Chapter 45

"You ready for this?" Trevor asked me, as I prepped my team for what we were about to face. I counted off all six one more time, then responded.

"Yeah. I don't know who I'm leaving out of the fight though. Grotle and Manectric are musts, Swellow and Swampert will probably step in for a bit too, but I'm not sure beyond that. It'll be a heat of the moment decision for sure." Attaching my belt, I noticed Trevor was holding something in his hands. Upon closer examination, they were a pair of black fingerless gloves. Bit of an odd gift.

"I picked these up after I left. I've worn them in all my Gym battles, but I don't think I'll need them anymore," Trevor said. "Kick Mizuko's ass for me."

"Will do," I said, grinning myself. Stepping out into the break of day, I walked towards the location Mizuko had marked on the map she gave me, seeing as mine didn't get service for some reason. As I walked through the forest, wild pokemon danced in and around the canopy of the rainforest.

Yes, rainforest. All this traveling had fortunately not left me soaked, but I wasn't exactly dry either. Moisture had darkened my clothes, and at this point I decided to pitch my hoodie back into my bag. Not only was it tattered and dirty from months of solid traveling and little to no laundry, but it just wasn't me anymore.

Now just in a black T-shirt, my jeans, a worn out pair of running shoes and the fingerless gloves, I stopped to try and calm down. My heart was beating at a tempo of roughly three hundred and thirty beats per minute, my fingers were starting to shake and a bead of sweat trickled down my forehead.

Shit. I was not ready for this after all. This was like before Fuego, but times ten. I had to go up there though. I couldn't just wait around for something to shove me in the right direction anymore. I had to take control again.

Wiping my hands once again on my jeans, I took the last few steps forward into the area that had been marked as the Gym. Instead of a building of some sort however, there was nothing but a gigantic lake, with an island in the middle. A reinforced steel footbridge, a stark contrast with the rest of the view, had been laid out in front of me. This would be it. My last chance to back out and go home.

"Screw it," I told myself, and I boldly marched along its length to meet my destiny in a way. Confirming my suspicions this was a final decision was how the bridge slowly pulled back towards the other side of the lake once I was no longer on it.

"Do you like it?" Mizuko asked. "Every League battle has been in a vastly unnatural location for most of my challengers. But not here. This island had been almost untouched when I came here. All we did was relocate the local populations of a few wild Pokemon, here and in the lake, so we'd be fighting one another exclusively. Shall we meet with the referee and set some rules?"

"That's fine with me," I answered. My heart skipped a beat when I saw the older woman's sly little grin however.

"Alright, this will be a Five against Five League battle. Only the challenger may make substitutions. Anywhere on the island and in the lake is fair game. Pokemon may not attack trainers," the official droned, offering no comfort to me. "Once one trainer is completely out of pokemon, the battle is over. Any additional conditions added by the Leader?"

"I want to fight his Swampert last. I have a treat for him, that I've saved for a long time. Otherwise, no," Mizuko stated rather excitedly.

"Very well. Mizuko's five have been confirmed. Swampert has been requested, as final choice, otherwise make your choices known to me now," the official prompted, looking at me.

Gulping, I put pokeballs in the tray now nudged towards me one by one. Swampert. Grotle. Manectric. Swellow.

Now on my final choice, I considered both Hariyama and Skuntank, weighing the advantages of both. Toxic was a guaranteed death sentence, but that much bulk might float in a pinch. Finally settling on Hariyama, I took a step back.

"Okay, here's where it gets weird. You have ten minutes to find a spot for us to start from. Then we begin," I was told.

Well, that was odd. I looked around, then settled on where I'd reached the island.

"There," I pointed, taking the steps. "Where's your first?"

Answering my question was both the surge of broken water and the looming shadow over my head. Turning around, I saw a cream underbelly and a gaping mouth made of one fused row of teeth. Easily the size of a small building, I had not expected to see a Wailord. Most trainers simply didn't bother with them on the grounds of their size, evolved Wailmers having some of the highest abandonment rates.

"Ah," I said, summarizing the obvious.

So be it.

"Manectric!" I called out, releasing my Electric Type. Normally going for dominance, Manectric's tail went between his legs in an instant.

"I know it's really big, but you have to take it down. It's in a giant conductor for crying out loud! Discharge!" I commanded. The large mass of lightning arched out into the whale's body, sending intensely powerful voltage through the Wailord. The gigantic whale, however, didn't feel a thing.

"Counter with Water Pulse!" Mizuko called out, slightly miffed at how quickly I'd rushed into a plan of attack. The gigantic whale gathered a blue ball of oceanic energy in its mouth that Manectric managed to duck underneath, only to watch it blow up a nearby tree. Mizuko and I instantly dove for cover, trying to avoid splinters sent flying by the sheer force of the attack.

Dusting myself off, I could see a small nick along my right arm, a small amount of blood starting to drip out.

"Not every opponent will be taken down by sheer force. Did you learn nothing from yesterday? I actually think I was wrong about you. You aren't ready to win your last badge, you don't have the guts-" the Asian woman ranted, before I tuned her out.

Trying to sync with Manectric, the familiar fusion of vision that Swellow and I had yesterday came over me. Feeling in reenergized, we resumed our assault. Shifting my body with each leap Manectric made, the rubbery feel underneath my feet was a sign of our success in climbing atop Wailord. Seeing the blowhole, I didn't even have to speak in order. A Signal Beam, made of a pulsating psychedelic light forced itself through the hole, dealing damage.

Wailord tried to buck at his, but Manectric leaped right back off, launching another Discharge that was able to pierce whatever barrier had stopped its first launch.

"Blizzard!" Mizuko shouted. A frigid gale suddenly burst through the air, winds chilled upon its inception. This wind managed to hit my Electric Type, who was forced into a roll when the attack went through.

"One last push!" I called out, encouraging Manectric as we fell out of our synchronization. The second Signal Beam connected, and the first of many rounds to come ended.

Panting from exhaustion on my own part, I recalled Manectric. Without even a moment to catch my breath, Mizuko's second pokemon began staring me down. This orangey-red octopus had a long, gaping snout, and each of its legs was covered in yellow suction cups. Staring at me with beady eyes, it moaned its name at me.

"Octillery."

"Grotle, you're on!" I called out, releasing my gigantic turtle. "Razor Leaf!" As the leaves flew through the air, shooting towards their target, a Fire Blast engulfed the entirety of the attack, causing me to panic.

"You know what? I have seen so much crazy shit, I'm not even going to ask why. Grotle, return," I prompted, calling him back.

"Hariyama, you're on instead," I said, making the last minute change. "Thu-" I began, before stopping. At the rate I was going, I was showing my hand and had no idea if she was going to have an ace up her sleeve that would make this even harder on me.

"Close Combat!" I yelled at the gigantic Fighting Type.

Instantly, Hariyama charged forward in a flurry of blows, trying to bring down Octillery with the power of sheer force alone. Instead, a blast of murky ink landed square in his face, effectively blinding him.

"Octozooka. It's even got a fun name too," she enthused. "Now, you were about to use Thunderpunch?"

Shouldn't have gotten ahead of myself again. Maybe if I went back into that synchronization again, I could pull it off. After all, Octillery could only hit targets that were in front of it. All I had to do was go in behind it, and end it that way.

Except for the fact my player in this game was huge. Hariyama might as well have had a bull's eye painted on his bare chest.

"We need to focus now Hariyama! On my mark!" I encouraged, trying to get back into the mindset. The lines slowly began to blur, and I felt the tingle of the electricity along my right forearm. We lunged, this time with twice the force, and the wind rushed behind us. Not only did the attack connect, but the full force of Hariyama's bulk squashed Octillery.

"Strike again!" I exclaimed, now that we were back in this fight. Hariyama turned for the next round of the attack, only for Octillery to leap up into the air, using its legs for force.

With Octillery landing on top of Hariyama, I had to leave this heightened state in order for the both of us to not be blinded.

This battle was going to be even more of a drain on my consciousness than I'd previously fought. Every time I made an action, twice as much reaction was thrown in my face.

"Let's add to the stakes, shall we?" Mizuko offered, cutting in from across the battlefield. Your friend has a Lombre. If you win, he gets a Water Stone. You like that deal?"

Hariyama then released a salty Brine that dislodged Octillery, the liquid jet sending the squid into the side of a tree, with the sheer force knocking the Water Type out.

"I think I can do that," I panted, trying to hide my exhaustion.

I couldn't keep up like this though. I had to end this battle, or else...

I might not have the strength to go further.


"That was awesome," the girl said to Carly, now that she had finished up her impromptu performance. "Why aren't you doing this stuff as a trainer?"

"None of my friends wanted to, or even knew this stuff existed," Carly answered.

"And that stopped you? You could really go far, become a proper Coordinator even. What are you waiting for? In fact, I bet you built a team that works in contests without trying. What others do you have?" the street performer responded.

"Totodile, Bulbasaur, Litwick, Staraptor, Luxray. What's that got to do with anything?" Carly responded, before catching a Pokeball that was thrown in her face.

"She's a Gothorita, but too fierce to just stay here. You've got a lot of traveling in your future. You'll be a better trainer," the younger Psychic Type's former owner explained. "Consider it a gift, and a message."

"Of what?" Carly asked.

"You'll figure it out," the girl said, a smile across her lips as she walked away.

Happy New Year! This battle started to run long, so it's going to continue across the next 2 chapters at minimum. Then, we approach the epilogue.

Thanks to M.T. Pockets for all the back reviews, as my regulars seem to have gone poof.