"Let's rock Electrode!" shouted Surge as his third pokemon took to the field.
Electrode landed and whirled into a fast spin, then it locked eyes on the hovering Alakazam. Electricity started to spark up as the electrode twitched and rocked back and forth."Pass over!" snapped Surge, causing his pokemon to accelerate.Will shot his hand up. "Barrier!" he said. A thin rectangle of energy formed up in front of his pokemon.Electrode flashed forward, only to pass next to the barrier. The sparks that it was letting off were washed against the barrier and then passed through it to zap Alakazam.Alakazam twitched and cried out before swinging its arms down. Will narrowed his eyes. "A deception? You weren't aiming at my pokemon but seeking to paralyze it?"Surge smirked. "Line up again for another pass!" he ordered. Electrode slowed. It then started spinning and causing more and more lightning to build up around itself, all while remaining still.Surge leaned forward, and Will huffed. "I'm not falling for that again," he said, snapping his fingers.His Alazakam crossed its spoons, and a small shield of psychic energy appeared in front of it before vanishing. I narrowed my eyes."Was that Magic Coat?" I asked Sabrina.She nodded. "Surge will need to be careful; moves such as Thunderwave, and Eerie Impulse, which he just used, will now bounce back on him." Sabrina eyed Surge. "Not that we need to worry about that; it seems he has a plan."I flicked my eyes over the sparking up Electrode that had lined itself up onto Alakazam.It was sparking angrily now, with a circle of electrical energy lancing off it every moment. I could also just make out a small sheen of energy that denoted that Electrode had used Light Screen."Roll Out!" barked Surge. Electrode rocketed ahead."Take control," Will said lazily.His pokemon gestured and psychic energy grasped around Electrode lifting it up, but instead of stopping it in its tracks, it kept on rolling like it had hit a bump and launched itself upwards."What?!" said Will in shock"Foul Play now!" Surge said and his pokemon leered down at the shocked Alakazam.His soaring Electrode suddenly became like a black hole, the shift from light to dark causing me to blink in surprise as the mass of darkness shifted and arced down towards Alakazam."Tch Tele—" Will started to say, only for his pokemon to twitch but fail at the action. Instead, it stood and took the hit, staggering thanks to it."Keep up the pressure!" roared Surge, his voice booming out over the battlefield.Electrode continued rolling forward. This time, electrical energy was unleashed from within, and Alakazam was blown backward."Teleport!" said Will just as his pokemon hit the back wall. Instantly, his pokemon did so, teleporting in a flash to the other side and closer to Surge.Electrode hit the wall where it had been a moment later. This time it was Surge's turn to click his tongue."Recover!" Will growled. Alakazam hovered upward, and any signs of battle damage vanished a moment later. It brandished its spoons and stepped into a fighting pose."Boost it!" said Surge. His pokemon whirled about and charged back in close."Put it down!" Will said sharply.His pokemon began to raise and lower the spoons in a circular pattern that sent rings of psychic energy towards the charging in Electrode. It seemed it was picking up more and more charge with each moment it was moving.It once more slammed into a barrier that Will had his pokemon raise, only for it to ricochet off. I glanced at Surge but saw that he wasn't at all bothered. If anything, he seemed happy for his pokemon to be sent careening off like it had.I inspected the field and saw it sparking with small flashes of light that kept building up and being discharged."Is Surge charging up his pokemon by having it on the Electric Terrain?" I asked.The Vermillion Gym trainer near us laughed. "Nice pickup! It's a fairly standard set-up for surge during tougher matches but it doesn't get used all that often. It works well though, as some pokemon can take charge or give charge to the field."A small fact about alternators in cars rose to the front of my mind. "Or if they move around enough and switch up, they can charge and use energy.""An alternating current was created by his pokemon's movements. Electrode would naturally be able to do this," Sabrina said, understanding what I was getting. "Surge has both empowered electrical types, but the longer he fights on the field and has his pokemon moving around, the better it is for him."The man whistled. "Oh! Dang, you two are sharp! Not many people know that about electricity.""I read," said Sabrina.The man blinked as though not understanding how that could equate to understanding how electrical systems could operate. I held in a chuckle. The man most likely either picked up on it in a lecture from Surge or from an electrician."Give him the roper dope, Electrode! Make him swing at nothing but air!" Surge commanded, causing his pokemon to suddenly take off, zigzagging across the field.I hummed. Surge was playing it a bit too cavalierly for my liking. I had some wider experiences—what with owning cars in my past life and having the alternator die enough times to understand its importance in battery life—but that didn't mean people like Will couldn't work out what he was doing. Especially with Surge practically rubbing it in his face.For all that Will was a horrible person, he sadly wasn't an idiot."If you're going to play games like this then—" Will started to only for his pokemon to twitch as psychic energy built up.I flicked my eyes around to find Electrode rocking back and forth in the corner furiously with a dark look on its face. It stuck its tongue out and twirled around to show its backside, or what passed for such with an Electrode to Alakazam.Alakazam did not look pleased. It unleashed a Psybeam straight at Electrode only for the other pokemon to dodge.Surge barked a laugh. "Ha! You thought I was just going to let you buff up your pokemon? How about a big fat no!" he said.Surge then laughed. "Time to cook your Farfetch'd punk! Electrode close it in!"Electrode shot forward only to get right up to the barrier. Only this time it stopped on a dime and rocked back and forth with a sherry grin on its face. It then lit up.Will gasped. Surge laughed. "Explosion!" he shouted, only for another bright light to flash outwards from his pokemon.I shook off the Flash a moment later. Something was wrong. There'd been a lot of light but no noise? I blinked and tilted my head. People around the stadium murmured, only to gasp when they took in the state of the field.It was untouched. Electrode was still on it, merrily rocking back and forth, while Will's Alakazam was locked behind a Protect.I laughed as Surge grinned and crossed his arms. "I told you boy! I saw you flinch!" he announced.Will gritted his teeth and leaned forward. I knew the moment the Protect was dropped, he'd try something. The shell fell, and Alakazam started to glow, but Surge wasn't about to give up his prize."Boom Baby," he said simply.This time his Electrode detonated with all its built-up charge. Electrical energy and debris shot outward, slamming into the barriers and pylons. This time, people's screams of fear were lost in the noise.When the smoke cleared up enough to see the field, Electrode was knocked out, but so was Alakazam."Ha! Booyah! Gotcha strongest!" taunted Surge with a fist pump.Will returned his pokemon and glowered across at Surge. "You will regret doing that.""Regret it? Fuck nah! I'm feeling even better about it now that you spoke up! Heh! What's the matter? You tried to shit a shitter and found your own pants full of crap?" Surge said manically.I facepalmed as Sabrina snorted softly. "Eloquent as always, Surge," she said."Fucken A he is!" said the trainer, who now had a notepad out and was furiously writing down Surge's words.I felt like facepalming harder.Sabrina shook her head and sighed. "I will patrol the area to link up with Koga and Janine." I got the feeling she was worried that Surge's idiocy was catching."Oh, Koga is around? I hadn't…" I shook my head. "I'm not sure why I expected him to pop up and say hello.I hovered in a half-sitting position for a moment. "Want me to come along?" I asked.Sabrina considered that before shaking her head. "If we detect anything, you may need to capture Will. I suspect Will may be put under pressure now that he has lost his Alakazam."I sat down at that. "Right, makes sense."I turned my attention back to the match. I noted that the Electric Terrain had dwindled and that Will was waiting out his minute before tossing out his next pokemon. Surge had tossed out Jolteon once again, and this was working rather well for him as the previously confused pokemon was now looking much more settled.Will held his nerve as the countdown began, only for him to flick out his pokeball with three seconds to go.A few in the crowd booed the act, while others gasped in surprise when they realised Will had sent out an Espeon against Surge's Jolteon.It was a battle of the eeveelutions. I could see a number of commentators proclaiming it already.Surge narrowed his eyes at the perceived challenge, while Will raised his chin in challenge. Espeon, perhaps at Will's urging, sat and raised its front paw to lick it indolently."Hit em," said Surge flatly. This time, his pokemon blurred across the distance."You never learn," said Will as a Protect came up to block Jolteon. Jolteon almost slammed into it, only to kick off at the last moment and sail up into the air as it jumped.Will gasped as Jolteon arced overhead and landed behind the barrier. Its spikes were already twitching forward like missile turrets. I could clearly see what Surge had in mind.As soon as the barrier dropped, Espeon was nailed with Pin Missiles that swept forward. "BLOW EM AWAY!" urged Surge. Jolteon closed in, its spikes blasting away.Espeon rolled itself backward, hissing as it righted itself. Then it sort of blurred, and I got the impression it moved backwards for a moment, only to blink and find it standing in a guarded position. That had been odd.Jolteon righted itself on the stationary pokemon and laid into it, only for the Espeon to not stumble back from what should have been a super-effective move. Instead, it shimmered and broke apart.From the side, Espeon suddenly appeared with its paw lashing out. Mud flew up into Jolteon's face and made it stagger to the side in surprise."What the!?" said Surge before glaring. "Substitute eh?""Indeed," said Will, turning himself so that he was sideways. "I wasn't going to merely allow my pokemon to be beaten down like that!" Espeon performed another Mudslap, only for Surge to whistle and his pokemon to blur out of danger.Jolteon then furiously tried to wipe away the mud from its eyes. "Cheeky," commented Surge.He cracked his neck from side to side. "Jolteon! Charge up the field again! Electric Terrain!""Recover your strength, Espeon; I shall be needing you," said Will as his pokemon simmered before stepping back and vanishing in another Baton Pass. "Come out, Claydol!" ordered Will with another pokeball rose.The Claydol emerged and swivelled on the spot, its various eyes surveying the battlefield, only to lock onto Jolteon.Surge clicked his tongue. "Return! Go Lanturn!" he said, not hesitating to send out another pokemon that landed on the ground. I whistled in surprise. I'd been expecting his Magenzone.Then I reconsidered that match-up. Magenzone would only be a stall-out option. It wouldn't have better odds with its steel-electric moves while being spared of any Earthquakes."Aqua Ring!" Surge shouted straight away."Earthquake!" said Will with a chop of his hand. His Claydol slammed a limb into the ground and caused the battlefield to rumble.Lanturn completed its move just in time to be lightly shaken about. It took me a moment to register that Surge had used the Aqua Ring as a buffer to the ground. Instead of having his pokemon in direct contact, it was now being supported by a pair of tightly wound hoops of water that raised it up.It would have been enough to weaken the otherwise super-effective move, and it would passively heal Lanturn. It did nothing to stop the Electric Terrain from sparking up into Lanturn however.And if Lanturn had Volt Absorb… Oh, that was clever of Surge, his pokemon would get the benefits of Aqua Ring, and Volt Absorb, potentially keeping it in the battle much longer than it should be able to.I swept my gaze back to Will. Would it be clever enough, however?"Tch! Spin up and start moving!" Will urged his pokemon.Claydol started to spin like a marionette and soon began sweeping itself around the battlefield. This was shown to be a good call, as Surge had his Lanturn unleash multiple Hydro Pumps in reply.Suddenly, the air was full of so many watery attacks that you would have been mistaken to think this was the Cerulean Gym that Will had challenged.Each blast hit the ground and caused huge gouges to be carved out. Despite the misses, Surge began to mount pressure on Will by forcing Claydol to be unable to advance.The Claydol had to spin through a number of small ponds that formed after barely a minute.Will held his cool, however, and when Lanturn finally let up the barrage, his Claydol sank into the ground.I swore, well aware that he'd just had his pokemon use Dig."Do a kickflip with your tail!" ordered Surge.Lanturn slapped its tail and launched itself into the air, only for Claydol to emerge from the ground. I had to admire the utility of Dig with a trainer that didn't need to stick to verbal commands. You direct it without having to worry about where it would end up.I almost wanted to call it cheating, but that was a perk of being psychic, I suppose. I just made do with training.Claydol spun through the air and into the still-falling Lanturn.Will made a clutching gesture with his hand. Lanturn froze in mid-air; I noted that with Claydol's positioning, it couldn't turn its head and fire off another Hydro Pump while the Claydol was stationary.Lanturn was then slammed directly into the ground, causing the Aqua Rings to break apart due to the hit. It still gamely rose up and opened its mouth.This time, however, when Claydol stomped its limb into the ground, shards of earth rose up and slammed into Lanturn, knocking it upwards."Hydro Pump!" barked Surge, causing his pokemon which was still hanging in by the thread of its teeth, to fire out another blast of water.This time it nailed Claydol and rocked the pokemon onto its back, where it had to sweep itself up with what looked like Telekinesis."Surf!" ordered Surge, making his pokemon rise up with a respectable wave. It wasn't as large as the waves that could be generated at a League battlefield or even my own, but it was enough to sweep the entire field."Fall back!" Will ordered his pokemon.I sat up with interest, it seemed Surge had him on the back foot!Will retreated his Claydol as far as he could and was about to step out of bounds with the wave close to collapsing on him when he gave the next order."Protect!" he said with a grin."Tch!" Surge and I said at the same time.The Surf swept over the shell without hurting the pokemon within. When the water fell away, it revealed a battlefield that was much damper with all the water attacks. It almost looked swampish, with a few furrows from earlier Hydro Pumps now being small ponds. That might make future water-type moves easier but I knew of a few pokemon Will could call on.So it seemed to be a sequence of events that would better be utilised by Will unless Surge was laying a trap?"Earth Power!" Will said as his pokemon stomped a foot. This caused Lanturn to once again be knocked around, but thanks to the damper environment, it didn't seem to do as much as it should have. I had to give it to Lanturn; it was holding out rather well with the Electric Terrain having run its course and no more Aqua Rings; it was proving itself durable.Claydol then spun its entire body and charred forward into the still-recovering Lanturn to slam its entire body into the water pokemon. Lanturn cried out and was hurled off the battlefield, where it went limp.Will raised three fingers to Surge to remind him of the score as his Claydol moved back to his side of the field. Surge snorted and considered the field.I glanced over it as well. The biggest point of interest to me was how Will had positioned his Claydol in the midst of a trio of puddles that formed the points of a rather uneven triangle. The small dips would probably slow up a pokemon's charge but it wasn't an insurmountable wall to climb.It would be a minor inconvenience, if anything."Go Raichu!" Surge yelled, hurling out his starter.Instantly, the crowd stood and roared their approval as Raichu dropped into a low position with his cheeks sparking up."Chu!" said the lightning mouse.I leaned forward in anticipation of what was about to come, only to be surprised when Sabrina returned to sit next to me."What's going on?" I asked her. She looked frustrated."Nothing is going on," she said with a tightly controlled expression.I raised an eyebrow at her, and she exhaled heavily through her nostrils. "The issue is that Will is too in control of the match. He might have lost his Alakazam thanks to Surge's tactics, but he doesn't appear to feel pressured enough that he needs Rocket's support with their Legendary," she whispered lowly to me.I grimaced and glanced at the score. At three to one, it was a bit one-sided. Will had used Mr Mime, Espeon, Claydol, and Alakazam, but apart from Alakazam, he hadn't lost any of them. Weakened? Yes, but not out of the fight.Unlike Electrode, Ampharos, and now Lanturn.On the battlefield, Raichu streaked across it faster and faster. It seemed like Surge was going for speed with his pokemon. Will on the other hand, had his pokemon hunker down with how it earthed itself, digging into the ground but remaining with the top of its body slightly exposed."That's got to be a trap, right?" I said to Sabrina, indicating the battle.Sabrina nodded. "Oh, it's most definitely a trap."I clicked my teeth as Surge had his pokemon line up on the Claydol. Surge punched his fist forward, and Raichu accelerated. Will snapped his fingers, and psychic energy wrapped around Raichu, only for it to unleash a blast of electricity to overcome the Psychic.It hit the point between the puddles, only to stop on a dime. Surge grinned. "Don't try and shit a shitter!" Raichu curled a fist and unleashed a powerful Focus Blast from as close as it could.Will clicked his tongue, and his pokemon vanished with Teleport behind Raichu."Future Sight Army boy!" taunted Will with a shake of his finger. Claydol lashed out and smacked Raichu into what now revealed itself to be a very steep sand trap.Surge narrowed his eyes only to snort derisively. "Yeah, sand might be annoying, but it ain't enough to stop us. Raichu! BRING THE LIGHTNING!"Raichu curled in on itself, and I had a momentary premonition before the small lightning rat unleashed everything. A thunderous boom rocked the stadium as lightning, which consumed everything on the battlefield, erupted from Raichu.While everyone's eyesight was returning to them, I caught sight of Raichu leaping off a glassed battlefield straight at Claydol. It spun itself in a tightly controlled arc with its tail whipping around behind it, only for the tail to lash out and strike the Claydol on the head, sending it soaring backwards."BOOYAH! Brick Break to the face, little man! You see that coming, huh?! That's what I thought! You got one of them weak chins!" Surge said.Raichu landed and drew in deep lungfuls of air. It seemed that unleashing all of that electrical energy had taken a lot out of it.Claydol rose unsteadily, its joints twitching spasmodically, with Will glaring at Surge. "Hmmm your starter is strong; I wouldn't have thought you'd escape my Sand Tomb trap by glassing it… You are not just a loud brute, it would seem Surge." Will inclined his head.Surge snorted. "Big whoop! Raichu! Close in again!""Psychic," Will said.Once again, Raichu struggled as it was raised upward. Raichu once again unleashed a torrent of electricity to break the other pokemon's grip, but this time it wasn't strong enough.Will flicked his hand to the side, and Raichu sailed into the wall, where it shook itself off and rose up."Raichu Double Team!" Surge ordered to get his pokemon out of danger.Will sighed theatrically as a small cluster of Raichu appeared. He then flicked his hand upwards, and the Raichus all lurched upwards only to break up and reveal Raichu, who struggled only to be hurled to the side once more.Despite the heavy hit, Raichu rose up on all fours. Will sniffed. "You should recall your pokemon, we all know how this will end now Surge. I have your measure."Surge glared. "Nasty Plot!" he said. His pokemon took on dark energy around it, breaking the hold.Will clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Yes, dark energy, how quaint. Earth Power," he said causing spikes to shoot up and knock Raichu skyward.Will made to make the sweeping gesture again, but Surge wasn't going to let that keep playing out."Hyper Beam!" he bellowed, causing Raichu to snap its head up, lock onto Claydol and unleash an attack.Will gasped at that. "Match it!" he shouted. Claydol leaned back and raised its own arms up to unleash a beam, and both Hyper Beams slammed into each other, causing a shockwave to rock the battlefield.When the dust cleared, I sighed as Raichu was revealed, face down and straining to stand but unable to."Some of Surge's team are more durable than I would expect of their species," Sabrina said having returned.The gym trainer nodded. "Yeah Surge only has a few that are from when he fought that are still around, but there's a world of difference between them."I nodded at that. It made sense that pokemon that had gone through that would be tougher than modern competitive pokemon. On the field, Surge returned his pokemon with a frown and a few whispered words to the pokeball that I couldn't make out.From the other side, Claydol teetered precariously from side to side, but Will made no move to return it. A stir went through the crowd at this, and Surge narrowed his eyes before selecting another pokeball."Let's go Magnezone!" Surge shouted.Will merely nodded his head, and a moment later his pokemon vanished in a Teleport to appear right on top of Magnezone."Ah, you cocksucker!" swore Surge a moment before Will made a flowering gesture with his hands.Claydol exploded, and once more, a gigantic boom rocked the Vermillion stadium.People screamed and stood to see what had happened.It took a few seconds for the dust to clear, but I sighed in relief when Surge was revealed unharmed. I punched the air when his Magenzone was likewise shown with a protective shell around it."Cute try, you lily-livered asshole!" Surge shook his head in annoyance. "You think you're the first to try and sucker-punch old Surge?"Surge cracked his neck from side to side, causing his neck to pop. "Alright, four to two, huh?" he said, glancing up at the projected match score. "I'm gonna have to dig deep!""Hmmm, well, I thought there would be certain poetry to it," Will said with a smirk. "My turning your own tactics against you, no?"Surge snorted. "Now, I'm a man's man, but the poetry you're trying to peddle right there? That's the shit I wouldn't wipe my backside with!" Surge said."You tell him Surge!" said one of his fans, standing and punching the air.On his podium, Will put a hand to his mask and shook his head. "Your resistance is commendable but I shall be the victor today, Surge." He selected a pokeball and whipped it forward. "Go Medicham!"The pokemon he'd used against me first appeared with light feet, bouncing back and forth. It locked its focus on Magnezone as Surge straightened up. With a pokemon that wasn't as well known for its psychic prowess or a type advantage against him, I knew Surge could smell blood."Set your sights!" bellowed Surge as the magnets on the Magnezone swivelled forth onto Medicham, who was already sprinting towards the hovering electric type.A red reticule appeared in the centre eye, which I knew meant that Lock On had been used."Detect!" barked Will, only for his face to blanche at whatever information was being fed to him by his link to Medicham. "Jum—" he started to say as his pokemon leapt, only for Magnezone to unleash a torrent of lightning that lanced forth and struck Medicham out of the air."Zap Cannon!" roared Surge.The fighting-psychic type slammed into the ground and rolled over itself before kipping up into a standing position. It then kneeled with a cry of pain. Will clicked his tongue and returned his pokemon."It looks like he's rushing, trying to end this quickly," I said.Sabrina flicked her eyes between the two combatants. "Both of them have made a number of mistakes, but they have also led each other into traps that have either worked or backfired. Surge may still be able to win if Will fumbles. With Espeon and now Medicham injured, the score is a technical four to four."That left Will to reveal his last pokemon."Go Espeon!" Will shouted, revealing a pokemon that was already limping from its earlier battle with Jolteon."Lock on again!" barked Surge, causing his pokemon to once again go through the setup for the release of Zap Cannon. This time I expected it, and I saw the shimmer and overlap of bodies as Espeon performed Substitute."Surge saw that, right?" I said, glancing up at the television screen, hoping for Surge to be smirking, but there was only a look of intense focus on his face."Thunderwave!" barked Surge, sweeping his hand wide. Magnezone, instead of firing off the much anticipated Zap Cannon, fired a broad wave of lightning that crackled and sparked. I expected to see either a cat-like pokemon jump over it, or be caught and zapped to reveal itself.The Substitute shimmered as the electric wave washed over it, but there was nothing else beyond the lack of reaction from the mirage that had been left behind by the Espeon.The crowd gasped in shock, and Surge narrowed his eyes, looking around.When no disruptions to the ground beyond the earlier gouges were present, he flicked his eyes upwards but there wasn't anything out of the ordinary."Is your pokemon within the boundary of this battlefield punk?" Surge said heatedly.Will smiled coyly. "Oh? You mean I slipped that one past you? I assure you, they're right where I need them to be."Sabrina sighed, and I glanced at her. "Where is the Espeon?""It is buried under the small section of glass that Raichu created earlier. It burrowed in through the side, and with the sand falling into the tunnel, there isn't an entrance for Surge to notice. It is using Rest."I groaned. That… wasn't such a bad trick; I might have even overlooked it, but then again, a Rock or Earth-type move would have caused Will to regret that choice. It was also markedly different from how Will had fought against me.He had swapped out some pokemon yes, but the moves that the familiar pokemon were using…Surge glared at Will. "Alright punk, if you want to play hide and seek, you'll learn why I'm the best at that game! Magenzone! Land and use Sonicboom!"Will laughed. "Isn't that an outdated move that does nothing?"Surge grinned. "Oh, it does something alright."He then put his fingers into his ears. I copied him out of instinct rather than actually understanding what was going on. Sabrina copied me. It was telling that every Gym trainer around us followed Surge's lead.Magnezone planted its magnets, and a moment later the air thrummed and a heavy whump sounded out, causing dust to radiate outwards before it suddenly sucked itself inwards.I felt the pressure wave radiate over me due to the air disruption. Will staggered on his podium and shook his head."What was that!?" Will shouted shrilly.Surge took his fingers out, and his eyes locked onto the now-shivering patch of glass where Sabrina had identified the Espeon as hiding. "Gotcha now, flinching punk," said Surge as he pointed at it.Will grabbed onto the podium rails. "Espeon! Baton Pass now!" he shouted, holding up another pokeball. Espeon vanished from underneath the glass, only for the pokemon that took its place to cause the glass to lift upwards as a much larger form appeared."Exeggutor!" chanted the many-faced grass-psychic pokemon.Surge clicked his tongue at the switch. I noticed a gleam all over its body. "He didn't juice, did he?" I asked.Sabrina chewed her lip. "He… may have; I felt Espeon get off another move after Rest, however, and with the time taken, he has a reasonable excuse. I can't be sure, and neither can others. It would have been obvious without this set up which couldn't be guaranteed."I hissed in annoyance. "If it's not one thing, it's another with this guy!" I said with a growl. "Just black-bagging him is suddenly looking a lot more attractive. Maybe blame it on Team Rocket, even."Sabrina snorted at that. "That's dark," she commented.I paused and sighed, releasing the energy I had unknowingly not let go of when the Flash had come out earlier in the fight. "Sorry," I said as Exeggutor marched towards Magnezone with Psychic warding off the few steel-type moves Surge had for his pokemon."Steel Beam!""Hypnosis!" ordered Will in response. His pokemon's eyes glowed as steel energy was launched into Exeggutor. It staggered, but most of the faces stayed focused on the task of bringing down the Magnezone.It staggered and fell out of the air to land, which had Will leaning forward hungrily. "Bulldoze!"Exeggutor stormed forward and slammed into the slumbering pokemon which woke it up, but Wil wasn't about to let the other pokemon escape. "Leap on it and Stomp!" he commanded.Exeggutor did just that, and then it began to stomp its feet down, smashing Magenzone down, and keeping it down on the ground."Blast it!" Surge snarled, causing Magezone to unleash everything it had from point-blank range. While it wasn't very effective, I had little doubt that Magnezone was one of Surge's old pokemon.Old pokemon usually had a lot in the tank and I grinned as Magenzone unleashed a powerful blast of electricity, that despite the type disadvantage still did damage.Exeggutor was thrown back, and it had to turn its body as the faces on one side seemed blinded by how the electricity had flash-fried them.Hmmm, perhaps a critical hit? I thought as I watched the Exeggutor continue to stumble."Bulldoze!" said Will causing his pokemon stop, stumble, and lean forward to throw itself into an attack. It surged forward with a growl."MAGNEZONE! GO!" shouted Surge with a manic grin on his face.His Magnezone narrowed its eyes and then surged forward. It built up momentum quickly.Both pokemon slammed into each other and another boom rocked the stadium.I chuckled when the dust shifted and Surge was revealed, grinning up at me.I nodded. "Nice of him to use Titan's catchphrase."Sabrina merely inclined her head. "It only got him to five to three, however." I looked to find both the Magnezone and the Exeggutor knocked out in the middle of the battlefield.I whistled. "Wow, alright then. Jolteon against Mr Mime, Espeon, and Medicham?""That is correct," Sabrina said.Will considered his options before tossing out Mr Mime; specifically, he landed the pokemon behind the now sizeable divot that had been where Espeon had dug down.Mr Mime winked at Jolteon as it appeared. A stir went through the crowd as they recalled that this had been the original matchup for this battle."Surge can still do it," I said aloud, glancing about for any signs of potential Team Rocket interference.Sabrina shook her head. "I don't think Will is going to risk it; just the set-up would cost him too much and it would reveal his intentions."Her eyes glowed for a moment, and she shook her head. "Agatha and Janine have yet to find anything suspicious locally."I sighed and chewed my lip as Jolteon blitzed around the field, only for Barriers to form up to block any lighting attacks. Surge started hammering back with Pin Missiles only for Will to click his tongue."Trick Room!" he ordered. Mr Mime raised its hands to form a cube, in doing so, it took a barrage of Pin Missiles.But the cube still expanded out and engulfed the battlefield. And just like that, Jotleon's best advantage with its speed was gone.Will leered. "Psybeam! Finish this match!" he barked, causing Mr Mime to fire off a beam of psychic energy that had Jolteon running to avoid it as best it could, only to be clipped and sent rolling."Again!" ordered Will, only for the Jolteon to vanish as it was recalled.Surge stood tall with his pokeball outstretched. "I think that's enough; there's no need to beat down like that on Jolteon."He worked his jaw a few times before nodding his head. "Well! Looks like I've had to eat some humble pie!" Surge said, putting a hand behind his head and laughing like he wasn't all that bothered.I sighed and stood up to give Surge my support with applause. The crowd joined in a moment later, and Will waved magnanimously, causing my stomach to curdle.Will turned and noticed me for the first time during the match.I held his gaze, and for a moment, I forgot that anyone else existed. Could I demand a fight from him here and now? He smirked before tapping the side of his mask.Will turned away, unaffected by my staredown. I really hated that mask.He returned to waving and a few moments later he shook hands with Surge only to turn towards a group of awaiting reporters. I snorted and toyed with the idea of inserting myself but decided against itWith the interviews going on I turned away and instead headed for Surge's training area. Surge didn't take long and when he entered the room he strode up to a boxing bag and slammed a fist against it. The bag shook and floated back only for another fist to lash out and send it careening back.Surge kept up the assault for a few minutes before catching the bag and exhaling a long and loud breath. Then he moved, but not like he usually did with energy and spontaneity.He moved… like he was an old man with a lot of burdens.Like a man whose scars and history dragged him down. He slumped onto a bench and released another sigh.I coughed to announce myself, but Surge just looked at the bag with an expression that told me his mind was far off."I used to be able to beat the stuffing out of the bag for a good half an hour without breaking a sweat… Now I can't do it for more than five minutes…" he said.I blinked. "It happens. Have you kept up your training?" I said.Surge snorted. "I do… I've just…" Surge sighed and shook his head. "I've just gotten old…" he said, staring at the ground."It was still a good fight," I said, looking to raise his spirits."Good? Good is something pros and veterans wipe their asses with. I needed to be great tonight." Surge shook his head.I shifted from foot to foot. "I mean, you had him pressured for a bit there. It really could have been a lot closer."Surge shook his head, staring at the punching bag. "Nah, you don't get it, Brock, I've slipped. I used to have one of the best edges when it came to pokemon battles. The fights we have in these Ace fights? They were nothing compared to fighting true combat… I… I used to think that would always see me through… but I've gotten sloppy."He looked down at his swollen knuckles. "I was arrogant and that's cost me this match… I'm… sorry, I know you were hoping I put that prick in his place but instead, I just made him look better…""Nah, you did great," I said loyally."Brock… I think I've known for years that I'm over the hill… I've had my peak… I just… well, I talked big." Surge clenched his fists. I could see it pained him to admit it."That's not true. You just need to find different methods and tactics. Use that experience you have!" I said firmly, not willing to let this matter sit.Surge merely waved back towards the arena where he'd lost to Will barely half an hour ago.I worked my jaw and considered the boxing bag. I walked up to it and gave it a soft jab. Surge snorted. "Lock out your wrist or you'll break it.".I nodded and did just that for a few more hits before speaking as I settled into a rhythm. "I won't lie; I was thinking you'd reveal him for what he is. We've both had to eat some humble pie of late, no?"I started speeding up my hits and putting some rock energy into my punches. "It freaking pisses me off to see that asshole strutting around like he's going to be the next Elite Four." I slammed a haymaker into the bag, and it swung wildly, only to be pounded in another direction as my other fist caught it on the backswing.Surge stood and laughed at the hammer blows I was unleashing. "Damn! That's the spirit Brock! Let it out! Use your hips! Twist through and push the power from your feet all the way into your fist and through!" My punches came faster and faster, harder and harder, as Surge coached me on how to improve my form.I continued to hammer at it, building up my energy."Imagine it's Will smirking at you!" Surge shouted all of a sudden.I felt my anger spike as I all too easily imagined his face superimposed on the bag.The tips Surge had been coaching me on suddenly clicked as I stepped into the bag and planted my foot before twisting and unleashing a punch that had every part of my body behind it.The boxing bag detonated from the hit, and sand scattered over the floor.I stepped back, huffing and puffing. "See that Surge? You haven't lost your edge, you just traded it out for being a Gym Leader. You're a hell of a coach, and I have no doubt the Gym trainers under you learn a lot." I tapped him on the shoulder. "I know I did when you helped me out."I made sure to lock eyes with him. "I could still use your experience and knowledge."Surge rubbed his thumb across his nose. "Aw shucks, you're gonna make me blush!"I chuckled. "You know, there is a good thing about Will being so prominent of late."Surge tilted his head. "Yeah, and what's that?"I chuckled. "My pokemon and I have never been more motivated to improve." I reached out and slapped Surge on the shoulder, barely able to reach him there. "Also, no one thinks you did bad. You stood up, and people respect that."I waved for him to follow, and I led him outside. There, a number of people were milling about on the boulevard.It only took seconds for people to notice Surge and for cheering and applause to start."Way to rattle that sissy's cage, Surge!" cheered one man."You're the best!""We love you, Surge!""Yeah, baby! Go Surge!" screamed another.I chuckled and smiled up at Surge. "They all believe in you. Give yourself some credit, just as you believe in me. I believe you can get over this. You up to some training with me again?""Heh! You ain't leaving me in the dirt, Brock! You're on!" he said before turning and waving to the crowd who cheered his name. Surge grinned and rubbed the back of his head.I merely laughed, glad to see him feeling better. I then considered what I'd said. "I might have to pick your brain on how to work with pokemon on building raids soon you know?"That made him perk up and look thoughtful. "Huh, yeah, there's gonna be a lot of raids coming up with Team Rocket being so frisky, ain't there?" he rubbed his chin. "Call me when you want to talk shop… or give me a week and I'll set something up," he said.I nodded, noting that he looked a lot more himself now that he had a task to work towards.I then waved for him to lead me around his City. I ended up spending an hour with Surge walking around Vermillion, talking with locals, and helping to lift his spirits.When that was done, I asked Sabrina to pick me up, and she did so only to Teleport me to her own Gym."Thought we were going home?" I asked.She merely gave me a coy smile. "You can stay at mine tonight." I chuckled as she handed Ralts to me before changing into her pyjamas.Huh, seemed like it was time for a sleepover; it was a good way to end the day.
148
I woke up the next morning to a room that I was only slightly familiar with. The feeling of the body pressing into me was much more familiar, however, and did wonders for keeping me calm.Until I remembered what we'd done last night when Sabrina had sent Ralts out for an hour or so. I was suddenly much more awake."No, I'm sleeping," Sabrina murmured before I got the chance to even reach for her. Ralts murmured something and wormed her way closer into Sabrina's arms.I chuckled and stood. "I need to go to the bathroom anyway." Sabrina made a gesture towards the hallway. I put on my shirt to cover myself and made my way to the toilet. It was only after flushing and washing my hands that I remembered Sabrina's parents.Or, more specifically, Sabrina's mother.She blinked at me, her eyes sliding down my body before glancing back up. "Good morning!" she said, sounding like she was testing the sound of the words."Morning," I replied, deciding to just go with the flow.Sabrina's mother tilted her head. "Did you stay the night?" she asked. I decided to nod. Would it have been better or worse to say I came over just now? After a moment's sluggish thought, I decided it might be worse.Sabrina's mother nodded. "Oh, that's good... I'll make breakfast!" she said before trotting away.Before I could stop myself, I spoke up. "Do you want my help?" I said, more due to habit than any actual desire to do so."Oh, that might be nice!" she replied, leaving me in a lurch. She flicked her eyes back down. "Maybe put some pants on first?""Right," I said, hurrying back to grab my pants, suddenly glad that I at least wore underwear to bed. I stepped in and pulled on my pants. "Sabrina! Your mother was out there!"Sabrina opened a single eye and peered at me. "Yes? She lives with me?" she said as though it were obvious... which it should have been.I huffed at her. "We need to get you a room with a private ensuite."Sabrina's eyes glowed. "Why? I can just teleport into the bathroom when I need it?"I huffed and tapped her on the nose. "I can't, though, and I don't think I should wander around in the morning like that.""Hmmm, don't worry, you have very nice legs," Sabrina said, then she sat up and eyed me. And your abs and your chest are very nice.""That's not what I meant," I said, deciding if I wanted to shield my body from her gaze before shaking the idea away."I know," she said simply, her eyes glowing as I pulled on some jeans before opening the door.A short shriek of fear had me stiffening up before Sandra called out. "Sabrina! If you're going to help out, remember what we talk about! No doing it from your bedroom!"Sabrina grumbled and rolled over. I chuckled and shot Ralts a look as she copied Sabrina in grumbling and turning to face away from the light. "I'll give you both another half hour?"The lights I'd turned on to find my clothes flicked off in answer. I turned and walked out with a smile, more than happy to help with breakfast. When Saul wandered in minutes later, he smiled at his wife, frowned, and then grimaced as he realised someone else was with her."Brock," he said."Saul," I replied.He worked his jaw back and forth for a moment. "Saw your match the other day." Sandra shot him a reproachful look, but he kept looking at me.I put down the knife I'd been using to slice bread. Then I nodded slowly. He twitched when he noticed I had something sharp in my hands. "It was a horrible thing what that Will did!" he rushed to say.I snorted. "Yeah, that's true. Still, a draw isn't the worst result, as people have been telling me." I chewed that over. "I just wish I could force him into a rematch."Sandra glanced at me. "Why haven't you?""Well," I said, turning that thought around in my head for a bit. "Mostly because, outside of his challenges, he is rather elusive. He comes and goes with his ability to Teleport, so chasing him isn't really feasible… Not that I want to do that…"I sighed and shook my head. "At that point, I think that I'd be giving him more attention than he truly deserves. The media ask when he's going to have a rematch with me enough to make it clear people still want it. So yeah, he kind of has to come back and face me if he really wants to advance, but I'm thinking of forcing the issue by reaching the mid-season Ace tournament."Saul blinked. "Won't that require a lot of time spent fighting Ace trainers?"I nodded. "Things are starting to calm down a bit." I shrugged. "Honestly, I was hoping Surge would pull him up short."Saul nodded. "We thought the same when he challenged Surge. Seems Surge has lost his edge."I nodded. "He thought so as well, but… well, he knows now what he needs to do to get it back. And I know he's going to come back stronger."Saul and Sandra grimaced. "Surge? Training again? Oh dear, people will think he's arming up again for war."I flicked my eyes over both Saul and Sandra. I took special note of their grey hairs. "You both would have been around back then; what did—""We don't like talking about it, Brock," Sandra said with a tone that let me know she would not be talking about this, full stop. I blinked in surprise. Usually, Sandra was a quiet and calm woman; I'd never heard her speak up like this.I nodded, deciding it was perhaps for the best not to ask a pair of psychics what they might have done during a war that they would have been in the midst of. If what Sabrina could do with reading memories was useful for criminals...I clapped my hands. "Right, well, I have confidence that he's going to be stopped before he can achieve his actual goals," I said, bringing the subject back to what we were talking about.Saul nodded and mouthed a thank you to me before resting his eyes on Sandra, who had begun wiping down an already clean bench."You think Erika will have a chance?" Saul said.It was my turn to grimace. "I respect Erika; she is an incredible Gym Leader…" I shifted my head back and forth. "But I'm not so confident in her battling skills.""She will surprise you," said Sabrina as she walked into the room.Saul blinked. "Ho? Have you foreseen something, Sabrina?"Sabrina shook her head. "I don't focus solely on what I can foresee; it is no way to live, I have learned." Sabrina smiled at me while she said this, leaning in and kissing me on the cheek. I kissed her back and settled in on the kitchen bench with her family.Saul nodded. "I'm glad to hear that." He tilted his head. "What gives you such confidence in your friend Erika?""It is because she is my friend," Sabrina replied. "She and I have spent a lot of time together. Alakazam and I have been training her on some of her pokemon's psychic moves, but she has in turn been challenging me. Will is going to be in for a surprise when he fights her. She is not some simple flower he can ignore.""I notice you haven't said she will win," Saul said. Sandra swatted him, and he stiffened. "I mean! Good for you! Backing up your friend like that!"Sabrina rolled her eyes and accepted a cup of tea from me. "I'm better than I was; I have lots of friends now, mother and father," she said drollly."But I think she has a chance of beating him. Surge… He was overconfident in his strength. He tried his known method of blitzing with speed and power, which doesn't work as well against a psychic trainer that knows how to use their pokemon."Saul nodded at that. "He wouldn't have had a lot of experience against trainers like us, merely the trainers that we work with. There hasn't been a true master... well, since you, Sabrina," Saul said proudly.Sabrina smiled and inclined her head. "My thanks, but I think I still have a lot to learn." She rubbed a thumb along a scar I had on the back of my arm, and I put my hand over hers.She didn't really blame herself for not holding back everything Moltres threw at us, did she? I squeezed her hand."That's a good attitude to have!" Saul proclaimed.I chuckled at how he'd missed the subtext but nevertheless supported his daughter. It was a sign that things were better around her. I glanced over to Sandra and found her looking at my arm thoughtfully. Hmmm.I decided to leave that alone and instead indicated the food Sandra and I had been working on.A few minutes in, Sandra tilted her head. "Why are you keeping some food aside, Brock?" I glanced down and chuckled.Sabrina giggled. "He has been trained by Munchlax.""That's not it!" I said. "I taught him to behave with treats of food from my plate!"Sabrina lifted her cup of tea. "Whatever you tell yourself. Sometimes training doesn't just impact the recipient." I couldn't refute that, so I grumbled and ate the food I usually left aside for Munchlax.Sabrina dropped me back home, where I was promptly ambushed by my siblings throwing themselves at me. When I was done with most of them, I nodded to Yolanda."You missed training this morning?" she asked.I shook my head. "I had myself scheduled for a rest day.""Oh…" she said, tilting her head.I could see she didn't understand, so I tapped the side of my head. "Sometimes it's best to give the body, mind, and spirit time to not be under stress. This allows for a full recovery and also increases your rate of growth instead of tapering off or plateauing.""Huh," Yolanda said.I ruffled her hair. "Go play some games with Terra and the others." I considered that. "Speaking of, later, let's go bowling!"Sabrina stiffened. "Brock, last time we went bowling in Hoenn…"I coughed. "Maybe the team will be calmer about it?" Sabrina raised a dubious eyebrow.Yolanda looked from me to Sabrina. "OH! Tell me! What happened?" She grinned. "Did Brock get upset because you used your psychic abilities?""No, I played as the rules state without interference with the ball once it had left my hand."I snorted at that, and Sabrina narrowed her eyes. "Bertha got us banned for life from the bowling alley.""Maybe Pewter will have stronger bowling alleys?" I offered.Sabrina shook her head, and Yolanda vibrated in place. "We so have to do it! I'll call the girls; they can join in; this sounds like it will be hilarious."I grumbled at that but waved her off. "Sabrina, we best check in with the others," I said, nodding to my room. Sabrina inclined her head, and we locked the door before pulling out the Guardian holopad.Sabrina paused on the texts that I'd been reading before making the call. "Mega-evolution, and Gigantamax/Dynamax." She scrolled down. "You've been looking into pokemon power-ups? What is Gigantamax?"I nodded. "I have been looking into the historical texts about Mega-evolutions. Turns out there had been incidents of Mega-evolution during the war, or more specifically several from then Gym Leaders. Did you know that the Cerulean sister's Grandfather once fought off an invasion force with his Gyarados? People witnessed it from afar and noted that a mountain got destroyed, which interestingly enough is where the pokedex entry comes from.""A mountain?" she said dubiously.I pinched my fingers together. "Small one, that was more of a cape that was slated to fall into the ocean in a few years from what I read, but it still displayed a lot more power than people thought Gyarados were capable of.""And they never witnessed Gyarados mega-evolving again?" she asked as she continued to read through the reports that had been compiled about the battle.I shook my head. "Apparently Patrick never left Cerulean City after that, but Cerulean also became an area no one was willing to attack after that day. I'd probably need to talk to someone from that generation to learn more about it.""Agatha or Oak then," Sabrina said before switching the holopad into call mode. When the call was picked up all of the Guardians were present, along with a bespectacled man."Gym Leaders! Battle Pike," he said."Everyone, this is Jacque, the local leader of our group in Vermillion, he was part of the observation team during Gym Leader Surge's match with Will," Agatha said.The man inclined his head. "Wonderful to be working with you all; usually we just supply information and aren't called into meetings like this!"I frowned. The inclusion of another member, albeit a man who worked in support of the Guardians meant something had to have happened."Was anything observed during the match?" I prompted.Jacques nodded his head. And an image was displayed. "Yesterday at eighteen-fifty-six, towards the end of the match between Surge and Will, a pokemon appeared in the skies above Vermillion. It was high up in the sky and the only reason we have pictures of it is thanks to the team that works in the observatory on route eleven. They have a wide scope telescope that was requisitioned into a lower angle than normal."I hummed as the image was a much higher quality than I would have expected. "I'm surprised you have such quality photos from a telescope.""Well… the telescope wasn't always used to pick up images of the night sky. It was a long-range observation site during the war, and this gives it a wide range of capabilities. The League knows of it, but it hasn't ever been decommissioned." Jacques coughed into his fist. "Just in case.""How does Team Rocket not know about this?" I asked."The list of what Kanto, or rather… Indigo, has at its disposal is a tightly guarded state secret. Even inquiring about it at the League draws attention. Slipping some facilities off the books is one thing; knowing what is and isn't still functional is another," Agatha said.I raised a hand. "Wouldn't Blaine know?""Blaine would have some idea, but he is not one to share without gaining something significant in return. He also has certain countermeasures from long-range observation beyond the typical dark emitters. Where he built his battlefield and Gym for example. The caldera and shadow of a volcano are not places that can easily be watched."I nodded and turned back to the images we now had of Mewtwo. Karen leaned forward and narrowed her eyes. "So that's the pokemon that almost did you and Koga in huh?""Silence girl! You reveal how foolish you are with every word! That pokemon is obviously powerful beyond the norm!" Agatha snapped, causing Karen to lean back and raise her hands to defuse the older woman.Agatha inclined her head toward Jacques. "Thank you for bringing this to our attention. You have assisted us wonderfully." Jacques inclined his head again and disconnected from the call.Agatha waved her cane at the camera. "The armour is an interesting touch. Perhaps it is a Steel psychic like Metagross?"I shook my head. "I didn't witness it using any Steel-type moves during its fight against Moltres and a Steel typing would have been a terrible match-up in any event. It was able to fight it for a little while before escaping. Would Giovanni have sent a pokemon with a known type weakness against another?"Agatha shook her head. "You are correct, Brock. Which makes me wonder about the armour.""Perhaps it's body armour Giovanni had his pokemon wear? Perhaps it has a number of monitoring systems and communication channels?" I offered up. I suspected it was merely to add an air of mystery around Mewtwo, but i couldn't be sure with Giovanni. There had to be a reason for it beyond that, right?Koga stroked his chin. "If there are communication channels being used to relay orders… there might be video feeds as well."Janine straightened. "There might also be a chance to pick up the signal!"Sabrina nodded. "If we can trace it, we will know where this pokemon is, along with its base of operations."Agatha inclined her head. "It only appeared when Surge was fighting back towards the end of the match. I imagine that Will thought himself capable enough until Surge had him on the back foot."I straightened up, knowing this might be the break we needed to lock Will down.Sadly, Agatha shook her head. "I have gone through the recording of the match with a fine-toothed comb and a number of analysts, and unlike Brock's match there is nothing suspicious."Karen grunted at that. "Huh, I wouldn't have guessed that you were stronger than Surge."I snorted. "I think there's a lot of ways Surge could still school me," I said easily, holding in the scowl I wanted to show. Damn, it had seemed like we'd been close!Koga nodded, and for a moment, his lips twitched upwards. "Good, the enemy of progress is complacency. Know yourself."Janine nodded along with her father's comments.I smiled at them both. "Right, so we have a chance of this pokemon appearing whenever Will is on the ropes right?"I drummed my fingers on the table. "It's damned annoying that he runs off when he does, if we could catch him in the open I could offer him a rematch and force Rocket to act."Karen made a humming noise. "A better option would be for me to tweak his nose. We're both making a bid for Elite Four after all and we'll have to butt heads eventually."Agatha leaned back in consideration. "That… is not a terrible idea. Both Brock and Karen have legitimate reasons to offer him a challenge. He can weedle his way out of facing you Brock, having already fought you… but pressure could be applied…"Agatha nodded. "We will have a whisper and media campaign run to set it up so it is considered reasonable. Karen, I want you to make an appearance at the next match he has in Celadon. We'll offer you up as bait and see if he's willing to bite."Karen nodded her head.Agatha rubbed her chin. "Erika… we will see about offering her some more support as she is on the weak side as a Gym Leader.""I think she'll surprise you," said three voices. Sabrina smiled at me while I flicked my eyes to Janine, who'd also spoken up.Koga gave Janine a considering look as Sabrina spoke up, "I have been working with Erika to increase her skills."Janine coughed into her fist sheepishly. "As have I."Koga nodded. "Good work," he said simply. Janine straightened a pleased smile on her face at the faint praise.Agatha chuckled before waving a hand. "Very good indeed! I think that will help her a good deal. Perhaps the flower maiden will have some thorns eh?"Karen huffed and rolled her eyes. "That's all good and well but we need to make sure that this pokemon that is supporting Will doesn't just hide up in the sky again. That will limit us.""We need to choose the battlefield," Koga said."What if we made sure the match was performed in the day? Erika's Gym has an open roof, so people could ride their pokemon. Maybe we have a few of ours up there flying around.""That… could work, it will force this pokemon into either close quarters in one of the surrounding buildings, or the Gym itself. We will have people roaming about.""If it is in the Gym or the building, as long as I am close, I might be able to detect it," Sabrina said."I will have a number of ghosts filter through the area, in the days before the match. This will allow us more of our channelers and priests throughout Celadon," Agatha said.I hummed. "We might need to do some training for fighting indoors.""If we do end up fighting that pokemon, it won't be indoors for long. We will nevertheless fight in pairs. Karen, I would suggest you meet with Brock, Sabrina, and Lucy so you can train on this. Janine, Agatha, or I will schedule a time that one of us can be present for later this week.""The shortstuff?" Karen said dismissively.Janine bristled at the insult, but Koga merely put a hand on his daughter's shoulder. "She has been trained," he said simply."Well," I said, deciding to defuse the tension. "We'll be in her care." I nodded my head, and Janine perked up once again. It would be interesting to train in this manner. I was used to doubles matches or large throwdowns. Having to work with someone other than Sabrina would be an experience. I might also talk with Surge about setting something up; he was a wellspring of knowledge that I shouldn't ignore."Anything else to discuss?" Koga asked the group. Lucy made sure to ask for more training, which was seen as a good thing. I pinged Agatha to let her know this was more specifically about something to do with her. "That young trainer you recommended? A.J.? He's settling in well; he's very rough on the edges, but I can see that he has a lot of potential."Agatha smiled fondly. "Ah, that little brat used my recommendation? Hah! He would have had to bend his pride for that!"I tilted my head. "Was he not the person you wanted me to look into for possible aura training?" I asked.Agatha huffed. "I saw he had the potential, but I never expected him to bend."I grimaced. "I think the reality of how big the world was forced his hand.""Hmpf, good. I leave it up to you to decide if you teach him Aura of course," Agatha said dismissively."If he wasn't the apprentice you had in mind, who was?" I asked with a frown.Agatha waved her head. "The man in question has gone wandering into the wilds. I don't expect to see him again. Don't let it bother you." I nodded slowly and decided to drop the topic. After that, we discussed some other pointers before signing off.I tucked the Holopad away and lay back on the bed. "Hmmm, do you think Erika can beat Will?""She has a shot," Sabrina said seriously.I grunted at that. "What do you want to do now?" I asked. "I have nothing planned this afternoon."Sabrina cocked an eyebrow at me. "You need to book the bowling alley, and your family wants to spend time with you before that. So—" she patted me on the head and flicked her eyes down, "—down boy."I chuckled and sat up to give her a kiss, which did nothing to settle me down. She pushed herself off and shook her head at me before opening the door and walking down the hall.I took a few minutes to calm down, during which I called and booked out the bowling alley before joining her."So what are we playing?" I said to the kids."Dragonslayer!" shouted the boys.I chuckled. "I think I can—""No!" shouted Suzie, stopping me in my tracks. "You can be the princess! Munchlax is the Dragonslayer!"I glanced over and found Munchlax wearing a cardboard helmet with horns on the side. He waved a packet of cheese and biscuits at me. I glanced over at Sabrina. "And her?""She's the good witch of the…" Suzie glanced at Sabrina, who mouthed something to Suzie. "West!" said Suzie firmly.I sighed and got into the game. It wasn't the weirdest game we'd ended up playing. When Munchlax saved me, I had to give him a friendly high five as his reward followed by some more cheese for the 'injuries' he sustained during the battle with the mighty Dragon, who had been played by Terra.After that, I clapped my hands. "Alright! Who wants to go bowling with me and my pokemon team?"Sabrina raised her hand which prompted most of the girls to join the boys. Flint rubbed his chin. "Well, I might stay here and clean things up, get dinner on an—" Nanny Grav shook her head as she started pushing him towards the door.I laughed. "We can order out tonight."Flint eventually accepted this and joined us as we walked to the bowling alley. On the way through the gym, I picked up Greta and A.J., with Crystal joining us on the way there.Both of the girls huddled up to Yolanda to chat while A.J. awkwardly made conversation with Salvadore. When we arrived the woman behind the counter called a group of assistants to fit out my family.She then turned back to me. "Will any pokemon be joining you today?" she asked.Before I got the chance to respond, a few of my team popped out of their pokeballs. I'd asked the pokemon in the reserve, and four had indicated they wanted to play. These being Bertha, Titan, Sanchez, and Izumi. Bertha pointed at herself and nodded excitedly."Alakazam!" shouted Sabrina's starter, indicating himself, Hypno, Ralts, and Mr Mime. Hypno narrowed its eyes at Bertha and warbled something that had Bertha grinning.I coughed to hide a laugh. Oh dear, this might end up just like Hoenn."We'll separate the pokemon from the kids, right?" Flint said worriedly.The woman chuckled. "Alright, but in our experience, kids tend to do more damage." She offered up some elastic socks with smooth bottoms for the pokemon.My pokemon lined up against Sabrina's and they eyed each other. Then Bertha turned to her 'team' and started speaking. "Rhy! Rhy-pherior! Rhy! Or!" she said, nodding her head.This caused her team to bark their own names.From Sabrina's side of things, Hypno spoke up.I tapped Sabrina on her shoulder. "Are they giving pep talks?"Sabrina nodded. "They really enjoyed Hoenn and have wanted to do this for a while." Sabrina eyed the alley. "It seems more sturdy, so I think we might not get banned this time. That, or hopefully, they'll let us pay them off."I huffed and decided to ignore the pokemon palming their way through the bowling balls to get one that would fit their digits or could be held easily enough in their grip. I noticed that Bertha just grabbed the heaviest while Titan toyed with the patterns.Terra waddled over and sat herself down to watch the game. I turned back to my own family and set up the scorecards on two different alleyways. Then I glanced over to Yolanda's group. "You got yours set up?" I asked.The girls gave me a thumbs-up while Salvadore and A.J. looked worried."Spike? That's not my name!" A.J. said as Crystal bequeathed everyone nicknames. "And why are you Lord Megadoom!?""Because the computer won't let me put in anything bigger!" Crystal replied.I decided to ignore that as well and merely focus on helping line up the rolling ramp for Tilly and Billy. When it was my turn to bowl, I hurled my ball down and was pleased at the release. It looked good with how it was running straight… only to turn at the last second.I turned and shot Sabrina a fixedly unimpressed look.She gave me an innocent look. "Everything's fair in love and war."Flint raised a finger. "Uhm… actually there are..."Sabrina turned her gaze upon him as she raised a clenched fist. "I'm going to beat you all at this game."Suzie hopped up and put her fists on her hips. "Oh no, you're not!" she pointed firmly, copying the pose Bertha had used earlier to point imperiously down at the pins that would dare defy her. "Brock, set up my bowling ramp!" she commanded.I rolled my eyes. "No! I still have another turn!" I said firmly.I shot Sabrina a less-than-amused look and selected another pokeball coloured bowling ball. I then pulled up dark energy and infused it into my bowling ball before throwing it down the lane.This time I got a perfect strike. I pumped my fist and pointed at Sabrina. She clapped lightly and I settled next to her. "You're lucky you're beautiful and I know you're joking," I said, kissing her on the cheek.When it was her turn, I channeled some rock energy and stomped my foot, causing Sabrina to slip. She shot me a furious look, but it didn't stop her from getting a strike. When I next went up, I infused dark energy into all the bowling balls to stop her cheating.From there, things were a little more even.I ended up flubbing a few throws as I overthought my technique, and Sabrina wasn't able to glide her balls in perfectly. Not that she didn't at least get a spare every time. I suspected she was nudging the pins with her mind now."Hypno!" yelled Hypno, causing me to look away from helping Billy roll his ball down the lane to look up and find Bertha pretending to whistle innocently while Hypno pointed at some broken pins at the end of the lane. Huh, I thought to myself, wondering if she'd lobbed the bowling ball rather than rolled it.A horrible thumping noise in the ball return soon revealed itself to be a tightly curled Izumi. She unclenched herself and gave Bertha a thumbs up. Hypno rounded on Alakazam, who appeared to have a rulebook out. Alakazam scratched the back of his head and eventually shrugged, causing Hypno to fall to his knees in despair.Apparently, there wasn't a rule that you couldn't be the ball and the competitor as well?I watched Bertha continue to roll Izumi down the lane for the rest of that particular match to get a perfect three hundred. I rather enjoyed watching Bertha pirouette up to the line like a delicate ballerina before throwing Izumi in an underhand lob at the pins.Izumi herself scored three hundred by rolling herself down the lane.Titan and Sanchez both refused to use Izumi as their bowling ball and instead opted for a more traditional toss.When I looked up at the staff, they were merely watching, not at all bothered by the wrecked pins. Huh, good to know they were a relaxed crew. The pokemon finished their own game much faster than we did, and soon were crowding around the various groups, giving their support. Bertha approached me with a huge grin and a scorecard, which she proudly brandished."Good to see our pokemon will be able to come back again," I said to Sabrina. I gave Bertha a pointed look. "Unlike last time!" Bertha stuck her tongue out at me for that and I chuckled.Sabrina nodded. "It helps that Bertha learned the rules before coming."Bertha adopted a wounded expression and put her massive hand on her chest.I waggled my hand back and forth. "Nah, I think accuracy was the main issue last time."Yolanda blinked before tilting her head. "Did she do much damage?"I nodded. "Yeah, she almost brained the manager of the bowling alley with a bad toss."Bertha rubbed the back of her head as Titan and Alakazam laughed at the reminder."Twice," Sabrina supplied stoically. "She almost brained him twice." Bertha sheepishly shrugged her shoulders before trying to 'coach' my younger siblings on how to toss the ball down the lane.When everything was done, Cindy was declared the best of the kids with a score of one hundred and thirty.Flint somehow was outscored by Munchlax much to the children's amusement, as Munchlax didn't really understand what was going on but he liked throwing the ball and knocking pins over. I think Sabrina might have rewarded his enthusiasm with a few random strikes, not that she gave anything away.Crystal topped her group with the highest score, but I think that had more to do with her catcalling and sledging them than actual skill at bowling on her part. Bertha highly approved of this and clapped the smaller girl on the shoulder.A.J. looked furious, while Salvadore was blushing terribly.I tapped Sabrina on the side. "Should I be worried about that?" I said, indicating the girls smiling and the boys looking like they'd been ambushed."No more than usual," Sabrina said without missing a beat.I turned my head away. Alright, I wasn't going to pry, they could sort it out themselves. It'd be educational… for most of them. But mostly the boys.When we made our way back to the Gym I clapped Yolanda and A.J. on the shoulder. "Training tomorrow morning?" I reminded.They nodded seriously, and I winked. Tomorrow might see things return to the grind. But the grind was starting to pay dividends. It was slow and methodical, but it was guaranteed.The trick was keeping an eye out for any opportunities.Still, that didn't mean I didn't send Lance a message with images of Mewtwo hovering above Surge's gym. I also made it very clear that if he needed me for any rocket base raids, all he had to do was ask.Until I got a chance to take a proper swing at them, I was going to focus on getting stronger.