Chapter 34
Lorelei was fast. She sent her first Pokemon out just when Leaf detached a PokeBall from her belt. A pearly white seal materialized in the water. Dewgong. Leaf could still hear the moans of the wild Dewgong in Seafoam Islands.
With a deep breath, Leaf tossed the PokeBall. Onto the platform right in front of her, Venusaur appeared. He barely fit on the platform, and he was too heavy to jump onto any of the others. Grass-types also had a disadvantage against ice-types. But Dewgong was also a water-type, and Leaf had a plan. She hoped to god that it would work.
"You can have the first move," Lorelei called out. Her voice was soft and airy. It was the prettiest voice Leaf had ever heard.
Even though Leaf could barely stand, she smiled. Both her and Lorelei knew that gesture meant nothing. Venusaur attacking first was barely going to give them an advantage, if any.
Leaf took another deep breath. When she exhaled, her heart slowed, as if she was letting out every nerve in her body. Maybe she was compartmentalizing, or maybe she genuinely wasn't afraid anymore. It didn't matter, really. The moment was here. Her dream was becoming a reality. There was nothing she could do but fight.
"Razor Leaf!"
A storm of leaves shot from the flower on Venusaur's back. The Dewgong dived, avoiding the sharp leaves that slammed into the water. They rose to the pool's surface.
"Ice Beam."
The Dewgong's head popped up on Venusaur's right, mouth open. A pale blue ray shot from it, slamming into Venusaur's side. Venusaur howled as ice began to form on his body.
"Razor Leaf!"
Again, the Dewgong dived. After a few moments, it emerged on Venusaur's left and fired another Ice Beam before ducking back into the water to avoid Razor Leaf.
Leaf sucked in a breath. The imbalance was obvious. The Dewgong was free to move around the entire field while Venusaur was trapped on his tiny platform. Her starter barely even had room to turn. Luckily, he was able to react fast enough that the Dewgong didn't have the chance to inflict major damage. But how many Ice Beams could Venusaur take? How long would it be until he was frozen solid? These were thoughts that Leaf knew the reporters had. By now, they were probably brushing her off as another failure.
But that was because they weren't aware of Leaf's plan.
It could work. She just needed more time.
The Dewgong rose out of the water, right in front of Venusaur. Venusaur roared and jerked his head as the Ice Beam hit him squarely in the face. Sharp leaves burst from his back, explosive as a bomb. A desperate, instinctive response. The Dewgong dived underwater and the leaves crashed down on the pool, splashing water at Lorelei's feet. She didn't flinch. She stoically gazed at all the leaves floating on the water. Cool, like the Pokemon she wielded.
Venusaur, too, was trying to appear strong. Despite taking an Ice Beam to the face, he managed to maintain his balance. He was breathing hard and Leaf thought she saw his leg shake, but he stood tall. She hoped it wasn't entirely an act.
"Hang in there," Leaf said in a low voice. Venusaur rumbled in response.
They waited for the Dewgong to reappear. A few seconds passed. Then more. Leaf shifted her feet. She studied the water, searching for any signs of the seal.
She nearly jumped when the Dewgong emerged in front of Venusaur again. Leaves rested on its head. It opened its mouth, pale blue light forming in it.
Then, the light faded and a moan came out.
Leaf's jaw dropped as the Dewgong began thrashing around in the water, its moans growing louder and louder. It slid onto a platform and frantically tried to shake the green leaves off its body. But water worked like glue; some of the leaves clung stubbornly onto the seal. The Dewgong convulsed.
Leaf grinned. Her plan worked.
"Venusaur, use Razor Leaf!"
With a bellow, Venusaur fired a barrage of sharp leaves. The impact sent the Dewgong flying across the pool, right in front of its trainer. It let out one last moan.
The referee raised a flag. "Dewgong is unable to battle!"
Leaf wanted to scream as Lorelei returned her Dewgong. The first Pokemon to faint wasn't hers, but the Elite Four member's. What were the odds of that? She glanced at the reporters, who typed furiously on their laptops, and smirked. Bet they didn't see that coming.
She was about to say something to Venusaur, praise him for pulling through, when Lorelei spoke. "You made your Razor Leaf poisonous, didn't you? Is it Poison Powder? Or Toxic? My guess is Toxic."
Leaf smiled. Lorelei was right. Venusaur had learned Toxic and figured out how to inject it into his Razor Leaf. She knew it would be difficult for Venusaur to land a direct hit, so she'd hoped for two things: either the water would be poisoned or the pool would be covered in so many leaves that the Dewgong would inevitably make contact with them. Whichever was the case, it meant the rest of Lorelei's team wouldn't be safe in the water. Thanks for the idea, Erika.
Of course, she wasn't going to tell Lorelei that. "A magician never reveals her tricks."
Lorelei didn't reply. She smirked and sent out her next Pokemon: a black mollusk encased inside a light gray shell and a larger, bumpier, violet one. The outer shell had multiple horns. A spike protruded from its head. Cloyster, the evolution of Shellder. It stood on the platform in front of Lorelei with a devious grin that reminded Leaf of Gengar.
This time, Lorelei didn't bother with gestures. "Cloyster, use Hail."
A shadow casted over the stadium. Leaf looked up. The sun, which had been shining so brightly moments earlier, was now hidden behind dark clouds. Even though it was summer, there was a chill in the air that pricked Leaf's skin.
And then, it was hailing. Venusaur groaned as he was pelted by ice.
"Ice Beam."
"Razor Leaf!"
At the last second, Venusaur fired a Razor Leaf, forming a strong enough blockade to keep the Ice Beam away. The Cloyster was undeterred; it held its Ice Beam with no difficulty.
Leaf wasn't sure if Venusaur could hold his Razor Leaf, not while in pain from his previous match, from being buffeted by hail. His groans, deep and strained, made that clear to her.
Switching to a different attack was risky. Leaf knew that from experience. But she didn't have another option.
"Sunny Day!"
The moment Venusaur stopped using Razor Leaf, he roared. Once again, his face was struck by a relentless ray of ice. He jerked his head away, exposing his neck to the Ice Beam. Leaf could see Venusaur's right eye, wide and bloodshot. The thought of returning him flashed through Leaf's mind.
But only for a second. All of a sudden, the stadium lit up and Leaf's body flushed with warmth. She looked up and had to shield her eyes from the sun, burning so intensely that it threatened to set the world on fire. It must've caught the Cloyster off-guard because the Ice Beam faltered.
She acted fast. "Solar Beam!"
Venusaur's neck must've frozen because his head was still turned. Fortunately, he knew where his target was. He bowed low and a bright green ray shot from his flower.
"Protect!"
Just in time, a translucent green dome formed around the Cloyster. The Solar Beam slammed hard into it and there was a loud crackling sound. Venusaur bellowed––the ice on his neck probably melted as he was able to move his head again––and the Solar Beam grew in size, force. But from what Leaf could tell, the Cloyster's shield wasn't breaking.
Leaf knew it would be a waste of time and energy to try getting past the Protect. They needed to get the Cloyster to bring its shield down. But how? She couldn't just tell Venusaur to stop attacking.
Venusaur bellowed again. The sound ended abruptly, as if cut halfway through. Leaf heard her starter breathe in sharply and she knew what to do.
"Synthesis!"
Immediately, the green ray disappeared. Venusaur straightened himself and the center of his flower glowed a soft yellow. He sighed and his legs relaxed slightly. The ice had long melted from his body, but that didn't mean he wasn't in pain. With the sun out, Venusaur could heal himself.
And since he was no longer attacking, the dome around the Cloyster faded.
"Solar Beam!"
Just as an Ice Beam shot out of the Cloyster's mouth, Venusaur tilted forward and launched another Solar Beam. The pale green and blue rays clashed into each other and bursted into a blinding white light. Leaf instinctively raised an arm over her face and squinted. All she could make out was Venusaur's dark shape. The fact that it was still too bright told her that neither Pokemon were relenting. They were at another stalemate. Either someone had to switch things up and risk getting hurt or they would see who had the greater stamina.
The light seemed to grow even brighter. One or both Pokemon had increased the force of their attack. There was no way Venusaur's eyes were still open. Leaf could barely keep hers open and she was further away from the light. They were lucky that the Cloyster was essentially trapped on a platform directly across from them. Though Leaf's Pokemon had trained for it, it was very difficult to hit a moving opponent that couldn't be seen.
But if Venusaur couldn't see the Cloyster, then the Cloyster probably couldn't see Venusaur.
Leaf had an idea.
But so did Lorelei.
"Grab the Cloyster!"
"Hail!"
Still holding Solar Beam, Venusaur stretched his vines forward. Within the same moment, dark clouds began to drift over the sun. Solar Beam didn't require a clear sky, but without direct sunlight, it was significantly weaker. As the world was covered in shadows, the beam grew thinner and thinner and Leaf could finally see the scene in front of her.
Venusaur's vines were wrapped around the two large horns at the top of the Cloyster's shell. He lifted the mollusk, gradually standing straighter to keep the Solar Beam directed at it. But now that it was hailing, the Ice Beam was more powerful than the Solar Beam. Anticipating the hit, Venusaur turned slightly. He bellowed as the Ice Beam slammed into his shoulder.
"Dunk Cloyster into the water!"
"Freeze the water!"
The Cloyster looked down, directing the Ice Beam to the pool. The water instantly began to freeze, but Venusaur brought the Cloyster down with so much force, it crashed through the ice.
"Use Ice Beam on the vines!"
"Toxic Leaf!"
Venusaur groaned as ice crept up his vines. Hail continued to buffet him. Leaf couldn't imagine how much pain her starter must be in, taking both the Ice Beam and hailstones. And yet, he refused to let go of the Cloyster. Instead, he fired the poisonous leaves into the water. Ice was beginning to bloom in the water. Leaf imagined the Cloyster turning its head all over, trying to freeze Venusaur's vines and leaves.
"Sunny Day!"
Venusaur stopped launching leaves. Still holding onto the Cloyster, he raised his head and dispelled the clouds. Venusaur's vines jerked around. The Cloyster was thrashing beneath the surface. Leaf couldn't say if it had been poisoned or was simply trying to escape.
"Solar Beam!"
Pale green light exploded in the water. The wave shot up high and straight. Leaf stepped back to avoid the splash. At some point, Venusaur had released the Cloyster. He was raising his vines up to the sun, melting the ice off.
When the water calmed, Leaf saw the Cloyster floating towards Lorelei. She couldn't see its face, only the horns on its shell.
The referee rushed to Lorelei's side of the field and leaned to inspect the Cloyster. He raised a flag. "Cloyster is unable to battle!"
Two Pokemon down. That was half of Lorelei's team. And Leaf had only used one Pokemon so far. She could feel the reporters' eyes on her. If she hadn't caught their attention yet, she knew she had now. They were probably wondering about the full extent of Venusaur's strength, if he could defeat Lorelei single-handedly like Red's Charizard had with Bruno.
Hearing Venusaur's ragged breathing, Leaf knew he wasn't Red's Charizard. Although Synthesis had healed him considerably, Venusaur had still taken more Ice Beams and Hails than he should've. He'd already proven himself by winning two matches despite the type disadvantage. There was no need to push him further.
So when Lorelei sent out her third Pokemon, a squat purple-faced creature, Leaf returned Venusaur and sent out Ninetales.
Ninetales glanced at her opponent and then at Leaf in confusion. Leaf couldn't blame her. Lorelei's Pokemon looked too much like a human woman. It had long blonde hair and wore a red dress with gold circlets on the chest. The shape of its white arms and purple hands vaguely reminded Leaf of Mr. Mime. Except this Pokemon, Jynx, was creepier to Leaf than Mr. Mime was. The Jynx pursed its plump, pink lips and stared at Ninetales with saucer-like eyes.
"You're a good trainer," Lorelei said. "But now, the real battle begins."
Leaf was taken aback. Real battle?
She realized a second too late that had been Lorelei's intention.
"Psychic."
The Jynx's eyes glowed blue. Ninetales yelped as she was lifted up in the air and Leaf became hyper-aware of the fact the battlefield was a pool. Leaf's legs began to shake. Ninetales knew a move that could break her out of Psychic's grip––Leaf made sure all her Pokemon did––but she couldn't ask Ninetales to use it when she was right above the water. Poison aside, Ninetales' fire power drastically decreased when she was soaked.
But the Jynx didn't just drop Ninetales into the water. It was moving the fox across the pool, closer to it. Soon, Ninetales was face-to-face with the purple woman.
And above a platform.
"Lovely Kiss."
"Roar!"
The Jynx puckered its lips and then drew back, startled, when Ninetales let out a mighty roar. Ninetales landed on the platform and quickly leaped onto another one nearby, her foot sliding as she landed. Leaf had forgotten for a second that the platforms were covered in real ice. Ninetales would have to be careful.
"Flamethrower!"
The sun was still blazing in the sky. That should've powered up the Flamethrower, but Leaf didn't see a great blast of fire, just its usual stream. Leaf didn't pause to question why. It was hard to when the Jynx's scream sounded like metal against metal.
"Psychic."
Ninetales stiffened and the fire disappeared. The fox opened her mouth, but the Jynx quickly flicked her into the water. Bubbles rose up as Ninetales roared, a muffled cry that was nowhere near intimidating enough for the Jynx to release her.
Then, Ninetales was quiet, and the Jynx lifted her and dropped her onto a platform. The fox was drenched. Her magnificent tails were thin and droopy. Leaf waited for Ninetales to desperately shake the water off her body. Instead, Ninetales laid on the platform, eyes shut.
Leaf balked. Was that it? Was the match over already? But the referee wasn't calling anything, even though he was watching intently.
It was when Ninetales convulsed with her eyes still closed that Leaf understood.
Lovely Kiss. Leaf had seen Lorelei use that attack before on TV. It put opponents to sleep. The effect was supposed to be immediate. The Jynx must not have firmly planted it when Ninetales roared. That also had to explain why Ninetales' Flamethrower wasn't so strong. The fox had been drowsy.
"Ice Beam."
On its own, Ice Beam would've been useless against a fire-type. But since Ninetales was poisoned, the Ice Beam would help speed up the inevitable. Psychic would've been more effective, but Lorelei likely didn't want to risk waking Ninetales by tossing her around.
"Ninetales, wake up!" Leaf cried.
Ninetales convulsed. Normally, Leaf returned her Pokemon whenever they were poisoned. She considered doing that now. But seeing how the Jynx's hair and dress were singed, Leaf couldn't bring herself to. Unlike Dewgong and Cloyster, Jynx wasn't partially a water-type. Leaf didn't want to give up that type advantage just yet.
"Wake up!"
Ninetales convulsed more violently than before. There was a faint smile on Lorelei's lips.
"I said, WAKE UP!"
Ninetales' body jerked so hard, it was as if she'd jumped. Her eyes snapped open and she howled in pain.
"Psychic."
Ninetales was lifted up. As she hung over the water, whimpering, Leaf realized with horror that Lorelei was simply going to wait for the poison to finish off Ninetales. And if Ninetales used Roar, she would just fall into the toxic water.
There was a pit in Leaf's stomach. Ninetales wasn't going to make it. There was no way around that.
But maybe Ninetales didn't have to go down alone.
"Roar Flame!"
It wasn't a trick Ninetales had learned. Leaf just needed to save time, even if only a millisecond. There was a very brief pause as Ninetales processed Leaf's command. But she got it quick enough.
Ninetales roared. As soon as the Jynx released her, sending her plummeting towards the water, fire exploded out of Ninetales' mouth. The Jynx shrieked and a second later, Ninetales was underwater and the fire was gone. The sun shone brightly above.
After a moment, Ninetales was flailing out of the water. She dragged herself onto a platform, whimpering. The Jynx didn't look much better. It sat down, staring dumbly ahead, smoke drifting from its body.
In the same breath, Ninetales grew silent and the Jynx fell back.
The referee raised a flag. "Both Jynx and Ninetales are unable to battle!"
Leaf's head was swimming as she returned Ninetales. Three Pokemon down, one more to go. One more and then she'll have defeated the first of the Elite Four. And she'd only lost one of her Pokemon. From an outside perspective, she was doing amazing. Leaf knew, in theory, that she was. But all she could think was, shit.
"That last move was impressive," Lorelei said. "Like I said before, you have talent. You could be a great trainer one day. But that won't be today because your challenge ends right now."
Lorelei's fourth and final Pokemon materialized: a blue sea dinosaur with a long neck, four large flippers, and a knobby shell on its back. Its underside was cream and there were dark blue spots scattered on its body. There was a short horn on its head and its ears were tightly curled. Its brown eyes were kind, but it was the sort of kindness that concealed a great power. And the most dangerous beings were the ones so confident in their power that they didn't need to show it off.
Lapras. It was the same Pokemon that Red was gifted by Silph Co.'s president. It was Lorelei's signature Pokemon. It was the one most challengers couldn't get past.
Leaf swallowed. She'd hoped that she would only need to use Venusaur and Ninetales. They had the greatest advantage over Lorelei's team and Leaf's other Pokemon would be at their strongest when facing the rest of the Elite Four. But Ninetales was unconscious. Venusaur was injured; maybe he could still battle, but Leaf wasn't sure how well he'd fare. Flying-types were weak against ice, so she was reluctant to send out Fearow and Dragonite. Golduck, being the same type as Lapras, wouldn't be able to do much, either. Gengar stood a decent chance, but Leaf wanted to save it for another battle.
"You must send out your next Pokemon now," the referee said firmly.
Leaf took a deep breath and prayed she was making the right decision.
She had to suppress a smile when Venusaur appeared with his head raised. At first glance, he didn't look as if he'd recently fought in two matches.
"Toxic Leaf!"
"Psychic."
Venusaur's body stiffened and the leaves fell harmlessly onto the water.
"Freeze the water."
Leaf's jaw dropped as Lapras looked down, forcing Venusaur down as well, and fired an Ice Beam. Ice began to spread over the pool.
She understood what Lorelei's plan was. The Lapras wasn't built for land. As long as the water was poisoned, it was stuck on its platform. But if the pool was frozen over, it could slide around.
It was a sensible move. What shocked Leaf was how easily the Lapras could use Psychic and Ice Beam at the same time. Golduck, not being part psychic-type, needed complete concentration when using Psychic. The Lapras wasn't part psychic-type either, but it acted as if it was using one move, not two separate ones.
The match had just started and already, Leaf felt as if the ice was creeping over her and not the water.
Leaf shut her eyes and focused on the sun's warmth. There was a way to combat this, she knew it. So what if the Lapras could use two moves at once. That wasn't so different from her Pokemon using combined moves, right? The Lapras was always going to be the toughest to defeat anyway. And Venusaur knew a move that could break him out of Psychic's control.
Leaf opened her eyes, then her mouth to command Venusaur. Nothing came out. A chill had crawled down her spine.
Why didn't the Lapras just attack Venusaur? It had immobilized him. It could've taken Venusaur out quickly. Why bother trying to freeze the entire pool? She didn't know how much time had passed, but the pool was only halfway frozen. Why didn't Lorelei just use that time and effort to knock Venusaur out?
The answers came to Leaf immediately. Because Ninetales was able to break out of the Jynx's Psychic. Because Lorelei doesn't think a single usage of Psychic and Ice Beam would be enough. Because this was the Lapras' best chance to gain mobility.
And if Venusaur attacked now, he would never be able to leave his platform.
Leaf wasn't cold anymore, but she crossed her arms and waited.
The Lapras was taking its sweet time. It had to ensure the ice would be sturdy enough to carry its weight. Leaf couldn't rush it, of course, but she found herself tapping her foot. She felt Lorelei's calculating brown gaze fixed on her.
As soon as the blue ray faded, Leaf shouted, "Sweet Scent!"
Leaf inhaled and instantly, saliva flooded her mouth. It was her favorite smell ever: Mom's homemade sugar cookies. The scent was strong enough that there was no denying it existed, but not enough to completely fill her nose, to be truly satisfying. All she wanted was to find the source so that she could bury her nose in it.
Whatever the Lapras' favorite scent was, it smelled it. It perked up, eyes wide, nostrils flaring. Venusaur's body relaxed.
"Solar Beam!"
A green ray blasted out of Venusaur's flower. Just in time, the Lapras pushed itself off the platform and slid across the ice, fervently shaking its head. Venusaur tried to redirect his Solar Beam, but the Lapras, despite its large build, despite being clearly distracted by the Sweet Scent, moved around gracefully.
"Ice Beam."
Venusaur bellowed when he was hit in the shoulder. The Solar Beam vanished. He tried to move away, but his right legs slid too far, too quickly, and he collapsed on his stomach.
Letting the Lapras freeze the pool had been a mistake.
"Toxic Leaf!"
The Lapras aimed its Ice Beam at each leaf, as if playing a shooting game. Each clink of a frozen leaf hitting the surface was a painful reminder of who they were up against. At this rate, Venusaur wouldn't be able to land a single attack.
Leaf examined the scene in front of her: Venusaur and the Lapras firing Toxic Leaf and Ice Beam at each other. She wracked her brain, squeezed it like a sponge, to find anything positive, anything she could turn into an advantage.
Venusaur couldn't touch the Lapras. But the Lapras wasn't touching Venusaur either. It couldn't when it had to deflect a never ending storm of poisonous leaves.
"Grab Lapras," Leaf blurted out.
Without ceasing his Toxic Leaf, Venusaur extended two vines and wrapped them around the Lapras' neck. The Lapras' eyes darted down, warily taking note of the vines. It wouldn't be able to move so easily now. Great. Now what?
Lorelei decided for her. "Move around."
Once again, Leaf found herself both impressed and terrified by the Lapras' power. Venusaur's eyes widened as the Lapras began to drag him, an over two-hundred pound beast, across the pool.
Oh no you don't. "Pull Lapras to you!"
Venusaur's vines stiffened and the Lapras halted. Leaf saw Venusaur's vines trembling, like a rope in a game of tug-of-war. Both Pokemon were still holding their Toxic Leaf and Ice Beam. This was not so much a test of skill, but of pure physical strength. Given that Venusaur had just battled two other Pokemon, Leaf wasn't confident he could win. And Lorelei knew that.
But maybe Venusaur didn't have to win.
"Stop pulling!"
Venusaur's eyes widened, but he listened. The Lapras must've been using all its strength to pull because suddenly, Venusaur was zooming towards it.
Before he crashed into the Lapras, Leaf yelled, "Sleep Powder Bomb!"
Venusaur roared when he stopped shooting out Toxic Leaf and took Ice Beam in the face, at close range. The two Pokemon collided and green powder exploded everywhere. Venusaur untangled himself from the Lapras, slipping a few times in the process, and slid away with a wince. The center of his face was completely frozen, ice branching out like a spiderweb. Leaf noticed Venusaur leaning too heavily on his right.
The Lapras lay still, sleeping soundly. Sleep Powder Bomb had worked, but Venusaur wasn't going to last much longer. It was time to finish the battle.
"Solar Beam!"
The center of Venusaur's flower glowed green, but no ray was shooting out. Leaf realized then that the sun was no longer beating down so harshly. It would take a moment for the Solar Beam to charge.
"Wake up, Lapras!" Lorelei shouted.
For some reason, Leaf was taken aback by the command. Then she realized: there was an urgency in Lorelei's tone. The Ice Queen was worried.
A pale green ray burst out of Venusaur's flower. It hit the Lapras square in the stomach, pushing it off the battlefield.
The Lapras' eyes snapped open.
"Ice Beam!"
"Frenzy Plant!"
The ground shook and the sounds that followed nearly made Leaf cover her ears. The rumble of the giant branches moving underground, then the tear as they burst out. The Lapras screaming as the branches swung at it. Venusaur bellowing when he was, once more, hit by a freezing blue ray.
Then, there was silence, and both Venusaur and the Lapras were very still.
The referee raised a flag. "Both Venusaur and Lapras are unable to battle! The winner of this match is Leaf Green of Pallet Town!"
What?
Lorelei returned the Lapras and smiled. "Congrats. I wish you the best of luck for the rest of your league challenge."
What?
"You may return your Pokemon now," the referee said.
After a second, Leaf did return Venusaur. She heard Scott Morey's voice over the speakers, but she didn't register a single word he was saying.
She'd defeated Lorelei. The first of the Elite Four. When her mind fully processed it, Leaf waited for the excitement to come. She felt nothing.
One down, three more to go. But now, the real battle begins. Lorelei was right. The battle was just getting started.
I know Lorelei has a Slowbro too, but Leaf's already battled one before. Plus, Slowbro ain't even an ice-type.
Thanks for reading and I appreciate any feedback!