Lance stared out of the windows of his office. Far below, Brock, Sabrina and their lawyer were still in sight. They stood out with how others made way for them. The lawyer was practically strutting alongside the two Gym Leaders while Brock and Sabrina walked close enough that people could mistake them for holding hands.
Brock paused, and for a moment, Lance wondered if their eyes had locked despite the distance separating them. Then Brock vanished in a teleport.Despite his disappearance, his words echoed in Lance's mind. My faith in you has taken some hits… they were simple words, but no less impactful for it. Lance gritted his teeth and turned away from the window. He wanted to roar and gnash his teeth at the disaster that dropped into his lap, but he'd learned control since his public defeat. Something that he'd had to spend long hours meditating with the elders to gain.
He liked Brock.Lance felt that there was an understanding between them. An understanding that they lived in an imperfect world where issues arose. Lance merely considered it a vagary of fate that he was so often on the other side to Brock of late.What could they achieve if they were on the same side, he wondered?Lance shook off his idle thoughts.He had work to do.
He immediately began reviewing the information that had been given to him by Brock. This would be a mere starting point.Lance reached out and pressed a button on his office transceiver. A woman's voice chirped up a moment later. "Champion, how may I help?""I want a memo sent out to the Records department regarding trainer numbers for the past five years. Also get me George, Dale, Marsha, Timothy, Matthew, and Clair. Inform Clair that I need her to bring Elder Chisoma with her.""Can do Champion!" chirped the woman as a staccato of keyboard clattering rang across the line before Lance hung up.A pointed cough was ignored as Lance opened his emails and began to review what the Head of Permits had sent through as a preliminary notice.Another cough. Lance didn't look away from the email. "Kruger, I should think that you have better things to do than wait around. This issue will affect the entirety of the League."Kruger proved stubborn though, and he shook his head. "You let Brock get away with far too much."Lance stopped what he was doing, his pride warred with his mind for a moment before he bit out, "I made no deals and I only made suggestions on what was possible." And it still left a foul taste in his mouth to act in such a way."And I know you, Lance. You will agree more than you would with another.""Brock has proven himself time and time again." Lance raised a hand. "I don't need to hear it. It's plain to me with how you're acting. Whatever grievance you've developed with him is compromising your professionalism. "Lance levelled an assessing gaze upon Kruger. "Do I need to be considering replacing more than just the Head of Permits?"The threat lingered, and Kruger sucked in a breath. "I dislike how he has made us look weak."Lance snorted. "He stepped up when I was being prideful. I respect him more for it. In doing so he showed that I wasn't invincible. Not all of us can have the legend of Samuel Oak." Lance opened some emails and read through them. "I had grown complacent."
Kruger grunted. "Very well. I will make sure that other… zealous officials are contained."Lance narrowed his eyes at Kruger's back as the President marched out of Lance's office. It seemed he'd need to keep a closer eye on this President of his. He didn't want more complacency, or worse, to slip into his administration. That had already cost him enough.Lance rubbed at the bracelet that contained the megastone he'd gotten from Steven Stone.Steven Stone who'd turned right around and used the favour he'd bargained for faster than Lance had expected.Lance let out a small rumble of displeasure as the elevator doors opened once again. Lance glowered as Lorelei entered the office, followed by Bruno. Agatha floated through the floor in a show of power that had Lorelei watching the older woman more than Lance. Lance shook his head at the elderly woman's antics.Agatha claimed the centre seat and inclined her head. "Champion, what might we do for you this day?"Lance sighed and gestured for the other two to sit.Bruno sat in a chair that was far too small for him. Lorelei folded herself into another chair, her glasses flashing as she observed Lance closely. Lance felt an instinctive need to show no weakness with an ice specialist in the room.He straightened up and huffed. "It seems that our Head of Permits has allowed far too many international trainers to enter Kanto. This has been projected to cause a huge strain on the region's infrastructure, as this number of trainers is unprecedented. According to him, the Permits Department did not have a procedure in place to prevent this, and so now we are left with trying to stem the flow."Bruno grunted. "Seems like closing the gate after the Tauros are already among the Miltank."Agatha cackled. "He's not wrong for once! I doubt you'll have many situations like this in future. Unless you plan on creating a run on us with any more losses!"Lance focused his gaze on her. He wouldn't miss the cutting remarks from the old woman. The end of the circuit and her retirement couldn't come soon enough. Her replacement with Koga would make things much more straightforward. It would see them at three people for the Elite four due to Shafner's resignation.While he was replacing members, it might be a good idea to replace Lorelei as well. Then he just needed two trainers of suitable standing.Lance fully expected a challenge from Walker, Shafner's son, in the next few years. With Falkner taking over as Gym Leader he knew the man only had another two years before he lost the right to challenge the Elite Four.Lance huffed. "Jokes aside, we need to have a response for this. I will be… reviewing the Head of Permits. He's been in his position as long as you, Agatha. It might be time for someone that is more forward-thinking."That made the old woman narrow her eyes. The faintest flickers of a smile appeared on Lorelei's face and Bruno remained unmoved."I'd make sure that who you assign the position to is up to the task. It is deceptively simple on first appearances," Agatha said primly. "It'll draw in fools and gobble them up!"Lance flexed his draconic aura to get rid of the ghostly energies Agatha had loosened. Lorelei nodded, unmindful of the subsequent cold while Bruno merely snorted like a Tauros.Truly, Lance couldn't wait until Agatha was gone. He fully expected her replacement to be much easier to get along with. "I have a few people in mind and have a number of people already assigned to the task. In the meantime, I will have Elder Chisoma to sit in as an observer to preserve Gym interests."Agatha snorted. "Blackthorn interests you mean."Lance raised a finger. "I will also have Koga tapped to weigh in. I have no doubt that he has the best understanding of the situation. He will be a good balancer. But, if you do have some names I will review them," Lance said, conceding the minor point to allow Agatha a small win that would help her calm down.Agatha rattled off some names and Lance was surprised to find three of them being among those he'd already nominated. He nodded, pleased that his initial thoughts were on the mark. Perhaps a few of them could have slightly expanded roles within the League. It would need to be reviewed. He made a note to do just that later. Talent needed to be nurtured after all.He turned to Lorelei. "Lorelei, I will also have you as part of the process. However, that is not all you will be doing."She raised a brow, coolly waiting for the task."Brock has been privately funding a resurrection machine. It has reached a level of function to the point that Brock has a small colony of ancient pokemon by the name of Lileep: A grass-rock type. I want an evaluation of the staff, the machine and other potential parties that could be offered the ancient pokemon to improve the genetic diversity."Lorelei tilted her head in thought. "The only one that comes to mind would be Erika. Other breeders wouldn't have the security. The second you handed an ancient pokemon over to them they'd be in danger."She then flicked her eyes to Agatha. "Also only giving a Kanto Gym the rights to ancient pokemon would be a slap in the face to some. Perhaps our own Olivine city Gym could be considered? They have a storied past of being rock typed."Agatha snorted derisively. "Storied? I have dresses with longer histories than that Gym!""Agatha, Lorelei!" Lance barked out before they could start fighting in his office. "I will consider it Lorelei. I think it has potential. It will need to be reviewed and kept secret that we're giving out any such deals."Lance clenched and unclenched his fists. The fact that the League was still leaky as a bucket used for bullet seed target practice galled him. His pride stung at finding such aspects of his life he'd apparently been a sleeping Dragonite on. So many improvements were made with his staff, the training they underwent, the policies and procedures, and still, documents and plans were slipped to people that had no rights to that information.Lorelei bobbed her head. "Well, I suppose I can see to Pewter's machine then."Lance turned to Agatha. "I want you to go and talk with our finance department and plan to have two tournaments made up away from the usual first badge gyms to make people spread out away from Pewter, Celadon, or Cerulean.""Lavender town is beautiful at this time of year," Agatha said, unmindful of the blatant favouritism.Lance had known what she'd suggest when he gave her that task. He grunted. "See that the other happens near Chrysanthemum city. They could do with some increased exposure."Agatha waved a hand at Lance in vague agreement before she sank through the floor. She cackled on the way out and the sound echoed throughout the room.Bruno sniffed. "Want me to go to Saffron and call out some punks? Let people know I'm taking any and all takers?"Lorelei pinched the bridge of her nose and muttered under her breath. "Urgh, you're such a meatheaded fool sometimes Bruno."Lance opened his mouth to say that, that wouldn't help, only to pause as he realised it actually would. Having an Elite Four member in a city and openly accepting challenges would be a large draw for said city. After all, trainers both young and old would find it hard to turn down a free chance at an Elite Four member. Saffron City would also have the infrastructure to deal with a large number of trainers, and Sabrina not changing her gym requirements should prevent her from being overrun."That…is actually a good idea," he said, causing Lorelei's eyes to bulge and her head to whip from scowling at Bruno to stare at Lance."You're joking, right?" she said.Lance smirked. "I might have you do the same soon."Lorelei grimaced, and Lance found himself liking the idea all the more for her displeasure. His pride was partially soothed by the fact that the proposal enraged the icy woman. He waved his hand. "For the time being, go handle those tasks. I want to stabilise the situation. Bruno, you have two weeks to roam around as you wish."Bruno grunted and marched off with a grin. Lorelei followed, shaking her head but otherwise following orders.Lance turned his attention back to his computer. He had a small flood of emails come in during the past two meetings. He sighed. Tonight was going to be the first of a lot of long nights.He just knew.He really wasn't looking forward to when the media caught hold of the situation.He suspected he'd need to schedule a media release for tomorrow, and then an appearance in another day or two.Karen smirked.Across from her, Falkner scowled. The little birdy was about to have his wings clipped on live television.Karen shot the camera a saucy wink and cocked her hip to the side. "So, ready to get sent back to school, little pidgey?"Falkner's scowl intensified. "You will not be talking so smugly after we're done!" he said, his feathers obviously ruffled. It hadn't been hard to get a match with him. Karen had already made a show of trouncing the four small Gyms of Johto. Now she was starting her true run. The other matches were just teasers to get her name out there. She'd been noted down thanks to their agents in Battlecast and her fights had gotten a little more screen time than they would have otherwise.Due to that additional publicity, she had Gym Leaders like Falkner unable to reject her challenge lest they lose face. Then again, as the first of the big eight on the Johto side, him going first made it clear she considered him the 'starting Gym'. Or as people liked to think, the weakest. That would have stung his pride worse than a Beedrill sneaking up on him.Little Falkner's snarling and spitting for the cameras when she issued her challenge had certainly pumped up the crowd.Karen had merely told him to set a time and place, like he was beneath her, and that she'd be there. She hadn't let up since, continuing to challenge other Ace trainers and openly train her Pokemon team in public places where friendly matches could occur.So far, for Ace matches for actual points, she was on a sixteen-straight win streak. More than enough to catapult her up into the top hundred Ace trainers.Today's match was very much her true 'coming out' day. She had all eyes on her, just where she wanted them.The referee raised his flag and dropped it. "Release!" he shouted.Karen hurled her pokeball and released Gengar as her first pokemon. Falkner chose his starter— Pidgeot—as his first pokemon. Karen threw her head back as she realised the little fool had called it out on the ground."Oh, sweet darkness, you're too simple! This isn't even going to be a match!" she said loudly.She got more than a few boos from the home crowd, but she ignored them with a toss of her head as Falkner bared his teeth."Trainers ready! Fight!" said the referee."Pidgeot, use U-turn!" shouted Falkner like he'd played a perfect move to start the match.Karen made a show of yawning. A bug move was so beneath her. Then again he probably thought he was being clever setting up for his combination one-two with his pokemon."Fling!" she said gleefully. The onrushing Pidgeot's charge was sidestepped before Gengar slapped a handful of rocks across the Pidgeot's face causing it to flinch. The energy that Pidgeot had been building up broke apart and the move was disrupted.As it flapped its wings to create space Karen grinned. "Thunderpunch!" she said. Her Gengar exploded from his position fist sparking as Falkner was left gaping at the display of speed."Protect!" he said, giving his pokemon a stay of execution.Gengar's fist slammed into the protective shell as Karen pointed at it dismissively. "Hypnosis."Once more, Gengar's eyes glowed only this time in a pulsing pattern. The shell of the Protect crumbled, and a sleeping pokemon was revealed. Karen nodded once and another fist of electricity slammed forward to knock out Falkner's pokemon.The crowd gasped, and Falker clicked his teeth. Karen rolled her eyes. He must have thought his pokemon would have been able to handle more than one move(?) and come back into the fight. He obviously didn't do enough homework on her. She'd practically gift-wrapped chances to check out her training sessions with her 'public' team.Falkner ignored the cries of the referee as he returned his pokemon, selecting another quickly. Karen smirked at him. She loved how it was getting to him. His hand fidgeted from pokeball to pokeball. Eventually, he licked his lips and selected his second pokemon.This one a Honchkrow.Karen narrowed her eyes. Was he challenging her?Falkner jutted his chin at her, and she huffed. "Alright, I see where this is going. I accept," she said, returning her pokemon to send out her own Honchkrow. She didn't care that it was tactically a mistake. This was about sending an Arceus be damned message.Both of their pokemon locked eyes, and there was a moment as they glared, only for their trainers to sweep their hands up."Icy wind!" called Falkner."Thunderwave!" said Karen.Electricity and ice blasted out of each of their respective pokemon only to meet in the middle and cause a divide. Both attacks negated the other but Falker pointed upwards."Get above it! Claim the skies Honchkrow!" he said.Karen huffed. "Stay low, you're fine, Honchkrow.""Ha! A true master of their pokemon would know that flying types operate best from a superior vertical position!"Karen yawned. "Are you done? I'm pretty sure if this takes too long your mother will be along to put you to bed."Despite themselves, a few of the crowd laughed as Falkner spluttered. "I do not have a bedtime!""Well, some of us don't want to miss happy hour then!" Karen said, pumping her fist and getting more laughs from the crowd."Descend with Drillpeck!" ordered Falkner, his pokemon dropping on Karen's.Karen hummed. "Oh! Well, guess I should do something like Sucker Punch!" she said, causing her pokemon to flash black for a moment only to disappear as it repositioned to the other Honchkrow's side and slam a dark wing into its opposition.Falkner's pokemon crumbled and fell to the ground, only to be trampled by Karen's before it could recover.Karen bared her fangs. "Thunderwave again!" Arcs of electricity slammed into the downed pokemon and locked it in place. Karen followed up with another order while Falkner was left reeling.Karen's Honchkrow cried out triumphantly when it slammed its own Drill Peck into the weakened Honchkrow. Falkner's arm shot up with a pokeball in it to withdraw his pokemon.He scowled. "You could have given me a chance to withdraw my pokemon. It wasn't going to be able to escape with how you entrapped it."Karen shrugged. "Eh, I'm just making sure of it."Falkner hissed as he drew out his next pokemon, a Noctowl. Karen hummed and returned her Honchcrow. She was done proving who had the better Honchkrow. She returned her Gengar to the field and there was a murmur of confusion from the crowd. Noctowls were known to be strong psychic pokemon after all.Karen didn't care. Tonight was about style. She had the strength in wag"1em">"Psychic!" said Falkner."Dark Pulse," replied Karen. Gengar's body exploded with dark energy, and the various loose rocks that had been affected by the Noctowl dropped. Noctowl itself took some damage and staggered back.And that was all it took for Karen to slash her hand forward. "Thunderpunch!"Once more Gengar closed the distance in the blink of an eye and once more another of Falkner's pokemon was put in the ground."Return Noctowl! Go Fearow!" shouted Falkner, desperation entering his voice as he hurled his pokemon up into the sky.Karen hummed. She knew from her own research that Fearow and Pidgeot shared a lot of moves. Such as U-turn, a clever move if you weren't expecting it but something Karen had already demonstrated she had an answer to. So what would he do instead?"Heatwave!" said Falkner, causing a gout of fire to be shot out of his pokemon."Dark Pulse again!" Karen ordered, making the two attacks clash before vanishing as both pokemon cut power to the moves. Karen grinned. That told her more than enough about the strength of the Fearow. It was true that both attacks covered a wide area, but to have them negate each other was telling."Now! U-turn!" shouted Falker as his pokemon was revealed to her, already mid-stab with glowing energy. Karen clicked her tongue."Thunderpunch but hold it!" she ordered. She knew her pokemon could endure the first hit. It was what came next that she needed a solid counter to.Fearow hit and caused Gengar to grimace slightly, only for Fearow's energy to break apart as it was returned via a specialised move, therefore not costing Falkner a withdrawal. It was a trite little strategy that looked good at the four-badge level."Pursuit!" said Falkner with glee as a Dodrio took to the stage.Karen could see what he was aiming for. Most people might see the returning pokemon and return their own to change that match up and gamble on what came out. Pursuit would do a lot of damage to Gengar if that had been the case. These were good solid fourth badge and higher strategies."Meet it head on with your Thunderpunch," said Karen harshly. Dodrio ran straight into the electric move and while two heads plunged on at Gengar, the centre head was slammed into the ground. The rest of the body followed suit a moment later.The outer two heads took a moment to register the knocked-out central head, and both huddled over it protectively before a feedback of shock passed through to them and knocked them all out.Karen grinned. "Cute move. But this is an Ace Challenge little boy. Step up your game!"Falkner stared at his downed pokemon as he returned it. Then he looked up to the screen where he was four pokemon down to her none. His hand raised and clutched at his chest as his breathing began to speed up.Karen clicked her teeth as she spotted this. "Urgh, this damn brat really can't handle the pressure, can he? Urgh!" She chewed her thumb as she thought about what to do.She tossed her hair and pulled on her dark energy and shot a tendril out to him. "Hey brat," she said.Falkner's eyes shot up to her unable to resist the effects of her 'Flatter' to make him sit up and draw him out of his funk. She didn't want him going to pieces on her. She needed him to be fired up to make it look somewhat interesting.She put her arms under her bust and deliberately pushed them up. The cameras would no doubt pick up on it and get a few pulses beating faster as she wiggled her breasts teasingly. "Is little boy going to cry? Give up cause he's getting spanked?" she taunted with a babyish tone.Falkner reeled back, realising for the first time how this must look. The comparisons to his grandfather's loss to Lance's Charizard haunting his family. He clenched his teeth and a fire entered his eyes. "No, I'm not giving up!""Go Fearow! Once more, take to the skies!" he shouted, causing his pokemon to take wing. The crowd of locals cheered at his pick up.Karen smirked and withdrew Gengar only to send out Weaville. Falkner's eyes bulged and his gaze snapped to her. She grinned. She'd always had all the answers for his team.His Fearow went down with a few icy winds that he tried to counter with Heatwave but it wasn't enough with her pokemon now fresh and full of energy compared to his own.When he revealed Xatu as his last pokemon Karen put it down in one move and considered it a mercy.Falkner slumped on his podium and stared at the ground. Karen made a show of waving to the crowd as her pokemon walked up to accept some praise. Then she sauntered over to the morose Falkner."That was pretty pathetic. I can see why you're thinking of running off into the hills like your granddaddy and your daddy did," she said without preamble.Falkner's head shot up as she glared at her. "What do you know!?""I know you're running the gym and just holding the fort, waiting for daddy to come home for you. You're not getting stronger and changing things up. Your placement in the Ace rankings is the second lowest of any Indigo Gym Leader and that's not saying much with the Cerulean sisters on that list." Karen inspected her nails like it didn't really matter."You were just a stepping stone for me brat," she said. She stared straight at him and watched as his face morphed from rage to impotent despair and back again. Eventually, it cooled into something else. Karen could feel the dark emotions fill the boy as resolve took hold. She mentally nodded. Good, he had been smacked around by her but hadn't been broken."I will face you again, and you will lose next time Karen!" he spat.Karen tossed her hair, amused at his now useless show of resolve. "Good luck with that boy."She pointed upwards, raising her voice as she shouted the next words, "If you want a rematch then you're gonna need to soar to the top! Cause I'm going all the way, and making an official run for the Championship!" She looked into the cameras and grinned."I'm hereby putting the League on notice! I'm not just going for Top Ace status! I'm coming for the best of the best! Watch yourself Lorelei cause you'll be first when I'm done with the Johto Gyms!" she walked up to the now visibly excited camera crews for her post-match interview, pointedly not looking back at the roiling ball of emotions that was Falkner.Ah teenagers, they made it so easy sometimes. She shot a quick message to Brock asking what he thought of her match.He didn't reply until the next day. 'Ah! I forgot! I had to read the twins and Munchlax a story! Sorry! I'll get the next one! How'd you do?'Karen shut her transceiver away calmly, and in no way, shape, or form, threw a hissy fit.Giovanni swirled his drink around before taking a leisurely sip. "The girl is playing with him", he said to the other occupant of the room.On the couch with his own drink, Blaine scoffed. "Bah! I could have told you that before the match started! This girl is practically screaming dark-type specialist. She'll play with her food and tease them out. If she makes an enemy that will come for her later she'll just think it's good entertainment and stomp the brat back down!"Giovanni nodded and changed the channel. He didn't need to finish the match to know the result."Our sources at the League have announced that Brock has a working resurrection machine." Giovanni kept a careful watch on his fellow Gym Leader.Blaine didn't flare up however and instead scoffed. "Grass-type pokemon as fossils! They're so basic and unrefined! I would have no issue resurrecting them with my current machine! No recalibration needed! It's not a proper resurrection machine until it resurrects something of complex cellular structure like another Aerodactyl! Then Brock will have a viable pure bloodline to work from before he looks to diverge!"Giovanni nodded. "What do you know of Crowley? He's apparently the lead scientist.""Hidebound. The man won't accept case studies as evidence or proof. A diehard stickler for getting proper sample sizes before he announces anything properly. He also has no financial sense. The man throws good money at bad situations!"The bald man then rubbed his moustache. "I had hoped to have him be signed on for Project Mewtwo actually… the man wouldn't care about what we were doing but rather the science involved. He'd need to be silenced eventually like the others of course, but he'd have been tunnel-visioned on getting a result. Not that you needed him eh?" Blaine said with a tilt of his head and a raise of his glass."Project Mewtwo is operating wonderfully," replied Giovanni. "I wouldn't have been able to do it without your mind Blaine.""Please! Save your platitudes for someone that cares for them. I enjoyed the challenge. The next trick would be to repeat it with another Legendary. We just need to recreate the entire lab!" Blaine said with a scowl."Project Mewtwo became emotional after gaining full consciousness for the first time.""How many of the controls were confirmed before his power expressed itself?" Blaine said carefully."Eighty-five percent of the controls and behaviours were imprinted. Project Mewtwo is compliant to me."Blaine nodded, his eyes distant as his fingers flickered lightly on his glass. "Be careful with it. A pokemon with the potential of a Legendary… It is more than I thought possible when you first approached me." Blaine grimaced. "There will be a lot of heat if people realise what you've done.""We've done," Giovanni said firmly.Blaine locked eyes with Giovanni for a long moment before the bald man nodded.They each took a drink to settle their nerves.Blaine waved his hand. "Put out a call to acquire as many fossils as we can. If Brock is going to enter the Ressurection game we'll just stymie the supply he has of fossils. We'll need to send some grunts into Mt Moon to sniff around. Perhaps some others at Grampa Canyon as well."Giovanni accepted the suggestion with a nod. "We have enough interested parties willing to buy the ancient pokemon to make it a highly profitable venture."Blaine raised a finger. "Not Stone," Blaine spat the name like a curse. "That whelp snuck an intern into my lab and had them steal the files regarding the machine's template. His recent success in establishing it for Devon corp is nothing short of corporate espionage!" Blaine put down his glass and Giovanni eyed the slight warping it now had. His eyes then turned to the couch that Blaine was sitting on. He relaxed once he confirmed it was fire-resistant.Blaine continued his rant, "Worse still that I had him dead to rights before Lance stepped in!" Blaine threw back the rest of his drink."All for a fucking Megastone! Crafty of Stone to sell one to earn himself some protection. Unlike Lance, no-one's broken Steven's aura of invincibility." Blaine grasped his hands forward like one would strangle someone."I'd have broken him over my knee! Shown him true firepower that you can't buy!" he said hotly.Giovanni stood and walked around the table to pour Blaine another drink with a new glass to help him calm down. "What are your options from here? I doubt you'll let this rest."Blaine snorted loudly. "I have to sue the man! Sue him!? The nerve! It used to be once that if a man wronged you, you could burn him and send a message! For all the world was rougher, things were simpler before the war. Pompous shits like this Steven Stone would have known better than to steal from me!"Giovanni nodded. "The price we pay for peace."Blaine snorted again. "Sue the man…" he muttered under his breath as he took another drink. He clicked his teeth and exhaled a gout of smoke. "Any thoughts on running a challenger or two against Steven?""None that we can trust. Our resources are tied up in other projects right now. It won't be put forth as something important. We have some candidates that have the potential for Hoenn but sounding them out will require a delicate touch."Blaine nodded. "I'll want front-row seats when we have someone slap Steven Stone back into place."Giovanni hummed. "Done," he said easily. He considered the other item of business he wanted to raise. This too needed to be handled… Delicately."Has my mot… has the Madam contacted you recently?" Giovanni said carefully.Blaine glanced up from his drink. "She making moves on your position again? No, not as yet. If she reaches out I'll let you know what my price is for her and then for you." He smirked as Giovanni nodded his head."That is acceptable. With that in mind, I have a gift, one that you can use straight away." Giovanni reached into a case and withdrew a red box with a blazing inferno within. It smouldered and charred the table when Giovanni set it down. Next to it he set down a rock with red crystal growths protruding out of it. It pulsed with heat as well but it was nothing compared to the furnace next to it.Blaine made no move to pick either up. "You found the Heat Rock? You do know I'd been looking for that rock to complete my research on the Magmarizer?" he said quietly. He snorted. "Of course, you know.""Indeed, congratulations on your success," said Giovanni, standing and raising his glass to Blaine. "I imagine the research community will be taken by storm with your discovery, no?"Blaine stayed where he was, staring at the Magmarizer before his eyes turned to the other gift. "Where did you get a Heat Rock?"Giovanni sat down with a smirk. "We have fully established contact with Sinnoh through a fellow organisation by the name of Team Galactic. We were both interested in exchanging information and more, so here we are. Enriching each other and those that stand with us."Blaine snorted before he threw his head back and laughed. "Ha! That's going to make you a very rich man Giovanni! Access to a new region! And here the League is all in a tailspin because they found Fiore! And Silph Co is claiming to have a perfect pokeball!"Giovanni smirked wider. "Well, I'll let them work on Fiore. As for the Masterball…" He considered Blaine for a moment and decided to give the man an innocent shrug. Blaine chortled as he picked up the Magmarizer and inspected it.Giovanni tilted his head innocently. "Also, who said anything about just one region being discovered?"Blaine snapped his head up. "Which region?""Orre," replied Giovanni.Blaine frowned, then blinked. Then he laughed, his head lolling back. This time he stood and offered Giovanni a salute with his glass.Sabrina stared.In her lap, the egg wiggled a little and bounced before settling down. Sabrina extended a hesitant mental touch to the egg. The Ralts that was still forming within gave a vague feeling of content and curiosity before their mind slumbered once more.Sabrina withheld her disappointment that the small being within wasn't going to hatch today. It seemed the twitches weren't up to speed as yet. There wasn't anything wrong with the egg of course. She'd had it checked multiple times and had taken to carrying it around with her for meals and when she slept at home.When she wasn't checking in with Brock she otherwise left it with her parents. Both of them were under strict orders to call her back the instant the egg looked like it was hatching.Sabrina had never hatched a pokemon egg before. The closest she'd ever come to raising a pokemon had been her Alakazam which had been a young abra when she'd first taken over the Gym. They'd worked together for years and had a good understanding of each other. They shared impressions of how they were feeling, what foods they were eating, how battles had gone and more but Sabrina would have struggled to say they were close.That had only started to develop more recently. The time spent together either meditating to control her power or to just relax had gained a new element to it. Alakazam had started to show her more of himself. She'd in turn done the same.Now it wasn't unusual for Alakazam to sleep in her family's house on the couch at night,almost like an uncle. He enjoyed the late night shows and Sabrina had heard her mother complain about the puzzles in the newspaper already being done when she collected the paper in the morning.Sabrina had tested a theory and presented a bookcase full of puzzle books. Alakazam had finished them all within the day and thanked her.Progress.Lately, Sabrina had felt like she was making progress herself. Now she just needed to make progress in other areas. Namely her relationship with Brock.They would return to dating. Which would involve… Well more things than they'd done as trainers during their journey together.She just needed to wait for things to settle down with Brock's family. Sadly the recent flood of trainers wouldn't lighten the load. Brock appeared to be able to handle it though. He had adjusted and was going to do fine, she was sure.He had nice shoulders.Sabrina felt her cheeks grow a little red and she made sure not to feed her feelings to the Ralts egg.Things were developing nicely.She rubbed the egg, and it twitched sporadically, like the occupant was more doing it to get as comfortable as possible than seriously trying to get out.Sabina could wait for them. She was good at waiting for the things she wanted.That didn't mean she wasn't anticipating what was to come so very soon in the future.
67
"—and then Veronica caught herself a pikachu!" Dennis read stolidly from his report, his eyes sliding from side to side.I made a noise of amusement as Missy and Daniel tried to look interested but they were too wiped out. They'd been the first trainers facing the gauntlet challengers, of which we'd had seven today. That, alongside the rest of the duties expected of them when in the Gym saw them leaning on their desks with droopy eyes.Next to them, Janine was alert and upright. The very picture of a professional pokemon trainer.Behind her, Rocko was doodling in his notepad with a bemused expression while Forrest shot glances at whatever Rocko was drawing. Jackson was leaning in and making suggestions on whatever was being drawn. I could feel Janine radiating disapproval even though she wasn't able to turn around without compromising her pose. Crystal and Yolanda were also here, both looking interested as Dennis reported on the recent foray into the surrounding areas with the Pewter-sponsored trainers."Alright," I said clapping my hands to end the torture I'd unleashed by letting Dennis debrief on his trip into the wilds with the kids. There was no one better to check and teach bushcraft… Beyond possibly Daniel but he was a new hire. It was just dangerous letting him report on what he'd done."So, they've had their time to train, get used to their pokemon and battle among themselves, and a few others. That's good. Are they ready for the sessions tomorrow?" I asked.Dennis nodded. "Yes, although Veronica stated she wants to look into contests…" he trailed off as though guilty or ashamed.I shrugged. "It would be a nice claim to have a professional coordinator. It also is something that has less competition for sponsorships. Smart."Yolanda frowned, "How do you mean Brock?"I waved my hand about. "Everyone else has been treading a path that is established with set markers that we can use to easily judge. Veronica will be doing something new that is different but it will work in her favour. Doubly so with most of the people coming to Kanto this year being Trainers. There will probably be a few that dabble in Contests which will make it slightly harder but she stands out for being different. Everyone else will be comparing themselves against the others in the group except for Veronica."I turned back to Dennis. "How'd Mia and Silly Mouse go?"Dennis flipped a few pages on his report, grumbling as he did so about still having more to talk about. He drew the pencil he had behind his ear and tapped it on one page. "Mia did well with practising Thunder. She has it up to the strength of a Thundershock at the moment but that's to be expected with Silly Mouse's estimated age. Her other move shows more immediate application so Mia spent a lot of time training on both moves more than she did anything else. As such, she still only has Silly Mouse on her team."Dennis furtively glanced around and flipped a page. "Humphery on the other hand was able to catch three—""Dennis," I said, cutting him off.I shook my head. "Save it for a surprise, as the others are going to face the gym's sponsored trainers." I turned towards the others. "Missy, Janine, Forrest… Yolanda, I'll have you all rotating through on those that are undergoing the gauntlet challenge."Yolanda perked up. "Me?! You want me to fight them?!"I nodded. "Yeah, you're more than qualified to handle some of the pokemon. Just remember to go easy on them." Crystal nudged Yolanda and said something that had Yolanda blushing. Oddly Crystal looked annoyed by this instead of pleased.Janine raised her hand. "Why me? The others make sense but they will not be expecting me."I nodded. "Precisely. Sometimes it's important to throw them a curveball. They'll be expecting rock or rock-themed pokemon. I want you to use the gym pokemon for this alright? You can deploy your own strategies but keep it within their skill level."Janine's hand shot into the air. "Question! How many of the lower-strength pokemon know how to perform Sandstorm!? Or Rock polish? Or Mudslap?"I raised a finger as Forrest chuckled maliciously. Yolanda was biting her lips while the older trainers stared at Janine. I coughed. "... quite a few actually," I said neutrally. "Keep it possible for them to beat you, yeah?" I sent a mental apology to any kid that faced Janine tomorrow. I flicked a glance to Dennis who had a determined glint in his eyes.So, who'd win? Dennis' week of preparation or Janine's out-of-the-box thinking? I shrugged. Oh well, it'd be good for the kids… I hoped. Veronica barely scraped a win against me with her pokemon limping across the line, but good use of her terrain to tire out the Onix I'd sent against her got her there. She'd proceeded to whittle down my pokemon and when the match had been called she almost collapsed from how much energy she'd used shouting commands.I marched across to her and offered her a hand. "That was a tough-fought match. I saw a lot of potential there."She smiled up at me. "Thanks, Gym Leader Brock," she said.I gestured to the side where Jackson was waiting with a tray of gym badges. "So, do you want your prize?"She bit her lips before raising her head to the stands where the other kids were all waiting. One and all, each of them so far had won their matches and earned their badges. And one and all of them had said they would wait for the others in their group to celebrate together.Veronica shook her head.They were putting a lot more pressure on themselves than they needed to. It was their decision though, so I left them to it. I led Veronica to the medical wing for her pokemon to get checked over. There I traded out my Onix and Geodude before grabbing up Izumi's pokeball.
I was actually glad that after Humprey and Mia's challenge I'd be done for the day. Before the sponsored trainers, I'd had a few two and three-badge matches. As things stood I was really turning over the pokemon that were used for my first badge challenge with the flood. I sighed. I'd have to be careful, soon some of these pokemon would be too strong to use on the new trainers.My options would get smaller and smaller until the rostered break in a few weeks time. Until then, I'd have to stay vigilant."And now! Representing the first of this year's fully sponsored trainers for Pewter City Gym! Humphrey Stoneman from Pewter city!" shouted Rachel as Humphery walked into the arena proper.Rachel grinned as she turned to the trainer arena. I pat Yolanda on the back. "This is just like a tussle in the schoolyard. Go have some fun.""That's easy for you to say! You don't have to worry about people laughing at you!""You'll do fine. If anyone laughs I'll send Titan to sit behind them," I said jokingly. Yolanda shot me a furious look."That is not helping!" Then her gaze softened. "Really though?"I smirked at her.Yolanda huffed at me, only to glower as a stray lock of hair floated in front of her face. I reached out and plucked her scrunchy out before retying her hair in a braid that was more firm. She blinked only to snort and give me a much more grateful look.It was short-lived as Rachel raised her microphone. "And now! Representing Pewter City Gym for the first time! Yolanda!"Yolanda marched down the stairs like she was a square block of stone rather than flesh and bone. When she reached the podium. She glanced around and I made a gesture to try and get her to calm down. She nodded and clapped her hands together and shut her eyes.Dennis whistled. "Huh. She really does take after you, doesn't she? She's going to be a terror when she goes on her journey if she can get that egg to hatch."I nodded, feeling rather proud as she released the pose and adopted a pose with a hand on her hip. "Trainer Yolanda! Ready!" she announced. When the crowd cheered she got a little spooked but settled back in.Humphrey merely held his game face."Trainers release your pokemon!" announced Jackson."Go Geodude!" said Yolanda."Go Seedot!" said Humphrey."Huh," I said. "Impressive! Those are tough to find in Viridian forest." I glanced at Dennis.He smiled widely. "Humphrey was quick to work out that certain pokemon had a different cycle of being active. He started varying when he was waking up and exploring at twilight and night. He's gotten himself a good team with that Aron we gave him as the starter."I nodded and watched as Yolanda tried to use tackles to nail the Seedot. When that didn't work she switched to Sand Attack only for Humphrey to order his pokemon to use absorb. Geodude toppled quickly at that. Yolanda grit her teeth as she withdrew her pokemon. Then she pulled out another pokeball."Go Zubat!" she said.I frowned. "Where'd she get that from?" I asked."Crystal caught it," said Dennis loyally. "Georgina's been letting her catch and train two pokemon in preparation for the day she goes out on a journey. They're shopping around for an official starter but otherwise, those two are good training pokemon for her to practise with."Janine appeared behind me. "I was not aware I could use a Zubat for this challenge?"I shrugged. "It's rock-themed. I hadn't expected her to use it but it works." I considered it before nodding. "We should consider getting some in the next acquisition run. After all, they're mostly found in caves."Dennis rubbed his chin at that and I watched as Yolanda unleashed Zubat on the Seedot. The type advantage didn't even become a factor."Supersonic!" shouted Yolanda happily as she punched the air. Across from her Seedot wobbled and wavered only for her to keep up the assault. Humphrey eventually remembered that he could withdraw his pokemon and did so to reveal a young Pidgeotto. I shot Dennis another look.Dennis shrugged. "Kid's impressive."I nodded and watched the larger bird pokemon outspeed and outpower Yolanda's Zubat. I nodded, deciding that I might feature a few Zubat in the next rotation of pokemon. It would work well with most people going through or past the tunnels of Mt Moon. An early warning of what these pokemon could be like.I tapped Janine on the shoulder. "You're up next."She bounced in place only for me to cough. "Wait for Yolanda to get off the arena and Rachel to announce you first.""Ah, of course," Janine said. It took a few minutes for Yolanda to depart. Humphrey apparently recognised her from school and stopped her to congratulate her for the good match. Then he turned his attention away and in doing so missed her saddened expression.I clicked my tongue. Dennis shot me a look. "You're gonna shake him up a bit boss?"I worked my jaw only for Janine to speak up first. "I shall avenge Yolanda's loss and remind him to be more gentle with a young girl's heart!""Also representing Pewter today we have—" Rachel was saying only for Janine to sprint down the stairs and leap over the edge. The crowd gaped as she flipped end over end in a gymnastics flip before landing in a perfect three-point pose."It is I! Janine of Fuchsia!" she said. She held up a pokeball. "Are you ready!?" she said, daring him to reject it.Humphrey was confused. "Do you even go here or are you a fan that jumped the fence?" he said looking to Jackson who wasn't helping as he burst out laughing.Janine bristled. "I am studying underneath Brock to learn how he runs his Gym! Now is not the time for talk! Are you prepared to fight!?"He nodded slowly, still looking to Jackson in case this was some sort of joke."Go Geodude!" said Janine as she whipped a pokeball out only to expertly catch it when the bounce-back feature activated.That had Humphrey straightening up. "Pidgeotto, use Gust!""Geodude! Defense Curl!" Janine answered, causing her pokemon to curl up into a ball as the wind swept aside dirt and small rocks. What it didn't do was move the small boulder pokemon. Humphrey clicked his tongue in annoyance."Pidgeotto stay up high! They're going to try and use Rollout!" he said, sweeping his hand.Janine sniffed loudly, "Rock Polish!" she said.Humphrey gritted his teeth before raising his pokeball and returning his pokemon. "Return Pidgeotto! Let's go Seedot!" he said instead. His Seedot bounced out and Janine grinned."Use Sandstorm!" she said, causing Geodude to spread out her arms and spin widely creating a dust cloud that expanded quickly.I hummed. "She's going a bit harder than she needs to against a first badge trainer."Dennis nodded from next to me, not saying anything. I shot him a sly look, had he bonded with the kids during their trip away? He seemed highly invested in their success."Seedot, get into the sandstorm and surprise them!" Humphrey said.I was surprised by the call and leaned in to see what he would do. I watched vague shapes move into each other and it looked like Janine had ordered her pokemon to use Tackle instead of Roll Out. I watched the Geodude-shaped form lunge only to strike something and rear back.Then Humphrey was shouting something and I saw hints of green energy. Dennis pumped his fist. "Yes! That's the way! Astonish into Absorb to keep your pokemon in the fight!" he said.I chuckled, realising that Dennis had it right. The Sandstorm slowly fell apart and a dirty and bruised-looking Seedot emerged with a downed Geodude laying across from it. Seedot puffed itself up victoriously.Janine observed this clinically before inching her hand towards another pokeball only to stop and shake her head. "You have demonstrated enough skill that you may advance. Geodude return!" she said before backflipping out of sight.The crowd gasped in shock before Jackson diverted their attention with a flag raised in Humphrey's direction. "Seedot wins and Trainer Humphrey advances!"This got people clapping, but I noted that more than a few were still trying to spot where Janine was. I turned and spotted her inching over the fence that divided the Gym trainers from the crowd."Have fun?" I asked.She paused, caught with one foot awkwardly over the fence. She coughed and hopped over before Dennis could turn. "Indeed. He was most skilled, but I wanted to make him sweat first."I hummed. "Well, I don't have to question his skills. He demonstrated enough for a two or three-badge challenge just there." I eyed Humphrey, while pointedly not looking at Yolanda who was looking glum off to the side. "No reason to make it too easy though."I toggled the radio and Rachel beamed as she raised the microphone. "And now! The Challenger has advanced enough to face off against the Gym Leader! Give it up, for Brock!" she shouted.I marched down and frowned when I realised that merely leaping across the divide wouldn't be as impressive now that Janine had demonstrated she could do a flip over the same distance. Damn, she's upstaged me and probably hadn't even been trying. I still made the leap, lacking anything better to do and chuckled to myself as I stood."Humphrey, good to see you again." I glanced at his pokemon. "You've grown in an interesting way."He nodded tightly and returned his Seedot. "We have, and we're ready for you! Let's go Aron!" he said, releasing the small metal dog I'd gifted him when I'd taken him on as a fully sponsored trainer. Aron barked harshly and I smirked."Very well. Let's see how you've grown. Go Onix!"Jackson raised and dropped his flags. "Harden," I said to start things off. Onix gained a sheen around his body as his defence increased.Humphrey punched forwards. "Metal Claw!" he said, causing his pokemon to charge across the distance. I smiled to myself, realising he'd set up his pokemon too deep to make the distance without me getting off another move. A small mistake, but one that was telling."Use Dig," I said to evade the charging Aron.Onix leapt into the dirt and vanished into a large hole. Aron skidded to a halt and growled."Go after it!" Humphrey shouted. I raised an eyebrow. Aron typically needed to be tutored that move so how had he had the time to… I watched as his pokemon sprinted down the tunnel my pokemon had left with harsh barks echoing after it.I sighed as Humphrey stared in shock. "I meant for him to Dig his own tunnel and intercept Onix…"I chuckled as the sounds of barking continued. Onix emerged a minute later and slid out with an annoyed look on his face. The cause was quickly revealed with a tiny Aron gnawing on his tail. I noted it wasn't with any actual energy to make it effective.Lots of enthusiasm though."Onix use Bide," I said. Onix glowed and Humphrey clicked his teeth.,"Let's commit! Aron, use Metal Claw!" His pokemon stopped biting mine and his front paw glowed silvery as he leapt in to strike my pokemon. Onix reared back but held strong."Again!" shouted Humphrey as he gained a bead of sweat on his brow.Once more Aron struck, only for Onix to rise up with a glint in his eyes."Finish it quickly!" Humphrey said, knowing he had to stay committed now."Onix attack," I said, causing Onix to build up energy as he prepared to lunge. He was just coiling up when Aron struck once again and a small blast of dust radiated out of the impact site. I wasn't surprised to see Onix down for the count with Aron heaving air into its tiny, trembling frame.Humphrey was also shaking. "Oh, wow! That was close!" he said as he wiped his brow. I nodded."And that's all I need to see. I can tell that you've more than earned your first badge." I cocked my head to the side and flicked my attention towards the stands. "Are you going to hold off as well?" I asked.He nodded, a grim look on his face. "Y-yeah… But Uhm… Brock, are you going to go easy on Mia? She only has—"I raised a hand and cut him off. "I will treat it like I always do. Mia has to show me her best." I shooed him away and nodded to Rachel as I made my way back up. I tapped Yolanda on the shoulder."You're up again. Don't go easy on her, but keep it controlled, alright?" Yolanda nodded seriously and when Mia was called, she came out with Silly Mouse in her arms. She was notably stroking him in a gesture that screamed 'I am not at all calm'! Silly Mouse himself looked a bit agitated, but I looked past that.He had a good lustre to his coat, and his body had bulked up a lot since the last time I'd seen them. She'd obviously doubled down on her pokemon and it showed.I was curious how she'd handle the upcoming challenges. I nodded and Yolanda marched forth, this time much more settled in. Mia perked up and waved happily when she spotted Yolanda causing Yolanda to wave back. Then she got a stern face on and Mia remembered what she was there for.Yolanda sent out a Geodude as her first pokemon.Silly Mouse took to the field and Yolanda was quick to have Geodude go on that attack with Sand-attack."Quick Iron Attack!" shouted Mia, making Silly Mouse blur away from the sand before sprinting in close to the side where he stopped on a pokedime. His body I noted was spinning in a tightly controlled arc like he was performing a dance rather than just turning. With one foot dug into the ground, his body whipped around, and a silvery glowing tail revealed itself.It slammed home into geodude and sent the other pokemon flying. Geodude slammed into the wall where it collapsed in a slumped pose. The crowd went silent in shock at the ferocious combination attack.I glanced at Dennis and he had a huge grin on his face. I laughed and that triggered a storm of cheers and applause as the crowd roared to life."She made very good use of that Iron Tail training then," I said.Dennis nodded. "Worked on nothing but her pokemon since she got it. That's going to be one strong Rattata when it finishes growing."I nodded and watched Silly Mouse wave happily.Yolanda returned her pokemon and pulled out a Diglett which proved a much tougher match-up as Silly Mouse's speed couldn't let it close with the mole pokemon. In the end, Mia had to allow a hit to land and rely on her timing to be good enough to get Silly Mouse an Iron Tail in retaliation.I clicked my tongue. "She should have used the boulders to escape Diglett. Diglett is one of the only pokemon that won't leap out of the ground when using Dig after all."Dennis shrugged but Janine to the side looked intrigued by that information."Silly Mouse come here!" said Mia gesturing for her pokemon to approach. I nodded, pleased that despite not catching any other pokemon she had the foresight to get herself a potion or three.Janine waited until Mia was done, then threw something that went off with a bang. Instantly everyone's heads snapped in that direction while I shot her a glare. Janine, either unrepentant or not noticing, sprinted down the stairs and was on the podium without anyone else noticing her deception."Well met!" she shouted, causing everyone to flinch and realise she was suddenly just 'there'!Mia tilted her head. "Hello? I don't know you?""I am Janine, I am interning under Brock. You might face me again in Fuchsia if you make it that far!"Mia made a surprised expression at that. "Oh! Alrighty then! That's pretty neat! Silly Mouse and I are ready for you today, and we'll be ready for you in Fuchsia!""Rat!" said Silly Mouse defiantly."Go Geodude!" said Janine once more, tossing out another of the Gym's pokemon."Begin!" Announced Jackson."Geodude use Sandstorm!" said Janine, this time not waiting around."Silly! Use Tail Whip while we can!" said Mia. I nodded. She'd done a good job judging her pokemon's speed and knowing that she would have probably had to have been a lot faster with her pokemon.The arena became shifting shapes and whistling winds as the sandstorm whipped at the pokemon. I could see Mia bracing and leaning into it. "Hang in there Silly!" she shouted as loud as she could.I knew from experience that she would have gotten a mouthful of sand from that but respected her dedication."Get up on a rock out of the storm! Use your claws!" I heard from Mia.I noted that I couldn't see the Geodude which let me know Janine had likely ordered it to dig. A few moments later I was proven right when a shape shot out of the ground to try and slam into Silly Mouse. Only for the Rattata to parry the attack."Now! Iron Tail!" shouted Mia, seeing her moment of opportunity. Her pokemon lunged and once more another win was chalked up.This time instead of finishing the match however, Janine sent out a Rhyhorn that she sent bulldozing around the arena after Silly Mouse making the pokemon have to run away. A number of rocks were destroyed in the rampage, but eventually, Silly Mouse won out with greater endurance and agility.When Rhyhorn faltered Silly Mouse once more turned and nailed the other pokemon into the ground with an Iron Tail between the eyes."Rhyhorn is unable to battle! Silly Mouse and Mia advance!" announced Jackson earning some applause from the crowd.I settled onto the top of the stairs as Rachel got ready, my eyes on Silly Mouse as he heaved in huge lungful after lungful. This was where the issue of only having one pokemon made itself abundantly obvious. Until that one pokemon became amazingly powerful and well-trained it would not be able to handle a gauntlet challenge.Mia was wiping at Silly Mouse with a cloth to get rid of some sand from his eyes while spraying other parts of him with potion. His grimaces and cries made it obvious that he hadn't escaped the last battles unscathed. He must have been clipped a few times there, either by tackles or flying rocks."—Brock!" shouted Rachel alerting me that it was time to move. I made my way down and had to resist the urge to slow down. On the podium, Mia was furiously rubbing potion into Silly Mouse as Silly Mouse tried to turn away from her and face me, the oncoming threat in his mind.I considered the pokemon on my belt and I slowly came up with a plan. I leapt across the fence once more and landed in my kneeling position before rising up.Silly Mouse was baring his fangs and ready for me, despite Mia holding him back to get one more squirt of potion onto him before letting him hop forward. Mia eyed me and then her pokemon."Go to the front!" she said to Silly Mouse ordering him right in close to the centre of the battlefield. I smirked."I've been looking forward to this. Time to show what you've got Mia and Silly Mouse." I enlarged a pokeball and nodded to Jackson."Go Lileep!" I said as I threw my pokeball to the middle of my area thereby giving my pokemon a bit of breathing room without making it too far back and therefore letting Silly Mouse have a run-up."Eh? Who's that pokemon?" Mia said, unknowingly mimicking most of the crowd as murmurs broke out. On the field my pokemon swayed innocently from side to side, her fronds retracted where her face was.Jackson took a moment to shoot me a surprised look. He obviously hadn't been expecting me to reveal the Gym's newest acquisition on a first badge match. I smirked at him and he nodded."Trainers! Ready!? Begin!" he said, dropping his flag."Silly Mouse! Go for the kill with Iron Tail straight away!" she said, punching forward. Silly Mouse charged forward and I hummed as he leapt into the air."Lileep, use Acid." My pokemon snapped her head up straight at the oncoming Rattata and spat a wad of poison. It must have been a critical hit as Silly Mouse cried out and missed with his Iron Tail as he crashed into the ground to the side of Lileep."Good, now use Wrap!" I said.Mia gasped. "No! Silly Mouse get out of there!" She said only for Silly Mouse to be locked in Lileep's fronds and body as she curled around him. His tail was most notably restrained. "Damn it…" She gritted her teeth. "Fine! Silly Mouse use Crunch! Bite them back if they're not going to let you go!"I chuckled as the match became a drag-down fight with my pokemon trying to smother him while SIlly Mouse bit for all he was worth. I was impressed that her pokemon knew Crunch and that likely was what earnt her the match."Lileep is unable to battle!" said Jackson as my pokemon went limp.I nodded and withdrew it. While I had a lot of these to potentially draw on, I wasn't going to use them to float the weakest badge teams. That would be bandaging something that needed much more delicate care. They'd feature, but not in large numbers.Silly Mouse heaved and trembled as he staggered back towards Mia who quivered and looked at me. She shut her eyes as I selected another pokeball. She held up her hand and raised Silly Mouse's pokeball to signal she wasn't going to test her luck.I felt my respect for her grow. She'd pushed as far as she should and she—Silly Mouse refused to go into his pokeball. The red beam of energy connected, and he started to be drawn back only to be aborted. Silly Mouse glared at me as though I had done it only to pause and shoot Mia a startled look."Rat? Tata? Rattata?" Then he got an angry look on his face as he gestured at himself. "Rat Rat Rat! Tat Ta!" He waved at me and chomped his fangs and turned back digging his claws in.I whistled. "Little guys got some fighting spirit that's for sure…" I said, "Are you willing to test that?"Mia shook her head. "No! Silly Mouse I don't need to win a badge today! I don't want to see you get hurt anymore! You've fought too much as it is! I should have gotten another pokemon to help back you up, instead of training you so hard!""Rat!" Silly Mouse said in a way that made me think he disagreed. He pointed at me and then made a gesture at his eyes and then back at me. Mia chuckled and nodded."W-w-we're going to c-con-continue," she said.I enlarged my pokeball. "Very well."I threw out Izumi. She emerged with a cry of her name before taking in the scene. She tilted her head and considered Silly Mouse."Be—" Silly Mouse charged before Mia could give her order.I hummed. That wasn't what I wanted to be taught here and now. "Rollout backwards," I said.Izumi tucked and rolled backwards out of danger as an Iron Tail came down where she'd been."Rock Throw," I followed up with.Silly Mouse started to charge ahead only for Mia to scream. "SILLY MOUSE STOP BEING STUPID AND DODGE THOSE ROCKS LIKE WE TRAINED!"He tripped as he lunged to the side, taking a rock as his instincts warred with his determination to prove himself. The Rock Throw saw him sliding back.I made a sign to Izumi to hold, which honestly was entirely unnecessary. She could read the room.Silly Mouse struggled to his feet and shook Mia shouted, "Silly! Stop, and listen!"Silly Mouse paused tilting to show that he was listening while watching me and my pokemon."I'm sorry I doubted you, I was scared for you. But charging in like that won't win us this fight. You're tired and that Geodude is fresh! We need to trust each other… I realise that's a lot to ask but I believe in you, can you do the same for me?"Silly Mouse considered that for a moment before nodding. "Good now… Use Thunder."Silly Mouse paused only to nod, charging up electrical energy and causing his whiskers to spark more like a pikachu than a rattata. I frowned, the crowd were screaming for her to stop as it wouldn't work. I knew Mia to be a smart girl. This wasn't her not knowing that.I saw the glint in her eyes and smiled.It looked like she had a plan."Ready yourself Izumi!" I said, causing my pokemon to make a show of punching the air.Silly Mouse charged up, and then Mia shot her hand out pointing ahead of her. "Blast the spot right in front of the geodude!" I blinked in surprise as Silly Mouse arced a bolt of electrical energy up into the air and down right in front of Izumi.I blinked furiously to get rid of the flash of lightning and boom of Thunder causing me to miss what she said to Silly Mouse next. The attack worked to blind me and Izumi to Silly Mouse and when the dust cleared we found ourselves suddenly face to tail to a leaping rattata with Iron Tail dive bombing us.I grinned. "Clever girl," I said aloud as Silly Mouse slammed into Izumi.Izumi was thrown backward and rolled over herself a few times. When she came to rest at the base of my podium I leaned over to see if she was alright. She opened both eyes and then winked at me before faking being knocked out.I glanced up to find Silly Mouse flat on his stomach as he stared defiantly at Izumi, willing her to stay down. When I raised my pokeball and returned her, he slumped.Mia leapt over the edge of her podium even as Jackson raised his flags. "Brock has withdrawn his pokemon! Silly Mouse and Mia are the victors!"The crowd in the stands erupted in cheers as Silly Mouse was raised up into Mia's hands. He grinned at her and waved weakly at the crowd. I watched her, letting her have her moment.When I got to the ground level, I made my way to her and coughed to announce myself. Mia and Silly Mouse both grinned at me. "Well, that wasn't how I thought things would go."I shot Silly Mouse a look. "You and Mia had already earned the right to the Pewter badge when Mia tried to withdraw you. That seemed good sense to me." I made a thoughtful face. "But then again, I don't know what you two are capable of apparently." I nodded."Mia, and Silly Mouse. It's matches like this that show just how much our bonds with each other matter. Moments like this make me love being a Pokemon trainer. I'm honoured to have witnessed you fight. You truly surprised me."Mia and Silly Mouse were speechless as I gave them a shallow bow of respect. I felt that they had deserved it. I shot them a wry smile. "I might have to use that Thunder trick with Sanchez you realise?""O-oh? Really?!"I nodded. "It was a great move." I glanced at Jackson. "So, I think there was an agreement with the Pewter Gym trainer group to get your badges as one today, no?"Mia beamed as I waved the others down onto the field. Instead of just the trainers I sponsored, the entire crowd poured onto the field like their home team had just won a match. In a way, it was, as there were only local parents and family and friends present for this series of matches. They'd cheered and cried and supported the kids just as much. I shouldn't have been surprised by them 'storming the pitch'.I raised a hand, considering stopping them only for the adults to host up the other kids and make them all part of the moment. I lowered my hand and chuckled. "Well, this works as well."When the kids got their badges, everyone cheered for them. I got a number of claps on the shoulder from the locals as well for the 'great matches' I'd had with the kids. I shook hands, and made small talk for a while. Internally, I was glad that I'd scheduled the matches as the last part of the day. This had allowed parents and families that worked to come and witness their children's success.When everyone was done celebrating the matches and the awards for gauntlet runs had been given out, I bid everyone good night and they all departed.As I was cleaning up, Janine edged up to me. "That… that was very different from how matches work at my father's gym.""You don't have crowds? Or something else?" I asked."Yes… but how the crowd included you. In Fuchsia… In Fuchsia, my father and I are respected but we are kept at a distance… We're the Guardians of the town, and people revere us. They wouldn't have included us in celebrating their or other children's success as they did today. They'd certainly never storm the arena after the match… Despite it being disrespectful in so many ways I…" She clenched and opened her hands."I liked that," she said, as though it hurt her to admit it.I frowned, that didn't seem right to me. "Why does it sound like you think that's a bad thing?""I… I don't want to erode all the traditions of my family!" she said, stomping her foot. "But! But, I find myself longing for some of the grandeur you have. The battle courts, the immersion into the community, the showmanship!"I shrugged. "So just work the traditions into what you want."She shot me a look. I gestured at the Gym at large."I kept a lot of the rocky aesthetic for my Gym. Why not do the same for your own Gym? Keep everything that makes it feel like your Gym while embracing the new. It won't be as easy perhaps but if you pull it off you'd have something unique. I spent an entire year and a lot of money just workshopping what I want. It's still developing and that, honestly? Makes it a lot of fun!"I scratched the back of my head. "Does that… help at all?" I said carefully.Janine nodded. "It has certainly given me a lot to think about. Some of your traditions are silly, but I can see your intent."I shot her a look and she tilted her head towards a poster that proclaimed the gym would be dressed up and styled in a 'Sevii island theme' in a few days' time. Which was just my version of Hawaiian shirt friday.I coughed. "That's to keep things fun."She huffed at me and put her chin on the broom. "Well, thank you for the chat Brock. If you don't mind, I will clean up the stands on my own from here. I think I would like some time to think."I patted her on the shoulder. "Alright, great job today."She smiled. I didn't miss how she reached up to where I'd pat her on the shoulder after complimenting her. Somehow, I doubted she got much of that at home.I returned home and found my siblings just starting dinner. I winked at Yolanda. "Great work today little sis," I said. She beamed at me.While the rest of my family watched some television or played with their toys I finished up some paperwork for the Gym. Then I turned my attention to a few sheets from the school. "Hmmm, bakesale and the school festival. Alright, I think we can get something whipped up.""Ohh Rocky Road! Everyone loves your Rocky Road big Bro!" chimed Salvadore. I winked at him. I was pretty sure they loved the theme I stuck with but that was just for marketing.When it was time for bedtime Suzie and Timmy grumbled at me. "No! We don't want a storybook. Tonight we want a Brock story that you make up!"I hummed. "I haven't done that in ages?"They nodded with the seriousness that only four-year-olds can muster. "Yeah! We noticed!"I rubbed my chin. "Alright, alright, let's get your teeth cleaned, and I'll see what I can manage."They did so with speed. Munchlax decided to join them tonight, and he even got tucked in next to Suzie. With him in the room and a vague idea of an easy story to cheat from, I began to weave a story about a mighty Snorlax that was actually a Dragonslayer. Munchalx loved that story, and Suzie and Timmy got more joy watching Munchlax's expressions.When the Snorlax got sad, Munchlax got sad. When Snorlax got angry, Munchlax growled. When Snorlax was startled, Munchlax hid under the sheets, only to be coaxed out by Suzie."— and though Snorlax had defeated the terrible Dragonite, he was wounded!""No!" gasped Suzie as she cuddled up to Munchlax. Munchlax looked very worried for his new hero.I nodded, trying to keep a serious expression. "But he was safe! For you see he had food in his pouch! And so, the Might Dragonslayer proceeded to eat a whole wheel of cheese and recovered from his ordeal! By the end, he ate the wheel, rind and all, and was as healthy as could be!"Munchlax's eyes practically had stars in them as he beamed at the way his hero had saved himself from injury. I think he liked that more than the fighting.I nodded. "And all the men, and women, kids, and pokemon cheered him on, and they lived happily ever after. The end.""Hoo-ray!" yawned Timmy sleepily.I nodded and gave him, Suzie, and Munchlax a kiss on the head. "Indeed, alright, good night now.""Thanks for the story Brock," said Suzie as she cuddled up to Munchlax."Munch~," said Munchlax.I left the room feeling warm and cozy. I found Yolanda sitting in the hallway with her egg in her lap, and a huge smile on her face. "That was amazing," she said happily. In her lap, the egg squirmed a few times before settling back down.I pat her on the head. "Good work again today. Now get some sleep, Gym trainers need to be rested up. Got a lot of battles coming your way soon.""Thanks, night Brock," she said after a quick hug.That night I lay down with a huge smile. Today was a win on all fronts, it felt like.I went to sleep with a smile only half as wide as Munchlax, but still more than content. When I felt the bed dip as another body joined me later, I merely shifted to wrap her in a hug.