The SHOCKING Nimbassa City (Part 2)
The second round was easy for Zach. He was against the trainer Chloe, and he had to bake some Poffins for the judges. While Chloe made a mango batch, he and Purrloin made a rasberry chocolate batch, which awed the judges and moved him on to the next round.
When the second round was over, the MC announced, "Now here are the matchups for the third round!"
1. James vs. Yuri
2. Lindsay vs. Poonya
3. Zach vs. Rebecca
4. Harley vs. Zoey
"Ugh!" gasped Becky. "It's that annoying twerp who beat me in the Nacrene contest!"
"Whoa, whoa," calmed Barry. "Your Pokemon are better than his! He just got lucky last time!"
"Yes," said Becky, "but we both have two ribbons! I had to work extra hard to get that ribbon again at the follow-up Nacrene contest, and if he beats me AGAIN, I will..."
"And now," shouted Jackson, the MC, "we have our first battle... James vs. Yuri!"
"Servine," I shouted, "let's go!"
Servine had to beat Joltik. Yeah, Joltik was a Bug type and Bug beat Grass, but Servine was a strong Pokemon!
Joltik started by using Thunder Shock on Servine, but it dodged. Then, Servine used Vine Whip to grab it, and Joltik used Bug Bite to get Servine's vines off!
Servine then used Leaf Tornado and blew the tiny Pokemon away. It hit the wall and fell down.
Joltik got back up and used Sticky Web on Servine, who couldn't dodge. Joltik leaped onto it and used Thunderbolt, damaging it by a lot! That was when Servine learned a move that helped us win: Slash. It cut through the Sticky Web and gave Servine the opportunity for Servine to use Vine Whip on the shocked Pokemon and slam it to the ground!
"Joltik is unable to battle, which means the victory goes to Servine!"
"I admit," said Elesa. "Your Pokemon do have a lot of talent and beauty! But mine outshine yours by two whole suns! Zebstrika, I choose you!"
Zebstrika came out of its Pokemon. This was it, the final Pokemon for me to beat in order for me to earn my Gym badge.
Servine used Leaf Tornado on Zebstrika to start the battle off, and it hit Zebstrika square on! But Zebstrika reacted quickly and used Thunderbolt on Servine. While it was busy recovering, Zebstrika used Flame Charge and hit Servine with incredible speed, blasting it into the air.
Servine was tired, but it could still fight! It unleashed its Leaf Tornado, while Zebstrika used Flame Charge. The Leaf Tornado, which was destroyed by the flames, slowed down Zebstrika's attack, and that let Servine use Slash on Zebstrika.
The Pokemon reacted quickly by using Spark on the leaping Pokemon, knocking it to the floor and knocking it out.
"Servine is unable to battle, which means the victory goes to Zebstrika!"
As far as Evelyn could tell, James battled beautifully against Yuri in a battle round. He and Purrloin used a combination of Dark Pulse and Slash to defeat the opponent's Lilipup. They truly did step up from their past selves.
Now, it was Rebecca and Zach's turn, and it was going to be a... dance off!
Rebecca and Zach both called out a Pokemon (Pikachu and Yamask), and they and their Pokemon had to follow the dance that was shown to them.
Zach and Yamask, moving gracefully and perfectly in sync, danced to the beat and enjoyed it thoroughly! Rebecca, however, got shocked by Pikachu's Thunderbolt because she stepped on its ears.
The obvious winner there was Zach!
The next round was easy for both James and Zach, who both had a Pokemon trivia game with their partners, against different opponents. Now was the time for the final round: the musical round.
Both cooridnators spent about an hour rehearsing their musicals. When they were over, the crowd was amazed.
Zach had a Romeo-and-Juliet twist on their play: two families who didn't like each other (family A: Dewott and Tranquill, family B: Yamask and Purrloin), but one Pokemon from each family (Tranquill and Yamask) loved each other and met in secret. But when the two were caught by the others, there was a beautifully coordinated Double battle between the lovers and their family. The lovers lost and were seperated, but promised each other they would love the other forever. Evelyn felt a tear running down her cheek after watching it.
James had a more adventurous theme to it. He had a knight (Sewaddle) who faced an evil prince (Pansage) when he tried to save his beloved maiden (Purrloin). The knight and the prince sparred, and the knight defeated the prince and saved the maiden. This was a happier yet equally enjoyable musical, thought Evelyn.
"Now!" shouted Jackson. "This is the time for you to vote for your favorite performance today. Will it be the heart-breaking tale produced by Zach, or the adventurous quest produced by James? VOTE!"
"Volcarona," I said, "I choose you!"
Volcarona, for the first time since it came along with me, was battling! It had to win!
Zebstrika used Flame Charge on Volcarona, but Volcarona used Hurricane and blew it back into a wall! It was awesome!
Then, Volcarona used Heat Wave, damaging Zebstrika even more! But Zebstrika was still strong, and it used Thunder on Volcarona, blasting it! Then, it used Flame Charge on the startled Pokemon, blasing it back! After that, it used Thunderbolt and weakened Volcarona even more.
The two Pokemon may not have been in battle against each other two long, but they looked equally tired. They had to use one last move to finish each other off!
Volcarona used Bug Buzz, and Zebstrika used Thunder. Both moves hit at the same time, and a cloud formed around the Pokemon.
Both Pokemon were panting, and they looked like they were about to fall. Volcarona winced, but it still stood strong. Zebstrika would not let down either! He grimaced, but stood still.
Then, one of them fell.
"All right, the votes are in!" shouted Jackson. "I got to tell you the numbers were awfully close, but we could only have one winner today. Now, here were the percentages of the two contestants:
James: 49%
Zach: 51%
"YAAAAAAY ZACH!" I shouted, as Philip and I both made our way to Evelyn, who was screaming at the top of her lungs.
"Hey, Evelyn," greeted Philip.
Evelyn turned around and finally noticed we were there. "Hey! How were your battles?"
Philip proudly held out his badge. "I got my first badge from Elesa!" he squealed.
"Nice!" said Evelyn, high-fiving him. "How about you, Kyle?"
"I might have to go back there again," I said cooly.
"Aww," said Evelyn. "Did you try your best?"
"WHAT?!" I shouted. "Who said I lost? I beat her, too! I only said that because I still have to watch you battle."
Philip laughed. "You should have seen your face."
"Ha, ha!" grunted Evelyn. "Very funny!"
Philip and I earned our Gym Badges, Zach won his Musical, and now, it was time for Evelyn to win!