Author's Note:
The moment we've all been waiting for is here! Gen...eration Z chapter 13!
Oh, and Gen 8 was announced! Who's excited about that? Looks like a good one so far. Can't wait for gyms to come back. And speaking of gyms...we've got Bonnie's first ever gym battle here! So let's get started.
Chapter 13: A Rocky Start
Bonnie and Clyde had gone back to the Pokemon Centre after leaving Kenny's battle, each feeling pretty badly for their friend, knowing that it was a pretty crushing blow for his already low confidence. When they arrived, they had asked Nurse Joy if he had come back, and she mentioned that she was taking care of Poliwag overnight, while Kenny had asked to not be disturbed, having gone to his room. Despite that request, they had still felt the need to try, but of course received no answer when they'd knocked and called for him. Eventually, they decided it was no use, returning to the lobby to get some dinner.
When the two young trainers had finally sat down at a table with some food, their Pokemon over by the desk getting some from Nurse Joy, Bonnie stared glumly outside, remembering Kenny's battle. He really hadn't been too bad, his Poliwag having used a decent combination of Rain Dance and his ability Swift Swim to evade some attacks and land his own. However, Kenny had clearly needed a little more strength and planning, as Roxanne was able to back him into a corner fairly easily in the end. Not to mention the fact that he needed another Pokemon.
"What do you think Kenny was up to going into that battle with only a Magikarp as his backup for Poliwag?" Clyde asked as he looked up from his food, seeing Bonnie deep in thought, clearly knowing what she was thinking about. "He had to have known that wasn't a good idea."
"Maybe that's why he was so nervous," Bonnie suggested, shrugging as she picked at her food. "I guess he just felt he needed to try since Tommy and Max had won their battles."
Clyde nodded, looking sadly towards the hall that led to the Pokemon Centre guest rooms. "Hopefully he doesn't give up after this. If he can catch another Pokemon..." He didn't sound too sure, shrugging after a moment. "Well, anyway, it's up to you next. What do you think you're gonna do?"
Bonnie, despite her concern for Kenny, couldn't help but let her excitement take over for a bit, thinking about how her first ever gym battle was the next day. "I know that Nosepass is supposed to be Roxanne's strongest Pokemon, and that it knows an electric attack, so Beautifly will be pretty vulnerable to it," she said, trying to think of her options. "I'll need to make sure I can use Dedenne against it, so Beautifly will need to battle her other Pokemon. Absorb should do the trick."
"Tommy said something about her other Pokemon being a Geodude," Clyde pointed out, Rotom immediately floating closer, sensing he was needed for information. "Any tips?" Clyde asked the PokeDex, smirking as he knew Rotom was glad to provide the details.
"Zzt! Of Course!" Rotom cried out, Geodude's image immediately on his screen, the serious looking rock type holding its arms out as though ready for a boxing match. "Geodude, the Rock Pokemon. The longer a Geodude lives, the more its edges are chipped and worn away, making it more rounded in appearance. However, this Pokemon's heart will remain hard, craggy and rough always." Rotom turned to face Bonnie, her Pokemon's images appearing alongside Geodude's. "Geodude will be immune to Dedenne's Thunder Shock and Nuzzle attacks, as it is part ground type. If it knows any ground type attacks, however, Beautifly will be immune to those. Unfortunately, it will likely have attacks that can harm both Dedenne and Beautifly, with ground and rock type attacks available."
Bonnie bit her lip at that, wishing she was a little better prepared herself for this match. Maybe it would've been a good idea to see if she could've tried to catch one of those Lotad that Natalie and her sisters worked with. That would've given her a huge advantage. "Are there any Pokemon nearby that are strong against rock types?" she asked, knowing that it was too late to try that, although Rotom appeared to be doing a scan.
"Zzt, it does not appear as though there are any wild Pokemon in this vicinity!" the PokeDex cried out. "I do, however, detect a Ralts nearby!"
"A Ralts?" The question had barely left her mouth when Bonnie noticed the door of the Pokemon Centre opening, and none other than Max and his partner Pokemon entering. He looked a little frustrated about something as he looked around, clearly trying to find someone. She groaned to herself, seeing her rival look over to them almost immediately and approaching. "Max..." she muttered, narrowing her eyes as he reached them.
"Have you guys seen Kenny?" the black-haired boy asked, looking around again. "I wanted to wish him luck for his rematch before I set off for Dewford Town."
This made Bonnie sit up, a mix of irritation and curiosity in her eyes. "You're leaving already?"
"Tommy already left, so I can't get too far behind," Max said simply. "I'm sure Kenny will be fine, but I've gotta focus on my own journey. Besides, he'll be stuck waiting for you now."
Bonnie clenched her fists at that, feeling Dedenne paw at her gently, having returned to their table, encouraging her not to snap. "I'm allowed to challenge gyms, you know."
"Do whatever you want, but I'm not letting it slow me down," Max muttered, turning around as though deciding he wasn't getting any answers on Kenny's whereabouts. "If you see Kenny, let him know I wanted to wish him luck." He then paused, smirking as he looked back. "Try not to hold him back too long."
Bonnie wanted to run after him and give him a good kick, but she noticed Nurse Joy watching the scene out of the corner of her eye and decided otherwise. Instead, Bonnie and Clyde watched as Max and his Ralts left the Pokemon Centre nearly as quickly as they'd entered, already off to their next destination. As frustrated as Bonnie was with her rival, she couldn't help but feel jealous that he was already off towards his next gym battle. She was already so far behind.
"I have to win tomorrow," she said, eyes narrowing as she looked outside. She couldn't see Roxanne's gym, but she was looking in its direction, feeling its presence in the distance. It was where she would truly start her journey towards the Hoenn League. "Dedenne, I'm not going to let Max get any further ahead. Not him, not Tommy, or Sadie, or Wally. I'm catching up as soon as possible."
"Nene..." the Antenna Pokemon said, nodding nervously as he watched his trainer stare out the window towards Max as he disappeared in the distance.
Bonnie knew that worrying about her rivals was probably not the best thing for her focus, but she just couldn't help it. So, she would use it as motivation. Every step they took that got them ahead of her, she would take two to get stronger. Eventually she was going to catch up. And I can't do that until I beat Roxanne.
"So you're taking on your first gym today?! Bonnie, that's great! I can't wait to hear about it!"
Bonnie couldn't help the big smile that came to her face as she looked at her brother getting so excited on the screen in front of her. She was almost convinced that he was more excited than her, and that was really saying something. She could barely sleep the night before, imagining all the different scenarios for her match with Roxanne. It was so close now.
"From what Ash says, Roxanne is a really tough gym leader," Clemont then said, getting Bonnie's attention. "You, Dedenne and Beautifly will need to think and act quickly. She can overwhelm you with her rock Pokemon if you don't."
Bonnie nodded. "I know. I saw her match with our friend Kenny yesterday. She ended things pretty quickly once she figured out his strategy." She sighed, wondering how poor Kenny was doing right now. Clemont seemed to think it was nervousness on her part, though, which she supposed it partly was.
"Don't worry, Bonnie, I'm sure you'll be great. With Dedenne by your side, you can do anything." With that, he looked at the Antenna Pokemon, who nodded in determination, holding tightly to Bonnie's shoulder. "Good luck, you two."
"Thanks, Clemont. I'll tell you how it all went tonight." With one final wave, the two siblings ended the call and Bonnie hung up the phone, the screen in front of her flashing off. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her nerves, before turning around and looking towards the table where Clyde was finishing his breakfast, Rotom hovering by him. It was almost time to go.
When she headed back over, Clyde looked up, taking one last bite of his food before pushing his plate forward. "Ready to get going for your big match?" he asked, looking fairly excited himself to see the battle.
"I think so," Bonnie said, looking to Dedenne for confirmation, the electric and fairy type nodding back. She then looked back to Clyde, frowning as she thought of Kenny. "Do you think we should try talking to-"
She stopped immediately as she noticed Clyde looking up in surprise, eyes widening as he stared at something behind her. Rotom was distracted too, stopping himself from trying to take a picture of someone's Pokemon as he looked at whatever it was as well. Bonnie followed their gazes, a surprised look coming to her face as she noticed Kenny emerging from the hallway that led to the guest rooms at the Pokemon Centre. He looked much better, although he clearly didn't look like the happiest person in the world. However, he managed to force a smile as he noticed Bonnie and Clyde and headed over to them.
"Hi guys," he said nervously, head lowered as he reached them. Bonnie and Clyde quickly greeted him, both relieved to see him out of his room, while Rotom resumed analyzing the various Pokemon around. Kenny didn't seem to notice, though, and looked to Bonnie as he noticed Dedenne on her shoulder. "So Bonnie...r-ready for your match?" he asked nervously.
Bonnie felt that she needed to try and encourage Kenny after yesterday, but she knew that he was, at the moment, trying to forget about his embarrassment. So, she tried to think of what Ash would say in this moment, and it came to her fairly quickly. "I'll be ready as long as I have my friends at my back," she told Kenny, holding a fist up to show she was ready to battle. "Can I count on you to cheer me on?"
He looked surprised to hear that, but as he met Bonnie's gaze, Kenny must've seen the seriousness in her eyes, and knew that she wanted him there. "I'll be there," he told her, nodding. "Poliwag and I will be paying close attention."
Bonnie grinned at that, and then looked back to Clyde, who looked like he was impressed with her motivation techniques. As he stood up from the table, she knew they were ready to go and with one more look to Dedenne, she turned towards the front door of the Pokemon Centre. "Let's go!" she announced, leading the way as her friends followed her.
As they walked towards the Rustboro Gym, Bonnie pulled out the badge case that Korrina had given her, hoping that she'd be able to put her very first badge in there today. It wouldn't be easy, but she had to believe in herself and her Pokemon. And she had to catch up to Max and the others. She was already far behind. She even felt she was behind Kenny, who Clyde was informing of Max's departure the night before. Even though Kenny had lost his gym battle, he still had those extra years of training at Roxanne's school. That was going to be hard to match, even if he hadn't put it together yet.
Bonnie knew it wasn't the best thing to focus on what her rivals were doing, but she just couldn't help it. She wanted to be the best trainer of them all, and to do that, she was going to have to beat them all at some point. She wouldn't be up against them today, but Roxanne was the first step towards facing off against them on the big stage.
The walk might've been quick, or it might've been slow. Bonnie really had no idea. In her mind, she was simply playing over all the different strategies she'd come up with, wondering what Ash, or Clemont, or Sawyer, or even Serena would do in a battle against an opponent like Roxanne. She wanted to be like them, taking on all the toughest challenges and rising to them. She needed to be like them.
"Zzt! There is the Rustboro Gym, Bonnie!" Rotom cried out, sounding surprisingly excited as he floated in front of her. Bonnie supposed he was probably excited about testing his "coaching" abilities. She just hoped he wouldn't tell her about having low chances of winning yet again. Before he could, she decided to run ahead, Clyde and Kenny quickly following after her.
When they reached the front door of the gym, its rocky exterior looking somewhat menacing, it opened up, and one of Roxanne's student assistants emerged, smiling as they noticed Bonnie. "Hello!" she said, greeting her with a handshake. "You're Bonnie, right? Here for your gym battle with Ms. Roxanne?"
Bonnie almost wanted to scream at those words, but she managed a restrained, "Yes, I'm here for my first gym battle."
"Great!" the student said, smiling as she noticed Bonnie and Dedenne exchange an excited look. "Ms. Roxanne is waiting inside. Are you okay with the match being recorded for study purposes?"
"Sure!" Bonnie answered happily as they followed the girl inside. "Roxanne's students can see how to win!"
Her last words were louder than she'd meant them to be, and she realized they'd echoed around the gym as they'd entered, and she quickly came to a stop as she noticed quite a few people looking at her. One of them happened to be Roxanne, the Rustboro Gym Leader waiting with some of her students near the front of the battlefield where Bonnie would be going to. Upon seeing Bonnie, she smiled, immediately heading over.
"Well Bonnie, it looks like you're good and ready for our battle!" she said, hands on her hips as she studied her new challenger. "I hope you're ready for this. This won't be like your battles on the road here. I need to make sure you're worthy of a journey to the Hoenn League to give you a badge, so I'm going to be pretty tough on you."
"That's just the way I want it," Bonnie assured her, noticing a surprised look on Kenny's face as she glanced at him and Clyde. "Besides, I've got my friends here to cheer me on. I can't lose!"
Roxanne looked relieved to see Kenny, looking to his Poliwag who he'd let out on the walk there, before returning her gaze to him. "How are you today, Kenny?"
"I...I'm okay," the blue-haired boy said quietly, avoiding eye contact.
"That's good to hear," the gym leader said kindly, before nodding in greeting to Clyde and then looking to Bonnie once more. "How about we get our battle started, Bonnie? I think you have just what it takes to show my students a good battle and a winning spirit." Her last words came with another look at Kenny, and Bonnie had the feeling Roxanne wasn't just referring to her current students. Nonetheless, she nodded excitedly, walking forwards as Roxanne turned around and headed towards her position on the battlefield, her students quickly hurrying off of it with cameras and broomsticks in their hands.
As Bonnie got in position, Dedenne hopping off of her shoulder to stand at her side, she looked around the gym, getting a better look at it from the perspective of the battlefield. She could see her friends sitting down in the stands, Clyde giving her a thumbs up, while Kenny and Poliwag looked on nervously. Many students were next to them, some with notebooks, presumably for their classes.
On the field was what Bonnie was most interested in, though, seeing the referee going to their position on the sideline. Once again, rocks were scattered around the field, the cleanup crew having done an excellent job after yesterday's battle. It looked perfectly prepared for a new battle, and Bonnie knew that it was going to be tough, considering Roxanne's advantage with her rock types. I'm ready, though, Bonnie told herself. I'm going to win!
She then glanced ahead to Roxanne, who was in position now, with a pokeball in her hand. With a smile to Bonnie, she quickly nodded to the referee, signalling for them to get the match started. Bonnie immediately focused on them, her heart starting to race as they called out the rules. This was it. Her first gym battle was about to start.
"Good luck, Bonnie!" Clyde called out quickly, just before the referee announced the rules.
"The battle between the gym leader, Roxanne, and her challenger Bonnie, from Lumiose City, will now begin!" the referee called out, the observers going quiet. "This will be an elimination match, with each trainer using two Pokemon. Only the challenger is allowed to substitute Pokemon during the match. Let the match begin!"
As soon as the rules were called out, Bonnie immediately looked to Roxanne, seeing the gym leader smiling as she raised her pokeball. "All right, Bonnie, let the best trainer win. Geodude, come on out!" She threw her pokeball out and Bonnie watched closely as it opened up, flashing above the rocks before the Rock Pokemon itself emerged. It looked as tough as Rotom made it sound when he'd explained it the night before.
"Zzt, Bonnie," the PokeDex whispered, floating close to Bonnie's ear. "This Geodude has a great deal of battle experience. Its edges are more chipped and worn just like I explained last night."
Bonnie nodded, having noticed that herself. It wasn't going to change anything, though, as she had to go with the strategy she'd planned regardless of its experience. She took a deep breath and then pulled out her own pokeball. "Beautifly, let's rumble!" she shouted out, throwing out the pokeball and watching as it opened up, lighting the field up before her Butterfly Pokemon emerged.
"Interesting," Roxanne said, eyes narrowing as she studied the bug type. "A shiny Beautifly. I suppose we'll see if its battling ability matches its beauty."
"It sure does," Bonnie assured the gym leader, before deciding she was going to make the first move, a rush of excitement coming to her as she thrust her arm forward and gave the order. "Beautifly, use Tackle!"
"Beauuutifly!"
The Butterfly Pokemon rushed forward with everything she had, flapping her wings hard as she followed her trainer's command. Bonnie definitely wanted to win this, but it was clear her bug type was just as desperate. Roxanne didn't even order a counterattack and Geodude only watched as Beautifly came at him from the air. And then, she struck, putting all the force into the attack that she could, and...
"Zzt! It did nothing!"
Bonnie gasped, seeing that Rotom was right, watching as Beautifly cried out, seemingly bouncing off of the rock hard Geodude, the Rock Pokemon barely moving, eyes narrowing as it looked at the bug type fly backwards to avoid any quick counterattacks. He glanced back to his trainer, Roxanne smiling as she observed the field in front of her.
"Rock types are very strong defensively, Bonnie," she said, arms folded as she spoke, looking very business-like. "A simple Tackle attack is hardly going to do much damage."
"Zzt! Why did you use Tackle?" Rotom asked, sounding perplexed by Bonnie's weak attack order.
"I can't let her know my strategy already," Bonnie whispered back, knowing that she might've screwed up, but not wanting to admit it. "I can still win this."
"How about I go next?" Roxanne then said, smiling as Geodude flexed ahead of her. "Geodude, use Mega Punch!"
"Geo! Geodude!" Bonnie blinked, surprised by Geodude's fierce look as it immediately started rushing towards Beautifly, its arm pulled back and its fist glowing white as it prepared to lash out. It would not be good if that attack landed.
"Use String Shot and fly up!"
"Fly!" Beautifly nodded quickly, firing out the string of web, hitting Geodude right in the face before flapping her wings hard and darting up. Geodude managed to block the webs from hitting his eyes, but was still slowed down enough that he swung at air when he reached where Beautifly had been a moment before.
That was close, Bonnie thought, looking over to where Clyde and Kenny were watching, seeing them both looking relieved by the quick dodge. She quickly looked back to the field, though, knowing that she needed to do more than that if she was going to win this battle. "Beautifly, hit Geodude with Gust!"
"Beautifly!" the Butterfly Pokemon cried out, nodding before aiming down at the rock type beneath her and flapping her wings as fast as she could. Once the attack began, though, Bonnie could see it was no use, the wind generated by Beautifly's Gust not nearly enough to move Geodude, the Rock Pokemon simply narrowing its eyes as it braved the attack.
"Once again, Bonnie, you'll need more than that to harm a rock type Pokemon," Roxanne informed the young trainer. "Geodude, let's try another Mega Punch, and this time, give chase and land a hit!"
Bonnie gulped nervously upon hearing that, but she wasn't going to let Roxanne get her way. She was going to fight back. "All right, Beautifly, it's time to use Absorb!" she ordered, knowing that the only way she was going to do any damage was if she went with her best attack now.
The Butterfly Pokemon immediately stopped her Gust, positioning herself further above Geodude as he rushed towards her with his arm once more pulled back in preparation to swing it forward. Her body glowed bright green as she focused, tensing up as she tried to get as much out of the attack as possible. And, just as Geodude was nearing her, his body glowed green as well. As he started to swing his fist forward, three green orbs appeared to be sucked out of him, causing him to grunt in pain just before they were absorbed into Beautifly. However, the success was short lived, Geodude's Mega Punch landing hard in the centre of her chest and sending her spinning away before she managed to right herself to avoid crashing into a wall.
"Zzt, I think Beautifly took more damage than Geodude," Rotom said nervously. Bonnie was pretty sure he was right, seeing her Pokemon breathing heavily while Geodude managed to shake off his discomfort fairly quickly.
"Not bad, Bonnie, but if that's all, Beautifly's going to have a hard time keeping up. I've trained my Pokemon to handle their weaknesses, and as effective as a grass type attack like Absorb is, I don't think it'll do much to my Geodude." Roxanne narrowed her eyes, looking towards the Pokemon in the air above the field once more, clearly ready to make her next order. "Let's keep it up, Geodude! Use Rock Throw!"
"Geodude!" the Rock Pokemon cried out, flexing its rocky muscles once more before rushing to the ground and grabbing rocks that seemed to form underneath him, pulled up through the ground to join the others on the field. Bonnie could only watch in surprise as he started whipping them up in the air, straight towards Beautifly. She had no idea what to do, knowing Beautifly couldn't fight back against them, and sure that she couldn't dodge them quickly enough.
It didn't take long for one to hit, a large rock flying straight into her wing as the Butterfly Pokemon attempted to swerve around a previous one. She cried out in pain, falling towards the ground as she weakly tried to flap her other wing to right herself. Roxanne wasn't going to let her land, though, immediately ordering a follow up attack.
"Mega Punch, Geodude!"
"Beautifly, use String Shot to grab onto the ceiling!" Bonnie didn't have many options left, but the best she could hope for right now was to keep Beautifly in the air. Even if flying Pokemon were weak to rock types, they could still do more from the air than they could.
"Fly!" Beautifly answered, a stringy web immediately shooting upwards. Bonnie pumped her fist as it stuck to the ceiling and Beautifly quickly started pulling herself up, Geodude missing another Mega Punch as he lashed out at where Beautifly had been heading to. However, he was on the pursuit, moving up as he prepared another one, urged on by Roxanne.
How do I do any damage? Bonnie asked herself, starting to panic as Geodude closed in on Beautifly, who was still too weak to fly yet. Her eyes scanned the field, trying to find something she might be able to use before she glanced up again, seeing Beautifly rising up with her String Shot. If she used it towards the ground...
"Dude!" Bonnie gasped, realizing Geodude was within reach, Beautifly unable to get herself up any higher as he swung out towards her. Once again, the fist made contact, snapping the web that held Beautifly and sending her flying towards the ground. Bonnie's eyes widened, desperately hoping this wasn't it.
"Hang in there, Beautifly!" she shouted, wincing as her bug type hit the ground hard. However, she could see it was no use. Without being able to fly, and with Geodude's brute force attacks, it was over. Beautifly struggled once to rise up again, but fell to the ground quickly, exhaustion overcoming her.
"Beautifly is unable to battle!" the referee called out, as Roxanne's students cheered. "Geodude is the winner! The challenger will now select her final Pokemon."
Bonnie felt a numbness in her hands as she fumbled at Beautifly's pokeball. She was already down a Pokemon. How could she have lost the first battle so easily? And she had just been preparing a new strategy. I couldn't even make anything of my first strategy, she thought bitterly, staring down at the pokeball as she scolded herself. What was I doing?
"Everything okay, Bonnie?" Roxanne called out, sounding concerned. Bonnie blinked, looking up at the gym leader, who was watching her carefully.
I can't give up yet. Dedenne can do this. Bonnie nodded towards Roxanne and then held up Beautifly's pokeball, recalling her into it. "Thank you, Beautifly," she whispered to it, before putting the pokeball away and turning to look down at Dedenne, who was looking up at her with his eyes narrowed. "Ready to go out there and win us this battle, Dedenne?" she asked, forcing a confident smile onto her face.
"Nene!" the Antenna Pokemon cried out, pumping his little fist before darting out in front of her.
Bonnie looked across the field to Roxanne, who seemed glad that she was going to keep trying. It appeared as though the gym leader was glancing towards Kenny, who was watching Bonnie with a surprised look in his eyes. Did he think I was going to give up? She shook her head, deciding not to worry about that now, and she held up a fist, ready to get the battle going again. "I'm gonna win this round, Roxanne!" she told the gym leader confidently.
Roxanne smiled at that, her Geodude floating down in front of her. "I like your spirit, Bonnie, but don't be so sure. We've taken on a lot of tough trainers. You'll need to be at your very best."
"We will be!" Bonnie took a deep breath, knowing that one mistake could be the end of this match, with Dedenne needing to beat both Geodude and Nosepass. She had faith in her partner Pokemon, though, so she didn't care about the pressure on them in this round. "Go Dedenne! Tackle!"
"Zzt! Bonni-"
"Nene!"
Bonnie knew it wasn't the most effective attack against rock Pokemon, but it was all she had, and she had to hope that it would be enough. Come on, Dedenne...you can do it. She watched closely as the Antenna Pokemon ran forward, tensed up as he tried to go as fast as possible. Once again, Roxanne and Geodude waited, choosing to observe their opponent before acting. Bonnie had expected that, though, hoping she could take advantage with a quick couple of attacks.
"Ne!"
"Dude!"
Roxanne gasped in surprise as Geodude staggered back a little, Dedenne leaping back after driving his body hard into the rock type. It wasn't much, but unlike with Beautifly's Tackle, Geodude had felt this one, and neither he nor his trainer had expected that. Bonnie couldn't help but feel proud about that, seeing Dedenne bracing himself on the ground as he looked up at the Rock Pokemon, ready for the next command. Bonnie was just as ready to give it.
She knew that Dedenne's electric attacks weren't going to work directly, but Bonnie had seen Ash battle enough times to know that attacks had more uses than just direct strikes on the opposing Pokemon. "Use Thunder Shock, Dedenne, and hit the rocks in front of you!" she yelled, pointing ahead to the rocks scattered along the field.
Dedenne nodded quickly, jumping back behind one of the rocks and getting some more space between him and Geodude. Roxanne wasn't going to let him go easily, though, quickly ordering Geodude to pursue him with a Rollout attack. With a shout, Dedenne fired off his electric attack, though, sending it into the stone that was between him and the opposing rock type. Bonnie heard Geodude grunt as a piece hit him, sending him off course slightly, but he managed to keep his focus enough to just barely hit Dedenne in the side, knocking the electric and fairy type over as he ended his roll.
"Go Geodude! Mega Punch!" Roxanne then ordered, clearly hoping she could use the follow up attack to gain the advantage for the round.
Bonnie wasn't letting that happen, though, immediately ordering a move herself. "Tackle!"
"Nene!" Dedenne cried out, rolling out of his fall and jumping up with all the force he could muster as Geodude swung his fist forward.
The attacks met with full force, and for a moment, Dedenne held his own, straining in midair against the larger Pokemon's attack. However, he ultimately wasn't strong enough, Geodude's fist forcing its way through and sending him crashing to the ground. He slid along it for a few feet, grunting as his head hit a rock.
"Dedenne!" Bonnie cried out in concern, hearing Kenny murmuring something to Clyde about it already being over. Dedenne proved him wrong, though, shaking himself and getting to his feet. He was breathing heavily, but otherwise, he was okay. "Good job, Dedenne!" Bonnie called out encouragingly. "You're doing great!"
"But Dedenne has been hit by powerful attacks twice already!" Rotom told Bonnie quickly, not sounding too confident. "He's already becoming tired."
"He'll be fine," Bonnie told her PokeDex, ignoring the fact that she was partly trying to convince herself. "Dedenne, use the rocks and aim a Thunder Shock towards Geodude!"
"That attack won't work on Geodude," Roxanne called out, smiling as she watched Dedenne starting hopping along the stones across the battlefield. "Geodude, get ready to use Rock Throw!"
Bonnie didn't focus on Geodude, too intent on making her plan with Dedenne work successfully. If it didn't work, they wouldn't even get their chance with Nosepass. They needed to put everything into their next attack. She watched as Dedenne darted across the field, hopping from one stone to the next as Geodude prepared his own attack. Then, the Antenna Pokemon struck, leaping high off of a large rock and firing a Thunder Shock down towards a stone jutting out of the ground in front of Geodude.
"Now!" Roxanne shouted.
"Geo!" Geodude fired off his own attack, throwing a rock up with all his might. It clashed with Dedenne's Thunder Shock midair, the two attacks straining against one another before exploding into a cloud of dust, the shock wave propelling Dedenne further into the air.
Bonnie smirked. It was just what she wanted. "Go! Tackle from the air!"
The students watching seemed shocked, murmuring in excitement as Dedenne cried out from almost near the ceiling before aiming his head down and falling quickly towards Geodude. The Rock Pokemon looked up in surprise, preparing to throw another rock as Roxanne told him to get ready. Bonnie had an idea for that as well, though.
"Thunder Shock into the lights!"
"Neneneee!" came the answer, a blast of electricity quickly firing upwards, blinding Geodude briefly as the lights seemed to grow far brighter for a moment. He tossed his rock, but it missed badly, leaving him wide open as Dedenne barreled into him. "Dene!"
"Duuude!" Geodude hit the ground hard, crying out as he scraped along the ground, Dedenne kicking him further along as he used him as a springboard to get back on one of the stones. As the dust settled, the students watching were stunned into silence as they saw the still form of Geodude.
"Geodude is unable to battle!" the referee called out. "Dedenne is the winner! The gym leader Roxanne will now select her final Pokemon."
"Wow Bonnie, I'm certainly impressed!" Roxanne called out as she returned Geodude to its pokeball. "I actually haven't seen an attack like that since I battled Ash. He used the same technique of using the momentum of a fall to improve the power of a physical attack from his Treecko. That Thunder Shock to blind Geodude made all the difference, though."
"Zzt! It was an excellent move, Pokemon trainer Bonnie!" Rotom cried out excitedly, surprising Bonnie with the praise. "Updating data! Electric attacks can be used on Geodude to blind them!"
Bonnie smiled, filled with relief after managing to tie the match, and thoroughly impressed herself with how well Dedenne had done. We're actually doing it, she told herself, realizing she was holding her own against a gym leader. We're fighting for a badge, and we're halfway there to win it. She looked over to her friends, seeing Clyde giving her a thumbs up, while Kenny and Poliwag looked stunned that she hadn't been beaten yet. That didn't matter to her, though. She would show Kenny the good old fashioned never give up attitude that had guided her friends and her through Kalos.
"All right, Bonnie," Roxanne then announced, holding up her next pokeball. "This is it. This match will decide if you leave with the Rustboro Gym Badge or not. I wish you the best of luck. Now go! Nosepass!"
"Nosepass!" the Compass Pokemon called out as it emerged from its pokeball, hitting the ground with a thud as it did so. Bonnie may have seen it in action already, but she still felt she hadn't seen everything this thing could do. It wasn't going to be easy to beat it.
"Let's get this started!" Roxanne then shouted, snapping Bonnie and Dedenne to attention. "Nosepass, use Rock Tomb!"
Bonnie grimaced, remembering how that move had quickly put Kenny and Poliwag behind in their match against Roxanne. She had to keep Dedenne moving, even if it wasn't going to be easy, with him already a little tired out by battling Geodude. "Dedenne, use the rocks and stay on the move!" she called out, her Antenna Pokemon nodding before taking off, hopping from rock to rock as quickly as he could, while Nosepass kept turning to try and aim its strike.
Roxanne seemed perfectly content to wait, however, and Bonnie quickly saw why. While Dedenne certainly seemed fast enough right now to avoid a direct strike from Nosepass, his battle with Geodude had definitely done enough to tire him out. This constant running was only going to make him an easier target in the end if Bonnie didn't do something. She could already see him slowing a bit, breathing getting heavier and heavier as he tried to stay out of Nosepass' line of sight.
"Dedenne, we need to go on the attack!" Bonnie yelled, pointing straight ahead to Nosepass. "Use a Nuzzle attack and we might be able to slow Nosepass down to win this."
"Nene!"
"I don't think so, Bonnie!" Roxanne answered, smiling as she pointed ahead. "Fire away Nosepass!"
Bonnie blinked in surprise, seeing Dedenne easily leap back as stones burst out of the ground where he'd been a moment before. He slid back a few feet, cheeks sparking as he prepared to run ahead for his Nuzzle attack, but then Bonnie noticed right away what Roxanne was doing. She was too late to call Dedenne back, though, seeing him running up the newly formed stones so that he could leap down on Nosepass.
"Zap Cannon!"
"Pass!"
Bonnie couldn't see the full attack with the Rock Tomb blocking her view, but just as Dedenne began to descend towards the ground, she saw a bright flash of light. And then, a moment later, a huge explosion rocked the field in front of her, and within a second, the rocky barrier between her and Dedenne exploded into pieces as the Zap Cannon smashed through it, bringing the poor Antenna Pokemon with it. He cried out in pain as he was sent hard along the ground, the rocky surface ripped apart by the attack. When he landed in front of Bonnie, she was sure the match was over.
"Zzt...Bonnie..." Rotom whispered, sounding as defeated as she felt.
"Dedenne is unable to...huh?" as the referee started to call out the end of the match, everyone went silent as Dedenne stirred in front of Bonnie, groaning as he got to his feet.
"Ne...ne...neee," he muttered, shaking as he stood up. "Dene."
"No way..." Bonnie heard Kenny saying next to Clyde. "This match is over...Dedenne needs to give up."
Bonnie ignored that, though, watching as her best friend stood, turning to look back at her. "Dedenne? You want to keep going?"
"Denene," he answered, nodding quickly before turning back towards Roxanne and Nosepass, the former looking surprised, but impressed.
"An excellent never give up attitude," the gym leader acknowledged. "Are you sure you want to continue?"
Bonnie narrowed her eyes, seeing Dedenne nodding once more in front of her. Of course they would continue. This thing wasn't over yet. "You bet! Now Dedenne, get in there with a Tackle attack!"
Roxanne smiled, looking just as ready to continue the match, appearing to be quite enjoying herself. "All right then! Nosepass, counter with another Zap Cannon!"
As Dedenne burst forward, running as hard as he could towards Nosepass, Bonnie watched the Compass Pokemon. She could see the glow near its nose as it began to prepare the powerful electric attack, knowing she couldn't let Dedenne get hit by another one. And as it fired, she called her next order to make sure it was avoided.
"Jump and spin!" she shouted, watching as the blast of electricity rushed forward. Dedenne timed it perfectly, though, continuing his run but jumping and spinning to the left, appearing to go in an arc right over the huge blast. As the attack ended, the Antenna Pokemon had a clear path towards Nosepass. "Go!" Bonnie yelled, pumping her fist as Dedenne hit the ground and burst forward, slamming his body into Nosepass, causing the Compass Pokemon to stagger back, stunned as Geodude had been by the force the little Pokemon could muster. "Now Thunder Shock!" Bonnie ordered, desperate to keep up the assault, knowing Nosepass would have a harder time with Dedenne now in close.
"Neneneeee!" Dedenne shouted out, unleashing his own blast of electricity, the attack engulfing Nosepass as the Antenna Pokemon leaped up in front of him.
"Paaassss!" the rock type cried out, staggering back a couple of steps as the attack ended, its body smoking.
"Now use Nuzzle!" Bonnie shouted, confidence building. We're gonna win! I'm gonna catch up to Max in no time!
"Not so fast!" Roxanne countered, smirking as the battle heated up. "Sandstorm!"
"Nosepass!"
As Dedenne's cheeks sparked, the Antenna Pokemon preparing to run forward, Nosepass appeared to tense up, the dust around him starting to swirl up. Bonnie knew what was about to happen, remembering it from Kenny's match, but there was nothing she could do. Before Dedenne could run forward to finish his attack, the sand had started whipping up like a tornado between him and Nosepass, and before long, the whole field was a swirling mess of sand.
"Dedenne!" Bonnie called out in concern, not knowing where she was as she tried to shield her eyes. "Try using a Thunder Shock!"
"Nene!" came the answer, and a moment later, Bonnie noticed a yellow glow amidst the storm, but clearly it wasn't hitting anything, with no response from Nosepass.
"Bonnie!" Rotom cried out from next to her. "Don't forget that Nosepass can find Dedenne within the storm using its compass!"
Bonnie bit her lip, knowing that it was a huge disadvantage for her, but she had no idea what to do. It didn't help that she could hear Roxanne beginning her next order. "Nosepass, find Dedenne and then use Rock Tomb!"
"Nosepass!" came the answer from the Compass Pokemon. Bonnie once again tried to find the Pokemon through the swirling sand, but she could only make out the shadows on the field, and many of those were rocks. Then, she noticed a small one appearing to jump over a big rock, but as it did so, a massive group of rocks appeared to shoot up around it.
"Nene!" came the cry of pain, and Bonnie knew that Dedenne had been hit, and was now trapped in the rocks. This wasn't good, and it was only about to get worse.
"Now Nosepass! Finish with Zap Cannon!"
"Pass!"
Bonnie could only watch in horror as another yellow glow could be seen within the storm, shining brighter as Nosepass charged the attack. She was sure she noticed a glow among the rocks that Dedenne had been trapped in, but his escape attempt didn't seem to do much. A moment later, another explosion ripped through the ground and the stones, and Bonnie heard one last cry of pain as a loud thud was heard on the field in front of her.
The storm then began to dissipate, and with it, a cloud of dust in front of Bonnie. This time, Dedenne wasn't going to rise. Bonnie was already moving forward as the referee stepped out, raising an arm in Roxanne's direction.
"Dedenne is unable to battle! Nosepass is the winner!" he called out. "The match goes to the gym leader, Roxanne!"
Bonnie ignored the quiet cheers of Roxanne's students, reaching Dedenne and kneeling down in front of him. She picked him up gently, glad to see him weakly open his eyes and peer up at her as she held him close to her chest. "You okay, Dedenne?" His nod meant more to her than a victory would have, as disappointed as she was, and she smiled widely, hugging him. "You were so great out there, Dedenne. I couldn't have asked for more.
"Nenene..." the Antenna Pokemon whispered back, clearly disappointed. Bonnie just smiled back at him, though, feeling a strange sense of relief, and not disappointment, herself. As far as she was concerned, she'd proved a lot in this battle. While she would've loved to win, she had at least been close. The next match would be a lot different.
"Bonnie!" she looked up, seeing Clyde running over, Kenny and Poliwag lagging behind, each looking nervous as though this only proved that they were going to have an even harder time beating Roxanne in their next match. "Is Dedenne okay?" Clyde asked as he stopped in front of her, Bonnie standing up.
"Yeah, but I should probably get him to the Pokemon Centre," Bonnie said, before turning around, seeing Roxanne approaching her. "Roxanne," she said, as the gym leader stopped in front of her, Nosepass at her side, "I would like a rematch whenever you have a chance to battle me again. I know that I can win next time, and I'm not going to give up after this!"
Roxanne didn't answer right away, but her eyes were shining. She'd clearly enjoyed the battle, and she appeared to admire Bonnie's battling spirit. She once again looked to Kenny, though, and Bonnie assumed she was going to give him a chance to go first, as he'd battled the day before. However, she surprised Bonnie with her next words.
"Kenny, would you mind if Bonnie had her rematch with me in a couple of days, and then we could have ours afterwards? I...believe it would be a great learning experience." She paused, watching the boy, and Bonnie could see that he was still struggling with his defeat the day before.
"I...I don't mind," he said quietly, looking at Bonnie and giving a weak smile. "I...I think it would be good to watch Bonnie battle again as well."
Roxanne looked pleased at that, looking back to Bonnie. "It truly was an excellent battle, Bonnie. I don't know how much more my Nosepass could've taken. I look forward to our rematch, although it's been a few days straight of gym battles for my Pokemon, so I think they'll need a rest tomorrow. Is that all right with you?"
As much as Bonnie wanted to battle as soon as possible, she knew it was best for both of them to get a chance to rest after today's match, and in Roxanne's case, the past few days of matches. She knew it would be a good chance to get a bit of extra training in as well, now that she knew more about Roxanne's Pokemon. "Sure, that's fine with me," she said, nodding.
"Excellent!" Roxanne said, smiling as she looked towards her students, sighing as she did so. "Perhaps I can make a few arrangements for the school as well..."
Bonnie had no idea what that meant, but ignored it as she looked down to Dedenne, who still looked disappointed and tired, but had managed to get enough energy to shift in her arms so that he was looking down to Roxanne's Nosepass, who appeared to look back. It appeared to be a look of challenge, and Bonnie knew that she wasn't the only one looking forward to a rematch. Dedenne would be fired up as well.
Author's Note:
And there we have it...Bonnie has fallen to Roxanne in her first gym battle. I know...I know...I make the main characters of my stories lose a lot, but this one makes more sense, right? Rookie trainer's first gym battle. Not an easy thing. Regardless, I think young Bonnie did quite well, and it looks like she's going to be the inspiration for Kenny to get back on track as well. Inspiring Roxanne a bit too maybe...hmm...
Well, let me know what you think. Next one will see the return of Team Archaic! And while waiting for that, also let me know what you think of Gen 8. New region, new starters, return of gyms, etc. I know I'm excited. Hope you all are too.