We're closing in fast now readers - the first Nuzlocke in the series is almost over : )

Hey everyone, here we are with the next chapter, and I'm very excited about this one, because it's time for Nolan to face his first major milestone in his Pokemon Training Career. Hopefully I did it justice ; )

But enough about that for now. Instead, let's talk about the winner of last week's evolution vote. Thank you so much to il2swim57 for breaking the tie, and I'm very excited to say that the latest winner was... Iris the Venonat! I am SO pleased about this one! I've had a plot in mind for ages in case Iris evolved into a Venomoth, so I'm very happy that I'll actually get to use it in the story : )

Other than that, I'd just like to say a GIANT thank you to everyone that has reviewed, favourited, and followed this story. I really appreciate the support so thank you : )

Please remember that Pokemon is not mine, only my OCs are.

I hope you enjoy this chapter : )

Showdown in Pewter City - Part 3

No sooner than those two short words of surrender passed by Ash's anguished lips did Onix finally cease his relentless assault upon poor Pikachu. With surprising gentility for such a massive creature, Onix then carefully lowered Pikachu towards the ground, where he tenderly placed the prone body of the small Electric Type Pokemon. Knowing that the chances of the Rock Snake Pokemon accidentally crushing him under an attack at this point were slim to none, Ash wasted no time in hurrying out onto the battlefield, all-but-collapsing to his knees by his fallen partner's side. He gently stroked Pikachu's vivid yellow fur, prompting the small creature to look up at him in utter exhaustion. Pikachu's ears drooped sadly. It was clear to all those present that the little Electric Type Pokemon felt as though he had let Ash down. The raven haired boy had to work hard to suppress tears just thinking about that, but that was Pikachu in a nutshell. Ever since that time when the Spearow flock had attacked them where they had bonded, it was clear that the little Pokemon loved his trainer dearly. A love that Ash felt just as strongly in return, and that was why he couldn't allow Pikachu to believe that he had failed him. He just couldn't.

Without so much as sparing Brock even a passing glance, nor even his friends one for that matter, Ash gathered Pikachu up into his arms as gently as possible, cradling his prone little body close to his chest. Then he stood up to his full height again, turned on his heel, and marched straight out of the gym without so much as speaking a single word. He didn't even glance back as he went.

From their positions on the sidelines of the battlefield, Nolan and Misty exchanged uneasy glances. It was more than a little obvious that they were both very concerned about their friend's state of mind right now, not to mention the awful condition that poor Pikachu was in right now. Within seconds, Misty was up and out of her chair, hurrying to leave the gym in pursuit of Ash. She wanted to check that he wasn't being too hard on himself for what could only be described as a crushing defeat, and to also ensure that he took Pikachu back to the Pokemon Center as soon as possible. The little guy was in obvious need of medical attention after all.

Nolan on the other hand briefly hesitated, but only for a moment. He felt like he was being torn into two halves as he struggled to decide what to do. On the one hand, he knew that Ash needed him right now, even if the other boy would never admit to that fact. He also knew what Ash would say in this situation, and that was that he should stay at the gym and make his own challenge against Brock, an instruction which Nolan would usually ignore. Because that was the type of person that Ash was. He would always put other people's happiness above his own needs. Nolan always tried to be the same type of friend towards him for that reason alone. It was that part of him that was telling him that his best friend needed him to go after him right now.

But on the other hand, the ambitious part of him that was serious about trying to become a Pokemon Master really, really wanted to challenge Brock right now. He had already waited to challenge the gym leader once today in favour of Ash. Nolan didn't think it was fair that he would be expected to do so again so soon afterwards. The golden haired boy quickly stifled those completelyselfish thoughts though. That was an unfair assessment of the situation, and deep down, Nolan knew that if the roles were reversed, Ash would be there for him in a heartbeat. So feeling rather ashamed of himself for his moment of hesitation, however brief it may have been, Nolan cuddled Meadow closer to his chest before he quickly hurried out of the gym after his friends, without so much as even a word of farewell to Brock.

The sight that met him outside threatened to break Nolan's heart completely.

Standing at the end of the driveway that led up to the Pewter City gym was none other than Ash. The raven haired boy was cradling the desperately weak Pikachu in his arms, whispering kind and reassuring words to the exhausted Pokemon in an attempt to comfort him. Misty was by their side, with a soothing hand placed on Ash's arm, and a look of sympathy on her face as she also looked down at Pikachu. Nolan almost felt like an intruder as he went over to join them, like it was a private moment he was walking into.

"Hey... how's Pikachu doing?" the golden haired boy asked quietly as he approached. Ash looked up at him, surprise written all over his face.

"What are you doing out here?" he blurted out in response before he could stop himself, "Shouldn't you be challenging Brock yourself right now?"

Nolan just shrugged his shoulders at his best friend, a strained smile on his face.

"You just suffered a major blow" the golden haired boy stated simply, though of course Ash didn't need reminding of that, "I came to check that you were okay. Challenging the gym myself can wait. So are you? Okay I mean?"

Ash's shoulders slumped, and Nolan realised just how stupid a question it was. Pikachu was barely holding onto consciousness and was black and blue all over. Of course Ash wasn't okay right now.

"I will be" Ash finally said after a couple of moments of tense silence, "Once I've taken Pikachu back to the Pokemon Centre and Nurse Joy helps him feel better".

Nolan gave him another strained smile upon hearing those words. At least his best friend had his priorities straight if nothing else. The golden haired boy was about to ask his best friend if there was anything that he could do to help, but before he could utter so much as a single syllable, Ash shook his head, as if knowing what Nolan was about to ask.

"No - I don't need you to come with me" the raven haired boy stated in a tone that brooked no argument, "You deserve the chance to battle Brock yourself today, so don't worry about me. I just hope you won't mind me not being there to cheer you on for your first gym match".

Nolan didn't mind per say, but he would have appreciated the support. He knew that there was no way that he could ask Ash to just drop Pikachu off at the Pokemon Centre and then return to the gym though. After all, if it was Meadow that was in such a pitiful condition, there was no force on the Earth that could have made him leave her side. That was just how having a Pokemon partner worked. So swallowing down any disappointment he might feel about his brother in all but blood not being there to see his first ever official gym battle, Nolan instead forced a wide grin for the other boy's benefit.

"Of course I don't mind" he said in what he hoped was a convincing voice, "Are you sure you don't mind me challenging Brock right now?"

The raven haired boy smiled and shook his head.

"I'll be fine. Honestly I will" Ash insisted, pretty much leaving Nolan with no further choice in the matter. Still not certain though, the golden haired boy instead threw a hopeful look towards Misty, before silently gesturing towards Ash and Pikachu. The young girl caught his meaning and nodded.

"Sure" she said in response to his unspoken request, "I'll go to the Pokemon Centre with Ash and Pikachu".

"I don't need a babysitter!" Ash tried to protest vehemently, but he was roundly ignored by the other two trainers. He huffed slightly, but he couldn't deny that it felt nice to know that they both cared so much about him.

"Thanks Misty" Nolan smiled at the orange haired girl gratefully.

"It's no problem" she assured him, before a somewhat apologetic expression flashed across her face, "I'm just sorry that you won't have either of us there to watch your big battle".

Again, Nolan just shrugged his shoulders in an attempt to mask his disappointment.

"It's okay, I'm sure you guys will be there for the next one" the golden haired boy assured his friends, "And I'll tell you all about this one when it's over".

Ash and Misty both smiled and nodded at him.

"Sounds good" the raven haired boy replied to his best friend, still feeling a little guilty, but putting on a smile for the other boy's benefit, "We'll meet you back at the Pokemon Centre when you're all done. Now go on! Go knock that gym leader down a peg or two!"

"Yeah, you can do it!" Misty said encouragingly with a smile of her own, "Good luck Nolan".

And with that, Nolan's two friends hurried away to go get Pikachu the medical attention he so clearly needed. Sighing, Nolan once again forced away his feelings of disappointment, as he turned and headed back up the driveway to the Pewter City gym. The golden haired boy hesitated for only a brief second outside the doors, before he took a deep breath to try and calm his mounting nerves. It didn't really help very much, but Nolan wasted no more time with stalling, and gently eased open the doors before re-entering the gym.

It was almost exactly as he'd left it not ten minutes earlier.

The large room was still bathed in bright light from the florescent lights overhead, and the simulated earthy terrain was still out. On the far side of the room, Brock was sitting cross-legged on his stone pedestal once more, clearly in the midst of meditation again. Nolan couldn't help but wonder if that was really how he spent all his spare time, but those irrelevant thoughts were quickly pushed out of his mind when the teenage gym leader looked up sharply as Nolan stepped back into the room.

"I see that you have returned" the older boy remarked calmly, before seemingly noticing the absence Ash and Misty, "Alone this time. I take it that means you wish to challenge me yourself this time?"

Nolan swallowed hard, but forced his building nerves aside and bravely stepped forwards.

"I do" the blonde boy solemnly confirmed, nodding his head.

Brock nodded in return, rising to his feet so that he was standing on his large stone pedestal.

"Very well" the older boy said, "Perhaps you will prove a greater challenge to defeat than your friend".

Nolan narrowed his eyes at those words. He couldn't tell if Brock was taking a dig at Ash, or if he was implying that he thought Nolan would be a pushover. Either way, the golden haired boy didn't much care for the remark.

"I will" Nolan swore through clenched teeth.

Even though he knew that he and Meadow definitely had their work cut out for them, the blonde boy wasn't going to back down without a serious fight. Anything but his absolute best would be an insult to the team he was building, and Nolan wouldn't stand for that. They had to give this fight their all. They just had to.

"Good" Brock smiled in approval, glad to see that the trainer opposite him was taking this seriously and was clearly dedicated to his team.

The gym leader could tell just by looking at the golden haired boy that although he was quietly confident in his training abilities, he wasn't cocky or arrogant to go with it. It was a refreshing change of pace for Brock, who had lately struggled through matches with some rather insufferable individuals. One particularly rude boy immediately sprung to mind. A brunette that hadn't even been polite enough to give Brock his name before stomping him with his partner Pokemon, an equally smug Eevee of all things. Brock had been loathed to present a trainer like him with a Boulder Badge. The kid hadn't exactly been gracious in victory after all. Hopefully Nolan wouldn't follow suit, should the golden haired boy manage to defeat him that was. Shrugging those thoughts away, Brock decided to get straight down to business.

"I know you were here earlier and probably heard me say all this, but since you didn't battle me yourself, I'm required to explain the rules we'll be following during this match" Brock informed the younger boy across the battlefield from him.

Nolan made a gesture with his hand for Brock to go ahead. Accepting the invitation, the gym leader continued.

"Throughout the duration of this battle, a trainer may only use up to two Pokemon" Brock announced, and Nolan tensed uncomfortably, knowing that he was pinning all his hopes on Meadow and Iris since it was too much of a risk to use Welkin, "The battle is over when both the Pokemon on one team are unable to continue. Only you as the challenger will be allowed to substitute Pokemon. There will also be no time limit. Are these terms acceptable to you?"

"Yes" Nolan nodded his agreement.

"Good. Then let's get to it. As the gym leader, I shall reveal my Pokemon first" Brock announced, reaching inside his jacket and withdrawing a pokeball that he immediately hurled into the air, "Let's go Geodude!"

From out of a beam of crimson light materialised Brock's first rock type Pokémon. Nolan carefully regarded the small Geodude that materialised on the field, making mental notes about the creature's potential strengths and weaknesses. Wanting some more information on the creature that greatly resembled a small boulder, albeit one with a face, Nolan quickly brought out his pokedex and pointed it in the direction of his latest opponent.

"Geodude - the Rock Pokemon" Dexi reported in her cool voice upon identifying the creature, "Geodude is often found on mountain roads with half of its body buried in the ground so it can observe mountain travellers".

Taking in that information, Nolan smiled as he put away his pokedex. Whilst he had originally thought that he would need Meadow to defeat both of Brock's Rock Type Pokemon on her own, now he wasn't so sure that that would be the case. Whilst Iris would still be at something of a disadvantage against Geodude due to type match ups, at least this particular Rock Type Pokemon didn't have such a colossal size advantage as well. Deciding that it was worth the risk if it meant that he could keep Meadow in reserve for Onix, Nolan decisively plucked one of the occupied pokeballs off of his belt.

"This might be a bit of a risk..." Nolan muttered under his breath to himself, before he said more confidently, "But go for it Iris! I choose you!"

He activated the pokeball, and in a haze of crimson coloured light, Iris the Venonat materialised on the battlefield in front of Nolan, opposite Geodude.

"Venonat!" Iris greeted her new trainer cheerfully upon spotting him. In the short time that they'd known each other, Iris was already starting to feel attached to the young human. He was a significant improvement on her last trainer after all, and they had already won a couple of battles together, albeit only against a couple of wild Pokemon back in Viridian Forest. This would be their first battle against another trainer together, as Iris quickly deduced that that's what this set-up was. She silently promised herself that she would do whatever it took to win. Nolan had said that he had seen a strength in her. Iris wanted to prove him right.

Across from them, Brock sighed deeply, and shook his head in apparent annoyance.

"Didn't you learn anything from watching your friend battle against me?" the gym leader asked despairingly, as if Nolan was a prized pupil in a classroom that had just handed in a substandard piece of homework, "Trainers need to carefully think about the type match ups when selecting their Pokemon for a battle. Your Bulbasaur, a Grass Type Pokemon, would have been a much better type match against Geodude than your Venonat, a Bug Type Pokemon, will be, but it's too late for that now! Go Geodude! Use your Tackle attack!"

And just like that, the battle quickly got underway.

Geodude lunged through the air with surprising speed and manoeuvrability towards the spot where Iris stood. Her large red eyes widened in shock. That had gotten underway quicker than she'd expected.

"Dodge that Iris!" Nolan called out.

He grinned when Iris recovered quickly from her shock and followed through with the instruction. The furry purple Pokemon effortlessly hopped out of the way of the incoming attack, moving to the side just in the nick of time. Geodude harmlessly sailed right past her, but managed to stop itself from crashing into the battlefield in time. Using its ethereal ability of levitation, which scientists weren't entirely able to explain, it corrected its course and tried again. Once again, Iris was able to successfully dodge the imminent attack in time. Observing this from the other side of the field, Brock smirked again.

"You'll never win any gym badges if all you're going to do is focus on having your Pokemon dodge attacks" the teenager stated in a borderline smug tone.

Nolan grit his teeth in annoyance. He knew that! Of course he knew that, it was one of the basics! Starting to get really tired of the way that Brock kept lecturing and critiquing him - which might be somewhat hypocritical of him considering that he did that to Ash all the time - Nolan decided it was time to teach the teenage gym leader a lesson of his own.

"Iris! Quick!" the golden haired boy called out, and Iris' antenna twitched upon hearing her name, "Use your Screech attack!"

Iris smirked and nodded, before quickly following through with the instruction, as Geodude launched itself forwards as it attempted to use its Tackle attack on her once again. The Rock Type Pokemon moved so fast that it was already in dangerously close quarters to Iris before the gym leader had a chance to try and stop it.

"VVVVVVVEEEEEEENNNNNNNOOOOOOO!"

Geodude gasped in shock and came to an abrupt halt a couple of feet away from Iris, looking physically pained, as a shrill piercing scream suddenly rang throughout the entire gym, amplified by the echoes that this cave-like room produced. Immediately, Nolan and Brock both had to clamp their hands tightly over their ears as well, as Iris kept on screaming and shrieking, whilst Geodude had its bulky fingers pressed hard against its temples, clearly already getting a severe migraine from the sound-based attack.

"GEODUDE!" Brock yelled over the horrible wailing that was echoing all around them, "ARE YOU OKAY?!"

Unfortunately the Rock Type Pokemon was so close to the point of origin of the incessant screeching that he had little to no chance of hearing his human's words of concern over the cacophony. He just kept his stone hands clamped tightly on either side of his head, presumably where his ears would be, if he had ears. Either way, Nolan smiled happily. His plan was coming together nicely.

"GOOD WORK IRIS!" the golden haired boy bellowed over the racket, hoping beyond hope that she could hear him over the reverberating echoes of her own Screech attack, "AND NOW THAT GEODUDE IS DISTRACTED, GET IN CLOSE AND USE YOUR POISON POWDER ATTACK!"

By some miracle, Iris was actually able to hear her trainer over the deafening din reverberating around the room, and immediately desisted her sound-based assault on her enemy. Quicker than Geodude was able to react, the Bug Type Pokemon then rushed over to him, and began shaking her entire body causing small specks of purple dust to rain out from her long violet fur. Still massaging his temples from the migraine he was suffering, Geodude had no chance of avoiding the specks of dust in time, and ended up breathing great lungfuls of them in.

The effect was instantaneous.

"GEO!" Geodude gagged and spluttered as the Poison Powder quickly took effect, and moments later, a ghoulish purple stripe appeared across the Rock Type Pokemon's face, directly below his eyes and standing out in sharp contrast to the grey of his skin. The young gym leader was utterly aghast when he realised what had just happened.

"No!" Brock called out, his voice and expression both flooded with concern, "Geodude! Are you okay?!"

The grimace on his Pokemon's face as he shivered in obvious pain was enough of an answer. Across the battlefield from them, it was Nolan's turn to smirk.

"Whilst you were right about type match ups being important Brock, a good trainer should also know that they aren't the only deciding factors in a battle" the golden haired boy felt fully justified in being just a little bit patronising to the older boy, "The moves that each individual Pokemon knows are also very important. I'd expect a gym leader to know that".

Brock clenched his jaw angrily, but didn't respond to the other boy's obvious taunting. It was clear that he was already struggling to think of a way out of this. Iris' Poison Powder attack had placed a time limit on Geodude's ability to keep fighting, and without being able to call him back into his pokeball as per the gym battle rules, Brock was quickly running out of ideas of how to win this first match.

"Geodude!" the young gym leader called out, "We have to end this quickly before you can't withstand the poison anymore! So use your quickest Tackle attack!"

"Dodge it Iris!" Nolan quickly commanded.

Both of the Pokemon on the battlefield hastened to obey their individual trainers' commands. Geodude, rather than floating through the air this time, curled up into a ball and rolled across the bumpy surface of the ground towards Iris at immense speed. Thankfully the little Bug Type Pokemon was able to jump out of the way just in time, successfully dodging her opponent's attack once more.

"Now Iris!" Nolan called out now that they were on a roll, "Keep Geodude at bay whilst we wait out the poison damage! Use your Psybeam attack!"

Nolan had to admit that he was very excited about what he would witness in a few seconds' time. Even though he and Iris had had a few battles against wild Pokemon together already, he had yet to see this particular attack put to use. The golden haired boy was therefore waiting with eager anticipation as Iris quickly followed through with the command. To her trainer's utter amazement, Iris' large red eyes began to glow with a mirage of dozens of different colours. A sense of great power seemed to shift around the small purple Pokemon's body, and before anyone had a chance to react further than wide-eyed astonishment, Iris concentrated the brewing power in her eyes into a focused beam of energy.

"VENO!" Iris screamed when she could contain the energy no more, and unleashed her powerful Psychic Type attack.

A rainbow bolt of light burst forth from her eyes, and within seconds had struck poor Geodude head on. The small Rock Type Pokemon was immediately shrouded in a bubble of bright multi-coloured light that left him feeling dazed and ill. After what felt like an eternity, but in reality was only a few seconds, Iris' rainbow-hued attack finally ended, and Geodude collapsed to the ground in pain.

"Dude... Geo" Geodude whimpered pitifully, before he started shivering again, the poison in his system clearly taking effect once more.

"No!" Brock cried out, horrified to see his Pokemon friend in such an awful condition, "Geodude! Try to get up!"

Geodude tried hard to push himself back up into the air again, but it was obvious that he was struggling. It wouldn't be long now until he could no longer fight.

"Iris! It won't be long now!" Nolan couldn't help but grin gleefully at his purple Pokemon, proud of her for how well she was doing in this fight despite starting it at a disadvantage, "But we can't afford to let our guard down! So use your Psybeam attack again!"

Iris nodded, and immediately began charging up a second Psybeam, her eyes becoming shrouded with power once more. Brock, knowing that his Pokemon friend couldn't withstand another attack like that, hastily called out another order of his own.

"Dodge it Geodude!" the gym leader cried out desperately, knowing that this match was probably a lost cause for him at this point, but unwilling to make it easy for his opponent nevertheless, "Don't let it hit you!"

No sooner had the words left Brock's mouth did Iris fire off her secondary Psybeam attack. Unfortunately for her and Nolan however, with a tremendous amount of effort on his part, Geodude was just barely able to dodge out of the way in time.

"Nice dodge Geodude!" Brock complimented his Pokemon friend proudly, "Now try your Tackle attack one more time!"

Clearly getting frustrated by this point, Geodude hurled himself in the direction of Iris, and rammed into her at full force before the Bug Type Pokemon had any opportunity to dodge him.

"Veno!" Iris shrieked in surprise and pain.

Geodude smiled, but he knew that his attack would unlikely affect the inevitable outcome of this battle. He had still wanted to get at least one hit in though, if only to save face at this point. The Rock Type Pokemon was pleased that he had managed to achieve at least that much if nothing else, but that self-gratification didn't last for long. With another grimace of crippling agony, Geodude felt the effects of the poison coursing through him once more. He couldn't help but shudder miserably.

"Oh Iris!" Nolan cried out, worried, as his Bug Type Pokemon friend hit the ground hard, "Are you ok?"

"Veno!" Iris nodded as she quickly picked herself up and dusted herself down.

Nolan couldn't help but smile in relief. That Tackle attack had been strong and had hit his friend hard, so he was glad to see that no lasting damage had been done.

"Good job Geodude!" Brock complimented his own combatant from across the battlefield.

"Geo!" Geodude managed to give his teenage trainer a weak thumbs up.

"You won't dodge this one!" Nolan declared boldly, his eyes narrowed with intense concentration as he turned back to Iris, "Iris! Again! Use Psybeam!"

The golden haired boy knew that it was probably overkill to attack the Rock Type Pokemon again at this point. Geodude had been on a ticking clock that was counting down for quite some time now, but Nolan wanted to keep up their relentless assault on him any way, just in case Brock managed to pull some trick out of his sleeve which could turn the tide in his favor. Nolan had no intention whatsoever of allowing that to happen. So overkill or not, he wanted Iris to remain on the offensive.

Sharing the same sentiments as her trainer, Iris nodded, and quickly got to work on charging up another Psybeam attack. But even as her large scarlet coloured eyes began to glow again with intense psychic energy, this time Brock was ready and waiting for the imminent attack.

"Geodude!" Brock yelled, knowing that what he was about to order was probably pointless at this the stage of the battle but willing to give it a try anyway, "Use Defence Curl!"

Immediately upon hearing the command, Geodude nodded, before curling himself up into a tight ball, shielding his face with his bulky stone fists whilst his opponent was still charging up her Psybeam attack. Once he was tightly curled up, a brief flash of bright white light seemed to ripple across the surface of Geodude's body for a moment. Knowing that it wasn't just a trick of the light, Nolan immediately understood what had just happened. Geodude had just significantly raised his defenses. Even if Iris' next attack hit, it probably wouldn't do as much damage as the first one had. That wouldn't stop them from trying though, and Iris quickly unleashed another powerful blast of psychic energy from her eyes in the direction of her opponent.

The rainbow coloured beam of light hit Geodude head on just like the last time, forcing him to unfold himself from the ball he had rolled up into. This time however, the Rock Type Pokemon seemed significantly less hurt by the Psychic Type attack.

In the end though, it turned out not to matter.

With a horrified gasp and another shiver that racked through his entire body, Geodude suddenly collapsed to the ground once more as the poison in his system finally became too much for him to handle.

"Dude... Geo..." Geodude's eyes began to slowly drift shut against his will, "Geodude!"

One last whimper of anguished pain managed to escape the Rock Type Pokemon's lips, before he sprawled face first into the dirt and laid motionless. It was obvious to everybody present what that meant.

Geodude was unconscious.

Nolan and Iris had won the first round.

"YES!" the golden haired boy couldn't help but immediately scream in pure and unadulterated excitement, practically jumping up and down on the spot in euphoria as Iris hurried over to join him, sharing in her trainer's delight, "YOU DID IT IRIS! YOU DID IT!"

Nolan immediately scooped his beloved Bug Type Pokemon up into his arms and hugged her tightly to his chest. Iris was a little surprised at first, considering that her previous trainer had never shown her such affection before, but she quickly relaxed and returned the hug, deciding that she liked it very much indeed.

"That was a really good battle Iris, and you worked very hard" Nolan said, unable to keep himself from smiling so widely that his face was beginning to hurt, "I'm so proud of you! Thank you!"

"Venonat!" Iris chirped happily as she nuzzled closer to his chest.

"Saur! Bulba! Bulbasaur!" Meadow congratulated her teammate on her victory as well from her spot on the floor next to Nolan. Iris beamed down at her and nodded gratefully.

Across the battlefield from them, Brock let out a deep sigh of disappointment, before he pulled out a pokeball from within his jacket and pointed it at the prone figure of Geodude. With a wordless command, the Rock Type Pokemon was pulled back into its confines.

"You did your best" he whispered to the pokeball, "I can't ask for more than that, so thank you".

The teenage gym leader then placed the now occupied pokeball back in his jacket, before turning his attention back to Nolan, who was still celebrating with his Pokemon on the other side of the battlefield. Allowing the younger trainer these few happy moments with his Pokemon, Brock knew that he would eventually have to bring him back down to the business at hand. This battle was far from over yet after all. So coughing lightly, the gym leader was able to quickly recapture the golden haired boy's attention.

"I admit that I allowed you to get the better of me there" Brock said humbly once he was sure that Nolan was paying attention to him again, "But rest assured, I won't make that same mistake again!"

And with that bold declaration, the gym leader then held another pokeball out in front of himself defiantly.

Nolan swallowed hard, realising what was about to happen. Realising just what Pokemon he was about to face next. And with that realisation came both a strong sense of dread, but also an almost overwhelming sense of eager excitement. This next Pokemon was going to be a very difficult challenge, make no mistake about that, but Nolan was nothing if not determined. Even after seeing first hand what this particular Pokemon had already done to poor Pikachu, Nolan was still confident that he and his Pokemon could win this. They had to. Anything else simply wasn't an option, but right now there was only one thing that was for certain.

And that was that this gym match was far from over...

And that's another one down : )

YAY! The first round of Nolan's very first gym battle ever is done, with Iris claiming the victory : ) I really wanted to show how despite being at a disadvantage, Nolan and Iris could still turn things around, so hopefully that came off nicely.

But enough about the actual contents of this chapter, so let's move on to this week's Elite Four Battle. This time I took on the final member of the Kanto Elite Four, and thankfully Lance proved a lot easier to deal with than Agatha was. First up was Electabuzz against Gyarados. Electabuzz used his Thunderbolt which knocked Gyarados out in one hit. Lapras easily took care of Lance's first Dragonair, knocking it out in one hit with Ice Beam. The second Dragonair also met the same fate. Aerodactyl was a little harder, but after a lot of back-and-forth with attacks and Full Restores, Lapras managed to finish it off with a well-placed Surf attack. Dragonite was a bit of a challenge as well; it took two Shock Waves, a Thunderbolt, and a Thunder attack from Electabuzz to finally bring it down. And that's all four members of the Kanto Elite Four defeated : ) Just the champion to face now...

But yay! My defeat of Lance means that another evolution has been secured, meaning that it's time for another new evolution vote. This time the options are: - Welkin the Pidgeotto, Meowth, Poliwag, Voltorb, Graveler, Electabuzz, Kadabra and Scyther. Choose wisely since this could potentially be the last evolution in regards to Nolan's Kanto team. That isn't a definite, but I have something a bit special in mind for the next voting topic if I win against the champion, so we'll just have to wait and see what happens ; )

And that's just about everything from me for this week. Thank you so much for reading my story, and I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please remember to leave your vote in a review or even just general feedback because I'd love to hear your comments : )

Until the next time, keep on reading : )