearances into the arena and they took their places, waiting for the battle to begin. Ruby suspected that Jessica would use Butterfree as she'd said before that was her favourite Pokémon. It also amused Ruby to be up against the Bug/Flying type Pokémon as she had a Butterfree of her own which she'd called Hawk Moth. At least he wasn't here now! The scoreboard displayed Ruby and Jessica's images and the timer was set at 5:00, ready to begin counting down. Nessa stepped in to begin the match.
"Pokémon coordinators ready…and go!" she called.
"Let's make this quick and easy Raven! Use Shadow Ball!" Ruby commanded.
The stoic Gengar held out her hands and formed a purple and black sphere between them.
"Azarath, Metrion…ZINTHOS!" she yelled as she threw the ball directly at Butterfree.
"We can stop that easily!" Jessica boasted, "Butterfree, use Bug Buzz!"
The butterfly Pokémon flapped its wings furiously and made a loud buzzing noise that swept over Raven's Shadow Ball, causing it to break apart harmlessly before it could get anywhere near. A successful counter like that knocked off some of Ruby's points, leaving Jessica with an early lead. Ruby could see that this wasn't going to be easy and she'd have to think carefully on her next move. It seemed Jessica wasn't going to give her time as she had Butterfree make another move.
"Now use Psychic!" she called.
That was bad news for Raven. Her half-Poison typing made her weak against Psychic attacks! Even though knockouts weren't allowed in the contest, super-effective hits were best avoided as they could do some damage and really knock off an opponent's score! Butterfree's eyes glowed pink and psychic energy started to sweep towards Raven, threatening to ensnare her and disorient her entire world. Luckily, Ruby reacted just in time and ordered Raven to use Dazzling Gleam. Raven held out her hands and Butterfree found itself surprised by a cloud of bright fairy lights that rushed towards it. The lights blinded Butterfree and left it unable to see for the time being. Now Butterfree was stunned, Ruby ordered Raven to use Thunderbolt on the Flying/Bug type Pokémon. The Ghost/Poison Pokémon struck Butterfree with a single jolt of electricity and Butterfree screeched in pain as it was electrocuted. Countering its Psychic attack plus that super-effective hit left Jessica with a lot of points deducted from her score. The audience gasped. What an exciting match this was turning out to be! Both coordinators were really giving it their all for this one! Butterfree shook off the pain from thunderbolt and blinked several times as its eyes began to recover.
"Good shot Ruby!" Jessica complimented, "You really caught us by surprise there!"
"That's me, always full of them!" Ruby declared.
"I can see, but we're full of our own surprises too." Jessica purred, "Now Butterfree, use Hurricane!"
The butterfly Pokémon flapped its wings again and created an enormous gust of wind that threatened to send Raven flying into the walls of the stadium. The Ghost Pokémon held her ground as best as she could but for the moment, she couldn't really move with the winds battering her like so. However, Ruby saw an opportunity to use Hurricane to Raven's advantage. She ordered her Pokémon to use Dazzling Gleam again. Raven did so and the fairy lights were quickly swept away by Butterfree's Hurricane. The result created a beautiful light display that blew around the arena with some of them blowing around Raven to make for a lovely light twister that seemed to make her shine. Because Ruby was using Jessica's attack to make her Pokémon look prettier, it brought Jessica's score down some more. She remembered as much from Dawn's training that Contest Battles were about using your opponent's moves to your advantage and making your Pokémon look better. Jessica was left speechless. Trust Ruby to come up with something like that!
"Damn, I've only made your Pokémon look more fabulous!" she exclaimed.
"Good thing I had a good teacher to help me get the gist of contest battles." Ruby replied.
"Most definitely." Jessica agreed, "But we can do that as well! Butterfree, use Quiver Dance!"
Butterfree obeyed. It stopped flapping its wings and the Hurricane winds died down along with Raven's Dazzling Gleam. Butterfree then began to spin around on the spot, its body glowing as Quiver Dance raised its Special Attack, Special Defence and Speed all at once. The graceful dance moves really helped in making Butterfree look good and Ruby was left unable to fight back for if she tried to have Raven attack Butterfree now, her attacks might end up enhancing the beauty of Butterfree's Quiver Dance. She had to counter it in a way that would make Raven look better! Ruby glanced at the timer. There was two minutes left and she couldn't waste those two minutes just waiting for Butterfree to stop its Quiver Dance, otherwise she might not get time to fight back. She had to act now!
"Use Thunderbolt!" Ruby ordered.
Raven took aim and fired her Thunderbolt at Butterfree. Ruby was hoping a super-effective hit would cause Butterfree enough pain to stop its dancing and wear it out. At least with the Special Defence boost from Quiver Dance, it wouldn't do as much damage so she wouldn't risk an accidental knockout. Raven struck Butterfree and despite the Bug/Flying type's best efforts, it couldn't hold off Thunderbolt forever and was forced to stop its Quiver Dance. It fluttered weakly above the arena floor, panting heavily. It seemed the damage taken had left it too tired to go on. Jessica watched with worry as Butterfree tried to keep going. Ruby was also worried. Had she done more damage than she thought and Butterfree was going to pass out? If so, it would be a disqualification for her as knockouts weren't allowed. But Butterfree wasn't down yet. It managed to stay flying and looked determined to carry on.
"That's a relief. I thought you were done for!" Jessica cried, "Now use Psychic!"
Butterfree did so and this time, it landed the hit successfully. Raven winced in anguish as psychic energy grabbed hold of her and put the mental squeeze on her. Thanks to Quiver Dance, Butterfree's attack did more damage than normal though thankfully, it wasn't strong enough to knock the Gengar out in one hit. After that was done, Ruby ordered Raven to fight back with Shadow Ball. The Ghost Pokémon threw the Shadow Ball at Butterfree and scored a direct hit, knocking it back slightly. Then the two Pokémon were left trying to land hits while countering one another until eventually the timer ran out. The five minutes were up and Ruby and Jessica stared up at the scoreboard to see who the winner was. It was extremely close but Ruby had just managed to win with a couple of points more than Jessica.
"And the winner is Ruby Silverlock!" Nessa announced, sounding genuinely thrilled to be saying that, "She progresses to the second round of the quarter finals!"
"Get stuffed…I actually won?!" Ruby gasped, "I don't believe it! I didn't think I'd actually win!"
"Well you did so you better believe it." Raven muttered.
"Flippin' heck…what a close call that was!" Jessica exclaimed, "I thought I might've clinched it but in the end, Ruby won, as she deserved to."
She patted Butterfree softly on the head. Her Pokémon looked disappointed and she wanted to show that she was OK with the loss.
"It's fine Butterfree. You win some, you lose some." Jessica said casually, "We gave it our all at least."
Butterfree chirped happily, glad to see its trainer wasn't upset. Ruby and Jessica returned their Pokémon and shook hands with each other.
"Great match Ruby. I see why you're our current Champion." Jessica said kindly.
"You haven't seen anything yet!" Ruby laughed, "My Champion battles are nothing like this! But thank you. You were awesome too and I enjoyed our battle."
"Likewise." Jessica agreed, "At least you and Emerald are both continuing ahead together. Give your friend my best wishes next time you see him, OK?"
"Will do." Ruby said brightly.
Jessica smiled and left the arena. Ruby sighed with relief. She was still in the show, as amazing as it was! Now she and Emerald were both still in for a chance to save Tony.
The rest of the quarter-finals went by in a breeze. Dawn passed her round with little effort and Avery managed to pass his round easily enough too, showing that he was far more used to battling than performing. Then came the second round of the quarter-finals in which Ruby, Emerald, Dawn and Avery all passed their rounds. It had been tough for all four of them but they had qualified and now they were in the semi-finals. Nessa concluded the day's show by revealing the semi-final match-ups. An electronic display board hung from the ceiling with a display showing the faces of the four semi-finalists. It was hard to believe that they'd started off with hundreds of coordinators when the show began and now only four were left. Ruby, Emerald, Dawn and Avery watched with baited breath as the board shuffled the images. Who was going to face who for the semi-final rounds? A tense few seconds passed before the board stopped and the semi-final match-ups were displayed.
"And the match-ups are…Ruby vs. Dawn for the first round and Emerald vs. Avery in the second round!" Nessa declared.
The board displayed exactly what she'd announced. There was Ruby's picture next to Dawn's and below them, Emerald's picture next to Avery's. Everyone stared in astonishment.
"Blimey, I'm against you!" Ruby cried, "Talk about master vs. student!"
"You're telling me!" Dawn concurred, "We all knew that this was gonna be a possible match-up but I didn't think it'd actually happen!"
"I wish I wasn't against Avery." Emerald muttered, "While I'm glad I won't have to face either of you two, I'd take any of you over that jerk."
"Why? Because you know you can't beat me?" Avery sneered.
"No, because it'd mean I wouldn't have to look at your stupid fashion sense and your ugly, smug face any longer!" Emerald retorted.
Ruby and Dawn burst into fits of laughter at Emerald's surprisingly savage comeback. It never failed to amuse Ruby how sassy her sister could be at times. Avery frowned but said nothing. Why waste his energy putting Emerald down when he could just do that anyway be defeating her in the semi-finals tomorrow? She wouldn't have any smart-aleck remarks to make once he sent her packing!
Now the show was over, the girls returned back to their hotel room to get some much needed rest from the day's events. The double-performance round and both quarter final matches had left them all well ready for a good cooldown before tomorrow. They lay on their beds and had a short nap before dinner. After eating, they returned to their room and sat together so they could discuss about tomorrow.
"Well, we all made it! We're all in the top four as we hoped for." Dawn noted.
"And hopefully, two of us will be making it to the final." Ruby added, "Whether it's you and Em or me and Em, we can't let Avery get to the final as he could throw a wrench into everything."
"I wouldn't worry about him." Emerald said dismissively, "Even if he beat me, he'd never win against a REAL coordinator like Dawn! She could beat Avery in his sleep!"
"Heh, heh, you really think so?" Dawn giggled.
"Absolutely!" Emerald insisted, "But if I did lose, Avery would never let me hear the end of it…he'd spend all eternity mocking me as the pathetic little brat he sees me as. I HAVE to beat him to show him I'm way better than he is! I won't let him stand between me and Tony's recovery!"
"You sure won't and we know you'll beat him Em." Ruby said encouragingly, "You have something to fight for. He's only fighting for himself. Your strive to win the contest will overcome anything he can throw at you. You're the girl that fought me to a draw, remember? So what hope has Avery got of winning against you?"
Emerald nodded agreeably. Her sister seemed so grown-up with these words of wisdom she had for her! It was hard to believe she was only fifteen now and here she was sounding more encouraging and wise than some adults out there. She would forever be grateful to have a sister like Ruby.
"You're the best Ruby! Thank you!" Emerald said, hugging her tightly.
"Anytime Em." Ruby said kindly.
For the rest of the night, the girls just talked together about other things to keep their minds occupied as they didn't want to be thinking too much about tomorrow. Then the next morning came and they set off to Hulbury Stadium to be ready for the semi-finals. Emerald decided to make a quick stop by the hospital to check on Tony. She wouldn't run late as the Flying Taxi would take her straight to the stadium in a flash so she had time to spare. Ruby and Dawn understood and told her they'd let Nessa know that she'd be coming in later. Once she arrived, Emerald went in and asked how Tony was doing. The doctor gave her just the news she was hoping to hear:
"You'll be delighted to know that Tony has regained consciousness." he answered, "He just woke up an hour ago. Don't get him too excited as he's still rather woozy but you may see him for a few minutes."
"Thank you sir!" Emerald said gratefully, "I'm glad he's awake! It would've sucked if he never woke up again…"
She shuddered and forced the ghastly thought out of her head. She went straight to Tony's room and her face lit up as she saw her love lying in bed, bright-eyed and clearly happy to see her. He still looked tired as if he might not have the strength to carry on any longer but his smile was as bright and cheerful as ever.
"I was hoping the first thing I'd get to see after coming to was you, little gem." Tony said kindly, "Obviously, my doctor was the first thing I saw but I meant in terms of non-medical staff."
"Heh, I get you." Emerald said casually, "How do you feel?"
"Groggy." Tony muttered, "But thankful that I've been able to wake up again. Every time I faint, I worry if I'll ever get up again…"
"At least you're awake now!" Emerald said optimistically, "And you'll be thrilled to know that me, Ruby and Dawn are all in the semi-finals!"
Tony was so pleased with this news that he seemed to forget his tiredness for the moment.
"Aw Emerald, that's awesome to hear!" he said happily, "Who's facing who?"
"Ruby's against Dawn and I'm against Avery…unfortunately." Emerald muttered, "I would've been happier if he lost and my opponent was somebody else. On the other hand, at least I'll kick his butt and make him sorry for all the times he put me down!"
"If anyone can put that twerp in his place, it's you." Tony said supportively, "I hope I can watch you do it. As for the semi-finals, can you do something for me?"
"I kinda already am." Emerald noted, "You see, me, Ruby and Dawn are fighting to win the contest so that either one of us can give you the prize money we'll win to pay for the treatment you desperately need to cure your illness. But if there's anything else I can do for you, just ask!"
Tony stared at Emerald as if she'd just turned into an angel and was blessing him with a new chance at life.
"Little gem…you and the others are doing this…for me?" he stammered, "My gosh…that's the nicest thing anyone's ever done for me! I'm honestly at a loss for words…" he trailed off, his words catching in his throat as he found himself beginning to well up.
"Think nothing of it!" Emerald insisted, "You need that prize money more than either of us so of course we're going to let you have it! Why would we keep it for ourselves? But we're digressing. What do you want me to do for you?"
"Just one small favour." Tony said was he wiped a tear from his eye, "For your semi-final battle…could you take Flossy for me? She wants to compete again. She wants to help me out more for anyone and would appreciate it a lot if she could play a part in helping you win the contest for my sake."
Emerald beamed with pleasure.
"I'd be happy to do so." the brunette girl said eagerly, "And don't worry Tony, I'll take great care of Flossy! She and I will beat Avery and make it to the final, mark my words!"
"I know you two will win. You'll be a great team out there." Tony declared.
His bag was lying beside the bed and all his Pokéballs were inside. Emerald had to go through a few of them before she found the one containing Flossy. The mint-cream flavoured Alcremie was glad to have the chance to go with Emerald and also help win the contest for her trainer's sake. She knew she'd be in safe hands with Emerald given how close she and Tony were and how nice the teenage girl was. Emerald bid Tony farewell and left the hospital so she could get to Hulbury Stadium. Luckily, she had time to spare so she arrived with no chance of being late. The show was due to start in ten minutes by the time she got there and changed into her contest outfit. Ruby, Dawn and Avery were waiting for her and the girls smiled to see Emerald arrive.
"We knew you wouldn't be too long." Ruby said brightly, "How is Tony?"
Emerald quickly explained her visit and then showed the two Flossy's Pokéball.
"Aww, that's sweet!" Dawn said kindly, "He lent you Flossy so she could carry on competing for her trainer! I bet you and her will be great out there!"
"I know we will!" Emerald declared excitedly, "The two of us won't let him down, that's for sure!"
"Huh, you expect to win with that puny Pokémon?" Avery sniffed, "Last I remember, she had stage fright and had to be prompted to perform. What's the betting that she'll freeze up in the middle of our battle and cost you the semi-finals? You're better off using REAL Pokémon if you ask me."
Emerald grabbed Avery by the ruffles of his shirt and jammed her face into his. Her teeth were gritted with anger. She looked as if she was about to smash Avery through a wall if he said one more word.
"Say that again! I DARE you!" she snarled.
"Honestly Avery, if you can't say anything nice than maybe you shouldn't speak it all." Ruby sighed, "Why do you have to be a complete tosser? Is it really that hard to say anything decent for a change?"
Avery wanted to retort but he knew that saying anything would be foolish when Emerald was just seconds away from punching his teeth out.
"You're lucky we're going to settle this in the arena." Emerald said coldly as she shoved him back, "When I'm through with you, you'll be sorry you ever insulted me and put me down at every opportunity!"
But of course, she would have to wait on that as it was Ruby and Dawn's battle to go first. Once the show finally started, Ruby and Dawn were called to make their way out into the arena. Emerald waved to her sister and friend as their battle was about to begin. She had to admit, her feelings were very conflicted on this battle. She genuinely didn't know WHO she wanted to win! Of course she was always going to back her older sister but at the same time, she'd become such firm friends with Dawn that she didn't really want to root against her. In the end, it wouldn't matter who won, she'd be proud of them regardless.
Ruby and Dawn took their positions in the arena as the crowd cheered and welcomed them ecstatically. Ruby could see that many people were cheering for both her and Dawn. It was no surprise that the Sinnoh girl had garnered up so many fans with her amazing contest performances. It also would be no surprise if Dawn ended up defeating her effortlessly. She was convinced that she had no chance of winning this, not that it mattered. It was also funny that this should be happening again. Ruby was back in Wyndon Stadium last year when she and Dawn had had a Pokémon battle to determine who would become Champion of Galar. Now here they were about to compete for a spot in the Contest Final! She gave Dawn a friendly smile.
"Hey…no matter what happens, it'll be an honour to lose to someone as skilled as you." Ruby insisted.
"You're too kind." Dawn said appreciatively, "And I won't mind losing to you a second time, Ruby. Though you may find me to be a different opponent here than the one you fought last year…"
Ruby nodded agreeably. Dawn in a contest was not like Dawn in a Pokémon battle! The girls chose their Pokémon with Ruby choosing Bugs the Cinderace and Dawn choosing Uppercut the Ambipom. This was going to be an interesting match. Ruby remembered how tricky Uppercut was in a battle with her twin-tails and her acrobatic skills. She'd been tough to hit and Ruby was sure that Uppercut was going to be even trickier to fight in a Contest Battle. The trainers stood by patiently. The crowd fell silent, not daring to make a sound in case they accidentally distracted the two trainers. Nessa stepped in to give the signal.
"Pokémon coordinators ready…and go!" she announced.
"We'll have to keep our cool for this one Bugs. This isn't the kind of battles you're used to!" Ruby acknowledged, "Start off with Zen Headbutt!"
Bugs lowered his head and sprinted towards Uppercut. His head glowed pink with psychic energy and he aimed directly at his opponent. The twin-tailed monkey Pokémon just stood where she was and dared Bugs to come in for the attack. Then just as Bugs was about to head-butt Uppercut, the Ambipom used her tails to spring up into the air out of Bugs's way. Bugs skidded to a halt and charged a second time as Uppercut landed. But as the fiery rabbit closed in on Uppercut, she spun around on the spot with her tails straightened out. She slapped Bugs twice with the hands at the end of her tails in a Double Hit move. Bugs fell onto his side and skidded to a painful stop on the arena floor. He winced, feeling as if he'd scraped his skin off his arm after that. The monkey Pokémon smiled cheekily as if taunting Bugs for failing to land a hit.
"Now, now Uppercut, be nice. It's not fair to tease your opponents in battle." Dawn said sternly, "Now let's fight back with Swift!"
Uppercut's tails reached around the front and waved furiously as lots of stars conjured up from nowhere and made their way towards Bugs. The Cinderace got back to his feet and retaliated by using Acrobatics to dodge the Swift stars. Unfortunately for Bugs, Swift was a move that never missed so he wasn't able to dodge but his acrobatic feats he was pulling off while trying to avoid being hit was enough to impress the audience and knock off some of Dawn's points as Ruby was using Uppercut's move as a means to show off Bugs's speed and agility. With every flip and every spin and every jump, Bugs was looking like an athletic champion performing for the audience watching him. Of course, he couldn't keep it up forever as the Swift stars only followed him everywhere he went. To stop them, Ruby ordered Bugs to use Pyro Ball. The rabbit Pokémon kicked a large ball of flames at the Swift stars and they were quickly incinerated as the fireball ploughed through them like a ship scything across the sea. The Pyro Ball continued on its way towards Uppercut but Dawn countered by ordering Uppercut to use Focus Punch on it. Uppercut drew one tail back, curled up the fist at the end of it, waited for a minute and then threw the punch. The huge amount of energy contained in the punch broke the Pyro Ball up into bits and Uppercut was left completely unharmed by the blow.
"Wow, you're doing great Ruby!" Dawn complimented, "You may not be a coordinator but you've caught on very well!"
"I have you to thank for that!" Ruby laughed, "I thought you were gonna kick my arse out here but now this match seems more even than I expected!"
Even Emerald was impressed at how well her sister was doing. Bugs and Uppercut so far seemed evenly matched with both coordinators having lost the same amount of points. It was going to be close, maybe too close to call at this rate! If someone was to ask her to judge the fight, she wouldn't know who to choose as the winner! She focused on Ruby as she made the next move.
"Try using Low Sweep!" Ruby ordered.
Bugs sprinted towards his opponent and then threw himself down onto the floor. He slid across with his foot aimed directly at Uppercut, hoping to trip her up. Landing a super-effective hit would at least help Ruby's score and knock off some of Dawn's. But Uppercut was way too fast and was already jumping up out the way as Bugs sailed past underneath her. Bugs came to a stop and picked himself up only to get hit by Uppercut's Swift attack. He was too slow to react and was hit by the shooting stars. Despite scoring a direct hit, Dawn could see Swift wasn't doing much to Bugs as he took it with little effort. Then Ruby ordered him to use Zen Headbutt and charge through the stars. Bugs did so with the Swift stars now adding to his shiny appearance by breaking up into glittering specks of light against his psychic coated cranium. Uppercut tried to block the attack with her tails but Bugs came in too fast and too strong so the block didn't work and she was knocked down onto her back. The Ambipom skidded across the floor and stopped by Dawn's feet. The Normal-type Pokémon stood back up again and her eyes widened in shock as Bugs sent another Pyro Ball shooting towards her. Thinking fast, Dawn ordered Uppercut to use Focus Punch to stop the Pyro Ball from successfully landing. Uppercut punched through the Pyro Ball again…only to realize too late that she'd walked right into a trap. She cried out in shock as Bugs came rushing in with another Zen Headbutt and he landed his hit successfully, knocking her back again. She came down heavily onto her back and grunted. The audience gasped in amazement. It seemed their Champion was going to win again!
"Aw yeah, we're on a roll here Bugs! Keep it up with Acrobatics!" Ruby commanded.
Bugs somersaulted and jumped through the air several times before coming down towards Uppercut. He was closing in fast, ready to land a huge blow until…
"Catch him with your tails!" Dawn ordered.
Uppercut turned around and her twin tails shot forwards just as Bugs was about to land a hit. She caught him with both hands and held him firm above the floor. Ruby imagined Ambipoms had impressive tail strength for Uppercut was holding Bugs with both tails and not even straining. Then Uppercut started to juggle her opponent by spinning him around like a ball and passing him from one tail to the other. The audience burst into laughter. This battle had suddenly turned into a comedy show and they were loving it! Even Nessa couldn't surpass a giggle or two. Juggling Pokémon, whatever next? Bugs was helpless to fight back as Uppercut juggled him around. Then Dawn ordered her Pokémon to send him up into the air, jump up after him and knock him down to the ground with Double Hit. The playful Pokémon carried out Dawn's command down to the letter and before Bugs knew it, he was up in the air and then being smacked down into the floor with a wallop from both of Uppercut's tails. Bugs crashed down hard and grimaced from the impact. Uppercut landed gracefully on her tails and held out her arms and legs as if saying to the audience "Ta-da!" That earned her much applause as that had been some impressive battling. Bugs groaned as he picked himself up. These Contest Battles were harder than he thought!
He shook himself off and jumped back into the fray with another Low Sweep attack. Uppercut retaliated by using Focus Punch. Both Pokémon landed their hits successfully on each other and knocked themselves away. It felt as if they'd both been hit by a sledgehammer. Bugs then used another Zen Headbutt while Uppercut jumped out of the way to dodge his attack. Bugs chased after his opponent, trying to land a hit but Uppercut was just too fast for him. She kept well back by using her tails like another pair of legs to leap away from Bugs. But then suddenly, Nessa called out that time was up and the battle had to stop. Bugs and Uppercut screeched to a halt and panted. The fight had left them worn out and ready for a rest. Dawn and Ruby stared up at the scoreboard to see who had won. It looked as if Dawn had slightly more points left than Ruby. The remains of her circle were a fraction bigger by comparison, which meant…
"And the winner of the first semi-final match is…Dawn Hikari!" Nessa announced excitedly, "She is our first finalist of the day!"
"Holy galoshes, I won?!" Dawn gasped, "Hooray! I'm in the final! I'm in the final!"
Uppercut began to dance around merrily while clapping her paws and the hands on her tails in a victory jig. Ruby was left staring at the board as she took in that this was a whole new experience for her. For the first time in her life, she had actually lost at something! Ever since her Pokémon journey had begun, she'd never lost any of her battles and the closest anyone had come to beating her was when Emerald had fought her to a draw in last year's Champion Cup. And now here she was actually experiencing a genuine defeat at the hands of Dawn! She had expected this as coordinating was more Dawn's experience than her's and yet it still felt surreal to be acknowledging she'd actually lost. So how did she feel? Surprisingly…not terrible. In fact, strangely enough, she didn't feel like she actually cared that she lost the battle! It helped that this battle wasn't necessary to win as no matter who won, it meant one of them was still going on to win the money for Tony so it was easier to accept this loss. But it wasn't just that. Ruby had never gone into the contest with the express interest in winning. She'd just been interested to give contests a go and see how she did and she could now go home proud that she'd made it to the semi-finals and lost to a true ace. She was brought out of her thoughts by Bugs nuzzling her arm.
"Ah well, we lost. Guess we can't win em' all." he said with a shrug.
"I know, and even though I've never lost at anything before, I don't really mind losing this one." Ruby said casually, "We both knew Dawn would beat us anyway. At least one of us still gets to go on for Tony's sake."
"And hopefully Emerald will join Dawn in da final so we can have a match where no matter who wins, everyone does." Bugs noted.
Ruby nodded agreeably. She turned to Dawn who was just approaching her. She gave a sympathetic smile to show Ruby that even though she won, she still felt sorry that she had to lose like this.
"No hard feelings, right?" she said sheepishly.
"None at all, mate." Ruby said reassuringly, "That was an awesome battle and I'm glad that I gave it my all in spite of everything! Well done Dawn. You deserve to be in the final."
"Thank you!" Dawn said graciously, "Now we gotta hope that Emerald will be my opponent."
"Oh I wouldn't worry about that. Avery won't stand a chance against her." Ruby declared.
Emerald nodded agreeably. She glared over at Avery as if to warn him "Watch out Avery, I'm coming for you!" She would defeat this pompous prawn easily and he would be going home in total humiliation, and it would serve him right for looking down on her and being so insensitive about Tony! He wouldn't stop her from getting that cash prize and that was a fact!
I hope you're watching now Tony, cause your little gem's about to shine like a diamond in this match! Emerald thought optimistically to herself.
There we have it folks, Ruby's perfect winning streak is over and Dawn is in the final! Now we'll see who's joining her when we get "Emerald vs. Avery" next time...
Trivia: Yes, Emerald's quarter-final opponent is me as my online avatar, the Media Man. I really couldn't resist and thought it'd be a fun cameo. XD Same goes for Jessica Farrell, the Media Woman, being Ruby's opponent. ;)