Theme Song
It is time for the home stretch (Gray shows her badge case with eight badges)
For it is the final catch (Magna appears, smiles, and fades, which is repeated by Fidens, Leviculus, Decorus, Durus, and another Pokemon)
Your goal's right there, it is your fate (Owen and Red stare down at the championship battle of the Indigo League)
Go ahead and become great! (Gray throws a Pokeball forwards and it opens)
No way! (2x) We won't back down! (Durus lunges at the camera and slashes it)
We will! (2x) Win that crown (Montage of Gray defeating Trentavious, Savannah, and Marcus before she looks across a battlefield and sees Owen)
This is it, the final quest (Gray looks off into the sunset with Chase, Tara, and their Pokemon)
You must do your very best... Pokemon!
What's up, everyone? Time for another PKA:ANG update, and the tournament is getting started! Last chapter, Gray met up with all of her rivals, and the rules of the tournament were announced. Now, Gray will be taking on her first opponent, and she's looking to advance, which would give her a potential shot at Trentavious in the top 32! With that being said, let's get going!
CaptainPrice: Wow, that right there is a bold prediction! Gray definitely could reach the finals, as hard as that is to believe, and Marcus and Savannah would both get huge boosts in power if either one faces Gray during this tournament. I should be able to shoot these out fairly quickly, depending on how driven I am to edit, so you'll find out if you're right pretty soon
ShadowDragon9000: Haha. Let's say she did win this tournament; she'd still end up going after all of the badges to train her Pokemon. The way I see it, is if she does win, it actually hurts her in the long run, because she has less opportunities to face off against tougher competition
poketto (guest): Thanks! At this point, it's about 99% certain Gray will be returning for Johto, but I don't have a clue about Chase and Tara. I'd love to have them back, but I also want to have Chase reach for his dreams and Tara could end up going with him
guest: Maybe that is why I gave that chapter it's name, maybe it isn't :3 I'm really glad you brought that up, by the way
Trentavious Phoenix: Hey, you never know. Crazier things have happened, my friend (Brian beating Owen). Trent definitely is being painted as the villain even though he didn't necessarily do anything wrong, but if his reaction back at Pallet Town wasn't as dramatic, I don't think he'd have ended up with these tags
Defender31415: Great! I look forward to posting more chapters really soon!
MerlockVonBaron: It's almost guaranteed that Gray will come back, but there's always a chance that she won't
MCMXCV: He is, but to be fair, it's not like he was the one to throw the first punch, Sammy was. Hopefully someone will put him in his place, but you never know
Blaze Falcon: Well, if you think about the team Marcus has, and the fact that he had Lucario out with him, that would seem to be the case. And you never know if Gray will beat him, though it is possible
Hotrod198: Lol, thanks! It's good to hear you're back in the writing spirit, and I'm flattered. I'll be sure to keep it up, so stay tuned!
Gray's team
Durus, (f), level 42, Power Gem, Feint Attack, Bite, Metal Claw, Pay Day*, Slash* - (Persian)
Leviculus, (m), level 38, Water Gun, Dig, Rain Dance, Body Slam, Mega Kick*, Ice Punch* - (Politoed)
Fidens, (m), level 40, Quick Attack, Wing Attack, Ancient Power, Dragon Breath, Crunch*, Acrobatics* - (Archeops)
Magna, (f), level 36, Confusion, Yawn, Astonish, Uproar, Last Resort*, Protect* - (Chingling)
Decorus, (f), level 40, Vine Whip, Moonblast, Psychic, Magical Leaf, Grassy Terrain*, Petal Blizzard* - (Florges)
"Now welcome both trainers to the battlefield!" the announcer shouted into his microphone. The crowd cheered as Gray and her opponent, a boy dressed up in a Pikachu costume, walked out of the tunnels and strode into their trainer boxes. Durus stared at the strange looking boy before shaking her head, and the referee spoke up.
"This will be a two versus two battle between Gray and Ben where neither trainer may substitute their Pokemon! Furthermore, the battle will be over when both Pokemon on either side are unable to continue! Now, choose your first Pokemon!"
"Magna, let's win this!" Gray shouted excitedly while releasing her Chingling from her Pokeball. The tiny bell landed on the ground and began jumping up and down excitedly, but she stopped when Ben tossed his first Pokeball.
"Zorua, shazam!" Gray, Durus, and Magna sweat dropped at the announcement, but they regained their composure when Magna's and Zorua's pictures appeared on the scoreboard.
"This battle will be between Magna and Zorua! Begin!"
"Crush Magna with Shadow Ball, Zorua!" Zorua bounded across the battlefield before leaping in the air and rearing his neck back. A purple and black ball formed in front of the fox's mouth, and Zorua fired the super effective attack at Magna, who narrowed her eyes and prepared to counter.
"Block it with Protect!" Magna stomped on the ground and a green bubble appeared around her body, blocking the Shadow Ball. The crowd cheered while Zorua fell back to the battlefield, and Ben cursed under his breath while Magna's shield went away. "Now use Uproar!" The psychic type opened her mouth and shrieked at the top of her lungs, firing waves of sound at her dark type opponent. Zorua was blasted into the wall behind Ben, but he somehow managed to get back up.
"Use Feint Attack as revenge!" Ben yelled while his Zorua began to run back to the battlefield. Gray gasped as the dark type disappeared and popped up behind Magna while he was enveloped in black energy. Suddenly, the fox smashed into Magna and sent the psychic type skidding along the ground face first, which must've been painful.
"Turn around and use Yawn, Magna!" Magna jumped up and turned while opening her mouth, releasing a cloud of bubbles. The bubbles, however, were too slow and Ben and his Zorua were able to counter the sleep inducing attack with no effort whatsoever.
"Quickly, Bite!" Zorua bolted towards Magna and leaped before chomping down on the smaller Pokemon, who cried out in pain. Gray bit her lip and watched as her Pokemon attempted to shake Zorua off, but the dark type had no intentions of letting go. The girl then looked over at Durus, who was screaming for Magna to keep fighting, and Gray grinned as she thought of the perfect counter.
"Hang in there, Magna! Uproar!" The psychic type opened her mouth and shrieked, making everyone's ears ring painfully. Zorua was then blasted into the air by a wave of sound, and he spun uncontrollably, making Magna, Durus, and Gray cheer along with the crowd. Ben, on the other hand, cursed under his breath before attempting to help his Pokemon regain control over its body.
"Zorua, spin and fire a Shadow Ball!" Doing just as he was told, Zorua started to spin before lining up with Magna and opening his mouth. In the blink of an eye, Zorua shot a ball of black and purple energy at Magna, who was panting heavily. The Chingling stopped showing her fatigue and prepared to counter, which Gray was more than eager to do.
"Counter with Uproar again!" Magna's mouth shot open and she screamed as loud as she possibly could. Waves of sound flew out of the tiny Pokemon's mouth, but they missed the Shadow Ball attack and instead hit Zorua, while the ghost type attack struck Magna. Both Pokemon were hurled towards their trainers and landed on the ground with their eyes shut, prompting the referee to raise his arms in the air.
"Both Pokemon are unable to battle! Trainers, choose your last Pokemon!" the referee shouted while Magna's and Zorua's pictures turned black.
"Return, Zorua. Sudowoodo, shazam!" Ben yelled while releasing his second Pokemon from its Pokeball. Gray and Durus watched as a tree appeared and began to dance, which caught them both by surprise.
"You were great, Magna, return. Leviculus, take the field!" Gray yelled while tossing her second Pokeball. In a blast of light, Leviculus took the battlefield and began to dance happily as his picture appeared along with Sudowoodo's.
"This battle will be between Leviculus and Sudowoodo! Begin!"
"Sudowoodo, use Rock Slide and squash that toad!" Ben yelled while throwing his hands towards the ground, as if he were pulling something downwards. Sudowoodo replicated his trainer's hand motions and a wave of rocks fell from the sky directly above Leviculus.
"Leviculus, dodge and counter with Water Gun!" Gray countered as fast as her mouth could move. The Politoed danced away from the rocks and immediately shot a blast of water at Sudowoodo, who was struck by the super effective attack. As he was pushed back by the water, Sudowoodo sidestepped out of the way and charged towards Leviculus, who was far too slow to react.
"Low Kick!" Ben ordered. Sudowoodo suddenly swept his foot underneath Leviculus' legs and knocked the water type onto his back. The rock type then stomped on his opponent and Leviculus cried in pain before rolling away and attempting to hide, which Gray sensed.
"Quickly, hide underground with Dig!" Leviculus, thankful for his trainer's order, dug a hole in the ground and began burrowing his way towards Sudowoodo and Ben. Despite this, Ben smirked and began stomping happily before issuing another command to his powerful Pokemon.
"Earthquake!" Sudowoodo jumped high in the air and prepared to slam against the ground, but Gray's quick thinking allowed her to get Leviculus out of the situation he was in.
"Hop out and strike with Ice Punch, Leviculus!" Leviculus shot out of the ground and his fist was shrouded in light blue energy as Sudowoodo began to fall, and he leaped forwards before dealing a wicked blow. Sudowoodo was sent rolling back to his trainer's side, yet he got up with no problem and smirked until he heard his trainer's voice.
"Crush 'em with Take Down, Sudowoodo!"
"Wrap this up with Mega Kick!" Gray commanded immediately after hearing Ben speak. Both Pokemon charged at one another, and Sudowoodo was suddenly covered in bronze energy. Leviculus, meanwhile, transferred all of his energy into his foot, which began to glow light blue, and he kicked at his opponent. Much to Ben's dismay, Mega Kick prevailed and sent Sudowoodo spiraling into the wall behind Ben, where he fainted and fell on his face.
"Sudowoodo is unable to battle! Gray and Leviculus are the winners!"
"Nice work, Leviculus," Durus complimented after Gray stopped hugging the Politoed. The water type bowed thankfully before waving to the crowd, and he walked alongside his trainer and Durus as they headed into the trainer room. Chase, Tara, Savannah, and Marcus were waiting and cheering as Gray and her Pokemon walked in victoriously, but they stopped once she got close enough.
"Great job, Gray! You're one step closer to battling me!" Marcus joked with a smile, making Gray and the others laugh.
"Hey, don't forget she might have to get past me!" Savannah informed Marcus, who shrugged before nodding at the statement. "Well, I guess I have to go. My battle's up pretty soon, and I want to get ready with my Pokemon." With that, Savannah walked away from the group and left them in silence.
000
"Well, Savannah, Marcus, and Trentavious all advanced," Tara informed Gray as she walked into the girl's room in her apartment. Gray had been working with Durus, Fidens, and Decorus so they could be prepared for their upcoming battle, and had left the arena as soon as she won her battle. "They all won pretty easily, too," the blonde continued before switching the channel on the TV.
"So who're you battling next round?" Billy inquired as he walked into the room with a bottle of water in his hands. Gray's mother followed her son into the room and watched the TV, which was displaying the bracket of the tournament. Gray waited in silence along with her five Pokemon, and Chase stood off to the side of the room with Audino and Musharna.
"There you are!" Billy shouted as he pointed at the screen, which had zoomed in and focused on Gray's quarter of the bracket. The girl was in the second spot from the top, just below Trentavious, and above Savannah. Gray remained expressionless, but Durus was excited to say the least.
"Alright! Now I get to have revenge on that jerk, Trentavious! I'm gonna-"
"Rip him to shreds. We know already," Decorus said while cutting off her teammate, who nodded in response before jumping off the couch to stretch. "Well, he hasn't battled me yet, so I'm gonna have fun seeing how he'll react."
"He hasn't battled me, either," Magna announced as she sat on top of Fidens' head. "But I'll wait for my shot at that punk."
"I can't believe your Pokemon are so fired up about this," Chase whispered to Gray. "I mean, it's not like he's said anything to them." Gray shrugged in response before cracking her knuckles and grinning.
"Trent's just another hurdle standing between me and first place. I'm not gonna get tripped up by him, and we'll show 'em just how strong we've become!"
Gray managed to win pretty comfortably this round even though the score was 2-1, and she's advancing to the top 32! The real question is whether she'll be able to Trentavious, who is definitely going to be much stronger than the last time they battled. With revenge on the minds of Gray and her Pokemon, they should come out guns blazing. Till next time, peace out.
Next Chapter: "Settling the Saffron Score": Now in the top 32, Gray squares off with Trentavious and hopes to avenge her previous losses. With both trainers clashing verbally prior to the battle, tensions between their Pokemon rise. With both sides putting everything on the line, who will win and advance to the top 16?
Saffron City Arc
Chapter 50: Undermanned?
Chapter 51: A Powerhouse Emerges!
Chapter 52: The Kanto Kids