Disclaimer: I don't own anything, except Lorelei and Damien – that's the only character
A/N: Special thank you for the reviews – let's see how it goes! On with the match!
Chapter 03
Ash's Charizard and Lorelei's Flygon were not listening to a single order that their trainers gave them.
"Come on Flygon – just listen to me for this one match. Please!" Lorelei screamed in frustration after enduring so much from Damien. "Use Sandstorm!" She hoped that Flygon would flap his wings and sweep vast gusts of particles up into the air, but he didn't. "Flygon!"
"Charizard – use Flamethrower!" Ash yelled, catching Charizard's attention. "You can finish this so easily – I know you can!"
"Pika, Pika!" Pikachu added desperately.
A torrent of fire spun around the arena and hurtled towards Flygon, who tried to swiftly escape Charizard's attack, but was sent flying into the podium that Lorelei stood on. The shake of the platform made Castform tumble off her shoulder. She flung herself over the railing around the platform and catching her Pokémon.
"Oh boy – this battle is getting aggressive." Lorelei looked at her cheering Pokémon, and at the baby Kangaskhan. "I'm sorry, I care too much about you guys to let you get hurt. Kangaskhan, Kirlia, return." She tossed the Pokéballs down to Damien and looked at Leafeon. "How about you?"
"Leafeon!"
"I'll take that as a no then. Okay, be careful though. Flygon, you listen to me right now! Use Crunch!" Lorelei felt like she was a mother telling off her child. "Don't make me ask you again…"
Charizard was showing Flygon no mercy, it slammed into Flygon with a Take Down. Leafeon lurched onto Lorelei's shoulder and Castform flinched as the pair of disobedient Pokémon slammed into the podium.
The spectator gasped, "Ladies and gentlemen – this is going to be an interesting battle. Flygon has really taken a hit from Charizard's Fire Spin and that Take Down. What is Lorelei going to do now?"
There's not very much I can do. Lorelei thought to herself. She remembered how it was to fight with Flygon – and the more that she had tried to train it, the more disobedient it had become.
Charizard grabbed Flygon with its sharp claws, gripping it with immense strength, before shooting up into the air.
"A seismic toss…" whispered Lorelei in complete amazement. "Flygon- you got to free yourself now." The desperation in her was apparent, because she knew that Flygon was her best chance of defeating Charizard. She lifted her hand to her brow, shielding her eyes from the sun so that she could see what was going on above her.
There was a glimmer as something shone up above the arena. Not long after, there was a huge smash and a fissure opened up as Charizard and Flygon hit the ground.
Ash and his opponent watched in anticipation as they tried to see exactly who had won the round.
"With Charizard, and Flygon unable to battle – the round ends in a tie. The pitch will now change to an ice zone."
"Charizard return – you did really well there, good job!" Ash put Charizard's Pokémonball back onto the Pokéball stand beside him, but he stared at his remaining two Pokéballs. "Staraptor – I choose you!"
"Staraptor!" Staraptor flew in circles, calling out its name as it waited for its opponent.
"Bellossom, it's up to you!" Lorelei let out her grass type Pokémon.
It slipped and stumbled about the icy pitch, but Lorelei didn't have any other Pokémon with an advantage on an ice rink. Bellossom was also in a bad way apart being affected by Muk's poisonous sludge bomb and from her earlier battles against Sceptile and Buizel. She was panting heavily and struggling to remain on her feet.
"Bellossom – let's use-"
"Staraptor, use close combat!" Ash snapped sharply.
Staraptor dove down and slapped Bellossom aggressively with its wings and scratching Bellossom with its talons, but little Bellossom didn't stand a chance. When Staraptor stopped, it soared through the air, preparing itself for another attack. Lorelei's Bellossom whimpered as it lay down flat on the ice.
"Come on, Bellossom. You can get up – you can do it." Lorelei shook her fists.
Bellossom leapt up onto her feet and narrowed her eyes, ready to fight. A purple flash coursed over her skin. Her health points were taking a sharp hit.
"Bellossom – use Bullet Seed!"
Lorelei's Pokémon fired seeds at Staraptor, missing it entirely, before collapsing down on the ground in exhaustion.
"Bellossom is unable to- what?!" the commentator squealed in shock as Bellossom lifted herself off the floor, but helplessly collapsed. "Wow. Bellossom is unable to battle – the round goes to Staraptor and Ash."
"Oh right – go Staraptor!" Ash yelled enthusiastically, feeling even more determined to win the match.
Lorelei apologised to her next Pokémon, throwing its Pokéball into the air. "Ninetales – go!"
Nintales came out of the Pokémon looking pretty bruised, but ready for a battle as it stood on the meadow of the battle ground. "Nine!"
"Nintales – use Safeguard!"
"Quick, Staraptor. Use Aerial Ace!" Ash yelled, pointing at Ninetales. "Show that Safeguard isn't going to work this time!"
Following Ash's orders, Staraptor tried to attack, but Safeguard was a little too strong. The bird like Pokémon bounced back off the beautiful Pokémon.
"Staraptor, Wing Attack!"
Ninetales was caught by the full force of the attack. "Nine, Ninetales!" it snapped angrily.
"Go on, Ninetales, use Confuse Ray!"
Ninetales' eyes glowed as it looked deep into the flying Pokémon's eyes. The glow transferred into Staraptor who darted up into the air, above the clouds.
"Watch out, Ninetales, be on your guard!" warned Lorelei, looking up at the clouds, no longer needing to shield her eyes from the sun.
A bird call echoed in everyone's ears as Staraptor shot down, aimed right at Ninetales. It pierced its beak straight into one of the tails of Ninetales, making it yelp in pain. Staraptor shook itself, emphasising to Ash's that confuse ray hadn't done anything to it this time, but Ash could see that Staraptor was already tired, maybe as much as Ninetales – it seemed an even battle in his eyes, which gave him hope when earlier, he had three Pokémon and his opponent five. Now, it was two of his, against two Pokémon – and a weakened Ninetales too.
"Go on Staraptor – let's try Brave Bird!"
Staraptor looked confused, because this attack could inflict a lot of damage onto the Pokémon itself. Instead of questioning it any further, Staraptor followed Ash's orders and used that attack whilst Ninetales was recovering.
Lorelei yelled out in pain as she watched Ninetales slide back into the meadow grass of the arena. "Ninetales?" she called out curiously.
"Ninetales is unable to battle – the round goes to Staraptor and Ash…" The commentator seemed to be losing a little enthusiasm due to the pure length of the battle – even the sun was disappearing and large flood lights were being turned on, completely illuminating the pitch.
Lorelei's hand hovered over the two remaining Pokéballs. "Which one? I'm not ready for this… Damien is never going to let go of the fact I went against his suggestion." She shook her head. "Who cares! Lucario – I choose you!"
"Lorelei – are you telling me that you changed the party of Pokémon that we decided yesterday?!" Damien yelled.
"Lucario – Metal Claw!" Lorelei peeled herself away from the battle, giving her attention to Damien. "Damien, I had to, it's not who I am. It would not have been a far fight at all and you know that!"
"Miss Periwinkle – this is unacceptable. Your father employed me to ensure that you became the best Pokémon trainer in the whole of the regions, and that is what I have to do- your father will hear of this!"
"Damien – stop it!" Lorelei yelled. "Lucario, Aura Sphere!" Somehow, she was able to tell her Pokémon what to do – as if she had trained him to be able to cope without her full attention.
"Staraptor – Wing attack!"
"Lucario, dodge it and use Close Combat!"
A series of equally offensive attacks followed and Lucario and Staraptor clashed viciously with one another. It was one final Aura Sphere that put Staraptor out of the battle.
"Staraptor is unable to battle – the round goes to Lucario and Lorelei…" There was a slight murmur afterwards, of which Nurse Joy's voice could be heard in the background. "Nurse Joy informs me that the committee has decided to finish this match tomorrow – we apologise for this inconvenience folks."
Lorelei stepped down from the podium where Damien grabbed her arm, gripping it tightly. "Please, let go…"
"Tell me who your last Pokémon is," he asked coldly. "You need to use Mew now."
"No – I won't do that to myself, and I won't do that to Mew either. You know the interest it would get if people had any idea that I was its trainer. Please, I can defeat Ash Ketchum fair and square – I know I can. You taught me well after all."
Behind Damien, Lorelei could see Ash looking over his shoulder at her as he walked out the stadium through the double doors after his two friends – Dawn and Brock.
"I am going to tell your father of your progress – you have vastly improved on the last match. This Ketchum boy is a tough opponent."
"Yeah – he really is. I'm going to stay here a little while – I want to talk to Raichu." Lorelei cradled the remaining Pokéball in her hands after Nurse Joy took her exhausted Pokéballs away. "Oh Raichu – I know you don't like to battle but I need you…"
Once Damien was gone, Lorelei sat down in one of the empty stadium chairs – there was now no one in the stadium at all. Even the commentator's box was empty.
"Hey," a voice startled her.
"Oh, Ash… Good match today," she replied weakly.
"Yeah, you've trained your Pokémon well. Really well – I've never seen a Ninetales swim in water before, or found a Pokémon as disobedient as my Charizard is sometimes."
A smile crept across Lorelei's face. "Thank you," she whispered quietly. Inadvertently, the Pokéball in her hands dropped and hit the floor.
Raichu escaped out of the Pokéball and sat on Lorelei's lap. "Rai!" it squeaked, a little startle by Ash and Pikachu. Raichu buried its head away in its trainer's shoulder.
"It's okay, Raichu. This is Ash, and this is his Pikachu – you remember being Pichu and then Pikachu, don't you?"
"Rai- Raichu…" Raichu seemed to agree.
"Pikachu," Pikachu said, smiling at Raichu, beckoning it to play. Even though Raichu was the fully evolved form, Pikachu was certainly bigger – Lorelei's Raichu seemed much smaller than any Ash had seen before.
"What are the Montazul Islands like, Leia?"
"They are, they are nice. It's hard to describe them when they're home. I mean, if I asked you what Pallet Town was like, I wonder if you'd be able to answer me, without saying it's home. I've only been to Pallet Town once to visit some long distance family friend Professor Oak, do you know him? Oh of course you do – he's a Pokémon Professor…" Lorelei took a deep breath. "I'm sorry – am I talking too much?" She felt her cheeks going bright red. "Maybe I can show you and your friends around the Islands?" she asked slowly.
"Yeah – I'd like that."
Ash and Lorelei talked about their hometowns and watched their two Pokémon chase each other around the arena.
"Can I ask you something?" Ash asked nervously.
"Yeah – what is it?" Lorelei leant forwards a little, a little towards Ash as well.
"That Pokéball around your neck – what Pokémon belongs in there?"
"No!" Lorelei snapped, cradling the Pokéball in her hands.
"Woah – why… not?"
"I can't – I just can't tell you…"
"You're not going to tell me it's the legendary Mew, because I'd highly doubt that. I have met that bubbly little Pokémon once or twice – maybe even three times before."
"You've met Mew?" Lorelei asked in amazement. "That's neat."
"Pika!"
"Rai!"
Ash and Lorelei stood up, Leafeon bounded into its trainer's arms as it saw the Pokémon standing in the centre of the arena. Lorelei had seen this Pokémon once before and it was before the earthquake that split one of the Montazul Islands in half.
"Absol…" Ash murmured.
"Ash – would it sound crazy if I said that I believe that there is a natural disaster about to occur on the Montazul Islands?"
"Come on, don't kid with me…" But when he realised the expression on his opponent's face, he saw that she was being incredibly serious. "What makes you say that?"
"It's rumoured that Montazul residents have always seen an Absol before a natural disaster occurs. One Absol came to my grandmother a week before a large tornado hit the Islands. Ash, I'm sorry, but I have to ask you to forfeit the match for me so that I can go on and win this thing."
Ash's eyes grew wide. "What?! You should be the one to forfeit! It's you that wants to go back home…"
"Please – there is something I have to do, but I can't go back home without winning the semi-finals and the finals…" Lorelei trailed off, and when she turned away from Ash, she saw that Absol was now nowhere to be seen. "You can't tell me that you haven't ever once been faced with a difficult decision that could upset a huge balance – that would put you and the people you love in danger if you did nothing?" Looking up at Ash, Lorelei felt her lips pursing a little, pleading him to agree.
"No – I can't step down. If you won't step down, then I guess I'll see you tomorrow…" Ash let out a deep sigh before standing up, calling for Pikachu and turning to leave the arena.
Lorelei felt a tear building on her eye. Can I really forfeit the match – what would my father think? She watched Raichu and Pikachu exchanged a confused, and slightly saddened look, but an urgent call to Pikachu pulled the electric mouse onto his trainer's shoulder.
Raichu instantly noticed her trainer's tearful eyes when the door closed. "Raii?" She bounded up onto Lorelei's lap and headbutted her chin gently.
"I don't know what to do, Raichu… If I stay and fight, I could endanger so many people back on the Montazul Islands. But if I go, then I'll upset my whole family, and Damien too."
"Rai, Rai, Raichu?"
"You think Flygon could get us there in time?"
Raichu nodded enthusiastically.
Early the next morning, Ash and Lorelei stood out on the balcony of their rooms – unaware of the other's presence at first. Ash stared out at the horizon, enjoying the tranquillity of the area and the sunlight sparkling on the water's surface.
"Hey, Ash," Lorelei whispered, looking right at him and silently revelling in the fact that he was only next door to her. "Ready for the battle?"
Ash mumbled an unaudible reply, before exhaling deeply.
"Ash! Ash are you coming?" Dawn called out to her companion from the ground below the balcony. "It's nearly time!"
For a moment, Dawn frowned a little at Lorelei until Ash came jogging out of the building with Pikachu hot on his heels. She noticed them glance up at her, before disappearing into the forest around the building.
"Come on, Leafeon – let's go finish this thing off. The sooner we defeat Ash, the sooner we can get home."
"Leafeon!" he replied as he returned into his Pokéball.
Lorelei sprinted to the arena, feeling butterflies in her stomach as she wondered how her battle with Ash would go. In the Pokémon Centre, Damien pulled Lorelei to one side.
"It's time to think seriously now. I'm going to ask that you return my Pokémon to me. That's Spheal, Kangaskhan, Kirlia and Flygon. I'll take back Lucario when your match is over."
Lorelei flinched at Damien's demand. "Oh, okay…" She handed back the Pokéballs from her satchel. "I'd like Dragonite though. You may use him to train me more than I use him, but he is my Pokémon." Deep down, she wanted to prepare everything so that she could quickly leave for the Montazul Islands. With Dragonite at her side, it would be a swift ride there.
Whilst Damien went into the arena, Lorelei signed in with Nurse Joy. This Nurse Joy could barely contain her excitement. "Ash Ketchum withdrew from the match, so you'll be through to the finals."
"You're serious, aren't you?!" Lorelei gawped at Nurse Joy, feeling a lump in her throat for the sacrifice that Ash had made. She had felt the exact way that he had the first time she asked him to forfeit the match. "He's not getting off that easily." Turning on her heels, Lorelei headed for the door. "We are going to finish this match together!"
"Wait – you can't leave, you can't!" Nurse Joy called out after her. "You're meant to be in the finals – you need to stay here!"
Thoughts from AspiringWriterGirl = Ooooo… A disaster is about to strike the Montazul Islands – uh oh… Will Lorelei get there in time? Seems it looked like a far more even fight than it was earlier