Last time on Pokemon: Johto Quest! A harrowing ordeal with a metallic bird-like creature lead Emily to climb above her fear of heights and gain a realization of the Poke Ball’s true power. She also learned how to text and conduct research on her phone thanks to the ever helpful Officer Jenny.
Our heroes emerged from the Pokemon Center in the little city with the purple roofed pagoda, the rain now subsided. Thanks to the efforts of the nurses, Emily donned a new red shirt, crisp shorts, a fresh out of the plastic backpack, and a fully healed body.
A mob of people armed with torches and Poke Balls suddenly surrounded our heroes.
Their leader stepped forward, a frown adorning his face and fire filling his eyes. “You think we’re just a bunch of bowling pins? You think you can just knock us over and have us be hunky dory with it?”
Emily put her hands on her hips. “I didn’t do that. My Pokemon did because her friend was in trouble. Sorry, but it was an emergency.”
The mob and their leader closed in further. Then the mob leader delivered a swift wave of his torch inches from Emily’s face. “I don’t care. If you’re gonna train Pokemon, you need to control them, even in an emergency.”
Emily leaped towards the torch, attempting to grab the flame.
The leader bounced away from Emily and shouted, “What is wrong with you?”
“I climbed a mountain. I caught a metal birb. I’m not scared.” Emily replied.
The mob leader laughed through his teeth. “You didn’t catch that bird.”
Emily ripped the metal bird-like creature’s ball off her belt and threw it like a fastball. From the ball, the metal bird-like creature emerged and released a metallic screech into the man’s face.
At the sight of the torch's flame, the bird-like creature yelped and launched itself backwards into the air with rapid flaps of its now glowing wings that blasted hordes of razor-sharp wind gusts at the fire, its eyes bulging. The man dropped the torch and somersaulted out of the path of the gusts, sprinting along with the mob the moment the maneuver was completed.
A moment later, the bird-like creature attempted to stand still. But it shook and hyperventilated. Emily searched “Is it normal for metal birbs to not like fire?” on the site that Officer Jenny had recommended. Soon, her brain flooded with information on the creature, from the fact that its name was Skarmory, to the plethora of moves it was capable of learning, to even a list of its weaknesses that included Fire-type moves.
A half-eaten bag of Big League Seed sitting on the ground caught Emily’s eye and, upon scooping it up, fed a handful of the seeds to the Skarmory. Layer upon layer of flavor coated its mouth. Its body steadied.
“Are you okay, Skarmory?” Emily asked.
It looked to her and the light-purple creature by her side, but only for a moment before shutting its eyes. Then, it took a single, slow step in their direction. But it halted for only a few moments before another step was taken. Step, halt, step, halt. This was the pattern it followed until finally, it opened its eyes and glanced at Emily and the light-purple creature, who raised its now glowing arm.
At the sight of the light-purple creature, a flash of raging heat exploded across its face and a strong temptation to scowl emerged. But it moved no muscle and made no sound. Question marks filled its head. Suddenly, Emily held out the now nearly empty bag of Big League Seed and the question marks dissipated the moment it began gorging on the perfectly flavor-coated seeds.
A smile took hold of the Skarmory upon completing its feast. Distant bells tolled and its smile turned to a grin as it whipped itself into a gleeful dance. Eddy lowered his arm, which lost its glow as soon as it reached his side. Emily joined in the dance.
As she danced, she spotted a gym. While orange and white like the others she and Eddy have encountered, there was a spinning, steel weathervane in the shape of a smiling Noctowl pointing a wing mounted to its roof. Emily flashed a toothy grin, sending the Skarmory back to its ball and rushing towards the weathervane gym with Eddy in tow.
Inside, oil and grease stains dotted the linoleum floor around what appeared to be a home for diminutive planes, whose bodies donned feather-like textures and whose noses resembled a beak. Armed with toolboxes and cleaning supplies, men and women in brown jumpsuits tightened, polished, and performed all other kinds of work on the planes. Wrapping around the long line between the top of the walls and ceiling was a steel walkway with various matching staircases rolling down near the corners.
Emily grinned and pointed. “Hey look! People this time.”
A man and woman duo immediately stopped their work and looked on at Emily and Eddy, their eyebrows raised and their mouths a hard line.
Emily turned to Eddy. “Let’s go find the gym leader.”
Emily and Eddy only took a few steps. Then, the man and woman duo slammed them against the nearest wall, leering right into their souls as they gripped their pinned arms.
“Last guy who walked around here without an escort fell right off that catwalk and turned his head into a crushed Watmel Berry.” The woman said to Emily.
Emily leered right back. “I’ve been higher and I survived just fine.”
She attempted to give the woman’s arm a nasty bite. But the woman flung it out of harm’s way. Moments later, Emily and Eddy are hurled out of the gym. When they rose to their feet, Eddy crossed his arms and turned away from Emily.
“Eddy, I survived more scary stuff than they have and they treated me like a baby. How is that fair?” Eddy’s stance remained unchanged. “If I was a baby, we’d be like Andy.”
Eddy stomped away.
“Wait Eddy!” Emily screamed. “Where are you going? No! Please!” Emily stomped away as well. “That’s it,” she thought to herself. “I’m getting in no matter what.”
She examined the gym building. There was a window on the side. She slipped off her backpack, swinging it around and around in a manner similar to hammer throwers. Within an instant, the backpack sailed through their air and shattered the glass.
Emily ascended the building. But the moment she rolled into an office-like room, a Noctowl dove from its perch, intending to impale Emily’s forehead with its beak. Emily rolled out of its path and gripped Gnasher’s Poke Ball.
“Gnasher! Flamethrower!” Emily yelled as she flung the ball.
Gnasher howled upon emerging from it, making its body turn red as white arrows soared into the atmosphere. Then, with a deep breath, a stream of flames exploded from Gnasher’s mouth. The stream scorched the Noctowl and its piercing, gurgling screech that nearly caused Emily and Gnasher’s ears to ring and bleed filled the room.
The door burst open. Everyone spun their head to the doorframe. A young man donning a light-blue aviator jacket, a dark-blue undershirt, and khakis stood there, his arms folded and his eyes fiercely locked into the other inhabitants of the room. His nametag read, “Falkner: Violet City Gym Leader.”
“What is this?” Falkner asked.
Emily rapidly waved her arms around and explained how she got into the predicament, Falkner using a light-red spray bottle on the Noctowl’s wounds while ensuring that he absorbed her every word. He then petted the Noctowl.
Falkner sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Tragedy is not leverage. Tragedy is not an excuse. I don’t tolerate this with any of my pilots down there and I will not tolerate it with you. If you’re old enough to take part in gym battles, you’re old enough to clean up your own messes. Hand over your belt. Leave the Poke Balls on it too.”
Emily pulled out her phone. After a few moments, she frowned. “That’s thieving.”
“It’s not thieving if I give it back to you when you’re done.”
“Not buying it.”
Falkner approached Emily, but Gnasher growled, then released a howl. His eyes locked onto Gnasher as he slowly stepped back.
Then, he smiled. “Actually, I have a better idea. Let’s see how well that attitude stacks up in a gym battle.”
Emily returned Gnasher to her ball and, with a grin, shook hands with Falkner. Emily vacated the office and marched towards a button at the end of the hall. Falkner, on the other hand, stayed behind and opened a drawer. Moments later, he joined up with Emily, his belt now holding two black and yellow balls and a Poke Ball. Upon Falkner pressing the button, the linoleum floor downstairs flipped around like a pancake that was launched by a spatula.
A bird-shaped flying machine with a huge, steel lined nest attached to its back made itself known. A man in a brown jumpsuit and helmet dove into its cockpit as the floor rose like a piston, a walkway quickly sprouting from it immediately after.
Emily’s mouth was agape. She smirked, dashed towards the nest, and plunged right in. Falkner carefully stepped in moments later. The roof creaked and parted, revealing the sky and allowing the burning sun to shoot its large, thick rays down on the battlers.
Falkner fishes a walkie-talkie from his pocket. “Alright Hector, you are clear for takeoff.”
The machine screeched to life and cautiously floated to the top. Soon, the view from the machine turned the cities and towns below into mere miniature models.
“Fire up the cameras, Hector.” Falkner said into his walkie-talkie. Video cameras mounted to thick metal poles sprouted from every corner of the nest until they reached heights of up to ten feet.
Falkner stood up straight, placed his arms at his sides, and locked his eyes onto one of the cameras facing him.
“Ladies and gentlemen. My name is Falkner and welcome to another Violet City gym battle. Challenging me today is—” He paused and looked to Emily. “What’s your name miss?”
“Emily Hawthorne,” she replied. “Don’t you watch the gym ba—”
“One thing before we begin. If you fall out of the nest, you lose.” Falkner exclaimed. “With that said, let the battle take flight!”
“Yeah!” Emily cheered.
Falkner plucked one of the black and yellow balls from his belt and hurled it. “Go! Mantine!”
Out of the ball emerged a large, blue and light-purple, manta ray-like creature with toothpick thin fangs protruding from its smile. Tucked under its right wing was a seafoam-green, fish-like creature with a small fin attached to its forehead and two dark-green marks on its side.
Emily turned and said, “Go Ed—” but stopped when she recalled that Eddy was no longer by her side. She quietly groaned and peered at her belt. Her eyes slid back and forth like a pendulum, straining to decide which of her Pokemon she should send into battle.
“Pick your Pokemon please,” Falkner said with crossed arms.
Emily’s eyes slid faster and faster until suddenly, she yanked Julie’s Poke Ball off of her belt and tossed it without even so much as a glance at where she intended to aim it.
Julie bursts from the ball. She spun around, trying to spot Eddy, but her efforts were fruitless. She grew long in the face as she slowly trotted towards Emily.
Emily groaned. “Eddy isn’t here. He ran away from me.”
Julie’s scream of rage nearly rattled the flying machine, sending razor-sharp leaves flying to and fro. Mantine and Falkner leapt out of the way of the leaves.
Emily’s lip slightly quivered, her hand obscuring her face, as she fought to clear the fog in her mind and reveal a plan to stop the madness.
“Julie! Stop!” Emily shouted. “He’ll come back. Nobody stays mad forever.”
Julie turned, slowly coming to a standstill, her eyes locked onto Emily. She then noticed Emily digging through her bag. From the bag, Emily produced a Mago Berry flavored Rare Candy.
Julie huffed, slowly devouring Emily’s peace offering. White sparks flew from her body. She then turned and leaped forward, making sure to face the Mantine.
“Julie! Use Reflect!” Emily yelled.
“Mantine! Use Headbutt!” Falkner shouted.
The Mantine fiercely glided towards Julie like a jet plane coming in for a landing. With a wink, Julie summoned a giant, glossy, pink window pane that flashed into existence while a ray of light drifted along its surface.
The Mantine slammed into her with every ounce of strength in its body. But she only drifted inches toward Emily with a slight flinch.
Falkner gave a faint smile. “Reflect. Not bad. But you’re going to need more than damage control to beat me.”
“Okay Julie! Use Razor Leaf!” Emily yelled.
“Mantine! Use Aerial Ace!”
Hundreds of razor-sharp leaves rocketed towards the Mantine as it glowed and rolled through the air up and down, side to side, dodging the leaves. Unfortunately, a horde of leaves pierced the belly of the Mantine, forcing a scream from its mouth and sending it hurtling to the ground. But just as its nose was about to kiss the ground, it lifted the tips of its wings and managed a wide backflip powerful enough to return it to its original position and allow it to float in place once again.
Falkner grinned. “Alright. Mantine! Agility!”
“Julie! Swords Dance!” Emily commanded.
Julie trotted in place, topping it off with a little spin, her body becoming red while upward pointing arrows draped her and ascended. The Mantine took the deepest breath it could muster, its body lightening more and more as it did so. Red arrows darted up its body.
Falkner said, “Alright Mantine! Use—”
“Julie use Razor Leaf again!” Emily shouted.
Julie did so and the Mantine fell to the ground, its eyes converted into black spirals. Falkner returned the Mantine to its ball and glared at Emily.
Julie shut her eyes tight, trotted in place, and squealed like she’d just won a lifetime supply of Moo Moo Milk, white sparking flying from her body. She dashed towards Emily and locked her into a tight hug.
“That was awesome Julie!” Emily exclaimed.
“Cutting someone off during a battle?” said Falkner. “Penalty!”
“What?” Emily yelled while throwing her hands down.
“That’s right,” Falkner responded. “Cut someone off during battle and you don’t get to use the Pokemon you had when you did it for the rest of the battle.”
“It’s so dumb,” Emily grumbled, returning Julie to her ball shortly after.
“Next time you do that, instant loss and no rematches for a week,” Falkner warned. Emily’s eyes widened and her jaw slammed to the ground. “Yeah. I don’t play around.”
Emily peered at her belt, selected Benny’s ball, and hurled it.
“Go! Crobat!” Falkner said, tossing its ball.
From the ball came a purple, bat-like creature as big as a basketball player with four wings, near microscopic feet, and a perpetual frown showcasing its pearly whites.
Falkner smiled. “Ah. Pitting a part Ground type Pokemon against a Pokemon immune to Ground type moves. Bold.”
“Thanks!” said Emily. “Now give ‘em a Water Gun, Benny!”
“Crobat! Use Bite!” said Falkner.
The Crobat spun high into the air like a tornado and swooped across the battlefield, its eyes laser-focused on Benny. Benny took a deep breath as a thick stream of raging water burst from his mouth. The stream soaked the wings of the Crobat, weighing them down to the point where they were no longer moveable.
The Crobat spun and trotted, its eyes darting in every which way. How would it maneuver? Falkner plucked a whistle from his pocket and put a great deal of elbow grease into his blow, the pitch of the whistle’s howl nearly cracking the glass of the camera lenses.
“Atten-tion!” Falkner yelled.
The Crobat drew its attention to Falkner and froze. Falkner walked toward the Crobat. Then, with his fingers, erased its tears.
“Take a breath,” Falkner whispers.
The Crobat slowly gathered air. Then, it released it at a matching pace.
“Remember when you were a little Zubat?” Falkner asked. “You had no eyes and sticks for legs. But you made it work, didn’t you?”
The Crobat nodded.
“Well, you have a way of making it work now. Hop. Hop as if you have springs on your feet, just like we practiced.”
The Crobat grinned and gave Falkner a fierce nod.
“Alright Crobat! Try Bite again!” Falkner commanded.
The Crobat spun towards Benny and hopped with all its might, its fangs all aglow.
“Dodge and use Water Gun!” said Emily.
Benny dashed toward the left side of the ship’s nest, twirled onto the railing, and ran across the entire undercarriage. With its short tail, he latches onto the closest camera support pole and spat a beam of water right in the Crobat’s face, forcing it to perform a backwards somersault and slam against the railing.
The Crobat moaned, repeating a pattern of rising to its feet and falling to the ground. Falkner slipped a small, orange spray bottle from his pocket and coated the Crobat in its contents. The Crobat spun into the air and, with a smile plastered on its face, held its wings outstretched.
“Crobat! Give it your all and use Aerial Ace!” Falkner shouted.
“Block it with Water Gun, Benny!” said Emily.
Benny spun like a sprinkler as a stream of densely packed water exploded from his mouth. Then, two large streams struck the Crobat, sending it into a tailspin. The Crobat’s face collided with the ground. After a small roll, black spirals appeared in place of its eyes, forcing Falkner to return it to its ball.
White sparks flew from Benny’s body. Then, a shiny, white glow coated Benny. Emily turned away. In a split-second flash, Emily gazed upon Benny once again.
He towered over her, his neck virtually indistinguishable from the rest of his body. Though he maintained his blue coloring, his purple branches were now gone. His paddle-shaped tail was now fuller and with a thin, black fin curving over its middle and forming into bumps upon reaching his back that was nearly covered in a large, wavy, purple marking.
Benny peered down. A gasp escaped him. He twirled towards Emily, his wide mouth arranged into a smile. He now had arms with three fingers on the ends of them.
“Wow!” Emily exclaimed.
Benny lunged at her and delivered a tight hug. Moments later, he clapped fast and clapped rough. He drummed on the railing, dashed about with his arms outstretched, and provided Falkner with a hug that was just as tight as Emily’s. A single tear glided down his face. Finally.
Falkner nudged Benny off of him and whistled. In seconds, the Noctowl from the gym’s office took flight and landed on Falkner’s arm moments later. The Noctowl nuzzled him.
He smiled. “Thank you. But let’s focus.”
The Noctowl flew away from his shoulder and flew in place.
“Noctowl! Use Hypnosis!” said Falkner.
“Yawn Benny!” Emily commanded.
Out of Benny’s mouth came a giant, fluffy cloud. It hurtled towards the many glowing pink rings released from the Noctowl’s eyes. The rings, however, flew through the cloud as if it was nothing more than butter standing up to a hot knife and smacked Benny in the face and stomach. Benny’s eyes gently shut and his body drooped to one side.
Emily threw off her bag and hastily rifled through it, hoping against all hope to find something that could wake Benny. Moments later, she stopped. Everything inside the bag was useless against the affliction. Emily sighed and returned Benny to his ball.
Emily looked to her belt. From it, she plucked the Skarmory’s ball and hurled it. The Skarmory exploded from the ball, a slight smile on its face.
“Two out of three? Not bad,” Falkner said.
Emily smiled. Her mind brought her back to the moment she researched information on Skarmory. A list of possible moves the Skarmory could know rolled like a reel on a slot machine. Emily’s mind locked onto a move.
“Okay Skarmory! Use Air Cutter!” Emily shouted.
The Skarmory hurtled into the air with glowing wings.
Falkner yelled, “Noctowl! Hypnosis again!” as the Skarmory launched hordes of razor-sharp wind gusts at it.
“Dodge Skarmory!” Emily said.
Giant pink rings flooded the battlefield, but the Skarmory rolled, looped, and spun through each one with just inches of space to spare.
“Try Swift Skarmory!” Emily suggested.
The Skarmory got behind the Noctowl and spun like a top, stars flying from its body. Star after star clobbered the Noctowl at a rapid pace.
As soon as the Skarmory was close to Emily, she hugged it. “That was so cool.”
The Skarmory smiled and a thought crossed its mind. Being with this girl wouldn’t be so bad. No more freezing, lonesome nights in the mountain nest. No more wondering whether it would obtain a next meal.
“Noctowl! Air Slash!” Falkner yelled.
Before Emily could deliver another command, the Noctowl curled into a ball, performed a somersault, and uncurled, lobbing a giant, light-blue orb directly at Emily and the Skarmory.
The ball knocked them off their feet. The Skarmory was flung upwards. Emily was sent headfirst over the edge of the flying machine.
“Skarmory!” Emily screamed with all her might, her legs and arms flailing uselessly as she plummeted to the ground.
Skarmory hopped onto the railing. With a great leap, it spread its wings and took flight.
On the ground, Eddy strolled along the path near the abandoned train station. Then, he heard a familiar scream and jerked his head to the sky. Emily was rapidly tumbling to the ground, the Skarmory darting to her aid, but still falling behind.
Every kind word she’d ever given him and every kind deed she’d ever done for him flashed in his mind nearly all at once. Eddy dashed up the path, through the streets of Ecruteak City, and towards a tower with nine navy-blue roofs and a thin, golden spire on top. Roof upon roof he leapt. He dove off once he reached the top roof.
Emily landed in his arms and he put her in a bear hug the moment she did. He, Emily, and the Skarmory reached the ground in one piece. Tears sprung from Eddy’s eyes.
“You came back!” Emily exclaimed. “Were you worried about me?”
Eddy nodded and tightened his hug. The Skarmory joined in on the hug.
Emily's head turned away from Eddy and the Skarmory. “Eddy, I’m sorry. I lost. I failed. I don’t know how to feel.”
Will Emily give herself another chance to face off against Falkner or will she give up on her quest to see her dad?
Our heroes emerged from the Pokemon Center in the little city with the purple roofed pagoda, the rain now subsided. Thanks to the efforts of the nurses, Emily donned a new red shirt, crisp shorts, a fresh out of the plastic backpack, and a fully healed body.
A mob of people armed with torches and Poke Balls suddenly surrounded our heroes.
Their leader stepped forward, a frown adorning his face and fire filling his eyes. “You think we’re just a bunch of bowling pins? You think you can just knock us over and have us be hunky dory with it?”
Emily put her hands on her hips. “I didn’t do that. My Pokemon did because her friend was in trouble. Sorry, but it was an emergency.”
The mob and their leader closed in further. Then the mob leader delivered a swift wave of his torch inches from Emily’s face. “I don’t care. If you’re gonna train Pokemon, you need to control them, even in an emergency.”
Emily leaped towards the torch, attempting to grab the flame.
The leader bounced away from Emily and shouted, “What is wrong with you?”
“I climbed a mountain. I caught a metal birb. I’m not scared.” Emily replied.
The mob leader laughed through his teeth. “You didn’t catch that bird.”
Emily ripped the metal bird-like creature’s ball off her belt and threw it like a fastball. From the ball, the metal bird-like creature emerged and released a metallic screech into the man’s face.
At the sight of the torch's flame, the bird-like creature yelped and launched itself backwards into the air with rapid flaps of its now glowing wings that blasted hordes of razor-sharp wind gusts at the fire, its eyes bulging. The man dropped the torch and somersaulted out of the path of the gusts, sprinting along with the mob the moment the maneuver was completed.
A moment later, the bird-like creature attempted to stand still. But it shook and hyperventilated. Emily searched “Is it normal for metal birbs to not like fire?” on the site that Officer Jenny had recommended. Soon, her brain flooded with information on the creature, from the fact that its name was Skarmory, to the plethora of moves it was capable of learning, to even a list of its weaknesses that included Fire-type moves.
A half-eaten bag of Big League Seed sitting on the ground caught Emily’s eye and, upon scooping it up, fed a handful of the seeds to the Skarmory. Layer upon layer of flavor coated its mouth. Its body steadied.
“Are you okay, Skarmory?” Emily asked.
It looked to her and the light-purple creature by her side, but only for a moment before shutting its eyes. Then, it took a single, slow step in their direction. But it halted for only a few moments before another step was taken. Step, halt, step, halt. This was the pattern it followed until finally, it opened its eyes and glanced at Emily and the light-purple creature, who raised its now glowing arm.
At the sight of the light-purple creature, a flash of raging heat exploded across its face and a strong temptation to scowl emerged. But it moved no muscle and made no sound. Question marks filled its head. Suddenly, Emily held out the now nearly empty bag of Big League Seed and the question marks dissipated the moment it began gorging on the perfectly flavor-coated seeds.
A smile took hold of the Skarmory upon completing its feast. Distant bells tolled and its smile turned to a grin as it whipped itself into a gleeful dance. Eddy lowered his arm, which lost its glow as soon as it reached his side. Emily joined in the dance.
As she danced, she spotted a gym. While orange and white like the others she and Eddy have encountered, there was a spinning, steel weathervane in the shape of a smiling Noctowl pointing a wing mounted to its roof. Emily flashed a toothy grin, sending the Skarmory back to its ball and rushing towards the weathervane gym with Eddy in tow.
Inside, oil and grease stains dotted the linoleum floor around what appeared to be a home for diminutive planes, whose bodies donned feather-like textures and whose noses resembled a beak. Armed with toolboxes and cleaning supplies, men and women in brown jumpsuits tightened, polished, and performed all other kinds of work on the planes. Wrapping around the long line between the top of the walls and ceiling was a steel walkway with various matching staircases rolling down near the corners.
Emily grinned and pointed. “Hey look! People this time.”
A man and woman duo immediately stopped their work and looked on at Emily and Eddy, their eyebrows raised and their mouths a hard line.
Emily turned to Eddy. “Let’s go find the gym leader.”
Emily and Eddy only took a few steps. Then, the man and woman duo slammed them against the nearest wall, leering right into their souls as they gripped their pinned arms.
“Last guy who walked around here without an escort fell right off that catwalk and turned his head into a crushed Watmel Berry.” The woman said to Emily.
Emily leered right back. “I’ve been higher and I survived just fine.”
She attempted to give the woman’s arm a nasty bite. But the woman flung it out of harm’s way. Moments later, Emily and Eddy are hurled out of the gym. When they rose to their feet, Eddy crossed his arms and turned away from Emily.
“Eddy, I survived more scary stuff than they have and they treated me like a baby. How is that fair?” Eddy’s stance remained unchanged. “If I was a baby, we’d be like Andy.”
Eddy stomped away.
“Wait Eddy!” Emily screamed. “Where are you going? No! Please!” Emily stomped away as well. “That’s it,” she thought to herself. “I’m getting in no matter what.”
She examined the gym building. There was a window on the side. She slipped off her backpack, swinging it around and around in a manner similar to hammer throwers. Within an instant, the backpack sailed through their air and shattered the glass.
Emily ascended the building. But the moment she rolled into an office-like room, a Noctowl dove from its perch, intending to impale Emily’s forehead with its beak. Emily rolled out of its path and gripped Gnasher’s Poke Ball.
“Gnasher! Flamethrower!” Emily yelled as she flung the ball.
Gnasher howled upon emerging from it, making its body turn red as white arrows soared into the atmosphere. Then, with a deep breath, a stream of flames exploded from Gnasher’s mouth. The stream scorched the Noctowl and its piercing, gurgling screech that nearly caused Emily and Gnasher’s ears to ring and bleed filled the room.
The door burst open. Everyone spun their head to the doorframe. A young man donning a light-blue aviator jacket, a dark-blue undershirt, and khakis stood there, his arms folded and his eyes fiercely locked into the other inhabitants of the room. His nametag read, “Falkner: Violet City Gym Leader.”
“What is this?” Falkner asked.
Emily rapidly waved her arms around and explained how she got into the predicament, Falkner using a light-red spray bottle on the Noctowl’s wounds while ensuring that he absorbed her every word. He then petted the Noctowl.
Falkner sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Tragedy is not leverage. Tragedy is not an excuse. I don’t tolerate this with any of my pilots down there and I will not tolerate it with you. If you’re old enough to take part in gym battles, you’re old enough to clean up your own messes. Hand over your belt. Leave the Poke Balls on it too.”
Emily pulled out her phone. After a few moments, she frowned. “That’s thieving.”
“It’s not thieving if I give it back to you when you’re done.”
“Not buying it.”
Falkner approached Emily, but Gnasher growled, then released a howl. His eyes locked onto Gnasher as he slowly stepped back.
Then, he smiled. “Actually, I have a better idea. Let’s see how well that attitude stacks up in a gym battle.”
Emily returned Gnasher to her ball and, with a grin, shook hands with Falkner. Emily vacated the office and marched towards a button at the end of the hall. Falkner, on the other hand, stayed behind and opened a drawer. Moments later, he joined up with Emily, his belt now holding two black and yellow balls and a Poke Ball. Upon Falkner pressing the button, the linoleum floor downstairs flipped around like a pancake that was launched by a spatula.
A bird-shaped flying machine with a huge, steel lined nest attached to its back made itself known. A man in a brown jumpsuit and helmet dove into its cockpit as the floor rose like a piston, a walkway quickly sprouting from it immediately after.
Emily’s mouth was agape. She smirked, dashed towards the nest, and plunged right in. Falkner carefully stepped in moments later. The roof creaked and parted, revealing the sky and allowing the burning sun to shoot its large, thick rays down on the battlers.
Falkner fishes a walkie-talkie from his pocket. “Alright Hector, you are clear for takeoff.”
The machine screeched to life and cautiously floated to the top. Soon, the view from the machine turned the cities and towns below into mere miniature models.
“Fire up the cameras, Hector.” Falkner said into his walkie-talkie. Video cameras mounted to thick metal poles sprouted from every corner of the nest until they reached heights of up to ten feet.
Falkner stood up straight, placed his arms at his sides, and locked his eyes onto one of the cameras facing him.
“Ladies and gentlemen. My name is Falkner and welcome to another Violet City gym battle. Challenging me today is—” He paused and looked to Emily. “What’s your name miss?”
“Emily Hawthorne,” she replied. “Don’t you watch the gym ba—”
“One thing before we begin. If you fall out of the nest, you lose.” Falkner exclaimed. “With that said, let the battle take flight!”
“Yeah!” Emily cheered.
Falkner plucked one of the black and yellow balls from his belt and hurled it. “Go! Mantine!”
Out of the ball emerged a large, blue and light-purple, manta ray-like creature with toothpick thin fangs protruding from its smile. Tucked under its right wing was a seafoam-green, fish-like creature with a small fin attached to its forehead and two dark-green marks on its side.
Emily turned and said, “Go Ed—” but stopped when she recalled that Eddy was no longer by her side. She quietly groaned and peered at her belt. Her eyes slid back and forth like a pendulum, straining to decide which of her Pokemon she should send into battle.
“Pick your Pokemon please,” Falkner said with crossed arms.
Emily’s eyes slid faster and faster until suddenly, she yanked Julie’s Poke Ball off of her belt and tossed it without even so much as a glance at where she intended to aim it.
Julie bursts from the ball. She spun around, trying to spot Eddy, but her efforts were fruitless. She grew long in the face as she slowly trotted towards Emily.
Emily groaned. “Eddy isn’t here. He ran away from me.”
Julie’s scream of rage nearly rattled the flying machine, sending razor-sharp leaves flying to and fro. Mantine and Falkner leapt out of the way of the leaves.
Emily’s lip slightly quivered, her hand obscuring her face, as she fought to clear the fog in her mind and reveal a plan to stop the madness.
“Julie! Stop!” Emily shouted. “He’ll come back. Nobody stays mad forever.”
Julie turned, slowly coming to a standstill, her eyes locked onto Emily. She then noticed Emily digging through her bag. From the bag, Emily produced a Mago Berry flavored Rare Candy.
Julie huffed, slowly devouring Emily’s peace offering. White sparks flew from her body. She then turned and leaped forward, making sure to face the Mantine.
“Julie! Use Reflect!” Emily yelled.
“Mantine! Use Headbutt!” Falkner shouted.
The Mantine fiercely glided towards Julie like a jet plane coming in for a landing. With a wink, Julie summoned a giant, glossy, pink window pane that flashed into existence while a ray of light drifted along its surface.
The Mantine slammed into her with every ounce of strength in its body. But she only drifted inches toward Emily with a slight flinch.
Falkner gave a faint smile. “Reflect. Not bad. But you’re going to need more than damage control to beat me.”
“Okay Julie! Use Razor Leaf!” Emily yelled.
“Mantine! Use Aerial Ace!”
Hundreds of razor-sharp leaves rocketed towards the Mantine as it glowed and rolled through the air up and down, side to side, dodging the leaves. Unfortunately, a horde of leaves pierced the belly of the Mantine, forcing a scream from its mouth and sending it hurtling to the ground. But just as its nose was about to kiss the ground, it lifted the tips of its wings and managed a wide backflip powerful enough to return it to its original position and allow it to float in place once again.
Falkner grinned. “Alright. Mantine! Agility!”
“Julie! Swords Dance!” Emily commanded.
Julie trotted in place, topping it off with a little spin, her body becoming red while upward pointing arrows draped her and ascended. The Mantine took the deepest breath it could muster, its body lightening more and more as it did so. Red arrows darted up its body.
Falkner said, “Alright Mantine! Use—”
“Julie use Razor Leaf again!” Emily shouted.
Julie did so and the Mantine fell to the ground, its eyes converted into black spirals. Falkner returned the Mantine to its ball and glared at Emily.
Julie shut her eyes tight, trotted in place, and squealed like she’d just won a lifetime supply of Moo Moo Milk, white sparking flying from her body. She dashed towards Emily and locked her into a tight hug.
“That was awesome Julie!” Emily exclaimed.
“Cutting someone off during a battle?” said Falkner. “Penalty!”
“What?” Emily yelled while throwing her hands down.
“That’s right,” Falkner responded. “Cut someone off during battle and you don’t get to use the Pokemon you had when you did it for the rest of the battle.”
“It’s so dumb,” Emily grumbled, returning Julie to her ball shortly after.
“Next time you do that, instant loss and no rematches for a week,” Falkner warned. Emily’s eyes widened and her jaw slammed to the ground. “Yeah. I don’t play around.”
Emily peered at her belt, selected Benny’s ball, and hurled it.
“Go! Crobat!” Falkner said, tossing its ball.
From the ball came a purple, bat-like creature as big as a basketball player with four wings, near microscopic feet, and a perpetual frown showcasing its pearly whites.
Falkner smiled. “Ah. Pitting a part Ground type Pokemon against a Pokemon immune to Ground type moves. Bold.”
“Thanks!” said Emily. “Now give ‘em a Water Gun, Benny!”
“Crobat! Use Bite!” said Falkner.
The Crobat spun high into the air like a tornado and swooped across the battlefield, its eyes laser-focused on Benny. Benny took a deep breath as a thick stream of raging water burst from his mouth. The stream soaked the wings of the Crobat, weighing them down to the point where they were no longer moveable.
The Crobat spun and trotted, its eyes darting in every which way. How would it maneuver? Falkner plucked a whistle from his pocket and put a great deal of elbow grease into his blow, the pitch of the whistle’s howl nearly cracking the glass of the camera lenses.
“Atten-tion!” Falkner yelled.
The Crobat drew its attention to Falkner and froze. Falkner walked toward the Crobat. Then, with his fingers, erased its tears.
“Take a breath,” Falkner whispers.
The Crobat slowly gathered air. Then, it released it at a matching pace.
“Remember when you were a little Zubat?” Falkner asked. “You had no eyes and sticks for legs. But you made it work, didn’t you?”
The Crobat nodded.
“Well, you have a way of making it work now. Hop. Hop as if you have springs on your feet, just like we practiced.”
The Crobat grinned and gave Falkner a fierce nod.
“Alright Crobat! Try Bite again!” Falkner commanded.
The Crobat spun towards Benny and hopped with all its might, its fangs all aglow.
“Dodge and use Water Gun!” said Emily.
Benny dashed toward the left side of the ship’s nest, twirled onto the railing, and ran across the entire undercarriage. With its short tail, he latches onto the closest camera support pole and spat a beam of water right in the Crobat’s face, forcing it to perform a backwards somersault and slam against the railing.
The Crobat moaned, repeating a pattern of rising to its feet and falling to the ground. Falkner slipped a small, orange spray bottle from his pocket and coated the Crobat in its contents. The Crobat spun into the air and, with a smile plastered on its face, held its wings outstretched.
“Crobat! Give it your all and use Aerial Ace!” Falkner shouted.
“Block it with Water Gun, Benny!” said Emily.
Benny spun like a sprinkler as a stream of densely packed water exploded from his mouth. Then, two large streams struck the Crobat, sending it into a tailspin. The Crobat’s face collided with the ground. After a small roll, black spirals appeared in place of its eyes, forcing Falkner to return it to its ball.
White sparks flew from Benny’s body. Then, a shiny, white glow coated Benny. Emily turned away. In a split-second flash, Emily gazed upon Benny once again.
He towered over her, his neck virtually indistinguishable from the rest of his body. Though he maintained his blue coloring, his purple branches were now gone. His paddle-shaped tail was now fuller and with a thin, black fin curving over its middle and forming into bumps upon reaching his back that was nearly covered in a large, wavy, purple marking.
Benny peered down. A gasp escaped him. He twirled towards Emily, his wide mouth arranged into a smile. He now had arms with three fingers on the ends of them.
“Wow!” Emily exclaimed.
Benny lunged at her and delivered a tight hug. Moments later, he clapped fast and clapped rough. He drummed on the railing, dashed about with his arms outstretched, and provided Falkner with a hug that was just as tight as Emily’s. A single tear glided down his face. Finally.
Falkner nudged Benny off of him and whistled. In seconds, the Noctowl from the gym’s office took flight and landed on Falkner’s arm moments later. The Noctowl nuzzled him.
He smiled. “Thank you. But let’s focus.”
The Noctowl flew away from his shoulder and flew in place.
“Noctowl! Use Hypnosis!” said Falkner.
“Yawn Benny!” Emily commanded.
Out of Benny’s mouth came a giant, fluffy cloud. It hurtled towards the many glowing pink rings released from the Noctowl’s eyes. The rings, however, flew through the cloud as if it was nothing more than butter standing up to a hot knife and smacked Benny in the face and stomach. Benny’s eyes gently shut and his body drooped to one side.
Emily threw off her bag and hastily rifled through it, hoping against all hope to find something that could wake Benny. Moments later, she stopped. Everything inside the bag was useless against the affliction. Emily sighed and returned Benny to his ball.
Emily looked to her belt. From it, she plucked the Skarmory’s ball and hurled it. The Skarmory exploded from the ball, a slight smile on its face.
“Two out of three? Not bad,” Falkner said.
Emily smiled. Her mind brought her back to the moment she researched information on Skarmory. A list of possible moves the Skarmory could know rolled like a reel on a slot machine. Emily’s mind locked onto a move.
“Okay Skarmory! Use Air Cutter!” Emily shouted.
The Skarmory hurtled into the air with glowing wings.
Falkner yelled, “Noctowl! Hypnosis again!” as the Skarmory launched hordes of razor-sharp wind gusts at it.
“Dodge Skarmory!” Emily said.
Giant pink rings flooded the battlefield, but the Skarmory rolled, looped, and spun through each one with just inches of space to spare.
“Try Swift Skarmory!” Emily suggested.
The Skarmory got behind the Noctowl and spun like a top, stars flying from its body. Star after star clobbered the Noctowl at a rapid pace.
As soon as the Skarmory was close to Emily, she hugged it. “That was so cool.”
The Skarmory smiled and a thought crossed its mind. Being with this girl wouldn’t be so bad. No more freezing, lonesome nights in the mountain nest. No more wondering whether it would obtain a next meal.
“Noctowl! Air Slash!” Falkner yelled.
Before Emily could deliver another command, the Noctowl curled into a ball, performed a somersault, and uncurled, lobbing a giant, light-blue orb directly at Emily and the Skarmory.
The ball knocked them off their feet. The Skarmory was flung upwards. Emily was sent headfirst over the edge of the flying machine.
“Skarmory!” Emily screamed with all her might, her legs and arms flailing uselessly as she plummeted to the ground.
Skarmory hopped onto the railing. With a great leap, it spread its wings and took flight.
On the ground, Eddy strolled along the path near the abandoned train station. Then, he heard a familiar scream and jerked his head to the sky. Emily was rapidly tumbling to the ground, the Skarmory darting to her aid, but still falling behind.
Every kind word she’d ever given him and every kind deed she’d ever done for him flashed in his mind nearly all at once. Eddy dashed up the path, through the streets of Ecruteak City, and towards a tower with nine navy-blue roofs and a thin, golden spire on top. Roof upon roof he leapt. He dove off once he reached the top roof.
Emily landed in his arms and he put her in a bear hug the moment she did. He, Emily, and the Skarmory reached the ground in one piece. Tears sprung from Eddy’s eyes.
“You came back!” Emily exclaimed. “Were you worried about me?”
Eddy nodded and tightened his hug. The Skarmory joined in on the hug.
Emily's head turned away from Eddy and the Skarmory. “Eddy, I’m sorry. I lost. I failed. I don’t know how to feel.”
Will Emily give herself another chance to face off against Falkner or will she give up on her quest to see her dad?