Chapter 13

Hoping to earn their second Kalos gym badge, Aura and his team woke up extra early that morning to get in a few more hours of training before they broke for lunch and took some time to rest. As the time reached four in the afternoon, Aura had begun psyching himself up as they departed from the Pokemon Center.

Stan was probably the most excited of the bunch as this was his first gym match with Aura. The young feline striding along his trainer's heels with a wide grin as his tail swished joyfully behind him. "Ooh~! I can't wait to start battling!" He mewed confidently with an energetic skip in his step.

Aura rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry, Stan. But I might have you sit out for this one."

The Shinx tripped over his heels and tumbled forward, sitting up immediately and looking at Aura in shock. "What?! But why? I thought I was doing really good this morning? I even helped you beat Tyler a few days ago!"

Aura sighed. "I know, but the Lumiose Gym specializes in Electric types, so you won't be as effective against them."

He felt a jab against his arm and looked down to see Diamond crossing her arms with her stick in her paws. "I think you should give Stan a chance." She stepped forward and sheathed her stick in her tail. "He's fully recovered from what his old trainer did to him and it's thanks to him we were able to prepare to battle Electric types."

"I agree with Diamond." Prince interjected. "I see no reason all three of us cannot participate today? And wouldn't having more Pokemon to battle with be better?"

Aura slumped down and guiltily rubbed his neck. "Alright, alright. I see what you two are getting at. But it just means the Gym Leader will also be using three Pokemon so each of you will need to put in the extra effort if we are gonna win!" He told them, grinning at them and pumping his fist.

Stan's eyes sparkled as his tail glowed from his joyous emotions. "I won't let you down, Aura!" He cheered, spinning around with a hop as they continued along the streets.

"You've really been coming out of your shell a lot more lately." Nessa whispered as she stepped up to Diamond's side. The fox blushed while the Kirlia tittered gleefully. "I can sense your emotions are much more stable than when we first met. It seems like being with Aura is really having a positive impact on you."

Diamond combed her claws through her ear fur sheepishly. "Y-you really think so?" Nessa nodded.

"You still have a lot to work on, but how you took initiative and convinced Aura to allow Stan to battle today shows that you made progress, and I'm positive Aura thinks so too." She affirmed with a kind smile. Though they'd only known each other for barely one month, the two girls almost felt like they had a sisterly bond developing between them. So hearing these words of praise from the Kirlia certainly lifted Diamond's spirits and gave her a nice boost of self-confidence.

How she would often transition between meek and timid to confident and outgoing was a complete mystery and was difficult to explain for the fox, it almost felt like an inner voice was trying to act as her mentor, there wasn't actually a voice so-to-speak, but it almost felt like a second conscience was trying to provide her with guidance while not fully influencing her thoughts.

The thought of this possible secondary mind within her own only brought confusion to Diamond, and so she's come to just accept it as it is and not think about it too much.

Eventually, the group had reached the base of Lumiose Tower and the location of their second official gym challenge. The automatic doors glided open as they approached and allowed them to enter the dimly lit hallway full of thick wires hanging from the ceiling and below the metal grate they walked on. Every now and again a loud crack would sound off somewhere in the area as bright green sparks surged from the frayed and damaged cords, startling them as they anxiously walked through the tunnel. Diamond and Nessa both let out a squeal as a wire right beside them surged with the pop of a shattering lightbulb echoed overhead, the green light above them shutting off with tiny sparks coming down.

"Woah, it's alright." Dan assured, pointing up at the light fixture moments before it seamlessly turned back on. "This must be some kind of gimmick to give challengers a better feel for what they're up against?"

"But then what was that breaking glass?" Stan asked. Dan nodded and scanned the ceiling, pointing out a very small speaker hidden behind some loose wires. "That's so cool!" The Shinx cooed as he widened his eyes excitedly, taking a step closer to the edge of the walkway to get a better view. Unfortunately after another sudden pop of sparks burst from a nearby wire, the Shinx's balance faltered and he fell off the grate into the clusters of wires below.

Surprisingly, the only noise Stan let out was a short "oof" as a low thud filled the passage. Aura peered over the edge to see Stan lying flat on his face with his tail over his head. "Well that certainly makes me feel a bit safer." He said, getting on his stomach to lift Stan back onto the path. "They must've installed some plexi-glass or something underneath so nobody fell in… But the walls seem wide open?"

Stan shook his head and rubbed his nose with a short groan. "Maybe these sparks are fake then too?" He added as Aura put him back down and they resumed walking.

"How can you tell?" Prince asked.

Stan looked up and flicked his tail around with the star at the tip glowing. "I don't feel any super strong energy in this hallway?" Glancing to an upcoming wire hanging dangerously close to the path, Stan jogged ahead and batted at it carelessly. He smiled and trotted back to the others. "Yep! Just feels like static!"

"Then it might just be a Pokemon making these sparks and controlling their voltage?" Dan suggested. Soon after this theory was introduced, a vent opened up on their left with a trio of Magnemite floating out. Following their appearance came a soft beep from all around them.

"You guys are pretty good at observation." A voice echoed. "I designed this tunnel as an entrance for challengers to set a good atmosphere and encourage them to give it their all during their gym battle." One of the Magnemite hovered closer to Stan. "And yes, it was actually these Magnemite sending a very low voltage through all those wires. It's all thanks to my special lighting system that they appear much larger than they really are. But in reality they're too weak to even cause harm to a Water Pokemon. Anywho, you're almost at the end of the tunnel, I'll be waiting for you." The speakers cut off and the Magnemite returned to their vent just before the green lights of the tunnel all shut down at once while ordinary fluorescent lights flashed on instead, showing that those sparks from before were actually nearly invisible thanks to their extremely low power.

Aura smirked and cracked his knuckles. "Oh yeah. Now this is how a gym battle should start." He said, looking to his companions and urging them to hurry up as he started jogging down the corridor, eventually coming to a wall that promptly slid open to allow them entrance to the battlefield.

The moment they passed through the doors into the empty arena, a panel arose from the floor to their right with a screen. "Welcome, Challenger, to the Lumiose City Pokemon Gym," greeted a robotic voice, "please insert your official Trainer identification card into the scanner and place your Pokeballs into the slots for registration."

Nodding to himself, Aura slipped his ID into the card slot while placing all three of his Pokeballs into the rounded divots and watched as they smoothly spun around in place. A short ding sounded off and the robotic voice instructed him to remove his Pokeballs and ID while a loading bar came on the screen, eventually relaying all the information that was scanned for Aura to see. "Registration complete, good luck, Trainer." After that, the screen shut off and sunk back into the floor.

As Aura stepped up to the battlefield with his team beside him, a loud metallic clunk came from below their feet moments before the floor on the opposite side of the field opened up. Stood atop a rising platform, a man wearing a blue jumpsuit and a very heavy looking backpack came into view. He chuckled softly and adjusted his large spectacles which turned white from reflecting the spotlights overhead. "I hope you're ready, Challenger." He bellowed as the platform locked in place. The Gym Leader looked up and beamed with confidence. "My name is Clemont, and not only am I the Gym Leader, but I am a well known inventor too." The backpack he carried suddenly let off multiple loud whirring noises and all of a sudden three mechanical arms shot out, each holding a Pokeball. "It's very rare for challengers to defeat me on their first attempt, even rarer when they only just started their journey. But I have been pleasantly surprised in the past." Clemont paused and adjusted his glasses again. "Hold on. The computer told me you had three Pokemon, but they're standing right beside you…? Don't you think letting your opponent see your entire team beforehand would put you at a disadvantage?"

Aura looked at his team and shrugged. "Honestly, that's not something I'm worried about. Because all three of them are more than what they seem." He glanced at Stan and smirked before looking back at Clemont with a powerful fire in his eyes. "My name is Aura Borealis! And my family and I are here to show that true strength comes from a strong bond!"

Without even thinking, all three Pokemon let out a bark at once in agreement from the intense aura their trainer radiated.

Clemont slowly removed his glasses and nodded. "That is the kind of attitude a real trainer needs." He lifted his glasses over his shoulder and allowed a robotic arm to swiftly clean them before returning them to the bridge of his nose. "Even though I heavily support your goal and respect the actual real passion you hold towards it, I don't plan to take this battle lightly. In fact, I feel the need to fight even harder against you and see just how strongly you want your wish to come true."

Along the right side of the battlefield, another platform arose from the floor, this time a young girl standing on it with one flag in each hand. "My brother is a lot stronger than he looks!" The girl called out as she pointed one of the flags in Aura's direction, a Dedenne mimicking her movements atop her head. "For how much time he spends tinkering with his gadgets instead of training, you'll need to think extra fast to beat his calculative battle style!"

Clemont blushed as he stumbled forward. "Ack-ugh! Bonnie!" He stammered.

Bonnie faced him and shrugged. "What? That was a compliment. Besides, I'm sure you already figured out a strategy to win since you already know your opponent's team. Anyway, your friends should probably come sit back here behind the shock barrier before we begin, my brother's Pokemon are always fully charged and like to put on a good show when they battle."

Dan, Spyke and Nessa paused before nervously jogging over to the bleachers and sitting down.

"So what about us?" Stan asked, forgetting that they couldn't understand him. But thankfully they didn't need to as Bonnie was already giving the answer.

"As for you, don't worry about getting electrocuted either," four panels in the floor opened up from all four corners of the trainer box and from each came out thin metal pylons, "these lighting rods will absorb any electricity that comes too close. Now let's get on with the battle!" She called, raising each flag into the air while the Dedenne followed by raising its paws. "The official gym match between Clemont the Gym Leader and Aura the Challenger will now commence! Each side will use three Pokemon and the battle will be over once either side is unable to continue. Only the challenger will be allowed to substitute! Are both trainers ready?"

Clemont sighed and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose while assuring he was ready. Aura gave a confident glance towards his team before doing the same. Swinging her arms down, Bonnie loudly called out "Battle begin!"

"As the gym leader, I'll send out my Pokemon first! So let's start this off with Magnemite!" Clemont called, all but one of the robotic arms retracting into his bag as the remaining arm launched a Pokeball into the air. As the ball burst open in a flash of white light, the pylons around the arena began to glow as the magnet Pokemon floated in the middle of the field, furiously spinning its magnets and raining down a shower of sparks.

"Magnemite's also a steel type, so Diamond would be Aura's smartest choice," Dan commented, "although Prince would be a good choice as well."

Aura scanned over his team and nodded. "Assuming he's saving his strongest Pokemon for last, you're up first, Stan. I want you to give us an idea on what kind of power we'll be dealing with here, think you can do that?"

The once cheerful and carefree Pokemon suddenly narrowed his gaze and looked to his trainer confidently. "You got it, boss! Just say the word!"

Exchanging confident nods, Aura thrust his hand forward and called for Stan to get into position, the ecstatic Shinx letting off a shower of sparks before rushing onto the field, skidding to a halt near the center and grinning with his head low and haunches raised as if ready to pounce.

"Interesting choice using your Shinx first. But no matter, Magnemite and I are content with letting you take the first move!" Clemont said, Magnemite letting out a mechanical cry almost attune to a cocky chortle.

"I don't like the way they're sounding." Diamond nervously pointed out.

Aura sneered and hissed through his teeth. "Bonnie did say he specialized in quick calculations, so he probably already has a method to deal with other electric types. Hmph… Get ready, Stan! Even if neither of us can rely on using electric type attacks, let's show them what else you're capable of! Lower its defense with Leer then attack with Bite!"

Stan kept his pouncing stance and snarled viciously as his narrowed eyes glowed with a dim red hue, pulling in Magnemite's gaze until it began to shiver anxiously from the harsh psychological effects the move left in its mind. Following Magnemite's hindered focus, Stan finally sprung forward and let out a shrill battle-cry as he created a pair of large, glowing ethereal fangs in front of his mouth that he then used to snap down onto the opposing Pokemon like a powerful beartrap of dark energy.

The auric energy used to construct the massive fangs instantly imploded upon impact and blasted Magnemite through the air with a thunderous boom. Magnemite screeched as its metal body crashed into one of the lightning rods before clanging as it hit the ground.

Clemont let out a sigh of relief as Magnemite let off a dazed "bzzzrt" but managed to float back up to continue its fight. "I figured you'd avoid using an electric move, but even so your Shinx still packs a punch. Magnemite! Metal Sound!" Magnemite stared forward intensely as it began to vigorously rotate its magnet-like limbs and let off a mechanical humming. As its body started vibrating from the rapid movements, its humming drastically increased in pitch as transparent soundwaves could actually be seen cutting through the air towards Stan.

With such intense screaming akin to grinding together rusty metal sheets, Stan was practically immobilized with his head pressed low and his paws desperately trying to close his ears and block out the metallic wailing.

Clemont called to his Pokemon, though no one else could hear his command as Magnemite gradually ceased its ear-splitting screech, only giving Stan a short moment of relief before the magnetized sphere Pokemon was suddenly raining down sparks as it wound up and shot forward with shocking velocity, slamming into the still disoriented Shinx and shoving him across the field pressed harshly into the coarse battleturf. When they were almost a couple meters from Aura's trainer box, Magnemite shot back and let Stan's limp body roll a bit further. Stan winced as he weakly pushed himself up, his back covered in dirt with some patches of his fur either missing or tinted red with blood.

"Damn! You've taken enough damage for now! Come back and take a break!" Aura called.

Stan looked back over his shoulder. "No! I can still fight!"

Aura shook his head and placed his hand over Stan's Pokeball. "I'm sorry, but you won't be able to do much to his Magnemite, so come back and take a break for now." Though a bit hesitant, Stan limped back to Aura's side as Aura took his hand away from his ball. "You at least gave us a bit of insight into just how strong they are, so take some time to rest while Prince handles this one." Stan nodded and Aura turned to give Prince the word to get ready.

"The challenger has issued a substitution! Now let the battle continue!" Bonnie declared.

"Force Palm!" Aura instructed. Prince widened his stance while drawing back his right arm and focusing energy to flow into the center of his paw. Silent as a ninja, Prince vanished in a cloud of dust and lunged for Magnemite from below. Thrusting his arm directly upward, Prince unleashed a blast of orange energy from his paw that inflicted massive damage to the steel type.

Prince leaped back as Magnemite's body hit the ground with a loud clatter. "Magnemite! Come on, get back up!" Clemont shouted. Though it seemed futile, Magnemite let out a buzz and clumsily floated back up. "That's better! Now once again use Metal Sound!" Repeating its actions from earlier, Magnemite loosed another ear-splitting screech that forced Prince to cover his ears and collapse to his knees. "Gyro Ball!" Clemont ordered, his Magnemite vibrating heavily as it once again wound up and rocketed forward while rotating at blinding speeds.

Nothing could be done to avoid the attack as Prince didn't even notice it coming, suddenly feeling immense pain in his chest from being struck and shoved across the ground like they had done to Stan.

Aura tightened his fist and clenched his teeth. "Push back with Force Palm!" He cried in desperation. Thankfully Prince could still hear him over the ringing in his ears. The young jackal snarled as he pressed his paw against Magnemite and quickly released blasts of energy that pushed both Pokemon in opposite directions. Each of them tumbled backwards but were ultimately fine as Prince could only release a small burst with what limited time he had to charge, at least it did the trick and separated them with minimal damage received.

"Sonic Boom!" Clemont ordered while Magnemite was still tumbling backwards. His Magnemite suddenly flew into the air whilst keeping its momentum and let out a shriek just as it released a bombardment of crescent shaped soundwaves that cut through the air like razors.

Despite no orders being issued to the jackal, Prince stared down the incoming projectiles and waited for the last second to swiftly backflip away from them while watching his previous position suddenly erupt with smoke as he gracefully landed a couple meters away. Prince was about to look back and apologize for not awaiting an order, but Aura held out his hand and just gave a very short nod before calling their next move. "Blaze Kick!"

Clemont stumbled back in shock. "B-Blaze Kick?! Magnemite! Dodge it!" He shouted with haste. The air around Prince's right leg combust into flames with the fighting type sprinting forth with a gleam in his eye. "Magnemite?!" Clemont stammered as his Pokemon simply floated in place shivering violently.

"Force Palm must have paralyzed Magnemite!" Daniel announced excitedly, grinning while pumping his fists. Spyke watched his trainer and chortled, hopping atop the ledge in front of them and mimicking Dan's excitement. Nessa sighed at them but chuckled all the while as she continued to watch with bated breath, feeling just one Blaze Kick might not be enough to end this considering Magnemite took two Force Palm attacks already without going down.

Jumping just over Magnemite, Prince somersaulted before bringing his leg down with an axe kick directly against his opponent's forehead. Magnemite screeched horribly as it plummeted into the ground leaving a sizable crater surrounded by a cloud of dust and debris. Prince landed a short distance from the crater and extinguished the fire around his leg. Everyone watched in anticipation, anxiously waiting for the smoke to clear.

Diamond nervously gripped onto Aura's shirt while chewing on her ear-tuft. "I-is it over?"

Silently staring at his concealed Pokemon, Clemont lowered his head with light reflecting off his lenses.. "Magnemite…" He suddenly looked up, grinning coyly before raising his hand dramatically. "Thundershock!"

Caught completely off guard, Prince stumbled back as multiple bolts of electricity shot out from the smoke, many of which he scarcely managed to avoid but was ultimately struck by the sneak attack and felt his body seize up as a painfully high voltage shot through his entire being. Prince howled in agony, his body sparadically twitching about and locking in place while he tightly clenched his jaw and shut his eyes.

"How is Magnemite still able to keep going?! Must be the Sturdy ability…"

"Right on the money!" Clemont called. "My Magnemite does have the ability Sturdy. But not only that, I've done special training with it to drastically build up its defenses to even strengthen its ability to some degree," Magnemite ended its shocking retaliation and allowed Prince a moment to breath, "however, its speed isn't quite as desirable, or so some might think; but in reality, Magnemite's slower speed can be really beneficial, especially since paralysis hinders their speed even more! Show them what I mean! Gyro Ball!"

Magnemite's body momentarily seized up as the paralysis tried to stop the attack, but Magnemite managed to push through and proceeded to rapidly spin on its axis, white lines appearing from the absurd velocity it managed to build up. Finally, Magnemite launched itself forward just as Prince was pushing himself back up. Prince widened his eyes as he saw Magnemite hurtling towards him, he tried to avoid the attack but his body seized up again as sparks danced through his fur. Feeling this was the end, Aura grit his teeth and resentfully watched Magnemite get closer.

Prince closed his eyes and snarled. "I refuse to fail you, Master." He muttered. The appendages on his head lifted as Prince struggled to break through the paralysis, but not much could be done before Magnemite had slammed into the Riolu's chest and dragged him across the field; however, Prince used his last bit of strength to grapple onto his foe and throw his weight, causing Magnemite to falter and attempt to readjust. Surprising everyone, Prince suddenly let go of Magnemite and pushed himself to the side which caused it to suddenly shoot upward and crash into a light fixture hanging above the arena. As Prince rolled backwards, Magnemite along with hundreds of glass shards and sparks fell to the floor.

Widened eyes stared into the aftermath as Magnemite lay unmoving in another crater whilst Prince barely managed to hold himself up on his knees.

Bonnie shook her head and raised a flag. "Magnemite is unable to battle! Riolu wins!"

Stepping back in disbelief, Clemont glared at the floor as the mechanical arm holding Magnemite's ball recalled the fainted Pokemon and retracted back into the bag. After a few moments of silence had befallen upon the stadium, Clemont eventually sighed and straightened himself. "That was an impressive maneuver. Your Riolu must care a lot to use what little strength he had left to pull off a last ditch Counter."

Aura blinked. "He's never used Counter before… He must have learned it just then as a last resort." Aura slowly nodded and looked over to Bonnie. "I'd like to forfeit Prince from the rest of the match!" Prince's eyes shot towards his trainer.

"M-Master Aura?! I can continue!" He called. A stern glare from the trainer and a disapproving nod was his response.

"You've done enough for now. You can barely stand anyways and I refuse to push you any further." Raising his Pokeball, Prince knew Aura was serious and could only let out a sigh as he followed his master's orders and slowly limped back to his side.

Aura nodded and put away the Pokeball before looking back at Bonnie. "Well, if you think that's best for your Pokemon, then Riolu is withdrawn from the match meaning both sides are left with two Pokemon each. Send out your next Pokemon!"

Clemont nodded and offered a genuine smile to his opponent. "It's important for a trainer to know exactly when to call it quits. Honestly I admire how you prioritize your Pokemon's health over victory. If it weren't against official league rules and guidelines, I wouldn't be against rewarding you a badge just for that."

With Prince safely at his side, Aura looked back and shook his head. Even if you could, I'd probably deny the offer anyways. I intend to reach the Kalos League legit, and our goal would mean nothing if we don't put in the effort!"

Clemont beamed. "Even though I won't let you walk away with that badge today, just know that me and my team will be rooting for you all the way. So let's get serious and finish what we started!" Snapping his fingers, the bag over Clemont's shoulders extended another arm that immediately tossed out his second Pokemon. From the flash of light the Pokeball produced, a bipedal lizard stood with a sharp gaze toward its opponents. "My second Pokemon will be Heliolisk!"

"Hm, think you've got enough rest, Stan?" The Shinx's eyes lit up as he was getting a second chance to battle. He nodded vigorously and prompted a chuckle from his trainer. "Alright then. You've still taken a lot of damage from Magnemite, so try to keep away from its attacks for now. Then I'll call you back and give Diamond a chance to take it down. Got it?"

Stan nodded and was about to hurry onto the field, but Diamond stopped him for a moment with an oran berry held out in her paws. Thankfully Aura had learned that it wasn't against the rules to supply at most one healing item per Pokemon between rounds, but in the heat of the moment it slipped his mind so they were grateful Diamond had remembered. Exchanging confident nods, Diamond passed the berry to her teammate who snapped it between his fangs and ate it whole, feeling some of his strength instantly replenish before getting in position.

As Bonnie called for the second round to begin, Aura took initiative and made the first move. "Use Flash!" Stan raised his rear and straightened his tail while charging power in the star on the tip. Once fully charged, he let out a roar and whipped his tail forward, unleashing a blinding cone of light from the star that enveloped Heliolisk. "That should give us some time… Huh?!" Though Aura was sure Heliolisk had become disoriented from the Flash, it merely stood in place with its eyes tightly shut and the black frills around its neck fanned out.

"Heliolisk's natural habitat is usually in the middle of deserts, so they've adapted to the blinding sunlight and even use it to power themselves up like solar panels." Clemont explained, his Heliolisk grinning wickedly as its frills started glowing. "Parabolic Charge!" With a high pitched scream, Heliolisk shot out a large beam of energy from its frills at Stan.

"Dodge!" Stan narrowed his gaze and quickly flattened his body so the beam flew over his head, nearly hitting Aura had the grounding rods not pulled in the attack. Noticing this, a contemplative look crossed his face as he was sure there was a way to use the mechanism to his advantage, but unfortunately now was not the time to worry about that as he needed complete focus if there would be any chance of winning. "Since Flash didn't work, lower its defense with Leer and then increase your own with Charge!"

"Not happening! Heliolisk! Counter their Leer using Flash!" Again Heliolisk fanned out its frills and similar to before it unleashed a blinding light that overpowered Stan's gaze and completely blocked it from sight. Stan let out a cry as his Leer left him unable to block his vision in time to dampen the effects. So with his vision fully impaired, Stan could do nothing to avoid a direct hit from Heliolisk's Quick Attack, the lizard dealing blow after blow to the blinded Pokemon until he could endure no more and finally collapsed.

As Bonnie declared Stan unable to battle, Aura hurried over and picked up his weakened partner. "You did the best you could. You were still recovering from Magnemite anyway so don't worry about this."

Stan groaned and smiled at his trainer. "We'll get them next time." He said quietly.

After bringing Stan back to their trainer box and setting him down against his bag next to Prince. "Huua… I don't think we'll be able to beat them this time."

Diamond bit her claw for a second as she looked between the gym leader and her fallen allies. She sighed and took a step towards the battlefield. "Maybe not, but we won't gain anything by quitting early."

Aura nodded and stood up, Diamond continued walking onto the field as Aura turned around with a serious gaze. The moment Bonnie gave the signal to begin the third round, neither trainer wasted any time giving their first order.

"Dragon Tail!"

"Block it with Cut!"

As Heliolisk leaped into the air and encased its tail with green draconic energy forming thick scales, Diamond drew her stick and held it over her head, coating it in a white aura that took on the shape of a fine-edged katana.

Sparks of multiple hues were spat from the point of contact between their attacks, each Pokemon pushing harshly against the other. As neither side was giving an inch, they both simultaneously gave one final push; Heliolisk flipping back through the air as Diamond skid across the battlefield and digging her claws into the turf to slow herself down.

"I'm thoroughly impressed with your Braixen. She must have a lot of potential to match up against my Heliolisk like that." He pointed forward and shouted. "Bulldoze!" The electric reptile tensed its entire body and fiercely slammed its foot against the ground, sending powerful shockwaves across the arena that kicked up loose dust as they went, giving a clear visual of exactly where each shockwave was.

Seeing little chance of actually avoiding the move, Aura called out for Diamond to brace herself with Light Screen before making an attempt to avoid as much as she could. With nimble and steady movements, Diamond twirled her wand as glittering energy quickly enveloped her figure, creating a form-fitting barrier of translucent armour to temporarily increase her defenses. Aura let out a sigh of relief as Diamond's Light Screen was completed just in time for her to scarcely hop over the first shockwave, though landing with a solid footing proved difficult as with each shockwave that passed by, the ground beneath her shook more violently.

Upon landing after dodging the fifth shockwave, a sudden shift in the turf caused her to trip and left her unable to dodge the last two waves which tossed her into the air moments before the ground below cracked open and fired a storm of solid dirt and rock at her body, thankfully her Light Screen absorbed most of the damage, but by the time it all ended her armour shattered before she hit the ground.

Diamond picked herself back up through the pain, desperately spitting loose dirt and sand from her mouth before shaking her head and getting to her feet. "Flamethrower!" Aura called. Baring her fangs, Diamond pointed the end of her stick in Heliolisk's direction before igniting it and releasing a column of fire.

The flames quickly engulfed Helioptile as it squealed from the blistering heat. The flames subsided after a few seconds and Heliolisk stumbled forward slightly, wincing as small flames momentarily erupted across its body showing it had been inflicted with a burn. "That's not good. Heliolisk, we need to end this quick! Charge in with rapid Quick Attacks!"

Growling through its teeth, Heliolisk took off across the field with a white streak following behind it. Diamond readied her stick to guard a head-on attack, but her opponent swerved around her and crashed into her from behind, knocking her down to her knees before coming back around for another sudden assault. One after another Diamond let out short cries and grunts as Heliolisk tackled and kicked her while she was down.

"Diamond! Use Fire Spin on the ground around you!" The fox hastily swung her stick and let a ball of fire fall to the ground beside her, the tiny flame suddenly erupting into a terrible spiral of heat just in time for Heliolisk to take another whack at Diamond and unintentionally throw itself into the fire. Surprised by the sudden combustion, Heliolisk slammed into Diamond and sent them both tumbling out of the twister.

Heliolisk was the first to regain its footing and scurry away to get some distance, but as not only a small layer of fire flickered across its skin from its burn, a cylinder of fire shot up from around its feet due to coming into contact with Fire Spin. Clemont scowled. "Regain some energy using Parabolic Charge!" Fanning out its frills, Heliolisk shot a beam of electricity into Diamond that quickly began sapping her energy while also dealing a good deal of damage. Once the attack ended, Diamond fell to her knees with sparks jolting across her body. "Quick! Hit it while it's down, Heliolisk! Bulldoze!" Diamond couldn't even react to her opponent's command as she couldn't move herself at all aside from an occasional twitch.

A shrill scream escaped her lips as Heliolisk slammed its foot against the ground and loosed multiple shockwaves across the field, Diamond being tossed into the air and pelted by loosened debris before crashing back into the floor in a plume of smoke. Aura cried out her name in terror and didn't even wait for the air to clear before rushing onto the field.

Aura dropped by her side within the dust cloud and lifted her into his arms carefully. After the cloud had dissipated, Bonnie sighed before hesitantly declaring Diamond unable to battle and calling Clemont the victor. As his friends all watched in sadness, Aura carried Diamond's unconscious body over to his bag and laid her down to rest. "Aura!" Dan and his Pokemon hurried over from the bleachers and stopped as Aura let out a sigh and got to his feet. "You guys did amazing! That was a really close battle!" Dan affirmed.

Surprisingly, Aura flashed a melancholy smirk and nodded. "I know, but thank you." He looked down at his team as Prince was helping Diamond eat an oran berry. Aura kneeled down just as the fox began to open her eyes, coughing for a moment before looking up at her trainer sadly.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't strong enough."

"Don't let it bother you, okay? I didn't expect us to win right away, but you still did amazing out there. A bit more training and we probably could have actually won." Aura ruffled her fur and laughed. "Just remember that losing is also a big part in battles, we learn from our mistakes and come back stronger because of them. Don't ever forget that."

Diamond smiled and rubbed her eyes before nodding. "Alright. I will."

"You and your team all did exceptional, Aura." They looked back to see Clemont and Bonnie approaching them. "I honestly couldn't tell who was going to win that after the great fight your Braixen put up near the end. Your Shinx and Riolu were a challenge just as well for Magnemite." He extended his hand confidently and waited for Aura to take it. "After witnessing the drive your team shares with you, I anxiously await your next challenge." Aura smirked and stood up, taking Clemont's hand and giving it a firm shake.

"Thank you. And next time we'll come back stronger than ever. Right guys?" Aura turned to his team who all collectively agreed.

"Then until next time. We wish you luck."

Returning Stan and Prince to their balls, Aura lifted Diamond bridal-style and carried her out of the gym. After stopping in the nearest Pokemon Center to get everybody healed, the crew took a brief detour to the shops to replenish their supplies.

Whilst browsing through a large grocery store, Dan and Aura split up to speed up their shopping. Aura and Diamond were nearly finished their half of the lift when they reached the fresh produce section. But while Aura had been preoccupied comparing different vegetables to buy the higher quality, Diamond's mind wandered back to sometime earlier along their journey.

"Aura?" She muttered sheepishly.

"Hm?"

Diamond tapped her claws together and took a breath. "Do you remember a while ago? You promised to teach me how to cook once I evolved?"

Aura seemed to blankly stare forward for a moment before flinching and covering her forehead. "Oh! That's right… I'm sorry, I completely forgot about that with everything that's happened recently. There isn't a gym in Camphrier Town, so while we're there I'll make sure to set aside some time to teach you."

Diamond shrugged. "Actually, if it's not too much to ask, I was wondering if we could start tonight when we set up camp?"

Aura thought for a moment and shrugged. "I guess we can make that happen. Since we're on the road a lot it would be smart to learn how to cook on an open fire as well. Okay then, tonight you can help me make supper." He nodded, patting her head softly. Diamond beamed and wrapped her arms around Aura's waist, thanking him excitedly while he simply chuckled awkwardly and placed a hand over her back. Clearing his throat and grinning, Aura raised a finger and lifted his chin. "Now! Your first lesson, my student, will be discerning the quality of your ingredients!" Giving her a sly glance, Aura began to go through different vegetables and explain what to look for when aiming for the highest quality.