~ Chapter 49 ~
The Battle n' Breakfast
"It wasn't easy leaving Solaceon Town. We had grown accustomed to the comforts of a warm bed, hot showers and warm meals made for us daily. That was one of the hardest parts of stopping in cities when we travelled; we got too comfortable and kept forgetting we had to leave. Maybe that's why we chose to stay at the Battle n' Breakfast on Route 210. It was far from a normal experience though. At the end of your stay, the owner offered an optional challenge to every guest. The challenge of a Pokémon Battle; two on two. If you could defeat him, or if he was particularly impressed by your skills, as a Trainer your stay was half off. To me, I never took the challenge for the money. I did it for the thrill and the challenge. There was something about a Pokémon Battle that's just exhilarating for me; and it doesn't hurt to test your skills once and a while."
Sam looked expectantly at the back door of the motel.
The group had spent a night at the Battle n' Breakfast. A small little place on Route 210, nearby where Route 210 converged with Route 215. It wasn't world famous, but to those who knew it, the place was infamous. It was one of the few places that allowed people to battle for their bill. The Battle n' Breakfast gave anyone who stayed there the option to battle the owner of the small motel, or any of his family members. If the challenger beat the house, they got half off their bill. If they lost, they paid the full bill.
Sam thought it was a worthy opportunity—to him, he didn't care whether or not he paid less or more on the bill. That part of the challenge was inconsequential. What really drew Sam to the challenge was the chance to test himself against other Trainers. Most of Sam's battles were against his friends or Wild Pokémon. He'd only twice fought a Gym Leader, and once the current Sinnoh League Champion. Rarely did Sam have a chance to battle passing Trainers, but now he had his moment and he wasn't going to let it slide.
Very few people had ever defeated the owner or his family in a Pokémon Battle. "Only a handful" was what the brochure advertised. Apparently, the family was descended of one of the first Sinnoh League Champions. A worthy bloodline, and according to eyewitness accounts; they battled like they were vying for the title themselves.
Sam had heard stories about a similar family in the Hoenn Region, the Winstrate Family. Perhaps one-day Sam would have the chance to fight them also. But for now, he remained calm and did his best to focus on the fight at hand.
He and his friends sat behind the motel at the small battlefield that had been set up for these kinds of occasions. Sam had waited two hours for Nurse Joy to be driven up from Solaceon Town so that she could referee the match. Apparently, the on-site referee had been away this week, on his annual vacation.
The waiting only made Sam more anxious though, and he had started pacing.
"Will you sit down?" demanded Niya; "You're going to wear a hole in the ground. Besides, if you keep worrying you'll psyche yourself out and you'll definitely lose."
Sam didn't respond, but simply shrugged and grunted, acknowledging that Niya spoke, but not if he had heard what she said or not.
Niya threw her hands up in the air and resigned herself. "If you get this nervous about an insignificant little match like this, I can only imagine how nervous you'll be when you have to fight Valentina," she declared.
Jeremy laughed, "He'll probably be frozen with fear and we'll have to wheel him out to the match on a dolly."
Sam frowned and turned his back on his friends, ignoring their jokes. Sam wasn't so much nervous about the results as he was about his own skill. Was it good enough? Was he where he had to be? Was this going to be the defeat that Fantina had talked about when he met her? No, no. He had to calm down.
Sam's grandfather appeared shortly after the thoughts in his head started buzzing out of control like a swarm of Beedrill. "She's right you know," he said with a kind but firm smile on his face, "If you keep worrying like this you're going to turn these nice people's back lawn into a canyon"
Sam sighed and threw himself on to the bench. He couldn't respond to his grandfather in front of his friends, but he wanted to. Yet at the same time, Sam knew everyone was right, so he sighed again and resigned himself to fate.
Sam wasn't sure if that was what did it, but whatever had happened, the owner, Ernest Victree, and Nurse Joy walked out of the backdoor, ready to battle. Sam shot up, excited and beaming and Mr. Victree laughed.
"Someone's excited!" he exclaimed, "Good! I like to see passion and enthusiasm! Just like my father, and his father, and his father before that. We do this, so we can help a new generation of Trainers get better and test themselves."
Aurelio smiled, whispering to himself. "This kid's just like his grandfather. It's nice to see passion never truly dies." He wasn't sure if Sam heard him or not, but regardless, they would find out soon enough; probably.
Tensions grew however, as Sam and Mr. Victree took their positions on either side of the field after shaking hands in a friendly manner. It was clear both competitors truly respected one another. Mr. Victree respected Sam for having the courage to take the challenge—especially when he heard the reasons as to why Sam wanted to take the challenge so badly.
Sam on the other hand, respected Mr. Victree for what he was trying to do, and for the raw passion he had for doing it. Something about it was inspiring and commendable—it was rare nowadays.
Both sides stared hard at each other as Nurse Joy read out the rules of the match.
"All right contestants! Let's have a nice clean fight, shall we?" she asked rhetorically, for she knew there would be no problems from either contestant, "This will be a two on two battle. Each contestant will only be allowed two Pokémon each, and cannot switch out until their current Pokémon is defeated. Switching out between rounds is also permitted. The fight will continue until either player has defeated all of the Pokémon of the other, or unless someone forfeits the match! If at any time, either Trainer wishes to withdraw from the battle, they need simply step backwards out of their Trainer's Box and declare their resignation from the match! Are we all in accordance?"
Sam and Mr. Victree nodded.
Lyss sat on the bench, biting her lip as she cheered for Sam internally as much as externally. She really wanted him to win this. She wanted to see Sam go far and test his skills. To become the best Trainer he could be, and then go beyond that.
Aurelio too watched the match, but he was not near as nervous as Alyssandra, though he wanted the same thing. Age and years of being a Pokémon Trainer had made Aurelio understand that if Sam's win was meant to be, it would happen, and if not, he would simply have to train harder and get better. There was no denying skill. It played a big part in these kinds of matches.
Nurse Joy lowered her white flag and the match began. Immediately both opponents released their first Pokémon. Sam had unleashed his Cranidos, while Mr. Victree sent out a Magnezone.
Jeremy immediately went for his Pokédex to look up information on the Magnezone and was amazed as he read up on the Pokémon. Recently Jeremy had taken up the habit of checking out Pokémon he encountered in his Pokédex.
Everyone had one, including Niya, and they used them to learn more about the Pokémon they caught or owned and how best to raise them, feed them, as well as check out behaviour and temperament of Pokémon they wanted to catch. The Pokédex even showed places where Pokémon they wanted were usually found in abundance. The Pokédex also kept track of which Pokémon the group had caught already and how many they owned.
Sam immediately snapped himself out of what Jeremy was doing in the side-lines. He needed to focus.
Cranidos was prepared to deflect any attack coming from the enemy Magnezone.
Good thing too, as Mr. Victree took advantage of the opening to send Magnezone on the offensive. He commanded Magnezone to use Gyro Ball.
The massive Steel/Electric type Pokémon turned itself on its side, looking like a giant floating oval, and spun itself like a tire. It kept spinning, picking up more speed, and aimed itself, still hovering over the ground, right at Cranidos.
Sam took a minute to analyse the situation and responded just in time to counter the attack. "Cranidos! Stand firm! Lower your head and stop the attack with your skull!" cried Sam.
Cranidos, fearless as her leader, did as was asked. The Magnezone, fast as it was going, slammed headlong into Cranidos's incredibly thick skull.
Magnezone kept spinning, trying to push through Cranidos, but the smaller Pokémon refused to budge. Her feet sunk into the ground as she resisted against Magnezone's attack.
Sam called for another manoeuvre. "Cranidos, tilt your head down towards the ground! Push Magnezone into the dirt!"
Sam's call was sudden but Cranidos obeyed as best as possible. As she tilted her head, Magnezone's direction changed from straight and parallel to the ground to diagonally and right into it.
There was a crunching sound as gravel exploded and moved aside, throwing dust into the air. Magnezone's speed and strength behind its push drilled the Pokémon into the ground like a car tire in deep snow.
With Magnezone stuck, Sam took the time to strike, calling for Cranidos to jump back and hit her opponent with a Headbutt.
The small Cranidos charged, snorting, and ranting as she reversed her retreat. She rushed full speed at Magnezone and as her head hit the other Pokémon, it was dislodged from the ground and sent flying backwards with a massive clang, not unlike a hammer hitting steel.
Luckily for Magnezone was able to stabilize itself and levitate its body with its internal magnetism before it slammed into any of its surroundings.
Mr. Victree congratulated Magnezone on its save and called for retaliation with Zap Cannon.
"Damn," hissed Sam to himself. Cranidos may have been a Rock/Ground type, but even with a natural resistance to Electric type moves, a move as strong as Zap Cannon would still do some damage.
Sam tried to tell Cranidos to jump out of the way, but as Cranidos leaped into mid-air, one of the two magnets on Magnezone's side hit Cranidos with a Magnet Rise attack, keeping it raised in the air, spinning, and twirling like a helpless turtle on its back.
Magnezone took that opportunity to hit Cranidos with the charging Zap Cannon. Sam could do nothing but remain strong as Cranidos cried out in pain as she was struck with Zap Cannon.
The electricity did not diminish the effect of Magnet Rise, and Magnezone was already preparing a second attack.
Sam would not allow it. "Cranidos, when you get a clear shot hit Magnezone with a Flamethrower!"
Cranidos did as asked, and the flames blasted across the arena, hitting Magnezone straight in the centre of its body, sending the Pokémon backwards and negating its next attack.
Sam smiled; he would fight his way back in this.
Magnezone came back to its starting position in front of Mr. Victree as its Trainer called out its next move.
"Magnezone, hit Cranidos with a Mirror Shot while you still have it in the air!" cried Mr. Victree.
Sam was not letting Cranidos get hit twice though. As Magnezone prepared and fired a small ball of blue-white energy, Sam called for Cranidos to retaliate with an Ice Beam.
"Crani-dooooooooos!" cried the Pokémon with all of its remaining strength, shooting the ball of energy with as much ice as it could muster. The battlefield flashed, bathing the surroundings and spectators in worry and white-blue flashes of light in equal measure.
As the light show stopped, it was revealed that Sam's Cranidos has frozen the Mirror Shot in a block of ice. It now sat upon the ground, twinkling in the sun for a few brief moments before it exploded in a dazzling, yet non-lethal, burst of sparkling ice shards.
Sam smiled for two reasons. Firstly, he had negated the attack and now Magnezone was distracted by the display, and second, because Magnet Rise had finally let up.
Sam sent Cranidos in for the final charge. "Cranidos, dash in, hit Magnezone with a Headbutt!"
"Cranidos!' called back the small Pokémon in acknowledgment.
The Pokémon's steel-grade skull slammed itself into Magnezone's side, sending the Pokémon spinning off backwards from the force of the hit.
Cranidos and Sam did not let up tough.
Sam merely called for Cranidos to "press the attack," and left the rest in the hands of his Cranidos, and he had with his Empoleon in the past.
Cranidos bathed the spinning Magnezone with an instant Flamethrower, hitting the Pokémon on all sides as it spun, revealing all parts of its body. It was like a Pokémon rotisserie barbecue.
Cranidos gave a smirk then kept going. Another Headbutt; an Assurance. Not letting Magnezone a chance to get an attack in edgewise.
Magnezone managed to prepare another Flash Cannon, but Cranidos hit it with an Assurance again, and the opponent flinched, losing focus and the attack in one painful go.
Cranidos finally finished up the battle as it bathed Magnezone in one final Flamethrower.
The enemy Magnezone, it's power spent, hit the ground with a massive thud, making a dent in the dirt below and fell unconscious, sparking off spare electricity every so often.
"Round One has ended!" called Nurse Joy, pointing her flag towards Sam, "The winner is Sam Accardi and his Cranidos!"
A cheer erupted across the field as Cranidos ran over to Sam and leapt into his arms.
Meanwhile, Jeremy, Pikachu, Niya and Alyssandra erupted into cheers of congratulations and jubilation in the stands.
Even Aurelio clapped heartily, whistling with his fingers in his mouth as he egged Sam on into the next round.
Mr. Victree was far from disappointed with his defeat—in fact, he was quite happy about it. "I'm just glad I lost to a skilled Trainer," he said with a genuine, hearty laugh, "That was an exhilarating battle! I've never seen anyone trust their Pokémon to lead the battle like that! No one has ever commanded a Pokémon without speaking before. And taking advantage of certain opportunities like that—especially with that Gyro Ball—remarkable!"
"Thank you," Sam called back in response as he returned his Cranidos to her Poké Ball. The Pokémon had fought well, and while he was sure Cranidos would be more than happy to fight a second round, Sam was not going to force his Pokémon to do so.
Instead Sam drew his second Poké Ball, as did Mr. Victree, and the two prepared mentally for Round Two.
This would be the deciding Round, if Sam could win it.
Sam felt he could though; he was brimming with confidence; bolstered by his recent win. He could do this. He just needed to remain calm and focused.
Nurse Joy raised her flags again and called for the start of the second round as she reminded the two opponents of the rules.
Within seconds of the round starting, both Trainers had their Pokémon out on the field.
Sam had sent out his Gabite, for the first time since the Hearthome Tournament.
Meanwhile, Mr. Victree sent out a weathered, but still dangerous looking Salamence.
Sam knew all about Salamence, however, and smirked as he remembered his grandfather had had one in his lifetime. Sam battled against it and with it often, and knew much about a Salamence's repertoire of moves, manoeuvres, and strategies.
A Salamence was a Dragon/Flying type Pokémon, as Jeremy's Pokédex explained from the stands. Sam knew this. Sam also new that Salamence were renowned and valued for their ferocity in a fight, their loyalty to their Trainers and their speed in the sky.
Sam knew that this Salamence was going to try and get into the sky and stay there, attacking the earthbound Gabite from above with strikes that were faster than lightning.
Sam knew how to stop it though, and Gabite was just the Pokémon for the job. "Gabite! Sandstorm, now! Extra hard, extra wind! I want as much dirt and dust as possible; we need to reduce Salamence's visibility, so it can't fly!"
"Yes! Way to go my boy! Rip that Pokémon to shreds! Destroy its advantage!" he called to Sam. Sam heeded the advice.
"Uh oh!" called Mr. Victree. He was just as surprised as everyone else that Sam had analysed Salamence so fast. Mr. Victree tried to get Salamence into the air as fast as possible, out of the range of the Sandstorm, but by the time he reacted it was too late.
Gabite had unleashed a Sandstorm so violent it was sending leaves, twigs and even small branches billowing around in the air.
Mr. Victree had to throw himself to the ground to avoid a branch that blew itself in his direction.
No one could see as they forced their eyes closed to keep sand from blinding them. Only Gabite, Aurelio and Sam could see.
Gabite went without saying. Aurelio because he was a spirit and weather phenomena did not usually disturb the dead.
Sam was able to see because, anticipating something like this in the future, bought a set of Go Goggles in Hearthome City. Though he had to travel across half the city to find them.
Sam called over the raging torrent of sand and wind to Gabite. "Gabite! You remember that game of Whack-a-Diglett we played in Hearthome?" he asked.
Gabite nodded. "Gabite!"
"You know what to do then!" called Sam, "Get up nice and close to Salamence and hit it with Dragon Rage close up, as many times as you can!"
"Gabite!" replied Gabite before she disappeared beneath the dirt, tunnel with the speed of a swimming Sharpedo.
Sounds of battle faintly echoed through the maelstrom, as well as the sounds of Salamence's torment. It did not last long though.
Within minutes the maelstrom of sand died down and Gabite was back at Sam's side, smiling happily as it had done its job.
Salamence on the other hand, had not fared so well. It was sprawled on the ground, exhausted and unconscious.
Mr. Victree was only stunned and couldn't manage to bring any words forth.
Nurse Joy was equally as stunned, as were Sam's friends on the bench.
Aurelio on the other hand was clapping and cheering loudly, like he was cheering on a sports team. He was proud of his grandson's quick thinking and affirmative action.
Sam had done what few Trainers of his experience could do. He had brought down a fully-grown and well-trained Salamence in the time it took to brew coffee. He identified its weakness, exploited it, and then moved in for the kill. Sam battled like a predator.
After a few moments of silence, Sam's friends started cheering from the bench, running up to meet him.
Nurse Joy proclaimed him the winner and Mr. Victree had to wipe sweat from his brow as he recalled his exhausted Salamence.
"I have to say, I didn't expect you to take down Salamence so fast," he laughed nervously, "I thought I had you there. You reacted like you've done this a thousand times."
Sam laughed as he extended his hand out to shake Victree's, "Something like that."
Mr. Victree chuckled and shook Sam's hand firmly, clearly pleased with the latter's skills as a Trainer. "I guess this means you get half off of your bill," he said, "Don't worry, you've earned it. Even if you'd lost I'd give it to you. You fight well; a calm level head with a cunning mind."
Sam thanked Mr. Victree, who led Sam and his friends inside to the lobby, so they could pay the bill. As they walked inside Sam froze, then looked over at the ghost of his grandfather.
Sam had noticed a picture on the wall next to a list of those who had won the challenge against the Victree family. On the list was the name 'Aurelio Giovinazzo', followed by 'Rowan Oak.' The picture was a picture of a young Professor Rowan and Aurelio shaking hands with someone who was most likely Mr. Victree's grandfather.
As if reading Sam's mind Aurelio laughed and shrugged, "You never asked."
Sam sighed; Aurelio had a point. But at the same time Sam was proud. He had started following in the footsteps of his grandfather, and something about that made Sam happy.
Suddenly, Niya interjected in Sam's thoughts. "You okay?" she asked.
Sam nodded, and he and Alyssandra exchanged a glance, as she seemed to understand the exchange going on between Sam and his ghostly grandfather.
"Just thinking; still can't believe I won that," explained Sam, giving an excuse.
"Understandable," smiled Niya, "I didn't think you'd win that—at least not like that. You're full of surprises…I don't know that I have anything left to teach you."
Niya frowned, as she seemed to lament the loss of student.
"Come on, you can't be out of material already," laughed Sam as he wrote out a cheque for the amount on the bill that Mr. Victree handed him.
Niya nodded, "I'm afraid so Sam," she replied sadly, yet still with the pride a teacher has for a successful student, "You're a fast learner and I only have so many years of experience over you. You'll need a new teacher soon."
"Who?" asked Sam with a frown. He could go to his grandfather, but the old ghostly man would probably say no. Despite how much Aurelio loved his grandson, he had told Sam before to find someone younger. Someone who's experienced was more up to date than his
Niya shrugged and walked over to her bags.
Sam could think of only one person. Perhaps he'd given him a call once he reached Veilstone City. But for now, Sam would have to worry about that later though.
Once Sam had paid it was time to get back on the road and keep moving. The Rapidash were released and saddled up. It was time to hit the road again. Sam would have to find a new mentor later; but if his gut feeling was right, he probably already had one.
