Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or its characters.
Author's Notes: This chapter is the first part of the dual-chapter release. Please don't skip ahead to the last one before reading this one.
"Gah… I should've listened to mom!" One loud sneeze flew out of the young trainer; A teenage boy with straight grey hair, slightly tinted with red at their tips, its length almost reaching the base of his shoulders. He rubbed both hands around the side of his arms in a vain attempt of warming himself up. "This place is soooo cold! Don't you think so, buddy?"
A rough and deep growl spread inside the hallway, the sound coming from the tall Aggron walking beside his trainer.
It's has been quite some time since the air has been getting chilly, a sudden coldness embracing the tight halls of the building. And ever since they stepped out of the last room, the boy swears that the temperature is only getting worse.
"Woah… Look at that door." He pointed at the double wooden door at the end of the hall, sparkling little gems adorning the figures carved at its surface. "Scary…"
Aggron growled again, this time nodding in agreement at the comment. But as his trainer stopped walking for the moment to stare at the craftwork wonder, the big white Pokémon tapped at the boy's small back with the top of his head and pushing his hesitant trainer forward.
"Hey! What's the big deal?!" His body twirled in a little attempt of getting away, but his companion's push at his back is not going anywhere. "You're that eager to battle again? We just got out of one scary battle."
A wave of response came from the Pokémon, the first ones sounding like impatient growls of annoyance, the rest changing more to some cry of expectation.
The boy chuckled and patted his friend in the head. "I think I get what you want to say. While everything here is scary… this is also so amazing." He sighed happily, pushing himself forward and getting back to walk his way closer to the door by himself again. "One more to go and we are there… Although, they say that since the famous Drake stepped down, his replacement is even scarier…" The boy shuddered, now getting all moody again with his shoulders hanging low and his gaze dragging through the floor.
As the boy said, Drake has finally chosen to retire from his duties to the league. While many were skeptical of anyone being able to replace the mighty Drake, soon their worriers, or even distrust, got squashed in a grandeur way. Maybe the new member of the Elite Four did so a bit too much, in a way that is not so good for his reputation, as the once stern Gym Leader is now known for a different alias.
"Wally, the Tyrant… just the nickname gives me the chills." A little cold foot was about to occur, but luckily for the young trainer, his Aggron just tackled him inside the room, leaving no room for more hesitation.
As graceful as a sloppy Slakoth waking up from its nap, the young trainer rolled inside the large room. With his back doing a splat on the ground, he was ready to shout some unfriendly words at his partner, but before he could rudely raise his voice, a surprised gasp caught his attention.
"Quite the entrance you did there…" One smooth but serious voice called out to him, the poor boy's eyes almost bulging out from their sockets.
He rolled on his back, pushing his body upwards with both arms, practically squatting back to a straight form. "H-H-Hello!" The boy shouted as loud as he could, his tripped voice making the man in front of him wince a bit at the high pitch.
"Hey there… I get that you're the young challenger making all the ruckus on the League's halls. Congratulations on making so far."
"T-Thank you!"
The man in front of him chuckled at the stiffness of the youngster, finding more than familiar his stuttering and nervousness. How many have come here all of smug and overconfidence, they all share the same trait of thinking too highly of themselves, yet here is this boy. Shivering like a green leaf just looking at his next opponent.
The fourth and final member of Elite Four, Wally, aka, The Tyrant. A nickname that the man himself is not very proud of. He earned this alias after his first year as the final member of the Elite Four. If Brendan had earned quite a bit of complaint from trainers at the impossible challenge that he is, now the poor souls trying to conquer the steps of destiny on Ever Grande have an equally big problem added to their list. In the last six months, only two trainers had successfully reached to the Champion's chamber, the rest got utterly destroyed by the green-haired terror.
Wally, now an adult man with a very athletic lean body, owner of heavy tea-green hair, some of it falling like silk at the left side of his face almost covering his eye. He is pale and tall, dressed in a combination of a training light-blue pants, grey shirt, and one long-sleeved lime-green open coat. Like his mentor always used to battle, he stands barefoot on the clean tatami mat covered floor.
"I welcome you to the last step of your road." Wally announced with a well-acted manner, a performance that would make Wallace clap in reverence. "I am the last of the Pokémon League Elite Four, Wally the Balance Keeper! Pokémon are powerful beings, terrible foes, and reliable allies. As of most things in life, balance is what reigns over their nature, as it reigns over everything else. To understand their mind, first, you have to understand your own. Are you able to see it? Do you have what it takes to understand them?"
The young trainer looked behind him, to the tall metallic Pokémon standing tall at his back, a warm smile appearing on his lips. "I DO!" He shouted his answer, a bit too louder than he needed. "I think…" The latter part came out a little bit more like a faint whisper.
Wally smiled and nodded. "Good. Because if you don't, your journey will end here!"
"Yaaahooo! We won! We won!" The energetic teenager is chirping loudly in his celebration, both he and his Aggron are jumping around like birds at the sunrise; the boy mostly running around his tall and heavy Pokémon, while the metallic menace is just stomping his feet in place, like awkward little dance.
'Unbelievable…' Wally stared in a daze at the bouncing boy in front of him. The stoic trainer brought his right hand up, holding the Poke-Ball of his last Pokémon close to his gaze. 'This boy, the way he battles is just like…'
Watching the youngster yell so loudly after winning, lightly breaks the terrifying aura he gives when he serious in battle. This drastic change brought Wally back from his dazed state, a low chuckle coming out from him as he shook his head slowly. 'Only a kid, despite all else.'
The boy, after hearing what sounded like a growl coming from the adult gazing at him, shuddered, his happy legs freezing in place as his wide-open, scared eyes traveled over to Wally.
"S-Sorry!" He shouted his apology just as loudly as he was celebrating. "I know how rude it is to celebrate in front of your opponent… I am just so happy about winning."
Wally lazily waved one of his hands in front of him, dismissing the boy's affliction easily with that gesture. "You defeated the last member of the Elite Four. It is only understandable that you would react… vividly at that victory." As the boy nodded rather energetically, with his head becoming almost a blur going up and down, Wally chuckled again and then smiled. "Congratulations young challenger. You've conquered the victory road."
The boy glanced at his Aggron, who in return looked down at him. Then after one long moment of silence coming from those two, it started again. "Wahooo! We won, Aggron! We defeated the Elite Four."
Aggron growled happily, taking his trainer on his arms and tossing the small human up to his back.
"Yet, your final challenge still awaits you." Wally announced in a cold reprimanding tone.
Boy and Pokémon both stopped cheering, Aggron quietly putting the boy on the ground again and then taking one step back to leave his trainer as the receiver of Wally's questioning gaze.
Seeing as the proper seriousness has returned to the boy in front of him, Wally relented on his frown. Waving for the youngster to step closer, he guided the boy towards the door at the other side of the room, stopping just a few paces away from it and then turning to look at the trainer beside him.
"Before I send you off to the monster's den, I would like to know your name."
"Y-Yes, Of course!" Replied the boy still stuttering under Wally's heavy gaze. "Timmothy, my name is Timmothy. But my friends call me Tim."
"You have an outstanding control of your Pokémon, Timmothy." Wally said. "It has been weeks since any trainer was able to defeat me in battle; but as remarkable as that one feat is… Yours is even greater in my eyes."
"Sir?" Tim stared at Wally with confused eyes, one brow quirking up just to add to his distressed look.
"While it is my job to send worthy trainers off to face the Champion, I always do so with a heavy heart." A minute of respite settled in, Wally quietly musing with his experiences while the boy at his side is beginning to freak out just a little. "Not one of them stood a chance against the Champion, and I knew that from the moment our battles ended." Seeing the watering eyes and the sobbing state of Tim's face, Wally could just smile and shook his head. "However… that is different with you."
For someone who was moments away from breaking down in tears, Tim's features suddenly transformed in sunshine and smiles. "Really! You think I will win?" He asked expectantly, eyes shining and all.
"No." Wally answered in all honesty, his words just crushing the poor boy down into the floor. "But I believe you stand a chance of doing so." Already twitching lifelessly on his puddle of tears, Tim rolled over to the side and glanced upwards to Wally, the man not used to so many antics as this boy is displaying. "Do you believe me to be a strong opponent?" He asked seriously.
The boy hummed and nodded. "Crazy strong… We got down to my last Pokémon, even then, Aggron had to go all bananas to win against your Gallade."
Wally smiled and crouched next to the downcast boy, tapping him on the top of his head and messing with his voluminous grey hair. "Yet, I never won against the Champion. He is just strong like that. But you showed me something special in our battle, Timmothy. That's why I believe you stand a chance of winning against Brendan, even if it is really small."
Once again, Tim's eyes flared up with a shining light of hope, his sparkling gaze asking Wally all the questions his voice would be able to do so.
The green-haired man hummed and poked the boy at his forehead. "The way you command your Pokémon team, the trust they place on you… I've seen it before. Warm and bright like a cozy light, this is your aura as a trainer. Just like a friend of mine always had on his battles when we were growing up."
"Really?!" Tim jumped out from his pity-puddle of tears, joy flushing his face anew with a slight tint of red at the bridge of his nose. "Who is your friend? Is he strong? What's his name?"
Hyperactive kids, Wally greatest weaknesses. Overwhelmed by the number of words, voice, and loudness; the Balance keeper had to pull himself straight up and trail a few steps back to try and escape Tim's shining face, which only prompted the boy to step right after him.
"He is strong." Wally sighed at the circling teenager around him. "He is the best one." Now a gentle and warm smile broke his lips apart, this small change making the energetic boy stop and stare at him in awe.
"Wow… he sounds so cool. If I could only meet him, I would love to battle against the very best."
'Hah, he has no idea.' A slightly amused smile showed at Wally's usually stoic features. "Very well, then. I've kept you here for too long, Timmothy." Stepping aside, he pointed to the wooden door behind him and beckoned the young trainer to step forward. "Go on brave challenger. Hoenn's very best is waiting for you."
As Wally spoke the words, the double doors slowly creaked open, a cold breeze passing through as the dark hallway came to view on the other side. To Tim's eyes, the door just answered to the man's command, showing them the way in a mystical way like the cartoons he used to watch when younger; unknown to him, Wally had just pressed the button at the side of the doorframe.
Taken by the mesmerizing atmosphere of the pathway, Tim stepped forward without blinking or turning his gaze away; his Aggron just as mesmerized as him, following behind the young trainer.
Wally watched as the duo walked out of his room and when both passed by the door, he closed the way behind them, leaving only the way forward to the challenging team.
"Good luck, Tim."
The boy's head turned harshly to the side, his glance going back to the closed door behind him. It was faint, but still lingering, a feeling that someone was calling out to him. Staring at that door, it finally hit him what was happening and all his sudden calmness got replaced by crushing anxiety.
Contrary to every part of the giant castle he has been before, this place is completely white. A massive hallway that seems impossibly wide to the sides and unbelievably long in its straight path.
Overwhelmed by this atmosphere, Tim got stuck in the middle of the road. His legs shaking and his body frozen; he could not take a single step forward.
"T-This… this is it!" He said stuttering heavily in his words, his trembling voice getting his Pokémon companion's attention, making the tall Aggron stop in his walk and notice that his trainer was far behind him. "W-We made it Aggron… this is the end of the Victory Road, just as the Tyrant said. Now… only the champion is left."
With his loud stomping feet echoing inside this massive blank hallway, Aggron trailed back to his trainer. The white giant leaned in closer and pressed the flat part of his head against the boy's forehead, making silent growling noises as he comforted Tim's racing heart.
A pair of slim and pale arms wrapped themselves onto the large part of Aggron's belly, tightening their hold into a close hug.
"Sorry for freaking out, Aggron." Tim said with a small little grin. "Let's face our last challenge heads high, this is the least I can do for the person who inspired me to come this far."
Seeing the glow coming back to his trainer's eyes, Aggron pulled himself away from the boy, this time growling a lot louder, with a blazing conviction.
"Let's go, partner!" Tim jumped ahead of the white steel giant. "The freaking Champion awaits us."
One terrifying dark-room was the sight Tim was greeted by, as he crossed past the giant doors. The only color he could see behind the encroaching black, are the faint little glow of the small lamps sparkling from the floor, their small beams of light going far high but never reaching anything that resembles a ceiling.
The boy gulped his shock down his throat and carefully stepped inside the place. With his first step inside the room's floor, a barrage of lights switched on, instantly flashing color everywhere and pushing the darkness away. Caught by surprise, Tim was helpless against the loud yelp that flew out of his mouth.
"I welcome you, challenger." One gentle and yet powerful voice stormed inside the room, greeting the arriving boy but also scaring him out of his shoes.
Following the ringing sound of that voice, Tim found the massive staircase standing in the middle of the room, at its top the marble-made throne in its full pure-white glory. Sitting on the said throne is a man of short straight brown-hair with the most terrifying red eyes this boy has ever seen in his life; they are glowing and sharp as if this person wasn't human at all.
Dressed with a pair of jet-black pants with double white laced-cords serving as a belt, one long-sleeved red jacket with an inner black shirt and two dark boots. His straight brown-hair is now short, a bit longer than it was before when he was a teenager, but a lot shorter than when he let it grow past his shoulder. Brendan is looking rather young still, despite being twenty-five years old now, his appearance is almost just like when he started his adult life, with a small difference of his clothing resembling a bit more the ones he used on his Pokémon contest appearances.
"You made quite the commotion on the League's halls." The champion raised his hand, dangling a small screen in front of him. "I've been watching your progress."
Under those piercing eyes, Tim is mesmerized, terrifying and most of all in complete awe. He watched every inch of movement that man makes like it is a wonder of the world, as if just him breathing like everyone else, somehow, was being special and different from all other people.
Seeing the boy, who was so hyper just moments ago in his every battle, go stone-cold silent made Brendan quirk one brow upward. "Are you nervous?" He asked calmly and the young trainer nodded his head like a machine gone turbo. Brendan just nodded back and laugh quietly. "That is understandable, but now is not the time to be frozen with nerves. This is your chance to climb the last step, go further beyond all your peers. Now step forward and push your fears aside."
The grey-haired boy stepped forward with one firm stomp of his right feet, his body going from stiff frozen to bursting with energy. He continued walking until his feet reached the marked spot for trainers on his side of the arena, his gaze never leaving the great throne in front of him.
Seeing the boy's reignited resolve made Brendan smile and hum. "That's the spirit." Placing the small device at the side of his luxurious seat, the man stood up from his throne and eyed the boy with a firm gaze. "I am Hoenn's Pokémon League Champion, my name is-"
"I KNOW YOU!" Tim shouted from the top of his lungs, a bit too harshly as his throat was left tingling with an annoying sensation. "You're Brendan… the invincible Champion!" His light-blue eyes sparkling like shining stars at a midnight clear sky. "Y-You might not remember, but I met you once… when I was a little kid."
Aggron growled very loudly, saying in his way that he too has met the Champion before.
"M-My name is Timmothy, but my friends call me Tim. When my mother and I came to Ever Grande to cheer for my big brother as he tried to take on the Elite Four, we went to have lunch in a small restaurant… You came and spoke to me." Reverting to a more shy way of speaking, Tim pressed both of his index fingers against one another, his gaze trailing downwards to the floor and away from Brendan's eyes. "Ever since that day, I… I… I TRAINED VERY HARD TO BECOME A STRONG TRAINER LIKE YOU!"
As the boy's heartfelt words echoed inside the giant room, Brendan fell into a pensive silence; his gaze still focused on the boy but his mind trailing into the depths of his memory.
'Yeah, I can see a lot of promise on you two.' His own voice sounded in his head as that day's event played itself in front of him again; the faint image of a very small boy and his cute little Aron showing right in front of Brendan's eyes.
A very large smile broke Brendan's lips apart. With his legs moving on their own, he paced down to the plain level of the Pokémon arena in the room. Stopping by his own marked spot, Brendan eyed the boy with a hint of pride in his gaze.
"I remember you, Tim." Brendan's words hit the younger trainer like one powerful wave; with arms shivering and his lips quivering, Tim's eyes got wet quickly with the first little tears to blur his vision. "And I take that the giant guy at your side is the tiny Aron from before… he sure grew to be an impressive Pokémon."
Being weak against such praises, Aggron growled happily and arched one arm to the back of his head, the heavy Pokémon beaming like a happy little toddler.
"Do you still want to become the Champion, Tim?" Brendan asked with a gentle tone.
The boy on the verge of losing himself to tears, wiped his eyes with the back of his left hand, literally shaking any other tears away as he waved his head from right to left. "Y-Yes, sir!" He replied loud and clear.
Any resemblance of warmth or gentleness faded away from Brendan's features; his face turning into the visage of a stone-cold trainer ready to crush his opposition. "Then show me how strong you have become, young challenger." The tall, red-eyed champion pulled one Poke-Ball from his pockets and prepared himself to battle. "Show to me, how strong your resolve is!"
"Yes, sir!" Tim took out one Poke-Ball of his own; throwing the round object on the arena, he started the battle he waited his whole life for, not only that; He took the last step towards the goal of his life.
Xenoblade Chronicles OST - Mechanical Rhythm ( watch?v=Q0W0VyaoZzY )
At the center of the arena an explosion of light called forth the first two contestants of this battle; first Brendan's night-terror, Naito. The poised looking Honchkrow soared above the cold marble with a terrifying regality to the rhythm of his wings.
Little shines of light gleamed from upfront, the spotlights reflecting against the metallic surface of Naito's opponent, a big Skarmory. Feeling the surging heat of battle, the silvered bird cried loudly in its spot, a menacing voice booming all around.
"Naito!" Brendan took the first step, calling out to his Pokémon. "Take the space above, don't let it get a height advantage."
"Brave Bird!" Tim's young voice echoed inside the room, its high-pitched tone overpowering Brendan's stoic voice.
Once more, displaying his intimidating voice, Skarmory cried out loudly. His metallic wings flapped at full speed in a matter of moments, and before Naito could get properly airborne, the shining edges of Skarmory's silver wings clashed onto the Honchkrow's body, toppling him down onto the floor.
Gasping ever so quietly as his friend crashed against the cold marble, Brendan felt a rush of surprise daze him for a moment. His violet-eyes traveling to the young boy in front of him and then to the silvered bird, messily shaking his head from left to right after the bad hit his own body had to take.
'This boy…' Brendan sucked in his breath. 'Using Brave Bird in such close distance to the target and the ground… His Skarmory suffered the most in this move.' A brief second of silence flooded the champion's mind, for then a ghost of a smile to appear on his lips.
"You're gutsy, Tim. Not a lot of trainers would take this destructive path." Brendan commended; his tone not too friendly but not as cold as moments ago.
"When facing against a mountain, you break it first or its weight will kill you." Tim replied with a serious face, not a shred of his juvenile happiness showing up. "I have no choice."
Brendan furrowed his brow, taking in his opponent words with all seriousness of its weight. 'So it was a conscious decision and not a fluke…' His stance relaxed a little, but his gaze only got sterner.
From the corner of his visual field, Brendan saw the small flicker of dark-blue feathers, his right hand shooting up in an instant reaction. "Naito, use Night Slash!"
Without a sound, Naito flew from his spot into Skarmory's space. A dark-colored slash crossed harshly against the metallic bird's chest, the push of this attack making the Pokémon stumble backward and screech in pain.
"Again!" Brendan's commanding voice boomed loudly.
Another line of black crossed at Skarmory's chest, this time coming from the other side, making a black-cut shaped in the form of an X.
Tim hissed from his spot, the boy clapping his hands in front of him as fast and loud as he could, so his Pokémon would focus on his instead of the pain. "We have to break away, use Metal Sound."
Hearing his trainer's command, Skarmory shook his head forcefully to try and gather his bearings again. Getting the bare minimum to see where he is and where Naito stands, the silvered bird clashed both of his wings against one another, this impact exploding right in front of him and sending a deafening soundwave forward, taking the dark-bird by surprise.
As Naito groggily flapped his wings, pushing his body back towards the center of the arena, Skarmory took the opportunity to go airborne and float above the floor.
"Send him blasting, use Air Cutter." Tim shouted, swiping his right arm in front of him.
Batting his wings in front of him, Skarmory released two razer-like wind blasts aiming at the confused dark-bird bellow him. These two arch-shaped blasts crashed against Naito, bashing him onto the floor again, but having little effect aside from that.
On his place, Brendan just grunted a bit louder than normal; his reaction getting to his Pokémon as Naito nodded with his head and took over to the air himself.
"Again, send him to the floor, Air Cutter." Tim shouted once more.
With Skarmory repeating the same move as before, Brendan's lips twitched right before he stepped forward and shouted. "That move will only shove you a little, ignore it and push forward. Take him out of the air with a Brave Bird of your own!"
Naito chirped and curled his body enough to make himself into a powerful bullet, as his wing carried him fast in its current.
"We got them!" The younger trainer jumped in, his tone showing his overexcitement. "Skarmory, like we trained before. Put more weight onto your wings, let's switch to an Air Slash!"
Seeing the silvered Pokémon arc his wings even further back, quickly tipped Brendan off as to the ploy the young trainer has lured him into; but it was already too late for any reaction. With Naito flying at full speed and Skarmory more than half past his movement set, everything else just happened in a chain of events.
The speeding Hunchkrow flew straight onto Skarmory just to get completely blasted by the cutting-edge of a powerful shockwave. This one carrying a lot more than just a bit of force, it dragged Naito down to the floor all the while managing to cut a nasty wound on the bird's chest.
Naito fell harshly with the impact, paired with the fresh wound on him, it left the night-terror out of combat shape, despite the brave bird still being conscious as he slowly brought himself up to a straight form. Before he could try and swing any attacks back at Skarmory, the soothing light of his Poke-Ball was already surrounding him and calling him back.
Taking his Poke-Ball back into his pocket, Brendan watched quietly as the victorious Skarmory weakly descended from the air, the metallic bird rocking his head up and down like it was a struggle just to remain standing. One closer look to his pained face and it became very clear that this Pokémon is still heavily suffering from the backslash of his first move. At this point, even if the boy was dangerously reckless, his Pokémon would not be able to continue fighting.
Seeing the young trainer come to the realization himself and then calling his Pokémon back, basically forfeiting one spot at this battle, was comforting and reassuring on Brendan's point of view. Even if a trainer shows outstanding promise in their talents, they are worthless in the Champion's eyes, if they treat their companions with little respect.
Alloying himself only a small praising smile, Brendan promptly called upon his next Pokémon, releasing him on the arena, one blue mountain of grumpiness landed on the cold floor with his yellow eyes glaring at the opposite trainer.
"Jetto… please behave." Brendan asked in exasperation, it has been years and this Pokémon still is unfriendly to anyone that is not his trainer.
Hearing the mildly annoyed tone of his trainer, made the imposing Sawmpert grunt quietly in obedience, but his powerful glare it is still very present on his eyes.
Sweat dropping a little from that monster of a glare he is receiving, Tim quietly rolled a Poké-Ball over his right hand, tossing it at the center of the arena. A giant serpentine form appeared in front of the Swampert, one massive snake made out of steel began to cross the floor, the second row of his metal-bubbly body spinning wildly, making it look like a ferocious propeller.
Brendan raised an eyebrow after seeing Tim's second team member; waving one hand in front of him, he brought the teen's attention fully to him. "That is your second Steel-type Pokémon. Is that a coincidence or it is a thought out choice?"
"It's a choice!" Tim replied proudly and rather loudly as his voice once again echoed all around the massive room. "I always admired you, that is very true and nothing will change it. But… I also admire trainers who devote themselves to one type. I want to be strong like you and determined like those trainers, that is why I am a Steel-type specialist."
"Steel-type specialist…" Brendan pondered quietly at the boy's passionate account; it was just a brief moment of silence as very soon he was already gracing the other trainer with one appraising nod. "Most competitive trainers choose to diversify their team, one member to cover the other's weakness. It's the most rational and sensible path to take, even more so when you inspire to trail on the high-end." As he was speaking, Brendan noticed a small frown form on the boy's features, bringing him to grin at the reaction. "With that said, this only means that your path is more difficult than the others, not an impossible one."
Timmothy shook his head in an energetic motion, his gaze was never more focused and serious as it is right now. "I don't mind that. Ever since that day you praised me, I knew where my path should go. More difficult than everyone else? That is a given, I am not everyone else. I am the trainer he will finally defeat Brendan, the invincible Champion."
That posture, those shining eyes full of determination… by the world, to Brendan it felt like he was staring at the thirteen years version of himself; having the same bravado, leaving Steven speechless with his subtle but still present cockiness. Moment by moment, this battle with Tim was making Brendan nervous, static and more than all, very nostalgic of his own younger days.
'So, this is how it feels when a young trainer leaves you speechless…' Brendan chuckled, bringing one hand to his face to hide the faint little red line appearing on his cheeks. 'Now I get you, Steven…'
"Very well, Tim. I will confess that until now I was seeing you with a biased view… unfairly treating you softer than I would treat most trainers." Walking to the edge of the trainer spot, Brendan wore the same heavy glare that his Swampert has, this gaze sending chills down the boy's spine. "No more small talk or advice, this time I will face you like the challenger you are."
Tim's eyes shone even brighter at his idol's proclamation, it served as a trigger for both of them, not long after, their furious battle resumed.
"Hah, I knew the boy had guts. Look at him go, taunting our scary leader to go all out on him." The carefree Dark-type master of the Elite Four chirped happily as he points at the big screen on the wall. "Can't believe he managed to take you down, Wally." Getting a little bit too friendly for his comrade's taste, the almost bald-man leaned in over on the green-haired trainer, resting the full weight of his arm on Wally's shoulders.
"His spirit sure burns hot with youth… This is a marvelous battle to watch." The elegant icy-queen commented from her spot on the luxurious pink padded-chair, her blue eyes sparkling like those of an excited little girl.
In a misguided thought, Wally came to the Elite Four members lounge, thinking that he would able to watch that promising boy's battle against Brendan in complete peace. To his dismay, Phoebe had closely followed his steps, which then prompted her to drag Sidney and Glacia to the room as well, claiming that they should all watch together to increase their bonds of friendship.
Poor Wally could only pout and frown in silence, as his personal space kept getting invaded by his peers.
"Look! Look! Brendan's Swampert is getting overwhelmed." Said the always sunshine of happiness that is Phoebe. In her vivid reaction, the tropical beauty latched herself onto Wally's neck, her arms locking themselves together close to Sidney's arm, while her breasts are firmly pressed onto the side of his face in all their glory.
If this was years before, Wally would have gone instantly red and yelped his way away from Phoebe's embrace. But at this point, used to the borderline sexual harassment he suffers from her and Sidney, he just sighed deeply and rolled his eyes in annoyance.
"Hot damn, the kid won this round!" Sidney announced loudly, his eyes widening out as he saw that giant Steelix land with his body on top of Sawmpert, practically shoving the blue Pokémon inside the ground.
A round of gasps sounded inside the room, as their watchful gazes witnessed that building-sized Pokémon get lifted out of the ground and casually be tossed to the side by a fuming looking Swampert.
"The hell?! It is still fighting?!" Sidney said in outrage.
"A Pokémon like that can't be fair! Brendan always has this abnormal Pokémon that does stuff like this!" Phoebe whined as if she was the one standing against the Champion, however, her jumping around only worsened Wally already 'poor' state, as her mounds started grinding and jiggle against his face.
Already at his wit's end, Wally gracefully pressed his right hand on the upper side of Phoebe's toned belly and then not so gracefully pushed the girl away from him; earning a whimper and a pout out of the way too friendly dark-skinned woman.
"What is up with the commentary?" Wally questioned the other two members of the Elite Four. "Are you guys rooting for the kid?"
"Hell yeah!"
"Yes!"
"Absolutely."
Even Glacia jumped in on the reply train, her voice a lot more composed than the other two but just as sonorous.
"Come on Wally, aren't you itching to see someone give Brendan the slap?" Sidney poked Wally at his side with the edge of his elbow, making the 'abused' green-haired trainer jump to the side at the contact.
"I am with Sidney on this!" Phoebe jumped in, tossing both arms up to the air to make her statement more 'important'. "I love Brendan and all that, but it's past time he loses to someone! I can't stand his smug face when we go out to drink and he starts talking about his record… It makes me want to punch him."
On those words and very graphical example out of Phoebe, she is currently strangling the air with both hands; Wally had to relent. "That part of Brendan is very… aggravating." He said with a slow nod. "Seeing him getting handled by a young trainer sure would be at least satisfying to watch."
Sidney snorted loudly; one evil grin plastered on his lips. "I would call it fucking hilarious."
"Deserved!" Phoebe chirped with a spin.
"Entertaining…" Glacia said quietly on her spot, but despite the coldness of her tone, her eyes are burning brighter than those of the other two.
Seeing the always composed and noblewoman behave with such fire, makes Wally chuckle on the inside, he rarely sees Glacia so excited as she is today. "Then, it is unanimous. We, the Elite Four, are officially rooting for the young challenger, Timmothy."
"Show him what you got, kid!" Sidney cheered loudly, of course, while he was shouting his words, his right fist bumped on Wally's side once more, forcing the other man to bend forward a little.
"Woohoo! Let's go, Tim, kick Brendan's smug butt!" At this point on what can be called a natural reaction of hers, Phoebe latched onto Wally again, readily crushing his face against her breasts.
Getting ganked by the usual two, Wally tried to wiggly his way out of their 'friendliness', desperately trying to watch the match despite all the 'Phoebe' standing in his line of sight. "Can you two, please!" Wally was ready to tackle Sidney and Phoebe away from him when he felt a soft weight press on his back and the smooth skin of Glacia's chin rests on the top of his head. "Come on, Glacia… Not you too."
"It's your fault…" The blond elegant woman said in her monotone voice, a faint whisper of a teasing giggle coming out of her lips. "Being this cozy should be a crime."
With the icy-queen joining the others on his unending hell of personal space invasion, Wally could just sigh and let himself be consumed by his fate.
From the little he could see past the dark blue top that keeps Phoebe's boobs from properly assaulting Wally's face, he saw the ongoing battle shift left and right, with Tim's Steelix getting a better trade of blows each time the Pokémon clashed against one another. It was only when Swampert tried to attack his opponent from the air with a very high jump, that Steelix got a clear shot at winning, and the metallic snake managed to strike true in this small window.
Sweeping his long and heavy tail to the incoming blue Pokémon, Steelix landed a perfect hit on Swampert's body, trashing him to the far back wall of the room. Surprising every member of the Elite Four again, the aquatic terror managed to stand up and walk forward, displaying an almost impossible level of resilience. But despite his mental fortitude, his body had gone way past its limit, then his blue legs slowly gave out to the weight of his own body, leaving Swampert unable to continue fighting.
As the swirling light called back the aquatic Pokémon, a round of loud cheers erupted on the Elite Four's private room.
"You can do it, rookie! Four more to go and you've beaten him!" Sidney's voice boomed in the small room, the lingering ring of his tone pushing everyone else to celebrate just as energetic as him, but not as loudly.
Giving a little breathing room for Wally to sing his praises too, Phoebe detached herself from him, but still managed to find her arms embracing someone else, this time Glacia being the target of her affection.
This euphory moment lasted the whole while of three minutes, the time for Brendan to call forward his third Pokémon, another imposing character, this time a fire counterpart of Swampert, a tall and nimble Blaziken.
The battle of Blaziken and Steelix lasted just until the fiery Pokémon landed an explosive kick on top of the metallic snake's head. It was simple as one hit and knock out.
"They have tied again…" Phoebe said quietly, her previous excitement all but faded away with that one kick coming from Brendan's Blaziken.
Even from behind the screen they could feel the shift in Brendan's mood, he was… somehow angry. And this translated to an almost unbearable atmosphere, the mood feeling as heavy as a ton of rocks piled on top of one another.
Sidney quietly gulped, his frown saying a lot of what he is feeling right now. "Brendan looks pissed… That doesn't bode well, does it?"
Despite feeling the same dreading doom clutching at his chest, Wally was casually smiling at the scene, a reaction that made his three companions give him a searching look. "What?" Wally replied to them. "Timmothy so desperately wanted to fight against the very best… Now he is getting the very best; It has been years since I saw that look on Brendan's face."
"Whelp… it was fun while it lasted." Sidney shrugged off, lazily turning around and dumping himself on a chair.
"Aw… That's not fair at all, poor boy." Phoebe slid down to the carpet, sulking sadly as her puppy eyes stared at the screen.
The blond icy-queen quietly walked back to her fancy chair, the burning spark of her eyes all but gone. "Unfortunate… I was rather enjoying his struggle." She said nonchalantly, putting all her attention to the steamy tea set resting on the small table in front of her, and disregarding the ongoing battle.
All out of the four members, Wally was the only one still completely focus on the screen. Deep down he knows how terrifying it is to stand against that side of Brendan, is like facing an unrelenting current ready to sweep you away with one move. Yet, something inside of him was giving him a small hope, a faint chance that this boy could withstand this.
'Now it's showtime, little Timmothy. Let that flame inside of you burn as strong as ever, or you will share the same fate as all the other that came before you.'
A running line of sweat slid down Tim's stiff face, an occasional twitching of his lips being the only changing on his features for a quite long time now. Each step he takes in this battle is more nerve-wracking than the previous one, at each Pokémon he manages to push down and defeat, his opponent calls forward one that appears to be twice or three times as strong and this is insanity in every way.
In his team, there is nothing close to such disparity, each one of his Pokémon are almost equally on the same level, but with Brendan? That seems a norm that is currently non-existent.
The Champion's Blaziken was fast, strong and ruthless at each of its strikes. Dashing and kicking across the arena, Tim was only able to take down that monster of a fighter, because he has a special addition to his team, a Milotic. After getting told that he was not allowed to fly to Ever Grande, the young trainer was forced to capture and train an aquatic Pokémon; that decision proved to be a fate changing one, as that single out Pokémon was able to take down Brendan's Blaziken with a lucky water move.
As in every other time that Timmothy had managed to bring down one of his opponent's Pokémon, the champion was ready to unleash a beast even scarier than the one before. This once was a small Swellow, as pretty and inoffensive as she looked; that flying menace just obliterated Tim's Milotic, not even one single move managing to land on that swift blue streak in the air.
Pushed down to his fourth member on his team, Tim relied on the fighting prowess of his Lucario. Using his steel-hard fists and his psychic affinity, Lucario trapped Layla withing a ring of stones, all the while punching stone pellets at the caged bird. Even with an abnormal resistance to her natural weakness, Brendan's beloved Swellow succumbed to the relentless waves of flying stones and psychic moves.
Taking down any trainer to his fifth member, while you're up one and that Pokémon is still very much rested to the fight the next battle is a massive advantage, and an almost guaranteed victory. Then why is the young trainer sweating his weight out and is on the verge of hyperventilating?
That would be because of Brendan's Fifth Pokémon, the green monster named Ekkisu.
Without sparing many details, Tim's Lucario while putting up a decent fight on his part, he was completely useless against that Sceptile; and this comparison is not even funny. While every other match was one-sided for one trainer or the other, they at least were able to push their opponents to give their maximum, to outthink and overperform their counterpart.
In Ekkisu versus Lucario's case, the metallic fighter had just one chance to strike at his foe; which resulted in him getting slammed against the ground after one slash of the Sceptile's leaf-blade.
"We can stand here all day and stare at each other, Tim… But I rather get going with our battle." With no hint of malice in his words, Brendan called the boy's attention that only then got him back to his senses.
Gulping his growing fear of that one Pokémon down his throat, Tim grabbed in his hands the last Poké-Ball still tucked in his left pockets. Before tossing the object in the arena and calling his next member out, he stopped for a moment and eyed the ball for a few moments.
'This will give him a scare…' A little remembrance flashing on the boy's mind, the words of that strange person who meet him months ago before this day. "I hope you were right strange guy." Seeing the 'ghost' of a tall blue-haired man appears at his side, giving him that silly smile he always had on his lips; Tim hurled the Poke-Ball forward, trusting his newest member to stand up against that green beast.
Feeling somewhat impatient with the boy's delay, Brendan didn't even realize that the tip of his right foot was quietly but steadily stomping on the floor; that is until his eyes landed on the broad Pokémon appearing on the arena.
"W-Where… where did you get that Pokémon?" Asked the startled Champion, his eyes never leaving the form of the boy's Metagross.
Brendan's sudden shift was puzzling to the younger trainer, the man who was the perfect image of focus is now staring at him with a confused gaze. "I got it as a Beldum…" Tim started. "One day, I met this strange guy on the road. He was really funny but dressed very oddly, his messy blue hair didn't help his image either… Anyway, we spent two days traveling together. He taught me a lot of things, before parting away he gave me a Beldum."
"Did he use a long-sleeved dark shirt with metal tips at each sleeve?" Brendan asked out of curiosity.
To which the boy eyed him with surprised recognition. "Yeah, he did! How did you know? Do you know him? He said that my Beldum would give the Champion a scare when he gets to see it."
"And it did…" A low chuckle quietly escaped Brendan's lips as he rubbed the bridge of his nose with two fingers. "The strange man you met is a friend of mine, a close friend." Once more, Brendan's features softened when he eyed the kid in front of him, this time it was impossible to suppress this growing sensation in his chest.
'This boy got your approval as well, Steven?' Mused in silence the brown-haired Champion. 'You gave me a Beldum saying that it was a token of your choice, the choice of a new champion... Is this the way you found for pushing me into a decision?'
Pushing this thought aside for the moment, Brendan regained his deadly focus yet again, his change of stance and attitude made the younger trainer jump back into his stiffness of before.
"Ekkisu, it seems that our friend Steven believes that we found our match." Brendan commented with a borderline sarcastic voice, the sultry tone of his words sounding strange in a straightforward person like him. "Let's prove to him again, how strong we can be."
Giving his trainer one quick glance, Ekkisu shifted his glance towards Tim and not at his Pokémon strangely enough. Frowning deeply, practically glaring at the youngster, the tall Sceptile readied his arm-blades, raising them both in front of his head as his legs bent into an offensive stance.
Tim heard one loud whistle echoed inside the room, instantly he felt goosebumps take over his skin. He has heard and even read so much about this tactic, one that he was almost disappointed he was not a victim of until this point, but now dreading the thought of going against it. Brendan was commanding his Pokémon without speaking any words, but the boys know this tactic from countless books he has read; his only problem is doing something about it.
"Agility quickly!" Tim shouted his command erratically, the sudden outburst doing more to confuse his Pokémon than guide him, but Metagross did what he was told and lifted a portion of its weight, letting him float twice as fast as before.
So imperative was this preemptive move, that without it Ekkisu would have clashed both of his leaf-blades on his opponent's head with a destructive X-Scissor. But having his body faster, allowed Metagross to dodge to the side in pure reflex, the Steel-type Pokémon staring at the Sceptile with huge widening eyes, surprised to see that blur of green getting at him so fast.
"He is within range, hit him with a Meteor Mash!" Tim ordered loudly.
His Metagross growled in response, swinging one arm at full speed ahead, he shot a meteoric like punch at the still bouncing Sceptile. Another whistle ringed true and with its noise spreading, Ekkisu's form turned into a blur of green again. Dashing inches close to Metagross stretching arm, Ekkisu flew at his opponent and executed the same move as before, but this once nailing a perfect X-Scissor on the blue Pokémon's head.
'This again…' Tim hissed internally. 'That Sceptile is brutally strong, what is up with that?!'
Tim's observation was not wrong, Ekkisu's hits are stronger than an average tackle coming from a Wailord, and that is putting it lightly. A Metagross can withstand the heaviest of blows and still maintain his standing position, after that one combo of slashing blades crashing at his head, Tim's Metagross instantly got trashed to the floor, even managing to crack and break the marble tiles with its weight.
'But we have to withstand those blows…' He thought to himself. 'Speed is a negative for us, then one shot is all that we have left!'
"Metagross!" Tim called out to his Pokémon. "Use Iron Defense!"
Following the commands given to him, Metagross stood in a straight form again, clenching the joints of his legs as he reverted shift of his weight, now adding even more to his body and making his stony-skin harder than any kind of steel.
"Are you sure about that?" Came an unsettling question from the red-eyed champion, his taunting gaze making the boy shiver at those words.
The youngster had no time to second guess his choice as soon enough Ekkisu was on top of Metagross again, arms prompted and arm-blades ready to strike.
A song of two noises exploded in the room, the first gritty and hard, the second faint and metallic, like someone was dragging a knife against a fridge. Yet, as bone-chilling as those sounds were, Metagross still stands. Instead of a repeat of the previous outcome, this time it was Ekkisu's arms that went flying backward from the impact.
"THIS IS OUR CHANCE!" Tim's voice exploded out from his throat, his right arm shooting forward with a blazing fire shining in his gaze. "Metagross, blast him with a Meteor Mash!"
Releasing a crystal-sounding roar, Metagross just shoot two of his arms/legs forward, the pointy tip of his claws shining with glinting light as they shoved the air out of their way. This was his moment, and Tim could feel it; it doesn't matter how absurdly strong that Sceptile is, getting hit by that crushing move would bring Brendan's fifth Pokémon down without failure.
"LET'S GO!" The boy flared up as the shining light coming from Metagross' attack seemed to clash onto Ekkisu's form.
However, contrary to what was expected, Metagross' move didn't connect directly onto his opponent, a fact that was obvious as his arms passed by the green Pokémon's side; and the glowing light didn't spot spreading, instead, it surrounded the Sceptile's body, taking him inside an orb of pure light, changing his form gradually.
"That was a valiant effort… but you missed." Brendan's cold tone brought his young opponent gaze onto him, just to then make the boy shield his eye from the ever-shining orb of light that has taken a hold of Ekkisu's form.
From within that orb, one long barbed green tail came crashing down on top of Metagross's head, this one hit making the metallic Pokémon waver; right then two shining blades slashed against its broad back, completely shattering the layer of steel defense; blasting the blue Pokémon inside the floor.
Just like that, in one single moment of euphoria, Tim was pushed back in his attempt and the advantage that laid for so long withing his hands has now bounced back to Brendan's side. Metagross is out of combat and Tim is left with one Pokémon in his team still able to fight in this battle.
"That's… That's not fair…" Holding his gaze down, Tim's face is mostly hidden within the shadow of his hair. The quivering of his lips, even if barely visible, is very much noticeable as it is the trembling of his arms.
With calm but judging eyes, Brendan studied the boy's posture like a teacher watches their students. 'Was it too much for him?' Asked the Champion in a non-existent whisper. 'Did seeing his last resort fail, broke his resolve? Come on, boy. Show me what you're truly made of."
A low whimper escaped the boy's lips, or so Brendan thought; if he was truly on the verge of sobbing, why is he holding a large grin at his features?
"That's unfair you know." Tim raised his gaze, showing a vibrant look in his eyes paired together with a dignified smile on his lips. "You made your Pokémon go bananas at the very last moment, that caught me off guard." Then, surprising Brendan for the countless time since his arrival, Timmothy laughed, not one out of desperation, but warm and pure laughter of a boy having fun.
Following the wakes of the youngster's voice, heavy stepping sounds came forward. From behind him the form of his giant white Pokémon appeared, Aggron stepped inside the arena.
"Did you watch everything, buddy?" Tim asked his partner, the Aggron growling in reply sounding a lot more serious now than what he was before. "Can you beat him?" He asked more in a teasing manner than a real question, which earned him a loud scoff out of the tall white mountain of a Pokémon.
Aggron's annoyed reaction only made Tim start to laugh again, this time louder and more vividly. Seeing that exchange between the two of them made Brendan himself hold in a chuckle, it was striking to him the resemblance between those two and his relationship with Ekkisu.
"You scared me for a moment there, Tim." Brendan said calmly. "I was thinking that maybe I had overdone it and crushed your will to fight."
"You're kidding me?!" The boy shouted outraged, his bombastic voice returning as powerful as ever. "This is the best battle ever, if anything, seeing your Sceptile crush my team only made me want to win more."
This time Brendan was unable to hold in his short laugh. "That's a good mentality to have, but… How would you go about that, huh?"
"That part is easy." Tim replied with a grin, his right hand going inside his pocket and pulling something out with it. "We just have to go bananas ourselves."
"YOU CAN DO IT, KID!"
"This is the best battle of the year, I tell you!"
"I told ya! That boy is something else."
The endless amount of cheers and supportive voices would not stop erupting inside this place; a place that really should not be this loud or crowded. As it is, the Elite Four's private quarters, is not a very spacious room, but for only four people, the space and accommodation is more than enough, with enough room for each member to be comfortable and not bother the others in the process; at least in theory as Phoebe and Sidney always does their best to bother Wally in some way.
However, with that being said, when thirty members of the Pokémon League's staff suddenly invaded the room, it all turned into a tight-packet hell. Wally was reconsidering the wisdom of his choice of coming here.
Squished inside the sea of people swimming inside the room, Wally just gave up and let himself be carried by the current of people waving around. But even if he has a stone-dead expression on his face, his eyes are perfectly focused on the now 'tiny' screen at the wall.
'You're using Ekkisu as your fifth member… What are you planning Brendan?' His ice-blue eyes clenched slightly, staring at the huge smile showing on his long-time friend's lips. Then, one crashing wave of realization hit Wally right in his head, the Balance Keeper of the Elite Four jumped out from his spot and tackling people down to the floor as he stood in front of the bright screen, each of his hands grabbing a side of the TV. "DON'T TELL ME THAT HE IS…!?"
A thunderclap struck inside the Champion's chamber, then another one, the floor cracking small lines in its pristine whiteness. Of course, since there is no sky inside this massive room, this impressive wave of sounds has to be coming from another source, in this case, are the gigantic feet of Aggron's mega form.
Looking a lot more like a war machine than the gentle Pokémon he usually is, Aggron marched his way forward, crackling the air with his steps as he charged full force against the Sceptile in front of him.
Swinging his right arm forward, Aggron swept his member in an arc letting the lone white spike, sticking out from his hard shell, fly furiously towards the green Pokémon's form.
Dodging away from Aggron's attack should not be a difficult task, especially for a Pokémon as swift and nimble as Ekkisu is. However, somehow the Mega-Sceptile found it extremely difficult to just duck down and let the spike fly above his head, and in doing so he almost lost his footing.
For someone so heavy and big, Aggron proved to be quite the mobile fighter; with his right arm swinging and missing, his left one instantly traveled downward, his open claw snatching the Sceptile by his neck and bashing his body against the ground. This destructive hold while effective in its power was unable to hold Ekkisu for too long, the Sceptile managing to swing his long tail at Aggron's head, forcing the other Pokémon to release him.
Bouncing rapidly against the cracked floor, Ekkisu pushed himself up in the air by punching the ground with his full force. Getting enough height to glide over Aggron's head, he twirled his body in a swirl letting his barbed-tail spin wildly in an offensive frenzy.
One, two, three, Aggron had to find support with his claw on the ground after the fourth swing of Ekkisu's tail bashed against his face. Letting out a groggy growl, Aggron turned half-circle, aiming the long steel blades coming out of his shoulders at Ekkisu's direction; this move managing to only graze the Sceptile at the end of his tail.
A loud, long and echoing whistling flourished on the arena, Aggron twitched at the alien sound, refraining himself from getting distracted because of outside noises. Ekkisu on the other side went rigid at the moment that sound hit his ears, his arms slumped to his side and his head went into a downcast motion, his yellow eyes getting a terrifying focus and sharpness to them. Then it was but a moment before a hell of pain crashed onto the giant white Pokémon.
Aggron could only see a blur of vivid green and red colors before his head went swinging to the right, with his vision starting to tremble he raised his gaze to find his opponent, only to find a leaf-blade bashing his head downwards again.
X-Scissor after X-Scissor, Aggron fell prey to a bloody onslaught. His heavy body is stern and durable, but in return, he is slow to react; and at this moment even his steel-made defense is cracking and rumbling. To the giant Pokémon, each of those cross-shaped cuts was more painful than all moves he has ever suffered from any other Pokémon.
In his eyes, Aggron was getting smaller and smaller; in front of him that Sceptile is looking at a lot more like a giant mountain, those blades like giant green pillars flying at his tiny body. Any other sound coming from the arena was getting overwhelmed and ultimately suffocated by those hellish sounds exploding on his metallic shell.
"ddy… at me… buddy…"
Tiny droplets fell in front of Aggron's vision, it was like he was staring on a dead-silent lake casually get disturbed by the falling drops of water coming from the ceiling. With his consciousness barely keeping up with his surroundings, Aggron was slowly letting himself waver and get swallowed by the welcoming darkness of slumber. The promise of no more pain, no more exhaustion, just blissful peace.
"AGGRON! LOOK AT ME!"
Timmothy's voice pulled Aggron back to reality, his eyes jolting awake once again, his head still swinging from one side to the other with each impact.
On the verge of tears, Tim is staring at his Pokémon with a strange look. His eyes are nothing but pure pain reflected on them, but his lips are welcoming sight to his friend; one warm and huge smile showing on them.
How hard it was to keep looking at his trainer while his head was getting trashing all around, his body arching slowly with the throbbing affliction. Yet, Aggron never let his eyes swing away from that boy's visage, he could not take his eyes away from him; it gave him strength, gave him resolve. And at this moment, his world stopped for this fraction of a second.
No sound came out from Timmothy's mouth, at least not one that Aggron could hear past all the bashing on himself. Yet, the words coming from those lips were clear as the midday sky, shining with the sun.
'I believe in you.'
Aggron felt his body filling with energy again, it was a strange feeling like this, the first time he has ever felt so strong. The world came to life in full motion once again, the once green-blurs of pain flashing at his eyes now became a lot more clear.
Curling both arms in a defensive stance in front of his head, Aggron continued to take the unending flurry of hits coming from Ekkisu, but this time he was not defenselessly bobbing from one side to the other, instead, he was standing like an immovable mountain, taking everything that Sceptile had to offer.
Even with this outstanding defensive move, Aggron was still feeling his entire system going numb, to stand strong and still is one thing, but to ignore this burning pain is practically impossible. So, instead of shoving this feeling away, he stored everything, every little cut and burn flashing at his limbs and body, he kept everything pilling up in his chest.
Tim recognized that stance, his eyes shining with a bright new light, forcing him to blink the few tears he has away. "You really are the best Pokémon ever, Aggron." Taking two steps forward, Tim raised his arm and yelled. "That is enough, buddy. Give everything back to him, unleash your Metal Burst!"
Resonating with his trainer's word, Aggron roared every bit of air out of his lungs; his voice so powerful that the entire tower shivered the moment it boomed out from his mouth. Locked in his unfazed stream of attacks, Ekkisu had no time to move away from the surging burst coming out from Aggron, this silver bathed barrier erupted in a speed that even Layla would be unable to surpass; ringing a distinct metallic sound, this wave of energy blasted Ekkisu with a power equal to the entirety of his flurry of X-Scissors.
After landing on the cracked floor, the completely bruised Sceptile had only the option of growling in pain before passing out from that outburst. In a complete reverse of roles, Aggron managed to take down Brendan's fifth Pokémon and allegedly the most strong member of his team.
More than anything else, Tim wanted to scream, he wanted to dash inside that arena and hug his partner for winning such a ridiculous match; yet he couldn't. Despite how much of a monster that Sceptile was and how difficult it was to take him down; the battle has not ended yet. Ekkisu was not Brendan's last Pokémon, that is still to be revealed and the sudden silence that befell the champion only makes this anticipation be filled with dread.
Without saying a word, Brendan took one step forward, then another one. Going completely out of the script for formal matches, he stepped out of the trainer area and marched right into the arena.
"You took down Ekkisu…" Brendan said in a chilling tone of voice, scaring the living soul out of his young opponent. "I would congratulate you, but that is nothing still." Calling his Sceptile back to his Poke-Ball, Brendan continued to walk forward right until he stopped at the center of the arena. "You will fail, boy. This is the end of the road for your little journey."
Seriously scared of the complete one-eighty of his idol's personality, Tim was unconsciously stepping backward, his eyes widening at the sight of those nightmare-inducing sparkling red-eyes.
"I will show you, Timmothy. I will demonstrate to you what real power looks like!" Moving one hand to the inner part of his long coat, Brendan brought out one ominous-looking black Poke-Ball. With this thing in his hand, his gaze went from scary to insane and rabid. "Behold, the end."
The entire island of Ever Grande shook in fear of the Titanic voice exploding in the air; if Aggron had managed to crack some of the tiles when he transformed, now every bit of the marble floor broke into a mess.
Towering over his puny opposition, the massive Molten Titan stared down at Aggron, pure hatred flowing on the gaze of that mythical creature.
Aggron was stiffened frozen in his place, and it is impossible to blame the poor Pokémon. In front of him stood the mighty of the earth itself, looking ready to kill and rip and tear anything in its path; any other living creature would cower before such a thing.
Brendan's voice sounded out yet again, this time in the form of a menacing but taunting laughter. "What's the matter, Tim? Our battle is not yet over, are you going to stand there in silence or would you rather forfeit and give up?"
Locked in a daze, and most of all utterly confused to see the person he always saw as a perfect human being behaving like the most evil of villains. This was not Brendan, no way in hell Brendan would act like this; yet here was the man himself, scaring Tim out of his body.
"I-I-I will never forfeit!" Proclaimed the boy in all bravado with his legs trembling like green twigs.
"Oh?" Brendan said amused. "And what exactly do you plan on doing?" He threw a glance at Aggron, chuckling at the frozen Pokémon. "This looks quite over for me."
"W-We will fight! R-Right, buddy?" Once again Tim yelled at the top of his lungs, throwing his Pokémon one hopeful glance, but Aggron looked at him with a spooked face. "Come on, Aggron! Don't let them make fun of us! No matter the odds we always fight head-on, isn't that right? Isn't that how we always did things? Stop shivering and let's beat that thing down to the ground!"
Pushing his overwhelming fear away, Aggron roared in reply to his trainer's words. The large white Pokémon ignored his self-preserving senses all telling him to run away, instead of running, he marched straight onto Groudon's way. Managing to get close enough to the molten beast, Aggron jumped far high even with his weight and landed a square hit with his right claw at the left side of Groudon's belly.
Aggron's effort was quite valiant and impressive, despite the odds, he charged right through and managed to scratch one of Hoenn's most dangerous creatures. However, it proved to be quite for nothing, as he landed on the floor with a hard crash, the wind of his landing went upwards and swept away the claw marks out of Groudon's body.
Brendan busted into a fit of laughter, but different for before, he had no malice in his voice this time. The Champion just arched forward, holding his belly all the while he laughed the air out of his lungs.
"Ha… Haha… You really did, didn't you?" Said the wheezing man. "Aggron went all superhero and jumped at Groudon… Hahaha!"
Staring at each other more than lost for words, Aggron and Tim were taken back by another shift of Brendan's personality. In one moment, he looks at you like he will rip your guts out, then the other, he is almost rolling on the ground from laughing so hard.
"Oh boy, that was great… I almost lost my bearings." Casually bringing his black Poke-Ball out again, Brendan called Groudon back and happily walked his way towards Tim.
"Eh… Brendan?" The boy asked him with a raised brow, only getting more confused when his idol just leaned in closer, putting one hand at his shoulder.
"That was a test, Tim. I wanted to see your reaction going against something like Groudon, and you impressed me." Brendan said with one beaming smile.
"Ah… What?" Asked the boy, still lost on what is happening.
"Oh yeah, I guess some praising are in order… jeez almost messed that up." Pulling himself straight up again, Brendan brought one hand to the young challenger's head and began to mess with his hair. "Congratulations, Timmothy. You are Hoenn's Pokémon League new Champion."
"WHAAAAAAAAAAT?!"
Not only the trainer shouted his confusion as loudly as he could, but Aggron also growled his baffled words out, both him and his trainer falling on their behinds after getting hit by the news.
"Oh, right! We need to go to the next room and register your team in the Hall of Fame… What's wrong with me, I am forgetting everything today." Patting he boy on the head one last time, Brendan just turned on his heels and began trailing slowly to the door at the other side of the giant room. "I wonder what Zinnia is making for dinner today…" Already occupying his mind with random thoughts, he went along by himself, all the while musing about the doings of his family back home.
"What?! How?! Brendan?! What is going on here?" Jumping from the floor in a spasm, Tim started to run desperately after Brendan while flailing his arms in the air. "We won?" Then he stopped, making his Aggron stop right behind him. "Aggron, did we win?"
Aggron looked at his trainer and raised both claws in front of him, the Pokémon just as lost as his trainer.
"W-w-w-we DID IT! Aggron, we defeated the Champion! We won against Brendan!" Wailing tears of pure joy, Tim launched himself onto Aggron, grabbing his partner into a tight hug; the metallic Pokémon roaring just as happily while holding the boy in his arms. Lost in their little moment of happiness, the two of them kept spinning, laughing and crying for the whole lot of ten minutes, every struggle and difficult that they suffered in their journey all paying out in a huge round of cheers of celebration.
"Tim… hurry up, friend. We still have a lot of things to sign and all that." Brendan popped out from the other room, giving the pair one impassive stare.
Detaching himself from Aggron, Tim quietly rubbed his tears away, his cheeks burning red after getting caught screaming like a crazy person. Holding his gaze down to avoid the judging eyes of the adult trainer, Tim quietly and politely walked towards the door, his Aggron following behind.
"Don't need to rush it, kid." Brendan said in a calming voice, his right hand resting on the boy's head again. "You will have a lot of time to celebrate about it. Keep some of that happiness when you go tell your mom and brother, okay?"
Getting his head wrapping in the idea of sharing the news with his family made the boy beam even more brightly. "You think they will be proud of me?" He asked the silliest question of all time.
To which Brendan just shook his head and smiled. "Of course they will, Champion."
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Mallory S Nocturne chapter 39 . Feb 18 – I can never make a bittersweet ending, it just feels wrong to me. Even then, just that much as a resolution felt very lacking to me, so I decided to make this larger chapter to wrap everything up.
Mr MogiGaming chapter 39 . Feb 18 – As far as this story is concerned, the plot with Team Rocket is over and done with. I wanted to tie them into their future appearances (like Pokémon Ultra Sun/Moon), that's why Giovanni got away and all that.