A/N: Good evening. This chapter was fun for me to write. Pokemon Day is coming up and I'm excited for whatever news we get. Not much to say here. I'm hoping to have the next chapter up soon. Have a great week!
Pokemon Journey: Indigo League
Chapter 24: Preliminary Round
"Hey guys," Brandon says, looking at his Pokemon. "We are in our first official Pokemon Tournament. No matter what happens, I want us to give our all, alright?"
"Wartortle," Wartortle nods, folding his arms.
"Tangela," Tangela nods as well.
"Nidorina," Nidorina agrees.
"Joltik," Joltik chips in.
"Great," Brandon beams at them. "Everyone will get the chance to battle. Our first match isn't until this afternoon, so I think we can get some last minute training in. Tangela, I want you to practice your jumping. Wartortle, practice your new move. Nidorina, practice your speed alright. And Joltik, I want to work with you. Now that you have your assignments, let's get started."
Nidorina, Wartortle, and Tangela break off and begin to work on their assigned work. Tangela is jumping back and forth, getting much better at dodging and counter attacking with his stun spore. Nidorina began to jump from rock to rock, hoping to increase her speed. Wartortle begins to shadow box an imaginary figure.
"Joltik, I want to work with you but really, I want to see how you are doing," Brandon says, leading Joltik away from the others.
"Joltik?" Joltik asks, looking up at his trainer curiously.
"When Zoe said that stuff yesterday," Brandon replies, kneeling down.
"Jolt," Joltik says, brushing it off.
"Good," Brandon says, scratching Joltik on his head. "You are a valuable member of the time. Don't listen to her."
"Jolt," Joltik comes softly, while leaning into Brandon's hand.
"But I do want to work with you," Brandon says, standing up. "We've known each other for a short while but we are still getting to know each other. Let's start off with a simple string shot."
Joltik nods, walking a little ways from Brandon before opening his mouth, releasing a string. It didn't travel very far.
"Alright," Brandon says, scratching his chain. "From your battle with Nidorina, it seems like you like to attack from afar, slowing your opponent down before jumping in."
"Joltik," Joltik nods.
"Perfect. We can work with that," Brandon says. "Knowing that is your battle style, I think string shot will be a pivotal move for you. For now, let's see if we can add a little distance for it."
Joltik nodded and began to release a barrage of string shots. The earlier ones went the same distance but Brandon could have sworn the last one went a little further but he wasn't 100% sure. Brandon watches as Joltik begins another barrage of string shots. None of them increased their distance.
"You are doing great Joltik," Brandon praises him. "At least we know what to work on with you. And in the meantime, we will see about other speed-reducing attacks you can learn."
"Joltik," Joltik says, nodding his head.
"Great. For now, work on string shot on your own. I want to see how the others are doing," Brandon smiles at Joltik before moving to the others.
"Brandon has grown since we last saw him," Lisa says, stepping beside Ava and Saul. His friend nods, watching from the balcony. "That's what we like to hear."
"Lately, he has surprised me with a couple of training exercises," Ava states proudly.
"Oh like what?" Fred asks.
"The other day, he had Nidoran and Joltik battle like they were wild Pokemon. Something I never thought of."
"That's Brandon," Lisa says proudly. "In school, he always tried to come up with creative ways to do his homework. One day, he forgot to do his science project. So on a whim, he took our Oddish to school and totally winged it. He would have failed it but his teacher decided to give him a C."
"Your Oddish?" Ava asks.
"Yeah. We have a family Oddish," Fred says, watching Brandon speaking with Nidorina. "Oh that reminds me. Before we forget, when you guys are about to leave Cinnabar Island, can you let us know please? We have moved into our new place but Brandon hasn't seen it yet."
"Of course," Saul says.
"Thanks," Lisa says gratefully. She then laughed as a thought crossed her mind. "Oh man. Kelly won't be thrilled with Joltik. She hates spiders."
"Uh oh," Saul says, grinning.
"Leave it to Brandon to catch a spider Pokemon," Fred chuckles along with his wife.
"Don't worry," Lisa says quickly, catching the look on Ava's face. "She won't be mean to him. In fact, because Joltik is Brandon's, she will try harder to get along with him."
Brandon looks up at the balcony, waving to them before returning to work with Tangela. He did catch the look on Ava's face.
"Well, we are going to enjoy this cruise," Lisa says, stepping away from the balcony. "We will find you guys at some point tonight."
"Have fun," Ava says, waving goodbye to them.
"See you later," Saul says, also waving goodbye.
Finally, after working with Wartortle, Brandon decided to call their training session there. They are on a cruise ship, so he wanted to fully enjoy it. Soon, Brandon, Ava, Saul and his parents met up at a restaurant. Together, they had supper, then played board games until the sun disappeared, leaving the ocean a dark, scary place. Saul and Brandon say good night to each other before heading to their respective rooms.
Saul was out as soon as his head hit the pillow but Brandon couldn't sleep. So he got up and began to walk the ship when he noticed Ava's light was still on. Brandon knocked and entered when Ava invited him in.
Ava is sitting on her balcony, sipping hot chocolate, staring out into the darkness. Brandon grabs a cup and joins her, sitting down on the empty chair.
"Everything alright?" Brandon asks.
"Yeah, just thinking," Ava replies.
"I saw that look earlier," Brandon says, unsure if he should ask. "I'm sorry if what my mom said earlier made you uncomfortable."
"It's fine," Ava says, waving away his apology. "It felt good to actually hear it."
"I understand," Brandon says softly, nodding his head.
"Makes me wonder how one family can be so warm and friendly, when another family can be so cold and distant," Ava says.
"I don't know the answer to that," Brandon says, taking a sip of his hot chocolate. "Did all of your family disown you?"
"Most of my immediate family," Ava says, taking a sip of her hot chocolate. "I have 2 brothers who got the same treatment as me but I haven't talked to them in so long."
"That's rough," Brandon says empathically.
"I was close to Jason," Ava says, finally speaking about this. "We were inseparable as kids. He was my idol growing up."
"Sounds like a great guy," Brandon says.
"He was. He went for his Johto journey but never came back," Ava says sadly. "At first, I thought it was my fault. My parents went along with it, making me believe it was but with everything that happened to me, I'm starting to wonder what really happened."
"Do you think they also disowned him?" Brandon asks.
"It's the only thing that makes sense," Ava replies, taking a sip of her hot chocolate. "Someday, I want to try to look for him."
"Sounds like a great goal," Brandon says. "What about your other brother?"
"Oh, Shane. Not entirely sure what happened to him," Ava says. "One moment he's there, the next, he's gone. No explanation. Here, this is the last photo I have of us together."
Ava brings out a photo of the two standing in front of a tree, arms around each other's shoulders. Both are smiling with a Furret curled around their ankles.
"You guys seem happy," Brandon says, looking at the photo.
"Shane and I were close though not as close as Jay and I," Ava says, putting the photo away. She drains her mug and places it on the counter. "Sometimes I wonder what if, you know."
"I understand," Brandon says, also downing his mug. He steps inside and places it on the counter. He pets Growlithe, Omanyte and Umbreon, who both stretch and walk to their trainer. "If you want help, let me know. Will you ever tell Saul?"
"Thanks Brandon," Ava says, bending down to pet Growlithe, Omanyte and Umbreon. "I will eventually."
"Whenever you are comfortable," Brandon says, yawning. He steps to the door. "Good night Ava."
"Good night Brandon," Ava says, also yawning. She lays on her bed, with Umbreon and Growlithe curling up on her sides. Omanyte curls up beside her head. She smiles, thankful for their friendship before falling asleep.
In his room, Brandon shoots Kelly a quick email before crawling into his bed and falling asleep.
" Good morning folks," Captain Lawson says, speaking into the microphone. "Welcome to the annual S.S. Anne Tournament. We have 64 trainers signed up, ready to give you guys a show. Over the next four days, you all will be treated to some spectacular matches until one trainer is crowned the winner and wins this trophy. Without further ado, I will hand it over to John, who is the PBA's representative on board."
"Thank you Captain Lawson," John says, taking the offered microphone before addressing the crowd. "Remember, matches are fifteen minutes. With that being said, let the 2022 S.S Anne Official Tournament begin! Make noise for our opening trainers…"
Brandon sits in the stands beside Ava, Saul and his parents, watching the flurry of matches speed by. In all honesty, he paid little attention to most of the matches and instead thought about his matches. He sat up though, when Kyle battled. He used a red fox like Pokemon, Greedent, and a green elephant looking Pokemon. Kyle easily won his match, which made Brandon nervous.
His stomach growls, so he heads for a quick snack of popcorn. He is nearly finished with his bag when he realizes he's next. He gets up, with Ava, Saul and his parents wishing him luck, before he exits the stands and waits in the tunnel.
Standing in the same tunnel is his opponent. A male looking to be in his late 20's with short hair, a beard with glasses. He smiles at Brandon, wishing him luck. Brandon smiles back and wishes him luck though his heart began to beat faster and faster. He can feel his palms getting sweaty as he leans his head against the wall, trying to calm his nerves. He listens as John speaks to the crowd.
" Ladies and Gentlemen, we've seen some amazing battles today!" John yells, hyping up the crowd. "We have one battle remaining. Please join me in welcoming Ryan Jones, from Viridian City and Brandon Adams from Pallet Town!"
Ryan and Brandon step onto the field to a thunderous round of applause. Brandon looks towards Ava, who sends him a small, warming smile. Brandon smiles back, trying to calm himself by taking a deep breath and tries to block out the crowd. The two battlers pause in the middle of the field in front of John.
" We will now have our coin flip to determine who does what," John says, with a Rotom Camera circling around the trio. "Ryan, heads or tails?"
"Heads," Ryan says.
John flips the coin as Rotom Camera zooms in on it. The TV screen shows the coin flipping in the air before landing on the ground. It lands on tails, meaning that Brandon has the choice between first move or first reveal.
" What will Brandon decide?" John says, as everyone looks at Brandon.
"First move," Brandon says, after thinking it over for a moment.
" Brandon decides to go with the first move," John explains to the crowd. "Which means Ryan reveals first. Can we have Ryan and Brandon please go to your respective boxes as I will go over the rules quickly. This will be a 3v3 single battle elimination battle and the match will be over when one side's Pokemon are unable to battle. Furthermore, both trainers are free to substitute at any time. Ready? Let the match begin!"
Ryan unclips one of his Pokeballs and summons it. "Dugtrio, I choose you!"
A three head brown Pokemon materializes on the ground. Brandon takes out his Pokedex to scan it.
"Dugtrio, the mole Pokemon. The evolved form of Diglett. Ground type. A team of Diglett triplets. It triggers huge earthquakes by burrowing 60 miles underground."
"Interesting Pokemon," Brandon says, putting his dex away. "So a ground type huh? A flying type would be great here. Since I don't have one, I will lead with you. Tangela, I need your help!"
Brandon takes Tangela's ball and summons his partner.
"This will be an interesting battle," Ava states, watching them introduce their Pokemon.
"Agreed," Fred agrees with her.
Back on the field, Brandon clips Tangela's ball back on his belt. "Let's start this match off with a growth Tangela!"
"Sandstorm!" Ryan counters.
Tangela begins to swell up a little just as Dugtrio summons a sandstorm, obscuring people's vision a little. Brandon has to squint his eyes as a few bits of sand got in them.
"Tangela, can you see?" Brandon asks, mentally trying to think of a way to combat this.
"Dugtrio, return!" Ryan quickly switches his Pokemon. "Excadrill, come on out!"
Brandon again takes out his Pokedex to scan the new Pokemon.
" Excadrill, the subterrane Pokemon and the evolved form of drillbur. Ground/Steel type. It's not uncommon for tunnels that appear to have formed naturally to actually be a result of Excadrill's rampant digging."
"So Dugtrio, a ground type and now Excadrill, another ground type?" Brandon thinks out loud. "What are the chances his third one will also be a ground type?"
"Ryan wastes no time in a quick switch," John calls out. "How will Brandon deal with the sand?"
"Good question," Ava mutters. "How will Brandon deal with weather effects?"
"He dealt with rain dance pretty well," Lisa points out. "At least, from what we saw on TV."
"He did but in a way, he had a counter to that in Tangela," Saul says, thinking back to the match. "Here, Tangela is a soft counter only."
Brandon thinks for a moment. Tangela, in theory, could deal with Excadrill, due to the ground typing but does he want him to? Or will he be needed for Dugtrio? Making up his mind, Brandon pulls out Tangela's ball.
"Tangela, I'll need you for later," Brandon says, switching out Pokeballs. "Wartortle, come on out."
"Looks like Brandon is also switching out," John says, as the crowd is getting into this match.
"Excadrill, use horn drill!" Ryan commands.
Excadrill claps his hands together and begins to spin before taking off like a bullet towards Wartortle. But the attack doesn't have enough juice, entirely missing Wartortle, who steps to the side.
"Wartortle, use ice punch!" Brandon shouts out.
Wartortle's fist is surrounded by an icy glow and with a rapid jab, smashes into Excadrill's side, causing damage. The crowd cheers.
"Great job Wartortle," Brandon praises him. "Now, use water pulse!"
"Excadrill, quick. Use dig!" Ryan commands.
Wartortle opens his mouth and releases water rings, aiming for Excadrill. He misses as Excadrill burrows underneath the field. Sand is still swirling around the field, causing Brandon and Wartortle to have reduced vision.
" I need to deal with the sand but how?" Brandon thinks to himself. His eyes land on Wartortle's shell and an idea started to form.
"Wartortle, duck into your shell and spin around. Use water pulse as you spin," Brandon orders.
Wartortle ducks into his shell and begins to spin around, spraying water out of the holes, clearing a path through the sandstorm. Excadrill burst through the ground, knocking Wartortle flying into the air.
"Wartortle, rapid gun now!" Brandon immediately calls out.
Still in his shell, Wartortle lets loose a stream of water, propelling the spinning shell to gain momentum and smashing into the stunned Excadrill, before Wartortle emerges and hits Excadrill with a close range water gun.
"Great job Wartortle," Brandon yells. "Now, ice punch."
Wartortle pulls back his fist and lets it fly as ice encases it. The punch smashes into Excadrill, knocking him out.
" Excadrill faints. Brandon takes the lead," John shouts as the crowd cheers for Wartortle. "Who will Ryan send out next?"
"I wasn't expecting that," Ryan chuckles, as he holds ups Excadrill's Pokeball. "Return Excadrill. You battled well. Dugtrio, you are up again."
Once again, the three headed brown Pokemon emerges. Brandon looks at Wartortle, who gives his trainer a nod.
"Looks like it's Dugtrio vs Wartortle," John shouts to the crowd. "But we have seen that these two trainers aren't afraid to switch it up."
"Dugtrio, use dig!" Ryan commands.
"Wartortle, stay alert," Brandon commands.
Dugtrio digs underneath the ground, and begins tunneling through the ground. Wartortle stays in his spot but his eyes are constantly looking around, hoping to spot any hint of where Dugtrio is. This went on for a few moments before Brandon got an idea.
"Wartortle, jump down in the hole and use rapid gun!" Brandon shouts.
Wartortle immediately jumps into the hole Dugtrio caused. Using water gun as a a motor, Wartortle is able to move underneath the ground, though at a slow pace. But damage, or speed, isn't the goal. Something Ryan just realized.
"Dugtrio, resurface now!" Ryan shouts. "Clever really clever."
"Not sure what Brandon did," Lisa remarks, trying to understand.
"He flooded the tunnels underneath the surface," Saul explains, impressed. "Or at least, that was the goal. But Ryan figured it out very quickly."
"Still, Brandon made it harder for Ryan's Pokemon to dig," Ava points out. "What are the chances that his last Pokemon will be another ground type?"
"That's my boy," Fred says with a proud smile.
"Wartortle, rapid gun again!" Brandon shouts out. "Use it over and over again!"
Once again, Wartortle ducks into his shell and goes zipping around the battlefield, stopping every now and then to pop his head out and firing off a water gun towards Dugtrio, who dodged them all. Ryan began to laugh.
"Is that all you got?" Ryan asks Brandon.
Brandon ignores Ryan and focuses on Wartortle. "Keep going Wartortle. You got this."
"What is Brandon's strategy here?" John asks the crowd. "It's clear he's up to something but not sure what."
"What can …. Oh!" Ava exclaims. She saw the ground softening from the water. "I think I know what he's doing."
"What do you mean?" Saul asks. Ava leans in and whispers to him.
Brandon takes out Wartortle's Pokeball. "Thank you Wartortle. Take a break. Nidorina, I need your help."
Nidorina appears on the battlefield as Ryan instructs Dugtrio.
"Dugtrio, use night slash!" Ryan shouts.
"Nidorina, wait for it!" Brandon says calmly.
Dugtrio comes rushing towards Nidorina, who just awkwardly stands there, itching to rush it. Just as Dugtrio comes in range, Brandon issues another command.
"Use scratch," Brandon commands. He notices that Nidorina sinks just a little into the ground but Ryan doesn't pay attention.
Dugtrio unleashes the night slash, scoring a direct hit on Nidorina, who counters with a scratch, doing little damage.
"Nidorina with scratch? Oh come on," Ryan shouts, rolling his eyes.
Brandon smiles at Ryan. "I know right."
"Whatever," Ryan says. "Dugtrio, use bulldoze!"
"Nidorina, stand your ground!" Brandon shouts.
Dugtrio sends out a Shockwave underneath the ground, causing the whole boat to rock a little and throwing Nidorina off.
"Nidorina, use your tail to jump into the air," Brandon commands.
Nidorina uses her tail and jumps into the air. Dugtrio just watches, unaware how soft the ground is.
"Use double kick on the ground full power!" Brandon shouts.
Nidorina comes crashing down, using double kick on the ground. This causes a single crack in the ground before a series of smaller spider cracks begins to form and causing jagged lines, thus immobilizes Dugtrio.
" Well folks, I think we know what Brandon was doing with Wartortle," John shouts to an excited crowd as Ryan is forced to recall Dugtrio.
"Again, I wasn't expecting that," Ryan says, stunned. "I apologize for being cocky earlier. Sadly, I will have to forfeit as my last Pokemon won't be able to move."
"Nice job Nidorina," Brandon says, recalling his Pokemon. He meets with Ryan at the tunnel entrance, shaking his hand.
"A rather unusual ending to a match but Brandon moves on to the quarter finals," John shouts. "And with that, the preliminary rounds are complete. Trainers, if I may direct your attention to the jumbotron, your matches for tomorrow are posted. Good luck!"
Brandon looks for his name and silently groans. His opponent is none other than Zoe.
Team Listings:
Brandon Adams:
Wartortle - Male, Torrent ability. Knows Water Pulse, Ice Punch, Withdraw, Rapid Spin
Tangela - Male, Leaf Guard ability. Knows Bind, Stun Spore, Mega Drain, Growth
Nidorina - Female, Poison Point ability. Knows Growl, Poison Sting, Double Kick, scratch
Joltik – Male, unknown ability. Knows Shockwave, Electroweb, String Shot
Ava Mcarthur:
Umbreon - Female. Run Away ability. Knows growl , Quick Attack, Double Kick, Snarl
Omanyte - Male. Weak Armor ability. Knows: Withdraw, Constrict
Growlithe – Female. Flash Fire. Knows: Ember, Bite
Saul Raymond:
Yungoos – Male. Unknown Ability. Knows Tackle, Sand attack, Leer
Pikipek – Female (Shiny). Unknow Ability. Knows Peck, Growl
Mantyke – Female. Unknown Ability. Unknown moves