Pokemon - The Biggest Wish

Chapter 19 - Get In Shape!

"No time for that, they’re getting away!” Ethan roared, pointing towards the stage. Underneath the cluster of bodies, James and Valentina rose, limping through the curtain. Darkrai and its Trainer ran forward, hoping to catch the culprits before they made their escape. I only just noticed that Holly had not been caught in the Dark Void attack, but she was still in a bit of a daze. She walked up to the bench, grunted and fell forward. “Holly!” I exclaimed, leaping from the bench to stop her fall. Kneeling in front of her, I caught Holly’s shoulders. Her head dropped forward onto my shoulder - obviously the dizziness was too much.

After the usual Full Restore business, I laid Holly down on the bench with Piplup and Cyndi, whilst Grovyle and I ran to the stage, looking for Jake and Bonnie. To my surprise, Bonnie was sat atop all of the men, treating them as if she were the queen. “Where’s Jake?” I asked her. She shrugged her shoulders and jumped off the pile of stirring bodies.

“I’m fine, thanks for asking. He’s probably at the bottom of these geezers.” She stated. Immediately, Grovyle and I set to work, throwing men aside, frantically pushing through the sea of limbs.

“Blecgh!” Jake spluttered when Grovyle finally dragged him from the pile. Just then, Ethan and Darkrai appeared, Ethan with a depressed look. “All I could find was this.” He said, holding up a golden cloth.

“A cloth!? Why’d they carry around that trash?” Bonnie pitched. Jake stood up and rolled his eyes.

“Maybe because its gold?” He asked in a sarcastic voice. And before another word could be said, the local authorities surrounded us.

“You have the right to remain silent. Whatever you say can and will be--”

“STOP!” Came a booming voice, distracting the officers who were just about to handcuff us. We turned to see a man in darkest green looming over the police. “I, Gym Leader Marcus, can vouch for their innocence!” He said. One unfortunate officer had his ear drum burst by the shout.

“How do you explain the mass of bodies?” The head chief of the station asked. After a rather blown up explanation of events, our saviour pointed the police to the West, where James and Valentina had headed. “T-thank you!” Bonnie squeaked.

“No problem! I'm Marcus, nice to meet you!” He replied. “I'm Celadon City's Gym Leader!”

“Let's go then!” Said Holly, appearing by Marcus' side with Cyndi and Piplup on her shoulders. “Oh? You'd like to challenge me?” Marcus asked. Holly handed me my Pokemon and brought out a PokeBall. “Don't worry. You won't regret it!” She said, assuming a warrior stance.

“I like your spirit!” Marcus roared.

“Etienne! Keep our guests occupied will you?” The Gym Leader shouted before we entered his building. Almost immediately, a young boy sprung from behind the doors, saluting the Leader. “This young lady will be battling me. Please, could you keep her friends in shape?” He asked the boy.

“Yes sir!” Etienne replied humbly. And with that, Marcus and Holly entered the Gym. “Hi, I'm Etienne! My Pokemon and I are good friends, and we'd like to strengthen the bonds between you and your Pokemon!” He explained.

“Great, exercise.” I moaned.

“Come on out, Dewott!”

“Grovyle!”

“Lucario!”

“Darkrai.”

“Emolga!”

We shouted as we brought our Pokemon out. Whilst our usual Pokemon appeared, Etienne's Dewott clumsily landed on its face. “Whoa! A D-Darkrai!” Etienne stammered, noticing the beast hovering by Ethan's shoulder. What followed was a barrage of questions from the young boy, “Where did you get it? How did you catch it?”

Meanwhile, Bonnie's Emolga encouraged Dewott to stand. “Aww, he's so cute!” Bonnie exclaimed. Grovyle and Lucario walked in to shake hands.

“This is training, not a business meeting!” Jake said.

After Etienne had gotten over his initial awe, he once again assumed the role of 'Teacher'. “Excuse me, Bonnie, was it? May I test the bonds of you and your Pokemon in battle?” He asked.

“You? Take on me?” Bonnie scoffed. “All right.”

“Etienne, just what exactly are you doing here?” I enquired.

“Me? Well, I'm training to be a Gym Leader!” Etienne replied politely. Ethan frowned and remarked,

“If you're in training, why are you testing us?” The trainee sighed quizzically and lowered his head.

“Because I'm still learning. I-I'm not very good at battles yet...”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever! Let's go!” Bonnie exclaimed.

“She's becoming more like Holly everyday.” I said to Jake.

Jake, Ethan and I sat back on the grass, whilst our Pokemon practised behind us. “Ok trainee boy, let's see what you've got!” Bonnie roared, bringing Emolga to the battlefield.

“Dewott, you're up!” Etienne said, patting his friend on the back. “I'll go first! Dewott, use Hydro Pump!” He followed. Immediately, Dewott's cheeks puffed up with pressure, taking the strain of thousands of gallons of water.

“Emolga, use Spark!” Bonnie ordered. The little squirrel leapt into the air, caught the wind and summoned electricity. Emolga was the faster Pokemon, due to its size and the advantage of wing flaps. This obviously meant that Emolga slammed into Dewott before it had time to blink. “Dewott!” Etienne shrieked. And in a rather comical fashion, Dewott flew into the air, releasing its Hydro Pump and shooting itself out into the city plaza. “Ah!” Etienne exclaimed, running after his Pokemon whilst Jake and Bonnie couldn't control their laughter.

“Phew!” Holly sighed as she burst out of the Gym doors. “I won, but only barely!”

Bonnie ran up to Holly, greeting her with a high-five. “What type was the Gym?” I asked. Holly whipped out her new badge and waved it in my face.

“He uses Fighting Types, and this is the Badge I got!”

Just then, Marcus himself exited the Gym and came to meet us. “Where is Etienne?” He asked. After Bonnie told him her 'funny' story, Marcus sighed and said, “That boy, he'd lose his head if it wasn't screwed on tight! Anyway, who's next?”

Grovyle folded his arms and stood by my side. “That would be me.” I said confidently. Marcus nodded and turned his back on us.

“Good, now if you'd excuse me, I'm going to get Etienne. We'll battle afterwards.” He said sprinting towards the park.

“You'd better be ready Toby.” Holly said out of nowhere. “Riolu and I were only just able to win!” It was then that I noticed Riolu, panting and heaving at Holly's side.

“Don't worry, I have a plan.” I replied softly.