This is probably my favorite part of writing any of these stories; full battles! As stated last chapter, Owen will be duking it out with one of his rivals in this round, so he's going to have a really tough challenge. Will he be able to advance to the quarterfinals? Let's find out!
tepigsfire758: Lol. It seems like you really like 'fast paced' battles ;) Could you PM me about what makes them so fast paced?
Jaylon101: Thanks. And yes, Owen will go to Kalos, but not to compete in the league. I'll give more detail about that after the conclusion of the Unova League
Owen's team for battle
Snivy, (f), level 32, Tackle, Leech Seed, Grass Pledge, Vine Whip, Leaf Tornado*, Leaf Blade*
Heatmor, (m), level 44, Flame Burst, Flamethrower, Hone Claws, Flame Wheel, Fury Swipes*, Fire Pledge*
Krookodile, (m), level 48, Bite, Dig, Dragon Claw, Bulldoze, Hyper Beam*, Stone Edge*
Puff, (f), level 35, Dynamic Punch, Sing, Rollout, Pound, DoubleSlap*
Unfezant, (f), level 35, Detect, Air Cutter, Gust, Quick Attack, Aerial Ace*
Zebstrika, (m), level 36, Quick Attack, Shock Wave, Thunder Wave, Flame Charge, Stomp
"Hello, fans! I'm Greg, and as usual, I'm your host for this tournament! Today, we will begin the full battles portion of the Unova League, and four trainers will be sent to each stadium! These match ups will be randomly generated, but this bracket will remain the same throughout the duration of the league. Are you ready to find out these match ups?"
The crowd screamed in response.
"Alright, let's see what we've got!"
"Dude, this is so awesome!" Dante exclaimed. He, Owen, Blake, and Astral were all standing next to each other in the fourth row of trainers, and Akito was standing in the third, just in front of Owen. "Me and my Pokemon are gonna kick some major butt!"
"Talk is cheap," Akito said without turning around, which made Dante glare at him. "Let your performance on the battlefield do the talking."
"He's right, you know," Blake told Dante. The energetic teen starred at Blake angrily, causing him to slide away from Dante, which made Owen and Astral laugh.
"In the green stadium, the first battle will be between Owen and Astral! The second battle will feature Blake and Quincy!"
"Damn! Why do I have to be in the same bracket as you two?" Blake whined like a child. Dante cackled at Blake's misfortune, but stopped when Greg moved on to the red bracket, which was next to the green.
"At least you don't have to battle us in the first round," Owen shot back. "Good luck, by the way," he said to Astral while extending his hand.
"You too. I hope we have a great battle," Astral replied while shaking Owen's hand.
"In the red stadium, the first battle will be between Dante and Gina! The second battle will have Rory and Cathy!"
"Sweet! I can't wait to see which one of you I face in the semifinals," Dante whispered to Owen, Astral, and Blake with a smirk.
"That's if you even get that far," Astral joked, causing Dante to fume. Owen and Blake, meanwhile, laughed at the joke.
"And in the blue stadium, the first battle will feature Akito and Stacy!" Greg exclaimed before continuing on with the rest of the match ups.
"It looks like I'll be seeing you in the finals," Dante told Akito while tapping him on the shoulder. Akito turned and rolled his eyes at the cocky trainer before looking at Owen, Astral, and Blake.
"I hope I see any of you in the finals if I can get there. Good luck, guys." With that, Akito walked out of the arena, but shot a glance at Owen when he wasn't looking. None of the other trainers noticed either, and they continued talking.
"Let's get this thing started already! I want to see you two battle!" Blake exclaimed while looking at Owen and Astral, who looked at one another before nodding.
000
Owen and Astral both stood at opposite ends of the battlefield in the green stadium while the referee spoke.
"This will be a full battle between Owen and Astral! Neither trainer may substitute his Pokemon at any time! Trainers, choose your first Pokemon!"
"Here we go! Zebstrika, I choose you!" Owen shouted as he threw out his first Pokeball. Zebstrika appeared in front of Owen as his picture took the first spot in Owen's lineup on the scoreboard.
"Manectric, go!" Owen watched as Manectric appeared on the opposite end of the battlefield, and it growled lowly at Zebstrika, who glared at the electric type in response.
"This is so exciting! Owen better win!" Brooklyn shouted. "I want to stay here and shop as long as I can!" She, Fate, CJ, Rebecca, Orange, and Charizard were sitting on the bench off to the side of the battlefield, where they had the best seats in the stadium.
"Of course you do," Orange muttered, which made Owen's three traveling companions laugh.
"This battle will be between Zebstrika and Manectric! Begin!"
"Zebstrika, use Flame Charge!" Owen commanded. Zebstrika slammed his front hooves against the ground repeatedly before his body was covered in fire, and he sprinted towards his four legged opponent.
"Manectric, bring the heat and use Flamethrower!" As Zebstrika began closing in, Manectric shot a blast of fire at the electric zebra, and the attack struck. The result of the fire type attack was an explosion, which sent Zebstrika skidding back to Owen and Snivy, who didn't seem worried by the attack's lack of success.
"Fight back and use Stomp!" Zebstrika nodded before taking off towards Manectric, who lowered his stance and prepared to lunge at Zebstrika, who had sprung into the air. Everyone in the green stadium watched as Zebstrika descended at a high speed, but Astral countered the powerful normal type attack.
"Manectric, dodge it and use Ice Fang on Zebstrika's leg!" Manectric hopped back slightly, which allowed him to evade Zebstrika's attack. Then, as his mouth was filled with icy energy, Manectric bit Zebstrika's front left leg. The black and white zebra jumped away from his foe and hobbled back to Owen's half of the battlefield with a pained look on his face.
"Zebstrika, show 'em your power! Use a max effort Shock Wave!" Zebstrika took a deep breath as electricity began circulating around his body, and his stripes turned a bright yellow. A powerful bolt of lightning flew off Zebstrika's body and across the battlefield, and it struck Manectric. Despite the power of the attack, Manectric flashed a cocky grin, which puzzled Owen, Snivy and Zebstrika.
"Electric type attacks don't hurt Manectric thanks to Lightning Rod. Manectric, show them your Thunderbolt!" Manectric nodded and began to howl as his body was surrounded in yellow light. In the blink of an eye, Zebstrika was hit by a zigzagging bolt of electricity, and he began stumbling back in pain until the attack stopped. The injured Pokemon shook his head after feeling the awful pain surging through his body, and the crowd could sense Zebstrika's fatigue setting in.
"Use Flame Charge again, Zebstrika!" The hobbled zebra dashed towards Manectric as fire appeared around his body, and he lunged forward in an attempt to strike the electric type from Hoenn. Much to his and Owen's dismay, Zebstrika fell to the ground when he put all of his weight on his front left leg, giving Manectric and Astral the perfect opportunity to strike.
"Now land a Dragon Claw!" Manectric's front claws began to glow blue before he slashed Zebstrika, sending the larger Pokemon rolling across the battlefield. Once he stopped, the referee saw Zebstrika's eyes were shut tight.
"Zebstrika is unable to battle! Owen, choose your next Pokemon!"
"Thanks, Zebstrika. Puff, come on out!" Owen yelled without hesitation. Puff shot out of the second Pokeball and landed on the battlefield, where she began waving to the audience. As she did that, Zebstrika's picture on the scoreboard turned black, and Puff's occupied the second spot in Owen's lineup.
"This battle will be between Puff and Manectric! Begin!"
"Manectric, use Thunderbolt!" Astral shouted. Manectric was covered in a blinding yellow light, but it was shot towards Puff, who easily dodged the first bolt of lightning with ease, prompting Astral and Manectric to attack once again. This time, however, Owen issued a counter.
"Dodge it and use Rollout, Puff!" Puff hopped into the air, dodging the zigzagging bolt, and then she started spinning like a wheel. Once she landed on the ground, Puff sped towards Manectric and slammed into the electric type. Surprisingly, Manectric started pushing Puff back while growling lowly.
"Stop Puff by using Ice Fang!" Astral commanded. Manectric grew two large blue fangs and bit Puff, stopping the tiny Pokemon's attack. Manectric began to shake his head violently, causing Puff to become Dizzy while being immobilized by Manectric's fearsome grip.
"Damn, this isn't looking good," Fate opined as Manectric electrocuted Puff, who cried out in pain. "Come on, Owen. Do something."
"Hang in there, Puff! Use Dynamic Punch to break free!" Puff snapped out of her dizzy state and punched Manectric in the jaw, which forced the electric type to open his mouth and bounce across the ground. Puff then chased after her four legged foe, who recovered quickly and glared at the circular Pokemon.
"Zap 'em with Thunderbolt!"
"Inflate!" Owen screamed. As Manectric fired a powerful blast of electricity, Puff inflated to a massive size, which allowed her to fly into the air. Manectric's Thunderbolt missed its target horribly, but Astral ordered another attack as Puff began to descend.
"What the? Manectric, use Dragon Claw!"
"Let's wrap this up with Rollout!" Puff began to inflate again while spinning, and she quickly overpowered Manectric, whose claws had began to glow blue. The neon colored Pokemon was slammed against the ground underneath Puff's force, and was revealed to be unconscious once Puff got off her opponent.
"Manectric is unable to battle! Astral, choose your next Pokemon!"
"Great job, Manectric. Exploud, it's your turn!" Once the second Pokeball of Astral's opened, an Exploud appeared on his half of the battlefield and his picture appeared underneath Manectric's, which was black.
"This battle will be between Puff and Exploud! Begin!"
"Exploud, use Surf!" Exploud slammed his two blue hands against the ground, and a tidal wave of crystal-clear water swept across the battlefield, and it crashed down on Puff. The tiny normal type was thrown against the wall behind Owen and Snivy, who were both soaked by the attack, and the water suddenly vanished from the battlefield.
"Puff, fight back with DoubleSlap!" Puff got off the ground and ran towards the larger normal type while her stubby arms were glowing white, and she began slapping Exploud across the face repeatedly. Despite landing ten slaps in a row, Puff was unable to do significant damage to her fully evolved opponent, who smirked slyly at the smaller Pokemon.
"Grab Puff and then use Brick Break!" Exploud's right arm shot straight forward and he grabbed Puff by her head. The tiny pink ball tried breaking free from Exploud's grip, but was unable to do so.
"You can't be serious! What's with Owen's Pokemon and getting into the situations?" Brooklyn asked rhetorically while looking at the four other trainers and Charizard. The winged lizard laughed at the comment, but didn't provide any input, leading Brooklyn to cross her arms and pout.
"Puff, use Sing to put Exploud to sleep!" Owen shouted to his flailing Pokemon. Puff began to sing a harmonious tune, and several colorful music notes flew towards Exploud. Much to his dismay, Owen watched as Exploud unleashed a deafening screech from the sound holes on his body, and the notes were destroyed instantly.
"That's Exploud's ability, Soundproof. Any attack that uses sound can't harm Exploud," Orange announced.
"This isn't looking good!" Rebecca shrieked before covering her eyes.
"Ploud!" Exploud roared as his glowing white fist slammed into Puff's face. The inflatable Pokemon was launched across the battlefield and bounced against the ground before finally stopping after she hit into Owen.
"Use Dynamic Punch, Puff!" Owen commanded. Puff slowly got back up and her fist began to glow crimson, but she wasn't able to move her legs, causing everyone in the audience to start asking each other questions about what was happening.
"Let's show them your real power, Exploud! Hyper Voice!" Exploud slammed both of his feet against the ground and threw his arms straight to his sides before screaming. A gust of energy zipped across the battlefield and hit into Puff, who was knocked out as soon as the attack hit.
"Puff is unable to battle! Owen, choose your next Pokemon!" the referee ordered upon seeing Puff with her eyes closed.
"Thanks for the hard work, Puff. Unfezant, take to the skies!" Owen tossed his third Pokeball into the air and Unfezant materialized from the white light. As she landed on the ground, Unfezant's picture appeared in the third spot on Owen's team while Puff's turned pure black.
"This battle will be between Unfezant and Exploud! Begin!"
"Jump in the air and use Surf!" Astral ordered. The fully evolved normal type jumped a solid fifteen feet in the air and threw his arms towards Unfezant, who was still standing a few steps in front of Owen and Snivy. A wave of water appeared in front of Exploud and fell straight towards Unfezant, but Owen grinned when he saw Unfezant take off.
"Unfezant, use Gust to send the water back at Exploud!" With a powerful flap of her wings, Unfezant created a gale force wind that pushed the tidal wave towards Astral and Exploud, who had just landed on the ground. As the water crashed and began to sweep across the battlefield, Exploud stuck his arms out and began to hum loudly.
"Destroy the water with Hyper Voice!" Exploud's jaw shot open and he screamed, generating a wave of sound that collided with the water. Eventually, the water prevailed and crashed over Exploud, giving Owen and Unfezant the perfect opportunity to attack.
"This is our chance! Air Cutter!" Unfezant quickly created a ball of spiraling wind with her wings and threw it at Exploud just after the water disappeared from the battlefield. The attack struck Exploud, dealing even more damage to the already injured Pokemon, who dropped to one knee as a result.
"Exploud, bite Unfezant's wing with Thunder Fang!" Exploud got back up and trudged across the battlefield while he grew two large yellow fangs. The huge Pokemon then jumped into the air and attempted to bite the normal and flying type, but Owen wouldn't let that happen.
"Detect! Then use Gust!" Unfezant's eyes flashed gold for a nanosecond, and she acrobatically dodged the super effective attack. Right after that, Unfezant threw her wings forward, and Exploud was spiked into the ground, which cracked slightly. Unfezant landed on the ground right after and continued to flap her wings, which sent Exploud tumbling back to the other half of the battlefield.
"Don't hold back, Exploud! Use Brick Break!"
"Spin and use Aerial Ace!" The two battling Pokemon made their way towards the middle of the battlefield while performing their ordered attacks, and the crowd rose from their seats collectively. Unfezant began spinning like a drill as she was covered in streaks of light while Exploud's hand began glowing white. The two attacks collided, but Unfezant managed to overpower Exploud due to the sound Pokemon being fatigued.
"Exploud is unable to battle! Astral, choose your next Pokemon!" the referee shouted after waiting for Exploud to move for five seconds.
"Well done, Exploud. Zangoose, you're up!" Owen stared at the third Pokemon to appear for Astral, remembering his own Zangoose and the strength he possessed, which made Owen feel uneasy. The mongoose's picture appeared in the third spot in Astral's lineup on the scoreboard while Exploud's turned black.
"This battle will be between Unfezant and Zangoose! Begin!"
"Unfezant, use Air Cutter!" Unfezant quickly formed a ball of spinning air with her wings before throwing it at Zangoose. Owen and snivy both waited for the attack to hit its target, but it never did.
"Dodge it and use Poison Jab!" Astral countered. Zangoose rolled forward and managed to evade the flying type attack before he ran towards Unfezant. As soon as he jumped in the air, Zangoose's fist began to glow purple, and he tomahawked Unfezant, sending the flying type crashing towards the ground.
"Use a spinning Aerial Ace, Unfezant!" Owen ordered as Unfezant continued to fall. The normal and flying type's eyes shot open and she recovered quickly before spinning like a drill while white streaks of light flew off her body. As she zipped across the battlefield, the entire bench saw Astral point at Unfezant, but they couldn't make out the command.
"You use Aerial Ace, Zangoose!" Zangoose darted towards the spinning Pokemon, and he threw his arm forward. The two Pokemon collided, but Zangoose's attack prevailed. The bipedal Pokemon then picked Unfezant up off the ground by her neck, and Owen watched reluctantly as Zangoose prepared to deal the final blow.
"Unfezant, use Gust to break free!"
"Zangoose, Slash!" Before Unfezant could attack, Zangoose slashed her across the chest, sending Unfezant rolling across the ground while unconscious.
"Unfezant is unable to battle! Owen, choose your next Pokemon!"
"Great job out there, Unfezant. Snivy, take the field!" Owen told his starter as he withdrew Unfezant. Snivy obliged and watched as her picture appeared on the scoreboard and it occupied the fourth spot on Owen's team while Unfezant's turned black, just like the three Pokemon before her.
"This battle will be between Snivy and Zangoose! Begin!"
"Start this off by sending Zangoose into the air with Leaf Tornado!" Owen demanded. Snivy quickly created a powerful wind around her tail, and hundreds of leaves appeared from thin air. The grass snake then pointed her tail at Zangoose, which managed to capture the normal type. Snivy then flicked her tail upwards, and Zangoose was launched straight into the air while the leaves cut his body.
"Start spinning like a drill and use Aerial Ace, just like Unfezant!" Astral screamed while cupping his hands around his mouth. Somehow, Zangoose managed to hear Astral, and he began to spin while sticking both of his arms above his head. The normal type took on the appearance of a drill as white light slashed around him, and the Hoenn Pokemon closed in on Snivy.
"Dodge it and use Leaf Blade!" Owen ordered. Snivy quickly hopped away from the super effective attack, and Zangoose slammed into the ground. Once he managed to stand up, Zangoose began rubbing his head in pain while Snivy jumped through the air and began spinning like a wheel as her tail began to glow light green.
"Block with Poison Jab, Zangoose!" Zangoose's fist turned bright purple, and he blocked Snivy's Leaf Blade. Then, his other fist turned purple and he struck Snivy viciously. The grass type Pokemon slowly got back up after the powerful punch, but she began panting slightly.
"Hang in there, Snivy! Use Vine Whip around Zangoose's legs!" Before anyone could blink, Snivy fired two vines from her neck and they wrapped around Zangoose's legs. The larger Pokemon then landed on his back after Snivy yanked her vines, making her opponent susceptible to yet another attack.
"Zangoose, no!"
"Snivy, use Grass Pledge!" Snivy's stomach began to glow bright green before she punched the ground. Zangoose attempted to move away, but Snivy's vines were still wrapped around his legs, which immobilized him. Suddenly, a column of green energy shot up around Zangoose, and the mongoose Pokemon let out a deafening cry. Once the attack stopped, the referee saw Zangoose's eyes were rolled into the back of his head, and he stuck his arms into the air.
"Zangoose is unable to battle! Astral, choose your next Pokemon!"
"Yeah! Owen took the lead!" Orange cheered as he clapped excitedly.
"And he still has his two strongest Pokemon. It looks like he's going to the quarterfinals," Fate predicted naively.
"Way to go, Zangoose. Camerupt, I need your help!" Astral shouted as he threw out his fourth Pokeball. Owen frowned at the mismatch between the large fire type and Snivy, but he decided to keep his starter in the battle.
"This battle will be between Snivy and Camerupt! Begin!"
"Heat it up with Lava Plume!" Camerupt slammed its large hooves on the ground before shooting two large bullets of fire out of the humps on its back, and they crashed down towards Snivy, who stared at the attack in awe.
"Send it right back with Leaf Tornado!" Snivy heard Owen command. Acting quickly, Snivy's tail was covered in a spinning flurry of leaves, and she managed to catch both bullets of fire in the vortex. Then, she shot them right back at Camerupt, who was crushed by the power of her own attack. Despite this, the fire and ground type masked the pain she felt from the scorching hot attack, and continued battling.
"Get in close with Rollout, Camerupt!" Camerupt began trudging towards Snivy before rolling like a wheel and taking the shape of a boulder. The large Pokemon flattened Snivy and continued spinning around the field as Snivy tried to get back up. Once she did, Snivy saw Camerupt closing in on her, and so did Owen.
"Snivy, use your vines to jump over Camerupt!" Two vines appeared from Snivy's neck, and she used them to push off the ground and leap over Camerupt, who slammed into the wall and took an immense amount of recoil damage.
"Now use Heat Wave!" As Snivy was about to land on the ground, Camerupt shot a crescent of fire towards her, and the super effective attack hit. As result, Snivy was thrown across the battlefield and towards Astral, but she got back on her feet and bolted towards her bulky fire type foe.
"Hit 'em right back with Leaf Blade!" Snivy sprinted past Camerupt and up the wall behind Owen, wowing everyone in attendance. The grass snake then turned around and began to spin while her tail began glowing light green, and she whipped Camerupt's backside, causing the large Pokemon to run back to her trainer's side before turning around angrily.
"Camerupt, use Heat Wave again!"
"Grass Pledge!" Owen screamed, seeing that Snivy didn't have much left in the tank. As Camerupt unleashed a crescent of fire towards Snivy, the latter of the two's stomach began to glow green before she punched the ground. As soon as she did, Snivy was hit and knocked out by the Heat Wave attack, which made Camerupt celebrate victoriously. The celebration was cut off, however, when Camerupt was engulfed by a pillar of green energy. After the light faded, Camerupt was knocked out cold, too.
"Both Pokemon are unable to battle! Trainers, choose your next Pokemon!"
"You were incredible, Snivy," Owen told his starter as he picked her up and walked over to the bench. Snivy nodded at her trainer thankfully as she was handed to Fate, and Owen walked back to his trainer box with another Pokeball in his hand. "Krookodile, I'm counting on you!" Owen cried as he threw his fifth Pokeball. Krookodile stood on Owen's half of the battlefield proudly and waited for Astral to send out his Pokemon.
"Armaldo, rock and roll!" Krookodile grinned as he saw the large blue mantis Pokemon appear on the other side of the battlefield, and Armaldo began sharpening her arms in preparation for the battle.
"This battle will be between Krookodile and Armaldo! Begin!"
"Krookodile, use Bulldoze!" Krookodile stomped on the ground, creating a wave of energy to ride along the battlefield, and it struck Armaldo. The bug and rock type stumbled back before a spinning ring of blue energy appeared around her body and disappeared.
"Armaldo, shake it off and use X-Scissor!" The prehistoric Pokemon did as her trainer commanded, and she charged towards Krookodile while crossing her arms over her chest as they turned light green and appeared to take the shape of an 'X'.
"Use a Dragon Claw barrage to counter!" Krookodile's claws turned light blue as he made his way towards Armaldo, and the two Pokemon began to slash each other savagely. Neither Pokemon gave an inch, and the crowd began to cheer for both creatures. Seeing that the battle wasn't going to stop any time soon, Astral managed to think of a way to separate Armaldo from Krookodile.
"Hit Krookodile with Cross Poison, and then use Rock Blast!" Armaldo quickly ducked underneath a Dragon Claw from Krookodile, and she jabbed him with her arm as it turned purple. The ground and dark type was pushed about ten feet back, and he was sweating profusely. Then, three boulders appeared around Armaldo's body, and she fired all of them at Krookodile.
"Shake it off and dodge by using Dig!" Krookodile quickly dug a large hole and disappeared underground as the three large boulders flew past where he was previously standing.
"That's not going to work on us! Armaldo, use Flash Cannon into the hole!" Astral shouted while remembering Owen's tactics from the top 128. Armaldo dashed over to the hole Krookodile had dug, and she fired a silver colored beam of energy into the hole, but Owen responded to the attack calmly.
"Resurface and use Dig again!" Krookodile shot out of the ground just before the Flash Cannon attack, and he dug another hole, which frustrated Astral and Armaldo. The two began looking around the battlefield, hoping Krookodile wasn't going to continue to dig holes. Much to their surprise, Krookodile appeared right underneath Armaldo, and he uppercut the bug before running back to Owen's half of the battlefield.
"Armaldo, finish this with Flash Cannon!" Astral shouted in frustration as Armaldo got back on her feet.
"Show them your power, Krookodile! Use Hyper Beam!" Krookodile nodded and reared his head back before firing a terrifyingly powerful beam of orange energy towards Armaldo, who countered with a silver beam of energy. The two attacks collided, but Krookodile's Hyper Beam easily crashed through Armaldo's Flash Cannon, and it obliterated the prehistoric Pokemon, who collapsed as soon as the Hyper Beam faded.
"Armaldo is unable to battle! Astral, choose your last Pokemon!"
"Excellent effort, Armaldo. Tyrouge, I'm counting on you!" Owen narrowed his eyes as Astral's shiny Tyrouge appeared. The purple Pokemon had much more muscle than the last time Astral and Owen battled, which worried the Kantonian. Krookodile, however, didn't seem intimidated by the fighting type despite being winded from his last battle.
"Well, it's all over. Let's get going," Rebecca joked while laughing. Orange and Brooklyn laughed along with the younger girl, but Fate and CJ remained silent. "What's wrong, guys? You should be celebrating! You too, Snivy!"
"No we shouldn't. Look at Krookodile," CJ told the three cheering teens. Rebecca, Orange, and Brooklyn peered over at the panting Pokemon, but they didn't think much of it. "Krookodile's gassed, so you shouldn't be confident about him winning."
"So? Owen still has Heatmor," Brooklyn countered.
"Even so, Tyrouge nearly beat Heatmor during the Vermilion City contest," Fate started, "and it looks like he's gotten way stronger."
"This battle will be between Krookodile and Tyrouge! Begin!"
"Tyrouge, allow them to strike first." Tyrouge reluctantly obeyed his trainer's command, and he gestured for Owen and Krookodile to attack, which confused the pair.
"Okay? Krookodile, use Dig!" Krookodile nodded and quickly dredged underground and vanished from sight, but Astral and Tyrouge remained calm. After a few seconds passed, Krookodile shot out of the ground and attempted to uppercut Tyrouge.
"Block it and use Fire Punch to counter!" In a nanosecond, Tyrouge caught Krookodile's fist and then punched the ground and dark type in the stomach while his other hand was on fire. Krookodile rolled back a few feet, but he hopped back up and angrily charged at his fighting type opponent, who continued to look calm and collected.
"Use Dragon Claw, Krookodile!" Krookodile's claws turned blue as he prepared to slash Tyrouge, but the unevolved Pokemon was too quick to hit.
"Now spin and land an Ice Punch!" Tyrouge spun like a ballerina while his right fist was covered in icy energy, and he punched Krookodile in the leg as hard as he could. A loud crack echoed through the stadium, and everyone looked away from the gruesome sight as Krookodile dropped to the ground and his left leg looked like rubber.
The bench to the side of the battlefield looked on in concern as Krookodile slammed his fist against the ground repeatedly while crying out in pain, and Astral and Tyrouge dropped to one knee and began praying.
"Krookodile!" Owen shouted as he ran to the downed Pokemon's side. Krookodile looked up at his trainer and tried getting back on his feet, but he let out a pained roar when he put the slightest bit of pressure on his left leg. "Don't worry, buddy, you're going to be okay," Owen assured the ground and dark type. Krookodile nodded, and was placed on a stretcher by two bulky men who ran onto the field. Krookodile waved back at Owen and then to the crowd as he exited to an explosion of applause, and Owen walked back to his trainer box. Krookodile's picture immediately turned black, leaving Owen with just one more Pokemon.
"Wh-what just happened to Krookodile?" Brooklyn asked nervously while looking at the others, who were all sitting in silence.
"I don't know. But that injury looked really bad," Fate muttered as Owen took out his sixth and final Pokeball. Before he threw it, Owen looked over at Snivy and gave her a simple nod before chucking the spherical device into the air.
"Heatmor, let's do this thing!" Heatmor jumped out of the Pokeball and landed on the ground forcefully. The anteater looked around at the crowd before his eyes settled on the scoreboard. He saw that his picture was in the final spot on Owen's team, but he focused more on Krookodile's blacked out picture. To say Heatmor was shocked was an understatement, as he turned around and stared at Owen worriedly while pointing at Krookodile's picture.
"Don't worry about it. Krookodile had to be taken out because of an injury, that's all." Heatmor sighed at the information and turned to look at the bench. He saw Snivy giving him a smile, and Charizard's arms were crossed. The winged lizard gave Heatmor a thumbs up before the referee stepped onto the battlefield.
"This battle will be between Heatmor and Tyrouge! Begin!"
"Tyrouge, it's time to show Owen and Heatmor how far we've come! Use Thunder Punch!" Tyrouge nodded and took off towards Heatmor while his fist was covered in electricity. Owen and Heatmor were both wowed by Tyrouge's massive increase in speed since their last battle, but that was to be expected after such a long period of time passed.
"Dodge it and use Flame Burst!" Heatmor swiftly sidestepped away from the nasty right hook performed by Tyrouge, and he reared his head back before shooting a bullet of fire out of his mouth. Tyrouge was flung back by the force of the explosion caused by Flame Burst, and he slowly struggled to get back on his feet.
"Fight through the pain and use Sky Uppercut!" After hearing the tone of Astral's voice, Tyrouge shot up and bolted towards Heatmor, who wasn't expecting Tyrouge to arrive that quickly. With a ferocious upward punch to Heatmor's chin, Tyrouge sent the fire type soaring into the air like a missile, but Heatmor regained control of his body quickly, which brought a grin to Owen's face.
"Heatmor, use Flame Wheel at full throttle!" Heatmor nodded and covered himself in fire while spinning, and everyone hollered excitedly as Heatmor looked like a meteor crashing towards the Earth. Charizard watched the speeding fire type with a proud smile on his face, but it vanished when Astral and his Tyrouge countered.
"Grab it with Ice Punch and then use Thunder Punch!" Tyrouge's hands were suddenly covered in a powder blue light, and he stuck his arms out as Heatmor crashed into him. Somehow, Tyrouge stopped the attack dead in its tracks, and Heatmor tried breaking free of Tyrouge's freezing cold grip. Then, Tyrouge's left hand was covered in electricity, which he used to punch Heatmor in the gut. Heatmor got back off the ground and glared at his challenging foe, which gave Owen a newfound sense of confidence.
"Way to hang in there, Heatmor! Keep it up with Flamethrower!" Heatmor reared back and released a wave of fire from his mouth, but Tyrouge disappeared in the blink of an eye. Owen and Heatmor both looked around with puzzled expressions before Tyrouge appeared right in front of the fire type Pokemon in a boxing stance, which caused Owen and everyone on the bench to gasp.
"Tyrouge, Close Combat!" Tyrouge instantly unleashed a relentless flurry of jabs and uppercuts before dealing a devastating right hook that knocked Heatmor onto his side.
"Heatmor, no!" Owen cried as Heatmor laid on the ground limply. Even though he couldn't see, Owen knew Heatmor was still conscious. The fire type looked up at Tyrouge grimly before feeling a sudden wave of power sweep over his aching body. The entire stadium gasped in unison as Heatmor was covered in a thin coat of fire, and he stood back up with a stern look on his face.
"I'm not letting Owen down. Not here, not ever! If I'm going down, it's not going to be without a fight!"
"This is where we finish this! Tyrouge, use Sky Uppercut!" Astral commanded despite seeing the unnatural fire burning around Heatmor's body. Tyrouge turned and nodded at his trainer before running towards Heatmor and attempting to uppercut him. Before Owen could say anything, Heatmor grabbed Tyrouge's arm and twisted it behind the fighting type's back.
"Heat-MORRRR!" the fire type screeched as he reared back and unleashed a gigantic wave of blue fire. The unknown attack engulfed Tyrouge and launched him across the battlefield, which made Charizard look at the anteater in awe. The fire burning on Tyrouge's body went out after a few seconds, and the referee ran over to the unconscious Pokemon's side before raising his hands in the air.
"Tyrouge is unable to battle! That means Owen will be moving on to the top 8!"
As soon as he heard the referee, the fire around Heatmor's body disappeared, and he ran over to Owen and hugged his trainer tightly. Snivy and Charizard made their way over to Owen and hugged their trainer, too, and they began cheering. Owen, however, broke away from his three Pokemon and walked over to Astral.
"Nice battle, Astral. My heart was racing the entire time," Owen told his rival while extending a hand. Astral smiled and shook Owen's hand while nodding in agreement.
"You too. Good luck the rest of the way," the older teen said to Owen as he walked off the battlefield and into the trainer room on the other end of the green stadium.
000
"Nurse Joy, is Krookodile going to be okay?" Owen inquired as he waited by the nurse's desk. The pink haired woman didn't smile, and she sighed as if something had gone horribly wrong.
"Krookodile is going to be just fine," she answered. Owen pumped his fist excitedly along with his other eight Pokemon and Charizard, but the celebrating stopped when Nurse Joy continued speaking. "However, his leg was broken during the fight."
"What does that mean?" Owen interrogated while slamming his hands on the counter, which caused Nurse Joy to sweat drop nervously.
"I'm sorry, but Krookodile won't be able to heal in time. I'm pulling him from the league."
Oooh, it looks like that's the kiss of death for Owen's championship aspirations. Well, at least he got past the top 16 :P So, Owen defeated Astral in a close battle, which resulted in Krookodile breaking his leg and Heatmor being the hero again. Now that Krookodile, arguably the strongest Pokemon on his team, is out for the Unova League, Owen's road to the championship has just become significantly tougher. Till next time, peace out.
1) With Krookodile out, do you think Owen has any chance of winning the Unova League?
Next Chapter: Dealing with a Crippling Blow: After finding out that Krookodile is out for the remainder of the Unova League, Owen is forced to rely on Pokemon he never thought he would, and Heatmor begins to feel the pressures of carrying the team. Now facing another rival, will Owen have enough firepower to advance?