Chapter 42:
Final Splash
Location: Humilau City
"It's time," I said. "The day I battle for my final Gym Badge in my Unova region campaign."
"Good luck!" Bianca said. "You deserve it! You've done so much for the region, it's unbelievable."
"I warn you though," Hugh said. "Marlon is not the strongest Gym Leader in Unova for funsies. He was my biggest challenge thus far, until we take down Team Plasma of course."
It was still unbelievable to hear. Every Gym Leader: Mr. Cheren, Roxie, Burgh, Elesa, Clay, Skyla and Drayden. They had all challenged me in different ways. But to think that in many ways, this was THE challenge. Before the Elite Four and the Champion of course, and Team Plasma on top of that. It was a lot of icing on this already enormous cake. Wow, thinking about cake got me hungry. The battle would give me the main course of a lifetime though!
Location: Humilau City Gym
Out of all the Gyms in Unova, the Humilau City Gym had by far the most relaxing atmosphere. There were wooden planks that gave support over the clear water below. It was like a swimming pool mixed with a desert island. But the main standout feature were giant lily pads everywhere. They were like giant Lotad in the water.
"Yo, Champ in the near making!" said Clyde. "Okay. Marlon uses Water Types. What are Water Types weak against? You know what? You've come so far, I'll let you figure it out for yourself! Good luck Rosa, and with Team Plasma to!"
I guessed how to do things immediately. I stepped on a lily pad, and it floated me across the water over to another wooden platform.
I stepped off and I encountered an Ace Trainer. "Wow, surprised you didn't fall in!"
Rosa Vs. Ace Trainer Doyle
"Okay Serperior, you're up!" I shouted. Obviously, being a Grass Type, I would be relying on Serperior quite a lot. It had a lot of weight on its… shoulders? It didn't have those.
"Floatzel, go!" Doyle replied, sending out the orange Water Type. "Start with Ice Fang!" Serperior's teeth started glowing white, and it bit Serperior. I forgot that Water Types can learn Ice Type moves.
"Serperior, counter with Giga Drain!" Serperior drained some of Floatzel's health, bringing it down to half.
"Ice Fang again!" Floatzel chomped down again with its cold fangs.
"Now Leaf Blade!" Serperior slashed at Floatzel with its tail, taking it down.
"Nice start, but let's see how you do with Mantine!" Out came the next Pokémon. Since it was a Flying Type, I decided to let Serperior sit it out.
"Cinccino, you're next!" I shouted, sending out my Normal Type. "Use Rock Blast!" Cinccino fired five rocks at Mantine, almost knocking it out. (I knew taking advantage of Skill Link was a good idea!)
"Okay Mantine, Water Pulse!" Mantine fired a bulge of water at Cinccino who, upon impact, became confused.
"Oh no!" I shouted. "Okay then, try another Rock Blast!" Cinccino tried to attack, but it hurt itself instead.
"Now Mantine, Air Slash!" Mantine swiped the air and it hit Cinccino.
Enough was enough; I recalled Cinccino and sent out Vibrava. It was at least faster than Mantine. "Use Dragonbreath!" Vibrava fired purple smoke at Mantine, dealing the final blow.
"Don't fall off on your way to Marlon! It took me a couple of tries!"
I saw another pad and jumped on it. I skimmed across the water and bumped into another lilypad. This knocked it into a gap between the platforms, making the next part accessible.
There was another one like this that filled another platform, so I did that to. But there was an Ace Trainer on a smaller platform that wanted to challenge me.
"Not so fast!" she said. "We can battle on this, right?"
Rosa Vs. Ace Trainer Melina
"I choose Cinccino!" I shouted, sending it out.
"I choose Alomomola!" replied Melina, sending out the pink Pokémon that went in the water. (Why were you so concerned about fighting on the pad if you were going to use an aquatic Pokémon?!)
Alomomola (ママンボウ)
182
Water Type
Caring Pokémon
3'11" (1.2 m)
69.7 lbs (31.6 kg)
It gently holds injured and weak Pokémon in its fins. Its special membrane heals their wounds.
Alomomola has no known evolutions.
"Now Cinccino, Bullet Seed!" Cinccino fired streaks of seeds at Alomomola, but its HP was out of this world.
"Use Scald!" Alomomola fired boiling water at Cinccino. When it hit, Cinccino was burned.
Since burning halves Attack, I switched out Cinccino. "Serperior, go!" I shouted as it took another Scald. "Use Giga Drain!" Serperior drained some HP from Alomomola. It's Sp. Defense was lower that its Defense, so I took that into account.
"Use Shadow Ball!" Alomomola fired a black ball at Serperior, but it missed.
"One more Giga Drain!" Serperior drained the rest of Alomomola's health.
"Well, that surprisingly worked."
I needed to put more pressure on the pad, so I got onto the small platform and ran onto the pad again, floating me back to the entrance. This allowed me to quickly nip to the Pokémon Center and heal.
Upon return, I went across the pads that had filled in the missing parts of the platforms. I walked across a white bridge and was spotted by another Ace Trainer on a small platform.
"Let's bring some cold into this close climate!"
Rosa Vs. Ace Trainer Santino
"I choose Growlithe!" I yelled.
"Go Walrein!" replied Santino. He sent out a blue Pokémon that had blubber and two large teeth.
Walrein (トドゼルガ)
245
Ice/Water Type
Ice Break Pokémon
4'07" (1.4 m)
332 lbs (150.6 kg)
Not only does its thick blubber keep it warm, it also protects it from attacks. It shatters ice with its prized tusks.
Spheal -Lv 32- Sealeo -Lv 44- Walrein
Well, I didn't want that. But luck seemed to be on my side. Growlithe started getting covered in blue energy. It was getting angry.
"What's going on?" I asked. "Wait… I think that's Outrage! A Dragon Type move! Okay then, let's do it! Growlithe, Outrage!" Growlithe jumped into Walrein and whilst it only did about a third damage, it was still great Growlithe learned it when it did.
"Walrein, Rock Slide!" Warlrein made rocks fall from the sky onto Growlithe. It did a lot of damage to it.
"Okay, give it a… Growlithe?" It was still using Outrage. It attacked Walrein once again. "This isn't good. It's too strong."
"Walrein, Rock Slide!" Another lot of rocks came crashing down onto Growlithe, knocking it out.
"You did great," I said.
"Outrage is strong but risky," said my foe. "It will keep using it until it's exhausted and when that happens, it gets confused. Use it with caution."
I took that advice and sent out Serperior, who finished off Walrein with a Leaf Blade.
"Ah, that's better. I can breathe a bit better now."
I found another pad that I used to sail to the other end of the water to another platform. And yes, there was an Ace Trainer waiting for me.
"You're doing well, but can you defeat me? Oof, that was generic."
Rosa Vs. Ace Trainer Sable
"Vibrava, go!" I shouted.
"Go Golduck!" replied Sable. "Zen Headbutt!" Golduck's head started glowing, and it headbutted Vibrava.
"You okay?" I asked Vibrava, who started flapping its wings creating a… "Sandstorm! Vibrava learned Sandstorm!"
"Golduck, Aqua Tail!" Golduck's tail started glowing, but it missed the hit.
"Now use Dragonbreath!" Vibrava hit Golduck with purple smoke. It was paralyzed! "And now Earth Power!" Vibrava made the earth crack, and the energy hit Golduck, almost dealing with it. It couldn't move due to paralysis, and the Sandstorm took it out.
"If that's how you want to do it, then I choose Starmie!" The next Pokémon was a purple one with many sides and a big-red gem in the middle.
Starmie (スターミー)
239
Water/Psychic Type
Mysterious Pokémon
3'07" (1.1 m)
176.4 lbs (80 kg)
Its core shines in many colors and sends radio signals into space to communicate with something.
Staryu -Water Stone- Starmie
"Come back Vibrava. Okay Zoroark, go!" I shouted.
"Starmie, Swift!" Starmie fired multiple stars at Zoroark.
"Counter with Night Slash!" Zoroark's claws went red, and it slashed at Starmie's gem.
"Come back with Surf!" Starmie created a huge wave that crashed down on Zoroark, but we were doing fine.
"Night Slash again!" Zoroark swiped at Starmie once more. This time it struck a Critical Hit, knocking Starmie out.
"Aw man, I lost! Even my losing phrase is generic!"
Just then, Vibrava's Pokéball started acting up, so I sent it out. When Vibrava emerged, it was glowing!
"Vibrava's starting to evolve!" I shouted. Vibrava, of course, evolved into Flygon. "Amazing!" Flygon's tail started glowing green, then it whacked it forward. "And you learned Dragon Tail to! Nice one!"
With a new evolution with me, we took out the rest of the Trainers before reaching Marlon. Well, I say that. He wasn't there when we got there. We walked to the platform where he jumped out of the water.
"Welcome to the Humilau Gym," he said. "As you know, I am Gym Leader Marlon. This is the newest Gym in Unova, only open for a year ever since I set it up after moving from Hoenn. I also just so happen to be the strongest Gym Leader in the region. Okay, let's make a splash!"
Rosa Vs. Gym Leader Marlon
"I choose Azumarill!" I shouted.
"Go Carracosta!" replied Marlon, sending out the Fossil Pokémon.
Carracosta (アバゴーラ)
127
Water/Rock Type
Prototurtle Pokémon
3'11" (1.2 m)
178.6 lbs (81 kg)
It could knock out a foe with a slap from one of its developed front appendages and chew it up, shell or bones and all.
Tirtouga -Lv 37- Carracosta
Revived from a Cover Fossil.
Just then, Azumarill started getting buffed. "Wait… Azumarill! Superpower!" Azumarill charged into Carracosta at full force. It didn't do a ton, because Carracosta had a rock-hard shell. "Nice one!" However, I saw that Azumarill was exhausted. Superpower is strong, but it also lowers Attack and Defense.
"Carracosta, Shell Smash!" Carracosta broke some of its shell off. This lowered Defense but raised Attack and Speed. "Now use Stone Edge!" Carracosta flung sharp stones at Azumarill, which did lots of damage because of the Defense lowering and Attack raising.
"One more Superpower!" Azumarill attacked once more, this time knocking out Carracosta. Azumarill needed to catch its breath a bit more; this would be it.
"That was impressive but lets see how you can take on Wailord!" Marlon put his hand up as the giant Wailord came up from the sea behind and onto the battlefield with a big splash. "Use Bounce!" Wailord jumped high into the air, and Azumarill's Superpower missed. It came crashing back down onto Azumarill, finishing it off.
"Good job," I told Azumarill. "Okay Growlithe, I choose you!"
"Water Spout Wailord!" From its blowhole, Wailord fired a jet of water at Growlithe that took it down at once.
"NO!" I shouted. "Looks like I need to take it down with speed. I choose Cinccino!" My cutest member of the team was sent out. "Bullet Seed!" Cinccino fired seeds at Wailord which did quite a bit of damage each time.
"Water Spout again!" Wailord fired another jet of water from its blowhole. This didn't do as much. Not just because of Cinccino's neutral Type matchup, but because Water Spout is weaker the less HP the user has. Think of it as the opposite to Flail and Reversal.
"Another Bullet Seed!" Cinccino continued firing seeds at Wailord. It was getting weaker.
"Now use Scald!" Wailord fired boiling water at Cinccino, burning it. Marlon knew his stuff.
"More Bullet Seed!" Of course, these seeds weren't as powerful.
"Use Scald one last time!" Wailord fired more hot water at Cinccino, and it was down.
"Urgh. We've still got this. Flygon, I choose you!" My newest member of the team was sent out. "Use Dragon Tail!" Flygon hit Wailord with its tail, and it was finished.
"It seems we've reached our ending tidal wave. Go Jellicent!" Marlon shouted, as the blue thing was sent out.
Jellicent (ブルンゲル)
181
Water/Ghost Type
Floating Pokémon
7'03" (2.2 m)
297.6 lbs (135 kg)
Its body is mostly seawater. It's said there's a castle of ships Jellicent have sunk to the seafloor.
Frillish -Lv 40- Jellicent
"Okay Flygon, Earth Power!" Flygon sent energy through the ground towards Jellicent, who was hit.
"Come back with Ice Beam!" Jellicent fired a beam of ice at Flygon; it was down in one due to a massive disadvantage.
"We're not done yet. Serperior, go!" Out came my first friend. "Use Leaf Blade!" Serperior swiped Jellicent in the face for lots of damage.
"Ice Beam again!" Jellicent fired another beam of white at Serperior. It could only take one more.
"We've got this! Use another Leaf Blade!" However, Serperior was unable to. "Oh no, I forgot about Cursed Body. Okay then, Giga Drain!" Whilst Super Effective, it didn't do nearly as much due to the fact that Jellicent favoured Sp. Defense over all other stats.
"Use another Ice Beam!" That was Serperior's frigid finish.
"Zoroark, let's finish this!" I sent out my last hope. "Night Slash!" Zoroark leapt forward, claws darkened, but it missed.
"Jellicent, Hydro Pump!" Jellicent fired a large steam of water at Zoroark. It flew through the air and onto the ground. The soggy Pokémon got up.
"Try Night Slash again! It should give us the victory!" Zoroark jumped forward and swiped Jellicent across the face. It was finished.
"You showed great determination, even against the rough seas. In honour of that, I present to you, the Wave Badge!" He handed me the same Badge that Hugh received. "That's not all. I also give you TM55, Scald. It's a Water Type move that has the potential to burn. Now, having eight Badges means two things. First, it means that Pokémon traded to you at any level will obey you. It also means you have the honour of going through the Victory Road gates and taking on the Elite Four for your role as Champion!"
"I… don't know what to say, other than thank you of course," I said. "But… I have to deal with Team Plasma before I become Champion."
"Team Plasma?" Marlon. "Who are they?"
I would excuse Marlon's naivety as he wasn't in Unova during their original reign on terror two years ago. But had he not heard about their return?
"Marlon. They are horrible people. The attack on Opelucid City a couple of days ago? That was them! We need to stop them!"
Just then, my Xtransciever started ringing. It was Hugh.
"We have sighting of the Plasma Frigate," he said. "They are just outside Seaside Cave, which is south of the City. You think you could make it there?"
"I… don't think I'll help," Marlon said.
"WHAT?!" I shouted. "Have you been living under a Gigalith all this time?"
However, he just dove in the water and swam off.
With all eight Badges in my Case now (yay!), I feel that the final attack on Team Plasma needs to happen. And it will happen. Tomorrow.