Chapter 21: Paul vs Greta
The next morning.
At the Lavender Town's Pokemon Center.
Barry was up and seemingly in deep thought. "Catching Nuzleaf was good, however..." He looked at his Pokeballs. "I think it's time for some more traveling but..."
At the Saffron City's Pokemon Center.
Paul, Hilda, and Daisy were getting dressed.
The Pokemon he had chosen for the battle against Greta was decided. "It's time."
"Did you remember, that Greta chooses the number of Pokemon using that spin wheel?" Hilda reminded.
"I'm aware of that and I know what Pokemon will be needed to battle regardless of the number," Paul replied.
"What Pokemon will you be using?" Hilda asked curiously.
Paul didn't say anything instead he left the Pokemon Center.
"Hey, wait for a second, you didn't answer my question!" Hilda called out.
Daisy just smiled. "That guy sure is secretive, though, I'm sure he's going to give us a good battle to watch."
They all arrived at the Battle Area.
"Guess, Barry didn't arrive yet," Hilda said.
"Doesn't matter, he'll show up, but, if not, that's his loss," Paul said.
"Gee, that's not nice," Hilda muttered.
Paul ignored her and walked up to the large doors. "Hey, Greta, It's me, Paul, I'm here for the battle!"
The doors began to open as a voice was heard. "Great, let's begin the battle, Uss!"
Maylene was there and so was Scott. "Greetings, I hope to see this battle, and what the outcome will be."
"I'll win, no matter what," Paul said. "So, you ready Greta?'
Greta grinned with a battle look. "You bet, Uss!" She took out her Pokeball. "First off, everyone must remove their shoes and socks, Dojo rules!"
"That's weird..." Hilda said feeling awkward.
"Weird or not, that's the rules, I suppose we have no choice," Daisy spoke.
After that was done, Paul and Greta entered their battle ring.
"Also, spin the wheel, depending on which number stops at, will show the number of Pokemon we will use, I'll overlook this! Uss!" Greta stated.
Paul placed his hand on the lever and activated it.
The wheel spun around, then it began to slow down and finally landed on the three dots.
"Good a three-on-three match!" Greta said looking excited.
Paul smirked. "Good, let's begin this battle!"
Maylene was the referee. "Listen, the battle 3-3 will begin, only the challenger will be allowed to substitute their Pokemon, the match is over when neither side's Pokemon can continue, so, begin!"
"Medicham, Hariyama, and Conkeldurr!"
Hilda recognized the other third Pokemon. "Conkeldurr, that's from the Unova Region!"
Daisy was amazed. "Wow, another Fighting Pokemon from the Unova Region, such a spectacular moment!"
Paul was surprised, though, he focus. "Scyther, Hariyama, and Sawk, stand by for battle!"
"Well, a Scyther, Hariyama, and Sawk, this should be good," Greta said looking intrigued.
"Medicham, you're up first, Uss!" Greta said.
"Scyther, you're up too!" Paul said.
"Now Scyther vs Medicham, begin!" Maylene announced.
"Scyther use Swords Dance!"
The Mantis Pokemon began to do its dance and increased's attack power.
"Powering up your Pokemon's attack is a good move," Greta praised. "However, I don't intend to let you win using that move easily, Medicham, use Ice Punch!"
Medicham made a fist of ice and delivered the punch towards Scyther.
"Use Agility!" Paul commanded.
The Mantis Pokemon evaded the attack using the speed attack. "That was fast!" Greta exclaimed though she was calm.
Medicham was seemingly calm and was closing its eyes.
"Use Air Slash!"
Scyther launched blades of energy toward the Meditate Pokemon.
"Use Detect!"
Medicham was able to dodge the attack, however, Paul saw that coming. "Thought you'd do that."
Greta was puzzled about what he meant by that, Paul continued. "Scyther use Agility again!"
The Mantis Pokemon did the same move, only for it to appear quickly behind Medicham, surprising it and Greta at the same time.
"Use Air Slash again!"
This time the attack landed its mark dealing super effective damage.
Medicham fell on the floor.
"Now, use finish it off with Aerial Ace!" Paul commanded.
"Medicham use Ice Punch!"
Once again, the Meditate Pokemon delivered another ice fist, however, the moment its attack made contact, the Mantis Pokemon vanished instead of taking a direct hit in the chest.
Medicham fell on its back with dizzy eyes.
"Medicham is unable to battle, Scyther wins!" Maylene announced.
"Alright, Paul's Scyther won!" Hilda cheered.
"Yes, normally, Greta has a way of opponent's speed to her advantage, in other words, she uses strategies to counter speed them, however, Paul knew that she would, so, he created a diversion to make it appear she was in control and that's when he took the right time to strike!" Scott explained.
"So, the training he did seems to be paying off," Daisy said. "On top of that, he saw her match against Maylene, so that must've given him some ideas."
"Medicham, return!" Greta called as she looked at the Pokeball. "You did excellent work." She then looked in Paul's direction. "Nice job, you noticed that I use countermeasures against an opponent with speed, though, you took advantage of that and caused me to let my guard down, that was smart thinking."
She then looked at her Hariyama. "Hariyama, you're up next. Uss!"
"Return Scyther for now!" Paul called back which the Mantis Pokemon did and flew behind him.
"Hariyama, you're up next!"
"Focus Punch!" Paul and Greta commanded at the same time.
Both Pokemon delivered their punches which collided, they struggled to push each other, then their attack exploded which sent them a few feet away.
"Hariyama Arm Thrust!" Greta commanded.
Greta's Hariyama ran up to Paul's Hariyama and unleashed a barrage of Arm Thrusts.
"Catch one of Hariyama's hands!" Which Paul's Hariyama did. "Now Seismic Toss!"
Hariyama jumped into the air and straight down while holding onto Greta's Hariyama with great force.
Greta's Hariyama took some serious damage, though it got back on its feet.
"Hariyama use Force Palm!"
"Protect now!"
Greta's Hariyama created a blue barrier around its body and blocked its opponent's attack.
"Now use Dynamic Punch!" Greta's Hariyama created a fist that had a ball of light surrounding it and punched the other Hariyama in the face and then it looked dizzy, but it was more than that.
"Oh no, it's confused now," Paul said.
"Now use Focus Punch while it's confused!" Greta commanded.
Her Hariyama did, though, even after being attacked, Paul's Hariyama kept its composure. "Hariyama, you're tougher than ever, but you're still confused, so, return now!"
Hariyama returned to the purple-haired trainer.
"Good choice, now, what's next?" Greta asked calmly.
"Scyther, you're up again!"
"Scyther!" The Mantis Pokemon said.
"Use Aerial Ace!"
"Hariyama use Protect!"
Greta's Hariyama created the blue barrier again which blocked Sycther's attack.
"Now grab it and use your Seismic Toss!"
Greta's Hariyama grabbed hold of Scyther and jumped in the air and fell with great force.
Scyther was on the ground, though, it stood back up despite panting.
Paul was relieved to see Scyther could still battle, however, he knew if he would attack, Hariyama would block it again with Protect, though, it has a low percentage of working.
Then he saw Scyther looking determined to continue fighting, Paul looked at his Pokemon's expression and nodded. "Scyther, Aerial Ace again!"
"Predictable..." Greta said. "Hariyama use Protect again!"
"Scyther use Feint!"
This caused Hariyama's Protect barrier to fade away. "Oh no!" Greta yelled in shock.
"Now continue with Aerial Ace and use all the power you got!"
Scyther soared right into Hariyama's chest, it was the verge of fainting but..." Hariyama, use the last of your strength and use Knock Off!"
Hariyamae slammed its palm right down onto Scyther which caused it to fall onto the ground.
Hariyama and Scyther were laying unconscious with dizzy eyes.
"Hariyama and Scyther are both unable to battle!" Maylene announced.
Both trainers called their Pokemon.
"Hariyama, you did great, I knew you would be good, but, you're stronger than I thought, this battle is getting me fired up," Greta said with a lot of enthusiasm. "Now, Conkeldurr, you're up!"
"Sawk, you're up this time," Paul said.
The Karate Pokemon walked into the battle ring.
"Sawk use Bulk Up!"
The Karate Pokemon bulked up while its muscles and biceps glowed dark red. "Sa-wk!"
"Conkeldurr, use Bulk Up too!"
The Muscular Pokemon bulked just like Sawk did.
"Karate Chop!" Paul commanded.
"Focus Punch!" Greta commanded.
Conkeldurr tossed his stone pillars aside and delivered a punch against Sawk's Karate Chop.
"Both seem to be evenly matched," Hilda said.
Both Fighting Pokemon struggled to push each other away with determination in their eyes.
"Sawk, grab Conkeldurr's wrist, and swing yourself up!" Everyone gasped at the bizarre command.
Sawk used its free hand and grabbed the part of Conkeldurr's wrist then swung itself around. "Now bounce off that pillar and use Fire Punch in Conkeldurr's face!"
Sawk instantly bounced off its feet off the pillar and pulled back its fist which was consumed in flame and landed a direct hit on Conkeldurr's face.
Conkeldurr took damage and nearly fell over.
"Good job, he had Sawk use Conkeldurr's wrist as a monkey bar to swing itself and then had it bounce off the stone pillar to deliver a close-range attack," Scott said looking impressed.
"Yeah, Paul knows how to put on a good battle," Daisy added.
"If this keeps up, Paul will win easily," Hilda said.
However, Greta wasn't worried. "Alright, time to take this battle more seriously, Uss!"
Conkeldurr shared the same feeling. "Use Focus Blast!"
The muscular Pokemon put its hands together gathering energy between and threw a large ball of energy at the Karate Pokemon.
"Sawk uses Karate Chop to deflect it!" Paul commanded.
"I was hoping you'd do that!" Greta said with a grin. "Use the pillar as a baseball and hit the Focus Blast!"
Everyone was confused at the bizzare command, though, Conkeldurr used one of the stone pillars and swung it like a baseball at the Focus Blast which made it soar even faster than ever.
Sawk had no time to dodge and was hit hard in the chest sending it crashing plus creating a smoke explosion.
Once the smoke was clear, Sawk was laying down on its back with dizzy eyes.
"Sawk is unable to battle, Conkeldurr wins!"
"Wow, Greta had her Conkeldurr swing one of its stone pillar-like a baseball bat and hit the Focus Blast as if it were a baseball," Scott said intrigued.
"Yes, in doing that, it made the Focus Blast not just stronger but faster, which Sawk wasn't able to dodge in time," Daisy added.
"Poor Sawk," Hilda said feeling sorry for the Karate Pokemon.
"Sawk return," Paul called back. "You did okay, take some rest."
Greta grinned. "Both of us are down to our last Pokemon. Uss!"
"I'm aware of that, I intend to win, Hariyama, you're up next!"
"Hari-Yama!" The Arm Thrust Pokemon said looking determined.
"Now use Arm Thrust!"
"Use both stone pillars to block that attack!" Greta commanded.
Hariyama went close to Conkeldurr and unleashed a barrage of Arm Thrusts, however, the Muscular Pokemon used both stone pillars to defend itself.
"Now use Strength!"
Conkeldurr's body glowed brightly red and swung one of the stone pillars at Hariyama.
"Use Arm Thrust to deflect that!"
Hariyama thrust one of its large hands and deflected the stone pillar, which the Conkeldurr off balance.
"Now use Force Palm!"
The Arm Thrust Pokemon used its other hand and palmed the Muscular Pokemon on the chest which exploded.
"Oh no!" Greta yelled.
Muscular Pokemon took a few steps back, but, it regained its balance. "Good, Bulk Up again!"
Conkeldurr bulked up it's body.
"Great, now's attack and defense has gotten stronger than before," Paul muttered in annoyance.
"Use Stone Edge now!"
The Muscular Pokemon summoned sharp stones and send each one directly to the Arms Thrust Pokemon.
"Block it!"
Hariyama used its large hands to block each of the stones.
"I was hoping you'd do that, now Focus Punch!"
Conkeldurr delivered a punch right into Hariyama's chest, dealing a lot of damage.
"Oh no!" Paul said a little worried.
Hariyama stayed strong, though, it was clear, one more direct attack, and it's over.
"I think it's time we end this, Conkeldurr uses another Stone Edge!"
Hariyama was a bit concerned, however... "Hariyama, do you want to lose the way you did before back at the Battle Pyramid, I know that was mostly my fault, but, I refuse to go down like we did when we battled Brandon, so, let's show them our full power!"
Hearing that made Hariyama's concerned expression fade away and looked more determined than ever.
The Stone Edges made contact and created smoke.
No sound was heard, Paul looked closely at where Hariyama was.
Greta just smiled. "Looks like I win..." However she was wrong the moment that the smoke cleared, revealing Hariyama was not just fine, but, it was holding the stones in its arms.
"What?" Greta exclaimed in shock.
"Conkeldurr?" Her Pokemon said sharing the same reaction.
"Oh, my," Scott said looking more impressed.
"Hariyama caught the Stone Edges!" Hilda pointed out.
Paul was impressed and looked up at the move it learned. "So, Fling, it's dark type attack, though, it gains more power the stronger the item it throws,"
He smirked. "Alright, toss those Stone Edges using Fling!"
"Conkeldurr use your pillars to block those stones!" Greta commanded.
Her Muscular Pokemon did so, but, Paul just smirked. "Good, Hariyama, rush in and snatch away those stone pillars!"
The Arms Thrust Pokemon quickly rushed over to Conkeldurr and snatched both of its stone pillars. "Now, Fling those Stone Pillars with everything you got!"
Hariyama tossed the stone pillars at Conkeldurr hitting his face and his mid-stomach which landed a critical hit.
"Oh no!" Greta cried.
Conkeldurr was lying down on its back with dizzy eyes. "Conkel-Durr..."
"Conkeldurr is unable to battle, Hariyama is the winner! The victory goes to Paul from Veilstone City!" Maylene announced.
A faint smile formed on Paul's face and he walked over to his Pokemon. "Hariyama...you did great, all of you did."
Sawk and Scyther nodded.
Greta went beside Conkeldurr. "Conkeldurr, you did a good job, now you and the others take a good rest," She returned each of her Pokemon to her Pokeballs.
She then walked over to Paul. "I must admit you have more talent than I thought, I also noticed the more we battled, the more fired up I got."
Hilda giggled. "Paul has that effect on everyone he battles."
Paul turned away hiding his flustered face.
Greta recollected herself. "Now, I award you with the Guts Symbol."
Paul took the symbol and placed it in his symbol case. "Two down."
"Well done," Scott approached the purple-haired trainer. "That battle was awesome, I look forward to seeing what else you have in store, I wish you good luck through your journey, see ya all later."
"Thanks," Paul said despite not smiling.
Daisy smiled. "You did great, I'm proud our training paid off."
Paul then had a serious look. "True, however, the other Battle Frontier won't be easy, so, I'll have to come up with different plans to overcome each challenge."
"Right, first, I need to train for my gym rematch," Hilda suggested.
"Fine, first off, I need to get my Pokemon checked," Paul said.
Maylene smiled. "I guess Paul has changed, I hope he continues to do so, for his brother's sake."
Greta stood by her friend. "That Paul guy sure is a strange one, but, his battling skills are something, he came up with good ideas to overcome mine, I look forward to seeing what else he'll accomplish in the future."
Maylene's smile didn't leave her face and she nodded. "Right."
At the Saffron City Gym
The mysterious red-haired trainer stood out the front door. "Looks like this is it, I will win."
At Lavander Town's Pokemon center.
Barry was checked out and his Pokemon were rearing to go, however, he glanced at Nurse Joy. "Nurse Joy, did you send that message to the Pokemon Center in Saffron City?"
The nurse nodded. "Yes, I'm sure your friends will get it."
The blonde boy smiled. "Paul, Daisy, Hilda, I need to travel on my own for a while longer, I need to learn more on my own, but, I have a feeling I'll run into you guys soon, right, now, I'm off to do more training."
End of chapter.