Another chapter! Now it is time for the first matches to begin!
Phantom Knight21: We'll see.
ZenoZen: She will probably be okay.
Darkhammer: Thanks, I will!
Jay Hayden: Well, who can say? Maybe they're just friends, maybe one of them has feelings for the other… Who knows how things will go? Maybe we'll find out some day…
Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings
Chapter 29
"So, are you nervous?" Cynthia asked Blake as they waited for the pairings to be announced. They were seated in the waiting room, on one of the large couches, staring up at the screen in anticipation.
"Kind of," Blake said, nodding. "But I'm sure you're not."
"How rude!" Cynthia huffed. "I get nervous too, you know! I'm just more excited than I am nervous!"
"Well, if that works for you," Blake sighed.
"Well, well, well… don't you two look cozy?" Blake and Cynthia turned to the owner of the voice, and their eyes landed on a girl with messy, short brown hair.
"Oh… you're…" Blake said, vaguely remembering the girl.
"…Who?" Cynthia asked, completely blank on who the girl was.
"Kate! It's Kate! From the Gardening Club!" Kate snarled.
"Oh, yeah," Blake and Cynthia said simultaneously, nodding.
"Rrrgh, fine, whatever! This is perfect, anyway!" Kate said, frowning. "What good fortune that I happened to be in the same block as the two of you! I'm going to enjoy crushing you two, just watch!"
Kate pointed to Cynthia.
"I'll take you down in the first round, red. I'm going to stomp you as punishment for all the rude things you said about our Queen!"
Her finger moved to Blake.
"And as for you… I'm going to tear you down in the next round, and show Lady Alcea that you're nothing special! You two better watch yourselves… I'm going to take you down!" Kate looked down at them with a smug grin on her face.
"You do know that the pairings are completely random, don't you?" Blake asked. "You might not face either of us, you know."
"…" Kate said nothing, her smirk not changing. "…I knew that," she lied.
"Hey, the pairings just went up!" Cynthia said, pointing at the screen, where the four matches were showing.
Kate was not facing either of them.
"Oh well," Kate said, shrugging. "I don't think the two of you will make it past the first matches, even if I don't defeat you myself. Good luck, you two." She turned and walked out of the waiting room.
"So we're not fighting each other, either," Blake said, smiling.
"Nope," Cynthia said, shaking her head. "Well then, see you out there!"
Blake was the last one to leave the room. He walked slowly to the arena entrance, taking a deep breath. The doors opened, and the eight trainers in Block A stepped out.
"Welcome back, everyone!" Darla's voice rang out over the loudspeakers. "The first round is beginning here! Let's meet our Block A trainers!"
"On Field 1, we have the Gardening Club's very own Kate Nomia!" Lila announced. "She's a cute, tough sophomore who has trained under Alcea Vermeil, the Third Leader and Grass Type specialist!"
"If Alcea is a beautiful rose, Kate is the annoying thorns that prick you whenever you try to get close!" Darla added.
"Hey!"
"And her opponent…" Darla looked over the list. "I see, another Gardening Club member, Brianne! She's just a freshman, can she hope to stand up against her upperclassman?"
"Brianne, I won't go easy on you," Kate sternly explained as the two stepped out onto the first battlefield. The Queen is watching my match… I can't afford to lose.
"Let's set the stage!" Lila cheered. The screen began flashing and the wheel spun, landing on a card. The card moved up to the screen. It had a large stone on it.
"Rock Stage 3!" Darla announced. "Mountain Crag Field!"
The battlefield began rumbling and sunk into the stadium. Appearing in its place were several large rocky outcroppings overlooking the battlefield, forming a natural maze of large stone walls.
"Whoa…" Sango was impressed looking on from the audience, but it was nothing compared to the reactions of those in the arena themselves.
"Blake! That was just the coolest thing ever!" Cynthia gushed. "Oh man, I'm even more excited!"
"Now, on Field 2, we have Austin Granger! A powerful Fire Type user, his knowledge of pokemon strategy makes him well-suited to being a gym leader in the future. He's just a sophomore, but it's rumored that he will become one of the eight leaders in his junior year!"
"Who's his opponent, Darla?" Lila asked.
"Violet, a freshman," Darla answered. "Nothing really notable about her, so let's move on."
"Um, okay! They'll be fighting on…" Lila mumbled, spinning the wheel.
The roulette spun again, landing on a card with a teardrop on it.
"Water Stage 1! Pool Field!" Darla announced. The stage dropped down, a pool of water replacing it. There were several standing points for non-water types to fight on.
"Oh, this is bad! This field looks like the worst choice for our fire type trainer!"
"Not at all," Austin said, shaking his head. "This will not be a problem."
"Now, Field 3, Blake Harker!" Lila announced. "He's just a freshman, but he gained a brief stint of fame in his victory over the sophomore, Akira!"
"And since no one believes that our main character will be losing to some no-name, let's just move this whole thing along, shall we?" Darla asked.
"Darla!"
"Set the stage!" Darla ignored her partner, spinning the wheel. It landed on a card depicting a spider.
"Bug Stage 1! Insect Forest Field!" Lila exclaimed. The field Blake was standing in front of dropped down, replaced with a small forest with very tall grass. Spider webs crisscrossed between the trees, and rustling could be heard.
"Ew, glad I'm not on the one," Cynthia said, shaking her head.
"Field 4! Cynthia Fafnir!" Darla moved on, clearly wanting to get ahead with the battles. "She-"
"Cynthia is well-known for her energetic and bubbly personality!" Lila interrupted Darla's attempt to speed things up.
"Yes, but that's not all! It turns out, she and Blake are actually dating!" Darla continued.
"Really?" Lila asked, surprised.
"Yup! An anonymous source reported it to the local paper a while back, and it turns out that she and Blake have been going out since the term started!" Darla explained. "So sorry boys, but it seems this cutie is already spoken for!"
"…" Sango pressed her palm against her face in frustration as she heard the crowd chuckle.
"Hey, Cynthia."
"…Um… yes?" Cynthia asked, turning to Blake, sweating.
"Didn't you tell Dakota to print a retraction?"
"…Well, maybe… I forgot?" She asked, putting on a cutesy dope grin.
"Cynthia!"
"How sweet!" Lila said, smiling. "I'm going to root for them! Here's hoping they're the two champions of A Block, right Darla?"
"I don't know, Lila. I'd like to see them fight each other! A fated match between lovers…"
"Wow, those two are just running with that ball," Sango sighed, shaking her head.
"Anyway, Cynthia and her opponent-"
"Morgan!" Lila interjected.
"Yes, Cynthia and Morgan, they'll be fighting on… Rock Stage 2! Great Pillar Field!" The battlefield transformed into a long flat field of stone, with large rock pillars sticking out at various places.
"Oh yeah, this is gonna be great!" Cynthia cheered.
"Now, let the matches begin!" Darla and Lila announced.
"Taili, go!" Blake's opponent sent out a Swellow, who took to the skies immediately.
"Alright, Ruru, since this is a bug field you should feel right at home," Blake said, calling out his Joltik. The small bug quickly hid itself in the grassy field.
"Rossa, toxic spikes!" Kate shouted. Her Roselia spun on its tiny legs and held her flower hands out, flinging poisonous caltrops out around her.
"Wow, knowing that she's going against another grass type user, Kate was quick in planting those caltrops on the field!" Lila said.
"Yeah, even though they won't have any effect on her opponent's Jumpluff, they'll definitely come in handy later on!" Darla agreed. "Seems like she's setting up for a long battle of attrition!"
The matches continued for a while with the occasional comments from the announcer, when Cynthia suddenly broke into a powerful exclamation.
"Tristan! Finish him off!" Cynthia's voice drew the eyes of the announcers to her battlefield, where her Breloom had knocked out her opponent's Pangoro with a powerful punch.
"Cynthia has knocked out the first of her opponent's pokemon!" Lila commented.
"But this battle isn't over yet! Morgan has sent out a large Snorlax to try and even things up!" Darla said.
"Let's go, Tristan! Let's do this!" Cynthia smiled. Everyone's watching me. I'm going to make it to the next round just like this!
Blake was focused on his own battle. Tara had managed to take down his opponent's Golem, but she was beginning to tire out. Just as his opponent sent out a Magmar, his attention was drawn.
"Th-the first person in A Block has already advanced!" Lila exclaimed. "Austin's Fletchinder has handily defeated Violet's last pokemon!"
"That's not all," Darla said. "It seems I have to retract the statement I made a few minutes ago…"
"Lumia! Take down that Leafeon with your sludge bomb!" Kate ordered. Her Vileplume lowered the massive flower on its head and unleashed a powerful barrage of poisonous sludge, the grass type letting out a whimper as it crumpled to the rocky ground.
"Return…" Brianne looked down, returning her last pokemon to its pokeball.
"Brush up on your weaknesses a little better," Kate said, frowning. "Next time, try not to embarrass our queen as you did."
"Y-yes…" Brianne dejectedly murmured.
"With her stunning mastery of poison types, Kate has also advanced to the next round!" Lila exclaimed. A look of anger flashed over Kate's face and she turned away, returning her Vileplume to its pokeball.
"Hey, get it right!" Kate shouted. "They're grass type pokemon, not gross poison types!" She stalked off the field in anger, leaving the matches on field 3 and field 4 as the only remaining matches of the block.
Blake returned the badly burned Tara to her pokeball, and looked at the powerful fire type in front of him.
"Cory, go!" Blake ordered. His Corphish emerged with a clash of his pincers, firing a barrage of bubbles at the fire type.
"Marga, counter with a fire spin!" His opponent shouted, his Magmar opening his mouth a releasing a spiral of fire at Cory that collided with the bubbles in front of it, creating a series of small explosions. Cory jumped to the side as fast as he could, but was still slightly burned.
"Cor!" Cory exclaimed. He scuttled across the burning grass at the fire type, water swirling around his body.
"Cory, use aqua jet!" Blake ordered. Cory lowered his head and shot forward, striking the Magmar, sending it flying back into a tree.
"Maaaar!" The Magmar shouted in pain. Cory landed on the ground, holding up a pincer.
"Cory, finish it with bubblebeam!"
"Cor!" Cory agreed, launching a barrage of bubbles at the fire type. The water attack hit Magmar with a barrage of force, the fire pokemon falling to the ground, unconscious.
"And with that, Blake Harker moves on to the next round!" Darla announced. "Now, the only match left is between Cynthia and Morgan!"
"Although she made quite a strong start," Lila commented, "Morgan's Snorlax has managed to take out both her Breloom and her Loudred! She down to her last pokemon!"
Good luck, Cynthia, Blake silently wished her, looking back at her as he left the battlefield.
"Me? Worried?" Cynthia laughed. "Let's go, Ruby! Let's finish this guy off!"
Cynthia tossed out a pokeball, her Mawile emerging. The small pokemon turned and opened the large, menacing jaw on the back of her head, growling at the large Snorlax.
"Oh! What an adorable little Mawile!" Lila gushed.
"Snax, use body slam!" Morgan ordered. His Snorlax lumbered toward Ruby, who skillfully jumped out of the way. Ruby ran across the field and hid behind one of the pillars as the Snorlax ran towards her.
"Alright, now bite him!" Ruby's fangs stretched open and bit down on the Snorlax's foot, tripping him over. As the massive pokemon slowly rose to his feet, Ruby increased her distance.
"Why is she running?" Darla asked. "How strange…"
"Indeed, it seems like Cynthia is planning something besides just confronting the Snorlax head on," Lila agreed.
"After the Mawile!" Morgan ordered. Snax charged after the Mawile, who skillfully jumped around the field to avoid the large pokemon.
Snax lowered his shoulder and barreled towards the steel type pokemon, but Ruby jumped behind another stone pillar, the normal type crashing right into it. Ruby stepped back, the Snorlax's massive body unable to squeeze between the two pillars in between them.
"It seems like Cynthia's Mawile is doing a good job of taking advantage of the terrain!" Darla said. "By taking advantage of its small body, it can dodge behind the stone pillars and keep out of reach of the Snorlax!"
"Snax, break through with giga impact and finish that Mawile off!" Morgan shouted. The Snorlax stepped back, lowering his head, energy swirling around his body. Snax charged forward at high speed, barreling through the pillars. Ruby jumped out of the way, but Snax turned, following after her.
"Go under! Under!" Cynthia shouted, catching the eye of her pokemon. Ruby nodded, a smile coming to its small face. As Snax loomed over, the steel type ducked low. Her fangs opened up, wrapping around the Snorlax's foot, biting down hard. With a turn of the head, Ruby tripped Snax off the ground and let go, his momentum sending him flying through the air. The normal type barreled into multiple rock pillars, crashing them into rubble, before finally coming to a stop.
"Snax!" Morgan exclaimed. Snax, paused from exertion of the giga impact, was unable to move.
"Now, Ruby, finish him off with play rough!" Cynthia ordered. Ruby ran towards the frozen pokemon, hitting it with a powerful punch right in the stomach.
"Snooor!" Snax wailed in pain, his body twitching before finally losing consciousness.
"And Cynthia has evened it up to one pokemon remaining apiece!" Darla exclaimed.
"Yeah, way to go, Mawile!" Lila cheered.
"Alright then, if that's how it is…" Morgan murmured, "…then Cinder, let's finish her off!"
Morgan sent out his final pokemon, a Cyndaquil. The small blue pokemon let out a growl, flames bursting from its back.
"Uh-oh…" Cynthia murmured. "Ruby! It's okay! I know it's a fire type, but you can handle it! Just do it!"
"Maw!" Ruby growled. She ran head-on at the Cyndaquil, large jaws thrashing. Cinder's flames lit up again and he opened his mouth, firing a stream of embers at the steel type.
"Ruby, just calm down, okay?" Cynthia asked.
"Maw!" Ruby cried out, shaking her head, glaring at the fire type.
"Flame wheel!" Morgan ordered. Cinder wrapped a cloak of flames around his body and charged at Ruby. Ruby charged straight for it, the two maneuvering through the pillars surrounding them as they closed in on each other.
"Ruby, dodge!" Cynthia cried. Ruby ignored her orders, however, opening her jaws and biting at the Cyndaquil. Cinder dodged to the side, slamming into Ruby's chest, sending her flying back into a pillar.
"Oh no…" Lila murmured.
"It seems that Cynthia's Mawile refuses to follow Cynthia's orders!" Darla said, frowning. "What an unfortunate occurrence!"
"Gaaah! Why are you always like this?!" Cynthia moaned, running her hands through her hair in frustration.
"Cinder, use flamethrower!" Morgan ordered. Cinder's flames ignited even hotter, and he opened his mouth, firing a long blast of flames at the steel type.
"Ruby!" Cynthia cried out.
"Maw!" Ruby jumped off the stone pillar, dodging the flames at the last moment.
"It seems that Mawile is still up for it!" Darla cheered.
"Oh, I hope she manages to win!" Lila smiled.
"Lila, we're supposed to remain impartial!" Darla hissed.
"I know, but I can't help it! She's such a cute pokemon!" Lila wailed.
"Ruby…" Cynthia said softly, but Ruby didn't even look back. She growled at the fire type and turned her head, sending her jaws towards Cinder.
"Flamethrower again!" Morgan ordered. The flames struck Ruby, burning her, but the pokemon continued to run at the fire type. She whipped her fangs and bit down on Cinder, flinging him into a pillar.
"Maw…" Ruby panted, collapsing to the ground. She struggled to stand up, but she was still badly burned.
"Ruby!" Cynthia exclaimed. "Please, just…"
"Please…" she softly cried.
"Mawile!" Ruby exclaimed, rising to her feet, panting, glaring at the Cyndaquil.
"Ruby… I know you hate fire type pokemon… but if you keep going like this…" Cynthia shook her head. "Just… listen, okay, then we can win! Please, Ruby!"
"Maw…" Ruby glared at Cinder as the fire pokemon raised itself up off the ground, coating its body with flames. The Cyndaquil charged at Ruby with a flame wheel again, and Ruby ran head on after it.
"Ruby!"
"Flame wheel," Morgan ordered. Cinder increased speed, rolling right towards the Mawile. Just before he struck, however, Ruby jumped to the side. Cinder flew past it as Ruby touched down, quickly moving back from the fire type.
"Ruby!" Cynthia said, her entire face brightening into a big smile. "Yeah! That's it, go for it!"
"Maw!" Ruby said, nodding. Cinder turned, and rolled towards Ruby again, his flames increasing in size. Ruby moved back into an area where there were still pillars standing, forcing Cinder to drop in speed so as to maneuver.
"Increase in speed!" Morgan ordered. Cinder sped up and launched right towards Ruby, who found herself at the edge of the pillars, her back against the smashed rubble from Snax' giga impact.
"Ruby, dodge!" Cynthia ordered, but Ruby ignored her, charging at Cinder again.
"Oh no, it seems like the Mawile isn't listening to her orders again!" Lila cried.
"This could be bad…" Darla murmured.
"Finish it!" Morgan exclaimed, Cinder leaping right for Ruby.
"Maw!" Ruby said, a smile crossing her face. She stopped and planted her foot on the ground, pivoting, swinging her head around.
"Cynda!" Cinder exclaimed, flying through the air and smashing into a stone pillar.
"Wha-" Darla gasped.
"Yes!" Lila cheered.
Clenched tightly in Ruby's jaws was a large chunk of stone.
"Maw…" Ruby panted, a smile on her face.
"So it seems the Mawile lured her opponent to this side of the field in order to make use of the rubble left over from the last battle!" Darla explained. "But wow, to lift something that big… that's quite a lot of power in that tiny pokemon!"
"Yup, of course!" Lila said, smiling smugly. "See, Darla? Fairy types aren't just cute! They're really strong, too! That's why they're much better than your dragons."
"My dragon types are super-awesome, Lila, and we both know it!" Darla huffed. "But I admit, that Mawile is really impressive!"
"Ruby!" Cynthia cheered.
"Cyn…" Cinder slid down the pillar and tried to rise his feet, before collapsing, unconscious.
"Cyndaquil is unable to battle!" Darla exclaimed.
"Mawile wins!" Lila cheered.
"And you know what that means?"
"What, Darla?"
"Cynthia Fafnir is the winner!" Darla exclaimed.
"And with that…" Lila said.
"…The first round of A Block…" Darla continued.
"…Has come to a close!" Lila and Darla exclaimed. "Good job to all our peers who tried their hardest!"
The two applauded, as the crowd began cheering.
"Ruby!" Cynthia smiled, running across the field to her pokemon, scooping her up into her arms.
"Maw…" Ruby said, smiling, looking away from Cynthia sheepishly.
"It's okay, don't worry," Cynthia said, nuzzling her cheek against Ruby's. "Just, let's listen to me next time, 'kay?"
"Maw…" Ruby said, nodding. Cynthia returned her to her pokeball, staring out at the audience.
"I won, bitches!" Cynthia cheered, holding her hands out in peace signs as she cackled.
"Please vacate the battlefield," Darla said over the loudspeaker, impatience clearly ringing out of her voice, along with frustration that someone else was stealing their spotlight.
"Oh, right, sorry!" Cynthia giggled sheepishly, waving to the audience gleefully as she walked off the field.
Cynthia entered the waiting room for A Block, a her big grin still wide on her face.
"So, what do you think, was I awesome? Or was I awesome?" Cynthia asked.
"Geez, I was on the edge of my seat," Blake said, shaking his head. "That was really close, you know that?"
"Yup, I know," Cynthia said, nodding. "But I took Ruby to be healed, and she should be all ready to go for the battle this afternoon!"
"You need to control your pokemon better!" Kate huffed, Cynthia turning to her. "I would never have allowed my pokemon to make such a mistake!"
"Hey!" Cynthia growled, glaring at Kate. "Ruby may have been a little too passionate, but she still won!"
"That's true." Austin's voice drew the attention of the other three A Block finalists, who turned to him. "Your Mawile had quite an impressive series of victories, it really is quite intelligent."
"Yeah, I know, she's great," Cynthia said, scratching the back of her head, blushing with pride.
"It must be quite embarrassing to have a pokemon smarter than you are," Austin said, shaking his head, turning back to the screen.
"Thanks, I- HEY! What the heck is that supposed to mean?!" Cynthia exclaimed. Blake wrapped his arms under her armpits to hold her back as she thrashed at the arrogant finalist.
"Cynthia, just calm down, okay? Don't let him get to you, you might have to fight him later. Don't go losing your head."
"…Fine," Cynthia said, taking a few deep breaths.
"And you," Blake said, turning to Austin, "you shouldn't be so rude. Cynthia might not be that smart, but that doesn't mean you should just insult her like that!"
"Hey!" Cynthia exclaimed. "You think I'm an idiot too, Blake?!"
"Well, I mean…" Blake said, unable to meet her eyes.
"Rrrgh, forget it!" Cynthia huffed. "I'll show you! Next round, I'll prove I'm smart! Just you wait!"
So, Blake and Cynthia have both made it to the top 32! But what about the others? And who will they have to face in the next round? Could it be… that they even might have to face each other?