Chapter 42 – Time to Kick Some Grass!
The next day, May, Martin, Trevor, and I, along with the fire foxes and Redfur the Growlithe, had breakfast in the hotel cafeteria. Martin was reading the paper, and on the cover were photos of all the victors from yesterday's League Final battles. He handed it to me and said, "Check out your picture!" My picture was among the winners of the Rock Field. There I was, standing with my human and Pokemon friends, in front of Onix. Trevor and Redfur were standing to May's right, Flamefox and Amber were on the ground between May and I, in such a cute pose together, I was propping Fearow up with my left arm, and Tauros and Firestorm also stood to my left. I remarked, "Poor Fearow! He looks like crap in this picture!" May said, "Well, he was in a very tough battle and got beat up pretty bad, not to mention being poisoned! You're just lucky that the poison knocked out Sandslash before it knocked out Fearow!" I said, "Yeah, I know!" Martin said, "Don't worry, Joe! I'm sure Fearow will be just fine in no time!" I replied, "I hope so. Hopefully, he'll be ready to battle by the time we face the Elite Four!" May asked, "What makes you so sure that you'll be the one battling the Elite Four?" A familiar voice interjected, "Do not let your confidence get the best of you. Overconfidence can be a stumbling block." We turned to see that it was, in fact, an old friend of ours. "Sage Li!" I exclaimed. "It's good to see you again!" May said to him. He said, "And it is good to see how much the 2 of you have grown in your journey, and that you have come this far." Martin said, "Honorable Sage, you bless us with your presence" and bowed his head to him. I asked, "You know each other?" Sage Li replied, "I have known Martin for many years now." May said, "But you haven't met Trevor yet." Trevor stood up to shake his hand and said, "It's a pleasure. Joe and May have told me about you." May then asked me, "Is my picture in there somewhere?" I looked and said, "Yeah, here it is, with the winners at the Water Field!" There was a picture of all of us, the fire foxes, Redur, along with May's Raichu, Blastoise, and Marrill. "Marrill didn't do too bad for his first battle!" I said to her. "You both did outstanding in your battles" Sage Li told us. "You saw them? How come you didn't say anything yesterday?" I asked. He said, "I had things to tend to after your battles yesterday, so I decided to come by this morning to tell you." Trevor asked us, "So, do you think you guys are ready for your next battles?" I replied, "I think so. I'm looking forward to my battle in the Grass Field this afternoon. It turns out I'll be battling against…" Just then, another familiar voice said, "Hey, Joe!" It was Chris, the trainer I had traded Skarmory to for Jolteon, AND my next competitor! He ran over to our table and said, "This is gonna be a great battle! I can't wait for you to see how great your Skarmory has turned out!" I said, "Me, too! And I can't wait for you to see how well your Jolteon is doing." Then I said, "Chris, these are my friends" and I introduced everyone to him. He said, "Its nice to meet all of you!" Then he said, "Hey, I wanted to tell you, I saw your battle on the Rock Field yesterday and you were awesome! That Onix you pulled out at the last minute really socked it to that pompous brat Ryan." Then he said to May, "And your battle was amazing, too! You were excellent!" We both thanked him. After that, he said to me, "I can't thank you enough for trading me your Skarmory!" I told him, "It was no big deal! I feel the same way about Jolteon! He's really become a valuable member of my team!" He finally said, "It'll be good to see him again. Well, I gotta go! It was nice to meet all of you!" and then he ran off. May said, "He's a really nice kid! Not at all like Ryan." Sage Li said, "Some trainers do not fully realize what it means to be a trainer." Martin said, "Yeah, some of them just can't grasp that we're all in this together, and no one is better than anyone else. I think that's why I like you kids so much." May and I looked at each other and smiled. Sage Li wished us luck, then went on his way, as well.
My match at the Grass Field was right at noon. The 4 of us and our Pokemon headed for the Grass Field stadium and entered it. May asked me, "Are you going to use Flamefox or Firestorm against Skarmory?" I answered, "I suppose I could. They have each beaten a Skarmory before. But I think I'll use Jolteon, since Chris traded him to me for Skarmory. It's more ironic that way!" She said, "That's a good idea. Even though little is known about Skarmory yet, they have discovered that it's weak to fire, water, and electric types!" I said, "Yeah, I know. This should be a great match!"
We entered the arena at noon, and I climbed up to the top of my battle platform, along with Flamefox and Firestorm. This time, Martin, May and Trevor sat on a bench just below the platform. Redfur and Amber sat with May, while Martin stroked his Persian. Chris stood atop his battle platform, as well. The announcer's voice soon came over the speakers, saying, "The green trainer, Joseph Ehlle, one of yesterday's big winners at the Rock Field will now face off against the red trainer, Chris Palmer, one of yesterday's Ice Field winners!" The referee held up his red and green flags and said, "Let the battle begin!" Chris tossed his first pokeball, shouting, "Go, Ivysaur!" I shouted, "Go, Flamefox!" and my Vulpix leapt down to the battlefield from the platform. "Ivysaur, use vine whip!" Chris ordered. "Flamefox, evade it!" I shouted. As Ivysaur's vines shot at Flamefox, he crouched to the ground on his four brown paws, then thrust himself up into the air. The vines missed him and he landed safely on his feet! "Flamefox, use ember!" I shouted. My Vulpix shot out a ball of fire from his mouth, which directly hit Ivysaur on the head, knocking it back! "Ivysaur, use razor leaf!" Chris ordered. Ivysaur launched several spinning leaf projectiles at Flamefox. I responded, "Flamefox, use flamethrower!" His eyes glowed bright white as he shot out a stream of flames at Ivysaur's razor leaf attack, incinerating the leaves, and hitting Ivysaur again, this time doing significantly more damage! In desperation, I heard Chris order, "Ivysaur, use solar beam!" Ivysaur began taking sunlight into the flower on it's back. Martin said, "Joe, it's vulnerable now! Have Flamefox use his strongest attack!" I said, "Right! Flamefox, use fire spin!" His body began to glow brightly, and his eyes glowed an even brighter white as he released the tornado of flames from his mouth! The flames wrapped around Ivysaur, who was still taking in sunlight! When they dispersed, a charred Ivysaur fell sideways to the ground! The referee said, "Ivysaur is no longer able to battle! Vulpix is the winner of this round!" and he held up the green flag. I shouted, "Way to go, Flamefox!" and my Vulpix ran up to me and leapt into my arms for a hug, while the crowds, and my friends, all cheered. One light went out underneath Chris' picture on the scoreboard, and Chris recalled Ivysaur. "That was a bad Pokemon choice on the part of the red trainer. But let's see who he brings out next!" the announcer said over the speakers. Chris took out his next pokeball and shouted, "I choose Pinsir!" and released the big, horned bug. I responded, "In that case, I choose Scyther!" and released him from his pokeball. Martin advised me, "Be careful, Joe. Pinsir might know guillotine". I said, "Thanks for the warning, Martin!" Then I commanded, "Scyther, use fury cutter!" Chris responded, "Pinsir, use vicegrip!" Scyther flew at Pinsir to attack, but Pinsir grabbed Scyther in mid-air with his 2 horns, and was crushing him in between them! "Scyther!" I shouted. The announcer shouted, "Wow, Chris' Pinsir has Scyther in a crushing grip! This may very well be the beginning of Chris' comeback!" Scyther slashed at Pinsir, but couldn't touch him, as Pinsir simply held him in place above his head and continued crushing his abdomen with his horns. "Good work, Pinsir! Now use seismic toss!" Chris shouted. Pinsir forcefully threw Scyther, releasing his grip, and Scyther was catapulted across the battlefield, and crashed to the wall of the arena! "Scyther, no!" I shouted. Scyther attempted to stand back up, but was clearly in no shape to battle anymore, and just collapsed to the ground. The referee said, "Scyther is unable to battle! Round 2 goes to Chris!" and he held up the red flag. I watched on the scoreboard as one light went out under my picture. The announcer exclaimed, "Pinsir proved himself to be the tougher bug this round!" as I recalled Scyther. May advised, "Send Flamefox back in this time! He's strong against bugs, and even if he does get beaten, you still have Jolteon to fall back on!" I said, "Right! But Flamefox isn't gonna get beaten! Go, Flamefox!" My Vulpix re-entered the arena. "Pinsir, use guillotine!" Chris shouted. I quickly replied, "Flamefox, use agility!" Pinsir launched the attack at Flamefox, and he dodged it, moving too quickly for Pinsir to get good aim. "Flamefox, use fire spin again!" I shouted. Flamefox again launched a tornado of flames from his mouth, which wrapped around the large insect. But when the flames dispersed, he still stood! "I don't believe this! That's one tough bug!" the announcer shouted. Then Chris ordered, "Pinsir, use headbutt!" Pinsir quickly thrust himself at Flamefox, and hit him with the attack, knocking him back. I ordered, "Flamefox, use confuse ray!" Flamefox's eyes turned black as he stared at Pinsir, and the attack was a success! "Pinsir, use guillotine again!" Chris ordered. But it was no good, and Pinsir just randomly launched the attack in the opposite direction of Flamefox. I said, "Let's finish this! Flamefox, one more flamethrower!" He launched the stream of flames from his mouth, which engulfed the Pinsir. This time, when the flames dispersed, he collapsed to the ground, defeated. "Pinsir is no longer able to battle! This round goes to the green trainer!" and he raised the green flag. Another light went out underneath Chris' picture on the scoreboard, and Chris recalled Pinsir as I ran down to hug Flamefox again! "Joe's Vulpix is a fire powerhouse!" the announcer shouted. Now was the final round, and I think we both knew which Pokemon each of us was going to use! Chris shouted, "Go, Skarmory!" and released the metal bird from his pokeball, in flight. The announcer said, "The red trainer is using a Skarmory, a newly discovered Pokemon native only to Johto. Since not a lot is known about them yet, they are only in the Johto Pokedex for now, and are only legal in the Johto League battles. If this were the Kanto League, the trainer would be disqualified." Flamefox and Firestorm were both anxious to melt down this steel Pokemon, but I told them, "Next time, guys! This round is Jolteon's!" and I released my electric Eevee from his pokeball. "My Jolteon looks great!" Chris said. I said, "So does my Skarmory!" Then we began the battle. "Skarmory, use sandstorm!" The steel bird flapped his wings quickly, stirring up all the dirt on the arena floor surrounding the grassy center. "Skarmory has launched a blinding sandstorm!" the announcer shouted. "I can't see him!" I shouted. Martin advised, "Have him use agility! With the visibiltiy as limited as it is, neither one of them has much accuracy for offensive attacks right now!" I said, "Good idea! Jolteon, use agility!" I heard Chris shout, "Skarmory, use steel wing! Keep using it!" Skarmory flew into his sandstorm, and for a while, no one could see what was going on. Suddenly, Jolteon was hurled out of the sandstorm and crashed to the ground! "Jolteon!" I shouted. "It looks like Skarmory managed to get an attack in!" the announcer shouted. Jolteon stood back up and I ordered him, "Use thunderbolt! Launch it into the sandstorm!" He did so, his entire body sending out lightning bolts into the sandstorm, and soon, I saw Skarmory come crashing out from the sandstorm to the ground! Skarmory stood back up. His sandstorm dispersed to reveal the grassy field again, and Skarmory took to the air once more! "Skarmory, use drill peck!" Chris ordered. I commanded, "Jolteon, use agility again!" Skarmory flew down at my Jolteon. Jolteon was running, and moving back and forth in a blur, but Skarmory managed to hit him with one drill peck, which knocked him to the ground! "Quick, Skarmory, before he gets back up, use steel wing again!" Skarmory turned in the air, and flew back down towards Jolteon. I shouted, "Jolteon, use thunder!" Jolteon took in lightning from the sky, and directed it at Skarmory as he flew at him! The metal bird didn't stand a chance as it got fried by the lightning! He crashed to the ground, defeated! The referee said, "Skarmory is unable to battle! This match goes to the green trainer, Joseph Ehlle from Crimson Town!" and he held up the green flag. The crowd cheered as the last light went out under Chris' picture, and then it vanished so that only my picture showed, with the word "Congratulations!" next to it! The announcer declared, "That sure was a shocking ending!" I ran down to hug Jolteon, accompanied by Flamefox and Firestorm, while my friends cheered me on, and Chris recalled Skarmory. Then Chris ran up to me and said, "That was a great match, Joe! Jolteon did very well!" I replied, "Well, Skarmory was doing pretty good, himself, for a while there!" We shook hands, and the photographers and news cameras filmed us. Then Chris said, "After this, I need to talk to you!" I said, "Okay!" He left the field after that, and the cameras filmed me, May, and Trevor with our fire foxes, Redfur, Persian, and Jolteon. I also let Scyther out, but had to hold him up, like I did with Fearow yesterday. Martin, once again, stayed out of view from the cameras! Suddenly, I was surprised to hear two people shouting for me. I turned to see my parents! "You did great, son!" my father said. "And you did very well, yourself, Flamefox!" my mother said to my Vulpix as he ran over to be petted by her. I introduced my parents to May, Trevor, Martin, and the other Pokemon. They really liked May!
After we left the Grass Field stadium, Chris was standing by the wall waiting for me. I asked him, "So, what did you want to talk about?" He said, "Well, seeing Jolteon battling, I got to thinking – he really is the better Pokemon. Maybe I'm a better Jolteon trainer than a Skarmory trainer. How would you feel about trading back?" I cringed, and saw that Martin, Trevor, and May overheard what he said. I didn't want to lose Jolteon! He was my only electric type, not to mention a very valuable member of my team, and a good friend. I thought for a second and said, "You know, that's a very defeatist attitude! You shouldn't just give up on your Skarmory so easily! I mean, he's already getting pretty strong! Keep training him, and he'll be ready for next year's Finals!" He looked at me and said, "You're right! I'll do that! Skarmory is a great Pokemon. I can't just give up on him because he lost at this year's Finals. We'll be more than ready next year!" I exclaimed, "That's the spirit!" and patted him on the shoulder. He said, "Thanks, Joe! You just stopped me from making a terrible mistake! Well, I'm gonna pack up for home now! I'll see you around!" and he headed into the Pokemon Village. As I wiped the sweat off my forehead, Martin said, "You really dodged a bullet there, didn't you?" I looked at him and nodded. Then we continued walking into the Pokemon Village. After May's battle this afternoon, we were going to meet my parents for dinner.
As we walked, we saw Ryan leaving his hotel with his backpack, evidently going home. May said, "Oh, look who it is! Mister high and mighty! Just ignore him!" I replied, "I can't do that. I'd be no better than he is!" She said, "I suppose you're right". I walked over to him and he asked, "You again? What do you want now?" I replied, "I just wanted to congratulate you for making it this far! I'm sorry that you lost this year, but I'm sure if you keep training hard, you'll do better next year. No hard feelings?" and I offered my hand to shake. He just looked at me, stuck his nose in the air again, and walked past me. Martin cracked his knuckles and said, "I'll handle him this time, Trevor." Then Martin walked right up to Ryan and said, "Hey! My friend here just offered you his hand in friendship. The polite thing to do would be to shake his hand!" At that, Martin grabbed Ryan by the shoulders and forcefully turned him around! "Not this again!" Ryan said. Martin shoved him up to me and said, "Now shake!" Ryan reluctantly shook my hand once more. Then Martin let go his grip and said, "Now was that so hard?" The kid just looked at Martin in terror and ran off. "You have a nice day now!" Martin shouted to him. Trevor said, "That was great, Martin! I'm impressed!" Martin said, "Between the two of us, we'll set him straight!" Trevor said, "Yeah… or traumatize him for life trying!" They both laughed, and then we continued on our way to the Pokemon Center. After my Pokemon were treated, we got a quick bite to eat. Flamefox and Jolteon would just need to rest for a few hours, but Nurse Joy said to let Scyther have a day or 2 before battling again. After we ate, we headed for the Ice Field to cheer May on in her second League Final battle.