Aron Figaro
New Member
Chapter 1: Beginnings
Aron slowly hauled himself out of bed on the morning of his final test to become a Pokémon trainer. At 16, he was finally old enough to receive his license, a day he had been looking forward to for years.
“Aron! Hurry up, it’s ten o’clock!” His mother shouted from downstairs.
“Whoa! Yeah, I’m coming!” Aron shouted back, realizing his test was in an hour and he still had to shower, eat, get dressed, and focus on passing his test. He had done well on all of the other tests so far - very few had scored as high as he had in the four-year history of the new tests. The tests were mostly developed because of how many trainers abused their Pokémon while they were still too young to know any better. After a while, the United Nations met and discussed a global licensing system that would be enforced by existing Pokémon rangers.
Aron grabbed his clothes and bolted for the bathroom. After a very quick shower, he dressed and ran downstairs. “Hey mom! Breakfast ready?”
“You missed breakfast by about three hours, Aron, but since today’s so important I made sausage and eggs special for you.” his mother said, setting a plate in front of him.
“Great! I can’t wait to become – a Pokémon – trainer!” Aron managed to say between bites of his food, “Today’s – the big day!”
“Yes it is, but you’ve still got half an hour, take your time, there’s no need to rush breakfast.”
Aron slowed down, and finished his breakfast at a more normal pace. He then walked back up to his room, and donned the coat his mother made for him. It was as white as snow, and fell down to his knees, with gold trim on the cuffs and hem. On the back, it had a strange sign that Aron didn’t know well, but his mother said was an ancient symbol of protection and good luck. The jacket went well with his long, braided blonde hair and slim build - though sometimes his friends said it made him look girlish. He also grabbed up his matching backpack, also made by his mother, and his NaviCom - the Sylph version of the PokéNav.
Aron hurried out to the training grounds where Professor Sycamore would be staging the final test. The test was a three-on-three battle using Pokémon specially trained by the professor. Only the trainers who demonstrated enough knowledge of battle to give them a fair chance would be able to become Pokémon trainers, because one of the greatest problems with the trainers of old was that they blamed their Pokémon for losing battles when they should have blamed themselves.
When Aron arrived, only the Professor and Sara, a girl from down the street, was there. Sara was older - 18 to be exact - but had still not finished her tests because her mother wanted her to take two extra years of school. Aron had been in her classes, being two years ahead with nothing better to do, and did admire the girl’s intelligence. He also took a moment to admire the rest of her - she was a beautiful young woman, about 5'6" with a full figure, a bright smile, and raven-black hair in a ponytail that reached halfway down her back. As he drew closer, she noticed him and waved.
“Hey Sara, ready to get crushed?” Aron called out to her.
“We’ll see,” she replied cordially.
Aron wondered why she always seemed so distant...was there something that kept her from being his friend? He shook his head and pushed the thought out of his mind. Now was not the time to be thinking about that, now was the time for battle.
As he stood and waited, he spoke for a few moments with the professor about the Pokémon being used for the test. They were all well-trained Pokémon, and would obey nearly any command the trainer would issue. Each trainer would choose three Pokémon, and the competition would be an elimination battle, with Pokémon healed back to full strength between rounds. If the trainers are skilled enough, all of them will advance, but the competition is as much a status symbol as a test of competence. As Aron and the professor spoke, Sara just stood by, watched, and listened.
About ten minutes later the other boys and girls, mostly 16 and 17 years old, were arriving at the training ground - sixteen of them in total. Professor Sycamore quickly explained the competition to those who didn’t know what was going on, and lined them up to choose their Pokémon. He informed them that they were all equally matched, types and attacks aside, so everyone would be on a relatively level playing field. Aron’s turn was fifth, Sara was two spots behind him. He had kept note of what the other trainers had chosen so far, and reviewed the Pokémon to be chosen. There was a slightly higher number of psychic Pokémon than anything else, and no Steel Pokémon to speak of save for a single Lairon, picked by the third boy.
Aron stood for a moment in thought and study, and the others behind him began to goad him on, telling him to just pick something. He whirled around, sweeping his arm back, and the girl behind him jumped backwards. He glared, then returned to his calculations. After a few more minutes he chose - Arcanine, Eletabuzz, and Murkrow. It was far from optimal but should win him this tournament, he thought.
Sara had an affinity for psychic and dark-type Pokémon, so was able to choose more quickly, snatching up Kirlia, Medicham, and Shiftry. She snickered at her luck of finding a fully-evolved Pokémon in the group, and walked over to find out who she was facing first - a boy named Jack Taylor.
Aron was up against a girl he went to school with years ago, named Jaqueline. She had not yet chosen her Pokémon, but he expected the match to be fair as the professor said. Aron made his way to the arena to begin contemplating the terrain, his choice of Pokémon, and which he would open with. He quickly ruled out any terrain tricks - it was flat dirt. He decided that he would open with Electabuzz, and start aggressively for his first real Pokémon battle.
Jaqueline arrived after a couple of minutes, and she smiled at Aron. “Good to see you again, Aron, but don’t expect me to be easy on you, mon ami.”
Aron just chuckled, nodded, and softly replied “bring it on”.
The referee raised his flags, and shouted “Trainers, Ready! This will be a three-on-three battle with no time limit! Begin!”
“Snorlax, allez-y!” Jaqueline shouted, throwing out her first Pokéball. A moderately large Snorlas, about six and a half feet tall and standing on two legs, appeared before her. She smiled - Snorlax are known for being hard to take down.
“Hah! Go Electabuzz!” Aron called out, sending forth his own Pokémon. “Open it up with a Thunderpunch!” Electabuzz materialized and immediately lunged toward Snorlax, its fists crackling with electricity.
At the same time, Jaqueline and Aron called out their next moves. “Snorlax! Body Slam it now!” “Electabuzz, Quick Attack!” Snorlax fell forward to where Electabuzz would have been had it not quickly dodged sideways, evading the powerful attack. The electric Pokémon then began to pummel Snorlax with its thundering fists, bolts of lightning leaping around the two combatants.
“Snorlax, ici!”, Jaqueline screeched as she called back the battered Snorlax. That did not go well for her, perhaps her next Pokémon would fare better...”Electrode! Allez-y!”
“Electrode, huh? Electabuzz, use Double Team!” Aron ordered. Electabuzz immediately shifted its stance and split into several shadow-forms, not even Aron knowing which was the real Electabuzz.
“Electrode! Rollout attack!” Jaqueline called to her own Pokémon, and Electrode began to roll forward through one of the Electabuzzes. It vanished, and Electrode turned towards another, gaining speed.
“Electabuzz! Uhh...oh, this isn’t good! Return! Go Arcanine!” Aron shouted as he returned Electabuzz to its Pokéball, sending forth Arcanine.
“But why? Arcanine has a weakness to...” one of the onlookers murmured, and questions began to be raised among the small crowd that had gathered to watch these high-level Pokémon battle.
“Arcanine! Dig underground!” Aron shouted, hoping that Professor Sycamore had taught Arcanine that old Pokémon League trick that Gary Oak first used. Arcanine leapt into the air, claws pointed down, and quickly burrowed underground just as Electrode passed over the hole.
As Electrode rolled to a stop, Arcanine burst up from underneath it, knocking it skyward. “Electrode! Thunder!” Jaqueline called, as Aron ordered his Arcanine to use Flamethrower. The two powerful attacks flew past one another, neither Pokémon able to dodge. Both fell to the ground, knocked out from the blows.
“Arcanine, return! Go Electabuzz!” Aron shouted.
“Oh dear...I concede.” Jaqueline said, and the referee nodded. “Jaqueline concedes! Aron is the winner!” He shouted.
“Why did you concede?” Aron asked.
“My last Pokémon is Wailord - a powerful water-type, but it wouldn’t have any chance against your Electabuzz.” she said, looking sort of sad.
“Hey, you did well. I’m sure you’ll still get your licence - I didn’t really see many mistakes in your battle technique.” Aron replied. “Good luck! I’m off to get my Pokémon healed up for the next match!
Aron walked back to where Professor Sycamore had hooked up the energizing machine, and he placed the three Pokéballs inside. He looked over to the arena where Sara was battling, and saw her Shiftry delivering the finishing blow to her opponent’s Ninjask, winning her the match. That Shiftry would be hard to beat, but he was confident in his Arcanine’s ability to burn it out.
The energizing machine interrupted his train of thought with a series of beeps as it returned his Pokéballs to him. He then looked up at the card to find his next match.
Two hours later, Aron had won two more matches, securing his spot in the finals against none other than Sara. She’s good... he thought, knowing that he would have a difficult battle ahead of him.
Aron walked over to the arena and smiled at Sara. She smirked back, and said nothing until the referee began the match. “Go, Kirlia!” She called out, sending her first Pokémon into the ring.
“Go! Murkrow!” Aron shouted, knowing that the Psychic Pokémon would have little chance against it.
“Kirlia! Ice Beam now!” Sara shouted to her Pokémon.
“No! Ice Beam! Murkrow, Protect yourself!” Aron shouted. Murkrow responded immediately, throwing up a wall of force to block the attack. “Murkrow! Return!” Aron called to it, bringing it back.
“Go! Arcanine! Open with Extremespeed!” Aron shouted, sending Arcanine into battle. It immediately burst forward in a lightning-fast tackle, catching Kirlia by surprise, and knocking the frail psychic straight out of the ring!
“Hmph,” Sara muttered, and called out her next Pokémon. “Go! Medicham!”
Aron quickly assessed the situation and ordered Arcanine to attack. “Arcanine! Go get it! Extremespeed then Flamethrower attack!”
“Medicham! Counter that and Detect his Flamethrower!” Sara called out. As Arcanine collided with Medicham, Medicham quickly reversed the move and sent Arcanine flying up into the air, and as Arcanine countered with Flamethrower, Medicham just casually sidestepped the attack. Aron called back Arcanine before it hit the ground, knowing he’d need it to fight Shiftry.
“Hmm...go Murkrow!” Aron called, sending out his flying Pokémon. Murkrow had been his least effective Pokémon of the day, but it’s weakness to fighting types was nicely offset by its ability to fly over anything they could throw at it.
“Medicham! Hi Jump Kick!” Sara shouted at her Pokémon, and it leapt up high in the air.
“Murkrow! Protect yourself, then Aerial Ace!” Aron shouted. Murkrow quickly shot up its barrier again, then locked Medicham in its sights for a diving attack. It streaked past Medicham before it could even react, knocking it to the ground. Still, it seemed undeterred, and quickly rose to its feet.
“Hah. Was that your best? Medicham can take a lot worse than that!” Sara retorted.
“Oh really? Murkrow! Fly high!” Aron called to his Pokémon.
“Medicham! Hi Jump Kick it again!” Sara called.
“Murkrow! Finish it off!” Aron yelled, and Murkrow dove quickly at Medicham, gathering speed before it collided with it, just as its jumpkick landed. Medicham seemed hurt, but it landed - unlike Murkrow, which fell dazed, Aron calling it back before it struck the ground.
“Haha, you can’t beat Medicham!” Sara snickered.
“Oh really? I think I can. Go Electabuzz!”Aron called as he sent out his next Pokémon. “Open it up with a Thunderpunch!”
The electric Pokémon burst from its ball, ready for battle as usual, and started out swinging, its fists sparking with electrical power. Medicham dodged the first punch easily, and was about to counter with a kick, when Aron called to his Pokémon “Electabuzz! Knock it down with Quick Attack!”
Electabuzz quickly shifted its stance and shoulder-checked Medicham before it could react, sending it to the ground. As the fighting Pokémon rose, Electabuzz smashed it straight in the face with a Thunderpunch, sending it sliding backwards, knocked unconscious after the blows from the battle with Murkrow.
“Hah. Looks like you’re down to Shiftry now, and my Arcanine has you,” Aron replied.
“Type isn’t everything, go Shiftry!” Sara retorted, sending out her last Pokémon, hopeful for victory but knowing that it would be hard-fought.
Aron quickly called back his Electabuzz, sending out Arcanine. “Go Arcanine! Flamethrower attack!” he shouted.
Arcanine jumped forward, its mouth erupting with flames intent on scorching the flammable Shiftry. Shiftry dodged the flames nimbly however - it was VERY fast.
“Slash attack!” Sara called to her Pokémon. Aron saw it right behind his Arcanine, but Arcanine couldn’t see the attack.
“Arcanine! Get out of there now! Extremespeed!” Aron called, but was too late - after the beating it had received previously, the slash was enough to take Arcanine out of the fight! Aron had only Electabuzz left - but had seen just what a type-disadvantaged Pokémon could do.
“Go Electabuzz! Quick Attack!” Aron shouted, tossing Electabuzz’ Pokéball. It came out quickly as usual, dashing around Shiftry’s slashes and landing small attacks.
“Shiftry! Razor Leaf!” Sara called, and Shiftry began to spin, throwing pointed leaf-spines everywhere. Sara and Aron both ducked to avoid being skewered, as did Electabuzz, but not before a couple of the leaves caught it in the shoulder and arm.
“Electabuzz! Hang in there and Thunderbolt it!” Aron shouted, and Electabuzz fired a large bolt of electricty towards Shiftry. Its unconductive body managed to ground it from most of the damage, but the shock still stunned it long enough for Aron’s plan to go into action. “Electabuzz! Finish it now! Mega Punch!”
Sara didn’t expect the Normal-type move from the Electric Pokémon, and it caught Shiftry, still stunned, right in the midsection. It doubled over from the blow. “Electabuzz! Headbutt!” Aron called for the finishing blow. Electabuzz quickly head-butted Shiftry to the ground, and Sara knew she was beaten. Aron smiled.
“Great battle, Aron,” Sara said as she recalled Shiftry and turned away.
Aron walked back to the staging area. Sara was there, but she said nothing, and he didn’t dear break the silence after her defeat. He knew she would get over it.
After all of the Pokémon were returned to Prof. Sycamore, he announced the licensees. Nearly everyone who battled received a licence, with the exception of a few very weak trainers. Aron, Sara, Jack, and Jaqueline were all among those who succeeded. Aron beamed as he was led back to the lab with the rest of the group to have his licence card printed, and to get his Pokédex. After a short wait in line, he finally had it - he was a real Pokémon trainer! He smiled...and then his stomach rumbled. He glanced at the clock, and realized it was four o’clock - he had totally missed lunch! Aron dashed for home, eager to begin his adventure on a full stomach.
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So? What say you guys? Better than the original? I think so myself...
Aron slowly hauled himself out of bed on the morning of his final test to become a Pokémon trainer. At 16, he was finally old enough to receive his license, a day he had been looking forward to for years.
“Aron! Hurry up, it’s ten o’clock!” His mother shouted from downstairs.
“Whoa! Yeah, I’m coming!” Aron shouted back, realizing his test was in an hour and he still had to shower, eat, get dressed, and focus on passing his test. He had done well on all of the other tests so far - very few had scored as high as he had in the four-year history of the new tests. The tests were mostly developed because of how many trainers abused their Pokémon while they were still too young to know any better. After a while, the United Nations met and discussed a global licensing system that would be enforced by existing Pokémon rangers.
Aron grabbed his clothes and bolted for the bathroom. After a very quick shower, he dressed and ran downstairs. “Hey mom! Breakfast ready?”
“You missed breakfast by about three hours, Aron, but since today’s so important I made sausage and eggs special for you.” his mother said, setting a plate in front of him.
“Great! I can’t wait to become – a Pokémon – trainer!” Aron managed to say between bites of his food, “Today’s – the big day!”
“Yes it is, but you’ve still got half an hour, take your time, there’s no need to rush breakfast.”
Aron slowed down, and finished his breakfast at a more normal pace. He then walked back up to his room, and donned the coat his mother made for him. It was as white as snow, and fell down to his knees, with gold trim on the cuffs and hem. On the back, it had a strange sign that Aron didn’t know well, but his mother said was an ancient symbol of protection and good luck. The jacket went well with his long, braided blonde hair and slim build - though sometimes his friends said it made him look girlish. He also grabbed up his matching backpack, also made by his mother, and his NaviCom - the Sylph version of the PokéNav.
Aron hurried out to the training grounds where Professor Sycamore would be staging the final test. The test was a three-on-three battle using Pokémon specially trained by the professor. Only the trainers who demonstrated enough knowledge of battle to give them a fair chance would be able to become Pokémon trainers, because one of the greatest problems with the trainers of old was that they blamed their Pokémon for losing battles when they should have blamed themselves.
When Aron arrived, only the Professor and Sara, a girl from down the street, was there. Sara was older - 18 to be exact - but had still not finished her tests because her mother wanted her to take two extra years of school. Aron had been in her classes, being two years ahead with nothing better to do, and did admire the girl’s intelligence. He also took a moment to admire the rest of her - she was a beautiful young woman, about 5'6" with a full figure, a bright smile, and raven-black hair in a ponytail that reached halfway down her back. As he drew closer, she noticed him and waved.
“Hey Sara, ready to get crushed?” Aron called out to her.
“We’ll see,” she replied cordially.
Aron wondered why she always seemed so distant...was there something that kept her from being his friend? He shook his head and pushed the thought out of his mind. Now was not the time to be thinking about that, now was the time for battle.
As he stood and waited, he spoke for a few moments with the professor about the Pokémon being used for the test. They were all well-trained Pokémon, and would obey nearly any command the trainer would issue. Each trainer would choose three Pokémon, and the competition would be an elimination battle, with Pokémon healed back to full strength between rounds. If the trainers are skilled enough, all of them will advance, but the competition is as much a status symbol as a test of competence. As Aron and the professor spoke, Sara just stood by, watched, and listened.
About ten minutes later the other boys and girls, mostly 16 and 17 years old, were arriving at the training ground - sixteen of them in total. Professor Sycamore quickly explained the competition to those who didn’t know what was going on, and lined them up to choose their Pokémon. He informed them that they were all equally matched, types and attacks aside, so everyone would be on a relatively level playing field. Aron’s turn was fifth, Sara was two spots behind him. He had kept note of what the other trainers had chosen so far, and reviewed the Pokémon to be chosen. There was a slightly higher number of psychic Pokémon than anything else, and no Steel Pokémon to speak of save for a single Lairon, picked by the third boy.
Aron stood for a moment in thought and study, and the others behind him began to goad him on, telling him to just pick something. He whirled around, sweeping his arm back, and the girl behind him jumped backwards. He glared, then returned to his calculations. After a few more minutes he chose - Arcanine, Eletabuzz, and Murkrow. It was far from optimal but should win him this tournament, he thought.
Sara had an affinity for psychic and dark-type Pokémon, so was able to choose more quickly, snatching up Kirlia, Medicham, and Shiftry. She snickered at her luck of finding a fully-evolved Pokémon in the group, and walked over to find out who she was facing first - a boy named Jack Taylor.
Aron was up against a girl he went to school with years ago, named Jaqueline. She had not yet chosen her Pokémon, but he expected the match to be fair as the professor said. Aron made his way to the arena to begin contemplating the terrain, his choice of Pokémon, and which he would open with. He quickly ruled out any terrain tricks - it was flat dirt. He decided that he would open with Electabuzz, and start aggressively for his first real Pokémon battle.
Jaqueline arrived after a couple of minutes, and she smiled at Aron. “Good to see you again, Aron, but don’t expect me to be easy on you, mon ami.”
Aron just chuckled, nodded, and softly replied “bring it on”.
The referee raised his flags, and shouted “Trainers, Ready! This will be a three-on-three battle with no time limit! Begin!”
“Snorlax, allez-y!” Jaqueline shouted, throwing out her first Pokéball. A moderately large Snorlas, about six and a half feet tall and standing on two legs, appeared before her. She smiled - Snorlax are known for being hard to take down.
“Hah! Go Electabuzz!” Aron called out, sending forth his own Pokémon. “Open it up with a Thunderpunch!” Electabuzz materialized and immediately lunged toward Snorlax, its fists crackling with electricity.
At the same time, Jaqueline and Aron called out their next moves. “Snorlax! Body Slam it now!” “Electabuzz, Quick Attack!” Snorlax fell forward to where Electabuzz would have been had it not quickly dodged sideways, evading the powerful attack. The electric Pokémon then began to pummel Snorlax with its thundering fists, bolts of lightning leaping around the two combatants.
“Snorlax, ici!”, Jaqueline screeched as she called back the battered Snorlax. That did not go well for her, perhaps her next Pokémon would fare better...”Electrode! Allez-y!”
“Electrode, huh? Electabuzz, use Double Team!” Aron ordered. Electabuzz immediately shifted its stance and split into several shadow-forms, not even Aron knowing which was the real Electabuzz.
“Electrode! Rollout attack!” Jaqueline called to her own Pokémon, and Electrode began to roll forward through one of the Electabuzzes. It vanished, and Electrode turned towards another, gaining speed.
“Electabuzz! Uhh...oh, this isn’t good! Return! Go Arcanine!” Aron shouted as he returned Electabuzz to its Pokéball, sending forth Arcanine.
“But why? Arcanine has a weakness to...” one of the onlookers murmured, and questions began to be raised among the small crowd that had gathered to watch these high-level Pokémon battle.
“Arcanine! Dig underground!” Aron shouted, hoping that Professor Sycamore had taught Arcanine that old Pokémon League trick that Gary Oak first used. Arcanine leapt into the air, claws pointed down, and quickly burrowed underground just as Electrode passed over the hole.
As Electrode rolled to a stop, Arcanine burst up from underneath it, knocking it skyward. “Electrode! Thunder!” Jaqueline called, as Aron ordered his Arcanine to use Flamethrower. The two powerful attacks flew past one another, neither Pokémon able to dodge. Both fell to the ground, knocked out from the blows.
“Arcanine, return! Go Electabuzz!” Aron shouted.
“Oh dear...I concede.” Jaqueline said, and the referee nodded. “Jaqueline concedes! Aron is the winner!” He shouted.
“Why did you concede?” Aron asked.
“My last Pokémon is Wailord - a powerful water-type, but it wouldn’t have any chance against your Electabuzz.” she said, looking sort of sad.
“Hey, you did well. I’m sure you’ll still get your licence - I didn’t really see many mistakes in your battle technique.” Aron replied. “Good luck! I’m off to get my Pokémon healed up for the next match!
Aron walked back to where Professor Sycamore had hooked up the energizing machine, and he placed the three Pokéballs inside. He looked over to the arena where Sara was battling, and saw her Shiftry delivering the finishing blow to her opponent’s Ninjask, winning her the match. That Shiftry would be hard to beat, but he was confident in his Arcanine’s ability to burn it out.
The energizing machine interrupted his train of thought with a series of beeps as it returned his Pokéballs to him. He then looked up at the card to find his next match.
Two hours later, Aron had won two more matches, securing his spot in the finals against none other than Sara. She’s good... he thought, knowing that he would have a difficult battle ahead of him.
Aron walked over to the arena and smiled at Sara. She smirked back, and said nothing until the referee began the match. “Go, Kirlia!” She called out, sending her first Pokémon into the ring.
“Go! Murkrow!” Aron shouted, knowing that the Psychic Pokémon would have little chance against it.
“Kirlia! Ice Beam now!” Sara shouted to her Pokémon.
“No! Ice Beam! Murkrow, Protect yourself!” Aron shouted. Murkrow responded immediately, throwing up a wall of force to block the attack. “Murkrow! Return!” Aron called to it, bringing it back.
“Go! Arcanine! Open with Extremespeed!” Aron shouted, sending Arcanine into battle. It immediately burst forward in a lightning-fast tackle, catching Kirlia by surprise, and knocking the frail psychic straight out of the ring!
“Hmph,” Sara muttered, and called out her next Pokémon. “Go! Medicham!”
Aron quickly assessed the situation and ordered Arcanine to attack. “Arcanine! Go get it! Extremespeed then Flamethrower attack!”
“Medicham! Counter that and Detect his Flamethrower!” Sara called out. As Arcanine collided with Medicham, Medicham quickly reversed the move and sent Arcanine flying up into the air, and as Arcanine countered with Flamethrower, Medicham just casually sidestepped the attack. Aron called back Arcanine before it hit the ground, knowing he’d need it to fight Shiftry.
“Hmm...go Murkrow!” Aron called, sending out his flying Pokémon. Murkrow had been his least effective Pokémon of the day, but it’s weakness to fighting types was nicely offset by its ability to fly over anything they could throw at it.
“Medicham! Hi Jump Kick!” Sara shouted at her Pokémon, and it leapt up high in the air.
“Murkrow! Protect yourself, then Aerial Ace!” Aron shouted. Murkrow quickly shot up its barrier again, then locked Medicham in its sights for a diving attack. It streaked past Medicham before it could even react, knocking it to the ground. Still, it seemed undeterred, and quickly rose to its feet.
“Hah. Was that your best? Medicham can take a lot worse than that!” Sara retorted.
“Oh really? Murkrow! Fly high!” Aron called to his Pokémon.
“Medicham! Hi Jump Kick it again!” Sara called.
“Murkrow! Finish it off!” Aron yelled, and Murkrow dove quickly at Medicham, gathering speed before it collided with it, just as its jumpkick landed. Medicham seemed hurt, but it landed - unlike Murkrow, which fell dazed, Aron calling it back before it struck the ground.
“Haha, you can’t beat Medicham!” Sara snickered.
“Oh really? I think I can. Go Electabuzz!”Aron called as he sent out his next Pokémon. “Open it up with a Thunderpunch!”
The electric Pokémon burst from its ball, ready for battle as usual, and started out swinging, its fists sparking with electrical power. Medicham dodged the first punch easily, and was about to counter with a kick, when Aron called to his Pokémon “Electabuzz! Knock it down with Quick Attack!”
Electabuzz quickly shifted its stance and shoulder-checked Medicham before it could react, sending it to the ground. As the fighting Pokémon rose, Electabuzz smashed it straight in the face with a Thunderpunch, sending it sliding backwards, knocked unconscious after the blows from the battle with Murkrow.
“Hah. Looks like you’re down to Shiftry now, and my Arcanine has you,” Aron replied.
“Type isn’t everything, go Shiftry!” Sara retorted, sending out her last Pokémon, hopeful for victory but knowing that it would be hard-fought.
Aron quickly called back his Electabuzz, sending out Arcanine. “Go Arcanine! Flamethrower attack!” he shouted.
Arcanine jumped forward, its mouth erupting with flames intent on scorching the flammable Shiftry. Shiftry dodged the flames nimbly however - it was VERY fast.
“Slash attack!” Sara called to her Pokémon. Aron saw it right behind his Arcanine, but Arcanine couldn’t see the attack.
“Arcanine! Get out of there now! Extremespeed!” Aron called, but was too late - after the beating it had received previously, the slash was enough to take Arcanine out of the fight! Aron had only Electabuzz left - but had seen just what a type-disadvantaged Pokémon could do.
“Go Electabuzz! Quick Attack!” Aron shouted, tossing Electabuzz’ Pokéball. It came out quickly as usual, dashing around Shiftry’s slashes and landing small attacks.
“Shiftry! Razor Leaf!” Sara called, and Shiftry began to spin, throwing pointed leaf-spines everywhere. Sara and Aron both ducked to avoid being skewered, as did Electabuzz, but not before a couple of the leaves caught it in the shoulder and arm.
“Electabuzz! Hang in there and Thunderbolt it!” Aron shouted, and Electabuzz fired a large bolt of electricty towards Shiftry. Its unconductive body managed to ground it from most of the damage, but the shock still stunned it long enough for Aron’s plan to go into action. “Electabuzz! Finish it now! Mega Punch!”
Sara didn’t expect the Normal-type move from the Electric Pokémon, and it caught Shiftry, still stunned, right in the midsection. It doubled over from the blow. “Electabuzz! Headbutt!” Aron called for the finishing blow. Electabuzz quickly head-butted Shiftry to the ground, and Sara knew she was beaten. Aron smiled.
“Great battle, Aron,” Sara said as she recalled Shiftry and turned away.
Aron walked back to the staging area. Sara was there, but she said nothing, and he didn’t dear break the silence after her defeat. He knew she would get over it.
After all of the Pokémon were returned to Prof. Sycamore, he announced the licensees. Nearly everyone who battled received a licence, with the exception of a few very weak trainers. Aron, Sara, Jack, and Jaqueline were all among those who succeeded. Aron beamed as he was led back to the lab with the rest of the group to have his licence card printed, and to get his Pokédex. After a short wait in line, he finally had it - he was a real Pokémon trainer! He smiled...and then his stomach rumbled. He glanced at the clock, and realized it was four o’clock - he had totally missed lunch! Aron dashed for home, eager to begin his adventure on a full stomach.
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So? What say you guys? Better than the original? I think so myself...