Pokémon: Crimson and Cobalt (2)
"Whoa!" the emcee shouted, barely audible over the raucous crowd. "Looks like Misty's expecting that Golduck of hers to be her 'ace in the hole', so to speak! That smirk she's wearing cannot be a good sign for her opposition. I have a feeling we're about to see firsthand the Cerulean Gym Leader's all-out offensive policy when it comes to water -type Pokémon!"
True to the announcer's words, the second it was on the field, Golduck rushed at its opponent, claws encased in shadows. In self-defense, the Alakazam unleashed a volley of telekinetic energy, revealing its third attack as Psychic. The hit landed plush, but the duck still took it relatively easily. What came next was a flash of Confuse Ray. The barrage of Shadow Claw slashes as well as the constant damage the psychic took by its own self-damaging attacks was enough to finish it off.
"Don't feel too bad," the swimmer told her opponent as he recalled his fainted partner. "Not many people can get past my Golduck. There's a reason I don't use my real team in official gym battles."
To Misty (and everyone else's) surprise, a smirk appeared on the young trainer's face. "Perfect."
The girl's eyebrow raised. "Perfect? From where I'm standing, you're down, three to two."
"I just needed to get a good understanding of who I was fighting. It's nice to know that every Pokémon you sent out today has been faster than mine."
"And, how does that help you again?"
Regis picked out a Poké ball caressing it in his hand. "You see, you're not the only one with an ace up their sleeve. I have one, too. Meet Exeggutor!"
The Pokémon in question appeared out of its capsule. The three-headed living coconut tree stomped around giddily, eager to battle.
The swimmer tilted her head in confusion. "I'm still waiting…"
"Well, wait no more! Trick Room!"
With that, Exeggutor sent out a pulse of psychic energy so strong that it warped the physics of time and space in the battlefield. It was now enclosed in a cage like structure, and true to the room's effect, Golduck was slowed to the point where its opponent could move faster than it.
"That won't save you. Shadow Cl— "
"Barrage."
A small round of black spears shot out from the Coconut Pokémon's mouth and hit, much to the opposing Pokémon and trainer's annoyance.
"Really?"
"That was just a distraction," declared Regis. "Hypnosis."
The hypnotic suggestion came immediately, and try as it might, Golduck couldn't resist the sleep that came. The living palm tree started to charge up an ominous beam of energy from the sun. It was safe to say that the future wasn't looking bleak for Misty so much as it was looking way too bright.
Meanwhile, back in a fairly quiet Viridian City, one girl couldn't look away from her TV. On the eve of her 13th birthday, another future trainer by the name of Bella was captivated by the action going on her screen. That didn't stop her, however, from screaming frantically for her mother.
"Mom! Mom! Hurry up, you're missing everything!" The brunette made a point to over hover over every syllable of 'everything'.
"Coming, sweetie!" The response echoed back from the ground floor downstairs for what felt like millionth time. Bella's mother had been cooking for a while now, but to the girl herself, eating could wait however long this match lasted. This was just too good.
Back on the field, the beam of energy came down with no resistance, as no amount of screaming Golduck's name roused it from its slumber. Both trainers cringed as their vision was obscured by a bright flash of yellowish green. The duck never stood a chance. Misty grimaced as she looked over her fallen friend.
"Thanks, Golduck." With that, she recalled her Pokémon. At this point, she could have easily switched out into Starmie and bet it all on a Signal Beam managing to hit. Or at least, that's what one would think she would've done. Instead, the next fire to come out shocked the entire building.
"It's a… Togekiss?!" Even the emcee couldn't hide his surprise. Being a water- type specialist, everybody had expected all Pokémon of that type. This was the exact opposite.
"I didn't know you had one of those," Regis mumbled, barely audible over his own shock. The swimmer merely smirked, somewhat enjoying making her opponent sweat.
"Yup. And if memory serves me, Flying beats Grass, right?"
The boy responded by ordering Exeggutor to throw out a Hypnosis. The bird swiftly dodged the attack before countering with a Brave Bird. The attack's incredible force slammed its target against the opposite stadium wall. Exeggutor was down and out!
"No…" Regis recalled his partner robotically. He looked like a kid who'd failed a test. "Looks like I have no choice. Let's go, Poliwrath!"
A large, round biped with a swirly chest and angry eyes took the field, more than raring to go judging by its constant posing. Regis looked more than a little mortified by this.
"So, I guess I'm not the only one here capable of playing against type. Interesting. Your Poliwrath looks as I've ever seen one, by the way."
"Thanks," he said, smiling for the first time in a little while.
"You do know, of course, that it stands no chance against my Togekiss, right?"
"On paper, no. If I'm being really honest, I really didn't want things to have to come to this. But as long as there's a chance for victory, I'll never give up!"
"I like your spirit, kid. Too bad I gotta wrap this up. Now! Aerial Ace!"
The spotted bird vanished from view before hammering its opponent with a barrage of nearly invisible strikes with its wings. Just when the bird was about to land the killing blow, Regis ordered a Hypnosis just seconds before impact. It hit, sending Togekiss spiraling down into dreamland.
Regis didn't waste a second. "Psychic."
The sleeping Pokémon was caught in a blue aura of energy as it was thrown around the battlefield repeatedly.
"Come on, Poliwrath! Don't let up until it's over! We cannot risk letting that Togekiss wake up!"
The soul kept coming, but unfortunately for Regis, his opposition managed to wake up. To make matters even worse, it was still relatively healthy compared to the barely conscious tadpole that he was staring down at. The swimmer grinned in satisfaction.
"Sorry. Too little, too late. Aura Sphere!" The massive ball of energy came way too quick for Poliwrath to dodge. Both him and Regis had lost.
The emcee promptly stepped in, and declared Misty as the winner. Meanwhile, Regis congratulated her as well as his own Pokémon for the former's victory and latter's good fights.
Amazing! I've never seen a battle like that. Just makes me more stoked to become more like him. The thoughts that come naturally to Ralphie, as this battle had reminded him of the type of down- to-the- wire battles that his idol, Red, participate in back in his prime. Still, his battles never got this heated. He was about to see if he couldn't sneak backstage to get a few words for the both of them when he heard a helicopter hovering overhead. As the sound became louder and louder, all eyes pointed toward the now disturbed night sky.
"Bravo indeed. That was certainly with my time. It's always good to scout out any potential enemies so they can be disabled as efficiently as possible."
"What the?! Who is that?!" The emcee cried, not sure where the ominous voice from a megaphone was coming from.
The two competitors backed away as the copter landed right in the center of the battlefield. A rather short man wearing a business suit came out with an emotionless, icy stare. His frown turned into a smirk as he stepped forward.
"Hello, Kanto. I'll bet you're wondering who I am. Let's just say, I'm a blast from the past that's going to ensure that the present and the future are a little more…progressive."
