Chapter 47: Lucas versus May

Normal-types were not to be underestimated. This was a fact Lucas had known for a long time. His Eevee Gizmo had been the trump card in many of his victories, all because his opponents had assumed the unevolved Pokemon posed no threat to larger, more varied Pokemon. He knew not to take these seemingly common creatures lightly, and his knowledge and experience of this information was practically all that kept him going through the tough battles of the Petalburg Gym. The Gym's challenge was a form of introspection, how the Trainers answered difficult questions by entering specifically marked doors determined what kind of battle and strategy the Trainer was forced to use. But despite the difficulty, Lucas had successfully defeated all three Trainers, and now the only obstacle between him and the Gym's Leader was a plainly marked door.

Going through the door, the tattooed Trainer was greeted with a room larger than the others, but just as plainly and simply decorated. White-washed walls and and a wood floor hid nothing, and across the arena stood his next and final opponent: the Gym Leader May. May was a young woman about Lucas' age with short brown hair, longer at the front and covered with a tied handkerchief, with green eyes and dressed in colorful, athletic-looking clothing. She seemed friendly and cheerful but her eyes shone with experience and calculation. Only a total idiot would assume this girl would be a pushover. Seeing her opponent she began the rehearsed speech all Leaders gave their challengers, "Welcome to the Petalburg City Gym. I am May. After Journeying around Hoenn I inherited this Gym from my father Norman. Like him, I specialize in normal-type Pokemon. The most common type in the Pokemon world, normal-types are the definition of both adaptation and flexibility. They have few advantages, but just as few weaknesses. Based off of the doors you went through to get to me, you are a Trainer who values strength, not just physical prowess, but strength of the heart and the strength within themselves. Who is the Trainer who values these things?"

"My name is Lucas. I'm originally from Cherrygrove City in Johto and I've come to challenge the Hoenn league for a Championship, just like I did in Sinnoh. You are my first obstacle to this challenge, so I've come for a badge!" Lucas replied in turn. Pulling off a Pokeball from his belt the teen began the battle, "Go! Diablo!"

"Wait a second. You're a Champion from another League?" May said with some surprise.

With pride, Lucas pulled out the badge he received from Professor Oak after defeating Sinnoh's former Champion, Dawn. "That's right. I won this just a week ago,"

While May was obviously impressed, she also seemed somewhat concerned. Lucas and Diablo waited impatiently for the Leader to make her first move, but instead of throwing out her own Pokemon, she went to a panel on the wall and opened it. Inside was a second set of Pokeballs. She switched the ones she had on her belt with the ones from the wall before returning to her original position. Lucas shifted in his spot, a sense of unease about the situation growing. Finally May explained, "Champions who wish to challenge other Leagues are required to face a separate, advanced team of Pokemon. The Gym system is currently set up that the default difficulty is for beginning and aspiring Trainers. If Champions just faced the entry level Pokemon, they'd be able to breeze through multiple Leagues with almost no challenge. It'd be unfair, make sense?"

"Yeah, that makes total sense," Lucas conceded, but now that gnawing unease was getting worse.

"Go! Delcatty!" May announced as she finally threw the Pokeball into the arena. Before the feisty Poochyena appeared a slightly larger pink cat with wide black eyes. The young man finally understood what was causing his concern, and suddenly he felt completely and totally foolish again. The Pokemon the Leader had summoned was leveled in the mid 30s. With exception of Gizmo, the rest of his team hadn't even hit level 20 yet. Lucas was so sure he'd be ready for this League this time. Not only was he a Champion, he had taken great pains to not be caught off guard by researching this new region and his new opponents to avoid the mistakes he had made over and over again in Sinnoh. Instead, he had made a completely new mistake. He felt like a rookie all over again.

Not only that, if he went through the battle, the new team he put so much pride in putting together would get seriously hurt. And relying solely on Gizmo not only was poor strategy, it defeated the purpose of putting together a new team in the first place, "I don't think I can go through with this battle,"

May nodded her head, "I see what you mean. That Poochyena is really low level. That's why I was so surprised to learn you were a Champion. What happened to your old team? Why don't you just keep using them?"

"I have a lot of Pokemon," Lucas responded, "For a new league I wanted to give a new team of Pokemon a chance to be as great as my other guys. It only seemed fair. But I guess if I want to win the Hoenn League like I did Sinnoh, I'll just have to keep using them. I think we'll have to call this match off,"

May nodded again, "That's a smart decision, Lucas. But you have to realize since you threw down your Pokeball that means that this was an official Gym match. In order to end this fight you'll have to formally forfeit, including the loser's fee,"

The other Trainer let out a slow, controlled breath in resignation, "No, I understand that. But it's a small price to pay. Picking your battles and all that," the teen then called to his Poochyena, "C'mon Diablo, let's throw in the towel,"

Instead of trotting back to his Trainer's side, the small dark-type stood its ground, staring down the slightly larger Delcatty the Gym Leader still had on the field.

Lucas frowned and clapped his hands to get the Pokemon's attention, "Diablo, seriously, it's time to go. The fight's over," But the Pokemon refused to move. Instead it merely glanced back at his Trainer with a growl. Both Trainers looked at each other with some surprise. The tattooed teen had gotten eight badges from a Pokemon League, by all accounts, even the most powerful Pokemon were supposed to obey Lucas without question. But for some unknown reason, this low-level Poochyena refused to obey. The Trainer finally realized why his Pokemon was being so stubborn. It was the same reason why the Pokemon refused to back down even when it was paralyzed and on the verge of fainting. It could not back down from a fight, "Diablo, seriously. You don't have a chance against that Delcatty. Its level is far too high. If you fight that thing, you will lose,"

Diablo continued to hold its ground, only letting out a bark to let his new Trainer know he had no intention of running away from an opponent. Lucas sighed over the Poochyena's behavior, but his annoyance turned to amusement and he couldn't help but smile. This Pokemon's personality was so like his own it bordered on terrifying. While Lucas would do anything to prevent his Pokemon from getting harmed, when it came to himself he had no qualms about throwing himself in the middle of a fight: pain, injury and consequence be damned. He knew he wouldn't like it much is someone dragged him out of a brawl, and while he didn't want to see Diablo get hurt, he also didn't want to crush his creature's pride, "I guess I won't be forfeiting after all. Looks like if you want me out of here you're going to have to defeat each and every one of my team,"

"If that's the final choice you're making, then I have no option than to respect it," While May could see the Trainer and his Pokemon's folly, she also had to admire their sheer determination. This boy had become a Champion for a reason, "Go Delcatty! Use Takedown!"

The pink feline creature rushed the small gray Poochyena at full force, but Diablo held his ground, waiting until the last second to rush out of the way, causing the much more powerful Pokemon to miss its mark. Now it was Lucas' turn to fight back, "Diablo! Tackle!"

Now the dark-type was completely obedient as it slammed his small body against his opponent. As his Trainer had expected, the damage the Poochyena had done was minimal, but the first round of attacks was over and it was the Delcatty that had been harmed. The brown-haired girl kept her business-like focus, "Delcatty, Takedown again!"

Once again the cat-like normal-type rushed the canid Pokemon, fully intent on knocking out the creature in one powerful blow, but like the last round the Delcatty had missed. Diablo waited his opponent out until the last second and dodged out of the charging Pokemon's way only to respond with his own Tackle attack. Another round with minor damage, but the damage was on the Leader's side instead of the Trainer's.

The Gym Leader switched tactics as the low-level Pokemon started to prove to be an unexpected nuisance, "Delcatty, use Sing this time!" Rather than a direct physical attack again, the normal-type sat down and began to use a hypnotic cry. The sound hurt Lucas' human ears, but this time it had the desired affect on Diablo as his eye-lids dropped and he fell to his side.

Lucas pulled out his Pokeball, "Diablo, return! Gizmo! Take the field!" Now that the battle was in full swing, the teen was taking it as seriously as he had any before. The fight may have started out as a mistake, but now the Trainer was looking at as just a challenge. When he fought against the Elite Four in Sinnoh, against the Trainer Cynthia he was offered a chance to forfeit when his team was was being run ragged. He had turned her down because he had trusted in his team had the power to go all the way, and he had put together his new team in Hoenn for the exact same reason. Lucas' strength may not have been in his intelligence, but in his adaptability and quick decision making. The Eevee leapt off his Trainer's shoulders and faced the Delcatty, "Gizmo, use Return!"

"Delcatty, Takedown one more time!" The two normal-types circled one and other, waiting for an opening. Finally the two just lunged at each other. This time the Delcatty's attack hit its mark, but took damage in the process. In response, the Eevee used his most powerful attack and sent the already injured feline flying across the Gym. May's first Pokemon was now defeated. Though she was concentrated on the battle, her expression was hard to read as to how she was feeling. She pulled the next Pokeball off her belt and set the fighter to the ring, "Go Wigglytuff! Use Bodyslam!"

"Gizmo return! Go Beautifly," Lucas used the cards he was dealt. Even though he hadn't intended for a miss-matched battle to take place at the Gym, he was going to use the opportunity to get his Pokemon stronger. The female Beautifly was a Pokemon the teen had originally caught in Sinnoh as a Wurmple. The loyal and beautiful Pokemon had proved an asset in his earliest Gym matches, and he thought the bug-type deserved a second chance on the team in Hoenn. As such, the creature was in the upper teens. Not enough to survive long against the high-level Wigglytuff, but enough to at least get off one or two attacks before having to be benched again, "Beautifly, use Silverwind!"

As Lucas expected the Bodyslam attack from the squishy pink bunny-eared beast did heavy damage to the insect, but the Silverwind managed to pull off a critical attack, doing a great deal more damage than either Trainer had expected. May continued the assault without hesitation, "Wigglytuff, use Bounce!"

"Poison Powder, Beautifly!" the Mohawk-bearing teen commanded. Despite the lower level, Beautifly managed to eke out its attack faster than the normal-type. Toxic scales landed on the pink Pokemon's body before it leapt into the air. When the Pokemon would come down its attack would knock out Lucas' creature, so he found the opportunity to switch out while he could, "Gizmo, I need you again!"

The Eevee jumped back into the fray just as the the pink blog careened into his fluffy body. The damage was significant though manageable, and the Wigglytuff was suffering from its poisoned state. May seemed unfazed by her Pokemon's suffering, and it seemed as though the Pokemon's state seemed to give her a boost of confidence, "Wigglytuff, Facade!"

Lucas' confusion over May's delight in her Pokemon's pain ended when he realized what she was so happy about. The Wigglytuff's attack seemed greatly amplified. It wasn't enough to knock Gizmo out, but the Eevee's health was still dangerously low. This round would have to end soon if Lucas had any hope of facing May's third and final Pokemon, "Gizmo, use Return again!"

Once again the powerful move pushed May's Pokemon to the brink, and with its additional poisoned state the pink creature collapsed at the end of the turn. This was it, May's last Pokemon. Lucas knew better than to start celebrating just yet. Leaders always saved their most powerful and most challenging Pokemon for last. It wouldn't be unusual for a final Pokemon to wipe out an entire Trainer's team, something Lucas himself had once had happen to him. May pulled the last ball on her belt and summoned the final beast to the field, "Go! Slaking!"

A giant hulk of a creature appeared on the field. Lucas would have had his heart in his throat if the Pokemon's expression wasn't so disinterested in its surroundings. Still, even if this Pokemon seemed to care less about battling than he thought was possible for a creature, his gut was telling him not to take the massive beast lightly, "Gizmo, return! Go Bruce!"

Lucas's original plan was to keep his new Mudkip out for one turn and then switch it immediately before the very low level Pokemon could get hurt. However, a different idea came to mind when the Gym Leader called out her attack, "Slaking, use Faint Attack!"

Much to his shock, the Pokemon completely ignored his Trainer. And May had given him an odd look when Diablo refused to back down when her own Pokemon clearly had no interest in obeying. At least Diablo's disobedience was eagerness to prove himself. This Slaking's problem appeared to be...laziness. The teen risked an attack, "Bruce! Use Bubble!"

"Slaking! Faint Attack!" May commanded again. This time, much to the teen's shock, the Slaking lurched up and slammed into the small, low-level water-type, sending the unfortunate creature flying across the Gym and slamming into a wall.

"What gives?" Lucas blurted in surprise. While the tattooed young man never pretended he was an expert in Pokemon, he thought he at least understood a great deal about what occurs during battle.

May was more than happy to explain the strange Pokemon's actions, "Slaking have an ability called Truant. Essentially they are one of few Pokemon on earth who even with the required badge level will disobey their Trainers. Slaking may not always listen to what I ask, but I don't need him to. His attack is so high all he has to do is land a hit once and even that level 52 Eevee is pretty much done for. I admire your heart Lucas, I really do, but it really was a mistake to face this team with those low-level Pokemon,"

Lucas knew the Leader was right. He had only one chance to survive the match, and that was to put all bets of Gizmo. No more swapping around. He had to finish it, "Gizmo, bring this battle home. Come on buddy, I know this is your specialty," the teen said to his Pokemon as the weakened Eevee entered the match for the final time. This battle would be in the strictest terms a gamble. He had a fifty-fifty shot that the Slaking would chose not to fight during each turn. Lucas hated to rely on chance versus skill, but as the old saying goes, it's better to be lucky than good, "Gizmo, Dig!"

"Slaking, Faint Attack!" The tiny creature dove underground as once again the Slaking chose to grace the participants with a show of his mighty skill, but the tiny fur ball managed to escape the behemoth's attack. May knew the Eevee's attack would hit first and altered her strategy, "Slaking, Counter!"

The teen held his breath and practically ripped out an earring he was playing with it so nervously. Gizmo popped out of the ground and despite his small size sent his opponent flying through the air. A Counter attack would end this battle now. Not only was Counter more powerful being the second attack in a turn, its fighting attribute meant it would be super effective against the Eevee. Add in Slaking's already high attack and Gizmo would even have a shot at full health. But whatever celestial force there was out there that occasionally threw Lucas a bone in his life was in full force that day. The Slaking gave a disinterested look to May, yawned and started to scratch itself. Gizmo had survived the round.

And the next one, and the next one. For whatever the reason, even with the beat down the Eevee kept dealing out to his opponent, the other normal-type either kept missing his attacks or simply didn't feel like fighting back. May was clearly growing frustrated with her Pokemon, but kept ordering the attacks. Lucas kept waiting for the shoe to drop, for the Slaking to finally wipe his poor Eevee out, but somehow his usual trump card worked out again. After four rounds the Slaking slumped over one final time, not out of laziness, but from defeat.

May afforded herself a whine of frustration and annoyance, "Ohhh! I hate when he does that. This Slaking used to belong to my father, but he gave him to me when I took over as Trainer after retiring from Champion. Even though I'm a former Champion and a second generation Leader, the silly thing still decides not to listen to me from time to time. But even still I suffered from a lot of bad luck during this match you're still a very skilled opponent. You were at a complete disadvantage, but you still managed to use your lower level Pokemon to fight back against me. I understand why you were able to become the Champion of Sinnoh. You won't be able to breeze through the Hoenn League, but after seeing what I saw today it wouldn't shock me if you do end up a two-league Champion,"

"It's funny," Lucas replied, now able to relax and act more friendly to his fellow Trainer, "This fight started because my Pokemon wouldn't obey and ended because yours wouldn't. It only goes to show that Pokemon Battling isn't just about stats or type-matchups,"

"You really proved though that your trust and value the strength and hearts of your Pokemon, just like the battle test before you came here proved. I clearly still have a lot to learn, even with all my experience. So with great pleasure I present to you the Hoenn League's Balance Badge, as well as the TM for the move Facade. Just like I used in battle, Facade becomes more powerful if your Pokemon gets hit by a status affecting move like poison or a burn," May pulled out the winnings from her belt pouches and handed them to her opponent.

Lucas scooped up his exhausted Eevee and grabbed his winnings from the Gym Leader. The teen studied the new badge carefully. Even though he had made a big mistake, he still managed to turn the battle around. All because he believed in his Pokemon. Though the start to the League seemed rocky, this match showed as long as he kept learning and trusting his Pokemon like he always has, the Hoenn League Championship would be his as well.