MAUVILLE CITY

"Magneton, use Thunderbolt!" Wattson commanded his Magnet Pokémon.

Magneton charged its metallic body with a surge of electricity. Once it felt balance with the lightning, it let loose an attack of high voltage at Wally's Kirlia. Kirlia fell down in shock and was unable to battle.

"Kirlia, no!" Wally cried out and called his Pokémon back to its PokéBall. "I thought I had it in me..."

"Maybe if you had more Pokémon on your team," Wattson said and walked over to the young trainer. He placed his arm on the teenager's shoulder. "It seemed that Kirlia itself was not strong enough to take on a full Pokémon team."

"You're right..." Wally nodded. "I'm going to get a team full of strong Pokémon and then I'm going to beat all of the gyms!"

"That's the spirit, child," Wattson smiled. "Now come back here when you've finally assembled your team."

"Will do."

In Mauville's Pokémon Center, Brendan's PokéNav alarm clock went off. He quickly got up and fumbled around on the nightstand in order to shut it off. When the buzzing subsided, Brendan slowly sat up and scratched his eyes open. It was a new day and he would have to get ready to face Mauville City's gym leader.

He suddenly remembered the dream he had the night before as a result of his selflessness. Out of curiosity, he wondered how Wally did in his gym battle. Hopefully Wally was able to win using his new found confidence, but it was also possible that the gym leader was thirsty for victory after his embarrassing loss to the mysterious trainer with Latias.

Brendan slipped into his bathroom shoes as he went in to brush, shave, shower, and change. After he was done with all four, he looked in the mirror and adjusted his hat per morning ritual. It would take a lot of confidence to defeat a gym leader, and making sure he looked good was just the first step in being confident. Brendan knew that he wouldn't get as lucky as he did against Roxanne and Brawly, so it would take strategy and planning.

He remembered that the gym leader used a Manectric in battle, a well-known Electric-type Pokémon. Brendan figured that the Mauville City Gym was probably a primarily Electric-type gym and he would have to plan for attacks such as Thunderbolt and Shock Wave.

As he always heard every morning, there was a loud pitter-patter of knocking on his door. Expecting May and Lisia, he opened his door to find the two of them waiting for him. And like always, May had that usual look of impatience wiped on her face.

"You said you wanted to go face the gym leader a half hour ago," May reminded him. "Why do you sleep in so often?"

"Sorry May, I just have to get my beauty sleep in," he chuckled. "Anyways, you girls ready to go?"

"Yup," they both nodded in unison.

Not too long after, they all managed to check out of the Pokémon Center and headed down the "streets" all the way to what appeared to be the Pokémon gym. While it had "Mauville City Pokémon Gym" written on it, the entrance door looked more like the door to a supply closet than it did to a gym.

"I guess this is it?" Brendan asked, hoping to receive nods of approval from the girls.

"I don't know, if you think it is then go inside," May shrugged. "I'm not the aspiring Pokémon master here."

Brendan groaned at her response and opened the large door. On the other side, Brendan could see a massive mechanical battlefield that was lit by electrical circuits running through the entire area. It almost looked as if the gym leader wanted to leave the gym unfinished for some sort of electrical appeal.

Brendan could see in the distance that an old man in a yellow jumpsuit with a Hawaiian shirt thrown over it was working on some sort of cable. Not wanting to disturb his work, Brendan slowly approached the man. He lightly tapped him on the shoulder once he reached him.

"Um, excuse me?" Brendan asked as the man turned around quickly.

"Oh, yes, hello there!" The man smiled. "Who are you?"

"I'm Brendan and I was wondering if you knew where the gym leader of Mauville City was."

"The gym leader of Mauville City?" The man asked. "Why that would be none other than I, Wattson!"

"Oh, cool!" Brendan exclaimed. "So how about we get a battle started right away?"

"I don't see why not!"

"Please make it quick, though," May said to Wattson as she and Lisia stood on the sidelines.

"Let's get ready to battle!" Brendan smiled and stood on one end of the battlefield. After fighting two gym leaders, he already knew the drill. "So what are the rules here?"

"What do you mean?" Wattson asked and took the other side of the battlefield.

"How many Pokémon can we use?"

"Well, we can use as many as we want, but the minimum is set to three," Wattson explained.

"So how about a three-on-three?" Brendan asked. He had already planned the battle and thought it would be a good idea to sit Magikarp out with it being a Water-type.

"Fine by me," Wattson nodded. "But make sure you have at least three Pokémon. I had a trainer show up here earlier today with only one Pokémon."

"Wally..." Brendan mumbled under his breath. Wally must have come by earlier with Kirlia and lost. He looked into Wattson's eyes. "I have three Pokémon and they're all ready to win."

"Good attitude," Wattson said and pulled out a PokéBall.

"Cool, then let's get this show on the road!" Brendan smirked and pulled out his first PokéBall. "Whismur, I choose you!"

"Voltorb, you're up first!"

Both trainers sent their PokéBalls onto the battlefield as their Pokémon appeared from them. They both fell to the ground and stood in front of their trainers.

"Alright Whismur, use Uproar!"

Whismur opened its mouth wide and let out a powerful wall of noise. Despite screaming at the top of its lungs, however, Voltorb seemed to take no damage. When Whismur's attack subsided, Voltorb just stood there as if Whismur didn't even do anything.

"W-what?" Brendan threw his arms out. "It didn't do anything!"

"That's, like, because Voltorb's attack prevents sound damage!" Lisia shouted from the sidelines.

"That would be correct," Wattson nodded. "Now Voltorb, use Shock Wave!"

"Whismur, dodge it and try to use Pound!"

Voltorb's eyes flashed a bright yellow and it released an energy of lightning bolts as Whismur. Whismur ran around the lightning and flopped its wings as it flew towards Voltorb. However, it was stopped in its tracks as Voltorb's attack changed direction and struck Whismur directly.

"H-h-how did that happen?" Brendan asked desperately. "That's not even possible!"

"Shock Wave is an attack that never misses," Wattson explained. "It scours its opponents vital signs and directs it lightning towards them. It's part of the appeal of Electric-type attacks."

"You've gotta be kidding me..." Brendan groaned. "But I won't let that stop me! Whismur, use Pound!"

"Voltorb, use another Shock Wave!"

Whismur hopped around everywhere as Voltorb let loose another powerful wave of lightning. This time, however, Whismur was able to get to Voltorb as it slammed into the circular Pokémon with its ears. Before Whismur could do any real damage, though, Voltorb's Shock Wave attack came and struck it from behind. Whismur cried out before falling to the ground, unable to battle.

"And Whismur is unable to battle!" Lisia announced. "Brendan is now down to two more Pokémon!"

"Thanks, Lisia, but I know that!" Brendan shouted angrily and called his Pokémon back to its PokéBall. He pulled out another PokéBall and sent it flying forward. "Grovyle, it's your turn!"

Grovyle flashed out of its PokéBall and fell to the field in front of Brendan. It hissed softly and looked at its much smaller opponent.

"Grovyle, see if you can use a Quick Attack!" Brendan commanded.

"Voltorb, keep at it with another Shock Wave!"

Grovyle loosened its muscles and darted straight for Voltorb as fast as it could go. Voltorb attempted to protect itself by sending out a flash of lightning from its attack at Grovyle, but Grovyle leafy body made it a bad electrical conductor. Voltorb's attack did almost nothing to Grovyle as it was send hurling into the air by the Quick Attack.

"Voltorb!" Wattson shouted as he watched his Pokémon fall to the field. "No!"

"Awesome, Grovyle!" Brendan pumped his fist. "Now drain its life energy with Absorb!"

Grovyle shot out red beams of light energy out of its hands as they latched onto Voltorb. Voltorb could feel the pain within itself as Grovyle drained it of health.

"Voltorb, don't let it take you out!" Wattson shouted. "Use Self-Destruct!"

"Self-Destruct?" Brendan asked, puzzled. "You'd really do that?"

"Watch it!"

As Grovyle was busy sucking Voltorb of its health, Voltorb began to glow a bright orange. In a matter of seconds, it loudly detonated itself as smoke filled the battlefield. Grovyle, using its Absorb attack, hurt itself even more as it sucked it damaging energy from Voltorb's Self-Destruct attack.

"Voltorb is do-o-o-own and out!" Lisia exclaimed in a sing-song voice.

"Grovyle is still kickin'!" Brendan cheered. "You can't do anything to him!"

"Well, maybe your Pokémon is stronger than I thought it would be," Wattson sighed and called Voltorb back to its PokéBall. He looked to his belt and pulled out another one. "Voltorb was easy, but try taking out Magneton!"

The Magnet Pokémon appeared from its PokéBall in a flash of white and started to beep as it analyzed Grovyle. Grovyle, taken back in slight discomfort, lightly hissed to itself.

"What's it doing?" Brendan asked the gym leader.

"It like to analyze its opponents," Wattson answered. "That's how it gives me an edge. Magneton, use Metal Sound!"

An emittance of noise was released from the magnets on Magneton's three heads. Even though Brendan couldn't hear the noise due to its audibility being higher than a human's possible hearing, he could see that the attack was getting to Groyvle's head.

"Grovyle, snap out of it and use Leaf Blade!"

Grovyle shook its head in an attempt to rid the sound waves and formed blades of leaves out of its wrists. It ran for Magneton and slashed at it. However, its metal encasing prevented a good amount of Grovyle's physical damage.

"Now Magneton, take advantage of your Metal Sound set-up with Thunderbolt!"

"Grovyle, stop it with Absorb!"

Grovyle shot out red beams out of its arms and they latched onto the enemy Magneton. Magneton, however, seemed unaffected and charged its body up with electricity. By making use of Grovyle's attack, it was able to send its Thunderbolt through Grovyle's Absorb and do internal damage. Grovyle released Magneton from its grip and fell to one knee.

"That Metal Sound attack, like, totally improved Grovyle's electrical current," Lisia informed May.

"What do you mean?" May asked.

"Metal Sound creates, like, an electrical field in whatever Pokémon is affected by it," Lisia explained. "Because of that, Grovyle takes more damage from Electric-type attacks."

"Grovyle!" Brendan grunted. "Wattson, you really know how to take apart my team."

"Such is the charm of Electric-type Pokémon," Wattson said. "Now Magneton, finish the job with another Thunderbolt!"

"Wait a minute..." Brendan paused to think. "Grovyle, use a Leaf Blade and attract its electricity to your blades!"

Grovyle nodded and charged up the leaves on its wrists. At the same time, Magneton let loose a powerful surge of lightning from its body. Grovyle charged at Magneton with its glowing blades in front and let the Thunderbolt latch onto them. When Grovyle reached Magneton, its blades were fully charged with electrical energy and it slashed at the Magnet Pokémon as hard as it could. There was a small explosion and Magneton was thrown to the ground.

"And that takes care of Magneton!" Lisia cheered her friend on. "One more Pokémon and Brendan can call this match over!"

"Magneton!" Wattson shouted. When the smoke cleared, he could see that Magneton was knocked out with Grovyle standing over it. He sighed and called it back to its PokéBall. "You did good, Magneton."

"Now what?" Brendan asked as his Pokémon walked back over in front of him. "I'm ready for whatever you have next."

"It seems that you are ready to face my most powerful Pokémon," Wattson mumbled and pulled a PokéBall out from his pocket. "In this PokéBall is my signature Pokémon, Manectric."

Wattson threw the PokéBall forward and Manectric was released in a powerful flash of light. It looked towards the ceiling and howled menacingly. When it brought its head back down, it glared at its Grass-type opponent.

"My Manectric is no laughing matter," Wattson warned the young trainer. "It has rarely faced defeat at the hands of a newbie trainer like you."

"Who are you calling newbie trainer?" Brendan asked defensively. "My Pokémon and I have been through a lot."

"I'll let Manectric be the judge of that," Wattson said softly. "Now Manectric, use Thunder Fang!"

Manectric roared and leapt over to Grovyle. It bit onto Brendan's Pokémon and surged a powerful electrical current through its teeth. Grovyle, feeling the shock take over its body, tried to shake Manectric off. However, this only made things worse for it.

"That doesn't look good..." May frowned from the sidelines.

"Grovyle, get it off by darting around using Quick Attack!" Brendan commanded.

Grovyle braced through the pain and sprinted around the room in a whir of green. Manectric tried its best to tighten its bite on Grovyle, but the speed of the Grass-type Pokémon eventually threw it off.

"And that's how you fight strategy with strategy," Brendan taunted. Suddenly, Grovyle fell to one knee as its body sparked up. "Grovyle, what's going on?"

"It looks like Grovyle is paralyzed!" Lisia shouted from the sidelines. "It happens a lot when you're hit by an Electric-type attack!"

"Shit," Brendan growled. "Grovyle, get up and use Leaf Blade!"

"Manectric, stop Grovyle dead in its tracks with a Thunderbolt!"

Grovyle tried its best to move, but the shocking paralysis took over its body. Manectric roared loudly and sent out its Thunderbolt straight at Brendan's Pokémon. Due to Grovyle's earlier exposure to Magneton's Metal Sound, Electric-type attacks did more damage to it. As a result, Grovyle fell to the ground in a daze and was unable to battle.

"And that takes care of Grovyle!" Lisia announced. "This leaves the battle at a one-on-one!"

"But that's not good for Brendan..." May mumbled.

"What do you mean?" Lisia asked.

"I know Brendan isn't going to use his Water-type Magikarp against Wattson," May said. "That means he only has one other Pokémon to use; Lairon."

"What's so bad about Lairon?" Lisia asked. Since she had only joined the group, she was curious as to why Brendan couldn't use Lairon. "Isn't Lairon supposed to be a powerful Pokémon?"

"Well, it is, but it doesn't listen to Brendan," May answered. "Hopefully, it snaps to its trainer this match."

"Wow, I hope so..." Lisia responded and looked back to Brendan.

"Come back, Grovyle!" Brendan exclaimed and returned his Pokémon back to its PokéBall. His entire body shook as he slowly pulled out Lairon's PokéBall. This Pokémon would either make or break the match for him. With a deep breath, he threw Lairon's PokéBall forward. "Lairon, I choose you! Please win this for me."

Lairon appeared out of its PokéBall and fell to the ground with a loud thud. It glared at Manectric and roared loudly. Manectric roared back in response.

"A Lairon, huh?" Wattson asked. "An interesting choice. No matter, Manectric, use Thunderbolt!"

"Lairon, use Iron Head!"

Lairon, like it usually did, just stood in one place without reacting to Brendan's commands. Manectric, on the other hand, roared and shot out a powerful wave of lightning bolts at Brendan's Pokémon. Lairon took the attack surprisingly well and continued to stare at its "opponent".

"Lairon, why didn't you do anything!?" Brendan asked in frustration. "Come on!"

"Wow, a Pokémon that won't even listen to its trainer..." Wattson chuckled. "How embarrassing!"

"Hey, it's not funny!" Brendan exclaimed. "Lairon, use another Iron Head!"

"Manectric, use Thunder Fang!"

Lairon yawned and continued to stand in one place. It couldn't care less for Brendan's silly little gym battle. Manectric, however, listened to its trainer and latched onto Lairon with its electrically charged teeth. In response, Lairon widened its eyes and roared loudly. It flailed around wildly and threw Manectric off.

"That's right, Lairon!" Brendan cheered. "Now listen to me and use your fucking Iron Head!"

Instead, Lairon's glare turned into a glower. It stomped one foot on the ground ferociously and glew in a blinding white light.

"Whoa..." Brendan muttered. "Lairon, you're evolving!"

The white light surrounding Lairon grew to twice Brendan's height. When the light subsided, Brendan could see a towering dragon-like Pokémon standing in Lairon's place. It stomped the ground and growled at the Pokémon that dared to bite it. There was a look of pure anger in its eyes as it would make Manectric pay for its attack.

Brendan marveled at his new monstrous Pokémon that stood in Lairon's place. The other three trainers, however, were taken back in fear.

"Lairon just evolved into Aggron!" Wattson exclaimed. "I don't believe it!"

"Uh-oh..." May commented, knowing just how badly the battle would end for Brendan. "That can't be good..."

"Aggron?" Brendan asked and pulled out his PokéDex.

"Aggron, the Iron Armor Pokémon," his PokéDex started. "Aggron is protective of its environment. If its mountain is ravaged by a landslide or a fire, this Pokémon will haul topsoil to the area, plant trees, and beautifully restore its own territory."

"Aggron sounds super powerful!" Brendan pumped his fist. "Aggron, now listen to me and use that signature Iron Head attack of yours!"

Aggron instead roared loudly and charged at Manectric. It sent its fists flying at the defenseless Pokémon and slugged it to the ground. It kept on punching at Manectric even after it was clear that Manectric was knocked out.

"Manectric, come back!" Wattson shouted and called his Pokémon back in fear.

Noticing that Manectric went back to Wattson's PokéBall, Aggron ran straight for Wattson. Realizing that Aggron was out of control, Brendan held its PokéBall up in the air.

"Brendan, call that thing back!" May pleaded from the sidelines. "Quickly, before it does anything bad!"

"Aggron, come back!" Brendan exclaimed as his newly evolved Pokémon flew back to its PokéBall in a flash of red. "But... but I still won, right?"

"Brendan..." Wattson said as he attempted to catch his breath. "You may have defeated me in battle, but you were unable to win by channeling your strengths into your Pokémon. I am sorry, but as a result, I cannot give you the Dynamo Badge."

"Damn it!" Brendan shouted and slammed his foot on the ground. "You've gotta be kidding me!"

"I'm sorry Brendan, but you only won because your Pokémon went wild," Wattson told him. "Maybe if you were able to control if, you would have earned the badge, but the fact that Aggron did not listen to you should be proof enough that you are not worthy of the badge."

"That's a real bummer," May said softly and approached Brendan.

"Yeah, like, a total bummer," Lisia aggeed and followed May.

"But... but I thought I almost had Aggron there..." Brendan fell to his knees. "What's it gonna take for me to prove myself to it?"

"It's, like, okay," Lisia mumbled and kneeled next to him. "If it makes you feel better, Ali didn't listen to me when I first started training her."

"Maybe if you can gain your Pokémon's trust we can have a rematch," Wattson suggested.

Before anybody could say anything else, the door suddenly opened and a black-haired woman barged into the battlefield. Brendan, May, and Lisia immediately recognized her as the mysterious trainer with Latias. She looked a lot less intimidating in person and almost like any ordinary woman in their early-twenties.

"Wattson!" She exclaimed. "There's something going on at New Mauville!"

"New Mauville?" Wattson asked. "Are you sure about that, Olivia?"

"I'm positive," Olivia nodded. "It's almost as if somebody is interfering with the generators down there."

"We're going to have to go check on them, then!" Wattson stated before looking to the three trainers. "You three are free to come help us if you'd like to. The more hands we have, the more ground we can get."

"Of course!" May nodded and looked to her friends. "Come on, they need help!"

The five trainers bolted out of the Mauville Gym in an instant. If the underground grid-line of New Mauville needed their help, then that's where they would go next.