Chereads / Hard Enough by Viva01 / Chapter 91 - 191

Chapter 91 - 191

The next day saw me once more behind the judge's desk with Joy and Monique.

Joy and I were wearing the same attire as yesterday but Monique had gone for an entirely different ensemble.This time she was wearing something that had chains and buckles all over it. If she'd had a sword at her hip I'd have been tempted to call her the raid boss instead of the judge.She seemed happy with the looks she was getting so at the very least she was making a statement.Rachel, Archibald and Gardevoir once again were hyping the crowd and welcoming them to the second day of competition. I noted that Rachel, Archibald and Gardevoir all were wearing new outfits.Rachel had gotten a hold of a jacket with the sleeves torn off and a collar around her neck that made her 'tough-cute' more than tough but it seemed to work.Archibald had lost his tie and jacket while rolling up his sleeves to display tattoos that would have fitted right in with a yakuza mob boss. More than a few people were giving him a lot more respect.Somehow Gardevoir was still wearing the most out there outfit with a jacket where the lapels were huge spikey things that made her look thuggish. She'd also had her hair styled into a greaser look and alternated between scowling and giggling, so she seemed to be enjoying herself.This led to Archibald… a possible gang leader in his youth, to also be happy.Rachel keyed up her microphone as she skipped out to the front with Archibald and Gardevoir to the side. "Welcome back everyone" she crowed with obvious delight. "Today is the second round with our sixteen participants for the Battle Stage where coordinators will go head to head in a battle that needs to show style and finesse!"Archibald nodded seriously. "Showing results, taking damage and not being artistic can see man and pokemon expunged from the competition! It becomes a balancing act if you will!"Gardevoir made a show of juggling and launching small juggling balls at Racehl who nimbly dodged them much to the crowd's approval. One ball snuck through and tagged Rachel but she worked with the nudge and flipped over onto her feet to land a backflip earning herself some more applause.I smiled and glanced over the crowd noting that today Sabrina, Erika and the Cerulean sisters were in attendance. The patch of bright colours rather drew the eye with Erika and friends sitting in a field of flowers as some might say with how many girls had grouped up.I nodded towards Sabrina before checking with Monique. "We're still on for the final event of the day?" I asked.She nodded and winked before turning her head to the announcers.Archibald nodded seriously. "For those of you following at home or looking for the more technical details. Each battle lasts at maximum five minutes and the object of the battle is to decrease the opponent's points more than knock out your foe!"He indicated the screen above where two fake accounts and pokemon were shown trading blows and points began to drop. "Coordinators lose points when their Pokémon are hit by an attack, when their Pokémon's attack fails, when the opponent's Pokémon performs a particularly appealing move, or when the opponent's Pokémon uses their Pokémon's attack to its own advantage." The screen showed a variety of such events playing out earning some thoughtful looks from the crowd. Most of these had been taken from Hoenn contests.Rachel stepped back in. "A battle can also end when one of the Pokémon is unable to battle, called Battle Off by the judges. In this case, the Coordinator with the remaining Pokémon is declared the winner!"Archibald nodded and gestured to the screens. "And now, we shall randomly allocate the match ups!" he said.On the screen, sixteen faces appeared. The most notable being Walter, Jessie, Yolanda, Greta, Crystal, Solidad, Bosco, and Zek.Yolanda, Greta and Crystal were all standing together with their fingers crossed. Walter was standing with his arms crossed and his face set in a scowl. Jessie was hopping from foot to foot with a pensive expression."And the first match!" announced Rachel, as faces began to cascade around like pinwheels.Yolanda's face slotted into the first bracket causing a stir from the people that knew she was my sister. "Yolanda from Pewter city!" screamed Rachel, as the crowd roared their approval. I raised an eyebrow. That was rather interesting to have her coming out first like that.The next face was the man who'd come in ranked eighth overall with his Pidgeotto."Vinny from Fortree City!" announced Rachel.I shot both trainers a smile and a nod as they stepped up onto the stage.Vinny bowed to us in time with Yolanda, first to each other and then to us. Then they drew out their pokeballs as a timer counted down above them. When it hit zero a chime sounded out and they both released their pokemon."Let's go Swellow!" shouted Vinny.Vinny sent out a Swellow which had me sitting up, it had an extremely vibrant plumage and had small golden bands around its feet that seemed to be the nod to the Tough Theme.Yolanda bounced on the spot as she sent out Spot the Growlithe. "Let's go Growlithe!"The small Growlithe appeared and growled fiercely. I exhaled in relief, glad that she hadn't sent out Terra. On paper it might have been a better match but I could tell that Vinny and his Swellow were serious contenders and powerful in their own right, from a quick look at Swellow's plumage.From Yolanda's grimace she was well aware of her back being up against a wall."Begin!" called Rachel, as both of their points were put on display."Twister into a Sky Strike like we practised!" ordered Vinny."Spot! Use Agility and kick up some dust!" Yolanda said, playing a hit-and-run game by camouflaging where her pokemon was, as the dust cloud caused them to become shadows with Spot further playing into it by barking. The sound of his barks echoing as dust rose up obscuring him.I watched for a long moment before sighing, it had been a good attempt on Yolanda's part.Vinny didn't even have to give his pokemon an order, it was well trained enough to gain height and then sweep its wings forward, once, twice, thrice and then the field was clear again.This revealed a rather startled Spot who was doing his best to run against the Hurricane force winds but coming up short. Vinny then raised and dropped his hand and Swellow stopped beating its wings to tuck and dive.Spot launched forward as the wind that had been pushing it back vanished only to run face first into a powerful Sky Strike that had been well executed. They'd even thought to target ahead of where Spot had been.Spot tumbled end over end and for a moment I thought he would be thrown off the side of the stage only to dig his claws in and struggle to stand. "Lithe!" growled Spot, as he locked eyes with Swellow.On the screen above, his points plummeted while Vinny and Swellow stayed the same.Yolanda gritted her teeth. "Go again!" she shouted, and Spot loyally threw himself into the same move, once more accelerating and kicking up dust. Yolanda kept her eyes locked on Swellow while Vinny just shook his head."Let's finish this," he said. He gestured and Swellow shot in to blow away the dust."Now!" called Yolanda and right as the dust was blown away, Spot vanished."Eh?" shouted Vinny as his Swellow baulked at the vanishing act.I chuckled. "She wouldn't get away with this anywhere else," I said, as Spot popped out of the stage behind Swellow with what had to be a dig.Spot didn't need the order as he leaped straight at Swellow, an orb of flame taking over his form as she slammed into Swellow and caused a blinding flash.I chuckled as Swellow was revealed, still flying with its feet raised and locked in a grip with Spot as flames lashed the flying type. Swellow cried out in pain but before Spot could make it to the ground Swellow swooped down and snatched him out of the air.Spot twisted in Swellow's grip, trying and failing to land another blast of fire on his foe. Swellow merely continued to hold Spot by the neck, a glint appearing in its eye as it surveyed the ground.It stopped beating its wings and instantly both pokemon plummeted, just before they hit however. Swellow kicked off, which left Spot smashing into the ground harshly and escaping danger itself. Swellow finished off, by beating its wings once again and caused the shockwave of dust to sweep away, letting everyone clearly see its power.It looked rather impressive even if I didn't want to acknowledge it due to how it was beating up my sister's pokemon."Oh! A Reversal plays out with Yolanda's tactics backfiring!" exclaimed Rachel. "Tough show!"A small dip showed that Vinny and Swellow had taken a small hit of their points initially, only to have their fortunes reversed by their smart tactics.I sighed having seen enough to know that Yolanda and Spot had been up against very long odds of winning. I tapped a button and a chime rang out showing that Yolanda only had a few points left with those last two exchanges not working out for them.Spot stood, barely there with how he was quivering and shaking, but still pushing himself. I had to give it to him, he was a loyal pokemon and wasn't going down without giving it his all.Yolanda's eyes darted about looking for something she could use only for Vinny to not hesitate to send Swellow in once again."Aerial Ace to finish with style!" he called.I grimaced, knowing that it was overkill.I stood, unclipped a pokeball and threw it in one clean practised action. "Shin! Block!" I called, and Shin exploded into action getting next to Spot in a heartbeatSwellow lunged talons raised to rake Spot only for Shin to appear between them with his scythe to block the attack only for Swellow to vanish..For a second I felt my heart lurch that Swellow had still been able to get off the Aerial Ace that late, only for shin to twist and raise his other Scythe This time instead of a physical block however, wall of water shot up as Shin performed a small Surf, snatching Spot up and away from danger.Swellow swept through the point Spot had been only for nothing to hit.I exhaled in relief as Swellow arced around unhurt.I signalled to Vinny and keyed my microphone. "I rule Battle Out on grounds of potential injury or worse had Spot continued," I said."I second this motion," said Nurse Joy. I glanced at her and noticed for the first time she too was standing with a pokeball in hand. Had she been about to send out someone to protect Spot if I'd been too slow?The only pokemon that had the speed would have been… Latias, and damn that would have created some issues for her if people knew she had a Latias.I nodded in thanks as Yolanda slumped, dejectedly.I strode over to her and clapped her on the shoulder. "Sorry it didn't turn out the way you wanted. It was a bad match-up for you cause you're not even out there Journeying, but I don't want you to feel too bad. "I waved a hand towards Vinny. "That guy is a pushing Ace trainer, at least I should assume so, His Pidgeotto is good for a circuit pokemon but his Swellow is really good," I said.He was at least fourth tier as a trainer, not yet an Ace trainer, but he'd be a strong battler at the end of year circuit.Vinny approached Yolanda and I . "I should have gone for a lighter exchange at the end there, I must apologise," Vinny bowed politely and I nodded."Y-yeah I just thought I could find a way to win," Yoland said with a sigh. "I got Spot to learn your Dip dig trick last night and I thought I could use that.""You did? That's impressive," I said, giving Yolanda a small squeeze. That wasn't an easy trick to learn. "Sadly he had an answer for it, you did well today. You've shown that you're growing. Terra and Spot are going to be terrors when you set off," I said, giving her another squeeze.Vinny approached. "Sorry again! I'm so used to battling instead of contest-style fights!" he said apologetically.I sighed and nodded. He was entirely correct of course. "Just be more careful in future," I said, letting the two coordinators depart to the crowd's applause."I should have deducted more points for the lack of style," I said as I sat down.Nurse Joy rubbed the back of her head having not done so. Monique smirked and preened. It was then that I noticed that Vinny hadn't gotten away with a perfect score."Huh, nice work," I said before nodding at my other judge. "Thanks for having my back," I said."No problem, happy to help," she said easily. She then turned her gaze upwards as the next match was announced.Two very familiar faces appeared.Greta versus Crystal.Both girls stiffened only for Crystal to gain a cocky smile. Greta swallowed and nodded to her friend before marching stiffly to the stage.Crystal palmed her second pokeball and I had to admit to being a bit curious about what she had."Let's go Flamer!" she shouted, as she revealed a Cyndaquil. I whistled, damn, Georgina hadn't been kidding that she was going to be setting Crystal up for her journey, with an Eevee and a Cyndaquil she had a lot of potential firepower.Greta swallowed and most tellingly didn't react with surprise.So, she'd known about this before today had she? I shot Yolanda a look and she too wasn't surprised.Greta's pokemon turned out to be a Beedrill of all things."Huh, she's that confident in her Beedrill," I said. Nurse Joy shot me a look and I waved a hand. "She told me she only caught it recently, she must have been making use of Bug Type pokemon's fast growth rates," I said.Crystal twitched in surprise. "Bwuh? When did you catch that pokemon?""Not that long ago," smirked Greta. "I caught Weedle after talking with the Bug catchers. I saw some potential so I went for it." Greta stood tall. "I'm sorry I had to face you, but Crystal? You're going down!" she said.Crystal gaped at this seeming one-eighty from her friend only for Rachel to call the start.Greta slashed her hand forward. "Encirclement method with Poison Sting!" she called, causing Beedril to blur and leave after images that raised their stingers and began to fire from all angles.Flamer, Crystal's Cyndaquil wailed in pain causing Crystal to drop her shock and get her head in the match. "Blow your top, sweep the field with Ember! Limit their options!" she called. Her pokemon inhaled before exhaling and causing its back to explode with fine motes of flame shooting up into the air while its mouth exhaled more embers down low.The embers trailed through the air and stung Beedril who twitched and the after images faded to reveal the actual pokemon."Ha! Got you now! Ember again but do a barrel roll at the same time!" called Crystal.Flamer blinked in surprise but did as asked, inhaling and then exhaling Ember once again, dutifully barrel rolling to the side and causing a sort of twister like wave of flame that had me nodding along. It wasn't too shabby for style."Drop and Brick Break!" called Greta, making her pokemon plummet from the sky and slam a stinger into the ground where it raised part of the earth to shield itself. The Embers washed against the raised shield ineffectively and Beedril remained kneeling looking like a knight with a shield raised."Build up your power!" Greta called and Beedril's wings began to vibrate faster and faster a droning pitch was quickly achieved."Smokescreen and then light up the air with Ember once more!" Crystal called, making her pokemon exhale smoke around itself before sending out small pulsing Embers that made the Smoke look like a night sky.The crowd 'oohed' with wonder. I hummed and had to give Crystal some credit she was coming up with some nice-looking combinations.Greta however wasn't just twiddling her thumbs as she pointed to the sky. "Launch Poison Sting up into the air!"Beedrill did just this only for Greta to snap her hand to the side. "Agility to the side then shoot the falling Posion Sting!" she called. Beedril blurred to the side and raised his stingers once more and fired, resulting in a cascade of spinning twirling purple stingers.It looked like the sky had been flipped with glow sticks and added an air of unpredictability as the tumbling stingers fell to the ground in a chaotic pattern that covered where Flamer was hiding."Defog to clear the field of Ember but don't just twirl! Remember! Pirouette to keep any blow back away!" she called.Beedrill buzzed angrily only to surprise me as it raised its stingers and spun like a ballerina, its wings fluttering gracefully. Instead of a harsh wind blowing away the smoke, the smoke cleared in an almost calm manner. This revealed a punctured Flamer who was wailing in pain.Greta opened her mouth only to pause and glance in our direction. Nurse Joy and I shared a look and a nod."We're ruling another Battle Out, Flamer can not continue to fight!" Nurse Joy said this time.I stood and signalled for some applause for both Coordinators with Rachel leading the charge happily.Archibald took over the commentary this time with a pleased rub of his moustache. "I rather like being surprised with how young trainers can perform. They used style, grace and skill all at once. They created a wonderful display while fighting it out I have to say. That Beedrill was also a startling find with its control of the winds. I dare say a flying type would be envious," he said."Voir!" Agreed Gardevoir.Crystal and Greta marched over and shook hands. "Can't believe you hid that you had a Beedril from me!" said Crystal."Sorry, most people find it weird?" said Greta."Feh! They're feckless idiots!" said Crystal. "Urgh! I thought you were going to be shaky but you were all cool and collected!" Crystal sighed. "Guess being part of the Gym means you get used to fighting?"Greta smirked. "More than you realise," she said.Crystal sighed and rolled her eyes and hugged her friend. Something was said that was muffled by the hug but it seemed to be positive. The crowd ate it up awwing at the show of friendship.Greta just giggled. "Better you lose to me than some idiot you can't stand!" she said with a giggle.Both girls strode off the stage with their heads high and I chuckled as they received a round of applause with each of them bowing together.Beedrill had surprised me, she'd certainly done well with a pokemon that she'd only caught recently. But then again she'd also sought out the local experts on said pokemon, so perhaps it was warranted. I peered into the crowd and spotted a number of the local chapter house proudly cheering for Greta with banners for Beedrill raised high.Once more I turned to the overhead display only to find it was yet another pair I'd marked as 'to watch'. Walter appeared first and then Jessie appeared.Huh, that promised to be good.Jessie marched out with James and Meowth cheering for her as loudly as they could while Walter strode forth with a measured gait. "Fair maiden! I must apologise for the defeat I am about to hand you!" barked Walter.Jessie narrowed her eyes, any hint of worry fleeing as she locked eyes with the martial artist trying to be gentlemanly. "I'm no maiden!" Jessie hissed as she enlarged a pokeball.I heard a number of women hoot and cheer for Jessie at this statement and Rachel was quick to call the match to a start. Jessie sent forth her Arbok while Walter sent out a Primeape."Arbok set the stage with Acid Spray around Primeape!" Jessie called. Her pokemon unleashed a barrage of poison in a single long burst like a hose unleashed a deluge of water. The poison splashed around in front of Primeape seemingly doing nothing for the moment.Primeape marched up to the edge of the poison and snorted contemptuously swaggering back and forth. Arbok snarled angrily and I could see a glow overtake it as Walter smirked.I lowered both of their points for the initial poor showing causing both Walter and Jessie to twitch as they recalled that this was a contest and not a battle. Jessie grimaced, but was the first to look serious while Walter considered his options."Advance Arbok!" Jessie called, making her pokemon slither forward, an annoyed tick still showing that it was under the effects of Swagger."Primeape! Use Brick Break and send some rocks that Arboks way with a strong right!"Primeape stomped its feet and caused a pair of rocks to be fired off one after the other at Arbok.Jessie blanched. "Brace and use Stockpile!" she called.Arbok did just that, standing tall. Then it opened its mouth and swallowed both rocks straight down its gullet. It rocked back from the momentum of the strikes but then came back and made an exaggerated swallowing action.The crowd went silent."Well, that was certainly a unique method of stopping damage," said Monique.I raised a finger. "I can't tell if that was Arbok being confused or planned," I said."I think it didn't mean to Swallow!" said Nurse Joy with a gleam in her eyes.I glanced at her but her mask hid her mouth. She had to be smirking though. No way she'd delivered that line with a straight face. I wanted to remind her that there were children listening but that had most likely passed over their heads."It's worth points!" chimed Nurse Joy as she awarded Jessie and penalised Walter.Jessie twitched at this sudden turn of events. "Spit up!" she called, and Arbok fired back a pair of rocks that were now covered in poison straight into the gobsmacked Primeape."Dodge with Swagger again!" roared Walter. Primeape stumped to the left and right only for flecks of poison to touch it as the first rock sailed past. The second rock slammed home though and Primeape glowered at Arbok."APE!" it roared.Jessie stiffened. "Dive into the poison and use Mud shot!" she called. Arbok did just that, lashing its tail and sent forth a wave of mud that was encrusted with the earlier Acid Spray to splash into Primeape's eyes.Primeape howled with rage and began thrashing about in earnest. When it got close to Arbok, Jessie had her pokemon coil around it and bring it down into the poisoned mudpit.Walter sighed and bowed. "I withdraw my pokemon, Jessie has countered me well this day!" he said stoically.Jessie beamed as Primeape was withdrawn from Arbok's clutches.On the display Jessie's face grew large with the words 'winner' displayed. She grinned hugely and once more James and Meowth were the first to start cheering for her.From there Bosco, and Zek both advanced with the Weezing and Muk causing Rachel to perk up. "It's a poison sweep by the looks of things! We've had Beedrill, Arbok, Weezing and Muk all taking over! I hope the poison enthusiasts out there are enjoying the show cause their pokemon are representing today!"I glanced up to find an extremely pleased looking Janine buzzing with energy among the ladies of Celadon."And now to close out the round of sixteen! We have Solidad of Pewter versus Argo of Fuchsia!"Argo emerged with a confident grin ."Seems like the odds favour me today eh?" he said with a smirk.Solidad merely smiled and when they were asked to send out their pokemon it was clear why.While Argo sent out a Venomoth, Solidad sent out a Slowbro."Let the last match! Begin!" called Rachel.Slowbro yawned hugely and I felt a wave of something wash over me causing me to frown. That had been oddly fast for a move from a pokemon notorious for being slow."Let's go with poison powder!" called Argo, and his pokemon began beating its wings and sending out clouds of purple glittering powder, but oddly it didn't go forwards to cover the entire field instead it hovered."Water Gun sequence!" replied Solidad, and her pokemon responded slowly, arcing a trio of watery bullets up into the air that didn't seem to even be getting close to Venomoth's form, where it was sweeping its wings and causing poison to drift forward.Monique leaned forward with a predatory gleam in her eyes which was matched by her daughter, alerting me that something was about to happen."Venomoth use Confusion to sweep all the poison upon Slowbro!" called Argo, and the drifting clouds formed ribbons that began to flow towards Slowbro.Slowbro yawned and the world seemed to slow down as things just got a lot more— a pulse of energy appeared in its mouth and then with only the barest warning, Slowbro unleashed a Hyper Beam that shot clear through the trio of water Guns that had not been aimed at Venomoth, but rather as preliminary target for her pokemon to hit.All three orbs of water burst and caused water to rain out in a shimmering display that dispersed the Poisonpowder as the Hyper Beam punched into the startled Venomoth blowing it away and ending the match with a third Battle Out.Argo stared at his downed pokemon and then back over to Solidad who now had a rainbow forming on her side of the field.I whistled and dropped his points while awarding Solidad for that perfect three move set. "The early Yawn move is a surprise, that's to lower speed and reactions isn't it?" I asked MoniqueMonique nodded. "It also causes a lull that turns into a sudden surprise, making it twice as effective as you almost grow bored with slowbro on the field, only to then have it startle you with wow."I nodded. "It is certainly that," I said.Solidad waved and I glanced at the other competitors. With that match, Solidad had just emerged as the coordinator to beat.Rachel led a round of applause before directing people's attention to the overhead display. "And now! To give people a taste of what's to come! We are going to give out the next four matches at once!"I shot Monique a raised eyebrow and she coughed. "We wanted the surprise for the first match but now we want people to know what is to come. We all have our favourites, so now the crowd can see and cheer more," she said.I hummed and let the matter drop. It wasn't a big issue, but next time I think I'd just announce the entire bracket format ahead of time. I whistled when I saw that Bosco and Vinny each had 'easier' matches. Most of my attention though was turned to the other two matches.Solidad versus Zek.And Greta versus Jessadia.

192

"—on the red side we have Solidad of Pewter City! Can I get a Pewter City welcome?" roared Rachel into the microphone.There were obviously enough locals, or those at least in the know, to stomp twice and clap, creating the signature welcome we'd cultivated in the Gym.Solidad, now in a leather jacket with her hair in pigtails pumped up the crowd with her fist punching the air in time with the claps as she walked onto the stage. When she reached her podium the stomping and the clapping dissolved into merely applause and she waved both hands excitedly before locking her gaze upon Zek.Zek for his part looked thoroughly put off his game.I leaned towards my fellow judges. "I'm not sure if we should allow this in future, what's your thoughts?" I asked. I idly tracked a disturbance in the green gathering from Erika's Gym as another young woman joined them only to push her way to the center and hug Erika and Sabrina while nodding towards Janine and other Celadon Gym trainers.Monique shrugged, not noticing I was looking elsewhere. "It is rare that a Coordinator gets the home field advantage and it is something that their opponents have to be ready for," she said blithely.Nurse Joy nodded slowly. "It's no different than a trainer fight, so I think it is fine. It might be a bit… rougher than Hoenn contests, but we're not Hoenn. This is Pewter city and if the people have favourites then let it be."I nodded slowly and shot Monique a smirk, "So if this was Cerulean, or Celadon and Solidad had the crowd cheering for her opponent would you be so ambivalent?"Monique huffed. "I would, Solidad has faced worse in other Contests, as I said this is a rarity, and for my daughter, it is something of a treat to have the crowd's support for once. She will have to make sure it doesn't give her too big a head," she said."Good point," I said, knowing how headey it could be to have the home-field advantage. I and my pokemon had gotten used to it, but it had changed some things for me. Such as how Sanchez, who'd never experienced the crowd not cheering him, had been despondent when he didn't get the usual reaction from his antics.Extrinsically motivated, was the term. Sanchez did better when he had a crowd behind him. I'd also gotten used to the facilities and the way certain small changes led to differences such as the fields outside Lavender Town. The match at Goldenrod had shown me what it was like to have a crowd actively work against you before being turned at the end. If I fought there again against anyone but the home favourite I might even be the one they cheer for. That'd be neat.Still, there were a lot more matches I'd need to look into and I didn't doubt for a second there wouldn't be other niche aspects of being an Ace trainer in which I was lacking.Zek palmed his pokeball and locked eyes with Solidad. "You ain't gonna find me easy sistah!" he sneered."Good! I look forward to the challenge. Let's Go Pidgeot!" called Solidad."Bring the style! Arbok!" shouted Zek.Both pokemon emerged and I had to admit to being rather intrigued by their choices.Zek had a Roselia that had done him well last round with good use of Petal Blizzard to hide in a swirl of pink only to strike hard. The Celadon Gym had been very loud in their approval of that.Pidgeot was wearing a vest with small buckles that tightened around his stomach, playing into a biker fashion.Arbok had a form of hood jewellery with metal spikes and dangling links of metal.Both pokemon looked like they were part of the pokemon cast of Mad Max Fury Road rather than attending a contest. I just knew that somewhere in the world, a coordinator was frothing with rage."Sludge Bomb!" shouted Zek, getting the order off first. His pokemon spat wads of purple at Pidgeot only for the pokemon to deftly evade by tucking its wings and darting low."Sand Attack to form a wall then use Quick Attack!" responded Solidad, making the most of the lowered position of her pokemon to have it sweep its wings and form a wall of sand for a moment."Get ready to catch em!" said Zek, leaning forward, his eyes glinting with intent.Arbok copied him. Its tail curled behind itself and a tension built in its form.A moment later, Pidgeot shot through the sand from a different angle looking to take Arbok unawares.Arbok adjusted and matched it, shooting forward in readiness only for Pidgeot to get off the first hit. Arbok faltered despite the power of its lunge. It had broken the floor behind it with the power of its leap. It spoke well of both pokemon's training that they had been able to react like they had. Zek's points dropped away due to the missed coupled with the hit from Solidad landing.Arbok hit the ground only to twist about and lock onto the smug Pidgeot. Pidgeot began to rise for altitude but did so slowly and with its back to Arbok."Damn, use Toxic screen!" Zek called.The snake went from regathering itself to launching a wave of purple fluid over the field in an instant."Twister! Deny it!" Solidad said, and her pokemon began to spin around and around blocking the attack while forming a defensive barrier.The points that both pokemon had shifted accordingly with Solidad clearly having a lead now.Zek noticed that and cursed. "Arbok boost up! We need more speed buddy!" he said.Arbok stood and began to shine with light as what I suspected was Stockpile began, a move most notably not known for its speed boosts. Arbok sadly didn't know such a move so it was nothing but a bluff, sadly an unstylish one as well. I dropped his points a little more.I shot Solidad a look and wondered if she knew that Zek was bluffing her.She narrowed her eyes before huffing, "If you want to make it a battle of speed I shall oblige! Pidgeot build up a Tailwind!" A wind began to sweep through the arena as Pidgeot circled, faster and faster as it built up speed. The display was visually impressive at the very least and fit with the theme. You had to be tough to create, or endure a tornado after all."Now form another Twister!" called Solidad, after what had to be a full minute of both pokemon bolstering themselves even as their points trickled away.Zek clicked his tongue and pointed at Pidgeot. "Glare!" he ordered, making Arbok snap its gaze upwards and reveal shining red eyes that caused a glow to form around Pidgeot.Pidgeot stiffened and cried out in fear as its move failed. With Pidgeot startled, Zek went on the offensive. "Sludge Bomb again!" he called once more. This time Arbok rose up and shimmied as it unleashed a trio of shots. It was lacking compared to anything I'd seen from watching coordinators in the past but I had to give them credit for attempting something.This time Pidgeot was caught before it could escape. The trio of purple gunk splattered over Pidgeot.Solidad grimaced as her points dipped down and Pidgeot levelled Arbok a fierce look of its own. It was no Glare, but it promised retribution."Let's play to our strengths, Twister again before going for the finisher!" Solidad called.Pidgeot spun once again and with how turbulent the winds were a Twister was formed quickly. The Twister shot towards Arbok and Zek scowled."Fill the Twister with Poison! Fire at the base" called Zek and his Arbok followed the command perfectly unleashing a huge gout of fluid that seemed more like it had become a fire hose with how it continued to exhale noxious liquid. It landed at the base of the Twister even as it advanced on Arbok and a hiss of gas rose.I was impressed with how it turned the blue Twister purple. The inside of that Twister would be a death pit.I had to wonder if that didn't mean the energy holding it together hadn't changed from Dragon to Poison. The Twister fell apart to reveal no Pidgeot however and a moment later the missing pokemon appeared behind Arbok mid-attack.Distraction and delay before attacking from a weak point through Aerial Ace. I nodded with approval as Pidgeot slammed once more into Arbok and sent the pokemon down.Surprisingly Arbok stood even after that hit and it did so with a huge swallowing action."Ah, I see, those earlier Stockpiles," I said, awarding Zek some points to his tally for the foresight he'd had to bolster Arbok. It was keeping him in this fight. Barely, but it was still there."Arbok! Glare and Poison Sting! Aim for the wings to slow it down!" called Zek making his pokemon put Pidgeot back under pressure.Both pokemon continued to slug it out until a moment later a bell sounded and startled everyone.I blinked in surprise only to recall what it signified.Monique wasn't caught off guard however and she was the first to stand. "Time! The match is over! The winner will be determined through who has the highest points!"The crowd shot their gaze up, only to find a blank screen waiting with circling rings where we judges 'aimed' in deliberating who won. Please prepare to cheer for the victor'.Eyes turned to us just as small tablets in front of us showed Solidad's picture with a small prompt asking if we agreed with this. While she'd gone into the end with the most points, if she'd pulled something we didn't like, or all of us as judges disagreed with, we could still penalise her.I quickly ticked yes alongside Nurse Joy and Monique. Within moments Solidad's image appeared on the big screen."And the winner is Solidad!" shouted Rachel, causing a round of cheers.Archibald nodded his head in a knowing manner while Gardevoir clapped her hands with the crowd.Solidad beamed only to blanch and rush out to fix up her obviously poisoned pokemon. Hmmm Pidgeot had done well to not let the poison slow it down at the end there.I keyed the microphone once everyone had given the victor their praise and Solidad had healed up Pidgeot with an Antidote.I stood and gestured to Solidad and then to Zek. "I'd like to acknowledge both trainers—" "Coordinators", corrected Monique."—Coordinators," I said, adjusting my words to the amusement of the crowd. "I'd like to applaud both for their showing. This match is the first that has gone the distance and has showcased a lot of strengths and clever thinking. You are both wonderful… Coordinators and for the first to reach adjudication, I thought it worth mentioning. I hope to see it from many more today!" I said, hopeful that the level of skill would continue to rise.This earned another round of applause for them both and Solidad marched over to shake Zek's hand. He seemed a bit bashful at the positive attention but his friends in the crowd hooted and hollered for him like they were a gang of Primeape.He scuttled off the stage, waving and smiling. On the way up the stairs he clapped hands with his fellow Venom Pack member in Bosco. Bosco descended with a smirk on his lips while twisting a pokeball around. I noted that Mittens wasn't out and about this time.That being said, it didn't take long for her to appear as she was Bosco's to go to pick for this fight. She landed with a slight crouch and a loud cheer from one section of the stands."Gooooo! Mittens! Rock em sock em!" cried a nasally tone of voice that even without looking I could tell was Meowth from Team Rocket cheering.Across from Bosco, one of the only people to advance with the use of rock pokemon stepped forward. Jet, oddly with no home city listed now that I reviewed his notes.He had a much quieter appearance in the first round that had almost been downright bland to get him to the top eight. His opponent had chosen poorly against him, fielding an Ariados which Jet's Graveller had destroyed in seconds.Today, he stepped out without the headpiece covering his hair. He displayed a much more tribal appearance today, if anything with how he was sporting beads in his hair. With each step he took they clacked. His eyes searched through the crowd with a look of utter bewilderment as people cheered and waved at him. My own family seemed rather pleased to see him as they waved and chanted for him and his 'painted onix'.Monique cupped her chin in thought. "Seems the big guy isn't used to huge crowds," she said.I tilted my head looking Jet over. He was certainly solidly built but he was by no means what I'd call big. Then again hanging out with Surge had probably caused my sense of size to be thrown off."Hmmm," I said, not saying anything and choosing to just take a drink from a handy bottle of milk displaying Lonlon's brand. Monique was also flying Pewter's producer's flag proud but had gone for a cappuccino with the mug sporting a local cafe's name.Nurse Joy shot us a gleeful look as we both began to drink. "Think he's going to show us his rock snake?" said Nurse Joy excitedly.I coughed causing a splutter of water to fountain out. Monique snorted into her foam causing it to shoot up and leave streaks up her face like she'd gained an unusual take on make up for this match. I wiped myself up and shot Joy an annoyed look."You're off the chain," I said, causing her to giggle and nod. Apparently, if you take a Joy away from their pokemon centre duties they get to let their hair down and in our Joy's case that means she becomes a bit of a menace.When Jet released his Onix for the match Joy giggled ominously and I vowed to not touch my drink for the rest of the battle. Monique ignored Joy and I's banter as she opened a clutch purse to get a mirror. "Hmmm, this isn't bad… not great but there's some potential here," she murmured as she fixed her make up from having four eyebrows to just two with deft swipes of her hand."Begin!" shouted Rachel to get the battle between Jet and Bosco underway.I looked up to find Onix facing off against Mittens the Persian and I felt a moment of deja vu.Bosco grinned, his huge hairy arms crossed over his chest as Jet smirked like he'd already won."Ha! A normal type won't do well against a rock type! Onix! Shake up the field and spike a rock as your follow up!"Onix raised its giant tail, all along it's depictions of people and pokemon wove themselves across the tail making for a mesmerising pattern. It was an interesting addition that we'd seen during the 'performance' but now we saw it in play during the battle phase and I realised there was a slight hypnotic effect to it. A quick glance at Mittens showed that she was tracking the tail instead of moving like Bosco was ordering her to do.Was this like an item effect? Lulling your opponent into a hypnosis-like state only to allow you the first move?" If you weren't careful the pattern itself would lower your guard.Thoughts of this interesting adaptation to battling was tossed aside as the tail struck the ground causing a huge rumble and for Mittens to be thrown about with a small shriek.Rocks shot up into the air due to the power of the attack and Onix grinned as the tail raised once more before slapping them down.Earthquake into Rock Throw, not bad. It had style certainly.Mittens didn't let a little shaken earth disrupt beyond an initial toss however and she accelerated into a blur shooting around the oncoming rocks. Bending, twisting and dancing with an amazing display of grace. At one point she even stopped to lick her front paw nonchalantly.I considered it a rather marvellous flex at first before realising that it was actually Taunt.I awarded Bosco a few points for that and watched as he baited Onix into continually trying to crush Mittens only for Mittens to gain more and more control of the match.Mittens dodged and began delivering Screech after Screech to soften up Onix without taking any more damage herself.Jet seemed to cotton on that something was going on here and went for another Earthquake only for Mittens to leap up and fall on a rock that shot into the air.There was a moment of stunned surprise as Mittens and the Onix locked gazes on an even level for the first time in this match.Then before anyone could realise how it had happened, Mittens was on Onix's face slashing Metal Claw after Metal Claw into the stunned Onix.Bosco grinned as Mittens landed lightly. Onix toppled with a mighty groan. "I saw a cool cat do this earlier in the year!" He then shot out a victory sign. "We built our own method based on that!""Oh, Arceus she's seen my figh—" a hysterical voice was cut off as the crowd rose to cheer out the impressive Battle Out win.With that Bosco and his team of pokemon advanced yet again. I watched Jet frown at his pokemon. He returned it after a moment and offered Bosco a firm nod before stalking off without a backward glance. I made a mental note to seek him out, that paint job on his pokemon had been an interesting piece before but now it offered a potential advantage I'd never seen before.I glanced over to Sabrina and found her staring at me. She nodded, and I felt a connection as I pulled in my dark energy as close as possible. 'The body art for his Onix?' I thought to myself.'Yes it was much more than it see—' the connection faltered a little '—Mittens was entranced at the beginning of the match, allowing Onix the first move despite being slower.'I nodded. I'd have to seek Jet out later and have a chat with him. I was already interested in him due to his apparent interest in the Crusher Tribe. He must be a history buff of some sort. I nodded to Sabrina and shot her a blown kiss before turning my gaze back to our coordinators. Bosco was making his way off the stage having enjoyed a 'victory lap' so to speak with Mittens at his side.This time Meowth didn't approach his newest crush. I suspected he was too embarrassed knowing she'd watched his fight and approved his methods of taking down my Onix. I chuckled."What's funny?" asked Nurse Joy."Oh, just that I remember the match Bosco is talking about, I don't think he realised he just complimented his opponent Jessie though.""Oh?" Nurse Joy frowned and looked over the remaining trainers. "Jessadia you mean?"I coughed and nodded. "Yup, her," I said. "She used Meowth like that earlier in the year against me and my Onix," I said."Hmmmm, they'll face each other if she advances," commented Nurse Joy. she then gained a coy smile and I knew where she was going."My Onix is fine, and she's only going to advance if she can beat Greta," I said. Joy tsked at the missed chance to tease me and I rolled my eyes while Monique lowered her drink, having raised it. Hmmm, it seemed Joy was trying to get her again."And now! Introducing the Pewter preppie! The last hope for the Gym! But also the youngest coordinator to make it this far! We have our girl! Grrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeta Green!" shouted Rachel.I shot Greta a thumbs-up as she marched down the stairs as Jessie matched her on the other side. Jessie shot me a worried look and I gave her a firm look before nodding and gesturing a hand that she was safe.Jessie blinked and tilted her head. I rolled my eyes, waving her off. Monique and Joy shot me looks, aware of the by play but I didn't say anything.I wasn't going to get in Jessie's way here. I wanted her to keep trying her hand at legitimate trainer experiences and she wouldn't get that if I hindered her on something she was actually rather good at.I eyed the long skirt she was wearing today and the long chains she had around her forearms. It looked like she'd gotten some of her old biker gear out of the closet.Greta on the other hand had gotten a jacket that showcased thorns rather than flowers. It was a nice twist. For both of them it showed they'd grown from yesterday's pointers about actually putting in an effort for themselves and not just their pokemon.Greta and Jessie locked eyes and I smiled. This was a better match-up than what might have happened if they'd encountered each other at the start of the circuit with Greta having some more confidence after beating Crystal."Go Bulbasaur!" Bulbasaur matched his trainer with some painted on thorny vines that wrapped around his legs."Go Mawile!" Jessie's pokemon on the other hand had her bangs sticking up in a V in what she must have thought was a fierce style with the tiny biker jacket she wore. The hair reminded me more of another world's greatest superhero."I am here," I whispered as Mawile growled at Bulbasaur. My words were lost among the stirring of the crowd.This time Archibald called the start. "Begin!""Fairy Wind and go on the attack!" Jessie shouted, punching forward.Mawile twirled once and looked like it was about to break into a full dance routine only to kick off its leg and launch itself forward to hurtle towards Bulbasaur with a glittering wind buying it forth.Bulbasaur wasn't caught unaware however and seemed ready with Vine Whip already deployed."Leap!" Greta called, sending her pokemon up into the air and adroitly dodging the Sucker Punch which should have landed.Mawile glowered up at Bulbasaur only to begin to spin up another Fairy Wind."Sleep Powder!" Greta responded, making Bulbasaur turn into a crop duster as he fell to the ground. Fairy Wind caused the Sleep powder to spread about and while Bulbasaur took some damage the light attack wasn't enough to put Bulbasaur out."Cheer routine!" Jessie called, and Mawile began to flip and shimmy like she was a cheer girl.Greta scowled wondering what the trick was before twitching as she realised she was falling for the distraction and being pulled into Jessie's tempo."Shine combination!" She countered, as Bulbasaur twisted with vines shooting out and an orb of flame built up behind Bulbasaur before rising up. With how the vines rose with the Sunny Day it looked like Bulbasaur was lifting the sun.Or perhaps…"Praise the sun?" I said under my breath.Joy who was close enough to hear me pinched me. "Stop distracting me," she muttered, her eyes locked on the match.I started to look away to Jessie only to frown as I noticed something else building up right where the tips of Bulbasaur's vines were overlapping the fiery orb.At that moment Mawile performed an impressive flip that carried her over the blighted and glittering ground that might cause her to fall asleep. As she flipped, the horn on the back of her head opened to reveal a drooling maw.Bulbasaur twitched in fear and the action caused the vines to spasm.A moment later an orb of energy shot down and slammed into the ground, just missing Mawile as she advanced."Hmmm a hidden Energy Ball, clever that," I said. I was rather sad as I deducted Greta's points for the failed moveset. That would have been a strong combination if she'd gotten it off."Jessadia's routine with her pokemon was distracting for a reason it would seem," said Monique. She hid the Astonish rather well and lulled her opponent into a false sense of security.""She's playing to her pokemon's strengths," said Nurse Joy with a giggle.With both pokemon in suddenly much closer range Bulbasaur raised his vines like a kung fu master while Mawile smiled innocently and began to twirl about."Whirlie top!" called Greta. This time Bulbasaur didn't seek to evade but instead whirled his vines around as Sleep Powder disgorged from his bulb. The vines whipped the powder out only for the vines to also act like spinning lashes.Mawile once again kicked hard off the ground and went low to the ground with a mischievous look on her face as she slammed a Sucker Punch home.Bulbasaur tumbled backwards only to slam his vines into the ground in defiance while Mawile skipped back and forth.The sleep powder Bulbasaur had sent out began to descend only for Jessie to sweep her hand and Mawile to swing her head and send out another Fairy Wind to disrupt it, sending yet another splash of glittering powder to the side and away from where it would threaten her.Bulbasaur snarled in annoyance and grit his teeth. "Hang in there Bulbasaur I know we can do this!" cheered Greta, causing me to smile as Bulbasur took a single firm step forward aggressively. He obviously heard and believed in Greta's belief which I was glad to be able to witness.They'd need to— whatever thoughts I had were cut off as Bulbasaur growled deeply only to surprise us as he began to shine.I whistled. "I hadn't been expecting this," I said, as Bulbasaur shone with the light of evolution. A moment later a much larger Ivysaur stood proudly."Saur!" he roared.Greta squealed with happiness and punched her fist forward. "Quick make use of your stronger bulb with its leaves! Go for Razor Leaf with a Vine Whip assist!" she called.Leaves whipped out of Ivysaur's side only to be caught at the base by the tips of the vines. Ivysaur then began spinning his vines, causing the leaves to begin rotating faster and faster. Reminding me of a trick plate spinner only the 'plates' in question were much more deadly.I whistled impressed at this combination. Now this was something I'd never seen before. Mawile stared in shock at the display and Jessie was caught by surprise as well as she gaped."Get ready to dodge!" Jessie said, moments later as she shook off her surprise.Greta grinned as Mawile crouched in readiness. "Fire!" she bellowed, and Ivysaur snapped his vines forward causing the Razor Leaves to shoot forward.Mawile flinched and was about to jump only for Jessie to scream. "DUCK!" and Mawile did just that, trusting her trainer.The call proved to be almost perfect as Mawile, instead of jumping into the attack dropped under the leaves as they buzzed above her clipping off some hair from Mawile's left most bang, causing it to fall to the ground."Damn, needs some work," I said, as I deducted more points from Greta for the miss.I could see the entire cadre of Celadon on their feet staring in shock at the fight going on. More than a few had their transceivers raised and were recording the match now."While she's down! Keep up the attack with an Energy Ball!" called Greta. Ivysaur grunted and unleashed another attack only for Mawile to flip over herself as Jessie called for the dodge. When the cut flap of bang on the left side flapped down sadly Mawile noticed the 'damage' she'd taken and shrieked in anger glaring at Ivysaur who met her gaze unashamedly."Charge in!" called Jessie, deciding to make the most of Mawile's anger. The little pokemon blitzed forward."Crush it with Vine Whip!" called Greta.Twin vines rose and slammed down only for Mawile to dance between them. "Like a jump rope!" called Jessie.Little Mawile skipped and shimmied through the lashing vines to get right in front of Ivysaur with a feral grin on her face."Go! Iron Head!" Jessie ordered, and Mawile had no issues slamming first her small forehead into Ivysaur only to continue to roll forward and whip her much larger horn around, also glowing with Steel type energy to slam into Ivysaur.The hit was enough to send him sprawling and he couldn't gather the energy to get his feet underneath him.Greta sighed but didn't slump as she raised her pokeball and recalled Ivysaur, not needing to wait for the call of 'Battle Out' from us. Before any announcement for Jessie could be called however the crowd rose to their feet and roared their approval for the match they'd just witnessed. I and the other judges joined them."What did we just witness?" shouted Archibald in shock."Greta Green turning up and turning heads despite going down! Jessie and her Mawhile have the moves though and they're going to be the ones to advance! Wow!""Gadrevoir!" called Gardevoir as she mimed punching a few times and snorting through her nose as though the fight had pumped her up.As the applause died off the Celadon girls cupped their hands over their mouths and shouted. "Greta! That was amazing!" We love you!" "Join our Gym!"Greta and Jessie seemed caught off guard with the surge of support and I chuckled as Greta gained a red face at the Celadon's attempts to poach her. When Greta shot me a look I shot her a double thumbs up."Thank you but I like it here!" called Greta bowing in apology to the girls before scuttling over to shake Jessie's hand. Jessie dragged her in for a hug and reignited the crowd in another round of cheers. Greta broke off with a grin, taking Jessie's hand in hers and raising it up.I chuckled. I might not have been teaching her as much as I liked but it certainly seemed like Greta had been learning and growing. When Greta broke off to rejoin Crystal and Yolanda she gave her starter's pokeball, now containing an Ivysaur, a huge grin and a whispered compliment.She seemed pleased and I had to agree with her, getting her pokemon to evolve had been a good result from taking part in this contest. She'd need to adjust to Ivysaur's differences over the much smaller lighter Bulbasaur but I had no doubts about that. And that Razor Leaf adjustment? Damn! That was good. She'd once again demonstrated that if she wanted to be, she could have easily been throwing down with Ash and Gary this year.It would probably be time to unleash her on some other Gyms. Cerulean first and then perhaps… Kong in Saffron? He deserved some attention. In fact… Maybe I might unleash her on Goldenrod when we went there next.I rather liked the sound of that.Vinny's match to close out the round of eight was almost an afterthought with how he blitzed his opponent with Gusts that his foe wasn't able to tough out.Everyone's eyes turned towards the next series of matches showing up on the big screen.They were; Bosco against Solidad, while Jessie got to fight against Vinny.I rose with the other judges as a small intermission was called before we got into the semifinals. I considered for a second chasing after Jet before deciding he could wait.I instead marched over to Greta to give her some well-earned praise.193"So what are you going to call your new move?" I asked when I was done seriously congratulating Greta on her performance.Greta, as she'd been doing since the end of the match it seemed, continued to blush. "I don't really know, I honestly just thought the move up on the fly," she said.I whistled. "You realise that only makes it even more impressive if you can have Bulb… I mean Ivysaur to whip it out like that," I said. Great flashed me a look only for a softer voice to intrude."You also have to consider that Ivysaur would have been adjusting to his body having just evolved."Greta, Yolanda, Crystal and I turned to find Erika approaching at the lead of the Celadon cadre. If this was a model catwalk they'd be getting very… I glanced around and noticed more than a few people had stopped to stare at the beautiful young lasses and ladies sauntered up to us. More than a few boyfriends suddenly found themselves in hot water.Amusingly Rachel and Trixie were both staring and shot each other looks before giggling to each other.The soft crunch of popcorn made me stop and look behind Yolanda to find Sabrina, Ralts and Janine watching the show with a bucket of popcorn. When had they— ah that's a pointless question.I turned back to Erika and smiled. "Think she'll get better with that move when Ivysaur gets used to his new strength?"Erika nodded, her group fanning out around her. "Indeed, Ivysaur will be much more accurate with his new combination move in the future I should assume." She tilted her head and offered a smile with just the softest traces of teasing in it. "So, what will you call this move?" she said.Greta coughed. "The…" her eyes darted around and landed on the group of Geodudes and Gravelers that Dennis and Rocko had performing juggling tricks during the intermission. "Twirl out?" she said.I turned away, holding in the laughter that threatened to bubble out.Yolanda shot her friend a bemused look while Crystal tilted her head. Erika merely nodded and clapped her hands. "The twirl out, a wonderful name," she said, without missing a beat. "I shall have to pay homage to you when I use it with my own pokemon. I have to admit that I'm rather looking forward to showing my pokemon the clips from today's match!"Greta stared, "You''re going to use my move?" she said, her voice pitching into a small shriek of elation… and what sounded like a little terror.I clapped her on the back. "It was a powerful move," I confirmed, bringing up the clips on my Xtransicever and showing that while it had missed, the resultant hit to the barriers had dipped them into the yellow signalling a powerful attack."May I formally request—" Erika began to say only for me to wave my hand easily. "Sure thing, I'll send you the clip of the fight now," I said.Erika paused and nodded. "Well thank you…" she then fidgeted with her dress before straightening. "Well this is somewhat awkward, but I think I must formally ask," she said as she shot me an apologetic look."Greta Green, you showcase admirable talent, I understand that you're currently operating as a Gym trainer for Brock but I was wondering if you might be interested in expanding your understanding of pokemon with Grass types in particular! I'd like to extend—""I'm happy here!" said Greta so quickly that she cut off Erika's pitch. The soft crunch of a trio of people and pokemon enjoying the show sounded out as background noise.I coughed in amusement, a small smile tugging at my lips. Sabrina, no, not now, I thought in her general direction. A larger crunch of popcorn had both myself and Erika twitching.I decided to forge ahead. "Greta, you should seriously consider it, I think it might be a great offer for you… in the future," I said, adding the last part quickly as her face began to drop.Greta and Erika blinked, turning to me like I was a source of light and they Sunflora. "What do you mean?" asked Erika politely.I crossed my arms and stood tall. "Greta, is one of the smartest trainers I've had the pleasure of housing. I've given her access to a variety of lessons and information, even offhandedly she's absorbed more than I ever expected.""But!" I raised a single finger. "I know I can teach her more, when she reaches the point that I have nothing more to teach her, I will inform her of such. That said, I would love for her to experience different situations and learning environments. So, perhaps in the future, she might examine your offer, if that's alright for you?" I said, offering her an open hand.Erika beamed at me. "That sounds wonderful, I'd love to host such talent!" she said.I smiled back as Greta shot her head from me to Erika before smiling giddily. I looked past her at Yolanda and Crystal. "While you're at it you may as well scoop up her friends as well," I said tugging the girls close.The trio, now standing before the cadre of Celadon, found themselves being assessed. Terra, in her customary position of being held by Yolanda sniffed at the girls only to sneeze loudly. "Tar! Larvitar!" she said.Erika glanced at the little Larvitar. "You would be happy with me looking over your… sister?" she said. For a second there I was sure she was going to say something else but I waved the thought away."Yup," it's important to not just learn your own typing but also how to handle the weaknesses. Grass types are one of our Gym's strongest weaknesses and Yolanda getting some time to wrap her head around that would be good," I explained.I clapped her and Crtstal on the shoulders. "That being said, it would have to be on the weekends this year as they still attend school."Crystal gained a slightly forced look of innocence that made me raise an eyebrow while Yolanda shot her friend a smirk. Hmmm, was she skipping? I decided to prod Crystal slightly. "Of course, if we get clearance from their teachers they might get extra days," I said, alluding to how Yolanda got to spend so long at the Gym.Crystal twitched and I hid a smirk while Erika held in a giggle, as she read the situation just as well as I had. She nodded to me. "I'm sure the girls would be welcome additions," she said easily.Crystal smirked. "Heh, A.J. misses out," she said.I hummed. "I might ask another to look after A.J. I don't think… he'd fit in too well with the tea parties and calm atmosphere of Celadon.""I don't know he might look good in a dress," suggested Yolanda with a smirk.I snorted only for Erika to smile. "Speaking of boys wearing dresses, want to see your brother and his friends?"Yolanda gasped, her head bouncing up and down so fast I worried for a moment she'd concuss herself.Erika raised her transceiver and showed off a series of pictures from a few months ago. In it, Misty was shown with a gigantic smile on her face while on either side of her Ash, and Forrest were wearing dresses, atomic blushes on display while a few ladies posed around them.I chuckled for a moment only for a bell tone to ring out, announcing that the intermission would end in another five minutes. "Ah, I need to see a man about a Ponyta," I said as I dashed towards the bathroom.I doubted I'd be fast enough to finish this and grab a snack but thankfully I had an assistant for the snacks. Still, I was sad I had missed out on the chance to talk to Jet. After this intermission, there were only three more matches before we wrapped up the contest."What does that mean?" asked Erika. Behind me, I heard the girls murmuring in confusion.Yolanda sighed. "My brother has weird sayings," she said.I nodded in thanks as Alexa deposited a hotdog and a soda in front of me. "Thanks for that, and have you gotten Titan geared up for the surprise?" I asked her.Alexa shot me a thumbs up and I grinned. Joy and Monique glanced at me. "Surprise?" They asked.I just smiled enigmatically. "Just something I cooked up 'cause I wanted things to end with a bang," I said before smiling winningly.Monique frowned. "Brock, it's your Gym and your Contest so I hope you know what you're doing," she said sternly.I just smiled. "Don't worry it's something I had planned out a while back and have practised, trust me it'll be good."Monique grumbled at this for a while but eventually turned her attention back to the stage where Jessie and Vinny were being called up.Jessie strode forth with her head held high and a glint in her eyes as the chains, which had multiplied since the last time she'd been on stage, clinked together with each step. Vinny on the other hand remained the same. He noticed that Jessie had gone for an upgrade to her wardrobe while he'd remained the same. He twitched while glancing towards us, only to chew his lip and duck behind a partition where the sound of ripping occurred.I facepalmed as he emerged without the sleeves of his shirt. Yes, it did make him look slightly tougher and could, if you squinted, count as a wardrobe change but it was just… "I feel like I should deduct a point?" I said aloud.Joy snorted in amusement while Monique seemed to seriously contemplate the idea. "He is rather crude with his method," she said, before sighing and shaking her head.Jessie grinned maliciously looking like she had this in the bag while Vinny coughed and enlarged his pokeball, straightening up as he did so. Ah, it was just pre-match nerves. Perhaps Vinny was one of those people who got too trapped in their heads only to settle down when the fight started.I nodded, yeah that made sense.Joy pinched me to get me to focus as both trainers sent out their pokemon for the match."Go! Swellow!" announced Vinny as he sent out his powerhouse once again."Let's go Tentacruel!" shouted Jessie.I frowned and more than a few people broke into whispers causing Jessie to look around. "What? Never seen the true boss of the sea before?" she said. Tentacruel perked up at her words and wiggled some tentacles happily.Joy opened her mouth and I preemptively pinched the bridge of my nose. "She's tentacruel girl? It figures," she said with a smirk.I exhaled with a laugh before turning my head to Monique. "Is her choice of a third pokemon valid? I thought they could only use two?" I said, recalling what I'd seen from Hoenn matches I'd watched.Before Monique could answer Archibald keyed his microphone, "It seems an explanation is in order. In the Hoenn Contest scene, it is standard practice for only two pokemon to be allowed with trade between matches allowed. I know there are some debates about allowing trade out but that is beside the point."Archibald thumped his fist on the desk in front of him causing Rachel to twitch in surprise while Gardevoir shot her companion bedroom eyes at the show of force. "This is Kanto! Not Hoenn! In Kanto you can use whatever pokemon you want each round!" he shouted passionately.Rachel adjusted her microphone, having fallen back in shock. "W-well said!" she said, supporting her cohost quickly."Garde~" said Gardevoir as she leaned into Archibald and wiggled happily. "Voir~."Archibald coughed and a blush flooded across his face. "Yes yes, of course, my dear but not here," he murmured. A quick sign to Rachel had her hitting a button to stop Archibald from projecting any details about what was going to happen later. We were trying to keep this event PG after all.I turned away from the whispering pair of shot callers and looked to the stage where Jessie was grinning. "You were expecting my Arbok weren't you? Well! I'm not just a beautiful woman! I'm also smart enough to read the Kanto rulebook!" she said, as she whipped out a gigantic book from a pouch at her side.Joy leaned towards me. "Did you read that?""No, did you?" I whispered back. Joy shook her head and Monique sighed, alerting us that we hadn't been as subtle as we hoped."Begin!" called Rachel, causing the pre-match banter to end and for Jessie and Vinny to make their moves."Ascend with Tailwind! Blow them back while rising!" called Vinny. Swellow beat its wings and summoned what felt like typhoon winds that buffeted us judges.On the other side, Jessie snapped her hand forth having gotten off the mark slower. "Use Poison Jab to hold your ground and get a grip on the ground around you!" she called.I leaned forward as my fighting experience warned me that something else was going on here.Vinny narrowed his eyes as his attack failed to do anything while Jessie claimed the ground around her pokemon with it turning a dark purple that she'd be able to use in some form."Come in hard with Aerial Ace!" Vinny called and his pokemon tucked its wings and plummeted hard."Swift," countered Jessie and around her pokemon stars began to form before launching. The inescapable attack shot forth and Swellow found itself peppered even after it flickered into the signature Aerial Ace dodge that led to Swellow ramming into Tentacruel from the side.Tentacruel bobbled to the side only for the stars that were still in play, to come about and race straight at the Swellow.Jessie smirked and I leaned forward in anticipation. "Water Pulse," she called, and instead of firing from Tentacruel's mouth as I'd expected, Tentacruel unleashed the attack from underneath the ground causing it to erupt and a section of the hardened rock stage was launched into Swellow's back."Ha! Just because Tentacruel is water-poison doesn't mean we can't make use of the stage!" shouted Jessie fiercely as the rock closed."Hmpf, so it seems, ignore Swift and use Reversal," said Viinny. Swellow nodded and snapped its wings arching itself over and around so that it stabbed back into the boulder with a beak blazing with orange-brown fighting-type energy.The boulder detonated and shot back at Tentacruel like a shotgun being fired off.I hurried to award and remove points as both Jessie and Vinny traded blows back and forth either each other a grin forming on my face as they duked it out. While Vinny had been a terrible match-up for Yolanda, Jessie was strong and experienced enough to match him."Tch! You're forcing my hand Jessie!" called Vinny. He punched a fist and growled out his next words as a chill ran up my spine. "Giga Impact!"Swellow locked its gaze on Tentacruel and snarled as it snapped its wings, once, twice, and then a third and final time before it became a streaking meteor."What? No use, go for Poison Jab!" called Jessie. Tentacruel loyally raised its tentacles and launched them forward with purple energy glinting on the tips only for Swellow to bull through and slam an extremely powerful blow into Tentacruel.A shockwave swept the field and it took a moment for everyone to see through the dust. I wasn't surprised to find Tentacruel out cold but I was to find that Swellow was struggling.Apparently, Jessie, while losing the match hadn't gone down without making Vinny pay to advance. Swellow looked worn down and I doubted he'd be able to use it for the next match.I had to give Jessie props when she dragged the fight out against Vinny, sadly his stronger pokemon and greater experience shone through.Which left just Bosco and Solidad to face off.… after the stage got fixed up.A small avalanche of Graveler and Geodude rolled out from the medbay and up onto the stage with Sanchez bringing up the rear. I chuckled at the small yellow helmet Sanchez had found and he happily strutted around on the stage pointing out the various points of damage. He even approached Gardevoir to talk with her only for Archibald to shoo him away.When the stage was fixed Sanchez gave it a look over before tweaking his moustache and shooting me a thumbs-up. "Go lem!" he called, and the avalanche of pokemon all rolled off the field quickly.With that done, Rachel stood."And in this corner! The rose of Pewter with her thorns bared! Let's cheer on Solidad!" announced Rachel even as "And who should she face but the brute with a brain Bosco!"Bosco raised his hands like a pro wrestler and grinned, showing he rather liked the title Rachel had dubbed him with. She must have spoken with him during the downtime.Both of them locked eyes and readied themselves. "Begin!" shouted Rachel.Both of them tossed out their pokemon with Solidad sending out her Pidgeot once again. Bosco however sent out a Machamp making me wince in sympathy.Bad match-up.Solidad perked up only for Bosco to throw out a punch and bark, "Style time! Show off with a Wide Guard!" Machamp shot its arms out wide to form an X while stomping. Around it an X of boulders shot up forming a pseudo fortress that reached Machamp's chest height.I hummed and laced my fingers. The brainy brute indeed, Bosco had strategies to counter his type disadvantage and now it was Solidad grimacing."Feather Dance into Aerial Ace!" she called, causing a cascade of feathers to puff out of Pidgeot and drift about the stage only to fall atop Machamp who grimaced and drooped slightly."Rotate and raise your hand for Thunderpunch" barked Bosco. "An arm an entry point liaise practised!" he called, and Machamp turned so that at least one arm was pointed straight down the narrowing passageway.Solidad grinned and I knew what she was going to try.Pidgeot shot forward and streaked along the ground coming in low and lining itself up right at Machamp's face. It came on fast and Machamp lashed out with the lower left hand only for Pidgeot to vanish in a blur of speed.Pidgeot then appeared behind Machamp with talons outstretched. I hummed, not what I thought was going to happen.Machamp stumbled but one hand still shot out and locked onto Pidgeot by the tailfeathers causing an indignant squawk. Then it turned to a cry of pain as Machamp lit Pidgeot up.Both pokemon took super effective damage and I leaned forward expecting one of them to drop.Both faltered for a moment, only to correct themselves and swivel to lock eyes. Machamp and Pidgeot were both worn out but willing to keep fighting."Rest!" "Rest!" called both of them together causing them to blink in surprise and a murmur to break out among the crowd.Bosco grinned, however. "Sleep Talk!" he called, and a moment later the sleeping Machamp dashed forward, arms flopping as it did so mid-snore to throw itself at the sleeping Pidgeot with what had to be Strength.Pidgeot was knocked back and Machamp fumbled the landing. I shook my head and penalised both of the lack of style. Solidad glanced at her pokemon only to sigh when she saw Pidgeot hadn't woken up from that."Ma champ?" called Machamp as it blinked awake. Bosco punched the air."Yes! Nice going buddy! Finish it off with Thunderpunch!"This time Machamp attacked with intent and the powerful electric move knocked Pidgeot out of the fight despite the debuff Solidad had gotten off earlier."Rough match," I said, my eyes turning towards the slowly crumbling Wide Guard Bosco had used earlier in the match.Monique shook her head. "There was an obvious avenue for attack that she should have exploited!"I smirked and eyed the Machamp. "Yeah, obvious," I said, a suspicion forming in my mind. When Monique shot me a look I just waved a hand to indicate I had nothing more to say.Bosco happily shot both fists into the air. "HO HA! We're going all the way Machamp It's brute time!" he roared, much to the crowd's amusement. He then marched over and thanked Solidad for the tough-fought spectacle."Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your patience! Before the finale we have to get the rankings for the top four! So without further adieu can you please give it up for Solidad and Jessie to make their final match to decide third place?"Soledad strode out having expected this but Jessie floundered as she had to push her way through the crowd and to the stairs for her own return to the stage, having not known this was coming.Jessie was obviously still reeling from her defeat against Vinny, in my opinion, but she seemed willing to try her best. When she shot me a hesitant look I gave her a supportive nod."Coordinators! Show us your style! Begin!" called Archibald."Go Mawile!" shouted Jessie, only for Solidad to counter with Lapras.The tiny fairy-type pokemon glowered up at the much larger water-ice pokemon."Mawile char—" Jessie started to say only for Solidad to go on the offensive straight away. "Blizzard! control the field!"Mawile suddenly found herself having to cover a lot of ground while giant icicles rained down. I grimaced as Jessie floundered instead of getting her little pokemon to hop skip and jump around like I was expecting.Mawile ended up getting frozen and taken out far too quickly while Jessie failed to find her footing."Battle out!" called Monique this time, ending the match for Jessie who slumped and recalled her pokemon.I made a point to stand and give them both applause leading the crowd in praising them. "Have to give it to you two ladies, you've demonstrated a lot of tough spirit today and I want to thank you both. Jess…adia," I said, making sure to use her fake name. "I know this is your first-ever Contest and I think this is something you should continue to look into, you've got some latent talent that's for sure. Solidad, thank you for showing a lot of young people what you can achieve as an experienced Coordinator."Jessie smiled tentatively at the praise and I waved for her to come close. She did so with a quick glance up towards where her teammates were."Hey, don't go anywhere after the final match alright? I'd like to talk to you and your friends," I said, an idea slowly forming in my head about what I could do with the Team Rocket trio.Jessie nodded and fidgeted, giving off the impression that she very much would not be sticking around. I sighed and rolled my eyes. "There's going to be a free meal and get-together with all the trainers that made it to the top sixteen.""Oh! Well sure we'll stick around!" she said, losing all hints of reluctance immediately.I huffed, shaking my head as I waved her away. Nurse Joy shot me a questioning look but I ignored her.I had one more contest match to observe and it wasn't who I'd first expected in the finals but I was also glad for the surprise.Bosco versus Vinny. The Venom pack brute against the Hoenn flying type specialist.Bosco once more marched down the stairs and he took great pleasure having the backing of the crowd as he dashed down the stairs hands out wide to slap his hands against others who cheered at his passing."Here comes the boulder! The brute with a brain! Bosco!" called Rachel.Next to her, Gradevoir waved a small flag with Bosco's face cartoonishly drawn on it. I had to wonder where she'd gotten those from before spotting Georgina handing them out.Vinny came out much more sedately and he grinned towards Bosco as he pretended to box towards Vinny. "So? Ready for your cat to feel my pokemon's talons?" he taunted.Bosco narrowed his eyes before snorting. "Puh-lease! You ain't worth me sending Mittens out for!" he said, as he palmed a pokeball."Begin!" called Rachel, and both Bosco and Vinny sent out their pokemon.Vinny sent out Pidgeotto this time with a faint grimace. Jessie's match had drained Swellow too much to send it out one last time. I was surprised he hadn't chosen another pokemon but then again that might be his Hoenn sensibilities playing up on him.The Pidgeotto swept its wings and caused a loud thoom to boom across the stadium.Bosco surprised me again by sending Machamp instead of his Persian back out."Wide Guard X formation!" called Bosco, once again getting his pokemon to form an X formation of boulders around itself instantly."Oh? Bold of you to think I'm not wise to your tricks!" Vinny called. "Pidgeotto! Agility into Brave Bird! We're ending this!" he called out confidently.Pidgeotto glowed for a moment before tucking its wings and plummeting down. Like a bird in pursuit of its prey, it locked eyes onto Machamp who raised its now sparking up hands.Pdigeotto shot in low and hard only to slam its wings into the ground and shoot up and out of the narrow confine.Next to me Monique nodded and sighed but I leaned forward ready for what I thought was to come.Pidgeotto rose up and tucked a wing to barrel roll and forcing it to twist through the air. From there it dropped straight down all while maintaining its speed. Its aerial acrobatics allowed it to approach from directly overhead.Pidgeotto lunged with talons glowing with flying energy."Clap," said Bosco just before Pidgeotto hit.Machamp who must have been awaiting this very command, flexed and slammed its hands together above his head like the jaws of a metal Ursaring trap.Pidgeotto went from just about to win, to caught as Machamp's hands slammed together hammering the Pidgeotto.Pidgeotto was caught in the grip of the powerful Machamp.Pidgeotto had a moment to give Machamp a look of disbelief before it fainted as a current of lightning arced through its body, ending the match in one exchange.Vinny could only gape in shock. He'd wanted this match won in one pass, and it had been, just with him not as the victor.I shook my head and watched Vinny withdraw his pokemon. Coming from above seemed like the easy answer to Bosco's defense, but it was just that, the easy, obvious answer that was in fact a trap."How? That?! What even was that?!" Vinny shouted, waving a hand towards Bosco."Sword catching," I said, toggling the microphone, "He's like one of the old Samurai of Johto that when disarmed would catch their opponent's weapon between their palms."That's a myth! It's impossible!" said Vinny."No," I replied. "It's not a myth or impossible, it is just extremely difficult and requires a high degree of skill," I said. I shot Bosco a smirk. "Setting the field helps, I should imagine."Bosco rubbed the back of his head. "Ah shucks Gym Leader Brock you're gonna make me blush!" he said.I shook my head and glanced at my fellow judges. "Any complaints?"They shook their heads and I stood and raised a hand towards Bosco. "I hereby declare the winner of the inaugural Pewter Contest to be Bosco!"On the big screen, Bosco along with his Persian and Machamp were put on display causing a round of applause to ring through the stadium. When it was time to award prizes the top three placeholders each received a small token with Bosco earning the inaugural Pewter Gym Contest Ribbon."Oh! This is pretty!" he said, as I handed him a ribbon which was a sandstone with granite lines through it that glittered. In the middle, a pink diamond shone and I smiled as he attached it to his Persian's collar while Machamp posed.Bosco then shot the crowd a huge v for victory. I shot Solidad a look only to find her happily smiling.With the Contest officially over, I had Rachel ask the crowd to remain for a final event. "Ladies. Gentlemen! Pokemon of all ages! Thank you for your attention today! We've had a great two days and to thank you for coming, Brock has arranged a special showcase!""Brock? Is this your surprise?" Monique whispered only for me to stand, ignoring her as I stood raising up one hand. I snapped my fingers while channelling rock energy to make the snap echo through the Gym getting everyone's attention and making a lot of people fall silent.To the side of the judging panel, a set of huge doors swung open and a beam of light shone out causing people to stir, as they realised that something was coming.I tapped on my headset. "I want to apologise to Bosco for possibly stealing a bit of his thunder with his amazing performance. To make it up to him, I hope he can take over my role as judge?" Judges trading out with the winning coordinator wasn't how things worked.It wasn't how things worked anywhere else, but I wanted to have some fun after spending the last two days simply watching.Bosco's eyes lit up and he trooped up to grab the headset I offered him before marching over to the judging panel with Mittens and Machamp claiming spots at the table as well, much to Nurse Joy's amusement. Monique had a fixed expression but I soldered on. I knew people would like what I had planned.I raised my hand and snapped my fingers again. This time the speakers began to thrum as an electric guitar heralded the start of a rock song. Then a thump swept through the gym as something big began to move and the light faded as a shadow began to form.People stirred and I grinned as with each step a mini quake followed, people leaned further and further forward as more and more of the shape resolved itself.The first thing that started to form out of the lights was the spikes. All over the giant body spikes protruded.With each step, the shape resolved itself into that of Titan, my starter.The crowd gasped as they noted that Titan was wearing a black jacket with metal spikes. On his face, huge red glasses had been specially crafted just for Titan.I'd taken inspiration from my past life and anime. Kamina's red sunglasses just worked too well.I stepped onto the stage and this time it was Titan's turn to leap. He soared like a rock, heavy and huge before landing and rocking the stage. I bent my knees and grinned."And for his dance partner?" Rachel said, standing and planting one foot atop the table. "Who else!? But the Mistress of Psychic Might! SAAAAAAAABRIIIIIIINNNAA!"Across from me, Sabrina teleported in with Alakazam in position. I grinned eagerly. This was going to be more showy than our usual fights but that didn't mean I hadn't been looking forward to this."HOOOOOOOO! We got ourselves a throwdown!" cheered Bosco into his headset getting well and truly into his role and then some as he started waving the ten paddle around.I grinned at Sabrina who'd chosen to wear the outfit she'd worn when fighting against Will, on her hand the Keystone glinted brightly and more than a few people connected the dots.I'd set up the contest to end with a friendly feature match with Sabrina and I throwing down with our starters.Titan versus Alakazam.