Alex

  —

  Breakfast the next morning was… interesting. We ate at the Pokemon Center cafeteria, and this morning we splurged on actually decent food instead of the free oatmeal and fruits… Most trainers still had reactions to Leto, of course, but this morning she was only the most eye-catching sight. Three Dragonite and an Aerodactyl were also very eye-catching, of course, but I think what threw most of them for a loop was the Champion sitting at the table with us. Even without his stupid capes, Lance was distinctive.

  It would have been more irritating without Leto looming over us all, honestly. Lance had fans, and quite a few hovered near the entrance to the cafeteria when they spotted him, but I could see them fighting with themselves. Leto aside, Lance was just… enjoying breakfast with us, and considering he and Ms. Greenwood were sitting right next to each other? Not to mention their little looks between themselves? It was kind of obvious that they were… dating, and the vast majority had too much common sense to interrupt him to ask for an autograph.

  The one person that either didn't care, or had 'Lance tunnel vision', had been glared at by Dragonite- Lance's main Dragonite, name your Pokemon, Lance!- and had retreated. Lance hadn't even glanced up from his huge Pidgey omelet, though, while Ms. Greenwood seemed amused by the whole thing.

  Still, it had been… nice. I hadn't ever gotten to really enjoy… family meals, before. Especially not after I came out to my old 'parents' and they started nearly shunning me, so it had felt nice… It honestly would be nice to have them all as family, even if Erin and Leaf were both kind of… insane.

  In all honesty I probably was too, these days. At least a little…

  Now, though? Now I stood in the Challengers waiting room at the Pewter Gym, waiting for my name to be called. My whole name, because of course, they had listed me as Alex Blackthorn…

  "Unity, remember, you're going to be up first, but Brock knows every Pokemon I have except for Yanmega, so he will almost certainly have something to counter you. Probably as his second Pokemon, actually. If you do get countered, I have to assume you don't want to be switched out?" His Pokeball rattled briefly, and I smiled.

  "I figured. If that happens, I do not want you to get too badly hurt, but I also don't want you to feel bad for losing. It happens plenty during spars, right? Brock's probably going to be fielding stronger Pokemon, too." His ball rattled again, sharper this time, and I laughed.

  "Honor, you're our next fighter, obviously. Unless Brock pulls a Solrock or Lunatone out, or one of the flying Fossil Pokemon, you'll still be doing double damage, and I kind of doubt the psychics will come out for a fifth badge battle… Ready for this?" His ball rattled enthusiastically, of course, and I smiled even as the chime rang out.

  "The Challenger, Alex Blackthorn!"

  I squared my shoulders and walked through the doors, and thankfully I didn't freeze up from the amount of people watching me. Fuchsia Gym had been slightly smaller as far as the stands went, and these were packed. My Clan name and the next two battlers aside, the higher Badge battles were always more crowded, especially now, in the middle of the Circuit.

  I had thought that Brock always sat cross-legged for matches, but I guess this time was slightly different, as he was standing on top of his usual boulder, squinting at me. Or just squinting in general, honestly. I assumed there were eyes there, as they squinted harder when I stepped onto the Challengers podium.

  "Welcome to my Gym, challenger! Do you have what it takes to endure this battle?" Honestly, if I didn't grow up where I did, or travel with who I did, I would have been kind of intimidated by Brock. He seemed solid, like I could literally break rocks on him, and I knew that he was a true Rock Master just by his pressure. He might not be able to wield aura, but it was noticeable when he released his grip on it.

  Still, I just smiled widely at the display.

  "I think you're going to need to repair your arena after I'm done, actually!" He laughed and pointed to the side of the field, where two Dugtrio were watching.

  "Already thought of that, but thanks for the warning!" I smiled at him as the referee started their usual spiel.

  "This will be a four versus four Fifth Badge Gym Battle! As the Gym Leader, Brock will release his Pokemon first, and be unable to switch! Challenger, you will release your Pokemon second, and will have three switches available to you! The matches will continue until surrender or knockout! Are there any questions?" We both shook our heads, and then I grinned as Brock released his first Pokemon.

  Onix were intimidating Pokemon, and this one looked strong, honestly. I'd watched the video of Leaf's battle with Brock, and that Onix had looked much rougher, and had shifted around a lot when it was released.

  This one was almost smooth, and came out deadly still, glaring at me. It looked like it might be a sixth-badge Pokemon, which wouldn't surprise me… It was slightly intimidating simply because of the size of the huge rock serpent, but I wasn't intimidated. I had my own serpents. Syrupents, technically, but I really didn't like that name. Wyrms was a much cooler term… Or just plain serpents.

  "Unity, time to have fun!"

  Unity came out with a small roar, but considering his size, it sounded far more like a deep hiss than anything. He still glared at his huge opponent, and his tail-wyrm was already stretched as far as it could, bracing him.

  I barely paid attention to the referee as they counted down, my eyes focused on the Onix and Brock. This was going to be fun!

  "Match begin!"

  "Onix, hit and run!"

  "Unity, buff and cover!"

  I apparently made the right decision, as the Onix almost immediately dove into the ground, disappearing from view even as Unity used Growth, a green shimmer enveloping him briefly. He got off a second one before the ground under him cracked, but he was already Withdrawing even as Onix slammed into him with a Dig.

  My not-so-little apple dragon was launched into the air spinning wildly, and I cursed. Unity wouldn't get very dizzy, we had trained for going airborne with Grace's 'help', but he was small, and spinning far too quickly to pop out and attack. Onix, however, was just fine as it built up a huge Dragon Breath.

  "Unity, Protect!" The Dragon Breath broke harmlessly on Unity's Protect, but it sent him flying even further, bouncing him off the barriers.

  Unity also stopped spinning wildly as his apple seemed to stick to the barrier briefly, and I didn't even have to give the order. The second he stopped spinning, Unity popped his head out of his apple, green energies briefly surging around him before he fired off a weak but fast Energy Ball.

  It smashed into Onix, and weak or not, the Energy Ball did a lot of damage to a Rock/Ground Pokemon, and Onix reeled backwards in pain. Unity plopped to the ground, and even as his tail-wyrm righted his apple he was unleashing another rapid Energy Ball straight into Onix's head.

  Onix went down with a loud roar, and I grinned. Unity rapidly shot a Dragon Breath of his own, sending him flying back towards our side of the field. It wasn't required, but it was considered poor form to try and stick too close to an opponents side while they sent out a new Pokemon.

  I was grateful too, as with a huge grin Brock sent out a Magcargo! A Fire/Rock snail, because obviously Brock was prepared. That wasn't great, honestly… It would have been much worse if Unity focused on physical attacks, though…

  "Second round, begin!"

  "Magcargo, Lava Plume!" Of course…

  "Unity, full dragon!"

  The huge eruption of lava directly under Unity worried me, but he only got clipped by it as his tail-wyrm slammed a Dragon Tail into the ground. Unity retaliated with a strong Dragon Pulse that slammed into the slow-moving Magcargo, sending cracks throughout its shell. I'd have been worried for it, but I knew it could easily reform its shell with more lava. It didn't bother, though, and just unleashed another rapid Lava Plume. Unity's tail-wyrm was already launching them, though, and once again they only got clipped.

  Their apple was looking… well, not rough, really, but it certainly looked melted on the sides. It smelled amazing, honestly… Unity unleashed another Dragon Pulse, but it broke on a Protect, even as another Lava Plume erupted. I grit my teeth in frustration, but there wasn't much strategy in a fight where both opponents had almost no mobility.

  Unity's tail-wyrm took the hit this time, and I could hear the hiss even from inside the apple. Unity, though?

  Unity looked pissed!

  I wasn't all that surprised when he began to glow, honestly. He had been getting close size-wise, at least according to the PokeNet, but he still had to have a bit more cooperation between him and his tail-wyrm. I guess anger at it being struck was enough, though, as with a blinding flash Unity Evolved.

  Hydrapple were much, much larger than Dipplin, and Unity was on the larger end for them, too. His apple itself stood almost four feet tall, but what really made me smile was the two tail-wyrms, much larger than before, that easily braced the huge hardened-syrup apple. Unity himself rose from the middle of the apple, a tiny apple on one of his two horns. Four other, smaller wyrms waved under him, coming out of each 'corner' of his apple, and I really wondered where they came from. I assumed it was some sort of a-sexual splitting of some sort, but I honestly didn't care at that moment.

  I cared more about the fact that all four were glaring at Unity, hissing at him.

  I whistled and Unity looked back at me, and after a moment his wyrms followed his gaze, glaring at me.

  "Not the time to fight yourselves, idiots! Unity!" I grinned as I called out my next order. I had been wanting to see this for a long time!

  "Fickle Beam!"

  Unity hissed and twisted back to Magcargo just as a huge Lava Plume erupted underneath him. He was launching himself out of it after a brief moment, but the beam of energy that shot out of him was… not a unified beam. It was just Unity, as his wyrms writhed in pain. I had kind of expected that directly after Evolving, especially while under attack like that, but I was still disappointed.

  Not as disappointed as Unity probably was, though. When the fire surrounding him died down, my apple hydra was unconscious, covered in burns, and I scowled. I returned him, still scowling fiercely, but I made my voice as light as possible as I spoke to his ball. He might not be able to hear me, but I didn't care.

  "Good job, Unity! You were at a disadvantage for that fight, but you still managed to mostly evade a lot of attacks, and you Evolved!" I looked up, and my scowl dropped away as I saw Magcargo being returned as well.

  "You also knocked Magcargo out with that Fickle Beam!" I was smiling as I put his ball back on my belt, and Brock was smiling as well. The referee looked at me, though.

  "Challenger, release your second Pokemon!" Oh, yeah… Unity went down first, technically… I grinned as I pulled a different Luxury Ball from my belt.

  "Honor, here's a tough fight for you!"

  Honor came out the way he liked to come out. Where Hazard was vicious, Honor was… intimidating, just not vicious… Honor came out with a huge stomping, clanging roar before he set himself into a fighting stance. I could tell he was happy, but Honor didn't smile. Honor just stared at Brock.

  Brock laughed, though. Laughed, and sent out something I should have really expected to see. Well, I kind of had, especially considering Brock was obviously bringing out stronger Pokemon against me, but it was still somewhat irritating… Especially considering what I'd said in the waiting room…

  I hadn't seen many Lunatone fight, so this was going to be something of a blind fight… other than our practice fights against psychics like Hecate and Grace, but they were both powerful already, and Honor wasn't quite to their level of strength, not yet…

  "Third round, begin!"

  "Lunatone, sharp eyes!" Hmmm…

  "Honor, end it fast!"

  Lunatone, of course, rose higher into the sky as Honor charged, a dark energy radiating from it momentarily before it receded into its… eyes. Shit, I'd never seen it before, but that might be Future Sight…

  Honor wasn't too happy that his opponent was running, but he did have some ranged options these days… just not many. He didn't get directly underneath Lunatone before he released a swift, weak Dragon Breath, but it was only a test shot. Lunatone still only barely managed to move out of the way, so it wasn't that fast in the air. The return Psychic was fast, but Honor still managed to barely dodge out of the way, unleashing a sweeping, overpowered Dragon Breath that knocked Lunatone out of the air.

  Even as it was falling towards the ground, though, a brilliant white light lined with dark shadows began to shine around Honor.

  "Honor, dodge!" I mean, obviously he knew to dodge, but still… shit!

  Honor threw himself to the side, evading the burst of light… mostly. His tail was hit, the last third bent at an angle it should not bend at. I was already raising his ball, but Honor snarled, a sound I had never heard from him before, and launched himself into the air at Lunatone just as it arrested its fall.

  The clash of Honors scales was almost deafening as he dragged the Rock Pokemon out of the air, one fist already raised, orange fighting energy surging around it. His fist came down in… a flash of red light, as Brock returned Lunatone! I glared at him even as Honor landed, and though he glared at Brock as well, I could tell how much pain he was in. His tail was broken!

  "Sorry about that! I'd rather not have to wait weeks for Lunatone to recover from being broken in half!" My scowl dropped, slightly, because that made sense… Inorganic Pokemon could survive something like that, but the recovery time was far worse than for organic Pokemon that broke a bone…

  Honor looked pissed still, but he scoffed at Brock dismissively, turned, and walked back to our side of the field. His glare at me was mild, but I knew that if I returned him, I would have to deal with an offended dragon for weeks, myself…

  I still looked at his tail in concern, but he just shrugged and raised his fists. His meaning was clear: No tail moves, sure, but he had his fists! His balance seemed to be fine, too… I still frowned, but met the worried-looking referee's eyes and shook my head.

  "I have to say, your Pokemon are kind of tough! They have some real endurance!" I smiled slightly at Brock's praise, but not very much.

  "They're well trained, motivated, and they're used to fighting against stronger opponents!" Brock didn't even flinch. He knew what he was doing, pulling these Pokemon out against me.

  His last Pokemon was just unfair, though.

  Archeops were cool Pokemon, honestly. They were Rock/Flying, sure, but they couldn't really fly. They could, however, run. They were fast Pokemon, and vicious… So not that unusual compared to our usual opponents, I guess. Even Hecate was vicious… Hell, Grace was vicious in her own caring, smiling way…

  "Battle resume!"

  "Archeops, Tailwind Slash!" Expected…

  "Honor, hunker down!"

  Even as Archeops began glowing with Flying type energy, a light breeze already building, Honor was shimmering with Steel type energy as he layered Iron Defense on top of a Work Up. The Air Slash that came flying at him was expected, sure, but still… would nobody get up close and fight Honor? I mean, sure, he looked kind of scary to fight in close combat, but so did Archeops!

  Honor managed to dodge out of the way of the first, and as a second came flying at him I got a bit mad.

  "Honor, break them!"

  He barked out a laugh even as he started sprinting at Archeops, tail held stiffly except for where it flopped towards the end… That had to hurt. He didn't seem to care, though, as he drew closer to Archeops. An Archeops that decided not to meet him in close range and began to run away, attempting to hide behind a boulder as a large amount of flying energy gathered around its wings.

  Honor didn't go around the boulder, however. Honor broke it with a Brick Break, sending pieces of it smashing into Archeops… who threw its arms down and flew into the air. It wasn't true flight, however. I recognized the move Fly, and I smiled. That was a very accurate, damaging Move, sure…

  It was also so predictable.

  "Honor, Noble Roar!" The wave of sound slammed into Archeops, and it shimmered right before it smashed into Honor's chest with its talons, almost seeming to teleport with its speed. Honor's eyes widened and he gasped in pain, and I knew he was one strong attack away from going down.

  If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.

  Good thing I bought that TM.

  Honor's Drain Punch hit Archeops directly in its face, and it tried to leap away. Honor wasn't going to let that happen, though. He was a close-range fighter, and his left hand had a vice-grip on that poor Archeops' right arm. The second Drain Punch left their positions reversed, with Honor looking better, if not great, but Archeops? Archeops looked defeated as it caught a third Drain Punch to the face.

  It still managed to bite Honor's left arm with a Crunch that snapped a huge scale and made him release it, but Honor wasn't going to let this chance slip away. The Dragon Breath that slammed into Arceops' stomach wasn't all that strong, really, but it didn't need to be.

  That poor Pokemon finally folded, and was returned after a moment as the crowd cheered.

  I was smiling widely as I met Honor on the field, and after a short roar of victory he returned himself. Crap… He hadn't stomped his feet to clang his scales together. That meant he was in a lot of pain, despite his unwillingness to retreat from battle…

  "I get the feeling you've heard this a few times, but your dragons are both very well trained!" I smiled as Brock walked up, and nodded at him.

  "I think we have some of the most intense training around! Most trainers who hear about it think we're crazy, actually!" He laughed briefly before holding out a badge for me.

  "Good job, either way! I'll see you at this year's Conference, no doubt about that."

  I flushed at the praise, but not much. I shook his hand and grinned.

  "Honestly, I'm almost looking forward to your next two battles more than I was my own!"

  Brock grinned and nodded.

  "I am, too! Those two left an impression for a first-badge battle…"

  My grin grew a little sharp as I leaned in a little, voice quiet enough the audience shouldn't be able to hear.

  "Thanks for listing me on your site as Alex Blackthorn, by the way! I must have… misclicked somehow, and accidentally typed in my whole last name!" He winced, though, and looked apologetic.

  "Sorry, that wasn't me, that was my brother Forrest. He runs the site, and he's a fan of yours, after Janine called and talked about you three. He wanted to get you the biggest crowd possible for your fifth badge battle, since these are all recorded and posted…"

  "Oh…" I blushed hard and turned around, walking off quickly. Fleeing, you could even say…

  I had fans? I mean, sure, it wasn't strange, I'd had a few trainers in the past couple years I would consider myself fans of, and my number of fans would probably grow as this battle was posted… but… me?

  It felt good, absolutely, but still… people liked… me?

  —

  Leaf

  —

  I walked onto the field with a wide, hungry smile. I was slightly worried about Honor, actually, but his tail should be completely healed by tomorrow. Luckily there was a tiny 'Clinic' here for challengers that transferred Pokemon to the Pokemon Center, so Alex was up in the stands watching. Her, Erin, mom, and… Lance. I mean, I liked Lance, sure. He was a lot less annoying these days, too, but still… I knew mom liked him, too, and that he seemed to make her happy, so I wasn't opposed to the whole situation…

  It still felt so weird! Although, if they actually did get married, that would make Alex my sister, which was cool… Lance as my dad, though? It just didn't seem possible!

  I met Brock's eyes from across the field- wait, I met his squint. Seriously, how did he see? Still, I met his… gaze? With a wide grin that he returned.

  "You know, it's very rare for challengers to request a second battle after they've won! Especially an eighth badge battle when the challenger only has five!" I laughed a little.

  "Well, we were in the area, so why not? You Gym Leaders have been pulling out stronger Pokemon for us, anyways!" He chuckled a little.

  "Well, we're not just speed bumps for trainers, you know? We test trainers, and nobody grows from an easy challenge!" I nodded at that and tightly gripped a ball in my hand.

  The referee actually looked kind of excited as he called out a slightly different spiel this time.

  "This will be a five versus five Eighth Badge Exhibition Battle! As the Gym Leader, Brock will release his Pokemon first, and be unable to switch! Challenger, you will release your Pokemon second, and will have four switches available to you! The matches will continue until surrender or knockout! Are there any questions?" We both shook our heads.

  Exhibition basically meant there was nothing on the line, other than the traditional losers fee. This was literally just for fun and to test ourselves… even if we weren't going to face any nasty strategies, just stronger opponents. The nasty strategies were for official Badge battles… I really wasn't looking forward to Sabrina, honestly.

  Brock grinned at me as he sent his first Pokemon out, and I knew exactly what Pokemon I would be sending out, not that my choice had changed. After all, Hazard had lost his cool over an Onix, so why not test him out on a Steelix?

  Steelix were very intimidating Pokemon, honestly. Over thirty feet of steel-coated rock serpent didn't exactly scream 'cuddly and friendly', and this one didn't disappoint. Well, I bet it was friendly with Brock and his trainers… Considering the way its red eyes glared at me, though? This was going to hurt.

  Good!

  "Hazard, time to get some redemption, baby!"

  Hazard came out in his usual, preferred way: one foot leading as he crouched, arms thrown wide as he snarled at Steelix. Then, unlike his last time in this arena, he straightened and nodded at Steelix. I could see the shock on Brock's face, because, yeah… Hazard had left an impression. Steelix must have heard from Brock, as well, because it also looked shocked momentarily before it returned a curt nod of its own, and I couldn't stop the huge smile that broke out.

  "Battle begin!"

  "Steelix, environmental ambush!"

  "Hazard, have fun!"

  I really enjoyed the way Brock's face grew confused, but then I couldn't see Brock as a huge Sandstorm whipped up. Hazard growled in irritation, and so did I. So far most opponents hadn't used many terrain Moves. Actually, Grace's Psychic Terrain counted, even if hers was an innate ability and not something she had to really deploy like this.

  Hazard, however, wasn't dumb. Well, scratch that, Hazard wasn't dumb in combat. I honestly think he might have been kind of dumb in everything else. I loved my baby, but he was… direct.

  He still calmly began to dance, a Swords Dance in fact, even as his arms seemed to claw more Normal type energy towards his chest. Hazard had worked very hard on this combo Move. Focus Energy and Swords Dance at the same time made Hazard hit very hard, and he knew it. Even as he finished his final step and energy surged along his blades he was twirling out of the way of a Dig, the earth erupting as Steelix barely missed him.

  It made me so happy to see him move like that! He had initially started off so hateful to anyone and everyone, but Grace? I think Grace had wormed her way into his… heart? Yeah, sure, let's go with that. He had eagerly taken instruction from her, at least after the first two or so months. It took him being practically humiliated numerous times, of course, but eventually Hazard had realized 'Hey, she's really good at not getting hit, and I'm really good at hitting! Let's see if I can combine those two things!'... and it worked.

  The Aqua Tail he unleashed into that poor Steelix wasn't that strong. He was a pure Dragon type, and the Move didn't come easily to him. It was still more than enough to rock Steelix to the side, and I grinned as Hazard threw himself onto the huge Pokemon.

  Steelix roared and curved on itself, trying to snap Hazard right off its back. It got another Aqua Tail to the face for the attempt as Hazard continued to climb it. That was a bit much for the huge Pokemon, though, and it tossed itself backwards in an attempt to crush Hazard, but I just smiled.

  I laughed as Hazard struck its upper back with a Brick Break. He had laughed at Honor's attempts to learn the Move, but after the first crack in a boulder, with Erin looking on proudly? Well, Hazard knew it was a good idea to have options. It had taken him almost a week longer to learn and perfect it than Honor, of course. Honor's internal Type energies had helped him learn it, but to my surprise, Honor had helped Hazard learn it after he perfected it.

  Honor for sure gave Hazard some grief for it, but if there was one thing they could both easily agree on, it was that growing more powerful was fun.

  The Brick Break smashed into Steelix's upper back, and even as the poor Pokemon Screeched out its pain, Hazard let another one fly. Steelix crumpled to the ground in an earth-shaking faint, and I smiled as Hazard tossed himself off, spinning into another Swords Dance even as he did. He completed it before Brock returned his Pokemon, too, so there would be no penalties for us using a Move in-between rounds.

  For his part, I couldn't see Brock all that well, still. Hazard was wincing as the sand ground at him like a rasp, but the Sandstorm was starting to fade slightly. Just enough to see Brock's second Pokemon.

  Aggron were also intimidating Pokemon, and this one looked mad.

  "Battle resume!"

  "Aggron, full power!"

  I didn't say a word as Hazard spun into another Swords Dance, of course. Hazard was easily my most trained Pokemon. Hope might still be stronger, but Hazard had trained in one on one fights far more.

  I still winced when the ground began to shake even through the barriers, and I winced harder when Hazard lost his footing to the Earthquake, tumbling to the ground as a boulder came flying out of the sandstorm. I groaned at the huge swarm of boulders that followed the first, a truly powerful barrage of Rock Blast's.

  Hazard managed to take the first few well enough, dodging and smashing his way through the barrage, closing in on Aggron, but the sixth one caught him directly on his snout. I gasped as I heard a crunching noise, but Hazard's neck was fine… his snout, though? It was dripping red, and I tightly gripped his ball as his eyes began to glow red. That wasn't Outrage, he was just actually outraged…

  To my surprise, Hazard actually managed to make it to Aggron. He even managed a strong Brick Break that smashed a deep dent into Aggron's chest.

  He still went down in a heap from the fast retaliatory Iron Tail, though, and I returned him with a frown.

  Hazard hit hard, but Steel/Rock was one of the worst combinations for my team to fight. Noibat was right out. I got the feeling that Aggron had more than a few ranged options other than Rock Blast, and one hit in melee might shatter his wings. Morgrem was still my weakest Pokemon, not counting Tinkatink up in the stands. I glanced at her and noticed she looked mad in moms arms… Yeah, she liked Hazard.

  "Challenger, you have thirty seconds to release your next Pokemon."

  Crap. Grace might be able to handle this, but I also had the feeling that there was another Rock/Steel on Brock's team right now, Gym Leaders shared information… Well, why not?

  "Hope, you're up!"

  Despite my nervousness I really enjoyed the gasps from the crowd when I sent out a named Fairy Pokemon. Even Brock frowned, and I couldn't stop the smile that broke through my nerves.

  "Battle Resume!"

  "Hope, have too much fun!"

  "Aggron, end it fast!" Yeah, you remember Hope, don't you?

  Hope giggled as she bounced off the ground once, then shot up into the air, dodging the Flash Cannon by inches. Even as she was rising, however, she was shimmering with Cosmic Power. Her next Cosmic Power was almost interrupted by another Flash Cannon that shattered her Protect, but my fae was different. She grinned down at Aggron as it glared at her.

  Then it got mad.

  I could tell what Move it was charging up instantly, and considering the audience's reaction, so could they. Hyper Beam was very distinctive.

  Luckily my fae was very used to pulling Protect back up after it shattered.

  I really enjoyed how Brock's mouth fell open as another Protect shimmered into existence just before the Hyper Beam hit. It shattered again, and the beam still managed to clip Hope a little, but she was already shimmering with another Cosmic Power.

  "Aggron, defense!"

  Brock's order was a bit late, however. Hyper Beam didn't stop a Pokemon from moving, or even using Moves. It just made them so, so tired, similar to holding your breath far over your limits. The moments after it was released, most Pokemon were more focused on not passing out than anything else.

  The intense Gravity that hit Aggron drove it to its hands and knees, then Hope let herself be caught up in it. I didn't need to call this out, she was using it, but it felt almost poetic.

  "Hope, Stored Power!"

  Hope cackled as she brought down an elbow right into Aggron's head, but of course, Aggron was resistant to Psychic energies, and even that strong strike hadn't put it down.

  Hope's Play Rough to the back of its head, however, did.

  I tuned out the sounds of the crowd as my fae leapt back to our side of the field, and I could see she had gotten in a fast but weak Heal Pulse before Aggron was returned. Still barely within the rules.

  I smiled widely at her, and she returned it before she turned back around, setting herself.

  Brock, for his part, looked almost constipated.

  "Your dragon got a lot better at controlling himself, but your fae is…" I just grinned at him. He was trying to stall for time, letting at least one of Hope's buffs fall away, but Hope was… different. It strained her, but she could hold at least two buffs on herself for minutes.

  Brock frowned at my lack of response, shook his head, then sent his next Pokemon out.

  Bastiodon was also expected, but I smiled.

  "Match resume!"

  "Bastiodon, full offense!" Yeah, your best bet is to get Hope out of there…

  I didn't say a word, because I didn't need to.

  Hope launched herself at the charging Bastiodon, shimmering with yet another Cosmic Power before a pinpoint Gravity slowed Bastidon down. It didn't drive it to the ground, but it was slowed, and its head, and that huge shield, bowed slightly.

  Hope came down on its neck with a Stored Power, eliciting a loud shriek from the Pokemon, even as a flurry of Play Rough punches hit it in the base of its skull. It managed to throw its head back, pinning my fae between its shield and neck with a crack, but I wasn't worried.

  Hope's next Stored Power knocked it out, and even as it was returned she floated back over. Floated, because her right leg was cleanly broken. Clefable didn't have knees, but she certainly had one, now…

  I met her eyes, but she just shrugged at me. Hope enjoyed causing pain to her opponents in battle. She might not enjoy her own pain, sure, but she wasn't all that bothered by it, either.

  I met the worried, questioning eyes of the referee and smiled. He looked very uneasy as his eyes flicked to my Pokemon, but after a moment he shrugged and looked at Brock.

  Brock, who was scowling at me.

  "Will your Clefable be alright to cont-" He cut off as Hope began to giggle. Well, Hope and I both began to giggle.

  "Hope doesn't care about such a minor injury! Neither did Honor, and he kicked your Acheop's as- butt! She's fine!" Hope nodded along and gave Brock a wide smile. I knew by his flinch that while her mask may have smiled, her true self?

  Well, Hope enjoyed driving her opponents to despair, and that didn't just include Pokemon. I knew without seeing it that her shine was snarling at him.

  He shook himself a little before releasing his fourth Pokemon with a frown.

  The Alolan Golem was slightly startling, but not much? It was kind of expected, honestly. He knew I had a flying dragon, so he was probably hoping to save it for Noibat… maybe? Rock was effective against Flying types, too… I had to wonder what his last Pokemon was, though…

  "Battle Resume!"

  "Golem, smash it!"

  Golem seemed to charge up before it began to roll, a Rollout, probably. Hope floated into the air, though, and hit herself with another Healing Pulse… I had forgotten something about Golem, though, as Hope unleashed another Gravity into Stored Power combo. Something rather important.

  Golem could Explode.

  The barriers visibly shuddered from the concussive wave, and Hope's smoking body slammed into the barrier directly in front of me. My heart leapt into my throat, but she was… well, not okay, but she wasn't bleeding badly… I returned her with a huge frown, though, and Brock looked apologetic as he spoke.

  "Sorry, but your Clefable is a bit… insane. Take it as a compliment that I felt it was necessary." He was serious, and I gave him a tight nod, but I was still mad. Yes, it was a valid tactic, but still…

  Brock's last Pokemon was a bit more expected, but not welcome.

  Rhyperior were intimidating Pokemon, honestly. Also very tanky… I was reluctant to send Noibat in against something like that, too. They could shoot rocks out at speed, and Morgrem was still a little weak…

  I sighed as I sent Grace out onto the field, and she immediately turned back to me and bowed. Her eyes were tight as she met mine, and I nodded.

  "Last opponent, Grace, but Hazard and Hope are both out." She nodded before turning around again.

  "Match resume!"

  "Rhyperior, overwhelm!"

  "Grace, keep away!"

  Grace began to glide, even as her Psychic Terrain rushed out and a Protect shimmered around her. The first rock that came flying out of its palm at her missed by inches, and I winced when it shattered a boulder. My combat maid didn't flinch, though, and kept laboriously building her newest Move between her hands. She had been idly working on it for weeks, but not seriously at all until the last couple of days. We hadn't planned to come back to Pewter this early, of course…

  It was rough, and it took far too long to be truly effective, despite Unity's coaching, but it was our best bet to end this before Rhyperior got a lucky shot in. She needed to be close to ensure it struck, though…

  The next rock shattered Grace's Protect, clipping her left horn and twisting her head around at speed. I gasped slightly, but with a growl, Grace planted her feet and launched herself towards Rhyperior. She couldn't truly float, but she could make herself very light, and she soared across the battlefield. The next rock shattered a boulder in front of her, sending a spray of sharp stone shards into Grace.

  She looked rough now, covered in small cuts, with small shards embedded into her body.

  She still let fly with her attack as she slid in front of Rhyperior.

  Energy Ball was very effective on it, even without a same type boost, even in its rough, amorphous form. It wasn't a nice solid ball, more of a wavering Egg shape, and a good bit of it just splattered on Rhyperior's face.

  The rest rocked its head back, and with a roar it brought a foot down in a Stomp that barely missed Grace.

  The shock wave still knocked her into the air, and she met its followup Punch Move, not sure which one, with a barrage of Psybeams. Grace flew through the air and smashed into the barrier, though, and I winced as I returned her.

  Rhyperior looked rough now, at least… and I only had one real option, unfortunately. Noibat was way too fragile to take those hits…

  "Morgrem, it's up to you, little buddy!"

  The crowd went very silent as my shiny Dark/Fairy came out, and for his part, Morgrem went stiff. This was the most attention he had ever received, and despite his species, despite being a fae, he was shiny. He was a target. He didn't want that much attention, not really, but he still sneered at Rhyperior after a moment.

  Brock once again had his mouth hanging open, but with a shake of his head he closed it.

  "Match resume!"

  "Rhyperior, end it fast!"

  "Morgrem, don't get hit!"

  "No shit! Look at that fucking thing!"

  I couldn't stop the bark of laughter as I heard his response. He was scared, and I didn't blame him one bit.

  Especially not as the ground began to quake.

  Morgrem leapt into the air, avoiding the initial effect of the Earthquake, and he didn't fall down as he landed. He still grimaced from the pain as the Ground energies slammed into him, but he immediately darted closer. Rhyperior lifted a leg to Stomp, but Morgrem was decently fast, and he barely avoided the foot and shock wave, retaliating with a Dazzling Gleam. It was a weak one, unfortunately, and while it did damage Rhyperior, I couldn't stop the flinch when a blade of rock popped up in front of Morgrem. The Stone Edge caught him right in his chest, too, and knocked him back a couple feet, blood freely running from the wound.

  I raised his ball, but before I could return him he was crashing to his knees, head bowed. Rhyperior, of course, paused in confusion.

  The spear-tip of hair that entered its open mouth was a bit too much, but I still smiled as pink energies radiated from Morgrem's hands. He used his hair to pull himself in and unleashed a flurry of blows onto Rhyperior's face, a Play Rough, and I got excited when its eyes rolled backwards in unconsciousness.

  I still frowned as Morgrem was smashed and sent flying by the Pokemon's collapse. He was not moving.

  The audience got quiet as they waited, but I didn't react much. Well, they probably saw me close my eyes, actually…

  I pulled myself into that communion-space with effort. I could come here on my own, but it was not easy, like forcing myself through a barely-cracked door that resisted me.

  'Morgrem, you won, you just have to stand up! Then you win, we win! Well, we won either way since I still have Noibat, but still!'

  His form was flickering, and I knew he was right on the verge of passing out, himself. His voice was faint and weak, as well.

  "I'm not sure I can physically stand, honestly…"

  'Do it to show them your power! Make them fear you!'

  He laughed a little, voice tight with pain.

  "Blatant manipulation? Well… I'll try…"

  I pulled myself out and opened my eyes to see Morgrem's arms shaking. He slowly, agonizingly picked himself up, but his sneer at Brock was weak, head lolling from side to side as he stumbled.

  "The winner is the Challenger, Leaf Greenwood!"

  I leapt onto the field and ran to Morgrem, grabbing him in a tight hug. Too tight a hug, apparently, as he hissed at me. He still gave me a shaky one-armed hug before returning himself, but not without a parting comment.

  "I think this is on you, right? You're the trainer, so do better next time!" I felt his amusement, though, and laughed.

  'We were testing ourselves, my little murder demon!'

  I looked up to find Brock standing there, frowning at me. I straightened and gave him a questioning look.

  "Is there a reason you're upset?" He grimaced.

  "Your fae. The shiny Morgrem aside, your Clefable is named, and she's too-" I raised a hand to interrupt him.

  "Trade secret. Look at my qualifications, and my trainer card, after this." I wasn't trying to advertise my Fairy Master status. That was just too much attention for me, honestly. Erin couldn't help but advertise hers with Leto, but me? I'd rather keep that… not secret, but I wasn't going to advertise it.

  Brock frowned, but stretched his hand out. I took it and gave him a firm handshake, and his face lightened up.

  "Still, that was a hell of a battle for someone with five badges! I know I'll see you at the Conference, Leaf. Congratulations." I smiled at him.

  "Oh, you will! The real question is if I'll be the winner or not!" He laughed, and his head tilted a bit. I assumed he was looking at Erin, or where she had been, since she was probably on the way to the waiting room, but I could not tell where Brock was actually looking…

  Seriously, how did he even see?!