Chapter Text
“OK, remember everything you’ve trained in these latest weeks! Relax, focus, use Cut! You can do this, you’ve got exceptional cutting skills!”, Goh enthusiastically instructed to his Mantis Pokémon who nodded and showed off his sharp scythes.
“I’ve got this!”, Scyther answered assertively.
“Confident, aren’t you?”, commented Raboot with neutrality while leaning against a wall with a lifted foot and both arms hidden under his fur layer.
“My middle name is “Cutting-Edge Precision”…”
“Oooooh…”, hummed Toxtricity in amazement. “That’s so cool, dude!”
“He just made it up.”, the Rabbit Pokémon noted to my big baby brother. This type of attitude didn’t surprise me anymore.
“You can’t tell apart from a joke, can’t you?”
“I’m hungry…”, commented Yamper out of the blue.
“Yamper, we already had a snack earlier!”, reminded Pikachu.
“Right, don’t do like last time where you almost jumped to a Takoyaki cart and gave a good scare to Chloe, she didn’t like that.”, I added.
“I know…”, whimpered the Puppy Pokémon, displeased for this awkward subject being brought up again. As much I love Takoyaki, I would never do such thing. I’ve seen Hope angry before and I guarantee you don’t want to see her embodying a Sharpedo.
A local man with a funny way to dress up had climbed the stage, holding a large microphone and a few papers. He glanced to the mass of people at his front and spoke out loud on the sound device:
“Good afternoon, Ecruteak Cityyyyyy!!! Welcome to the Clear Cut Challenge contest!!!! Oh yes! I can see on everyone’s faces that you love skilled Pokémon! You want to see them, right?! Perfect! I’m asking to all the contestants to go up on stage!”
“Time to go up there and show what you’ve got!”, said Goh to his participant pocket monster while flexing his arm. “Good luck!! You can win this!”
“Oh! It’s about to start!!!”, exclaimed Ash in great enthusiasm as Scyther flew up from the wooden stairs leading to the stage. “GO, SCYTHEEEER!!!”
“Goh spent a lot of time training him, let’s hope for a good result.”, said Chloe to everyone in the group.
“I never expected that in my first visit to Johto I would be watching a Pokémon cutting skill contest! Thank you so much for the invitation, everyone!”, happily thanked Hope.
“Don’t mention it, Hope! We’re all good friends!”, assured Ash with a wide-open smile.
“Yeah! We’re actually happy that you managed to come with us!”, added the blue-eyed lad.
“I also had nothing to do today so I took the opportunity to join you all.”, the pig-tailed girl admitted. “It would be really nice for dad if Scyther wins this.”
“What’s the prize?”, asked Hope.
Goh pointed to a few large sacks in a corner of the stage and explained: “A three-month supply of Pokémon ration.”
“Wow! Free food! That can feed Raboot and Scyther for many months beyond that!”
“It isn’t just for them! It’s for all mine and Ash’s Pokémon!”
“You’ve got more?”, my Trainer exclaimed in surprise, unaware of this. “Do you have four of them like Ash? Or a full team of six?”
“No! I have a few dozen!”, he replied in smug.
“D-Dozens?!”
“That’s right!”, confirmed Ash with a chuckle. “Goh’s determined to catch every different Pokémon species! He’s making progress.”
Hope looked with her jaw dropped to Chloe, who nodded with some constraint. He’s serious about the “catch them all”.
Goh showed her evidence by opening the Pokédex data registered in his Rotom Phone and swiped down with his finger. Seeing all that data impressed Hope even more and Chloe lightly remarked: “See why my dad will be happy? All the Pokémon of the park need to be fed.”
“Whoa… So, the Pokémon are in a park? Where, exactly?”
“Cerise Park! It’s right behind the main building!”, explained Ash. “You should pay a visit one of these days! Goh’s got so many Pokémon there and we sometimes spend a whole morning playing with them!”
Hope’s eyes were as shiny as… well, a Shiny Pokémon after it comes out from a Poké Ball? It has been a good while last time I saw her so enthusiastic and I could understand why. She loves Pokémon and the last time she could interact regularly with wild ones was when we both lived in Alola. Although she never caught other Pokémon except for me, she enjoyed to befriend with them. We had a good time.
“Well, well, well, we have sixteen contestants that come a bit from everywhere! This is going to be goooooooooooood, ladies and gentlemeeeen!! The rules are very simple! Our helpful Spinarak are going to hang up a log a few meters above our skilled contestants. Each log has got a white line drawn that shows where the cut must be performed. The log will be dropped one after another every time a crewmember gives a signal to the Spinarak out of the sight of the participants. A total of five logs will be dropped per round. The points will be calculated depending on how precise is each cut. The top eight results will be qualified for the second round. The third one is the final, where only the best four are going to compete for the tasty and nutritive grand prize! Oh yeeees!!!”
Many humans around us loudly cheered up the participating Pokémon with all their might. A few were either clapping or whistling. Scyther joined the other fifteen rivals, some more confident about their ability than others, I could tell by just looking to their eyes. Most were from either Kanto or Johto regions, but there were one or two cases that traveled from much afar. A single contestant had called up my attention: a large and deep-red Scizor that was on the fifth standing spot of the queue. He was notably in wonderful shape. The way he moved his pincers were quick and the scales were really reflecting the sunlight. He observed everyone around in contempt, talk about being really confident in winning this! Goh’s Scyther didn’t go unnoticed to the physical condition of this pincer-wielding Pokémon, immediately alerted that he was a potential rival who wasn’t willing to lose to something that, to the Steel-type’s point of view, was a mere stroll in the park. Once their eyes have met, both frowned. I’m glad none knew the move Mean Look nor Glare because the way they stared to each other gave me chills!
“Enjoy these first five cuts, rookie.”, provoked the overly secure Scizor. “They’ll be the only ones you’ll make. I’ve participated in this contest fourteen times in a row and I never lost!”
Scyther crossed his arms, closed his eyes and chuckled with the statement, catching Scizor off guard because this wasn’t the reaction he was expecting to have. Then he confidently responded, opening a single eye:
“Impressive. However… everything eventually comes to an end.”
Hah! That statement was as hot as an expelled Flamethrower from Fire-types like me!! The displeased Scizor was about to fly closer to him but the host prevented that to happen by continuing to talk to the crowd:
“All these wonderful sixteen Pokémon are about to showcase their talent to break the logs in half! Remember! The top eight results will pass to the second round!... Bring up the logs with your strong webs, Spinarak!”
“Here they come!!”, yelled an effusive Ash.
“You can do it, Scyther!!”, shouted Goh.
“Bring that ration to Vermilion!!”, added Chloe.
“Focus on the white line!!”, advised Pikachu out loud. Raboot just nodded in agreement.
“Show everyone here that non-evolved Pokémon can be winners too!!”, I shouted.
“Slash those looogs!!! Slash’em!!”, cheered Toxtricity while moving his arms way up.
Hope stood silent, eagerly watching what was happening at the front of those very dark green flags with white Poké Ball patterns, covering the pagodas of the horizon. A small trio of musicians started to play a short traditional music, very typical from this region, as the logs with the drawn white lines elevated on the air. For such a small Pokémon like Spinarak, the sturdiness of their web strings is very impressive! I have no idea how heavy are each of those tree trunks but probably enough to wound someone very badly if they fall over their heads!
“Contestants! Get ready for the fiiiiiiiiirst cut!!”
All the sixteen Pokémon prepared themselves to use the move Cut, waiting for the logs to fall. We could only listen to the sound of the soft breeze blowing from the right. The crewmember hidden on the same level of the Spinarak made a hand signal and the bugs let the trunks fall at the same time. The Pokémon under did their cuts and the crowd cheered, applauding the participants. The musicians played a Taiko drum tune with complementary percussion notes to mark the end of the first cut. Scyther cut a little too early, as he wasn’t expecting the log to be dropped so quickly. Better early than late, because the judges were penalizing the Pokémon that reacted too late! Scizor just smiled, he did a nearly perfect cut: it was probably a human thumb of distance to the white line! Goh’s Pokémon sweated a little, but he frowned and lifted his arms once again to get ready for the second log. This one stood suspended even less time!! Scyther felt very clumsy but accidentally made a perfect cut!! People clapped! It matched the cut of his rival, that this time was also right on the white line! The Pokémon hmphed realizing Scyther’s cut, with a clear face of “He was lucky”. The other three cuts followed and the judges were doing math on the board. Scyther was qualified for the second round by a scratch! He was the seventh best Pokémon! Tough luck for that Pawniard and Ambipom, the trip didn’t end up rewarding! During the very short break, Goh bent himself over the wooden fence and gave more advice to the Bug-type like a coach giving instructions in a heated wrestling ring match.
“You were nervous because they were the first cuts, it’s perfectly normal! But the exercise isn’t very different from what we’ve practiced! Remember the three words I’ve told you! Ignore the people and the other Pokémon! I believe in you!”
“Yeah, you did great in the trainings!”, added a pumped Ash who clenched his hands. “Just wait! Your results will get better with each cut you’ll make!”
“Right!”, Scyther said in nodding as he returned to his spot with the other seven contestants. But provocations weren’t over. Scizor decided to pester again the unevolved Mantis Pokémon:
“Only amateurs need advice from their Trainers! Get lost!”
“I didn’t ask for your opinion, metal-coated head!”, Scyther replied severely. Scizor didn’t like the adjective and he approached very closely to the Pokémon’s face with his pincer.
“If this was a Pokémon Battle I would show you that this metal-coated head is much better than a rookie Scyther like you. Watch out for your tone!”
“Could you both be quiet? You’re noisy!!”, complained the Sneasel that was nearby. She was also a skilled contestant.
“I don’t need advice from unevolved species. Once your Trainer takes this contest seriously, they’ll make you evolve.”
“Razor Claws aren’t as easy to find like Metal Coats are as far as I know. My Trainer likes me the way I am, I don’t care about your opinion.”
“You have a lot to learn.” disregarded Scizor. “Evolution is for the strongest! Humans like powerful Pokémon like me. And like this bracelet shows I’m among the noble group of those who can Mega Evolve! Pokémon that don’t want to evolve are weak. Their Trainers must be idiots.”
Us Pokémon were listening to that polemic statement. Pikachu, Yamper and I were upset, but my irritation levels were equal to Pikachu. That Scizor didn’t inspire me the moment I saw him going to the stage and after listening to this declaration I was certain that his spirit and his brain are as small as a pea. Toxtricity frowned upon listening to Scizor’s point of view. Raboot had turned to the offender, silently glaring at him. Knowing both my big brother and the Rabbit Pokémon, they would intervene in case things would escalate quickly.
“What’s his problem if we don’t want to evolve?!”, groaned Pikachu with sparks appearing on his cheeks.
“That’s not nice!!”, barked Yamper.
I disliked Scizor’s disapproval of my life options but what really offended me was involving humans in this pointless talk. I felt it was an attack to both Hope and Ash. I lost my calmness and expelled a good Flamethrower to the direction of Scizor, who yelped as he avoided the hit.
“F-FIRE!!! WHO DID THIS?!?!?”
“THIS UNEVOLVED GIRL RIGHT HERE!”, I shouted with my mouth releasing some smoke.
“LITTEN?!?!”, everybody in the group shouted in choir, startled with my attitude.
“LITTEN, WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU?!?!”, scolded Hope with her upset and blushing face, extremely embarrassed for the fact people around were looking to us with diverse expressions.
“Little-big sister, chill out!!!”, awkwardly requested Toxtricity. But I kept talking to the Scizor that showed a brief cowardice the moment he saw my fire.
“LISTEN, YOU POKÉBEAN-HEAD! I don’t care about Mega Evolution and all those fancy rocks you like to show off like if you were walking on a Kalosian passarele! Leave that to Pokémon performers who truly know how to perform! I don’t admit you’re saying that all humans that have unevolved Pokémon are idiots! My Trainer’s a caring, friendly, amazing human and very courageous! She always respected my decision to not want to evolve, it’s my choice! The Everstone she gave me and I hide in my neck fur is the evidence!”
Scyther and Sneasel were surprised, listening to my counter-statement. Scizor glared to me, astonished with my dare to interfere in the talk, I couldn’t care less about that. I was sure it was also because he felt embarrassed that he showed fear of fire from a Litten and was trying to mask it. I continued: “Unevolved Pokémon can be as strong as evolved Pokémon! Anything goes to win a battle! When you don’t have strength, you’ve got the technique and your brain to combine and use! That’s what Hope and Ash do to me and Pikachu!”
Scizor was about to tell me something but his Trainer was hidden somewhere in the crowd and I could hear his grave and angry voice yelling, asking who was the responsible for attacking his Pokémon. A security guy appeared nearby, looking for the user of that Flamethrower. Hope picked me up from the floor seconds earlier in a rush, hiding me inside her wheelchair’s backpack. She was extremely tense until the man had left, sighing after.
“That was close… Litten, I don’t want Scyther to be disqualified!”, sighed Goh in a mix of relief and yet slightly bothered after me.
“Litten, if I see a single singe from yours during this contest you’ll go inside your Poké Ball...”, my Trainer harshly whispered to my ears, showing the device to me.
“Thanks for defending our honour, Litten!”, acknowledged Yamper.
“I was tempted to shock that Scizor but I didn’t think you would really attack him.”, commented Pikachu, sort of satisfied to see that I managed to intimidate the rude Pokémon.
“Litten was reckless, it’s true. But that Scizor deserved it.”, partially defended Raboot, who blushed and avoided visual contact after he saw I was smiling to him. “I-I just want to ensure there’s food for everyone in the end.”. Yeah, right…
“Sis, do you want to go to the Poké Ball that badly?”, my brother naively asked me.
“No, Toxtricity… I don’t…”, I replied. I never enjoyed being inside a Poké Ball.
Ash observed the Scizor returning to his position, but not removing his inquisitive angular eyes from Scyther who tried to abstain from that penetrating stare. The cap-wearing boy frowned and commented to his human group.
“That Scizor over there seems to be bothering Scyther. Maybe he’s taunting him? I don’t think Litten would attack for no reason.”
“That’s a good point, Ash.”, admitted Chloe in surprise for Ash’s note. “Now that you mention it… Both seemed to be exchanging noises earlier.”
Goh hummed, placing a hand over his upper lip.
“Rivalry, perhaps?... Or better!... He acknowledges Scyther’s ability and is afraid to lose!”
“You know Goh, that’s not a bad theory!... It actually makes sense, gathering all pieces together!”, Hope exclaimed with her lifted eyebrows. She looked to me and started to understand why I had that attitude earlier. “Litten, as much as you wanted to help Scyther you must not bring any of us into unnecessary trouble! Please be cautious.”
“Yes, I get it…”, I meowed to her.
The second round went much better to Scyther. Now that he had a better knowledge of how the contest worked out, he could focus better to make more correct cuts. One after other, it was sublime, gracious and precise. Three perfect cuts! Two were really close to the white lines! A score worth to be in the round’s podium, providing the Mantis Pokémon a comfortable position to enter in the final round!! Now it was down to four Pokémon, the best ones of the contest: Goh’s Scyther, the Sneasel of before, a collected Pinsir and the arrogant Scizor. Now anyone in that horizontal queue could win a free banquet for three-months, they were all good. The Bug and Steel-type Pokémon was getting nervous. Scyther’s score earlier was the second best, right behind him by a single perfect cut of difference. Scizor leaned his head forward and told him:
“You’re in time to give up! There’s no way you can make five perfect cuts like I’ll do next!”
“Scared?...” jocosely remarked Sneasel with a smirk.
“Stay out of this, Sneasel! I wasn’t talking to you!”
“You can’t always win, Scizor. Today you’ll feel the bitter taste of defeat.”, spoke Pinsir for the first time. That statement made it clear it wasn’t the first time he participated in this contest.
The host interrupted their talk by calling out the audience’s attention once again. Everyone was hyped to see who would win! “Who would know about this? This year’s competition is quite tough! Scizor is here for the fifteenth time, Pinsir for the third! Then we have these amazing exhibitions of the newcomers Sneasel and Scyther! Both talented cutters! Who will win this time? We’ll find out next! Bring the first log, Spinarak! The final round starts NOW!!!”
Four Spinarak lifted the heavy trunks. The contestants prepared themselves. Scyther decided to close his eyes and I got worried. How in the world would that fellow insect of ours would see where to make the cut?!?! I looked to everyone and they didn’t seem worried, except maybe for my brother, Hope and Chloe. Goh revealed to be super confident before the final set of five logs had started. Some nervousness surfaced slowly on the lad, contrasting with Ash getting even more energic each new cut was performed. The wait for the final trunk was really tense. Scyther did what I thought it was unthinkable with his eyes closed: four perfect cuts! He was tied with the Scizor!! This last slash would decide who wouldn’t worry about food for the next times. And the signal-making crewmember was having lots of fun bringing suspense… At this rate I would fall asleep and not see the result! Toxtricity was tempted to play something in his chest protrusion but I showed my paw to make him understand this wasn’t the best time. Finally, the signal was made! The last cuts were done by the quartet of participants!... And Scyther won! WITH HIS EYES CLOSED!!! Scizor got in second place because of a difference smaller than a human thumb!!
“SCYTHER WON, YEAAAH!!”, shouted Ash in joy for the victory of his boyfriend’s Pokémon.
“ALRIGHT!! THE TRAINING HAS PAID OF!!”, happily zested Goh, racing to Scyther to hug him. His Pokémon got startled, he wasn’t expecting such an effusive reaction and that even made him blush a little!
My brother couldn’t hold the temptation anymore and he played a celebrative tune on his chest. “YOU DID IT, DUDE!!! THAT WAS SUPER!!”, he shouted.
“FANTASTIC CUTS, SCYTHER!!! YOU DESERVED TO WIN!”, Pikachu cheered while clapping.
Raboot sketched a smile. “Good show.”, he said it in a normal tone, yet hinting satisfaction for his friend’s performance.
“THAT WAS GREAT, SCYTHER!!!”, positively yelled Yamper with his non stopping wiggling tail and hopping around in circles.
“YOUR NAME’S TRULY SCYTHER CUTTING-EDGE PRECISION! YEEEES!!”, I partied along with my Pokémon friends. Scyther was smiling with all compliments he could listen from our group. Chloe was truly impressed, clapping and commenting to Hope who was on her right side:
“I’m not going to lie. Goh did an exceptional work training that Scyther.”
“That was soooo coooooool!!!”, wowed my Trainer with her glowing reddish eyes, moving her arms very fast on the air. “Scyther did these with such class!!! I loved to watch it!!”
Chloe smiled seeing her friend in such a good mood. We saw that the host was delivering a certificate of participation to Goh that proved his Pokémon had won the grand prize, and Scyther had the right to wear a fancy first place ribbon! Ultramarine blue fits him well in that chest! Both Trainer and Pokémon waved to the applauding audience in joy, thrilled by the whole show. What happened next was pretty cool to witness: Sneasel walked close to the Bug-type to touch her flexed arm on Scyther’s, as a sign of respect. “Good show!”, complemented the dark Pokémon with the short red-pink feather. Pinsir followed up next who did the same thing and complimented:
“I’ve never seen such a skilled Scyther like you before. You’re awesome, and you too, Sneasel! Congratulations for the third place!”
“I’ll be here next year and win the prize!”
“That is, if I don’t do better than you!”
That was some good sportsmanship right there! This was even pointed up by the observant host of the contest. The provider of the food was now asking Goh where should the Pokémon ration sacks be shipped for the next three months and the boy had removed a paper from his pocket, unwrapped it and showed to the man who silently read its content for the followed seconds. A yelp cut the silence, and the stuttering adult interjected:
“So-so many requested food!!! For this many Pokémon?!?!?!”
“That’s right! The contest terms stated there was no limit for the quantity that the winner could request.”, pridefully noted Goh who had his phone already on hand just in case the mister wanted to have his memory refreshed by seeing the online document that contained that information. The adult sighed loudly, whimpering the words “We’re going to be broke…!!!”, haha! But he knew that the boy was right so he had no choice other than registering that free order.
“All is taken care of.”, Goh told to all of us as he met us down stairs with his Scyther. “We can return to Kanto now, don’t you agree?”
“Oh yes, I can’t wait to tell dad that he won’t need to worry for ordering Pokémon ration for a while! Even for Ren it will be easier.”, observed Chloe.
“All Pokémon in the Park will be happy to know you’ve won all that food to share with them! Isn’t that great?!”, excitedly asked the cap-wearing youngster to the Mantis Pokémon.
“They’re better to respect me from now on!”, he noted while delightfully showing up his scythes shining with the sunlight.
In that moment, I saw a shadow approaching to his back at a great speed. And the silhouette was too familiar, to my discontent. Seriously, what was that Pokémon’s problem?! Scizor was about to attack Scyther with a Cut move but to his bad luck I was quick to act. I jumped off Hope’s legs and spitted a powerful Flamethrower towards that offensive pincer. The red insect got hit with my move and he retreated a few meters, angered after my attack.
“THERE ARE MEDICINES FOR HEARTBURNS, YOU KNOW?! LEARN TO ACCEPT DEFEAT, YOU STUBBORN CLOTHES IRON!!!”, I furiously yelled after him.
“Litten?!”, screamed a startled Chloe.
“Hey, it’s that Scizor of before!!”, observed Hope who immediately frowned because she saw what happened earlier. “Goh, he tried to attack your Scyther on his back!! His pincer was glowing!!”
“What?!”, the sweatshirt boy unhappily interjected while turning around to see the sore loser with the wounded pincer.
“You’ve lost, Scizor! Attacking Scyther won’t change a thing!!”, shouted Ash with grand austerity on his voice, also disliking what he was witnessing.
A grumpy male voice was heard coming from behind the offending Pokémon: “So, it was that Litten who did the fire earlier in the contest! “Who is responsible for you?! I want to know!!”
“She’s my Pokémon! She only tried to protect Scyther from your Pokémon’s attack!”, firmly pointed out Hope.
“You need to have guts to tell me about things my Pokémon would never do to anyone!! Let’s battle!”
“What?! Can’t you see she’s in a wheelchair?!?!”, questioned Chloe with great agitation, upset after the indifference of Scizor’s Trainer.
“That doesn’t prevent her Pokémon to battle me!! COME ON AND DO IT!!”
“Mister, I refuse to battle for something as pointless as this! I already explained why Litten used that Flamethrower!!”
“Then you’re a coward!! Just like your Litten who was going to burn my Scizor who was doing nothing!”
My blood was boiling with that comment. I arched my back, hissing loudly.
“Yo, leave my Trainer alone! She doesn’t want to fight!!”, reinforced Toxtricity to Scizor in a loud tone.
“Oh, please! Look at you! You’re weird looking, I can bet you don’t know how to fight!!”
“Don’t make me mad!!”, my brother warned in frown. But I hated to admit the truth: Toxtricity had only a single battle on his life and it was back when he evolved to save me and everyone else in that filthy warehouse. Battling under the constant supervision and commands of a Trainer is completely different, I speak by my own experience. The Electric and Poison-type is strong, but he could get easily disoriented if he was challenged by a humanly trained opponent like Scizor who clearly battles regularly and is immune to Poison-type moves. And Hope didn’t figure out Toxtricity’s true potential yet for reasons I’m sadly aware about.
Ash didn’t like the man’s taunt. He stepped ahead of everyone and defiantly shouted to the rude adult:
“She’s on her right to not want to battle. How can you call coward to someone who’s trying hard every day to achieve the dream to walk again, even if she doesn’t know what will be her future?!”
“Ash!...”, Hope exclaimed, surprised by her friends’ words.
“You stay out of this, kid! I want to battle, not listening to life lessons from a child!!”
“Then battle me if you want one so badly!!”
“Ash, are you sure you want to do this?!”, anxiously asked Goh.
“He won’t leave you guys alone if he doesn’t get what he wants, so I’m doing it!”
“And I’m in!!”, expressed Pikachu his will out loud, with his sparks coming out once again from his cheeks.
“Pikachu! I could have done this myself, you know?!”
“Your Trainer doesn’t want to fight, Litten! And for once I want to help you out, you’ve done it a lot before. Now it’s my turn!”
I didn’t know what to respond to that. So, I just stood back, close to Hope’s left wheel, and decided to watch the electric duo about to start a battle. The man gave a nasty chuckle, entertained with Ash’s courage to take the challenge, as he took out a Net Ball out of his pocket. He pointed to Scyther while saying:
“Very well. But that Scyther is going to join you in a Double Battle.”
Goh and Scyther exchanged looks. The Mantis Pokémon refused the idea to retreat and see Pikachu covering his exoskeleton. Aware of this, and looking to his boyfriend’s eyes full of determination to solve this problem as a tag team, Goh’s insecurities disappeared in a finger-snap, making the lightning-cheeks lad let out a quick smile. The boy is surely talented to lift the blue-eyed youngster’s spirit quicker than Toxtricity falling asleep the moment he sees a soap opera’s episode preview on television! In a blended feeling of confidence and seriousness, he expressed out loud while approaching Ash:
“Scyther accepts the challenge, and he won’t lose! It isn’t just to prove his worth! This is also for Hope’s honour!! She’s a brave girl that inspires all of us to face our daily challenges! Don’t mess up with our friend!”
“You heard him!”, Scyther reinforced while standing next to Pikachu.
“Goh!...”, my Trainer exclaimed for the second time, for the same reason as earlier. She grabbed the wheelchair’s handles tightly, under a state of stupefaction realizing now that, alongside with Goh, for the very first time ever she was going to see the Champion of Alola battling right in front of her eyes, and not through video footage behind a television screen. Despite of having built a friendship with Ash, the red-haired girl is still a big fan of his exhibition many months ago in the Pokémon League Championship organized in her birthregion.
“Ninjask! Come on out!!”, shouted Scizor’s Trainer, revealing that yellow and black Bug-type from that Net Ball. Goh took no time to pick up his Rotom Phone and scan both opponents before the start of the battle, with the device describing some information:
“Ninjask! The Ninja Pokémon and the evolved form of Nincada! Bug and Flying-type! Ninjask moves around at such a high speed that it cannot be seen, even while its crying can be clearly heard. For that reason, this Pokémon was long believed to be invisible.
…
Scizor! The Pincer Pokémon and the evolved form of Scyther! Bug and Steel-type! Scizor has a body with the hardness of steel. It’s not easily fazed by ordinary sorts of attacks. This Pokémon flaps its wings to regulate its body temperature.”
“Hahaha! Checking data won’t help you a thing, kid!”, cackled the tall adult man. “This is going to be as easy as knocking out two Magikarp! SCIZOR!! MEGA EVOLVE!!”
Everyone watching opened their eyes widely, myself included, upon listening to the command of the guy who pressed his Key Stone installed on his belt buckle. I had never seen a Mega Evolution live! Scizor’s body disappeared in a huge echoing multicolored sphere that created a small sandstorm around him. And from a moment to another he returned, with his form completely altered and briefly illuminated with the phenomenon’s symbol.
“YOU’LL BE SHREDDED TO SMITHEREENS!!”, the Mega Evolved Scizor yelled in an intimidation attempt.
“It’s no good!...”, Raboot commented next to us with sweat dropping from his forehead.
“PIKACHU! SCYTHER! DON’T LOSE THIS!!”, shouted Yamper angered by the Mega Evolution advantage of the transformed red insect.
“What a power!... What’s that?!”, the pigtailed girl nervously asked while grabbing Yamper tightly on her arms.
“Mega Evolution! I’ve seen it on some Kalos and Hoenn battles that broadcasted on TV! It’s similar to Z-Rings, except instead of powering up a matching move of a Pokémon it transforms its body to a stronger form!...”, Hope tensely explained.
“I knew it couldn’t be good!... Will Ash and Goh be ok?! That Scizor seems to be much more difficult to take down now!!”
Hope hummed in hesitation for what to answer to her friend and I could perfectly understand why. I also watched those battles on that flat screen of our home’s living room and Mega Evolved Pokémon are extremely tough to defeat. Neither Pikachu or Scyther had fire-type moves to take control of that mutated clothes iron, so how would they solve this out?! Odds weren’t really on their favour. Even Raboot was looking to both with that expression that clearly showed that he wanted to be there to give a good kick on a rock to incinerate it and burn that red metal head. Suddenly, Toxtricity decided to cut the silence on our side by frowning and energetically play a known battle song with his chest protrusion. That was fitting, we all thought!
“Victory will taste better with a background music like that one!”, the adult commented. “NINJASK! USE AGILITY! SCIZOR! USE SWORDS DANCE!”
The two Pokémon performed the ordered moves. Ninjask was already flying quick when he was sent out but that move made him nearly invisible. In Mega Scizor’s side, some magical lights materialized in the same shape of multiple swords danced around until vanishing and making an ascending one surround the Pokémon. I was aware that meant his physical strength was bulked up.
“This is not good news, Ash!”, commented Goh in apprehension.
“Not good, but it’s a problem that we’ll solve like any other! PIKACHU! USE QUICK ATTACK ON SCIZOR!”
“GOT IT!!”, Pikachu obeyed racing as fast as he could to tackle Mega Scizor’s abdomen. CLAAAASH! It echoed!! The Pokémon cackled seeing Pikachu’s reaction upon landing that he barely felt a thing! Goh immediately decided to target the speedy Ninjask by ordering to his Scyther:
“SCYTHER! USE AIR SLASH ON NINJASK!”
“COME RIGHT HERE!”, Scyther yelled to his opponent while doing the move after a good jump. But that Pokémon was too quick to be hit, Air Slash easily missed with the uneven flight pattern of Ninjask now even harder to predict where he would place himself! “Why yoooou!!!!...”
Ash suggested Goh to exchange targets to see if his Pikachu could give damage to the Ninja Pokémon and if Scyther had more luck with his evolved rival. Mega Scizor’s head shone, almost turning into a mirror. His Trainer commanded an Iron Head to hit Scyther’s abdomen. The green Mantis Pokémon flew a few meters away to avoid the dangerous damage. That was close!! Goh ordered next a Swords Dance to his Pokémon increase his attack power, deciding to approach more the opponent’s physical strength. Pikachu got requested to use a Thunderbolt but even its wide range wasn’t enough to land on Ninjask. The Pokémon responded with a Double Team. That annoying insect increased evasiveness was getting in my nerves. If speed wasn’t already a problem, this only made it worse!!
Pikachu and Scyther were trapped inside a game similar to the Meowth and the Rattata, being constantly chased down by Ninjask and Scizor, desperately trying to avoid to be hit. The boys were angered, trying to come up with a fast solution. Pressure only increased the moment that Ninjask’s Trainer ordered him to use Dig. Scyther managed to escape the soil impact but Pikachu didn’t. He shouted with the taken damage, making Ash call out for his name, alarmed.
“That Ninjask knows a Ground-type move!”, Goh commented loudly, exalted. “The Pokémon are too fast to counter!! How can we make them slow down?!?! If only Scyther’s Air Slash could land in Ninjask!!!...”
“I’m trying to think!!! I agree that we need to give more attention to Ninj- Wait!! Wait!! I have an idea!!!”
“Did you hear, Scyther?! Ash has a plan!!”, shouted Pikachu with a tone of optimism to his battling partner.
“I did! Looks like we’ll change the results to our favour!!”, affirmed an attentive Scyther, still avoiding the offensive moves of both Ninjask and Mega Scizor. Goh’s eyes illuminated instantly in excitement upon listening to his boyfriend’s plan whispered on his ear. The two were now confident and started to follow the plan:
“Scyther! Use Swords Dance, one more time!”
“Again? That’s the second time!”, the Mantis Pokémon wondered but yet performing the move on a standing spot.
“How foolish! Even if you maximize Scyther’s attack power you can’t face any of my Pokémon!! Ninjask, use Aerial Ace! Scizor, use Cut! Both on Scyther!!!”
“Aeeeeerial Aaaaaace!!”
“This is for the humiliation back there!!!”
The two opponents approached in a terrifying speed ready to take Scyther down to the ground. He didn’t move away from his spot, having full trust in the boys’ plan. A few seconds before the impact, Ash shouted an order:
“Pikachu!! Use Electroweb on them SIDEWAYS!!”
“ELECTOWEB, COMING OUT!!!”
“What?!”, both opponents and Trainer shouted in surprise, unaware that Pikachu had this sort of move. The Electroweb trapped both Pokémon inside the net in middle air and gave some electrifying damage! Way to go!!!
“NOW USE IRON TAIL UPWARDS!!!”
“KEEP USING SWORDS DANCE!!”
“UP, YOU GO!!! IROOOOON TAIL!”, shouted Pikachu while slamming his metallic tail onto Ninjask and Scizor’s way, projecting them up above the ground! Scyther kept performing Swords Dance during the wait. I counted, and he did it five times!!! His scythes were glowing orange!!! And once the group was falling towards the soil, still trapped in the Electroweb, Goh shouted out of his lungs:
“JUMP AND AIM WITH AN AIR SLASH!!!”
“HAAAA!”
Scyther did such a powerful hit with his two scythes that the slashing sound echoed around the plaza, it even lifted dust from the ground!! The electric trap disappeared and Ninjask fell on the floor, fainted from such a super-effective move!!! But it wasn’t over yet! Mega Scizor was still standing, although with considerable damage and notably slower, with some yellow sparks surrounding his trembling body.
“Hey, is that Paralysis?!”, questioned Yamper.
“It is!!!”, I confirmed. “That helps to slow Pokémon down and sometimes they can’t even move!! Lucky boys!!! WELL DONE!!!”
“GO, DUDES, GO!!!”, Toxtricity cheered while still playing his music.
“Impressive.”, admitted Raboot, now calmer after seeing the big turn-around of the battle. Mega Scizor’s Trainer was really upset as he retreated his fainted Pokémon.
“SCIZOR! DON’T LET YOUR GUARD DOWN! THAT’S JUST A SMALL PARALYSIS!! USE IRON HEAD ON SCYTHER!”
“A-A Paralyze Heal spray would come handy right n-…”, he mumbled, disagreeing with his Trainer’s overoptimistic point of view. He was unable to do the Iron Head because his body was covered by an electric current. The boys surprisingly enough kept their cool, even after Ninjask’s defeat. They took no time to take advantage of Mega Scizor’s status condition to finish him off.
“It’s our chance! Scyther! Use Slash with all your strength!!!”
“Pikachu! Use Thunderbolt!!”
“HAVE THIS SLASH!!”
“THUNDEEEEERBOOOOOOLT!!”
Mega Scizor shouted, having no margin to respond to all damage he was taking. The Pokémon stood up still for brief seconds before he fainted on the ground, changing back to his original form. The battle was over! And it was FAAAN-TASTIC!!! WOOO!!
“NOOOO!! I LOST TO TWO KIDS?!?! TO NON-FULLY EVOLVED POKÉMON?!?!?!”, shouted the angered adult Trainer with his knees on the floor, punching it hard.
“They did it!!!”, exclaimed Chloe, amazed with what she had witnessed. Toxtricity gave a burst of laughter, thrilled by the boyfriends’ victory as he played a different tune, equally fitting. Hope had her jaw-dropped and her glittering eyes blinked non-stop. She was lost for words for the battle she had just watched a few meters away of her. The Alolan girl was having trouble to express her feelings, stuttering in between sentences: “They… they used Scyther as a BAIT!!! And Pikachu’s Electroweb could trap Scizor and Ninjask as a way to counter the Pokémon’s high speed!!!!!... The time they were suspended on the air gave enough time to power up Scyther to the maximum and be in more equality to match Mega Scizor’s strength and resistance to the less effective moves!!... It was!!!... Brilliant!!...”.
Finally, my Trainer saw that Ash is as spectacular in live as he was on TV when he was doing the Alolan Championship with his Pikachu, Torracat and another amazing Pokémon! She was completely enchanted! Moving my attentions again to the battling group, Scyther gave a cold look to the fallen Pincer Pokémon. I could hear him telling Scizor before leaving: “Arrogance is for the weak. Choosing whenever one wants to evolve or not, that’s up to each creature.”
Well said, Scyther! Pikachu didn’t even bother to talk to his opponent. He gave a high-five with his tail to his partner’s flat side of the scythe, celebrating the victory. A quick observation to Ash and Goh made me realize that for a brief instant they were really tempted to hug each other instinctively, but since they were in a public area they decided to give a strong high-five just like their Pokémon after a good jump on the air, laughing out loud. This was a great battle, no doubt about it!
We could finally get out of Ecruteak’s main plaza and leave the human sore loser behind with his cloth iron-headed Pokémon as well, they had made us waste enough time already. Thankfully, there were a lot of buses that could bring us to Goldenrod City to take the Magnet Train towards Saffron so we could still arrive in time, even if it was just by less than five minutes before departure! Hope’s disabled status allowed all of us to have priority in the ticket purchase and embarking, that also helped save time. The atmosphere was very pleasant. Goh was very proud of his Scyther winning the grand prize of the Clear Cut Challenge contest, bragging about how his training methods were efficient and how were rewarding to everyone. Chloe was complimenting the achievement but she quickly regretted because Goh couldn’t quiet about it. His smug levels were as high as the height of an Alolan Exeggutor to a point that the pigtailed girl asked Ash to do something to stop. But the effect was the total opposite: Ash reinforced the compliments on the charcoal-haired boy even further and now nobody could absolutely make him hush, whoops!! I was wheezing the moment the girl was talking alone: “If the train had bathrooms I would go there right now and lock myself for the rest of the trip…”!! Hahaha!
Things have calmed down a little about thirty minutes later. The boys were napping with their temples touching each other. Their Pokémon were sleeping on their spots as well, alongside Yamper and my brother who was drooling with his head resting on the window. The girls were awake and Chloe was intrigued by her friend’s quietness during the whole return trip to the Kanto region.
“Is there something on the matter, Hope?” she asked her, snapping her out from the downcast look. “You’ve been silent all the way since we left Ecruteak.”
“Oh!...... I… I’m fine.”
“You know I don’t believe in you, right? Something’s up.” Chloe retorted with a smile, waiting for my Trainer’s honesty. “Please tell me.”
Hope was quiet for an instant. Chloe could read her mind, somehow. The red-haired girl decided to open up and admit with an unusual low and slow-paced voice:
“…Watching Ash and Goh battling that strange man in Ecruteak City made me remember how much I miss participating in combats. They were incredible back there…”
The lass that was wearing at this day a pair of yellow overalls and a grey shirt with horizontal stripes leaned a little closer to my gloomy Trainer and asked by mere curiosity:
“I’m sorry to ask you this but… couldn’t you still battle even in a wheelchair? Afterall it’s the Pokémon that battles, not really the Trainer.”
“I don’t agree with your point of view, Chloe. Battling is much more than a Pokémon taking down their adversary. Trainers are also an important part of it. When you’re standing up behind your partner and instruct them what to do, you feel like you’re one with them. One doesn’t work without the other one, do you understand me? I don’t think I could command efficiently to either Litten or Toxtricity standing still on a wheelchair. So many things happen during a combat that it’s impossible to stay quiet!”
Chloe didn’t change her neutral facial expression and remained attentive to her friend’s explanation. Hope sighed while looking to the window with the background in constant locomotion, feeling nostalgic.
“Afterall, life is all about movement, isn’t it? Ne’e… Ola ka ne’e… as it’s said in Alola… Everything moves. To move, you need to give a step after other with your feet. Walking on your own feels really nice. You become free. Freedom is in your reach as you can go wherever you want to… For many months I felt it was stolen from me… I feel like a Trumbeak with wounded wings… Or a Pidgeotto, for Kantonian natives like you. I value so much more those adventures in my birthregion since the day I left the hospital and sat on this wheelchair for the first time…”
“…Hope?”, Chloe asked seconds after the last sentence. My Trainer looked to her in wonder and her friend winked with optimism: “Those days will return. You’re the most determined girl I know, a true fighter! And you remember me a lot the sleepyheads in front of us. You’re as stubborn as Ash and you both love battles. You explained me things back in Johto that I didn’t know about! And you’re as smug as Goh every time one talks about Alola. To add to that, both of you are also technology enthusiasts and are interested about Pokémon biology. They’re determined to reach their dreams. And you as well! You’ll win this battle!”
Chloe managed to make Hope chuckle out of amusement with her friend’s sincere adjectives to describe her personality. But I agree with the girl! Hope’s very similar with the boyfriends! Maybe that explains why I quickly got along with them a few hours after our first casual meeting in the centre of Vermilion City. Together, they embody my Trainer in her absence!
“I’m not giving up in my goal to walk again!”, the red-eyed girl expressed firmly while clenching a fist on the air. “I’m a girl from Alola! And Alolan people are people of fiber!! Forces of Nature!!! We overcome any obstacles on our way!”
“That’s the spirit! That’s the Hope I know!”
“And by the way, Chloe. You’re too serious. Since you’re at it with pointing out personality traits that can be both good and bad.”
A short pause followed, with Hope’s ripped smile pleased to see Chloe’s lifted eyebrows for being countered that way. They ended laughing together. Chloe was especially happy to see that Hope was smiling again! But that laugh didn’t last long on the green-eyed girl’s face because a smirking expression shaped up on her shaggy haired friend once she had a quick look to the snoozing partners.
“Nooo!! You’re up to no good!”, harshly whispered Chloe in alert. Hope chuckled while removing the smartphone from her pocket, opening the camera app and photographing them. Then, she leaned forward and cautiously altered their position. “What are you doing?!”
“This is the perfect chance to take some photos without their knowledge!”, Hope explained as she took other one with Goh’s head locked on Ash’s neck. They didn’t notice Hope’s actions but it was really cute seeing that Goh subconsciously snuggled a little his head and gave a soft sigh of relaxation. Ash kept snoring but he smiled a little and dropped his head a little more to the side.
“Hope!!”
“Good call, Chloe. I need a variant with Ash.”, she noted while altering their pose again, now with Ash having his head resting on Goh’s shoulder and the sweatshirt lad wearing his boyfriend’s cap after my Trainer placed it.
“I-I said NOTHING!! What if they awake and start screaming all over the railcar?! Stop photographing without their consent!!”
“The railcar emptied on the last two stops, this isn’t a high movement hour. They won’t notice a thing and I won’t share this outside our circle. I can’t wait to show them the photos at the right time!”
“Promise you’ll save your phone after this photo.”
“I thought you would like to take some selfies.”
Chloe thought for a few seconds before she smiled. “That’s a better plan.”
The two friends posed together while angling the phone.
“By the way, how do you say “Smile” in Alolan?”
“We say “'Aka'aka”!“
“That’s cute!”, the pigtailed girl giggled.
Hope decided to take a surprise photo of her Kantonian friend’s chuckling face and a chaos of arm movements followed. Chloe was surprised by the sudden photo and wanted to do the same to Hope as a friendly revenge. My Trainer was having more dexterity to hide the device out of the reach of Chloe’s hands desperately trying to reach it so that last for a while before they took the regular selfies together. Incredibly enough, the boys didn’t wake up with their giggles nor noticed anything. Not even the other snoozing Pokémon that were out of the Poké Balls: Yamper and Pikachu!