Chapter 19: The Seventh Gym
After Team Royal had been arrested and taken away, Marnie's Gym duties resumed as normal.
She and Paul quickly got back to their battle, resuming from last time with Paul's Rillaboom going up against Marnie's Weavile. Emerald and Sapphire watched from the crowd along with Team Yell, joining in with the chanting and cheering as the grunts cheered for Marnie. Emerald wondered who to root for at first given Paul was her rival and she wanted him to win so she could beat him in the Champion Cup but at the same time, she was friends with Marnie so it felt wrong to cheer against her. Sapphire had no trouble picking who to cheer for, screaming Marnie's name along with the Yell Grunts as the battle continued. Piers was on the stage behind his sister acting as the musical accompaniment by singing along with the battle.
The fight didn't last much longer with Marnie's Weavile taking Paul's Rillaboom out with another Ice Punch. Its immense speed just made it too fast for Rillaboom to keep up with it and thus it went down without landing a single hit. Emerald and Sapphire assumed the battle was over but as they quickly learned, Paul still had one Pokémon left to use. Marnie was down to her last one as well so this battle would be determined by whoever won this next match. The twins watched with interest to see what the Sinnoh boy's next Pokémon was going to be. Paul returned Rillaboom and drew out his next Pokéball. Marnie stood still with her arms folded, her face neutral as she awaited her next opponent.
"Grapploct, standby for battle!" Paul commanded.
His next Pokémon materialized onto the field and flexed its muscles with excitement. Emerald and Sapphire stared in amazement as Grapploct made its entrance. Grapploct was a curious species of Pokémon for despite its octopus appearance, it was NOT a Water-type Pokémon. It was instead a pure Fighting-type. Grapploct was blue and black in appearance with four tentacles to fight with, three that it stood on and another wrapped around its waist like a martial artist's belt. Grapploct were often found in the waters on Route 9 outside of Spikemuth so it was easy to see how Paul had this powerful Pokémon in his possession. He probably caught it on his way over. Marnie frowned. Weavile's Ice/Dark typing made it cannon fodder for Fighting types so this match could go against her really easily.
"Good choice Paul, but it won't help ya." Marnie insisted, "Weavile, use Psycho Cut!"
Emerald gasped excitedly. So Marnie had taught her Weavile a Psychic move to cover its weaknesses! Excellent! Maybe this wouldn't be so one-sided after all. Weavile charged towards Grapploct, its claws glowing with Psychic energy as it prepared to slash at its opponent. Paul was ready for the attack.
"Use Dig!" he commanded.
The fighting octopus jumped up and dived straight towards the floor, using its muscular tentacles to dig its way down. Weavile missed its opponent completely as Grapploct disappeared into the floor. Weavile looked around wildly. Grapploct could be anywhere now it was underground! Marnie didn't look too worried while Team Yell cried out for her to do something. If anything, Marnie looked as if she was trying to pinpoint where Grapploct was going to come up. That was something she'd picked up from training with her brother. Piers had taught her much on the important of tracking an opponent's movements when they're out of sight. Her green eyes were fixed on the floor for any signs of movement that would tell her Grapploct was about to come up. She could see the floor bulge slightly as it was about to resurface.
"There it is!" Marnie yelled, "Use Psycho Cut the moment it comes up!"
Weavile spun around just in time to see Grapploct explode from under the floor, sending shards of concrete and showers of dirt flying everywhere. As Weavile had been ready for the ambush, it was able to react in time to land its attack. It clawed Grapploct across the face with Psycho Cut, the psychic energy in its claws doing all the damage and bringing Grapploct down onto its stomach. It winced in pain and lay on the floor. It tried to ignore the pain but the Psycho Cut had been a pretty powerful attack. Paul wondered if Grapploct could even get up again after that. If not, he'd be very disappointed as this was its first real fight and losing on its first try wouldn't exactly tell his opponents that he had a strong Pokémon to look out for. His eyes fixed on Grapploct as it pushed itself back onto its tentacles. It seemed despite everything, it was willing to carry on. Marnie raised an eyebrow, impressed with Grapploct's stamina. It seemed this wasn't going to be a done-in-one like she thought.
"Good." Paul complimented. It was about the only compliment he was capable of handing out to his Pokémon, "Now use Superpower!"
Grapploct shot forwards as if it had been fired from a cannon. Its body was surrounded by a red aura as raw energy and pure power seemed to surge through its body. Superpower as an extremely powerful Fighting attack and a move that was guaranteed to finish off a Pokémon with a double Fighting-type weakness like Weavile. Weavile tried to jump away from Grapploct but the tentacle it wound around its waist suddenly unwound itself and shot out. It was as if Grapploct was a martial arts master whose belt could somehow move on its own and grab people. The tentacle wrapped around Weavile's ankle, preventing it from fleeing, and flung it down on to the floor. Once Weavile was down, Grapploct finished off its attack. It came down on Weavile like a punishing storm, wailing down on the weasel like Pokémon with a flurry of punches from its four tentacles. Weavile cried out from each hit. Emerald turned away, finding this too much to watch even for her. She didn't want to imagine what it must feel like to get bombarded by so many punches from a Pokémon with multiple limbs like Grapploct. After Grapploct had finished, it flashed blue to signify the side-effects of Superpower had kicked in. Whenever it was used, the user's Attack and Defence fell. It didn't matter anyway for Weavile was down and out, unable to fight any longer. So that was that, another Gym Badge claimed for Paul. Team Yell groaned in dismay while Piers gave the announcement into his microphone.
"And that's the match! The winner is Gym Challenger Paul!" he cried.
Paul and Marnie returned their Pokémon to their Pokéballs and approached each other. Neither one showed much emotion as they spoke. Emerald had to wonder how two Pokémon trainers could have such an exciting match and look so nonchalant about it. Even Marnie's fan club was showing more emotion by comparison and they'd only been watching the fight!
"I really thought I had you on the ropes, mate." Marnie murmured, "Guess I paid the price for my overconfidence. Well, a win is a win so here's your Dark Badge. You've really earned it."
She handed Paul his prize. The purple haired teen merely put it in his badge case along with the other badges he had, not even bothering to admire his latest possession. Having been through three regions, including his own, in the past, earning a Gym Badge didn't feel all that special to him anymore.
"It was a good battle." Paul complimented, "You're honestly the strongest Gym Leader I've faced so far. All the others didn't come anywhere near as close to beating me as you did."
"Coming from you especially, that's high praise." Marnie said with a small smile, "Good luck against Raihan. You'll see why he's the last one before the semi-finals."
Paul bowed politely and then turned around so he could leave the arena and make his way to the changing rooms and change out of his uniform. As soon as he left, Marnie turned to Emerald and Sapphire. They were watching Paul go but they turned back to see Marnie was looking at them.
"You two will want your matches next." she acknowledged, "And since you helped in weeding out Team Royal's hideout, I'll reserve your spots so you can go next. Meet me again here in an hour and one of you shall be my next opponent."
"Will do!" Emerald said cheerfully, "Can't wait to battle you!"
Marnie nodded. As much as her face didn't show it, she was secretly feeling enthusiastic herself. It was exciting to think that she'd have a chance to battle against her old rival's sisters. Hopefully they'd be as challenging as she was.
Emerald and Sapphire left the Gym to find something to do to pass the time until their turn with Marnie came. Of course the first thing they did was use their Box Link devices to pick and choose their teams for when the time to face Marnie came. Marnie specialized in Dark types so it was only logical to come with a team that would be specialized in fighting off Dark-types. Emerald settled on Gemstone, Slasher, Tybo, Marinette, Flaps and Percival as each of them either had a type-advantage or had an attack that was super-effective against Dark-types. For Sapphire, she knew that she had to use Celestia as she was part Fairy-type so she would be useful in this Gym. Emerald imagined that her sister would bring her famous strategies to the foray and overwhelm Marnie as she'd done to her in their friendly battle earlier. Unlike Emerald, Marnie would have a harder time adapting as she didn't know Sapphire as well as she did. Whatever happened, the twins knew that this wouldn't be the same Marnie that fought Ruby in the semi-finals last year. She'd come closer than ANY Gym Leader to beating a trainer as skilled as Paul so that definitely told them they couldn't take her lightly.
Speaking of Paul, after they'd finished finalizing their teams, the twins saw him emerge from the Pokémon centre. He was back in his normal clothes again and he appeared to be ready to leave. Why wouldn't he be? He had his Dark Badge so he didn't need to stay any longer. But something deep inside of Emerald felt insulted by that. They'd deigned to watch his battle and yet he was just going to walk off without giving them the time of day? Emerald ran over to him.
"Hey Paul! Where are you going?" she asked.
Paul turned to face her, his face as blank as ever.
"I'm off to Hammerlocke. My last Gym Badge is there so that's where I'm going." he answered.
"Well don't you at least want to stay and watch us battle Marnie?" Emerald asked, "I mean we watched your battle so why not watch us too?"
"Come on Em, just let him go." Sapphire insisted, "He doesn't have to stay if he doesn't want to."
But Paul seemed to accept Emerald's request for he shrugged casually.
"Suits me just fine." he said nonchalantly, "If anything, it gives me a chance to study your battling style so I can prepare for next time we battle."
"Good luck with that." Sapphire teased, "I'm Emerald's sister and even I can't predict her battling style. We fought each other on the way to Spikemuth and she kept pulling out surprise after surprise on me!"
Paul took this in with interest. So Emerald was a little unorthodox in battle? That sounded like Ash and his battling style. He was practically a master at unpredictable battle strategies! It was what ultimately helped him win over him in the Sinnoh League. It would be interesting to see how Emerald would perform with this in mind.
The hour came and went and now Emerald and Sapphire were making their way into the Gym to challenge Marnie for the Dark Badge. Emerald was going first as her number, 143, was before Sapphire's number, 200. Sapphire and Paul watched from the side-lines along with Team Yell, the grunts blowing their horns and cheering loudly for their Gym Leader. If Sapphire tried to cheer for Emerald, her voice would be drowned out by all the Yell Grunts. Piers was up on the stage behind Marnie and just as the twins had predicted, he was already breaking into song as Emerald entered, said song being "The Girl From Postwick Town" as they'd guessed. Even though Ruby had asked him not to, he'd gone ahead and written it anyway as it was his biggest way to thank Ruby for her generous donations to Spikemuth and offering to help them out of their poverty lifestyle. The song had even gone on to be a Number 1 hit single and had brought more attention to the town as a result.
I came from a ghost toooooooooown, so impoverished and run doooooooooown.
Life there was nothing short of dull and drearyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.
It's enough to make a man feel so weak and wearyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy.
But life took an uphill turn as we looked up to the skyyyyyyyyyyyy.
Like an angel descended from up hiiiiiiiiiigh.
Who should be the one to come descending dooooooooooooooooown?
Our saviour, the Girl from Postwick Toooooooooooooown!
Hearing the song that Piers had written especially for Ruby was enough to make Emerald tear up. Of course she'd heard it before but hearing it performed in person by the man who had created it while she was here for a Gym Battle made it even more special. She wiped her eyes as she took her position opposite Marnie. The Gym Leader was looking refreshed and ready for action once again.
"My bruv insisted on performing that for yours and Sapphire's sakes." Marnie inquired, "Ever since you two signed up for the Gym Challenge, he'd been planning on it. I'm glad you like it."
"Why wouldn't I?" Emerald replied, wiping away her last tear, "It's a song about my big sister and what a kind person she is! Of course I'd like it! Me and Sapph honestly expected that he'd perform it while we were here anyway."
"I see." Marnie replied, "Well get ready for the next song you'll hear is my victory tune. Ready to get your butt kicked?"
"Not if I kick yours first!" Emerald laughed.
The two whipped out their first Pokéballs while Piers broke into commentary. The music changed from his song to the usual music that played during Gym Battles, a harsh rocking tune blasting out of the speakers.
"LAAAAAAAAAAADIES AND GENTLEMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEN! Welcome here for the Spikemuth Gym Battle between Emerald Silverlock and the Dark Gym Leader herself, Marnie Yami!" Piers bellowed, his voice amplified by his microphone, "Will the challenger claim her Dark Badge or will the Gym Leader drown her in darkness? Let's get this battle STARTEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED!"
Ever since Ruby had offered to help Spikemuth out and Marnie had taken over as Gym Leader, Piers had become much more alive than before. Not only did he have a little more colour to his face and his eyes looked less sunken in, but he radiated energy and enthusiasm that he hadn't displayed in a long time. Emerald had to admit that it was pretty irresistible and somehow managed to hype her up for this battle more than she already was.
"OK Gemstone, let the fun begin!" Emerald cried.
"Scrafty, rock on!" Marnie yelled.
Both trainers sent out their first Pokémon. Gemstone and Scrafty materialized out of their balls and took up their positions on the battlefield. The starfish and lizard like Pokémon stared each other down, awaiting patiently for their trainer's first orders. The sight of Gemstone made everyone stare in amazement. Starmie could only be found in the Isle of Armour so it was unusual to see one here. At the same time, Marnie and Piers were confused. Surely Emerald knew that Starmie was weak to Dark-types? Why was she using it? Even Paul had no idea what was going on in Emerald's head to bring a Starmie to a match like this. He turned to Sapphire.
"I suppose this is part of your sister's unpredictable strategy?" he asked with interest.
"Oh yes Paul." Sapphire confirmed, "Just you watch. It'll all make sense in the end."
The Sinnoh boy turned back to Emerald and as he did so, he noticed something strange about Gemstone. The starfish Pokémon seemed to be carrying something on its back. It was a pink slab of some kind. Yes…Paul knew what he was looking at. Back in Sinnoh, there were plenty of plates that boosted the power of moves depending on what type of plate the Pokémon was carrying. This had to be a Pixie Plate, a plate that boosted the power of Fairy-type moves. So that had to mean Gemstone had a Fairy-attack! Now he could see Emerald's plan. But could she execute it?
"Gemstone, use Dazzling Gleam!" Emerald cried.
Paul's guess had been correct. Team Yell gasped as Gemstone fired a dazzling pink beam of fairy energy towards Scrafty. The fact Gemstone was carrying the Pixie Plate that Emerald had bought back in Stow-on-Side would make this move an instant one-hit KO, helped by the fact Scrafty were already doubly weak to Fairy attacks anyway. Or it would do if it actually landed. Marnie had been ready for her opponent making a move and ordered Scrafty to dodge. Most of her training over the past year had involved training her Pokémon's speed up to the max to make them great at dodging and evading an opponent's attack, especially the super-effective ones. Scrafty dodged the Dazzling Gleam and ran towards Gemstone from the side. The Starmie didn't even have time to react as it jumped towards it and drew its arm back.
"Use Thunder Punch!" Marnie ordered.
Scrafty's fist was surrounded by electricity as it launched the attack. It threw its punch at Gemstone and hit it square in the gem in its centre. Gemstone reeled back from the super-effective blow. Electricity crackled around its body and it winced from the pain. Emerald also noticed that Gemstone seemed to be twitching from the electricity surrounding it. Not only had Scrafty landed a successful hit, but it had managed to paralyze Gemstone at the same time! This was bad. If Gemstone couldn't land an attack thanks to paralysis, then Scrafty would well wrap up this battle in its favour! She had to cross her fingers and hope for the best.
"Try again with Dazzling Gleam!" Emerald yelled frantically.
Gemstone was still twitching from the paralysis Scrafty had inflicted on it. But despite that, it soldiered on and fired the Dazzling Gleam attack at its opponent. Unfortunately, Scrafty was able to dodge it again thanks to its great speed. The Dark/Fighting Pokémon simply moved to one side and that was it. Then it pounced towards Gemstone as Marnie ordered it to use Crunch. She was aiming for a quick easy super-effective attack that would do more damage thanks to Same Type Attack Bonus, or STAB as Pokémon trainers shortened it to. Scrafty scampered on all fours and jumped towards Gemstone, its mouth opened wide for a Crunch attack. That was its first and last mistake. Now it was in the air, it couldn't dodge as Emerald ordered Gemstone to use Dazzling Gleam again. Gemstone fired and hit Scrafty square on with its boosted attack. The lizard Pokémon cried out as it was blasted by pink fairy energy. Scrafty's double weakness to Fairy types plus the boost from Gemstone's Pixie Plate it was carrying meant it went down in a single blow. Emerald punched the air excitedly as Scrafty was blown back from the attack and brought down onto the floor. Its eyes became swirls as it passed out. Marnie cursed herself for not being more careful. She'd try and avoid having her Pokémon jump at the opponent next time. Team Yell groaned in disappointment, thinking that Marnie was about to win only for Emerald to pull off a last minute upset. Sapphire cheered for her sister while Paul watched in silent observation. It seemed that another thing Emerald had in common with Ash was luck. As skilled as he was, he often got lucky in his matches. The next time he and Emerald battled would certainly be an interesting one.
"And the first Pokémon of the match bites the dust! Emerald's Starmie wins the match!" Piers announced through his microphone.
Marnie returned Scrafty to its Pokéball. She certainly hadn't expected the match to go the way it did. Scrafty was on top at first but it all went belly up for her. At least this match would go differently.
"That was good thinking on your part." Marnie complimented, "Taking advantage of my Pokémon while it was in mid-leap. But I assure you, it won't happen a second time because I ain't repeating that mistake. Morpeko, rock on!" she cried, throwing her next Pokéball.
Emerald wasn't at all surprised to see Marnie's first Pokémon was going to be taking part in the match. It just wouldn't be a battle with Ruby's friend and rival if Morpeko wasn't in it. The hamster-like Pokémon chirped eagerly, its buck-toothed grin wide as it was ready to fight. Emerald knew that Gemstone was in no position to take on this Pokémon, not when it was weak to Electric types and still suffering from paralysis. Lucky for her, she'd already planned ahead for an eventual battle with Morpeko. While Morpeko weren't the strongest Pokémon ever, Emerald knew that this one would be a force to be reckoned with so she wasn't going to take her chances. She returned Gemstone and threw her next Pokéball to bring forth her next Pokémon. Tybo was now in play and he roared with enthusiasm. Team Yell stared in horror as Emerald's next Pokémon came onto the field. A Rock/Ground type like Rhydon would absolutely obliterate Morpeko! Their beloved Marnie didn't stand a chance against it! Or didn't she? Paul didn't seem to think it would be that straight forward for he turned to Sapphire.
"Emerald's in for a surprise with that one." he muttered.
"How so?" Sapphire asked curiously.
"Just watch." Paul replied.
Sapphire soon got her answer for Marnie surprised both her and Emerald with Morpeko's first attack.
"Alright my mate, use Seed Bomb!" she yelled.
So that was what Paul meant! Morpeko knew a Grass attack to cover its Ground-type weakness! Morpeko opened its mouth and shot a bunch of exploding seeds at Tybo. True to its name, the seeds rained down on Tybo and exploded as if he was caught up in some horrific bomb attack. The huge Rhydon was sent reeling back, showing surprising power from the little Electric/Dark Pokémon as its little Seed Bomb had its giant opponent on the ropes. Rhydon had a double weakness to Grass so Morpeko was able to do a surprising amount of damage to Tybo. Emerald watched, worried on what was going to happen next. Would Tybo go down? The damage had been done but luckily, Tybo had managed to endure the attack. His Physical Defences were very high so a Physical Attack wouldn't hit quite as hard against him, even if it was a double weakness. He wouldn't survive another hit but it wouldn't matter if Tybo could land the next attack. Morpeko were frail Pokémon, unable to withstand much hits so a single Earthquake from Tybo would do the trick.
She noticed that Morpeko had suddenly changed colours, sporting a black and purple colour scheme instead of yellow and black and its eyes had become red and more vicious looking than before. This was Morpeko's special ability: Hunger Switch. At the end of each move, it would switch between Full Belly and Hangry forms and its signature move, Aura Wheel, changed typing depending on which form it was in. Emerald didn't think much of it at the time, knowing that Hunger Switch didn't change Morpeko's type. Earthquake was still super-effective against it.
"Great job Tybo! You took the hit!" Emerald praised, "Now strike back with Earthquake!"
Tybo responded instantly, raising one of his feet and bringing it crashing down onto the floor. The resulting stomp created a huge shockwave that tore through the floor and straight towards Morpeko. It should've been a clean hit but Marnie had trained her partner Pokémon for this. Just as the Earthquake was about to hit, she ordered Morpeko to use Aura Wheel. The hamster Pokémon conjured up a wheel of electricity and proceeded to run in it as if it were using a hamster wheel. Morpeko then proceeded to zoom towards the earthquake that threatened to knock it clean out and shoot up a chunk of arena floor as it jutted up from the attack. Morpeko was flicked up into the air and sent hurling out of harm's way, making Emerald gasp in astonishment. She never thought a Morpeko could use Aura Wheel in such a way. This was certainly NOT the same Marnie that had been Ruby's rival in the Gym Challenge last year! She'd proven to be very adaptable and creative in using her attacks! As Morpeko came sailing down to the ground, it jumped out of its Aura Wheel and sent it rushing towards Tybo. Normally the attack wouldn't work on him as Ground-types were immune to Electric attacks but Morpeko was in Hangry Mode, so its Aura Wheel attack had changed to the Dark type and thus allowed it to bypass the Ground-type immunity. Tybo merely held his arms up to block the attack. The Aura Wheel slammed into him and to his surprise, it felt more powerful than he'd expected. But he was able to take it and he shook it off effortlessly. Morpeko landed back on the ground, switching back to its normal Full Belly mode. Team Yell cheered, excited to see their beloved Gym Leader had successfully pulled off her strategy.
"I don't believe it! You actually managed to get Morpeko to dodge the Earthquake?!" Emerald exclaimed.
"Sure did. I spent all of last year practicing that to make up for her losses in the past." Marnie explained, "It seemed a good idea to use her Aura Wheel as a way to ride the Earthquake and fly out the way of it. I'm so impressed that she nailed it in the end and have put it to great use to anyone who thinks they can knock her down with a Ground attack like that!" she cried, sounding genuinely enthusiastic for a change. It was the most amount of emotion she'd displayed since the battle started.
"That honestly sounds like a strategy my sister would've coined up." Emerald murmured, turning to Sapphire for a quick moment.
"I probably would've, honestly." Sapphire admitted.
"And that's not the only strategy I have." Marnie put in, "Use Torment!"
Morpeko proceeded to start yelling at Tybo in a taunting manner and sticking her tongue out at him. Tybo growled in annoyance, clearly agitated by Morpeko's jeering. Emerald was confused. What was Torment and what did it do exactly? Aside from winding Tybo up, it didn't seem to do anything else. Sapphire however knew what was happening and could only watch as Emerald found out the hard way. She ordered Tybo to use Earthquake again. But he couldn't. Tybo tried to use it but it was as if Morpeko's tormenting behaviour had rewired his brain and told him he can't do that anymore. Marnie just smiled coolly.
"That's Torment for you, it stops you using the same attack more than once." she explained, "Your Earthquake's out of the question for now."
"Oh bugger!" Emerald cried, "But Tybo has more than just Earthquake to use. Hit Morpeko with Hammer Arm!"
Marnie gasped in alarm. So Emerald's Rhydon had a Fighting move as well! Now it wouldn't matter if he couldn't use Earthquake for Tybo could exploit Morpeko's Dark-type weakness to Fighting! Tybo charged towards Morpeko with his arm glowing white with raw energy. He raised it up high and swung it down, roaring savagely. Morpeko tried to dodge the attack but just as she darted to one side, Tybo lashed out with his tail to block the way and knock his opponent back into the range of his attack. Morpeko was helpless as the Hammer Arm came smashing down on her. If this had been a fight to the death and not a fun battle for sport, Morpeko would've been crushed instantly. Tybo raised his arm away, letting the crowd see a very battered and unconscious Morpeko lying groaning on the floor. Emerald hoped that Tybo hadn't hurt her too badly. The Rock/Ground Pokémon merely folded his arms and huffed.
"Morpeko has been defeated! Case closed!" he announced.
Marnie returned her signature Pokémon to her Pokéball. She had been hoping that Morpeko could've held on longer to win the match. But she knew Tybo had been weakened sufficiently by the attacks of her first Pokémon. She could still turn this around. She drew out her next Pokéball, her stoic gaze fixed on Emerald.
"You're certainly proving to be as powerful as Ruby." the Spikemuth Gym Leader commented, "She was always providing quick and easy finishes to our battles. But now it's time for me to make my come back!"
She threw her next ball and as Emerald had suspected, Weavile was up next. After seeing how powerful it was against Paul, she had known from the start Marnie would use it against her. Weavile flexed its claws, the lights in the ceiling glinting off of them, and it dropped into a battle ready stance. For a Pokémon so small, it sure looked very battle ready and like it could claw an enemy's face off, no matter how big. Emerald knew this would be a bad match for Tybo as he was weak to Ice attacks. But she did have a way around that. She wanted to use Hammer Arm again but Morpeko's Torment was still in play so he couldn't. He had to use a different attack. Luckily this next one still gave him a type-advantage over Weavile.
"Use Heat Crash!" Emerald commanded.
Tybo jumped up into the air, his body surrounding itself with flames. As of now, he looked like a huge fiery meteor about to come crashing down on Weavile. If he hit, the attack would knock it out instantly as Heat Crash did more damage depending on how much the user outweighed the target. Weavile were tiny, lightweight Pokémon while Rhydon were huge and very heavy so Tybo would easily bring Weavile down…or so he thought. Like before in its battles against Paul, Weavile was able to jump out of the way, showing its impressive speed as it effortlessly dodged. Tybo crashed down onto the floor, his huge weight making the entire stadium shudder. Piers clutched hold of his microphone to steady himself as he nearly fell off the stage and both Marnie and Emerald had to fight to keep themselves standing. Dust sprinkled down from the ceiling, the chain link fences rattled like pennies in a moneybox and cracks appeared in the floor from where Tybo had hit. God, he'd bring the whole stadium down on them if he tried that again! Tybo looked around for his opponent, wondering if he'd actually hit it or not. He soon got the answer, and in the most painful way possible. While Tybo had been distracted, Marnie ordered Weavile to use Ice Punch. The feline-esque Pokémon jumped towards Tybo and slugged him hard in the back. It was quite a sight to see this small, frail looking Pokémon landing such a powerful punch onto a rock solid behemoth like a Rhydon. The punch hit and the icy energy surrounding Weavile's fist spread up Tybo's back, a literal example of feeling a chill up his spine.
Tybo shivered and staggered forwards, clutching himself and rubbing his back to try and warm himself up. Weavile somersaulted through the air and landed in front of his opponent. While he was still suffering from the effects of Ice Punch, Weavile finished the fight by using Low Kick. Ironic it should be that it was using a move that did more damage depending on weight just as Tybo had tried to do earlier. In Low Kick's case, it did more damage depending on how heavy the opponent was. With how much Tybo weighed, it was no surprise that it was the finishing blow. Weavile took Tybo's legs out from underneath him and the giant rhinosaurus crashed down heavily onto the floor, once again making the stadium shudder. This match had truly become an example of "the bigger they are, the harder they fall". Emerald watched, speechless that she'd lost this battle. She'd been so sure that Tybo would defeat Weavile and yet Weavile was standing triumphant while Tybo was lying unconscious on the floor! Pokémon battles were the prime examples of unpredictable outcomes. Paul turned to Sapphire while Team Yell cheered, ecstatic that Marnie had finally managed to knock out one of Emerald's Pokémon.
"I should've warned her about that Weavile. I underestimated it and it almost cost me the match." he muttered.
"Yes, Marnie truly is showing that she's no fluke anymore." Sapphire agreed, "Her Pokémon are skilled at dodging attacks and striking back just as hard! I hope Em has a plan in mind for that Weavile."
Sapphire was right to guess for Emerald did have a plan. As she returned Tybo to his Pokéball, she drew out her next Pokémon. She'd been planning to use Slasher at some point and now was the perfect time to use him. He hadn't seen much action since evolving so why not bring him out now? Plus his signature move could be just what she needed to win this match.
"OK Slasher, let the fun begin!" Emerald cried, throwing the ball and summoning forth her mighty Golisopod.
Paul's eyes fixed on Slasher with interest as he materialized onto the field. He could easily guess that this Golisopod had evolved from the very same Wimpod that had saved his and Emerald's lives back in the second Galar Mine. Sapphire had told him they were powerful so he would now get to see this power for himself. Slasher clawed at the air with his huge claws, showing clear enthusiasm for the battle he was about to partake in. Ever since he'd evolved, he'd become much more fired up and had completely lost his original form's cowardice. Weavile showed no signs of being intimidated by the huge Bug Pokémon. Both opponent's bared their claws and lowered down, getting ready to charge at each other. Marnie knew that this would be a tricky match up for her as her Weavile was weak to Bug-types and had no attacks that could be useful against a Golisopod. She'd rely on Weavile's speed and landing multiple hits to gradually wear Slasher down to win. But she didn't even get a chance to call an attack as Emerald made the first move.
"Use First Impression!" Emerald cried.
That was the perfect move to use. Not only was it super-effective against Weavile, but it always hit first so Slasher would land a hit before Weavile could. Slasher moved at a blinding speed, rushing to Weavile so fast that he looked more like he teleported to his opponent instead of running. Weavile reeled back, stunned by how fast the Golisopod had moved. It didn't have time to react as Slasher appeared as if by magic in front of it and slugged it hard with his powerful claws. Weavile was flung clean off of its feet by the attack and sent hurling into the wall behind Marnie. Sapphire grimaced as she watched the whole thing. She imagined that hit must've been painful. Marnie gasped incredulously. She was taken aback by just how hard Slasher had hit her Pokémon. She knew from battles with Nessa that Golisopod were strong but Slasher seemed to be on a whole new level! Weavile slumped to the floor, completely taken out by the single hit. It lay in a heap on the floor, looking like a dumped sack of vegetables that had been carelessly dumped at the foot of the wall. Emerald put her hands to her mouth in astonishment.
"Oh my gosh, I actually took Weavile out in one hit?!" she gasped, "I had no idea First Impression was such a powerful attack!"
"You better believe it!" Slasher crowed, "We Golisopods have it as our signature move for a reason! But there's one tiny little thing wrong with it…" he said grimly, his antennae drooping down in dismay, "…we can only do it once." he muttered.
"That's a shame." Emerald agreed, "But if I was to return you and then bring you back out, could you do it again?"
"Oh yes. Switching out recharges us so we can use it again." Slasher confirmed.
That was good to hear. At least Slasher could use it again if necessary. She returned him to his Pokéball so he'd be able to use First Impression again later. In the meantime, Marnie had her last Pokéball in her hands. She was down to her fourth and final one while Emerald still had five left, but she nonetheless seemed confident about her final choice.
"And so we're at the end, you and me." Marnie announced, "Time for my ace to bring down the house! We're gonna look real good on the battlefield now! Grimmsnarl, rock on!"
She threw the ball and Emerald was greeted with the sight of Marnie's strongest Pokémon, the fearsome Dark/Fairy-type Pokémon Grimmsnarl. She remembered watching him in action when Ruby and Marnie had their semi-final battle last year. He had gone down in a single hit from Shard the Duraludon using Max Steelspike. Grimmsnarl had always been her equivalent of the bogeyman as a child. Sometimes Emerald would wake up in the night after a nightmare involving getting wrapped up in Grimmsnarl's prehensile hair and taken away never to be seen again. While she didn't have dreams like that anymore, Grimmsnarl was still a Pokémon that gave her the creeps and she shuddered seeing this one now. Grimmsnarl flexed his muscles, the hair surrounding his arms bulging with them. If this battle had been in another Gym, Marnie would be able to show off its Gigantamax form, but Spikemuth hadn't been built on a power spot so the battle would happen without Dynamaxing this time. Emerald didn't mind as it would make this battle more unique as a result. She drew out her next Pokéball, feeling she had the perfect choice to battle this one.
"As scary as that Pokémon may be, it doesn't scare me! I'll win this battle and claim my Gym Badge!" Emerald declared, throwing the ball.
This one contained Marinette the Orbeetle. She'd chosen her as her Bug-typing would make her useful in a Gym like this. Unfortunately, she would prove to be the wrong choice. The tiny Orbeetle hovered in front of Emerald, fixing her eyes on Grimmsnarl. Grimmsnarl eyed up his opponent, seeing her as nothing to be scared of. Emerald expected Marnie to call an attack but instead, she caught her completely off-guard by ordering Grimmsnarl to use Bulk Up. She remembered Ashley's Gurdurr using that move back when she and Sapphire had that double-battle with Paul. Grimmsnarl roared viciously as his Attack and Defence both increased. Red energy surrounded him as he flexed his muscles. So it seemed Marnie was going all out for this one, relying on getting Grimmsnarl's stats up so he could take a hit and fight back just as hard. Paul's face remained blank. Marnie had done the same thing when he'd fought her earlier so he wasn't surprised to see it happening again. Marinette turned to Emerald.
"Is it just me, or does that trainer sound a bit like me?" she asked curiously, "Albeit with a Galarian accent that is…"
"I thought so too." Emerald agreed, "But that's not important. Use Bug Buzz on Grimmsnarl!"
Marinette's wing case opened up, the black dots glowing as she launched her attack. The Bug Buzz rattled out towards Grimmsnarl, a loud buzzing noise that cut through his eardrums and made him wince. Even Team Yell had to cover their ears to block out the noise as it was pretty loud and unpleasant to listen to. Piers was unaffected as he was next to the speakers on stage so the rock music drowned out the noise to him. Emerald watched as Grimmsnarl shook his head, disappointed that Bug Buzz didn't seem to have done much damage. That was strange. Dark-types were weak to Bug types so why hadn't the attack been super-effective? Marnie answered her question as if reading her mind.
"Sorry mate, Grimmsnarl doesn't have the Dark-type weakness to Bug due to being half-Fairy type." she explained, "That Orbeetle won't be doing the damage you're looking for."
"Bummer…" Emerald murmured, "I'd hoped she would've been the perfect choice to handle Grimmsnarl!"
"Not this time." Marnie said coolly, "Grimmsnarl, use Bulk Up again and then follow it up with Darkest Lariat!" she commanded.
Grimmsnarl obeyed, flexing his body again as his Attack and Defence rose up a second time and immediately afterwards, he threw himself towards Marinette, swinging around and around while dark energy surrounded his arms. He spun like a fantastic tornado about to destroy everything in sight and slammed into Marinette. The tiny Pokémon didn't stand a chance. With Grimmsnarl's boosted Attack stats plus Marinette's weak Defences, it was like she was a glass window to her opponent. Marinette was flicked aside like a fly and thrown towards Emerald. Emerald held her hands out to catch her Pokémon before she could land on the floor. She looked down at Marinette, hoping she was OK. The Bug/Psychic Pokémon looked up at Emerald apologetically as if sorry she'd lost the fight and then she drifted into unconsciousness. She was out of the match with Grimmsnarl as the victor, much to Team Yell's delight as they exploded with rapturous applause.
"And our girl Marnie takes down another Pokémon with the help of her ace!" Piers announced, "Is this battle about to turn on its head for our challenger?!"
He sounded genuinely curious if Emerald could still win this fight despite everything. Emerald returned Marinette to her ball and took a moment to weigh up her options. Grimmsnarl had used Bulk Up twice so his Attack was insanely high and his Defences were bigger than before so it would take more hits to take it down. He was half Dark type so Gemstone would be at a disadvantage and he was also half Fairy type so bringing Percival in would be suicide. Her only option was to use Flaps or Slasher and Flaps wouldn't last long against Grimmsnarl with his boosted attack and Flaps' weak defences along with his lack of super-effective moves. Damn, why hadn't she thought to bring Steelclaw with her?! Grimmsnarl were weak to Steel-types so she should've brought him or Misty at least! Then Emerald thought for a moment. Grimmsnarl's Defence had gone up…but NOT his Special Defence. As risky as it was, maybe Gemstone's Dazzling Gleam could do the trick? Grimmsnarl were weak to Fairy-types despite being half-Fairy themselves so it was worth a shot. Emerald whipped out Gemstone's Pokéball and brought it back into play.
Gemstone returned to the arena, looking much healthier than before. That was because Gemstone's ability, Natural Cure, had kicked in. Natural Cure cured a Pokémon of status conditions upon being switched out so Gemstone's earlier paralysis at the hands of Scrafty was gone. That would help the Starmie out a lot for Gemstone wouldn't be hindered by paralysis and could move at full speed, and speed was what Emerald needed a lot of to win this battle.
"It's up to you Gemstone! Use Dazzling Gleam!" Emerald cried.
Gemstone's centre jewel glowed as it fired a dazzling beam of fairy energy at Grimmsnarl. Emerald was sure that if this attack landed, Grimmsnarl would be defeated. Marinette had softened him up a little earlier so that would help too. But unfortunately, her plan fell to pieces in front of her. Grimmsnarl used the hair around his body to smack down on the ground and catapult himself into the air. Team Yell roared with excitement at Grimmsnarl's successful dodge while Emerald gasped in amazement. Marnie must have trained her Pokémon really hard to pull off a trick like that! Even Paul looked stunned for Grimmsnarl hadn't done that when he'd battled him earlier. Then as Grimmsnarl sailed towards Gemstone, he used Darkest Lariat again. Spinning through the air like a top, he came hurling down towards Gemstone and crashed into the Water/Psychic type Pokémon. As Gemstone was half-Psychic, the attack was super-effective and Grimmsnarl's boosted Attack power meant it was a one-hit KO. Gemstone lay on the floor, its centre jewel flashing as if Gemstone was a robot that was low on power and needed a recharge. Emerald put her hands to her face in astonishment as Team Yell cheered for Marnie again. This was the first time that half her team had been defeated like this! This was proving to be her toughest Gym Battle yet!
"And Marnie takes down two Pokémon in a row!" Piers boomed, "Looks like the Gym Challenger is really feeling the heat now! Can she save this battle or is it all over?!"
"It's far from over!" Emerald declared, "I won't give up no matter what!"
"That's the kind of enthusiasm we strive for in this Gym." Marnie said approvingly, "Keep it up, Emerald! I'm sure you've got somethin' up your sleeve to pull off a win."
Emerald smiled appreciatively. At least Marnie hadn't lost her nice nature despite being in battle. She thought her chances seemed pretty hopeless for the moment as she didn't have any Pokémon that could help her out much. Percival's Poison Jab would be super-effective and might help but Grimmsnarl could potentially dodge out the way and just one shot him. Then Emerald realized something. She'd recalled Slasher earlier so he'd be able to use First Impression again. It wouldn't be super-effective, but it hit pretty hard so it was always worth trying that out. Also Grimmsnarl had no attacks that were super-effective on Slasher so he would take the hits, especially as Golisopod were pretty bulky Pokémon in terms of Physical Defence. Sighing nervously, Emerald decided to give it a shot. She brought Slasher back out to the field, the giant Bug/Water Pokémon keen to get in on the action once again. He clashed his claws together while Grimmsnarl clenched his fists. Both were ready to have a titanic throw down and shake things up in the arena. Sapphire held her breath, praying that her sister could win. Paul watched observantly.
"It worked last time so let's hope it works again!" Emerald cried, "Use First Impression!"
Slasher shot forwards, seeming to vanish and then reappear in the blink of an eye just as he did before. Like with Weavile before him, Grimmsnarl was much too slow to react and before he knew it, was whisked off his feet and knocked backwards by the powerful attack. Not even his enhanced defences could soften the blow as Grimmsnarl rocketed backwards and crashed into the wall, coincidentally hitting the same spot that Weavile had hit earlier. Grimmsnarl hit it so hard that he nearly went straight through it. Marnie looked over at her Pokémon, wondering if he was alright. Grimmsnarl picked himself up and growled, brushing debris off of himself. It was lucky he'd used Bulk Up at least twice otherwise the sheer power of Slasher's attack alone would've finished him off. He still had enough health to carry on fighting.
"We'll have to deal with that powerful Attack power." Marnie declared, "Use Play Rough!"
Grimmsnarl sprinted towards Slasher and pounced on him. As he did, a Fairy mist suddenly conjured up out of nowhere and surrounded himself and Slasher. Then Grimmsnarl followed it up by violently throwing punches and using some of the hair on his body to hit Slasher. The mist cleared once he'd finished. Play Rough was a Fairy attack that lowered a Pokémon's Attack when it hit. Marnie was clearly hoping to soften the tough Golisopod up so he wouldn't be able to hit as hard. Emerald watched as Slasher's body flashed blue to signify the lowered Attack. Despite this, he didn't look perturbed in the slightest. He still looked very much ready for action and like nothing could slow him down. Despite his lowered attack, Emerald knew how to work around that.
"Use Liquidation!" Emerald cried.
Slasher conjured up balls of water that surrounded his clawed hands and he sprinted towards his opponent. Liquidation had the side effect of lowering a Pokémon's Defence when it hit so Emerald could potentially get rid of some of Bulk Up's Defence boost while also mitigating Slasher's lowered Attack. As Slasher came in close, Grimmsnarl used its body hair to propel itself up off the floor again in an attempt to dodge. But Emerald had expected that move and told Slasher to jump up after him. Marnie watched in astonishment as Slasher jumped after Grimmsnarl and slugged him in the stomach with his attack. His water-covered claws hit hard and soaked Grimmsnarl's hair around his torso. The two Pokémon crashed down together with Slasher on top of Grimmsnarl. The troll-like Pokémon flashed blue as his Defence decreased. Now he wouldn't be as endurable as before. One more hit would surely finish him off! Slasher backed away so he could launch another attack on Grimmsnarl. Grimmsnarl stood up and shook himself dry. He was determined to win this fight no matter what. He wasn't going down that easily!
"Go Slasher! Use Drill Run to finish off!" cried Emerald.
"Grimmsnarl, use Play Rough again!" screeched Marnie.
Both Pokémon came stampeding towards each other. Slasher jumped up and spun his whole body around like a drill, his claws pointing ahead, while Grimmsnarl summoned the fairy mist again and sprinted towards his opponent. The attacks collided but thanks to the fairy mist of Play Rough, neither trainer could see what was happening. Emerald and Marnie tried to see through the cloud but it was useless. All they could see were faint silhouettes of their Pokémon attacking each other. The fighting went on until eventually, the mist cleared and both Slasher and Grimmsnarl were left standing. They were panting, both worn out from the heavy blows they'd landed on each other. It was clear the fight couldn't go on much longer as both opponents were almost at the end of their strength. The girls stared, scarcely daring to breathe as they waited to see what would happen next. Then eventually…Grimmsnarl took the fall. The earlier damage was what swung the fight in Slasher's favour in the end. The troll-like Pokémon keeled over and fainted on the floor, unable to fight any longer. The music stopped playing as if the stadium itself was taking a moment to drink in the atmosphere and realize what had happened. Marnie gasped while Team Yell stared in disappointment. Emerald stared open-mouthed in disbelief. She too could hardly believe that she'd won in the end despite how bad things were looking for her. Piers broke the silence.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand that's the end of the battle! Grimmsnarl takes the fall and leaves Golisopod as the winner! Gym Challenger Emerald claims for herself the Dark Badge and progresses on to Hammerlocke for the final Gym Badge!" he screamed.
"Oh my gosh, I actually did it?!" Emerald exclaimed, "Wow, I actually did it! I was so close to losing but I still won!"
She ran over to Slasher and threw her arms around him. Slasher hugged her back graciously.
"Well done Slasher! You were incredible out there!" Emerald squealed excitedly.
"Aw shucks, I really don't know what to say…" Slasher said bashfully.
Marnie went over to Grimmsnarl and patted him on the back gently. Grimmsnarl looked up at his trainer and smiled, glad she wasn't upset with losing again.
"Great job mate. You've earned yourself a good, long rest." Marnie said kindly.
She returned Grimmsnarl to his Pokéball and walked over to Emerald, who was still hugging Slasher. Emerald noticed that Marnie was standing there and she broke up the hug to see what she was going to say. Marnie gave a small smile of congratulations to her challenger.
"That was probably the best battle I've ever had." she complimented, "Both of us really showed each other what we're made of, didn't we?"
"We sure did!" Emerald agreed, "I think you've come closer than ANY Gym Leader to beating me so far! No other Gym Leader's taken half my team out before the end!"
"I'm glad I could be the one that truly gave ya a run for your money." Marnie said casually, "Well done Emerald. You truly deserve your Dark Badge."
She handed the badge over to Emerald. Emerald took a moment to admire it, reassuring herself that she truly had just earned her seventh Gym Badge and she now only had one badge left to earn and her Gym Challenge was complete. She shook Marnie's hand in gratitude.
"Thanks ever so much Marnie!" the Postwick girl said gleefully, "And I hope Sapph can give you a good battle too. I warn you, she's nothing like me in terms of fighting style."
"Oh I'm aware." Marnie replied, "The other Gym Leaders have told me that she fights very differently from you and Ruby. They also tell me she has a habit of crushing on some of them too…" she added, smirking teasingly at Sapphire.
Sapphire blushed and looked away.
"Funny you should mention that," Emerald put in, "By any chance have you fought a girl named Ashley Benson at all? She's in the Gym Challenge too and we haven't seen her in a while."
"I'd be worried if I'd forgotten her!" the Spikemuth girl retorted, "She was my first Challenger today! I wouldn't be surprised if she's over in Hammerlocke by now. I tell you, she's gonna give you both some stiff competition what with being a Champion from another region an' all."
"We know." Emerald laughed, "Well if we run in to her, we'll say hi for you."
"You'll see her sooner than you think." Paul put in, emerging from the crowd to join Emerald in the arena. Sapphire came with him.
"Oh really? How so?" Emerald asked curiously.
"Cause I ran into Ashley before I challenged Marnie." Paul explained, "And we both agreed to arrange a special battle between us after I got my Dark Badge. She'll still be waiting for me."
Emerald and Sapphire were speechless. This sounded like a dream match that they had to see! No way could they miss this!
"You…and Ashley… are going to battle each other?!" Emerald shrieked excitedly.
"My Gym Battle with Marnie can wait! No way I'm missing this!" Sapphire exclaimed, "Let's go!"
"Why am I not surprised YOU'RE so keen to get going?" Emerald snorted.
The three teens left together to meet up with Ashley so she and Paul could have their battle. Marnie was left with her brother to prepare for her next Gym Challenger in the next hour. The two siblings looked at each other in thought. They both had the same question on their minds:
Who was possibly going to win between the experienced Paul and the Champion Ashley?
Another Gym Badge for Emerald! She's got seven badges, leaving her with just one more to earn. Before she can get back to Hammerlocke to challenge Raihan for the Dragon Badge, the twins are gonna get the match of the century as their rivals are going to have a battle together. Who will emerge victorious between Ashley and Paul as we witness "Rival vs. Rival" next time...?
Trivia: Marnie's team here is based on her team during Championship matches, minus the Weavile of course. The way her Scrafty was defeated was the way I beat Piers's Scrafty during my playthrough and given Marnie has a Scrafty, I decided to keep it. The rest I made up obviously. XD
Also because this is a made-up battle and not one from my playthrough, I took the liberty of making this Emerald's hardest Gym battle just so Marnie could look more skilled and to show she's gotten a lot stronger since the first story. Due to the nature of Nuzlockes, I really couldn't do her justice last time so at least this can make up for it. ^^
Oh and if you're puzzled by Marinette's comment on Marnie's voice, that's because Christina Vee, the voice of Ladybug, voices Marnie in the Pokemon Masters mobile game. Naturally I had to make a joke about it. XD