After heading into town with Serena and Aurora to buy some pastries for breakfast, we headed back to the Pokémon Center, where Ash, Bonnie, and Clemont had only recently awoken.
After a filling meal, we all headed towards the Santalune Gym.
As we entered the Arena grounds, Viola was already standing at one end of the Battlefield while Alexa stood on the sidelines.
"Good to see you finally here, Kai! I hope you're ready because my Pokémon and I sure are!" Viola called out when we entered.
"We're ready," I said with a smile.
My friends went to stand over to the side with Alexa.
Suddenly, a burst of energy erupted from my bag, forming into Luca. He turned around to look at me, performing a bow with his right paw on his chest, before looking up at me with a complicated look in his eyes.
He didn't look nervous about the coming Battle.
But more along the lines of being worried about me.
Understanding his meaning, I smiled softly, nodding my head.
With one final bow, he made his way to the sidelines with the rest.
"Have you made your preparations?" Viola asked teasingly,
I looked over at her and the smile on my face suddenly faded. My entire atmosphere began to change.
My eyes grew cold and calculating, my eyebrows relaxed, and my overall expression made it seem as if I were made of stone.
My entire aura had changed into that of a singular, unfeeling entity.
Finished with locking away my emotions, I mechanically nodded my head in response to her question.
Seeing my state, everyone was surprised.
Viola felt a shiver run up her spine as she stared into my cold eyes while the referee and observers, sans Luca, became nervous.
Gone was the playful and teasing aura that usually surrounded me. Instead, as Viola stared at me, all she saw was a machine. A cold and calculating machine built for precision and lethality.
"Umm, Clemont… W-What's going on? Why does Kai look so different…?" Bonnie asked, sounding quite nervous and slightly afraid.
"I… I'm not sure, Bonnie. I think this is just what Kai looks like when he's getting serious…." Clemont replied.
"It's just like that time…" Serena muttered under her breath, remembering a memory from many years ago.
Ash just stared at me seriously. He was paying close attention to my actions, perhaps hoping he could learn something from this Battle.
"Ehem… The Gym Battle between Kai, The Challenger, and Viola, The Santalune Gym Leader, will now begin!" The match referee announced, clearing her throat, which had suddenly run dry from nervousness.
"Each side will have the use of two Pokémon, and the Battle will be over when either Trainer's Pokémon are unable to continue! Only the Challenger may substitute Pokémon!"
Viola and I nodded. She did not say her usual catchphrase, seeming as though her entire focus was on the battle to come.
"Go, Surskit!" Viola cried out, sending out her first Pokémon.
With a burst of light, Surskit appeared on the arena grounds.
"Surskit~!" it cried out in a high-pitched voice.
Seeing Viola's choice, my unfeeling, machine-like mind snapped towards a plan that I had formulated previously.
"Kaida," I called out in a cold, monotone voice.
With a burst of light, Kaida appeared in front of me, crying out!
"Gaaaaar~!"
Seeing my choice, Viola frowned. She was confused by my choice of Pokémon. After all, [Ice] Type moves were Super-effective against Garchomp.
She wasn't the only one as the spectators, sans Luca, looked on in confusion as well.
"Now, Battle Begin!" The referee called out.
"Surskit, use [Ice Beam]!" Viola called out, deciding to target Kaida's weakness directly.
However, I was unphased, calling out,
"Movement Alpha."
"Huh?" The group on the side called out in confusion, wondering what I'd just said.
However, they didn't have to wait long as Kaida suddenly blasted skyward, narrowly dodging Surskit's [Ice Beam] by millimetres!
Once in the air, Kaida began charging up a familiar purple glow, suddenly releasing a [Hyper Beam] directly at the ground!
The beam hit the Battlefield dead-centre, missing Surskit by miles but blasting up a massive cloud of dust that obstructed the view of everyone in the arena.
Ash and the others raised their brows in surprise, wondering if Kaida had made a mistake.
But suddenly,
"Quick, Surskit! Evasive maneuvers!" Viola ordered out, causing more confusion among the spectators.
"Beta." My voice echoed throughout the arena, causing everyone to furrow their brows, wondering just what was going on.
With a swooshing sound, Kaida suddenly appeared out of the dust cloud directly in front of Surskit with green claw-shaped energy blades surrounding and protruding from her arms!
Surskit had only barely begun to follow Viola's last order, so it couldn't get out of the way in time!
With a loud bang that shook the entire building, Kaida's [Dragon Claw] impacted Surskit, sending it blasting backwards as if it were shot from a cannon, tumbling and skidding across the ground towards Viola.
"Ah! Surskit!" Viola cried out!
Surskit finally managed to get its feet under it, skidding to a stop three paces in front of Viola.
"W-What's going on? Kai hasn't said anything about the moves Kaida should use, but she seems to be attacking every time Kai says a random word!" Ash exclaimed!
"This… Kai seems to have come up with different scenarios and practised them with his Pokémon… He then assigned a code name to each of them, saving the amount of time his orders take to get to his Pokémon while also preventing his opponent from hearing and knowing what he plans to do…." Alexa said in disbelief.
"And knowing the kind of Trainer that Kai is, he's probably already predicted most of what Viola will do, much like he did during Ash's Battle with her…." Clemont added.
"Meaning he's already come up with different courses of action to take, each with their own code name, that he can deploy whenever he wants…." Alexa finished.
Hearing her words, everyone sucked in a sharp breath at the ridiculousness of the situation. This type of Battling Style was just so unique; they struggled to come up with ways they'd counter it themselves.
After finishing her attack, Kaida soared back into the air, hovering above my side of the arena, waiting patiently.
Viola looked down at Surskit standing in front of her, saying,
"Alright, Surskit, just hang in there. Use [Sticky Web]!"
Hearing its orders, Surskit began shooting [Sticky Web]s rapidly at the hovering Kaida.
"Delta, then Charlie." My voice once again echoed out in its cold monotone.
Hearing my orders and seeing the incoming attack, Kaida dove straight down, barrel-rolling and twisting in the air, avoiding as many [Sticky Web]s as she could. However, unlike the small and agile Fletchling, Kaida could not dodge all of them, with a couple landing on her tail and back-fin.
Undeterred, she completed my orders, landing on the arena ground roughly before immediately raising her foot and stomping down!
As a result, the arena's ground began to shake violently as Kaida used [Earthquake]!
The intense vibrations caused Surskit to tumble around, losing its balance. The attack itself wasn't very effective, but it was only a prelude to what came next.
"Beta, Omega," I called out.
Kaida suddenly zoomed towards the still tumbling Surskit at high speed, the familiar green energy claws protruding from her arms.
However, Viola was now ready, calling out,
"Use [Protect]!"
Even while unbalanced, Surskit managed to time its Move perfectly, a translucent disk forming in front of it just as Kaida's [Dragon Claw] reached it, causing a massive explosion that sent Kaida flying backwards.
However, before Viola could breathe a sigh of relief, a purple glow had just fully formed in Kaida's mouth.
Even though she was sent flying away from Surskit, Kaida had practised this maneuver repeatedly to get it right. So as she was blasted back, she made sure to angle her face towards Surskit, building up her [Hyper Beam] and releasing it just as Surskit's [Protect] faded.
BOOOOOOOM
The impact from Kaida's [Hyper Beam] and the subsequent delayed explosion sent Surskit tumbling backwards. It had happened so fast that it hadn't even realised what occurred before it was impacting the ground, skidding to a halt and falling unconscious at Viola's feet.
After completing her attack, Kaida was also sent tumbling; however, she launched herself from the first impact with the ground, landing on her feet and skidding to a stop just in front of me.
"Surskit is unable to battle; Kaida wins!" the referee announced.
Silence followed as everyone stared, shellshocked at what had just occurred.
This Battle was unlike any of them had ever seen. It was filled with unexpected turns, and because of my unfamiliar call-outs, everything my Pokémon and I did seemed utterly unpredictable.
Viola reached into her pocket with furrowed brows, pulling out a Pokéball and pointing it at the unconscious Surskit and returning it.
"Thanks, Surskit, you did great out there." She said.
"Kaida, Return," I called out.
Kaida then turned into a beam of energy, returning to her Pokéball.
"Raiu," I called out.
With a burst of energy, my Jolteon, Raiu, appeared in the arena in front of me, releasing its cry!
With a grimace, Viola noticed that the Pokémon I'd sent out was an [Electric] Type. Understanding that her next Pokémon would be in for a hard Battle, she readied herself, calling out,
"Vivillon, come out!"
However, she would never expect what would occur next.
As soon as Vivillon appeared, it suddenly cried out in pain!
"Viiiiiiii!!!!"
Shocked by the sudden occurrence, Viola cried out,
"Vivillon?!? What's wrong!"
However, it soon became clear.
There were rocks that were stabbing Vivillon from multiple different directions!
"What's going on? What are those rocks hurting Vivillon?!?" Bonnie cried out.
"[Stealth Rock]…" Alexa muttered in disbelief.
"Huh?" Ash, Serena and Clemont exclaimed after hearing her utterance.
"During Kaida's first attack… She... She didn't just create that dust cloud to hide her approach… She did it to hide her use of [Stealth Rock]... So when Viola finally sent out Vivillon, it would be lying in wait…"
"Only to catch it by surprise with a Super-effective attack." My voice echoed out, completing Alexa's sentence.
"W-What…?" Viola muttered in shock. She then looked over at me, staring into my cold eyes, finally realising what I'd done.
However, I spared her no mercy, calling out,
"Omega."
As my voice echoed over Vivillon's cries, Raiu made his move, charging up a massive amount of Electricity, before finally sending an enormous [Thunderbolt] directly at the wailing Vivillon.
Viola watched as everything around her seemed to be moving in slow motion, the massive beam of erratic electricity inching closer and closer towards her helpless Pokémon…
It was only now, after experiencing a Battle of this magnitude, that she understood the meaning of my words…
That despite enjoying Battles, the Pokémon that participated ultimately faced suffering…
BOOOOOOOM
The [Thunderbolt] finally impacted the flailing Vivillon, creating a massive mushroom cloud of smoke that expanded outwards.
From it, Vivillon suddenly fell to the ground, impacting the arena floor with a thud and lay there, unmoving.
"Vivillon is unable to battle. Raiu wins, which means the Victory goes to Kai, The Challenger!"
The referee's voice echoed around the arena, but all it was met with was silence…
…
..
.
With the battle over, I slowly came out of the state of mind that I'd put myself in, my emotions surging back to the forefront of my mind, doing their best to stabilise.
Looking over at the fallen Vivillon, the first glimpse of emotion that appeared on my face was subtle sadness as I furrowed my eyebrows.
Those around the arena immediately noticed this as they were all looking directly at me.
Deep inside, I was incredibly saddened by Vivillon's state and felt extreme guilt, but I focused on my training and kept my expressions minimal...
Without even thinking, I walked over to Vivillon, who was lying motionless.
As I arrived at her side, I knelt down and pulled out a pink capsule from my bag.
It immediately released a pink mist that covered Vivillon, seeping deep into her.
The effects were immediate as Vivillon began breathing more easily, and she actually managed to open her eyes.
Staring up at me, she released a little mewl,
"Vi…~, Vivi…~."
Hearing her tiny voice, my brows furrowed deeper as my expression cramped. It seemed that keeping my emotions off my face was proving to be a more challenging task than I had expected.
In fact, from how unstable my emotions tend to be whenever I come out of the state I'd put myself in previously, it was a miracle that I was only frowning.
Taking a deep breath, I gingerly reached out my hands and picked her up as gently as I could before walking over to Viola's side.
"Pokémon Center… She needs it." I said.
Viola looked me in the eyes before looking down at Vivillon in my arms.
She tentatively reached out and took Vivillon into her arms.
"Vi…~ Vivillon…~" Vivillon mewled when she recognised the hands she was in.
Viola just continued to stare down at Vivillon, seemingly still in shock or going through some kind of crisis.
"Viola, snap out of it. Vivillon needs a Pokémon Center, now." I said, more clearly this time, while placing my hand on her shoulder, which caused Viola to flinch and look up at me.
"R..Right!" She said as she suddenly took off running out of the Arena, most likely heading straight to the Pokémon Center.
Watching Viola rush away, I looked down at my hands which were subtly shaking.
I hated seeing Pokémon hurt… Knowing I'd caused it tore away at my soul. But this was my duty… the entire reason I was sent to the Kalos region.
The mission my Family assigned to me needed to be done, and the only way to get it done was by participating in the Kalos League…
I never liked Battling… But I was always good at it.
It was my gift.
My curse.
Suddenly a pair of hands entered my vision, clasping my shivering hands.
My head shot up to look at who had approached me, seeing Serena looking at me with a light of understanding in her eyes and a worried smile on her face.
My furrowed brows tensed up more when I noticed her look and her supposed understanding…
I had the strangest feeling that I'd seen that exact same look somewhere before, but I couldn't quite remember when…
Suddenly, I felt her hands squeeze mine, bringing my focus back to her, noticing her smile widening marginally.
It was as if she were saying,
'It's okay. I understand. Everything is okay.'
I couldn't prevent myself from turning my face down to avoid her look; something about it frustrated me, but at the same time, comforted me.
Her eyes and expression were causing my emotions to become more tumultuous, as if she were trying to tear down the walls I'd put up, hoping to expose my hidden fragility.
Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath, successfully burying the emotions that her comforting actions had nearly caused to spill free. I then looked up and put on the best smile that I could.
Ash, Bonnie, and Clemont had arrived by her side, and they were all looking at me with the same worried eyes and soft smiles.
So I smiled.
I smiled and further buried my tumultuous emotions, saying,
"Let's head to the Pokémon Center. I want to see how Vivillon and Surskit are doing."
With smiles all around, they all nodded.
However, behind Serena's smile, her feelings of worry continued to build.
After all, she had easily seen through my false expression.
Thus we headed out of the Santalune Gym, heading for the Pokémon Center we'd previously come from.
All the while, Alexa stared at us with a complicated look in her eyes.
She could clearly see how much I cared for Pokémon, especially my own.
But when she thought back to my eyes and my entire demeanour during the Battle, she couldn't understand how there was such a significant contrast between how I usually was and how I Battled.
However, with a sigh, she eventually made her way out of the Gym toward the Pokémon Center as well.
"I need to check on my sister…. She seemed pretty shaken up…" She mumbled to herself.
…
..
.