Alrighty then everybody! Here is my update FINALLY! I think there I only two more chapters to this then it’s another story finally done.

HUGE thanks to Gameguardian2x for writing most of the battle scenes!

Ages ~

Ash ~ 14

Misty ~ 14

Brock ~ 14

Sarah ~ 13

Then and Now

~ Part 10; Water Wars ~

Ash glanced at the bright screen and thought for moment. Ah yes! He began to write.

~

Misty battled many people and won! Really, if you want to know, you can rent or even buy a tape of that year’s battle. But that’s not the point! The point is that I’m going to tell you about the last battle, the battle that deciphered whether or not Misty was going to be a Water master.

The day couldn’t have been more perfect. The sun was shining, there were a few clouds in the sky, and it was hot enough that you didn’t mind getting wet, which the people in the front row would more than likely get.

Misty walked onto the field in all her beauty. She stepped into the platform she was to battle on and turned and winked at me.

As if on cue, the announcer started his job. “Welcome ladies and gentlemen to the grandmother of this 23^rd annual pokemon water competition! This battle will decide who will be this year’s water pokemon champion. Battling as blue trainer is Miss Misty Kasumi Waterflower form the beautiful Cerulean City!” The crowd cheered loudly. I stood up and whistled with my fingers, Pikachu stood up and chanted too. The announcer made a noise and continued, “On the other side of the stadium is the old master, red challenger, Miss Shannon Jessica Spoiled!” Wonder why she has that name? “And so the six on six battle with no items aloud begins!”

Misty’s eyes glinted and she selected Goldeen’s pokeball and threw it out into the playing field, which was actually a pool with several platforms. "Go, Goldeen"

Shannon smirked as her Pokemon emerged from it’s Lureball. Corsola. "Bubblebeam!" She ordered.

"Back and Whirlpool defensive." Goldeen retreated, laying a small whirlpool behind it to catch and dispel Corsola’s Bubblebeam!

"Go around The whirlpool stupid." Shannon snapped at Corsola, who was still shooting bubbles into the Whirpool. The small corral pokemon started going around the right side.

Misty smirked. "Another one! " Goldeen darted to the left and created another whirlpool, forcing Corsola to extend its detour. While Corsola tried to circumvent this new obstacle, Goldeen dived between the two whirlpools, coming up behind Corsola.

Shannon spotted the trick too late. As she frantically screamed for Corsola to "Turn around, you stupid rock!" Goldeen slammed it into the wall with a series of Horn Attacks, finishing it off with Horn Drill.

Shannon angrily tossed out an Ultraball. "Go Manteen!"

"Whirlpool!" Misty called.

"Over it, take down!" Manteen leaped over the whirlpool, only to run into a waterfall attack.

"Agility!" Shannon commanded. Manteen abruptly became a great deal faster, easily leaping out of the way of a Horn Drill.

Goldeen tried to use Waterfall again but Manteen easily dodged it and came up behind Goldeen. Misty however, knew the trick, and ordered Goldeen to dive just in time to avoid another Take Down. Unfortunately, Goldeen was still unable to land any attacks as Manteen skipped nimbly away and fired a Bubblebeam.

Misty recalled Goldeen and selected a Greatball. "Go Dragonair!"

The crowd seemed to be awed at that.

"Takedown!" Shannon ordered.

"Icebeam!" Misty let Dragonair take the hit, knowing that she would withstand it. Unfortunately, Manteen was not so tough. The ice on its wings forced it out of the air in mid jump, and it crashed into the water. "Now, Whirlpool!" Dragonair circled the downed Manteen, creating a huge Whirlpool, much bigger than Goldeen’s. Manteen struggled to get out of the whirlpool, and was rewarded for her efforts by an Icebeam from Dragonair. Manteen promptly fainted.

Shannon pitched a Pokeball into the Pool. This one split to reveal a Gyrados. Misty didn’t wait for the Hyperbeam she knew was coming; she recalled Dragonair immediately. She swapped in Goldeen, who she could afford to sacrifice.

Shannon took the bait, using the powerful Hyperbeam on Goldeen. With Gyrados temporarily out of action while it recharged, Misty called in her own Gyrados, reveling in the look on Shannon’s face. "Hydro pump!" The huge torrent of water struck Shannon’s Gyrados, nearly knocking it over. Before it could recover, Misty followed up by ordering a Hyperbeam.

Shannon almost smashed Gyrados’s pokeball against the railing of the trainer box in anger at the loss, then hurled her next pokeball out with far more force than necessary. "Vaporeon, Icy Wind"

Misty groaned as the attack froze Gyrados. The Large sea serpent pokemon could not fight while frozen so she recalled it.

Misty drew Staryu’s Pokeball and threw it into the pool. "Swift." She cried, knowing that Staryu’s excellent speed gave it a chance to get a hit in first.

Shannon wasn’t about to let her get away with that. "Quick attack." The latter proved to be faster, as Vaporeon slammed into Staryu. Vaporeon did not escape unscathed though, as the energy packets of Staryu’s swift struck home.

Both trainers ordered their Pokemon to use agility, a tactic that proved to be in Misty’s favor as another perfectly accurate swift attack hit Vaporeon.

Shannon, realizing the futility of the tactic acted quickly. "Hold position. Icy Wind, omni-directional!" Icy tendrils spiraled out in all directions. One caught Staryu, freezing two of it’s "arms." Shannon was quick to capitalize on this. "Quick attack!"

"Barrier!" Misty countered. Vaporeon slammed rather painfully into a psychic wall (ouch!).

Shannon switched over to special attacks. Aurabeam after Aurabeam slammed into the barrier, slowly weakening it. Finally it collapsed, and an Aurabeam struck Staryu, knocking out the Starfish Pokemon. Despite the loss of a Pokemon, Misty was smirking, and only Ash could guess why.

Misty pulled out a Pokeball well worn from slamming into tabletops in frustration. "Go Golduck, Headbutt!" Misty had finally turned Psyduck, now Golduck’s, headache problem into an advantage by teaching it Headbutt with a TM.

"Aurabeam" Shannon yelled. Vaporeon, however, did nothing, as its ice energy had already been expended on Staryu. A second later Golduck rammed into Vaporeon headfirst. The headache was starting…

Shannon cursed and ordered a Quick Attack. Golduck ducked (can a duck duck? LOL) and took the hit on his head. Now the headache was really going…

"Confusion!" Misty yelled. A blue aura of psychic energy enveloped Golduck. He telekinetically tossed Vaporeon into the air, slammed him back into the small floating platform on the pool, and repeated the maneuver until Vaporeon had fainted.

Shannon just stared for several seconds. Then she swore and recalled Vaporeon. Pulling out another pokeball, she tossed it into the ring. "Go Lanturn"

Misty groaned. Like the most of the truly serious Water trainers who had made it to the final rounds, Misty and Shannon disdained to use "cheap" Thunder, Zap Cannon, and Thunderbolt TMs. However, Lanturn was naturally an electric type.

"Confusion!" Misty screamed, simultaneous with Shannon’s Cry of "Spark!"

Both Pokemon unleashed their energy upon the call of their trainers. The bluish glow of Confusion surrounded Lanturn as she was slammed into the platform hard. Sparks of electricity skimmed the waves, in a dizzy pattern of crisscrossing electric arcs, converging on Golduck. By the time everyone had recovered from the blinding effects of all that electricity, the two pokemon were both unconscious.

Shannon allowed herself a small smirk as she drew her final pokeball. Misty might be ahead, but the real battle was just beginning.

Misty called out her pokemon first. "Go Horsea."

Shannon almost laughed. A puny Horsea? She tossed out her pokeball. "Go Cloyster."

"Hydro pump!"

"Ice Beam!"

The ice beam attack froze the oncoming hydro pump and gave Cloyster a chance to escape.

“Now Cloyster, Spike cannon!”

Misty looked frantic and she ordered, “Horsea, quick, smokescreen!”

A smokescreen quickly filled the above ground pool, but Shannon had other plans, “Use your bubble to blow it away!”

“Good! Now finish it with another spike cannon!”

“Horsea move!”

Poor little Horsea wasn’t fast enough and the attack hit it striking it out.

“Good job Horsea, return. You’re turn Dragonair!”

Dragonair appeared in the water and got ready.

“Alright Dragonair, Ice Beam!”

“Cloyster harden!”

The attack struck Cloyster, and struck it hard. The ice almost seemed to close it shut. But wait! The ice suddenly melted. The crowd gasped. How could something like that happen? Misty stood speechless, along with Dragonair. Shannon grinned maliciously and took advantage of the situation, “SPIKE CANNON!” When the cloister shell opened up I thought I saw something in the shell, I was almost positive I saw it fall out to the bottom of the pool, but before I could confirm it, I heard Misty shout in despair.

I looked up and I saw that Cloyster’s attack had taken it’s toll. Dragonair was out.

The crowd cheered happily while the announcer said something, but I didn’t pay attention, I ran to the collapsed Misty.

“MISTY!” I kneeled down beside her and hugged her. “It’s okay Misty, you did your best, not many people can make it this far!”

Misty just shook her head. “I don’t get it though, how can Cloyster break the ice like that.” I didn’t know the answer, but I had a gut feeling, and you know me and my gut feelings! I ran to the bottom of the pool and scanned the area. I’m sure most people thought I was nuts, but I had a bad feeling. And then I saw it. My eyebrows furrowed together in anger. “HOLD IT!” I screamed. Everyone was silent. Ah, the joys of being a pokemon master. “What does that look like to you?” I asked the referee who had walked over to see what was the matter. He looked at what I was pointing at and gasped. He ran over to the police and pointed angrily and Shannon.

Shannon looked confused, but I saw right through that confused look. I was angry. She had cheated to win.

The crowd was buzzing with rumors that started already, but silenced as soon as the announcer began to speak. “Attention everyone! Apparently Shannon is disqualified because of her using an item. Ice heal we can only assume. Since the rules were no items, she broke the rules which is punishable by being disqualified and maybe pokemon license being taken.” Everyone was in awe. I glanced over at Misty who seemed the most surprised. “So everyone, congratulations to the new Water master, Misty Waterflower!”

Misty’s supporters in the audience burst into enthusiastic applause. I ran over to congratulate Misty. I hugged her. “Thank-you.” She whispered in my ear.

“NO problem.” I said. “ I knew you should’ve won. Besides,” my face scrunched up, “I don’t like cheaters.”

Misty just smiled and kissed me, which resulted in a louder cheer from the crowd. I pulled away and saw Pikachu, Sarah, and Brock who was holding Togepi come running towards us.

“Pika Pikachupi! ((Congrats PikachuPi!))”

“If not me,” Sarah hugged Misty. “I’m glad you won.”

“ALRIGHT MISTY!” Brock came over and gave her a nice big bear hug. “Erg,” Misty choked out, “Brock please let me go, your choking me.” Everyone laughed and Brock shyly let go of Misty. Togepi just jumped up and down. “Toge Togepi Togepriiiiiiiiiiii! ((I don’t know why everyone is happy, but I’ll be happy too!))”

Everyone was happy! Confetti was pouring out from who knows where, music was blaring, the crowd was cheering, and Misty and I? Well, we were kissing.

What a beautiful ending to a beautiful day.

~

Ash sighed contentedly and sat back in his chair. It was almost done! Just one more to go. He saved the computer and shut it down until the next time.

So… just one more chapter to go!

Thanks again to Gameguardian2x!!

~ Smile Jesus loves you!

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