Author's Note: Guess what? Today is my birthday! A review about your thoughts on the chapter would be a great birthday present for me!
This was it. It all came down to this. The final battle of the Pokemon League. I would be facing my best friend, Jason, and we knew each others' battling strategies better than anyone. We were so evenly matched that I had no idea which of us would win, there could only be one Pokemon League Champion.
The rain was pouring outside as a thunderstorm was raging, just like the storm that was raging inside of me. The stadium had a dome roof that was usually open to the sky but could be closed to cover the inside of the stadium in case of bad weather like today.
I looked into the audience and found my family and friends amidst the thousands of screaming people. Jason's parents were hoping that he would win and my parents and cousin were hoping for me to win. Michelle seemed torn about who to cheer for. After all, both Jason and I were her closest friends and she didn't want either of us to lose.
I was then snapped out of my thoughts as the announcer began to introduce the battle.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the final battle of this year's Kanto Pokemon League Tournament! The battles this year have been some of the most exciting battles that have ever happened in the history of the tournament, but none as spectacular as the battles that have been put on by our two trainers here today!
"This battle will feature two trainers who are both ten years old, who are both from Pallet Town, and who are both competing in their first Pokemon League Tournament ever! Adam Ketchum, the son of Pokemon Master Ash Ketchum, and Jason Oak, the son of Prof. Gary Oak! Folks, if you were hoping to see an exciting ending to the tournament, you couldn't have hoped for something more exciting than this! So let's get this battle started!"
"The Pokemon League Final between Adam Ketchum and Jason Oak will now begin." said the referee. "Both trainers will use six Pokemon with substitutions allowed and the battle will be over when all of one trainer's six Pokemon are unable to continue. Let the battle begin!"
I grabbed my hat and did something that my dad had done when he was going into a big battle: I twisted my hat around so that it was on backwards. Feeling more excited than I had ever felt in my life, I threw my Pokeball and yelled, "Venusaur, I choose you!
Jason confidently threw his Pokeball and yelled, "Charizard, go!"
No! I was at a disadvantage right from the start!
"Were you hoping that I would start with Golduck, Adam?" Jason said to me. "Well, when you bet, sometimes you lose."
Jason had a habit of sometimes getting overconfident in big battles, just like his dad. What he didn't know was that I had been secretly training my Pokemon to learn special techniques to beat Charizard, his strongest Pokemon.
"Charizard, use Flamethrower!"
"Venusaur, Razor Leaf!"
Charizard's fire easily burned through the leaves and hit Venusaur.
"Now use Fire Fang!" Charizard's mouth burned with flames as it sped towards Venusaur.
Perfect! This is what I was waiting for! I thought to myself.
I waited for Charizard to get close enough and then said, "Venusaur, Poison Powder!" Venusaur let out a spray of poisonous powder from the flower on his back, which stopped Charizard and poisoned it. Jason looked very surprised.
"Don't get overconfident, Jason. I knew that Charizard was your strongest Pokemon, so I made sure that all of my Pokemon were prepared to deal with it, even those with a type disadvantage!" I said proudly.
"Use Razor Leaf!" I commanded. Charizard was a little wobbly after getting poisoned, so the time to strike was now! Charizard was bombarded by leaves and fell to the ground.
"Now it's my turn to go on the attack!" I said, all fired up. "Venusaur, return. Go, Golem!" I returned my Pokemon and quickly threw my next Pokeball. Golem now had the type advantage.
"Rock Throw!" I called to Golem. Rocks were thrown at Charizard but Jason acted too fast!
"No you don't, Adam! Charizard, return!" Jason returned Charizard and readied his next Pokeball. "Machamp, go!" Once again, I was at a disadvantage. Jason and I were switching our Pokemon around very quickly.
"Golem, use Rollout!" I shouted. Golem spun around rapidly and zoomed towards Machamp.
"Machamp, stop it with your hands!" Jason called out. When Golem hit Machamp's powerful arms, he continued spinning, but stayed in one place as Machamp held him back.
"Incredible! Machamp's strength is strong enough to keep Golem's Rollout at bay!" the announcer cried.
"Now lift it up!" Jason yelled. Machamp grabbed Golem with its four arms, stopping the Rollout, and lifted him above his head.
"Use Seismic Toss!" Jason screamed. Machamp jumped into the air, somersaulted, and slammed Golem into the ground, creating a large hole.
As Golem got back on his feet, I had no idea what to do! Golem was getting tossed around like a rag doll!
"Rock Throw, Golem!"
"Machamp, Karate Chop!"
Machamp used its arms to punch through the barrage of rocks as it ran towards Golem.
"Dynamic Punch!" Jason screamed. Machamp hit Golem so hard that he went flying up into the air and almost hit the roof of the stadium.
Then I got an idea. "Golem, Rollout!" I shouted to my Pokemon. Golem began to fall to the ground as he spun around rapidly. He picked up speed, going faster and faster as he fell, heading right towards Machamp. Jason finally realized what was happening, but too late. Golem slammed into Machamp, creating another large crater in the ground.
"Golem weighs more than 600 pounds. Not even a superpower Pokemon like Machamp can withstand that kind of weight when it falls and crashes onto it at speeds that high!" I said to Jason as Machamp laid there, moving only slightly.
"And just to make sure that it's over, Golem, use Rock Throw." Golem buried Machamp under tons of heavy rock, leaving only its head. Machamp tried to free itself, but was too weak and fainted.
"Machamp is unable to battle. Golem wins!"
It was close, but I had managed to defeat Jason's first Pokemon, thanks to a bit of luck. Jason returned Machamp and threw his next Pokeball.
"Golduck, go!" Jason announced. I was at a type disadvantage yet again but I still had one more trick up my sleeve that Jason didn't know about.
"Golem, use Earthquake!" Golem shook the battlefield and damaged Golduck.
"Golduck, Aqua Jet!"
"Use Rollout, Golem!"
Both Pokemon collided and the moves canceled each other out as smoke covered the battlefield. When it cleared, I saw that Golem was reaching the end of his rope. He had taken a lot of damage while fighting Machamp and he was also weak against water. It was time for me to use my secret weapon, I just had to get close enough.
"Rollout again!"
"Keep Golem away with Hydro Pump!"
Golem kept speeding towards Golduck. He got hit a few times but pushed through and knocked Golduck to the ground. This was my chance!
"Time to end this, Golem! Use Explosion!" I screamed. Golem began to glow and then a deafening boom echoed across the stadium, creating smoke and dust across the battlefield. When it cleared, both Pokemon were lying on the ground.
"Golem and Golduck are both unable to battle!" the ref declared.
Jason and I returned our Pokemon. It was a risky strategy, using Explosion like that, but I felt that it had paid off. Golem had beaten a Fighting Pokemon and a Water Pokemon, two types of Pokemon that he was weak against. I had lost only one Pokemon while Jason had lost two.
"Charmeleon, I choose you!" I shouted as I tossed my Pokeball.
"Fearow, go!" Jason shouted as he tossed his Pokeball.
With Golduck defeated, Jason had no Pokemon that had a type advantage over Charmeleon.
"Fearow, use Fury Attack!"
"Counter it with Slash!"
Fearow attacked with its beak, using rapid pecks. Charmeleon used his claws to fend them off but Fearow's Fury Attack was faster and Charmeleon couldn't counter all of the pecks.
"Use Aerial Ace!" Jason commanded. Fearow sped towards Charmeleon.
"Flamethrower!" I called to Charmeleon, who shot out breaths of fire but Fearow zoomed left and right and avoided the flames.
Charmeleon was hit but then I called out, "Grab onto Fearow, Charmeleon!" Charmeleon grabbed onto Fearow's wings and swung onto its back.
"Shake Charmeleon off, Fearow!" Fearow flew around in the air and twisted and turned but Charmeleon hung on!
"Fire Fang!" I yelled. Charmeleon first bit into Fearow's wing and then its neck with his burning jaws of fire.
Fearow then managed to shake Charmeleon off of its back and Charmeleon landed on the ground. Not waiting for him to recover, Jason immediately called out the next attack.
"Fearow, use Fury Attack!" Charmeleon was pummeled with rapid hits.
"Break free with Flamethrower!" I yelled. Charmeleon launched Flamethrower at close range and blasted Fearow away from him.
"Now use Fire Spin!" I cried.
"Dodge and use Aerial Ace!" Jason cried.
Fearow avoided the fire and hit Charmeleon with a full-force Aerial Ace, causing him to faint.
"Charmeleon is unable to battle. Fearow wins!" said the ref.
"You did great, Charmeleon. Your hard work won't be in vain." I said as I returned him. I grabbed my next Pokeball. There was only one way to deal with Fearow: a Flying Pokemon duel!
"Pidgeot, I choose you!" I yelled as I threw the Pokeball.
"Fearow, use Agility!"
"Pidgeot, you use Agility, too!"
Both Pokemon increased their speed. The battle would be even faster now!
"Aerial Ace!" Jason and I both called out at the same time. Both Pokemon zoomed through the air towards each other. They hit each other head-on and an explosion occurred. Both Pokemon flapped their wings, trying to maintain their balance and stay airborne as they emerged from the smoke.
"Fury Attack!" Jason shouted.
"Use Quick Attack to dodge!" I cried.
Pidgeot sped out of harm's way. Then I decided to use a technique that my dad had used in Sinnoh in his Veilstone City gym battle.
"Go from Quick Attack to Aerial Ace!" Building on the speed from Quick Attack, Pidgeot zoomed in twice as fast and struck Fearow with an even more powerful Aerial Ace! Fearow began to lose height and I knew that it was almost over.
"Finish it with Wing Attack!"
"Keep Pidgeot away with Fury Attack!"
Fearow tried its best, but Pidgeot broke through and struck Fearow with his wings. Fearow fell to the ground and didn't get back up.
"Fearow is unable to battle. Pidgeot wins!" said the ref.
As Jason returned Fearow, I knew that this battle could still go either way. I had four Pokemon left and Jason had three, but that didn't mean that I had an advantage just because I had one more Pokemon remaining than Jason.
"Haunter, go!" Jason yelled as he threw his next Pokeball. "Use Shadow Ball!"
"Deflect it with Wing Attack!" I yelled.
Pidgeot's wings glowed and they deflected the ball of dark energy to the ground.
"Keep using Shadow Ball!"
"Dodge with Aerial Ace!"
Haunter kept launching Shadow Ball after Shadow Ball in rapid succession but Pidgeot's speed enabled him to avoid them all as he veered left and right and up and down.
"Do it!" I called to Pidgeot. Pidgeot flew in amidst the Shadow Ball barrage and hit Haunter with Aerial Ace.
"Haunter, use Dark Pulse!" Jason called out the attack so fast that I didn't have time to react and Pidgeot was hit, but managed to stay in the air.
"Now use Hypnosis!"
"No!"
Haunter launched sleep waves and Pidgeot fell to the ground, fast asleep. This was bad. Pidgeot couldn't do anything while he was asleep!
"Shadow Ball!" Jason cried and Pidgeot was hit with the attack.
"Pidgeot, wake up!" I yelled. Pidgeot didn't respond.
"Dark Pulse!" Again, Pidgeot was blasted with the dark waves and was now looking beaten.
"Pidgeot, you have to wake up! Please!" I screamed. Hearing my cries, Pidgeot finally opened his eyes!
"That's showing 'em, Pidgeot! Use Aerial Ace!"
"Stop Pidgeot with Dark Pulse!"
Pidgeot was hit, but pushed through the attack and struck Haunter...and then he fell to the ground and fainted. That attack had used up the last bit of strength that he had left.
"Pidgeot is unable to battle. Haunter wins!" announced the ref.
"Great job, Pidgeot. You hung in there and did a great job." I said as I returned my Pokemon.
We were dead even again. Both Jason and I had lost three Pokemon and only had three Pokemon left. There was no room for any mistakes from either of us.
"Wartortle, I choose you!" I yelled as I threw my next Pokeball.
"Haunter, use Shadow Ball!" Jason commanded.
"Wartortle, use Water Pulse!" I commanded.
The ball of water and the ball of dark energy collided and exploded, creating smoke. I couldn't see Haunter, it blended in perfectly with the dark smoke. But I knew that it was there somewhere and I had a plan.
"Use Rapid Hydro Spin!" This was a combination of Hydro Pump and Rapid Spin that I had used in my semifinal battle against Trevor. Wartortle withdrew into his shell and sent water spraying out of the holes. The water was sprayed out over all of the battlefield and I heard Haunter crying out in pain. As the smoke cleared, I saw Haunter being pummeled with wave after wave of water, taking major damage.
Desperation was showing in Jason's eyes. "Haunter, use Hypnosis!" he yelled.
"Quick, Wartortle! Hide in your shell!" I shouted.
Wartortle withdrew into his shell and the sleep waves passed over him.
"Haunter's Hypnosis waves can't reach Wartortle if he's hiding from them in his shell." I said to Jason.
"Very clever thinking, Adam." he replied. "But we're not done yet!"
"You got that right! Wartortle, use Hydro Pump!"
"Dodge, Haunter!"
Haunter floated out of the way of the attack. Ghost Pokemon were very tricky to hit, but I knew how to beat them!
"Now use Dark Pulse!" Jason cried.
"Use your Counter-Shield!" I cried.
Wartortle spun around on the ground, spraying water everywhere into the air. The water blocked the Dark Pulse and like before, Haunter was hit with waves of water blasts.
This proved to be too much for Haunter, having already taken damage from battling Pidgeot. Haunter fell to the ground and fainted.
"Haunter is unable to battle. Wartortle wins!" the ref shouted.
Jason returned Haunter and threw his next Pokeball. "Tangela, go!" he called out.
Wartortle was at a disadvantage, being a Water Pokemon against a Grass Pokemon, so I returned him. I wasn't sure who to use. Venusaur was also a Grass Pokemon so neither Pokemon would be very effective against the other. Pikachu was my only other choice, but Electric attacks wouldn't be very effective against Grass Pokemon. But there were no other options, so I had to chance it.
I looked down at the ground beside me and asked, "Pikachu, are you ready to go?"
"Pika!" he replied and ran out onto the battlefield.
"Tangela, use Vine Whip!" Jason shouted.
"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!" I yelled.
Pikachu dashed out of the way of the vines and hit Tangela.
"Grab Pikachu with your vines and keep him still!" Jason said. Tangela wrapped its vines around Pikachu so that he couldn't move. "Now use Sleep Powder!"
"No! Use Thunderbolt!" I screamed. I couldn't let Pikachu fall asleep! Pikachu shocked Tangela with electricity, which didn't do a ton of damage, but it stopped the attack and forced Tangela to let Pikachu go.
"Use Thunderbolt again!" I yelled to Pikachu. I knew that it wouldn't do much, but I had to chip away at Tangela's health little by little. Tangela was electrocuted again, but remained standing.
"Quick Attack, Pikachu!"
"Spin and use Vine Whip, Tangela!"
It looked like Jason had taken a page from me by using a spin like that. Tangela spun, swinging its vines around in a circle and Pikachu was hit and fell to the ground, unable to get past the swinging vines.
"Jump over the vines and use Iron Tail!" I yelled. Pikachu leapt into the air and his tail turned to metal. Aiming right at Tangela, Pikachu's attack hit its mark.
"Finish it with Volt Tackle!"
"Use Giga Drain!"
But Tangela's attack missed as Pikachu slammed into Tangela with all of his might, creating an explosion. As the smoke cleared, I saw that Pikachu was clearly hurt by the recoil, but it was worth it because Tangela had fainted.
"Tangela is unable to battle. Pikachu wins!" the ref declared.
As Jason returned Tangela, my excitement reached a new high. I was only one Pokemon away from winning the tournament! All that was standing between me and victory was Jason's Charizard. I knew that I couldn't let my guard down, though. After all, Charizard was Jason's strongest Pokemon. I had a secret plan of how to defeat it, but it would take all three of my remaining Pokemon to pull it off. Starting with Wartortle...
"Pikachu, come back!" I called. Pikachu ran back to my side. "Wartortle, I need you again!" I called. Wartortle reappeared as I threw his Pokeball.
Jason looked worried, since he knew that his Pokemon would be at a disadvantage, but he had no choice but to press on.
He threw his Pokeball and said, "Charizard, go!" Charizard reappeared but its breathing was labored because it was still suffering from the effects of the poison that it had been afflicted with from Venusaur's Poison Powder at the beginning of the match.
"Every second, Charizard is getting weaker and weaker from the effects of the poison, Jason." I said to my friend.
"Then I'll just have to defeat your Pokemon quickly, Adam!" he replied.
"But you have to defeat three while I only have to defeat one! Wartortle, Hydro Pump!" I yelled.
"Charizard, Flamethrower!" Jason commanded.
Charizard's fire burned through the water and created steam, which rose into the air.
"Hydro Pump, again!"
"Flamethrower, again!"
Just like before, the fire dissolved the water and more steam was created.
"Trap Wartortle with Fire Spin!" Jason cried. A vortex of fire surrounded Wartortle.
"Break out with Rapid Hydro Spin!" I cried. Wartortle spun, shooting out water from his shell, which vaporized the fire and even more steam rose into the air.
"I don't get it! Why can't Wartortle's water get through Charizard's fire?" I asked aloud.
"If Wartortle were a Blastoise, he would have a fighting chance. But I have a fully evolved Pokemon who is at a much higher level than your Pokemon." Jason explained. "As it stands right now, Charizard can easily burn through Wartortle's attacks."
"Then try this on for size! Return, Wartortle!" I returned my Pokemon and looked down at Pikachu. "Get back in there, Pikachu! I need you!" Pikachu ran back onto the battlefield.
"Charizard is partly a Flying Pokemon so Electric attacks are super-effective!" I said to Jason.
"Yes, but can Pikachu keep up with Charizard? You can't hit what you can't catch!" Jason replied.
"Just you wait and see! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" I shouted.
"Charizard, fly into the air!" Jason shouted.
Pikachu's attack missed and Jason immediately called out the next attack.
"Charizard, Flamethrower!"
"Dodge, Pikachu!"
Pikachu was quicker and dodged out of the way.
"Don't give Charizard an opening to attack! Keep using Thunderbolts until they hit!" I cried.
"Charizard, fly out of the way!" Jason cried.
Pikachu launched Thunderbolt after Thunderbolt, but they all missed and flew up into the air. I then noticed how exhausted Pikachu looked from using up all of that electricity. It didn't help that he had used a lot against Tangela, too.
"Pikachu, you're too tired! Return!" Pikachu ran back and I grabbed another Pokeball. It was time for the final phase of my secret plan to beat Charizard. It was risky, but I had to take the chance!
"Venusaur, I choose you!" I shouted, throwing my Pokeball.
Everyone in the stadium looked at me with dumfounded expressions. They were wondering why in the world had I chosen a Grass Pokemon to go up against a Fire Pokemon. Jason just smiled.
"So...you want us to finish the battle with the Pokemon that we chose at the beginning of our journey. Choosing sentiment over victory. Well, if that's how you want it, then this battle just turned in my favor!"
"That's what you think, Jason! Venusaur, grab Charizard and keep him there!" Venusaur reached up into the air and wrapped Charizard up in his vines, preventing him from moving.
"You really think that that's going to hold Charizard? Charizard, use Flame-huh?" Jason stopped in mid-sentence as a flash of light and a low rumble interrupted him. He looked up in the air and a look of surprise came over his face. A black cloud was in the air above the battlefield.
"A rain cloud? Indoors?!" he screamed in disbelief.
"That's not just a rain cloud, Jason." I said proudly. "That is a thunder cloud!"
I then explained it to him. "You see, the water that Wartortle used was vaporized into superheated water droplets by Charizard's fire, which created steam. The steam rose into the air and the droplets condensed into a cloud that's been charged with Pikachu's electricity. All of those Thunderbolts that he shot, which missed Charizard, were absorbed into the cloud and became lightning. And as I'm sure you know, lightning strikes the highest point that it can find, which in this case would be..."
"CHARIZARD!" Jason yelled in shock as he finished my sentence, finally realizing what was going to happen.
No sooner had that word left Jason's mouth than a huge bolt of lightning came down from the cloud and electrocuted Charizard. As more lightning came down, heavy rain poured from the cloud and drenched Charizard's body. Charizard loudly cried out in pain as it was hit with the elements of a storm. Weak against both Water and Electric attacks, Charizard was being bombarded with both types of attacks at once!
"Charizard, get out of there! Use Flamethrower on Venusaur!" Jason yelled desperately, seeing Charizard suffer. But Charizard was in too much pain to attack as the storm raged on over the battlefield.
"Don't let Charizard go until it faints!" I yelled to Venusaur.
"Charizard, you have to fight through the pain! Flamethrower, I know that you can do it!" Charizard gritted its teeth, aimed its head downwards, and launched the attack, hitting Venusaur.
"Hang in there, Venusaur! Just a little more!" I yelled desperately.
"BURN IT!" Jason screamed at the top of his lungs.
"HOLD IT STILL!" I screamed just as loud.
Flashes of lightning, pouring rain, and burning fire were all mixed into one! The sounds of our Pokemons' painful cries filled the air, drowned out by the screams of Jason and I. Our eyes were narrowed, our teeth were clenched, our hands were balled into fists! The rush of adrenaline was unlike anything that we had ever felt before! In that moment of intensity, we both finally understood what we were feeling. This was the feeling of never giving up or losing hope! The feeling of never losing faith in our Pokemon and their power and always believing in them to the very end, no matter how tough the challenge was! And we both realized that THAT is what it means to be a true Pokemon trainer!
A huge flash of light engulfed the stadium as the buildup of all that power was released in a huge blast, knocking both Jason and I off of our feet! Smoke covered the battlefield and neither of us could see what had happened. But as the smoke cleared and we got back on our feet, Charizard came into view, standing on the battlefield with burns and scrapes covering all of its body. Venusaur was lying on the ground, not moving. Nobody in the stadium spoke.
"Then the winner is Jas-" the announcer began. But then, Charizard wobbled and fell to the ground on its side and didn't try to get up.
I then looked at Venusaur, who struggled to get back up. I held my breath, silently encouraging him as he slowly got back on his feet and let out a triumphant, "SAUR!"
"No!" said the announcer. "The winner of the battle and the new Pokemon League Champion is...ADAM KETCHUM!"
Author's Note: WHOA! Didn't see that one coming, did you?
After a long, incredible journey, Adam has beaten his best friend, Jason, and has become the newest Pokemon League Champion!
Where will the story go from here? What will happen to Adam, his friends, and family, now that the journey is over?
Find out as the celebrations and aftermath take place in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!