The Pokemon that popped out of the PokeBall was a Nuzleaf. As it materialized from the white light it took the form of to fit into the PokeBall, it hopped forward clumsily on one foot, before falling down on its face. Embarrassedly, it jumped back onto its feet and rubbed the bruise on its nose.
Riley sent out Burndillo, who happily bounced up and down in its wheel-like shell! It unrolled itself and took on a battle stance, unprofessionally balancing on its weak back legs. Riley looked into its eyes. It was scared in the dark, so it released more of the hot lava-like substance from inside its body, causing it to glow, lighting up the room.
Burndillo used Ember on Nuzleaf, but the Grass- and Dark-type Pokemon dodged the attack! It used Night Shade to counter its attacker, but it wasn't very effective.
Burndillo looked back to Riley, who ordered it to use Fire Fang! It landed its attack, and right on Nuzleaf's bruised nose, too! The opposing Pokemon fainted!
That's when Burndillo had a brilliant epiphany. It rolled up into its shell and rolled rapidly on the spot. Sparks and embers flew out from underneath it as its round shell was engulfed in flames! Riley knew what move this was! Flame Wheel! Burndillo had learned a new move, and it was Flame Wheel!
The opposing Ninja, shocked at his quick loss, sent out Darkoon, the younger form of the Pokemon that Night Shadow had used to ward of the Team Delta Grunts in the theme park.
It had a cute fur pattern, with a domino mask-resembling pattern around its pure-white eyes. It was pudgy and hopped back and forth, almost anxiously, on its four stubby legs. Its claws glistened in the blood-red light.
Riley switched out Burndillo for Barksky, who bravely opposed the Dark-type Raccoon Pokemon, its impressive senses allowing it to sense the dark room around it even without the advantage of sight.
Barksky was fast enough to make the first move! It used Brick Break, bringing the opposing Darkoon down to critically low health! Darkoon retaliated by using Feint Attack! Darkoon used the darkness to its advantage, popping in and out of the shadows and landing a strong hit on Barksky after jumping out of its shadowy disguise. As a result of being hit with the tricky-to-spot attack, the Loyal Pokemon flinched, missing its chance to attack! In its surprised state, it received a Bite attack from Darkoon's strong jaws! Barksky was unhealthy, and dangerously so!
It heightened its awareness, lowering its torso to the ground and gripping the rug with its claws. Is released a Brick Break on Darkoon, karate-chopping the Thieving Pokemon with incredible force, and caused it to become knocked out!
But the Ninja wasn't done yet! He one more trick up his sleeve, and it was one that would throw Riley completely off his high horse!
"Sa'eye!"
The purple-skinned Pokemon had what appeared to be blue gems for eyes. It teetered playfully on its legs like a half-efforted dance. It struck first, using Will-O-Wisp on Barksky! Barksky's Ice-type body couldn't handle such an intense burn, and it caused it to faint!
Riley gasped and pet the scruff under Barksky's chin, sending it guiltily back into its PokeBall to recover. He sent out Burndillo, who illuminated the room with its flames yet again! It used Fire Wheel, and rammed its rapidly-spinning shell into the Sableye! The Pokemon fell over, landing on its behind and rubbing its gut, where there was now a burn mark!
It got up, trying its best not to stretch the burn mark, as each time it did, it was injected with a shot of pain across its body. It used Dark Pulse, causing a wave of darkness to close in on Burndillo! Burndillo's lowered health caused it to be unable to withstand the attack, and it fainted!
Riley returned it to its PokeBall before it could be further hurt. He thought to himself of the strategy he should now use. Sableye's one weakness was Fairy-type, but Riley had no Fairy-type Pokemon, or Fairy-type moves!
He sent out Bluntooth, hoping it would gain experience if not defeat the enemy's Pokemon! Bluntooth used Superpower, but it had absolutely no effect on Sableye! Both Bluntooth and Riley's eyes went wide in surprise.
Sableye used Will-O-Wisp, ghostly purple flames closing in on Bluntooth and inflicting it with burn marks on its body, and leaving some of its icy armour to melt. The cat thought of what it could possibly do. It used Ice Beam!
Sableye took decent damage, but not enough to make it weak! It countered the attack by using Night Shade! Bluntooth took regular damage from the attack. Its tail flicked with worry.
Concealpillar, who had apparently escaped its PokeBall without Riley noticing, nudged Riley's ankle with its big, round head. Riley picked it up in his hand and asked it what it wanted. "Con-lar! Pi! Pi-illa! Rallip!" Its chitter made absolutely no sense to Riley, but what was clear is that it wanted to battle.
Riley, cautiously, sent Concealpillar to take on Sableye! Concealpillar looked so it excited! It had just learned a new move by watching the battle from on top of RIley's shoe!
A blinding white light came out of its body! The light sparkled like snow, before focusing itself into twenty or so focused beams that cut through Sableye like spears! It was super effective! Dazzling Gleam! Sableye was down and unable to battle!
Another glorious light emanated from Concealpillar's body, its face looking triumphant. Was it, like Barksky had, evolving!? Riley beamed with excitement! Amongst the light, four to six pieces of a spherical shell appeared in the air. They closed in on Concealpillar before they had completely encased the tiny Pokemon's body.
The light dissipated, leaving behind the body of the same Pokemon that Polleniah had used to oppose Riley, Elric and Lilly at the Contest Palace. "Koon!" it cooed, sounding absolutely joyous. It hopped up and down in its spherical shell, the eyes on its shell looking like two upward facing half-circles it was so happy! It jumped into Riley's arms, now much larger and no longer able to fit in a single one of his hands, and Riley pet it affectionately, super proud of it.
"Ha! What a great battle, young Kricketot!" the Ninja exclaimed. "Your next trial awaits, but perhaps you should heal your fainted Pokemon." Riley agreed, and left into the elevator.
He walked nervously to the Pokemon Centre, hoping not to encounter any trainers on the way. On the rooftops, he saw a familiar figure. It was Night Shadow, who seemed only to be a silhouette in the moon's calm light, and his muscular Pokemon! They both jumped over the rooftops of smaller apartments, and jumped on the rooftop of the cylindrically-structured Pokemon Centre just as Riley walked through its glass doors.
"Hey there! You're the one who participated in a Pokemon Contest with out local star, Elric, right!?" the Nurse Joy working in this particular Pokemon Centre squealed, fangirling. "And you want me to heal your Pokemon for you!? Consider it done!"
Playing on the wide-screen TV in the waiting area was the Contest Palace live broadcast. Riley sat in one of the comfy, yet stylish armchairs in the waiting area, and watched the live feed. On stage was a Macho Man that looked very familiar to Riley- Marcus, could it be?- a Beauty wearing a stylish sun dress and cropped jacket that had diamond-shaped sleeves past the elbow, a male Swimmer who had a blue wave tattoo on his left pec and was in a pose meant to show off his muscles, and a dark-skinned Pokemon Freak wearing a beige bra, a headband that had Meowth ears on it, and a bikini bottom the same colour as her bra that had a Meowth-style plush tail sewn on the back. She also had a tiara on that had a Meowth's coin on it where the middle of her forehead was.
He was a little uncomfortable watching four people showing so much skin, and decided to cheer for the Beauty, who was wearing a fashionable outfit rather than publicly acceptable underwear.
She had her Milotic, a strong and captivatingly beautiful Pokemon that had an invertebrate body, use Whirlpool. The stunning Pokemon created a tornado of water that it jumped right into, spiraling around its torrents as if dancing. When the cyclone of water eventually dissipated, the beautiful Pokemon merely basked in the spray, letting the salty water leave a gleam on its skin.
The next turn belonged to Marcus- as the announcer had confirmed Riley's suspicions- who had a Machoke. "Machoke," Marcus called excitedly. "Use Mach Punch!"
But Riley was called to pick up his Pokemon from Nurse Joy before he could watch his past opponent's Pokemon use its move. "Thanks for visiting me, Superstar-in-the-Making!" Nurse Joy cooed, waving flirtatiously at Riley, whose face instantly became blank with discomfort. He turned around slowly, keeping an eye on his back, as he heard Nurse Joy sigh and chatter with the female cashier over at the PokeMart across the lobby about Riley's Pokemon Contest, how he won, and how cute his Burndillo was.
He let Burndillo out of its PokeBall, letting it roll happily beside him as they walked back to the gym. He decided to take a shortcut through an alleyway, where he noticed a steel garbage bin outside some apartment's back door shaking as if something was inside it. He heard, "Crow!" from one of the higher-up balconies.
A Pokemon flew down and grabbed his hat! He was not going to lose that hat! It was his favourite of his articles of clothing! He yelled at the Pokemon, which looked a lot like a smaller, less intimidating version of the Corvekt that the Hiker woman on Route 7, the cliff separating Eclisse City from Dinohlr Town, that was carrying a twig rather than a thick branch that had been fashioned into a sword.
"Crowtact!" it screeched. The sound alerted the Pokemon that had been making the garbage bin shake, which was a Darkoon!
Burndillo jumped in front of Riley, ready for battle! Riley also sent out Bluntooth, who looked ready to get his hat back for him!
Darkoon made the first move, using Bite on Bluntooth. Bluntooth took the hit with little pain, and used Ice Beam on the Crowtact! It was super effective, and the Pokemon slowly lost health until it eventually couldn't take the beam anymore and fainted! Riley ran over and grabbed his hat, running back to avid getting hit by any of the Pokemon's moves!
He put his hat back on his head and turned it slightly sideways, ordering Burndillo to use Flame Wheel! His beloved partner obeyed, curling up and ramming its flame-encased body into Darkoon's gut!
The wild Pokemon nibbled on the rotten food in the bento box it had dug out of the trash, and recovered a little bit of health! It used Scratch on Burndillo, but Burndillo took the hit very well! Riley called its name and ordered it to use Ember! It shot a burning coal that it coughed up from its throat at Darkoon, and it fainted from the burn!
Riley pet both of his Pokemon. But then, Burndillo let out a screech. White light blanketed the alley, causing both Darkoon and Crowtact to limp away out of fear with the last bit of their strength that they had left. Burndillo was swallowed by the light coming out of its body!
Riley observed in its silhouette that it grew greatly larger. Its body structure changed, allowing it to rest comfortably on its hind legs. On its waist, two large shield-like shell parts appeared, and the shell on its back cracked open. The shell it was now sporting was much sleeker and complemented the Pokemon's body like a knight's armour. Riley's partner had now become fat, and learned to control the fluid that had been leaking from its shell. It now ran through its shell in a matter that made it so it no longer leaked. On top of that, both the shell on its back and the shell-shields on its thighs had huge, sharp spikes on them.
Riley got on his knees and hugged the evolved Burndillo. He rubbed its shoulder with one hand and wiped a tear from his eye with his other. "Fa-lare..." the Pokemon sighed, affectionate.
"Number 2, Flaradillo. Fire-type. The Armadillo Pokèmon. Flaradillo can stand on their hind legs for up to ten minutes before losing balance. Their shells grow spikes as a response to their bodies growing too large and breaking them. On top of this, they occasionally breathe fire, especially when angry or provoked," recited his PokeDex.
Riley dug a Poffin out of his bag and fed it to Flaradillo, joyous to see his first Pokemon growing stronger. Bluntooth rubbed its small, frail body against Flaradillo's belly, purring affectionately.
Riley's brow became intense as he wall filled with the confidence to take on the upcoming Gym Leader battle!
He ran down the city's streets, stopping only for a second to marvel in the grandness of the skyscraper that was home to Derreck's Pokemon Gym.
"Taking on the Gym again?" asked the elevator worker. He inputted the same code as last time into the screen on the wall and bowed, making an upside-down arch with his hand as he urged Riley into the elevator. Riley hopped inside, Flaradillo waddling its chubby legs inside the elevator as well.
It shot up the dozens of floors until it arrived on the top floor, Derreck's Gym. Riley stepped out, the room still as dark as it had been before. A new trainer was waiting in the middle of the PokeBall rug. This trainer was a tall, slender older teenager. He wore a black sweater, the hood pulled up over his abyssal-blue hair, and black skinny jeans with many rips and burns in them. At some times, Riley could see bloody slits in the Punk Guy's right wrist.
"There's no beating me, man!" the Punk Guy shouted loudly! "I'll show you how powerful I can be when I'm empowered by the people around me!"
Punk Guy Alexander sent out a Chinockan Pokemon, an upright fox-like creature with a line of black going down the entirety of its back. "Sournox, open up with Night Shade!"
Flaradillo waddled onto the battlefield, awkwardly adapting to walking on two legs. The opposing Pokemon Sournox, had a black headpiece-like fur pattern that outlined its ears and cheeks and had two points on either side pointing towards its fangs. There was a jewel in the middle of its forehead that sent a red pulse through the black fur on its face and down its back.
It used night shade, the jewel, fur design, and its eyes all glowing the colour of freshly-drawn blood. A huge claw crawled out of the shadows that made up most of the room and dealt a lot of damage to Flaradillo with a critical hit!
Flaradillo retaliated by using Flame Wheel! It took a moment to adapt, since Flaradillo had grown quite a lot from its previous form, but it managed to curl up into a ball, its spiked shields becoming the outsides and its spiky back shell becoming the sharp tire! Its spikes lit up like torches as Flaradillo rolled Sonic the Hedgehog-style into Sournox.
The sly creature survived only with a little health left. It chittered, repeating itself as it built up its high-pitched but adorable voice. "S-so! So, sou-sourn! Sournox!"
It performed its next attack, Shadow Claw! Its fur glowed once more, this time a ghostly purple, and the pulse followed its patterned fur to the tip of its paw. Its claws extended in a ghostly shadow as it swung them at Flaradillo! But it missed!
Flaradillo used Ember, launching a still-glowing coal at Sournox! But it hit its Shadow Claw as Sournox was retracting it and fell apart, becoming harmless. Sournox attacked Flaradillo again, using Tackle! The Fire-type Pokemon curled up in its spiky shell and blocked some of the damage from the attack, but not all. It used its rolled-up state as an advantage, charging up a Flame Wheel right after it got hit with Tackle. It landed a critical hit on Sournox and it fainted!
Riley withdrew Flaradillo to preserve its little remaining health when he heard that the opposing Punk Guy was going to be sending out Honchkrow! "Honchkrow!" it cried, tipping its hat.
What could Riley use against a Flying- and Dark-type Pokemon!? He scrambled through his possible strategies. If only he had an Electric-type Pokemon, like Elric did. Then he remembered! Flying-type is weak to Ice-type!
"Blo-ooth!" Bluntooth purred. It used Ice Beam, a super effective attack! But Honchkrow's defenses were so high that it only lost less than half of its health from the attack. Honchkrow used Sunny Day, creating a ball of light and launching it into the air to act as a temporary indoor sun. It brightened up the room, and Riley noticed something. Derreck was no longer standing behind his desk. In fact, he was nowhere to be seen at all.
Everyone but Honchkrow covered their eyes from the incredible brightness. "Honchkrow, return! Go Houndoom!"
"Droom!" barked the hound Pokemon.
"Flamethrower!" Alexander ordered.
Houndoom used the temporary sun's energy to power up its Fire-type Flamethrower! It was so powerful that Bluntooth fainted in a single hit! Riley sent out Barksky, knowing its Ice typing would put it at a disadvantage to Honchkrow, but hoping its Brick break would be enough to take down its Dark-type opponent!
Brick Break it did! A critical hit and the super effectiveness of the Fighting-type attack on Alexander's Houndoom knocked Houndoom right unconscious!
"Augh!" Alexander grunted. "Return! Honchkrow, you're on!"
Barksky took its chance to attack, using Ice Fang, an attack it had learned since gaining its secondary Ice typing. Honchkrow had been weakened, and the super effective attack caused it to faint!
"I don't feel so empowered anymore..." Alexander pouted, slouching as he dragged his feet along the ground out of Riley's way.
The temporary sun disappeared, but there was still enough light in the room for Riley to see a very familiar face at the end of the room. Lilly was descending from an elevator platform that seemed to just float through the air gently with nothing supporting it from the ceiling or the ground. She stepped out of the cylindrical elevator interior, the black railing in the front end of it sliding open for her. "Riley!"
Beside her walking, was a long, invertebrate Pokemon that had a helmet over its face that had the texture of bone. Despite its similarities, it wasn't Elelel. Riley aimed his PokeDex at it. Number 5, Moreel. Water- and Psychic-type. The Electric-Hypnotic Pokèmon. Moreel grow significantly over the course of evolution. They coil and hide in reefs of Coralyte, and then spring out of their coiled state to attack their prey. It emanates a neurotoxin that feels like an electric shock if felt. Coralyte, however, are immune to this neurotoxin."
"Impressed?" Lilly asked, flipping her ponytail over her shoulder. "My Elelel evolved into Moreel!"
Riley nodded. It looked like a very honourable Pokemon.
"Oh my gosh, is that the evolution of Burndillo!?" Lilly gasped, her hands going straight to her cheeks. She pet Flaradillo's head with gentle vigor, aiming her PokeDex at it to find out more!
"Look what I got!" she exclaimed, skipping on her heels as she pointed to a third badge on her messenger-style bag's strap. "That's right, the Moon Badge! That means I'm technically beating you now!"