Chapter Six: Pushed to the Limit! Discovering New Heights!
As we began our training, the stress it put on us was light, gradually getting heavier as time went on. From the Observation Room, Dawn began to show signs of nervousness, growing more and more nervous as my training intensified. Serena took notice, and asked, "What's wrong Dawn?" Dawn didn't even turn to Serena, but simply stated, "I am nervous about Nicolas." Serena got a puzzled look on her face. "Why would you worry about him? From what I see, he seems incredibly strong! He is even stronger than Ash!" Dawn sighed. "Well, when Nicolas starts training, sometimes he pushes himself to hard. That just leads to all sorts of problems." Serena sat back in her chair. "Yeah, I can see how you be nervous about that. Ash does that sometimes too. But his determination to not give up until he cannot go on is what makes him more attractive to me." Upon stating this, Serena instinctively put her hands over her mouth, and blushed a bright red. Dawn and Bonnie saw this, and they giggled. "You are right, Serena", Dawn said. "I have no need to worry about him. I trust his judgement. He is my boyfriend, after all". Serena looked at Dawn, who was looking through the glass, and Dawn was smiling. With that, the girls returned their attention to the Training Room, where our training was still getting more intense.
Garchomp and I had just finished some defense training, and took a break before moving on. We decided to observe the training of the others. We started with Ash, and Gala Richard. They were still going strong with some endurance training. Ash was currently training with Pikachu. "Now, Ash. You are an extraordinary battler. But I see some flaws in your defense I would like to point out. When you unleash an attack on your opponent, you tend to let your guard down when the attack lands. You must be mindful that some opponents have trained to strike at that moment. Do not let your focus waiver in the heat of battle. If you do, you are set up to fail!"
Ash stood there silent for a moment, then nodded, "Right!" He looked at Pikachu, who nodded back at him, and Ash shouted, "Let's do it again, and stay focused the whole time!"
I smiled, even though no one was watching. I enjoyed the sight of trainers learning, and growing together with their Pokémon.
I then turned my gaze towards Clemont and Steven. Steven had Clemont treat their battle as if Clemont were challenging a gym, run by Steven. Steven's Armaldo had barely taken a scratch, whereas Clemont's Luxray looked like it was getting ready to go down. Steven stopped the fight, and walked forward, standing next to his Armaldo. "Clemont, you show an immense amount of passion for what you do. But you are lacking in confidence. At some points, I see your confidence dwindle. Not just in yourself, but in what you are doing. Your Pokémon can feel your uneasiness. As a result, none of your attacks have done much against Armaldo. You must trust yourself, and your Pokémon. By doing so, your confidence will be bolstered, and you will be able to be a greater Gym Leader, and a greater "Trainer!" I could see the light in Clemont's eyes from where I was. He responded, "Thank you Steven! I will try harder next round!" Once again, I smiled at the sight of the training paying off.
Gala Nate approached me. "Shall we continue?" I nodded, and Garchomp and I stood up, and walked back to the battlefield. Now it was my turn to learn something. "Sir, I have yet to spot any holes in your defenses. So now, we will test your defensive endurance!" shouted Gala Nate. He reached for another Pokéball, and tossed it into the air. From within, came out a Magmortar. I thought that Garchomp should be able to handle whatever Magmortar could dish out. "Magmortar, use Dark Pulse!" shouted Gala Nate. Garchomp braced for the impact, but neither of us predicted how powerful it was going to be. Garchomp took the whole blast, head-on. This blast dealt massive damage, with power increasing with each passing second. Garchomp was struggling to hold on, and I could feel the pain from the damage he was taking. From the sides, I noticed our training has gripped the attention of everyone in the room. Within a split second, I dropped to one knee from exhaustion, and I noticed Garchomp had too, even though he was still tanking the blast. Then, completely in sync with one another, Garchomp and I both went down on both knees. I could hear Gala Nate getting ready to stop attacking. "Gala Nate, do not stop! Hit us with everything you have!" I shouted, fighting through the pain.
Gala Nate showed signs of reluctance, but Steven motioned him to continue. Gala Nate called for Magmortar to use full power. The Dark Pulse intensified, and with the increased intensity, I could feel the pain Garchomp was enduring. I called to Garchomp, "Sheppard! We can do this! We have to push through it!" With the passing of each moment, I could feel Garchomp's strength fading. Just when we were both at the breaking point, I felt an immense surge of power and strength. Garchomp surrounded itself in an orb, which seemed to be absorbing some of the damage that we were being dealt. From within the orb, I could see Garchomp's features changing. It was like Mega Evolution, but we didn't have a Keystone, or any Mega Stone! Before I could put more thought into it, Garchomp broke the orb, and with a swing of his claw, sent the Dark Pulse flying right back where it came from! This retaliated Dark Pulse hit Magmortar head-on, rendering it unable to continue.
As Gala Nate stood there in shock, I could hear everyone else cheering around me. I smiled, only before both Garchomp and I collapsed from exhaustion. Everyone rushed over, and made sure we were still breathing. We were, but we were extremely exhausted, to the point where we really couldn't move much at all. We were both handed items to bring our strength back up, and we sat up, and leaned up against the wall. "I…..." I couldn't put the words in my mouth. "I felt like I was in sync with Garchomp. I felt like we were one! There was so much power, but it took a massive toll on both of us. Right buddy?" I said, placing my hand on the side of Garchomp's face. "It was incredible!" I turned my head towards Gala Nate, "Gala Nate. Thank you for not holding back. You helped us discover our latent potential! For that, I thank you!". At this point, I had regained enough energy to stand back up. I held up Garchomp's Pokéball, and said, "Thanks bud, you put up a heck of a fight. Get a well-deserved rest!" Garchomp nodded, and I returned him to his Pokéball.
"Well, I think that is enough for now, don't you all?" I said, still out of breath. "I agree!" said Clemont. "Me too", Ash responded. "Well then, thank you Gala Nate and Richard, for training with myself and Ash. And Steven, thank you for training with Clemont! You are welcome back anytime!" They offered their thanks, and departed the room. I turned to the Observation Room windows, "Regina? Escort the ladies to the Recovery Room, if you'd please?" From over the intercom, I heard "Right away, Sir!" With that, I motioned for Ash and Clemont to follow me back to the Locker Area.