Hey readers - here we are with another new chapter : )
Oh my gosh! This chapter was so hard to write! I don't know what was going on, but it just did not want to come out of my brain XD I normally have these chapters written a couple of weeks in advance, but this time I just barely finished in time. Having said all that though, I'm quite pleased with where I got it to, so I shouldn't complain too much : )
Enough about that though, so instead let's move on to more exciting news. The result of the last voting topic ended in a tie again, but thankfully it was only between two Pokemon - Voltorb and Poliwag - so I was easily able to settle it with a coin toss. Not how I wanted to resolve this, but I'm also very keen to move on to the next voting topic as it's quite... special, in its own way ; ) Anyway, I'm very pleased to say that the winner of the latest Evolution Vote and the final one of my Orange Islands Nuzlocke is... Poliwag! I have to say, I'm really happy with how all six of the evolutions in this specific Nuzlocke have gone. I don't know if any of you guys have noticed, but we've had three of Nolan's original Pokemon evolve, and three of his new ones. Funny how that happened but I'm all for it ; )
Finally, I'd just like 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 School of Hard Knocks - Part 4
In the time it took Joe to realise what had just happened and to allow the magnitude of its significance to truly sink in, Nolan had already crossed the room and was on his knees next to Iris, pulling the small purple creature into his arms and hugging her tightly. The Bug Type Pokemon looked rather proud of herself for this particular defeat considering just how much of a whooping disadvantage she had started the match at, and was happily soaking up all the praise and compliments that her beloved human was currently showering her with. Next to the pair stood Meadow, looking just as gleeful about their team's most recent victory as her partner and teammate both did, and thus she was congratulating Iris on a job well done as well. It was a very heart-warming and tender moment.
"That was amazing Iris, just... amazing!" Nolan was practically gushing as he cuddled Iris close to his chest, the small purple creature happily reciprocating the gesture, "I'm so proud of you right now. Thank you".
"Veno... Nat!" Iris squeaked, clearly very happy about all the affection that she was receiving.
"Bulba! Bulbasaur!" Meadow chimed in as well, proud of the impressive feat that her friend and fellow Pokemon had managed to pull off. She knew from personal experience just how difficult it could be to overcome such odds after all.
Across the room from the celebrating trio, Joe was still just stood there, gaping in absolute astonishment. It was obvious that the timid male student was still struggling to comprehend what had just happened. With trembling fingers, Joe raised a pokeball and nimbly returned his unconscious Spearow to the safety of its confines.
"I don't get it" Joe shook his head in confusion, both his tone and expression utterly perplexed by the events that had just taken place, "Spearow should have been strong against a Bug Type Pokemon like Venonat".
Upon hearing the soft and incredulous complaint slip by Joe's lips, Nolan looked up from where he was knelt petting Iris, an air of sympathy in his expression as he regarded the other boy. Whilst deliberately throwing a Pokemon battle was never an option in his mind, the golden haired boy hadn't wanted to crush Joe's confidence in the process of battling him either. Heaven knew that the male student was timid enough already, but Nolan had had to make a point. That there were aspects of being a Pokemon Trainer, very important aspects, that simply couldn't be learnt in a classroom. And if Joe ever wanted to make it as a good Pokemon trainer, that was something he would have to realise very quickly.
Before the golden haired boy had a chance to give voice to any of those thoughts and important life-lessons however, something happened which cut him off before he had a chance to utter so much as a single syllable. From behind several of the bookshelves and other pieces of large furniture which lined the Pokemon Tech's Battle Facility, a collection of teenaged figures emerged, several of which Nolan recognised very well. A very ugly look flashed across his handsome features at the mere sight of them. It was the same group of bullies that had been picking on Joe earlier that day, those key to the whole event which had led to Nolan and his friends befriending the timid male student in the first place. And at the head of them all, the only female Pokemon Tech student present in the room, was none other than the pretty girl in the photograph which Joe had shown them all earlier.
Giselle.
Nolan could already feel an intense dislike for the girl building up within him, and he hadn't even exchanged so much as one word with her yet. But if he'd been in any doubt before about just how nasty a piece of work this Giselle girl was, the expression currently clouding her pretty face would be enough of a hint without the need for any foreknowledge. The smug smirk gracing her lips practically reeked of a superiority complex, and the way that her cold dark eyes lingered upon Nolan and his friends made it perfectly clear what she thought of them. They were not Pokemon Trainers. They weren't even people. They were nothing more than specks of dirt on the bottom of her grotesquely expensive shoes.
It was enough to make young Nolan's blood boil.
Before the golden haired boy had a chance to ream her out for the appalling way that she and her gang of cronies treated their fellow students here at the Pokemon Tech, Giselle turned her nose at him before diverting her attention to Joe. Nolan couldn't help but notice how the timid male student swallowed hard and stood up a little bit straighter. It was clear that he was very afraid of whatever Giselle was going to say. It did little to improve Nolan's already incredibly low opinion of the nasty girl.
"True, but there's one thing you didn't know" Giselle said to Joe, her tone practically dripping with condescension, "Your opponent's Venonat had a wide range of attacks at its disposal, meaning that it clearly has much more experience battling. You should've known that. You're an embarrassment to the whole school!"
Joe looked absolutely crushed by Giselle's insult. Nolan and Misty both looked enraged.
The golden haired boy opened his mouth angrily, no doubt a red-hot retort on the tip of his tongue. Before he could utter so much as a single syllable however, he was quickly cut off by his best friend, who had a dopey loved-up expression on his face. At Ash's side, Brock was in much the same emotional state. Nolan threw up his hands in sheer frustration.
"She's really pretty, isn't she?" Ash was practically drooling as he ogled Giselle's attractive figure and beautiful features.
"Yeah, she looks just like a movie star" Brock enthusiastically replied with the same kind of dazed expression on his face.
Nolan couldn't help but scoff in annoyance at the way his two male friends were behaving right now. It was like they had forgotten all about how Giselle was the leader of a gang of bullies. Talk about shallow. Thankfully, at least Misty seemed to have her head fastened on straight.
"They like stars, do they?" the orange haired girl muttered under her breath, narrowing her eyes at Ash and Brock angrily, I'll be glad to show them some stars!"
Nolan wholeheartedly agreed with the girl's sentiment.
"Yeah! If you two could stop slobbering like a pair of lovesick Arcanine and put your tongues away for a minute, that would be great!" the golden haired boy shot at his male friends, who suddenly both looked rather sheepish.
Darkly satisfied that he had managed to bring the other two boys back to their senses for the moment, Nolan then turned his attention back to Giselle. Before he had a chance to begin challenging her on the way she treated her fellow students however, the girl in question spoke up first.
"I'm the top student in the beginning class of the most exclusive prep school in the world, Pokemon Tech" Giselle began boosting in what was clearly supposed to be a modest manner, but was failing epically, "It's sad that others aren't blessed with my beauty, my talent, my humble attitude".
Nolan didn't even try to refrain from rolling his eyes at the hypocritical irony of that particular piece of self-flattery.
"People call me a star..." Giselle continued eagerly, striking a dramatic pose that was worthy of Team Rocket. It was obvious that the girl was revelling in the opportunity to talk about herself and show off, which only served to cement Nolan's intense dislike of her, "But I'm just Giselle!"
Needless to say, Nolan and Misty were not impressed in the slightest.
"Really?" Nolan's voice was thin with both ice and sarcasm in equal measure, "Well I'm not one of those people. I'll call you exactly what you are. A vile bully!"
Giselle briefly looked taken aback by Nolan's sharp tone, but she didn't allow his words to phase her. Instead, the pretty girl's delicate lips twitched into a cool mockery of a smile.
"'Bully' is such a terribly ugly word, don't you think?" the attractive female student simpered, sneering condescendingly down her nose at Nolan, who merely glared back at her, "I prefer to think of my approach as... an extreme method of helping those around me to do better".
"And you think that justifies having this poor kid lying on the ground whilst your five cronies all towered over him, do you?" Nolan snapped back as he gestured towards Joe, shaking his head in disgust.
"I most certainly do" Giselle sniffed impetuously, looking at Nolan as though he was a foolish simpleton for even daring to disagree with her, "I want to continue to help my classmates be the very best they can be. To teach each other, respect each other, and insure the Pokemon of tomorrow..."
That was the moment that Giselle's gaze honed in on Joe, who gulped loudly.
"But you're a weakling!" the nasty female student told her timid classmate cruelly, clearly feeling empowered by the way that Joe seemed to shrink a couple of inches in front of their very eyes, "You'd better get stronger fast, or before you know it. your fellow students will turn their backs on you for good!"
Joe lowered his head to the ground in shame under the onslaught of Giselle's harsh words. Noticing this, Nolan was quick to step in front of him, drawing the bully's attention back to himself.
"No doubt at your gentle persuasion, hmm?" Nolan arched an eyebrow at the girl standing opposite him, the challenge clear in his tone and expression, "And they'll do whatever you say of course, because mostly people who feel bullied in a classroom setting always do. Best way deflect a bully's attention from oneself is to let someone else be their target".
Nolan's lip was curled in sheer disgust by the time that he'd finished speaking. This time however, his words seemed to have found a minor chink in Giselle's armour.
"I don't appreciate what you're insinuating" the attractive female student narrowed her dark eyes dangerously, but this time it was Nolan who decided to remain unfazed. The golden haired boy was more than happy to stand his ground against the likes of somebody like Giselle.
"No I bet you don't" Nolan said without even bothering to try and keep his smug satisfaction of getting under Giselle's skin from his tone, "Because people like you don't like being called out on your appalling behaviour. You prefer it when everyone just quietly takes whatever you say lying down. That way you can just walk all over them with your overly expensive shoes. Well sorry to disappoint, Giselle, but I'm not quite as star struck as everyone else seems to be around you".
A look of pure and unadulterated astonishment flashed across Giselle's beautiful features, clearly not used to being spoken to in such a manner. With an indignant harrumph, she turned back to Joe, favouring to just ignoring Nolan completely since she didn't like what she was hearing.
"If I were you Joe, I'd think very carefully about whose advice you start taking" Giselle told her timid classmate, the undertone of a threat clear to everyone, "He is only going to be here today, but I'll be here for a lot longer, and I can make life very uncomfortable. So if you want the help of your friends to continue around here, take a moment to seriously think about that".
And without so much as a backwards glance at Nolan and his friends, Giselle tossed her long sleek hair over her shoulder and began to march away.
"NOT SO FAST!" Misty yelled angrily, getting in first this time before Nolan had a chance to start arguing again. The orange haired girl lowered her voice as Giselle glanced back at her, "A true friend wouldn't threaten somebody just for choosing to listen to somebody else! Nor would they walk away from someone who needs their help!"
Giselle simply arched an eyebrow at Misty, clearly finding her words no more noteworthy than Nolan's earlier ones.
"You may look beautiful!" Misty continued in an indignant tone, clearly annoyed by the other girl's flippant attitude and not appreciating it one bit, "But you remind me of an old saying about how beauty's only skin deep!"
If Giselle was offended by the insinuation that she was ugly on the inside, she hid it well.
"Jealousy's not very pretty either, is it?" Giselle quipped back, her lips curled into an unpleasant smirk as she caught a flash of anger flicker across Misty's face.
"I'm not jealous of you, you little witch" Misty retorted bluntly, and Giselle looked rather put out when she realised just how honest the other girl was being when making that rather bold statement, "I'm not so shallow as to find somebody's worth in what I can only see on the surface. I look deeper than that, which is why I will never be envious of somebody so superficial as you Giselle!"
Once again, Giselle merely scoffed and sneered down her nose at Misty as if she was completely insignificant.
"I can assure you, little girl, that beauty isn't the only asset that I have in my arsenal" the nasty female student's voice was practically oozing with condescension as she regarded Misty like a Charizard would a Caterpie, "Perhaps if you had bothered listening to me before, you'd have heard me say that I'm also very intelligent, not to mention a highly skilled Pokemon trainer!"
"Along with exceptionally conceited" Nolan muttered under his breath so that only Misty heard him. Her lips quirked in amusement, but she didn't respond to his quip.
"Well I happen to be a pretty strong Pokemon trainer myself" Misty retorted to Giselle's comments smugly, but when the female student didn't look convinced, the orange haired girl added, "I was once one of the gym leaders at the official Pokemon Gym in Cerulean City, until I denounced the title in order to go travelling".
For the first time since with this entire conversation began, Giselle actually looked interested in what someone other than herself was saying.
"A Cerulean City gym leader, huh?" Giselle repeated with a knowing glint in her eye, casting Misty a look that was filled with intrigue rather than just nasty superiority, "So that would make you an expert in the use of Water Type Pokemon".
"It would" Misty confirmed with an undeniable hint of pride in her tone.
Giselle looked thoughtful for a brief moment, seemingly weighing something up in her mind. She soon nodded to herself before she walked across the room and approached one of the shelves with the pokeballs on it. She quickly selected one of the red and white spheres before she turned back to Misty and all of her friends with a smug smirk on her beautiful face.
"Then perhaps you wouldn't mind settling our little dispute with a friendly Pokemon battle?" Giselle proposed as she held up the pokeball challengingly, "A one on one match to decide who's right?"
Misty hesitated for all of one second before sharply nodding her head.
"Fine by me" the orange haired girl agreed, slipping her backpack off of her back and rummaging around in it for a brief moment. Soon enough, the Water Type Pokemon Specialist withdrew her hand from within the fabric, holding a pokeball of her own.
Across from Misty, Giselle's lips quirked into a smug smirk. It was obvious that the nasty female student was confident in her own abilities.
"Against your Water Type Pokemon, I'll choose..." Giselle elegantly tossed the red and white sphere in her hand high into the air over all of their heads. Everybody present watched with curious eyes as the capsule device arched through the air, "Graveler! Go!"
In a flash of crimson coloured light, a very large bulky creature materialized on the school's practice battlefield in front of them all. The creature was roughly spherical in shape and was a sort of earthy grey in colour. It had what Nolan could only describe as a rather goofy face, but despite its rather comical expression, the creature was clearly very powerful. Its four huge muscular arms were evidence enough of that. The golden haired boy immediately recognised the Pokemon that Misty was about to face in battle, but at his side, Ash was wearing a look of complete confusion.
"Whoa!" the raven haired boy exclaimed in astonishment, his russet coloured eyes fixed on the creature that had just manifested, "What is that?"
"A Graveler" Brock replied, eyeing the Pokemon Tech School Pokemon with an air of interest.
Nolan couldn't help but nod to himself knowingly. It made sense that Brock, the aspiring Pokemon breeder, would recognise that particular creature on sight, especially considering the line-up of his Pokemon team. Nolan of course knew some things about Graveler as well, but for Ash's benefit, the golden haired boy fished his pokedex out of his back pocket and aimed it in the direction of the round grey creature.
"Graveler - the Rock Pokemon" Dexi announced in her smooth mechanical voice after successfully identifying the creature in front of them, "This Pokemon's favourite food are rocks. Graveler will climb a mountain from the base to the summit, crunchingly feasting on rocks all the while. Upon reaching the peak, it rolls back down to the bottom".
"But what's more interesting is the fact that Graveler is also the evolved form of Geodude" Nolan proudly explained to his best friend as he put his pokedex away again, "That's the Pokemon that Xanthite will become one day when it's time for her to evolve".
"Mine too" Brock added, affectionately tapping the pokeball on his belt containing his own Geodude.
Whilst Ash was marvelling upon the information he had just received, Misty on the other hand was ignoring her friends' conversation entirely. Instead, the orange haired girl's attention was fixed firmly upon Giselle and the Pokemon that was to be her opponent, and try though she might, Misty just couldn't wrap her mind around the logic behind Giselle's selection.
"Graveler?" Misty shook her head in a thoroughly perplexed manner, "But Rock and Ground Type Pokemon are weak against Water Type Pokemon".
Catching the other girl's rather obvious confusion, Giselle's sense of smug self-satisfaction only multiplied tenfold.
"The Pokemon here at Pokemon Tech have been trained by some of the most prestigious Pokemon handlers in the entire world" Giselle boasted arrogantly to Misty and the rest of the little traveling quartet, "Despite the fact that Graveler may have a natural disadvantage when it comes to typing against Water Type Pokemon, it has been trained to be able to defeat Water Type Pokemon through some very advanced techniques. I highly doubt that whatever Pokemon you choose will be able to beat it".
Outright anger flashed across Misty's face at the sheer gall of the other girl, and she scoffed before angrily hurling her own pokeball high into the air.
"Misty calls... Starmie!" the Water Type Pokemon Specialist announced proudly.
"Star!" Starmie's ethereal voice droned loudly as the peculiar creature materialised in front of Misty in a haze of scarlet coloured light. It's large ruby jewel core gleamed brightly under the bright fluorescent lights of the classroom.
"A Starmie huh? Never battled one of those before" Giselle actually sounded slightly impressed, which was probably the closest she had ever come to paying someone else a compliment, "Now, are we clear on the rules?"
"Yes. A one on one elimination match. A trainer loses whenever their Pokemon is defeated" Misty nodded her head curtly to show that she understood the terms, "May the best woman win".
The words were meant as a simple olive branch, but unsurprisingly, they were met with a condescending scoff.
"Oh trust me, I will" Giselle sneered nastily down her nose at Misty, who harrumphed indignantly. Grinning to herself, the particularly unpleasant female student quickly turned to her own selected Pokemon and claimed the first move of the match for herself in at rather self-entitled manner, "Now Graveler! Use your Rollout attack!"
And just like that, the battle immediately got underway.
Graveler didn't give any verbal inclination that it had heard Giselle's command, nor did its facial expression change in the slightest. The large Rock and Ground Type Pokemon merely curled itself up into ball and began rolling back and forth, quickly gathering momentum and speed. Then, with expert precision, the humongous boulder-like creature pivoted on the spot while still curled up, and stormed across the battlefield towards where Starmie was standing.
Misty didn't even bat an eyelid.
"Dodge that Starmie" the Water Type Pokemon Specialist lazily commanded her partner Pokémon in a tone of voice which sounded almost bored.
"STAR!"
Seemingly as unconcerned about the incoming threat of Graveler's Rollout attack as its trainer was, the ruby red jewel at Starmie's core began to glow with an ethereal white light. Then, much to the astonishment of everybody watching, Starmie began floating before their very eyes. And with its newfound height, the Water and Psychic Type Pokemon was easily able to dodge Graveler's powerful Rollout attack, as it hovered lazily over the battlefield.
Over on the sidelines, Nolan's jaw was hanging wide open.
"Whoa!" the golden haired boy whispered in awe, his icy blue eyes wide in amazement at what he was seeing, "I had no idea that Starmie could levitate like that! That's so cool!"
"It's Starmie's psychic abilities at work" Brock explained to the younger boy, looking just as impressed as Nolan did, "It's holding itself in the air using just the power of its own mind".
"Amazing!" Ash breathed in utter astonishment.
Misty was oblivious to the conversation between her three friends and travelling companions, and instead had her entire focus on the match she was participating in. She glanced up towards where the purple star-shaped creature was floating high in the air over her head.
"Nice dodge Starmie!" the orange haired girl complimented her beloved partner Pokemon, "Now use your Swift attack!"
Starmie reacted to its partner's command almost instantaneously, and while it was still hovering in the air, it began spinning. Slowly at first, but then faster and faster. It soon became just a purple blur of motion, but then the jewel at its core lit up. In a matter of seconds, hundreds upon hundreds of tiny golden star-like pulses of light had been generated.
"STARMIE!"
When it could contain the build-up of power no longer, Starmie launched its dazzling array of Swift stars at its opponent, each one homing in on Graveler with pinpoint accuracy. Everybody glanced over towards Giselle, curious to see how the so-called top student trainer would deal with this latest turn of events. To the audience's surprise however, the pretty young girl just smiled.
"Take that head on Graveler" Giselle calmly instructed her chosen combatant.
Nolan blanched in horror. Around him, his friends all did the same. They couldn't believe that a trainer that was supposedly an expert would actually be willing to let their own Pokemon take what would no doubt be a very painful hit. Even Giselle's own group of cronies looked surprised by the course of action that the girl in question had decided to take. Nobody had a chance to call the nasty female student out on her cold-hearted tactic however because everything just happened so quickly.
"GRAVELER!"
Still propelling itself all over the battlefield with ever-increasing speed, the humongous boulder-like behemoth once again managed to pivot on the spot and change direction, with surprising grace and manoeuvrability. It was now facing Starmie's incoming Swift attack head on, and without even the slightest moment of hesitation, Graveler charged forwards without any fear at all.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!
In less than a nanosecond after the first star of Starmie's Swift attack collided with its bulky body, Graveler was immediately engulfed in a powerful explosion. The Rock and Ground Type Pokemon was lost from sight as it became shrouded in a plume of inky black smoke. A tense couple of moments passed by in silence.
Everybody was left on tenterhooks, wondering whether or not Graveler would be okay. After what felt like an eternity however, but in reality was just a few short scant seconds, the smoke cloud dispersed, and the Rock Pokemon's ultimate fate was revealed.
"No. Way!" Nolan gaped over on the sidelines out of sheer disbelief. He wasn't the only one.
Graveler... was still standing. Not a cut. Not a bruise. Not a dent. Not even so much as a single scratch. The Rock Pokemon was in perfect condition, like it hadn't just taken an explosive attack head on at all. It honestly defied all belief, so it was no wonder that Misty was now sporting a look of abject horror on her face.
"Uh oh..." the orange haired girl whispered nervously under her breath to herself, "That Graveler's a lot stronger than I thought! This isn't good!"
Across the battlefield from the Water Type Pokemon Specialist, Giselle's face contorted into a smug smile.
"Graveler's much more resilient than you thought, huh?" the nasty female student smirked at Misty, her tone practically oozing with condescension, "But Graveler doesn't just have amazing defensive capabilities. It also has an impressive offense. Let me show you. Now Graveler! Use Rock Throw!"
Graveler heeded Giselle's sharp command almost instantly.
From his position over on the sidelines, Nolan couldn't help but wonder how exactly the nasty female student and her chosen combatant were going to pull this particular move off. Rock Throw was usually the kind of attack that required the Pokemon in question to be in a very specific environment. The kind of environment that most definitely was not an indoor training facility. Therefore it came as a complete surprise when Graveler's four arms all began to bubble and bulge in almost perfect unison. Soon enough, the entire Rock Pokemon looked as though it were boiling, and from each of the lumps covering Graveler's body, small rocks began to spawn and emerge from beneath the boulder-like creature's skin. Without so much as a split-second's hesitation, Graveler then began hurling the newly formed stones at its opponent.
Needless to say, most of the audience was left utterly speechless by the incredible display.
"Okay... how on Earth did it manage to do that?!" Ash's face was contorted with the same kind of confusion that Nolan currently felt. The golden haired boy could only shrug at his best friend, but thankfully for them both, Brock was able to provide the answer.
"It's because of Graveler's diet. Remember what the pokedex said about how they eat rocks?" the aspiring Pokemon breeder reminded his two friends, "Well, because rocks are incredibly hard for any kind of Pokemon to digest, they stay inside Graveler's body. And because Graveler and their evolved form Golem have such a strong affinity with the earth, they can manipulate those rocks and expel them from their own bodies at will".
"That's amazing!" Nolan breathed, highly impressed by the information he had just learned.
Back with Misty however, she was understandably less awestruck than her friend was. The orange haired girl watched with an air of anxiety as Starmie bobbed back and forth in the air over her head, struggling to dodge all of the small rocky projectiles being lobbed its way.
"Watch out Starmie!" Misty exclaimed encouragingly to her beloved partner, but it was no use. Graveler's Rock Thr ow attack was coming too thick and fast, and it was only a matter of time before the inevitable happened...
CRASH!
With a sickening crunch that made everyone cringe as they felt it deep within their bones, one of Graveler's stones hit its mark. Starmie gasped loudly, clearly in a great deal of pain, as its ruby core was hit. The strange star-shaped creature was knocked clean out of the air, and was just barely able to catch itself in time before it landed back on the ground.
"Starmie! Are you okay?!" Misty gasped, her tone and expression both heavy with concern.
"Mie! Starmie!" Starmie jerked its whole body in what could only be construed as an affirmative. The Water and Psychic Type Pokemon was already standing proud and talk, obviously ready to keep going.
"Okay! Let's see how Graveler does when we're in our element!" the Water Type Pokemon Specialist said with a twinkle in her eye, "Use your BubbleBeam!"
The jewel at Starmie's core flashed once, before the strange star-shaped creature began rotating where it stood. Pearly white foam began spewing out from the tips of each of Starmie's points, and before anybody had a chance to do much more than blink, the Water and Psychic Type Pokemon had produced a large array of bubbles in various colours and sizes. The bubbles were immediately propelled towards their intended opponent in a high pressured stream of water.
It only lasted for a brief second, but Nolan saw it. A flicker of worry in Giselle's eyes. The golden haired boy couldn't help but smirk from his position on the sidelines. It was about time the nasty female student was taken down a peg or two.
SPLASH!
"GGGRRRAAAVVVEEELLLEEERRR!"
Finally, at long last, Misty and Starmie were able to land an attack that got the boulder-like behemoth to flinch. And whilst the BubbleBeam wasn't enough to bring Graveler down, it was enough to get past its impressive defensive capabilities, if only for one brief moment. But it was a start, and it proved that the Rock Pokemon wasn't invulnerable. That gave Misty something to work with.
"Ler! Graveler!" Graveler let out a low grunt of pain as the seemingly unending stream of explosive bubbles continued pounding into it.
Behind her chosen combatant, Giselle was starting to look slightly worried, although to give the nasty female student her credit, she was hiding it very well behind a mask of bravado. Despite everything she had said earlier however about Graveler being strong enough to defeat Water Type Pokemon, Giselle knew that Graveler couldn't withstand this type of attack forever. As such, she quickly put the great intellect that the Pokemon Tech Academy bestowed upon its students to work, and came up with a new strategy on the spot.
"Graveler, enough of this!" the beautiful dark haired girl snapped, and it was the closest that any of them had come to see her losing her composure, "Counterstrike with your Magnitude attack!"
Somehow still withstanding Starmie's intense BubbleBeam attack, Graveler was able to bring itself back up to its full height. With one swift powerful jump, the huge rocky-skinned creature all but hurled itself up into the air with the all the grace and charm of an incoming cannonball. Shaking off its body and sending tiny water droplets flying everywhere, the boulder-like behemoth then slammed back into the ground, sending out a powerful shockwave of artificial seismic energy.
The effect was instantaneous.
It was like the entire building was suddenly quivering around them, and Nolan, along with all of the other spectators as well as Misty and Giselle themselves, all had to throw out their arms to steady their balance as the floor trembled beneath them. The golden haired boy idly wondered why the use of a technique like Magnitude was permitted in a school of all places, but quickly reasoned that with the amount of funding this place must receive on a yearly basis in commissions alone, it could no doubt reinforce this room so much that a truck could hit it and the rest of the building wouldn't feel its effects. Nolan quickly shook the unimportant thought away however, and turned his attention back to the match still unfolding in front of him.
"STAR!"
Much to the concern of Misty, Starmie had taken quite the hit from being so close to the initial impact of Graveler's powerful attack. The unusual creature's points were all flailing about, the only obvious indication that Starmie was in pain.
"Lift off again Starmie!" Misty urgently advised.
In a moment of Deja vu, history repeated itself, and Starmie was soon floating over the battlefield again, lazily drifting over them all. It was regenerating quickly thanks to the power stored inside its jewelled core, but it was more than a little obvious Starmie had taken some serious damage from that last attack. It would be wise for the Water and Psychic Type Pokemon not to get hit like that again. Fortunately, Misty was already working on that.
"Nice dodge Starmie, but we're not out of this yet, so keep up the good work!" the orange haired girl said to her partner, always one to give praise where it was due, "Let's see how well Graveler tanks your next attack! Use Hydro Pump!"
"MIE! STARMIE!"
In a manner that was almost comically reminiscent of a fire-safety sprinkler system, thick torrents of crystal clear water began pouring out of the ends of each of Starmie's points, raining down across the battlefield as the bizarre purple creature gently rotated whilst continuing to float in the air.
"Grav..." Graveler low out a low grunt of pain as the water gently sprayed its rocky skin, "Graveler!"
Taking note of the expression of discomfort on the Rock and Ground Type Pokemon's face, Giselle bit her lip thoughtfully. Suddenly an idea hit the nasty female student, and a smug smirk worked its way onto her pretty features.
"I know it hurts Graveler but I know you can bare through it!" Giselle's tone was the closest it had ever come to actually sounding compassionate for another lifeform, "Protect yourself with your Defense Curl!"
Graveler didn't need telling twice.
Again, moving much quicker than a creature it's size should be able to, the large hulking Rock and Ground Type Pokemon soon had all four of a huge muscular arms wrapped up tight around itself. There was a brief flash of light that seemed to ripple across the surface Graveler's body, signalling that it's natural defences had just increased significantly. It wasn't enough to prevent Graveler from taking damage from Starmie's Hydro Pump attack, but it certainly improved Giselle's chosen combatant's chances of surviving this round of the match.
"Grav!"
The efforts of Giselle's quick thinking were enough to keep this battle going. Grunting with exertion, Graveler just barely managed to stay upright against the deluge, its resolve remaining unbroken as it stood it's ground against the onslaught of water. Over on the sidelines, Misty's friends were stunned by the creature's unwavering resilience.
"Whoa!" Ash breathed in amazement, his russet coloured eyes wide as he continued to watch the gripping match unfold, "Graveler's a lot tougher than I thought!".
Nolan and Brock couldn't help but nod their heads in agreement with the raven haired boy's assessment.
"I have to admit, Giselle wasn't lying when she said that Graveler has been trained by a professional" Nolan admitted with a hint of bitterness in both his tone and his expression, "It's almost like that Graveler has been bred to be resistant to water, just like A.J managed to train his Sandshrew to be".
"This will definitely be a complicating factor for Misty moving forwards in this match" Brock added seriously as he observed the happenings, "She'll have to stay on her toes if she wants to be in with a chance of winning".
Back on the battlefield, Giselle's confidence had been restored and with it came her trademark smirk of superiority.
"Looks like you and your Starmie underestimated my Graveler's defence Misty" the nasty female student mocked her opponent, "It's certainly something impressive, is it not?"
Loathed though Misty was to admit it, it was. Even in all of her battles as a gym leader, Misty had never come across an opponent with such high defensive capabilities before. It was starting to make her a little nervous about her chances of winning this match, but the orange haired girl refused to give in. There had to be a way that they could win this. There just had to be.
"Let's try something else Starmie!" Misty called up to where her beloved partner was currently floating through the air, "You're not just a Water Type Pokemon after all, so let's show them what else you can do! Use Psychic!"
Her words quickly prompted a change in Starmie's methods. The bizarre purple creature quickly ended the Hydro Pump attack that was still raining down over - much to the relief of the opposing Pokemon - and instead focused its energy entirely on itself. It started out slowly at first, barely even noticeable in fact, but soon enough, the shining ruby at Starmie's core began to glow with a pale blue light, a bona fide signal that the Water and Psychic Type Pokemon's mental power was building. In a matter of seconds, the light soon encased the whole of the strange star-shaped creature, and it began one of the most powerful attacks in its arsenal.
"LER! GRAVELER!"
Graveler simply couldn't help it when a loud bellow of pain slipped past its earthy lips against its will. Much to the Rock and Ground Type Pokemon's horror, it suddenly found its huge hulking body completely paralysed, with each and every one of its bulky limbs frozen and locked in place. A faint blue aura, the same as that emanating from Starmie's jewelled core, shrouded Graveler's body as everybody looked on in awe.
Then it started floating.
"GRAVELER!" the Rock Pokemon let out a sharp gasp of alarm as its feet suddenly left the ground. Graveler was helpless to do anything about it as Starmie levitated it higher and higher into the air just with the power of thought. In a matter of seconds, the large stone behemoth was bobbing about near the ceiling, looking for all the world like a bizarre and alien-esque balloon. And then, without any kind of warning or preamble whatsoever, Starmie... stopped.
CRUNCH!
Starmie didn't even need to propel its opponent back towards the ground. Gravity did all the work instead. Literally a stone dropping out of the air, Graveler tumbled back down to earth and slammed into the floor with a sickening thud. Everybody watching couldn't help but grimace sympathetically as Graveler flailed about, moaning in what must have been utterly agonising pain.
"GRAVELER!" Graveler roared in pain.
"Oh my!" Giselle's hand flew up to cover her mouth, her entire expression becoming something entirely different from smug superiority for the first time since the travelling quartet had first met her, "Graveler, are you okay?!"
"Veler!" by some miracle the stone behemoth actually was. Well, perhaps it wasn't okay, but Graveler was at least able to use its four hulking arms to quite literally drag itself back up to its feet. The Rock Pokemon looked terrible, its thick skin now discoloured in places with dark bruising, so it was obvious that despite its tough exterior, that last attack had managed to do some serious damage. Across the battlefield from Giselle and her chosen combatant, Misty wore a proud smile on her face as she looked at her beloved partner.
"Excellent work Starmie!" the orange haired girl beamed in delight, glad to have finally gotten the upper hand, ""Now let's finish this with one last Hydro Pump attack!"
From her spot on the opposite side of the battlefield to the Water Type Pokemon Specialist, Giselle actually snarled.
"Oh we're going to finish this alright, but it won't be with a Hydro Pump attack!" the nasty female student practically spat, clearly very unhappy about how things were going at this point. She quickly turned to her chosen Pokemon and gave what would no doubt be the last order of this match, "Graveler, end this now! Use Seismic Toss!"
On the sidelines, Nolan couldn't help but gasp upon hearing Giselle's command.
The golden haired boy was rather knowledgeable when it came to the different techniques that Pokemon could learn. His father wrote the TMs that trainers used for a living after all, not to mention the fact that he was also a Move Tutor licenced and registered with the Pokemon League, the man was so talented in the field. And Nathaniel had taught his son a lot on the subject, including the fact that Seismic Toss was an incredibly powerful yet dangerous move. If executed incorrectly, it could have disastrous effects, not only on the intended target but on the user as well. Nolan nervously bit his lip as he waited to see how this would play out, hoping with everything he had that both Pokemon would come out of this without any life-changing injuries.
"Grave... LER!"
With another loud grunt of sheer exertion, Graveler took a running jump and cannonballed through the air towards the spot where Starmie was still levitating, the first trickles of water spilling from the tips of each of its purple points. Sensing its opponent's approach, Starmie tried to speed things up a bit, but this time Graveler was the one who was too fast to be evaded. In one fell swoop, the large stone behemoth managed to grab four of its opponent points in its large rocky fists, dragging Starmie back down to the ground and holding it in place so that the star-shaped Pokemon couldn't escape the inevitable. Graveler then began the final phase of its attack.
"STAR! STARMIE!" Starmie frantically began thrashing about, no doubt sensing what was coming. Its struggles made no difference though. Graveler's grip was simply too strong, and Starmie was utterly helpless to escape.
Graveler began to pivot on the spot, slow at first but gaining momentum, spinning both combatants around like a bizarre-looking spinning top...
"No! Starmie! You have to break free!" Misty screamed desperately, knowing that her beloved partner Pokemon wasn't strong enough to take a Seismic Toss and get back up, "Use your Bubble-"
Too late.
"GRAVEEEEEEEEEEEEELER!"
With one final burst of energy, Graveler reached its maximum speed of rotation. The two creatures locked in combat were precious little more than a purple and grey blur at this point to the audience waiting on tenterhooks, and after what felt like an eternity, but in reality was just a few short scant seconds, Graveler... let go...
"MIEEEEEEEEE!"
Starmie screamed as it soared through the air. The Mysterious Pokemon was propelled like a rocket, each and every one of its points flailing uncontrollably, as it desperately tried to correct itself. It was no use though. Graveler had sent it hurtling off at too high a momentum, and even with its strong mental powers, Starmie simply wasn't able to activate its levitation ability in time...
CCCCCRRRRRAAAAASSSSSHHHHH!
The noise was piercing, and from his spot on the sidelines, Nolan couldn't help but cover his ears with his hands as Starmie smashed straight through the window without even breaking its stride, the force Graveler had sent it off was so intense. Everybody, battle-participants and spectators alike, all watched on, almost mesmerised, as the Mysterious Pokemon burst outside of the school in a lethal rain of broken glass, before tumbling downwards and vanishing from sight.
For one single stunned moment, nobody moved. Nobody spoke. Nobody even dared breathe as they tried to process what they had just witnessed. Then...
"NOOOO! STARMIE!"
The words of horror practically tore their way up Misty's throat, and before anybody else had a chance to so much as even blink, the orange haired girl had crossed the room in three long strides and was now fretfully staring out of the shattered window. Everybody else came over to join the distraught Water Type Pokemon Specialist, Giselle' and her cronies on one side, Misty's friends on the other. Together, they all looked out of the ruined window to see what Starmie's ultimate fate had been.
All things considered, it wasn't quite as bad as it could have been.
Pokemon Tech was an academy that was renowned for its numerous and amazing facilities after all, and one of those facilities just so happened to be an impressive swimming pool. And quite by chance, probably just on sheer whim, the swimming pool happened to be located just below the window that Starmie had so unceremoniously shattered. And sure enough, there was Starmie, bobbing about on the water's surface and not moving so much as an inch. The jewel at its core was very telling though. It was flashing sporadically from light to dark, and it didn't a genius to work out what that meant.
It meant that Starmie was out of energy and was therefore unable to battle.
It meant that Misty... had been defeated...
And that marks the end of another chapter : )
Like I said in a previous chapter, I was very keen to give some focus to Misty since I removed her battle with Joe, which some how ended up becoming an extra long battle here XD But yes, I really wanted to have her properly compete against Giselle, since I personally think what she got in the canon episode was just an insult to her character and her skills as a trainer : )
But enough about that for now though. I believe I promised you all a very special bonus voting topic once we'd established the winners of the extra evolutions, so let's get to it ; )
Now, for any of you keeping up with all the little notes that I post about how the Nuzlocke is progressing, you may have noticed that it's been quite some time since I said anything pertaining to any loses suffered by Nolan's team. Well the reason for that is really quite simple...
I GOT THROUGH THIS WHOLE NUZLOCKE WITHOUT LOSING A SINGLE POKEMON!
Yep! That's right! I successfully got to Palace of Victory without sustaining a single casualty : ) I didn't even lose one in the battle against the champion! How I pulled that off I'm not quite sure, but I definitely think it deserves a reward of some kind, and that is where the Post-Game comes in. Yes, this fan-made rom hack comes with its own Post-Game which unlocks several special areas after you have defeated Champion Drake. It allows you to capture the five Kanto Legendary Pokemon. It unlocks New Island (from the first Pokemon movie) for Mew and Mewtwo; and Fire, Ice and Lightning Islands (from the second Pokemon movie) for Moltres, Zapdos and Articuno. Now I have no intention of giving Nolan any Legendary Pokemon, but you can catch other Pokémon in those locations if you catch to my drift ; ) Yep, we are having one last bonus Pokemon encounter vote for my Orange Islands Nuzlocke, and once this one is decided, that will be it for my second Nuzlocke in this series : ) So for making it through this entire Nuzlocke without a single death, here are the options for the reward bonus vote: -
Pokemon Options: -
New Island: - Gastly - Male - Mild Nature - Levitate Ability
Fire Island: - Magmar - Male - Bold Nature - Flame Body Ability
Ice Island: - Cloyster - Female - Naughty Nature - Shell Armor Ability
Lightning Island: - Pikachu - Female - Modest Nature - Static Ability
There's some really good options here for the bonus voting topic. In fact there's only one which I wouldn't really be happy with. Some of you might think that Magmar was an incredibly lucky encounter to make, but it was actually the only thing on Fire Island which I didn't already have, since the other available Pokemon there were Growlithe and Vulpix, both of which activated the Dups Clause. I have no idea what the chances of finding a Pikachu first on Lightning Island were however, since I ran into three Voltorb first which again activated the Dups Clause, and then I didn't find another Pikachu again for quite some time. I must have been lucky on that Island ; ) Either way, please go and leave your vote in a review for this special bonus Pokemon Encounter vote : )
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 : )