Chapter 11- Kyle VS Lt. Surge
Lieutenant Surge and the spectators waited eagerly to see who I was going to toss onto the field. When I thought about it, I only had one Pokemon that would stand a chance in an electric-type gym- Dusty, my Sandshrew. Bit was a water-type, and there was no way I was throwing him in to start this thing off only to get fried. Nodding to myself about my decision, I reached to my belt and unsnapped Dusty's pokeball. The sandshrew blinked a few times when he made it onto the field and and chittered in surprise. It's been a while since we were in a gym and his last experience in Cerulean didn't go too well. I was expecting him to be nervous or scared, but he was neither. Aside from the sudden start when he emerged from his pokeball, he was surprisingly calm.
My decision only made Surge smirk. "At least he know a little something about our weaknesses at this gym." he said. He quickly snapped a finger at Dusty, taking the iniative while my Sandshrew got a fix on the surroundings. "Well, let's show him just how weak we are, Raichu! Thunderbolt!"
I blanched as I saw the electricity building up within the Raichu's cheek. The crackling noise it made caught Dusty's attention just in time for him to see the enormous bolt aimed for him streaking through the air. Even though ground-type Pokemone were supposed to strong against electric ones to the point where lightning was grounded out, that bolt still looked lethal. "Dusty! Don't let that hit you!"
The Sandshrew yelped as he leapt off to the left to take cover behind a piece of the uprooted terrain. The lightning bolt cracked loudly where he had once been standing. The electrical surge from it was intense. Smaller bolts splashed from where the main one hit, one of the little jolts connecting with my arm and numbing it a little. I noticed one had hit Dusty's leg too when he managed to dodge, but he didn't seem to be slowed down much by the smaller ones. From the huge char mark in the ground where the full force of the Raichu's attack hit though, it looked like it would have done some serious damage if it hit its mark. I didn't have time to gawk though. I needed to get a hold on things before we were in serious trouble. "Try to get in closer, Dusty! Make sure the Raichu can't get a fix on you!"
Dusty nodded and bolted from his hiding spot to charge towards Lt. Surge's Raichu, all the while taking cover behind the upchurned earth as he went to avoid getting hit with a bolt dead on. I counted about three bolts had hit the ground when he came within range, taking notes of how much more of a mess we were making. Maybe there was a way to use this to my advantage. Dusty had just managed to barely dodge another shot, but fell forward as he was knocked off balance. "Dig!"
The Sandshrew made no attempt to recover from his fall. Rather, he welcomed it with claws outstretched, only to tear through the dirt before hit. Dusty quickly burrowed underneath the earth, just in time to avoid another bolt that was aimed to fry him before he could get back up had he actually fallen. On the other side of the ring, I could tell I had Lt. Surge's interest now. The Raichu's tell flicked in a bit of annoyance while it tried to seek out Dusty, taking a few cautious steps out into the arena to get a better look. "Heh," Surge chuckled. "It looks like he knows what he's doing more than those other punks. No more holding back, Raichu! Show 'em what we're made of!"
The Raichu's expression gained an all-new malice when it grinned, still standing in wait for Dusty to surface, as did we all. I took this as a chance to take a quick look over to the bleaches. The group parked there was watching with great interest, as was Fern. She had a little trouble keeping Eve in her seat, but she was still watching the battle very intently. Eve on the other hand, seemed extremely troubled by what was going on. She kept trying to get up and hurry over into the ring; but each time she did, Fern simply pulled her back to her seat and gave her a small scolding. I didn't appreciate the lecture she was giving the Eevee-girl, but it was probably necessary right now. I didn't want her getting caught in the crossfire out here or anything.
The sound of dirt churning snapped my attention back to the fight. Dusty was finally making his move. In the center of the ring, the Raichu was focused and listening too, its ears pricking up at every little noise. Watching his eyes, I realized he was actually tracking Rusty underneath the ground. The attack was going to get botched if I didn't think of something, but by the time I did, it was already too late. Dusty burst from the ground to the Raichu's right and attempted to slash at it, only to swipe at nothing but air as the Pokemon easily dodged the attack. Before my Sandshrew had a chance to recover, the Raichu's tail came down from overhead and slammed into the back of his head, planting him face-first in the dirt. As if that wasn't enough, he was then scooped up and tossed into the air. Raichu wasted no time in making the short dash forward to send him flying across the arena with a well-placed Slam attack.
Dusty screeched in pain as he went sailing through the air and bounced a few more yards before skidding to a stop. Spectators on the sidelines were thrilled about how this was going. I didn't know how Fern felt, but I could hear Eve trying to call out to the Sandshrew in her own Pokemon language. Fern's hand quickly shushed her before she drew too much attention. Who knew what would happen if her cover was blown in here. I could almost feel the pain Dusty was in. My chest hurt a little to see him suffer like that, and my arm was still numb from the previous shock. I didn't want him to keep this up, but if he could still fight and wanted to, I was going to stick with him. "Are you alright, Dusty?" I asked.
The Sandshrew didn't move for a moment, but then he slowly staggered to his feet. After a moment of disorientation, he looked over to me and gave a thumbs-up. I couldn't believe he did that. Had I been in his shoes, I would've been a little less enthusiastic about this, but it looked like he wanted to get even. Nodding in response, we both glared at the Raichu that was already charging in to attack again. Dusty's eyes narrowed as he tensed up, but he made no move to counterattack, simply waiting for my command. "Wait for it." I warned him.
It felt weird. As I focused on the Raichu, I realized my vision seemed a lot sharper than usual. I could make out every little detail of the Pokemon- his paws hammering away at the dirt, the fog of his breath while he charged in like a raging Tauros, the faintest jolts of electricity forming in his cheeks...at first I thought he was coming in for another Slam attack, but that electrical build-up made me feel very uneasy. Dusty was getting ready to make a decision himself when I made my own, shouting my order quickly before Raichu came to close. "Use Sand Attack and jump!"
Dusty didn't hesitate for an instant. His claws dug into the ground before he vaulted straight up into the air, kicking up a shroud of sand in his wake. The Raichu wasn't expecting this and continued on its path. Like I thought, he wasn't coming in to crash into Dusty again. At the last possible moment in his charge, he slammed his paws into the ground and forced himself into a skid. The electricity in his cheeks flared up as he shot a bolt of lightning, hoping to have nailed Dusty point blanc. Instead of hitting the Sandshrew though, he now skid straight through the dust cloud he created. The startled growl of the Pokemon made me positive that what I was aiming for had worked. Not only did the dust ground out the shock absorbers in its cheeks to lessen the firepower a little, but it also blinded it. Dusty landed just as the cloud had cleared, and we all could see the Raichu staggering about trying to wipe out his eyes. "Now, Dusty! Slash attack!"
Dusty grunted as he moved quickly to close the gap before Raichu recovered. I could hear Lieutenant Surge's shouts telling his Pokemon to snap out of it, but by then it was too late. The Raichu looked up, only to met right across the face with a fierce swipe. It shrieked in pain and held its stinging face as it staggered back to get away. We weren't stopping there. On my command, Dusty moved in again and began swiping furiously at the other Pokemon before it could regain its footing again. He didn't stop until it collapsed out cold from the beating, by which time he was out of breath too. I watched as the referee hurryed over to get a better look. When he was certain Raichu wouldn't be getting up for a while, he raised the red flag which indicated Lt. Surge's side of the field. "Raichu is unable to battle!" he annouced, raising the green flag in his other hand towards me. "The winner of this battle is Kyle and Sandshrew! Lieutenant, sir! Please call out your next Pokemon!" Even as a ref, the guy still new better than to go without being formal with his superior.
I looked over to Surge, who was staring back in disbelief. I took a bit of satisfaction in knowing we'd done a good job of wiping away that smug look on his face; but this was far from over. He still had one Pokemon, Dusty was exhausted, and if it was down to Bit, this match was already decided with the gym leader as the victor. It wasn't that I didn't have faith in Bit, but I knew that if Dusty couldn't take bolts like the Raichu sent out, Bit might've been killed by them. I looked over to the bleachers again to check on Eve and Fern. Eve had finally quieted down; but she looked miserable. Fern was grinning with excitement; but something about her expression seemed a little grim. I couldn't place my finger on it, but it almost felt like she was expecting me to lose that round. For all the encouragement she gave earlier, she wasn't giving too much now...
Lieutenant Surge finally recovered from his shock and called his Raichu back. For somebody who just got his butt kicked, he didn't look disappointed at all. As a matter of fact, he was laughing. "Not bad, rookie!" he said with a small applause after putting away his pokeball. "I haven't had a match like this in a while. Looks like I'm gonna have to watch myself around you after all!"
I guess I should have taken that as a compliment. But now I was too focused on the battle to even care. It felt really weird this time around though. I felt more alert. Like I had just downed a whole lot of caffiene without the shaking side effects of the hyperactivity that usually followed a sugar rush. I felt...pretty good actually. That tingly sensation was still at the back of my neck; but even so, I still felt great. I couldn't explain it, but it was definitely a rush. It kind of put me a step closer to feeling like I was actually in this fight. Looking across the arena with this newfound sight, I spotted something that confused me. Surge didn't have a second pokeball on him. That couldn't have been right. They said this was a two on two match right? So where was his other Pokemon?
Then it dawned on me. There were Pokemon that didn't like being in pokeballs. And he did have his Raichu out already, so maybe his other Pokemon was here somewhere too. I didn't have much time to figure it out though. Lieutenant Surge brought his fingers to his lips and let out a shrill whistle. Dusty and I both went on the alert. I knew we had to think of something or he wasn't going to last at all. After the gym leader gave that whistle, everybody fell silent to see what would happen next.
Something was wrong with the lighting. It kept getting dimmer and then brightening, only to fade out again. I looked up to see what was going on and found out what Surge's next Pokemon was as it descended into the arena. The very same Magneton that was in charge of lighting the room hummed as it hovered off the ground. The three tired eyes of the combined Magnemites watched Dusty; but the moment their trainer gave them a command, they woke up instantly. The room lit up again as Magneton sparked, then launched its Sonic Boom attack. It looked easily dodgeable and Dusty did just that, leaping lightly into the air and preparing another Slash attack on my command.
"Swift!" I heard Surge call out. There was no wait to avoid it. Dusty was already in the air and sailing closer to the Magneton. I winced as more sparks shot from the Magneton's eyes and hit my Sandshrew hard, changing his direction and air and sending him crashing right at me feet.
"Dusty!" I dropped to my knees to check on him. Even though he'd taken a beating already, that attack alone looked like it was more than enough to have done him in. The referee didn't exactly help matters when he came over to confirm it.
"Sandshrew is unable to battle!" he announced. "Both trainers are down to one Pokemon!"
Lieutenant Surge chuckled as the Magneton backed away from the center of the field and closer to him. "Got a nice kick, doesn't he? I have this guy recharge by feeding off the lights before a match." That explained the problems with the lighting. Now that Magneton was on the ground, it was back to the dim glow it was at when I entered. Still, the light coming off the Pokemon was strong and perfectly lit up the arena. I saw how strong he was, which just made my situation even worse- not only was he an overpowered electric type, all I had was Bit. There was no way this was going to end well...
My decision only made Surge smirk. "At least he know a little something about our weaknesses at this gym." he said. He quickly snapped a finger at Dusty, taking the iniative while my Sandshrew got a fix on the surroundings. "Well, let's show him just how weak we are, Raichu! Thunderbolt!"
I blanched as I saw the electricity building up within the Raichu's cheek. The crackling noise it made caught Dusty's attention just in time for him to see the enormous bolt aimed for him streaking through the air. Even though ground-type Pokemone were supposed to strong against electric ones to the point where lightning was grounded out, that bolt still looked lethal. "Dusty! Don't let that hit you!"
The Sandshrew yelped as he leapt off to the left to take cover behind a piece of the uprooted terrain. The lightning bolt cracked loudly where he had once been standing. The electrical surge from it was intense. Smaller bolts splashed from where the main one hit, one of the little jolts connecting with my arm and numbing it a little. I noticed one had hit Dusty's leg too when he managed to dodge, but he didn't seem to be slowed down much by the smaller ones. From the huge char mark in the ground where the full force of the Raichu's attack hit though, it looked like it would have done some serious damage if it hit its mark. I didn't have time to gawk though. I needed to get a hold on things before we were in serious trouble. "Try to get in closer, Dusty! Make sure the Raichu can't get a fix on you!"
Dusty nodded and bolted from his hiding spot to charge towards Lt. Surge's Raichu, all the while taking cover behind the upchurned earth as he went to avoid getting hit with a bolt dead on. I counted about three bolts had hit the ground when he came within range, taking notes of how much more of a mess we were making. Maybe there was a way to use this to my advantage. Dusty had just managed to barely dodge another shot, but fell forward as he was knocked off balance. "Dig!"
The Sandshrew made no attempt to recover from his fall. Rather, he welcomed it with claws outstretched, only to tear through the dirt before hit. Dusty quickly burrowed underneath the earth, just in time to avoid another bolt that was aimed to fry him before he could get back up had he actually fallen. On the other side of the ring, I could tell I had Lt. Surge's interest now. The Raichu's tell flicked in a bit of annoyance while it tried to seek out Dusty, taking a few cautious steps out into the arena to get a better look. "Heh," Surge chuckled. "It looks like he knows what he's doing more than those other punks. No more holding back, Raichu! Show 'em what we're made of!"
The Raichu's expression gained an all-new malice when it grinned, still standing in wait for Dusty to surface, as did we all. I took this as a chance to take a quick look over to the bleaches. The group parked there was watching with great interest, as was Fern. She had a little trouble keeping Eve in her seat, but she was still watching the battle very intently. Eve on the other hand, seemed extremely troubled by what was going on. She kept trying to get up and hurry over into the ring; but each time she did, Fern simply pulled her back to her seat and gave her a small scolding. I didn't appreciate the lecture she was giving the Eevee-girl, but it was probably necessary right now. I didn't want her getting caught in the crossfire out here or anything.
The sound of dirt churning snapped my attention back to the fight. Dusty was finally making his move. In the center of the ring, the Raichu was focused and listening too, its ears pricking up at every little noise. Watching his eyes, I realized he was actually tracking Rusty underneath the ground. The attack was going to get botched if I didn't think of something, but by the time I did, it was already too late. Dusty burst from the ground to the Raichu's right and attempted to slash at it, only to swipe at nothing but air as the Pokemon easily dodged the attack. Before my Sandshrew had a chance to recover, the Raichu's tail came down from overhead and slammed into the back of his head, planting him face-first in the dirt. As if that wasn't enough, he was then scooped up and tossed into the air. Raichu wasted no time in making the short dash forward to send him flying across the arena with a well-placed Slam attack.
Dusty screeched in pain as he went sailing through the air and bounced a few more yards before skidding to a stop. Spectators on the sidelines were thrilled about how this was going. I didn't know how Fern felt, but I could hear Eve trying to call out to the Sandshrew in her own Pokemon language. Fern's hand quickly shushed her before she drew too much attention. Who knew what would happen if her cover was blown in here. I could almost feel the pain Dusty was in. My chest hurt a little to see him suffer like that, and my arm was still numb from the previous shock. I didn't want him to keep this up, but if he could still fight and wanted to, I was going to stick with him. "Are you alright, Dusty?" I asked.
The Sandshrew didn't move for a moment, but then he slowly staggered to his feet. After a moment of disorientation, he looked over to me and gave a thumbs-up. I couldn't believe he did that. Had I been in his shoes, I would've been a little less enthusiastic about this, but it looked like he wanted to get even. Nodding in response, we both glared at the Raichu that was already charging in to attack again. Dusty's eyes narrowed as he tensed up, but he made no move to counterattack, simply waiting for my command. "Wait for it." I warned him.
It felt weird. As I focused on the Raichu, I realized my vision seemed a lot sharper than usual. I could make out every little detail of the Pokemon- his paws hammering away at the dirt, the fog of his breath while he charged in like a raging Tauros, the faintest jolts of electricity forming in his cheeks...at first I thought he was coming in for another Slam attack, but that electrical build-up made me feel very uneasy. Dusty was getting ready to make a decision himself when I made my own, shouting my order quickly before Raichu came to close. "Use Sand Attack and jump!"
Dusty didn't hesitate for an instant. His claws dug into the ground before he vaulted straight up into the air, kicking up a shroud of sand in his wake. The Raichu wasn't expecting this and continued on its path. Like I thought, he wasn't coming in to crash into Dusty again. At the last possible moment in his charge, he slammed his paws into the ground and forced himself into a skid. The electricity in his cheeks flared up as he shot a bolt of lightning, hoping to have nailed Dusty point blanc. Instead of hitting the Sandshrew though, he now skid straight through the dust cloud he created. The startled growl of the Pokemon made me positive that what I was aiming for had worked. Not only did the dust ground out the shock absorbers in its cheeks to lessen the firepower a little, but it also blinded it. Dusty landed just as the cloud had cleared, and we all could see the Raichu staggering about trying to wipe out his eyes. "Now, Dusty! Slash attack!"
Dusty grunted as he moved quickly to close the gap before Raichu recovered. I could hear Lieutenant Surge's shouts telling his Pokemon to snap out of it, but by then it was too late. The Raichu looked up, only to met right across the face with a fierce swipe. It shrieked in pain and held its stinging face as it staggered back to get away. We weren't stopping there. On my command, Dusty moved in again and began swiping furiously at the other Pokemon before it could regain its footing again. He didn't stop until it collapsed out cold from the beating, by which time he was out of breath too. I watched as the referee hurryed over to get a better look. When he was certain Raichu wouldn't be getting up for a while, he raised the red flag which indicated Lt. Surge's side of the field. "Raichu is unable to battle!" he annouced, raising the green flag in his other hand towards me. "The winner of this battle is Kyle and Sandshrew! Lieutenant, sir! Please call out your next Pokemon!" Even as a ref, the guy still new better than to go without being formal with his superior.
I looked over to Surge, who was staring back in disbelief. I took a bit of satisfaction in knowing we'd done a good job of wiping away that smug look on his face; but this was far from over. He still had one Pokemon, Dusty was exhausted, and if it was down to Bit, this match was already decided with the gym leader as the victor. It wasn't that I didn't have faith in Bit, but I knew that if Dusty couldn't take bolts like the Raichu sent out, Bit might've been killed by them. I looked over to the bleachers again to check on Eve and Fern. Eve had finally quieted down; but she looked miserable. Fern was grinning with excitement; but something about her expression seemed a little grim. I couldn't place my finger on it, but it almost felt like she was expecting me to lose that round. For all the encouragement she gave earlier, she wasn't giving too much now...
Lieutenant Surge finally recovered from his shock and called his Raichu back. For somebody who just got his butt kicked, he didn't look disappointed at all. As a matter of fact, he was laughing. "Not bad, rookie!" he said with a small applause after putting away his pokeball. "I haven't had a match like this in a while. Looks like I'm gonna have to watch myself around you after all!"
I guess I should have taken that as a compliment. But now I was too focused on the battle to even care. It felt really weird this time around though. I felt more alert. Like I had just downed a whole lot of caffiene without the shaking side effects of the hyperactivity that usually followed a sugar rush. I felt...pretty good actually. That tingly sensation was still at the back of my neck; but even so, I still felt great. I couldn't explain it, but it was definitely a rush. It kind of put me a step closer to feeling like I was actually in this fight. Looking across the arena with this newfound sight, I spotted something that confused me. Surge didn't have a second pokeball on him. That couldn't have been right. They said this was a two on two match right? So where was his other Pokemon?
Then it dawned on me. There were Pokemon that didn't like being in pokeballs. And he did have his Raichu out already, so maybe his other Pokemon was here somewhere too. I didn't have much time to figure it out though. Lieutenant Surge brought his fingers to his lips and let out a shrill whistle. Dusty and I both went on the alert. I knew we had to think of something or he wasn't going to last at all. After the gym leader gave that whistle, everybody fell silent to see what would happen next.
Something was wrong with the lighting. It kept getting dimmer and then brightening, only to fade out again. I looked up to see what was going on and found out what Surge's next Pokemon was as it descended into the arena. The very same Magneton that was in charge of lighting the room hummed as it hovered off the ground. The three tired eyes of the combined Magnemites watched Dusty; but the moment their trainer gave them a command, they woke up instantly. The room lit up again as Magneton sparked, then launched its Sonic Boom attack. It looked easily dodgeable and Dusty did just that, leaping lightly into the air and preparing another Slash attack on my command.
"Swift!" I heard Surge call out. There was no wait to avoid it. Dusty was already in the air and sailing closer to the Magneton. I winced as more sparks shot from the Magneton's eyes and hit my Sandshrew hard, changing his direction and air and sending him crashing right at me feet.
"Dusty!" I dropped to my knees to check on him. Even though he'd taken a beating already, that attack alone looked like it was more than enough to have done him in. The referee didn't exactly help matters when he came over to confirm it.
"Sandshrew is unable to battle!" he announced. "Both trainers are down to one Pokemon!"
Lieutenant Surge chuckled as the Magneton backed away from the center of the field and closer to him. "Got a nice kick, doesn't he? I have this guy recharge by feeding off the lights before a match." That explained the problems with the lighting. Now that Magneton was on the ground, it was back to the dim glow it was at when I entered. Still, the light coming off the Pokemon was strong and perfectly lit up the arena. I saw how strong he was, which just made my situation even worse- not only was he an overpowered electric type, all I had was Bit. There was no way this was going to end well...