Shocking Fire

Chapter 17

Storm's POV

The gate slammed shut, which startled me into turning around. I turned around fast enough to see Blaze in midair with a petrified look on his face. I laughed so hard i fell on the floor. Blaze turned a deep red and turned away, embarrassed. That dude can't get angry at stuff like this. How weird. After i caught my breath again, i stood up and walked down the stairs to view my choices. There were four doors. I had no idea what was behind any of them. "Okay Midnight, what's the plan?" He looked around and shrugged. "Let's start with the door on the far left and work our way to the right." I rolled my eyes. "You are such a neat freak." I complained. "Well do you have an idea?" He snapped back. I snickered. "You're my kinda dude." We fist bumped as we made our way up the stairs to the room on the left. When we entered i was drawn to the ripped curtains, ghostly lights and tall ceilings. The bookcases added to the mood of the room, but i am not a huge reader. I prefer artwork. I moved to the edge of the platform and looked up. There was a huge structure in the center of the room with a figure on top of it. I glanced across the room for a way up, but the staircase was broken and weak. I was getting angry and so was Midnight when purple lights swirled around us and lifted me into the air. Midnight grasped my vest with his teeth to stay just in case his feet faltered. We reached the top of the structure and we saw a woman wearing a purple dress with black sleeves, gloves, and leggings. Her collar puffed out and a red brooch was clipped to it. She wore red shoes that were flat with straps and carried a pen and a book. Her hair was purple and styled in a short bob. "Okay, so the plan is that I am sent out first, then if something happens it's onto whomever. I will give my all and we should strategize depending on who we are up against. I'm thinking......." Midnight was still pep-talking when the woman said her intro. I slapped a hand over Midnight's muzzle so i could at least hear her name. She said something about "chapter" and "inspiration" before i could hear her over Midnight's muffles. "My name is Shauntal, ghost type Elite Four member! Let us begin!" "Weird name." Midnight whispered through my hand. I snickered and let go of his muzzle. "Shauntal" moved her arms out in a wing motion and closed her book. She set it down just as she flung out a polished pokeball. "Cofagrigus!" The coffin emerged and cackled like a witch to intimidate us. I liked her. "Midnight, kick some butt." I said as my nimble little ninja jumped off my shoulder and landed gracefully after a series of front flips. "Will-o-Wisp!" Shauntal cried. "Shadow ball!" The blue flames were extinguished on contact with the sphere of dark energy. "Dark Pulse!" I beat Shauntal to the next move. Midnight had a different way of using this move. He charged the dark energy inside him and encased it outside his fur. Then he released it out in every direction dome-like with him in the center. It caught Shauntal by surprise so she didn't see her Cofagrigus faint. Boom. Super affective AND over-powered. When she did see her fallen pokemon, she showed more surprise and returned her. "Jellicent!" The pink, floating blob emerged and i cringed. Ew. Fat water type. I snapped back as Shauntal called out her move. "Surf!" I waited this one out. I winked at Midnight waited for the huge wave to hit. When it did Shauntal showed a smirk. I growled and scoffed. Once the water cleared, Midnight shook himself till he poofed up and as his fur settled down, Shauntal was still gathering herself on what she was seeing. "Dark pulse!" The same events re-occurred. However, before Jellicent fainted, an eerie blueish color framed her and then Midnight's body. Shauntal smirked. Before the jelly hit the ground i heard her whispered "Cursed Body." Then she collapsed. I racked my brain for an explanation. Aha! Cursed Body! I remembered. It's common in Jellicent and other Ghost Types. Causes the victim/foe to not be able to use the last move used at all after the user faints. I cursed under my breath silently. Shauntal, smug because my overpowered move was unable to be used, sent out her next pokemon, a gigantic Golurk. "Shadow Punch!" She called out. I let the move hit while i strategized. Midnight was fine, and got what i was doing. He allowed himself to be hit with 3 Shadow Punches, 7 Earthquakes, and a Curse. As his health was going down by the Curse i came up with my next strategy. Shauntal then yelled out, "Now, finish it with Brick Break!" I spat out the water i was drinking. Then i laughed. I laughed so hard i was on my knees. Shauntal was looking at me like i had three heads. I was still laughing, but with little hiccups instead of my normal bellow. "Do-" *hiccup* "-you-" *hiccup* "-really think-" *hiccup* "-Midnight will go down that fast?!" I finally stopped laughing and sighed. "Oh my Arceus that was the most i've laughed in months." Shauntal was just staring at me with an 'are you really that dumb' look. I motioned for her to carry on. "Brick Break!" She commanded with her eyes still fixed on me. I stood up and put my water back in my bag while i watched the action. Golurk lunged and landed a direct hit on Midnight. Dust kicked up so Shauntal and I couldn't see my pokemon get hit by the giant hand charged with super-affective energy. I could tell Shauntal was smirking, but i just kept looking into the cloud of dust. "Hey, clear it up will you Midnight?" I called to him. After a few seconds, the cloud disappeared. Midnight was 'inhaling' the dust. It was an old trick we mustered up together. Shauntal, in her disgust, stared at him blankly. "Go!" I called out. We had done this so many times before i didn't even need to tell him what to do anymore. Midnight spat the dust in Golurk's face and ran behind him, all the while spitting Shadow Ball. It was not as strong as Dark Pulse but when used repeatedly it was awesome. I then noticed Golurk's light was dimming. "MIDNIGHT! STOP!!" He screeched to a halt with a charged Shadow Ball in front of him. "Spit that into the ground!!!" I yelled as i ran over to Golurk. This was not good. It was dying! I reached into my bag and pulled out a Hyper Potion. I uncapped it and sprayed the whole bottle onto where Golurk's stone was blackened. I had to jump, it was so huge. Shauntal was in front of her pokemon spraying him with an Ether. It's light finally came back but he started to fall backwards. I rushed to move out of the way and shielded my head when it came down. Thankfully, he had only fainted. "Oh my Arceus Midnight. We almost killed a Golurk! Your Shadow Ball is way stronger than last time. Were you training in secret?" He shook his head. "Have you been training?" He shook his head again, still stunned. "Then what the Distortion World happened?!" I cursed. Shauntal had returned her Golurk and resumed her position on the battlefield. "Well, are we finishing this or what?" She called with a slightly shaky voice. I walked back to my position. "Let's do this Midnight!" "Just... don't kill my next pokemon, okay?" She asked with the same shaky voice. "Alright. Midnight, you heard her." "Ya, i'll only fire one next time..." He smiled at me riskily. I grinned back. "Chandelure!" Shauntal called for her final pokemon. "Let's do this!" Midnight and i said in sync. Chandelure looked at us, and said in a floaty voice to Midnight, "Yooou are a llllllot like yoour ttraainer." Her words were slurred and not very enunciated. "Too baad yoou arrreen't gooing to liive up toooo heerrr....." She smiled evily. "Payback!" I let her hit Midnight. "Now Shadow Ball!" Shauntal commanded. "Use Shadow Ball too Midnight!" The two collided but Midnight's plowed right through at hit Chandelure strait-on. She was down. I just know she hates me now. Midnight hopped back apon my shoulder and started talking away. "That was easy! Can't wait to battle the next one! We are going clockwise from here out, correct? Can i use Dark Pulse now? No need to heal me, i'm actually fine-" i had missed Shauntal's outing so i once again slapped my hand over his little mouth. "-You may proceed to the other Elite Four members!" She called out and a grayish platform next to her desk glowed blue. I was curious, so i moved closer to it. Cautiously, i stepped my black boots onto the thing. I was whisked away just as i had been in Iris' gym. Oh, okay. So that is another thingy that makes you go from here to there. I had to follow Blaze to understand what the glowing thing was in her gym. I uncovered Midnight's mouth when i entered the next room. Huge mistake. "Ya know, i think that i actually might last for all the battles! I'm perfectly fine, and it's-" i stepped onto the staircase and it started to move. I ignored Midnight's endless chatting, and admired the moving stairs. Every time we passed a pole, the top would burst into flame. We reached the top, and man was there. He had wavy black hair swooshed to the back and stuck out like thorns. He wore a black suit with a white shirt and red tie, and the edges of his pants had red triangles in the front and back with white in between. He wore black dress shoes and a yellow scarf. He started to move his mouth, but i had no idea what he was saying. I kept hearing a noise on my right... shoulder. I rolled my eyes and clapped a hand over his mouth again. "I am Grimsley, the dark type Elite Four member." He said in a cool, slick voice. "Shall we begin?" "Midnight, you're up!" I released him and he flipped onto the field once more. "An agile dark type," Grimsley crooned. "Scrafty!" The polished pokeball released the pokemon, and he hissed at Midnight and I. Grimsley beat me to the first move. "Brick Break!" A new strategy popped into my head. "Same procedure!" I called out. He snickered and let the super-affective move hit him. Then his sucked all the dust in, spat it in Scrafty's face, ran behind him, and threw a Shadow Ball at his back. Once the dust cleared, Scrafty was down. Even with a half-effective move. "BOOM!" I could not resist jumping up in the air and high-fiving my little ninja. Grimsley, shocked, returned his befallen pokemon and rolled his eyes. That's what i would do... Cool guy. "Liepard!" He called. "Use Attract!" I snickered. That was not going to work on my Midnight. Nope, nosiree, and nope again. I watched as it hit Midnight and his eyes bulged out lovingly. "Hey Midnight! Wanna battle your love?" At the mention of 'battle' Midnight's head swerved around to face me. "If you win, Liepard owes you a kiss!" I whispered to him. He snapped back into the battle and took stance. "Dark Pulse!" I commanded. Midnight charged the move up in his special way that caught Grimsley and Liepard off guard. "Now!" He released it and it hit Liepard strait on. We all could see she was down. Midnights eyes went from pink hearts to the normal deep red and his dark pupils faded back into existence. "Good job, bro." I high-fived him again. Grimsley, still gathering up on the events that just happened, hastily sent out his next pokemon. "Krookodile!" He called. She emerged from the pokeball and took a stand. She roared at Midnight and I and awaited her command. "Dragon Claw!" Though up a plan. "Midnight, after she uses the move bite her claw!" Sure enough, Midnight's teeth latched onto Krookodile's wrist after he was hit strait on with the dragon-type move. She started shaking her claw to unlatch him, but he had a firm grip with his teeth. "Now jump up when she shakes you upwards!" I called. He did so, and hovered a good ten feet above her. "Aim Shadow Ball at her and use it to propel yourself even higher to that ledge!" Boom. Krookodile down and Midnight was now positioned fifteen feet above us. Grimsley whistled when he was returning Krookodile. "That is one amazing Umbreon." He stated. "Duh." Is all i replied. "Bisharp!" He released her onto the field while she was kneeling down, and looked up into my icy blue eyes. I stared right back into her black ones. "Use Aerial Ace up on that ledge!" Grimsley pointed to where Midnight was. I saw her fly up there and hit Midnight several times. On her descent i called to him, "Jump onto her back!" Midnight seemed to fly when he jumped, and gracefully landed on Bisharp's back. "Position her so she rams into the ground!" Midnight pushed her head down so it was facing the field. She struggled, and even spat many curses at Midnight. "Now jump!" He did, just as Bisharp went barreling into the field. She, with her steel structure, had made a 2 inch dent into the floor. I held back a laugh when Girimsley just looked at her, defeated. He returned her and talked about coins and chances, but i was too busy replaying his face in my head to notice. When i saw the platform light up, i walked over to it eagerly. As much fun battling is, i thought these things were so awesome. I whisked away into the center again, and that's when i realized that another platform was over by Shauntal's room. I looked down and saw that i was standing on one too. "Weird." Midnight stated. "Must be for marking off which ones you defeated." He said. I shrugged and walked over to the next room. Two down, two more to go.