RTBC!: Fierce Ignition
Before The Beginning - Part 1
by Jam
SBKidJamX@aol.com
hometown.aol.com/sbkidjamx/Jeffpage.html

The last couple of months have flown by. I am now in the Pokémon League, which begins in a little over a week. My friends Nathan and Ryan have been training alongside me, and we all feel we're ready to take the League head-on. We don't know if we'll do well or not, but only time and our skill shall tell us that.
I've also caught a bunch of Pokémon. My team now consists of Farfetch'd, Marril, Rhyhorn, Snorlax, Muk, and Vileplume. Nathan's got his Squirtle, Cubone, Machop, Bellsprout, and Bulbasaur. And Ryan? Well, he's got Psyduck, Slowpoke, Venonat, Shellder, Parasect, and Flareon. We think they'll be enough to win. Here's hoping!
Nathan and I were talking while heading down to the store for supplies.
"So, Nathan, you feel ready for the League?" I asked.
"I don't know, Jeff. The League seems so big...and you know there'll be a ton of competition. I'll be surprised if I get past the first round." he responded.
"Aw, c'mon! You're a great Trainer! You'll blow past the first round!" I reassured him.
"That may be true...but y'never know." he said.
"You're right. But all we have to do is try our hardest!" I said.
"You've got that right. And even if we lose, we can say we competed in the Pokémon League!" Nathan agreed.
"No regrets?" I asked.
"No regrets." He confirmed.
"So, where are they holding it this year?" I inquired.
"Up on Horizon Mountain." he answered.
"Ah, Horizon Mountain? That'll be a tough walk." I said.
"Think you can handle it, tubby?" Nathan joked, poking me.
"Ah, shut up. I'll be fine." I shot back.

*A Week Later*

"Sheesh...this...is....a....hard....walk..." I said, inbetween pants. Ryan laughed.
"Ha! C'mon, Jeff! I thought because of all that training that you'd lost weight!" he laughed.
"Yeah...well...I...guess....not..." I panted.
"Don't worry, once we get to the top, things'll be fine." Nathan reassured me.
"What do you think the League looks like?" Ryan asked.
"That...!" I said, pointing to the huge Coliseum that had just come over the hill. It was enormous.
"Whoa!" Nathan exclaimed.
"What he said!" Ryan agreed. Our excitement started to build up. Full of renewed energy, we dashed toward the Coliseum, eager to register and receive our first battle.

"So, Nathan, who did you get for the first round?" I asked him.
"Some guy named Ash. Here's hoping he's a pushover." he sighed.
"You'll do fine." I said. Just then, a huge cheer came up.
"Hey, what do you think is going on?" Nathan asked.
"Let's go see." I said. We walked out to the stands, where a Pidgeot and a Fearow were locked in a fierce battle. The Pidgeot belonged to none other than the Gym Leader of Skyhigh City, Tanner!
"Hey, look Nathan! It's Tanner!" I pointed out.
"Wow! He's doing really good! He's worn down his opponent with just that Pidgeot!" Nathan exclaimed. He was quite skillful. I cheered as his Pidgeot snagged the win for him.
"Wow, that was some awesome stuff. Sure is a lot of competition here. I dunno if I can take it." I said.
"When's your first battle, Jeff?" Nathan asked. I checked my watch.
"NOW!" I yelled. I started to run off.
"Where is it being held?!" Nathan yelled after me.
"At the Flying Field!" I yelled back.

The Flying Field was really a platform held above a pit. It had wind machines on both sides that would blow occasionally to keep things interesting. If you felt into the pit, you lost. Pretty tough.
My opponent was a tough-looking guy named Joseph. He glared at me intimidatingly.
"Well, fans, welcome to the preliminary rounds of the Pokémon League here at Horizon Stadium. This match is between Joseph and Jeff and promises to be a truly electrifiying matchup! Let the battle begin!" the announcer shouted.
I was so nervous, I almost forgot to send out my Pokémon! I sent forth Rhyhorn. Joseph started with his Arbok.
"Okay, Rhyhorn, begin with Take Down!" I yelled. Rhyhorn dashed forward and slammed into Arbok, who was sent flying.
"Arbok, Poison Sting!" Joseph yelled. Arbok opened his mouth and fires a series of energy needles, but they were ineffective against Rhyhorn's armor.
"Nice try, but no good! Rhyhorn, Tackle!" I commanded. Rhyhorn ran forward(as fast as a Rhyhorn can run, anyways) and crashed into Arbok at full speed, knocking him unconscious.
"Arbok can not go on! Rhyhorn is the winner!" the ref announced. A large cheer rose from the crowd. This was awesome. They were actually cheering for me! I almost couldn't take it.
"I choose Magnemite!" Joseph said. His Magnemite came out, and started to spark. I almost fell over. Everyone knows that Electric can't hurt Ground!
"Fine, Rhyhorn, use Earthquake!" I said. Rhyhorn stamped his foot on the ground and the resulting shockwaves knocked Magnemite out of the air and fainted it.
"Magnemite is fainted! Rhyhorn is the winner!" the ref said. The cheer came again, this time larger. I was electric.
"For my last Pokémon, I choose....Golduck!" Joseph said, with a smirk. Now I was in trouble. Water beats Ground.
"Rhyhorn, try...umm....Earthquake!" I said. Rhyhorn stamped his foot on the ground, but it was no good, as Golduck had lept into the air.
"Golduck, Hydro Pump!" Joseph said. Golduck sent a blast of water full force into Rhyhorn, knocking him down.
"Rhyhorn has fainted! Victory to Golduck!" the ref said. A cheer, this time for Joseph, came. My hope was starting to dwindle. Then I decided to bring out something sure to defeat Golduck.
"Vileplume, go!" I said, and Vileplume emerged from it's ball, doing a little dance.
"Ha! It's finished!" Joseph declared. "Golduck, Psybeam!" His Golduck started to gather energy for it's attack.
"Vileplume, Reflect!" I commanded. Vileplume quickly put up a shield around itself, just as Golduck fired the Psybeam. It connected with the shield, and the two fought it out for a while, before the Psybeam turned around and hit the Golduck right between the eyes, sending it flying.
"Golduck is fainted! Victory to Vileplume and it's trainer, Jeff!" the ref declared.
I couldn't believe it. I heard cheers and horns sounding, and I was on top of the world right then. The feeling that I had right there at my first victory was unexplainable. It was something I'd remember for the rest of my life.
As I left the Field, I had to stop and take a breath. I had been so energetic and nervous that I'd actually worn myself out. My arms were drenched with sweat. I could see beads of it falling to the floor.
I met up later at the PokéCenter with Nathan and Ryan.
"So, you guys won your first matches?" I asked them.
"Sure did! It was a snap. All it took was Squirtle and it was a done deal." Nathan said, obviously proud of himself. "That Ash guy was nothin'. He even had a Pikachu, but Squirtle beat him easy."
"It was some hard work for me, but Venonat, Flareon, and Parasect did the job quite well for me." Ryan said.
"I was so nervous...I couldn't even feel my legs!" I said.
"Yeah, the first round's always the hardest...but that's how things go." Nathan agreed.
"It was a breeze!" Ryan stated.
Nathan and I stared at him.
"Okay, I was kinda nervous."
More staring.
"All right, I was scared outta my wits, all right?!" Ryan yelled, breaking down.
"Well, let me congratulate you on surviving your first round..." I heard a voice say. I turned around only to find...Olon!
"Well, I never thought I'd hear those words from you." I responded.
"Hey, here at the League, courtesy is a must." Olon said.
"Yeah. I assume you got through your first match easily enough." I said.
"Of course. It was gonna happen anyways." Olon said, smugly.
"So, if we keep winning, we'll be fighting around the fourth or fifth rounds, right?" I asked.
"You really think you can win enough matches to get that far?" he asked me.
"Hey, you never know until you try." I answered.
"Well, in whatever case, I look forward to dueling you...it will surely not disappoint." Olon said.
"You can bet on it." I agreed. He then waved and walked off.
"You think you'll be able to beat him, Jeff?" Nathan asked.
"I don't even know if I'll be fighting him, Nathan...but the trainer who ever does beat him will be a very skilled one." I stated. With that, Ryan, Nathan and I retired to our separate rooms where we were staying.

I layed awake that night, staring at the ceiling, thinking about future battles. Would I win? Would I lose? I didn't know. All I knew was that if I was going to win, it was going to take a lot of skill and courage to do so. I wondered if I was up to the task. Then I thought of Olon and his promise of a spectacular duel. That renewed my spirits. I then fell asleep, with dreams of defeating all comers and beating the League...

To Be Continued...
In Chapter 2 of RTBC!: Fierce Ignition
Don't miss it, lest we smack you about with various sticks and pointy implements!