CHAPTER 21:

An Egg-Citing Battle!

After getting over the morning's events, our heroes continued to Meteor Falls, passing the desert and going onto Route 113 soil, which was covered in whitish-gray volcanic soot.

"So, Melanie…" Roy began. "How's your egg?"

Melanie pulled out the robin's egg blue spotted egg, tightening up the slack on the tan scarf on it to keep it warm.

"Well, it's been moving a bit more every day, and I think I see cracking. In this warm climate, it should hatch soon." Suddenly, a Shadow Ball attack knocked the egg out of Melanie's hand by barely touching it, but Melanie caught it in time.

"Where'd that come from!" Melanie cried, looking in all directions, seeing a Mightyena.

"Where's the Mightyena from?" Steven wondered.

"Well, you'll find out shortly!" a deep male voice rumbled.

A Team Magma Grunt jumped forth, holding a Team Magma Ball.

"Grr! Team MAGMA!" Melanie growled, running wildly at him… Or, trying to. Roy had grabbed the back of her shirt, holding her back.

"Ha… Really, Melanie, after all this time? This is my greeting? I haven't seen you since… Route 104!" The Grunt let out a harsh laugh, and his Dark Element snarled at his opponents.

"Route 104? Umm… Oh, great. Ibson!" Melanie shouted, legs spinning into wheel form.

"And, Roy, you met me in the Petalburg Woods!"

"Yeah, this is such a happy reunion!" Roy said sarcastically, clapping his hands to add to the sarcasm.

"You stay out of this, child! I've been training, and I want some one-on-one with Melanie! No you, and no silver-haired-geek!" Ibson sneered.

"Fine! How many Pokemon'll be used?" Melanie asked, forcing Roy to let go of her shirt.

"A two-on-two single battle system. NO substitutions! I have my Mightyena for my first Pokemon. Yours?"

Melanie gave her egg to Roy, and grabbed Marshtomp's Aqua Ball.

"This one! I choose you, Marshtomp!" she shouted.

Marshtomp appeared in a blaze of white light, calling out:

"Marsh!"

Battle statistics: Is it just me or do you guys never listen to anyone who says these? Gah… Anyway, this is a two-on-two single battle with no substitutions or time limits.

Melanie's Marshtomp vs. TMG Ibson's Mightyena

BATTLE COMMENCE!

"Okay, I'll go first! Marshtomp, use Mud Shot!"

Marshtomp opened its blue mouth, and a football shaped brown solid mud ball shot at Mightyena, leaving a mud trail. The attack bombarded the Dark Element, causing some good damage.

"Mightyena! Use Crunch!"

Mightyena recovered from the Ground attack, and dashed at Marshtomp, fangs bared and glowing sinister black. But a few feet from Marshtomp, Melanie shouted:

"Marshtomp, defend with Water Pulse!"

Marshtomp shot three supersonic, blue, and watery rings at the close Mightyena. The attack was critical, and made Mightyena stagger wobbly, meaning Water Pulse had taken full effect and Confused him!

"Yes! Good work, Marshtomp! Finish him off with your Surf!" Melanie shouted, thrusting out her open hand.

Marshtomp let out a roar, and a big lake behind them rushed into a blue tidal wave, flooding into Mightyena. The Water-Type attack was very powerful, forcing Mightyena to the gray, soot-covered ground, knocked out.

"Yay! Wait a' go Marshtomp!" Melanie cheered.

Ibson growled, pointing his Magma Ball at Mightyena. A red beam of light shot toward the Dark-Type and he became one with the light, receding back into the black and red Poke Ball.

"Well, Melanie, your Marshtomp is impressive, but you see, I shall still destroy you! With… THIS! Go, my great beast!" Ibson bellowed, throwing out a white-bottom Ball with a yellow top, and a black letter "H" on the top; an Ultra Ball, known to some as the Hyper Ball.

A Fire/ Rock-Type Pokemon appeared; the evolved form of Slugma. It had a snail-like appearance with a gray-black shell on its red, magma-like body, with yellow eyes and lava parts on its head that were droopy. Well… The above color wasn't quite accurate… The shell was metallic dark silver and the body was a flashy crimson. The eyes were gold!

"MAGCARGO!" it shouted, blowing a flame from its shell.

"Wow… a specially-colored Pokemon!" Melanie and Roy gaped, with stars in their eyes. Roy thought about Wattson's shiny head back in the Mauville City Gym.

"HEY! This battle's still on!" Ibson yelled from his location, head becoming humongous with a sweatdrop and anger cross.

Melanie's Marshtomp vs. TMG Ibson's Magcargo

BATTLE COMMENCE!

"Magcargo, show her your ultimate shiny power with Earthquake!"

Hearing its trainer's call, the Rock-Fire Element jumped up, and came down, causing brown tectonic rings to zoom toward Marshtomp. The attack wasn't even super effective or critical and it caused Marshtomp to faint!

"No, Marshtomp! Grr…!" Melanie recalled her faithful Water/Ground-Type, thanking it for his extreme battle.

'Now what? That shiny Magcargo would take out any of my Pokemon, be it Mightyena or Carvanha! Maybe I should just quit…' Melanie thought somberly, not noticing a yellow shine behind her.

"Uh, Mel?" Roy called to her.

"What, Roy?"

"Um, use this Pokemon!" A ball-shaped Pokemon with a white belly, red ears, and blue fur, along with a black zigzag tail ending in a blue ball appeared from nowhere, with bits of the eggshells on it from Melanie's egg!

"That hatched from the egg? Um... Okay! What is it?"

"A Marill!" Steven cut in. "Its mom must not've had the Lax Incense on it. Otherwise, it would be an Azurill."

"Okay! You wanna battle with me, little Marill?" Melanie asked.

"Marill-mar!" the cute Water-Type nodded, preparing for battle.

Melanie's Marill vs. TMG Ibson's Magcargo

BATTLE THAT IS PROBABLY AN UNDENIABLE LOSS FOR MELANIE COMMENCE!

"Magcargo, get rid of that poor Water Element with YOUR…!" Ibson ended in a yell, then said in a mocking voice, "Rock Throw."

As Magcargo jumped up and down, causing rocks to zoom toward Marill, with a pressure mark on her head, Melanie shouted:

"Use Water Gun!"

From Marill's mouth came a blue and white water beam, stopping Rock Throw and going through the small brown rocks to Magcargo, who's HP was nearly taken down to the yellows, since it was 4 times as strong against the snail-like Rock/Fire Pokemon.

"Cheap shot!" Ibson shouted, pointing at Marill. "Magcargo, Flamethrower!"

From Magcargo's throat came a burst of red and orange fire, which engulfed Marill. The Fire-Type attack did little to the Water Element, HP barely down by an eighth.

"Marill, Bubblebeam!" Melanie ordered.

A blue sphere formed in front of Marill's open mouth, from which numerous bubbled came with strong velocity. The attack was more powerful than Water Gun, reducing Magcargo's HP bar to a thin red sliver, most likely 1 to 3.

"Magcargo! Attack with Fire Blast!" Ibson snarled.

A deep red and orange ball of fire formed in Magcargo's red throat, which soon shot out in the form of a star, which zoomed in toward Marill. Marill couldn't dodge in time, and got caught in the star-shaped doom. The green HP bar had now gone into the yellows, nearly the reds from the ineffective but powerful Fire-Type attack.

"Marill! You can do it!" Melanie cried, but inside she didn't feel the enthusiasm her words spoke with.

"Magcargo, use your Body Slam!"

Magcargo leapt up, ready to crash into Marill and win.

'It's all over!' Melanie thought, but then, a loud shout came from her Marill. It wasn't pain filled, though…

Melanie looked up to see Marill deflecting Body Slam with a golden barrier: Protect! Magcargo bounced off the golden shield, and to the middle of the battle field.

"YES! Marill, you did it! Now, win with Water Pulse!" Melanie yelled, thrusting out her black-gloved fist.

Marill opened his mouth and a shiny blue water ball appeared, and then it discharged toward Magcargo. The attack won the battle for Melanie, and both recalled their Pokemon, Melanie thanking it for a good battle. (Note: Melanie's egg came with a Poke Ball.)

"Well, you won this time! But… I'll be back." Ibson warned evilly. Roy, Melanie, and Steven heard him mumble about how his shiny Pokemon shouldn't have lost before he flew away with his jet pack.

"Good job, Melanie! Guess you don't need The Roy to win! Heh heh!" Roy chuckled, grinning widely.

"Uh-huh…" Melanie mumbled, mouth dropping below her face line and sweat drop forming on her head.

The three continued to Fallarbor Town, knowing they'd find Team Magma.

Author: Okay, 'bout time I create a long Chapter! (Punches himself) Ow. Anyway, hope ya' enjoy. Review! Oh, and the, uh, bolded print up there, "The Roy", I got that from what Chazz Princeton calls himself in Yu-Gi-Oh! GX. HEY! Just cuz I can't watch it… yet… doesn't mean I don't know a thing or four about it!