Scene 4 - Bisharp


"Brick Break!" Gordon commanded.

The two had been in Mt. Azure's caverns for a few hours, and just as Gordon had said, the wild Pokémon weren't going to make their journey easy for them. Every few minutes, they'd encounter another angry creature that wanted them dead.

Down one of the tunnels, a long serpentine Pokémon made of steel raced toward them. It opened its mouth and roared, but Gordon's Pokémon wasn't afraid. It leaped into the air and crashed its helmet-like skull against the wild Pokémon. In what had become a familiar sight, the wild Pokémon instantly fainted, leaving Gordon's powerful Pokémon as the winner.

Gordon pat his Pokémon on its shoulder. The Pokémon was roughly a foot smaller than him, but it stood like a human, and its movements were similar to those of a highly trained soldier. Clint had never seen anything like it.

"What was the name of that thing?" Clint asked Petilil, who was resting on his left shoulder. Meltan had become comfortable enough with the Kalosian, finding a place on his right shoulder.

"Petilil!" his Pokémon answered.

"This is Bisharp," Gordon said. "He is one of my strongest Pokémon. They're hard to train, but if you can get the job done, then they become some of the most loyal Pokémon you can add to your team."

"All of my Pokémon are loyal because I'm an awesome trainer!" Clint exclaimed proudly.

"Skar!" a wild Pokémon cried from above. An avian Pokémon swooped from the air and stuck out its talons, ready to grab a hold of the trainers and rip them to shreds.

"I got this one!" Clint yelled while throwing his ball into the air. "Furret, use Flamethrower!"

His Poké Ball exploded open, and his lanky Pokémon appeared. She instantly used her attack, engulfing the Steel-type in flames. It immediately fainted and then crashed into the ground next to the Pokémon that Bisharp had battled.

"You're not the only one with strong Pokémon!" Clint exclaimed. He looked up the hill where Gordon and Bisharp were already walking. "Wait up!"

"Try to keep up, boy," Gordon shouted back with a laugh. He coughed lightly and then took in a deep breath.

Clint paused momentarily before he waved Furret over to follow him. He watched Gordon as the man limped up the hill. He was glad that he joined him on the journey through the cave, as he wasn't sure if Gordon could have survived it by himself, no matter how tough he tried to act.

"Hurry up!" Gordon shouted. He stopped and then banged on the metal brace around his leg. "I'm starting to chafe."

Clint followed. He adjusted his pants and then walked up the hill. In one of the far-away tunnels, he could hear Pokémon battling. It made him nervous, but after seeing Bisharp battle firsthand, he knew that they could get through. He assumed that Gordon had even stronger Pokémon stored away just in case.

It took the two a few more hours in the caverns, and after what felt like hundreds of battles, they finally made it to the peak of the mountain, walking out into a light breeze. Gordon looked far past Kanto and at the sun as it was preparing to set.

"It's about to be morning in Unova," he said. "Way past my bedtime."

"It's the middle of the day in Kalos right now," Clint exclaimed. "Come to think of it, it's also past my bedtime." He snorted.

Gordon looked at the ground. The steps up to the exit at the top were clearly carved into the mountain thousands of years ago, but Gordon couldn't tell if they were man-made or something else. He recognized the markings on the steps, which made him believe that they were close to their goal.

He reached out his arm and let Meltan climb onto his shoulder. "You feel home?"

Meltan squeaked happily.

"Home is where the heart is," he said. "But let's not get too excited. We can't be sure if all of your friends are here or not. This place looks ancient."

Clint walked ahead and turned around the corner. He stopped and his eyes widened as a temple made of wooden came into view. It had been worn down over years of no upkeep, but somehow it still managed to stand. He knew that he couldn't enter it though, as his weight on old boards would surely destroy them.

"Can you read any kanji?" Gordon asked. He pointed at a faded sign that hung from the entrance. It had the name of the temple on it, but Gordon had no idea what any of the characters meant.

Clint shrugged. "A little bit, but this looks ancient. I'm sure that even someone from Kanto would struggle to read it." He pointed at a wooden trunk with thin but long slits on the top. "How about we pray for good luck? Temples usually have a specific purpose, and it's tradition to pray when you come to them. I'd like to pray for safety back down at least."

"How do we do it?" Gordon asked. "I don't pray except for on special days like Christmas or the day before hockey starts."

"Do you have five Poké?" Clint asked while fumbling around in his wallet for the change. Gordon did the same and then followed Clint to the trunk. "The first step is to lightly toss the coin in."

Gordon moved to throw the coin into the trunk, but Clint promptly stopped him.

"You should probably wait till I give you the rest of the directions," he said. "Don't want to mess up your prayer, eh? So, you throw the coin in and then bow deeply twice. Then, you clap twice and make your prayer. You don't need to speak. They can read your mind."

"They?"

"The gods. When you finish your prayer, clap once more, and we'll be done," he exclaimed. "You got that?"

Gordon looked unsure of himself. "I suffered a concussion so long ago, and now my brain don't work very good. I'm pretty sure I got it though."

The two took turns throwing in their coins before they bowed and then clapped. They both paused and prayed.

Clint prayed for safety back down the mountain, and he prayed that his wife and children were healthy in Kalos. He prayed that his son that was on his own journey was taking care of his Pokémon and was staying out of trouble.

Gordon prayed for Meltan. The two had traveled so much, and he promised that he'd help the Pokémon evolve. If they hit another dead end, he wasn't sure what he'd tell the Steel-type.

When they finished, they bowed once more and looked at the dilapidated temple.

"It was probably beautiful when it was first built. It does look ancient though," Gordon muttered.

Before Clint could say anything, there was a sudden stirring inside the trunk. The two men backed away slightly before something started to make its way from inside the slits. It was a familiar face, appearing to be another Meltan.

Gordon's Meltan squealed happily upon seeing another of its kind. It quickly climbed down from Gordon's massive body and then raced over to its companion, who was eating the two coins that Clint and Gordon had donated.

"Well, that's a relief," Gordon said. "I'm happy for ya."

Gordon's Meltan tackled into the new face and rejoiced. The wild Meltan appeared surprised, but upon realizing that this Meltan was unfamiliar, it also appeared happy. The two danced around momentarily, like jello in an earthquake.

Gordon's Meltan pulled away before squeaking determinately at his new friend. It went on for minutes, and to Gordon and Clint, it was pretty much nonsensical, but the wild Meltan and Petilil hung onto its every word as it told of its journey from Alola to the top of Mt. Azure.

The wild Meltan wiped what looked like a tear from the side of its head. It then whistled, and the top of Mt. Azure started to shake slightly. Dozens of Meltan appeared from every crack and corner of the temple, slowly making their way to the group. Some of them appeared fascinated with the two trainers, as they could smell the tasty iron. Luckily for Gordon, the brace around his leg was hidden by his thick jeans.

"I-I didn't expect there to be hundreds of them!" Clint exclaimed.

"I wasn't sure what I was expecting," Gordon said. He looked at Meltan, who appeared to be overjoyed. "But I'm happy that we prayed, Clint."

The Meltan all started to squeak in unison and then chant. They danced around, leaving Gordon's Meltan in the middle. The two trainers back away, unsure of what to do with themselves while the Pokémon had their small ceremony.

Then, what happened next took their breath away. The Meltan all started to pile onto one another, and their bodies started to morph. One by one, they disappeared and mixed as a bright blue glow overtook their body. Gordon's Meltan looked at his trainer one last time and gave a wave before it allowed itself to be sucked in. The energy became too bright for the trainers to properly get a view of, and in moments, the dozens of Meltan had transformed into a singular being. This Pokémon was massive, standing roughly two feet over both Clint and Gordon. It looked at them then laughed before flexing its metallic muscles.

"It actually evolved!" Clint exclaimed. "That's amazing!"

Gordon could feel tears coming to his eyes. Seeing his Pokémon suddenly grow up in front of him made him emotional. He stumbled forward and then gave the giant Pokémon a hug. It was surprised that it was now bigger than the large man, but once it got over its new size, it hugged back.

"I'm proud of you, Meltan!" Gordon exclaimed.

Clint put his hand to his chin. "Er-should we still call it Meltan? It evolved, so I think you should give it a new name!"

Gordon pulled back and thought for a moment. "How about Melmetal? You all melted together to become one, so I think the name fits perfectly."

Clint almost couldn't contain himself. He quickly drew out a Poké Ball, which frightened Melmetal. The large Pokémon took a step backward, not wanting to be caught.

"Let's battle! Right here! Right now!" Clint exclaimed excitedly.

Melmetal felt a sudden sense of relief as it realized that Clint wasn't after it.

Gordon cracked his fingers and turned around. He looked at the sunset and then grinned. "A battle on top of Mt. Azure. Clint, you should know how monumental of a battle it'll be. I don't want you to hold back, even for one second."

"I won't!" Clint exclaimed.

"Then how about a three on three battle?" he asked.

Clint thought over his team before nodding. "No problem!"

"Melmetal, you'll fight with me?" Gordon asked the new Pokémon.

"Mel!" it exclaimed before going back to flex its muscles again.

Gordon grinned. "We'll hold off on that for now." The two trainers parted to give themselves a decent place to battle. The wind had slightly picked up at the top of the mountain, but there was no better place for Gordon to go all out.

"Since I'm challenging you, I'll go with my Pokémon first!" Clint exclaimed. "Go, Tentacruel!"

Clint's large Pokémon appeared, standing on its multiple tentacles. It gazed past Gordon and at Meltan, who was eager to battle.

Gordon thought for a moment. "I'm not going to make this easy on you. C'mon out, Ferrothorn!"

Ferrothorn was smaller than Tentacruel, but it used its long limbs to help it stand up straight in an intimidating fashion. The two Pokémon glared at one another, waiting for their orders.

"Use Stealth Rock!" Gordon yelled.

"Send it back with Bubble Beam!" Gordon commanded.

Tentacruel prepared his defensive strike while looking on at Ferrothorn, but the Grass-type was taking his time. It started to spin, ripping up the ground with his disc-like hands. The shredded ground flew towards Clint's side of the field, and Tentacruel started to blast bubbles from his mouth. But then suddenly, all of the rocks and debris dove into the ground, disappearing, making Tentacruel's defensive attack pointless.

"What just happened?" Clint wondered.

Without answering Clint's question, Gordon pointed forward and made his next command. "Power Whip!"

"Use Reflect Type!" Clint shouted.

Ferrothorn was a silent Pokémon, but all of his actions made a lot of noise. He swung one of his vines around, aiming for a direct hit and expecting to do a fair amount of damage. But then, Tentacruel reached out and entangled his vines around Ferrothorn's, able to do it as though he took no damage.

"With Reflect Type, we're on relatively equal footing as far as types go," Clint said. "Now it's just going to be a test of strength!"

"In that case, use Leech Seed!" Gordon ordered.

Ferrothorn didn't struggle to get free, instead allowing his vine to glow with energy. Small particles flew into the air before landing on Tentacruel. The particles suddenly stung into him, sucking away some energy and making him recoil slightly.

"And Gyro Ball!" Gordon shouted.

Ferrothorn started to spin, becoming a blur of silver. He raced down the field, tearing up the ground below him.

"Wrap!" Clint commanded.

The former Water-type quickly stood up on his back tentacles and raised his body. He caught the entirety of Ferrothorn before he started to squeeze tightly. Although the attacks were no longer as effective as Gordon had wanted, Tentacruel was naturally weak at up and close battling. He wouldn't be able to hold on for very long.

"Keep a tight grip and use Bubble Beam!" Clint directed.

Tentacruel looked at Ferrothorn directly in the eyes before launching his attack once again. Each of the bubbles popped and stung against Ferrothorn but barely. Tentacruel kept on the assault though until more of his energy was sapped, and he was forced to relent momentarily.

"One more Gyro Ball!" Gordon's voice bellowed.

Ferrothorn momentarily fell back before he shoved his body into the underbelly of Tentacruel. He spun around, letting his barbed body do damage, and eventually, it was enough. Tentacruel went limp and collapsed to the ground.

Clint sighed and then withdrew Tentacruel. "You did well! Leave the rest to the team!"

Clint looked at Ferrothorn and then Gordon. He had a different aura to him than when they first met. It was as though he had been holding back in their first back. If Clint wanted to win, he'd have to battle as though he were fighting in the finals of the Indigo Conference.

Gordon's blue eyes pierced the fading light. It was only a friendly contest, but his eyes told the story of a man who refused to lose easily.


AUTHOR'S NOTES:

With one more chapter to go, we're nearing the end of this short story. It's much shorter and easier to read than the others. I probably could have gotten everything done within three chapters, but here we are!

Anyways, next chapter will see the results for this battle, and then the two will go their separate ways.

REVIEWS:

CrescentApple - "I'm liking this Gordon character more and more. He's gritty but has good morals, a cool backstory that gave him a metal leg, and unfortunate side effects... and he was champion tier?" - Well, he believed himself to be that good, but we'll have to actually see him in battle to figure that out.