Hey guys, this is Chapter 15 of Pokémon Society. I don't really have any news to give you, so let's get right into it! Hope you enjoy!
"This is the Criminal Network! The only place to get the best twenty-four seven coverage on criminal activity. If you don't watch the Criminal Network, you don't get the right information! This is Rebbeca Malore and I have big news! Just yesterday, the Gamma Team was involved in one of the biggest crimes ever recorded in Voyanna City. They successfully summoned and caught Groudon! The Gamma Team also caused a region-wide blackout! Hundreds of small towns and villages are struggling to restore power, while Alfheim City is having issues with the power grids. During the time Groudon was active, the Oak Agency did their best to try and stop the Gamma Team. While the members were little problem, the problem was the giant Pokémon fighting Groudon. These special Pokémon were injected with something called the Alpha Gene, a mix of the genes that caused Pokémon back in the Hisui Region, or nowadays Sinnoh, to be much stronger and bigger. These Pokémon were then Gigantamaxed, causing them to rise to extreme power levels. These Pokémon were simply too dangerous to even get within fifteen feet of. While the situation was starting to be contained, a third force entered the battle. Team Magma, the infamous criminal team that originated from the Hoenn Region. Seeing the Gamma Team's action as an opportunity, Team Magma decided to try and capture Groudon from right under their noses. While they ultimately failed, they did obstruct the Oak Agency mission. At the end of the day, forty-seven arrests were made. Twenty-five of them were known Team Magma members, while twenty-two of them were known Gamma Team members. As for what to do next, the Oak Agency has promised they will find the rest of the Gamma Team members and bring them into custody along with the police force. Recently, the Oak Agency raided the Gamma Team headquarters. However, it is clear the Gamma Team vacated their base recently, as the entire base was empty. When investigating a series of tunnels that lead all over Gama Team property, the Oak Agency was surprised to see the tunnel purposely collapsed. While the Oak Agency investigated multiple entries to the tunnel around Voyanna City, all of them collapsed. The tunnel system was identified as a series of mining tunnels from a long time ago. These tunnels were shut down and lost to history after many miners were attacked by feral Pokémon. The Oak Agency nor the police force have any leads as to why the Gamma Team are hiding. But it's only a matter of time before the Gamma Team makes a move. Next up: Here's to why crime in Outainus is rapidly decreasing.``
Executive Stewart turned off the TV. "Rebecca is such a chatterbox. But this is the information we need," he said to all of the mission branch of the Gamma Team save for Elaine.
They were in their back up Gamma Team base, located in Alfheim City. The base was smaller than their main base in Voyanna City, and lacked serious technology. For example, the TV Executive Stewart was using only had two HDMI inputs and only had cable. While the TVs were only meant for presentations, the TV was very small compared to the old one.
The laboratories were also smaller, and didn't have any equipment. Fortunately, any needed equipment was transported to the back up base. The labs didn't have personal safe rooms either. All the safe rooms we clumped together in a separate place in the base.
Another problem was living space. In the old base, they had living spaces for all the members. But this base could only accommodate all the special branches. Some executive branch members were investigating living spaces elsewhere in the city, but with little success.
The same issue applied to the garage space. The back up base was meant for a major crisis where the Gamma Team numbers were greatly reduced. Executive Stewart's only real option was to split the Gamma Team into two groups, three once they formulated a plan to break the others out of jail, and choose a leader. The three groups would each inhabit one of the bases in each major city.
Of course, these bases weren't empty until they were needed. But only a small force of the Gamma Team ran these back up bases, and the one in Alfheim had been deserted not too long ago.
Even with all this, everyone was in high spirits. They had successfully completed their mission and were one step closer to their ultimate goal. Accommodations and whatnot could come later.
"Excuse me, but what kind of information can we get from an under-informed news reporter?" asked Gabrielle.
"This confirms my suspicions," said Executive Stewart. "The Oak Agency's trail has gone cold. We made a perfect escape."
"Blowing up the tunnels was the best part," said Olivia dreamily.
"Hold up. We can't be sure the trail has gone cold. The Oak Agency could be lying to the public just so that we could feel at ease," said Marlow.
"That is why I already have confirmation measures in place. Don't worry about it. What we do need to worry about is what's in store for all of you. I saw how you performed at the Groudon summoning. And frankly, most of you need training. You all lost or were losing to various Oak Agency members."
"Except for me of course," said Devon.
"What about the woman you were battling?" asked Kazuma. "What happened there?"
"I wasn't losing!" said Devon, offended. "We had drawn the battle to a stalemate. We were both fainted one Pokémon and neither my Gyarados or her Garchomp could take out the other. Then of course, Groudon came."
"Okay okay, no need to get offended."
"Okay, no need to get offended."
"Anyways," said Executive Stewart, taking control of the conversation. "Everyone here has room for improvement. I believe that if we are to succeed and defeat the Oak Agency, we're all going to improve our battling skills."
Jacob sighed. "Do we have to, I'd say my battling skills are adequate, and my Pokémon are strong."
"Until your Cinccino got murdered by an Emolga," commented Kazuma.
"Hey, me and Olivia didn't lose. We actually beat two members. We made an amazing team," argued Molly.
"Yeah but your Charizard lost to a Joltik," said Olivia.
"Well we still won in the end!"
"With your stupid, disgusting Hydregion!" shouted Olivia, her voice rising.
"My Hydreigon isn't disgusting. I love how it makes you-"
Olivia rolled her eyes. "I'm out of here."
Executive Stewart held up a hand to get her to stop. "Guys, please don't start an argument. As I was saying, no matter how well you performed during the mission. You will all be doing the training. There'll be a few tests, and then I'll send you on a mission to test your skills."
Executive Stewart smiled, something people rarely saw him do. "By the time we're all finished, you'll be as good as Devon!"
Devon raised a hand. "As good as me before the training program."
Everyone from the mission branch showed up at the training program, the program took place in a classroom. A man with giant glasses and a business suit stood at the front of the room. He had a mane of red and purple hair that stuck out in every which way.
"Welcome class! My name is Mr. Henderson, and I will be your instructor for this training program. Of course, I know you are all adults, so I'll be treating you as such. No one please ask me any basic questions unless you can convince me you actually didn't know."
"I have a question. Are we going to be battling against each other, or against other trainers?" asked Devon.
Mr. Henderson's glasses flashed. "You see my man, learning how to battle has two parts. Knowledge, and experience. No doubt all of you have experience, but I'm going to test and bolster your knowledge. Get ready everyone!"
Gabrielle's POV
I didn't like this "knowledge" thing. This guy was clearly crazy, his hair wasn't the only thing that indicated that.
"Alright, before we start our lessons, you will all take a pretest."
Everyone groaned, and I don't blame them. Damn Executive Stewart, this training program is literally just school.
Henderson walked around the room, passing out our pretests. I rolled my eyes as I received my own and looked at it.
The test was five pages long, I flipped through the pages and sighed.
"Alright people, I know you all know how to do a test, so you all have thirty minutes to do this test. I don't believe in luck. Begin!"
I went to the first page and looked at it. A chart filled the entire page. The chart was your typical type chart, with all eighteen types on the top row and left column, but everything in between was blank.
The instructions were clear, fill the chart. It was going to be easy, everyone memorized the type chart. I quickly filled in the type chart, making sure not to forget the steel type's ten resistances and one immunity.
I soon finished the chat and moved on to the next page. This one had free response questions. Six of them to be exact.
The first question asked which type had the highest base HP stat. I thought about it, but no type seemed health based. I ended up choosing dragon because dragon types are strong.
The rest of the questions were similar, only that they had different stats. For attack I chose fighting, for defense I chose steel, for special defense I chose steel as well, for special attack I chose psychic, and I chose electric for speed.
The next set of questions asked me to list the weaknesses, resistances, and immunities of multiple Pokémon.
I filled it in for Gengar, Absol, Rotom and all its forms. Emolga, Zoroark and its Hisuian form. I then realized that all these Pokemon were used by the Oak Agency.
I looked at the next question. I froze when I saw it. The question read, "What are the weaknesses and resistances of Torterra?"
It made me think about Gavin. I was committed to the Gamma Team, I needed revenge for what they did. But Gavin is working for them, he's working for my greatest enemy. The ones who killed Micheal.
Ever since I've seen Gavin, I've been in constant strife. I can't let what the Oak Agency go unpunished, but Gavin wouldn't want that. He'd want me to forget and believe the Oak Agency are the good guys. He'd want me to come home with him and stay with father. Knowing him, he probably joined Oak Agency to find me.
"Tick tock! Time's running out and you're staring at the wall! Focus Gabriella! Complete this test or else I'll expel you from life."
This idiot, I'll get him back for calling me Gabriella later.
"Um, it's actually Gabrielle," I said in my sweetest voice.
"Oh, I'm sorry," he said somewhat startled by my cute facade.
This guy's seriously going to regret it. But I have a test to complete.
No one's POV
Soon, everyone finished their pretests and handed them in. Henderson worked fast as he and an Alakazam that was lurking in a corner marked the test.
"Alright, good job everyone. Most of you did well. Except for Devon and Marlow," he said, turning away sadly as he said the last part.
Everyone looked straight at Devon and Marlow, both of them were very bewildered themselves.
"But I'm sure-"
"You did perfectly!" he shouted suddenly, whipping around and causing everyone to jump in surprise.
"You both got every single question correct! But it was expected, the test was about type effectiveness and Pokémon stats. A good battler should know the answer to all these questions on this test, and a good scientist. But I want to address page two of the test."
Jacob raised a hand. Causing Henderson to roll his eyes.
"This isn't an actual class, feel free to blurt out your question."
"Okay, I'm wondering, why is knowing the highest stat averages important? I don't think it's going to benefit me if I know dragon types have the highest average attack."
"Fighting types actually have the highest attack stat out of all eighteen types. And why would it be helpful? If you were to battle a fighting type, and none of your Pokémon had any super effective damage. You could work on the assumption that the fighting type you're facing has a high attack stat like most fighting types. With this knowledge you can select a Pokémon with a high defense stat to protect against it. What I wanted to address was that a lot of you made a few mistakes on this page. Some of them are common, others not. If you hadn't done well on the other pages, I would execute you right here right now! Ain't that funny?"
With that, Henderson started laughing. His laugh was very disturbing and caused Jacob to shiver.
"What a weirdo," muttered Kazuma to Molly.
Henderson snapped back to attention. "This is a class! No talking when I'm teaching!"
Marlow raised an eyebrow. "But you said-"
"No buts about it! I may have to reconsider not executing them all."
He started laughing again, causing everyone except for Olivia to look at each other bewildered.
"Are you sure you're fit to be our teacher?" asked Kazuma.
"Of course I am! I am the strongest executive branch member and strongest member in the Gamma Team! Devon, don't you dare say anything."
"Yet you're as crazy as a wild Gengar," muttered Devon.
"Is there a problem with that?" asked Olivia.
"What she said!" agreed Molly.
Henderson sighed. "This is why I like Olivia, she understands people who are different. And she isn't judgy, fine qualities for a Pokémon battler. People who are picky about their teams are never successful, especially with the decreasing population of Pokémon around these parts. Anyways! Let's get back on topic!"
Kazuma gave him a blank stare. "What were we-"
"I will give you the answer to all six questions and tell you some common mistakes. Type with the highest attack is fighting. Type with the highest HP is dragon. The type with the most defense is steel. The type with the most special attack and defense is psychic. And the type with the most speed is flying."
The last part he said caused surprise from most people in the room.
"Wait hold up! You're saying that flying types, are faster than electric types?" asked Jacob incredulously.
"That makes no sense!" exclaimed Molly.
"It's a common stereotype that all electric Pokémon are fast," explained Henderson. "So I don't blame you all for getting this one wrong. But there are plenty of slow electric types. Stunfisk, Vikavolt, Eelektross, Ampharos, the list goes on. Don't forget that the average stats for each type includes NFEs or not fully evolved Pokémon."
"Still doesn't make sense but okay," said Kazuma.
"Whether you want to believe it or not, it's true. Now, let us commence class for the next three hours before training our minds and Pokémon in a tournament."
"DId you say three hours?" asked Marlow.
"You're kidding! Are you crazy?" asked Gabrielle.
"By your definition, no. We have a lot to learn and not much time! Grab those textbooks from the side of the room and open to page five!"
Three hours later
"Alright, class is over! Hand in your test!"
"I hate this class," grumbled Molly as she put her test on his desk.
"This isn't a class! It's a training session!" protested Henderson.
"Y'know Molly," said Olivia. "This reminds me of the last time I went to school when I was eleven."
Kazuma slapped his test on the teachers table. "We're actual criminals who do actual crimes! Not some wild, slightly old teenagers!"
Henderson shrugged. "Okay, now get back to your seats."
"Did you even-"
Henderson ignored him and turned to the class. "Now that I have drilled knowledge into your heads, we shall test that knowledge with a tournament. Everyone shall use one Pokémon. The brackets have been decided by this online spinner called the Wheel of Names®!"
"Wait, aren't there only seven of us since Elaine's not here?" asked Devon.
"Right! I shall have someone join you. Be warned, they've taken classes too! Now for the brackets! In Bracket A you have Olivia and Kazuma! In Bracket B you have Jacob and Molly! In Bracket C you have Devon and Marlow! Finally, you have Gabrielle and my friend Justin in Bracket D. Proceed to the training room, pull the building plan on your phone or something."
"Alright everyone!" shouted Henderson into a microphone. "We shall now begin our first battle between Olivia and Kazuma! Everyone pay attention to what's going on because you'll be next. You have a minute to select your first Pokémon."
Olivia thought hard about what Pokémon she should choose. Normally, she would have chosen Mors, but she figured Kazuma knew that and wouldn't send out his Goodra. Ultimately, she decided on her Froslass. If Kazuma were to send out his Goodra, she'd have the advantage.
Kazuma on the other hand was expecting her to use Mors, so he figured he shouldn't use Goodra. But then he thought that Olivia could've reached the same conclusion and switched to a different Pokémon.
Kazuma scratched his head. "This is impossible," he muttered. "Might as well choose a Pokémon that wouldn't take super effective damage. Swampert, or Electivire. Psychic types, especially Pokémon like Espeon have low defense and HP stats. The same can't be said about ice types."
In the end, Kazuma decided the best course of action would be to send out Electivire.
"Time's up! Send out your Pokémon!"
"Go, Congelatio!"
"Out, Electivire!"
"Now, Congelatio, use Spikes!"
Kazuma was surprised by the speed in which she used her first move. Olivia hadn't even stopped to assess what he'd chosen. That's when he realized with increasing dread that she had a plan beforehand.
"Electivire, watch your step! Use Thunder!"
"Dodge it and use Spikes again!"
Kazuma immediately understood what she was doing. She was trying to limit the playing field for his Electivire by laying the Spikes all over the place. Her Froslass was unaffected by the spikes because she could fly.
"We have no choice but brute force! Knock those Spikes away, Volt Tackle!" shouted Kazuma.
Kazuma knew that blasting Thunder to clear the Spikes would just leave Electivire as an easy target. Besides, the Froslass could probably make more Spikes than Electivire could get rid of.
"Congelatio, use Shadow Ball!"
"Block it!"
Kazuma's Electivire stopped his mad rush and held up his arms to defend against the Shadow Ball. He slid back a few paces as he tanked the ghostly orb and shook away the pain.
"Use Earthquake to clear the Spikes! Spread it around you!"
Electivire slammed the ground and caused a wave of earthen energy to flood the stage. For a moment, Kazuma could have sworn he saw a flash of a smile on Olivia's face.
"I figured you would do something like that, and I was counting on it! Take a good look around Kazuma!"
Kazuma looked around in surprise and saw that while the middle of the stage was clear, the edges were littered with spikes now. If his Electivire were to end up there, it would be many times more dangerous than before. He now realized that the Spikes being there would lower the rate at which Electivire moved with Volt Tackle. The Pokémon would now have to be much more careful.
"Use Shadow Ball!"
"No time to dodge, block it!"
Electivire raised his arms protectively, resulting in the move not doing much again.
"Shadow Ball again! And keep using it!"
Kazuma watched as his Electivire blocked Shadow Ball after Shadow Ball. He then realized Olivia's plan was to force his Pokémon into the Spike ring. But Kazuma knew that using Thunder was just going to make his Electivire an easy target. Fortunately though, Kazuma's Electivire was close enough to the spike ring in one direction, thus allowing him to safely Volt Tackle in the other direction without running the risk of hitting the piled up Spikes.
"Use Volt Tackle! Ignore the Shadow Balls!"
Electivire roared and surrounded himself with electricity. He charged forward, soaking up the Shadow Balls as he charged straight at Congelatio.
"Ice Beam!"
Kazuma was surprised her Pokémon didn't try to dodge. The beam of ice glanced off the Electivire's body, not doing much. Electivire slammed into Congelatio, the Froslass was sent flying as Volt Tackle fizzled out.
"Now, Thunder!"
"Dodge it!"
Kazuma couldn't believe how fast the Froslass was. It dodged the Thunder and fired another Shadow Ball.
"We're going to have to fight this thing physically. Use Volt Tackle!"
The Electivire grunted, but no electricity shot out of his body.
"What the-"
Olivia laughed maniacally. "Cursed Body. My dear Congelatio's ability gives it a chance to disable any damaging moves that hits it for four minutes. Your Electivire's Volt Tackle was the first to go. Now, Ice Beam!"
"Ice Punch!"
Kazuma's Electivire resisted as its icy fist tried breaking through the Ice Beam. It proved to be too much as the Electivire slid back, ice forming around its fist.
"Now that he can't block it, Shadow Ball!"
There was nothing Kazuma's Electivire could do. The Shadow Ball hit it directly in the chest and made the big Pokémon lose his balance, painfully landing on to the Spikes and fainting.
"Electivire is unable to fight! Olivia advances to the next round!" shouted Hendeson.
"Chapter four, setting the terrain to your advantage," remarked Olivia.
"You actually paid attention to his lessons?"
"The battle between Molly and Jacob shall now begin!"
"Go, Gardevoir!"
"Out, Mary!"
The Gardevoir and the Azumarill faced each other. Fortunately, Gardevoir didn't perceive the Azumarill as strong or dangerous. So she didn't retreat back to her pokéball.
"Alright, use Belly Drum! This fight will be over in a second!" shouted Jacob.
"Gardevoir, use Shadow Ball!"
Mary hammered on its stomach, somehow, that boosted her attack while cutting her energy by half. The Shadow Ball hit her, but she remained standing.
"Now you're in trouble, Waterfall!"
Azumarill rushed forward in a torrent of water. Molly's Gardevoir covered her head in her arms and tried fleeing. But Mary charged forward and slammed into her.
The match had only been going on for two minutes, but it was already over.
"Gardevoir is unable to fight. Jacob advances instantly!"
Jacob returned his Pokémon. "I don't blame you for losing. Mary wasn't originally my Pokémon. She used to belong to my uncle Oswald. Her moveset and training is on a competitive level."
Molly stared at her fallen Gardevoir in shock. "And who may your uncle be?"
"A retired competitive battler. In his old days, he was ranked eighth nationally!" said Jacob proudly.
He didn't happen to notice the murderous look on Molly's face.
"Next match between Devon and Marlow!"
"Go, Rhyperior!"
"Out, Snox!"
Devon's Rhyperior seemed to give Marlow's Malamar a confident smirk. Snox simply waved his tentacles in response.
"I knew you wouldn't send out your Mimikyu. Rhyperior beats both your Malamar and your Salamence!" said Devon. "Rhyperior, use Megahorn!"
"Snox, use Swagger!"
As the Rhyperoir lumbered towards Snox, Snox puffed out his body. This confused the Rhyperior, as well as boosted his attack.
"Oh yeah? Rhyperior, use Stone Edge!"
The Rhyperior managed to break through the confusion and created jagged pillars of rocks. However, the rocks were severely off target and slammed into the wall.
"Use Switcheroo!"
Snox swapped their stat boosts, resulting in a powered up Malamar and a confused Rhyperior.
"Now, Psycho Cut!"
The Rhyperior shielded himself as the blades psychic energy slammed into him.
"Make your way towards it. Don't let its pitiful attack stop your unbeatable defense!" shouted Devon.
His words incented his Rhyperior and bit into its pride. It tilted its head and roared, breaking through the confusion. It glared at Snox for a brief moment before charging forward.
Snox didn't stand a chance against the enraged Rhyperior. It rushed forward, ignoring the Psycho Cuts that hit it over and over again. Its horn glowed green as it rammed into Snox, fainting him immediately.
"Ouch, that must have hurt coming from a base one hundred and forty attack Rhyperior using a double super effective Megahorn. Anyways Snox is unable to battle and-"
At that moment, Devon's Rhyperior fainted because of the damage it had been ignoring.
"Well he's dead. Anyways, Devon still wins!"
"Fourth match between Gabrielle and my friend Justin shall begin!"
Justin was about to send out his Pokémon when Gabrielle stopped him.
"Wait, can you go easy on me? I'm not really good at battling, or anything really. I just joined the Gamma Team for the money," said Gabrielle in a cutesy voice. She was twisting her body slightly and doing her best to look embarrassed.
Justin was taken aback and almost felt mad at himself when he was about to go all out on her.
"Oh course I will."
Gabrielle brightened. "Really? Thank you very much! Alright, I'm ready. Go, Tony!"
"Go, Honchkrow!"
Justin smiled to himself. He was going to go easy on her, but he still planned on winning. He couldn't help but think Gabrielle was going to fall to him.
"Alright Honchkrow, use Night Slash!"
"Dodge it Tony!"
Tony the Incineroar leaped to the side and landed on all fours. The Honchkrow missed the attack and flew away.
Gabrielle smiled to herself, she really got to the guy. "Tony, use Iron Head!"
"Fly away Honchkrow."
As Tony rushed at the Honchkrow, the Honchkrow flew faster into the air, flying way outside Tony's reach. Tony stopped in his tracks and gazed at the circling Honchkrow.
"Flamethrower!"
Tony's belt sparked to life as a jet of flame came racing at the Honchkrow. Completely unprepared, the flames spread onto one of its wings, causing it to screech as it rapidly beat the air.
Gabrielle faked a gasp. "Omigosh I'm so sorry! Did it get hurt too bad?"
Justin smiled. "Nah, it will take more than that to take out my Honchkrow. You should be worrying about your Incineroar. Brave Bird!"
"Really now?" muttered Gabrielle. "Bulk Up!"
Tony went into a kneeling position, tensing his muscles as the Honchkrow came nearer.
"Darkest Lariat!"
In almost no time at all, Tony became a whirling tornado of fire and darkness. He and the Honchkrow met head on. The Honchkrow was sent backward, flapping its wings rapidly to correct its course.
"Iron Head!"
Tony sprang from all fours, he slammed his head into the Honchkrow and sent it flying into a plexiglass screen right in front of Justin.
"Honchkrow is unable to fight. I'm very disappointed in you for losing Justin," said Henderson with a sad tone.
"Wow, maybe I went too easy on you. But still, you're pretty good at battling."
Gabrielle gave him a sinister smile. "About that, I kind of lied," she said in her normal voice. "Also, you're way too big headed for my tastes."
With that, she turned around and walked out of the arena, leaving a very exasperated Justin behind.
"The next match between Olivia and Jacob shall begin."
Jacob was at a major disadvantage and he and Olivia both knew it. All three of his Pokémon were weak to Mors, Olivia's strongest Pokémon. He knew Mary couldn't risk a Belly Drum, and trying to pit a Hisuian Lilligant and a Sneasler against each other in hand to hand combat was a terrible idea.
"Go, Mors!"
Jacob sighed. "Go, Scarfy."
Sending out a Unovan Pokémon like Cincinno was also a bad idea.
As Soon as Olivia saw the Pokémon, she freaked out.
"Kill it! Destroy it, tear it apart!" she screamed. "Drain Punch!"
Mors hesitated for a moment, and Olivia banged against the plexiglass screen separating her from the battlefield.
"Do it!"
Startled, Mors sprang forward, swinging his claws at Scarfy. Scarf dodged the claws and scurried away.
"Rock Blast!"
Scarfy slammed his tail against the ground with surprising force. Pieces of floor material came flying upwards. Scarfy whacked the pieces with his tail in rapid succession.
"Dire Claw!"
Mors shredded through the rocks with his claws. They easily broke apart and barely affected him.
"Swords Dance!"
"Tail Slap!"
As Mors strengthened himself with magical swords, Scarfy ran forward and leaped into the air. He swung his tail, spinning himself in mid-air and smacking Mors multiple times.
Olivia suddenly started screaming curses at Mors, things about how weak and useless he was. Mors became annoyed and grabbed Scarf in mid-air. He looked away from the small Pokémon as he hurtled it across the room.
"Stop holding back! KILL IT!" shrieked Olivia.
Mors knew he'd never get her to stop unless he finished the job. As Scarfy came charging at him, he gave the Pokémon an apologetic look.
"Scarfy, Bullet Seed!"
Mors rushed forward much faster than he normally did. He struck Scarfy with Drain Punch and easily finished the Pokémon.
"Wow! It seems the Sneasler is much stronger than he appears, I wonder why he was holding back? Was he playing with the poor Cinccino? Anyways, Olivia wins. That Cinccino is clearly unable to fight. Kinda funny isn't it?"
Mors simply sat down and sighed. He really didn't like hurting other Pokémon, but he didn't like Olivia more.
Gabrielle's POV
"The next match between Gabby and Devon shall commence!"
I sighed, I really didn't like Mr. Henderson, but I have more important things to focus on.
Unfortunately, I'm going to have to fight Devon. But this is okay. I already rehearsed my plan with Snellie. We just have to act our parts. If my assumptions are correct, he'll be sending out his Gyarados. He already knows Snellie's moveset and his Gyarados is the best to counter that.
"Go, Gyarados!"
"Out Snellie!"
Knowing Devon. The first thing he'll try and do is try to figure out whether or not Snellie has Storm Drain.
"Gyarados, use Aqua Tail!"
And this is where Snellie's acting comes into play. I watched as the Gyarados' tail came swinging at Snellie. As soon as it made contact, I knew my plan was going to work.
It was all too perfect, Snellie's "foot" managed to make sure she didn't go too far from the blow. She flinched in pain, but I knew she was faking it.
"A shame your Gastrodon doesn't have Storm Drain, but it's good for me! Bulldoze!"
"Prepare yourself!"
Unfortunately, I couldn't have Snellie counterattack until she became strong enough to overpower the Gyarados. I couldn't have Devon catching on before it was time.
The Gyarados crashed into Snellie in a torrent of earth. Snellie couldn't hold on this time and rolled across the floor. I barely had time to blink before the Gyarados sent it skidding with Aqua Tail.
"Hurricane!"
The whirlwind picked up Snellie and threw her. I knew she could handle a lot, but this amount, I wasn't sure.
I just needed to wait for Devon to use Aqua Tail enough before using Rest and Sleep Talk. I delayed giving Snellie a move to give Devon the opportunity to mess up.
"Not offering any resistance? Intimidated by my Gyarados? No matter. Gyarados, use the home-run combo! Crunch, Aqua Tail!"
The Gyarados rushed forward and grabbed Snellie with his fangs. He threw her upwards and brought his Aqua Tail crashing down onto her.
"Wow, that still didn't defeat her. That must be a very Hardy Gastrodon. No matter. Aqua Tail, give it no time to breathe!"
This poor fool. I watched in amusement as the Gyarados lashed Snellie over and over again with Aqua Tail. The Gyarados moved back, out of breath. I smiled at Devon's apparent shock.
"H-How did it survive?"
"Snellie, use Rest. As for you Devon, you always try to analyze a Pokémon's moves. But you never analyze their personalities! If you knew Snellie was a great actor, you would have known that she was faking being hurt by Aqua Tail! The truth is, she does have Storm Drain! I rehearsed this entire strategy with her before our battle. I knew I couldn't beat you on a fair one versus one, so I had to resort to trickery. I'm sorry Devon, I hope I can make up with a proper battle later, but I must win this! Sleep Talk!
Having epic moments and speeches like this really kept my mind off of Gavin. But of course, Arceus hated me. Snellie was supposed to use Ice Beam, but instead, her soft snoring doubled as she used Rest again.
Devon laughed. "Wow, you are so-"
Suddenly, Snellie fired a beam of ice that slammed into the Gyarados. Leave up to Snellie to pull a double dupe just for fun. Gavin would have been hysterical.
Gavin, I wondered where he was now. No doubt hunting me with his new government friends. Why did it have to be like this? Why can't he understand?
"Gabriella wins. What's that? Her name's Gabrielle? Well I don't care."
Screw you Henderson.
No one's POV
"Final match between Bella and Olivia shall begin!"
Gabrielle rolled her eyes and turned to look at Olivia. "Wow, I didn't expect you to get to the final round. It isn't like you."
"Unlike everyone else, I paid attention to our lessons. I'm surprised you're here. I expected you to lose to Devon."
"There's more to Pokémon battling than strategy and strength. And that's why I'll beat you! Go, Mors!"
"Out, Lucas!"
Olivia seemed mildly surprised. "You knew I wouldn't send out my Espeon or my Froslass because of your Incineroar. Plus, my Sneasler is super effective against two of your Pokémon."
"Like Henderson said. While super effectiveness gives you an edge in battle, that doesn't mean you can't win with the odds stacked against you. And I trust in Lucas' abilities Nasty Plot!"
"Then you've placed your faith in the wrong Pokémon! Swords Dance!"
Both Pokémon powered themselves up, both sides knew that it would all go down to an all out battle. Both Pokémon trying to crush the other before getting beat.
"Mors, use Drain Punch!"
"Get back Lucas! Don't let that thing come near you. Flash Cannon!"
Lucas leapt backwards as Mors came rushing at him. A bright flash emitted from his palms as he used Flash Cannon.
"Hit and running won't do you any good! Drain Punch again!"
Lucas dodged another Drain Punch, but couldn't get a Flash Cannon in as Mors struck again. He leaped back a few paces and ducked as Mors launched another attack.
"Shadow Ball! Dodge and release!"
Lucas leapt back as he dodged another strike. He formed a Shadow Ball as Mors came again, and dodged a Drain Punch as he threw the Shadow Ball.
"Now, Flash Cannon!"
"Big mistake! Drain Punch!"
While Mors had been momentarily stunned by the Shadow Ball, he hadn't been stunned for long enough. He powered through the Flash Cannon and poised his claws to strike Lucas and gain back some energy to finish the fight.
Only he didn't. Olivia gasped in shock as she realized Lucas had caught one of Mors claws between his hands. Mors brought the other swinging directly towards Lucas' face, but Lucas threw the other claw towards Mors and ducked.
"I was right to place my faith in Lucas! Pokémon are more than just statistics! Finish him!"
Lucas delivered an uppercut to Mors' jaw, something his previous trainer had taught him. While Mors was off-balance. He fired a Flash Cannon. The move critting and defeating Mors.
"Gabrielle is the winner! I can't believe it! What an amazing turnaround with that grab at the end! Anyways, everyone reports to the meeting room for the rest of the week's agenda. We're having class everyday until next week. Then we'll have your mission."
Olivia sighed. "I guess you won. Good battle, I must say you did surprise me."
Gabrielle raised her eyebrows at what Olivia had said. It wasn't really like Olivia to act like this. Usually, she'd say or do something crazy.
"Thanks. But, we have school tomorrow. Don't let me see you awake all night."
Olivia gave her a twisted smile. "Oh no. It'll be you who's going to be up all night once I'm through with you."
Five hours later
"You summoned me?" asked Executive Stewart to Scarlet. His head still hurt from the telepathic message.
"Feel free to express your annoyance verbally Dakota. I can read it in your mind."
"And that's why I dislike you."
He was in a small room. It wasn't furnished save for a red and blue rug on the floor. Scarlet was sitting with her back to him, hovered over the Blue Orb.
"I summoned you for a reason. Get comfortable Dakota. Right now, I'm trying to discern the location of the Red Orb. The Blue Orb is pointing my powers towards the Donalda region. Once I have discerned its location, I want you to formulate a plan to retrieve it."
"Sure, leave all the planning to me. It's not as if I'm apprecia-"
"Silence."
A bright glow filled the room, causing Executive Stewart to shield his eyes. When the glow faded. Scarlet stood up.
"There, the Red Orb is located in the treasury Von Nightport Manor. Belongs to the royal rules of the Donalda Region. Never liked hierarchy."
"That's because you want to rule the world," muttered Executive Stewart.
"Don't think I didn't hear what you said Dakota. You owe me a lot of debt, but you're right. You are underappreciated."
She patted Executive Stewart's head. "Now, go relax and be happy. Play a game on your computer or something."
"I will!" he said brightly, skipping out the door happily.
She smirked at him as he skipped away. She loved her powers.
"I'm getting impatient. Having sixty percent of its power is amazing, but if I had the other forty, I'd be a god. No one's stopping me from getting the first thirty percent, I'll find her. And when I do, she'll pay for betraying me."
And that's the end of the chapter. Seeing as how I mentioned someone from my other story, I think it'll be prudent to mention that the beginning of my other story, the Island of Challenge, starts at the end of this story. What's the time difference between this point and the end of this story, I can't say. There's still a lot more to this story though. So tune in for the next chapter. (in the near future.)