Hello, again, Internet. I apologize again for these lack of updates. RWBY Ice Queen came, and I was enthralled in it, and I've been doing some streaming here and there, and this Spooky month I'm streaming every day up until Halloween. So if you feel inclined to go to my gaming channel, Freelancer Amber Plays, to join in on those streams or watch previous streams you missed.
As always, thanks to Jacob Pendra-Huth for helping with this chapter. Go check out his stories. Now on to the chapter!
After Sienna and Cynthia wrapped up their shopping, they headed out to the Veilstone Gym. Before leaving, Cynthia asked if she was able to deal with things better than before.
"What are you talking about?" Sienna asked.
"I mean involving our modern technology." Cynthia answered, "I know you had already blown a fuse from seeing just the simpler things in our world. There are still far more technological marvels in our world that are pretty basic to all of us. If there are any questions, let me know."
"Thanks, Cynthia," Sienna replied.
They made their way to the gym, though along the way, Sienna noticed a young man who had a red and white ball like the ones Cynthia had, opening up, and with some sort of energy, out came a large boulder with a head and limbs sticking out of it.
"Okay, I gotta ask then…." Sienna started, pointing to the ball, "How in the heck does a small thing like that able to encapsulate a Pokémon like that rock monster?"
"First of all, that is a Golem." Cynthia clarified, "And secondly, I already explained you about Pokéballs, correct?"
"Uhhh... Like I said, there's not much technology where I'm from." Sienna answered, scratching the back of her head in embarrassment. "Can you at least give me a refresher? I lived a simpler life with less things to work with than now." To be fair, that little lie isn't that far off, but she still can't really tell Cynthia that she's from a world where everyone's way of life is using magic.
'Interesting… She still has a difficult time understanding Pokéballs.' Cynthia understood, 'Maybe I can explain things for further prodding.'
"Pokéballs have been around for a long time. In fact, from what I was able to gather, its creation took place in this land back when it was formerly known as the Hissui region. Surely, you have seen something like this?"
"Uhh, yeah~." Sienna answered, faking an expression that showed she knew them, "I have seen SOMETHING like them before."
'She is a terrible liar.' Cynthia sweatdropped as she thought to herself.
"But…" Sienna continued, "They do kinda remind me of this relic my friend Leonie and I found."
"A relic?" Cynthia asked, stopping to look at her.
"Yeah. Some bandits were trying to take it. It looked pretty powerful, and my friend and I fought the bandits."
"Fought them, how?" Cynthia asked.
"Uhh…hand-to-hand combat?" Sienna responded.
"They didn't have Pokémon?"
"No. But they had weapons." Sienna wasn't wrong. The tomes they carried were basically weapons, too.
"I see…" Cynthia understood. She could tell she wasn't lying about this part.
"Then, they used that spherical relic on my friend, I dove in to protect her, and then, badda-bing, badda-boom, I somehow fell out of the sky at your feet." Sienna finished her story, folding her hands behind her head, feeling pretty confident she fooled her well enough.
"Pokéballs don't just send you flying into the sky." Cynthia pointed out.
Sienna stops in her tracks at that realization and starts to sweat a little. "I… I already told you that it REMINDED me of a Pokéball. I didn't say it WAS one."
"Well, whatever." Cynthia shrugged off, "We can explain further about how you suddenly got sent into the sky. Right now, we should go to the gym." They continued on their path to the new gym.
They arrived together at the front of the gym, which looked more old-school compared to the rest of the city. Sienna looked at it, not recognizing the style but feeling like it was a little closer to home than anything else.
"This doesn't seem too bad," Sienna muttered.
"A place you're more accustomed to?" Cynthia asked.
"Kinda. Not exactly the same, though." Sienna corrected her, "Is this supposed to be a gym?"
"It is. Wanna see the inside?" Sienna nodded to this request, and they entered in.
The inside looked like a training space, but not the same as the training space at the Vermillion household. The walls were wooden planks, as were the floorboards. There were all sorts of training equipment here and there, and they were being used by both the people and the Pokémon. The people inside were mostly wearing what looked like white bath robes with leather belts, each with a respective Pokémon partner.
As they continued inward, Sienna looked around with amazement. No one looked like they didn't belong there, and everyone looked like they were working together as equals. It was rather comforting to see people like this. Course, she had grown to expect this after witnessing everyone in this city before.
She then heard someone's battle cries nearby and turned to see a young girl and her Pokémon fighting each other. The girl was maybe half Sienna's age, with pink hair that was almost horn-like, curving upwards, reddish eyes, and wore that white robe like everyone else. The Pokemon was small, blue and black, bipedal, and dog-faced.
The two were fighting hand-to-hand combat, and it almost looked like they were predicting each other's moves like they had been fighting each other for as long as they lived, for they had a counter and a block for each other's attacks. However, this changed when the Pokémon suddenly made a false move, followed by a palm thrust to the girl's face, causing her to fly back in pain. The Pokémon looked startled that it made such a clean hit. An adult that was watching the fight went over to her, saying, "You misread your Pokémon's movements again, Maylene. Be more wary next time."
The girl, Maylene, sat back up, scrunching up her face as she placed a hand on the bridge of her nose, answering, "Yes, Sensei."
"Let me see your face." The man told her, pulling back her hand and examining it before saying, "Well, it will recover. Let's put a bandage over it." He pulled out a said bandage from his robe and placed it on the bridge of the girl's nose. She touched it, wincing, but was satisfied with it.
"You interested?" Cynthia asked, looking at Sienna as she pulled away from what she saw, "You did say you were used to hand-to-hand combat."
"Well… maybe later." She replied, "I am interested, but I wanna see this gym battle you are taking part in."
The pair walked over to the back of the gym, where they saw a lean yet burly man, his top shirtless to unveil his six-pack abs and his black hair cut short with a bandana over his forehead. His pants were baggy with frayed upper trims, and he was barefooted. He was holding a bandage-like cloth that was tied to a leather bag the size and width of him right behind him, and he was pulling it on one shoulder. With a roar and a heave, he threw the bag over his shoulder, slamming the bag on the ground in front of him.
'How can I learn to do something like that?!' Sienna asked, amazed at the strength of the man, who relaxed himself as one of the people by him handed him a damp cloth to wipe his face off.
He turned to see the two girls approach him and asked, "Who are you? You here to join my dojo or what?"
"Sorry, but no." Cynthia replied, "My name is Cynthia, and I'm here to challenge your gym."
"So, a challenger, eh?" He asked, looking up and down the pair, "You don't look the part of a strong trainer, in my opinion. Your friend there…." He pointed a finger at Sienna, "…Does have some muscles on her. I would like to see her potential."
"Uh…" Sienna started. While she appreciated the compliment, she wasn't sure if she should accept such a challenge, especially if she might accidentally pull out her magic in the process of hand-to-hand combat.
"She is only here to view my challenge." Cynthia explained, "She doesn't have any Pokémon on hand."
"Shame." The man stated, grabbing the bandage tied to the bag. He then tugged on it hard and hoisted the bag high into the air before bringing it back, standing up in front of him, where it sagged to one side. He placed his hands on top of it as he greeted, "Well, I am the gym leader of this dojo, Juno! In my personal opinion, trainers need to be as strong as their Pokémon, and that is why I think Fighting-types best exemplify that fact! Their strength can push us forward and vice-versa! And if your appearance is anything to go by, your Pokémon will not stand a chance against mine!"
Cynthia glared at him as she stated, "I will prove you wrong by showing you how much my Pokémon and I have pushed ourselves in this endeavor. Do not underestimate me based on looks."
'Dang, she looks a bit pissed.' Sienna told herself with a sweat-dropped expression.
Moments later, the gym leader and the trainer stood on either side of the battlefield, with many of those part of the dojo watching the match, Sienna included. Cynthia glared at Judo, as one of the students stood on the sidelines on the other end of the battlefield from Sienna, centering himself between the two.
Sienna looked at the red device that Cynthia gave her, which she called a Pokédex. "You just click this button on the side, which will open it up. If you do so while pointing at a Pokémon, it will give you the information about that said Pokémon.'
"I'm sure I can figure this out…." Sienna muttered to herself, looking at it, "It's just pointing and pressing a button. How hard can it be?"
"The gym battle between Veilstone Gym Leader Judo and challenger Cynthia of Celestic Town will now begin! Each trainer will use three Pokémon each. The battle will be decided when one or both sides are unable to continue. In addition, only the challenger is allowed to switch out her Pokémon. Are both trainers ready?"
"I am ready," Cynthia replied.
"Os!" Juno replied strongly, pulling out one of the Pokéballs on his belt, "You'd better be prepared for what I have in store for you! Croagunk, out into battle!" He tossed out the ball, which opened up, and through a flash of energy, a blue-skinned bipedal toad appeared.
"A toad?" Sienna muttered, looking at it, "That certainly is a weird-looking Pokémon."
"A Croagunk, huh?" Cynthia recognized the Pokémon as Sienna held out the device, clicking the button. It opened up, revealing a pair of screens. Sienna yelped at the sight of it activating like that, fumbling it in her hands before dropping it and causing it to close. "Crap!" She cried getting hushes from the other trainers. She giggled in embarrassment before clicking and opening it up again, pointing the device at the toad, which the device recognized, and showing a picture of it. A voice started to speak, making Sienna yelp again, but she made sure not to drop the device again.
"Croagunk. The Toxic Mouth Pokémon. Its cheeks hold poison sacs. It tries to catch foes off guard to jab them with toxic fingers."
"It really did just explain about that Pokémon! Amazing!" Sienna gasped, getting more hushes from the trainers around her, and she sheepishly averted herself from their gaze.
Cynthia took a moment to gaze at her, getting an understanding on how inept she was at simple technology before returning to the battlefield. "Roselia, now!" She called out, tossing out a ball, revealing a small, plant-like Pokémon with roses for hands. Sienna, now more understanding on how the Pokédex works, pointed it at the new Pokemon.
"Roselia. The Thorn Pokémon. The beautiful flowers on its arms have toxic thorns. Don't even think about picking those flowers."
"So this is one of Cynthia's Pokémon?" Sienna asked, "She wasn't going for that tough-looking one she had before?"
"Battle begin!" The referee declared.
"Roselia, use Toxic Spikes!" Cynthia ordered. Roselia raised her rose hands up high, and poison thorns shot into the sky before falling down all over the field, going into the ground before vanishing.
"Ha! That won't do you any good!" Juno shouted, "Croagunk, use Venoshock!" Croagunk inhaled and spewed a purple ball of sludge that struck Roselia, knocking her back.
"Counter it with Leech Seed!" Cynthia ordered, and Roselia was able to recover and shoot seeds at Croagunk, which connected and grew to produce vines and intertwined around his body, emitting energy that caused it pain.
"Is this plant-based magic?" Sienna asked herself quietly, not audible for anyone to hear. She then noticed the energy shoot from Croagunk all the way to Roselia, and her body started to glow green and gentle as the injuries from the previous attack started to vanish. "Hold on, that was healing her?" She whispered.
"An interesting strategy, but one we are strong to overcome!" Juno shouted, "Croagunk, force her into a fight with Taunt!" Croagunk was able to get over the Leech Seed entwining him before glowing with energy, raising a hand and flicking his fingers to Roselia as if he was saying, "Bring it on!" Roselia started to glow the same energy and looked aggressively back at her target.
"Forcing my Roselia to actually fight him." Cynthia understood, "Very well, then. Roselia, Giga Drain!" Roselia leaped up, her flowers glowing.
"Gotcha! Use Sucker Punch!" Juno shouted, and Croagunk instantly came up and punched Roselia so quickly, she had no time to react and got sent flying.
"Whoa, what just happened?!" Sienna gasped.
"That's our sensei!" Cheered one of the students, while others were cheering as well.
"Jeez, they tell me to be quiet…." Sienna muttered, irritated they weren't practicing what they preached. She then noticed the young girl she saw before right next to her and asked, "Hey, uh, can you explain to me what is going on?"
The girl, Maylene, looked at her and answered, "That was sensei's combination of Taunt and Sucker Punch. Taunt forces a Pokémon to use actual attacks, while Sucker Punch hits the opponent before they can make an actual attack."
"Taunting and sucker punches are actual moves on a Pokémon?" Sienna asked, looking bewildered.
"Roselia, don't stop! Use your Giga Drain!" Cynthia ordered. Roselia regained herself and, with her glowing hands, caused strands of energy to shoot out and connect with Croagunk, making him yell in pain as the attack caused damage to it. This was further amplified as the Leech Seed activated, draining him of more stamina. All of that energy was brought into Roselia, curing her wounds.
"Cynthia's Roselia is pretty much healing herself of any damage that is inflicted on her." Sienna understood, "Even with that taunting and sucker punch combo, Cynthia is just wearing down her opponent."
"Two can play at that game!" Juno called out, "Croagunk, Drain Punch!" The toad hopped towards Roselia, its fist encased in a glowing, swirling green energy.
Cynthia smirked as she said, "Time to try out the new move we learned at the shopping mall recently. Roselia, Dazzling Gleam!" Roselia thrust her flowers forward and was encased in a bright rainbow light of energy, expanding outwards. It hit Croagunk, who got sent flying in pain before crashing to the ground, spirals in its eyes.
"Croagunk is unable to battle!" The referee announced, "Roselia is the winner!"
"Excellent job, Roselia." Cynthia praised her partner, who bowed graciously at this compliment.
"That's a shame…." "Master's Croagunk really gave it its all, and it wasn't enough." "How is that small little Pokémon so strong?" The words from the other people watching the match could be heard in Sienna's ears as she looked on in amazement. 'So this is a Pokémon battle.' She understood, 'That bright light just did a number on that guy's toad Pokémon. How did the referee know it wasn't able to fight anymore?'
"Croagunk, you did a fine job out there." Juno told his partner, calling him back into his Pokéball. He placed it away as he said, "Okay, so I wasn't expecting that much from you. But do not underestimate me as I did for you. You have the stamina and skill to overcome, but this one has greater stamina and strength! Hariyama, go!" He tossed out another ball and out came a wide Pokémon that was human-looking, with super-wide legs that were barely noticeable as actual legs and large open palms.
"Holy heck?!" Sienna gasped, pointing the Pokédex to it, activating it. "Hariyama. The Arm Thrust Pokémon and the evolved form of Makuhita. It loves to match power with big-bodied Pokémon. It can send a truck flying with its arm thrust."
"Wait a second…evolved form?" Sienna echoed, hearing it right. "What does that mean? This guy is an evolved version of something else?" Suddenly the ground beneath him became purple as Hariyama had purple energy coursing about it, and his face looked sickly. "Now what just happened?" Sienna asked.
"Looks like my Toxic Spikes worked out well." Cynthia noted, "Hariyama is now poisoned when he appeared."
"You mean…" Sienna thought back to the first move Roselia used, littering the floor with all those thorns of poison, "…So it activated upon that big guy's appearance?"
To these words, Juno smirked, causing Cynthia to look confused. "You underestimate my partner and me. We are just getting started!" Hariyama roared as he suddenly became encased in reddish-orange energy, its body almost looking like it was steaming.
"Shoot! So Hariyama has the Guts ability!" Cynthia grimaced.
"Wait, what?" Sienna asked, "Ability? What is she talking about?"
"You don't know about abilities?" Maylene asked, looking at her.
"I…" Sienna started before retaliating with, "And you do? At your age?"
"Sure. Abilities are what all Pokémon have. It can vary from Pokémon to Pokémon." She answered, "In Sensei's Hariyama's case, it's Guts, which causes him to be strong when it is hit with a status effect like poison."
"So… in other words, that ability was activated because of Cynthia's attack?" Sienna asked, realizing she was set up for failure.
"We underestimated that, but we will still keep fighting." Cynthia called out, "Roselia, use Leech Seed!" Roselia was ready to fire off another seed toward Hariyama.
"Fake Out!" Juno ordered, and Hariyama clapped his hands, causing a shockwave to stop Roselia from attacking, before bounding forward and slamming her with his open palm, making Roselia as small as a fly in its hand.
"Roselia!" Cynthia cried out.
"Now, to finish this! Knock Off!" With surprising movement capabilities, Hariyama bounded to the flung Roselia, and slammed it hard into the ground with a smack of its hand, causing a dust cloud to form. The sound of splintered wood was heard from the attack breaking the floorboards. When she came to, Roselia was barely getting to her feet again but ended up falling backward with spirals in her eyes.
"Roselia is unable to battle! Hariyama is the winner!" The referee announced, as Hariyama came back to his starting position. The audience cheered as Sienna looked horrified at the amount of damage done to such a small Pokémon. Would it be okay after that?
Cynthia, meanwhile, walked over and picked up Roselia in her arms, cradling her as she said, "You fought excellently. I couldn't be more proud of you. We ended up mistaking our strategy this time around, but we'll rethink that later. Take a good rest." She placed Roselia in her ball before pocketing it. She walked back to her side of the field, looking at Hariyama as she pondered on what to do next. Finally, she came up with a solution and pulled out another ball. "Come forth, Togetic!" She shouted, throwing a ball, and out came a small, white Pokémon with a long neck, an egg-like body, and small wings that it used to fly in the air.
Sienna pulled out the Pokédex at it, examining it. "Togetic. The Happiness Pokémon, and the evolved form of Togepi. It is said to appear in front of kind people to scatter a glowing down called joy dust."
"Again with the evolving thing." Sienna heard the repetition of the word, "So Pokémon have a previous form before this? But that Togetic doesn't look like it'll do much against that monster of a Pokémon."
"You should learn about one thing, Sienna." Cynthia called out, able to hear what she said, "Size among Pokémon doesn't matter much. It's the experience and strength each Pokémon has that matters. Allow me to demonstrate it to you."
"By all means, do! Use Force Palm!" Juno ordered, and his partner launched forward again, one of its palms pulled back as it was gathering energy into the center of it.
"Safeguard!" Cynthia ordered, and Togetic became encased in a barrier of energy as Hariyama smacked her with the open palm, causing an explosion and sending Togetic flipping into the air backward before coming to a halt, looking as if it took very little damage.
"You used Safeguard to prevent the secondary effect of my Hariyama's Force Palm from paralyzing you." Juno understood.
"And since Togetic is a Flying and Fairy-type, that means Fighting-type moves barely could phase her." Cynthia finished, smirking at the strategy she had formed.
'Wait, so that's a thing, too?' Sienna thought to herself, 'Moves that don't do much damage to other Pokémon because they are a certain 'type'? I am so confused!'
"Now it's our turn! Dazzling Gleam!" Cynthia roared, and her partner glowed brightly, emitting a blast of rainbow light that hit Hariyama, causing him to slide backward, though held his ground.
"It's the same as Roselia's!" Sienna gasped.
"That would be the case if we didn't have other moves under our disposal." Juno called out, "Use Rock Tomb!" Hariyama summoned out rocks encased in white energy that threw over Togetic about to fall on top of her.
"Evade, and use Charm!" Cynthia ordered. Togetic danced about the falling rocks before approaching Hariyama and winked at him with a charming look. Hariyama blushed, and an aura of downward blue energy enveloped him as he started to look weaker.
"Um… did charming Hariyama actually work?" Sienna asked, "I know those attractive girls do that to draw in men, but this?"
"You really don't know anything, do you?" Maylene asked her.
"Hey, I'm new to all of this!" She argued.
"Swat her away with Knock Off!" Juno ordered, and Hariyama was able to regain himself and smack Togetic to the ground, causing her to bounce along the floor before regaining herself. The attack didn't do as much damage as it did to Roselia.
"Thanks to Charm, Togetic didn't get damaged as much." Cynthia smirked, "Now, let's counterattack. Use Steel Wing!" Togetic flew at Hariyama, the wings on its back glowing as they grew bigger and became metallic.
"Wait, her wings are now made of metal?!" Sienna gasped as she watched her attack make contact with Hariyama in the face, knocking him about. She circled around, her body glowing with a red rising hue as she continued this assault, continuously striking Hariyama over and over again. When she finished doing it about ten times, she backed off, her body emitting a strong red aura. "What happened there?!" Sienna asked.
"You are clever. Hariyama, Rock Tomb, again!" Juno called out, and Hariyama summoned up more rocks over Togetic before they fell down at her. This time, they did hit her, but the damage wasn't a whole lot, even as a blue aura enveloped her. "What?!" Juno gasped.
"That should've been a super-effective move!" Maylene gasped while others around her were shocked at this.
"Steel Wing has a chance of boosting my Togetic's Physical Defense." Cynthia noted out loud, "But my Togetic has Serene Grace as her ability, too, doubling that chance for the boost. Despite the weak physical strength of my Togetic, it is useful.
"Clever. So you bet on that chance to boost your defenses." Juno understood.
"And there is something else you failed to notice…." Cynthia noted, getting Juno's attention to his Hariyama, who was looking far weaker than it should've been. Then it occurred to him; Guts was boosted thanks to the poison effect on him, but it was still slowly draining the stamina of his Pokémon!
"Shoot! Hariyama, Rock Tomb again!" "Finish him with Dazzling Gleam!" Hariyama tried to summon more rocks quickly to attack, but Togetic was close enough to unleash a blast of rainbow energy around her, consuming Hariyama until he fell backward, unconscious.
"Hariyama is unable to battle! Togetic is the winner!" The referee announced, surprising the audience with what just happened. Sienna, especially since she had no idea Cynthia would think that strategically to take down that wide and strong-looking Pokémon. The more and more she watched the battle, the more she realized something; Cynthia was incredible. She was just as amazing as Acier. In fact, it almost felt like she was a near replica when it came to capabilities and strategy. That both impressed her, and slightly irritated her. She and Leona never could beat her in a fair battle.
Hariyama was called back to his ball by Juno, who pocketed the ball. "I must admit, that was clever of you. But even strategy can go so far without the power to overcome them. Fortunately, I still have my ace."
"Here it comes!" "His best Pokémon!" The voices of students around Sienna were getting excited, while Sienna wondered what this final Pokémon would look like.
"Come forth…" Juno started, pulling out the final ball, "…And let us break our opponent's will like a stack of chopping blocks! Lucario!" He tossed out the ball and out came a Pokémon that looked very similar to the one that Maylene was training with. However, this one was bigger, still bipedal, with yellow fur to add to the blue and black, spikes on its chest and backhands, and a more fox-like face than the other.
"That looks like…." Sienna started before looking at the Pokédex. "Lucario. The Aura Pokémon and the evolved form of Riolu. It has the ability to sense the aura of all things. It understands human language."
"So that Pokémon you were training with before…." Sienna started, looking to Maylene, "...Was that a Riolu?"
"Yes, it was." She replied, "Sensei gave him to me to train with, but he said he would officially be mine when I am of age."
Now she understood a bit more about the idea of evolution. Riolu was the previous form, but when it 'evolved,' it would turn into something like Lucario. So evolution was a change in appearance and strength.
"Lucario…" Cynthia noted, glaring at it, "The legends behind this Pokémon are well-known. I have to be cautious." The floor suddenly emitted the purple energy, as Lucario's arrival activated Toxic Spikes. However, the field did not affect Lucario whatsoever. "And to make matters worse, Toxic Spikes has no effect on him due to Lucario being a Steel-type." Cynthia finished.
"Steel-type?" Sienna echoed, "So that typing cannot be affected by poisons or something?"
"In that case, let's weaken him another way. Togetic, Charm!" Her partner flew in, intending to charm him, like she did with Hariyama.
"Lucario, Aura Sphere!" Juno shouted. Lucario pulled his hands close together, and created a sphere of blue, swirling energy, before hurling it at Togetic, causing an explosion that sent her flying backwards in pain.
"I thought her defense was boosted!" Sienna noted.
"Her PHYSICAL defense is, but not her SPECIAL defense." Maylene explained, "How are you even older than me without knowing this?"
Sienna was irritated at her. This is supposed to be common sense for people of THIS world, and she was barely here for a day! Not like she knew everything about Pokémon.
"Lucario can keep you at bay with anything you have." Juno told Cynthia, "I dare you to try anything against him." Lucario looked prepared to attack again, prepared for any attack.
Cynthia pondered before she pulled out the Pokéball and said, "Come back, Togetic." She returned her Pokémon to her ball, surprising everyone, Juno included.
"Why would she call her back?" Maylene asked, "Doing that will nullify the stat boosts she gained from the battle when it comes back again."
"She must have a strategy…." Sienna assumed, looking to the said friend as she replaced the ball with another, looking at it.
Cynthia looked up at Juno as she said, "You wanted me to show my power. Then prepare yourself, for I will show you my closest partner. Garchomp, go!" She tossed out the ball, and out came the powerful draconic-like Pokémon Sienna had encountered before, who roared in rage. This even brought fear among some of the students.
Sienna pulled out the Pokédex, pointing at Garchomp, now wanting to know about it. "Garchomp. The Mach Pokémon and the final evolved form of Gible. When it folds up its body and extends its wings, it looks like a jet plane. It flies at sonic speeds."
'Dunno about what a jet plane is, but it sounds like it's fast.' Sienna summed up, seeing the Pokémon.
"Now, THIS is a challenge!" Juno called out, "Lucario, Bone Rush!" Lucario created an aura energy of a long bone, twirling it around before launching at Garchomp.
"Endure it!" Cynthia called out. Garchomp crossed his arms in front of him as Lucario struck him with an endless chain of strikes from his bone, twirling and smacking him over and over again. Garchomp, fortunately, looked like he wasn't phased as much by the attack.
"Now, Dragon Claw!" Cynthia called out. Garchomp pushed Lucario backward, before creating green energy from its hands, taking on the form of draconic claws, before lunging at Lucario, slashing at him multiple times, causing Lucario to cry out in pain.
"Lucario, hold yourself, and use Drain Punch!" Juno shouted, and Lucario encased his paw in green swirling energy, before punching Garchomp in the face, forcing him back while draining him of his stamina and healing himself.
"Bulldoze!" "Aura Sphere!" Cynthia and Juno shouted. As Lucario charged up another sphere of energy, Garchomp stomped the ground, causing shockwaves and a yellow aura to crack along the ground, before striking Lucario, who took the hit hard, before launching his Aura Sphere to strike Garchomp, causing him pain. Both took heavy damage by the attack.
"This… is incredible," Sienna muttered, watching as Juno called to Lucario to use Metal Claw, creating steely claws from his paws, while Cynthia called to Garchomp to use Dragon Claw again. The two engaged in a battle of claws versus claws, slashing, countering, clawing, enduring, forcing every attack with all they had to try and overpower the other. Sienna was in awe at the level of power they exuded and how she was reminiscing about her times with Leona and how they would spar just like this. The more she watched, the more she realized how much she missed home.
By the time they were done, Garchomp and Lucario were panting in exhaustion but still able to continue. "Now, THIS is what I wanted! A battle of power between our Pokémon!" Juno called out, "I thought you were gonna be all about that strategy and thinking, but it's clear to me you had some hidden fangs within you. Now, you are impressing me, young lady."
"I thank you for the compliment, but I am not here for that." She replied, "I am here to beat your gym. And Garchomp and I will do just that!"
"You will still have to get past my Lucario and me! Aura Sphere!" Juno shouted, and Lucario fired off a powerful sphere of aura energy.
"Garchomp, Slash!" Cynthia ordered, and her partner's 'wings' attached to her arms glowed, before performing a swipe with them, causing the attack to be cut in two, the two pieces flying right behind him and Cynthia, exploding when they hit the wall. "Now, Giga Impact!" Cynthia followed up, and Garchomp leaped up, folding its body, taking on flight mode, before shooting down at Lucario, encased in a very powerful aura of swirling energy. Lucario gasped before he or Juno had time to react, and there was a great explosion of energy, consuming the field and the dojo, causing everyone to cry out and endure the shockwaves. Maylene was flung up and into the crowd while Sienna held her ground. While she was feeling the pressure, she was used to enduring these kinds of pressure. She had to know what the results of the battle were.
After a few seconds, the explosion dissipated, and Garchomp was panting from exhaustion as she looked at Lucario, who stood before her, looking very injured, but still trying to stay able. He raised a paw, about to pull back his fist. However, he couldn't move anymore and fell to the side, unable to continue anymore.
"Lucario is unable to battle! Garchomp is the winner!" The referee announced, waving a hand to Cynthia, "Therefore, the victor of this match goes to Cynthia of Celestic Town!"
Cynthia looked proud of herself before walking over to Garchomp, who turned and walked over to her. "You were amazing." She told her, patting her head. Garchomp gave a toothy grin, proud of the achievement they were able to achieve.
Juno called back Lucario, saying to him, "You were able to display a fine amount of strength. Take a good rest." He pocketed the ball before approaching Cynthia and her Garchomp, "You impressed me, young lady. My first impression of you was greatly misunderstood. You have shown that I still have much to learn. Maybe in a few years' time, I should probably retire and go on a journey."
"Really?" Cynthia asked, surprised.
"You have shown that I am only seeing people and Pokémon for what they are on the outside. I do not see their true power deep down. But I still can learn more while I am at this dojo, and I still have students to take care of. Who knows…." He looked to see Sienna helping out Maylene get back on her feet again after she fell over, "…I believe one of my students might have the potential to surpass me."
Cynthia looked in that same direction, looking at Sienna as she eagerly spoke about the battle she had witnessed. "I believe I am starting to understand things, as well." She agreed, "But I'll still need to get the absolute truth from them before I can confirm my theories."
"Seems like we both still have much to learn," Juno stated, digging into his pants, and pulled out a badge, and handing it to her. "Here is the badge of Veilstone's Gym. May it be proof of the strength you exhibit today."
"Thank you." Cynthia thanked him, took the pin, opened up her badge case, and placed it in before closing the case. She smiled as she looked back at Sienna, who noticed her looking at her and looked back, wondering what she was thinking. Finally, Cynthia smiled at her, saying, "I hope you learned a lot from this."
Sienna looked back at her before smiling and nodding in response, saying, "Yeah. These Pokémon battles…are really exciting!"
It was later that evening, and Cynthia introduced Sienna to the Pokémon Center, as well as the overnight stay system they had there, allowing trainers to recuperate before going on their journey. Cynthia had some sleepwear for herself, while Sienna had a black shirt over a sports bra and shorts for her sleepwear.
"I really should've gotten something to sleep in at the store…." Sienna grimaced.
"Well, we can swing on by there before we leave." Cynthia told her, "Make sure it's a color you like."
"That's not really necessary, so long as it is comfortable." Sienna sighed, laying back in her bed, "Speaking of which, these beds are fantastic. Does every Pokémon Center have these kinds of facilities?"
"For the most part, yes." Cynthia answered, "They're for trainers who are on long journeys across the region. You don't have resting places back in your home?"
"We do, but they are not as comfortable as they are here," Sienna answered.
There was a moment's pause between the girls, before Cynthia asked, "So, did you enjoy watching your first Pokémon battle?"
"Heck, yeah! It was fantastic!" Sienna answered, "I mean, I am still really, REALLY confused about all that. Not just the battles, but the attacks the Pokémon were using, that ability thing, 'types', evolution. I mean, Pokémon sound so crazy, I am losing my mind over it!"
Cynthia chuckled as she said, "I agree. Pokémon are an eternal mystery to the world. Maybe that's the whole reason why every trainer starts on their journey; to understand Pokémon in their own individual way."
Sienna looked to Cynthia for a second, who gazed out at the full moon in the sky, before she asked, "So, I gotta ask; What does it take to be a Pokémon trainer?"
She looked back at her as she asked, "Oh? Are you curious enough that you want to become one?"
Sienna looked up at the ceiling, wondering. On one hand, heck yeah, she was interested. Having creatures like those around you, working together with them, fighting all sorts of battles and whatnot. She could almost compare a Magic Knight to a trainer, where only the privileged would be able to achieve such a title. With her magic experience AND having intelligent monsters at her command? That would be an amazing deal.
However, that was the other hand she was thinking about. She really needed to find a way home again. Wouldn't a trainer ground her here in this world and keep her from really choosing to go home? She thought about Leona and that she must be worried sick of her at this point if she even knew she was alive. But at this point, she had no clue how to find a way home. She could ask Cynthia, who she was really having a strong bond with, but she was unsure about telling her the truth about herself. She was really unsure on whether what she should do or not.
Cynthia looked at her, thinking. She could almost hear the Klinklang in her brain hard at work. Finally, she answered, "You don't have to answer tonight. You already went through a heck of an experience today so far, as have I. I'll help you figure things out tomorrow, okay?"
"Oh…sure," Sienna answered, looking back at her before looking above.
Cynthia went and turned off the lights for the two of them before they settled in their beds. As they rested there, their minds would not shut off. Sienna was mentally exhausted, but not enough to fall asleep. She was also a bit hot, as the temperature in the room was a bit on the warmer side. She didn't want to take off the blankets, as they were super nice, at least compared to what she was used to back home.
She sat up, looking over to Cynthia's bed, seeing if she was asleep. She wanted her to be that way before she did what she had to do to cool off. Seeing that she was okay, she took off her shirt and bundled it up next to her. She paused as she looked down at the spot over her chest, seen over the straps of her sports bra, was the burnt mark that was left there by Leona's fist. The promise was made between them by permanently burning their skin. She looked at her own fist, the one she pressed on Leona's chest to leave the same mark. She made it glow just for a second, feeling the warmth of her magic. She didn't want to ignite her fist any more than that to get Cynthia's attention.
"Sienna?" She mentally spoke too soon as she spun her head over to where her bedmate was and saw Cynthia was, in fact, still awake and had raised herself up with one hand. "What was that? With your fist?" She asked, "And… what's with that mark near your heart?"
"I…." Sienna wasn't sure how to make an excuse to explain all of this. She was stunned at Cynthia seeing that, and her mind was afraid she would start to change how she acted around her. She hastily tried to think of something but couldn't. Cynthia looked very curiously at her and was a bit amazed at what she saw, both her fist and her burn mark.
Sienna threw the blanket over her body, hiding from Cynthia, who reached out to her, wondering if she had scared her. She waited for a reply from Sienna. Finally, she answered, "I'm sorry. I can't tell you… not yet."
Cynthia looked at her for a moment before closing her eyes as she said, "Okay. I won't bother you. Goodnight, Sienna." She turned herself away from the worried girl and pondered. Based on everything she had gathered, including what she witnessed tonight and the night before, she started to formulate a hypothesis. The hypothesis was that she believed Sienna was from a very distant land, one too far from anyone's knowledge, and where Pokémon don't exist. It must be one lacking technology, but in exchange, it seems like it was possible that people had some sort of ability. Something similar to the power of Pokémon.
She was extremely curious about it but didn't want to hurt Sienna's feelings. After all, she was actually liking Sienna, and she wanted to help her. But she did say 'not yet,' which meant she still had to earn her trust a bit more. But how could she earn it? Was she supposed to not be afraid of what Sienna actually was? She had no clue, but for now, she had to fall asleep.
The two girls took a really long time each to finally fall asleep, curious and worried about the other.