Pokemon Conclave Part 21: The Miko of Saffron © 1999-2000 Willow McCall    “Are you sure you’re ready for this, Aoife?” Petra asked as Aoife stood outside the gym.  “I mean, psychic Pokemon, you know?  It’s really tough.  They can turn your attacks back around on you and teleport and everything.”  “I can do this,” Aoife insisted.  She had been repeating that phrase like a mantra all day.  “I’m positive I can do this.”  “Aif, are you sure you don’t want to borrow Gengar?” Aidan offered.  “I mean, you can if you want…”  “Nope,” Aoife shook her head.  “I’m gonna use Abra.”  Her four companions exchanged worried glances.  One psychic Pokemon against another sounded like a difficult match.  But still Aoife marched into the dark gym with determination.  “Hellooooo, anyone in here?” Aoife called.  “I’m here to challenge the gym leader!”  There was no response.  Aoife tried again.  “Anyone home?  Hello—whoa!”  A figure materialized in front of her.  It was a young woman, about 15 years old, with short dark green hair, wearing glasses, a black jacket, and white pants.  Petra went into her usual routine.  She dashed up to the young woman and groveled.  “She’s beautiful; she must be some sort of Pokemon goddess to just materialize like that!”  Ferio rolled her eyes.  “This is a psychic Pokemon gym, remember?” she reminded her.  “Everyone who trains here is probably psychic too and they know how to teleport.”  She looked at the girl.  “Isn’t that right?”  The girl nodded.  “Absolutely.  I’m Sonia and I’m the leader…well, my mom is the leader, but I handle some of the battles.”  “Cool!” Aoife said.  “I bet you’re psychic like that guy Yuri Geller and you can bend spoons and stuff too, huh?”  Again Ferio rolled her eyes.  “That’s just a stereotype.  You don’t really—”  “Actually,” Sonia broke in, “I do know how to bend spoons.  But that’s just a beginner’s exercise.  More advanced psychics can do other things, like this.”  She stared at Chu-Chu, hair standing on end as she concentrated.  “Pi?” Chu-Chu looked back questioningly at the psychic.  Suddenly Chu-Chu felt the ground beneath its feet disappear as it was lifted telekinetically into the air.  “Chaa!”  “Whoa,” Aoife murmured.  “That’s really cool.”  Chu-Chu floated towards Aoife, who plucked the Pokemon from out of the air.    Sonia giggled.  “You think that’s cool, you should see some of the other psychics.  Come on, I’ll show you the practice room.”  She led them down the corridors of the gym, talking to them as she went.  “Are we gonna get lost?” Aoife worried.  “No, I’m familiar with this place,” Sonia said.  She gestured to a glowing tile on the floor.  “This way, please.”  “A warp tile.”  Ferio was the first to see it for what it was.  “Yes,” Sonia confirmed.  “Hey, you look familiar…do I know you from somewhere?”  “Oh,” Ferio looked down.  “Yeah, uh…I’m the one you beat in the Saffron Gym Competition.”  Aoife, who was about to step on the warp tile, turned around.  “Wow, someone actually BEAT you, Ferio?”  “Of course she beat me!” Ferio almost snapped back.  “I train fighting Pokemon, Aoife.  She trains psychic type.  Figure it out.”  Aoife smirked.  “What’s the Saffron Gym Competition?” she asked Sonia.  “It’s the tournament between the leaders and trainers of the two gyms in Saffron to find out which gym gets to be the official gym,” Sonia explained.  “And needless to say we won.”  She caught sight of the embarrassed look on Ferio’s face, and felt sorry for her for an instant.   “But it doesn’t mean that we’re necessarily better trainers,” she said quickly, to make Ferio feel better.  “You just had a type disadvantage.  It’d be like if a fire-type gym opened in Cerulean City.  Obviously the water-type gym would still get to be the official one.” Ferio still wasn’t convinced.  “Truly excellent trainers can overcome an element type disadvantage even that great.” Sora put her hand on Ferio’s shoulder as the others went through the warp tile.  “Don’t feel bad, Ferio,” she said.  “You’re better than she is, and I’m sure if you had a ghost Pokemon you’d wipe the floor with this gym!” “Yeah, Ferio!” Aidan chimed in.  “In fact, I could loan you one of mine and you could challenge her again!  What do you say, huh?”  Ferio shrugged both of them off as she approached the tile.  “It doesn’t matter anymore.  I’m leaving Saffron with you guys anyway, so I don’t care anymore if I only have the second-best gym.”  She stepped onto the tile and disappeared.  Sora frowned.  “I knew we shouldn’t have brought her here.  It really opened some old wounds, I guess.”   ***    “And this is where the really advanced psychics practice,” Sonia said, pushing open a door with an eye symbol on it.  “It’s mostly just my parents and I, and a couple other trainers who are almost to our level.  These are the ones who would inherit the gym if ever I decided I didn’t want it anymore.”  “Wow,” Aoife breathed, watching the psychics.  One woman was lifting a huge Ming vase, then gently setting it back down again, like weight lifting telekinetically.  Another man was playing darts telekinetically, and one trainer was trying to control two remote-controlled cars simultaneously using only his powers.  “So these people…wow,” Aoife took it all in.  “So they have really strong sixth senses, huh?  Like they can do basically any everyday activity using just telekinesis.”  “Not quite,” Sonia said.  “They can do a lot of things using only psychic powers, though.  Watch.”  She went over to a desk in the corner and the chair slid out without her even touching it.  A paper and pencil lay on the desk, and the pencil picked itself up, then drew an unsteady line across the paper.  Then it drew some more lines, a circle, a jagged line…Sonia was drawing Chu-Chu.  “Nifty,” Aoife said.  “That’s really cool.”  Sonia stepped back from the desk and adjusted her glasses modestly.  “My mother’s much better than I am, though.  See how wobbly the lines are?  My mom can draw the lines perfectly straight.  Oh, I should introduce you to her, shouldn’t I?  I’m sure she’s around here somewhere…” Sonia looked around the room for a while before her eyes fell on an older woman with long hair the same color as Sonia’s.    “Mom!”  Sonia went up to the woman, and the group followed.  “Too old,” Petra dismissed her.  “Although I bet she was really beautiful when she was young.”  “Mom, this girl is a challenger,” Sonia explained.  “Her name’s Aoife.”  “Nice to meet you, Aoife,” Sonia’s mother said.  “I’m Sabrina, and that’s my husband Vlad.”  She pointed to a man with long brown hair, the one who was telekinetically playing darts.  “Vlad, can you come here a minute?  There’s a challenger here.”  “A challenger?” the man asked in a thick Russian accent, turning around and walking over.  “Vell, ve always like when challengers come, huh?”  “This is Aoife, dad,” Sonia explained.  “She’s from…where are you from again, Aoife?”  “Pallet Town,” Aoife said.  “And these are my friends Petra, Sora, Aidan…and Ferio.”  Aoife grimaced when she caught herself calling Ferio a friend.  “Nice to meet you,” Vlad said.  “So, you come to challenge Sonia?”  “Yes, sir,” Aoife said.  “So which way to the arena?   (Who's that Pokemon?  It's Kadabra!)    “Okay,” Sonia announced from her position opposite the ring from Aoife.  “Four Pokemon each.  But here’s the deal: once I recall a Pokemon I can’t put it back in again.  If you recall a Pokemon that still has some of its health points left, you can substitute it in again.  Is that understood?”  “Yes,” Aoife agreed.  “Okay,” Sonia said, producing a Pokeball with her psychic powers.  “I choose Butterfree!”  “And I’ll use…” Aoife thought for a minute.  “I’ll use Chu-Chu!”  “Pi?” Chu-Chu questioned Aoife’s decision.  “It’s a flying Pokemon,” Aoife reminded Chu-Chu.  “You’ll be really effective against it.”  “Pika.”  Chu-Chu nodded, then strode into the arena.  “Pika-pika!  Pikachu!” it yelled up at the Butterfree, shaking its fist.  “Sleep powder, Butterfree!”  Butterfree flapped its wings and a light sparkly dust wafted down towards Chu-Chu.  “Run, Chu-Chu!” Aoife cried.  “Hurry!  Don’t let any of that stuff touch you!”  Chu-Chu ran out of the range of the powder, then glared up at Butterfree and shocked it.  “Furiiiii!” the butterfly Pokemon cried as it fell to the ground.   “Furi,” it said in defeat as it hit the ground.  “Return, Butterfree!” Sonia said, recalling Butterfree.  She used her powers to make Butterfree’s Pokeball disappear and a new one appear in its place.  “Go, Snorlax!”  “Snorlax?” Petra repeated from the sidelines.  “Ohh dear…”  A giant Pokemon, one of the biggest Aoife had ever seen, appeared in the center of the ring.  “But it’s asleep,” Aoife pointed out.  “Although I guess this is one of those psychic Pokemon that can attack while asleep, huh?”  “You bet,” Sonia nodded.  Aoife sweatdropped.  “Uh.  Okay, Chu-Chu, try to Thundershock it!”  “Chuuu!” Chu-Chu shocked the large Pokemon, but it wasn’t affected.  Apparently because of the sheer size and mass of the Snorlax, only a very powerful shock could affect it.  Chu-Chu tried again nevertheless.  “Chuu!  Chuu!”  “Snooooooor,” Snorlax mumbled, turning over in its sleep, right on top of Chu-Chu.  “Piii!” Chu-Chu squeaked.  “Pika.”  “Chu-Chu!” Aoife realized something.  “Now you’re in direct contact with the Snorlax!  Your Thundershock might work now!”  “Pika?” Chu-Chu asked.  “Sure, give it a try,” Aoife said encouragingly.  “Pi.”  Chu-Chu nodded as best as it could with its head poking out from under the huge Pokemon, then tried its attack again.  “Chuuuu!”  “Laaaaax!” Snorlax jumped up, leaving Chu-Chu room to crawl out from under it, then fell back to the floor with a jarring thud.  “Snor.”  “Hey, I think it worked!”  Aoife looked up at the screen in the middle of the stadium that showed the vital statistics of both Pokemon and saw that Snorlax’s HP was just about all gone.  “Hey, cool!  I beat the Snorlax!”  “Two more, Aoife,” Sonia warned.  “And if I were you I’d call back your Pikachu.  After Snorlax sitting on it, it must be exhausted.”  “Yeah,” Aoife agreed, running out to the middle of the arena to retrieve Chu-Chu.  “It’s okay, Chu-Chu, you did a good job so far.”  “Pika,” Chu-Chu said, thanking Aoife for letting it rest.  “Now I’ll use Pele!” Aoife announced, throwing out her next Pokeball, which contained the pre-evolution of Magmar that Bill had given her.  “That’s an interesting Pokemon,” Sonia observed.  “Where did you get it?”  “From Bill,” Aoife said.  “The Pokemon researcher, you know?  It evolves into Magmar.”  “Pele,” Pele announced proudly, sticking out its chest.  “Cute,” Sonia giggled, conjuring another Pokeball.  “Then I guess I’ll use Hypno!”  From the Pokeball that Sonia conjured, a yellow and white Pokemon emerged.  It had a long snout and a yellow ruff around its neck, and in its hand it held a medallion on a chain.  “Hypno, hypno,” it chanted in a voice that echoed around the arena.  “Fire spin, Pele!”  Pele performed one of its more powerful attacks, causing a whirlwind of fire to circle around Hypno.  That took care of Hypno fairly quickly.  “Okay, Hypno, return!”  Sonia switched Pokeballs again.  “Only one more Pokemon before you get your Marsh Badge, Aoife!  Good luck!”  “And I’m probably gonna need it,” Aoife said to herself.  “She might have saved the best for last.”  That is exactly what Sonia had done.  From the Pokeball that she threw, a Kadabra emerged.  It was a brown Pokemon with a foxlike face, a thick tail, and a spoon in one of its hands.  “Uh-oh,” Aoife said.  “What’s that?”  “Kadabra,” her Pokedex said.  “The psi Pokemon.  Uses its spoon as a channel for its psychic attacks.  It emits alpha rays that can induce headaches to those around it.”  “Sounds powerful,” Aoife gulped.  “It is,” Sonia said.  “But I think you’ll be able to beat it.”  “If you say so,” Aoife said.  “Okay, Pele, fire spin again!”  “Peleeeee!” Pele cried as it used its fire whirlwind attack again.    “Kadabra,” Sonia’s Pokemon said, holding up its spoon and using it to push Pele’s attack back towards it.  “Le!” Pele squealed, as its own attack finished it off.  “Oh, rats!” Aoife muttered, recalling Pele.  “It can do that?  Oh, man, this is gonna be really hard!”  She considered which Pokemon to use next.  “I think…Cubone.”  She threw her Pokeball.  “Go, Cubone!”  “Cubone?” Ferio shook her head.  “Honestly.  Against a psychic Pokemon, Cubone isn’t very good.  She might as well have thrown out a fighting Pokemon if she was going to do that!”  “Really?” Petra asked.  Ferio nodded.  “Cubone only has physical attacks.  Like, it doesn’t have any elemental attacks like fire, electricity, etc.  Psychic Pokemon can easily deflect physical attacks.”  “Maybe Aoife has a trick up her sleeve,” Sora hoped.  But Aoife didn’t.  She ordered Cubone to use Bonemerang, which glanced off of Kadabra’s psychic shield.  “Psybeam, Kadabra!” Sonia yelled, and the attack was so effective Aoife had to recall Cubone after that.  “Well, you saved the best till last and so can I,” Aoife said.  “I have a psychic Pokemon too.  Go, Abra!”  “Aaaaaaabra,” Abra said in its sleep.  “Kadabra?” Sonia’s Kadabra asked, pointing to the Abra with its spoon.  “Kadabra kadabra?”  It snickered.  “Kadabra.”  “Hey, stop laughing!” Aoife yelled at the opponent’s Pokemon.  “You might be more evolved than my Pokemon, but it could still beat you!”  “Ka-dabra,” it shook its head.  “Psybeam, Kadabra,” Sonia ordered.  “You too, Abra!” Aoife said.  “See who’s really stronger!”  “Uh-oh,” Petra said.  “This might be destructive.”  The Psybeams met and they struggled for power, but eventually Kadabra’s overpowered that of its pre-evolution and Abra was hit, forcing Aoife to recall it.  “I have to admit, though,” Sonia said, “your Abra did put up a pretty good fight.”  This still didn’t make Aoife feel better.  “Guess that means I lose.”  But the scoreboard still showed that Aoife had one more Pokemon left.  “Huh?  What’s up with that?” Aoife asked.  “Look behind you,” Sonia answered.  Aoife did, and saw Chu-Chu.  “Oh, that’s right,” Aoife recalled.  “I let Chu-Chu rest for a while but now it’s gotten some of its health points back!”  She knelt down to have a word with her last remaining Pokemon.  “Do you think you can handle it, Chu-Chu?”  “Pika,” Chu-Chu nodded, marching into the arena.  “Oh, no,” Ferio muttered.  “Poor Chu-Chu.  That Kadabra’s too powerful.”  She rested her head on her arms on the seat in front of her.  “I can’t watch.”  “Okay, Chu-Chu, thundershock!” Aoife yelled.  “Piiiika…” Chu-Chu geared up for an attack, sparks gathering at its cheeks.  “CHUUUU!”  The electricity approached Kadabra as it usually did when Chu-Chu used that attack, but something different happened.  Instead of electrocuting Kadabra, Kadabra held up its spoon and the electric current turned around, forming into the shape of a dragon as it raced towards Chu-Chu.  “Chu-Chu!” Aoife cried.  “NOOOOO!”  In that moment, Sonia, Sabrina and Vlad saw an interesting sight.  Being psychics, they were able to see auras around people.  They saw Aoife’s aura, which was blue, green, and yellow, flare up and an arm of it extend around Chu-Chu.  When the electricity reached the aura, it bounced off and headed back in the direction it came from…towards Kadabra.  This time, it didn’t miss.  “Wow,” Sonia said as she recalled Kadabra.  “I wonder what happened there?”  “Why…why did it do that?” Ferio asked.  “I mean, it was going towards Chu-Chu and then it just turned around again.”  “It’s like ping pong,” Sora laughed.  “Who cares why it did that?” Aoife said, bounding across the arena to collect her badge.  “I got my MARSH BADGE!”     Author's Notes Yeah, why _did_ it do that?  Sore wa himitsu desu. :b That would be a spoiler, so I'm not going to say until the end of the story.  Well, in my opinion, this episode started out pretty well but it got worse as it went on.  The next one will be better...I hope.  Hey, let's do a countdown, okay?  Five more episodes until Ruari appears!   back