The New Normal – 5-5 – INTERLUDE – Lorelei
'Three down, three to go. Halfway there.' She thought to herself as her eyes remained locked onto Walker's figure in the distance.
Everything else didn't matter. Not the cheers or jeers that were being shouted out from the crowd, nor the obnoxious calls from the announcer. Her target was remained stubbornly in her way, and she refused to lose to him. It wasn't personal, but her future depended on this victory.
She had a great start, with everything mostly going to plan. She had utilized her Froslass excellently, knocking out two of Walker's Pokémon, one of which was his powerful Crobat. She didn't intend for her Cloyster to go down to his Pelipper, but at least she knocked out Crobat with her Froslass. That was a key knockout.
Now it was just about securing her victory using the advantageous position that she was in. She was not about to let victory slip through her hands.
Absently, she heard the announcer say something about the need to send out her next Pokémon. She quickly ran through both her own options as well as Walker's likely choices in her head before she eventually grabbed hold of her next chosen Pokémon.
They both released their Pokémon at the same time.
"Jynx, you have the advantage!"
"Tropius, shut her down!"
As soon as her Jynx emerged on the field, she held back a smile as she watched the Aurora Veil slowly wrap around Jynx. Similarly, she felt a sense of relief wash through her as Walker chose to send out his Tropius against her Jynx; it would have been far more problematic if she had chosen her Slowbro instead.
Putting that aside for the time being, she mentally dove into her research. Remembering what she had noted down, she was confident what Walker was likely intending to do with his Tropius, which was…
"Sunny Day, Tropius! Get rid of the Snow!"
"TAUNT, NOW!"
A quick pulse of Dark energy shot out from Jynx, enveloping the Tropius before it could finish dispelling the Snow and setting up the Sun. Tropius' head snapped towards the Jynx as its expression reddened with rage.
That was good. Denying Tropius the ability to fight underneath the Sun was critical for her chances of victory. She knew that Walker loved to make use of the Chlorophyll boosted Tropius to out-speed and overwhelm opponents with a spam of Solar Beams. Denying him this was an essential part of her plan.
"Fine then. Tropius, Steel Wing! Cut through them!"
"Ice Beam, Jynx! Strike it down!"
The Tropius roared out into the air as it began its rage-fuelled charge towards her Jynx. Its large frame exploded forwards, causing Ice to collide with a reinforced Steel blade as the Tropius tried to cut through the Ice Beam with his Steel Wing. Tropius continued its charge forwards; its Steel blade deflecting the Ice Beam harmlessly to the side.
She grimaced at the sheer speed shown by Walker's supposed 'slowest Pokémon', even without the Chlorophyll boost. Whoever had given it that misnomer was seriously misrepresenting things. Even with its large size, it easily outpaced most Pokémon, with a level of agility that you wouldn't expect from such a commonly slow Pokémon.
This was Walker's training at its finest.
Her frown grew as the two battled it out in a contest of strength. She cursed as she regretted not training her Jynx harder to bolster her Special Attack. She had thought that her Jynx would be strong enough to blast it backwards, but clearly not.
Her fists clenched painfully as she watched on with increasing worry as her Jynx pushed herself to the limit to try to beat back the approaching Tropius. The Ice beam grew more intense, causing small crystals of frost to form on the ground below. But his Tropius appeared like an unstoppable juggernaut, his Steel Wing continued to cleave endlessly through her Ice Beam as Tropius continued to push forwards.
Ultimately, with her Jynx's strength slowly waning as time went on, Tropius's Steel Wing suddenly sliced though the remains on the weakening Ice Beam before descending on Jynx with a supereffective crushing Steel Wing.
Jynx cried out painfully as the Steel Wing slammed into her, sending her flying from the impact before eventually just landing short of the psychic barriers. Fortunately, as she watched Jynx scrap herself off the ground and pull herself back up, she was thankful that Jynx was spared from some of the damage due to the lingering protection from Froslass' Aurora Veil. However, Lorelei knew that the Aurora Veil won't last forever, so she had to make the most out of its provided protection before it went away.
Thus, she decided to take a risk and made use of the sudden distance between their Pokémon.
"Nasty Plot, Jynx! Boost yourself!"
"Air Slash, Tropius! Interrupt her!"
It was a huge risk to put her Jynx in such a vulnerable position, but she trusted in her Aurora Veil to protect her Jynx from at least being knocked out. It wasn't the best place to be, but she realized her Jynx really didn't hit hard enough to bring down the Tropius, despite her 4x type advantage.
…she really needed to train more.
Jynx began to channel Dark energies within herself. But what took Lorelei off-guard was that, instead of a singular Air Slash that she was used to, Tropius retaliated with a volley of Air Slashes that were fired off two at a time that ripped through the battlefield as they shot forwards, gale wings blowing heavily in their wake, leaving a small trench that cut through the length of the arena as the attack flew. Tropius was making full use of its giant wingspan to maximize the power of the attack.
She winced as the Air Slashes shredded through Jynx, and her fists clenched once more as she hoped that Jynx wouldn't flinch. But, as if to add insult to injury, the gale wings generated from the Air Slash was so strong that it actually began carrying rocks along too, causing Jynx to be peppered by these additional small projectiles.
But her long hours of training had paid off, as Jynx was able to hang on using the waning strength of the Aurora Veil. Lorelei inwardly cheered as she saw a Dark aura settle within her Jynx, signifying that Jynx had successfully channelled her Nasty Plot; the onslaught of Air Slashes being just barely insufficient at knocking her Jynx out.
Her Jynx was injured; cut up with a litany of wounds with her 'hair' now sliced and damaged. But now that they were on a more even field, it was time to retaliate.
"Blizzard, Jynx!"
"Charge up a Hyper Beam, Tropius! Annihilate her!"
Both Pokémon immediately began charging up their most devastating moves. Yet she knew that if Tropius ever fired off that Hyper Beam, it was going to be the end for her Jynx. There was no chance she was going to be able to endure past such a powerful attack. Thus, Lorelei knew that her only hope was if Tropius got knocked out by the Blizzard before it could fire off the Hyper Beam.
Fortunately for her, with the Snow still set up, her Blizzard was able to form instantly as freezing winds barrelled into Tropius, who was forced to remain stationary and charge up its own Hyper Beam. The Blizzard, boosted by Nasty Plot, quickly blanketed the entire arena in snow. Tropius roared in anguish as the Blizzard dug painfully into it, taking full advantage of its 4x weakness, with the freezingly cutting winds slicing endlessly through Tropius.
But it frustratingly refused to fall, continually charging up that damned Hyper Beam from its mouth. Lorelei clenched her fists tightly as she stared at the Tropius, wishing to Arceus that it would JUST. GO. DOWN!
But her pleas to Arceus were once again unheard, as the Tropius fired off its Hyper Beam, ripping right through Jynx's Blizzard like a glowing lance. The beam of energy radiated with such energy that the snow rapidly melted around it, causing small pools of water to form on the arena.
Unable to dodge, the Hyper Beam slammed mercilessly into Jynx, launching her poor Pokémon backwards and pinning her helplessly into the arena's psychic shields. The shields cracked and flickered at the impact, barely holding on as they continued to withstand the power of the Hyper Beam. The beam of energy was so intense that even while pinned to the wall, Jynx gradually caught fire as she was ignited by the Hyper Beam.
Lorelei was biting her lip so hard that it nearly bled. She couldn't afford to have Tropius stay up and replace the Snow with a Sunny Day! That would be the worst-case scenario.
Eventually, the Hyper Beam came to an end, revealing a huge crack in the Psychic shield from its impact. Her Jynx came sliding off the wall, her form completely scorched from the attack as she fell limply onto the ground. She was knocked out.
Luckily, Arceus finally showed its mercy, as right after knocking out her own Jynx, Tropius eventually succumbed to its wounds and fell over unconscious as well. Lorelei let out a huge sigh of relief as she saw the fainted Tropius.
That meant that things were still salvageable, and another one of Walker's larger threats were down. She hadn't wanted her Jynx to fall, but she could adapt.
"OH! ITS ANOTHER DOUBLE KNOCKOUT FROM THE BOTH OF THEM! WHAT A NERVE-WRACKING FIGHT THAT WE'RE SEEING! THE SCORE IS NOW 4-3!" The announcer shouted out, with the audience beginning to boo and cheer at her in equal measure. She forced out the crowd and the announcer from her mind, as usual, and focused tightly on what Pokémon to send out next.
Walker only had two Pokémon left. One of which was his Skarmory. But she knew that he preferred saving it for last, as did most trainers with their starters and ace. That meant that his next options were between a Gligar and a Swellow.
She bet he would choose to bring his Swellow over a Gligar, considering the latter was extremely weak to Ice. If so, then her Slowbro would be a better choice over her Dewgong, considering it had much greater Physical defenses.
Decision made; she threw out her next Pokémon just as Walker did the same.
"Slowbro, it's your time!"
"Swellow, I choose you! Into the air!"
Her Slowbro slammed lazily into the ground, its derpy face hiding its surprising ability to tank and dish out damage. In the meanwhile, Walker's Swellow began circling around it menacingly with its eyes locked onto Slowbro like a hunter scoping out its prey. Unfortunately for her Slowbro, the Snow wouldn't be beneficial to it here since it wasn't an Ice type, meaning that it wasn't going to get the Defense boost.
She shook away those thoughts; she knew that this was just the calm before the storm that was Swellow would begin its unrelenting series of attacks. She had to get ready.
"Iron Defense, Slowbro! Start setting up!"
"Focus Energy, Swellow! Do the same!"
Her Slowbro became momentarily outlined in white and its body briefly shined as a thin layer of Iron seemed to surround it for a moment, boosting its Defenses. However, she frowned as she watched the Swellow close its eyes midair and start channelling its own internal energies, which would boost its critical hit chances. If Walker landed a powerful critical hit on her Slowbro, it might just be enough to knock it out despite the Defense boosts.
But what she was more afraid of was if Swellow started buffing its Special Attacks with Work Up before unleashing a barrage of Special Attacks towards her Slowbro. Her Slowbro was not trained to dodge attacks, preferring to rely on its natural bulk to just tank through most attacks. However, if Swellow buffed itself enough, then Slowbro would have no chance at being able to endure through them.
She needed to start putting pressure on Swellow so that it couldn't set up any further. She couldn't afford to stay passive.
"Blizzard, Slowbro!"
"Heat Wave, Swellow! Disperse it and ignite yourself!"
Slowbro opened its mouth and unleashed a field of snow towards the flying Swellow, who retaliated with a threatening squawk of its own and expelled its own scorching wave of heat that blasted over the incoming Blizzard, instantly melting the incoming Blizzard, and causing pools of water to form on the ground as the attack was mostly nullified.
However, more concerningly, the Heat Wave also successfully set the Swellow on fire, triggering its Guts ability.
Lorelei didn't need to rely on her research to guess what was coming next.
"Brave Bird NOW, Swellow! Full power!"
"Blizzard again, Slowbro! Bring it down!"
Swellow screeched into the air as it performed an aerial somersault before it started glowing a bright silver as it transitioned into a meteoric descent towards her Slowbro, cutting through the sky like a sword as it blitzed downwards in a freefall. Lorelei barely had time to blink, and her Slowbro was just able to fire of another powerful Blizzard that threatened to engulf the descending Swellow in a freezing coffin of ice.
Lorelei hoped that the supereffective attack would be enough to knock out the Swellow before it could land a hit, but alas, that didn't happen.
But, once again, Walker proved that his mastery of speed as Swellow shot straight through the tomb of freezing winds like a missile. The supereffective winds ripped and slashed through the speeding Swellow, but it preserved and maintained its momentum with its dive, its flaming body helping offset some of the damage, and it cut straight through the Blizzard as if it wasn't affected by it. Lorelei's eyes widened in alarm as she underestimated Swellow's capabilities.
"PROTECT, now!"
But her order came too late. Her Slowbro didn't have time to form a Protect shield before the Swellow slammed straight into its center, unleashing all of that built up energy that it accumulated during its near-suicidal dive.
A small, yet audible BANG erupted as Swellow smashed into Slowbro with a critical hit, striking him right in the center and kicking up a small cloud of dust.
Slowbro stumbled back with a groan of pain as the momentum of the attack caused it to skid backwards, looking like it was moments away from falling over. It tried to steady itself, but it was panting heavily and was clutching painfully at its stomach, and even now was continuing to wobble uncertainly on its feet. Its previous Iron Defense proving futile as the critical hit ignored its boosted Defenses.
On the other hand, and luckily for Lorelei, Swellow wasn't fairing much better. Not only did the recoil damage from its Brave Bird result in a lot of self-inflicted damage, but having to tank through the supereffective Blizzard wasn't good for its health as the freezing winds ripped through it. In fact, when she observed Walker's Swellow, it looked like it was favouring one of its wings very heavily and wasn't able to turn very easily in the air as she spotted lingering crystals of frost scattered across its wings that refused to melt.
To make matters worse for Walker, Swellow was still suffering from its Burn, continuing to take damage over time. Both trainers knew that it was only a matter of time before Swellow would be knocked out.
In that brief pause when both Pokémon stabilized themselves, Lorelei understood that she had two choices before her. One, to push onwards and try to land another hit on Swellow, which would most certainly knock it out. Or two, to try and heal up and outlast the Swellow before it succumbed to its Burn.
Similarly, Lorelei knew that Walker couldn't make use of his favourite hit-and-run strategy anymore. Not with Swellow so badly injured and with its mobility severely hampered. He too needed to choose between unleashing an all-out final attack or try to heal up Swellow with a Roost.
She paused for a moment due to her indecision, but Walker showed no signs of hesitation.
"Brave Bird again, Swellow! END THIS FIGHT!"
Not giving Lorelei any chance to think things through, Swellow fell into one final dive that was infused with all of its stored energy, shooting towards Slowbro like a missile. But, just before the attack landed, her body moved on its own.
"FROST STEP!"
She didn't know what made her command her Slowbro to perform a move that it hadn't perfected, but it was too late to take it back. It was all up to her Pokémon now.
Slowbro's figure blurred slightly, before it dashed backwards a small distance so quickly using a burst of Ice energy that it left an icy mirage in its previous position. Swellow, completely taken by surprise by this sudden manoeuvre, tried to adjust its dive at the last minute to avoid hitting the ground.
With a herculean effort that once again showed off its mastery of flight, Swellow pulled up at the VERY last moment and narrowly avoided crashing into the ground. However, this put it right in front of a waiting Slowbro.
"ICE BEAM!"
Her command was ultimately unnecessary, as Slowbro had already fired off a piercing beam of Ice before she could order it to. The Ice Beam struck Swellow in the chest just as it was trying to recover from its failed attack, and frost crystals rapidly spread across its chest as a wave of frost enveloped it. Nearly completely frozen, Swellow tumbled out of the air and crashed unceremoniously onto the ground, defeated.
Walker blinked at her, surprised etched on his face. He clearly hadn't been expecting that. Yet Lorelei herself was in the same position, not having expected Slowbro to be able to pull off the mood. Yet she was very glad that it did.
It was supposed to be last-ditch defensive move for the normally immobile Slowbro, and she was so glad that it paid off here. And as soon as she saw Walker withdraw his Swellow, she instinctively released a huge, relieved breath as the threat was finally removed from the battle. His Swellow hit harder and quicker than she had ever expected.
But then, turning back and seeing the rampant injuries on her own Slowbro, she then quickly grabbed Slowbro's Pokéball and withdrew it, announcing that she was retiring it from the battle.
"AND IT LOOKS LIKE THIS IS YET ANOTHER DOUBLE KNOCKOUT FROM OUR TRAINERS TODAY! IT MIGHT HAVE BEEN A SHORT BATTLE, BUT LET NONE SAY THAT IT WAS NOT A BRUTAL ONE! THE SCORE IS NOW 5-4!" The announcer hyped up over the screaming crowds, "THIS LEAVES ELITE WALKER WITH HIS FINAL POKEMON! ARE WE FINALLY GOING TO SEE HIS STARTER IN ACTION!? BOTH TRAINERS HAVE 30 SECONDS TO SEND OUT THEIR NEXT POKEMON!"
Lorelei was absent-mindedly listening to the announcer's words before his last few sentences pulled her back together. This was it. Walker was down to his final Pokémon. The final obstacle between her and the position of the Elite Four.
She didn't even know if she was going to be able to keep the position in the long-term, but she reminded herself that she wasn't doing it for power. Or for fame. Or for family. No, the only reason she decided to push herself this far, to force herself and her Pokémon into a gruelling and unrelenting training regime where she barely survived on over 4 hours of sleep per day, was all for this moment.
To triumph over Walker and to show that she wasn't just some silver-spooned trainer coasting by off the power and influence of her now disgraced uncle.
No, she was here to prove to everyone watching, especially those in the VIP booth, that she was more than just Pryce's niece. She was a master of Ice in her own way too.
And the stage was now set to instil this image into everyone's minds, using her most beloved and trusted starter.
"Lapras, just one last push! Show the world your glory!"
"Skarmory, it's all on you now. Remind the world of your strength!"
Her Lapras emerged with a noble roar, slamming its huge weight into the ground of the arena, and knocking up a small cloud of dust with its weight alone. To an outsider, the first thing they would notice was that her Lapras was far larger than most wild Lapras. And, if they looked closer, they would be able to tell by the intense and battle-hardened look in its eyes as well as the numerous scars on its shell that it was clear that this was no transport Pokémon like so many other Lapras were.
No, this was a Pokémon trained to battle. To bring glory. To win.
On the other hand, Walker's Skarmory emerged and screeched menacingly as it spread its wings wide, forming an intimidating visage that almost caused Lorelei to step backwards. Furthermore, the armoured carapace on Walker's Skarmory looked shined to a mirror's sheen, its head ever so angled to give off a sense of aggression and danger. This all reinforced the image of a Pokémon with a perfect mixture of mobility, aggression, and endurance.
Still, her Lapras responded with another proud roar, settling Lorelei's nerves and reminding her of the plan that she had made just for this situation. If it were allowed, then a small part of her would have treacherously taken the win by making use of Perish Song. Yet the rules stopped those temptations; it was forbidden to use moves like Perish Song or Destiny Bond if your opponent was on their last Pokémon.
But that was fine, she didn't want to win like that anyways. It would only worsen the criticism being levied against her. No, she had her own plan ready. One that would prove her abilities. She took a very quick breath to stabilize herself before her eyes refocused and she immediately started giving out orders.
"Rain Dance, Lapras!"
"Sword Defense, Skarmory!"
Her Lapras raised its two front flippers into the air, causing the once snow-filled clouds to transform into ones heavy with rain and water. The once Snow-filled sky quickly changed as a torrential downpour began to set in, greatly buffing up Water attack moves.
In the meanwhile, Skarmory rapidly shined a mix of white and blue before it encased itself in another layer of Iron. She knew that this was one of Walker's custom moves where he had successfully combined both Iron Defense and Swords Dance together, allowing Skarmory to quickly boost both its Attack and Defense simultaneously.
But that was fine. Allowing Skarmory its boost was still a worthy trade in exchange for setting up the rain. It meant it allowed her to do this.
"Hydro Pump, Lapras! Fire in short bursts!"
"Iron Head, Skarmory! Get close and pummel it!"
A huge torrent of water gushed out from Lapras' maw like a laser beam, which Skarmory was able to dismissively dodge by tilting slightly to the side. But this was all within Lorelei's prediction.
Thus, instead of firing the Hydro Pump in one continuous torrent, Lorelei had ordered her Lapras to fire in short bursts so that it had a better chance of sniping the diving Skarmory out of the air with a rain-boosted Hydro Pump.
Her Lapras transformed into a pseudo anti-aircraft cannon as it constantly fired volley after volley of devastating Hydro Pumps that always narrowly missed the Skarmory, who was able to dodge past the attacks through a mixture of impressive last-second dives, rolls, and swerves. And this was all done without any speed boosts, instead all achieved through incredible amounts of training and pure technique alone.
It was a truly praiseworthy performance, and Lorelei would have been similarly impressed if she currently wasn't facing off against it. Skarmory's mobility and evasiveness was become more than a growing concern, as her Lapras still failed to land a hit as it got closer.
But that was fine, she still had a back-up plan in mind. It was far riskier, but as Lapras continued to miss with its Hydro Pumps, she steeled herself for what was to come.
Unaware of her intentions, Skarmory continued its dive towards her Lapras, its head glowing as it prepared to smash into her Lapras with a powerful Iron Head. It dodged past yet another Hydro Pump, before it angled itself forwards and committed itself fully into the attack to do maximum damage.
Exactly what Lorelei had been waiting for.
"Icy Wind, Lapras! Tank through the attack and slow it down!"
Moments before Skarmory crashed into it with an Iron Head, her Lapras quickly changed attacks and released a huge fog of Icy Wind that swiftly surrounded the incoming Skarmory. The freezing fog was so cold that the falling droplets of water instantly turned into Ice as they contacted the fog. The ground itself froze over as the surrounding temperature rapidly plummeted.
Frost crystals spread rapidly across Skarmory's carapace, but contrary to her expectations, it seemingly ignored it and pummelled her Lapras with a brutal boosted Iron Head, causing Lapras' head to snap back as it groaned in pain from the attack. Not allowing it to recover, Skarmory let out an angry Screech to lower Lapras' defence as it used its other wing to bash Lapras across the head with another Steel Wing.
Then, Skarmory continued its onslaught of attacks by pivoting in the air while repeatedly slicing into it with Steel Wings and Iron Heads, keeping as close as it could to Lapras so that it could not have the time to fire off an attack. It also managed to mix in the occasional Screech into its attacks, adding further vulnerability to her Lapras.
Not being proficient at close range fighting, Lapras was unable to fend off Skarmory's aggression. Its feeble attempts to fend it off with its flippers were no match for Skarmory's skill and speed.
While she had not underestimated Skarmory's abilities, she didn't realize how her Pokémon would be unable to deal with just how oppressive Skarmory could be at close range. Lapras simpl wasn't used to being pressured like this, and its injuries rapidly started to build as Skarmory repeatedly slashed it with its wings.
It was not a very destructive way of attacking, but the constant defence drops through Screech meant that it was having a devastating effect on her Lapras as each hit landed progressively harder. Obviously, her plan had backfired. She knew that she had to do SOMETHING before her Lapras eventually went down.
And then, as if it was getting used to Skarmory's attack pattern, Lapras just barely managed to deflect one of Skarmory's Iron Heads with one of its fins, throwing the Skarmory wide as it was pushed aside.
THIS WAS HER CHANCE!
"Thunder! STRIKE IT DOWN!"
"PROTECT! AND DODGE! NOW!"
Her Lapras roared into the air, before summoning huge bolts of Thunder that crashed down from the sky like huge spears of light. To its credit, Skarmory took the opportunity to Slash at Lapras with its sharp talons before forming a Protect shield just in time to block against the first volley of Lightning spears, but the attack wasn't over yet.
"Keep going, Lapras! BRING IT DOWN!"
"Double Team, Skarmory! Get out of there and make some distance!"
Skarmory screeched in the air as its figure started to flicker and blur before a few illusionary copies of itself appeared in the sky, making it hard for Lapras to determine which was the real one. Instead of staying to fight, Walker had instead chosen to pull his Skarmory back, hopefully to safety, to lower its chances of being struck out of the air. Thus, he likely hoped that the illusory copies would distract Lapras enough to build distance so that it could reposition and recover.
But that just gave Lorelei to make use of what she was good at.
"Switch to Blizzard, Lapras! Wipe them all out!"
The bolts of Lightning stopped, only to be replaced by an enormous Blizzard that almost covered half of the arena. Even without the Snow, her Lapras so proficient in the attack that, even through its injuries, it barely took a few seconds for an all-consuming vortex of snow to form.
The true Skarmory revealed itself as it squawked in pain when all of its illusions were promptly destroyed by this tidal wave of frost. And yet, the Blizzard only continued to grow, engulfing the entirety of the arena in an Ice Age that threatened to freeze everything over.
Despite herself, she found herself grinning as she witnessed the sheer scale of her attack as Ice blanketed everything in a field of frost. THIS was why she became an Ice specialist, after seeing her uncle accomplish this exact feat with such ease in the past. She was not close to her uncle's full strength in his prime, but she knew she was slowly getting there.
This was her statement to all the naysayers. No matter their jeering, she WAS a master of Ice. And this attack would prove it!
In the distance, Lorelei could see Walker gritting his teeth in desperation as Skarmory slowly froze over and was battered by this unrelenting storm of ice, with thick frost crystals spreading rapidly across its frame. He realized that he had misread the situation and things had gone from bad to worse.
"Agility, Skarmory! Tank through the attacks! You MUST increase your speed!"
"Thunder again, Lapras! Now's your chance!"
But even with the unyielding Blizzard in place, she knew she could not allow Skarmory to get any faster, or else the tables would be quickly turned on her.
Fortunately, just as Skarmory began glowing a faint pink as it began recovering its lost speed, a humongous boom shook the sky as a singular bolt of Thunder violently pierced through the clouds of snow and crashed brutally into the Skarmory, forcing an unhealthy amount of electricity through its body, paralyzing the once mobile Pokémon, and causing it to begin its involuntary descent.
"Roost, Skarmory! QUICKLY!"
"FINISH IT OFF, LAPRAS! WIN IT ALL!" She screamed out loud, her heart beating out of her chest as she realized that her victory was close. Thunder was a demanding move, and she wasn't sure if her Lapras could sustain many more attacks like this.
But she didn't care. All she could hear was her heart was screaming out VICTORY! VICTORY! VICTORY!
With one final roar of power, another spear of lightning came crackling down from the rainclouds above, critically striking the Skarmory as it fell out of the air as an unhealthy amount of electricity surged through it, smoke wafting from its body from the impact. Her eyes remained locked to the falling figure in the distance, her fists clenched so tightly that she feared that she might break the bones in her fingers.
But she NEEDED to know if Skarmory was knocked out or not. Her entire future was riding on this, and she was willed with every bit of strength that she had for the Skarmory to stay down. She knew that her Lapras was running on fumes at this point and couldn't sustain another assault. Unknowingly, blood dripped down from her mouth as she was biting down hard on her lip.
She looked around idly to see that the entire battlefield was covered in a layer of frost, with various spears of Ice decorating the landscape. The consequences of her earlier Blizzard and a testament to her power.
And then, after what felt like an eon of nervous waiting, the announcer finally said the words that she had been yearning to hear for so long.
"AND WALKER'S FINAL POKEMON GOES DOWN TO A DEVESTATING THUNDER! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WE HAVE A NEW MEMBER OF THE ELITE FOUR! PLEASE APPLAUD FOR THE NEWEST ELITE FOUR MEMBER, ELITE LORELEI!"
She wanted to cheer, she wanted to scream, she wanted to throw up. But she did neither of those things as she forcefully crushed down on those feelings and tried to calm herself.
She had won the first battle. But she knew that if she was going to keep her position in the Elite Four and slowly repair her reputation, she needed to keep winning. But for now, she could take a sigh of relief as a heavy burden was lifted from her shoulders.
She had done it.
A.N. AND LORELEI WINS! Meaning that she now replaces Walker in the Elite Four! Hope you enjoyed the fight, I tried to make it distinct from the Pryce vs Lance fight despite Lorelei's and Pryce's similar fighting styles. This was a long chapter to write, so I really hope it was everything you had hoped for.
This chapter has been BETAed by Allute! Thanks! And to anyone who wants to support me, please check out my p atreon at CartecTNN where you can read 8 advanced chapters! Thanks to those who have supported me already!
