With Courage I Will Face
Arc IV: Cerulean
Chapter Twenty: The School of Hard Knocks
"Alright you guys, break time!" Ash called to get his Pokemon's attention.
His three Pokemon all stopped what they were doing and returned to Ash's side, greeting him enthusiastically as he kneeled down to engage with them. Pikachu specifically liked that about Ash.
Their morning exercises were simple. Pikachu and Butterfree mostly engaged in a beam struggle, each trying to overpower the other using ThunderShock and Psybeam respectively, while Pidgeotto did laps using Quick Attack in order to build her stamina.
"Everybody was looking great out there today; you guys are getting stronger already." Ash praised them. "It's almost lunchtime, that's enough work for today. We're gonna try and cover a lot more distance this afternoon, right guys?"
"Yeah, it's been two days since we left AJ, we should be coming up on Pokemon Tech any day now." Brock noted as he consulted their map.
"Hard to believe we're coming up on anything today, look at all this fog." Misty commented, waving her arms dramatically.
She was right. The fog had crept in overnight while they slept and had been present in thick clumps from the moment they woke up. It hadn't gotten any thinner since then either, no matter how much distance they covered. Which, by the way, was hard to determine considering how little they could see.
"Hey guys, if someone wants to go collect some firewood, I can whip up some hot tea and soup for lunch. Otherwise, we'll have to make do with just the cold stuff, and maybe some trail-mix." Brock suggested as he rooted through his backpack.
Brock's backpack was nearly twice the size of Ash's and probably was triple the size of Misty's drawstring, but it seemed worth it since he was definitely the most well-prepared one of them all.
"That's a wonderful idea Brock! I'm willing to give up the exciting task of searching for firewood to stay here and help you set up!" Misty said happily.
It was so masterfully done that Ash almost didn't realize that she had signed him up to go find said firewood.
"Lucky me, I get to have all the fun." Ash said dryly. "Alright, Butterfree, Pidgeotto, return. C'mon, let's go, Pikachu." He called to his friend, who made his way back on to his shoulder.
And off into the forest they went.
"If only firewood was as easy to come by as these Pidgey and Rattata." Ash lamented as he inspected the ground beneath him.
"Pika." Pikachu agreed, tapping around on the ground along with his trainer.
"Well, maybe we can hope we got enough for what Brock needs. It doesn't have to burn all night, right?" Ash suggested, and Pikachu shrugged.
While they were not empty-handed, they were hoping for more despite the fog making much of the potential firewood too damp. Though clearly that was a fools dream, and they were about to resign themselves back to camp with what they had collected when Pikachu's attention was captured by a flame-like glow in the distance peeking through the fog.
"Pika Pi! Pikachu!" Pikachu stood a bit on his toes to peek over the bush he had been looking under for kindling.
"Huh?" Ash, not immediately understanding Pikachu, turned away from the ground to look at him instead. It was easier to tell what Pikachu was saying sometimes just by looking at him, Ash had found.
He followed Pikachu's line of sight to see the flicker of a flame through the thick fog.
"Looks like somebody got a fire going out here." Ash commented as he stood up. "Let's go see where they found their firewood."
It was an idea. A good one, even. But the closer Ash and Pikachu got, the more confusing the scene ahead became.
There was not one fire, but four fires. There was no firewood either, as the light was coming from candlesticks held by four boys dressed the same. There was another boy without a candle, and they were gathered around a treadmill as another boy ran on it.
"I know we haven't been traveling for very long but… this is weird, right?" Ash felt the need to whisper as he asked Pikachu's opinion. Pikachu just nodded, and they both curiously approached.
"Who's this Pokemon?" The boy without the candle held up a picture instead, showing it to the boy on the treadmill.
"Is it… Zubat?" The running boy panted out. Someone reached over to increase the speed on the treadmill, to the boys distress.
"Try again." The correction followed.
"Pidgey?" The reply came faster now, and more panicked.
"Lucky guess." One of the candle-holding boys proclaimed. "What's Pidgey's evolved form?"
"Pidgeotto!" He shouted quickly.
"Good. Now, what are all the moves Pidgey learns before it evolves?" The same boy asked.
"Tackle… Sand Attack… Gust…" The running boy was taking deeper breaths, and it was evident he could not finish the answer to the question.
"Come on Joe, either think faster or run faster." One of the boys said as he increased the speed on the machine, forcing the other boy to keep up.
He was quickly overwhelmed though and fell backwards off the treadmill, landing roughly on the ground. Ash watched in something akin to frustration as the other boys simply stood around and didn't offer him any help to stand.
"You call yourself a Pokemon Tech student?" A boy with bright orange hair mocked. "Well, we don't want to waste our time studying with the likes of you."
"I-I'm sorry." The fallen boy replied, staring at the ground. "I understand."
"Pathetic." Another candle-holding boy piped up.
The looks the standing boys shot at the other boy were more scornful than any looks he had shared with even Jessie and James, and it triggered something in him. Before he could think, he was running forward.
"Hey! What do you think your doing? That's no way to treat a friend!" Ash yelled as he came to a firm stop. Pikachu landed at his feet just seconds later, and Ash was thankful for his backup because all of their intense stares were quickly aimed at him instead.
"This is a private training session. Get lost and mind your own business." The boy with orange hair spat at him.
"Yeah, because there's no room in our Pokemon school for losers who don't even know a Pidgey's learn set." A boy with shiny green hair said.
"We have standards to maintain, after all." Another candle-holding boy added.
"Yeah? Well, if you guys are the standard how hard can it be? Seems like a pretty low bar to me." Ash shot back as he helped the boy to his feet.
"You would think so, your even worse than he is." The green-haired boy nodded at the boy by Ash's side. "He's here putting in effort, even if he does suck at it."
"What would you know about effort? All I saw was a bunch of bullies standing around acting tough while he worked hard." Ash replied heatedly.
"That's right! You tell 'em, Ash!" Misty's voice echoed from behind him.
"You guys better back off right now, or you'll have to go through all of us too." Brock said next.
Ash spared a glance back and smiled, seeing his friends approaching. He turned back to the group of students and smiled, feeling more confident with his friends there.
"We don't fight."
"Fighting is for cavemen. This isn't the stone age, you know?"
"And if we wasted our time with a punk like you, it'd just make Pokemon Tech look really bad." They all took turns giving condescending replies and turned to start walking away.
"We'll finish this later. See you back at the tech, Joe." The green-haired boy spared one last glance back before they headed off.
"Well, aren't they a bunch of charmers." Misty said dryly as they walked off.
"They were even worse than AJ at first." Ash added. "At least he fought me. Those guys think they're above everything."
"They're not so bad, they just want to make Pokemon Tech look good. They were helping me get up to par." Joe said, though it was obvious that he was also trying to convince himself of it.
"So, you asked them for that?" Brock said expectantly. Joe wouldn't meet his eyes. "That's what I thought."
"Isn't there anyone looking out for you against guys like that? They're just a bunch of bullies." Misty asked. Joe shrugged.
"They're not so bad, they're just trying to help. Besides, they're still beginner level just like me so there's not much they can really do that I can't." Joe replied.
"Sounds like a pretty ass-backwards way of thinking for the most prestigious school in the region." She lamented. Joe just shrugged again.
"I can't wait 'till we get there, then I'll show everyone at that school a thing or two." Ash mumbled as he clenched his fists.
"You guys are heading to Pokemon Tech? What for?" Joe asked, unable to hold back his surprise.
"I'm gonna compete in the tournament there this week." Ash said eagerly. "And hopefully show those guys what for!"
"Well, you're out of luck there; they aren't competing. But you'll probably get to fight Giselle, she's at the very top of the beginner level- almost Intermediate, really, and she's way worse than those guys." Joe told him. "You'd better hurry though, last I heard they're looking to hold the tournament later today, so if they don't get enough people, they'll start filling it with upperclassmen."
Ash couldn't help but let out a startled yell at the news.
"What? No way am I gonna lose my spot to any upperclassmen! Joe, which way to the Tech?" Ash was practically running in place as he asked Joe for directions.
Joe pointed in a direction and could only watch, dumbstruck, as Ash took off running followed quickly by Pikachu.
"He didn't have to run, it's really not that far." Joe said, pointing a little upward.
Through some patches of the thick fog, there was the silhouette of a large building that could be made out. Even if it wasn't as big as it appeared through the fog, they had practically been in Pokemon Tech's backyard.
"Come on, we should catch up to him before he ends up challenging an entire classroom to a battle." Misty said, only slightly joking.
"I'll show you guys where to register." Joe volunteered, and they set off after Ash.
"You don't look like you could pass the entrance exam, let alone compete in a tournament here."
"And you don't look like a huge bully, but appearances can be deceiving!"
The scene Misty and Brock arrived at was exactly what they were afraid of when having Ash out of their sight for more than three minutes. He was in a shouting match again, with a girl this time. She was taller than him, but couldn't have been much older, and had long, dark pretty hair.
"It's not bullying! I'm doing everyone a favor and helping them learn, something I'm sure you've never done a day in your life!" She yelled at Ash.
"I guess this must be Giselle?" Misty muttered, though it was more to herself than Joe or Brock.
"I can see why everyone let's her run the place. She looks…" Brock trailed off, unable to take his focus off Giselle long enough to even form the rest of his thought.
"Yeah, I know." Joe was blushing as he looked out at Giselle too.
"Boys." Misty rolled her eyes.
"You wouldn't know a thing about life outside this school, let alone my life! I've got two badges now, that puts me way ahead of you in experience!" Ash shouted back.
"As if." Giselle laughed. "That's a beginner level accomplishment here at Pokemon Tech. I'm almost Intermediate level, that means I'm almost qualified for four badges. That's twice as experienced as you!"
"Twice as experienced in what? Reading, or being a controlling lunatic?"
"Isn't there any teachers at this school? Shouldn't someone be coming to break this up?" Brock asked.
A small crowd was beginning to form now with Ash and Giselle in the center.
"Of course there is, but they don't typically get involved in student matters like this. They say its best for us to sort out our differences ourselves, it teaches us people skills and how to navigate the real world. One of the advantages of being a boarding school too, they say." Joe replied. He paused.
"Besides, stuff like this doesn't usually happen. Believe it or not, nobody ever really yells at Giselle like this. It's probably the first time anybody here has stood up against her." Joe added after a moment's thought.
"In everything, including Pokemon training! I don't know why you think your such hot stuff, I bet your badges came from a couple of loser gyms on the wrong side of Kanto and now you think your ready for the Indigo League already!" Giselle poked him in the chest and Ash had to step back.
"What? Loser gyms?" Misty shouted from the crowd.
"Are you just gonna take that, Ash?" Brock cupped his hands together to yell at Ash.
"Show her you earned our badges fair and square!" Misty continued.
Ash turned to face them for just a second before he turned back to Giselle, who had stepped directly into his person space.
"Aw, you fought your friends for gym badges? How sweet." She rolled her eyes. "I can't wait to see whatever it is you think you can show me. See you in the tournament, loser." She shoulder checked him as she walked right through him.
Ash grit his teeth as he watched her go, the crowd parting automatically for her to pass through. Nobody hung around long, they either had their own days to get back to or trailed behind Giselle. Ash stared at her for another few moments until Misty and Brock approached him, snapping him back into the present.
"I can't stand people like her." Ash grumbled. "She thinks she's so much better than everyone else for no reason."
"She has a reason." Joe interrupted with a sigh of longing.
"Actually, I can think of at least two reasons." Brock added with a laugh. Joe blushed again, while Misty stomped on Brock's foot.
"Being pretty doesn't mean you can be petty." Ash crossed his arms. "I can't wait to wipe that smirk off her face when I battle her."
"Right, you can sign up right through there and to the left. I've got to run, but hopefully I'll see you at the tournament if they fill enough slots today." Joe gave them quick directions and slipped away.
Ash, Misty and Brock followed the brief directions Joe gave them, going through a set of glass doors. They were no longer outside on a path, but inside in a cramped hallway. To their left was a long stretch of hallway, and at the end was a set of large wooden doors that held the library inside.
"Hi, I'd like to register for the Pokemon Tech tournament, please." Ash addressed the librarian. He handed over his Pokedex for proper identification.
"Very good, we need a handful more people before we can begin." She jotted his name. "Will you two be signing up as well? We still have a few available slots left."
"Hey, yeah! We should compete too, Brock! It'll give us a chance to put Giselle in her place ourselves." Misty agreed, approaching the librarian next. She gave over her Trainer Card as well, and the librarian put her name down.
"Not a bad idea. It'd be a good way to not get rusty, too." Brock agreed and mirrored Misty, handing over his own Trainer Card.
"All set! Now with you three, we should have no problem filling out enough spots to hold the tournament this afternoon. There will be an announcement made on the loudspeaker with any follow-up information. Good luck to you!" She dismissed them quickly but politely.
By the time they had made it down a long hallway and back outside, the loudspeaker clicked on to give out available details about the tournament.
"Good afternoon students! I'm pleased to announce that we've just filled up all the remaining slots for this months official Pokemon Tech Beginners Tournament! All battlers and anyone who wants to watch should make their way to the main courtyard starting now, the event will begin in fifteen minutes. Thank you all!" The man's voice clicked off quickly.
"She wasn't kidding, that was a quick update." Brock said.
The three of them just shrugged, and attempted to find their way to the main courtyard before the fifteen-minute window was up.
"You're so hopeless, I don't know why we ever listened to you." Misty chastised Ash as they emerged into the courtyard with only a minute to spare.
There were seats set up on either side of the arenas where most people were already seated, so they had no trouble approaching the fields. It looked like everyone standing was either conducting the tournament or competing in it. Giselle and Joe were both there as well. Joe stood awkwardly while Giselle could not have looked more bored until a man in a suit began to speak.
"Good afternoon again, everyone, and welcome to the Beginners Tournament! Since we have a few non-students competing in this month's tournament, I'll introduce myself. I'm Principal Hackett, and I sponsor this and many other held tournaments throughout the year here at Pokemon Tech." He introduced himself. "So, as usual this tournament will have sixteen competitors. They have all been registered and shuffled into two brackets, A and B, and then randomized into their first-round match-ups! So, let's get started!"
Just as he finished, the display board shuffled the names around rapidly. Once they came to a stop, the competitors all gathered in closely to see.
Bracket A
A1: Ash vs. Alpesh
A2: Yellow vs. Finn
A3: Nancy vs. Austin
A4: Elijah vs. Isabelle
Bracket B
B1: Joe vs. Misty
B2: Brock vs. Lori
B3: Jeff vs. Giselle
B4: AJ vs. Ricky
"I guess AJ made it here." Ash noted out loud as they read the list.
"O'course, you didn't doubt me, did ya?" AJ teased coming up behind them.
Ash spun around excitedly, clenching his fists in excitement.
"Not for a second! I can't wait to fight you again." He said.
"Yeah, here's hoping we get to have our rematch today." AJ said with equal excitement. "Looking forward to fighting you guys too, if your anything like your friend here this'll be a tournament to remember."
Misty and Brock could only smile at him before Principal Hackett spoke again, calling for everyone to take their places so the battles could start.
"Y'know, it's really unlucky that you got matched up against me straight away. I only got here because they needed to fill a space to get this thing going today; I'm actually an Intermediate level student." Alpesh confessed to Ash as they took their places.
"You call it unlucky, but I think that's super lucky, because if anyone here's gonna beat you it's gonna be me!" Ash replied back with a wide grin. Alpesh couldn't help but let out a laugh at the boys confidence.
"You talk a big game, let's see how well you can play it. Farfetch'd, come on!" Alpesh selected his Pokemon.
It was his opponent, but Ash still couldn't help but get excited over seeing a new species of Pokemon in person. It was light brown in color and avian-like with large flat wings, one of which was holding a green leek stick almost as tall as itself.
"Cool! Alright Pikachu, I choose you!" Ash punched forward and Pikachu moved with him in tandem, jumping out and onto the field eagerly.
"Farfetch'd, use Leer!" Alpesh took the lead.
Farfetch'd glared at Pikachu, pointing its leek out as if to target him and Pikachu shuddered involuntarily.
"Now, Sand Attack!" Alpesh continued.
"Quick Attack!" Ash countered.
Pikachu was faster and took off running, followed by a streak of white. Before Farfetch'd could even throw out a single ball of sand Pikachu slammed into its chest and launched it back. Alpesh appeared shocked at the outcome but tried to hide it in his next command.
"Go in for Peck!" Alpesh ordered instead.
Farfetch'd quickly raised back up and rushed at Pikachu just as he was landing. It reared its head back with a glowing beak, but Ash and Alpesh both gave new orders.
"Growl!"
"Fury Cutter!"
Pikachu let out as aggressive a growl as he could muster so quickly. It seemed to take effect just in time, as Farfetch'd slammed its leek into Pikachu's side with great force just after. The impact sent Pikachu backwards, but Pikachu could feel that a little bit of momentum had been lost in the swing.
Thank Mew for his trainer, honestly, because his reaction would've been to let out a ThunderShock that probably wouldn't have been able to stop the swing either.
"Fury Cutter, again!" Alpesh ordered. Farfetch'd sprinted out again towards Pikachu's new position just as Pikachu got to his feet.
"Charm!" Ash called suddenly.
Just before Farfetch'd's leek made contact with Pikachu again, it seemed to hesitate for just a moment as Pikachu looked up at him with big, rounded eyes. The leek slammed into Pikachu again and while he toppled over, he didn't go as far as before. Alpesh called for another Fury Cutter, but Pikachu had caught on to Ash's plan and unleashed another Charm unprompted.
This time when Farfetch'd slammed its leek into Pikachu's side, it was unable to send him sailing. Pikachu seemed to be able to push back against the leek with just his body weight, much to Alpesh's shock.
"ThunderShock!" Ash called out.
Pikachu quickly lit up with electricity, sending a quick arcing bolt at Farfetch'd, who stumbled back under its power and winced heavily. Ash grinned widely while Alpesh did the opposite.
"Fury Attack!" Alpesh's command mirrored what he was feeling.
Farfetch'd ran forward after the ThunderShock had let up, intent on stabbing Pikachu with the glowing end of its leek.
"Quick Attack, go from behind!" Ash cried.
Pikachu leapt forward, dodging just to the side of one of Farfetch'd's stabs. The mouse circled the bird as Farfetch'd tried to stab at Pikachu relentlessly to no avail. Eventually, Farfetch'd got its leek stuck in the ground for just a moment longer than usual, limiting its mobility to turn to face Pikachu.
Just the moment Ash had been waiting for, as Pikachu slammed straight into Farfetch'd's back. Farfetch'd ripped its leek out of the ground in panic, swinging outward wildly with another Fury Cutter. It did knock Pikachu away, as he hadn't yet completely found his footing yet from landing, and then Farfetch'd charged again.
Alpesh wasn't used to not being able to completely control a battle, Ash quickly realized. Likewise, Farfetch'd wasn't used to fighting anyone that was close to its level like Pikachu was. It was clearly becoming quickly frantic that Pikachu could keep up with it.
"Block it with Brick Break!" Pikachu quickly spun around, slamming his glowing tail into Farfetch'd's leek.
They stalemated, each trying to push the other back until Farfetch'd reared back quickly, causing Pikachu to fall forward and get struck by the next Fury Cutter. He quickly dodged another one before Ash cried out again.
"Nuzzle!"
They weren't making contact, but Pikachu's entire body lit up with electricity. It was as if a bubble surrounded him, and Farfetch'd struck straight into it, electrocuting itself. It hadn't had time to stop its swing just like, now, it didn't have time to dodge Pikachu as he lunged forward with Quick Attack, slamming them both backwards and tackling Farfetch'd to the ground.
"No way! Farfetch'd, use Cut!" Alpesh cried out urgently.
"Pikachu, ThunderShock 'em!" Ash countered.
Pikachu and Farfetch'd both cried out as they unleashed their attacks, but Pikachu's made contact first as Farfetch'd was still mid-swing. Farfetch'd struggled against the electricity for a few moments before it collapsed forward, unable to take the relentless electrocution any further.
Very quickly, their ref declared Farfetch'd unable to battle and Pikachu as the winner. Ash ran forward, quickly picking Pikachu up.
"Alright! We did it again, buddy! You were great out there!" Ash said, and Pikachu squeaked with happiness at the praise.
"I guess you were the lucky one after all." Alpesh said as he recalled Farfetch'd. "Good luck out there, kid. If you were able to beat me, I hope you'll make quick work of the rest of these guys." That was all he said before he took off, presumably returning to class now that he had been eliminated from the tournament.
Ash looked around. It seemed like everyone else's first rounds had finished already. His had taken the longest.
Great, Misty would never let him live that down.
"Don't think I'll go easy on you just because we're already friends." Misty teased Joe across the field, waving teasingly at him.
"Uh, no, of course not." Joe couldn't help but start to blush from the attention Misty was showing him. "Go, Weepinbell!"
Misty would admit, she was surprised to see an evolved Pokemon in a Beginners tournament. Especially since Joe had admitted he was rather close to the bottom of the totem pole. Was this really the level of standard Pokemon Tech forced onto its students? Regardless, she was no less assured of her victory as she selected her Pokemon.
"Tentacool, let's go!" She cried, choosing her Pokemon.
It was an awkward scene, she would give that, watching two Pokemon with no legs and huge eyes try to glare each other down. But Tentacool didn't need water to be an adept battler, despite its helpless appearance out of the water.
"A water type against my grass type? I thought you were here to show us all how it's done." Joe said. Misty couldn't tell if he was mocking her or if he was genuinely confused, but it didn't matter. He was going down all the same. "Weepinbell, Vine Whip!"
The brown vine situated on top of Weepinbell's head extended quickly towards Tentacool, going to whip the Jellyfish Pokemon.
"Grab it back, Tentacool!" Misty countered.
Tentacool lunged out of the way of Weepinbell's vine, avoiding the attack and gripping it with its own tentacles. Ignoring the shock on Joe and Weepinbell's faces, Misty continued to give her orders.
"Now, use Water Gun!"
While holding Weepinbell in place, Tentacool shot a jet of water at its opponent. It quickly made contact, as Weepinbell couldn't escape due to being in Tentacool's grip. Joe gasped.
"Try a Razor Leaf!" He commanded. Weepinbell waved both its arms forward, sending off multiple sharp, crescent-shaped leaves at Tentacool.
"Acid!" Misty's response was swift. Tentacool, without loosening its grip on Weepinbell, sprayed purple acid out that enveloped the barrage of leaves. They collided, but Razor Leaf was no match for the acid and quickly melted away.
"What? But grass-type moves are supposed to be effective against water Pokemon!" Joe exclaimed in shock.
"Okay Tentacool, pull it in and use Wrap!" Misty ignored Joe in favor of her next command.
Tentacool gave a mighty yank on Weepinbell's vine, pulling it across the field and into its own binding grip. Joe gasped again as Tentacool squeezed Weepinbell tight.
"Poison Powder!" Joe cried urgently. Weepinbell seemed to cough through being squeezed, releasing a thin cloud of purple toxins into the air that enveloped both it and Tentacool. To Joe's surprise, however, it seemed Tentacool was completely unaffected.
Once again, Misty didn't bother to offer an explanation and instead issued her next command.
"Acid, again!" She called.
This time there was no escape for Weepinbell as Tentacool sprayed it with corrosive acid.
"Go ahead and finish it with your Water Gun!" Completely held helpless by Tentacool, Weepinbell was sprayed by and ejected with the force of the Water Gun.
Weepinbell collapsed on the ground after, unable to move while Misty happily recalled Tentacool.
"I don't get it." Joe muttered, confused.
"Tentacool isn't just a water-type, you know. It's also part poison-type, just like Weepinbell. Your grass attacks weren't any more effective than my poison attacks against you." Misty explained as she approached him. "But even if you have the type of advantage, you still need a plan. It's never good to dismiss an opponent just because of something like type."
Joe nodded, though Misty could tell he was still taking his defeat hard. She sighed, wondering if she had been too hard on him. After all he wasn't the problem, just a symptom of it. The root of the problem was clearly the curriculum and management at Pokemon Tech, though she didn't expect that to get fixed anytime soon.
Maybe she could take her frustrations out on someone more appropriate in the next round.
"Lori, was it? We simply must get together after the tournament, I'd love to take you out to eat." Brock couldn't resist gawking at the beauty before him.
"Thanks, but I'll pass. This is enough excitement for me for one day." Lori denied quickly, but politely, before choosing her Pokemon. "Gloom, let's go!"
"Suit yourself. Geodude, come on!" Brock followed her lead and chose his.
"An interesting choice. Gloom, Absorb!" Lori commented.
Gloom opened its mouth wide and the flower buds on its head seemed to shake, attempting to draw out latent energy from Geodude. Particles of green energy escaped Geodude and flew into Gloom, causing Geodude to wince in pain as Brock issued his command.
"Rock Polish!" He said quickly.
Geodude slammed both its fists together and its body seemed to spark with light blue energy, diluting into the rest of its body leaving it looking a shade lighter than before.
"Absorb, again!" Lori called eagerly, but this time Brock smirked.
"Rock Throw!" He cried.
Before Gloom could even open its mouth, Geodude had launched an array of light grey rocks across the field at it. It attempted to still get off its Absorb instead of dodging, causing it to get hit by most of the rocks as they honed in on its position. Lori gasped, while Brock simply crossed his arms.
"Now, Tackle!" Brock ordered.
Geodude practically threw itself across the field at Gloom, much faster than Lori or Gloom had been expecting. Being made of solid rock, Geodude weighed enough to throw Gloom off its feet.
"Gloom, no! Use Acid!" Lori called worriedly.
Gloom quickly righted itself and spat out a small wave of toxic purple liquid at Geodude. The attack landed and Geodude flinched as the corrosive acid made contact with its rock-hard skin.
"Rock Throw!"
Quickly, Geodude created and threw more rocks. Gloom managed to avoid a few direct hits but still found itself hit by the rock-type attack.
"Fight back with Stun Spore!" Lori countered.
The flower on Gloom's head seemed to shake as it released a puff of glowing green spores that quickly made their way towards Geodude, but Brock was already working on a counter.
"Mud Slap, on the ground!" He ordered.
Geodude's fist began to glow a bright orange, and it slapped its hand down onto the ground below, kicking up a wall of mud and dirt that seemed to absorb the spores given off by Gloom, much to Lori and Gloom's surprise.
"Absorb, again!" Lori shouted, panicked now. But before Gloom could carry out her order, Geodude was moving once more.
"Tackle!" Brock ordered simply.
Before Gloom knew what had hit it, Geodude practically flew through the air and slammed into it once again. Gloom was tackled to the ground once again, and before it could even roll over Brock had ordered Geodude to hit it with another Mud Slap. Gloom rolled over, taking the impact full-force, and then clearly could not continue battling.
Lori gasped as she recalled Gloom at the same time as the ref declared Brock the winner. He calmly recalled Geodude, smiling with pride as he approached Lori to thank her for the battle.
"That was a great battle, Lori, I can tell you care a lot about your Gloom." He said to her, offering her his hand.
"Thanks Brock, you too. Though I can't believe Gloom lost to a rock-type like that." Lori shook his hand.
"It's all in experience, don't forget that." Brock replied simply, nodding at her. There was a brief pause.
"I still won't go out with you." Lori said simply, and Brock let out a sigh.
"I didn't think so. That's okay, best of luck to ya." Brock replied easily, and they both went their separate ways.
Ash and Alpesh took by far the longest, surprising everyone who had seen Alpesh battle before as an Intermediate level student. Everyone was surprised further when he lost in the first round, and to an outsider, nonetheless. The crowd as well as the other competitors quickly found out this tournament would stir up a lot more attention than usual from everyone involved as even some of the other matches yielded surprising results.
Ash beating Alpesh was the biggest upset, but far from the only one. Nobody expected Misty and Brock, more outsiders, to secure such quick victories over even a Beginner level student like Joe and a Gym Aide like Lori at huge type disadvantages. Furthermore, there was Yellow, a mysterious forest-dwelling girl who sometimes participated in tournaments, had returned and handily won her battle over an Ace Trainer.
Another Ace Trainer had made it through, and AJ and Giselle both won their battles with ease, but that meant that half of the Tech students had been eliminated already. An unusual tournament, indeed.
The next round started very fast, since almost all the round one matches were over very quickly.
A1: Ash vs. Yellow
A2: Austin vs. Isabelle
B1: Misty vs. Brock
B2: AJ vs. Giselle
Alright, I'm sure some of you are ready to rip me a new one but it's been a long few months. Long story short, I am unemployed and deserately searching for work at all times lol. It feels like every moment not spent searching for a job is 'wasting time', even though I've gotten absolutely nowhere in over four months. That guilt thing is a hell of a drug, innit?
Anyway, to dry and make it up to you guys I'm going to try and give you tons of content leading up to Christmas! I'm going for a few updates, and maybe I'll post some old draft ideas that I didn't polish enough into complete fics if anyones interested in stuff like that? Rest assured, though, I'll be back!
I hope this one makes sense to everyone, I really wanted to include a lot from the idea of Pokemon Tech. I really like the idea of the school and that it can turn trainers into a sort of elitest snobs who trained there. In case it isn't fleshed out enough yet (because we still have one more chapter here), the idea is that rich or exceptionally prominent families send their kids to Pokemon Tech where they can design their own path. Some kids study, some kids prefer to look into challenging the league and then Master Trainers are a seperate class. But the idea is that, by far and away, they don't focus enough on actual battling and, despite the 'level' of some Pokemon at the school and how advanced some students appear that their Pokemon are simply not used to being hit back. That's why Alpesh can't push Ash around and why Joe and Lori are so surprised that their type advantages didn't bascially get them insta-wins. It'll be a lot less preach-y about that going forward, but it's an important part of what can seperate the 'good' from 'great' trainers.
Any Yellow fans out there? I love playing with the lore too much, I'm having a lot of fun tying large parts of different canons together. She won't be exactly the same as her manga counterpart, or nearly as prominent, but I thought it would be fun.
That's about all I have to say for this chapter, now its your turn to have things to say! Let me know what you think, and hopefully I'll be back again later this week to conclude this tournament!
Ash's Team: Pikachu, Butterfree, Pidgeotto
Pikachu: Electric - Male - Static - Rash | ThunderShock, Tail Whip, Growl, Nuzzle, Charm, Thunder Wave, Brick Break, Quick Attack
Butterfree: Bug/Flying - Male - Compound Eyes - Hardy | Tackle, String Shot, Harden, Gust, Supersonic, Confusion, Stun Spore, Poison Powder, Sleep Powder, Psybeam
Pidgeotto: Normal/Flying - Female - Keen Eye - Hasty | Tackle, Sand Attack, Gust, Quick Attack, Wing Attack
Misty's Team: Staryu, Goldeen, Tentacool
Staryu: Water - N/A - Natural Cure - Modest | Tackle, Rapid Spin, Harden, Water Gun, Confuse Ray, Swift
Goldeen: Water - Female - Swift Swim - Careful | Peck, Tail Whip, Supersonic
Tentacool: Water/Poison - Male - Liquid Ooze - Hardy | Water Gun, Poison Sting, Acid, Supersonic, Wrap
Brock's Team: Onix, Geodude, Zubat
Onix: Rock/Ground - Male - Rock Head - Calm | Tackle, Bind, Screech, Harden, Rock Throw
Geodude: Rock/Ground - Male - Sturdy - Relaxed | Tackle, Defense Curl, Rock Throw, Rock Polish, Mud Slap
Zubat: Poison/Flying - Male - Inner Focus - Hasty | Absorb, Supersonic, Astonish
Jessie's Team: Ekans, Spearow, Jynx
Ekans: Poison - Male - Shed Skin - Serious | Poison Sting, Bite, Wrap, Leer
Spearow: Normal/Flying - Male - Keen Eye - Hasty | Peck, Growl, Leer
Jynx: Ice/Psychic - Female - Oblivious - Modest | Powder Snow, Pound, Sweet Kiss, Lick, Confusion
James' Team: Koffing, Spearow, Weedle
Koffing: Poison - Male - Levitate - Bashful | Poison Gas, Tackle, Smog, Smokescreen
Spearow: Normal/Flying - Female - Keen Eye - Lax | Peck, Growl Leer
Weedle: Bug/Poison - Female - Swarm - Jolly | Poison Sting, String Shot
Meowth: Normal - Male - Pickup - Sassy | Fury Swipes, Scratch, Growl, Fake Out