Final battle. Enjoy.
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The Wraith of Blaze #4: Ash VS Cinder
Written by Razorclaw X (spiceoflife@IEATSPAMhotmail.com)
http://www.crosswinds.net/~slythe/pokemon/index.html
Disclaimer: Pokemon belongs to Nintendo. Proper licenses
belong to respective properties and characters.
This file may be freely distributed so long as it appears
in its complete form and proper credit is given. No part may
be reproduced in part or whole for monetary/personal gain
without permission from the author.
Fair question: who is Cinder?
Fanart can be found at:
http://www.crosswinds.net/~slythe/fanart/index.html
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Pokemon League Final Tournament, Day 5
Gary exited the stadium, proud of his work on the
fifth elimination round.
For a moment, he missed the attention he got from his
'fan club,' a group of six girls that constantly cheered
Gary on no matter what kind of battle he was facing.
But, somewhere along the line he realized such cheer
was fleeting, and it was when Gary suffered defeat at
the Viridian Gym that it became hollow.
A whole year since that battle, Gary was a different
person.
In order to catch up with Ash, his longtime rival
who traveled to compete in the Orange League in the
Southern Islands, Gary reworked his training strategy
into something more cohesive, and at the same time
being particularly careful not to succumb to Ash's own
training tactics. Careful raising of each of his
myriad Pokemon was what would prove to Ash that a
small handful of Pokemon was not good enough when
the final cut came.
In fact, Ash had indeed lost the previous day to a
Gym Leader, when it was expected that Ash would turn
out to be the champion of the tournament. Losing early
made Gary upset a bit, because he wanted to test his
newfound techniques against his rival. However, due to
a dubious investigation, Ash has been reinstated back
into the tournament, and Gary knew he may get his
chance yet.
Ever since arriving for the final tournament six days
ago Gary noticed strange events going on, from the
apparent tampering with the tournament schedule lineup
to outright sabotage of trainers. While the entire point
of the Gym Leaders being involved was to weed out the
weak links, losing over half of them within the first
three days was ridiculous, and more than one person
suspected tampering.
It was for that reason an investigation was launched
the previous day, and they quickly turned up interesting
results. Among other trainers, two of eight suspected
trainers were Gym Leaders, both of whom were still in the
running, and were now eliminated due to the investigation.
Gary and a few others suspected this also was the work
of the saboteur, but there was no proof, and no
saboteur to find, for that matter.
Without surprise Gary was stopped by Surge, the Gym
Leader of Vermilion City, one of those eliminated in
the first round. He held a Pokeball in his hand, and wore
a big smile on his face, despite his elimination.
"Good job there, soldier!" Surge congratulated.
"Thanks," Gary replied. "But I'm guessing this isn't a
social call." Which would be typical of the former
soldier, he added silently.
"Apparently, the police has caught someone," the Gym
Leader explained. "I think you ought to be there and
help determine if this is the real guy."
"Is it the Rocket?" the younger trainer asked
hopefully, remembering what he and Surge found the night
before.
Surge nodded. "Seems he's the boss, or so the guys
who turned him in say. Funny thing is, he got turned in
by his own men."
Erika paced about in front of Ash, Brock, and Misty,
seated on the couch in her VIP room, Pikachu and Togepi
sitting on the floor.
"So you see," Brock explained, "we need to find Sabrina
and Cinder, and we think you know where Cinder is. If we
find him, we find Sabrina, too."
The Gym Leader paused to consider this. "I can't tell
you."
"Why not?!" demanded Ash.
"Don't get me wrong, Ash," Erika said, "it's not
because of what happened yesterday, but... I can't
tell you."
"Why are you hiding such a bad person?" Misty asked.
"If Sabrina gets hurt over this it'll be on your
head!" Brock pointed out.
"That's not true, because I really can't tell you,"
insisted the Gym Leader.
"But you've got to know at least SOMETHING!" Ash
pleaded.
"Even if it was for his own good, I wouldn't turn
Cinder in," Erika stated, staring off into the air.
"You just don't understand him."
"Well, we certainly won't if the only impression he's
going to give is kidnapping people," Brock said.
"A couple years back Cinder was mortally wounded in
a Pokemon battle," Erika explained. "He was found by
scientists and taken to their lab, where they saved
his life by turning him into a living weapon. When one
of the experiments got loose Cinder got away, and
became a trainer himself after rescuing a lab Pokemon
from the destruction."
She turned to face the trio. "Cinder thinks trainers
are to blame for Pokemons' lot in life, and is seeking
to 'liberate' them from 'slavery,' probably because he's
never met a decent trainer before. So he decided in
order to force trainers to change their ways he would
enter the Pokemon League tournament and make his case
heard."
"Sounds rather ambitious," Misty said in awe.
"And kidnapping the Gym Leaders was probably one of
the ways he thought he would get the League's attention,"
Brock deduced.
Erika nodded. "But I persuaded him that it wouldn't
work, and that's when he stopped. The police don't
know that the kidnapper is really Cinder because none
of us told them."
"Why not?" asked Ash.
"After a lot of talk we decided to give him a chance,"
the Gym Leader answered. "Of course, not all of us were
happy with that decision, particularly Sabrina, who
took it rather personally. So she became his biggest
enemy, and that's probably why they fought each other
last night."
"So what's he going to do with her now?" asked Misty.
Erika shook her head. "I can't say. I've never known
him to have gone that far before."
"And that's why we've got to find him and Sabrina,"
Ash said. "She's the last Gym Leader left in the
tournament, too."
"Pika-pi," Pikachu warned, tugging at Ash's leg.
"No, that's all right," Erika assured the electric
Pokemon. "I never thought through the consequences of
borrowing Cinder's Pokemon for the tournament."
"I'd say it's only wrong if you paid him," Brock
said.
"He lent them to me out of his own will," the she
replied. "Cinder was getting suspicious about the
tournament, so he thought he could help me out a bit.
And now, everybody thinks I'm a rich, spoiled brat
simply because I have money and got those Pokemon."
"It'll pass," Brock assured her. "When the truth
is sorted out, you'll come out fine."
"So I guess you won't help us turn in your friend,
then," Ash concluded, standing to his feet. "I guess
I wouldn't turn in Brock if he were in trouble,
either."
"Maybe," Erika said, as Brock and Misty got up in
turn.
"We'll just show ourselves out," Brock said, as he
headed for the door.
"Wait."
"Huh?"
"Cinder likes hot places."
"Hot places?" Ash repeated.
"I don't know if he's there for sure," Erika warned,
"but it's likely he's hiding in the caves under the
Victory Road. It's nice and warm down there, from what
I hear... probably even magma, too."
"Thanks, Erika," Ash said.
"You're just in time," Officer Jenny told Surge and
Gary, just as they walked into her office. "We were
just about ready to question them."
"Question who?" asked the Gym Leader.
"Team Rocket, of course," Jenny answered. Waving
the two toward her, she said, "This way."
The chief among the myriad Jennies lead Surge and
Gary through the office, through several doors and
around several cubicle desks, and finally to a sound-
proof room. The three took standing positions behind
a glass window, which Gary suspected was really a
one-way mirror.
At the moment there were only two Jennies in the
room, pacing around a rectangular, wooden table, all
four members of Team Rocket sitting on the side
opposite the door. Three of them Gary recognized as
being the ones who were at the Viridian City gym that
day long ago, while the fourth, a man dressed in the
traditional black Team Rocket uniform, sat arms-folded
with his hat tipped low.
"Just like I thought," he couldn't resist saying.
"Shhh! Be quiet," Jenny warned.
"So what's their story?" asked Surge.
"Apparently, these three," she explained, pointing to
Jessie, James, and Meowth, "are turning in their REAL
boss, him," pointing to the black-suited Rocket. "Even
when Blackie denies it, those three keep insisting on
it, so we retained them as well."
"You think it's a trick?" asked Gary.
"We'll find out soon," answered Jenny. "If they can
prove that Giovanni is not the boss of Team Rocket,
then I think it's a good start."
Obsidian shattered under the metallic heel of Cinder
as the cloaked wraith made his way closer to the
flowing, hot magma. He did not mind the heat; it was
a perfectly normal temperature for a resident of
Cinnabar Island, and he hardly shielded his eyes from
the intense glow as the fires beckoned him.
Cinder crushed more of the cooled magma as he dug
his metallic toes into the ground, looking for a
sensation that was no longer there. He sighed.
He produced the Trainerball that held Sabrina captive,
and studied over its yellow and black coloration. The
weapon designed to work on humans worked quite well,
and the Silph engineers were to be congratulated for
that. Of course, such weapons were illegal, but that
was beside the point.
Popping open the Trainerball, Sabrina materialized
before Cinder, bruised in some places, but still
conscious. The sudden burst of heat from the sudden
change in environment was not lost upon the psychic
Gym Leader, and she found herself shivering despite
herself.
"W...where am I?" Sabrina asked.
"Under the stadium, of course," answered Cinder.
"A wonderful hot zone where the legendary Moltres was
rumored to reside. The great bird is no longer here,
but it certainly left a comfortable home behind."
Moltres' lair, Sabrina repeated in her mind.
"If I had the inclination to remain here I would
choose this as my lair," continued the wraith.
"But, that is for later. What am I going to do with
a rival such as yourself?"
"You bastard," Sabrina spat. "Not until one of us
doesn't leave alive will I quit!"
"Oh, but don't get ahead of yourself," warned the
wraith, picking up Sabrina by the collar. With
crushing steps punctuating his words, Cinder added,
"You see, if I dispose of you here there will be no
body, either. Not one anyone could possibly identify,
of course, since you're going to join Mother Earth."
The psychic Gym Leader felt the heat of the magma
grow behind her. Risking a glance back, she realized
that Cinder was carrying her over a cliff, overlooking
a large stream of magma flowing in the cavern. Her
mind raced for a solution....
"And so we prove which of us is the better."
Sabrina started laughing. "Fool. Did you really
think it'd end like this?"
"I was disappointed about it, but you leave me no
choice."
"Look...." She pointed a finger behind the robed man.
"Cinder!"
Cinder glanced over his shoulder, where three kids
stood defiantly in the midst of obsidian. His
mechanical eye focused on the boy in the center.
"Ash."
"Let Sabrina go!" the boy demanded.
"I have no time for this!" the wraith cried, tossing
Sabrina away from the cliff. Her beaten body collapsed
easily, crushing obsidian as she landed.
"Now what?" Brock asked Ash.
Cinder threw all of his Pokeballs out before him.
"My followers will deal with you fools!"
One after another, six Pokemon formed in a line in
front of the wraith: Scyther, Kingler, Aerodactyl, the
horse-sized electrical spider creature Spidera, the
giant scorpion Scorpin, whose pincers were replaced by
metal shears and head protected by a reptilian skull,
and Omastar, the prehistoric Pokemon.
"Pokemon battle, eh?!" Ash cried, throwing Pokeballs
of his own. "Squirtle! Charizard! Bulbasaur! Snorlax!"
Misty three Pokeballs of her own. "Go, Staryu!
Dewgong! Starmie!"
In turn Brock shouted, "Geodude! Onix! Vulpix!
Rhyhorn!"
One after another, the trio's Pokemon materialized,
spread in their own line opposite that of Cinder.
Pikachu also stepped forward into the line with his
fellows.
But Cinder took a step back in terrified shock. "N...
no! Stay back!"
"Eh?!" the three said, confused.
"GET THAT THING AWAY FROM ME!!!" screamed Cinder.
It was then Brock noticed that Rhyhorn was getting
ready to charge the cloaked man. "Rhyhorn, what are you
doing?!"
But, paying no heed to its master's commands, or lack
thereof, Rhyhorn charged. Cinder's Pokemon moved to
intercept, but each and every one of them were knocked
aside from Rhyhorn's bulk and momentum.
In absolute terror Cinder threw flames at Rhyhorn, to
no effect.
"GET AWAY!!!"
"Rhyhorn, no!" Brock yelled.
The great Rhyhorn charged into Cinder and kept on
going.
That is, until there was no more ground left. Both
the terrified Cinder and Rhyhorn plummeted to their
fiery demise as the magma seemed to open up to
caress them.
"Cinder!" Ash and Misty yelled, rushing to the
edge of the cliff, despite the intense heat.
Both stared down at the magma, but had to shield their
eyes and fall back due to the intense light and heat.
All six of Cinder's Pokemon watched them, not stopping
Ash and Misty.
"I don't believe it," Ash said, feeling numb.
Brock lifted Sabrina up, throwing her arm over his
shoulder. "There's no way anybody could survive that.
Except for Rhyhorn, that is."
"Rhyhorn?" echoed Misty.
"Didn't you know?" the Pokemon breeder said. "Rhyhorn
and Rhydon's armor plating is so thick they can survive
intense heat, such as magma. It's just that I'm not sure
if it's going to come back."
"Mmmm... no..." Sabrina moaned.
"Sabrina!" Ash exclaimed. "You're going to be fine!"
That's not it, he heard her say in his mind.
"Yeaaaahhh!!"
"What is it, Ash?" asked Misty.
"I'm hearing Sabrina in my head!"
Cinder lives....
"That's impossible!"
"Hey, I can hear it, too," Brock noted.
"Same here," Misty said. "But how could Cinder
survive that magma?"
You don't know Cinder... not as much as I. He is far
craftier than that... because he's psychic.
"Cinder's psychic, too?" Ash said in amazement.
But, that's not all....
Rumbling underfoot forcefully caused Sabrina to
break her mental contact. The obsidian chunks the
humans and Pokemon stood upon shook and shattered
under them as a minor earthquake passed through.
"W...what's that?!" Ash cried.
A column of liquid fire burst from the magma stream
below them, and the attentions of both human and
Pokemon alike was to that flame. Each one of them
shielded their eyes from the intense light and heat,
but the Pokemon ran for cover as a heavy shape came
flying at them.
Tumbling through the obsidian Rhyhorn rolled
past the humans, coming to a stop several meters
away from the cliff edge.
"Rhyhorn?!" Brock yelled. "What the...?!"
In a bright flash of light, Rhyhorn evolved into
Rhydon.
"Rhyhorn evolved!" the breeder finished.
The evolved Pokemon's eyes narrowed, staring
past his trainer back to the column of fire. All
eyes in turn faced the magma pillar, as a dark
shape could be made out within.
The creature of my nightmares.... they all heard
in their heads, is no more!
In an instant the magma pillar dissolved into
nothingness, falling down to the stream below,
revealing a glowing flaming form. Where hands and
feet should have been were steel claws, the fingers
made up of nail-like talons that looked as if they
could crush reinforced steel easily. Durable hoses
ran from each arm to the creature's back. Its tail
ended with four razor-sharp nails, engulfed in an
eternal flame. The lower jaw of the monster was
gone, replaced by a steel jaw, and the left eye
replaced by a large, red mechanical eye. Two ceaseless
flames danced over the creature's eyes in a manner
similar to its tail. Pieces and patches of metallic
armor decorated the creature's body.
Floating in the air, covered in even the flames
born from within, Ash whispered, "Cinder?!"
In his disturbingly metallic tone, the revealed
wraith simply said, "Maaaaggggmaaarrr...."
Having removed Billy from the room, one Jenny
approached the remaining members of Team Rocket with
a set of forms in her hand. Placing them in front
of Jessie, she said, "You're willing to tell a court
that Billy is indeed the leader of Team Rocket?"
Jessie nodded. "As far as I'm concerned he is."
"Of course, not for long," added James.
"But he's still not cracking," Jenny said. "So it's
just your word against his, and that gets us nowhere.
We can't really charge him with anything without some
sort of proof."
"The only way to get it out of him for sure is to
trick him," Surge said as he entered the room. Gary
and the chief followed close behind.
"You're the Gym Leader," Jessie said in recognition.
"You got that right," he replied. "I've worked quite
a few jobs during the war, and one of the main things
that worked was psychological warfare."
"That's brilliant!" James exclaimed.
"But what's that got to do with us?" Meowth asked.
"We can cut a deal," the chief Jenny answered. "If
you three can help us out, then we'll drop all charges
against you and everybody else falsely-accused."
"Sounds like a plan to me," Jessie said.
"Cinder is a Pokemon?!" Misty gasped in surprise.
The rebuilt Magmar, cloaked in flames, levitated in
place, arms folded. "Is it any wonder that the master
of the Pokemon Legion is a Pokemon himself? Did you
truly believe you could DESTROY me, in the earth that
gave BIRTH to me?!"
"Until I came to the tournament, I believed that no
trainer existed that could possibly not treat his
Pokemon as slaves," the wraith continued. "But I saw
differently... no, such trainers are more the rule
and not the exception. But, in place of that, there
are those trainers that shun others... the different
is feared, and must be eliminated! THAT is why the
trainer is human, and not the monster."
"That's not true!" Ash shouted, but Cinder hardly
listened.
Cinder pointed a talon at Ash. "Go, my Legion!
Wipe them out... all of them!"
Scyther, Aerodactyl, Kingler, Scorpin, Spidera, and
Omastar roared as one, and charged into battle.
In turn, the humans' Pokemon charged as well, the
numerical odds in their favor.
But where the Legion's numbers were sorely lacking
they made up that shortcoming with skill and power.
Omastar gushed out Hydro Pump at the evolved
Rhydon, Onix, and Geodude, taking on all three at
once with great skill and precision.
Spidera shot sticky strands of webbing at Staryu
and Dewgong, sending electric pulses through the
webbing for a shocking surprise.
Kingler sparred with Ash's Bulbasaur, neither
gaining a significant advantage over the other.
Scyther played a deadly dance against the gigantic
Snorlax, one-on-one, with Snorlax failing to score
hits against the ninja-like Pokemon.
Aerodactyl battled against Squirtle, Vulpix, and
Starmie, all three trying to shoot down the
prehistoric monster.
Scorpin raised its tail and smashed Charizard with
metal claws, favoring jabs rather than cuts. But
Charizard was hardly standing still and landed a few
blows of its own.
Surging with flaming energy, Cinder rocketed over the
battling Pokemon, straight for Ash.
"Ash!!" Brock and Misty yelled in warning.
Flaming a steel fist, the wraith screamed, "DIIEE!!!"
But he stopped in his tracks in mid-air, just in time
to avoid flying into a curtain of lightning. Seething in
anger, he stared down at Pikachu, putting out millions
of volts of electrical power, and giving time for Ash
to bolt for safety.
"YOU LITTLE RUNT!" Cinder yelled, directing his anger
at Pikachu instead of the human. Pointing both arms
palms downward, he fired dual jets of flame at the
electrical mouse.
Pikachu darted, releasing the lightning curtain just
in time to avoid the double Flamethrower attack. He
turned and fired a Thunderbolt at Cinder, but the
intense heat field surrounding the wraith proved too
much for the electrical attack. In retaliation Cinder
launched a Fire Blast, throwing Pikachu back with
great force.
"Pikachu!" Ash cried.
But from behind Charizard knocked Cinder out of the
air with a mighty lash from its tail. Behind Ash's Fire
Pokemon the Legion Pokemon dealt with a switch-off in
mid battle to compensate for Charizard's confrontation
of the metal Magmar.
Rolling away from Charizard, Cinder recovered from the
surprise blow, crushing more obsidian as he stood up.
"I see. A true warrior among children!"
Charizard roared in delight, beckoning Cinder forward
with one claw.
With too many Pokemon to direct in the battle, the
three trainers carried Sabrina to a safe distance,
watching the battle from afar.
"You can do it!" Ash shouted.
Cinder and Charizard circled each other, gauging each
other's strengths as the other Pokemon battled around
them. Charizard opened its mouth and initiated a
Flamethrower attack, while Cinder raised both his arms
and fired two Flamethrowers of his own.
The flames of both attacks met at the midpoint, but
it was clear that Cinder's Flamethrowers would prevail.
Dodging to the side, Charizard abandoned the attack,
and rushed forward with claws ready to Slash.
The wraith dodged the Slash attack, then launched
a Fire Punch into the great lizard's midsection. In
anger Charizard Skull Bashed Cinder over the head,
sending him reeling long enough to throw yet another
Flamethrower.
Cupping his metal claws together, Cinder threw a
Fire Blast. This time Charizard had no time to escape
the attack, and caught the blast in full.
"My flame is much more powerful than yours, foolish
lizard!" taunted the wraith. "If you can't play with
fire, you'd better quit now!"
Charizard snarled in response as it got up to its
feet. Spreading wings, the Fire Pokemon catapulted
itself into a low-level dive attack, smashing into
Cinder with its head, and taking off.
The wraith grabbed hold of one of Charizard's horns
with one claw and banged on its head with the other,
successfully forcing Charizard to crash into the
obsidian floor. The crash threw Cinder away from the
fallen Charizard, giving it enough time to recover.
Cinder Slashed with his metal claws as Charizard
did the same; both Fire Pokemon took turns blocking
and attacking, neither gaining an advantage from all
appearances.
But a tail strike from over Cinder's shoulder
more than evened the odds in the wraith's favor, a
virtual third arm to Slash with. In an attempt to
compensate Charizard attempted to Bite the tail, but
the tail was far more flexible and dexterous than
Charizard's long neck.
Instead, Charizard fired a Flamethrower into Cinder's
face, momentarily forcing the attack to cease. It was
that moment the great lizard needed to turn the battle
in its favor as Charizard grabbed the metal Magmar's
tail, and threw him.
Cinder slid through obsidian face-first, but the
metal jaw served to his advantage now, as he got back
up to his feet virtually unhurt.
He brushed off the obsidian stuck in his chest. "I
admire your strength, creature, but if strength were
the only deciding factor...." Cinder's single organic
eye closed, and the mechanical eye rotated in place.
Blue energies surrounded Charizard, who roared in
surprise as it was lifted into the air by psychic
power.
"No way!" Ash cried in disbelief. "I know for a fact
that Magmar isn't a Psychic-type!"
"They're not," Brock said. "But I think I know what
it is, from my studies."
"Huh?"
"Apparently Magmar's mind works in a fashion that it
can be trained to use Psychic attacks, given the proper
equipment," explained the Pokemon Breeder.
"And Erika said Cinder was created to be a living
weapon," added Misty.
"So that must mean they also trained him mentally as
well as physically!" concluded Brock.
"Oh no!" Ash moaned.
"T...there's a way," Sabrina whispered, struggling to
speak.
"Sabrina?"
"I brought... a Master Ball...."
Producing the Master Ball, Ash looked at it. "Yeah, I
found it out in the stadium. What's in it?"
"Don't be stupid!" Sabrina hissed. "That's meant... for
Cinder!"
"Cinder?" repeated Misty.
"Then why didn't YOU use it?" wondered Brock.
"Stupid pride," answered the Gym Leader. She grabbed
Ash's arm. "Finish it!!"
"Okay," Ash replied, "but I'm not sure if it's going
to work on something that's only half-Pokemon...."
He glanced back to where Cinder was throwing Charizard
with his mind, and saw that the metal Magmar was unleashing
a Psywave.
Winding up his arm, Ash shouted, "Here goes nothing!" He
threw the Master Ball at Cinder.
Realizing the new danger too late, Cinder ceased in his
psionic assault. "GAAAAAHHH!!!"
He raised his arms up and fired.
As soon as Billy was certain he wasn't being followed,
he slipped off into the woods.
He cursed the two white-suited Rockets and their
Meowth. If he didn't know any better he'd have sworn that
those three were so devoted to Giovanni that they were
blind and stupid.
Billy found the hidden camp he made in the woods, which
was located far from the camp he ordered the three
Rocket flunkies to make. Throwing a green tarp off from
over the hidden communications equipment, Billy took a
seat at the radio transmitter, and flipped it on.
Taking care to scramble the frequencies first, Billy
said into the microphone, "It's Billy."
"Report," the voice from the other end of the
transmission ordered. "You're later than usual."
Billy winced at the sound of the scrambled voice. "I
had a little problem. The three flunkies tried to turn
me in, but without any evidence the cops had to let me
go. They kept the three for filing purposes, but I'm glad
to be rid of them. They can't prove I sabotaged the
tournament, and if anything it'll point to those three
because I used THEIR Pokemon to do the jobs."
"And Giovanni?"
"He hasn't been located since he disappeared yesterday,
after I planted that evidence in his room. The moment he
turns up, however...."
"Excellent. Then our deal may go as planned, without
Giovanni's interference."
"Oh, of course," Billy agreed. "As soon as Team Rocket
crumbles after Giovanni's capture, all you have to do is
walk in without anyone to interfere with operations."
"Yes."
"So, when are you going to extract me? I'm getting
tired of being a Rocket."
"Very soon. The helicopter that's your ride should be
at your location shortly."
As if on cue, Billy heard the sound of the spinning
blades of the helicopter, high above the trees. The black
Rocket turned on a signal beam, and watched and waited
as a rope ladder was thrown down to him.
"We'll be seeing you shortly," the scrambled voice said.
"Take off in the 'copter, and we'll take care of the rest."
"Thank you, sir," Billy said, turning off the radio.
After a few moments the rope ladder was within reach,
and so the traitorous Rocket climbed up as the luxury
helicopter ascended. Thoughts of money filled his mind and
soon Billy was in the 'copter.
He shut the door behind him, and fastened his seatbelt,
but shutting the door only served to kill all lights in
the 'copter.
"What's going on?!" he yelled.
"Oh, nothing, really," a familiar voice answered. "Just
that you're going for a long detour."
As soon as the lights flickered on in the 'copter's
cabinet, Billy yelped in surprise as he saw Giovanni
sitting in the seat across from him, holding a gun leveled
at his face. Persian sat next to the boss of Team Rocket,
only scorn showing on its face, as usual.
With his free hand Giovanni picked up a microphone.
His voice, transmitted through the speakers next to him,
was scrambled. "Did you like our little deception?"
Billy's eyes opened wider in shock. "Y...you set me
up!"
"Actually, I think it was the other way around," the
Gym Leader said, shutting off the voice scrambler. "You
set ME up."
"So what're you going to do, shoot me? You'll only be
worse off when the police catch you!"
"Oh no, never something as crude as that," assured
Giovanni. "You see, the reason I 'fled' was simply because
I was working WITH the police from the start, ever since
you began your little campaign of terror. I had already
proved my innocence, after all, but allowed the officers
to keep quiet about it in order to pull off this
deception. You're the big fish, after all."
"We got it all on tape," Jenny said, entering the
passenger cabin. Following behind her were Jessie, James,
Meowth, Gary, and Surge.
"Y...you all tricked me!" Billy yelled angrily.
"Your trick was hardly tasteful," Giovanni pointed out.
The black Rocket looked at the other three Rockets in
shocked surprise. "How long did YOU know?!"
"They just told us," Meowth answered. "All we had to do
to get all our charges dropped was get you to confess!"
"With my assistance, of course," added Giovanni.
"Not to mention we figured out your plans," Surge said.
"You really can't hide equipment like yours from my
Pokemon and my army training. Gary and I found them last
night."
"So after we found out the whole story we easily set
this up," finished Giovanni.
Jenny put handcuffs on Billy. "Looks like after getting
you we ran across something bigger. Too bad we can't get
your friends on this, too, but at least we know to look
for them."
The arrested Rocket snarled toward the Viridian City
Gym Leader. "You can't get away with this!"
"Oh, but I already have," he assured Billy. "That's why
you NEVER bet against Giovanni."
Ash, Brock, and Misty applauded as they watched Sabrina
defeat her fifth opponent on the television set at the
Pokemon Center. All of the trio's Pokemon needed time to
recover from the great fight with Cinder's Pokemon
Legion, and they barely got back to the stadium in time
for Sabrina's match to start.
Even when she stepped into the stadium, she assured
them she was okay, using psychic healing techniques on
herself, and her Pokemon did the same. Apparently, even
when injured her Pokemon were still extremely skilled
and powerful.
When Ash captured Cinder in the Master Ball, the six
monsters that made up the Legion scattered rather than
be captured or surrender. He had no idea where any of
the Legion disappeared to, or where they were going, but
Ash was disappointed he couldn't catch any of them,
particularly the foreign Spidera and Scorpin.
For a moment, he regretted that Cinder would no longer
participate in the tournament, but fighting him in a
real life-or-death battle was enough.
After the tournaments were concluded that day another
special news report was held in the conference hall.
Just as the day before, the room was crowded with
reporters and other attendees, while it was reaching the
rest of the attendees through the League's localized
cable feed.
Lance stood behind the podium, just as the day before,
this time in apparently brighter spirits.
"For five days," he began, "I'm sure many of you have
heard about the alleged sabotaging of the tournament.
Well, I am happy to announce that it's over."
He allowed a wave of murmurs to pass through the
gathered crowd. "We now have the perpetrator in police
custody, and the tournament can proceed as normal.
However, I would like to personally apologize to any
and all trainers affected by this and were eliminated
for it; we are sorry to say that you cannot participate
further in the tournament."
Even more words passed in the audience, some people
even calling out names to the Dragon trainer.
"The tournament will continue with any and all
remaining contestants," Lance said. However, it is to
the League's decision that Gym deeds will NOT be
recirculated this year."
This time members of the crowd cheered, while some
still made angry calls.
"At this time we are reevaluating the Gym system,
and until further notice all existing Gyms will retain
their status."
Erika smiled to herself as she heard those words
leave Lance's lips on the television screen. Nearly
a week full of frustration was about to end.
She wiped a tear from her eye, remembering that Cinder
had forfeited his match that afternoon, which meant
that Ash and his friends managed to defeat him to the
point where he could not recover in time... if at all.
If there was anything in the world that Cinder and
Erika shared was a mutual fear of a certain Pokemon;
while Erika feared Grimer since she was a little girl,
Cinder feared Rhyhorn since one tried to Stomp him to
death. And, strangely enough, the event for both of
them ended with meeting lifelong friends and partners;
for Erika, it was Gloom, and for Cinder, Omastar.
The Gym Leader wished she knew what happened to
Cinder. For a moment, she wondered if Ash ever got to
see his true face.
Pokemon League Final Tournament, Day 7
In traditional League tournament rules the elimination
rounds took place over the course of a week, with the
seventh and eight matches taking place on the same
day, since there were only four matches left by the
time the seventh round came about, and only two people
left to compete in the eighth and final round.
Sabrina had lost her match earlier in the day, during
the seventh round elimination. The seventh round was
long since over, and it left but three hours for the
two lucky trainers to duke it out in the final match.
It was to no surprise to Ash when he stood ready for
combat in the final elimination round that his opponent
would be Gary. Pikachu stood at Ash's side, determination
in his little black eyes.
"Saved the best for last," Gary said. "Finally, I can
show you who's the number one!"
"I'm surprised you held out so long," Ash taunted,
"with your training techniques and all. I've proved many
times over that my training techniques are better!"
"We'll see about that, Ash!" the other boy shouted
back. "You see, while you were playing parades in the
Orange League, I've been doing some training of my
own. Not only have I refined my technique, but it's
better than yours!"
It was to the option of the parties involved in the
final round how many Pokemon would be used in the
battle, the default being three, and the maximum being
six. Both Ash and Gary agreed to a six-on-six battle,
which would prove to be a long and interesting match.
Points were awarded on nothing short than a complete
knockout of the opposing Pokemon. While victory was
only possible when one person scored six points, under
certain circumstances the trainer with the highest score
by the end of the battle would be declared the winner.
There was nothing more to be said between the two
rivals from Pallet Town; it would be decided in one
grand battle.
Turning his hat backward, Ash threw his first Pokeball
into the battle arena. "Snorlax, I choose you!"
Gary threw in his Pokeball in turn, "Go, Sandslash!"
Dwarfed by the hulking Snorlax, Sandslash looked no
less menacing, brandishing its sharp claws. The
larger Pokemon looked down at the rodent, and looked
about ready to Stomp on it.
"Now, Ash, we'll see which of us has the advantage!"
Gary shouted. "Sandslash, burrow underground!"
Shoveling the ground of the arena with surprising
speed, Sandslash dug a hole large enough for it to
sink into.
"Snorlax, Stomp the ground!" Ash commanded. "That
ought to get Sandslash to come out!"
The large Pokemon complied, lifting its heavy foot
and crashing it to the arena grounds, sending vibrations
throughout the stadium.
Gary folded his arms. "Is that all? Sandslash,
Fissure attack!"
The rumbling became even greater, and Ash yelped in
shock as he realized that Snorlax wasn't the one that
was making it. The earth crackled in a perfect
circle around Snorlax, and eventually caved-in,
sending all the hundreds of pounds of Snorlax
tumbling into the newly-created fissure in the earth.
Sandslash jumped out of the hole just as Snorlax
disappeared.
"Sandslash is the winner!" announced the judge.
Ash stared into the hole in shock, but the hole
began to collapse on itself, closing the fissure.
Holding out an empty Pokeball, he recalled Snorlax.
"Snorlax, return!"
"Ha-ha!" laughed Gary. "That was TOO easy!"
"Well, I've got a Pokemon that could take on that
sneaky Sandslash any day!" Ash shouted back, tossing
his second Pokeball. "Squirtle, go!"
"Squirtle!" the Water Pokemon cried as it materialized
from its Pokeball.
"Use your Water Gun!"
Squirtle sucked in air, then spat a stream of highly-
pressured water at Sandslash. The Ground Pokemon
recoiled from the attack, trying to shield itself with
its large claws.
"You're so naive, Ash!" Gary taunted, raising a
Pokeball. "Sandslash, return!"
A tight beam jumped from the Pokeball, enveloping
Sandslash, and dematerializing it in a flash.
In turn he threw another Pokeball. "Magneton! Get'm!"
The three linked Magnemites materialized in the air,
hovering low over the ground, electrical energy
crackling between its polarized magnets. Three large
eyes stared down Squirtle menacingly.
"Now, Magneton," Gary ordered, "give that Squirtle
the shock of its life! Thunder attack!"
Forming a triangle of electrical power, Magneton
launched a violent Thunder attack against Squirtle,
catching the Water Pokemon in a curtain of lightning.
Squirtle was knocked-out before the attack completed
its course.
"Magneton is the winner!" the judge announced.
Ash balled his free fist as he recalled Squirtle into
its Pokeball. "At this rate Gary's going to beat me!"
Throwing a third Pokeball into the arena, he cried,
"Go, Muk!"
The sludge Pokemon materialized, gaping its mouth wide
open, arms raised.
"Sludge attack!" Ash ordered.
"Magneton, Thunderbolt!" Gary commanded Magneton.
Heavy Sludge flew in a large arc over toward Magneton,
who fired another electrical attack. However, the
slimy nature of Muk resisted the electrical attack,
and the Sludge attack slammed into Magneton full-on,
forcing it from the air.
"Muk is the winner!"
Ash leaped with joy. "Yes!"
"That's just ONE point!" Gary pointed out, recalling
Magneton. He threw another Pokeball into the arena.
"Now, Exeggutor, show that brash kid who's the real
master!"
The three-headed, palm-tree-like Pokemon materialized
before Gary, stomping in place eagerly.
"Big mistake!" Ash cried. "I thought you knew Poison
Pokemon had an advantage over Grass Pokemon!" To Muk,
he ordered, "Sludge attack!"
Heaving another glob of itself, Muk threw Sludge at
Exeggutor. However, the Grass Pokemon hardly stood
still, and in a blink of an eye Exeggutor vanished into
thin air.
"Ah?!" Ash yelped.
At the same moment Exeggutor teleported behind Muk.
"Good job!" Gary encouraged his Pokemon. "Use Sleep
Powder!"
Shaking its head, the Grass Pokemon shook its Sleep
Powder from its leaves, spreading it over Muk, and
forcing the Poison Pokemon into a slumber.
"No way!" Ash cried, holding out a Pokeball. "Muk,
return!"
Gary laughed. "I see you finally had the gall to
recall your Pokemon, Ash! But I'm still ahead of you by
a mile!"
"Then I'll play Grass with Grass! Bulbasaur, I choose
you!"
"Bulbasaur!" the Grass Pokemon cried as it materialized
from its Pokeball.
"That Bulbasaur's weak!" Gary turned to Exeggutor. "Use
your Psychic attack!"
Butting its three heads together, Gary's Pokemon bathed
Bulbasaur with blue psychic energies, lifting it off the
ground.
"Don't let Exeggutor finish!" Ash shouted. "Vine Whip!"
Unleashing two vines, Bulbasaur slapped two of
Exeggutor's faces, breaking their train of thought. At
the same time Ash's Pokemon gathered sunlight as it fell
to the ground.
"Solar Beam!" Ash ordered.
"Stomp Bulbasaur!" Gary shouted in desperation.
But it was too late, as Bulbasaur completed its attack
cycle, emitting a beam of pure sun and pushing Exeggutor
back, and out of the arena.
Although Exeggutor was still ready and active, it was
also standing out of bounds. The judge announced, "The
winner is Bulbasaur by default!"
Gary clenched his fists in anger. "Technicalities,
Ash! Exeggutor, return!"
"Arcanine, finish that Bulbasaur!" he shouted, tossing
in another Pokeball.
The flaming dog Pokemon roared in anticipation.
"Fire Blast!"
Ash jumped in surprise as Bulbasaur got fried from the
intense fire attack made by Arcanine.
"Arcanine is the winner!" the judge announced. "Current
totals: Gary leads with three, Ash behind with two."
"And that's the way it's going to stay!" Gary taunted.
"Always one step behind me!"
"Not for long!" assured Ash, recalling Bulbasaur. "Now,
Charizard! Show Gary what a Fire Pokemon can really do!"
Ash's Pokemon roared as it materialized in the arena.
"Flamethrower!" both trainers shouted to their monsters.
Charizard and Arcanine fired at once, belching flames
of such intensity that it forced both trainers, and the
audience in the stadium, to shield their eyes. A large
explosion erupted between the two Fire Pokemon, but when
the dust settled neither Pokemon held the advantage.
"That Charizard of yours is very impressive!" noted
Gary, holding out a Pokeball. "You never got that little
Charmander back at Grandpa's did you?"
"I got Charizard myself!" Ash proclaimed proudly. "I
didn't need it handed to me!"
"That's strange," Gary said, "I've always thought the
longer you had a Pokemon, the stronger the bond! So...
Arcanine, return!"
Arcanine let out a low roar of disappointment as it
dematerialized back into the Pokeball in Gary's hand.
"And so, Ash," he said, "this is where we finish it
for real!" Gary threw a fresh Pokeball into the arena.
"Blastoise! Show him how long and hard you've trained!"
The great turtle Pokemon emerged, leveling its two
shoulder cannons at Charizard, a smirk forming across
its beak.
"Hydro Pump!" Gary shouted.
Jetting out high-pressure water from its shoulder
cannons, Blastoise attacked. Charizard reacted by using
another Flamethrower attack, and when it seemed as if
Charizard would lose the Flamethrower heated the water
attack fast enough that all that attacked it was very
hot steam.
"I learned," Ash said, "that even when using Pokemon
with advantages over each other, it's nothing if the
disadvantaged Pokemon is too strong! Charizard, Fire
Spin!"
But Gary was smiling. "You're so gullible, Ash! Even
if your Charizard IS stronger.... Blastoise! Blizzard
attack!"
As Charizard spun in place in preparation for its Fire
Spin, Blastoise leveled its cannons at the Fire Pokemon
once more, this time unleashing shards of ice. The
Blizzard attack, which normally would have melted before
ever reaching Charizard, flew through the Fire Spin
unaffected!
"Ah?!" Ash cried.
"Looks like MY Ice attack was too much for your Fire
Pokemon!" Gary taunted, as Charizard was being frozen
solid by the Blizzard attack.
Ash wanted Charizard to melt the ice building around
it, but from his standing position he knew that the
freezing was far more intense than usual.
"Blastoise is the winner!" cried the judge.
Looking down at Pikachu, Ash said, "It's all up to you
now!"
"Pika!"
"That Pikachu!" Gary cried, laughing. "What're you
going to do, shock Blastoise?!"
"Thunderbolt!" ordered Ash.
"Pi...ka...chu!!" A mighty bolt of electricity fired
past the frozen Charizard, and directly at Blastoise.
But, to the surprise of everyone except Gary and his
Pokemon, the electrical attack had no effect!
"No way!" Ash cried in disbelief. "Water-types are
WEAK to electricity!"
"Show him your secret, Blastoise!" the other trainer
ordered.
Blastoise turned in a quarter circle, revealing a
spike attached to its tail that was planted in the
ground.
"He artificially-grounded his Blastoise?!" Ash
realized. "No way!"
"I learned this trick from Surge!" Gary said proudly.
"Raichu can't use its own electrical attacks without
grounding itself with its tail to prevent shocking
itself, so why not with my Blastoise?"
"That's a dirty trick!"
"But it IS legal in the League!"
Turning to Pikachu, Ash said, "You're going to have
to use non-electric attacks for this one!"
Pikachu nodded, dashing ahead for a Quick Attack.
"Finish it off, Blastoise!" Gary ordered. "Skull
Bash!"
Rearing its head into its shell, Blastoise waited
until Pikachu was close enough to hit.
Despite not being present at the stadium, Erika
nevertheless applauded Gary's victory over Ash,
sitting in her couch in front of the television set.
"I never thought he'd be the one to do it," she
admitted aloud. "It seems both of them... rivals, have
come quite a long way."
"Indeed they have," a cold, metallic voice replied.
She faced the metal Magmar curiously. "So now that
it's all over, what're you going to do now?"
Cinder scratched his metallic chin for a moment.
After narrowly-escaping the Master Ball with a last-
minute Teleport, the wraith hid himself from Ash and
everyone else but Erika, not wishing to have news of
his true nature spread while without a replacement
disguise. After persuading from the Gym Leader Cinder
agreed to allow the Pokemon League tournament to
finish before deciding on what to do.
Either way, Ash probably still thought he was locked
away in the Master Ball. That is, of course, until he
got around to looking in it.
"I think I'll travel a bit more," the wraith
decided. "Other than the monsters that have joined me
there must be others.... And when I've trained them
and myself enough, I'll hunt down Ash and challenge
him again. Our battle ended prematurely due to his
treachery, but I swear I will finish it, and emerge
victorious."
------------------------------------------------
Author's Notes
The truth of Cinder's identity revealed at last! If
it was a surprise you probably weren't paying attention
to the minor detail hints given away in Erika VS
Cinder, for if you put the pieces together you should
have known this for a while.
The Pokemon League tournament may be over, but the
quest to become a Pokemon Master goes on... in more
ways than one. Whether Cinder and his Pokemon Legion
will return remains to be seen, and when that time
comes all bets are off.
---------POKEMON ROSTER----------
Name: Ash Ketchum (Orange League Champion)
Pokemon: Pikachu, Charizard, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Snorlax
Stored: Kingler, Muk, etc.
Name: Gary Oak (Professor Oak's grandson)
Pokemon: Blastoise, Magneton, Arcanine, Sandslash,
Exeggutor, Alakazam
Stored: Kingler, Fearow, Rhydon, Jolteon, Pidgeot,
Gyarados, Cloyster, Nidoking, Ninetails, etc.
Name: Cinder (The Wraith of Blaze)
Pokemon: Scyther, Kingler, Omastar, Aerodactyl, Scorpin
(new; see below), Spidera (new; see below)
Stored: Venomoth, Tentacruel, Beedrill, Parasect, Pinsir,
Electabuzz, Magmar, Cloyster, Kabutops, etc.
Name: Brock (Rock Gym)
Pokemon: Graveler, Geodude, Onix, Vulpix, Zubat, Rhyhorn
Name: Misty (Water Gym)
Pokemon: Staryu, Starmie, Togepi, Psyduck, Goldeen, Dewgong
Name: Erika (Grass Gym)
Pokemon: Gloom, Victreebel, Tangela, Ivysaur, Exeggcute
Stored: Vileplume, Clefairy, Wigglytuff, Dratini
Name: Sabrina (Psychic Gym)
Pokemon: Alakazam, Mr. Mime, Kadabra, Porygon, Jynx, Hypno
Stored: Exeggcutor, Slowbro, Abra
Name: Giovanni (Ground Gym; Team Rocket)
Pokemon: Gyarados, Nidoking, Cloyster, Electabuzz, Rhydon
Stored: Persian, Kingler, Machamp, Nidoqueen, Dugtrio, etc.
Name: Jessie (Team Rocket)
Pokemon: Arbok, Lickitung, Tauros, Meowth
Name: James (Team Rocket)
Pokemon: Weezing, Victreebel, Raticate, Farfetch'd
---------POKEDEX ENTRY-----------
Basic Pokemon
Spidera
Spider Pokemon
Bug/Electric
No. 690, Level 6; Evolves at Level 23 (Spidek)
Length: ???',???", Weight: ??? lbs.
Skill Level
----- -----
Tackle -
String Shot -
Thundershock 9
Thunder Wave 13
* Absorb 20
* Thunderbolt 24
* Agility 32
* Thunder 45
Spins sticky webs in order to catch prey. Usually
sends electric shocks through its webbing.
---------------------------------
---------POKEDEX ENTRY-----------
Basic Pokemon
Scorpin
Scorpion Pokemon
Bug/Ground
No. 693, Level 7; Evolves at Level 25 (Skullpin)
Length: ???',???", Weight: ??? lbs.
Skill Level
----- -----
Scratch -
Sand Attack -
Poison Stinger 8
* Swords Dance 15
Twineedle 21
* Slash 28
* Earthquake 36
* Guillotine 48
It's stinger and pincers are made of stainless steel.
Wears a strange reptilian helmet of unknown origin.
---------------------------------
Razorclaw X
http://www.crosswinds.net/~slythe/pokemon/index.html
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