Chapter 78: Testing Him
It had been quite some time since Ash and Nikki had exited the forest, and now the group found themselves at a roadside Pokémon Center. After getting their Pokémon looked at by Nurse Joy Ash decided to make a call to Professor Oak's lab in Pallet Town.
"I must say, Ash, you are amassing quite the team of powerful Pokémon," the professor commented.
"I know, and I'm going to need them all to win the Legenda League," Ash stated.
"I'm sure you will," Professor Oak agreed. "Now, I'm sure you didn't call just to chat, did you?"
"Actually I called to make some Pokémon changes," Ash said.
"And would I be correct in assuming that your newly caught Breloom was one of the Pokémon you wanted to exchange for?" the professor wondered.
"You'd be right," Ash confirmed. He went ahead and made the swaps, thanked the professor and hung up.
"So, are we ready to head out?" Nikki asked.
"Not yet. I want to try out Breloom in a battle," Ash said. "I want to see how he handles taking orders in a trainer battle."
"You're not thinking about having him battle one of my Pokémon, are you?" Nikki inquired.
"Well, I wanted to battle against you using one of my Pokémon," Ash explained. "You don't mind, do you?"
"No, not at all," Nikki stated. "I'm sure Nurse Joy will even let us use the battlefield out back." He was sure she'd say yes, but Ash felt as though he still needed to ask permission.
"Would it be okay if we use the battlefield behind the Pokémon Center for some training, Nurse Joy?" he asked.
"Of course you can. Gosh, it's been ages since anyone's used it," she said. "Most trainers just stop in to get their Pokémon checked up and then leave."
"In that case we'll make sure to put it to good use," Nikki said. "So, who are you going to put against him?"
"I'll have to see once we get out there," Ash replied.
"Would you mind if I watched? It's been a good while since I've seen a good battle," Nurse Joy said.
"We don't mind at all," Ash told her. "In fact, you can be the referee if you want."
"I'd be glad to be the referee," Nurse Joy said.
"Well then, let's get this battle underway." The two of them followed Nurse Joy outside to the battlefield. Just as she has said the field looked as though it hadn't seen much use.
"Alright, everyone! Come on out!" Ash shouted, tossing all his Poké Balls into the air. One by one Breloom, Scizor, Staraptor, Typhlosion and Aron all appeared.
"Oh my. All your Pokémon look so strong," Nurse Joy commented.
"Thank you," Ash said. His Pokémon appeared pleased at the praise they were getting. Now came the though part of choosing an opponent for Breloom.
"Oh man… this is going to be tougher than I thought," Ash said.
"Any one of your Pokémon would make a good opponent for Breloom," Nikki commented. Once he heard that they were looking for someone to battle against Breloom Scizor stepped forward.
"(I'll face him,)" the Pincer Pokémon declared. Ash looked at Scizor, wondering why he volunteered like that. Nikki, on the other hand, saw no issue with this.
"Why not use Scizor? He matched up pretty well with Breloom when you were trying to catch him. This might be the best option for you," she stated. Ash had to agree she made a lot of sense when she put it like that.
"Okay then. It'll be Scizor versus Breloom," he announced. "I'll let you use Scizor and…"
"(No. Let her command Breloom. I want you to command me,)" Scizor requested. This request caught Ash by surprise. Even though Scizor's demeanor was getting better he wasn't expecting the Pincer Pokémon to want him to command him in battle again.
"Are you sure about this, Scizor?" Ash asked.
"(I am,)" Scizor replied.
"But why?" Ash inquired.
"(I have my reasons,)" Scizor responded. Ash still didn't know what was up with Scizor, but he ultimately decided to drop the subject.
"Are you okay with this, Nikki?" he asked.
"I don't have a problem if he doesn't," Nikki replied.
"(If Scizor is that eager to battle me again then I'll oblige him,)" the Mushroom Pokémon said. With that taken care of the two trainers took their places on each side of the battlefield with their respective Pokémon. Pikachu and the other Pokémon stood on the sidelines with Nurse Joy as she got ready to begin the battle.
"Okay… are both sides ready?" she asked.
"I'm ready," Ash said.
"Me too," Nikki said.
"Alright then… begin!"
"Start off with Iron Tail, Breloom!" Nikki called. Breloom charged forward and swung his Tail, charged with Steel type energy at Scizor.
"Use X-Scissor to block that!" Ash countered. Scizor blocked the incoming Iron Tail using his X-Scissor, leaving the two Pokémon locked in a stalemate.
"Sky Uppercut!" Nikki shouted.
"Jump back!" Ash instructed. It looked like Breloom had a perfect opportunity to land a powerful blow with his Sky Uppercut, but Ash's quick realization of the situation gave Scizor time to dodge the incoming attack. Unfortunately for the Mushroom Pokémon this left him wide open for a counter-attack.
"Hit him with Night Slash!" Ash called. With Breloom still airborne and wide open after missing his Sky Uppercut he was an easy target for Scizor as he struck home with his Night Slash, sending the Mushroom Pokémon crashing down in front of Nikki.
"You okay, Breloom?" she asked.
"(Yes. It'll take more than that to keep me down,)" Breloom replied. Nikki breathed a sigh of relief as she got ready to go on the attack again.
"Okay, let's get bck on the offensive! Mach Punch!" she called.
"Counter with Bullet Punch!" Ash said. The two Pokémon swung at each other, locki g their claws together and effectively reaching a stalemate in the exchange.
"Looks like it's all even," Ash said.
"For now, maybe, but I don't plan on letting it stay that way," Nikki replied. "Iron Tail!" Even though their claws were locked together that still left Breloom's tail free, which he used to execute a powerful Iron Tail, striking Scizor in the side of the head. The impact forced the Pincer Pokémon back, forcing their claws to separate.
"Now hit him with Sky Uppercut!" Nikki shouted. With Scizor still stunned from the Iron Tail Breloom continued his assault with a Sky Uppercut, hitting Scizor under the chin and sending him crashing back in front of Ash.
"Scizor! Are you alright?!" Ash asked. Scizor tried to get back to his feet, but upon standing he stumbled forward and had to catch himself. It was clear that the last series of blows had had an effect on him.
"Okay, I think that's enough," Nurse Joy announced, bringing an end to the battle. "Your Scizor needs some attention."
"Yeah, you're right," Ash agreed. He then walked over to Scizor and helped him stand up.
"I know this was just a sparring battle, but I want you to know that I'm sorry I couldn't help you win," Ash told him. "Still, you showed me a lot out there, and I know that next time you'll win." Scizor just looked at him as he spoke.
"I hope I didn't overdo it there," Nikki said as she and Breloom approached them. Ash just shook his head.
"You didn't. I know we were just sparring but I know Scizor wouldn't have wanted you to hold back," he told her. "Besides, this showed me just how good of a trainer you are. You made it seem like Breloom was your Pokémon, not mine." Nikki smiled at the compliment she was getting.
"That's only natural. Remember, my father is one of the Elite 4," she stated.
"Oh yeah, I remember you telling me that a while back," Ash said. "In any case we need to get these two checked up by Nurse Joy." Before anyone could do anything else Ash's stomach began to grumble.
"And maybe get something to eat," he added.
"Well, it is getting a bit late," Nikki observed. "Perhaps I could use the Center's kitchen to whip up something for us."
"You're more than welcome to it," Nurse Joy offered.
"Great. While our Pokémon are getting checked out I'll get started on dinner," Nikki announced.
"Sounds good to me," Ash said. With the battle over everyone headed back inside the Pokémon Center to finish off the day.
After getting their Pokémon checked out and having enjoyed the amazing meal Nikki prepared Nurse Joy offered to let them spend the night at the Center and head out in the morning. Of course they accepted the invitation. That night, while everyone else was sleeping, Scizor was wide awake, thinking about his relationship with Ash. Despite his behavior up until this point Ash had done nothing but try and break through to the Pincer Pokémon.
"(No matter how I've acted towards him he's always shown me compassion,)" he said, making sure to whisper as to not wake any of the other Pokémon. "(It's just like Charizard told me that night.)" He sat there and thought about his retalionship with Ash some more, wondering if the trainer would really be worth his time.
"So far he hasn't shown me any reason not to trust him,)" he mused. "(I've seen how he treats the other Pokémon on his team, and they all appear to be quite strong.)" The more he thought about it the more he began to believe that maybe he should give Ash a chance. Eventually sleep began to overtake him as his eyelids began to close. Before completely drifting off he smiled as he came to a decision.
The next morning Ash and Nikki were up bright and early. Once again Nikki made use of the Center's kitchen as she made breakfast for everyone. After eating they all gathered in front of the Center.
"We want to thank you for letting us spend the night here," Ash said.
"Yes. Even though camping out under the stars is nice there's no beating a roof over your head," Nikki added.
"It was my pleasure," Nurse Joy replied. "Good luck on the rest of your journey." With that Ash and Nikki left the Pokémon Center as they continued on towards their next destination.
A sparring session may have given Scizor some insight on his relationship with Ash. Does this mean the Pincer Pokémon will finally start obeying him? Find out in the next chapter of Search for Power!
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