The Palto Adventures

Part 10: The Scorpio Cup Line Tournament
( Guest starring FallingHawk as Hawk and Scizor7777 as Scizor)

“ …And those are all the techniques you taught my pokemon? “ Kazuki said.

“ Yeah, that’s all. “ Scizor replied.

The island was just a few hundred feet ahead, and Scizor and Kazuki had just finished telling each other about what attacks and training they’d done for each other’s pokemon. As they landed, a voice echoed across the island. Kazuki looked up towards the sound.

“ Would Kazuki please report to the Bug Hut. Your battle is about to begin. “

“ Oh my gosh, I forgot that the competition has begun! “ Kazuki said in surprise.
“ I have to go. See you Scizor. I hope we get to battle. “

“ We’ll battle alright. “ He mumbled.

Scizor shuffled down the beach, and as he did the sky began to clear.

“ Welcome, one and all! “ The announcer boomed.
“ Today, the tenth annual Scorpio Cup competition is underway, and you can bet that there’ll be plenty of action! Take your seats. We’re about to begin! “

The crowd roared with excitement, and Kazuki boldly walked out of his locker room and on to the arena floor. He could see a pretty girl in her twenties walking out on the other side. She was wearing a long, black glove on one arm, and a neatly groomed Pidgeotto perched there.

“ Alright, let’s learn all about our first two competitors. “

The audience was ecstatic and yelled their praise.

“ First up we have the newcomer, Kazuki. “ The announcer said in a deep voice.
“ Kazuki is a beginning trainer from Sage Town and has signed up in hopes of winning his first Scorpio Cup. He has claimed one badge in less then a month journeying. Give it up for Kazuki! “

The crowd was loud, but Kazuki could here the voice of Hawk and Sandy carry over the noise. He turned to see them in a large room in the top of the stadium. They waved happily.

“ Next we have the beautiful and mysterious Elise. “ He said.
“ We’ve seen this trainer on several occasions. Elsie hails from the small mining colony of Mineral Town. Her father, Shaft, is the gymleader there, and has trained her since she was a little girl. Please give her a hand! “

The audience had obviously heard of her, because most gave her a standing ovation.

“ Alright trainers, take you positions in the ring, and we’ll begin. “

“ Okay, you two know the rules. “ The ref said.
“ You both use three pokemon, and the trainer with all of there pokemon knocked out loses. Let the battle begin. “

“…And here we are, Kazuki and Elise are sure to give us quiet a show. “ The announcer said.

“ My Pidgeotto wants a challenge, so don’t disappoint. “ Elise said.
“ Go get him… “

The Pidgeotto flapped its huge wings and came down to the sandy floor a foot or two from Elise. It cawed for Kazuki to send out his pokemon.

“ Okay, gotta beat a flying type. “ Kazuki thought to himself.

“ Oh, it looks like Elise is sticking with her usual trend, and beginning with her Pidgeotto. We’ve seen its powerful flying attacks devastate whole teams in the past. “

The audience cried out to begin, and Kazuki pulled the pokeball from his belt.

“ Sudowoodo, I choose you! “ Kazuki exclaimed, for all the crowd to hear.

Sudowoodo leapt from its ball and jostled its bushels like maracas. It shined even brighter then normal in the stadium. The audience gasped and whispers circled the arena. Kazuki liked this attention. It made him more comfortable then nervous.

“ I believe that that’s a shiny pokemon! “ The announcer said, stunned.
“ It is rare to see a pokemon like that being trained by a new trainer. “

“ I have to admit, Kazuki…” Elise said, eyes closed.
“ That is an exquisite pokemon you have. You must be very skilled to have captured it. “

“ Actually, it was nothing. “ He said snidely.

Elise sneered. She pointed at Kazuki.

“ You’re a little too arrogant! “ She bellowed.
“ Pidgeotto, Razor Wind! “

As the Pidgeotto flapped its wings, Kazuki could see the crescents of air speeding across the field. Kazuki’s lip curled up ever so slightly.

“ Defense Curl! “

Sudowoodo blocked its body with its lanky arms, and the attacks bounced off like they were nothing. The audience cheered.

“ Oh, and Sudowoodo endures the attack, and hardly lost its step. It just goes to show how well Kazuki must have trained it. “ The announcer said.

“ Now what was that special attack that Scizor taught it? “ Kazuki thought.
“ Oh yeah, Pebble Storm! “

“ What? “ Elise said, ready to laugh.

Sudowoodo launched its bushels off, like it does when it performs Rock Throw, but the purple spheres instead exploded into hundreds and hundreds of good-sized pebbles. They bombarded Pidgeotto so bad, that it crashed to the ground, and covered itself with its wings. The audience all seemed to yell “ yeah “ in unison.

“ Now is a good time to get some info. “ Kazuki said.

He pulled out his pokedex, and pointed it at the downed pokemon.

< Pidgeotto. > It said.
< This flying type pokemon are very proud, and will attack enemies viciously. They can summon up clouds of dust to escape from battle and blind enemies. >

“ Okay Sudowoodo, Rock Throw! “ Kazuki ordered.

The bushels fired off of the golden limbs, and knocked Pidgeotto along the floor, and back to Elise’s feet. She stared down in shock.

“ Oh, and Sudowoodo hits Pidgeotto with a powerful Rock Throw! “
“ It looks like the ref is moving in. “

The ref inspected the Pidgeotto. It struggled to get up, and faltered. The ref raised a green flag in Elise’s direction.

“ Pidgeotto is unable to battle! “ He shouted for all to hear.

The audience exploded with cheers. They were standing out of their seats and yelling praise at the field. Elise slowly pulled the pokemon back onto her arm, and moments later a Nurse Joy attending the match rushed it to the Hospital Ward.

“ Now Elise will be forced to use another pokemon. “ The announcer said.

“ I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do this… “

She plucked a Great ball from her belt and smiled sinisterly.

“ Go get him… “

The pokemon appeared, and Kazuki could hardly make out what it was. It had a pink inside, but the outside was a shiny, metallic-silver color. There were prods sticking out of the shell, and two eyes were sunk back within the creature. It shuddered and shook, shaking off dust.

“ This is my Forretress. “ She laughed.
“ I haven’t used it for a long time… “

“ Sudowoodo, Low Kick that thing! “ Kazuki ordered.

Sudowoodo ran sideways; his lanky arm out as though he were playing football. He slid as he came up to the bulky Forretress, and launched his foot upwards, trying to knock the pokemon over. Unfortunately, the pokemon was harder then rock. Sudowoodo’s leg bounced off the chrome shell and he was thrown back a considerable distance.

“ Oh, physical attacks like Low Kick and Rock Throw hardly bother steel types. “ Elise laughed.

“ Man, a steel type, and Sudowoodo doesn’t have any special attacks. “ Kazuki said, fist clenched.
“ Sudowoodo, return! “

Kazuki looked at his belt. He had Sudowoodo, Golduck, and…

“ Go, Beedrill! “ He said.

The crowd was up in arms over his choice. Many pointed out that there were two bug types battling.

“ Oh, when both trainers use their bug types, the audience expects action. “ The announcer said.

“ Okay Beedrill, we have to hit it with special attacks, and hit it where it hurts, under its shell! “

Beedrill buzzed above the field menacingly. The Forretress Sand Attacked quickly, and Kazuki gave his command.

“ Gust! “ He cried.

Beedrill undulated its wings, and blew the sand away as fast as it had come at him. The granules blinded Forretress, who reared up in pain. As it did, its shell opened slightly.

“ Now, Pin Missile! “ Kazuki said happily.

“ No! Forretress, close your shell! “ Elsie cried.

The announcer yelled as Beedrill dived in for its target.

“ Incredible! Never have I seen such a superbly fast Beedrill. Forretress doesn’t seem to be putting up much of a match. “

“ Spikes! “ Elise said.

Forretress shuddered between the pain, and spikes appeared all over its mirrored body. They launched off in every direction and scattered themselves all over the ground. Beedrill had to pull up and back to Kazuki in order to dodge the attack.

“ Now let’s see how you fair without being able to switch! “ She cackled.

“ Oh, and Elise traps Beedrill in the ring. If Kazuki switches now, the razor-sharp tacks will damage the pokemon that pops out. “

Kazuki was speechless. He couldn’t send another pokemon, since both of his other pokemon had to stand on the ground.

“ Beedrill, return. “ Kazuki said, a smile spreading over his face.

“ Kazuki must have something planned… “ The announcer said.

“ Golduck, psyche that big bug out! “

Golduck appeared, and instead of touching down, he hovered over the ground, and safely to the center of the ring. Elsie’s face was a combination of anger and sadness twisting together.

“ Use a Sandstorm attack. “ Elise ordered.

Forretress spun in place and conjured up a wisp of dirt hat blew towards Golduck. He stared at it hard, and the whole thing was outlined in blue. The sand settled back down on the ground.

“ Wow, nice Confusion. “ Kazuki said, raising his two fingers in a V-shape.

“ Rollout! “ Elsie screamed.

The Forretress rumbled forward, closing its shell before it got too far. It was heading right towards Golduck.

“ What is Kazuki doing? “ The announcer said, fixated.

“ Wait for it… “ Kazuki said.

The mass of metal was coming closer, and gaining speed. Elise was ecstatic.

“ He’s crazy! “ The announcer yelled, grabbing his head.

“ Wait for it… “ Kazuki said.

It was just in front of him now. A drop of sweat dripped from Kazuki’s nose.

“ Now! “ He bellowed.

Golduck disappeared in a flash of purple light, and the Forretress crashed into the stadium wall, shaking the entire hut. People screamed at the intensity. Golduck appeared behind Forretress and drew in a breath.

“ Watergun! “ Kazuki said, laughing.

The pokemon had only just turned around when the jet of water hit it forcefully. It was shoved into the crumbling wall, and it indented under the pressure.

The referee shook his head, and threw up his flag in Elise’s direction.

“ Forretress is unable to battle. “ He shouted for all to hear. He raised the red flag at Kazuki, who couldn’t help but bow.

“ Un-be-leivable! “ The announcer yelled.
“ In all my years, I’ve never seen a stunt like that. “

Elise was very mad. She snatched up her last pokemon from her belt and threw it into the field. It bounced and opened, emitting a cloud of poison powders from the inside of the ball.

“ Go get him, Gloom! “

The crowd boomed again, this time following up with “ Kazuki! “.

“ Golduck, teleport! “ Kazuki said.

Gloom fell onto its head, which exploded with powder. It rolled away with a great force, dodging the Golduck’s swipe.

“ Man, he’s fast for such a chubby guy. “ Kazuki said through gritted teeth.

“ Gloom, Sleep Powder! “ Elise ordered.

Before Kazuki or Golduck could react, Gloom let loose a fog of blue spores. Golduck’s eyelids got heavy and he fell to the dirt floor.

Now the referee threw a flag in Kazuki’s direction. His pupils shrunk to almost nothing in horror. He returned the pokemon.

“ Golduck is unable to battle. “ He proclaimed. He gave Elise’s flag a raise, and Elise grinned at Kazuki across the field.

“ What an upset, and young Kazuki was doing so well! With a lightning quick Gloom, Elise has taken Golduck out with one technique! “ The announcer said.

“ Okay, let’s see how this works… “ Kazuki whispered.
“ Sudowoodo, shake those maracas! “

Sudowoodo wasted no time. It pummeled the Gloom with its hands over and over. The Gloom tried desperately to back away, but the attack was unrelenting.

“ Fury Attack… “ Kazuki said.

Gloom finally dodged the hits and leapt into Sudowoodo’s face. It was drowned in multi-colored powders and looked like a piece of abstract art.

“ Did you like that? It’s called Rainbow Dust. “ Elsie chortled.

“ Yes, Mimic! “ Kazuki yelled.

Sudowoodo shook its hands vigorously, producing a similar mixture of colored dust. It all settled on the surprised Gloom’s face, who was immediately put to sleep. Sudowoodo smiled from under the powder, and then passed out.

“ Kazuki wins! Kazuki wins! Kazuki wins! “ The announcer bellowed.

The ref raised the red flag high above his head, and the big score board behind Kazuki lit up with his face. The words “ Winner: Congratulations “ emblazoned it. He called his pokemon back and thanked them under his breath. Elsie was making her way across the field.

“ I’m happy you won. “ She said.
“ I wasn’t sure if I trained enough, and you answered my question. “

She stretched out her arm, and took Kazuki’s hand. They shook and turned away towards their locker rooms. He waved to the cheering crowd, and spotted Sandra in the locker room entranceway. She smiled.

“ You did good kid. “ She said in a deep voice.

“ Thanks, pretty good for a rookie. “ He laughed.

“ Come on, my battle’s over, but Hawk is still fighting. “

They walked without talking for a bit, and then curiosity got to Kazuki. He turned to her as they strolled through the corridor.

“ Did you win? “ He asked.

They walked a little longer.

“ Yeah. “

“ I knew you would! “ Kazuki said enthusiastically.

“ Thanks. “ She said.
“ Come on, we don’t want to miss it! “

They ran up the stairs and into the stadium. The crowd was fixated on the event taking place down in the center of the arena. Hawk was just returning an unconscious Larvitar to its ball, and the scoreboard showed that the opponent, Teddy, had only his one pokemon left. That pokemon was a large, mean-looking Drowzee. It had a dark blotch over one of its eyes. Hawk had just lost his second, so now it was down to this final battle.

“ Go, Hawk! “ Sandy screamed.
“ Wooooo! “

Kazuki cheered too.

“ You can do it! “

Hawk waved to them and released his final pokemon, Butterfree. It was a pacifying indigo, and the eyes shined like rubies. One thing Kazuki noticed was the missing left antenna. He figured it was from training, but how would it affect him in battle?

“ Supersonic! “ Hawk ordered.

“ Hypnosis! “ Teddy ordered.

The waves rippled back and forth over the field, and distorted anything in the area. Even the dust on the ground shook and jittered. Kazuki was amused to look through the waves, and see a smeared audience on the opposite side. He’d never seen anything like this. Drowzee pushed forward, and started to gain ground. The Hypnosis wave was getting slowly through the left side, and Kazuki realized that the antenna produced the Supersonic.

< A Butterfree’s antennae are important in battle, because they help with such basic things as perception. If an antenna is damaged or cut off, it will grow back, but very slowly. >

“ Man… “ Kazuki thought.

“ Use the Whirlwind! “ Hawk yelled.

The Hypnosis was knocked away as Butterfree released its Supersonic, and Kazuki let out a breath of relief.

“ OK, now Tackle! “

“ Drowzee, Confusion! “ Teddy yelled.

The whirlwind was enveloped in blue and ambled back towards Butterfree. It started to speed up as it Tackled.

“ Yeah, Agility… “

Butterfree sped right through the gale and into Drowzee’s chest. It was in pain, but had enough strength to throw Butterfree to its side. It fell to its stubby knees, and fainted.

“ Hawk is the winner! “ The announcer cried.

“ Yeah, Hawk! “ Kazuki screamed.

“ Yeah, Hawk! “ Sandra screamed.

He collected his Butterfree and walked over to them. He was sweating pretty bad.

“ Man, I wonder if the money is really worth this. I must have sweated out a couple of pounds. “ He joked.

“ Come on! “ Sandy said.
“ I want to see how Scizor is fairing. “

They ran to the next field, and managed to talk about each other’s battles during the way. The came up the stairs to see the field shrouded in a cloud of dust. Except for the occasional cough, the audience was silent.

“ What happened? “ Kazuki said breathlessly.

As everything came back into focus, a Nidorino was seen laying motionless at one side of the field, while a Scizor was folding his arms on the other. The group was horrified when they looked at the scoreboard.

“ Scizor…”
“ Scizor K.O.ed all of Duncan’s pokemon with only Scizor…” Sandy said.

Scizor was confident-looking as usual. He bowed to the crowd, that had begun to clap, and the announcer congratulated him, even though he too was on the verge of speechlessness. Kazuki and the group turned around to face each other.

“ We’d better go find out our standings. “ Hawk said.

“ Hold on. “ Kazuki said.

He patted a man on the shoulder, and he turned around slowly.

“ What happened in this battle? “ He asked.

“ It’s indescribable. “ The man muttered.

They all left to the lobby.

“ Okay… “ Sandy said.
“ Who’s fighting who? “

The line chart showed Sandy had advanced to semifinals, and would fight Scizor. She shuddered about that. The other side said that Kazuki and Hawk would fight. This was yet another surprise.

“ Wow, I didn’t think I’d have to fight you. “ Kazuki said.

“ Me neither. “
“ Let’s make sure we have a good battle though. If we let our friendship get in the way, it won’t be a fair fight. “

“ Right, I have an idea. “

One half-hour later…

“ Our first semi-final match is between Kazuki and Hawk! “ The announcer said.
“ Kazuki and Hawk have agreed to use only one pokemon of their choice. “

Kazuki and Hawk came out onto the field; one pokeball in their hands. Kazuki waved to Sandy, as did Hawk, She waved back and went to her match. She could hardly walk straight as she left.

“ You will each use one pokemon. “ The ref said.
“ They do not have to be a bug type. “

Kazuki and Hawk shook hands and went to their sides.

“ Ready? “
“ Begin! “

The pokeballs dropped, and the battle began. From both came Chikorita. Kazuki and Hawk couldn’t hide their stunned expressions. They gawked at the two like they were aliens.

“ Interesting. “ A commentator said.

“ Folks, we are honored to have a pokemon professor here today all the way from Bacillus Town. He is a grass and bug pokemon expert, and it looks as though he’ll have his work cut out for him in this battle. “ The announcer blared.

“ Thank you for having me. “ The man said.
“ I’d like everyone to start by looking at the differences between the two pokemon on the field. One Chikorita is a healthy yellowish-chartreuse, while the other is a bit more golden. That not only signifies an age difference of about one year, but also tells me that it is near evolution. “

“ Do you expect it might evolve today? “ The announcer asked excitedly.

“ No, I do believe the lack of sunlight will make it difficult for it to evolve. “

Kazuki and Hawk both laughed a little and gave their orders.

“ Razor leaf! “ Kazuki said.

“ Counter with Vine Whip! “ Hawk ordered.

The leaves were easily knocked away and Kazuki’s Chikorita was swatted back by the other Chikorita’s vines. It got it relatively unscathed.

“ Now use your Vine Whip! “ Kazuki yelled.

“ Razor Leaf it back. “ Hawk said calmly.

This time, the leaves were not knocked away, but misfired because of Hawk’s Chikorita’s blow to the head by the vines. It stumbled back, and shook it off.

“ Kazuki’s Chikorita has a powerful Razor leaf, but it lacks speed. They are too easily knocked away. Hawk’s Chikorita has slow vines in turn, and the Razor Leaf, as slow an attack as it may be, was able to get there first. “

“ It looks like the two Chikorita are dishing out a little eye-for-an-eye tactics. “ The announcer chuckled.

“ Headbut! “ Hawk ordered.

“ Chikorita, Agility! “

Hawk’s Chikorita missed Kazuki’s and got a face full of dirt in the process. Kazuki’s Chikorita turned around and took in a deep breath. When it did, the tiny seeds around its neck were sucked up inside its skin like a vacuumed had taken them up.

“ Seed Barrage! “ Kazuki said.

“ No! “ Hawk said.

Hawk’s Chikorita could only hope to endure the attack as best it could. The seeds were coming to fast, and it wasn’t quick enough to get away. When the attack stopped, it got up from the ground, its health dwindling.

“ Tackle! “ Hawk said.

“ Tackle! “ Kazuki said.

The two pokemon butted together in the center of the field, and were thrown back to their respective sides with bruises.

“ Tackle again! “ Hawk said.

“ Tackle again! “ Kazuki said.

The Chikorita smashed together again, this time much harder. They recovered far from gracefully, and were both panting like dogs.

“ Use your strongest tackle! “ Hawk said.

“ Super Tackle, Chikorita! “ Kazuki ordered loudly.

“ What? “

“ What did he say? “ The announcer said, puzzled.

“ I believe he’ll try a new attack. “ The professor said.

Both Chikorita leapt towards each other, chugging along like bulls. Hawk’s Chikorita was coming fast, but Kazuki’s was faster. It had a bright green shield over its body, and it covered her like an extra layer of skin. The shield let it run just above the ground, keeping it suspended just a few centimeters off the dirt. Like a comet entering the atmosphere, a white fire blazed over Kazuki’s Chikorita’s front. It looked like a little green rocket.

“ This is gonna be bad. “ The announcer said, covering his eyes.

It was an ugly sound, too. Like two “ meaty “ pillows, they crashed headlong into each other, and they were thrown back nearly to the walls of the stadium. Like meaty pillows…

Kazuki got to his Chikorita first. The green shield faded like a fluorescent light, and it blinked happily. It was over-all okay. Hawk’s Chikorita was in a lot more pain. Her side where it had run into Kazuki’s Chikorita was almost purple, and was painful to the touch. A nurse took it to the Hospital Ward and he went to where Kazuki stood.

“ Great job, Kazu. “

Hawk extended a hand, and Kazuki took it happily.

“ Kazuki is the winner! “ The announcer said.

“ Good job, Kazuki! “ The professor said.
“ You certainly have a good Chikorita there. “

Kazuki walked back to the locker room. He was shaking bad, and he couldn’t seem to calm himself down. Hawk came in and uneasily knocked.

“ Mind if I talk to you? “ He asked.

“ No, come in Hawk. “

They sat there for a few seconds.

“ I’m happy I lost to you. “ Hawk said.

“ I’m happy I won against you. “ Kazuki said.

They both cracked up. They nearly fell off the bench. Kazuki wiped his watering eyes and got up. He motioned to Hawk.

“ Come on, Sandy will need our support. “ He said, still laughing a little.

They ran as fast as possible. After what happened at the last match, they figured the battle would be over soon. The scene on the stadium floor was all too obvious.

“ Scizor certainly is putting the squeeze on Wartortle! “ The announcer quipped.

Scizor had a shell in its clamp, and was squeezing it like a nut. The spikes that serrated the inside were digging into it slowly. A startled cry could be heard from the inside. It was the Wartortle, and it was scared.

“ Seismic Toss. “ Scizor said.

Scizor spun in place, rotating like a helicopter, and threw the pokemon out over the field. It popped out of its shell with an angry expression over its face.

“ Use Hydro Pump, Wartortle! “ Sandy yelled.

Wartortle let a jet of water bigger then its mouth escape from it stomach, and it blasted down towards Scizor.

“ Static Ray. “ He said, staring at Kazuki.

“ Oh man, that’s the attack I taught his Scizor. This is ironic. “ Kazuki sighed.

The sound of Scizor’s buzzing wings were very loud in the echoing stadium. He charged up the balls of electricity and fired the beams of energy straight up the Hydro Pump. It was split down the middle as they veered skyward.

“ No! “ Sandy cried.

Wartortle was suspended by the power, and came back to the earth in his shell. Smoke poured from the holes.

“ Scizor wins the match! “ The ref said.

“ Another one-sided victory by Scizor. “ The announcer said.
“ This boy is going somewhere. “

Kazuki looked down at Scizor. Scizor looked up at Kazuki.

“ Ladies and Gentleman, the finals competitors have been decided. “ A voice cracked over an intercom.

Hawk walked Sandy back to the locker room, and left Kazuki in the emptying stadium. He and Scizor remained, fixed on each other’s glares.

“ The final battle… “
“ Kazuki Vs. Scizor! “