James had already set his lineup for his Gym challenge, so he and his team trained hard almost as soon as he and Jen returned to the Pokémon Centre. Jen turned her Pokémon over to Nurse Joy, and watched as James worked Elekid out to take full advantage of his Brick Break. Graveler had volunteered to help in this regard, despite his Rock typing leaving him open to damage. Quilava lay down on the sideline, knowing that James wasn't supposed to use him, and Gastly was nipping back and forth between his teammates, making a nuisance of himself.
Elekid was already showing signs of a fighting ability beyond what James expected. Hit after hit landed, and even though Graveler was standing up well, he was feeling the strikes. James had checked Elekid's moves beyond his Brick Break and found the usual basic Electric attacks, and even though they'd be no use against Graveler, he hoped either a lucky ThunderShock or Elekid's Static ability could cause Whitney some trouble. Elekid looked eager to go up against Whitney's Normal-types, and after a few hours James called a halt so his team could rest before the match.
After turning his Pokéballs and Quilava over to Nurse Joy, James followed Jen towards the cafeteria so they could eat before turning in. Jen noted that James looked much more vigorous than before, even if Quilava wasn't allowed to battle tomorrow.
“You ready to battle, James? You know Whitney isn't going to be easy.”
“Oh, I'm ready for her. Elekid's Brick Break should cause some havoc, and I've drilled Pidgey and Graveler on how to counter Furret's speed. As for Miltank, I'm just going to have to hammer away at her until she goes down.”
“So your usual strategy, then?” Jen giggled as James turned away, knowing she'd pinned it in one.
The next morning brought a repeat of the previous day; a brisk but calm walk to the Gym, mainly for Quilava's benefit, and a quick talk with Whitney before entering the arena itself. James sent Quilava up into the stands with Jen; he didn't want to risk sending the Fire-type out due to a lapse of concentration, which was likely to happen if he stood next to him. Quilava reluctantly complied, and James readied himself for his first match without his strongest Pokémon and best pal.
“Attention! The battle between James of Violet City and Whitney the Goldenrod City Gym Leader is about to begin!
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James Enfield
A: ★★
D: ★
S: ★★
Whitney
A: ★
D: ★★
S: ★★
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At stake is the Plain Badge! Each side may use three Pokémon, and the challenge will end when all three Pokémon on either side is rendered unable to continue. In addition, only the challenger may substitute.”
“Don't think you'll beat me easily, James!” Whitney called from across the field. “We're ready for you, no matter what you throw at us!”
“Oh, I'll be walking out of here with that badge. I may not have Quilava, but the rest of the gang are more than capable of winning.”
“Alright, battle begin!”
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“Furret, let's go!” The Long Body Pokémon stretched itself out as it emerged, confident in its speed and power.
“Furret to start, huh? Okay, Pidgey, let's do this!” Pidgey trilled disdainfully at Furret as she flew up, out of the Normal-type's reach. Furret simply smiled and readied itself for the coming fight. “Alright, Pidgey, start it off! Quick Attack!” Pidgey raced at Furret, which used its usual tactic of flattening itself against the floor as the opponent went by. Pidgey didn't give up after the initial miss, though, and rocketed back towards her target as it rose from the floor. The resultant hit left Furret reeling, but it quickly recomposed and got ready to continue. “Okay, Quick Attack once more!”
“Furret, use your own Quick Attack!” Furret and Pidgey collided, neither doing too much damage, and Pidgey flew back out of range before Furret could hit her with a stronger move.
“Wing Attack!” A slap of Pidgey's wing knocked Furret off-balance, and James knew he had an opening. “Okay, we've got it now! Quick Attack, and keep it going!”
“Furret, Slam!” Furret allowed two attacks to hit before landing a powerful blow with a swing of its tail. Pidgey forced herself up, but the attack had done serious damage. “Alright, jump after it and use Slam again!”
“Dodge and use Wing Attack!” Pidgey was moving slower than usual, though, and couldn't avoid the ferocious hit. She crashed to the ground and trilled weakly, her battle nearly finished.
“Get it, Furret! Quick Attack!” Pidgey watched helplessly as Furret charged at her, but at the last second she found the energy to rocket back into the air.
“That's the way, Pidgey! Now, Wing Attack!” Pidgey charged, wings outstretched and ready to strike.
“Use Dig to escape!” James let out a shout of frustration as Furret dived underground, and Pidgey missed by inches. “Now come out and use Slam!”
“Counter it with Quick Attack!” Pidgey and Furret crashed together, but Pidgey took the worst of it. Her dazed look signaled her defeat.
“Pidgey is unable to battle! Furret wins!”
“No, not again!” Pidgey had fallen at the first hurdle again, and James couldn't believe it. She'd done her absolute best in all her matches, yet their hard work hadn't paid off. He wouldn't hold it against her, though, since there were many battles ahead. “It's okay, Pidgey, you battled hard. Take a break.”
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“Pidgey tried hard, but she just couldn't stop Furret.” Jen watched James recall Pidgey with concern. The same thing had happened in his first match with Bugsy, and she knew James wouldn't want a rematch this time. He'd keep the energy up, but it wouldn't be easy.
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“Alright, Graveler, come on out!” The newly-evolved Rock-type stood calmly before Furret, readying himself for battle.
“A Rock-type, huh? No problem!” Whitney knew, of course, that she might struggle to damage Graveler, but she could try. “Furret, Slam!”
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“Defense Curl!” Graveler knew the routine by now, and rolled up in preparation for a big hit. Furret crashed its tail into Graveler's side, but did little apparent damage. Graveler simply smiled; he knew what to do. “Okay, Rollout!”
“Dig!” Furret burrowed back underground as Graveler rolled by, but as the Rock Pokémon stopped, he jumped up and slammed down on the ground, setting off a shockwave that shook the Gym hard. Furret was blasted out of the hole it had dug, and looked shaken. It wasn't beaten, but the attack had done its work well.
“Was that Magnitude?” James asked, amazed that Graveler had learned a new move in the time after his evolution. The Ground-type attack may be random in its output, but the effects were occasionally devastating, even more so when the opponent was underground.
“It was, and that means I'm in trouble. We're not giving up, though! Slam, Furret!”
“Rollout!” Again, the moves collided, but Graveler overwhelmed the Normal-type move and rolled right over Furret. The ferret lay flat on the ground, resembling a furry pancake; it had been squashed by the powerful move.
“Furret is unable to battle! Graveler wins!”
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“What a hit! I've never seen a Pokémon get literally flattened like that.” As Jen indicated her amazement, Quilava growled quietly, amused at the result of the ferret's defeat. “It's not funny, Quilava!” When the Fire-type smiled, she couldn't hold back a giggle. “Well...okay, it kinda is, but Furret is still a Pokémon. Being squished by a living boulder can't be much fun.” She looked at James, who was congratulating Graveler, and smiled. “He's doing fine. One down, two to go.”
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“Furret, take a rest.” Whitney sounded down as she recalled her Pokémon, and took out another Pokéball. “Alright, let's focus and win! Clefairy, time to shine!” Clefairy popped out and began skipping about, trying to disarm Graveler. Graveler simply nodded and folded his arms, not succumbing to the Normal-type's charms.
“Graveler! Let's finish this up quickly! Use Magnitude!” Graveler thumped down again, sending a slightly weaker shockwave through the ground. “Okay, now Rollout!”
“Metronome!” Whitney was scared now. Clefairy couldn't handle Graveler on her own, so she had to hope Metronome would come out with a winner. Clefairy waved her finger, and an all-too familiar flurry of fire bolts came out. “No, not Ember! That won't help!” Graveler slammed hard into Clefairy, knocking it down hard, all the while ignoring the weak fire attack that battered him. This went on a few times, Clefairy desperately trying to evade while Graveler rolled along the ground.
“We've got it on the run! Finish this, Graveler!” The Rock-type slammed into Clefairy, nearly flattening her, and Whitney shrieked in panic.
“No, Clefairy! Quickly, use Metronome again!” Clefairy went through the Metronome, then paused as Graveler spun around for another pass, her body gradually taking on a strange glow. As he rolled back toward her, Clefairy unleashed a blue-white beam of energy from her hand, blasting the Rock Pokémon and knocking him out.
“Graveler is unable...” The judge stopped short as Clefairy pitched forward, burned out from all the hits she had taken. “Correction! Both Pokémon are unable to battle! This round is a draw!”
“What kind of move was that?” James asked, recalling Graveler in shock. “I know Metronome is completely random, but this is ridiculous!”
“It was a Solar Beam,” Whitney answered, just as surprised as her challenger. “Since it's a Grass-type move, it was able to put Graveler away in one shot. I've never seen it happen before, though. Metronome's pretty random at the best of times, and it isn't a tactic I like to rely on.” She giggled as she pulled Clefairy. “But if it works, it works, right?”
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“Trust a Gym Leader to work out of a tight spot.” Jen knew that Whitney had ridden her luck to knock out Graveler, but that was all part of the battle. “It's up to Elekid to pull this off. Do you think he can do it, Quilava?” Quilava growled an affirmative, and Jen turned back to the field to see how Elekid would handle the pressure.
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“Well, James, it's time for our final battle. I hope you're ready, this is gonna be tough.”
“We're ready, Whitney! Let's get this going!”
“Okay, here we go!” Whitney tossed out Miltank's Pokéball, and the Milk Cow Pokémon stood ready to take down any challengers.
“Alright, Elekid, you're up!” The yellow Electric-type spun his arms as he emerged, building a charge in anticipation of a fight.
“Hey, you have an Elekid just like Jennifer? That's so cool! You two must have a similar taste in Pokémon!” James couldn't think of a response, so he just ordered his first attack.
“Okay, Elekid, Quick Attack!” No waiting, no preparation, just an all-out attack. Elekid's leapt at Miltank with a big grin on his face.
“Defense Curl!” Miltank blunted the move's effect with the defensive tactic, leaving Elekid to glare at her in shock. “Now, Rollout!”
“Use Quick Attack to get out of the way!!” The rolling cow nicked the racing Electric-type, and Elekid landed with a growl. “Okay, fire off a ThunderShock!”
“Out of the way, Miltank!” Miltank's rolling momentum carried her away from the weak Electric-type move, and Elekid snarled in frustration that the move didn't hit. “Now, run in close and use Stomp!”
“Brick Break!” Elekid's fist sparked as he swung, but the move missed its mark, and Miltank brought her foot down on the Electric Pokémon. “Argh! Okay, then, use ThunderShock to get away!”
“Don't let it escape! Stomp, one more time!” Elekid blasted Miltank with the shock, and Miltank simply smashed into him again. “Now, get ready for Rollout, and watch out for...!”
“Brick Break again!” Elekid hit Miltank hard before she could start her attack, then jumped back after firing off a ThunderShock to create some distance.
“Rollout!” Miltank's next hit slammed Elekid to the floor, and she spun away to gain some reprieve from the barrage of Fighting attacks. As James watched Elekid turn to face Miltank again, he could sense that he was shaking in anger, his arms spinning wildly as sparks flew from his horns.
“Hey! Cool it, Elekid! If you lose your temper, we might lose the battle!” Elekid growled back at him, and James shouted back. “Look, I'm counting on you to win this! So get a hold of yourself, focus and let's take them down!” Elekid growled again, then dropped his arms as he stopped shaking. “That's right, calm down. We're going to win, just keep cool while you're fighting.” Whitney smiled as she saw James talk to Elekid.
“He really knows how his Pokémon think,” she mused as she watched Elekid point at Miltank. “But I do too! I won't lose this time, no way! Miltank, Rollout!”
“Elekid, Quick Attack to dodge, then Brick Break again!” Another collision of moves resulted in both Pokémon landing hard on the ground. Elekid got up and glared at Miltank, who had also stood and was readying herself for the next attack, even though her body was shaking with fatigue.
“It looks like it's coming down to the end, Miltank! One more Rollout should do it!” Miltank curled up and raced at Elekid, who stood firm.
“End it with Brick Break!” Elekid's final strike sent Miltank sprawling to the floor, finished for the day.
“Miltank is unable to battle and Elekid is the winner! The victor is James from Violet City!” James ran out to congratulate Elekid on a successful first battle, and he saw Jen and Quilava from the corner of his eye, running over to offer their own congratulations.
“Way to go, Elekid.” James told the Electric-type. “For your first real match, you really showed me something. We've still gotta work on your temper, but that'll come with time.” Elekid grinned and then poked James in the knee, delivering a shock that knocked the boy off his feet. “We've got to work on that, too,” James grumbled as he recalled Elekid. Quilava growled at him, and he smiled. “Thanks, buddy. I would've liked to have you out there, but it's good to get the rest of the team in on the act.”
“And they battled really well.” Whitney wasn't crying now, but she looked ready to. “James, you and your Pokémon really showed me what being a trainer can be like. You were a great challenger, and here's your Plain Badge.” She held out the same yellow square she'd given to Jen the day before, and James took it gratefully.
“Three down, five to go, James,” Jen told him, stroking Quilava's ears; she and the Fire-type had really bonded during their time in the stands. “Whitney, thanks for two great matches. You're a really strong Gym Leader.”
“Thanks, Jennifer.” Whitney turned away so they wouldn't see her crying, and the two youngsters left before she broke down completely.