Track 26 - Duck Duck Goose
Leinani bowed out on the ground in a scene that was unfamiliar to Kaiko. She pleaded and begged with Tanium, hoping that they'd still allow her to challenge the gym.
Tanium stood over Leinani, giving no answer.
"Please! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to use foul language! I'm having a rough day! They say that if you want to be a star, you have to walk like a star! I saw someone use that word on television!" Leinani exclaimed, hoping that any of her excuses would work.
"The only thing worse than someone with a dirty mouth is someone who is spineless," Tanium responded. "Get up off of the ground. You're embarrassing your brother."
"You really are," Kaiko muttered quietly.
Leinani stood up and looked toward the ground. "I'm sorry. I'm flustered."
"That's clear," Tanium snapped. "I'll accept your challenge to battle me. It's the easiest way for me to read your true character. However, if I deem you irresponsible or ill-mannered, the match will stop, and you won't be able to return to my gym until you learn proper etiquette. Got it?"
Leinani nodded. "Got it!"
"Same goes for your Pokémon. If they're misbehaved or not well trained, then I'll know, for sure, what kind of trainer you are. Pokémon's attitudes reflect their trainer's." She looked up at Rowlet, who had been continuously sleeping throughout the whole ordeal.
Leinani panicked and grabbed Rowlet from her hat and then held in her arms. "DJ-DJ isn't lazy! I promise! She's not ill-mannered either! She just really appreciates sleep. She's nocturnal after-all, and it's only noon!"
Tanium nodded. "I know. I'm fully aware. I was just examining Rowlet momentarily. Her heart-shaped leaf on her crest is really cute." Tanium remained deadpan. "Principal Oak, do you mind if we borrow one of your fields for our battle?"
"No problem!" Oak exclaimed.
"W-wait! Right now?!" Leinani asked, panicked.
"Is that a problem?" Tanium wondered.
"N-no-no!" Leinani said. "I'm good to battle whenever!"
"How many gym badges have you earned?"
"Four! If I may happen to beat you, then I will acquire my fifth!" Leinani responded, trying to speak as politely as possible.
Tanium rolled their eyes. "Alright. The battle will be three on three. I'm not allowed to substitute. You may do so if you choose to. I'll give you five minutes to prepare your team. Meet me on the A field."
"Got it!" Leinani exclaimed.
Tanium, Ilima, and Oak all walked away, leaving the siblings alone. Leinani collapsed to her knees and groaned.
"Tanium is so scary," she muttered.
"I've never seen you break like that. Well, once when sensei yelled at you. That was funny," Kaiko teased. "What are you gonna do? Your team isn't exactly ready for Steel-types."
Leinani thought over her options. Kaiko was right. If Leinani was going to win this battle, she'd have to do so with pure strategy.
"The following battle between challenger, Leinani, and gym leader, Tanium, will now begin!" Ilima stated. He was going to serve as a referee for the battle. Students from the school collected in the stands to watch the battle. Although it was after school, a lot of them were still interested in watching live-action battles. "Only the challenger will be allowed to make substitutions! Begin!"
Tanium closed their eyes and thought about what Pokémon to choose first. They grabbed a Poké Ball from their belt and threw it forward. A Pokémon burst forth into the air, and the sun shined off of its metallic body. It was a wicked Pokémon in appearance, and Leinani could feel herself shaking again.
"Skarmory, the Armor Bird Pokémon. Its metal body is sturdy, but it does rust rather easily. So on rainy days, this Pokémon prefers to stay put in its nest," Leinani's Pokédex chimed.
Leinani looked back at Wishiwashi, who was resting inside of his small bowl. Had the field been usable for him, she would have chosen him to battle, but there were no pools. She'd have to go with a different technique.
"DJ, you're up!" she exclaimed. "We'll make it a battle in the skies!"
Rowlet had been awake since the incident with Tanium. She was told to be on her best behavior, and she flew forward, chirping happily. She eventually came to the ground and looked into the air at her opponent.
"You may have the first move," Tanium stated.
"And we shall do with it what we may!" Leinani responded, still unsure if she knew exactly what she was saying. "Rowlet, use Razor Leaf!"
Rowlet took into the air and unleashed her attack, sending swirling leaves that were sharp as knives from her wings.
"Iron Defense!" Tanium commanded.
Skarmory stayed in the air and started to glow with a slight silver tint. She took the blows from Rowlet's attack, which managed to only do a little bit of damage.
Tanium grinned. "And we'll continue our set-up with Swords Dance!"
Now the silver tint turned to red, and Skarmory started to flail about in the air, gaining more strength for her attacks.
"Don't let them charge!" Leinani yelled. "Use Shadow Claw!"
Rowlet trilled before taking back into the air. She rounded about and then stuck out one of her talons, building up shadowy energy.
"Steel Wing!"
Skarmory stopped flailing about and then focused. She jabbed with one of her wings, connecting with Rowlet's talon. She then followed with another strike, making Rowlet fall back towards the ground.
"DJ!" Leinani shouted.
Rowlet quickly recovered before she could hit the ground, and she flew back into the air. The Steel-type's attack was a lot stronger than she had anticipated, and she could feel that a lot of her energy had already been drained.
"Wing Attack!" Tanium commanded.
"Use Pluck!" Leinani ordered. She was originally going to withdraw Rowlet from the battle, but Tanium was relentless in their commands.
Skarmory flew downwards, her wings spread out. She attempted to strike Rowlet, but the Grass-type was surprisingly faster. She flew overhead and reached out, seemingly ripping one of Skarmory's feathers from her back.
"And now, Steel Wing!" Leinani followed.
Using the feather that she just got, Rowlet began to spin. She slammed the feather into the back of Skarmory's head like a bat, and the Steel-type was forced to the ground. It didn't take long for Skarmory to get back up though, but now she was fuming with anger.
"Yikes," Leinani said. "DJ, come back!"
Rowlet chirped and then flew back to Leinani's trainer box. She dropped the steel feather and then breathed heavily, looking out at the scary avian Pokémon.
"That was quite the interesting technique you pulled off," Tanium muttered. "You're a lot smarter than you look, but if you withdraw your Pokémon too often, then you're going to slowly wear down your team."
Leinani balled her fist and then drew out her next Poké Ball. She threw it onto the field, and Charjabug emerged.
"Interesting," Tanium said. "Just when I was thinking that you had talent, you go and put a Bug-type against a Flying-type. What's your plan?"
"We'll show you!" Leinani exclaimed. "Use X-Scissor!"
"Wing Attack!" Tanium shouted.
The two Pokémon charged at one another, and to no one's surprise, Skarmory blasted through Charjabug's attack. The Bug-type was tossed backward, landing directly in front of Leinani's feet.
"One more Wing Attack!" Tanium ordered, continuing her onslaught of commands.
Wind whipped up around Skarmory once more as she flew forward.
"Use Crunch, Boombox!" Leinani commanded at the last second.
Charjabug leaped up and snapped her front pincers down, clamping them onto Skarmory's beak. She then twisted herself around Skarmory's body, landing on the back of her neck.
"Nice!" Leinani exclaimed. "Now, use Spark!"
Charjabug sent electric shocks through Skarmory's body, making the Flying-type screech from the pain. Eventually, it became too much for Skarmory, and she flew into the ground, defeated. Charjabug leaped off of her and then started to wave around her pincers, dancing.
"Skarmory is unable to battle," Ilima exclaimed. He eyed Tanium, who appeared unaffected by the loss.
Tanium withdrew Skarmory and then observed Charjabug. "Celebrating a victory is okay, but bragging about it is rude."
"Boombox, stop dancing!" Leinani shouted, putting her Pokémon's groovy moves to an end.
Tanium grinned and then tucked away their Poké Ball. "Your Pokémon fear you. Don't mistake fear for respect though, Leinani."
Leinani stayed quiet. She didn't believe that her Pokémon actually feared her. She gave a simple command, and her Pokémon responded appropriately.
"Dugtrio, go," Tanium called while rolling their Poké Ball against the ground. It exploded open, and the energy surged towards the field. Nothing happened for a while, but then, three different heads, all with blonde hair made their way through the soil.
"Dugtrio, the Mole Pokémon. Its metallic whiskers are heavy, so it's not very fast, but it has the power to dig through bedrock," Leinani's Pokédex buzzed.
Leinani observed the field once again before withdrawing Charjabug, seemingly to Tanium's surprise. She pointed, and then Rowlet trilled and flew out. She flapped her wings violently, prepared to take on a grounded opponent.
"I'm done giving you the first attack," Tanium stated. "Use Sandstorm!"
The three Dugtrio heads started to whistle and make noise before whipping up sand around them. The sand swirled through the air, not looking for any specific target. Rowlet took light damage from the storm, but more importantly, she could no longer see Dugtrio's heads.
"Show no fear!" Leinani cheered. "DJ, use a flurry of Razor Leaf!"
Rowlet sent the leaves of energy through the storm in random places. Had her attack struck, it would have done decent damage to Dugtrio. However, the Steel-type was able to move quickly in the storm, and it managed to move out of the way from every strike.
Rowlet landed back on the ground and squinted her eyes, trying to find Dugtrio. However, she was simply affected by the storm once more. She breathed heavily, panic now beginning to set in.
"Use Metal Claw!" Tanium's voice called.
"Defend yourself with Steel Wing!" Leinani ordered.
Rowlet still was unable to see anything in the storm, but she let the steel power surge through her wings. She held them up and took Dugtrio's attack head-on.
"One more!" Tanium yelled.
"Don't give in!" Leinani shouted. "Keep your guard up! Wait for an opportunity, and strike!"
Rowlet did as was commanded over her, and continued to keep her wings over her face. Dugtrio was relentless though, smashing into Rowlet repeatedly with an attack that she couldn't see coming. Rowlet continued to peek through her feathers though, looking for a chance.
"Row!" she trilled.
"Razor Leaf!" Leinani ordered.
In between strikes, Rowlet let her attack loose. Dugtrio's three heads were sliced into by Rowlet's leaves, and they let out a pained howl before retreating into the storm. They disappeared from Rowlet's vision, and everything became quiet. However, the storm then struck Rowlet once more, and she finally collapsed.
The storm parted enough for Leinani to realize what had happened. She looked on at her Pokémon, unsure of what to do. She knew that Rowlet hated her Poké Ball, but she was afraid that if she left her trainer's box, she'd get chastised by Tanium. She took her chances, left the box, and ran into the storm. She knelt and picked up Rowlet before quickly escaping. She passed over Rowlet to Kaiko, who'd give her potions and berries while they waited for the battle to finish.
Tanium watched Leinani the whole time with their deadpan eyes. When Leinani finished recovering her Pokémon and then getting back to her box, Tanium smiled.
"Entering into the storm of battle for a comrade," Tanium said. "I can respect it. And from what I can see, you're respecting your Pokémon's wishes by not withdrawing them into a Poké Ball. Interesting."
Leinani chose not to answer Tanium. She wanted to remain focused on the battle. She grabbed her lone Great Ball and threw it against the ground. It popped open, and Sandygast came to the field.
Tanium raised their eyebrow. "A shiny Sandygast. Interesting. So, you seem to take pride in the appearance of your team, huh?"
"Huh? No!" Leinani snapped. She quickly collected herself when Tanium raised their other eyebrow. "Um-no. I just happened to stumble upon Vinyl, and she decided to join my team. I wasn't looking for a shiny Pokémon."
Tanium folded their arms. "Nonetheless, let's see what you can do."
"Sandygast, use Energy Ball!"
Sandygast howled as she began her attack, unleashing green orbs from around her body. They entered into the storm, and because of Sandygast's typing, she could see through the sand. Dugtrio was pelted a multitude of times, but it quickly retreated back into the ground, avoiding the full blow of Sandygast's attack.
"Earth Power!" Tanium commanded.
The ground rumbled before Dugtrio used its attack, shooting shards of earth from around its three heads. They hit Sandygast directly, but they weren't as strong as Tanium had been hoping for.
"Change up tactics! Use Metal Claw!" Tanium ordered.
Dugtrio stopped blast shards of earth and then started to race forward. Tanium couldn't see where they were coming from, but she could feel the rumble getting more and more intense.
"Bulldoze!" Leinani shouted.
Sandygast attached herself to the ground before she started to shake it up. The field was torn and cracked, becoming difficult to navigate. Dugtrio continued on with their attack, but they were clearly slightly disrupted.
"When they're close, use Energy Ball!"
Sandygast howled, generating the green orb in front of her face. And as soon as she saw Dugtrio's form, she launched her attack, causing smoke to fly into the air.
The two Pokémon became still, and now the sandstorm had run its course, slowly dissipating into the air. Dugtrio was breathing heavily, all near the end of the battle. Although they were strong, they could only take so many super-effective attacks.
"This is our chance!" Leinani shouted.
"Metal Claw!" Tanium interrupted.
Dugtrio snapped forward and slashed, hitting Sandygast directly yet again. The Ghost-type was launched backward, her body dragging against the field. The attack wasn't very strong, but it was enough to stun her.
"One more Energy Ball!" Leinani ordered.
Sandygast came back to her senses and then launched the ball once again. It connected with Dugtrio and then exploded into smoke, which quickly faded away. Dugtrio's three heads had slumped and fallen over, indicating that they were finished.
"Dugtrio is unable to battle!" Ilima yelled while holding up his flag. He looked at Tanium, who remained cool when they withdrew their Pokémon. Ilimia understood Tanium's demeanor. He was excited for their final Pokémon.
"It wasn't very honorable of you to attack me when I was in the middle of a command," Leinani said. "I don't want to speak out of line, but it definitely surprised me. I didn't take you as the kind of person to perform cheap shots."
"I believe in fighting honorably," Tanium answered. "However, when you're in the heat of battle, it's a matter of winning or losing. If you lose honorably, it doesn't matter, because at the end of the day, you still lost. Honor is important. Manners are important. But more even important is getting the victory."
This person is talking to me in circles. I think they're just trying to push me and get me riled up. I can't let them, Leinani thought.
Tanium grinned and drew out their final Poké Ball. "So far, you haven't impressed me, in manners or with your battling skills. I see no way that you're walking out of here with my gym badge. My next Pokémon is my strongest. He's the leader of my team and has been with me for many years. Bisharp, come to the field!"
Tanium's next Pokémon stood up straight on two legs. It looked out at Leinani and Sandygast with the same cold look that was in Tanium's eyes.
"Bisharp, the Sword Blade Pokémon. It leads a group of Pawniard. Bisharp doesn't even change its expression when it deals the finishing blow to an opponent," Leinani's Pokédex read.
"Oh boy," Leinani muttered. She observed the Pokémon's red and black body. She could see from the Pokédex that it was dual-typed, which actually put her at an advantage, but if it were true that it was Tanium's strongest Pokémon, Leinani wouldn't have an easy time.
"Bisharp, use Swords Dance!"
"Bulldoze!" Leinani yelled.
Bisharp raised his arms and started to glow with red energy while Sandygast shook the ground, making some of the field crumble around the Steel-type.
"Now, Night Slash!"
"That'll do a lot!" Leinani exclaimed. "Use Sand Tomb!"
Bisharp bounded forward, but Sandygast had a fast reaction. She whipped up stones and rocks around her, managing to put Bisharp to a stop.
"And now Energy Ball, Vinyl!"
Sandygast didn't let up. She bobbed her body up and down, blasting some of the green orbs off of her and into the air. They entered the storm and swirled around, pelting Bisharp repeatedly. For the first time since he appeared, Bisharp showed emotion, appearing irritated by the constant strikes.
"One more Bulldoze!" Leinani ordered, making sure to keep her commands decisive and quick.
Sandygast latched onto the ground and started to shake it again. The field was now almost torn to shreds, and the shockwaves that Sandygast generated could be felt by Bisharp. The Steel-type Pokémon roared and then slashed through the small sand tornado. He bounded forward, generating black energy. Then, he struck Sandygast, who unfortunately wasn't fast enough to dodge. The Ghost-type was torn from the ground and plopped down in front of Leinani, falling into herself like a plastic bag.
"Sandygast is unable to battle!" Ilima shouted.
Leinani withdrew Sandygast and then grabbed Charjabug's Poké Ball. She had already taken some damage from the battle with Skarmory, but Leinani knew that she could still win. She observed Bisharp, who had taken quite a lot of super-effective damage from Sandygast's attacks.
"One more time, come on out, Boombox!" Leinani shouted while throwing her ball to the field. Charjabug emerged and made sure to avoid waving around her pincers into the air. She didn't want Tanium or Leinani to get angry.
Tanium grinned. "We'll finish this quickly. Use Iron Head!"
"Boombox, use Mud Shot!"
Bisharp's next strike was set to be another head-on collision. He lowered himself and then rocketed forward, but Charjabug had enough distance to use her strike. She shot a stream of mud from her mouth, blasting Bisharp in the face. He wavered slightly before the small concentrated storm from before whipped up again, effectively making him stop.
"Here's our chance!" Leinani shouted while putting the dark green crystal into her bracelet. "Let's do this!"
Leinani and Charjabug began to strike poses, building up energy from the forest that surrounded them. Wind blew around the two, slowly shifting and changing into a dark green color.
"Feel the rhythm in our soul and the music in our hearts! Here we go! Savage Spin-Out!" Leinani shouted as she did the final pose.
Charjabug howled before shooting a straight blast of web from her mouth. The web stuck to Bisharp's leg, and using the swirling motion from the small storm, she was able to wrap up Bisharp before he could figure out what was happening. Using what strength she could muster, Charjabug lifted Bisharp with her web and then quickly ripped the connective tissue, sending the Steel-type into a violent spin. Bisharp crashed into the ground, and everyone froze, thinking that the battle had already been finished.
"We did it!" Leinani cheered but she quickly came to a stop when she saw Tanium, who was smiling.
"Bisharp, use Metal Burst," Tanium commanded before their Pokémon could even stand back up.
Metallic energy surged around Bisharp's body before he stood back up. He glared at Charjabug and then unleashed the energy, causing a massive explosion which made the field level once again. Leinani was blinded by the light, and she was unsure of where Charjabug went, and when the flash finally faded away, everyone was left searching for the Bug-type. Where Charjabug once stood was a small cocoon of mud.
Leinani sighed. She wasn't sure if Charjabug would have survived the attack, but if she managed to create the cocoon in time, there was a chance that she was safe. However, there was just as much of a chance that Charjabug was simply left fainted on the inside of the cocoon.
"No chances," Tanium muttered while raising their wrist and showing off their Z-Crystal. "We'll finish this with a definitive win."
That's overkill! Leinani thought. "Boombox, if you can hear me, run!"
Tanium and Bisharp were in perfect synchronization. They struck their poses together and began to build up energy created by their bond.
"I'm the Ironclad Instructor!" Tanium exclaimed while hitting their last pose. "Bisharp is the ironheart of my team! And with this, we end our war! Corkscrew-"
But then, Charjabug came up from the ground and latched her pincers onto Bisharp's leg. The Dark-type let out a shriek as Charjabug shocked him. His focus for the Z-Move was broken, and he stumbled backward as static electricity emitted from his body.
It looks like Boombox was able to move around easily in the soil. Her small body let her get around quickly, and then all she had to find was the strong source of power, which wasn't hard because of the Z-Energy, Kaiko thought.
Leinani grinned. "Boombox, you're fantastic! Finish this with X-Scissor!"
Charjabug crossed her pincers and generated power before blasting a dark green 'X' into the air. It collided with Bisharp's chest and sent him flying. He spun around before hitting the ground, his body limp.
Ilima grinned and then raised his flag. "Bisharp is unable to continue! Leinani and Charjabug are the winners!"
"We did it?" Leinani wondered. She started to smile, and she had to do everything that she could do to hold herself back from jumping up and down. She watched as Tanium withdrew Bisharp and Charjabug stumbled her way back over to Leinani's side of the field. Leinani knelt and pet her Pokémon on the head. The two had trained so hard, and managing to defeat Bisharp was a testament to it.
Tanium appeared as though they were lost in thought. They folded their arms and ran their tongue on the inside of their cheek. Slowly, they walked onto the field, followed by Principal Oak and Ilima.
"Your mouth is filthy and your attitude leaves something to be desired," Tanium said. "You're Pokémon are a reflection of yourself. They're flashy and quick to brag when they win."
Leinani recoiled, unsure of how to answer.
But then, Tanium grinned, "However, those aren't all bad things. A Pokémon that reflects their trainer only means that they're bond is strong. And as mentioned before, if you're able to get the win, then not much else should matter." Tanium reached into their pocket and handed out a silver and red badge that resembled Bisharp's gauntlet. "This is the Titan Badge. Congratulations."
Leinani eyed it before slowly taking it from Tanium and then bowing. "Thank you! I'll do better to not use so much foul language!"
Lies, Kaiko thought.
Tanium closed their eyes. "I'm on a small losing streak. It looks like I need to change up my tactics a bit more. Don't disappoint me, Leinani. I'll be watching the Manalo Conference. If you lose in the first round, then there will be no point to this battle. You have one more gym badge left, right?"
Leinani nodded. "Yeah. I have to battle Kala."
Tanium folded their arms and looked at the ground. "I don't know Kala very well, but I do know that she goes all out when she's battling. She has a lot of pride, and while she might be a gentle soul, she's got a warrior's spirit. Even if I went all out, I'm not sure if I could beat her. Good luck."
"I'll do my best!" Leinani cheered.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
I almost didn't finish this chapter today. I'm behind on my writing schedule because of work, my weekend hobby, and the heartbreak. I might not post up next week for this story, but we'll have to see. I have a lot going on in my head, and I have no idea how to process it.
But anyways, Leinani now has her fifth and second-to-last badge.
REVIEWS:
SceptileBlade - "F in the chat for Leinani. Of course Tanium walked into her talking with her filter off. I still have strong feelings about not giving out the gym badge after taking an L from the challenger. Big Whitney Claire vibes if you know what I mean. Hopefully Tanium isn't nearly as anywhere annoying, but I suppose I'll see soon enough. Wait. Just noticed the chapter name. lmao." - This chapter name is also... yeah... haha
CrescentApple - "Kind of nice they took the time to call their mom." - This story has a lot of family themes, so them calling their mom was important, I think.
pokestets23 - "You inspire me, my friend! Tons of education and culture brought into a FanFiction. You are one of the best, and the stories you tell and the lessons within will last as this next generation grows! You're amazing!" - Thanks, Stets. Much love.
wisdom-jewel - "Oh now, Leinani has to deal with her badmouth now. Tanium would go to enjoy teasing the poor girl. I'll bet Leinani would be super apologetic to Tanium. Something tells me Kala and Tanium are simply teasing gym challenges for fun. Though I could be wrong." - I definitely think that Tanium was mostly messing with Leinani. It was fun for her to watch Leinani break.
