Theme Song
We're on the road, far from home (Gray's Pokemon and her mother are shown working at the Adoption Center, and then the camera switches to show Unicus, Potens, and Furcifer battling a Malamar and Bellator using Razor Shell to battle a Bisharp)
A brand new region we will rome (The five Team Flare scientists smirk at Gray, White, and Noah)
New rivals here, and evil there (Bianca and Snivy, Cheren and Tepig, and Hugh and Frogadier smile at Gray, then the scene switches to Lysandre staring out at Castelia City)
Time to breathe in some fresh air (White and Snivy battle a Magikarp but end up getting attacked by a Gyarados while Tympole hides and Noah and Arcanine watch from afar and shake their heads)
All right (2x)! Another tale (Gray punches her fist in the air with White and Noah)
Walk down (2x)! An unknown trail (Gray and Alain reach out to each other and touch a mirror splitting the screen in half, and then the screen transitions to Charizard staring at Bellator and another figure behind him)
Reach out (2x)! For the holy grail... (Unicus, Bellator, Furcifer, Potens, Ferus, and two other Pokemon stand by Gray's side)
Pokemon!
Hey hey hey! It's time for another update, and this chapter will focus on Gray battling against... Alder! Of course, if you read the last chapter preview, you'd know that. Anyways, last chapter featured the return of Roggenrola, and he battled against Unicus. Then, they both evolved, and now Gray and White have themselves some pretty strong teams. Now, like I said, this chapter's going to be a battle between Gray and Alder, and more specifically, Potens and Bellator. Let's get going!
MysticBeatz21: I'm not sure if she'll be getting a Gigalith, though I do have a an idea that could end up making that happen. Still, I'm not sure
Warrior of Hope: Yeah, I think this is it for her, though. There might be a fourth, but that depends entirely on how many battles she'll be participating in throughout the story. Plus, she's going to have at least two evolutions, and I don't want every one of her battles to involve one
dragonplayer18: Unicus was starting to get screwed out of screen time, so there's the reasoning behind that and why it happened so suddenly (wasn't originally supposed to until I changed the arc preview before 19)
JustinThePokemonMaster: You would be right about both of those, sir. Potens won't do well, obviously, and they will be returning to Relic Castle pretty soon. And Unicus was originally supposed to evolve in the Driftveil Gym and win, but with how much attention the others have gotten, and will continue to get, I couldn't sit back and let that happen. I completely agree with you, though, it was too early. Also, the eyes were not N and Zoroark :P
FinLay Real: Si! The dunes have eyes! She will get beaten down, but I think you'll eventually start to feel bad for her with the way things shake out. Unicus' battling style will be aggressive and focus heavily on hand-to-hand combat. It's kind of like if Bellator will be more reckless
Defender31415: Thanks, and Boldore will be a welcomed addition to White's team. As for Potens, she's going to get clobbered
Gray's Team
Unicus, (f), level 22, Crush Claw, Magnitude, Swift, Rollout, Gyro Ball*, Fury Cutter* - (Sandslash)
Bellator, (m), level 23, Tackle, Tail Whip, Water Gun, Razor Shell, Water Sport*, Water Pulse* - (Dewott)
Furcifer, (f), level 19, Fury Swipes, Quick Attack, Icy Wind, Feint Attack - (Sneasel)
Potens, (f), level 16, Tackle, Gust, Bite, Wing Attack, Agility* - (Noibat)
Ferus, (m), level 60, Flamethrower, Feint Attack, Iron Tail, Foul Play, Bite*, Fire Fang* - (Houndoom)
"What do you mean you couldn't get it!?" Chase screamed, causing Gray to sweat drop as she looked back at Noah and White, who were whistling and had turned their heads away. "Gray! My grade depends entirely on finding a Larvesta egg!"
As soon as the medical student slammed his hands on the table in a blind fit of rage, Bellator, from across the battlefield, hurled a scalchop that hit Chase right between the eyes, knocking him onto his back while Gray turned around and glared at the water type. He didn't seem to care, however, and walked over to Gray protectively, picking his scalchop up off the ground.
"You better watch yourself," the Dewott threatened Chase as a blade of water extended from the object he had picked up.
Chase, looking up after rubbing his nose, gasped as the blade of water was touching his head, and he tried not making a move. Thankfully for him, Gray pulled Bellator away and scolded him. Still, she cracked a smile and patted the bipedal creature before letting him walk away while Chase rose to his feet with the help of Audino and dusted his clothes off.
"Sorry for getting so heated. I just really need to get this assignment done."
Gray waved off the student's concerns and turned as Tara and Scizor walked over nonchalantly as if they hadn't seen or heard any of the screaming. Once they sat down at the table, they positioned themselves so that they were able to watch Noah and White train together, along with Gray's Pokemon.
"So, how're your Pokemon getting along? It seems like they're all really nice," Tara opined, drawing a scowl from Gray as she looked around, noticing that Potens was no longer with her teammates. "What's wrong?"
"Potens is missing, again," Gray muttered, shaking her head in anger before turning her attention to her three other Pokemon, all of whom were standing around, waiting to be told what to do. "Guys, can you help find-"
"AAAAGGGGHHH!"
A deafening scream filled the air and everyone covered their ears in pain until the obnoxious sound stopped. Once it did, Potens floated towards the ground, cackling the entire way until Unicus rolled over to her and had the angriest look on her face. However, Potens wasn't intimidated in hte slightest and continued glaring right back at her teammate while Snivy stepped in-between the two and pushed them back with the vines from her neck. That didn't stop Unicus from swinging at Potens after she mocked the ground type.
Boldore was quick to break up the altercation by grabbing Unicus and holding her back while Bellator held Potens back. Arcanine, Tympole, and Furcifer, meanwhile, all watched and deadpanned as both Pokemon thrashed violently in an attempt to break free and beat the crap out of each other. They were stopped, however, when Gray shot up from her seat and walked over to the two.
"What do you think you're doing!?" she screamed, glancing back and forth at both creatures.
After they looked at each other, Unicus and Potens attempted to attack, but were held back by Boldore and Bellator, respectively. Hanging her head in shame, Unicus sighed, prompting Boldore to let her go. As soon as he did, Unicus rolled over to Gray's side and pointed at Potens, who Bellator had let go of.
"I've had it with her, Gray! She's always a jerk and trying to get on my nerves! I can't take it!"
"And she poured hot sauce in your food! It wasn't me!" Furcifer screamed, drawing stern looks from her teammate and Gray, making her sweat drop while Bellator narrowed his eyes and examined Furcifer's body language as closely as he could.
"She's not lying," he announced, grabbing the attention of his trainer, teammates, and everyone else. "Potens did it. I can tell," he said, pointing his scalchop at the Noibat, who snickered in response while shaking her head.
While White exchanged glances with Noah and backed away from the situation with her Pokemon and Arcanine, Chase and Tara looked at one another and began walking towards Bellator.
"Is that true Potens?" Gray asked, making the dragon type fold her arms and turn her back to the brunette.
"So what if it was?"
Before she could utter another word, Unicus lunged at Potens. She was stopped, however, by a blindingly fast Pokemon, who kicked her claw into the ground with its heel, making everyone gasp in shock while Bellator grabbed his second scalchop and Potens took to the air, preparing to scream as loud as she could. She didn't, however, when she saw a strange person walk towards Gray with his arms wide open, confusing Potens while her teammates, Snivy, White, and Gray greeted the man.
"Alder? What are you doing here?" Gray inquired as the man laughed heartily.
"Yeah, shouldn't you be teaching in Striaton City?" White quizzed while Noah, Chase, and Tara stared with their jaws hanging.
The redheaded man continued laughing and put his hands on his stomach as he did so before spotting the large group of Pokemon, and the trio of unfamiliar teens. As soon as he did, Alder walked over to them and extended a hand warmly.
"I'm sorry for being so rude. My name's Alder, nice to meet you," the former champion greeted, shaking the hands of Noah, Tara, and Chase. "Are you all traveling with White and Gray?"
"N-no, sir," Chase replied, stuttering as he stood in the presence of arguably the most famous champion within recent memory. "I'm Chase, and this is Tara," he stated, pointing at the girl accompanying him before continuing. "We used to travel with Gray, but I came here for medical school."
Alder raised his eyebrows and rubbed his chin, deep in thought.
"That's very impressive, Chase. Getting accepted into Castelia med is something very few people can say they accomplished. And what about you, Tara? Are you a student too?"
The girl sweat dropped at the question along with Scizor and they shook their heads. As they did so, Alder noticed the Mega Bracelet on Tara's wrist, drawing his attention. He didn't say anything, however, and finally turned his attention to Noah while Ferus limped out of the Pokemon Center with Nurse Joy by his side to make sure he got there safely.
"What about you, son?"
"Uhm, I'm Noah, and this is my buddy, Arcanine. We're traveling with White and Gray," the teen answered, making Alder smirk as he noticed the look in Noah's eyes when he spoke of the girls. "It's an honor to meet you."
Alder bowed appreciatively before returning to the two girls he had battled, and the strange Pokemon that had prevented Unicus from stabbing Potens walked to his side and folded its arms over its chest. Seeing the idle stance it was in, White took out her Pokedex and scanned the creature.
"Mienshao, the Martial Arts Pokemon, and the evolved form of Mienfoo. Using the long fur on its arms like whips, it launches into combo attacks that, once started, no one can stop."
"Wow, that's one impressive Pokemon," the rookie trainer muttered as Snivy hopped onto her shoulder and nodded, agreeing with the statement.
Alder didn't pay any attention to the kind words, instead looking at the Pokemon standing by White, and he smiled while crouching. Extending his hand to Tympole, the man smiled, and, surprisingly, Tympole hopped over to him with a joyous look on his face. Smiling as he was patted on the head, Tympole bounced back to White's side and continued smiling at the older man while Boldore nodded.
Then, shifting his attention to Gray and her Pokemon, Alder froze for a second, noticing the dramatic changes the girl's team had gone through since the last time they had seen each other. Both Unicus and Bellator evolved, Potens was captured, and Ferus had been brought back from Saffron City. The one thing that really caught Alder's attention was the way in which the Pokemon positioned themselves, with Bellator standing in the front confidently while Furcifer and Unicus stood by Ferus to make sure he was fine. Then there was Potens, who was off flying by herself, not wanting to associate with her teammates.
"I see your Pokemon have grown a lot stronger, ladies," Alder stated, drawing nods from both trainers as their Pokemon cheered in response, except for Bellator, who kept his eyes on Mienshao. The fighting type stared right back and nodded at Bellator, drawing a nod from the water starter before he placed his scalchops back on his thighs as a sign of peace, which made Alder chuckle.
"White's been training really hard ever since our battle, actually," Gray informed the older man, who smiled and turned to White, who shrugged bashfully. "She's really been helping us train for our Gym Battles. Isn't that right, guys?"
"Yeah! Now we're trying to help Tympole become more confident," Unicus told Alder, who smiled at the kind Pokemon.
"That's wonderful to hear. Now, whose Pokemon is that?" the former champion asked as he pointed at Potens, who heard the question and angrily swooped down, landing a few inches in front of him.
"I'm no one's Pokemon, got it?" she shouted, making Alder laugh. "You won't be laughing when I'm done with you! Let's go!" Potens continued, spreading her wings while Mienshao shook his head at the dragon type.
Bellator quickly stepped in front of Potens and put his arm out in front of her, shaking his head, which made her scowl.
"You don't want to do that, Potens. Alder isn't a normal trainer. He's a lot stronger than those people we battled in Pinwheel Forest," Bellator informed his teammate, who simply pushed his arm out of the way and glared at Mienshao, who narrowed his eyes and peered at the tiny Pokemon standing before him.
"I don't care. I'll tear this freaky mongoose apart, limb by limb," Potens retorted with a wicked look on her face.
"Oh really? How about we settle this!" Mienshao shouted, stepping towards his foe, who began snickering at the fact that she had pissed him off, even while Bellator held her back and protected her from the fighting type's fury.
"I'd be glad to, you disgusting freak."
As soon as she finished speaking, Potens was caught off guard, along with everyone else, by Alder slamming his foot on the ground, making a sound as loud as thunder crack in the air.
"Don't you dare disrespect any opponent of yours, whether it's my friend or someone else's. Got it?" the man interrogated.
Potens rolled her eyes and prepared to scream in Alder's face, but Snivy used Vine Whip to keep her on the ground.
Gray wasn't in the mood for confrontation and attempted to stop her Pokemon, but Ferus blocked her with his tail, shaking his head once he caught his trainer's gaze.
"She has to learn sooner or later," he muttered, drawing a reluctant nod from Gray. "I can referee if you'd like," Ferus offered, only to be shot down immediately and whisked to the other side near the Pokemon Center by Unicus and Furcifer.
Bellator, meanwhile, eyed Potens in concern before walking over to Gray's side and motioning for her to lean towards him, which she did.
"Gray, don't make her do this. Potens is going to get killed out there," he whispered as Arcanine and Noah stood in the referee box while White, Chase, Tara, their Pokemon, and the rest of Gray's waited. "I'll take the beating instead, just don't let her battle. You have to call this off."
The eighteen year old bit her lower lip and eyed Mienshao, who slowly walked forward, stepping in front of Alder, who had a stern look on his face. She then turned to Bellator and sighed.
"I don't want you getting hurt out there either," she confessed, pointing towards the sideline.
Bellator stared at his trainer in shock and shook his head as he walked over to Scizor and folded his arms over his chest, cursing wildly as he did so, which made the bug type, along with Tara, sweat drop. Noah, however, spoke up after clearing his throat, and he pointed at both sides.
"This will be a one versus one battle between Potens and Mienshao! Because Alder is, well, Alder, it's only fair Gray has the first move! Begin!"
"Potens, be careful, okay?" Gray requested worriedly, shaking as she did so.
Much to her dismay, Potens completely ignored Gray and shot forwards while her wings began to glow white. Letting out a powerful scream, Potens began swinging at Mienshao, but the incredibly skilled Pokemon effortlessly evaded each and every one of the attempted strikes. Growing frustrated with her inability to hit her opponent, Potens blindly flew right at Mienshao, prompting Alder to act.
"Blast Potens back with Aura Sphere!" the redhead commanded.
Mienshao slowly placed his hands together and formed a large ball of blue energy in-between them. Then, as Potens closed in on him, Mienshao hurled his arms forwards and threw the ball of energy. Flying right into it, Potens let out a cry of pain and rolled back to Gray's half of the battlefield.
"Potens!" Gray screamed while everyone else watched in silence. "Please, Potens, stop!" the girl begged as her Noibat rose to her feet and screeched to show that she was still ready to fight, making Bellator look up from his scalchops and stare. "Potens," Gray whispered, staring at the dragon type before her, blocking everything else out of her mind as she felt the determination radiating from the tiny bat. "If you're not going to give in, I won't either! Use Gust!"
Disobeying Gray for a second time, Potens sprung into the air and vanished, only to reappear a few feet to the right. After consistently vanishing and reappearing, the bat performed a nosedive and opened her mouth, preparing to use a Bite attack with her improved speed, but because of Mienshao and Alder's skill and experience, they were able to act without hesitation.
"Use Double Team to dodge it, Mienshao!" the former champion ordered.
Just before Potens could bite her opponent, Mienshao created multiple copies of himself. Once he did, Potens zipped through the clone standing in Mienshao's original spot, and she slammed her face against the ground, crying out in pain once again while Mienshao and his clones surrounded her. Slowly pushing herself off the ground, Potens looked around at her enemies and narrowed her eyes, preparing to deliver a wicked blow to the real Mienshao.
"Please, just listen to me, Potens! Spin and use Gust!" Gray begged, putting her hands together worriedly.
Despite hearing the desperate tone behind her trainer's voice, Potens continued acting on her own and flew at one of the fighting types head first. Instead of flying through the copy, it punched her in the face at the speed of light, knocking Potens onto her back and presenting Alder the perfect opportunity to continued his assault.
"Fire away with Stone Edge!"
Every single one of the Mienshao circled around Potens crossed their arms into the shape of an 'X' and two rings of sharp rocks began spinning around their bodies. Them, throwing their arms forwards, the Mienshao fired all of the rocks at Potens, whose eyes went wide while Gray's heart fell into her stomach.
"No!" the Kantonian shrieked as Potens was pelted by the dangerously sharp rocks, most of which lacerated parts of her skin.
Mienshao then got rid of his clones and walked over to Potens, picking her up by the throat before throwing her against the ground, making Gray recoil while everyone else remained as still as stone. Watching her Pokemon bounce along the ground, covered in cuts and bruises while a bit of blood trickled out of her mouth, Gray dropped to her knees and brought her hands up to her mouth, unable to speak due to the shock of seeing the condition her Pokemon was in.
Despite the immense pain coursing through her body, Potens refused to give in when she saw the solemn expressions on the faces of Mienshao and Alder. However, instead of hearing the usual support she did whenever her teammates battled, Potens heard nothing except Gray screaming for her to stop. Turning to her right, the dragon type didn't see a single person or Pokemon look at her in concern. Instead, it seemed as if they wanted her to get beaten down.
"They, they don't even care," the dragon type thought to herself. "Not even my teammates care if I'm okay or not. Not Unicus, not Furcifer, not Ferus, not even Bellator," she continued, looking at each of them before locking eyes with Bellator, who saw an expression in his teammates eyes, one he hadn't seen in her before.
She had given up.
"High Jump Kick!" Alder roared, throwing his knee into the air.
While Mienshao sprung straight into the sky, Gray slowly looked up to track his trajectory before realizing the potentially fatal damage Potens could accrue. As soon as she did, Gray attempted to stand up, but her legs were frozen.
They had given up.
Just as Mienshao was about to crush Potens, he grunted loudly and reared his leg back, narrowing his eyes. Throwing his knee forwards, everyone gasped in unison when a blue blur appeared in front of Potens and blocked the attack. After a second, all of the trainers and their Pokemon noticed that it was Bellator that had protected Potens, and he was using all of his might with both scalchops crossing to form an 'X' while blocking the ferocious attack from Mienshao. The attacks then cancelled each other out and Mienshao did a backflip before gracefully landing on his feet while Bellator placed his scalchops back on his thighs and turned to check on Potens, who was barely conscious.
"Do either of you know what Bellator's doing?" Musharna inquired as she floated next to Audino and Chase, eyeing White, Noah, and their Pokemon.
"Not a clue. What about you, Snivy? Is there any insight you could give?" White asked her starter, who sighed and put her hands on her hips.
Everyone looked at each other in confusion before Snivy finally spoke up.
"You were going to learn this sooner or later, but Bellator's as loyal as they come," she started, making everyone turn to look at the Dewott that was protectively standing over Potens. "Even if he doesn't like someone, he'll put that aside to protect them at any costs," the grass starter concluded, looking around and nodding, adding finality to her answer.
Unicus, Furcifer, and Ferus looked at one another before shifting their gaze back to Bellator, and for a split second, Ferus smiled as he pictured Fortis standing behind Bellator, almost as if he had possessed the Dewott. There personalities were exactly the same, yet completely different at the same time. As he shook the thought from his mind, Ferus noticed the unfazed expressions on the faces of Unicus and Furcifer, who didn't seem to care that Potens had nearly been put into a forty year coma, which took him by surprise.
"Potens is disqualified due to interference! Alder and Mienshao are the winners!" Noah announced, staying in his trainer box with Arcanine while Alder and Mienshao walked across the battlefield and towards Gray, who was trying to see if Potens was okay.
"I'm sorry it had to come to that, Gray. I truly am," Alder confessed, bowing to the younger trainer along with Mienshao, who received a ferocious glare from Bellator, a flash of gray light appearing in his eyes, which took the fighting type by surprise. Alder, who saw the light, didn't say anything about it, instead continuing to focus on the young woman he saw so much potential in. "Here, I'll give you my number so you can call me for a battle whenever you'd like. I truly am sorry about the way I acted."
"As am I," Mienshao added, bowing alongside his trainer.
"It's... fine," Gray replied, scooping Potens into her arms and rising to her feet. "I'm sorry, but I need to get her checked out right away," the brunette continued, running towards the Pokemon Center and leaving everyone else outside.
000
Sitting outside the intensive care room, Gray peered through the glass and stared at Potens, whose eyes were still closed even after five hours of treatment. The brunette put her back against the wall and began to slump down to the ground, burying her face in her hands. As she did so, Nurse Joy walked out and cleared her throat loudly as a means of alerting Gray, who slowly looked up with a depressed demeanor.
"Gray, your Noibat is in fine condition, and she should be waking up soon. You can check on her if you'd like," the pink haired woman informed the younger girl, who shot off the ground and nodded while her friends watched from their chairs.
The Pokemon, on the other hand, bolted over towards Gray and looked up at her worriedly even as they walked into the room. As soon as they stepped foot inside, Nurse Joy closed the door, which was soundproof, allowing the young women and her Pokemon to talk freely, which they refrained from doing. Instead, Gray grabbed a chair folded up in the corner and sat down next to the bed Potens was lying in, prompting the others to gather around.
"Potens," Gray whispered, extending her hand and placing it on the Noibat's tiny fingers, which were on the top of her wings. "I am so, so sorry," she said, sniffling before hanging her head.
"You can't blame yourself, Gray," Ferus told his trainer, who began crying and shaking her head. "You know the outcome of that battle wasn't your fault. If I was healthy, I would've been battling instead of her. Or I would've kept her in line. I know that for a fact."
Gray continued crying and shaking her head while staring at the ground, but Unicus and Furcifer didn't share the same feelings as their trainer. As they stared at Potens, both Pokemon felt rage for different reasons, but it was the same feeling nonetheless. Bellator, who was leaning against a wall beside Gray, simply kept his eyes fixated on the ground, replaying the last moment of the battle in his head over and over again.
"If I would've intervened earlier, she wouldn't be in this situation. What the hell is wrong with me!?"
Suddenly, Bellator smashed his right fist against the wall so hard it began to bleed slightly, grabbing the attention of his teammates and Gray while Nurse Joy ran into the room in a panicked hurry.
"Is everything okay? I just heard a loud bang!" the woman shouted, prompting Bellator to walk towards her and bow apologetically.
"Sorry for the scare, ma'am. I just hit my hand," Bellator informed her before glancing back at Potens, which Nurse Joy caught on to. "It won't happen again, I promise."
Nurse Joy smiled and placed a hand on Bellator's shoulder with a warm smile, confusing him.
"Don't worry, your friend is going to be back and better than ever in a day or so. There's no reason to be angry or sad," the woman assured Bellator, who kept a straight face as he hung his head, disgusted with his delay in protecting his teammate.
Nodding to make Nurse Joy go away, Bellator turned back to Gray and his teammates, who were all focused on Potens. Muttering something under his breath, Bellator slinked out of the room and disappeared.
"I don't get why she didn't back down. I don't get why I didn't back down!" Gray shouted, tears pouring down her face as the guilt from the result of the battle washed over her like an ocean wave. "I'm a terrible trainer," she whispered, rising to her feet.
After wiping the tears from her eyes, Gray attempted to reach out to Potens, but she stopped and stared at her hand in disgust before running out of the room with Ferus, who chased after her despite the pain of his broken ribs, leaving Unicus and Furcifer, who glared daggers at the Noibat laying before them.
Without uttering a word, they turned their backs on Potens, unaware of her waking up. As she did so, Potens slowly turned to see her two teammates standing a few feet away, and they had stopped walking and began speaking to each other.
"I never liked her. I'm glad she finally got put in her place," Unicus muttered, making Potens open her eyes wide in shock, having not expected the Sandslash to say such things.
"Yeah. Maybe now she won't be traveling with us," Furcifer added before walking out of the room leaving Potens in disbelief.
After several hours passed and Potens knew Nurse Joy and Audino had gone to sleep, she rose from her bed and unhooked all of the machinery attached to her. Hopping out of her bed, Potens stumbled towards the door, struggling to get her legs under her. Once she did, Potens opened the door and began creeping out of the Pokemon Center.
Upon exiting the building, the dragon type turned around and stared at the window of the room Gray was resting in, and she hung her head in shame. Turning her back to the Pokemon Center, Potens attempted to leave, but was stopped when a strange object slammed into the ground in front of her.
In the blink of an eye, Bellator appeared in front of her and had his arms crossed over his chest.
"Where are you going? You should be resting," he whispered, not wanting to wake anyone up from being too loud. "Come on, let's go," he ordered, attempting to grab Potens.
She managed to evade his grasp and began flying, perching herself on the roof of the Pokemon Center, which made Bellator furrow his brow.
"I'm not wanted here, Bellator. It's not hard to see," Potens informed her teammate, who stared at her in confusion, not knowing where she was going with the information. "It'd be better for everyone if I just left. It's not like anyone would miss me," she continued, rising to her feet and preparing to take off in the dark of night.
"Hold on just a second," the Dewott demanded, turning Potens' attention to him. "Sure, we may not get along, and maybe there is some hatred between you and the others, but you can't say no one would miss you."
"Please. It's a little late for love confessions, isn't it?" the Noibat retorted, resulting in Bellator beginning to lose his cool.
"That's not what I was going to say!" he hissed, silencing Potens. "Do you have any idea what that would do to Gray? She's been beating herself up all day for not protecting you during that battle! And I have too!" Bellator shouted, catching Potens by surprise. "I know you don't like me, and to be perfectly honest, I don't exactly like being around you, but you're my teammate, God Damn it!"
The water type slammed his foot on the ground emphatically.
"Protecting a teammate, even if it comes at the expense of my own well-being, is something I believe in, and I failed to protect you, Potens. I'm sorry."
The night fell silent, save for the cars and screaming from the city, and Potens and Bellator stared out at the moon. Adjusting her balance, Potens looked down at the practice battlefield from the roof of the Pokemon Center and shook her head with a pained look on her face.
"I'm sorry, Bellator, but this is goodbye. Tell everyone they're better off without me."
"Potens, wait!" the Dewott shouted as he attempted to pursue his teammate.
Much to his dismay, Bellator watched as Potens took off at the speed of a fighter jet, leaving him in the dust as she disappeared into the night sky, leaving behind the one thing she had placed above all else: friendship.
Holy crap. Potens got absolutely destroyed by Alder and Mienshao, and she ran away because of the horrible things Unicus and Furcifer said about her! Of course, Gray's going to go out and try to find her with the help of Bellator, so hopefully they can encounter Potens before anything else can. That'll take place next chapter, and I'm hoping it turns out as well as I think it can (it actually, in my new outline, is one of my favorites). Till then, peace out.
1) Do you feel even the slightest bit of sympathy for Potens? I mean, she wasn't that terrible, was she?
2) Are you surprised Bellator protected Potens during the battle?
Next Chapter: "It Takes Two to Tango"
After finding out Potens ran away, Gray goes on a city-wide hunt for her disobedient Pokemon. Eventually, Gray and Bellator are confronted by Flare grunts and find themselves outnumbered! Will they be able to find Potens and defeat the grunts?
Castelia City Arc
Chapter 27: Protect the Pokemon Shelter
Chapter 28: Heart of the Hive
Chapter 29: A Dual Wield Duel
Chapter 30: Testing the Subject