Art of War: Game of Chess

Chapter- 42: The Qualification Question

"The Qualifier Round is past, so the next round is between Trainers Jeanette Fisher and Ash Ketchum. This is a three- on- three Battle, and once again, no substitutions."
Jeanette Fisher had earned a lot of recognition for being able to defeat Gary Oak, a.k.a. Ash's rival, in the first round. Gary had been capable enough, but Jeanette Fisher had defeated him, 3- 0. If Jeanette was defeated, Ash would face Assunta to qualify for the next round.
Gary had been apoplectic when he had been defeated. Cursing and crying, he stormed out of the stadium, thoroughly beaten. Most of the Trainers in this Conference treated their Pokémon like tools, and Jeanette Fisher was no different. Her main team consisted of Scizor, Victreebell and Gloom.
"A Scizor has appeared on the battlefield! What will Ash Ketchum send out to deal with this powerful battler?"
"It's war, Aggron!"
"An Aggron! It looks formidable! Champion Steven Stone is jumping in his seat in the VIP box! And now he's giving me a Death glare! Anyway, a powerful battle is about to begin!"
"Scizor, start of with a powerful Steel Beam, followed by Grass Knot!"
"Iron Defense, followed by Iron Head!"
Both pairs of Attacks perfectly countered one other, creating a huge explosion.
"Use Supersonic!"
"Earthquake!"
"Iron Defense!"
"Strike with Metal Claw and then again, before Horn Drill!"
"Counter that with a Guillotine!"
"Get out of the way, then use Iron Defense, then Hyper Beam!"
"Bug Buzz!"
"Rock Polish and then Rock Tomb!"
"Your own Hyper Beam!"
Everyone was watching the match, which was turning more and more intense. Each of the moves used were a perfect counter to each other.
"Now... Close Combat, Scizor!"
"You too, Aggron!"
"How intense! They're trading blows! This is good!"
And in that moment, Ash struck.
"Stone Edge!"
At close quarters, such a super- effective move had to bring Scizor to her knees.
"Scizor! Get up!"
"Finish this! Hyper Beam!"
And that was the end of Aggron.
"What's this? A brutal ending to an extremely intense match. Whoever makes it to the end, we'll be expecting great things in the Conference!"
"Scizor, return! I'll deal with you later! Go, Gloom! Put 'em down!"
"Fine, Aggron! Begin this, Rock Polish and then Iron Defense!"
"Counter that! Stun Spore!"
"Vaporize that with Steel Beam!"
"Vine Whip!"
"Metal Claw, cut them in half!"
"Another intense battle, both Aggron and Gloom look really fired up and evenly matched! It's a-"
"This is the time that the world woke up to the fact that Steel- Type Pokémon are awesome and badass! Just look at the metallic shine..."
"Such is the honor of the old knights! Steel- Type Pokémon have honor..."
"Steel- Type Pokémon have a unique form of combat unmatched by any..."
It seemed that the Steel- Type Masters like Steven Stone (Hoenn), his Gym Leader cousin Jasmine (Johto), Sinnoh Gym Leader Byron and Kalos Elite Four Wikstrom had hijacked the microphones to praise Steel- Type Pokémon. The audience and VIP Trainers and Professors facepalmed at their antics before Lance Wataru wrenched the microphone out of Steven's hand, handing it back to the MC.
"Gloom, Solar Beam!"
"Hyper Beam!"
An explosion followed as Aggron spammed moves. He also recovered fast and was much more powerful and durable.
"Gloom, recover and use Synthesis!"
"Aggron, end this with Hyper Beam!"
"That... was quick. Aggron obliterated Gloom in a show of pure power and is clearly more powerful after having been exerted by Scizor. It seems that Victreebell is the last hope for Jeanette Fisher. "
"Return, Gloom. End this, Victreebell. I'll deal with you. You've earned punishment, Gloom. "
Ash was outraged on hearing such words. He hated everyone who used Pokémon as tools, things to exploit for fame and profit.
"Aggron, let's begin-"
"Victreebell, Sleep Powder!"
An already worn- out Aggron collapsed, much to Ash's shock.
"And one of Ash Ketchum's Pokémon have fallen. How will he deal with this new development? Will he even qualify?"
"Return, Aggron, good work. Kingdra, it's war!"
"Uh- uh, a Type Disadvantage. We can work with that, can't we? Begin with a Leaf Blade, then grab with Vine Whip!"
"Kingdra... Ice Beam!"
"NO...! YOU CHEATED!"
"What you did just now, wasn't a dirty trick? Sleep Powder for an exhausted Pokémon? He might be in a coma for several days after this! No, you're going down today... Water Sprout, then Blizzard! "
"NO! Victreebell, Solar Beam-"
"Draco Meteor!"
Poetic justice for the showy Trainer who treated her Pokémon like weapons. Victreebell collapsed, and Jeanette Fisher's chances to the League were ruined.
It also made sense why Jeanette Fisher had a Victreebell instead of a proper Regional Starter. She had probably earned the disapproval of the Regional Professors with the training methods she employed. She had no sponsorship and it was rather unlikely that she could escape investigation after this.
The next day, a headline appeared in the newspaper:
THE EXPLOITATIVE RICH: RICH KID ARRESTED FOR POKÉMON CRUELTY
Ash smiled as he was treated to the satisfying image of Jeanette Fisher being led away in handcuffs.
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(A/N: 1. Alright guys, I've noticed that some people have problems with the time frame. I'm making it an annual affair, so the Conference is in the Eleventh month, and this is the beginning. Twelfth, and last month is for the Elite Four Challenge and getting ready for a new region.
2. I don't like most of the Trainers in the Indigo League, and that includes Jeanette Fisher. I always felt like she's more of the showy character. She doesn't show any real feeling for her Pokémon, has a hired group of cheerleaders, is clearly rich Miss Perfect and gets her ass wiped by Bulbasaur and Muk... in canon. So I intentionally made her one of those Trainers. Also, the reason why her whole Battle is uninteresting.
3. As for the Steel- Type people hijack the microphone, that was a lame attempt to add comic relief. I sincerely doubt that worked, though.
4. Yes, Ash will battle both Paul and Ritchie, but not in three- on- three. Ash's next opponent will be revealed in the next chapter. )