A/N: Welp, looks like I really am splitting this into two! Three chapters left after this, people!
~*Q*~
They left right away the next morning.
Their campsite was only a hundred yards from the official entrance to the Pokemon League. There were no wild Pokemon, so Tochi, Sepal, Bub, and Campbell walked there in nervous silence.
"I'm heading out," Campbell said finally. "Don't think fighting the Elite 4 along with you wouldn't end well."
"But you'll watch?" Sepal asked.
"'Course! Maybe I'll find a spot in person. Or catch it on a human TV, even."
Tochi patted Campbell's back. "See you."
"You too, kid. Good luck." He used another move to sink into the ground and disappear. Shadow Force? They couldn't even tell what it was.
The three remaining Pokemon drew near to the entrance. They were inside a cave; after spending the night there, the light shining from the exit was almost blinding.
The Pokemon League building caught their eyes as they stepped into the morning light. It was enormous, ridiculously so, and intimidating. Tochi's eyes landed on a slightly more familiar sight - a Pokemon Center, albeit one two or three times as big as normal. "You guys wanna stop there first?"
"Yup," Bub said immediately, and Sepal nodded.
The inside of the Pokemon Center was hectic. Human reporters rushed over to them as soon as they entered, and Trainers were hurrying around buying items in a frenzy. Most of them had at least one or two of their Pokemon out - Gyarados, Charizard - so it was a really good thing the Center was as big as it was.
"Hi there!" a reporter said to them as soon as they stepped through the door. Behind her, a man with a camera and a Machamp kept the other (jealous) reporters at bay. The two of them were wearing little earpieces that could be recognized as Pokemon-to-human translators. "Tochi, Sepal, and Bubbles?"
"It's Bub!" Bub said. "Oh. Wait, I mea -"
The reporter cleared her throat. "Right then! So tell the world, you three, how does it make you feel that your Elite 4 battle - or battles plural, if you can make it so far - will be televised to all of Kalos?"
"And select broadcasting stations in Hoenn!" a reporter in the background added.
"Fine…" Tochi said. "Kinda scared."
"'Fine, kinda scared,'" the reporter quoted for the camera. "Wonderful! Now, you'd normally have to sign up for a lengthy waiting line to challenge our Elite 4 members, busy as they are, but the esteemed Professor Sycamore in Lumiose has chosen to pay to bump you up to the 10:30 slot in just half an hour. How does that make you feel?"
"That's great, actually!" Sepal said. "Um...hi, Professor. Thank you. For everything."
"'That's great actually hi Professor thank you for everything," repeated the reporter. "Glad to hear it. We'll get out of your way now; gotta prepare for the big fight, huh?" She moved aside, and the Machamp helped clear the way to Nurse Joy.
"She's not turning the camera off," Sepal whispered to Tochi.
"Pretend you don't notice!"
A small commotion was made when a Banette nearly stole Bub's Pokeball for his Trainer, but other than that, the healing went smoothly. Unfortunately, the cameras accompanied them all the way during the walk to the Pokemon League building.
"Um," Sepal asked them timidly. "Are you gonna go…?"
"Eventually," the reporter with a translator said cheerfully. "Remember, this is televised!"
Despite the entourage, they were stunned by the interior of the Pokemon League. It was just as big as it looked on the outside. A receptionist immediately motioned them to some waiting benches along with some other nervous-looking Trainers.
"Hi," Tochi told someone as he slid onto a seat. The Trainer just stared.
The newscasters finally left them alone to set up for the actual battle.
"Do you remember our first Gym battle?" Sepal said wistfully.
Tochi winced. "Yeah."
"No!" said Bub.
"Well, I miss it." Sepal looked at the reporters squabbling by the door. "Less...fanfare."
"I'm scared," Tochi said suddenly.
"It's okay," Bub assured. "So am I."
"No, I mean - Sepal, I dragged you here all for this. What if Malva doesn't like me? What if I brought you here for nothing?"
"Tochi, do you really think I'm still just doing it for you at this point?" Sepal said, amused. "I mean - I'm your friend, of course I'd be here helping you. But I think I've figured out what to do for myself by now."
"I just came along because you guys are cool," Bub put in. "And...yeah, it's nice being in charge for once. Does that make any sense?"
"Not really."
"I guess I'm kinda tired of being kept in a shelter and traded around and stuff. I'm ready to make my own decisions." Bub perked up. "And I get to travel!"
"Er...Tochi's group?" the receptionist called. "It's your turn. Please go down the hall on your left."
Tochi looked at the others. "Ready?"
~*Q*~
If the waiting room was huge, this place was majestic. Four gigantic doors circled an intricately decorated common room. Light shone from torches mounted on the walls. And standing in the very center was Malva herself.
Tochi made a faint squeaking sound.
The Fire-type Elite 4 member looked the three starters over. "So you're the ones that Kalos has been in such a tizzy over?" she said sarcastically. "Speak, Delphox; I only understand Fire-type."
"I - yes. Hi."
"Hmm. Very well, then. If you're ready to lose, step through any one of the doors." She turned to leave.
"Wait," Tochi managed. "We're - we're not going to lose. And, and when we - um - don't lose, I have a favor to ask of you."
She raised her eyebrow. "Very well. Visit me last and tell me after you 'don't lose.' The other Elite 4 members wouldn't want to be kept waiting by your petty request. Though keep in mind, I as well do so hate to be kept waiting."
Malva left without another word, the door to her chamber booming shut behind her.
"Are you all right, Tochi?" Bub asked.
His eyes were shining. "She's so cool."
~*Q*~
They discussed the matter and decided to visit the Dragon room first.
"Dragon-types," Tochi said with a shiver. "Best get them out of the way first. Anyone know the Elite 4 member's name?"
"I've seen her somewhere, but I don't remember," Sepal said with a frown.
"We don't need to know it!" Bub pleaded, hanging on the door with the dragon insignia over it. "Come on, guys!"
Tochi took a shaky breath. "Now or never."
It took all three of them to push open the door. They walked down a hallway and onto a platform, which glowed blue and lifted them into the Dragonmark Chamber proper.
The hall was filled with blue mist and the smell of incense, which quickly blew away as a giant stone dragon scraped its wings across the floor. The starters backed up as its head creaked into motion, seemingly regarding them with a cold glare before raising itself high enough to reveal an old woman standing in front of a throne.
"Welcome!" the human gushed. "Aren't you just the - forgive me, I'm so delighted to see you here today! My name is Drasna. I do hope you're as strong as the rumors say. But enough of that. Shall we begin?" Drasna released her first Pokemon, a Dragalge.
Tochi stepped forwards, and Drasna's smile grew. "Dragalge, dear...Surf!"
"Ah!" Tochi threw himself out of the way as Dragalge fluttered her fins and produced an immense wave. He rolled and came up standing and formed a Light Screen out of thin air for protection.
Sepal looked up and noticed cameras in the corners of the room. They were on air, apparently.
The Dragalge was a master at Special attacks. Tochi utilized his Light Screen like a shield as he dodged quick bullets of Sludge Bomb and Dragon Pulse being fired at him in succession. With the boost from a hasty Flame Charge, he ran circles around the Dragon-type, occasionally firing Psychics or Flamethrowers at her. The Psychic did minimal damage, and the Flamethrowers even less.
It was her scales, Tochi realized as a Thunderbolt painfully crackled over his fur. She looked downright squishy, but her scales threw her special defense through the roof with an armor-like texture that made his flames slide right off.
Tochi was caught off guard with a Surf that swept him off his feet. For a split second he was drowning, but he used Psychic and split the wave down the middle, creating a strip of dry land that he caught his breath on. On the downside, he was suddenly surrounded by water on all sides - Dragalge aimed another Surf at him, but he created a Light Screen and held it over his head so the water only trickled onto his head as if through a sieve.
He then realized he was trapped in his own air pocket underneath even more water than before. Quickly, he used another Psychic; the effect was like blowing up a pool as water sloshed in all directions. The Dragalge was not spared, and Tochi hit her with Psychic as her own Surf engulfed her.
How would he get close enough to bypass her scales? Tochi asked himself. Flame Charge would barely do anything, likewise with Scratch, and -
Oh. Wait. Psyshock!
This one turned out much more kept vaulting around the room, avoiding Dragalge's attacks and retaliating with his own, and the Psyshock finally wore her down.
When Dragalge fainted, Drasna didn't miss a beat. She recalled her and sent out a Druddigon that leaped forward and hit Tochi with Retaliate before he had even taken a breath. The attack was painful, and Druddigon started raining Chip Away on him when he fell to the ground.
"Okay, wait…" Tochi fumbled for his wand and managed to temporarily pick up Druddigon and throw her across the room. "Guys, I need to switch."
"I'll go," Bub said immediately. "You stay and dry off."
When the Druddigon loped back, Bub was her new opponent. She started off with a Flash Cannon that Druddigon took by crossing her forearms. Bub kept switching moves - Flash Cannon, Hydro Pump - trying to keep her off guard. The first hurt Druddigon more, but the second was able to push her backwards and keep her off balance.
Finally, Bub tried getting closer for a Drill Peck, something that might have been more effective, but Druddigon was waiting for that and punched Bub in the side. While the Steel-type was too sturdy to be knocked to the ground by the blow, the breath was knocked out of her - Druddigon's Revenge hurt a lot. Bub tried to use Flash Cannon in the close range, but Druddigon quickly whipped around and hit her with Dragon Tail. Somehow, this attack did send her flying, and Tochi and Sepal had to dodge before she landed on top of them.
Druddigon didn't race after her, so Bub took a moment to catch her breath. But when she tried to charge at Druddigon again, the Dragon-type simply shook her head and held up a claw.
"Huh?" Bub asked.
"Oh!" Drasna realized. "Silly me, Druddigon wants you to switch out again. Normally, her Dragon Tail does it by force, but since you three don't have Pokeballs, would you be a dear for us…?"
Bub shrugged. "Why not! Sepal?"
He nodded and took her place. Druddigon rushed him the moment he stepped forwards, but Sepal Growled, confusing her into hesitation, and blasted Sleep Powder in her face. When she was asleep, he went on to use Growth as many times as possible.
Druddigon woke up and seemed only slightly dismayed at Sepal's size. She punched him with Chip Away, but he withstood it fairly well and used a close-range, boosted-like-crazy Sludge Bomb to poison her and knock her out.
Drasna immediately recalled her and sent out an Altaria. She wasted no time in Singing; Sepal tried and failed to cover his ears. For what felt like only a few panicky seconds, he fell asleep.
He woke up to the feeling of something like a Moonblast in his side. Without fully opening his eyes, he fired a Sludge Bomb to his left. By the time he was fully up, the Sludge Bomb had burned into Altaria and eaten away at her extra-fluffy down (he judged that she had built it up with Cotton Guard while he was asleep.)
Still, Sepal ran towards her, using Petal Blizzard to shield himself from more attacks, and knocked her lower to the ground with a simple Tackle. The fluff caused him to practically bounce off. Sepal pretended he had just made a bad move, but his stealth Leech Seed had been planted.
Seeing that her Moonblast was easily countered by Sludge Bomb, Altaria switched to spamming Dragon Pulse. Those attacks were much more painful and harder to avoid, and Sepal spent a few minutes dodging wildly and hoping that his constant Leech Seed draining hadn't been detected yet. Finally, Altaria switched to Sing. He pretended that his ears weren't covered in time and sank to the ground, pretending to be asleep. Like he'd thought, Altaria used the time to relax and fuss over her acid-covered fluff instead of attacking. Sepal used Synthesis and healed himself so he was almost as good as new.
He "woke up" a few minutes later and hit Altaria with Sludge Bomb. The extra weight dragged her to the ground, and his Leech Seed finally drained the last of her health away.
Sepal preemptively switched with Bub as Drasna sent out her last Pokemon, a Noivern. As soon as Bub was on the field, Noivern rushed over and started prodding her with the claws on the tips of her wings.
"Hey!" Bub complained, wiggling her place.
"No items, Miss Drasna!" Noivern reported cheerfully.
"Her ability is Frisk," Drasna said, equally happily. "My, isn't it so useful at times?"
Bub hadn't realized Noivern was attacking until the claws on her shoulders clamped down. Noivern bit Bub on the wing. The attack must have been Super Fang - no ordinary biting attack could have made her so pained so quickly. Then she blew a stream of fire in Bub's face. Bub immediately doused it with Aqua Jet and body-slammed Noivern, but she thought she could feel a burn beginning on her cheek.
Noivern pulled herself out from under her and took to the air. Bub followed her with Aqua Jet, but Noivern was much more graceful and was not trying to control her flight path by spitting water everywhere. They exchanged Flash Cannon and Dragon Pulse until Bub lost momentum and fell to the ground, where the battle quickly turned into a land vs air, sniper vs sniper type of affair.
Bub missed a beat when the burn on her face started to sting, and Noivern successfully hit with an Air Slash. Bub wasn't all that affected. Really, none of Noivern's attacking moves were very effective except for Flamethrower, and that one was doused with Whirlpool and Aqua Jet. Despite her natural resistance, Noivern also clearly didn't like getting wet - she was constantly letting herself get hit by slowing down in midair to try and shake water out of her wings. The cold and the water wore her down, and Bub used Brine to catch her off guard, making Noivern finally land to scrub saltwater out of her eyes. Bub jumped on her back and finished with Drill Peck.
Drasna returned Noivern. Bub thought for a second that she was about to go for a secret fifth Pokemon, but the Elite 4 member only smiled. "Goodness, what fun that was! Congratulations on beating your first obstacle to the Champion! Though I do hope I haven't raised your confidence too much."
"Definitely not," Tochi said wearily.
"My three coworkers are just as challenging. If not more, even! Go to the elevator - I wish you luck, my dears."
~*Q*~
"Steel or Water?" Sepal asked as they tended to themselves with Berries and various items.
Bub turned a Burn Heal upside down. "Um...you press this button here, right?"
"I have no idea."
She shrugged and pressed it anyways; she had to keep one wing flat like a table while pressing down with the other. A cool mist wafted out, and Bub blinked before applying to her face.
Tochi was doing the same with a Hyper Potion. His paws gave him a much easier time. "Can we go for Water, actually? I don't want to go to Malva right away if I'm soaking wet…"
"I'm fine with that," Sepal said. "I think I'm the least hurt, anyways. I'm not too tired for Water-types."
"Right," Bub said. "To the water guy!"
They pushed open the next door and found the next platform. This one lifted them into a shimmering blue room. Watery pillars erupted on either side of them, and then more water gushed in a curtain over the walls.
They approached the next Elite member. He was sitting on his chair, balancing something on the armrest. He wasn't even looking at them, in fact.
Tochi, Sepal, and Bub approached.
"Hello?" Bub ventured.
"Mmph- oh." He was eating something. He quickly stashed a plate (poffins?) underneath his throne and brushed crumbs out of his lap. "Forgive me. I thought I'd do some cooking...I, ah, hadn't had breakfast, you see…"
"Were those made from Aspear Berries?" Tochi asked. "Those are my favorite!"
"Ahem!" The man attempted to regain his dignity. "Challengers, my name is Siebold. You know me as the Water specialist of the Elite 4. I believe in the delicate art of Pokemon battling, in the joy of building towards victory and standing strong against every obstacle, despite that these sensations will fade as fleetingly as they arrive! As a Chef puts his soul into every meal he prepares, I will put my all into crushing you beneath my heel!"
"So how did you cook Poffins in a room full of water?" Bub asked.
"Never mind that!" Incensed, he released a Clawitzer and stepped backwards.
Sepal went first. The Clawitzer splashed around in a pool at the base of the chair and tentatively shot a Water Pulse at him from his left claw, which Sepal withstood easily. Apparently growing bolder, Clawitzer started firing more attacks, slowly getting faster and more varied.
Sepal conjured up a Petal Blizzard and charged at Clawitzer. It tried to dive deeper, but it couldn't escape; Sepal only had to stand on the edge of the water and let the petals damage him even more. The Clawitzer shot futile Water Pulses at the petals, and then a Dark Pulse at Sepal himself. Sepal flinched, and Clawitzer made his escape.
That was Clawitzer's weakness, Sepal deduced. He hit hard, but he couldn't really defend against attacks.
The Venusaur tried a new tactic: he used Vine Whip and tried to hold Clawitzer still. The Pokemon twisted and turned through its pool. It was next to impossible to get a grip even when he did manage to smack Clawitzer through sheer luck. Plan C.
He used Petal Dance, judged how deep the pool was for a split second, and jumped in himself. Tochi and Bub both gasped, though Bub started to giggle. The pool even had a deep and a shallow end; he was tall enough to go somewhere in the center, so he calmly stood in the middle of the (cold and uncomfortable) pool as the Clawitzer huddled in the deep end to escape.
The good thing about Petal Dance compared to Petal Blizzard was that the petals themselves were larger and more controllable. Like homing missiles, Sepal directed them towards the far end of the pool and cornered Clawitzer. He tried to dodge by blasting the petals away, but it didn't take long for him to succumb to the attack. As Siebold recalled Clawitzer and gave the Pokeball a little pat, Sepal let his attack die down. He was a little dizzy, but he shook his head, trying not to let his mild confusion get the best of him.
Siebold released his next Pokemon...a Gyarados. He landed in the deep end with a gigantic splash - a good ten feet of him was still sticking out of water. Sepal tried to backpedal frantically, but Venusaur weren't really made for swimming.
"You're in my territory, now," Gyarados rumbled, showing his fangs off with a grin.
Then his grin turned icy white as he bit Sepal with a Ice Fang. Covered with water as he was, Sepal froze instantly, and Gyarados almost lazy tossed his new ice sculpture through the air. Sepal landed on the ground next to Tochi and Bub. The ice encasing him defrosted, but he was still too cold to move.
Tochi and Bub looked at each other.
"I'm the Fire-type," Tochi said. Bub sighed and trudged forwards.
Gyarados was using Dragon Dance, and Bub panicked. She hit him in the next with a Flash Cannon before he could get too powerful.
Gyarados stopped, reeling in pain, and lowered his head to glare at Bub. She responded by hitting him with Flash Cannon again, this time in the eye. He bellowed angrily. Bub activated Aqua Jet and took off.
The battle was a little bit like a human trying to hit something with a flyswatter, but Bub was too big to pull that scenario off correctly. Instead, Gyarados jumped out of a water to knock her off course with Waterfall, and Bub would endure the attack and sting him with Drill Peck or Steel Wing in return. The random swervings of Aqua Jet proved beneficial because they tended to throw Gyarados off guard.
Finally, Gyarados got in a lucky shot by smacking her with his powerful tail. Bub was hurled out of the air. She landed with a splash in the pool at the same time that Gyarados did. Bub put her jet-boat-swimming skills to use and used Steel Wing to drive him straight into the other wall of the pool. Gyarados wheezed, and Bub started smacking him with Steel Wing in the same spot, over and over.
Gyarados had one more trick up his sleeve. He slammed his lower half into the bottom of the pool and fractured it, creating an immense Earthquake that not only brutally shook everything inside the pool but but the entire room. Bub was jolted violently like a loose trinket in a snowglobe, but she clung to Gyarados for dear life, digging into him with the spikes on her wings, and kept pecking him with Drill Peck all throughout it. When the chaos died down, Gyarados was finally unconscious.
"...Bub," Tochi said in amazement. "You just beat a Gyarados!"
Bub was grinning. "I feel awesome!"
Siebold sent out his next Pokemon, Starmie, after Gyarados was returned. There wasn't really a question for who would stay in on this one.
"Gimme a second, will ya?" Starmie hummed immediately, its gem core lighting up in time with its words. "Gotta repair the pool."
"Um...sure?" said Bub.
Starmie went to work. It meticulously lifted every single fragment of the fractured pool bottom with Psychic and carefully lowered it into place. Due to the amount of water that Gyarados had splashed out of the pool, and the jagged chunks of concrete, Starmie had difficulty moving, but its maneuverability increased as the foundation was set back into place. It cheerfully hummed some sort of elevator music as it worked.
Bub got out of the pool and lay on her stomach, fidgeting slightly. She tried to think of some kind of boosting move she could use when Starmie wasn't looking, but in the end she just sprawled on the ground and waited.
Unbeknownst to all of them, Siebold subtly dug his plate of Poffins out from under his chair and took a bite.
Starmie finished putting the concrete back in place. It spun over the bottom, making sure everything was nice and smooth, before using an underwater Surf to restore the water level to its original height.
"Okay!" it announced. "I'm done."
"I sort of feel bad about messing it up again," Bub said, sliding into the newly repaired pool with a ploosh.
"Ah, don't feel bad," Starmie said cheerfully. As it spoke, it was building a Light Screen in the water. The light reflected through both the water and the screen, so Bub could see what looked like a glitch in the world even after the shield disappeared from sight.
Bub got an idea. "In fact, I'm feeling really tired after all that waiting. I just kind of...I just…" She Yawned widely.
The Starmie's core lit up brightly as it made a yawning sound too, though it was hard to tell since it didn't have a mouth. "Funny you should mention...I…"
Bub struck. She zoomed forward and used Drill Peck right on the Starmie's gem. It cried out and flashed with Dazzling Gleam, blinding Bub, but she kept randomly thrashing around with Drill Peck until she heard it settle to the bottom of the pool.
The Empoleon cracked her eyes open. Starmie lay flat on the bottom, its gem gently flickering on and off in time to its deep...breathing sounds.
She used the opportunity to 'Peck it over and over in its weak spot, though she was a little worried about cracking it. By the time Starmie woke up, it was severely weakened; while not broken, its core's light was feeble.
Starmie had one shot. It surrounded Bub with Psychic and lifted her out of the pool in an attempt to drop her on the ground, but Bub struggled and managed to direct her course with Aqua Jet as she fell. It was only by a margin, but it was enough to send her falling straight on top of Starmie. Its light died immediately - it had fainted.
Siebold released his last Pokemon, Barbaracle. Bub was still raring to go, but Sepal stopped her. "Can I go?" He knew he wouldn't be of much use against the Steel- or Fire-type gyms.
Bub cheerfully let him go and took her place next to Tochi. It was only after she left the battle that her Torrent boost wore off. "Oh man, what did I just do…"
Sepal stared at the Barbaracle confidently, knowing how effective his Grass moves would be. The Barbaracle ran through its moves and was significantly less confident, but hid behind a brave leer.
Sepal started off with Petal Dance. Barbaracle tossed a Razor Shell from claw to claw and threw it like a boomerang. The shell whizzed around, knocking petals off course, but more took their place. Barbaracle stomped his foot and caused a Stone Edge to erupt underneath Sepal, which threw him...forward, and straight into Barbaracle. He used the opportunity to send his Petal Dance into a frenzy so the Rock-type was sliced all over with sharp projectiles. Sepal could feel Barbaracle hitting him with painful, close-range X-Scissors, but he was determined to hang on for as long as he could.
All of a sudden, the Barbaracle's struggling just stopped. Sepal stopped his Petal Dance and looked down in surprise; Barbaracle had already fainted.
"He's my strongest Pokemon if you get him going, but he never was good with Grass-types, poor fellow," Siebold said ruefully, recalling him. "That was wonderful. Simply marvelous. Especially your performance, Empoleon."
"Me?" Bub blushed.
"Go on. Two more challenges await, yes? May you succeed in your journey...and let me finish the rest of my meal."
~*Q*~