Chapter 43: First Impressions
While on their way to Kamillia Town for Nikki's next Pokémon Contest the group happened across a Pokémon Center. While Nurse Joy was examining their Pokémon they called Professor Redwood's lab and discovered that Professor Oak was preparing for his return trip to Kanto.
"So your work is all done here, huh," Ash assumed.
"That it is, though it appears as though your work is just beginning," the professor replied. "I saw the special about you on TV recently."
"You did?" Ash asked.
"Yes, and if you ask me you looked very impressive," Professor Oak praised. "The way you and Nikki handled Team Rocket it almost appeared as though you weren't even trying."
"They're annoying, but nothing we can't handle," Nikki said.
"That much was clear," the professor agreed.
"It's too bad Mom couldn't see it, but Olivia did say she'd send her a copy of the program," Ash said.
"I know she'll enjoy watching it," the professor commented. Right then a chime went off inside the Pokémon Center.
"Sounds like our Pokémon are ready to be picked up," Nikki commented.
"Sometimes I miss the life of a trainer, always going from one place to another, never knowing what you may find on the road ahead," Professor Oak mused. "Alas, those days are behind me now."
"Well, look on the bright side… now you get a chance to help others experience the same joy you once felt yourself," Nikki said.
"That is one positive way to look at it, and seeing the excited faces on the new trainers always put a smile on my own," Professor Oak agreed. After that farewells were exchanged and the call was ended. Ash and Nikki then proceeded to the front desk where Nurse Joy was waiting with their Pokémon.
"I'm pleased to report that everyone is in top form," she said.
"That's great," Ash replied. He and Nikki collected their Poké Balls, let Pikachu and Buneary climb up on their shoulders and then headed back to the videophones, where Ash made a call to Professor Oak's ranch to make some team changes.
"How many are you exchanging this time?" Tracey inquired.
"Just a couple," Ash told him. With the exchanges Ash's team now consisted of Pikachu, Charizard, Kingler, Sceptile, Absol and Larvitar.
"Thanks a lot, Tracey," Ash said.
"Don't mention it," Tracey replied. They ended the call and headed outside.
"So, which way do we go from here?" Ash inquired. Nikki grabbed her Pokécomm and checked the map.
"Let's see… Kamillia Town is still quite a ways north of here, but we should get there in a few days," she said.
"(And then we can finally earn our first ribbon!)" Buneary declared.
"Well then, let's hit the road." The group only managed to take five steps before…
"Hold it right there!" Slightly startled by the voice they turned around and saw a boy staring at them. His attire which, consisted of a green camouflage t-shirt, dark green cargo shorts and brown combat boots, told them he was a trainer, and the look on his face let them know he wasn't there to make friends.
"Can we help you?" Nikki asked. The boy didn't even acknowledge her question as he addressed Ash.
"You're Ash Ketchum, the one that appeared in the last episode of Legenda Lookout, right?" he inquired.
"That's right, but who are you?" Ash responded.
"My name's Jonas, and I'm challenging you to a battle right here and now!" he declared. Ash and Nikki were stunned a bit by his sudden challenge, but that only lasted a second or two.
"Talk about straight to the point," Nikki commented.
"Why do you want to challenge me so badly?" Ash inquired.
"I want to see if you're as good as Legenda Lookout made you look," Jonas replied.
"You don't think I am?" Ash asked.
"Now that I see you in person, no," Jonas answered. "Guys like you are a dime a dozen. You're mostly all talk and no action. In fact I bet that stunt with those two trainers that ambushed you was something the producers staged to make you look good."
"Now you just wait one minute! That attack was not staged! We really got jumped by those two!" Nikki argued.
"Yeah yeah, sure you did. Now are we going to battle or what?!" Jonas demanded. By now it was clear that Jonas had nothing else on his mind but battling Ash, and Ash had nothing else on his mind other than putting this upstart trainer in his place.
"You want a battle that badly? You're on!" Ash responded.
"Good. Now I can finally disprove all the hype," Jonas declared. They moved to a large clearing across from the Pokémon Center and took their places. Nikki remained on the sidelines with Pikachu and Buneary.
"(I hope Ash wipes the floor with that guy,)" Buneary spat.
"Yeah," Nikki agreed. "Maybe that'll teach him some manners." Meanwhile, Ash and Jonas were going over the rules of their battle.
"How many Pokémon?" Ash asked.
"Three on three. Substitutions are allowed," Jonas told him. "Think you can handle that?"
"Easily," Ash responded.
"Hmph, we'll see about that," Jonas scoffed. "Get 'em, Spearow!"
"Kingler, I choose you!" As the two Pokémon appeared Nikki scanned them with her Pokécomm.
Name: Spearow
Species: The Tiny Bird Pokémon
Pokécomm Entry: It flaps its small wings busily to fly. Using its beak, it searches in grass for prey.
Name: Kingler
Species: The Pincer Pokémon
Pokécomm Entry: The larger pincer has 10,000-horsepower strength. However, it is so heavy, it is difficult to aim.
"Start with Aerial Ace!" Jonas called. With a shrill squawk Spearow dove down towards Kingler.
"I wonder how Ash is going to defend against that," Nikki commented.
"(What do you mean?)" Buneary wondered.
"(Aerial Ace never misses, so telling Kingler to dodge wouldn't do any good,)" Pikachu explained. Now that Buneary knew what her trainer meant she too was curious to see how Ash would handle the situation.
"Use Protect!" Ash shouted. Kingler raised his massive claw and positioned it in front of himself. Spearow continued to charge in, but as his attack struck he was repelled by Kingler's Protect. Not only did Kingler not take any damage, but Spearow was stunned, giving the Pincer Pokémon the perfect opening to counter attack.
"Now hit back with Crabhammer!" Ash shouted. With his claw already in position it was a simple task. A swift back-claw strike with Crabhammer had the Tiny Bird Pokémon reeling.
"Now use Hyper Beam!" Ash instructed. Kingler's claw opened, revealing a sphere of orange energy that was quickly forming. Within seconds the attack was fully charged.
"Okay! Let it rip!"
"I don't think so! Double Team!" Right before Kingler was to fire his attack Jonas's Spearow created a dozen copies of himself. The sudden move made Kingler hesitate.
"Oh man… now what?" Ash groaned.
"Be careful, Ash! If Kingler doesn't hit the right one he'll be left wide open for a counterattack!" Nikki warned.
"I know, but the problem is figuring out which one is the real Spearow." Try as he might Ash couldn't figure out which one was the real Spearow and which ones were the fakes. In the end all he could do was tell Kingler to take aim and hope for the best.
"Alright, Kingler! Fire!" Ash called. The Pincer Pokémon let the powerful attack loose, hoping that luck would be on his side and that he'd hit the right target.
"Please hit the right one, please hit the right one, please hit the right one," Ash pleaded. Unfortunately his pleas fell on deaf ears as he could only watch in stunned disbelief as the Hyper Beam passed harmlessly through one of the many Spearow copies.
"Oh no!" Nikki gasped.
"My turn! Use Mirror Move!" Jonas ordered. Spearow smirked as he used Mirror Move to copy the Hyper Beam that was just fired at him.
"This is bad. After firing that Hyper Beam Kingler can't do anything," Nikki said. Just as she said the Pincer Pokémon could do nothing but sit there as the Tiny Bird Pokémon unleashed a Hyper Beam on him.
"No, Kingler!" he shouted. The massive blast engulfed Kingler, leaving Ash to worry about the Pincer Pokémon's well-being. The blast faded to reveal a badly hurt, but otherwise still standing Kingler. Ash was relieved to see his Pokémon was still standing, but he was also aware that the battle was not yet done.
"Kingler, do you think you could squeeze out one more attack?" he asked. The Pincer Pokémon glanced back at him and nodded.
"Alright then. Crabhammer!" The massive Pokémon shot forward and raised his massive claw into the air. Jonas gritted his teeth for he knew there was nothing he could do. Just as Ash's Kingler had suffered earlier when he fired Hyper Beam his Spearow was now suffering the backlash from the powerful attack. All Jonas could do was watch as Kingler brought his massive claw down onto the Tiny Bird Pokémon, sending his spiraling to the ground at his feet. One look at the downed Flying type revealed that he has been knocked out.
"Alright, Kingler!" Nikki cheered.
"(That's showing him!)" Pikachu added.
"(Good job!)" Buneary praised. Jonas silently recalled his defeated Pokémon, while in contrast Ash gave Kingler much deserved words of praise as he returned him for a well-deserved rest.
"Don't think that'll happen again," Jonas declared. "Now, get 'em, Gloom!" As his next Pokémon appeared Nikki scanned it with her Pokécomm.
Name: Gloom
Species: The Weed Pokémon
Pokécomm Entry: The honey it drools from its mouth smells so atrocious, it can curl noses more than a mile away.
"Absol, I choose you!" Ash shouted. The Disaster Pokémon appeared moments later, ready for combat.
"Use Bullet Seed!" Jonas ordered.
"Counter with Shadow Ball!" Ash responded. The two attacks were launched towards each other, exploding on contact. Unfortunately Absol's Shadow Ball could only block so much of Gloom's Bullet Seed as some of the attack still managed to get through.
"Dodge and use Razor Wind!" Ash instructed. The Disaster Pokémon jumped to the side, avoiding the Bullet Seed, and began powering up his Razor Wind. As the wind began swirling near his head he swung his head forward, creating blades of air that flew towards Gloom.
"Protect!" Jonas called. Gloom quickly created a barrier that easily deflected Absol's Razor Wind.
"Now counter with Toxic!" Jonas yelled. As soon as Gloom's Protect barrier dropped she spat out a glop of sludge towards Absol.
"Quick, dodge it!" Ash shouted. Absol managed to jump away just as the Toxic struck the ground in front of him, creating a thick poisonous cloud.
"Now hit him with Bullet Seed!" Jonas demanded. Because Absol was still airborne there was little he could do to avoid Gloom's attack. She spat out her Bullet Seed, the small projectiles pelting Absol over and over again.
"Sludge Bomb!" Jonas ordered. Once again Gloom spat out a glob of toxic material, but this attack was more solid than the previous.
"Watch out, Absol!" Nikki warned.
"Counter with Shadow Ball!" Ash called. Before the Sludge Bomb could make contact Absol fired off a Shadow Ball. The Ghost-type attack intercepted the Sludge Bomb, the two attacks canceling each other out.
"Now use X-Scissor!" Ash continued. Absol was nothing more than a white blur as he sped towards Gloom, his forepaws crossed in an X-shape.
"Stop him with Protect!" Jonas called. Timely use of Protect prevented Absol from damaging Gloom. However, Ash refused to let up the pressure.
"Night Slash!" he shouted.
"Guard yourself with Protect!" Jonas countered. Gloom once again put up her Protect shield, but Absol's initial Night Slash easily shattered it, allowing the follow-up Night Slash to critically damage the Weed Pokémon.
"Now X-Scissor!" Ash instructed. With Gloom reeling Absol delivered a powerful X-Scissor, putting the finishing touches on their battle.
"Alright! That's two down!" Nikki cheered. Jonas growled in frustration as he recalled his second defeated Pokémon. He then glared at Ash as he grabbed his final Poké Ball.
"You won't beat me like this. You hear me? You won't beat me like this!" he declared. "Get 'em, Electrike!" Nikki's Pokécomm made another appearance, this time scanning Jonas's Electrike.
Name: Electrike
Species: The Lightning Pokémon
Pokécomm Entry: Using electricity stored in its fur, it stimulates its muscles to heighten its reaction speed.
In response to Jonas's final Pokémon Ash surprisingly recalled Absol.
"Thanks, Absol. You did your part. Time to let someone else take over from here," he said. "Larvitar, I choose you!" The Rock Skin Pokémon appeared and quickly locked eyes with her opponent.
"(This is a surprise. I was expecting another sparring match,)" she commented.
"Not this time. This is a real battle," Ash said. The thought of being put in an actual battle rather than a sparring match sent shivers of excitement through Larvitar. Jonas, however, could care less.
"Use Quick Attack!" Jonas ordered.
"Counter with Screech!" Ash responded. In the midst of Electrike's charge Larvitar unleashed her Screech attack, stopping the Lightning Pokémon in his tracks.
"Now use Stone Edge!" Ash called. Seeing an opening he wanted to take advantage of Ash had Larvitar continue her attack. She quickly formed the razor-sharp rocks needed for the attack and launched them towards Electrike.
"Use your Thunderbolt to block that attack!" Jonas commanded. Electrike sent a bolt of electricity through the air that exploded upon striking Larvitar's Stone Edge. Right then Ash saw another advantage he could use.
"Quick! Use Dig!" he instructed. With the smoke cloud created from the explosion of Thunderbolt and Stone Edge blocking Jonas and Electrike's views Ash figured this would be a perfect time to try a sneak attack, and so he sent Larvitar underground. One thing he knew about Larvitar was that she was an expert at finding her opponents while underground.
"Come on… where did you go?" Suddenly the ground beneath Electrike erupted and Larvitar emerged, delivering a sharp uppercut to the Lightning Pokémon's jaw.
"Yes! Nice work!" Ash praised.
"Use Iron Tail, now!" Jonas yelled. Electrike shared his trainer's anger and frustration as he struck Larvitar with a rage-filled Iron Tail, stunning the Rock Skin Pokémon and knocking her to the ground.
"Now use Bite before she can recover!" Jonas ordered. While Larvitar was still trying to get her bearings Electrike continued his attack, charging towards her and latching onto her arm with Bite. Larvitar screamed in pain as she tried to shake the Lightning Pokémon off.
"Hang in there, Larvitar!" Nikki urged.
"Quick, use Sandstorm!" Ash shouted. Despite the pain she was in Larvitar managed to conjure up a Sandstorm, forcing Electrike to let her go and retreat to a safe distance. Despite this the damage had already been done. At that moment doubt began to creep into Ash's mind.
"Maybe it's too soon to try using her in real battles. Maybe I should let her get in a few more sparring battles before trying this again," he mused. He grabbed her Poké Ball and was preparing to recall her when she stopped him.
"(No! Let me finish this!)" she requested.
"Are… Are you sure?" Ash questioned. As Larvitar turned to face him Ash saw something in her eyes he liked… excitement.
"(Oh yeah,)" she replied. With a nod Ash put her Poké Ball back on his belt.
"Okay, Larvitar, let's finish this!" he shouted.
"You should have recalled her when you had the chance, because now I won't let you! Quick Attack!" Electrike let out a loud bark and charged forward.
"Dodge and use Sandstorm!" Ash countered. Larvitar side-stepped the charging Electrike and whipped up another Sandstorm, sending the Lightning Pokémon hurtling into the air.
"Now use Stone Edge!" Ash continued. Since Electrike was in the air there wasn't anything he could do to dodge Larvitar's attack. He howled in pain as he was pelted by the razor-sharp rocks. When he finally hit the ground it was clear who had won the battle.
"(Alright! I did it!)" Larvitar exclaimed.
"Yes! Way to go, Larvitar!" Ash cheered. With the battle now over Nikki, Pikachu and Buneary ran out to congratulate Ash and Larvitar.
"You were amazing," Nikki said.
"(That battle was awesome,)" Buneary commented.
"(I'll say. It's amazing how much stronger you've gotten, Larvitar,)" Pikachu praised.
"(Thanks, but it wasn't just me. Kingler and Absol were pretty amazing too,)" Larvitar stated.
"That they were," Ash agreed. Their attention soon turned to Jonas, who was recalling his defeated Electrike. He then looked up and glared at Ash.
"Don't fool yourself into thinking this win means anything," Jonas spat. "It was a fluke, nothing else. Next time we battle I'll show you who the stronger trainer really is." With those final words the turned and walked away.
"Well, he certainly was a sore loser," Nikki commented.
"(You can say that again,)" Buneary agreed.
"Yeah, but he was wrong," Ash stated.
"What do you mean?" Nikki inquired.
"My win over him… that wasn't a fluke," Ash said. "I was the stronger trainer, and I'll continue to be the stronger trainer. I'll defeat him every time we battle, and then I'll go on to the Legenda League and win there and become a Pokémon Master!"
"(Yeah!)" Pikachu and Larvitar shouted.
"And the best part is I'll have all you by my side the whole way," Ash continued.
"Wouldn't want to be anywhere else," Nikki said.
"But first we need to get to Kamillia Town for your Pokémon Contest," Ash stated. He was about to recall Larvitar so they could continue on their way when she suddenly started glowing white.
"L-Larvitar!" Ash exclaimed.
"Oh wow! She's evolving!" Nikki gasped. Her grew a bit bigger and her arms and legs retracted into her body, making her appear almost cocoon-like. Within seconds her evolution was complete, letting Ash and Nikki finally see her new form.
"She's a Pupitar now!" Nikki said. Ash took out his Pokécomm so he could scan his new Pokémon.
Name: Pupitar
Species: The Hard Shell Pokémon
Pokécomm Entry: This pupa flies around wildly by venting with great force the gas pressurized inside its body.
"I guess all that training she's been doing finally paid off," Nikki commented.
"This is great! Not only did we get a win but Larvitar evolved!" Ash excitedly said. "Man, things are really looking up for us."
"(Yeah,)" Pikachu agreed.
"Well I hope some of that good fortune rubs off on me," Nikki commented.
"It will," Ash told her. "Trust me, that ribbon is as good as yours."
"I hope you're right," Nikki said. Ash recalled his newly-evolved Pupitar. Then he, Nikki and their Pokémon continued on their way towards Kamillia Town, where Nikki hoped to win her first Pokémon Contest.
An battle with a new Legenda League rival not only ends in victory for Ash but also helps Larvitar evolve into Pupitar. Now with Nikki's next Pokémon Contest on the horizon what will the group encounter next? Find out in the next chapter of Search for Power!
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