CHAPTER 2: THE BATTLE BEGINS
Both trainers poke'balls flew into the air with dazzling accuracy, filling the sky with a sharp white light as two poke`mon emerged from within. In front of Gold, his crimson Scizor stood intently, staring down the bulky Venusaur.
"Nice choice for a lead Gold, now let's see what it can do!" cried Red jabbing his fist in the air.
Without a word Red's Venusaur lowered its head, the large flower on its back shivering at high speed. A second later an array of pink petals jutted out followed by the heavenly scent of honey and flowers that headed straight for Scizor. Before the petals could even reach the middle of the stadium Gold's Scizor swung its arm causing a gust of wind, effectively sending the attack back towards Venusaur. Venusaur's flower began to shake again as the petals whirled towards it before releasing a counter gust. The first attack flew into the air, dispersing in an array of soft reds and pinks.
"How about we stop the games and get onto the match." declared Gold
"Sorry." Replied Red smiling. " just making sure you're the real deal"
"I'll show you the real deal!" retorted Gold. "Now Scizor!"
From Red's perspective his opponent's poke`mon was nothing more than a blur, dashing gracefully across the field. In mere seconds Scizor was upon Venusaur, its claw aiming for a direct hit.
"Venusaur, counter!"
Scizor was immediately thrown off as Venusaur began to replicate around the stunned poke`mon. In mere moments Scizor was surrounded and the air was frenzied with vines as each copy entangled Scizor, slamming him down to the ground. Each hit chipped away at the ground as Scizor was reduced to little more than a rag doll. Gold stood without worry as Red raised his hand for the final blow.
"Venusaur-"
"Scizor, do it now!"
In a flash Scizor vanished; it was Venusaurs turn to be confused. Red eyed the stadium with rapid precision and knew Scizor was no longer on the ground. Upon realizing this Red, knew it was too late. Only several feet above one of the Venusaur copies, Scizor came plummeting down, its arms crossed, ready to strike. Its claws struck in an X pattern as Venusaur sank into the ground in a heap causing a small cloud of dust dispersing from around it. Red smirked as he called back his defeated poke`mon and eyed Gold.
"Not bad Gold. Using my attack to locate Venusaur like that."
"Thanks." replied Gold calling back his Scizor.
Gold exhaled a deep mental breath as he placed Scizor back in his pocket.
"That was one of the closest battles I've had in a while and it was only the first one." thought Gold reaching for his next poke`mon. "It's only gonna get harder from here."
Red had already selected his poke`ball and the two trainers commenced in releasing their poke`mon. This time Gold's Gyarados was ready for battle as Red's Blastoise stared it down.
"Gyarados, Hydro Pump!"
"Blastoise, Rapid Spin!"
Gyarados's water attack was ripped in two as the turtle-poke`mon spun straight through it, slamming into the dragon's stomach. With a loud thud Gyarados was pushed back several feet, barely able to keep its balance. Reds Blastoise spun back to its owner before coming to a halt.
However, upon stopping Blastoise still remained in its shell, throwing Gold for a loop.
"He's planning his next attack…should I go on the offensive again or wait for him?" pondered Gold staring at his Gyarados.
Gold decided he couldn't hold back, if he could pull out a one hit KO in time then it wouldn't matter what Blastoise did.
"Gyarados, hit it was everything you got! Use Hyper Beam!"
Gold's Gyarados roared in preparation as it opened its mouth, aiming straight for the withdrawn Blastoise. Tiny orbs of orange and yellow formed around the poke`mon's mouth creating a sphere of raw energy. Gold kept a close eye on Blastoise and saw that it wasn't doing anything at all. It hadn't moved a single inch since its last attack. Gold couldn't think about it now, his attack was prepared and there was no going back.
"Fire!" he roared pointing at the stationary target.
Gyarados twisted its head and slung it in the direction of Blastoise as it released a concentrated beam of energy, rocks and dirt flying to the side as it made its way across the stadium.
"Blastoise, stop it! Cut through it with Ice Beam!"
Within the darkness of Blastoise's shell, a bright cerulean beam came darting out from within, matching the hyper beam head on. There was a second delay as the two beams duked it out for supremacy, neither showing signs of letting down. Suddenly the sound of cracking ice filled the air and much to Gold's shock the two blast cancelled out. Gold looked at his poke`mon. He knew Gyarados would need a moment to recharge, but he didn't have the time, he needed another attack and now.
"Follow up with headbut!"
Gold grit his teeth as Red's Blastoise came charging forward, its head slamming into its opponent. The mighty Gyarados let out a cry as it crashed next to Gold, its eyes grimacing with pain. Red's Blastoise followed up with a full body tackle sending the dragon skidding into the dirt. With one final moan Gyarados attempted to rise but fell in a heap, unable to continue.
Gold retrieved its poke'ball and called it back . Red sighed gently and called back his Blastoise relieved that his strategy worked. From across the field Red could see Gold smiling happily at his defeated poke`mon's poke'ball.
"Your Gyarados did a fine job Gold."
Gold looked up and gave Red the same smile.
"Same with you Blastoise. That was a good follow up." he responded.
After this short exchange, Gold and Red simultaneously threw out their next poke`mon. Before the two trainers landed their poke`mon, Red's Snorlax and Gold's Primeape readied for battle. Gold's Primape jumped around and snorted as it eyed its opponent, ready to score a victory for its owner.
"Alright Primeape, Focus Energy!"
Primeape shot out its arms and clenched its large fists as its muscles began to bulge and twitch. Gold was leaving nothing to chance. He had fought a Snorlax in the past and knew how tough they could be. As long as he could Dodge Snorlax's slow yet powerful attacks he'd have a chance.
"Snorlax, Mega Punch!"
Red's Snorlax jumped to its feet and then into the air, a feat which both awed and scared Gold. He didn't expect such a giant thing to move with such quickness, let alone jump that high. That jump on top of the size led Gold to a chilling revelation, there was no way his primeape would be able to dodge the attack while effectively countering the substantial poke`mon. And then it came to Gold, the perfect counter.
"Damn, Primape, counter with Seismic Toss! Don't let it hit the plateau!"
Primeape squealed with anticipation as it leaped high into the air, its arms outstretched, ready to counter the incoming giant.
"Snorlax, flip and do a Mega Kick!"
"Keep going Primeape, use Seismic Toss on the punch still!"
With surprising ease Snorlax managed to do a 180 degree flip, its foot aimed straight for Primeape. The pig-poke`mon spun around Snorlax's kick as it grazed him slightly before continuing the attack. Grabbing his opponent's hand, primeape's eyes tensed while using tremendous force to send the Snorlax flying to the center of the field.
"Don't let up! Finish it off with Dynamic Punch!" cried Gold.
Primeape leaned its body down and plummeted right in front of the falling Snorlax, its fist already arched behind its back. Before Red could order a counter the Primeapes fist was already embedded in Snorlax's stomach, forcing it even deeper into the ground below.
A deafening crack rang throughout the dome as rubble flew everywhere. Neither trainer moved an inch as dust flew into the air. Seconds later the air settled and Primeape stood atop the unconscious Snorlax, grunting in victorious joy.
"Primeape get off!" ordered Gold returning the poke`mon to its poke'ball.
Red did the same and was scrounging for his next poke`mon.
"Sorry about that," Spoke Gold reaching for another poke'ball. "Primeape gets carried away sometimes."
" It put up an awesome match, I can understand why," Red said, nodding.
Gold shook his head to signal the next round and both trainers released their poke`mon.
Two flying poke`mon emerged into the sky. Not wanting to give them the first attack, Red's Charizard darted towards Gold's Aerodactyl with amazing speed. Aerodactyl mimicked his opponent, both beasts flying passed each other in an aerial dog fight, waiting for the perfect opening.
"Wing Attack!" cried the trainers in unison.
Both poke`mon turned around from their passes and dived straight down towards the stadium. Aerodactyl's wing made contact with Charizard's sending both poke`mon into a flimsy spin. It was Red's Charizard who recovered first and retaliated with a ferocious fire blast, searing the back of Aerodactyl. Screeching, Aerodactyl flew straight up and paused as it glared at its opponent.
"Alright Aerodactyl, charge Charizard head-on and don't stop for anything!"
The mighty fossil poke`mon screeched once again as it zoomed in on Charizard with incredible speed, its fangs bared. Red's Charizard was aiming to meet Aerodactyl head on as it shot back around and opened its mouth.
"Use Fire Blast while charging forward, Charizard!" ordered Red
Charizard was mere feet away from its opponent as it unleashed it monstrous flame attack, washing Aerodactly in flames. A giant fireball loomed over both trainer's heads with no signs of movement except the dancing flames and Charizard's beating wings.
"Aerodactyl, Anicent Power!"
"Are you serious!" motioned Red, eyes in disbelief.
From the flames came Aerocatyl, the fading aura of Protect visible.
"Clever, but I won't let you get to the rock ceiling, Charizard follow it up!"
With a mighty roar, Charizard went in pursuit of its fleeing prey. Charizard fired round after round of flamethrowers but each one was dodged by his elusive foe until it reached the cave's ceiling. Aerodactyl slammed its clawed feet into the rock and immediately returned fire with an avalanche of earth. The falling boulders slammed into Charizard's wings and back, sending it crashing into the stone steps of the plateau. Red rushed over to the side to see his Charizard recover and dart straight up towards Aerodactyl.
"That's it Charizard! Finish this one with Fire Spin!"
Charizard once again opened its mighty jaws and shot a spiral of flames at its opponent, engulfing it. A tornado of blaze descended onto the field spinning furiously. Despite the heat neither trainer guarded their face, too anxious to see the results of the impressive counter. Slowly the flames unraveled and an unconscious Aerodactly lay where the tornado had been. Gold was in awe of what just happened. His lat attack should have flattened Red's Charizard but it came back with a tenacious spirit. This really was a battle of champions. It was what Gold has been longing for.
"Just two more to go." announced Red returning his Charizard breaking Gold's thought.
Gold returned Aerodactyl and gazed at his fallen comrade's poke`ball.
"You were something else buddy, thanks for giving me such a great match."
Gold took out his second to last poke`mon and chucked it along with Red's into the center.
Red's Espeon and Gold's Umbreon charged towards each other immediately after being released from their poke`balls. Both began with tackle attacks, their heads smacking together from their synchronized movements. Each poke`mon bounced back, glaring with unwavering eyes.
"Espeon, Double team and follow it with Swift!" yelled Red.
The forked-tailed feline began to replicate with blinding speed before each clone lashed their tails, sending a barrage of stars in Umbreon's direction.
"Counter with Faint Attack!"
Just as the stars reached Umbreon it had disappeared, was gone, circling one of the Espeons. It reached out with a paw and swiped at its opponent only for it to vanish.
"Don't quit, move to the next one!"
Umbreon disappeared and began targeting each Espeon with quickening pace.
"Not fast enough, Espeon use Iron Tail!"
The solid feline-poke`mon suddenly emerged from among its doppelgangers and slammed its glowing tail into Umbreon's side, sending it flying to the other side of the stadium.
"Quick attack Umbreon!"
Without hesitation Umbreon darted forward and slammed into Espeon making it topple over several feet.
"Espeon, Iron Tail on the ground!"
Red's Espeon shook its head from Umbreon's previous attack and proceeded to slam its tail into the ground in front of it.
"That smokescreen isn't going to work!" hollered Gold. "Use Swift on the distraction!"
Umbreon leaped back and waved its tail, unleashing a flurry of stars. The stars dashed through and came out of the other side as Espeon leaped forth into the air.
"Zap Cannon, Espeon!"
Espeon tilted its head and began to focus as electricity began to charge in front of it.
"Not good." thought Gold. "If that hits we're done."
"Umbreon, use Hidden Power!"
Umrbreon also began to charge an attack of his own, this time small bits of black and white mass formed around its body. Slowly each poke`mon's attack took shape, the time to attack upon them. Both poke`mon fired their techniques, meeting head on in a fury of light and heat. Each technique pushed for control, the center of the blasts growing into a brightening mass. Fractions of energy shot off from the respective beams sending rock crashing from the ceilings. The cave began to shake as both poke`mon put all their energy into the attack. Finally it was too much, the blasts ignited sending a shockwave from the center knocking them back.
The light from the clash finally began to fade, and there on the field laid Espeon and Umbreon out cold. Gold and Red rushed over to check their Poke`mon's condition.
"A blast like that could have easily taken down the entire plateau," thought Gold as he tended to his Umbreon. He never knew his partner had that much strength inside. Umbreon must have known what kind of battle this was, how much passion and skill went into this. Gold was overcome with pride towards his poke`mon. They did so well and even if he lost the next match, it was worth it. This was the match they had all wanted.
"Looks like they're ok." spoke Red returning Espeon to it's poke'ball. "They really gave it their all huh?"
"Of course, they wanted this just as much as we did after all."
Red nodded and stood, walking back over to his side of the field.
[BATTLE CONTINUES NEXT CHAPTER]
