Subject: [PW!] A Fist Full of Badges Date: Fri, 16 May 2003 01:23:53 -0700 From: "Sabereye \(Chet Weaver\)" <nichirasu@hotmail.com> Newsgroups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon "So that's the Olivine City Gym," Lynkeru said. "Lively place. Looks like we're not the first to arrive today." "What makes you say that?" Yolei asked. "Because there's a battle going on inside," Lynkeru explained. "An uneven one, by the sounds of it." "What are you talking about?" Yolei inquired. "I don't hear..." Yolei was suddenly interrupted by the ground beneath her shaking. It practically knocked her off her feet. "I stand corrected," Yolei said. "That had to be pretty high-level blast! We should check this out!" PokeWars! featuring Yolei, Lynkeru, and Smasher "A Fist Full of Badges" by Chet "Tech" Weaver "I don't mean to sound rude or anything," Smasher said. "But that was pathetic. Are you sure these are your best Pokemon?" "This battle isn't over yet, Smasher," Jasmine said. "You may have beaten some of my toughest Pokemon, but I've saved the best for last." "If you say so," Smasher said. "But I haven't had a decent Gym Battle since I cleared Kanto. It's a little disappointing." "Well, I apologize if your visit to our region has been less than eventful..." "Oh, far from it. I've had some pretty wild adventures since I arrived in New Bark. Its just that all the Gym Leaders seem to be push-overs. Not to say that they're incompetant. Far from it. They just can't handle a trainer of my magnitude." "You're really trying my patience, you know that?" "Huh? Oh, sorry. I believe its your turn." "Okay! Go, Scizor!" The gleaming, metal insect soon stood on the court. "All right, Rush, let's... Rush?" Smasher said, ending in confusion. His Arcanine was nowhere to be seen. "Wha...? Where'd he go?" "Your Arcanine said to meet him at Juicedude when your done," one of Jasmine's aides said. "Well, I've still got the rest of my team so that's no big deal," Smasher said. "You wanna try it, Big Time?" The aforementioned Larvitar merely growled in annoyance. "C'mon, I think you can take him," Smasher urged. Big Time ignored him. "Well, suit yourself. I'll just go with..." Smasher took out a PokeBall and studied it for a bit before saying, "You know, maybe I should've started over with a new, low-level team and built it up from there. Start all over again. That might be something worth trying." "Will you just go already?" Jasmine demanded, getting very annoyed. "Oh, right. I'm unusually introspective today. Ice, go!" A Marowak appeared on the court hefting a heavy club. "Ice, Bone Club." "Scizor, Metal Claw!" Scizor lunged at Ice and wound up wrapping a claw around Ice's Bone Club. "I think I've worn out my welcome enough," Smasher sighed. "Ice Beam." On command, Scizor was encased in a solid block of ice. "Looks like you've won," Jasmine said as they met in the middle of the court. "Here is your Mineralbadge." As Jasmine handed the badge over, she was surprised that Smasher took her hand and shook it. "Good match," he said. "You definitely live up to your reputation." Jasmine blinked and said, "Thank you." "We should do this again sometime," Smasher said. He turned, recalled his Pokemon and left the gym. "Did you see that match?" Yolei asked. "I may have blinked," Lynkeru replied. "Smasher was incredible," Yolei continued. "Way better than at his last tournement. I have to fight him." "What!? He just creamed a Gym Leader!" "I know, but I saw something during the match. A vision. I couldn't quite make it out, but I think it will become clearer if I fight him myself." "But... Fine, suit yourself. They're your Pokemon, after all." Yolei and Lynkeru caught up Smasher just outside the gym. He looked up from affixing the badge onto his glove as she approached. "Adam 'Smasher' Samson!" Yolei declared. "I challenge you to a Pokemon battle!" "My full name," Smasher noted. "You must be serious. Is this about running into you mid-flight?" "No, I just want to battle you," Yolei replied. "Are you sure?" Smasher inquired. "How many badges do you have?" "... Five." Smasher flashed the badges attached to the backs of both his gloves. "Thirteen," he said. "That's bad luck." "I don't believe in luck," Yolei said. "C'mon. I know you know that I'm out of your league. You said you saw me competing in a Pokemon League tournement." "I'm just taking my game to an extreme level." "There's a fine line between being extreme and being a Darwin Award winner, and I don't want to help you cross it. What makes you think you have any sort of edge?" "I can see the future." "The future, huh?" Smasher examined her face. She was determined to battle him, and there was more too it than she let on. "If you insist," Smasher said. He got on his skateboard and rode off. "I don't want to hurt you or your Pokemon, so I'll give you a chance to think this through some more. Meet me at the skatepark in an hour." The hour came and went. Smasher was half surprised to see his challenger show. They stood on opposite sides of a half-pipe. This one was much wider than standard half-pipes, almost as if it was intended for Pokemon battles. "So, you still want to go through with it," Smasher pointed out. "Even though you only have a fist full of badges and I have a few badges more." "That's right," Yolei replied. "If this is for glory, forget it," Smasher warned. "You saw how I schooled Jasmine. You don't even have her badge yet." "This isn't about glory," Yolei said. "Then what?" Smasher asked. Yolei pondered the question for a moment before replying, "When I battle, I can see the future. I got a mere glimmer of a vision when I watched you take down Jasmine, and I'm convinced that if I battle you I'll see the whole thing." "So it doesn't matter whether you win or lose," Smasher noted. "You'll get what you want either way." "That's the plan." "Fine then. But there will be a handicap, just to make things more interesting." "Go on." "We'll both use two Pokemon at once. Agreed?" "How is that a handicap?" "There is a Pokemon on my team that I've been having trouble raising. I just can't get him into the spirit of things, and his performance suffers because of it. I think if he gets a taste of true battle, it'll ignite that hidden spark within him and it will drive him to feed that spark until it becomes a raging inferno!" "So, win or lose, you'll still get what you want?" "If all goes to plan, which I think it will." "All right, let's go." "Good. Then in the words of Mark 'The Undertaker' Calloway, I'm gonna make you famous! Big Time, Iron Horse! It's time to get extreme!" Smasher tossed out two PokeBalls. From one a Larvitar emerged and promptly plopped down on the ground, clearly not interested in its surroundings. The other produced a giant, metal serpent. "Okay!" Yolei called out. "Go, Rink and Mera!" From Yolei's PokeBalls came Quagsire and an abnormally large Quilava. Smasher also noticed something else. His senses, honed from his training as a Channeler, picked up on an almost unperceivable change in Yolei. At first he though it was just that she removed her glasses, which he assumed was because she was farsighted, but it was more than that. It was mostly mental, but a bit physical as well. Almost as if she were a little older now. Smasher decided to ignore it for now and focus on the match. "Look alive, Big Time!" Smasher called out. "You're up!" The Larvitar glanced around and stood up with a start when it realized it was in the thick of things. Big Time looked up at its trainer with a bewildered look. "Don't worry, I know exactly what I'm doing!" Smasher replied in a way that suggested the opposite was true but he just didn't know it yet. "Trust me! You're in good hands! You just put up a Sandstorm while Iron Horse Binds the Quagsire!" Big Time growled impertinently and began to spin. The resulting whirlwind kicked up dirt and rocks and flung them all over the half-pipe. Iron Horse and Rink didn't seem too disturbed by it, but Mera was having a hard time coping. It cried out a bit and covered its head with its paws. 'Sandstorm doesn't affect Rock, Steel, or Ground types,' Yolei mentally recalled. 'But everything else, including fire types like Quilava, will take continuous damage. Still, I should probably focus on his Steelix. Its obviously the stronger of the two.' "Mera! Rink!" she called out. "Wait for my signal!" The two Pokemon took ready positions as Smasher's Steelix swung its tail at Rink. Yolei waited a dangerously long time before issuing her next command. "Rink, jump left!" Yolei commanded. "Mera, use Flamethrower on the Steelix!" The Quagsire obiently jumped left, leaping right over Iron Horse's tail. The Quilava literally opened fire, hitting the spot Rink would've been in if he hadn't dodged. "Now Rink!" Yolei declared. "Use Water Gun on the Steelix!" Rink spun around and sprayed Iron Horse with a high-pressure water attack. The contrast of hot and cold caused much writhing on the part of Iron Horse. "Iron Horse, Dig underground!" Smasher ordered. "Big Time use Screech!" At almost the same time, Yolei called out, "Mera, Quick Attack! Rink, Earthquake!" Before Iron Horse and Big Time could so much as move, Mera disappeared in a blur and darted all around the Steelix. The Quilava was able to make many a scratch before Iron Horse dove underground. Then both of Yolei's Pokemon cringed as Smasher's Larvitar emitted a high-pitched wail. This didn't deter Rink, whose tail shook the skatepark to its foundation. 'The way called out her command the same time I did almost makes it seem like she can see the future,' Smasher thought. 'Almost. She probably didn't know that her Quagsire's Earthquake would also affect her Quilava. Heck, I don't think *I* knew that until just now.' Indeed, the Earthquake attack had knocked both Big Time and Mera off their feet. Mera was the first to regain its bearings and cry out in protest. "Sorry!" Yolei apologized. "But don't let your guard down! I'll tell you when to use Water Gun and Flamethrower!" "You seem pretty sure of yourself," Smasher said. "But can you really see everything? I bet you didn't know that 'Quake was going to hit your Quilava." "Believe me, I took all outcomes into account," Yolei replied. "This was the best course of action!" "If you say so," Smasher said, shrugging. "Big Time, Bite the Quilava!" "Mera! Six o'clock low! Rink, move!" The ground began to shake. Rink immediately jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding Iron Horse as it burst out of the ground. The Steelix was almost instantly met by Mera's Flamethrower attack. "Mera, watch out!" Unfortunately, Mera wasn't nearly as perceptive as its trainer. Big Time bit down on rear left leg and hung on for as long as possible before being shook off. "Rink, Water Gun now!" Rink once again spewed water at the still-heated Steelix. Iron Horse gritted its teeth (or whatever Steelix have) and tried to endure it. "Your Steelix shouldn't have long now," Yolei taunted. "Not only are Water and Fire attack super-effective against it, but they also work in tandem with each other! The Fire attacks cause the Steelix's metal skin to heat up and expand, then the following Water attack causes it to cool down and contract. The strain from this combo should cause quite a bit of damage to Iron Horse." "You're right," Smasher said, noticing the cracks beginning to form on Iron Horse's hide. "But I'm not out yet, and I still have the level advantage! Iron Horse, slam Rink with an Iron Tail attack!" As Iron Horse's tail swung towards Rink... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- "You again." "Is it true?" "Is what true?" The sudden sound of Dewgong's barking drew Yolei's attention to the southern part of town. She quickly turned her attention back to the Masked Rocket with a frightened and desperate look on her face. "Are you... Is your real name... Are you really...?" The Rocket grinned evilly and removed his mask. "Oh, Goddish... It is you... You're... You're..." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- "NOOOOO!!!!" Yolei's sudden scream drew everyone's attention, even the Pokemon in battle, to her as fell to her hands and knees and cried. "No..." she sobbed. "Tell me it's not true... There has to be a mistake..." Smasher hopped on his skateboard and rode over to Yolei's side. Lynkeru got there about the same time and they knelt down to comfort her. "Are you okay?" Lynkeru asked. "What happened?" Smasher asked. "What did you see?" "There's this Rocket," Yolei explained between sobs. "We've come to blows a few times before, but we never knew who he really was. But I'm going to find out, and soon." "Who is he?" Lynkeru asked as if she'd know. "I don't know yet," Yolei said with a sniffle. "But all I know is that I'm not going to like what I find..." To be continued... -- Chet "Tech" Weaver AIM: PanGatomon MSN/E-mail: Nichirasu@hotmail.com Yahoo! Messenger: tech_weaver ICQ: 122744531 Webcomic: http://desperadocoyote.keenspace.com "Some mistakes are too much fun to only make once." -- Unknown