Plot-Scorbunny 4: Ruby vs. Geeta Part 1
Two months passed by and the day had come at last.
After an intense but exciting battle with Nemona during a two week holiday in Paldea, Ruby Silverlock had been invited back to Paldea to participate in an exhibition match with Paldea's Top Champion. Ruby had heard much about Geeta from Nemona and Salma and had found it impossible to refuse when Geeta had rung her up one day and asked if in a couple of months, she could come back to Paldea to participate in a battle with her. Ruby supposed that with her current life as Galar's Champion, she should expect other Champions to want a go at battling her.
Emerald and Sapphire had been invited to come with Ruby and she'd also decided to invite Hop with her as well. Tony and Ashley had also been invited to come with Emerald and Sapphire. Geeta had arranged the match to take place on top of the Pokémon League building near Mesagoza. All trainers who conquered the league challenged Geeta on top of this building. Nemona and Salma both remembered very fondly their first times they'd been here battling the Top Champion. As a token of appreciation, Geeta had also offered to pay for Ruby and her friends to have another holiday in Paldea to enjoy themselves after the battle was over. Ruby accepted instantly, seeing no problem with another holiday in Paldea. It would be a shame to come all the way here just for one battle and go home again so Geeta was sure making it worth her while.
Once the gang had arrived, they'd been taken to the top of the Pokémon League building. Geeta was waiting for them. Nemona and Salma ushered Ruby to her.
"And here's the Top Champion herself!" Nemona said excitedly, "La Primera in the flesh! Impressive, isn't she?"
"Well she sure looks impressive." Ruby said sheepishly, hoping she didn't sound rude.
Geeta was a very tall and skinny woman with dark skin and a huge head of hair that looked almost alien to her. It was mostly black in colour with streaks of gold and blue in places. Ruby wondered if she had some kind of Pokémon attached to her head with how strange it looked to her. Geeta dressed very smartly in a black business suit with a dark blue undershirt, dark blue gloves, long smart shoes and long yellow tie. How she could possibly wear this suit in a blazing region like this, Ruby would never know. Geeta also had large blue eyes and a face that managed to be simultaneously friendly yet very formal. It was like she knew she was a businesswoman and had to be professional but also wanted to show she was human at the same time. Geeta looked down at Ruby from her great height and gave a welcoming smile.
"How do you do, Champion of Galar?" she asked politely, "It's a pleasure to meet you in person. I, as you've no doubt guessed, am Geeta Omodaka, chairwoman of the Uva Academy's school board and the Pokémon League of Paldea."
"Chair…woman? Of the Pokémon League?" Ruby asked with a sense of dread in her voice.
She shuddered uncomfortably as past experiences came flooding back in her mind.
"Is there something wrong?" Salma asked anxiously.
"Oh don't worry about her." Hop said, jumping to Ruby's defence, "It's nothing to do with you. Back in Galar, we had a chairman who also ran the Pokémon League too. Ruby…didn't exactly have a good experience with him."
Geeta shook her head in sympathy.
"My deepest sympathies, Champion. I'm sorry to hear about that." she said softly, "Please do not let your chairman's actions filter your perception of me. I have never committed any crimes, nor have I ever conducted anything shady. You are in good hands with me."
"Well…if you say so." Ruby said uneasily, "I've been used by one chairperson, I refuse to be used by another."
"We assure you, La Primera's nothing like that!" Nemona insisted, "She doesn't use people at all and would certainly never think of doing any harm to you!"
Ruby still felt uncomfortable with the fact she was with another chairperson running in a Pokémon League but she trusted Nemona enough to believe that Geeta was legitimate. She sighed heavily.
"OK. I trust you. But if she does turn out to be dodgy, I won't hesitate to kick her ass for it." she warned.
"Yes, I'm sure you won't…" Geeta said, sounding unsure what to make of the comment. She coughed sheepishly, keen to change the subject.
"Now then, shall we start our battle?" she asked.
"After you." Ruby offered.
The two took up their positions and prepared to do battle. Emerald, Sapphire, Hop, Tony and Ashley stood on the side-lines to watch with Salma and Nemona. Nemona was already shaking with excitement. She'd been waiting months for this.
"Good luck Ruby!" Emerald cheered.
"Show the Top Champion what a real Champion is like!" Sapphire cried.
"You've got this Ruby! Go for the win!" Hop cheered.
"As an ex-Champion myself, I'm sure keen to see how this goes." Ashley said eagerly, "Two Champions duking it out in one epic battle! We don't get ta see that often."
"I wonder what kind of opponent Geeta will be." Tony said thoughtfully, "She'll be a skilled fighter, no doubt."
"Skilled is one word for her!" Nemona declared, "Just watch her!"
A scoreboard flashed into life on the side of the arena with pictures of Ruby and Geeta and six circles below them to display their Pokémon. Ruby and Geeta drew out their Pokéballs.
"I do hope you enjoy the battle, Miss Silverlock." Geeta said smoothly, "But I must apologize in advance…for I am utterly incapable of holding back when it comes Pokémon battles."
"That makes two of us, miss!" Ruby said hotly, "Brace yourself for you're in for a hot one with me!"
The scoreboard counted down to start the match. Once the word "GO!" flashed on the screen, the contestants sent out their first Pokémon.
"Lancelot, you're up first!" Ruby shouted.
"Glimmora, time for action." Geeta said, still keeping her polite tone of voice as she threw her Pokéball.
The first two Pokémon materialized into battle with Lancelot adopting a battle-ready stance and Glimmora hovering ominously in front of him. Geeta's eyebrows raised with interest. Nemona had warned her Ruby had a Kingambit of her own and she was surprised to see him out already. Ruby took in her opponent with fascination and wonder. Glimmora was quite simply one of the strangest Pokémon Ruby had ever seen. It looked like a sentient cone flower with six large blue petals, four smaller purple petals behind them, three smaller green petals behind those ones a coned face and small yellow eyes. Ruby thought that the Pokémon even sort of resembled Geeta herself in some way. The petals looked a bit like her hair, especially when closed up. Glimmora spread out its petals and gazed at Lancelot with its small unblinking eyes.
"So that's a Glimmora. It's…something alright." Ruby muttered.
"I think it looks really pretty!" Emerald said with awe in her voice, "Look at those lovely blue petals!"
"I'm sure Geeta didn't pick it because it looked pretty." Sapphire said cautiously, "But we needn't worry. Lancelot's got this in the bag."
"How so?" Ashley asked curiously.
"I read about Glimmora. It's a Rock/Poison type and as you know, Kingambit are immune to Poison attacks and Steel-types are super-effective against Rock-types so Glimmora's got no chance." Sapphire explained.
"That's where you're wrong!" Nemona sneered, "Just watch the master in action and you'll see why!"
"Oh I'm sure." Ruby concurred, "This is Paldea's Top Champion after all so she's clearly picked Glimmora for a reason. I'm surprised it isn't a Grass-type considering how it looks but as Sapph says, it's Rock/Poison so I'm in a good spot for now. Lancelot, use Iron Head!" she commanded.
"Wait, don't do that!" Sapphire protested, "You're walking right into…"
But it was too late to stop him. Lancelot lowered his head and charged straight towards his opponent. He ploughed straight into Glimmora and knocked it backwards. As he did so, toxic spikes suddenly shot out from Glimmora's body and embedded themselves into the arena on Ruby's side. Ruby watched the spikes scatter all over the floor. Lancelot watched, confused on what had happened. He was safe of course as Steel-types were immune but Ruby's next Pokémon was in for a nasty surprise. Ruby blinked heavily.
"What just happened? I didn't hear you call your Pokémon to use Toxic Spikes or anything so where did this come from?" she asked.
"It's Glimmora's special ability known as Toxic Debris." Geeta purred, "It's the main reason why I ALWAYS send it out first. You see, this tricky little Pokémon can set up Toxic Spikes whenever it gets hit by a physical attack. Most trainers fall right into my trap and as you can imagine, it cripples their teams and makes them easy pickings for my Pokémon."
"Wow, that's a really clever strategy!" Ruby gasped, "I've never heard of Toxic Debris before. Certainly no Pokémon in Galar has that ability!"
"Or anywhere else. Glimmora is one of a kind." the Top Champion explained, "And don't think you're safe because you have a Kingambit either. Glimmora has just the kind of move to deal with Steal types…use Earth Power if you please." she commanded.
Ruby balked. So Glimmora could learn that attack! That was handy for it! Glimmora's body glowed yellow with energy as it spread its petals out wide and caused a huge fissure of energy to erupt underneath Lancelot. Lancelot was nearly thrown into the air by the force of the blast and he felt as if he was going to be ripped apart by the explosion but his tough body held firm and he remained standing firmly on the ground. It was a powerful attack but Lancelot was a sturdy and endurable Pokémon. Even super-effective hits didn't slow him down much. He shook off the damage and he sprinted towards Glimmora. Ruby ordered him to use Iron Head again. He closed in on his opponent and tried to hit Glimmora but the flower-like Pokémon spiralled out of the way of the attack. Glimmora's way of dodging seemed to consist of graceful spins as if it was a flower being carried by a gentle breeze. Lancelot spun on the balls of his feet and tried to stab Glimmora with the blade on his head but Glimmora dodged that too. Ruby frowned. It seemed Glimmora was a slippery customer. Luckily for her, Lancelot had an attack that never missed.
"Use Kowtow Cleave instead!" she commanded.
The command didn't even faze Geeta. As the owner of a Kingambit of her own, she expected Ruby's would know that attack as well. Lancelot bowed down as if in surrender and the blade on his head sent a wave if dark energy that sliced into Glimmora. The Rock/Poison Pokémon was hit full on and sent spiralling away. But the attack only caused its Toxic Debris ability to kick in again. Now with two rows of Toxic Spikes on Ruby's side of the field, her Pokémon would get poisoned even worse and would take more damage from it as a result. Ruby wasn't too worried about that for now as she had to focus on taking down Glimmora. She commanded Lancelot to use Psycho Cut next. Lancelot's head blade glowed pink with psychic energy and he swiped at the air. A blade of psychic energy whooshed towards Glimmora and cut straight into it. The flower-like Pokémon spun away and its petals drooped as if to emphasize that is was growing fatigued. Geeta could see that her Pokémon wasn't going to last much longer so she had to make this next move count. She ordered Glimmora to try again with Earth Power. The Rock/Poison Pokémon used it again and scored a direct hit. Lancelot stumbled backwards as the very ground itself seemed to explode underneath him.
He fell to one knee, almost completely drained of energy after that attack. While he was down, Geeta ordered Glimmora to use Energy Ball next. It was a Grass-type move she taught Glimmora to cover its weaknesses to Water types. Glimmora aimed at Lancelot and fired a green sphere of power at him. Energy Ball hit and Lancelot's body flashed to signify a decrease in his Special Defence. Now Earth Power would hit him even harder the next time Glimmora used it! Ruby could see this battle was going to end badly for her if she didn't end it now. But she relaxed a little as she saw Lancelot's body also flash orange to signify a stat boost. Geeta couldn't have possibly guessed that Lancelot had the Defiant ability! When his stats were lowered, his Attack was increased so she'd unintentionally made Lancelot even stronger with that last move.
"Can you still fight Lancelot?" she asked worriedly.
Despite being in pain, Lancelot was able to stand back up again. He showed no signs of giving up.
"I can handle this. I've had worse." he grunted.
"That's good. Use Iron Head one more time!" she commanded.
"Glimmora, Earth Power once more if you please." Geeta ordered.
Glimmora spread out its petals and glowed yellow with energy again as it was about to use Earth Power once more. Lancelot sprinted towards Glimmora as fast as he could, hoping to land the first hit. The ground started to tremble under his feet but just before it exploded, he jumped at the last minute so the force of the blast ended up catapulting him straight towards Glimmora. The Poison/Rock Pokémon couldn't even try to dodge as Lancelot collided into it with his almighty Iron Head. His head slammed straight into Glimmora's face and threw it backwards. Geeta ducked down quickly to avoid being hit by her Pokémon. Glimmora crashed into the nearby elevator and flopped down onto the floor, wiped out completely by the powerful blow. The scoreboard's image of Glimmora faded to black to signify that loss. Emerald, Sapphire, Hop, Tony and Ashley all cheered for Ruby. Nemona and Salma were speechless. Their Top Champion had taken the first loss of the fight already?! They'd seen first-hand how strong Ruby and her Pokémon were, but they didn't think she was THAT strong!
"Are you seeing what I'm seeing Salli?!" gasped Nemona.
"I sure hope so, otherwise I'd think I was hallucinating!" exclaimed Salma, "Ruby took down La Primera's first Pokémon like it was nothing!"
"Why is that so shocking?" Emerald asked.
"Because La Primera NEVER takes the first loss in a Pokémon battle!" Nemona shrieked, "Even Salma couldn't break that track record when she beat her! I didn't pull it off either!"
"So Ruby's the first to do it huh?" Sapphire said in amazement, "That's our sister alright! Always breaking expectations."
"Nobody does it better than our Ruby!" Hop agreed.
"Now let's see what La Primera has next…" Ashley murmured with interest. She'd already been enjoying seeing these two Champions duke it out and was keen to see what else Geeta had up her sleeves.
Geeta returned Glimmora to its Pokéball and smiled softly at it.
"Thank you for your efforts my dear. You fought so well." she complimented, "You sure live up to your reputation Ruby." she acknowledged, "I heard you were good, but I couldn't have anticipated you were THIS good."
"Meh, I still think people exaggerate a little about how good I am." Ruby said modestly.
"Humble I see. A good trait for any Champion to possess." Geeta said with approval, "For now, you have the lead but thanks to Glimmora's Toxic Debris, that's about to change. Now let's see what you think to my next Pokémon…"
She threw her second Pokéball and brought out a Palafin. Palafin were dolphin like Pokémon that looked identical to Finizen, save for one detail on them. They had a heart shaped symbol on their chests. Ruby remembered Palafin. Salma had one when she showed off her team to her during her holiday two months ago. At first, she'd been confused as to why Palafin looked identical to Finizen but she soon understood that Palafin was a very unique Pokémon in terms of evolution…
"I see where you're going with this." Ruby acknowledged, "Sapph evolved her Finizen in the two months that have passed since we last met. Palafin looks the same as before, but it has an ability that makes it change appearance and become stronger after it switches out. Salma taught us both about that."
"You are quite well educated, Champion." Geeta purred with interest, "You're as smart as you are strong. It's easy to see why you're Galar's current undefeated Champion. Palafin, use Flip Turn if you please."
Ruby wasn't even surprised that had been Geeta's first move. Dipper knew Flip Turn as well and Sapphire would have him use it so he could activate his Zero to Hero Ability. Palafin rushed towards Lancelot and slapped him hard across the face with its tail. It made a chirping noise that made it sound like it was laughing at Lancelot as it hit him. After the attack had landed, Palafin returned straight back to its Pokéball and Geeta sent out her third Pokémon. To Ruby's amazement, Geeta had sent out a Ceruledge in Palafin's place. So the Top Champion had a Ceruledge of her own. Geeta's Ceruledge looked slightly larger than the one Ruby had trained up during her last visit to Paldea and its blades looked to be a little longer. She imagined this Ceruledge was going to be much stronger than Reaper was as Geeta no doubt had been training this one for years while she'd only been training her's for two months. She didn't have Reaper with her now as Ruby had decided she needed all of her team to be the most experienced and well-trained Pokémon she owned to have a chance against Geeta.
"OK, Lancelot's got the advantage because Ceruledge is half Ghost, but Ceruledge also has the advantage because its half Fire. Talk about Even Stevens…" Ruby muttered to herself.
"She is right." Tony concurred, "Both sides have a weakness they can exploit in this match. Given Lancelot's already battled while Ceruledge is going in fresh, I'd say Geeta has this one."
"Maybe she does Tony, but Lancelot got an attack boost because of his Defiant ability." Emerald noted, "So he'll likely be stronger than Ceruledge."
"But can he take it down before it takes him down?" Ashley asked, "We'll just have to watch, Emi. When two Champions are in battle, ya NEVER know what the outcome will be. And I speak from experience!"
All eyes were on the trainers as they made their moves.
"Let's make this quick! Use Kowtow Cleave!" Ruby ordered.
Lancelot threw himself down on his hands and knees and sliced into Ceruledge with the huge blade on his head. As a Dark-type attack, it was super-effective against Ceruledge and the attack boost from Defiant made it especially painful for the ghostly knight Pokémon. Ceruledge grimaced and staggered backwards, clutching its shoulder in pain. But Geeta remained undeterred as she called the next move.
"Give us a Bitter Blade my dear." the chairwoman commanded.
Ceruledge sprinted towards Lancelot and sliced at him with its fiery blades. Lancelot cried out as the searing hot swords cut into his tough, steel body and he found himself suddenly feeling weak in the knees as his health was drained by the attack. Lancelot's went down while Ceruledge's went up. It was almost as if it had never been attacked at all. Ruby winced. This fight was NOT going to end well for Lancelot! She had to just hope she could do enough damage with Kowtow Cleave and soften Ceruledge enough for her next Pokémon to finish off. Lancelot used his signature move again but Ceruledge also leapt in with Bitter Blade. Both blades clashed together and the two Pokémon were caught up in a sword fight as they scythed at one another and clashed blades over and over. It was as if this Pokémon battle had become a medieval fantasy battle with a knight and a shogun duking it out with one another. Lancelot parried Ceruledge's next sword strike and he shoved Ceruledge's arm up to throw it off balance so he could then stab it in the stomach with his head blade. Ceruledge staggered back in pain and retaliated with an overhead strike that Lancelot successfully parried but it used its other arm to cut into him and drain more of his energy. They clashed once more and both opponents pushed against one another as their blades crossed. Lancelot quickly broke away for Ruby didn't want a repeat of what had happened when Reaper had defeated Nemona's Tinkaton two months back. Ceruledge chased after him and lunged at him with its swords but Lancelot turned around and blocked the blows with his huge steel hair. He then spun around and kicked Ceruledge in the gut. Ceruledge staggered backwards, briefly winded by the blow. Geeta could see that Lancelot wasn't giving up so easily despite being fatigued from the battle with Glimmora earlier.
"It seems we need a power boost to bring this contest to a close. Use Swords Dance my valiant knight of the arena." she commanded.
Ceruledge begin swiping at the air and pirouetting on the spot as its swords glowed with red energy. Ruby frowned. Trust Geeta to have a Ceruledge with Swords Dance too! Now she REALLY needed to end this fight fast! She ordered Lancelot to use one final Kowtow Cleave and Ceruledge was commanded to use one final Bitter Blade. Both opponents charged at each other, their blades poised and ready to strike. They swung at each other and created an almighty clash that caused an explosion of dark and fiery energy to erupt all around them. Ruby and Geeta had to look away for the moment as it was too bright to see but it didn't last long. Both their Pokémon were still standing…but not for long. Ceruledge grimaced and staggered briefly, seeming as if it was going to collapse. But it remained standing. Lancelot didn't. He collapsed onto the floor and passed out, the fatigue of both battles finally having caught up to him. Now both opponents were left with five Pokémon to battle with.
"Wahoo! Go La Primera!" Nemona cheered.
"That was a close fight!" Salma cried, "It really could've been anyone's game there!"
"Aww, Lancelot lost. He really worked so hard out there." Emerald said sympathetically.
"He sure did little gem. Now it's up to Ruby's next Pokémon to take back the lead." Tony replied, putting a comforting arm around his girlfriend.
"That was quite an epic tussle!" Hop exclaimed, "Especially when they were sword-fighting! Now let's see what my girl can do next! I hope she's got a plan for that Toxic Spikes trap…" he murmured.
The others nodded. Glimmora's Toxic Debris had given Ruby a disadvantage to deal with for any Pokémon she sent in next would get poisoned…or so they thought. Ruby smirked as she returned Lancelot to his Pokéball and sent out her next Pokémon. To Geeta's shock, Ruby had sent Freddy the Toxtricity out next. Toxic Spikes didn't work on Poison-type Pokémon and when a Poison-type was sent in, they got rid of the Toxic Spikes as a whole! Freddy began to play a tune and sing as he absorbed up all the Toxic Spikes. The poisonous spikes were sucked straight up into his body all while having no effect on him.
She's a killer queeeeeeeeen!
Gunpowder, gelatine!
Dynamite with a laser beam!
Guaranteed to blow your mind!
Any tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime!
In seconds, the Toxic Spikes were all gone and Ruby's side of the field was completely clear. Nemona and Salma were in disbelief at what had happened. Even Geeta seemed to take a minute to recover.
"That was certainly fortunate of you, Ruby." the Paldean woman remarked, "It's almost like you had the foresight to bring a Poison type with you as a just-in-case."
"I wouldn't call it that." Ruby said with a shake of her head, "I've had so many battles since becoming Champion that it's now something I do out of habit than foresight. I make sure I always bring Freddy just on the off-chance somebody might have a Pokémon with Toxic Spikes so I can then get rid of it. It was unlucky for me that Freddy got knocked out when fighting against Nemona's Salamence so her Clodsire was able to set up the spikes with no way to get rid of them."
"But in this case, you get to use him for his intended purpose." Geeta acknowledged, "A pity that my usual strategy was all for naught in the end. But mark my words, I have more tricks up my sleeves for you, Champion."
"I'm counting on it!" Ruby declared, "Now Freddy, use Noble Roar!"
Freddy roared at the top of his voice at Ceruledge. The roar was so loud that Geeta also had to cover her ears. Ceruledge's Attack and Special Attack both went down, halving the stat boost from Swords Dance earlier. The moment Freddy was finished, Ruby immediately returned him and exchanged him for Soundwave the Noivern. The bat/wyvern creature materialized into the air and spread his huge wings wide as if to make his entrance seem grander than usual. Nemona took this in and suddenly realized something was up about this whole match.
"Hey, what a second!" she cried, "First Lancelot, then Freddy, now Soundwave? She's using the exact same team she used to beat me with!"
"Not entirely." Sapphire corrected, "Ruby has chosen two different Pokémon to use so her team's not entirely the same. But her reason for choosing this particular team is down to the fact they're some of Ruby's strongest Pokémon she owns."
"I see." Salma murmured, "So which two will we not be seeing again in this battle?"
"Chomps and Reaper." Sapphire answered, "Ruby decided to exchange them and keep the rest. You'll see what her two new members are in due time…"
Nemona and Salma grew very intrigued. So what would these two new Pokémon be that they hadn't seen Ruby use against Nemona? They looked back to the battle to see what would happen next. Geeta took in her new opponent with concern in her eyes. Noivern could fly so Ruby would be able to keep a safe distance against her Ceruledge. With any luck, Soundwave didn't have any super-effective moves to use against her Pokémon and Ceruledge would be able to bring him down to the ground.
"We may not be able to fly, but we won't let that stop us." Geeta declared, "Ceruledge, be so good as to use Swords Dance so we can get your attack back up, will you?"
Ceruledge obeyed and began pirouetting around on its feet again while slicing at the air. Ruby ignored this, seeing no real threat to Soundwave as he could fight from a distance anyway. She ordered Soundwave to use Dark Pulse. The Dragon/Flying Pokémon opened his mouth and blasted Ceruledge with a dark beam of energy that seemed to be made up of the most evil power imaginable. Geeta recoiled, the first time her professional demeanour had faltered even slightly in this fight. She hadn't anticipated this! Dark Pulse hit Ceruledge and knocked it off its feet just as it had finished using Swords Dance. Ceruledge lay down on the floor and coiled up in fright. Dark Pulse had caused it to flinch so Soundwave now had a second free shot at it. Ruby ordered her dragon Pokémon to use Dark Pulse again. Soundwave blasted Ceruledge a second time, sapping away more of its energy with the powerful hit. Ceruledge lay on the floor, panting heavily but showing no signs of passing out for now. Ruby was impressed. Ceruledge weren't the bulkiest Pokémon ever but this one was taking hits and still going like a real trooper. Geeta was certainly the Top Champion for a reason!
Ceruledge picked itself back up and the Fire/Ghost Pokémon clashed its swords together, trying to intimidate Soundwave. The Noivern didn't even blink in response. Geeta ordered her Pokémon to jump after him and use Shadow Claw. Ceruledge did so and took aim at Soundwave with its ectoplasmic claws. Soundwave just blasted it for the third time with Dark Pulse. As it was jumping towards him, Ceruledge had no chance of dodging. Ceruledge was hit and knocked back down to the floor by Dark Pulse. The attack was enough to wipe Ceruledge out completely. The bat/wyvern Pokémon roared with triumph and cackled with glee.
"Soundwave superior: Ceruledge inferior!" he crowed.
The scoreboard dimmed its image of Ceruledge in response. Geeta was now down two Pokémon with her Palafin still hiding away waiting to show off its heroic transformation and three other Pokémon still a mystery for now. It was looking good for Ruby so far with two wins under her belt so far.
"I can always rely on you, can't I Soundwave? You've always been among my most reliable Pokémon I have!"
"Reliable he is!" Emerald agreed, "Way to go Soundwave! You trounced it!"
"He made La Primera's Ceruledge look like a total chump!" Nemona cried incredulously, "Poor guy couldn't even land a hit on Soundwave in that fight!"
"Of all of Ruby's Pokémon, Soundwave has one of the biggest success rates." Hop informed, "He rarely ever loses! Geeta's in for a real tough time with him!"
But despite that, Geeta didn't seem too worried about this loss. She returned Ceruledge to its Pokéball.
"A very well fought battle. Rest well for now." she cooed softly, "That Noivern of yours sure looks powerful Ruby. But I'll have it removed from the field in quick order…"
She threw her fourth Pokéball. Ruby had expected Palafin to come back out but to her surprise, Geeta had sent out something completely different. It wasn't Palafin, but instead an Elektross. They resembled electric eels with long tentacle like finned limbs on the backs of their heads, clawed hands and a large circular mouth with sharp teeth. Elektross were first discovered in the Unova region and were also native to Paldea. Ashley's eyes lit up excitedly.
"No way, she's got an Elektross too?!" she squealed, "That's so awesome! I love Elektross! I even beat the Unova League with one of my own!"
"You have one too?" Salma asked curiously.
"Sure do!" Ashley cried, "It's at home though so I can't show it you now but I have one. It's part of my Champion winning team alongside Emboar, Braviary, Carracosta, Chandelure and Druddigon."
"I've even met it." Sapphire said brightly, "I wonder how Geeta's Elektross will battle…"
Everyone watched curiously to see what would happen next. To everyone's surprise, Geeta called for Elektross to use Dragon Tail. That was a good call since it was super-effective against Soundwave, but that wasn't all it could do. Elektross's tail seemed to grow in length and an energy construct formed around it, creating the image of a dragon's tail. It then proceeded to whack Soundwave in the face with the draconian tail construct. Soundwave reeled away, both surprised and hurt by the blow. As he was hit, he ended up returning to his Pokéball and another one of Ruby's Pokémon was forced out in its place. Ruby watched with shock and awe as Soundwave went back in and out came Spearhead the Barraskewda instead. The barracuda like Pokémon looked around in confusion, wondering how he'd ended up here.
"Hey, what's going on? Is it time for hot chocolate already?" he asked.
"Oooooh…that's gonna hurt." Salma said, wincing, "Elektross will have a huge advantage against that Barraskewda. Ruby's better off returning it."
"And then what? Geeta will just use Elektross to force her next Pokémon back into its Pokéball and try to force Spearhead back out again and also allow Geeta to just inflict damage to more of her Pokémon. Switching out for Ruby won't work." Hop muttered, "I'm guessing that's Geeta's strategy with Elektross: use Dragon Tail to get rid of unfavourable match-ups and force out opponents it can beat."
"Too bad for Geeta Spearhead knows Drill Run." Sapphire noted, "It's one of the few Ground attacks that can hit Pokémon with Levitate as it's an attack that you can aim at your opponent and hit above the ground with."
"So Ruby can still win this!" Emerald cried excitedly.
"I sure hope so, Em." Ruby said unsurely, "Spearhead, use Drill Run now!"
"Get ready as I spin to win matey!" Spearhead cried at the top of his voice.
He spun around like a huge drill and shot towards Elektross. As Sapphire had said, Elektross would normally be immune to Ground attacks because of its Levitate ability but Drill Run could be aimed at opponents above ground so Levitate wouldn't stop it from hitting. Elektross was helpless to defend itself as Spearhead slammed into it and skewered it with Drill Run. Elektross crashed down onto its back but it wasn't down for long. It picked itself back up and retaliated with Thunder. Elektross's body seemed to explode with electrical energy as the biggest bolt of lightning anyone had ever seen shot out from its body and electrocuted Spearhead. The Barraskewda cried out a comical squeal of pain as he was hit. Ruby looked away, unable to look for the Thunder was too bright. As the strongest Electric-type attack a Pokémon could learn, Elektross had hit Spearhead with the worst possible move he could go up against. Spearhead collapsed onto the floor, twitching furiously and steaming from the hit. Despite everything, he was still grinning gormlessly and giggling to himself.
"Hey, can anyone smell grilled fish or is that just me?" he babbled inanely.
"How can that thing take a hit like that and still be laughing?!" Nemona cried incredulously.
"Don't ask. Just…don't ask." Sapphire said bluntly.
Spearhead was clearly down to the last remains of his health but despite the Thunder, he was amazingly able to get back up again. Geeta was astonished. How could Spearhead possibly still be standing after that?! Then she noticed something. Spearhead had a Focus Sash around his neck. Ruby had used one on him when battling Leon for the Championship title. It had saved him from being KO'd by Leon's Haxorus, and now it had saved him from being KO'd by Elektross. Spearhead wasn't a Pokémon that took hits very well as Barraskewda were frail by nature so Ruby often gave him a Focus Sash to wear to make up for it.
"That's our secret weapon all used up." Ruby said grimly, "Now we've gotta make this second chance count. Drill Run again!"
"Hey eel-boy, you ready for a dental check? Here comes the drill!" Spearhead cackled.
He spun around and launched himself directly at Elektross again. Instead of trying to dodge this time, Elektross retaliated by using Ice Punch. Elektross threw its frigid fist forwards and both attacks collided with each other. Spearhead drilled against Elektross's fist but the electric eel held firm. The two attacks cancelled each other out and both Pokémon were thrown backwards. Elektross then tried to use another Thunder on Spearhead. It fired the colossal lightning bolt at its opponent but this time, Spearhead dodged it. He was still spinning as a result of Drill Run so he weaved out of the way and kept on going towards Elektross. He skewered his opponent in the side and made Elektross cry out in agony. But Ruby had unintentionally given Geeta the opening she needed. While Spearhead was drilling into Elektross, Geeta ordered her Pokémon to use Drain Punch on him. Elektross closed its fist and punched Spearhead full on in the gut as hard as it could. The punch drained away what was left of Spearhead's health and left Elektross standing as the victor with the barracuda Pokémon lying defeated on the floor.
"Heh, heh…all of a sudden I feel little drained after that…" he giggled as he slipped into unconsciousness.
"Alright! La Primera strikes again!" Nemona crowed, "It's even again for our opponents!"
"No kidding." Ashley concurred, "That Elektross sure has some good moves to use. Maybe I should teach my Elektross Dragon Tail and use that strategy one day…"
"I'm sure you'd pull it off." Tony agreed, "So what will Ruby use next?"
Ruby returned Spearhead and smiled sadly at his Pokéball.
"I'm sorry mate. This really wasn't a favourable match-up for you." she said softly, "You rest well now. Hopefully Vesuvius can avenge you."
She threw her next Pokéball and brought out one of her personal favourites she had caught on her travels. Vesuvius the Coalossal was next up and she looked ready for battle. Nemona and Salma eyed her up with interest. Coalossal lived in Paldea as well as Galar so they knew what Vesuvius was. But how would this Colossal fare up against Elektross?
"Show them why you're a blazing flame Vesuvius! Use Heat Crash!" Ruby ordered.
Vesuvius jumped into the air with yellow and orange energy surrounding her. The result made her look as if she was a flaming meteor that was coming crashing down to Earth and would flatten anything in its path. Everyone gasped in awe as they watched this bulky, heavy Pokémon somehow throw itself into the air with ease and come crashing down on top of Elektross. The eel Pokémon cried out as it was both squashed and burnt by the attack. It felt as if Vesuvius was going to crush every bone in its body with that attack. Geeta winced, feeling the pain of her Pokémon. Being on the receiving end of a Heat Crash was not going to be enjoyable for anyone! It was worse for Elektross as Heat Crash did more damage depending on how heavy the user was compared to the opponent and Elektross were very light compared to Colossal indeed! Once Vesuvius had finished and clambered off of Elektross, the electric Pokémon picked itself back up and shook off the pain despite how damaging it had been. Geeta commanded her Pokémon to use Drain Punch next. Elektross snaked through the air towards Vesuvius and socked her in the face with Drain Punch. The attack did damage to Vesuvius and rejuvenated some of Elektross's lost health so now it didn't look quite as fatigued as earlier. Ruby wasn't worried. Elektross's Drain Punch may be super-effective but Vesuvius was an absolute tank in battle. She could handle that Drain Punch no problem! It also ended up being detrimental to Geeta for Elektross only ended up getting burnt by Vesuvius's Flame Body ability after that punch. Now its Physical Attacks would be weakened and it would take damage over time from the burn, putting Ruby in an advantageous position once more.
Vesuvius rubbed her face better and fought back by using Rock Slide. Rocks formed out of the coal pile on top of her head and came crashing down on top of Elektross. Elektross cried out from each rock that landed on top of it but the chairwoman didn't lose her resolve and ordered Elektross to retaliate with Thunder. With burn halving the damage of its Physical Attacks, it was better off using the one Special Attack it had. Elektross hit Vesuvius with Thunder and the sizzling electrical attack made her stagger back a little. Vesuvius winced but she wasn't too badly hurt. Then suddenly, Geeta ordered Elektross to use Dragon Tail again. The electric eel tail whipped Vesuvius in the face with its powerful draconian energy construct and Vesuvius was forced back into her Pokéball. In her place came back Freddy the Toxtricity. Freddy blinked in confusion and looked around.
"Oh, did somebody call for an encore?" he asked quizzically, "Ruby darling, what's going on here?"
"We're up against an Elektross with an annoying switch-out style of battling." Ruby informed, "It's used Dragon Tail to bring you back out."
"So I see." Freddy murmured, "Well maybe I can bring it down for you."
"If anyone can do it mate, it's you." Ruby said encouragingly, "It may be an electric type, but we've got other ways to battle against Elektross…"
Freddy and Elektross stared each other down as they prepared to battle again. Despite everything, Geeta remained composed and confident as if she was sure that she still had this battle in the bag. She smiled coolly as she considered her remaining options.
What you don't realize little Ruby is that the more Pokémon you defeat, the stronger I become. You'll soon see when my ace comes out… she thought slyly.
Ruby can see why Geeta's known as "La Primera". Her switch-out strategy's keeping her well on her toes and making her a slippery customer to deal with. Can Freddy take down Elektross? And what will Ruby do when Geeta's ace reaches the field? Find out in Part 2...
Trivia: As you've noticed straight away, Geeta is considerably more competent a Champion in this universe. Her team has been completely replaced except for Glimmora and Kingambit. You'll see Kingambit next time but as you've seen here, she sends Glimmora out first (which is how you SHOULD use it!) to exploit its Toxic Debris ability and she'll save Kingambit for last to exploit its Supreme Overlord ability. This is how she should use those two and you're seeing it here.
For the replacements you've seen so far, I've given her Palafin, Ceruledge and Elektross. The reasons for those are the fact as a Champion, she SHOULD use a Palafin. Nobody else in the games uses one so why not make it her as something similar to Cynthia being the only character in the Gen 4 games to use Spiritomb? Also Palafin's really powerful and would give Geeta something really strong to use. Ceruledge is another excuse for me to shill my favourite Paldean mon and Elektross is meant to throw off opponents by being a Pokemon with no weaknesses and it knows Dragon Tail to force swap outs.
Oh and Omodaka being Geeta's last name is yet again a reference to her Japanese name.
And before anyone comments, yes I know, Elektross is immune to Ground attacks because of Levitate but this isn't the games. There are certain Ground attacks that SHOULD still be able to hit Flying opponents such as Bonemarang and I feel Drill Run is a move that should be able to hit Flying types as Drill Run can be aimed at as we see in the anime, therefore Spearhead's Drill Run is able to hit Elektross. Certain things in the games really don't make since in terms of battle mechanics, hence why I follow anime rules when I write these fights.
And as you've no doubt guessed, the team Ashley described here is the team I imagine her using to beat the Unova League in this universe. By that, I mean this was the team she fought Alder with. Her team she used to beat Ghetsis will be different.