Hey readers - here we are with another new chapter, and I've got to say, this one's quite a long one. That's always a nice little bonus XD
Now I don't have an awful lot to say this time, so why don't we just jump straight on into it. On that note, I'm very pleased to announce the winner of the last voting topic was... Kadabra! Secretly I was hoping for this one. I want to pay her a little bit more attention than I have been so far, since I didn't use her an awful lot during my Fire Red Pokemon Nuzlocke : )
Finally, I just want to say a HUMONGOUS thank you to everyone that has reviewed, favourited, and followed this story. The support that has been shown to the story is amazing, and it means so much to me, so thank you : )
Please remember that Pokemon is not mine, only my OC's are : )
I hope you enjoy this chapter : )
The Waterflowers of Cerulean City - Part 4
Nolan couldn't help but feel slightly tense as he nervously awaited the Sensational Sisters' next move. Despite just barely claiming victory from the jaws of defeat in the first round against Lily, the golden haired boy would also admit that he had been left slightly rattled by that battle. Welkin had definitely managed to turn it around in the end and defeat Goldeen, and whilst the young Pokemon trainer was under no illusions that gym battles were by any means easy, it had still been a lot harder than Nolan had initially anticipated. And that was just the first round. He could only guess and wonder at what would be thrown it him and his Pokemon team in the next two rounds. Thankfully for the golden haired boy's fraying nerves however, the Sensational Sisters didn't keep Nolan waiting for very long.
"Well, since Lily totally blew it and was like, a complete washout..." Violet was the one to break the heavy silence that had fallen over the battle arena, pointedly ignoring the heated glare that Lily sent her for that last remark, "I guess I'll be your opponent next. Stand back and like, prepare to be dazzled kid, because like, the real star of the show is about to take the stage!"
And with that rather bold statement, the blue haired Sensational Sister then produced a pokeball, which she tossed high into the air in one single graceful manoeuvre.
Nolan carefully tracked the red and white sphere's progress with calculating eyes as it began its descent. The golden haired boy couldn't help but wonder what kind of aquatic Pokemon was likely to be inside, but thankfully he wouldn't have to wait long to find out. The pokeball soon snapped open, and in a flash of crimson coloured light, a new creature quickly materialised on the watery battlefield.
"Shellder!" the creature squealed in a strange, high-pitched voice.
His icy blue eyes immediately sweeping over the creature that was to be his latest opponent, Nolan was surprised to find that it was a Pokemon which he didn't actually recognise. It was clearly some sort of living shell creature though, predominantly purple in colour, with a strange dark face that was mostly obscured by its protective outer casing. A long pink tongue was sticking out from the shell's opening, and two somewhat goofy eyes were blinking lazily from within. Not knowing the creature's identity was making Nolan feel like he was at a distinct disadvantage, so he quickly set about correcting that, by fishing his pokedex out of his back pocket, and pointing it towards the mysterious Pokemon bobbing about in the water.
"Shellder - the Bivalve Pokemon" Dexi reported in her usual cool voice once the identification had been made, "If a grain of sand becomes trapped in this Pokemon's shell, it will mix with Shellder's body fluids to form beautiful pearls. Shellder's hard shell is capable of repelling most kinds of attack. It is typically vulnerable only when its shell is open".
For the second time in a row when the Sensational Sisters had released their selected Pokemon, Nolan couldn't help but feel slightly worried about the information he had just learned. He was reflecting hard upon everything that Dexi had just said as he put his pokedex away again. It sounded as though Shellder was a highly defensive Pokemon, which would make it very tricky for Welkin to deal much damage to it. If there was some way of forcing it to keep its shell open however, then they might just be in with a chance. Nolan would have to keep that in mind as this battle got underway.
"Isn't she precious?" Violet crooned happily over her lavender coloured Pokemon, looking at Shellder with adoring eyes, "But like, Shellder isn't just cute! She's like, totally strong as well!"
"Shellder!" Shellder squealed happily at her trainer's high praise.
Nolan frowned and bit his lip anxiously. He had a strong suspicion that those words weren't quite doing this creature justice. He glanced up towards where Welkin was still hovering in the air above the swimming pool. He knew that the Tiny Bird Pokemon was probably tired from his match against Goldeen, but Nolan decided to let the decision be his. Welkin had more than earned that right after all.
"Welkin!" the golden haired boy called out to his beloved Flying Type Pokemon, who immediately looked down at him, "Are you okay to keep going?"
"Gey! Pidgey!" the little Pidgey quickly nodded, excitedly confirming that he was. Nolan wasn't quite so sure, but he trusted his Pokemon's judgment.
"Well, if you're like, sticking with your Pidgey..." Violet remarked from her floating platform at the opposite end of the swimming pool, having heard the entire exchange, "We should like, totally get this show on the road! Go Shellder! Use your Bubblebeam attack!"
And just like that, the battle got underway.
"Shellder!" upon hearing the blue haired Sensational Sister's command, Shellder instantly sprung into action. Retracting its ridiculously long tongue back into its invisible mouth, the Bivalve Pokemon immediately began spitting out thick foamy bubbles. The bubbles were blown out with enough force that they formed into long-reaching jets, which Shellder relentlessly began firing in the direction of Welkin.
"Dodge those Welkin!" Nolan yelled, and the Tiny Bird Pokemon effortlessly twirled through the air, easily dodging the Bubblebeam attacks being thrown his way.
"Pid! Pidgey!" Welkin chirped happily as he easily dodged another one of Shellder's foamy attacks.
"Nice dodge!" the golden haired boy complimented his beloved Flying Type Pokemon, who puffed out his chest proudly at the praise, "Now let's try testing the waters when it comes to this Shellder's defences. Use your Gust attack Welkin!"
Quickly doing a lap of the swimming pool to dodge another incoming Bubblebeam attack, Welkin nodded his understanding, before he hastened to follow the order. Beating his little wings together as hard as he could, Welkin was able to quickly summon summon a small but powerful vortex of swirling air. Once satisfied that it was strong enough, the Tiny Bird Pokemon then quickly launched it in the direction of his latest opponent.
"Like, use Withdraw Shellder!" Violet commanded calmly from her end of the battlefield. It was obvious from the blue haired women's tone and expression that she was not in the least bit fazed by the incoming attack which Welkin had just fired off. Nolan couldn't help but swallow hard at that realisation. Her confidence was worrisome.
Worrisome, but not misplaced.
SNAP!
Reacting quickly to the blue haired Sensational Sister's command, Shellder promptly ceased firing off her Bubblebeam attack, and instead fully retracted back into her purple coloured shell, which slammed shut with a sharp audible crack. Moments later, there was a faint purple glow that seemed to crackle across the surface of the shell. It vaguely reminded Nolan of when a Pokemon used Harden, and he quickly deduced what that must mean. It meant that Shellder must have just raised its defence, a theory which was quickly proved barely half a second later, when Welkin's Gust attack struck Shellder's closed shell head-on, and harmlessly bounced straight off it.
"Uh oh..." Nolan muttered under his breath to himself. He had a horrible sinking feeling, that he and Welkin were now in for a world of trouble moving forwards.
"Gey?! Pidgey?!" up in the air above Nolan's head, Welkin looked just as horrified by what he had just witnessed as his trainer did. The Tiny Bird Pokemon quickly tried firing off another Gust attack, but it was just as ineffective as the first one had been. Welkin quickly twittering angrily in frustration, a sentiment that Nolan shared wholeheartedly.
"Welkin! Calm down! Don't waste your energy!" the golden haired boy called out soothingly to his small feathery friend, "Attacking Shellder when it's inside its shell won't work! We need to wait until its open again!"
The Tiny Bird Pokemon pouted, clearly not happy about this turn off events, but relented his pointless assault on the Bivalve Pokemon.
"That's like, a totally awesome defence Shellder!" Violet shouted loudly, no doubt to make sure that her beloved Water Type Pokemon could hear her from inside her thick sturdy shell, "But it's like, time we totally showed them your awesome attacks as well! So open up and like, use Icicle Spear!"
Nolan barely even had a chance to process the opposing trainer's words before the worst was already happening.
With another audible click that seemed to echo throughout the entire room and reverberate off the clean white tiles, Shellder's shell abruptly snapped open again, and she was already following through with Violet's command before her dark face could even be properly observed. At the point where Nolan would assume her mouth would be there came a faint blue light that was almost pure white, it was so incredibly pale. Moments later, the spot was covered with a thin layer of what looked like frost, and that's when something truly unbelievable happened.
Shellder... began spitting out icicles.
Fully-formed, frigid cold spears made of solid ice. Each about a foot long and a couple of inches thick in diameter, it was up there with some of the most bizarre sights that Nolan had ever seen in his entire life. Unfortunately for the golden haired boy however, he didn't have long to stand there and simply gape in amazement at the spectacle. For no sooner than when Shellder had three of her self-blown icicles prepared, did she promptly begin firing them in an equally startled Welkin's direction, all the whilst creating more and more icicles until the mouth of her shell was full with them.
That was enough to snap Nolan back out of his stunned reverie.
"Quick Welkin! Dodge those!" the golden haired boy cried urgently. After all, drom the name of the attack alone, it didn't take long for Nolan to deduce that it was an Ice Type move. As a Flying Type Pokemon, Welkin would be exceptionally vulnerable to it, so they couldn't allow him to be hit by the projectile icicles at any cost. If he was... well, that would probably be it for Welkin when it came to this match.
The golden haired boy watched with baited breath as Welkin darted through the air above the swimming pool that was acting as their battlefield. Shellder just kept firing icicle after icicle after the Tiny Bird Pokemon, and was doing it at such a speed that it was eerily reminiscent of bullets being sprayed from a machine gun.
By some divine miracle, Welkin was just barely managing to dodge the barrage of icicles coming his way, no doubt thanks to his superior speed. Nolan knew that his Flying Type friend wouldn't be able to keep it up indefinitely however, but then again, neither would Shellder. Already the Bivalve Pokemon was showing signs of fatigue, and the storm of projectile icicles was soon getting slower and slower, until it gradually came to a halt altogether.
"Shell... Der... Shellder..." Shellder was panting for breath, clearly past the point of exhaustion, and Nolan quickly spotted his opportunity.
"Quick Welkin! Whilst it's still open!" the golden haired boy wasted no time in issuing his next instruction, "Try to hit Shellder with your Tackle attack again!"
Welkin shot off towards the spot where Shellder was bobbing about in the water like a small feathery bullet. The Tiny Bird Pokemon was almost halfway there before Violet opened her mouth and gave another command of her own.
"Shellder, like, use Withdraw again!" the blue haired Sensational Sister said in a tone that was almost irritatingly casual.
"Der! Shellder!" Shellder let out another of those strange highlights squeals of hers, before she snapped her shell shut again. Just barely even a split-second later, Welkin was upon her.
WHAM!
If it had been quite literally any other kind of opponent he was up against, the impressive Tackle attack that Welkin had just put on display for them all to see would have been more than enough to see off most challengers from any battle. The Tiny Bird Pokemon should be doing a victory lap through the air around the swimming pool right at this very moment, so you can imagine his frustration at the fact that he wasn't. He wasn't getting to do his victory lap. Instead, Welkin was having to settle for just glowering at the purple shell idly bobbing about on the surface of the swimming pool, without so much as a scratch on it. Fuming, Welkin squawked indignantly, and took off into the air again.
Behind him, Nolan shared in his feelings of frustration.
"Damn" the golden haired boy cursed under his breath to himself, his jaw clenched angrily as he narrowed his eyes at the sturdy shell that was concealing their latest opponent from Welkin's attacks, "We've gotta do something about that shell... but what?! We just need once chance... Welkin just needs to be able to get to it quickly enough... before it can close its shell again..."
Unbeknownst to the young Pokemon trainer, Welkin had heard every single word from the air over Nolan's head. And out of all the words that slipped his beloved human's lips, two of them in particular had stuck out to the Tiny Bird Pokemon. Two seemingly innocuous words that lit the first spark of an idea within the Flying Type Pokemon's shrewd mind.
Quickly. Enough.
Those two small simple words kept echoing, almost as if on repeat, through Welkin's brain as the Tiny Bird Pokemon nervously awaited to see what his opponent would throw at him next. Quickly. Enough. Quickly. Enough...
It was only a fraction of a second later, that things finally started to come to a head.
"Shellder! It's like, totally time to end this!" Violet shouted to her Pokemon from her floating platform at the opposite end of the watery battlefield, completely oblivious to the intensely thoughtful expression which was now lining Welkin's face, "So come out of your shell and use your Icicle Spear again!"
Obviously hearing the blue haired Sensational Sister's latest instruction, the lavender coloured shell in the water slowly creaked open...
And that's when something truly amazing happened.
Welkin, evidently out of patience with the run-around that Shellder and Violet had been giving him and Nolan, decided that it was time for him to take matters into his own talons. Letting out a shrill scream that couldn't possibly be anything else but a war-cry, the Tiny Bird Pokemon put on a burst of speed that was almost impossible for the human eye to track. Streams of bright white light were left in Welkin's wake, lights which called Nolan's icy blue eyes to widen in pure and unadulterated shock.
"Those lights... that's not just not him moving quickly" Nolan realised, his voice little more than an awestruck whisper, "That was a Quick Attack! A real, fully-formed Quick Attack! I don't believe it! He finally managed it!"
Welkin distinctly heard the note of surprise and pride in his beloved human's voice, but chose to ignore it for the time being. Still, the Tiny Bird Pokemon allowed himself a small, smug smirk as he gracefully soared towards his opponent at scarcely imaginable speed. By the time that Shellder had fully opened her shell again, Welkin was already upon her.
"Shellder!" the Bivalve Pokemon squeaked in obvious surprise. She immediately tried to close her shell again, no doubt in order to protect herself, but unfortunately for Shellder, it was already too late for that.
Far too late.
"PIDGEY!" Welkin cawed out another fierce shriek of utter determination, and in one swift manoeuvre, the Tiny Bird Pokemon jammed both of his talons into the lavender coloured shell, using every ounce of his strength to hold the two halves apart.
"YES!" Nolan couldn't help but cheer excitedly when he realised what Welkin had just done, "Welkin! You're a genius! You've got it open!"
"Shellder!" Shellder squealed in distress.
Violet seemed to be sharing in that feeling from the other end of the battlefield, but she quickly came up with an idea to resolve this unexpected situation. Forcing her face into a mask over relative calmness she quickly called out her next instruction to her beloved Water Type Pokemon.
"Shellder! Don't panic!" the blue haired Sensational Sister said soothingly to the Bivalve Pokemon, "We can like, totally use this to our advantage too! Use Icicle Spear and knock that cute little Pidgey out!"
Sadly for Violet and Shellder though, Nolan was not about to let that happen.
"Oh no you don't!" Nolan hissed out through his teeth, clenching his fists so tightly that his knuckles turned a stark white, "You've given us the run-around for long enough! Welkin, quick! Use your strongest Gust attack right now!"
Shellder began building up the icy energy she needed to create her icicles, but this time Welkin was the one who was faster. Still using his sharp talons to hold the shell open, giving him a direct shot at the tender body concealed within, the Tiny Bird Pokemon began flapping his wings together as hard as he could. Within seconds, Welkin had managed to summon up a small but powerful vortex of swirling wind, which he quickly launched straight down into the lavender coloured shell at his feet.
The effect was instantaneous.
"SHELLDER!" Shellder screamed, not only from what must have been agonising pain, but also with fear. Welkin had put everything he had into that last Gust attack after all, and as such, the source of it was so great that not only was Shellder's tender inner body dealt a major blow, but it was also enough to launch the Bivalve Pokemon straight out of the swimming pool, and up into the air like an impressive but bizarre water fountain.
"Oh no! Shellder!" Violet gasped in horror from where she helplessly stood on her floating platform.
"Der!" Shellder cried weakly as she spiralled through the air. She couldn't have closed her shell even if she wanted to, she felt so dizzy by the ride she had unexpectedly been sent on.
On his floating platform down below, a certain ten year old boy grinned gleefully.
"This is it Welkin! Let's put all of that hard work you put in to good use!" Nolan beamed in delight from his own end of the swimming pool that was acting as their battlefield, "Use Quick Attack!"
And for the first time ever after Nolan had spoken that particular sequence of words, Welkin was finally able to properly follow through with the command.
"PIDGEY!" barely recognisable as anything more than a fuzzy brown blur, Welkin shot off after the tumbling Shellder at such an immense speed, Nolan was only able to track the movement by the streaks of white light left in the Tiny Bird Pokemon's wake. The golden haired boy couldn't help but smile proudly. All of Welkin's hard work had finally paid off, and he had such impeccable timing. Next to Meadow, the little Flying Type Pokemon really was the greatest friend that Nolan could ever ask for. Now, he stood by and watched as his beloved Pokemon did what he did best. Win against seemingly impossible odds.
WHAM!
Effortlessly managing to catch up to the point where Shellder was helplessly tumbling through the air, Welkin wasted no time on hesitation, and immediately rammed his small body into hers with every ounce of his weight behind the physical blow.
"DER! SHELLDER!" Shellder squealed in alarm once more as she was suddenly sent on a reverse journey, now hurtling back towards the surface of the water at a breakneck pace.
SPLASH!
With all the grace and momentum of a cannonball, Shellder hit the swimming pool hard and vanished beneath its surface, sending water flying in every direction. Everybody waited with baited breath to see what would happen next, so much so that a tense silence fell over the battle arena. Fortunately for all of the young trainers' nerves however, there weren't kept waiting in suspense for very long. Soon enough, there was a small break in the surface of the water as Shellder floated by up, and the answer to the question on everybody's minds made itself clear.
Shellder... was unconscious.
Welkin had won the second round of Nolan's Cerulean City gym challenge as well. There was a brief moment of stunned silence as everybody tried to process what they were seeing and exactly what it meant. Then...
"YYYEEESSS!" Nolan bellowed at the top of his lungs, knowing that he wasn't displaying very much dignity at the moment, but honestly unable to care any less about that right now, "YOU PULLED IT OFF AGAIN WELKIN! YOU WON AGAIN! AND YOU FINALLY MASTERED YOUR QUICK ATTACK TOO! I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU RIGHT NOW! THANK YOU SO, SO MUCH WELKIN!"
"BULBASAUR!" Meadow cheered for her teammate and friend as well, jumping up and down and rocking the floating platform in delight.
Welkin, looking exhausted but also exceptionally proud of himself right now, cawed out loudly as he did another victory lap of the swimming pool. He even did it using his newly mastered Quick Attack, obviously just to show off. Nolan just smiled at him indulgently. If anybody had earned the right to brag right now, it was Welkin.
Meanwhile, on the opposite side of the swimming pool, Violet was the one who was returning a defeated Pokemon back to its pokeball this time around. The blue haired Sensational Sister sighed as Shellder vanished into a haze of crimson coloured light.
"Huh? So now who's the washout?" Lily remarked sarcastically from her own floating platform. Violet threw her an unimpressed look.
"Like, can it Lily!" she grumbled in annoyance, tossing her long blue haired over her shoulder angrily, "Those two are like, totally something else. I like, can't believe how good they are!"
"They definitely have like, a lot of skill" Daisy, the blonde haired Sensational Sister, nodded in agreement with Violet's assessment of their collective opponent, "But we're like, not finished just yet girls!"
Daisy produced a pokeball of her own, before turning her attention back to where Nolan, Meadow and Welkin were all still celebrating the Flying Type Pokemon's latest victory.
"Hey kid! Like, don't celebrate too soon! There's still like, one more round to go after all!" the blonde haired Sensational Sister called across the surface of the swimming pool to Nolan, who nodded seriously and quickly sobered up, "I'll admit, you're like, way better then I thought you'd be, but like, how will you stand up to this Pokemon? Come on out sweetie!"
And with just as much elegance and grace as her two sisters before her, Daisy tossed the pokeball in her hand high into the air.
Nolan, Welkin and even Meadow all waited with tense expressions on their faces as they waited to see what their final opponent would be. Thankfully they were kept in suspense for very long, and after just a few short seconds, the red and white sphere snapped open, and the Sensational Sisters' final Pokemon materialised in the water in front of them.
"Seel! Seel! Seel!" a creature that Nolan immediately recognised as a Seel began to clap its flippers together, its adorable fluffy white face taking on a smile that seemed to radiate pure and unadulterated joy. The golden haired boy couldn't help but coo slightly at the sight.
"Aww! A Seel! How cute!" Nolan smiled down at the adorable Pokemon in the water. At the opposite end of the swimming pool, Daisy beamed at the praise he had just bestowed on her chosen combatant.
"Isn't he just!" the blonde haired Sensational Sister crooned delightedly, clapping her hands together in front of her chest, "But my little Seel isn't just cute! He also like, super smart and strong too!"
"Seel!" Seel happily clapped his flippers together again at his beloved human's complimentary words.
Unable to help but smile at the heart-warming sight, Nolan decided that he wanted to know a little bit more about the cute Pokemon in front of him. To that effect, the golden haired boy fished his pokedex out of the back pocket of his jeans, and pointed it in the direction of the creature that was to be his final opponent.
"Seel - the Sea Lion Pokemon" Dexi announced after taking a couple of moments to correctly identify the snow white creature now bobbing about in the water, "Seel hunts for prey in the frigid sea underneath sheets of ice. When it needs to breathe, it punches a hole through the ice with the small horn protruding from its head".
Nolan quickly made a mental note to keep an eye out for that horn during this next battle. Aside from that however, the only useful information he had gleamed from his pokedex was that his latest opponent may be able to pull off some Ice Type moves, despite it being a pure Water Type, much like Violet's Shellder had been able to.
"You can like, have the first move whenever you're like, ready to start" Daisy graciously offered him, and Nolan silently nodded his gratitude.
The golden haired boy paused for a moment, biting his lip anxiously as he tried to decide which one of his precious Pokemon he should enter into this match's final round. He knew that logically, the most sensible thing to do would be to switch out to Meadow right now, and yet there was a feeling brewing in Nolan's gut which prevented him from immediately doing so. He couldn't help it when he found himself staring into Welkin's eyes, nor could he help but feel moved by the somewhat pleading look in them. He allowed a small sigh to slip past his lips.
"Are you sure?" he asked simply, not needing Welkin to say so much as a single word to understand what the Tiny Bird Pokemon was asking of him, "You've already done enough, you know. There's nothing left the prove, and I'm already so proud of you Welkin".
"Pidgey! Gey! Pidgey!" Welkin cawed out beseechingly. Nolan just sighed again, realising that it was a pointless endeavour to try arguing. The Tiny Bird Pokemon could be even more stubborn then the golden haired boy himself when he wanted to be, and whilst they're both knew that overall Nolan was the one in charge, he could also accept that Welkin had earned the right to see this battle through to the end if he so wished.
"Alright... if you think you have enough strength left to win this battle too..." Nolan shrugged uncertainly, but couldn't help smiling when he saw how Welkin's little face lit up at his words, "Then let's try putting that new attack of yours to good use again. Alright Welkin! Use your Quick Attack!"
Deeply touched by the sheer amount of faith that his beloved human was placing in him, Welkin vowed to himself right then and there that he would not be letting the golden haired boy down. Almost welling up, the Tiny Bird Pokemon had to quickly rein in his brewing emotions, before he hastened to follow Nolan's latest command. Leaving nothing by trails of silvery white light behind him as he went, Welkin shot through the air towards his opponent like a small feathery bullet.
WHAM!
"SEEL!" the Sea Lion Pokemon grimaced in pain as he was knocked flying backwards through the water. The poor little guy hadn't even stood a chance at dodging the attack, Welkin was so speedy.
From his floating platform, Nolan couldn't help but grin widely. There was a warm, fuzzy feeling settling in his chest as he looked upon Welkin with affection. The golden haired boy had already told the Tiny Bird Pokemon just how proud he was of him, but truth be told, Nolan was also feeling rather proud of himself right now as well. He had taught Welkin that attack. The Tiny Bird Pokemon may have been the one to put in the work, but he had taught him how to do it. It was the first attack he had successfully managed to teach one of his Pokemon. It was funny in a way, but it really did feel like he'd just reached another major milestone in his career as a Pokemon trainer. But Nolan also knew that he couldn't afford to lose himself in the euphoria he felt regarding Welkin's mastery of his new attack. He was still in a gym battle after all. He needed to focus. Still, he couldn't help but smile as he got back into it.
"Seel! This like, isn't a rehearsal, so you totally need to shake that off!" Daisy called out to the fluffy white Pokemon, who groaned but managed to pull himself upright in the water, "Now, like, give that cute little Pidgey a taste of your Icy Wind attack!"
Nolan couldn't help but swallow hard upon hearing those words. It looked like his earlier suspicions about Seel being able to wield Ice Type attacks were spot on. Welkin would have to be careful of those if he wanted to see this match through to the end.
"SSSEEEEEELLL!" everyone watched as Seel drew in a deep breath, before he suddenly opened his mouth as wide as he could, and blew out what Nolan could only describe as a miniature blizzard. Flakes of snow and shards of ice were sent barrelling in Welkin's direction, who couldn't help but squawk in alarm as they approached.
"Dodge that Welkin!" Nolan immediately responded, smirking as the Tiny Bird Pokemon effortlessly dodged out of the way of the incoming Icy Wind attack, courtesy of another Quick Attack. The little show off. The golden haired boy was quick to issue his next instruction, "Return fire with your Gust attack!"
Nodding his head to show his understanding, Welkin immediately began beating his little wings together as hard as he possibly could. Soon enough, the Tiny Bird Pokemon had summoned up his powerful Gust attack, and he launched it towards where Seel was bobbing about in the water.
"Like, go underwater to avoid that Seel!" Daisy commanded, and when the cute little Sea Lion Pokemon did as she instructed when a small splash, the blonde haired Sensational Sister then raised her voice, "Nice dodge Seel! Now resurface and like, try your Headbutt attack!"
Nolan would admit that what happened next completely caught him off guard.
In a quite-frankly astonishing show of intense body-strength and impressive manoeuvrability, Seel somehow managed to launch himself out of the water, and like something straight out of a movie, he flipped himself higher and higher into the air, almost like a small furry acrobatic. Welkin, too stunned that this aquatic-based creature had successfully managed to invade his terrain of the air, couldn't get out of the way in time.
THUD!
"PPPIIIDDDGGGEEEYYY!"
It was poor Welkin that let out a cry of pain this time around. Unbelievably, Seel had managed to strike Welkin with his strong Headbutt attack head on whilst in mid-air, and had almost knocked the Flying Type Pokemon clean out of the air. Poor Welkin was left to catch himself, which he just barely managed to do in time, whilst with a single graceful flip, Seel elegantly landed back in the water. The cute Sea Lion Pokemon smiled and began clapping his flippers together again.
"Seel! Seel! Seel!" Seel said happily, clearly pleased with himself for the impressive show he had just put on.
"Like Pokemon like trainer!" Daisy cheered from the opposite end of the swimming pool, beaming at her beloved Water Type Pokemon in delight, "That was an excellent dive Seel!"
"Seel!" Seel happily clapped his flippers together once more.
"Are you okay Welkin?" Nolan called up to his beloved Flying Type Pokemon in concern. Welkin had taken quite a strong hit there, but he was still hovering in the air, which Nolan took to mean that he wasn't too badly injured. Still, he wanted to make sure before they did anything else, "Are you okay to keep going?"
"Pidgey!" Welkin immediately called back an affirmative. It was only slightly obvious that he did not want to Nolan to switch him out of this fight.
"Okay" Nolan sighed, rolling his eyes at how stubborn the little guy was, but knowing that he wouldn't have him any other way, "Then let's try your Quick Attack one more time!"
Eagerly nodding his head, and clearly wanting a little bit of revenge for that last smack which had actually really hurt, Welkin took off like a rocket in the direction of his latest opponent. Welkin loved the sense of achievement he felt about being able to freely use that attack now, having finally, finally cracked it, and he also loved how powerful it made him feel. Power he poured into the physical blow, as he immediately struck the opposing Seel head on.
"SEEL!" the Sea Lion Pokemon yelped in pain as he was struck once again.
From her floating platform at the other end of their watery battlefield, Daisy bit her lip in concern. Those Quick Attacks were starting to become a problem. Seel wasn't fast enough to be able to dodge them in time, and he was starting to take way too much damage from them. So knowing that what she was about to do next was a risky tactic, but not seeing what other option was available to them right now, Daisy hesitantly called out her next instruction.
"Seel! I want you to like, go right down to the bottom of the pool!" the blonde haired Sensational Sister said firmly to her beloved Water Type Pokemon, "Once there, like, use your Rest and like, restore all of your energy!"
A rather battered looking Seel nodded his understanding, before he gracefully flipped himself out of the water and went into a perfect dive. He disappeared beneath the water's surface with a small splash. There was a couple of moments where nothing happened, but as everyone watched, there soon came a faint white glow.
From his own end of the battlefield, Nolan couldn't help but grimace in dismay as he realised what was happening.
Rest was a technique that the golden haired boy had heard about, but he had never seen it put into action before. From what he understood, Rest was a move that the user used on themselves to put them into a deep sleep. It apparently then activated a quick regenerative jump-start within their bodies, healing even the most intensive of injuries. He had no idea that Seel were capable of using the technique, but apparently he could, and that only meant one thing.
He and Welkin were in massive trouble.
"Welkin! It can't stay down there asleep forever, so keep your guard up!" Nolan quickly warned his own combatant, who was impatiently hovering in the air over the boy's head, "We can't let it get the jump on you like it did with that Headbutt attack!"
"Pidgey!" Welkin cawed back his understanding.
Waiting with a heavy grimace already on his face, Nolan's earlier theories were quickly proved right. Evidently having awoken from his impromptu nap, Seel soon resurfaced, and looked better then ever before. All of the damage that he had taken from Welkin's Quick Attacks had been undone. He was now back in the condition he had started the match in, which was to say, pristine.
"Surprised?" Daisy questioned her latest challenger in a lightly teasing tone, "You see? Seel can like, totally recover any damage your team can deal to him, so you like, might as well give up now!"
Nolan fixed her with a narrowed-eyed glare.
"That's not gonna happen Daisy!" the golden haired boy declared in a tone of voice that brooked no argument, "I know how Rest works! You can only use it a couple of times in a row before it stops being effective!"
Daisy blinked in evident surprise. She had been expecting the boy in front of her to know about the limitations of the technique. This friend of her sister's was clearly a lot smarter than she'd initially given him credit for.
The golden haired boy was about to show her just how smart he really was.
"Welkin!" Nolan quickly shouted before Daisy had the opportunity to issue another command to her own Pokemon, "Use the strongest Gust attack that you can muster! Straight down!"
If the Tiny Bird Pokemon found the instruction strange, he at least had the good grace not to show it on his face. Beating his wings together as hard as he possibly could, Welkin held the attack for much longer than he usually did, allowing it to grow bigger and bigger and bigger still. Finally, when he could contain that sheer power of the swirling vortex no longer, Welkin let loose. An absolutely massive Gust attack struck the surface of the swimming pool with all the force of a hurricane.
The effect was instantaneous.
Unable to help but continue on the downwards trajectory that it's creator had sent it on, the Gust attack sliced straight through the surface of the water, and kept going until it hit the bottom of the pool. With nowhere else to go, most of the water in the gigantic swimming pool that was serving as their battlefield ended up being sucked into the vortex, creating a makeshift whirlpool. Nolan and Meadow both wobbled precariously upon their floating platform, struggling to maintain their balance. The golden haired boy hadn't factored that little detail in when coming up with this rather risky plan to finish the battle, but thankfully, what he had accounted for was also happening.
"SSSEEEEEELLL!" Seel shrieked in sheer terror, and began trying to swim away from the whirlpool in the opposite direction as hard as he could. It seemed hopeless though, and Seel quickly found himself being dragged backwards towards the Vortex. It was almost as if he were merely a toy in a bathtub, and he was about to be sucked down the plug-hole.
"Oh no! Seel!" Daisy yelled out desperately, and despite all of her experience as an underwater dancer, she too was struggling to maintain her balance on her wobbling platform. On either side of her, Lily and Violet were in much the same condition, trying desperately to remain out of the swimming pool, whose waters had become wilder than even the roughest of all the seas.
Hard as he might try, Seel simply couldn't break free of the grip that the whirlpool had on him. With a frightened expression on his face, the Sea Lion Pokemon found himself being dragged closer and closer to it. From the other end of the battlefield, Nolan couldn't help but grin, despite his own rather perilous situation atop his shaking platform. This was exactly what he'd been waiting for.
"Welkin! Use your Quick Attack to go grab Seel!" the golden haired boy commanded gleefully, "Lift him as high into the air as you can!"
Again, if Welkin found the order perplexing, he didn't show it. Instead, the Tiny Bird Pokemon just did as his trainer instructed. He trusted Nolan's judgement if nothing else after all. So using his newly mastered technique to its fullest potential, Welkin gracefully fell into a dive, and ended up near to the makeshift whirlpools edge. In one swift manoeuvre, the Tiny Bird Pokemon then used his sharp talons to grab Seel by the scruff of his neck, and with surprising strength for such a small creature, he hoisted the Sea Lion Pokemon out of the water, and up into the air.
"Seel!" Seel cried out in surprise. It was clear that the Sea Lion Pokemon wasn't sure whether he should be relieved about being pulled out of the whirlpool's reach, or petrified for what uncertainty was about to be thrown his way next. Nolan smirked, and Seel realised.
It was definitely the latter.
"Okay Welkin!" Nolan called up to his beloved Flying Type Pokemon, who was struggling to remain airborne with the additional weight that Seel provided, "Toss him!"
And in spite of the look of sheer terror that the words put on his opponent's face, that's just what Welkin did.
"PPPPPIIIIIDDDDDGGGGGEEEEEYYYYY!"
Screaming under the effort that the tricky little manoeuvre took on his part, Welkin just barely managed to flip both himself and the body of his captive in the air so that they ended up doing a loop-de-loop. Timing it just right however, the Tiny Bird Pokemon then finally did what Seel had come to dread the most. He let go.
The effect was instantaneous.
"SSSEEEEEELLL!" Seel screamed once more in pure and unadulterated panic as he plummeted downwards through the air, and unable to do anything to prevent his fall, he ended up landing straight in the middle of the whirlpool.
SPLASH!
The poor Sea Lion Pokemon yelled out in what must have been agonising pain once more, as he was brutally battered by the surging torrents of water from every angle. Unable to do anything but flail about helplessly as his body absorbed blow after blow from the relentless assault of Welkin's makeshift whirlpool, Seel was soon dragged beneath the surface of the water. Moments later, the whirlpool finally broke, sending one last tremendous wave outwards in every direction. Water lapped up over the sides of the swimming pool with an almighty crash, but to be perfectly honest, that was the least of anybody's worries.
Then, at long last, the waters finally became calm again.
"SEEL?! SEEL?! ARE YOU OKAY?!" Daisy shrieked, clearly starting to panic when her beloved Water Type Pokemon didn't immediately resurface, "COME ON! YOU HAVE TO LIKE, COME BACK UP AND TRY YOUR AURORA BEAM ATTACK! SEEL?!"
Unfortunately for Daisy however, Seel would not be firing off any Aurora Beams that day.
For quite suddenly and without any kind of warning whatsoever, the surface of the swimming pool broke for a final time, and a small furry white body drifted up to the surface.
It was Seel.
He was unconscious.
Nolan just stood reeling on his now stable floating platform. The golden haired boy barely even reacted when an utterly exhausted but supremely triumphant Welkin and gently landed on his shoulder. It was obvious that Nolan was struggling to process what had just happened and what it meant exactly, but once the reality of the situation finally started to sink in, an incredulous laugh bubbled its way past his lips. The golden haired boy immediately plucked his beloved Flying Type Pokemon off of his shoulder, and wrapped him up in fierce embrace.
"YOU DID IT WELKIN! YOU DID IT AGAIN!" Nolan bellowed at the top of his lungs, forcing himself to remember that he was still on unsteady ground, otherwise he'd have been twirling on the spot in delight, "I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! YOU MANAGED TO TAKE DOWN ALL THREE POKEMON BY YOURSELF! I COULDN'T HAVE ASKED FOR ANYTHING BETTER, AND I'M SO, SO PROUD OF YOU!
"Pidgey..." Welkin, who was struggling to even hold his eyes open, he was so incredibly tired by this point, cooed happily as his trainer hugged him tightly to his chest again.
"BULBASAUR!" Meadow cheered for all of the hard work that Welkin had put in as well, jumping up and down on the spot in her excitement. She quickly stopped though when she realised that she was rocking the platform they were all still on top of.
Noticing this, and wanting to allow both himself and his Pokemon the chance to celebrate their latest victory properly, Nolan smiled and gently manoeuvred their floating platform back over to the edge of the swimming pool. Once safely there; he, Welkin and Meadow all disembarked, and stepped back off onto dry land. Nolan had to admit that after all the excitement of that last battle, that in and of itself came as no small relief. He had no time to sit and reflect upon that feeling however, for hearing the sharp click of high-heels against soaking wet tiles, he looked up to see that all three of The Sensational Sisters has also disembarked from their floats, and were now walking around the edge of the swimming pool towards him. All three of the stunningly beautiful women had a genuinely warm smile on their faces. Practically quivering in excitement at what he knew must be coming next, Nolan returned their smiles wholeheartedly.
"Congratulations Nolan" Daisy was the first of the Sensational Sisters to speak, drawing the golden haired boy's focus on to her, "That was like, a really good battle. That finale that you like, pulled off at the end there was like, totally impressive!"
"And totally awesome!" Violet quickly chipped in as well.
"Totally!" Lily nodded sagely in agreement.
Nolan couldn't help but blush a faint shade of pink at all the praise they were giving him, which if what Misty said was accurate, didn't come about all that often. The golden haired boy rubbed the back of his head in a particularly sheepish manner as he responded to the three gorgeous women in front of him.
"Thanks a lot, but truth be told, those battles were all a lot harder then I was expecting them to be" the young blonde Pokemon trainer admitted modestly, "All three of you have done a really amazing job raising your Water Type Pokemon".
The three Sensational Sisters all smiled warmly at the boy's kind praise.
"Smart, a good battler, cute, and modest as well! Daisy suddenly crowed in a teasing voice, a smile that was positively wicked plastered all over her face, "Yep. Misty certainly bagged herself a Grade A boyfriend when she met you Nolan!"
Nolan's blush quickly intensified until his entire face was the same colour of a ripe tomato. The golden haired boy immediately began stammering out a protest, but he just couldn't seem to get the words out. Both Meadow and Welkin were of no help either. The two Pokemon were practically falling about whilst roaring with laughter at their beloved trainer's discomfort. In the end, Nolan just let out a low groan of defeat, something he did again once heard a familiar voice cry out angrily 'Hey! He's not my boyfriend!' from over in the stands.
Giggling for a couple of moments, the three Sensational Sisters all quickly sobered up however as they got serious again. They still had important business to get finished after all, and so with that thought in mind, Daisy finished her teasing, and took a small step closer to Nolan.
"But in all seriousness, congratulations!" the blonde haired woman said again, her smile now genuine once more, "And it's like, my honour to present you with this".
Daisy held out her arm towards the golden haired Pokemon Trainer, and opened her long slender fingers to reveal the small glittering trinket she held in the palm of her hand. Practically awestruck by this point, Nolan leaned in and took the offered gym badge with shaking fingers. Mystified, the boy held it up to eye level for a closer look. He had to admit, this badge was a lot prettier than the one he had received from Brock. Cerulean blue in colouring, the badge was shaped in the likeness of a teardrop. Nolan particularly like the way it came out like real water did under the bright fluorescent lights.
It was stunning, and now it was all his.
"It's called the Cascade Badge" Daisy explained, smiling at the way in which Nolan was handling it with such care, almost like it was sacred to him.
"It's the prize that trainers win when they manage to defeat the Cerulean City gym" Violet added from off to the side.
"Congratulations on getting your hands on one" Lily chimed in as well, "You totally deserve it!"
Beaming in pure and unadulterated joy, Nolan graciously thanked all three of them for this most precious gift, before he carefully pinned his new Cascade Badge to the front of his hoodie, right next to his Boulder Badge for the entire world to see. Two gym badges. Nolan now had two of the gym badges he needed to be able to compete in the Indigo League, and it was all thanks to Welkin. Never before had Nolan ever felt quite so proud. One thing was for sure in the young trainer's mind in that moment.
The Tiny Bird Pokemon was going to get spoiled something rotten for this.
And there we are, another chapter done : )
Yay! Nolan has his second Gym Badge! Only Six more to go in the Kanto story arc : ) My original plan for this battle was to have Welkin win the second round, but then lose to Daisy's Seel and have Meadow come in and finish off the fight, but the more I wrote it, the more I wanted to just give Welkin a chance to shine. Out of the four Pokemon currently on Nolan's team in story, Welkin is my second favourite, coming in just after Meadow : ) I had always planned for him to master Quick Attack at that specific moment however, so he'd really pull through for Nolan : )
But enough about that for now. Instead, let's talk about this week's voting topic, and I have to say, I'm quite interested to see how this one will play out. This week it's going to be another Evolution Vote, this time for defeating Danny and earning the Sea Ruby Badge. His team consisted of a level 30 Geodude, a level 32 Scyther, a level 35 Nidoqueen, a level 30 Electrode, and a level 32 Machoke, so it was a quite varied match. I won in the end though, so now you guys get to pick the next one of Nolan's Pokemon that gets to evolve. The options this time are Vulpix, Porygon, Lickitung, Goldeen, Scyther and Kadabra. Honestly, I'd be quite happy with any of these Pokemon evolving, but it's not up to me, so please go and leave your vote in a review to help decide which one of these guys gets to evolve : )
And I think that's just about everything from me for this time, so thank you so much for reading this chapter and my story in general. I hope you are enjoying it all so far, and please consider leaving a review because I'd love to hear your comments and feedback : )
Until the next time, keep on reading : )