~ Chapter 53 ~

Rematch with Maylene

"My rematch with Maylene did more than just earn me my badge. It earned me the friendship of another Trainer and Gym Leader, Maylene. I'll be honest; so much of that battle is a blur to me. I don't remember much. But I remember the victory after. I had used Pokémon with no particular advantage or disadvantage against Fighting type Pokémon. It was my Luxray, my Gabite and my Cranidos. I had my edge back. My element of surprise; my wit and ability to maximize a Pokémon's strengths over their type match-ups was perfected in this battle. Battling like that is what made me famous."

"Gabite, use Dragon Rage!" cried Sam.

"Dodge, Lucario!" was Maylene's quick-time response.

Her Lucario narrowly escaped the flames, retreating back closer to its Trainer.

There was a short pause before Lucario pressed the offensive again, going in at Gabite with a Metal Claw.

Gabite, at Sam's command, grabbed Lucario's paw in its mouth with his sharp teeth, and bit down hard. Using all of his strength, Gabite tossed Lucario across the arena, back towards Maylene.

Sam stood there, sweat beading on his brow as he watched Maylene and her Lucario. Sam's Gabite panted heavily as it waited for the equally as exhausted Lucario to strike.

Sam was in the middle of his match with Maylene.

He fought this battle alone. His grandfather waited quietly in the stands, while his friends, Pikachu, as well as Dawn, Lucas and Barry watched with baited breath, standing in the side lines as the battle came down to a hair.

In the first round, Sam used his Cranidos against Maylene's Meditite. Cranidos was small, but she hit like a truck. Though Meditite was sturdy for a small Pokémon, it's defensive moves and diversionary long-range tactics were no match for Cranidos's sheer ability to demolish anything in its path.

Maylene's Machoke was her second Pokémon, making short work of Cranidos. Sam sent out Luxray second. Machoke was surprisingly quick, and its Rock Tomb would've made short work of a Pokémon like Staravia, and it had in the past.

But Luxray was faster. Luxray could also take a hit.

Karate Chop, Strength—they barely left a scratch.

Rock Throw was too slow for Machoke to land a hit with.

In the end, Luxray wore away at Machoke until he was exhausted, then brought the Pokémon down by sinking his teeth into the Pokémon's forearm.

While Machoke tried to defend against a feint Bite attack, it sacrificed its forearm, hoping to grab Luxray at close range and smash the Pokémon with its physical attacks.

But Luxray let out a horrific Thunder Fang just as Machoke went to move. The lightning surged through Machoke's body and knocked the Pokémon out.

Luxray collapsed shortly after the second round was called in favour of Sam.

Sam gave the Pokémon his rest and sent out his Gabite.

Gabite had been with Sam the shortest time and had seen the fewest battles. But Sam had been rectifying that lately, especially with this battle.

Lucario, however, seemed to be evenly matched with Gabite. Though neither had a type advantage over the other, they were both also equally as strong, fast, and quick on their feet, and they both hit just as hard.

Both Pokémon were exhausted, and everyone was waiting with anticipation and anxiety to see who would win.

Sam knew the next few moves would decide the match. He needed to be quick, and smart about this. He couldn't afford to lose a second time. That wouldn't be right; not after all the hard work he put into training himself and his Pokémon for this rematch.

Lucario was quick, had keen eyes, and could even see through the use of Aura if well trained enough. But from what Sam could see, Maylene's Lucario was only somewhat adept at Aura Sensing.

Enough disturbances in the way of the second sight might "blind" the Pokémon to it. It wouldn't be able to see Gabite at all…not until it was too late.

Sam smiled. He had a plan. "Gabite, Sandstorm! Make it a big one!"

Maylene, serious once more as her mind focused on the battle, narrowed her eyes as she tried to understand what Sam was doing.

She smirked. "You know Lucario will just see right through it," she called.

Sam said nothing.

Gabite howled its determination and loosed a Sandstorm that engulfed the entire arena.

The wind from the gale knocked those who were watched back into their seats except Aurelio who, as a ghost, was unaffected.

They shielded their eyes, and Pikachu struggled to hold on.

"Jeez," hissed Jeremy, trying to keep his mouth closed so he wasn't eating sand, "What's Sam trying to do, blind us?"

"Pika-pi!" cried Pikachu.

Dawn and Lucas held tightly onto their hats and scarves, and Alyssandra lost her handkerchief to the gale as she tried to shield her mouth with it.

"I hope he knows what he's doing," cried Niya over the howling wind.

Aurelio smiled. "I think I'm starting to understand. It's your Gabite tactics. Blind the enemy, and strike from below."

Sam looked at Gabite, and Gabite understood. Sam needn't say anything.

The Pokémon jumped up and dived into the ground headfirst. More dirt and sand blew into the gale as Gabite dug his way into the ground beneath the field. Sam could see, briefly, the dorsal fin that was Gabite as it dug its way towards the enemy Lucario.

"Lucario!" cried Maylene over the sand and wind, "Use your Aura Sensing abilities to see Gabite!"

But Maylene's voice betrayed the confidence in Lucario she tried to convey.

Lucario closed its eyes and tried to look for the shining mass of blue energy that was its opponent. But Lucario couldn't. The sand from the sandstorm blocked its ability to see.

Lucario began to panic, frantically searching the field for Gabite. It opened its eyes—its last mistake.

Lucario cried out as sand entered its eyes, blinding it further and causing the Pokémon pain.

Before it knew it, Gabite erupted from the ground behind it, and slammed Lucario with a Dragon Rage.

Lucario cried out louder as the Sandstorm abated and it was sent flying across the field. Still blinded and writhing around from it, Lucario was hit by another Dragon Rage.

The one pinned Lucario to the ground.

Gabite finishing Lucario by using Take Down, slamming itself into the weakened, struggling Pokémon from above, causing an indentation in the ground.

As Gabite returned to Sam, the judge—now an official Pokémon League Judge—called the match in favour for Sam, as Lucario was deemed unable to battle as a distressed Maylene returned him to his Poké Ball.

Maylene thanked her Pokémon, but before she could walk over to congratulate Sam and hand him his Gym Badge, Gabite began to glow.

The Pokémon cried out as Sam smiled triumphantly.

Aurelio cheered from the side lines, as did Niya.

They knew what was going on.

Gabite began to change and morph, grow as the white light enveloped its body.

As the light exploded outward, raining down as small white sparkles of energy, Gabite was no more, and in his place, stood a mighty, proud Garchomp.

Alyssandra smiled, proud of Sam; she turned to Jeremy. "Garchomp are not easy to raise," she explained, "Valentina has one and it took her forever to get her Gabite to unlock its true potential. I don't know how Sam does it, but he seems to be able to find his Pokémon's true potential really quickly."

"Yeah, it's a far cry from where he was with Gible a month ago," smiled Niya, "That Pokémon kept trying to bite his arm off."

Aurelio laughed from the stands above. "Natural skill, that's what it is!" he cried to no one in particular. He knew no one but Sam could hear him.

Sam hugged his new Garchomp and thanked the Pokémon for its hard work—congratulating him on his evolution.

"You worked hard," laughed Sam, "You earned this evolution. You take a nice, long rest now, okay?"

Garchomp roared happily, nuzzling into Sam's cheek.

Sam laughed and returned his Pokémon to its Poké Ball before turning to Maylene.

She stared at Sam in amazement, completely in disbelief. For a moment, Sam was afraid she was angry with him.

Then suddenly, Maylene began to laugh, loud, long, and hard. She doubled over, clutching her gut. Maylene wiped a tear from her eye as she caught her breath and finally responded.

"I have never met a Trainer quite like you before," she smiled at Sam, handing him his Cobble Badge, "I get very competitive as a Gym Leader. It's almost like I enter a trance when I battle. It brings a thrill! You though, have given me the biggest thrill and rollercoaster at the same time."

Sam took his badge.

"I beat you the first time, and I thought I had you figured out," smiled Maylene, "A loud mouth who thought he was a prodigy. I took extra pleasure cutting your wings and plucking your plumage from you. I thought I dressed you down to who you really were. I figured you just got lucky against Roark and Gardenia…then you came back today, and you demolished me. You surprised me, using Pokémon that I never would have thought would beat me own, using moves and tactics I never expected. I realize now you are every bit the prodigy everyone says you are, and I can't wait to see you go far. You can expect to see me there when you fight the Elite Four, that's for sure."

"Thank you," beamed Sam, "I appreciate it. I'm glad for the chance to prove myself to you."

"You don't need to prove yourself to anyone," Maylene warned, "You proved yourself to yourself. If you fight to prove yourself to someone else, you'll lose every time. Fight for yourself, and for your Pokémon. That's all that matters."

Sam nodded. He took Maylene's words to heart and would remember to be mindful of them for the remainder of his life.

Sam's friends rushed towards him, Dawn, Lucas, and Barry included, and grabbed him, hugging him tight and throwing them up on their shoulders. Sam didn't last long up there sadly; as his friends collapsed from the disorganized attempt to carry him.

Sam held back laughter as he saw his grandfather standing there, hands out, trying to catch people, before realizing he couldn't.

Sam looked up at Maylene from beneath the pile of his friends. "Would you like to join us for a celebratory dinner? It's customary we invite the Gym Leader out with us."

Maylene laughed. "I would love to!"

Maylene helped everyone up and rushed out the door of the Gym with everyone, leaving the judge alone to clean up the Gym. It was a night full of laughter, happiness, and newfound friendship.

Dawn, Lucas, and Barry enjoyed learning from Maylene and picking her brain for knowledge and information on how to be good Pokémon Trainers.

A free meal didn't hurt either.

Maylene was surprisingly spirited and well mannered—something that completely betrayed her in-battle persona. The cold, competitive exterior had melted away to reveal a kind-hearted and laugh-loving soul.

It was an enjoyable celebration dinner.