I arrived at the field for the proposed ace match with a small entourage of Rachel, Missy, A.J, and Dennis.
Tori had her own entourage with them, having arrived with the Plains and Meadows Co. It was amusing that an entire business sector revolved around providing battlefields for pokemon trainers.I glanced over to the cameramen, who had a small rig set up to allow them to float thanks to a trio of Magneton that each cameraman had. Another pair of Magneton held cameras and seemed to act like drones would in the future."Welcome battlers!" said the Plains and Meadows representative.She offered a bow to Tori and me with a wide smile. "Thank you for choosing our humble facility for your match today!" she said. "I understand that you have both agreed on a specific region of our meadow battlefield today?" she said, indicating the area around herself.Tori nodded quickly but I had to tilt my head. Something about what she had just said."Is that not how it's usually done?" I asked.Tori coughed and looked away while the representative blinked. "Well, there's not a true method, but the norm that most trainers using our facilities is to do a shared matching first."At a gesture from me, she kept talking. "We would meet in the office on Route Eight where you would each select five sites. If any sites matched they would be put up on offer, if no sites were matching you could then select a randomised battlefield or narrow down options and try to match once more."The representative made a sweeping gesture. "It is not an issue at all though, as long as you both agree to the site and are willing to go ahead." She then coughed something quickly that sounded like "a small fee will still be required to pay due to our terms and conditions," but I couldn't be certain of that.I scratched the back of my head. "Huh, looks like my understanding was off, but then again I've not been a regular on the Ace scene till this year so I suppose there is bound to be some information I'm not aware of." I glanced at Tori who seemed to have relaxed now that it was obvious that I wasn't annoyed by this."We're still doing the specific selection first though right?" I said, checking that my information wasn't entirely out of date.Tori nodded seriously, and I hummed before turning and giving the meadow around us a serious look.Tori's group broke apart and a number of them started jabbing poles into the ground that lit up with green, blue, or red lights.A.J. squinted after them. "What are they doing?" he asked suspiciously."They're checking the nutrition of the soil," I said casually, waving for them to jog along with me in a lopping run."So they're going to be setting up for Grass types then?" he said after a few minutes, jumping straight to the heart of the matter.I nodded. "Yup, one thing to consider with matches like this is if you start testing for things too obviously you make it very clear what you're aiming for. The gadgets? You don't really need that if you have a good eye for soil.""And you do!" said Missy with glee.I snorted. "Nope! But I've been to Erika's Gym enough times to know what excellent soil quality looks and feels like," I said, signalling a pause to push my fingers into the ground before waving them on. A.J. and Missy hurried to copy me and I rattled off what was and wasn't good, to feel in soil. Then I started taking large bounding strides where I began landing heavily and trying to skid every ten metres or so."The ground's a bit rubbery, soft, and nutrient-rich here," I commented over one particular patch, making a mental note of where it was.When I got into some long grass, I paused and glanced around to see what the viewing angles into and out would be like. Then I led my group over to the single tree on the field that was included in our space.I ran a circuit and then doubled back, taking in the lay of the land, where it was low, where it offered good vantage points, and where it would hide certain details from an opponent.I nodded to myself eventually and clapped my hands together. "Well, she's gotten herself a good site," I said nodding my head towards Tori.Missy frowned. "But you only dug your hands into like five spots?" she asked, confused by my cavalier statement.A.J. snorted. "Yeah, but her group have stabbed those sticks everywhere, right?"I pointed at him and nodded. "Good instincts and eyes there A.J." I said, pleased that he'd picked up on things. I then made sure to clarify to Missy so she wasn't left out of the loop."If the other group is openly testing for something like that, you don't need to waste your time doing so yourself. You can look for other things that suit you. This entire meadow suits Tori, she's just being a perfectionist and looking for the best site. Not unless they were faking us out, but that was what I'd actually been checking those five areas for originally," I said, causing both my protege trainers to make noises of understanding."So she's going to be relying heavily on her Grass type pokemon, isn't she?" A.J. said."Yup!" I said, making sure to pop the p. "Should make for a fun fight. Now, run over there for me, will you please?" I waved for him to sprint up to the other side of the meadow and back before pointing in another direction for Missy to do the same. They both didn't question it and when they got back I nodded my head."Slight downhill from this point," I said, glancing at the tree off to the side. I clicked my tongue a little and then nodded. "Let's see what we can get." I waved to Tori and indicated I had my selection ready which caused her group to begin hurrying up.One thing that I had brushed over quickly during my recent lesson was that you only had fifteen minutes total to look over the area. As soon as one person indicated they were good to go, the other side had to wrap up their own tests within a minute to keep things moving along.I watched her team hurriedly dash up to her and give their assessment with a furious whisper. A few of them eyed me and my group before gesturing at where we'd run and where I was positioned at the moment.Tori quickly wrapped things up and joined me near the representative."I have observed your assessment; is everything to your liking?" the representative said with a placid smile. When we both nodded she pointed to our transceivers."You have each received a link to set out the battlefield where you desire. Please make your selections and we will do our best to include your area. If a discrepancy occurs, the average of each site will be used instead," said the representative.I raised up my transceiver and selected the area I wanted straight away.Tori and the representative stared at me. "You… Gym Leader Brock you understand you have another few minutes to separate and make your selection, don't you?" said the representative.I paused. I hadn't known that, and what she said made a lot of sense.I decided to fall back on audacity. "Ah, sorry, I just… don't mind?" I said with a playful shrug.Tori narrowed her eyes and glanced at her own map. She could probably see where I'd selected, but now she could skew the field if she wanted.She swallowed, glanced at her own, waiting entourage and then straightened her spine. "This is my own selection," she said. She then picked an area almost identical to mine that saw us both on opposite sides of a small gully with the tree to one side of the field.I smiled and nodded like that was what I'd planned for all along. The representative sent us on our way to confer one last time with our groups.Missy tilted her head. "So where are you going to…" she blinked at me as I rubbed my head sheepishly. "Oh, you already made the selection, didn't you?"I nodded and everyone blinked at me. Dennis coughed but it sounded more like a repressed laugh to me. I shot him a look and he wouldn't meet my eyes.A.J. shifted from foot to foot. "What're you talking about?" he said, and Missy filled him in on how things were supposed to go.Rachel shot me an amused look upon hearing this. "Going to have to make sure you're up to date on that one when you teach it, aren't you?" she said teasingly.I huffed. "If I had been teaching it I think I would have done better. I would have researched it more."Rachel raised an eyebrow as if to say and you didn't for today? I could only grimace. I'd done a cursory look into how things worked but there was obviously a lot more to this than I'd assumed.This was a mistake that I was going to get away with by playing confident. It felt… well it felt a little good to be able to get away with the mistake, but I would personally rather have been in the position that never needed to bluff like that.It was a bit of a wake-up call that there was more to fighting Ace battles, than I had assumed."So, about your match tomorrow," Rachel said leadingly."I'll review the facilities to make sure they're not too different tonight." I shot a glance toward Tori. "Our analysis for her and her team still holds up, however," I said, refocusing. As we spoke, I noticed that the cameramen had taken themselves for a walk before shooting into position to hover on one side, while another hovered up into the air behind where Tori would be. They created a small white boxed outline that would be for where either I or Tori would stand during the match.The representative clapped her hands. "It is time dear combatants! I shall be your referee, please have your entourages withdraw to the viewing rooms in our base facilities," she said. A pair of Hypno appeared with a flash of Teleport and the two groups soon departed, leaving me and Tori to face off."Flip for call?" Tori asked waving a hand to either starting point. I glanced between them, not seeing a huge difference beyond orientation.I shrugged. "Lady's choice," I said, deciding to be magnanimous.She stared at me for a long moment and I got the feeling I'd made another faux pas without meaning to."Hmmm so you're that confident then?" Her eyes narrowed and she waved to one position while I scratched my head sheepishly before turning to my own group and marching over.From my spot, the tree that I'd been eying was to my left and just within the field of play.Otherwise, there were no huge differences or points to worry about beyond the slope. The grass wasn't long enough here to offer any blindspots but that didn't mean a dedicated grass type couldn't boost the growth and see the field become much more difficult for me."Trainers! Are you ready?" called the referee.I glanced over Tori and she had her chin slightly raised in defiance. There was also a slight smirk on her lips like she knew something I didn't.I merely smiled back and palmed my first choice for today."Release!" shouted the referee and I hurled out my first pokemon in time with Tori."Go Zephyr!" I called."Brelo—" Tori started to say only for some very unladylike words to escape her mouth as her Breloom appeared. "Fuck nuggets!" she said as she spotted Zephyr, my Noctowl, taking to the sky.I cocked an eyebrow. She was expecting something else, wasn't she?"Zephyr use—" I started to say only for Tori to not hesitate. Instead of trying to match her grass-fighting against my normal-flying type, she went for something else with a quick recall.I twitched in surprise at the speed of her reaction before readjusting the order I'd been giving. "—CM!" I ordered.Zephyr flapped his wings serenely and a glow formed around him as he performed Calm Mind.Tori narrowed her eyes as she popped out another pokemon. "Let's try this out! Go Jolteon!" she shouted, sending out a much more favourable match-up for her.I hummed, considered it and then stabbed my hand forward. "Hypno!" I called, deciding that I would commit instead of trading out Zephyr. I'd been expecting her Raichu as an answer to Zephyr, but this would still work for me."Blast them!" shouted Tori. Her Jolteon flashed with a powerful burst of lightning that shot up only to come down a moment later."Dip into AA!" I barked. Zephyr tucked a wing and flew to the left allowing himself to fall just into the canopy of the tree as Jolteon's Thunder descended.The tree exploded. Branches flew every which way and shrapnel flew freely. With the sawdust of the tree's destruction hiding Zephyr's fate Tori could only lean forward in anticipation.A moment later, she gasped in surprise as Zephyr appeared in a burst of speed directly behind Jolteon. Zephyr slammed himself into Jolteon and then held him down with a large claw, forcing Jolteon to lock gazes.Zephyr's eyes glowed and pulsed with Hypnosis."Jolteon! Discharge!" Tori screamed only for her pokemon to weakly twitch and slump as sleep claimed it."Ah damn it!" she said only to grin. "Sleep talk!" she said with a grin as her asleep pokemon out of nowhere sparked up and unleashed a powerful blast of lightning."Win—" I tried to order Zephyr to plant his wings with Steel Wing but was nowhere near quick enough forcing Zephyr to tank a super effective attack.When the lightning died away Zephyr was revealed, ruffled and twitching in pain but still standing tall. "Dream Eater," I said, making as much of Jolteon's state as I could."Sleep Talk again!" said Tori deciding to back her pokemon.We both leaned forward as Zephyr created a link of energy between himself and Jolteon energy coursing its way into him.Jolteon twitched and a gleam of energy built up around him and I exhaled in relief. Agility, her pokemon had ended up using Agility instead of frying my pokemon.Tori clicked her tongue and whipped up her pokeball. "I withdraw Jolteon from the match!" she declared quickly.I had to mentally applaud her for acting decisively. She would allow me a free move, yes, but she wouldn't allow Zephyr back to full health with another Dream Eater.Zephyr could only glower as Jolteon was removed from the field with the referee declaring that I'd gone one up.I looked Zephyr over. He still looked very rough and I would have to pull him out for the moment. He wasn't in a good condition to be fighting against something fresh. It was better to save him.I raised his pokeball. "Return Zephyr," I said.Tori grimaced and let her hands glide across her pokebelt in thought. With her pulling her pokemon out first, I would have a small buffer to send out my next pokemon in response to her choice.She clicked her tongue and sent out a green and white pokemon that I barely got a glimpse of before it dashed into the tallest grass it could. It wasn't tall enough and my earlier decision to force Tori to wrap up her assessment of the field was paying dividends.If she'd moved the field off, away from the tree, she would have gotten some longer grass that she could hide pokemon in."Go Don," I said, happy to match an Aerodactyl against a Shifty that, despite its speed, was easily visible thanks to being too tall to hide in the grass.Tori sighed and set her jaw. "Of course you brought that brute!" she called out to me.I shrugged, pleased that our read on her team was good. She'd been trying to game me with a number of grass types due to my reliance on rock-water pokemon.Sadly for her, I had the answer for that with two of my pokemon and another few answers if she tried to use a fighting type against me."Icy Wind!" called Tori to start things off."Trips D!" I shouted and Don responded by plummeting.Just before he hit the ground, his wings snapped open and he swept back up with a rush to arc his way out of danger from the Icy Wind where he could perform his Dragon Dance uninterrupted.Tori locked eyes with me glaring her defiance. "One more time!" she said, stabbing her hands forward."Fly high Don!" I called.Don slammed his wings into the ground and practically bounced into the sky.I was taken by surprise when Shiftry didn't unleash another Icy Wind but instead held an arm aloft where an orb of bright light started to form.Ah, she'd tricked me into a fake order. It was something that she must have practised.That hadn't been something our scouting had picked up, I thought to myself. I'd have to make sure to start looking out for such tactics.I had no doubt that my own 'Go' order was well known by now throughout the Ace rankings. I would need to learn some of the tricks of the other higher-ranked Ace trainers if I wanted to keep advancing. I gave Tori a smile and a nod, acknowledging her tactic.With Don up high and Shiftry empowered I found myself at a bit of a standoff. Closing would be a challenge. Especially if Shiftry had Chlorophyll as its special ability.I held a hand and whistled. I clenched me fist, holding it up high to give Don the his order instead of shouting. Chances were he'd be able to hear me, but I could stall out Tori by obscuring the commandDon got off another Dragon Dance, and I grinned as Tori scowled.She shot her hand up and Shifty didn't hesitate as she gave her next command. "Blast them!" she said, her eyes narrowed on the still high-flying Don. Shifty raised its hands and unleashed a powerful beam of grass energy that lit up the field."Hard drop," I shouted even as the Solar Beam soared upwards.Don stared down the oncoming beam nd I felt a trickle of fear. Was he going to stare it down and play chicken with it?Moments before it slammed into him he tucked a wing and this time locked himself into as small a profile as possible. Solar Beam blew past him and I exhaled while Tori cursed.A shrill whistle rang out as Don dove straight down. Tori flinched at the surprising noise.Don couldn't usually pull off such a fast drop, but thanks to two applications of Dragon Dance he was incredibly fast. Shifty had enough time to drop the Solar Beam only for Don to sweep in with his wings snapping out wide.Shifty kicked off the ground to lessen the damage but Don wouldn't be denied as he swept past Shiftry, his wing slamming into his foe's body and buckling the grass type with a super-effective move.Shiftry dropped to his knees and gasped in shock only to collapse onto its face. Tori swore. "Shit! What are you feeding these pokemon? Shiftry shouldn't be going down like that! He's one of my strongest pokemon."I nodded, knowing that Don wasn't even one of the top six strongest for me these days. He offered me a lot of versatility, however and with his showing now, he was in a much stronger position. "As is Don," I replied.She blinked. "I mean… I guess? But this strong?" she said as she returned her pokemon.I smiled. "I've been pushing my pokemon for a good while. Often the Elite pokemon in my roster have to face off against an entire team." I shrugged. "It's not all the time and not often, but my earlier creation of a prestige badge? It's given my pokemon results to keep up their training. Don there? He has a lot of pride. He trains hard so he can keep sweeping trainers. That might not be the case this year though. There's a lot more attention coming our way."Don screeched his disagreement and a glint entered his eyes that let me know he would be working twice as hard at the next few training sessions. He glared at Tori and the girl stepped back before stiffening her resolve.The referee coughed politely. "The score is zero to two in Brock's favour," she said, prompting a response from Tori.Tori rolled her shoulders and slapped her cheeks with her hands making them glow red. "Alright, time to dig deep," she said, selecting her next pokemon.I leaned forward feeling my anticipation building. She'd pressured me a few times now so I had to keep my guard up. What else was she going to bring to the fight?"Go Starmie!" she barked, throwing out the water-psychic pokemon.It appeared with a flash and a quick gleam but I wasn't too worried about the type advantage, not with Don being buffed like he was."Bubblebeam!" ordered Tori. Her pokemon spun and from around it, a wall of bubbles formed that began to waft outward.Hmmm, this was a new spin on the use of bubbles on the battlefield. It was rather well-controlled as well…"Don! Spin to win!" I said, twisting my hands as I did so.Don grinned evilly as he swept his wings out wide and began to rotate in the air. Around him, a torrent of wind began to build until there was soon a sizeable Hurricane that pushed back all the bubbles.Don surged forward sweeping the Hurricane through where Starmie had been.Interestingly I didn't see Starmie anywhere once the wall of bubbles was cleared from the field.I narrowed my eyes. There must have been a quick set-up there. What had she done? Substituted? Mirage? Or…I clicked my tongue in annoyance as I saw something tiny shift before I lost track of it.She'd used Minimize.I swept my gaze about the field only to not see anything that gave away if Don's Hurricane had impacted Tori's Starmie. Damn, it apparently hadn't been big enough.Well, I had options for that. "Return for now Don! Let's go Shin!" I said quickly pulling Don out of there for someone with a few wider attacks.As Shin took to the stage I kept a sharp eye out for a flicker of energy, a twitch of the grass. Something to reveal where Tori was hiding her pokemon."Hydro Pump!" shouted Tori as Shin formed. From the grass that I'd dismissed earlier, a huge torrent of water shot forward."Jet out of there!" I barked, sweeping my hand wide. Shin responded by instantly launching himself out of danger. I locked my gaze on the grassy patch and stabbed a hand at it."Bubblebeam again! Move around Starmie!" shouted Tori, suddenly seeming like she had a lot more control of this match than she'd had moments ago.I frowned. So she was going to play keep away was she?"Aqua Jet with your blades out!" I said making a zigzagging pattern. Shin swept forward, blades out to cut through the grass with his passing, leaving it well-trimmed and scattered behind him with each sweep.Shin dodged once again and I was forced to grind my teeth. Come on, think, think! What could I do to disrupt this without putting my stronger pokemon in danger? Minimize caused some moves to hit with double damage, but that was only if they hit! I needed something big."Surf," I ordered, deciding to go for a full field effect that Starmie would be caught up in or have to deny. I leaned forward ready for any response only to be surprised as the Surf swept forward faster than I had anticipated.Ah, that would be the slight gulley we're standing on, wouldn't it? The wave surged down and then straight into the other side where it splashed down heavily.That… had been rather impressive; I hadn't considered the physics of Surf but that had rather played into my favour just now.Tori scowled. "Thunder!" she barked and from the splash zone a bolt of lightning shot up and then back down to Shin."Metal Claw," I responded.Shin stabbed his claws into the earth to avoid the worst of the powerful electric attack. Shin endured it and emerged from the powerful attack still smoking."Aqua Jet to the other side!" I barked, realising that I could really make use of the terrain here, especially if Tori hadn't moved her pokemon.Tori stiffened as Shin bolted in close to her, only to turn .She was already starting to understanding what I wanted."Surf!" I roared. Shin wept his claws out behind him a wave rising up as he did so bearing him up high."Thunder!" responded Tori.From both our pokemon, powerful attacks swept forward only to clash with water sweeping forward as lightning wracked Shin and hurled him from the wave.The wave still crashed home and I now had a good idea where Starmie must be.Shin fell to the ground with a defeated sigh and I bowed my head. His matchup had been a horrorible exchange, but thanks to his efforts, no other pokemon were going to fall to this trick.I returned him and hurled out my next pokemon without waiting.I didn't want Tori to have a second to shift her pokemon out from where the wave would have pushed it on the field.Sanchez hit the ground with his hands raised to the sky. "Go Go Lem!" he shouted, only to blink when there was no response from an opposing pokemon. "Lem?" he said uncertainly."No time for that! Discharge!" I barked, and he responded with a powerful wave of lightning that swept over the area around him, only to catch out Starmie."Yes!" I shouted, pumping my fist.I hadn't been able to pick where it had been during the earlier exchanges but by pushing Starmie into my side of the field, I'd denied Tori any chance to escape from an area of attack move."Again!" I said, deciding to make sure of it. Sanchez exploded with lightning again and I saw a spark flash onto a certain area.I pointed and was about to order another attack only for Tori to raise her pokeball and return the now-revealed Starmie. "I withdraw Starmie!" she shouted.I settled back and exhaled my tension. Yes, that had been more like it!"Go… go?" said Sanchez with an oddly withdrawn tone. I blinked and glanced down to find him looking about with a lost expression. What was he… I blinked as I realised what he was doing."Sanchez! We're fighting in a specialised field! We're being broadcast through the cameras! Wave to your fans!" I said pointing to the two cameramen.Sanchez instantly perked up and I had to laugh incredulously. I should have realised not having a crowd to hype him up might have impacted him. It was an interesting point to take note of, but Sanchez did feed off a crowd."Go Breloom!" shouted Tori. I shook off my idle thoughts and got myself back in the fight. Fighting grass against rock-electric? Alright, this I could do."Stealth Rock," I said, sweeping my hand and surprising Tori by going defensive."Close in!" ordered Tori and her Breloom bounced forward with its fists and legs primed to punish Don."Dig dip!" I barked right before Breloom could get close enough to actually injure Sanchez. Sanchez rolled himself to the side only to fall to the ground where he vanished into a quickly closing tunnel behind himself.He then popped back up close behind Breloom. "Go lem!" said Sanchez with the air of a professional Tauros fighter.Breloom didn't bother turning but merely kicked back, launching itself back towards Sanchez.In mid-air, the Breloom flipped and led with its foot slamming into Sanchez's face.I winced. That had been a good play, I'd not been expecting that from the mushroom kangaroo.Sanchez flew back from the strike before getting to his feet while adjusting his moustache. "Golem!" he said with a grin.Breloom twitched and swept its tail from side to side.I considered the match-up and what Sanchez had for moves. I considered raising his pokeball before my eyes fell upon the Stealth Rocks.Hmm, that could work for an advantage. "Stealth Rock," I said, amused that the power of Breloom's kick was now working against it."Seed Bomb!" shouted Tori, chopping her hand towards Sanchez.Sanchez got off another Stealth rock before diving into the earth to evade the super-effective attack. When he emerged he did so with one of his knees buckling, revealing that the explosion of grass energy had still gotten him, even if slightly.I quickly raised my pokemon and returned him. "I withdraw him!" I said, deciding to give Tori the respect she was owed. She'd taken down two of my pokemon now.I grabbed Don's pokeball and flicked it out. He re-emerged with a glower that soon turned vindictive when his eyes alighted on Breloom.Tori considered returning her pokemon but I could see she had doubts with Stealth Rock on the field now. I grinned. I had her right where I wanted her now.It had been a while, but Stealth Rock set-up was still a strong play. I'd have to keep that in mind going forward."Don, soar up high!" I said and once again Don rose up to glare at the Breloom.Breloom got off a quick buff that I didn't recognise. I wasn't too worried. I dropped my hand and once more Don tucked his wings and streamlined himself.Once again, the wind screamed as he tore through it like a bullet. Before Tori or Breloom could react Don slammed into his target and Breloom was hurled away.The referee raised a flag straight away when Breloom failed to so much as twitch. "Breloom is unable to battle! The match is now four to two!"Tori gritted her teeth and shot a glare towards the Stealth Rocks on the field along with Don as he beat his wings in anticipation. "Screeeeh!" he said in challenge.Tori palmed another pokeball and I found myself nodding as she sent out her next pokemon to face me.It didn't last long as I went for no mercy. As soon as the pokemon was out the Stealth Rocks slammed into the Machoke. Don then slammed into it with a Wing Attack to topple it.Tori inhaled sharply and shut her eyes. She then shook her head and returned her pokemon before calling out her last pokemon."Go! Nidoqueen!" she said, releasing what we'd identified as her starter pokemon.I felt a speck of pity for her as the Stealth Rocks closed in on her pokemon. She shrugged them off admirably, but she wasn't able to shrug off Don's follow-up attack.I merely punched my fist forward while Nidoqueen was distracted. "Go!" I said with an air of finality.Tori had a second to realise what was coming only to be unable to react as Don unleashed a powerful Hyper Beam upon Nidoqueen.When the dust cleared it revealed a downed pokemon and Don announced his victory with a high-pitched screech.I grinned. That had been a much harder fight than a good deal of other matches I'd had of late, some of that was due to my own mistakes, but it also revealed a level of tactics that I would need to be careful of. That Minimize could have been troublesome to deal with.It was a good thing I was learning about this now and not during a tournament where I might be more restricted.I glanced over the torn-up field.I'd need to do a lengthy review after this.My pokemon had stood up well, better than well honestly. Zephyr and Shin had outlasted some moves that should have put them in the ground. It seemed the training was paying off with them being a cut above.I just needed to make sure I made the most of their strength. I had made more than a few mistakes this match and Tori had exposed a possible weakness with my pokemon. I needed ways to deal with Minimize better than I had. That, or I'd have to take a pokemon dropping each time. It was worth thinking about. As much as a perfect sweep was a great thing to have, it wasn't the end goal, victory was.I marched forward to clap hands with Tori for the good match."Good match," I said."You too," she said with a shake of her head. "I'm surprised there's such a gap in our pokemon. Guess having lots of pattles really can make a difference," she said."You had some good strategies that had me scrambling and a good read on which pokemon to use. I just anticipated what you were doing." I nodded at the torn up field. "You made it kind of obvious you were going for a Grass heavy team," I said.Tori stared at me. "You realise I might challenge you again right?""Yeah? And?" I said, tilting my head to the side.Tori sighed. "This isn't like the Gym circuit Brock, giving hints to people, especially in the higher ranks is going to bite you in the backside eventually."I laughed sheepishly. "Well we're both learning something then!" I said, causing her to snort in amusement before bowing and waving off. I met up with my own team, chatting idly about how the match had gone, but not really giving it the attention it was due.Most of my attention was turned towards tomorrow's match.
174.5
Lance walked along the hallway of Honour, his eyes tracking across the various names and images that had been etched into the black granite.At the start of the hallway, the Blackthorn's founder had pride of place with other notable members of the clan having earned their own section along the hall. As Lance walked he travelled forward in time, from hundreds of years ago, featuring wilder times to more modern achieving members of the clan.When he reached the latest etched plaque he found himself once more reading the information of Claudia, the woman who defied Samuel Oak until she was cast down. She went on to join and lead the Rangers of Johto to keep much of the wilds safer. Next to her a blank space had been prepared.Many whispered that this would be where his name went.The first Indigo Champion of the Blackthorn Clan, some said. His name being etched here was all but guaranteed.He would not have anything written until he retired from society and was in his final years of life. Elder Claudia barely left her home these days. Clair often visited the older woman, sharing what had been occurring about the world and then relaying the woman's blunt responses back to those interested.Lance always found it amusing that he was still considered a 'wyrmling' according to her. It was a terribly kind term for family while being annoyingly demeaning.She was the only one who used it, so Lance tolerated it.Lance put his hand against the blank black granite. It was so highly polished it showed his reflection staring back. Would his Champion status be all that was written about him? Sometimes it was possible to lose the right to a plaque, through poor management or dishonourable conduct. Some of which stood out in their conspicuous absence with 'blank matte' sections of the hallways stood testimony to that.Instead of being lauded and taught with specific visits from the school, people were quietly directed to books in the library where their failings could be quietly reflected upon."Still hoping to grow old quickly?" said a voice from behind him.Lance didn't turn, instead merely waiting as the other man stepped up behind him. He bore a resemblance to Lance, but that was expected. Today his spikey hair was dyed blonde to highlight his sharp features. These day's the man had a near permanent scowl as he surveyed the world."Bruce," said Lance casually.Bruce jutted his chin but Lance continued to hold his silence well aware of how his lack of reaction vexed Bruce."Well?" said the man.Lance hummed. "Merely wondering how I can add to it. I rather feel I have done some good that should be mentioned, but the trick is to continue to strive instead of settling." Lance replied, subtly jabbing at Bruce's own position.Years ago there had been a quiet battle between the two of them. There could be nothing but a fight. Both of them had announced that they desired to become Champion to the Blackthorn clan. Both of them had announced their methods. Lance had decided to emulate and pay tribute to Claudia by working with the Rangers.Bruce had pushed to become the highest-ranked Ace trainer before making the leap to Elite and then Champion.They'd had years to develop their teams and their strategies. Lance through his Ranger work, Bruce through the Ace battles.Then, before either of them could announce their intentions to the world at large, the Elders had allowed them to fight each other.Lance had won handily, and thus gained the backing of the full support of the Clan for his bid. It was now seen as a wise move, but at the time it had felt… well it had divided the Clan and Lance had retreated into Ranger work from all of his Clan bar Clair, who'd remained his supporter throughout it all.And now Bruce was stuck, unable to claim the Blackthorn Gym with Clair having taken that over, and unable to challenge Lance without earning censor from the Clan. In his own mind he must think himself trapped, forever required to hold the first rank from the rest of the Indigo Ace trainers.In truth, Lance begrudged him his freedom. If Bruce wanted he could depart for other regions while Lance would have to rely on others if new pokemon appeared.Bruce growled. "I've been wondering for a while now if you haven't slumped with your loss to Brock cousin!"Lance chuckled. "Pride came before the fall, thankful it cost me nothing truly of substance." Lance turned and locked eyes with Bruce, his aura flaring out to dominate the lesser dragon that dared present itself. "You will find I have only grown stronger of late.""Ah, there you two are!" called a familiar voice. Lance broke his staring contest with Bruce, not caring that Bruce straightened smugly as if he'd won a prize for enduring until he could be saved by Clair."Clair, Bruce is worried that Brock will be nipping at his heels soon," Lance said casually.Bruce spluttered. "I said no such thing!"Clair rolled her eyes as she drew closer. "Must you two pull the other's pigtails?"Both Lance and Bruce huffed and muttered under their breaths. "We haven't had hair long enough for pigtails for years! Stop bringing that up!"Clair smiled, her teeth flashing in the dark cavern. "So, you're worried about Brock Bruce?"Bruce huffed. "I never said that!"Lance raised an eyebrow. "So you won't be asking for evolution restrictions to be lifted for some of your pokemon? To gain another Dragonite perhaps? Or a Kingdra?"Bruce clenched his fists and inhaled before slowly exhaling. "Stop putting words into my mouth."Clair and Lance both waited and Bruce eventually twitched in annoyance. "Alright yes! I did want to petition the Elders for my pokemon roster's expansion! Brock is advancing up the ranks and he will no doubt be after me, I need access to stronger, more specialised pokemon to counter him!"Lance grunted. "I will support this Cousin."Bruce narrowed his gaze. "Are you sure you want that? I might raise another challenge when my team is adjusted. I will be looking for Kingdra, Trapinch and a Bagon."Lance chuckled. "You think I am worried about being challenged? No, if anything I welcome it cousin. By all means challenge me. If you desire I will even set aside time for us to trade pointers." Lance turned his back to Bruce inspecting the hallway of honour once more. "You will be given the Trapinch and the Kingdra, the Bagon will take too long, I'd turn your attentions elsewhere."Bruce continued to frown, unsure of himself but obviously annoyed by the dismissal from his cousin. Eventually, he bowed shallowly. "My thanks… cousin," he said before stalking further in.Clair watched him go with a sigh. "You two love to needle each other.""Bruce started it," said Lance plainly, ignoring Clair's huff of amusement. He turned back to her. "Is something the matter?"Clair chewed her lip. "Your recent seizure of the Viridian Gym. Were the training manuals for Ground types there? I too would like to ask for a Trapinch to join my team but I also want to look into the optimal conditions and training methods for a ground-dragon typed pokemon."Lance sighed. "I sometimes wish you were the one in the top Ace ranking you know?""Please, I only know about it because I've worked so long as Gym Leader." Lance gestured and Clair joined him at his side as they moved towards the meeting hall where the Elders had assembled. "Will the League cause any issues with you having that information?" Clair asked.Lance shook his head. "The League has a copy and much of the information and hidden insights are also being spread around to the universities and professors. There is not going to be an outcry regarding this as so many people will benefit.""How positively libertarian of you," Claire said drolly."It makes Indigo stronger for those that know where to look," Lance commented."Like Brock," Clair pointed out giving Lance a moment to pause. "You know he keeps up to date on a lot of the recent research. Heck, he's caused some of the discussions at the university level! I hear there are people already fighting over getting seats when he eventually does a presentation at Celadon!""Brock is not my enemy," Lance said. "I've come to realise that.""It doesn't look that way to a lot of people," replied Clair.Lance raised an eyebrow. "Are you one of those people?""No." Clair continued to walk.When they reached the walkway spanning over the dragon grotto where the Clan's Dratini liked to frolic she sighed. "I… somewhat understand that you have a good read of Brock. Others though, they see him rising up the ranks of the Ace leaderboard and they worry. He's beaten you once—" Clair was quick to raise her hands to show she wasn't voicing her own thoughts, merely paraphrasing others. "—and there is always going to be temptation for him to do it again. It doesn't help that he will be well-positioned to beat Lorelei. You'd be reliant on Bruno."Lance continued to walk for a moment in reflective silence, pausing only to acknowledge the Gyarados and Dragonairs about the cave. A few were twisted around statues of their own forms or lying in the few spots of artificial heat lamps that were set up specifically for the pokemon's enjoyment. You wouldn't find a Dragonite here, not unless the meeting that was taking place was of the utmost secrecy.Today's meeting did not require such measures. It was not for the public, that went without saying, but no extra measures would be needed. Lance wondered where his starter was right now. Perhaps he was flying with a trio of his friends? Or lounging near the Lake for Rage? He'd found some amusing pictures on the poknet of the family that lived near the lake catching sight of his roster of dragonites.Soon enough his Salamance would no doubt join the Dragonite on their adventures.Eventually, Lance spoke up, "Uncle has so little faith sometimes that it hurts," he said referencing Clair's father and the likely instigator of this conversation.Clair sighed and nodded.Lance hummed. "I am rather repeating myself. Brock's goal is not to become Champion, neither is Sabrina's for that matter. I'd welcome them both as members of my Elite Four but both have their reasons to not desire it.""Sabrina…" Clair said. "She's someone the Elders are clucking about more.""They would, as they had previously thought her merely strong, but not at an Elite level. Suddenly the decision to push Agatha out of the Elite Four is looking very short-sighted. I will have to advocate for Karen with her Dark type specialty."Clair gained a pinched expression. "She… hasn't made herself very popular with her demolition of most of the other Gyms in Johto.""Your own match was rather spirited if I recall," Lance said teasingly."I would have had her if her Gengar hadn't faked me out so well!" snapped Clair.Lance merely chuckled only to stop before the sliding paper door to the meeting hall. He inhaled and drew himself up. Next to him Clair stepped back slightly and adjusted his cape. He shot her a smile and a nod before sliding the door open and marching in to claim his customary position on one side of the hall at the front, facing the Elders of the clan as the lead representative of the next generation.Bruce was to his left as Clair claimed her seat to his right. Lance raised his gaze towards the Head Elder who sat across from him.One of the matrons cackled. "Oh, it looks like the young one's blood are up!"Bruce, Lance and Clair all scoffed and threw their heads in annoyance, a trained response that caused smiles to break out from the Elders.The head elder merely hummed his approval, his eyes running over all before him. "This meeting was called to order with regard to the clan's path forward in light of the recent revelation of Team Rocket."That had everyone sitting up straight and being serious. Lance sighed. It didn't matter these days if he was acting in his capacity as Leader of the next generation of Blackthorns, or as the Champion. It seemed his days were destined to be locked in meetings.Still, that didn't mean he wasn't advancing his objectives.The Indigo-wide police force had gained a huge, and importantly, an early victory for them had done much to gain the G-men traction and acceptance. The public and the people in power knew his idea worked.He had the momentum now and he planned to initiate some more changes.It was therefore important that he reflect on the successes and blemishes of his clan. He wanted to be a name locked in stone when he finally laid down his burden. His deeds would be an inspiration, not a cautionary tale."Let us begin—" he said bringing everyone's attention to himself. He had much to do and the drive to do it.When the general summation of events was laid out Lance moved on to the first issue. "Foire is agreeing to allow the G-men access by setting them up as part of their ranger force. The island nations are also starting to agree making this a huge win for Indigo. I expect Steven will hold out until he gains more advantages for himself though."This earned a round of derisive snorts.Lance nodded and glanced around. When no one had any comments he moved to the second topic. "The expeditionary forces are combing through the routes that Team Rocket revealed and a lot of them seem to be extremely high risk with migration paths crossing over. We can use them but it will cost many, many lives."This earned a round of murmurs. "Which regions did they have access to beyond Sinnoh?" asked one of the elders.Lance hummed. "Orre is mentioned but the routes are never clear on this. There is quite a lot of contradictory information which our analysts in the League believe to mean that Team Rocket has a lot of infrastructure in Orre. Finding it is another matter." Lance drummed his fingers on the ground."What other regions are out there that we need to be aware of, I have access to some League information but it is redacted." Lance swept his gaze to one elder in particular. "I need to know more of what is out there," he said."Elder Librarian," prompted the Head Elder. "What do we know of the regions that have been lost to us?"The Elder Librarian bowed and when he rose his voice croaked forth. "There are a great many regions that have been lost to us through the power of the Legendary pokemon, such is their power." The man bowed again, and around the room others copied him.He straightened once again and smacked his lips, preparing for a long lecture no doubt. "The main regions that you will need to be aware of are Unova, Kalos, Sinnoh, and Fellum. Unova more than any other region you must learn of, they were the great conquerors and where many historians, those that still have access to pre-war texts, believe were the great instigators."Lance sat, and not for the first time felt glad that he was part of a greater structure. The League, as great as it was, didn't have the history of the Blackthorn clan. With both, he hoped to do great things."I welcome whatever you can teach me," he said.Even if that meant he had to endure meetings and lectures from many older people.175The proper review session I had after the match with Tori started about how I thought it would."You sucked," A.J. said.Yolanda bristled like a Meowth that had her fur rubbed the wrong way. "Brock won!"A.J. sniffed. "Only because he had the better pokemon, his strategy was pretty basic. He flailed around when Minimize was used instead of committing to a move that would have worked." A.J. began ticking his fingers. "Surf, Earthquake, Thunder, Discharge, Swift, Lock-On, or other accuracy boosting moves could have all worked."I coughed. "I only have a few of those and I don't have any moves to boost accuracy." I nodded to A.J. "You're right though, I should have committed to other options. I'm happy with how I was able to use Shin to get Starmie into a position where I could beat him with Sanchez, but things would have been tougher if I didn't have him on the team."Yolanda shifted only to scowl and cross her arms. "You would have worked something out!" she said, firm in her support.I shot her a smile. "Thanks; I think I might have had to do some other options, such as denying accuracy. Usually, I'd use Sandstorm for that, but it would have been hard. Sanchez was my best option but I wanted to guarantee it."A.J. nodded. "You also didn't—"I sat back and listened to A.J. lay out my various mistakes, from not scouting enough to not having a clear enough idea of what would be the best field for me. Missy sat to the side, taking all of this in while also writing a lot of what was being said down. Today had been worth a lot for her, having been involved in most of the negotiations, review, field check, spectating the battle, and now the review.She'd been given a dearth of information to look through and would have to take a while to digest it, especially with how I was going to go to Goldenrod City tomorrow for the next match.I'd faced a good number of people at home but it was time to fight in another stadium.I gestured to the whiteboard, "How much of this is going to need to be altered for tomorrow's match?" I asked.A.J. scowled at the whiteboard while the others in the room gained thoughtful looks.Yolanda shook her head. "We'd need to watch some of Corvo's matches to judge that." she pointed to another whiteboard that listed his pokemon roster. An impressive fifteen pokemon all registered and had made appearances at the Ace level."Feraligatr's going to be in his team as a starter," I said, placing said pokemon on the 'locked in' position. I then eyed the fourteen other pokemon that had made an appearance thus far."Meganium is another solid choice," I said before looking at the other options. Hypno, Heracross, Primeape, Ursaring, Kingler, were other pokemon I put on the maybe pile.Rocko tapped one of the whiteboards. "I think there is a chance that he might have some other pokemon up his sleeve," he said.When I raised an eyebrow in question and waved my hand for him to continue, Rocko coughed. "Right well, Corvoi was able to do well enough to do a Johto, Kanto, and Hoenn journey a number of years ago." Rocko waved a hand about the room. "But I don't see any Hoenn pokemon on this list."I chewed my lip in thought. That did rather stand out.Dennis snorted. "That isn't actually a mystery. Corvo is a known Johto patriot. He likes to only use pokemon that he caught within the region. It limits him but he takes pride in his rise up the ranks."A.J. scoffed. "Yeah, for a guy that got a Totodile as his starter he sure had it rough.," he said snidely.I reached over and nudged A.J. "Hey, don't be too quick to judge. We all have different hurdles to face. Don't forget that powerful pokemon like that can sometimes mean that the person has a target put on their back. Also, don't begrudge him his success. Professor Elm gifted him Totodile yes, but with his team, he's risen up to seventeenth in Indigo.""If he beats you he only needs to win a few more matches to guarantee a spot in the mid-season tournament," Alexa pointed out.I nodded. "Yeah, but that's not going to be happening. I plan to win this just like the others.""Now, let's do some review for his matches and pick out any techniques or tricks that he knows. Write down what they are and if they're important we can review them as a group. Otherwise, for now let's all pair up and watch a different match each," I said, sending people off."Score! We get to sit around watching pokemon matches for the afternoon!" said one of my trainers.I snorted. It was a pretty good gig to have. They were even getting paid. But that didn't mean there wouldn't be work to be done. There was information here, and it was up to us to ferret out what we could.Tori had admitted to reviewing and creating her team with mine in mind. People were starting to get smarter about how and what they faced me with.I had a few gaps with my roster's heavy rock and water focus, but as A.J. had detailed, I'd been coasting on the strength of my pokemon. Will… as much as I hated to admit it, had pokemon at my level.At the moment, it was like my team were made of pokemon that had all reached level sixty… or at least fifty, compared to the forties of my opponent's Ace trainers. Super effective moves would still blow me up, but we weren't on an even playing field.I needed to work on this to make sure I had the skills to cover for any advantages they might use, some of which I was doing.Still, that didn't mean I wasn't going to keep pushing my pokemon. With the embers of the Moltres event, along with Will's draw against us starting to die off, I would need to work to keep my pokemon motivated.I was hoping that the slow uptick in the toughness of my opponents would make them keep up their efforts. I knew there was more my pokemon could achieve. It was just a matter of drawing out that potential.Much like the games, it became harder and required more to have my pokemon get stronger. This was added to the complexity of needing to take into account training, rest, burnout, or even injury. All of that and more could cause setbacks.Still, you needed to roll the dice and chance your hand if you wanted to be getting stronger.For that, I needed to challenge and accept battles.Specifically, battles that would take me out of my comfort zone.Goldenrod City was one of the largest cities in Indigo. It came in as the third biggest after Celadon and Saffron. Where both of those cities were already established there was a growing sense that Goldenrod was still growing and doing it fast.In truth, this was a lie. Goldenrod should have been the biggest city within Indigo bar none. It had a longer history, greater cultural significance, and also population.It had all of these before the war.The war had seen Goldenrod City ravaged as enemy forces were able to raid the high-value target from land, sky and sea to rip through the City.Johto had been forced to station huge numbers of trainers and their pokemon at Goldenrod to defend it as they weren't willing to lose their capital. It was seen as too great a dishonour to abandon it.So they had dug themselves in and made others and their own pay.Due to this mindset, Goldenrod was the most infiltrated city the Guardians had thanks to the number of chanellers that were required to calm malevolent spirits. Morty's gym wasn't able to supply all of the demand, so specialists from Lavender Town were sent there by the League. Or perhaps it was just a matter of Lavender Town being seen as better thanks to Agatha's position as an Elite Four member.Regardless, by the time the war ended, Goldenrod had been a shadow of its former self. That hadn't stopped people advocating for it to be the capital of the newly formed Indigo. The people fighting for this were passionate enough that Oak's compromise of the Indigo plateau being the true heart had seen a lot of pushback. At least that's what was written in the Guardian's notes on the time post-war history.Goldenrod itself had struggled to get back despite the place in Johto residents had for it in their hearts.It wouldn't have surprised me that Giovanni had seen such an opportunity in Goldenrod with all the damage it had sustained. They'd needed support, and he'd had funds for days along with building materials, pokemon, and the connections to make things work.All for the low, low price of Giovanni having a sizeable stake in Goldenrod. League accountants even now were still working through everything. They were desperately trying to keep the money flowing even as the League seized Team Rocket's hidden assets to make sure that the rebuilding of Goldenrod continued.I walked down the main street with Zubat flapping around me, taking in the sights.There were a lot of building sites, but someone had obviously gotten a hold of a skilled city planner… or a team of them more likely, to set things out very well. Skyscrapers didn't hog the waterfront but rather were positioned such that they didn't obstruct someone's view. That was if they were to own houses on the eastern hills that allowed people there to look out over the Sentret sea to the west of Goldenrod.A railroad that, unlike the games, ran through the middle of Goldenrod, and allowed transport throughout the city, and indeed, a significant part of Johto. I knew of plans that often got tossed around to expand the rail network so that it came through Pewter and down into Saffron.Sadly, Mt Silver and the various denizens were in the way and any thoughts on setting something up long-term were crushed in the early stages by practical-minded engineers. Nobody wanted to create a railway above or below ground that passed anywhere near Mt Silver.Kanto residents liked to scoff that the railway made some of the Johto trainers soft. What with not having to camp out as much. They couldn't dispute the undeniable benefits it brought though.Interestingly, a subsect of the Battleclubs had formed due to the trains with trains often getting on and fighting other trainers from other areas of Johto. I had been told that there existed a Train challenge, where a trainer would start at the back, where the weaker trainers were supposed to be, before advancing up a cart after gaining three wins.The trick was that you could only use one pokemon for each fight and you needed to do it in the space of time that the train was in station. This led to frantic fights that were all-or-nothing exchanges taking place near the train stations.It was little wonder that the police had their own subbranches located right next to any rail station.Johto, to me, was a dichotomy of the past and the future merging. Johto held to traditional styles while also having the latest cutting-edge facilities and technology.It somewhat mirrored Japan from my past life, I suppose.Interestingly I'd found an update on the next Gym Leader for Goldenrod after Hannah's arrest.Norman, a Gym trainer that was seen with high regard and studying with his family had been called in to temporarily hold the Gym. It was being touted as a great honour, and extremely forward thinking by the League. I didn't miss the memo that mentioned how Norman, when he was expected to become a Hoenn Gym Leader, would help advocate for Indigo interests.Such as the G-men.I had to give it to Lance, it was a coup on many levels.The arena that I would be fighting Corvo at today was located on the waterfront, and to my own sensibilities, it took place north of the Goldenrod radio tower.A pier extended from the beachfront out to a large structure that was built into the ocean and held a lot of trainer facilities along with entertainment.In a way, it reminded me of Coney Island.My walk down the pier with my entourage started to draw attention from there. People couldn't help but notice me. What with how posters plastered up showcasing Corvo and my own face in a featured Ace match-up.People began stepping out of the way while others glared at me. It was actually surprising to have people not approaching me, but then again I'd gotten used to Kanto resident's reactions. Johto residents… well I might not be so popular with them having beaten their golden boy Lance, and I was now facing off against Corvo. Another Johto patriot.Murmurs were surprisingly as bad as it got with people giving me a cold shoulder. I had to wonder if there would be other reactions if I remained out in public but in the end, I decided to not test it.It still affected Yolanda and Missy though, with how they stepped a little closer. "So this is the Johto cold shoulder I've heard about?" said Missy.Yolanda shot her a look. "Cold shoulder?"Missy nodded. "Johto people like to snub people they think have wronged them or are going to wrong them. By not interacting with Brock they are showing disapproval." Missy raised up her transceiver and displayed a travel advisory. "I discovered this during my own journey but if you're not liked by the locals, they will only serve you certain dishes or even refuse service. It's caused a number of fights to take place and while it isn't supposed to occur as much, plenty of places will still give a very… diluted menu if you go there.""Huh," I said, eying the nearby stalls. "That's a shame. It looks like a nice place to bring the family."Missy nodded. "Yeah, they will be like this for today and a bit after the match but they should be fine if you're coming in as a tourist. If you're coming here to fight one of their darling trainers though?" Missy shook her head.I glanced towards where the Goldenrod Gym was. I wondered what the etiquette was about challenging the gym? "Do people just stay quiet about when they're going to challenge the Gym?"Missy made a so-so gesture. "It's not as bad for trainers as most people doing the Gym challenges are young kids. They get a bit of the treatment if the challenger is loud and obnoxious, but once the match is over they usually return to being polite.""Hmmmm, I can't say I like it," Yolanda said."Me neither," said A.J. causing Yolanda to blink in surprise."You do?" she said, perplexed."Yeah, they should just be upfront about it, not so sneaky. If people want to challenge them they shouldn't be like that. And if they have a problem they should just demand a fight themselves!" he said glaring at the people around us, only to earn a few glares himself as people reached for their pokeballs.I sighed as people took his challenge at face value. A.J. grinned. It probably hadn't been his intent, but he'd drawn out a few people for a fight.I was suddenly glad that I came an hour early for this match. It might have cost me a bit with Teleport fees but that wasn't too much of an issue. I'd just needed to schedule myself off for half the day.I watched A.J. beat down a few locals only to get crushed in his third match by a strong trainer who had a very well-trained Furret. Once that was wrapped up we continued on to the arena itself which had a huge golden edifice that swept around on itself like a wave. It easily had enough seating to be classed as a mega stadium.Team Rocket pokedollars had been spent very well.I marched into the stadium and was led to a set of rooms that were a touch shorter than I'd expected. I could hear the rumble of thousands of feet marching over my head.Yolanda twitched and shifted, agitated by the noise while I merely sat on a massage table and shut my eyes."This… is this really the room we have to wait in?" she said after a few minutes.I cracked an eye open and looked her over. "Yeah, this is the room they give to 'away' trainers. They are deliberately built to be smaller, not as accommodating, and a bit off-putting. It is yet another method of disadvantaging a trainer.""Huh, that's cheap," said A.J. with a dismissive sniff.I shrugged. "It's a common enough practise in most sports for away teams to not have the nicest waiting areas. It's no different for pokemon trainers," I said, not worried."You're not worried about this?" Yolanda said.I shook my head. "You just need to remember that there are worse places to wait around or to battle. It's one of those things that you'll learn a bit more about on your Journey," I said.Missy started looking around, opening cupboards and doors to find various change rooms or broom closets.A knock on the door ten minutes before the match led to an official entering and offering his id badge to me. I scanned it with my xtransceiver and got confirmation that he was who he said he was.The man then gestured to a small six-ball receptacle. "Gym Leader Brock, it has been noted that you have a carrying capacity beyond the norm of six. Therefore it is our duty to ask that you please lock in your selections for which pokemon you will be using.""Ah, like when I faced off against Lance," I said before nodding.Interestingly, the official's face twitched into annoyance when I mentioned the Lance fight. "Yes, quite."Yolanda shuffled from her feet. "You haven't had to do this in the past?"I shrugged. "People have been willing to accept that I'll hold to six pokemon. I usually only openly carry five pokemon on my pokebelt, so it is obvious if I draw a pokemon from somewhere else.""Five? But what…" Yolanda blinked and nodded. "Oh right! Titan's necklace greatball."I nodded my head and registered which pokemon I was going to use today. The man bowed in acceptance before departing."I feel like that could be abused," said Yolanda.I sighed. "Yeah, it could be. I was honestly surprised that Will didn't demand it for my match against him. I don't think it would have done him any favours. Then again he might not have thought about it."I tilted my head. "Then again with the tricks he pulled off I doubt that, it probably wasn't worth it." I offered a shrug and pulled out some cards from my carry pack. "Want to relax a bit? Your nerves are making me nervous," I said with a teasing smile to show I was joking.Yolanda huffed and dragged a chair to a table where we set up.I released some of my team, and a few of them scrapped the ceiling. Titan and Link settled next to me while Knight sat behind A.J. Gawain turned down the offer and instead moved to a corner to meditate while Selene assisted Yolanda and Terra to win big time.When the official came to collect us he found us playing another round."Go fish by the way," I said to A.J. who shot Knight a scowl. I then, at Titan's direction pointed a finger at Missy. "Two's?" I asked.She scowled and handed me over her two to Titan's pleasure."You're playing cards with your pokemon?" he said incredulously."Yeah, it's great fun for them. When they don't cheat!" I said, staring at Selene who looked far too smug.He shook his head and had me return my team before leading us up the tunnel. My entourage went ahead and got to their seats while I waited in the tunnel."And now! Ladies and gentlemen! Tonight's feature match! From Pewter City, the Gym Leader of Rock and Stone! Give it up, for Brock!"I step forward, thoroughly bemused at the rather lackluster introduction. Rachel did better on her bad days.I walked to the podium only for a wave of boos to roll out. Huh, guess this was another factor with being the Challenger.I hummed and smiled. Really, it reminded me a lot of my time as a Gym Leader where I needed to be the heel to push people. Sometimes the crowd, even at Pewter, didn't cheer for me. Then again the Gym circuit and the Ace circuit were very different beasts.I just shook my head as people shouted and hollered. I waved to Yolanda and the others, making sure to project how confident I was and that I wasn't letting these people get to me.When it was time for Corvo's introduction, the lights dimmed, the crowd fell silent, and Corvo stepped forth."From the east to the west! All know of him and his passion for Johto! He's the Johto Patriot! The eighteenth-ranked battler. It's Ace trainer Corvo!" introduced the announcer.Corvo descended through the crowd and they cheered as one for him. His long blue hair pulled into a ponytail. His hands played with a single pokeball as he walked.The crowd called out his name but he didn't even acknowledge them.His eyes were locked with mine. I felt a frisson of excitement run up my spine.Hoh? He's got some proper fighting spirit then? Excellent.When he reached his podium the referee was quick to go through the usual pre-match spiel before he waved flags in both of our directions."Trainers! Are you ready?" we both nodded and he swept his flags. "Release and begin!""Let's go Gawain!" I shouted."Snapper! Out and angry!" Corvo called.As Gawain took form I had to curse as on Corvo's side, Snapper, the Feraligatr was sent out straight away.Damn, he'd sent his starter out first against my rock-bug pokemon.I'd been hoping for Meganium, Ursaring, or one of his fighting-type pokemon."Waterfall!" barked Corvo. His pokemon suddenly launched forward like it was on top of a geyser with how the water appeared underneath it, launching Feraligatr straight at Gawain."Agility!" I called, forcing Gawain to dodge the attack. Gawain blurred to the side and I was pleased to see him dragging his axe into the ground as he slowed to keep Feraligatr in his field of vision."Tch! I'm not falling for that!' said Corvo. "Surf! Whip the field clear!" he commanded. Feraligatr stepped back and a huge tidal wave formed to sweep him up.Gawain stared at the oncoming attack with wide eyes. "Charge into it!" I ordered.Gawain twitched but did as commanded, right before the wave slammed into him I slashed my hand. "Protect!" I ordered, causing the wave to sweep over an orb of protective energy, resulting in Gawain escaping easily.When the wave crashed down on the other side of the field Snapper turned and shot Gawain a narrow-eyed look.Gawain dropped the Protect and brandished his axes.I shot a look towards where the small patch of Stealth Rock should have been only to find them washed away.Hmmm, they'd accounted for that with that Surf. That was wise of them. I huffed, it seemed I really couldn't play it out easily. I could probably win this with Gawain, but it would be enough to see the field inundated with water.Setting up for other water types and limiting rock or ground type attacks.Gawain had good mobility, but I needed some quick dodges while being able to pressure Corvo's starter. Gawain, if I got in close, might be able to do that.I had better options, however."Gawain return!" I barked holding up his pokeball.Corvo twitched and narrowed his eyes, watching as my pokemon departed before I sent out another."Go Selene!" I said frowning, as I noted that Corvo didn't use a buff or something delayed that would… Realisation clicked in. He didn't have a move like that for Snapper.I wanted to stare at him, that seemed like a bit of a blunder on his part, especially with how prevalent it was for trainers to change out pokemon. Instead, I had to make the most of Selene's appearance."Psy!" I said, making a grasping gesture. Selene glowed with psychic energy and Snapper rose struggling as he was grasped in Slene's Psychic."Waterfall!" barked Corvo.Snapper once again had a huge geyser of water launch him up into the air where he hung for a moment. From on high he loomed over Selene. I smirked.Well, if he was going to give me such options, who was I to deny him?"Psybeam!" I ordered.Selene tilted up and then unleashed right into the falling pokemon."Match it with Ice Beam!" Corvo said. His pokemon inhaled and then discharged a powerful blast of Ice straight at Selene only for her Psybeam to meet it in the middle.Ice beam, while strong, wasn't able to match the STAB bonus of Selene with her Psybeam blowing through Snapper's attack to nail him before he could land.Snapper landed only to kick up into a fighting position with a sinuous twist of the body. "Surf!" called Corvo."Build up for it!" I said, crossing my arms and watching as the wave built up before once more carrying Snapper.The wave came on and for a moment it looked like Selene was in danger, only for her to vanish at the last second in a Teleport."Snapper!" shouted Corvo, revealing that his pokemon had been waiting for just this.Snapper, already at the top of the wave, turned and leapt back towards where Selene was, fangs glowing darkly.I allowed myself a smile. Corvo had anticipated what I would do. Selene's trick was known these days. Which meant that people's responses could also be anticipated."SE!" I called as the wave crashed before me. I might not have seen where Selene was precisely, but I knew what was coming next.I saw Snapper vanish, only to reappear as a giant rock slammed into his head sending him flying back into the crashing wave.I grinned. "Nice one! Follow up on him!" I said only for Corvo to return his pokemon. I clicked my tongue and instead made a quick circle motion. "Future Sight!" I said, preparing the best I could while Corvo selected his next pokemon.Selene glowed with intent while Corvo paused, his eyes narrowing. Ah, he'd noticed that Selene was still in his area of the battlefield."Go! Snarler!" he said, sending out his Ursaring. It appeared with a snarl that I felt only to barrel towards Selene. "Payback!" he ordered, resulting in his Ursaring taking on a dark energy."Get out!" I said, resulting in Selene Teleporting back from the advancing pokemon. Selene appeared once more on my side of the field.Snarler lunged and missed only for the dark energy to not dissipate; it in fact grew stronger.I frowned as Snarler whirled about and charged on with more dark energy around it.Huh, it seemed like Payback had registered Selene's Teleport as her leaving, resulting in the move growing stronger. Alright, I definitely didn't want to let that play out again.With room to move, I snapped a hand down. "SE!" I said.Selene once more launched a large rock straight into the oncoming Ursaring.Snarler tanked the shot and once more the dark energy built up. "That's it! Take her out!" said Corvo as he realised that another dodge from Selene would only result in his pokemon growing stronger and stronger over time.Thankfully, I had other options."Protect," I said. The crowd howled their disapproval as Snarler's fist slammed down impotently against Selene's protective shell. He loosened a huge snarl of rage."Rest Snarler," said Corvo as he narrowed his eyes. This caused his pokemon to shut his eyes and snore loudly as it recovered its health."Take it out of the fight!" I said to Selene as her Protect faded away.Corvo, instead of fearing for his pokemon grinned. "Sleep talk," he ordered.Surprising everyone in the crowd, Snarler went from laying on his belly asleep to barreling forwards with powerful intent. I recognised the move as High Horsepower.Sadly Selene was too close to dodge and so had to take the hit straight on, getting cast away by the powerful attack."Again! Crovo called. This time his pokemon rose up with a brown glow around one arm. Brick Break, he was about to use Brick Break."Psybeam from in close!" I shouted.Selene narrowed her eyes and unleashed a powerful blast from close to point-blank range knocking Snarler back.With the impact, he shook his head and glowered at Selene, waking up from his beauty sleep.I rolled my shoulders. Our review session yesterday revealed something interesting about Snarler. He could tank a lot of damage, but most of the time he dished out more, was when he went to sleep. I suspected that Snarler had the ability guts, which increased attack when a status effect was in play.If so, Corvo was very much playing to his strengths with Rest, and then Sleep Talk into other attacks.I'd done my homework, however. Future Sight slammed home into Snarler before Corvo or I could give any more commands knocking the Ursaring down once more. I didn't hesitate. "Psychic!" I said.Selene lifted and then slammed Snarler into the ground heavily, ending the battle with a powerful blow, and I pumped my fist in victory having taken the lead one nil. "That's the way girl! Go Selene!" I shouted.Selene warbled her name, pleased at her showing before hovering back to my side of the arena.Corvo sighed, and sent out his next pokemon. "Let's go Pincher!"His Kingler took to the field and I had to lean forward, knowing that this would be a tough match for Selene, but it was once again doable. I just needed to be careful."BB up high!" said Corvo. His Kingler raised the singular huge club-like claw and unleashed a barrage of bubbles into the air above Selene."Future Sight," I said, happy to get this off.I eyed the floating bubbles and whistled to Selene. She glanced at me and I made a subtle gesture indicating for her to move slightly to the left.Corvo pointed straight at Selene. "HH!" he said, causing his Kingler to turn to the side and then sprint straight at her with the huge claw raised up, ready to club Selene.I merely pointed, willing to match attack for attack. "Stone Edge again!" I chose to forgo the shorter command.Selene unleashed her move only for Kingler to kip backwards, or rather, due to turning, sideways from Selene to avoid the attack. He then raised his claw up into the air and let loose an Ice Beam.As the beam swept through the air, it made contact with a number of previously innocently floating bubbles, whereby they became frozen and heavy.They plummeted out of the air as giant balls of ice and water shattered and splashed the area around them as they slammed into the arena floor.Selene, thanks to my earlier prompt, didn't even get wet.I grinned. If Sanchez had pulled that off he would have clapped his hand and mimed an ole for all his worth. Instead, I pointed straight ahead at the gobsmacked Corvo and Pincher."Psychic!" I said. Pincher rose up as Selene grasped him with her power. Then she hurled him into a wall with a deft flick of her mind.Pincher slammed into the wall, and then Future Sight slammed into him, knocking him out for another pokemon down.I punched the air. "That's the way Selene!" I said.She warbled but this time it was much more subdued. I assessed her and sighed. Those last three fights with Snapper, Snarler, and Pincher had all taken their toll.I raised her pokeball. "Nice work girl, time to send someone else in." I grinned down at her ball before selecting my next pokemon. It was time to bait the hook and see what I reeled in."Let's go Tide!" I said sending him out before Corvo had made his selection.Corvo stilled. His hand locked on one pokeball only to look up and meet my gaze.He shifted his hand to another pokeball and hurled out his fourth pokemon of the match. "Let's show them up! Princess!" he barked.Princess, the Meganium appeared and shook itself out as, on my side, Tide, the Lapras raised his chin defiantly.Grass versus water. An advantage to Corvo."Petal Dance!" he said."Blizzard!" I responded, sweeping my hand in a wide arc.Ice formed and was unleashed onto the field, freezing the petals as they formed. Huge boulders of ice flew down and Princess moved quickly to dodge the powerful, but inaccurate attack.When the Blizzard died down, Princess was revealed and she had moved quickly enough to evade any danger."Energy Ball!""Ice Beam!" I replied.Both pokemon opened their maws and a yellow and blue ball formed for each respectively.Then they snapped their heads down and unleashed their attacks. I was more than a little surprised when Tide's Ice beam was slightly pushed back. I shot Princess another look, reevaluating her strength.She would have had STAB, but still, a grass vs. ice matchup should have seen Tide emerging as the clear winner there."Again!" said Corvo, leaning forward as he sensed a weakness that he could push for. Princess formed another ball of yellow energy, only for me and Tide to not be willing to get locked into a mirror of earlier."Blizzard," I said, unleashing a powerful wave of ice once more. This time Princess wasn't in a position to quickly escape and a large boulder of ice slammed into her even as she got off the Energy Ball.Tide took the hit and glowered at her.Princess for her part shot back to her feet with a determined glint in her eyes."Meganium!" she said, shaking her head and flaring the flower."Charge in close with Vine Whip!" ordered Corvo, a hint of desperation tinging his words.Princess sprinted forward and I snapped my hand forward. "Ice Beam!""Leap now!" shouted Corvo and against my expectations for such a large pokemon, her vines formed up and lashed the ground, launching her up into the air and over the top of Tide's Ice Beam.Tide had a moment to try and tilt his head up to slam his beam into her only for her to get close enough to wrap her vines around his mouth. She landed heavily and Tide staggered her as he hurled himself backwards."Meganium!" said Princess, as she dug her feet in and wrenched Tide on his side, slamming him into the dirt and knocking him out.I sighed. He hadn't had a good run of it. While I had been hoping for a better outcome, I had to admit to being surprised about how powerful Princess had ended up being.She stood, heaving in breath after breath, before draining back her vines as Tide vanished in a red light as I recalled him."Megan!" Princess called as she waved to the crowd. The crowd roared their approval back only to fall silent as I selected my next pokemon and sent out Gawain right on top of Princess."X-scissor," I said firmly.Gawain raised his axes and lunged."Vine Whip away again!" Corvo commanded. Once more Princess surprised me with her agility as she used her Vine Whips to kick back with an extra set of limbs, getting herself a little more room.Only for Gawain to kick off the ground extra hard, his Agility still in effect from earlier to close with the Meganium.X-scissor landed, and just like that Corvo had lost his third pokemon, and what had to be his second strongest pokemon. Even that seemed doubtful with how much better Princess' showing had been compared to Snapper.But then again, a starter is your starter for a reason.Corvo returned his pokemon with a stern expression only to then pull out another pokeball. "Go! Smasher!" he said. His pokeball was released, and this time I found myself locking eyes with a Primeape.It instantly screamed in rage and began punching at the air before noticing Gawain before it.I nodded my head. Alright, fighting type v rock-bug.Let's do it to it, I thought.I might have started this all because of Will and my desire to block his advancement and continued it so I was in a position to be the barrier for others like him, but that didn't matter at all.I was in the thick of it, and I was loving it.I'd made the right choice to keep pushing myself."Agility!" I called, pushing for more of a buff to Gawain."Stomping Tantrum!" roared Corvo. Smasher stomped his feet into the ground with a roar as shockwaves rocked the arena. A good deal of the crowd gasped in shock as Gawain stumbled."Give yourself more balance points! Go into a low guard!" I commanded and Gawain did just that, his axes touching but not digging into the ground as he bobbed with the shaking earth.Smasher snorted and stopped stomping his gaze now locked onto Gawain."Focus Blast!" shouted Corvo. Smasher shot out a huge blast of energy with a punch."Evade!" I responded.Gawain vanished as he took off, circling Samsher as the feral Primaeape snarled and stomped his feet."Stone Axe in close!" I said deciding to dance in close."CC!" said Corvo with Primeape opening his arms in readiness to grapple if Gawain got too close."Control the fight!" I ordered, making Gawain shift his target from centre of mass hits to instead grazing attacks. I did not want Primeape getting a hold of him.Primeape and Gawain danced back and forth. Gawain chopped and slashed with his axes while Smasher snatched after him or tried to bullrush him into a tackle.Each attempt was evaded as Gawain was too fast.Smasher tried to fake him out with an aborted attempt only to twitch in another direction.Gawain didn't hesitate to pull his axes back, raise them into a high guard position before lashing them in an X as he performed an X-scissor without my prompting.I pumped my fist. "That's the stuff! Good read!" I shouted, pleased that the work we'd done with Shin and Hypnotoad, along with Trixie's fighting-type pokemon was paying off so well.Primeape staggered back only to shake himself and howl with rage. He stomped his feet and snarled only to then dash about to another location, stomping his feet and throwing punches at nothing."Uh oh, he's gotten rage locked," I said.Primeape snapped around at my voice and surged towards me, frothing at the mouth. I quirked an eyebrow, unimpressed as Gawain bodied the Primeape before he could take more than a few steps.Primeape landed heavily only to stand and glower, his arms hanging low. It snorted and snuffled in rage only for Corvo to raise his pokeball and return him. "I withdraw him," he said simply.I shot him a raised eyebrow. "You waited until then?""Smasher has a lot of vitality to him, he needs to be worn down properly. Sometimes he can lock onto the right target during his Rage and he becomes unstoppable…" he shrugged then. "And sometimes he focuses on the wrong target. It's a bit of a gambit. Fifty-fifty if you would, this time I came up unlucky."I frowned. That didn't sound like how Rage was supposed to work, but then again there were a number of moves that were similar, such as Outrage, that were tough to Or had he trained for that specifically? It was very risky, but if it worked like he said it did, then it would be worth it.Or was it an ability? Hmmm, too many variables that were unknown to say.With Smasher removed, it came down to Corvo's second last pokemon, his Feraligatr had taken a beating so I didn't expect it to come back out, but then again, I might be wrong.I glanced at Gawain and hummed at what I saw. He was a bit tired from that exchange but otherwise doing alright for himself. I tilted my head. If I was right… Corvo's best choice was another fighting type, with his Heracross having the highest odds.If I was wrong, it wasn't such an issue.I could stick with Gawain, he was already buffed up, but… I wanted to give another of my pokemon a chance to shine."Gawain, return!" I ordered. Gawain vanished in a red beam and Corvo narrowed his eyes at me as he palmed his last pokemon.I grinned and palmed my next choice. "Let's go, Link!" I shouted, sending him out for his debut showing.Link appeared with a twirl and both hands waving hugely, the wings on his back flapped excitedly and he had a gigantic smile on his face. "Clefable!" he shouted.The crowd wasn't quite sure what to make of him and there was a lull as they stared at him."YEAH! GO LINK!" shouted Yolanda from the side lines.I shot her a smile as Link perked up and waved at her before settling into a fighting stance.I then turned my attention back to Corvo who stared at the Clefable. "You haven't used this pokemon before," he said.I grinned. "Yup! This is his debut!" I said.Corvo shook his head and sent out his last pokemon. "Go Buzzer!" he said, sending out his Heracross. I mentally fistpumped. I might not have gotten the order right, but I'd guessed what team he'd use against me correctly."Aerial Ace!" Corvo shouted. Heracross vanished into a blur as his wings buzzed up to speed."Gravity!" I replied and Link clenched his fists and punched them forward resulting in a distortion to build up around him. He flexed his knees but was otherwise unaffected.Buzzer however was thrown off by the sudden increased weight of his flight and crashed into the ground with a heavy crash.I chopped my hand at Buzzer's downed form. "Moonblast!" I said and Link held up his hands, channelling up a pink ball before hurling it at Buzzer."Protect!" snapped Corvo resulting in the attack slamming into a barrier."Again!' I said making Link go for another blast and this time Corvo couldn't dodge. The orb of fairy energy hammered into Buzzer and dropped him.He buzzed angrily for a moment before standing and staggering back and forth. He glowered at Link for a moment before growling in rage and shaking his head, getting back into the fight.I had to admit that I was impressed by his fighting spirit to keep going."Throat Chop!" said Corvo and this time Buzzer came straight on his wings buzzing and pushing him even as he used his feet to kick off the ground."Meteor Mash," I responded and Link threw himself into a roll that saw him and Buzzer slamming into each other.For a moment they clashed, both of their energies radiating outwards only for an explosion to rock the field as both pokemon's attacks discharged.When the smoke cleared it revealed Buzzer angrily leaning against Link who stared into his eyes in curiosity."Hera…" said Buzzer tiredly, only to topple.Before he could hit the ground, Link caught him and held him up, helping Buzzer stand at his side."Fable!" said Link firmly. He then nodded once and put Buzzer back onto his feet before raising his hand up into the air with Buzzer's left hand.I blinked in surprise, was he… honouring his foe?The crowd, who'd almost to a person had been booing or catcalling me at the start, rose in dribs and drabs to clap.Before long, everyone in the stands were on their feet cheering for the show of sportsmanship Link had just done.Buzzer stared at the adoring crowd for a moment before shutting his eyes, passing out still on his feet.Link stepped back and smiled.I stared.Holy Houndoom. That… I wasn't even sure what to call that.He'd just flipped the crowd with one heartfelt gesture.Corvo returned his pokemon and gave Link a long, thoughtful look before raising a hand to the referee. "I will withdraw any other pokemon that I might have, I think." He then turned to Link and me and bowed. "The victory is yours, Brock. It is a well earned sweep," he said.He then raised his hands and clapped, leading a wave of renewed applause.I laughed and hopped over the podium railing to grab Link and toss him up onto my shoulder."You don't even have to try, do you?" I said to Link. I was so getting a poster made of this moment. I'd title it, that's what heroes do.He shot me a confused look before turning his attention elsewhere to wave to the crowd.I shook my head and joined him.The heart of a hero indeed.And what was more heroic than winning the hearts and minds of the people?