Hey readers - here we are with the next chapter : )
I'm actually really happy that I've been able to post this today. I've been suffering from extremely painful cramps in both of my hands this last week, so I'm lucky that I already had this chapter done because otherwise there's no way this would have got written in time : )
Anyway, I'd like to thank several people that reviewed the last chapter. They left me some very useful and constructive criticism, but they were also very kind about it, and I am going to try to take some of what they said onboard after I'm done with this episode. I would like to say more on this subject, but as I said before, day to day tasks and even typing is difficult for me right now, so I'm trying to keep this brief.
On that note, let's get down to business. I'm happy to say that the winner of the last voting topic was... Venonat! For reasons that will become apparent later on, this is actually HUGE in terms of story-telling for my rewrite of the Indigo League : )
I'd like to say a MASSIVE thank you to everyone that has reviewed, favourited and followed this story. The support really means a lot to me, especially at the moment, so thank you all very much. And finally, please remember that Pokemon is not mine, only my OCs are : )
I hope you enjoy this chapter : )
Challenge of the Samurai - Part 4
Almost paralysed with fear, Ash's russet coloured eyes immediately widened to almost comical proportions as he stared at the other boy holding the sword against his head, beyond terrified. The raven haired boy couldn't help but tremble slightly as a wave of unpleasant images flashed through his mind, each more gruesome and horrible than the last. He could scarcely believe it, and yet the reality was right in front of him. He was going to die. Oh God, he was going to die. He was going to be murdered all the way out here in the middle of nowhere, and save for his Pokemon, he was all on his own. That thought almost scared Ash as much as death itself. If he really was going to die out here in the forest, he didn't want to be on his own. Ash knew that he should be grateful that his friends weren't there at the moment, meaning they were hopefully safe, but he wished he could have seen them again, could have said goodbye. Truly, things were looking very bleak for the raven haired trainer right now. Never before in his far too short life had he ever felt so hopeless...
"ASH!" two very familiar voices suddenly called out.
For one brief moment, Ash really did believe that he was imagining things. That perhaps by thinking about his dear travelling companions, he had somehow summoned up an illusion of them in his mind. But then the sound of frantic footsteps approaching met his ears, and reality set in.
Ash wasn't just imagining that his friends were rushing to his rescue. They really were rushing to his rescue! A gentle warmth of affection immediately pulsed through Ash's entire body at their display of loyalty. And now it was his side that had the advantage. Now it was three against one, which might not seem fair, but this was a fight for survival. Ash would take what he could get.
So with their arrival, Ash realised that perhaps things weren't quite as hopeless as he had first thought...
"T-that sword doesn't scare me" Ash said bravely, impressed at how level he managed to keep his tone. Clearly the presence of his friends was boosting his confidence, "There's no way you're stealing my Pokemon!"
The Samurai let out a low snort, seemingly amused by Ash's accusation. At the same time, Nolan and Misty finally reached them, coming over to flank Ash, all three of them staring at the Samurai. Nolan was the only one that didn't seem to be intimidated.
"I am no Pokemon thief" the Samurai denied the words that Ash had spoken, wanting to dispel that idea from the other boy's mind as quickly as possible.
Ash and Misty both blinked in surprise. Then confusion set in for the two of them. The two young trainers both thought that the sword that the eccentric boy carried spoke for itself, and was certain proof that he was dangerous. But if the boy wasn't a Pokemon thief, then who was he? And much more importantly, what did he want?
Once again, Nolan was the only human member of their group that wasn't asking himself these questions. He already knew exactly what the Samurai wanted. Before he had the chance to explain to his friends however that the sword-wielding boy wasn't there to harm them, Misty burst out with the question that was weighing heavily upon her and Ash's minds.
"Who are you then?" the orange haired girl demanded to know, fear lacing her tone.
It was more than a little obvious from her shaking voice and tense shoulders that Misty was still very unnerved by her earlier encounter with the Samurai. Her vermillion eyes were narrowed, her fists clenched, as she tried to stand her ground despite her nervousness.
That was the moment that it all clicked into place for Nolan.
"Wait a minute!" the golden haired boy exclaimed as realisation washed over him, "This is the danger you were trying to tell me about Misty? The reason we came rushing back here so urgently?"
Misty turned her gaze away from the Samurai and over to her blonde haired friend. When she noticed that he didn't seem at all worried, she gaped at him incredulously.
"Of course this is the danger I was warning you about!" Misty couldn't help but snap at him, looking at Nolan as if he'd suddenly gone crazy, "Why aren't you more freaked out?! He's holding a sword to your best friend's head!"
Surprising the distressed girl immensely once more, Nolan just calmly smiled at her.
"Yeah, this is just the Samurai" Nolan replied casually.
Ash and Misty both stared at their golden haired friend in confusion. Across from them, the Samurai just smirked in amusement. He made no move to lower his blade however, still keeping it within range of Ash's skull.
"The Samurai?" Ash repeated slowly.
"What, you know him?" Misty added as well, her tone incredulous.
Nolan smiled patiently as he shook his head. He understood that this must be very confusing for his two human friends, not to mention a little scary. The blonde haired boy hastened to explain everything before the situation got any worse.
"Not well or anything" Nolan informed them, whilst throwing the Samurai a somewhat apologetic smile, "In fact, I only met him this morning".
"How? When?" Ash demanded to know, eyeing the sword that was still barely an inch away from his face with great fear.
"After Misty ran away from the main group and I followed her into the forest" Nolan explained, and Ash and Misty both nodded their understanding, "Whilst I was searching for her, I met the Samurai. He challenged me to a Pokemon Battle and I accepted".
Those words caused both Ash's and Misty's eyes to widen in surprise.
"Whoa, you had an Official Trainer Battle?" Ash asked in a slightly awed tone, since he himself had still yet to have one, "Cool!"
"So the Samurai isn't a Pokemon thief, but a Pokemon trainer" Misty deduced, and Nolan nodded his head once in confirmation.
"Precisely" the golden haired boy said.
"What happened in your battle?" Ash asked his best friend eagerly.
At the raven haired boy's words, a huge grin lit up Nolan's entire face. He affectionately squeezed Meadow, who was resting in his arms, before replying to the question.
"Well, it was two against two" the golden haired boy told his best friend happily, filling him in on everything that he had missed, "First up was Welkin against Samurai's Kakuna. Welkin won, but then lost to his Scyther. Meadow managed to finish it off, but it was close. We only just barely won. The Samurai is a really good trainer... even if he is still scaring my friends".
Those last few words were said pointedly in the direction of the Samurai. The eccentric boy looked mildly amused again, but thankfully he took Nolan's hint. At long last, he finally lowered his sword away from Ash's head. Ash, Misty and Pikachu all took a collective sigh of relief.
"It was a thrilling match, but alas... victory slipped past me and my warriors" the Samurai lamented, before he quickly brightened up again, "However, my comrades and I are quick to brush off our past defeats. Wallowing in self-pity is not the way of the Samurai. I am also shrewd, fearless, and highly skilled in the art of combat. I have been searching the forest for you".
The Samurai gestured grandly towards Ash, who in turned looked bewildered upon hearing those specific words.
"What d'you want from me?" the raven haired boy asked, unable to help but sound slightly nervous. The Samurai was still carrying a sword after all.
"A Pokemon match like I had with your friend" the Samurai spelled it out clearly for the other trainer by snatching a pokeball off of his belt and holding it up for the world to see, "Let us see if I can redeem myself for my earlier failure, and triumph over you instead!"
It was then that the full impact of everything he'd been told finally hit Ash. The raven haired Pokemon trainer turned to his best friend, a startled expression plastered all over his face.
"Wait a second! You won?!" he exclaimed, a somewhat surprised edge to his tone, "You actually won your first Official Trainer Battle?!"
"There's no need to sound so surprised Ash" Nolan couldn't help but laugh good-naturedly.
A huge grin immediately overtook Ash's face at the news.
"That's awesome Nolan" Ash told his best friend earnestly, nothing but genuine sincerity in his tone, "Congratulations!"
"Yeah, that's a really big step for any new trainer to take" Misty concurred, smiling brightly at the golden haired boy, "Well done!"
Sensing just how pleased his two friends were for him, Nolan couldn't help but blush a faint shade of pink and rub the back of his head sheepishly.
"Thanks a lot you guys" the blonde haired boy smiled modestly, "But Meadow and Welkin deserve a lot more credit than I do. They were both really great today".
"Saur" Meadow said tiredly but happily from his arms, pleased that her efforts weren't being brushed over.
"Pika" Pikachu squeaked up at the little Grass Type Pokemon from his position by Ash's feet.
"Geotto" Pidgeotto offered Meadow her congratulations as well.
It was the soft chirp of her voice that reminded Ash that his Flying Type Pokemon was out of her pokeball and was present in the group. The raven haired boy looked confused for a moment, as he tried to remember why he had let her out in the first place.
Then it all came flooding back to him.
A panicked gasp slipped the raven haired boy's lips as all the blood drained out of his face. Now a ghastly shade of white, Ash's russet coloured eyes widened in acute horror as he remembered exactly what he had been in the middle of before the Samurai had shown up.
"Oh no!" he cried out in despair, attracting everybody's attention and causing them all to stare at him in bewilderment, "I forgot about Weedle!"
Whipping around, Ash's heart sank.
Exactly as the young Pokemon trainer had predicted, the spot where the wild Weedle had collapsed thanks to the efforts of Pidgeotto was now totally empty. Ash frantically looked around the forest clearing, his sharp eyes scanning the area for any sign of the Hairy Bug Pokemon. He quickly spotted it as Weedle was squirming away as fast as it could, trying desperately to escape into some bushes.
"I'll get it" Ash growled determinedly under his breath, and he took careful aim with the pokeball that up until this point, he had forgotten he was even still holding, "Pokeball! Go!"
With every ounce of strength that Ash possessed, he hurled the empty pokeball after the retreating figure of Weedle. Sadly, it was already far too late for a successful capture to by made that day though.
"Wee..." Weedle let out a shrill little squeak as it dodged the incoming pokeball. Finally reaching the bushes, the Hairy Bug Pokemon dove into them, and disappeared from sight completely. The pokeball clattered uselessly to the forest floor in its wake.
The capture had not been successful.
Ash couldn't help it when a sharp sigh of disappointment and annoyance escaped him. Striding angrily across the clearing, he snatched up the unfortunately still empty pokeball and clipped it back on to his belt. He then plucked off another pokeball as he stomped back over to the others.
"You worked really hard Pidgeotto" Ash acknowledged, sensing that the large Flying Type Pokemon was just as annoyed by her wasted efforts as Ash himself was, "So return and rest up for now".
"Geotto" Pidgeotto chirped as she was called back into the confines of her pokeball in a beam of bright red light.
Ash smiled fondly for a moment as he clipped the occupied pokeball back on to his belt, but the expression didn't stay on his face for long. Turning back to face the Samurai, his russet coloured eyes narrowed into a furious glare, and his mouth twisted into a dark scowl. Everything about the raven haired Pokemon Trainer spoke of his pure and unadulterated rage. Gone was any trace of fear that Ash might have held for the other boy before. Now all he felt was a righteous burning anger.
"That Weedle only got away because you mixed me up!" Ash spat bitterly at the Samurai, his words undoubtedly a challenge and an accusation.
Rather than be fazed by being the target of such intense anger like many other people would, the Samurai merely regarded Ash like he was a piece of dirt on the bottom of his shoe. The eccentric boy's face twisted into a mockery of a smile as he responded to the accusations against him.
"Don't blame your failure on me" the Samurai told Ash bluntly, his tone practically oozing condescension, which only served to fan the flames of Ash's brewing outrage, "It is not my fault that your Pokemon handling is dim-witted and clumsy".
Ash ground his teeth together so hard it was a wonder that they didn't all shatter instantly. His blood boiling, the raven haired Pokemon trainer stalked over to the other boy and got all up in his personal space.
"Oh yeah? Well, what do you know about Pokemon?" Ash snarled in the Samurai's face, practically quivering with fury by this point. He couldn't believe the sheer gall of this kid. First he showed up, totally unannounced, and threatened him with a sword, completely distracting everyone from what they were doing. It was all his fault that Weedle had escaped, and now he was trying to turn it all back on him. Well Ash wasn't having it, "I bet I could beat you in a Pokemon match blindfolded!"
Of to the side, Nolan wasn't quite as sure as his best friend was about that. He knew from first hand experience that the Samurai was an extremely talented Pokemon Trainer. He wasn't about to point that out to Ash though. Not with the mood his best friend was currently in. Nolan didn't much fancy having his head bitten off, thank you very much.
"There is one way to find out" the Samurai responded to Ash's challenge by shaking the pokeball in his hand vigorously.
Ash grit his teeth and nodded. Everyone watched tensely as he reached down to his belt and ran his fingers over the pokeballs there for a moment. After a moment of deliberation, Ash selected a pokeball and plucked it off his belt. He confidently held it up towards the Samurai, who smirked back at him from across the forest clearing.
"How many Pokemon do you want to use?" the raven haired boy knew he needed to ask before they went any further with this.
The Samurai regarded him thoughtfully for a moment before replying to the question.
"A two on two match is acceptable to me if it is to you" the eccentric boy finally responded, "A trainer loses when both of his chosen warriors are unable to continue. Agreed?"
"Agreed" Ash nodded in acceptance of the proposed terms, before he enlarged the pokeball in his hand and tossed it high into the air, "Pidgeotto, do your stuff!"
In a burst of scarlet light, Pidgeotto materialised in the forest clearing once more. Unlike what Ash had come to expect from her however, this time Pidgeotto didn't emerge already in the sky and ready to go. Oh no. This time, Pidgeotto materialised on the ground, and what was worse, she was fast asleep!
Needless to say, Ash hadn't been expecting that.
"Uh oh!" Ash exclaimed, utterly aghast.
Off to the sidelines, Nolan and Misty couldn't help but frown at their raven haired friend disapprovingly. It was clear to the two of them that Pidgeotto was still far too exhausted from her fight with the wild Weedle to be able to battle another Pokemon again so soon. Nolan opened his mouth to tell his best friend as much, but unfortunately for the golden haired boy, Misty beat him to it.
"Ash, don't you know you have to let your Pokemon rest once in a while?" Misty told him bluntly, feeling that she was stating the obvious by needing to tell him that.
"Well, I..." Ash stammered, immediately feeling flustered.
The truth was he had allowed himself to get so riled up by the Samurai's comments, that he had thrown Pidgeotto into the match without really pausing to think about it. The raven haired boy hoped that he wasn't about to pay dearly for making such a foolish mistake.
"Only a novice goes into battle with a pooped-out Pokemon" the Samurai cried with a noticeable amount of glee in his tone, "Your blunder shall cost you dearly!"
And with that, the Samurai tossed his pokeball high into the air as well.
"Pinsir, assume battle mode!" the eccentric boy exclaimed as the red and white sphere began its descent back down to Earth.
As it tumbled down towards the ground, the pokeball suddenly snapped open, releasing an orb of pulsating bright red light. From his spot on the sidelines, Nolan watched along with everyone else as the ball of light slowly morphed into a large shape. And once again, it was one that the golden haired boy wasn't familiar with.
The creature that had appeared in front of them was just as intimidating as the Samurai's Scyther had been, perhaps even more so. It was a bipedal coleopteran Pokemon with an oval-shaped, dull-brown body that was segmented. Its dark eyes were narrowed dangerously, and its mouth was strange because it ran vertically up the Pokemon's face rather than horizontally. But what really made it so intimidating to face down were the two huge pincers that adorned its head. A sleek silver in colour, the two horns were coated in lethal looking barbs. It clicked them menacingly at Pidgeotto, who quickly woke up upon hearing the metallic clicking sound.
Misty let out a little shriek of fright upon laying eyes on the coleopteran creature. Thankfully however, she didn't run away this time, though Nolan wouldn't have blamed her if she had. That thing was terrifying. So as Misty began cowering behind him, Nolan couldn't help but wonder what on Earth the Pokemon actually was.
Apparently, he wasn't the only one.
"W-what is that?" Ash stammered out, taking an instinctive step backwards when the creature, whatever it was, clicked its gigantic pincers menacingly at him.
Now determined to find out more about the Pokemon that was to be his first opponent in what was also going to be his very first Official Trainer Battle ever too, Ash pulled his pokedex out of his pocket, and quickly aimed it at the scary-looking creature before him.
"Pinsir - the Stag Beetle Pokemon" Dexter reported after it had identified the creature, and thus provided the group of young trainers with the Pokemon's name, "This fearsome Pokemon uses its powerful claws to put the squeeze on its opponents".
Nolan couldn't help but grimace after hearing the report that Ash's pokedex had made. It sounded as though Pinsir was just as powerful as the Samurai's Scyther was, and not to mention as equally as dangerous. The golden haired trainer immediately found himself hoping against hope that Ash hadn't just bitten off more than he could chew. Nolan had an awful feeling that his best friend might have done just that though.
"You'd better play this carefully Ash!" the golden haired boy called out in warning to Ash, who glanced back over his shoulder at him, "It sounds like Pinsir are a pretty tough Pokemon to battle against!"
Ash, loathed though he was to admit it, was forced to agree with his closest friend's assessment.
"I know" the raven haired boy spat out begrudgingly, annoyed at how the Samurai's smirk seemed to widen at his words, "But I believe Pidgeotto can beat it!"
"Geotto!" Pidgeotto cawed out happily, deeply touched by her human's unwavering faith in her.
Clearly taking offensive at the remark, and rising to the challenge that it felt the words posed, the Samurai's Pinsir reared up, and clenched its silver pincers together in a menacing fashion. It had the desired effect, for both its opponent and her trainer gulped nervously, clearly intimidated by the display.
Ash swallowed hard, but forced himself to work through his nerves and face this head on. He reminded himself to focus on how annoyed he was with the Samurai, at how the eccentric boy had cost him the chance to capture that wild Weedle. Using the anger that memory caused to rid himself of any anxiety and to fuel his motivation instead, the raven haired Pokemon trainer quickly leapt into action.
"Pidgeotto!" Ash exclaimed, seizing upon the chance to be the one to start this match before the Samurai could do the same, "Let's play this carefully! Use your Sand Attack!"
Pidgeotto furiously began beating her wings together as she quickly swooped down low over the ground. Kicking up a lot of dirt and sand, the large avian creature then sent it thundering towards her enemy. Within seconds, Pinsir was shrouded behind a thick curtain of grit and dirt, and soon enough the young trainers could barely even see it anymore.
"Nice job Pidgeotto!" Ash cheered on his Pokemon, pleased at how well she had started this fight.
"Pidgeotto" the large Flying Type Pokemon cooed happily back at him.
Unfortunately, despite having landed dead-on, the attack seemed to have a minimal effect on the Samurai's Pinsir. Within seconds, the large coleopteran creature had shrugged off the Sand Attack, without so much as getting a single grain of dirt in its eyes. Ash and Pidgeotto couldn't help but look on in horror when they realised this.
"Sir! Pinsir!" Pinsir snarled menacingly at the pair of them, clicking its lethally sharp horns together in irritation.
"I see you are trying to deploy the same strategy that the Observant One did earlier with another of my warriors" the Samurai remarked, a smirk playing across his features, "Alas, this shall not work as effectively for you as it did for him. A true Samurai learns from his past failures after all. I shall not fall for the same trick twice".
"What do you mean?!" Ash demanded to know, wondering if the Samurai was somehow cheating.
The Samurai's smirk became incredibly smug as he replied to Ash's question.
"In my battle against your friend, he cleverly blinded my chosen warrior before coming in with a string of rapid attacks whilst our defenses were down" the Samurai explained, and when Ash glanced over at the golden haired boy in question, Nolan silently nodded, confirming that the Samurai was telling the truth, "So after our defeat, and whilst I searched the forest for you, I took a moment aside with my Pokemon. I instructed them that from now on, if they ever hear the word 'Sand' whilst in combat, they are to shut their eyes immediately. Behold - this strategy has proven very fortuitous for me and my warriors!"
Ash snarled angrily upon hearing the Samurai's smug words. The raven haired boy quickly decided that it was time to try another approach.
"Pidgeotto! Let's try your Gust attack instead!" Ash commanded to the Pokemon soaring in the air above his head.
"Geotto!" Pidgeotto crowed loudly. She immediately began beating her wings together as fast as she could. It took a while, but eventually she summoned up a swirling vortex of wind. Pidgeotto then proceeded to launch it at her opponent.
"Pin... Sir... Pinsir" Pinsir grunted in mild pain as the attack landed. The large coleopteran creature was knocked back slightly, but managed to remain on its feet.
From the sidelines, Nolan and Misty observed this, each wearing a concerned expression on their face.
"Errr... is it my imagination, or was that Gust attack less effective than it should have been?" the golden haired boy asked the girl at his side, "It seemed a lot less powerful than normal".
Misty bit her lip anxiously as she replied.
"Yeah, it was" Misty nodded her head, confirming that Nolan's mind wasn't just playing tricks on him, "It also took Pidgeotto quite a bit longer than it usually does for her to use her Gust attack".
"Do you think something might be wrong?" the golden haired boy asked his female friend nervously.
"I think she's just tired" was Misty's honest reply. It made logical sense after all. Pidgeotto hadn't had very long to rest between this battle and the one with the wild Weedle, and she had even come out of her pokeball fast asleep. It wasn't too much of a stretch to reason that the Flying Type Pokemon wasn't exactly firing on all cylinders as a result.
"Oh great" Nolan scowled and shook his head, unable to believe that Ash would screw himself over like this. Honestly, he loved the other boy like a brother, but sometimes he really wanted to shake some sense into his best friend, "Ash had better think of a way to end this quickly then. There's no way that Pidgeotto can keep running on empty for much longer".
Truer words had never been spoken.
Even as all of the young Pokemon trainers watched, they could see that Pidgeotto was rapidly getting more sluggish with each passing second. Her flying was a lot slower, and her movements were nowhere near as sharp as they usually were. It was obvious that the Flying Type Pokemon was in need of a good long rest.
"Grrr... Pidgeotto can't keep this up..." Ash muttered to himself under his breath, "Pidgeotto! We need to try and end this! Use your Quick Attack!"
Past the point of sheer exhaustion by this stage, Pidgeotto just barely managed to muster up the energy to perform the attack that her trainer had called for. The large avian creature streaked across the sky, but it was notably a lot slower than normal.
"Ha! That barely classifies as a Quick Attack!" the Samurai taunted in a gleeful tone of voice, "This is what happens when you choose a warrior that is too worn out to fight, Novice".
Ash grit his teeth and angrily clenched his fists. Loathed though he was to admit it, the raven haired boy knew that the other trainer actually had a point.
"Pinsir! Show the Novice what it means to be a serious contender in the art of combat!" the Samurai exclaimed to his Bug Type Pokemon, smirking at Ash with an air of superiority, "Knock that Pidgeotto out of the sky! Use your Body Slam attack!"
With surprising speed for such a large and bulky creature, Pinsir dashed forwards to meet Pidgeotto's attack head on. For a tense couple of seconds, nobody could do anything more than simply look on as the two Pokemon determinedly charged towards each other.
"Come on..." Ash whispered under his breath, subconsciously crossing his fingers, "You can do it... come on..."
Behind him, Nolan and Misty couldn't help but both look a little skeptical at the approach that Ash was choosing to take. The duo just couldn't shake the feeling that Ash's unwavering faith and hope might be a little misplaced this time. Neither of them had the heart to tell the raven haired boy that though. Only time would tell if they were right after all.
"Pidge... Otto!" Pidgeotto slammed her entire body into Pinsir's large hulking form with her Quick Attack.
"Pin... Sir!" Pinsir countered the impact of Pidgeotto's strike with its own, pouring every ounce of strength that its body possessed into its Body Slam attack.
Everything immediately seemed to slow down until it almost looked like the two Pokemon were frozen in time, locked in mortal combat. Both Pidgeotto and Pinsir strained furiously against one another, each of them warring for dominance, but it was obvious to everybody watching that it wouldn't last forever. Sooner or later, something was going to have to give.
Barely a split-second had passed, when at long last, something did.
"GGGGEEEEOOOOTTTTTTTTOOOO!"
Ash could do nothing more than cry out in horror and alarm as with a shrill, piercing scream, it finally seemed that Pidgeotto could take no more, and was flung hurtling backwards by the sheer brute force of Pinsir's Body Slam attack. The large avian creature began tumbling towards the ground, trying desperately to correct her flight pattern in time, but unable to.
"No! Pidgeotto!" the raven haired Pokemon trainer yelled, utterly aghast, as his beloved Flying Type Pokemon was sent on a collision course.
CRASH!
With a sickening thud that seemed to echo throughout the entire forest, Pidgeotto crashed into the ground in a graceless heap. A cloud of dirt was kicked up around her, temporarily shrouding her and hiding Pidgeotto from view.
Ash couldn't help but wince in sympathy, knowing that that must have been agonising for his poor Pokemon. Around him; Nolan, Misty, Pikachu and Meadow all looked on with similar expressions on their faces. They all hoped that Pidgeotto was alright.
Moments later, the dust settled, and all of their hopes instantly melted away.
Pidgeotto most certainly was not alright.
Barely even conscious, Pidgeotto looked exceptionally dazed and confused by the impact that she had just taken head first. The Flying Type Pokemon could barely tell which way was up and which way was down. She tried valiantly to get up, but swayed uneasily on her feet. Pidgeotto immediately toppled over and crumpled to the ground.
It was obvious to them all that there was no way she could continue.
"Hahahaha!" the Samurai laughed loud and hard, revelling in the triumph that he and his Pinsir had managed to achieve, whilst Ash could do little more than look on in horror, "Your chosen warrior has been defeated!"
Loathed though he was to admit it, Ash knew that the Samurai spoke the truth. His shoulders slumping dejectedly, the raven haired boy begrudgingly reached down to his belt and plucked off a pokeball. Ash then pointed it at the prone form of his Pidgeotto.
"Pidgeotto, return" Ash sighed sadly, and Pidgeotto was quickly pulled back into the confines of the red and white sphere. He gave it a fond smile, "You did your best, and I'm proud of you for that. Rest up now".
As he clipped the now occupied pokeball back on to his belt, Ash couldn't help but glare bitterly across the clearing, where the Samurai and his Pinsir were celebrating their victory.
"Excellent work dear comrade!" the Samurai said proudly, reaching out and affectionately rubbing Pinsir on the head between its horns, earning a happy grunt from the creature in question, "I believe we might finally be on the path to restoring our tarnished honour!"
"Pinsir!" Pinsir clicked its pincers together in a happy manner.
Ash couldn't help but grit his teeth together out of sheer annoyance as he watched the two of them. They were both acting like this battle was already over, but nothing could be further from the truth. It made Ash's blood boil in his veins. Unable to bare it for more than a couple of seconds, the raven haired boy couldn't help it when he impulsively called out to the two of them.
"I'd save the celebrations if I were you!" Ash snapped angrily, quickly regaining the attention of the Samurai and his Pinsir, "Because this match is just getting started!"
So with that bold declaration made to the heavens above, Ash quickly reached down towards his belt, and removed another pokeball. The young Pokemon trainer then held the red and white sphere up in front of his face in a rather dramatic fashion. Everything from his posture to the expression on his face made his intent perfectly clear to all those present in the forest clearing. It really showed just how much of a serious challenge his words truly were in that moment. Ash Ketchum meant business, and that could only mean one thing.
It meant that it was time to end this battle once and for all.
And Ash was going to win.
And there's another one done : )
I was actually quite keen to rewrite some of Ash's battle with the Samurai since in comparison to a lot of the other battles Ash had in this season of the anime, the one against the Samurai was actually quite boring. Hopefully I managed to change that a little ; )
Anyway, let's move on to today's voting topic. This time we're voting for another evolution thanks to my defeat of Koga in my Nuzlocke. The options are: - Meadow the Bulbasaur, Welkin the Pidgey, Jigglypuff, Geodude, Voltorb, Kadabra, Poliwag, Meowth, Koffing, Electabuzz, and Venonat.
Yes, I am including Electabuzz, despite him not being able to evolve in Pokemon Fire Red. I'll just evolve him later on when I get to generation four in the series, if he wins the vote of course ; )
Now, I just want to give you guys fair warning. I might not be able to get a new chapter up next week. If this pain in my hands doesn't let up then there's no way I'm going to be able write a whole new chapter. Even just writing these author's notes has been agonising, so if there's no update, that's why. Hopefully that won't happen though : )
I'd like to thank you all so much for reading this chapter, and I hope you're enjoying the story so far.
Until the next time, keep on reading : )