Pokemon: QATM Chapter 11
Pokémon:
Quest of a True Master
Chapter 11
-35 days remain-
"Aaaaaaaaagh..." Randy yawned, loudly and maybe a little rudely, as he lay back on Brock's couch, bored out of his mind. It had only been a week since Mark had left, and Randy had spent most of that time wandering around Pewter and Viridian City. He had even gone with Brock to Mt. Moon to dig for a few fossils. That had been somewhat enjoyable, but for the most part all he'd really done was lounge at Brock's house -the Gym Leader had allowed him to stay there as his guest, since Brock was rarely there anyway, and those days were often just spent watching TV.
"Good grief... if I knew I was going to be this bored, I'd have challenged Red myself before he took off," Randy complained to himself. "And if I'm this bored, I can only imagine how my Pokémon feel..."
At that, he glanced over at Cairo, who was sitting quietly in the armchair, seemingly deep in thought -or asleep sitting up. He was certainly still enough to be doing that, although his posture suggested he was meditating, something he did regularly. 'Wish I could be so chill,' thought Randy. 'So much for Cairo being bored... don't know about the others.'
_ _ Before he could carry on with his thoughts, Cairo suddenly moved, eyes opening and glancing towards the door. Randy sat up, peering over the back of the couch as the door opened, and Brock stepped through, greeting him with a nod as he closed the door with his hip and carried an armload of groceries into the kitchen. "How's your day going, Randy?" He called out to his guest.
"Lousy," replied Randy. "I'm bored out of my skull... why did you have to give Mark that crazy idea of going to train in seclusion? He could've trained here with you and I."
"My duties as a gym leader tend to keep me too occupied for that," Brock returned, raising his voice over the rustling of the paper bag he carried as he emptied its contents. "Even if they didn't, I trained most of my own Pokémon a specific way, just as he did, and just as you did. He needed to retrain his team the same way he trained them originally, because that's what made them strong, and unique."
As knowledgeable as Brock sounded, Randy still felt annoyed that the gym leader made so much sense in his words. "Still, all he really needed to do was get them active again, right?" Randy asked
"It's never that simple," replied Brock. "Mark needs to break his complacency, and those of his Pokémon, one at a time. If he doesn't, then he won't get back to full strength."
'Again with the sense making; this guy drives me bananas!' Randy thought. "I suppose I understand that," he admitted, despite his stray, aggravated thoughts. "But I'm just so damn bored."
Brock poked his head back out from the kitchen, seemingly having a thought. He put a hand to his chin, humming to himself for a moment, before smiling and pounding that hand into the palm of his other. "Tell you what," said Brock. "Why don't we have a battle at the gym?"
"What was that about 'duties as a gym leader'?" Randy pointed out.
"I don't have any challengers lined up right now; if you and I can start a match before one shows up then they have to let us finish," replied Brock. "Or, you can stay lying on my couch all day and continue complaining about boredom."
'...Damn it, he did it again.' "I suppose it's not going to kill me," returned Randy, sitting up from the couch. Cairo stood up from his seated position as well. "You sure you can handle me, though? You've got nothing but Rock-types; I have three Pokémon with type advantages over Rock-types."
"So did Mark," Brock stated. "I'm well aware Rock-types are weak against Steel-types; Mark's Steelix had a type advantage, and it lost against my Onix -its pre-evolved state. Using type advantages is a legitimate strategy, but there's more to it than that; there's also the characteristics of each Pokémon to consider."
'What was it Mark said when someone did this to him... oh yeah. Open mouth, insert foot,' thought Randy, once more finding himself struck down by how right Brock was. "Okay, you made your point. But don't say I didn't warn you."
"We'll just see about that," Brock returned, confidently.
The two stepped into the Pewter Gym. Since Mark's battles with both Red and Brock, the stones lain about the gym's dirt floor had been replaced, returning the gym to what it was like before -a home for Rock-type Pokémon. Brock took his place at the other end of the gym, standing with his arms crossed as Randy took his own spot at the challenger's square. "So, how does a four-on-four battle sound to you?" Brock asked.
"Fine by me," returned Randy, nodding. "You're the challenger so, I get to pick first."
"Be my guest," said Brock.
"Aren't I already?" Randy asked, being facetious before he glanced at Cairo. "You're up first, boy."
_"Arru-ah!"_Cairo returned, making a jump before landing on the field, ready to begin.
"A Lucario," said Brock. "Fighting/Steel type, a dual advantage over Rock-types; you're going to open with what may actually be your best means to beat me?"
"I have confidence in all of my Pokémon," Randy returned. "But Cairo is my go-to when I'm really ready to rumble."
"Then I too will open with mine," stated Brock, producing a Poké Ball. "Go, Onix!" He called before he cast it forward.
From the sphere, the massive snake of stone emerged, fixing its eyes on Cairo as it raised itself up on his tail, a loud, grinding growl emitting from his throat. The Lucario stood his ground, refusing to be intimidated by this opponent despite the Onix being vastly larger than him.
As the two stared each other down, he glanced at the keystone worn around his neck; he could easily defeat Onix if he used a Mega Evolution right now, but he decided to save it. He only knew Brock had an Onix; the gym leader would not be so confident if he didn't have some other trick up his sleeve, or a special Pokémon that Randy wouldn't be ready for. He decided to hold off on using it.
"Alright, Onix!" Brock called. "Hit him with Rock Tomb!"
Onix growled again, slamming his tail on the ground and sending several boulders around him hurtling into the air, all of which formed above Cairo and dropped down at the Lucario from above. Cairo easily evaded the attack, darting forward to get out of the way, and making a beeline straight for Onix.
"Force Palm; go!" Randy called.
Cairo sprang, launching himself at Onix with his paw drawn back and ready to strike. Much to his and Randy's dismay, however, Onix veered out of the way, bringing up his tail and slapping Cairo out of midair with it, sending the Lucario flying through the air. He managed to correct himself mid-flight, spinning around and landing feet-first on the wall, before he proceeded to launch himself back at Onix again. Once more, the rock-snake ducked under the attack, surprising Randy with his speed. Cairo touched back down, turning to face the Onix again, looking just as befuddled as his trainer.
"Onix, use Earthquake!" Brock bellowed.
Randy's eyes widened. "Are you crazy?! We're inside of a building!" But it was too late; Onix reared its head back, growling once again. "Cairo; Magnet Rise!"
Cairo threw out his paws, both arms sparking with electricity, and then angled his paws towards the ground. His feet left the ground, hovering in midair just as Onix slammed its head down on the stony ground, narrowly evading the attack. Randy felt a small tremor travel through his feet, but much to his astonishment he felt little more than that; only the floor where Cairo and Onix were had been visibly damaged by the Earthquake attack, but the rest of the gym suffered only a little shake.
"How...?" Randy asked. "How did you keep the building from coming down on our heads like that?"
"Over my years as a gym leader, I also spent some time researched new ways to set up a gym," stated Brock. "See, that floor that our Pokémon are battling on is not actually part of the main floor, but it is in fact another section of the building, wider at the top to look part of the regular structure, but underneath that ground is not concrete or any sort of flooring, but a granite pillar surrounded on all sides by a thick, shock-absorbing gel. Thanks to that, I can use wide-spread moves like Earthquake without any damage coming to my gym."
'Good grief, no wonder this guy's so famous; he's not only skilled, he's brilliant!' Randy thought. 'He found a way to use a move normally illegal in gym battles to gain an upper hand!' Not to mention, if Cairo hadn't known Magnet Rise, being a steel-type, that Earthquake attack would have been curtains for the Lucario. 'I can NOT underestimate this guy.'
_ _ "Alright, Onix; use Rock Tomb again!" Brock instructed. Onix repeated the same motion he had the first time, slamming his tail into the ground and sending stones hurtling towards Cairo. With the Lucario still levitating, his speed advantage had been nullified, and the stones came down on him before he could return to the ground, piling around him and trapping him within them.
"Crap," grunted Randy. 'So that was his plan; he used Rock Tomb first to try and slow down Cairo, then would hit him with Earthquake,' thought Randy, before it suddenly dawned on him. 'Now Cairo's pinned and he's going to do it again!' "Cairo, break out; hurry!"
A deep growl, muffled from inside the boulders, was heard, before the top boulder exploded, Cairo's head and paw emerging from the stones, but he was still stuck.
"Onix, Earthquake again!" Brock called, proving Randy right.
"Come on, Cairo; you can do it!" Randy called.
But it was too late. Onix hammered his head into the ground again, sending a tremor through the stonework. The stones trapping Cairo shattered, and the Lucario stumbled from the tremors, only to be shaken and rattled by the floor, the shaking of which became more violent and bounced him around, preventing him from getting back to his feet.
And then, the quaking stopped. Cairo immediately sprang up from the floor, readying himself as he expected an attack, but there was none coming. In fact... Onix was gone from sight; not a trace of him remained, startling both Randy and Cairo.
"What the... where'd he go?" Randy asked. "How can something that big just disappear?" He thought quickly, before calling out to Cairo. "Use Aura Sense; find him!"
Cairo shut his eyes, the dreadlocks growing from the back of his head splaying out as if organic as the Lucario focused, reopening his eyes to reveal a blue glow emitting from them. He searched the room, trying to spot Onix, but there was no sign of the big rock snake anywhere. On a whim, though, Cairo looked down, and sure enough, there it was; the massive form of Onix... coming right at him!
Cairo tried to dodge, but Onix exploded from the floor faster than he could move, catching the Lucario by the leg with his rocky jaws. Cairo flailed his paws instinctively, trying to find some give, before he hung helplessly from Onix's mouth. "Arraow-roh!!" He cried, not sure what to do... and unfortunately neither was Randy.
"Now Onix, finish him off!" Brock called.
Onix plunged his head towards the floor, slamming the Lucario between the ground and his head, knocking the wind out of poor Cairo. When Onix pulled back, Cairo lay gasping, clutching his stomach where most of the impact had hit, growling with pain.
"Cairo!" Randy called. Hurriedly, he produced the Lucario's Poké Ball to call him back, only to let him back out again at his side, kneeling down to inspect his Pokémon. "Are you okay, fella?" He asked. Cairo opened his eyes, looking up at Randy and eliciting a pained groan in reply. "It's okay." The trainer reached for his backpack, producing a Super Potion and spraying it on Cairo. "This should help."
Cairo nodded to him, and lay back to rest while the battle continued; Randy stood up from Cairo, turning to face Brock again. "That was pretty impressive," he admitted. "Beating a Lucario; that Onix of yours is faster than any I've ever seen."
"My Onix is the fastest of its kind, or so I'm told," replied Brock as Onix dragged itself over to his side, placing a hand on the middle boulder of Onix's body. "He's special."
Randy smiled. "So are all of my Pokémon," he said as he picked out a second Poké Ball. "Let me show you." He cast the ball forward. "Gemstar!"
Out of the ball, the Starmie emerged, spiralling through midair until it landed on the ground on the lower points of its star-shaped body -its 'legs' so to speak, and its gem-imbedded center shone brightly as it 'faced' Brock and his Onix.
"A water-type; should've guessed you had at least one," remarked Brock as Onix moved back into position. "And it's a Starmie, too; a Water-psychic type."
"Take him down, Gemstar," Randy bade. "Go, Hydro Pump!"
Gemstar angled the tip-point of its body forward, water erupting from that tip with torrential force, racing towards Onix. The boulder-snake veered out of the way, and charged at Gemstar, emitting plumes of dust as he rushed towards it. At Brock's command, Onix went into with a Headbutt, lowering his head and swinging himself like a giant flail towards the Starmie. Despite not actually having limbs to speak of, Gemstar evaded the attack with impressive speed, launching itself over Onix's sweeping head.
"Gemstar; Psychic!" Randy called.
The gem-center of the Starmine glowed, and the air in front of it distorted and discoloured, expanding around Onix and slamming him with powerful, telekinetic force that sent him skidding across the floor, destroying several boulders as he slid into the wall.
"I think your Onix is seeing stars now, Brock," Randy remarked.
Brock frowned, arcing an eyebrow at Randy. "Did you actually just say that?"
"Corny quips are kind of my thing," returned Randy, grinning and shrugging.
"Well it just so happiness sturdiness is a Rock-type thing," Brock remarked as Onix pulled himself away from the wall, shaking his head to clear it and facing Gemstar again. "It'll take more than that to stop Onix."
"Then I'll bring on the big-time hurt," returned Randy. "Gemstar, Hydro Pump again!"
"Onix, Bide!" Brock countered.
The Onix stiffed itself, letting the Hydro Pump hit him; he growled from the Watery attack as bored against his rock body, but he was still up, despite being highly vulnerable to Water-type attacks. Gemstar attacked again, and though it didn't seem possible, Onix still didn't go-down. With the second attack, he lunged forward, unleashing the energy he'd gained from the two attacks and striking Gemstar so hard with his tail it was a wonder the starfish-Pokémon did not go through the wall it was knocked into.
"That's freakin' crazy!" Randy exclaimed as he called Gemstar back into its Poké Ball. "How did Onix take two Hydro Pumps? It's not possible; no Rock-type can take that!"
"I told you before, there's more to battle than just type advantages," Brock stated. "Onix is the toughest Pokémon I have, but even he has limits. Which is why he's wearing that." He pointed at Onix's neck, and the rock snake slowly turned his head to the side, revealing something wrapped around the stone that served as his neck; a brown, leather band of sorts, which Randy hadn't noticed before, and was shocked to find now.
"Is that... a focus band?" Randy asked, clearly surprised. "Where the heck did you get that?"
"The Battle Resort in Hoenn," replied Brock. "Yes, I've been there; I beat the Single and Double Divisions of the Chateau, and with the points I earned, I found some useful stuff to give my Pokémon. I know Onix is very sturdy, and won't fall in one hit no matter what hits him, that second hit he'll have to take to use Bide is the bigger risk. I have always believed in Onix, but even he agrees, it never hurts to have a little backup."
The Onix growled in agreement.
"So by stacking that focus band, and Onix's natural sturdy ability, you try to make certain that when he uses Bide, he'll be able to make it past the second hit, so that your opponent will feel the full brunt of their own attacks," said Randy, shaking his head. "That's a risky move; focus band doesn't always work... but it's damn brilliant."
Brock glanced at Onix, who seemed to be having trouble staying up now. "Okay Onix; you've done enough," he said, producing Onix's Poké Ball and recalling him, pocketing the ball before looking back at Randy. "So now you have two remaining, and I have three. Who's going to be your next choice?"
Suddenly, Brock noticed Randy was actually shaking. At first, he wondered if he was afraid or something, but on closer inspection, it appeared Randy was actually snickering. "Did I say something funny and miss it?" Brock asked.
"No... I'm laughing at myself," returned Randy. "I think now I know what Mark felt like when he found out he'd grown too complacent with his Pokémon. In my case though, I think I got a tad overconfident; he and I both thought we were above gym leaders in skill, but every trainer is unique, and you've proven you could be a member of the Elite Four; you have skills right at their level." He produced his next Poké Ball. "No more restraints; I'm going all-out!"
Brock grinned. "Bring it on."
"Come on out, Thorn!" Randy called, casting the ball forward with greater zeal. It popped open, and from the energy emerged the Thorn. He elicited a growl of anticipation as he finally joined the fight, his tree-top tail sweeping over the dirt as he faced Brock, and the rock-type trainer could swear the Sceptile was grinning.
"A Sceptile," said Brock. "Never seen one before." He smiled wider. "Only one word to describe it; he's awesome... but what's that thing he's wearing for?" He inquired, pointing at the leather-clad harness the Sceptile wore. "Reminds me of a Gladiator movie."
"Was kind of the inspiration," replied Randy. "That harness houses his Mega Stone." He touched his necklace, the keystone beginning to glow. "Which I'm going to show you, right now!" He tapped the stone, and it emitted more light.
On the center of the harness he wore, over his chest, Thorn's Sceptilite shone brightly, and the crystalline light that marked the start of Mega Evolution formed around him, shattering and revealing his changed form. He largely looked the same as his previous self, except for some physical changes, such as the crests growing along the upper-sides of his skull having become longer, angling behind his head almost like horns. The red colouring around Thorn's eyes took on a similar shape to its crests, expanding and extending to a point towards the back of his head.
Leafy spikes, pressed together and forming the shape of an X on his chest, pressed behind his gladiator-style harness that housed his shining Mega Stone, stuck out above and below his shoulder and sticking out behind him. The two razor-sharp leaves growing from the top of his arms were now tipped with red, and a matching red colour had formed into rings around his tail, from the root of the limb to the base of the tree-like end to his tail. The tree also had a red tip, like a stinger, and the spherical seeds growing from his back had expanded, becoming larger. When he reared back his head and roared, the very air seemed to tremble at his power.
"A Mega Sceptile," Brock uttered, awestruck by what he was witnessing. "Never thought I'd get to see one." Brock produced his second Poké Ball. "Alright... the real battle starts now." He cast it forward, and when it opened, a Golem emerged from the ball, stomping its feet on the ground in readiness.
"Ah, a Golem," said Randy. "One of the heaviest Pokémon in the world..." He grinned. "And one of the slowest."
"We'll see about that," retorted Brock. "Golem, Rollout attack!" Golem pulled in its arms and tucked its head into its round, boulder-y body, and tumbled into a roll that shook the floor, racing across the battlefield towards its opponent.
"Can't hit what you can't catch," taunted Randy. "Right, Thorn?"
Thorn growled in reply, and began running backwards. Just as it looked like Golem would reach him, he crossed his arms and picked up speed, running in circles with only occasional glances as to where he was going, but every moment of his run, Golem never got an inch closer no matter how fast he rolled.
"Whoa... now that's fast," Brock remarked.
"Besides Velox, Thorn is actually the fastest of all of my Pokémon," stated Randy. "Nothing can catch him."
"One can try," returned Brock. "Come on, Golem; faster!"
By now, Golem was already rolling fast enough to look more like a tumbling cannonball than an animate boulder; from his speed, his body looked absolutely smooth, yet somehow he still went faster, and this time he did gain an inch on the Sceptile... but that was all. Thorn simply turned around and started running forward, charging at the wall, jumping and then using his feet to rebound off of it, flying over Golem and plowing into the wall.
Golem bounced off the wall, and suddenly went rolling the other way, smashing down several boulders before racing past Randy and bouncing off the wall near the doors, hitting the ledge of the battle arena and sending itself tumbling through midair; it almost reached the ceiling, but Golem uncurled from the Rollout attack, flailing its limbs and falling... well, like a stone, back down to the ground, causing a burst of dust as it hit the floor. Randy could even have sworn he actually heard it say 'ow' when it landed.
"...Well that was anti-climactic," remarked Randy.
"It was..." Brock admitted, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Good thing I had those walls reinforced too, just in case..." He looked to his Pokémon. "You okay, Golem?" Hearing itself being called, Golem stood back up, rubbing its head with both of its stubby arms before glancing at Brock, nodding. "Okay... this battle is still on, then."
"Not for long," Randy returned.
"Didn't you say something earlier about overconfidence?" Brock asked.
"This isn't about confidence, it's about certainty," replied Randy. "Thorn defeated the Gym Leader of Sootopolis, all of his Pokémon, in a clean sweep all by himself and never took a hit because none of Wallace's Pokémon could catch him. All of them were vulnerable to Grass-type. Lots of Rock-types also have a Ground sub-type, making them doubly vulnerable to Grass-type; combining Type advantage with superior speed and agility. Is that what you meant about factors before?"
Brock looked concerned about how the battle had suddenly turned on him... he had just beaten two of Randy's Pokémon with just one, but now Randy was speaking, not only with confidence but with certainty, that his Sceptile was going to win this entire battle for him. Despite Randy admitting he may have been overconfident before, this time Brock had an uneasy feeling that Randy was right. But he would not back down... not for that.
"Okay Randy, I'm going to make you put your money where your mouth is," remarked Brock. "Let's finish this. Golem, Rollout again!"
"Thorn, Tree Missile!"
"Tree-what?" Brock asked.
Thorn brought his tail around, angling it towards Golem as the rock-type Pokémon curled up into a ball and tumbled towards him once more. Thorn narrowed his eyes, and then roared loudly as the seeds on his back seemed to... explode? Trails of smoke erupted from his back, and then the end of his tail literally launched away from his body, leaving a smoking stump at the end where it used to be with leaves exploding from the missile-tree as it raced towards Golem, striking it head on and, despite Golem's own momentum generated by Rollout, sent the Golem flying back in the direction it came
Golem crashed down alongside Brock, kicking up dust and making him cover his eyes protectively. Brock looked at Golem as the dust settled, and with a frown, withdrew him back into his Poké Ball, pocketing it and looking at Thorn. "So he can actually launch his own tail like a missile?"
Randy nodded. "It's not an officially named attack yet, but yes; it's an attack specific only to Sceptile himself and only possible in Mega Form, being able to launch its tail like a missile at opponents. It's a heavy-hitter; hard to aim, but with the type advantage he had, it's pretty much a guaranteed K.O."
"I see," returned Brock. "He's like a living howitzer. So what happens when Sceptile loses its tail?"
"He's a lizard with plant DNA," Randy stated, and at that, Thorn turned around again, showing the stump at the end of his tail... or what had at least been a stump. It had smoothed over, become pointed, and already had some leaves growing out of it, which seemed to be getting bigger by the second. "If he were outside in sunlight, that tail would be grown back in about thirty seconds. In here, quadruples the time; takes about two minutes and then he'll have another shot."
"Then I'll just have to beat him before he does."
"Lots of luck," returned Randy. Thorn growled in agreement, sweeping his shortened tail across the floor as he faced straight ahead again. "Even without his tail, a Mega Sceptile is a powerful adversary, so let's see what else you got, Brock the Rock!"
"Brock the Rock; been a while since I've been called that," the gym leader returned with a smile. "Fine; let's continue." He cast forth his next Poké Ball. "Go, Sudowoodo!"
That was a name Randy hadn't heard of before... out of the ball, it emerged, forming onto the field. A... tree, with legs, was the best way for Randy to describe it at first glance. But it was more than that; it had a cylindrical body atop those two short legs, with beady black eyes, long thing arms ending in three-fingered, ball-pointed fists, and a V-shaped crest... or twig, growing from the top of its head.
'Is that thing a Grass-type? I thought Brock used Rock-types,' Randy thought. 'If it's a Grass-type it'll be resistant to Thorn's grass-type attacks, but if it turns out to be a rock-type, then... ah dammit I wish I knew more about these western Pokémon... or at least brought my Dex with me. I'll just go in assuming it's a Grass-type for the moment until I see something that proves me otherwise.'
_ _ "Alright Thorn, let's chop down that tree!" Randy barked. "Go, Dragonbreath!" Thorn inhaled deeply before emitting a torrent of a dark, green-tinted energy, travelling in a stream as if pressurized.
Sudowoodo weaved out of the way with a side-step, narrowly avoiding the attack. "Sudowoodo; use Mimic!" Brock said, but despite the intensity of his command, he was smiling with confidence; a smile that said 'I got you' to Randy, and suddenly the trainer had a sinking feeling.
Especially since nothing seemed to happen when Brock commanded Sudowoodo; was it ignoring him? No, it seemed to be straining with something... but then, Brock shouted out again, "now, Dragonbreath!" Randy, startled, stumbled on his words as Sudowoodo exhaled its own Dragonbreath attack, catching Thorn off guard; he just barely managed to get out of the way, suffering a glancing blow and growling with pain.
"How'd you do that?" Randy asked.
"Sudowoodo has the special attack 'Mimic'; when it's used he gets to copy the last attack he has seen," Brock explained. "I knew your Sceptile was also a Dragon-type when it Mega Evolved, so I knew you'd have at least one Dragon-type attack for the power boost -a nice trick to have if you battle other Dragon-types since they are one of only two Pokémon types that are damaged more by their own type than any other."
"Relying on Type-advantage again when we keep bringing up how it's only one factor?" Randy asked.
"It is only one factor; the other two in this case are Sudowoodo and myself," replied Brock. "Now enough talk; let's battle!"
"I can't make any sense of you, but fine; you're on!" Randy returned. "Thorn!"
"Sudowoodo!"
And simultaneously. "Dragonbreath attack!"
The two attacks were released, and the two attacks collided, meeting halfway to their intended targets, and began to duel. The attacks pushed against each other, both Pokémon pouring effort into it, but it rapidly became clear that Thorn had the advantage; his attack was gaining more ground, pushing closer to Sudowoodo every moment, until finally it failed; Sudowoodo took the hit directly, and was blown off of his feet, falling onto his back.
He quickly tried to get up, but suddenly froze in place, his movements becoming spastic, like something was disrupting his nervous system. "Sudowoodo, what's wrong?" Brock asked.
"Guess you don't battle dragon-types often," Randy returned. "Dragonbreath has a chance of causing Paralysis on its target, and now there's nothing you can do!" Randy pointed at Sudowoodo. "Thorn, use Seed Bomb!"
Thorn leaned forward, angling his back somewhat and dropping to all fours, eyes fixed on Sudowoodo. It was then Brock had noticed that the seeds on the Sceptile's back had already regrown, only to explode from his back once more, where they soared in an arch through the air, falling towards Sudowoodo. Brock told him to try and get out of the way, but the moment Sudowoodo tried to move, he stiffened again, and the seeds found their mark, bursting upon impact and doing serious damage.
'So, it was a rock type, after all.'
_ _ "Sudowoodo, return," Brock said, almost depressingly, as he called the mimic back to his Poké Ball, looking back at Randy again. "As much as I hate to admit it, you're tough." He produced his fourth, and last, Poké Ball housing one more Pokémon. "This is the last one I've got. You ready?"
"Bring it."
"Go, Rhydon!" Brock called, and with a throw, the last Pokémon emerged, appearing over the field before dropping down with a thunderous crash. After its initial entrance, the big, dinosaur-like Pokémon stood upright, holding out its arms and roaring with anticipation, load enough to make the room almost tremble as it expressed its power, facing Thorn with a fierce expression, blowing steam from its nostrils.
Rhydon was big; easily larger in both height and girth than Thorn, with a body as gray as stone but just by looking at it Randy could guess that hide was as tough as iron. It had many protrusions growing from its head, two of which slightly resembled ears, spiky ridges on its cheeks, and its nose was tipped by a short, powerful spiked horn with a corkscrew pattern, two red eyes looking past that horn. Its body was thick, and its legs were short, but everyone who knew anything about Rock-types knew a Rhydon was a powerful physical attacker; its tail could level buildings with a single hit, and Rhydon itself could take a hit that would drop an Onix.
"Impressive-looking Pokémon," Randy admitted. "Except that its horn seems kind of short."
"That's because it's a 'she'," replied Brock.
"Well I've learned the genders of all of my Pokémon, but with a Rhydon, how can you tell?" Randy inquired.
"What your eyes don't see is pretty clear to me," Brock retorted, smirking. "Look at her horn; can you measure just by gaze?"
"Not really."
"A female Rhyhorn, and in turn, Rhydon, has a horn of eighteen inches," Brock explained. "A male Rhyhorn and Rhydon have one of twenty inches for the former, twenty two inches for the latter. Sizes may vary depending on how big they get, but those are the average measurements." He irked an eyebrow. "As I told Mark, I also have an interest in Pokémon breeding; I've picked up a few things, even practiced it."
"Eh?"
"This Rhydon you see here," Brock stated. "She mothered the Rhyhorn that I gave to the Johto Champion, Ethan, in a trade for the Bonsly that became my Sudowoodo." His gaze was confident. "That same Rhyhorn evolved to a Rhydon too, and it was the Pokémon that beat Red's Charizard."
"Wait, so Ethan has a Rhydon too," Randy began, "and he used it to beat a Pokémon even Vitesse couldn't beat?" He then pointed at Brock's Rhydon. "And _that_is the mother of that same Rhydon?"
"Precisely," replied Brock. "I'm only telling you this so that you have an idea of what Mark will be facing when he challenges Ethan."
Randy chuckled. "Then you should have shown Mark," he stated. "I'm not the one fixing to battle Ethan, so my experience isn't going to mean much."
"Maybe not," said Brock. "But you're still going to have to."
"And we will, right Thorn?"
"_Graaaawr!"_The Mega Sceptile returned.
"Let's go; Bulldoze!" Brock called.
Rhydon leapt up into the air, coming back down like a bombshell and sending a powerful tremor ripping through the ground straight at Thorn. The ever-agile Mega Sceptile darted out of the way of the attack, and responded with a Seed Bomb upon being commanded by Randy. The seeds launched from its back, soaring across the air and falling towards Rhydon, who at Brock's instruction ran forward, charging through the bombs and seemingly unfazed by their detonations as she made a beeline straight for Thorn.
One bomb fell directly in her path, kicking up dust enough to obscure her from sight, only to emerge a second later. "Drill Run!" Brock called, and in midair, Rhydon began spinning, her horn leading as she shot across the floor like a torpedo straight towards Thorn.
"Look out, boy!" Randy called.
Thorn hurried to evade, but he missed his chance, and the attack hit him head on; the horn breaking skin and the Rhydon's mass as her head collided with the rest of Thorn's body sent the Sceptile soaring across the room as if fired out of a cannon. Randy was nearly hit by the flying Sceptile, hurriedly leaping out of the way and almost stumbling, utterly baffled by how powerful that attack had been. Thorn hit the wall hard, and was stunned by the impact, coughing and gasping for breath.
"Thorn! Are you okay?" Randy called.
"Rhydon; finish it with Mega Punch!" Brock ordered.
Rhydon charged forward, rushing at Thorn as fast as she could; every step felt like a small tremor through the floor. Thorn was trying to recover from the previous impact, but he was still so dazed by the hit he couldn't focus, and Rhydon was quickly getting closer.
'I can't tell him to use Synthesis; it won't work in here,' thought Randy. 'But if I can't get him to move, he's going to get flattened!' But then, he looked at Thorn's side, seeing that his tail, pinned behind his leg, was sticking out; the tree-tip had grown back now, and was ready to be used. "Thorn! Try and point your tail straight ahead!"
Thorn weakly shifted, his tail tip flopping around as he tried to angle it where he needed to be. Brock didn't see the tail and where it was aimed, nor had he really heard Randy talking to Thorn; he was waiting until Rhydon made her mark, and she was mere seconds away from doing so, her arm drawn back and her fist glowing as she wound up for a punch.
"Now, Tree Missile!" Randy bellowed. "Fire!"
Thorn's eyes opened, the slitted pupils narrowed to paper-thin as fierce determination crossed his features, and with a roar of defiance, the explosions from the seeds on his back pushed him off of the wall just as his tail fired; unfortunately this threw off his aim, but Rhydon was so close now that the Tree Missile still landed a glancing blow, throwing Rhydon completely off balance and sending her careening into the wall, her fist plowing straight through the concrete.
"Leaf Blade!" Randy called.
Thorn's razor-sharp leaves, growing from his arms, glowed and respositioned themselves onto his outer forearm, curving like scimitars, as he powered up the attack. Rhydon pulled her arm out just in time to avoid the initial swing, only for the follow up, in the form of a right-hooked punch that fell short to go straight across her chest, leaving a deep groove in her skin.
"Now, Frenzy Plant!" Randy called.
Thorn spun around, turning his back to Rhydon, and her eyes widened as the seeds on his back burst open, each one of them releasing a long, spiked root, all of which slammed into her full-strength at point-blank range; the combined onslaught sent her flying, and she hit the floor at the far end of the platform, throwing rocks in Brock's face and forcing him to cover it with his arms as she landed.
When she didn't move again, knocked out by the attack, Randy brushed his thumb across his nose and chuckled. "Well that's that," he said. "I win."
"Well done, my friend," complimented Brock, recalling Rhydon to her Poké Ball before turning to Randy. "Excellent battle, Randy; your Sceptile beat three of my Pokémon all on his own. That's quite impressive."
Randy shook his head. "It was lucky," he stated. "If Thorn hadn't managed to score that hit with Tree Missile, he'd have lost." Thorn stepped over to stand at Randy's side, leaning his head down as Randy reached over to pet him on the back of his neck. "Thankfully, though, he's just as stubborn as I am."
"Not to mention, even if he did lose, you still had one Pokémon left. Either way, I'm pretty sure you'd have won," returned Brock.
At that, Thorn devolved back to a normal Sceptile, eliciting a pleasured purr from his throat as Randy continued to pet him, leaning over and giving Randy a love-bite on the arm, making him chuckle and gently push him back, and tickle his belly a little, both of them laughing together for a moment before walking together to meet Brock, followed by Cairo, whom, after the effects of the Super Potion kicked in, was strong enough to get back on his feet, but still stumbled somewhat, causing both Randy and Thorn to pause; the latter walked back over and offered a hand, letting Cairo lean on him a little for support.
"I see your Pokémon get along with each other just as well as they get along with you," Brock remarked.
"Not quite," returned Randy. "Skyclaw and Thorn don't always see eye to eye, and good luck getting Velox to be friends with the Seviper I have back home; those two can NOT be in the same room or all hell breaks loose. And at first, Cairo really hated it when Shadow imitated him; he learned to put up with it since it had some strategic value in battle but, things sometimes got a little... loud, between them." Exasperated expressions crossed both Cairo and Thorn's faces, indicating they could vouch for their trainer's words.
"I see... well, conflicting personalities exist as much in Pokémon as people," Brock remarked in agreement. "But still, you did very well in that battle. I'd go so far as to say you're even stronger than Mark."
"On that I don't think we'd agree," returned Randy, shaking his head. "Thorn and Cairo here are, between the two of them, the toughest Pokémon I have," he explained, gesturing to the two. "I've battled Mark twice; first time, it was Cairo that ended the battle, but in that same match, Thorn experienced his first loss."
"Against who?" Brock asked, curiosity piqued.
Randy smirked. "Vitesse."
Brock irked an eyebrow. "You pit a Grass-type against a fully-trained and, from what I've heard, very strong Fire-type and expected to turn out in your favor?"
"Look who's talking," Randy pointed out.
"...Okay, touché; but still, why'd you pick Thorn to take on Vitesse?"
"Because nobody else could have beaten her if Thorn hadn't at least worn her down," replied Randy. "The two battled in Mega Form; Thorn's Dragon-type, gained by Mega Evolving, took away his weakness against Fire, and being a Special Attacker against a Physical Attacker worked in his favor a little too, but still, that Speed Boost ability Vitesse has is hard to beat; I pride all of my Pokémon on speed, every one of them raised to be fast and powerful, but Vitesse can match even Thorn when she goes Mega.
The two were fairly even at first, dashing all around the stage; it seemed like Thorn would win at first, as he was able to keep Vitesse at a distance until the boosts started kicking in; it went too long and she was able to get right in and score a Dual Chop -a Dragon-type move, right on Thorn, and she knocked him clean out." He looked back at the Sceptile. "Sorry boy; just telling it like it is."
"Grrf," returned Thorn, waving it off dismissively.
"But, he did what I needed him to; he weakened Vitesse enough that Gemstar was able to finish her off. The rest, as they say, is history."
"I see... so despite being out of shape would you say Vitesse could still beat Thorn?"
"As she is now, no, but if Mark can get her back to her peak, well..." Randy grinned. "I'm quite sure Red's Charizard will lose."
Brock chuckled at that. "We'll just see, although I admire the confidence you have in your friend."
"Well of course; wouldn't be much of a friend if I doubted him," returned Randy. "But above all else, I want him to succeed. I want to see him become the best."
"Why just him; why not yourself?" Brock asked.
Randy chuckled. "If he's out to challenge all of the best trainers in the world, eventually I'd be in his sights anyway, because I'm one of the best trainers in Hoenn, just like him; I'm one of the few from there who can beat him. Sooner or later, he'll be going back to Hoenn -I think he's saving that for last since it's also his home. And then, whether it's a friendly match or he really wants to test himself against me, he and I will_be battling again." Randy tucked his hands into his pockets and looked at the ceiling absently. "I'm not just his friend. I'm his _rival. I'm the first trainer who beat him after he became Champion; if I understand him as much as I hope I do, he knows that if he still can't beat me even after crossing the world, then he will not have been any better off than when he started."
"So you know that another crucial battle between you two will happen before his journey is over," stated Brock.
"Without a doubt in my mind."
Brock nodded in understanding. "I must admit... I'm very curious to see how that will turn out." He crossed his arms. "So until all that plays out, what do you plan to do?"
For a moment, Randy said nothing, simply standing there and exchanging gazes with the gym leader, the only sound being Cairo as he shuffled his pawed feet uncomfortably, a little bothered by the quiet. Soon, though, Randy flashed Brock a winning smile, and, "Mind giving me directions to Celadon City? I heard it's quite the tourist trap." He said, deciding that he might as well do what Mark suggested, before he became bored again.