The Canalave Gym only operates on weekdays. Hence, it is a surprise to anyone currently walking past the gym to hear loud noises coming from within the building. Today is a Saturday. There shouldn't be a battle going on in the gym today.
The source of the noise is Riley and his team, who is having his pokemon do a warm-up sparring session with each other in preparation for their battle with Volkner later. His mentor had accepted his challenge late last night, but since everyone was tired from successfully foiling Team Galactic's plans at that time, they all agreed to push the match to this morning instead.
Byron was kind enough to lend Riley a spare key to his gym before he headed home last night so that Riley can come early to do his own warm-up today. All Byron wants in return was to spectate an exciting match. Riley is not planning to disappoint. He is not planning to just do a spectacular job.
He is planning to win.
He knows that he is one of the stronger trainers in his generation, a 'rising star' as most of the older folks call him. The cream of the crop. Many people had told him that his strength as a trainer is enough for him to be considered by the League as a potential member to be the next Thirteen Pillars should a current member step down. He is happy that people recognise his strength, but he forced himself to keep a clear head and not let the praises get to him.
Arrogance can fell even the strongest of men. That was a lesson that he had learnt the hard way.
Back when Riley first started on his Sinnoh Gym Circuit and finally climbed his way through the first seven gyms to Sunyshore Gym, Volkner was the newly appointed leader of the gym. Riley was young back then, only twelve years old, but he had done the impossible and is on his way to complete his gym circuit in only a short span of less than a year. He had claimed seven badges in just ten months through beating every single Gym Leader in his gym challenges, a feat that not many can boast. He had thought that the challenge for the Beacon Badge would be an easy win.
Volkner had decimated him.
He had seriously underestimated the power that the last gym in the circuit wield. Even before facing the Gym Leader himself, the gym trainers he had to first overcome were no pushovers. Riley had persevered and eventually made his way to Volkner, but his team wasn't as healthy as he liked it to be.
And when Volkner had wiped his team with only an eelektross and a vikavolt, he started to doubt himself.
He had done several more attempts to win the Beacon Badge from Volkner, but each of them was thwarted by Volkner again and again. Volkner had said that he is a talented trainer but had also told him that talent alone is not enough. Volkner had said that he was not yet good enough to compete in the Lily of the Valley Conference. Volkner told him that he was not yet ready to be an Elite trainer.
And when Riley asked why, Volkner had simply said that it is something that he has to figure out on his own before Volkner went back to take a nap.
Volkner is not a Generalist like him, but he has several pokemon in his possession that are not electric types and yet also absurdly strong. It is rare to find a Generalist in the top tiers of the trainer community due to the difficulty in trying to be one, to master all knowledge, to train any and all pokemon belonging to all 17 typings. In the truly Elite tier, Volkner is the closest and strongest 'Generalist' one can get in Sinnoh that is not Cynthia.
Riley decided that the only way to beat Volkner is to learn from Volkner himself.
Volkner accepted his request to be his gym trainer. Even better, he had offered him a chance to be his official apprentice.
To be an apprentice of a Gym Leader is a huge matter, it is something to be proud of since it is not an offer given lightly. It is a prestigious position, one that many will try to get no matter the cost. Volkner may be new to the job back then, but he is a Gym Leader. Riley accepted the offer immediately. Apprenticeships are rare in the trainer community since most trainers prefer to keep their training method close to their chest. Such things are closely guarded secrets among trainers. Riley had requested to be apprenticed under several notable trainers before, but none of them gave him any time of the day.
Volkner may not think Riley was yet ready to be an Elite trainer, but the offer he gave him also meant that Volkner had recognised his potential.
Volkner's laid back personality can be frustrating to deal with, but Riley knew better than to be deceived by his mentor's behaviour. Volkner is deceptively strong. There are times that he hardly needs to even give a single command to his pokemon in battle and yet he and his team will still come up on top. Volkner put Riley through the toughest challenges he can find for him, and Riley will always do his utmost best to succeed.
He still failed more than he won.
Volkner never blamed him. In fact, it was like he had expected Riley to fail. It wasn't until much later that he realised that Volkner wanted him to fail.
It puzzled him. However, he also knows that Volkner wants nothing but the best for him, so he didn't question his mentor's logic.
Being Volkner's apprentice was a full-time job. Riley hardly gets any rest during his apprenticeship to Volkner. Volkner himself is also a very busy man, but he tried to have at least three training sessions with Riley every week no matter how busy he is. Because of the sincere dedication Volkner displayed in mentoring him, Riley cherished every training session he had with Volkner, not wanting to disappoint him.
Initially, Riley had no idea what he wanted to do if he ever completed his apprenticeship and finished competing in his first ever conference. The first thought he had was to head back to his home on Iron Island and continue to train like a hermit, but Volkner had suggested for him to try a career in the League's forces. He can still remember Volkner's words, 'If you truly want to stand at the very top, go get a life and go out and explore the world'.
According to Volkner, the real challenges can only be found there, since the League's forces deals with very real problems in the region. It is a place where your skills as a trainer are put to the ultimate test. Volkner even somehow managed to source for an internship for him with the SPF to help Riley get a feel of the job, so that Riley can know what it feels like to be working for the League and can better decide if such a future career suits him.
It was just a two-month internship, but Riley loved every moment of it. He decided that enlisting into the SPF is what he will do when he finally finished his conference. He likes the idea of using his strength to help people in need and to uphold justice and peace in his homeland. It is similar to what Volkner is doing, just that Volkner is doing it in the capacity as a Gym Leader.
In the second year of the apprenticeship, his apprenticeship with Volkner ended suddenly without any warning. It was just a normal day where Volkner will spar with him. As usual, Riley lost. Volkner then dropped the bomb on him, saying that Riley had learnt all that he can teach him and it is time for him to go out once more to see the world. He is now ready to be an Elite trainer. Volkner then gave Riley the Beacon Badge and promptly told him to kick everyone's ass in his upcoming conference.
That was how his two-year apprenticeship with Volkner came to an end.
Even when he left Sunyshore to compete in the 529th Lily of the Valley Conference, he still had no idea why Volkner suddenly deemed him ready. He only realised what Volkner was trying to impart to him only when he participated in his first conference.
Volkner wanted him to learn how to fail. Even without Riley himself realising it, he had become arrogant and complacent after seven consecutive wins in his gym circuit. Volkner wanted Riley to curb his own arrogance. Only when he learnt to be humble then can he flourish.
There will always be a handful of talented trainers in every year's conference, trainers who only needed a year or even less to finish their circuit. Riley would have been like them if it wasn't for Volkner putting a temporary stop to his journey. Most of these talented trainers have one thing in common.
They are so used to winning that they don't take their losses very well.
Volkner was right to say that talent can only bring one so far. The conference is a big event, where skilled trainers from all over the region came to compete to prove to the world that they are the strongest of the strongest. Some of them even travelled to Sinnoh from other regions to participate in the Sinnoh Gym Circuit on the Elite level to enter the Lily of the Valley Conference. It is a place where monsters gather. No matter how talented you are, there's no way one can win if you simply have one year of experience as a pokemon trainer. Unless you are Steven Stone from Hoenn, who is an anomaly even among Elite trainers.
Most trainers who only have one year of experience under their belt never ventured far into the conference, no matter how talented they are. Most of them didn't believe that they will lose. Riley can tell from their facial expressions whenever they got eliminated from the conference.
Riley could imagine what went on in their heads. Why would they lose? They are geniuses, people called them as such. They had never failed before.
So why?
They were like him. The him before he suffered a devastating loss thanks to Volkner. He was glad that Volkner taught him how to fail before he entered the conference. If Volkner were to just hand him the Beacon Badge on his first try in the Sunyshore Gym Challenge, Riley would be like these trainers: too full of himself. His own talent will be his downfall as it is a perfect breeding ground for arrogance to fester. He would not have known that there will always be someone stronger than you out there in this big world. A smooth sailing life may not always be the best for you. Sometimes, people do need to fail every now and then to remind themselves that there will always be someone better than you.
This was the most important lesson that he had learnt from Volkner.
He was still curious as to why Volkner chose him as his apprentice out of the many talented trainers that had challenged his gym. Volkner only gave him a short reply.
"Because unlike those self-conceited trainers, you are willing to learn and change. You are willing to continuously improve yourself and not stay stagnant no matter how strong you will be."
He can see his mentor's logic. Volkner could have singlehandedly stopped these talented trainers on their journey to teach them what it means to fail, but if they don't want to learn, then there won't be any use either.
Being Volkner's apprentice does have its own set of expectations. With the title comes a certain amount of pressure from the public. They expect him to perform.
He did. Riley mowed down his opposition and became the Champion of the 529th Lily of the Valley Conference. He did himself proud. He did his family proud. He did his mentor proud as well.
Due to his spectacular performance in his conference, his application into the SPF was immediately accepted. It also helped that he had left a nice impression on his superiors during his two-month internship with them previously. Over the years, he climbed up the ranks through his own skills and effort, ending up as the Deputy Head of Security of the Sinnoh Police Force at the young age of seventeen years old. Many had thought it was foolish to give such a huge responsibility to someone so young.
He proved them wrong.
If Volkner hadn't taught him how to fail, he wouldn't have succeeded today. That's why Riley decided to challenge his mentor to a battle.
He wants to show him that he is strong enough to surpass him.
He is ready.
"You are early as usual."
The familiar lazy drawl of his mentor's voice got him turning to the door as Volkner strode through the entrance with Byron and Jasmine beside him.
His mentor actually has a girlfriend. Riley still cannot believe that a person as lazy as him actually has a girlfriend.
"I'm ready, Mr Tide."
"So am I. I assume this is a six-on-six battle?" Volkner asked as he took his position on one end of the field and gave a lazy stretch. Byron walked to the referee stand as Jasmine took a seat behind Volkner.
"Yes. Please do not go easy on me, Mr Tide."
"As I used to say to you all the time, that will depend if you are able to make me and my team take you seriously." Volkner said with a lazy smile on his face as he handed the cap he was wearing on his head to Jasmine, who took a seat behind Volkner on the challenger's box. His mentor's girlfriend is also obviously curious as to what the outcome of this match will be.
Still, who is she? She looks so very familiar but for the life of him Riley just can't seem to remember who she is.
"Right. Just to make this clear, this is a six-on-six battle. No items are allowed. Switching of pokemon is allowed. Any objections?" Byron lay out the rules, a standard procedure before the start of any official match.
"I want to add one. Mega Evolution is allowed."
Everyone turned to Volkner at his words.
"Really?" Byron questioned, surprise clear in his voice.
"Riley should have a Mega Stone due to his position as the Deputy Head of Security. Besides, every one of us here knows about the secret existence of Mega Evolution and it is not like there is anyone else spectating this match. We are still acting in accordance to the rules set by the PWL. Why not?" Volkner shrugged. "Of course, that is if he agrees to it."
"I accept." Riley said quickly. If he wants to go all out, then Mega Evolution is a power that he wants to tap into.
Mega Evolution is a huge and tightly guarded secret that the member regions of the PWL keep away from the public eye and knowledge because this power is too dangerous when used by the wrong people. Most of the time, only high-ranking League trainers and the Thirteen Pillars are allowed possession of Mega Stones and Key Stones and even then, there is a limit on how many one is allowed to have. Only when the circumstances are dire enough is Mega Evolution allowed. Riley knows that Volkner had filed a report stating that he had resorted to Mega Evolution without prior approval from the League in order to save his city during the siege on Sunyshore. The League was fine with it due to the nature of the incident, and also because no one saw its use on the vast sea where the battle was held, including the ship which was attacked since it was proven that the ship was too far away for anyone to see the battle clearly. No one can find any faults with Volkner's decision, so it was left as it is. The secret of Mega Evolution is still a secret from those who should not know about it.
"Alright, just one thing before we start. Don't destroy my gym. Or I will flip." Byron directed the last part at Volkner, who simply wagged one of his eyebrows at Byron as if saying should I do just that?
"Both sides ready?" Upon seeing both challengers giving a nod of their heads, Byron called the start of the match.
"Let the battle begin!"
Like Riley had expected, Volkner sent out his jolteon, Jo, for battle first. Riley had sent out his absol. His absol is the only one that can possibly match Jo in speed.
"Thunder Wave!"
"Magic Coat!"
Upon hitting the Magic Coat, Jo's Thunder Wave bounced back harmlessly thanks to Jo's Volt Absorb ability. Absol used this time to charge right in and unleashed a massive Night Slash that tore the ground up with it.
"Charge Beam!"
Absol's Night Slash was countered by a condensed beam of electricity that dug a huge trench on the ground in its wake. Jo didn't let up as more Charge Beams were fired at absol, forcing it to be on the run. Riley gritted his teeth at the sight. Jo's Charge Beam are not to be trifled with. Each of these attacks might as well be a Thunderbolt with how destructive the effects are due to Jo's expertise in this particular move.
"Absol, Shadow Ball!"
"Agility, dodge it!"
Jo immediately became a yellow blur on the battlefield as absol's Shadow Balls missed its every mark. Riley can tell that his absol is getting frustrated at the futile attempts to nail Jo with even a single attack. Something needs to be done about Jo's insane speed. Jo is only getting quicker with successive uses of Agility.
"Blizzard, freeze the arena!"
"Discharge, blow it up!"
The raging snowstorm summoned by absol was met with a huge electrical blast by Jo, creating an explosion that left a huge crater in the middle of the battlefield. Another Charge Beam found its mark onto absol in the chaos, who hissed in pain at the contact but retaliated with a Punishment, only for the jolteon to evade it with Detect.
Volkner suddenly have a huge grin on his face which sent Riley into a panic. Whatever Volkner is planning to do next, it cannot be good. Wait a second, when had he seen this grin before?
His past battles with his mentor flashed across his mind.
Shit. How had he not thought of it earlier?!
"Jo, Baton Pass to Tec!"
Crap.
Jo immediately switched out and Volkner's hulking rhyperior announced its appearance with a deafening bellow.
"Drill Run!"
"Detect, then Water Pulse!"
Absol barely managed to evade Tec's charge and unleashed a huge pulse of water. The rhyperior countered absol's Water Pulse with its own use of Surf, sending absol tumbling back instead.
"Megahorn!"
With a burst of speed that such a behemoth shouldn't possess, Tec rushed in to try and fling absol away with a powerful thrust of his horn. Riley quickly recalled his absol back to its pokeball before that can happen. As of now, absol is not suited to take down an empowered Tec.
Jo had passed on its speed to Tec with Baton Pass earlier, covering Tec's weakness in the speed department. Riley gave himself a mental slap in his mind. How could he forget about Jo's ability to use Baton Pass? It is one of Volkner's favourite strategy when it comes to sending Jo out for battle!
The rhyperior species boasts impressive offense and defense but is extremely slow in speed. However, Jo had rectified that with Agility and passing it on with Baton Pass. There aren't many on Riley's team that can go against Tec. His gyarados could, but his mentor is the strongest Electric Specialist in Sinnoh. Tec would obviously have learnt a wide arsenal of electric type moves to be used at his disposal. Sending out a water-flying type for battle is just asking to get himself fried.
Only his rhyperior can go against Volkner's Tec.
Riley's own rhyperior appeared for battle and roared his challenge to Tec, who answered the challenge with his own.
"Tec, Surf!"
A massive wall of water crashed down on rhyperior as Tec rode the waves. Riley realised that the increase in offensive power from Jo's earlier usages of Charge Beam must have carried over to Tec as well with the Baton Pass. Thanks to that, Tec's Surf is a lot stronger than usual. In fact, any ranged moves from Tec will have its power increased thanks to the power up from Jo's Charge Beams. Volkner is taking full advantage of the power up carried over to Tec.
Baton Pass. One move, that was all Volkner needed to turn the tide of the battle to his favour. His mentor is really a skilled trainer and Riley himself is still too careless. He should have his absol started off with Taunt.
Still, there are benefits in allowing the opponent to move first.
"Metal Burst!"
A large burst of energy from rhyperior impacted against Tec, pushing him back. Metal Burst is an attack that deals a greater amount of damage that was recently inflicted on the user. It is a move that can be better utilised by a pokemon with slower speed. It is the perfect counter to Tec, who had raised its speed through Jo's help.
"Not bad, Riley. But how long can your rhyperior hold on? Tec, Focus Blast!"
Tec roared before charging up a Focus Blast and throwing it at his rhyperior, who destroyed the attack with a Stone Edge.
"Don't let up, Flash Cannon!"
Riley's rhyperior was forced to be on the defensive immediately. Riley gritted his teeth. The situation he is facing is getting worse the longer the battle drags on. Tec needs to be brought down before it grew to be too big a problem to be solved.
He will need to sacrifice rhyperior to bring Tec down. No other pokemon on his team can face Tec as it is. Right now, Riley's strategy is to force both rhyperiors to fling absurdly strong moves against each other to see who can outlast the other. There's no way both pokemon can last long in combat once the battle took this direction. It is just a matter of who goes down first.
"Power-Up Punch!"
Rhyperior dashed in upon his command to rain punches on Tec, who took a leaf out of their book by bracing the attack and countered with a Metal Burst, sending rhyperior flying back instead. Rhyperior didn't let up and unleashed a Superpower in an attempt to overpower Tec, who merely ripped the ground with Earth Power to stop rhyperior's charge.
"End it, Flash Cannon!"
"Charge through it, Endure!"
Knowing what its trainer is planning, Riley's rhyperior braved through Tec's Flash Cannon with Endure to close the distance. When Tec's Flash Cannon ended, rhyperior turned the tables by smacking Tec with an Endeavour, levelling the playing field immediately. With that, now both rhyperiors have their health dangerously low. One more hit is all it takes to knock each other out. Riley wasted no time in giving his next command.
"Iron Head!"
Rhyperior lowered his head and bashed at Tec with Iron Head, only to be surprised when a greenish energy shield got in its way.
Tec had somehow pulled off a Protect.
"Reversal!"
In a stunning display, Tec swung its massive arms and smashed into rhyperior, sending it flying to the other end of the arena and taking it out for the count.
No way. He was so close!
"I had a hunch you would pull off something like that." Volkner mused. "Good job on the Endeavour, by the way. But remember, Tec is still faster than your rhyperior thanks to Jo's Baton Pass. A speedy rhyperior is a scary one to face."
Riley didn't answer his mentor as he recalled his rhyperior. Even after so long, a battle with his mentor makes him feel as if he is the same inexperienced student all over again. And Volkner and Tec aren't even fully serious in their fight. He still didn't manage to push his mentor hard enough to take him seriously, he can tell that much. Tec had purposely taken on all the damage his own rhyperior inflicted on him when he could have just dodged or blocked. Riley knew Tec is more than capable of that. The fact that Tec's grin is stretching from one end of his rocky face to another is another clue that the monster of a rhyperior just wants to enjoy the thrill of the battle as much as possible. Tec didn't even care if he would lose or win as long as he can fight an exciting battle.
To be so strong that you are begging to lose by lowering your strength. Just how strong is Volkner?
Riley cannot help but let his own smile appear on his face at the excitement of facing his mentor in such a heated battle. He called out his absol for battle again, determined to put Tec down and make his mentor take him seriously. Tec has been weakened enough, absol can finish the job.
"Psych Up, then Water Pulse!"
Absol immediately copied the effects of Tec's power ups before unleashing a massive wave of water. Tec defended himself once more with Protect before starting a Rain Dance.
Oh no.
"Taunt! Then Focus Blast!"
Absol could only manage to use a Taunt before it was forced to flee from a massive Thunder coming at it from above. If there is one thing Riley had learnt from his apprenticeship with Volkner, it is that you should never allow Volkner the chance to set up a Rain Dance if you want to beat him.
"Sunny Day! Disperse the clouds!"
"Flamethrower! Roast it!"
Volkner and Tec quickly adapted to the change by making use of the heat of Sunny Day to use a Flamethrower, whose effects are boosted from the Sunny Day. No matter how absol tried, it can never get in range to fire off its attacks. Tec is just too versatile and strong.
"Future Sight!"
This is the only move left that might be able to help absol get pass Tec's onslaught.
"Earthquake! Wreck the ground!"
Numerous large cracks appeared on the ground as it split into many segments from Tec's Earthquake and slabs of earth were thrown into the air from the impact. Absol was forced to use a Detect to escape. An idea suddenly struck Riley. All he needs to bring the unstoppable Tec down is to bait it to use a huge attack.
"Absol, get close and use Iron Tail!"
"Focus Blast, take it down!"
Volkner took the bait. That's it.
"Me First!"
Riley knew that he succeeded when he saw the look of surprise on Volkner's face. Thanks to the effect of Me First, absol was able to steal Tec's Focus Blast and use it on him instead before Tec could, finally bringing the behemoth down.
From the looks on Byron's and Jasmine's faces, they weren't expecting the turnaround too.
Riley can see Volkner give him an approving grin before sending out Simba. The luxray let out a roar before using a Protect to defend himself from absol's Future Sight that was prepared earlier. That attack didn't accomplish anything other than annoying the large feline.
"Swagger."
Simba's Swagger managed to enrage absol into the state of confusion. It gives Simba just enough time to set up an Electric Terrain before promptly knocking absol out with a Thunderbolt. Absol didn't even have a chance to defend itself.
It still didn't discourage Riley. The battle so far is still one of the most favourable battles he had with his mentor. It shows that his hard work through the years had paid off. He quickly sent out his next pokemon.
"Salamence, Dragon Pulse!"
Riley's salamence flew into the air at high speeds before shooting numerous Dragon Pulses at Simba, who evaded the attacks and took to the air with its own use of Magnet Rise. Simba sent out numerous blasts of Shock Waves which found its target on Salamence, who roared in pain. The Shock Waves only serves to make the dragon angrier.
"Eerie Impulse, lower its offensive powers."
Simba let out a mysterious pulse of electrical energy which immediately lowered salamence's offensive powers upon the exposure. Simba followed up by sending numerous arcs of electricity, which Riley recognised to be Thunder Wave. Volkner and Simba are aiming to clip salamence's wings and hinder its ability to fly. That absolutely cannot be allowed to happen.
Salamence recognised the threat of the Thunder Wave as well and destroyed the attack with its own use of Dragon Breath. It flew up high into the air and used a Dragon Dance, determined to out speed the luxray.
"Dragon Rush!"
Salamence zoomed in at high speed upon the command, only for Volkner to do the unexpected once more.
"Flash, then Toxic!"
A bright surge of light blinded the occupants of the gym. When the light subsided, they found salamence to be on the defensive from Simba's onslaught of attacks. The dragon is still partially blinded from the earlier use of Flash.
Thankfully, salamence had managed to evade Simba's Toxic. Riley and salamence would be on a time limit to bring the luxray down otherwise.
"Dragon Claw!"
That attack connected onto Simba. Simba wasn't deterred and quickly got back on its feet before charging back in with a Wild Charge, shocking salamence with a huge voltage of electricity.
"Fly and Rest!"
Salamence quickly regained some of its lost health with Rest while flying upwards before purposely dropping back onto the ground the moment it fell asleep. Simba's Electric Terrain is still active, and salamence quickly woke up upon falling onto the electrified ground. Electric Terrain has the effect of preventing any pokemon on the ground from falling asleep and Riley is using any advantage that he can get from Simba's Electric Terrain to even the odds. It still didn't stop Simba from sinking its fangs onto salamence with an Ice Fang as the two pokemon clawed and bite at each other brutally on the ground.
"Earthquake!"
"Magnet Rise, then Thunder!"
Simba deftly evaded the Earthquake with Magnet Rise before a huge pillar of lightning crashed down onto salamence. Salamence is still far from being put down, its anger has no other purpose but to fuel its strength. It returned the favour by raining a large volley of rocks with Rock Slide, forcing Simba to dodge the attack.
Salamence's Scary Face managed to freeze Simba for a split second, just enough time for Riley's salamence to crash into it with a Dragon Rush and pin it to the ground.
"Draco Meteor!"
Salamence's Draco Meteor was unleashed onto Simba at point blank. The draconic attack blew up the entire arena with it, throwing rocks and earth in every direction. The entire battlefield was reshaped. The psychic barriers that protects the onlookers groaned and strained against the impact, flickering in and out of existence erratically but still managed to hold the worst of the attack in.
Riley let out a smile. He and salamence had brought Simba down.
Or so he thought.
A cry of pain got him snapping out of his thoughts as his salamence back-pedalled with arcs of electricity coursing through its body and its muscles convulsed uncontrollably. How? How had salamence got itself paralysed?
Simba fought to stand on its feet as it stood up from the huge crater on the ground. Riley realised that it must have used an Endure to defend itself from the Draco Meteor.
"Wild Charge!"
Simba smashed into salamence with a powerful Wild Charge before fainting from the recoil. Salamence had suffered significant damage, but is still able to battle even after taking the destructive attack head on. However, the paralysis status Simba had inflicted on it has Riley worried.
Also, the battle thus far feels a little too easy. Is Volkner still not going at his full strength?
"Now this is the battle I'm looking for! Watch out, Riley! Franky, Electro Ball!"
A huge blast of crackling orb of electricity blasted salamence backwards the moment Franky was called out for battle. The monstrous electivire zoomed in and closed the distance with a Thunder Punch while rain clouds start to blanket the entire ceiling of the gym as it ran. Byron and Jasmine both already have their pokemon out to help shield them from the incoming rain.
Still, how did Franky managed to use a Rain Dance while running at high speed?
Salamence blocked Franky's charge with a Protect, pushing itself past the paralysis to continue battling. The Electric Terrain that Simba had set up earlier had vanished, so Riley is unable to use the same tactic to let salamence use Rest to recover and then wake itself up from its forced rest. Volkner also won't be stupid enough to allow Riley to use his own moves against him a second time.
"Don't let it fly into the air! Electroweb!"
Nets charged with electricity covered salamence from head to toe which the dragon burned down with blasts of fire. Salamence tried to force Franky away with an Earthquake, the offensive power of the attack being boosted by its Moxie ability for taking down Simba earlier. Franky simply ignored the attack and stuck close to salamence with Quick Attack. It jumped onto salamence's back, used its two tails to wrap around its wings, and unleashed a massive voltage of electricity that got salamence roaring in pain.
"Shake it off your back! Outrage!"
"Thunder!"
Franky's attack was way faster as a Thunder struck down on both Franky and salamence from the rain clouds. Salamence had to defend itself with a Roost by healing itself and temporarily taking away its flying typing to mitigate some of the damage it is receiving, but it won't be enough.
"Thunder Punch!"
"Protect!"
Riley saw how his salamence was about to defend itself from Franky's Thunder Punch, only to widen his eyes in shock when the paralysis it received from Simba earlier prevented it from reacting fast enough. Franky's attack found its mark and salamence lay defeated beneath his feet.
Franky still looks fresh and raring to go.
Riley recalled salamence with a grim expression on his face. He knows facing Franky is inevitable the moment he challenged Volkner to an all-out battle, but the electivire is still a nightmare to face no matter how much he had prepared for it. Franky is arguably the strongest pokemon on Volkner's team, depending on which angle you are looking at.
As of now, one pokemon of his might be able to match Franky in power.
"Ursaring, Swords Dance!"
Riley's ursaring wasted no time in raising its offensive powers the moment it was summoned. Franky used the same time to close the distance and knocked ursaring back with a Cross Chop.
"Mega Punch!"
"Psychic, stop the attack!"
Ursaring's Mega Punch was forcefully stopped when Franky's Psychic halted its attack before flinging the normal type away from it. Franky sent out a Thunder Wave at Ursaring, who destroyed the attack with a Seed Bomb.
Franky had taken this brief time to close the distance again. The electivire is like an unstoppable force. No matter what you throw at it, it just won't stay down and keeps coming back at you. No defence is capable of withstanding Franky's insanely strong offensive powers.
In that case, Riley will just have to force Volkner to switch out his pokemon.
"Ursaring, Roar!"
That move forcefully sent Franky back to his pokeball and Jo was dragged out instead. The jolteon reacted quickly in preventing itself from being on the receiving end of ursaring's Slash by dodging to a side.
Ursaring started up a Fury Cutter, but every slash of its claws missed its mark as the jolteon zipped around the field with Agility while buzzing with electricity. As practiced, Riley's ursaring tried to stop Jo with an Earthquake, only for Jo to use Magnet Rise to evade the move.
"Feint Attack! Then Smack Down!"
Feint Attack is an attack that never misses, and Riley wasn't disappointed when ursaring managed to finally hit Jo with that attack, scoring a critical hit. However, Jo evaded the Smack Down with a Detect and blasted ursaring with a massive Thunderbolt in retaliation. Ursaring tried to hit Jo with Return, only to catch an afterimage of Jo's Double Team instead.
Jo's speed is a really big issue. They also cannot allow Jo to use Baton Pass again.
"Force jolteon to fight you head on, Taunt!"
Jo bristled as its continuous use of Agility was put to an abrupt stop by ursaring's Taunt, but it is still plenty fast even with Taunt in effect. It is no slouch in the strength department either, as shown when it got ursaring to stagger and take a few steps backwards with a single Thunderbolt that also destroyed whatever is left of the arena.
Jo closed the distance with a Quick Attack, dodging ursaring's swipes of its claws at the same time.
"Volt Switch!"
Franky announced its reappearance with a Thunder Punch that got ursaring to skid a few metres backwards. Ursaring tried to force Franky to switch out with another Roar, but Franky defended against the attack with a Protect before heading right in with a Rolling Kick. Ursaring is now forced into close combat with Franky, an area of combat in which Franky had hardly lost.
"Fury Cutter!"
Each consecutive slash of Fury Cutter that hits the target doubles the power of the next hit. It is the best attack for ursaring right now to match Franky in combat. The only thing that ursaring have to take note of is to not miss any of its slashes.
"Take it, then Dynamic Punch!"
Franky defended against the first slash of Fury Cutter by blocking it with one of his arms. He cocked back the other arm before he let loose a powerful Dynamic Punch on ursaring, sending it flying into the air.
"Don't let it have a chance to do anything else! Taunt! Then Thunder!"
Franky returned Riley's tactic of using Taunt against his foes with his own Taunt before calling down a massive Thunder. Ursaring destroyed the incoming Thunder with Metal Claw before dropping onto the ground, somehow overcoming its confused ailment inflicted by Franky's Dynamic Punch earlier.
"Rollout!"
Ursaring jumped into the air, curled itself up, and swiftly rolled in Franky's direction in a brown blur. Franky stood his ground and used its big arms to stop ursaring's Rollout directly, forcing it to come to a stop with sheer physical strength alone.
"Ursaring, get out of there!"
"Discharge!"
Franky's Discharge blasted ursaring backwards, who had snapped out of its confusion upon receiving the attack. Ursaring retaliated with a Play Rough which Franky intercepted before using a Low Sweep to trip it. Ursaring barely had time to roll out of the way when Franky's arm came crashing down with a Brick Break.
Franky's two tails poised like ekans on a hunt before it suddenly let out two separate Charge Beams from its tips that swept across the arena, tracking down ursaring as it ran from the attacks. The Charge Beams cut up anything in its way, turning the arena into a big mess. Ursaring only have a few options to defend itself with Franky's Taunt still in effect.
"Fling!"
Ursaring quickly picked up a huge rubble upon Riley's command and threw it at Franky at speed too fast for the human eye to pick up. Franky wasn't bothered by the attack as a swing of its own arms crushed the debris into pieces, his own Charge Beams still trying to find its mark on ursaring.
"Lift it up with Stone Edge!"
Franky's attack was finally disrupted when a huge jagged stone erupted from the ground to stab him. Franky managed to dodge the attack at the last minute and destroyed the rock with a swift punch. However, ursaring is now coming back at him with a snarl.
"Shadow Claw!"
"Barrier! Then Headbutt!"
Franky defended against most of Shadow Claw's damage with Barrier before smacking ursaring's head with a Headbutt, causing the normal type to flinch from the attack. It was enough time for Franky to wrap his tails onto ursaring's paws. Riley quickly shouted at ursaring to free itself. It is obvious what is coming next.
"Quick, get out of the bind!"
Riley's warning to ursaring was too late as Franky let loose a huge voltage of electricity directly onto ursaring, who cannot do anything else but thrash helplessly as its arms were restricted by Franky's tails. It tried to use a Mega Kick, but Franky simply smashed its legs back down with a Karate Chop. It tried to unleash a Hyper Beam from its mouth, but another Headbutt from Franky forced its mouth shut and prevented the Hyper Beam from firing.
Ursaring only lasted three seconds before it fainted.
Even when another member of his team was brought down, Riley wasn't discouraged. He knew Volkner's Franky is ridiculously strong in both close- and long-range combat. Almost nothing can faze Volkner's monstrous electivire, the cornerstone of his team. The only pokemon in Sinnoh that can match Volkner's electivire are probably Flint's magmortar and Cynthia's garchomp. Riley wasn't really expecting his ursaring to be able to defeat Volkner's electivire in a one-on-one match anyway, he just wants ursaring to wear Franky down.
Although from the looks of it, they didn't really quite succeed.
Riley sent out his metagross next, who defended against Franky's electric beams with Light Screen. Any physical attacks by Franky were defended against with Iron Defence and metagross matched Franky's speed with Agility. Franky seems to genuinely enjoy the challenge as it fought expertly, matching his fists with metagross's steel legs.
A Psychic sent Franky flying backwards although he immediately righted himself in the air with Magnet Rise. Riley was surprised when Volkner recalled Franky back into his pokeball. Riley really doesn't like the smile on Volkner's face right now.
"Come on out, Puddle!"
Riley held back a frustrated sound from forming in his throat. Puddle is an absolute menace to go against. Metagross's steel type attacks are also not as effective on a water type like Puddle. The gyarados's huge size is also making it harder for his metagross to take it down through strength alone.
Thankfully, Canalave gym is big enough to accommodate both metagross and Puddle and they are able to fight freely without being hindered much by space constraints. Riley immediately commanded his metagross to fly with Magnet Rise, a move that Volkner had taught him how to utilise to its full potential.
"Thunder Punch!"
"Flamethrower!"
Metagross zipped around the Flamethrower with its legs crackling with electricity. Its Thunder Punch found its target, but the attack barely affected the gigantic gyarados. Metagross was slammed backwards by Puddle's Aqua Tail with a simple lazy flick. Puddle even had the time to give a big disinterested yawn, its eyes drooping in a sleepy manner.
Puddle doesn't think metagross is a threat.
Metagross used one of its metal legs to defend itself from Puddle's Brutal Swing before crashing into the gyarados with a Zen Headbutt. Gyarados behaved as if the attack didn't even tickle it and halfheartedly tried to catch the flying metagross with a Crunch, looking annoyed at having called out for battle.
"Bring it down with Surf!"
"Psychic!"
Metagross's expertise with Psychic was its only saving grace against any ranged attacks Puddle threw at it. Riley saw Volkner frown a little before giving his next command to Puddle.
"Scald! Don't let up! Force it to defend!"
"Light Screen! Defend any attacks that got through the Light Screen with Psychic!"
A ghostly aura covered Puddle whenever metagross used a Psychic to defend against Puddle's Scald. It took a few seconds for Riley to realise what that ghostly aura is.
That was Spite. Volkner is trying to quickly deprive metagross of one of its strongest and most versatile moves by using Spite against metagross's Psychic. Puddle's repeated use of Scald is to force metagross to rely on Psychic for defence, and whenever it does so, Puddle will use a Spite as well.
Cunning.
"Double Team!"
Metagross immediately acted on the change in plans with Double Team and released a powerful Psyshock on Puddle, who is now enraged at getting hit by that move. All hints of sleepiness in Puddle is now gone. A powerful Hyper Beam struck Puddle as it roared in pain before the gyarados used a Brutal Swing to destroy all of metagross's illusionary copies in one fell swoop that was brought about by Double Team. The snarl from the humongous gyarados clued everyone in that Puddle is angry.
"Shadow Ball!"
Metagross adopted a hit-and-run tactic as it blasted Shadow Balls after Shadow Balls while zipping about in the air. Puddle released another Surf to wash metagross backwards with the huge wall of water, but metagross charged through the attack with a Zen Headbutt before firing another Hyper Beam right in Puddle's face. Puddle inflicted significant damage on metagross with just a single Hydro Pump before unleashing a Zap Cannon, which metagross managed to move out of the way at the last second.
"Toxic!"
Puddle was forced to use a Protect to prevent itself from getting poisoned. It finally decided to move from its position, slithering on the ground before taking off in the air.
Puddle roared, and Riley knew that this battle just got a lot harder.
Puddle is sick of taking hits. It is done playing around. One part of Riley is happy that he finally got Volkner and Puddle to take this match seriously, the other part is frantically screaming at him to hurry and do something before things got really hard.
"Dragon Dance! Then Waterfall!"
"Stop it! Bullet Punch!"
Puddle ignored the rain of punches metagross is unleashing on it. It let loose a roar before slamming into metagross with a powerful Waterfall. Metagross had managed to partially defend against the attack with an Iron Defence and tried to stop Puddle's advance with a barrage of Flash Cannon. Unfortunately, the attacks are barely slowing Puddle down.
Riley and Volkner are now at a stalemate. While metagross is able to defend itself from Puddle's attacks effectively, its own attacks are barely doing much damage to Puddle. Metagross needs to raise its own offensive powers somehow, or lower Puddle's defence.
The old-fashioned way it is.
"Metal Claw, don't let up!"
Metagross immediately flew in and slash at Puddle with a series of Metal Claws, which Puddle responded with a wall of flames with Flamethrower. The fire type attack didn't do much damage to metagross thanks to its use of Light Screen and metagross continued its onslaught.
"Surf!"
Another tidal wave attempts to wash metagross away but Riley already has a plan to counter that.
"Icy Wind!"
The wall of water froze immediately and metagross broke through it with a Meteor Mash to continue its attacks on Puddle with Metal Claw. Puddle looks visibly annoyed and tried to freeze metagross with a Blizzard, only for metagross to dispel the attack with an explosive Shadow Ball.
"Thunder Punch!"
The effect of metagross's Thunder Punch this time is a lot more obvious since metagross's offensive powers had heightened considerably after so many repeated usages of Metal Claw. It did significant damage on Puddle but is still not enough to bring it down. It only serves to enrage the massive gyarados further.
"Payback!"
A devastating smash from Puddle nearly took metagross out of the count if it didn't use a Reflect at the last second. Riley clicked his tongue in frustration. Puddle is simply too good at defending itself against most attacks. Thunder Punch is metagross's best move against Puddle and Riley had hoped that after having metagross's offensive powers raised by repeated usages of Metal Claw, it is enough to bring Puddle down in one single hit. Clearly, he had underestimated just how much punishment Puddle can take.
But Puddle's size works against it as well. Being as big as it is also meant that Puddle is near hopeless when it comes to dodging attacks in an enclosed area like the location in which they are now holding their battle. Metagross is barely standing as it is, just one more direct hit will take it out. However, the Thunder Punch that metagross had delivered had also inflicted a significant amount of damage on Puddle. This can be an opportunity for Riley and metagross to take Puddle out before it can heal itself up with Rest.
Volkner and Puddle didn't give the duo any extra time to think as Puddle shot a Brine at metagross.
"Dodge it, then get close and trap it with Reflect!"
Knowing what its trainer is trying to accomplish, metagross skated sideways with help of its psychic powers, narrowly dodging Puddle's Brine. It created walls of Reflect that surrounded itself and Puddle on all sides, trapping them together in a small enclosed space face-to-face.
"Get out of there! Break down the walls with Brutal Swing!"
"Thunder Punch!"
Metagross kept up the pressure, not allowing Puddle any chances to heal itself. A powerful Thunder Punch disrupted Puddle's attempt in freeing itself and further reducing its health. Riley himself has a gyarados, he knows that Puddle's species is unable to learn Brick Break and break through the walls of Reflect erected by metagross. He will use that to his advantage. Reflect may be a defensive move by creating psychic walls to mitigate physical damage, but it can also be used for trapping enemies as well if utilised properly.
Now, Puddle has nowhere to run.
Riley commanded metagross to use Volkner's favourite trick against him with Flash, temporarily blinding Puddle from the light. With that, Puddle is temporarily unable to put up any form of defence against metagross's next move for a short moment. Riley has confidence that metagross's next move will be able to take out the massive gyarados since it has been weakened enough.
They are going to take down Puddle, and they are going to beat Volkner.
"Explosion!"
A deafening boom shook the arena and the psychic barriers protecting the onlookers temporarily fizzled out of existence. Everyone had to take cover behind the metal walls behind their respective stands from metagross's final attack.
When the smoke finally cleared, it was visibly obvious that metagross is unable to continue battling after using Explosion. However, it had taken Puddle down with it as well. Volkner and Puddle were obviously not expecting such a suicidal and bold move to be used on them. If it wasn't the element of surprise, Riley wasn't even sure if metagross's Explosion would have worked.
Volkner still has three more pokemon left while he only has one. Jo and Franky are a given since they already appeared for battle earlier, but the last pokemon Volkner might send out is still an unknown.
Despite the odds, Riley still has confidence that his last and strongest member is able to snatch him the win. His starter is way stronger than the rest of his team that were brought down by Volkner and his pokemon. All of his previous failures will culminate into his victory today against his mentor, he is sure of it.
Volkner send out Jo for battle once more as Riley send out his starter, lucario.
"Extreme Speed!"
Lucario disappeared in a blur and kicked at Jo, who had no time to defend itself from the attack.
"Thunder Wave!"
"Bone Rush, destroy it!"
Like how Riley had trained his lucario to defend against electric type attacks, lucario's Bone Rush is sufficient to render Jo's Thunder Wave useless before it charged straight at Jo once more. Jo evaded the incoming Power-Up Punch with a Detect before trying to take lucario down with a Thunderbolt. That attempt failed as lucario simply destroyed the Thunderbolt with an Aura Sphere.
"Force Palm!"
Jo is obviously outclassed by lucario's speed even with Agility active and it doesn't have the required firepower needed to take lucario down. It is a matter of time before lucario defeats it.
It's here, his chance of victory.
"Take the Force Palm, Charm and Captivate!"
Even when Jo was brought down by lucario's second use of Force Palm, Riley knew that the next battle will be a hard one due to the effects of both Charm and Captivate that Jo had pulled off before it fainted. Both moves had drastically reduced lucario's offensive capabilities. He can raise it back up again by commanding lucario to use moves like Swords Dance or Nasty Plot, but he is sure that Volkner will not give him the chance to do so.
"Not bad, Riley. I can't remember the last time I was in a battle, down to only two pokemon left from my main team, and who my opponent wasn't Flint. You had really improved." Volkner said with a large grin on his face as he tossed a pokeball up and down on his right hand.
"It's all thanks to your teachings, Mr Tide. However, I am going to win this battle."
"Oh? Show me then, the results of your training." Volkner said in reply as he threw the pokeball in his hand into the air to release his next pokemon for battle.
Whatever Riley was expecting, he wasn't expecting Volkner to send out Fluffy.
When Riley had left the Sunyshore gym years back, Fluffy is nowhere near the level of Volkner's main team. For Volkner to send it out now will mean that Fluffy had at least reached that required level, or maybe even grew strong enough to match even Franky. Volkner knows very clearly just what his lucario is capable of. Even back then, only Franky had a solid chance to bring down his lucario.
"You know, I'm surprised that you haven't used Mega Evolution yet. Your absol, salamence, and metagross are all able to Mega Evolve, yet you didn't use it. Should have known that you were saving it for lucario."
"Aren't you the same, Mr Tide?"
Volkner's only answer was to reveal the Key Stone embedded on a bracelet he hidden under the long sleeves of his jacket.
"Don't hold back on me now, Riley. Fluffy is stronger than she looks."
On a silent cue, both master and student invoked Mega Evolution at the same time as their respective pokemon met each other head on for battle.
"MEGA EVOLUTION!"
The dust around the two pokemon were blasted away from them due to the sudden eruption of power. Mega lucario was immediately in front of Fluffy after experiencing the process of Mega Evolution, determined to help its trainer beat his mentor.
Mega lucario started off with a Power-Up Punch, only to find its fists partially buried in a wall of soft, yellow cotton.
"Get out of there, mega lucario! NOW!"
Mega lucario got out of its predicament with an Extreme Speed just as a Thunder crashed down on its previous location. Fluffy, now a mega ampharos, smirked back confidently at mega lucario. Fluffy's expertise in using Cotton Guard is already proving to be a big problem for mega lucario and its physical moves, like how it had defended herself from the Power-Up Punch earlier.
"Aura Sphere!"
A barrage of Aura Spheres bombard itself against Fluffy, who calmly raised a wall of Light Screen before detonating the Aura Spheres prematurely with a massive Discharge that blew up the entire arena. When the dust and light had died down, both mega-evolved pokemon are exchanging fire as lightning and aura-based attacks were thrown around in such a violent manner that shook the entire gym, each pokemon trying to outdo the other.
Fluffy suddenly charged in and smacked mega lucario with a Thunder Punch, sending mega lucario hurtling back and cracking the ground underneath them.
"Dragon Pulse!"
Mega lucario righted itself in mid-air before it let loose a massive beam of draconic energy. Fluffy is now also a dragon type thanks to her Mega Evolution, Fluffy now has a weakness to dragon type attacks.
Fluffy's answer to that Dragon Pulse was a massive Charge Beam so huge that it could have been mistaken for a Thunder. The resulting explosion knocked both pokemon backwards from the impact.
"Mega lucario, Earthquake!"
"Fluffy, to the air!"
Fluffy managed to levitate herself with Magnet Rise just before the Earthquake went off. Arcs of electricity that originated from the gem on her head raced towards mega lucario, who recognised the hidden threat the Thunder Waves posed and immediately destroyed them with Flash Cannon. It then jumped into the air to hit Fluffy with a Meteor Mash, only for Fluffy's Cotton Guard to get in its way once more. However, this time, mega lucario's arm is stuck in the wall of cotton that was produced when Fluffy puffed herself up with Cotton Guard.
"You are too hasty, Riley. Fluffy, Zap Cannon! End this!"
"Mega lucario, Vacuum Wave!"
A wave of pure vacuum blasted at Fluffy from mega lucario's palm that is stuck in the Cotton Guard, making her cry out in pain as she was forcefully blasted backwards by an unseen force. Mega lucario didn't let up and fired more Dragon Pulses at Fluffy, who is still reeling from the effect of the Vacuum Wave impacting against her at such close range. The Dragon Pulses found their mark, dealing significant damage onto Fluffy.
Mega lucario suddenly twisted out of the way when a Thunder fell upon it from above without any prior warning. The rain clouds are somehow back again, and mega lucario is suddenly forced to be on the defensive as massive columns of Thunders struck down without any mercy. One of the attacks scored a glancing blow on mega lucario, whose fur on its left side is now singed from the attack.
"Disperse the clouds with Flash Cannon!"
Mega lucario's attack was intercepted by another Thunder falling out from the clouds with Fluffy directing the attacks from afar. Riley clicked his tongue as he weighed his options.
"Take Fluffy out before it can summon more Thunders! Extreme Speed!"
Mega lucario disappeared in a blur of blue and yellow and appeared right behind Fluffy with a Dragon Pulse forming between its paws, ready to be fired.
"Dragon Pulse!"
Mega lucario fired its Dragon Pulse upon the order, only to hit a wall of psychic barriers which Riley recognised as Light Screen. Fluffy didn't get away unscathed as some of the damage from the attack got through, but they had been significantly dampened by the Light Screen.
A ghostly ray of energy burst out from Fluffy and Riley gripped the handrails in agitation. That was Confuse Ray!
"Hyper Beam!"
Using a normal type move on a steel type like his mega lucario? Mega lucario can take a Hyper Beam from even a pokemon as strong as Fluffy, no problems. It is a chance for him and mega lucario to take Fluffy down.
"Brave through the attack! Take Fluffy down with Ice Punch!"
When a massive beam of energy was fired from Fluffy, Riley knew that he had messed up. It is definitely not just a Hyper Beam. All he took was a split second to identify what had changed.
"Mega lucario! Switch to Protect!"
He had forgotten to account for the fact that Fluffy knows Ion Deluge, a move that converts all normal type attacks to electric types. It is not a common move to encounter in battle, so it had slipped his mind. Fluffy's Hyper Beam is now an electric type move and his mega lucario has no resistance to it. His steel-fighting dual typing offers no protection against an electric type move, especially for one as strong as an electrified Hyper Beam.
Fluffy didn't let up as she continue to fire the Hyper Beam at mega lucario, who is fighting through the confusion it is suffering from the previous Confuse Ray and somehow managed to erect a shield of Protect at the last minute. However, that doesn't prevent it from being pushed backwards to the edge of the arena from the blast. Fluffy is strong enough to not need any time to recharge from firing Hyper Beams after Hyper Beams consecutively.
"Thunder!"
The Hyper Beam was suddenly cancelled. Fluffy proved herself to be capable of continuing to fire attacks without needing to pause or rest as numerous Thunders rained down from the clouds, striking at mega lucario whose reactions were too slow to put up any form of resistance. The Confuse Ray did a sufficient job to mess with its senses.
To Riley's horror, his mega lucario was also inflicted with a paralysed status when the Thunders subsided, as can be visibly seen when erratic sparks of electricity covered his pokemon.
"Zap Cannon!"
Mega lucario won't have the necessary speed to get out of there given the paralysis inflicted on it. The only way out is to fight back.
"Flash Cannon! Destroy the attack!"
The arena exploded once more in a brilliant light of yellow and white, forcing everyone to shield their eyes with their hands to prevent the light from blinding them. When the light died down, only Fluffy's silhouette can be seen through the smoke. She waved her tail once, which produced enough force to clear the smoke instantly and allows the spectators to see the final result.
Riley's lucario lay defeated at the bottom of a huge crater on the ground. Its mega-evolved form had receded the moment it had been knocked unconscious. Byron called the match after seeing that lucario is unable to continue battling.
"Riley's lucario is unable to battle, victory goes to Volkner!"
Riley recalled his starter back to its pokeball, whispering his thanks to his long-time friend and companion. He is a little disappointed at the results, but they had done their best. This is the best result that they had produced so far in their battles against Volkner.
It proved that they had progressed. It is something to be happy about.
"Good job, Riley. That was fun." Volkner said as he walked up to him to shake hands, a gesture Riley reciprocated. "You have really come a long way."
"Thanks, Mr Tide. I wouldn't have gotten this far without your guidance."
"Heh, that was indeed a good battle. Kid could become a Gym Leader with that strength. All we need now is an open slot." Byron said with a guffaw as he joined them.
"Mine will always be open." Volkner added with a sly look on his face.
"You know the League will never relinquish their hold on you." Byron retorted to Volkner's words. "From what I know, you are supposed to replace Bertha when she retires."
"Urgh, no thanks." Volkner shuddered a little at the comment. "Being an Elite Four member means that I will not be able to slack around and it also means that Cynthia will always be on my case. I rather be a Gym Leader if that is the case."
"That was a good match." Jasmine applauded Riley's performance too as she walked up to join them. "Not many can push Volk to this extent, Thirteen Pillar or not. Even I am not confident in my abilities to push him this far."
Riley accepted her kind words with a nod of his head. Somehow, he has the feeling that he had saw this woman before. She looks vaguely familiar. But where and when had he seen her before?
"Don't sell yourself short, Jas. Facing your team in battle is a real pain."
Jasmine only gave Volkner a sweet smile at the praise as she handed his cap back to him. The love Volkner have for Jasmine is clear in his eyes as he put the cap back on his head before turning back to Riley and Byron.
Well, this side of his mentor is definitely a side that Riley had never seen before.
"I'd love to stay and chat, but we are on a vacation." Volkner continued with a yawn. "Jas and I should really be heading to our next destination."
"Enjoy your vacation, Mr Tide. Thank you for taking the time off to indulge my request for a battle."
"No worries." Volkner gave him a pat on the back and the usual smile on his face. "The next time we battle, I'm expecting a greater challenge from you, Riley."
"I will defeat you the next time."
"Looking forward to it." Volkner said with a huge grin before he turned to Byron.
"Thanks for hosting."
"No problems. Enjoy your vacation." Byron answered with a hearty laugh as Volkner and Jasmine both said their farewells before heading out of the gym.
"What are you frowning for?"
"Huh?" Riley snapped out of his thoughts when Byron's large hand landed on his shoulder. "Just… I have a feeling that Jasmine feels really familiar, like I had seen her somewhere before, but I cannot remember where or when…"
"She's the Gym Leader of Olivine." Byron said with a shrug. "The Iron Wall of Olivine, Jasmine Terbium. Ever heard of her?"
Riley's eyes widened in realisation and disbelief. He was talking to a Gym Leader all along?! A Steel Specialist similar to Byron at that?! Those are rare!
"Close your mouth, kid. A zubat might find its way inside if you continue to keep it hanging." Byron teased good-naturedly. "Jasmine has that effect on people. She somehow is able to maintain a low profile despite being a Thirteen Pillar herself. Sometimes I wish I have that same ability."
"What…How…" Riley stuttered as he struggled to form a coherent sentence.
"If you are asking me how the two got together, I have no freaking clue." Byron said as he let his excadrill out to help mend the destroyed arena with his ground type techniques. He grabbed Riley by his arm before dragging him to the pokemon center.
"Come on, since you are free, you might as well be my punching ba- I mean, sparring partner for today." Byron quickly corrected himself as the two exited the gym. "If you want to improve and stand a better chance against Volkner of all people, then you need to be accustomed to fighting people on the strength level of a Gym Leader. Like me, for example. Hate to break it to you, kid, but Volkner and his team definitely wasn't using their full strength. If he was serious, he would have ended the battle with you with probably only two pokemon on his main team fainting, tops. My gym would be destroyed within the first three minutes if he really went all out. He and his team toned down their power because it had been a long time since they had such an exciting fight. It's easy to tell that they just wanted to enjoy as much as possible because it is rare for them to find anyone that can give them a good challenge. Where others fight with their full strength to win, that lazyass had to tone down his power to enjoy a battle. That's how crazy strong Volkner is. That genius is on a whole other level from us mortals."
Riley nodded in agreement and quickly kept up his pace with Byron. Of course, he had felt that as well in their battle. Volkner is so strong that he and his team had to tone down their power to be able to enjoy a satisfying battle with him. It was a surprise that Puddle was taken down at all and it was the first big clue that Volkner wasn't being entirely serious in that battle. The second clue was when he purposely sent out Fluffy to battle his lucario when Franky is more than capable for the job. There was no need for Volkner to reveal his sixth member for their battle, he probably just wanted to pit his own mega-evolved pokemon with his mega lucario. Volkner did tell him after all that it is up to him to force him to go all out. He did manage that, to an extent. The intensity of the battle started heating up slowly as it drags on, but Riley knew he had only truly managed to get Volkner to be fully serious when lucario mega-evolved.
Such opportunities to battle against a Gym Leader at their full strength are rare to come by. Riley knows that it had always been Volkner's intention for him to surpass himself. He wants to groom Riley into his successor since he has the potential. It was obvious from how Volkner had been teaching him during his days as Volkner's apprentice.
Riley adjusted the hat sitting on his head while walking beside Byron as he reaffirmed his decision. His mentor is strong, but that shouldn't discourage him. It just makes him want to defeat Volkner even more, to defeat his mentor at his full strength. He will become so strong that Volkner will be forced to take him seriously in battle right from the start.
He will surpass his mentor.
He will shine brighter than the Sun of Sunyshore.
AN: I have nothing much to say here other than two things. One: As of now, I probably will be going with my series of reincarnated ocs pokemon fic that will all take place in the same universe and timeline. IJWTTTW, TSoS, and Ordinary Researcher (new fic, go check it out if you are interested) will be in there. I already have most of the characters' backstories planned out and I had worked out a way to incorporate them into one massive story that can be read as a whole or individually. As of now, I don't see a reason to not do it. The only problem I have is trying to craft a suitable character to be the last member of the seven. I tried two totally different ocs in my spare time, but I had no idea on how it could work beyond the introduction and complement well with the other six. I will see how it goes.
The second thing is I hoped that you guys had enjoyed this battle scene. I know most of you had been dying to see Volkner battling with his main team because if I am a reader I would be dying to see it too. So, here it is. Hope this chapter doesn't disappoint.
In any case, I hoped you enjoy this chapter.
Pokemon and trainer list:
Volkner Tide: Gym Leader of Sunyshore, Electric Specialist
Titles, Accolades and Achievements: Tie for First Place with Flint in the 521st Lily of the Valley Conference, Sinnoh's strongest Electric Specialist, Thirteen Pillar of Sinnoh, The Sun of Sunyshore, The Yellow Flash
Main team:
1) Electivire (Franky), male
2) Luxray (Simba), male
3) Jolteon (Jo), female
4) Magnezone (ISpy), genderless
5) Gallade (Myst), male
6) Rhyperior (Tec), male
7) Probopass (North), female
8) Gyarados (Puddle), male
Pokemon used for Gym challenges
9) Raichu (Squeaky), female
10) Pachirisu (Scrat), male
11) Heliolisk (Bask), male
12) Ampharos (Fluffy), female
13) Vikavolt (Vik), female
14) Eelektross (Whirr), male
15) Lanturn (Glowy), female
Pokemon used for Sunyshore's security
16) Rotom (Prime), genderless
17) Porygon-Z (Jarvis), genderless
Jasmine Terbium: The Gym Leader of Olivine, Steel Specialist
Titles, Accolades and Achievement: Johto's Strongest Steel Specialist, Thirteen Pillar of Johto, The Iron Wall of Olivine
Pokemon Team:
1) Ampharos (Amphy), male
2) Steelix (Steely), female
3) Magnezone (Magny), genderless
4) Skarmory (Skia), female
5) Forretress (Forest), male
6) Metagross (Mety), genderless
7) Empoleon (Emy), male
8) Bronzong (Bronzy), genderless
9) Mawile (Molly), female
10) Lucario (Lucy), female
11) Excadrill (Drilly), male
12) Ferrothorn (Thorny), male
13) Klinklang (Clang), genderless
14) Bastiodon (Bobby), male
Flint Cinders: Sinnoh Elite Four, Fire Specialist
Titles, Accolades and Achievement: Tie for First Place with Volkner in the 521st Lily of the Valley Conference, Sinnoh's strongest Fire Specialist, Thirteen Pillar of Sinnoh, Sinnoh's Raging Inferno
Pokemon team:
1) Magmortar (Burner), male
2) Infernape (Might), male
3) Houndoom (Bel), female
4) Flareon (Flare), male
5) Rapidash (Flamel), male
6) Talonflame (Soar), female
7) Volcarona (Buzz), male
8) Chandelure (Wick), female
9) Turtonator (Fuse), female
Cynthia Shirona: Sinnoh Champion, Generalist
Titles, Accolades and Achievement: Champion of Sinnoh, Pokemon Master, Sinnoh's strongest Generalist, Thirteen Pillar of Sinnoh, Sinnoh's Undefeatable Queen
Pokemon team:
1) Garchomp
2) Roserade
3) Spiritomb
4) Lucario
5) Milotic
6) Gastrodon
7) Togekiss
8) Glaceon
9) Braviary
10) Eelektross
Byron Gallium: The Gym Leader of Canalave, Steel Specialist
Titles, Accolades and Achievements: Sinnoh's strongest Steel Specialist, Thirteen Pillar of Sinnoh, Man of Steel, Shield of Canalave
Pokemon Team:
1) Bastiodon
2) Magnezone
3) Steelix
4) Skarmory
5) Aggron
6) Bronzong
7) Forretress
8) Excadrill
9) Kabutops
10) Armaldo
Riley Slyde: Generalist
Titles, Accolades and Achievements: Champion of 529th Lily of the Valley Conference, Deputy Head of Security of Sinnoh Police Force, Volkner's previous apprentice
Pokemon Team:
1) Lucario
2) Absol
3) Ursaring
4) Metagross
5) Salamence
6) Poliwrath
7) Rhyperior
8) Gyarados
9) Toxicroak