Another of many peaceful times in the Astral Planes for Chef DK as he was burying another berry into the moistened soil in the Berry Fields. "There we go, nice and fertile." He mused. "There! Give another two days and we'll be having fresh Tomato Berries to add to the curry recipe I've been trying."

"(Here you go!)" Cutiefly buzzed over, dragging the watering can in her tiny arms.

"Oh, thank you, Cutiefly." Chef DK took the can and dipped it down onto the soil. The water doused the dirt, quickly dampening it and making it easier for the berry to grow. "Perfect, hehehe."

Lilith floated over, greeting the chef. "Hello to you, Chef DK."

"Huh? O-oh, het Lilith, what's up?" Chef DK asked. "You need something from me?"

"Oh! Right, I'm sorry to ask, but I was wondering if you wouldn't by any chance happen to spare another one of those berries for me?"

Chef DK's eyes widened. "Oh! That's right! My bad, my bad. Uh, hold on." He reached into the basket beside him, pulling out an Oran Berry for her. "Here you go. You just need one per day, right?"

Lilith merrily nodded. "Yes! Thank you very much!" She took the berry from the chef and began to eat it. It was a very common thing to see her out and about her shrine, since she's normally dormant and conserving her energy the majority of her time. It was also habit to Chef DK to always have some form of berry ready for her, mainly to help keep her fed, as well as replenish her energy faster. And what better way to do that than with an Oran Berry.

As expected upon watching her, Lilith ate the Oran Berry up and felt a surge of power run through her. When it receded, she looked much more replenished.

"Ah, that was delicious! Thank you, Chef DK!"

The chef waved her off. "No trouble. So, you able to tell when the others are ready to come back whenever, or how's it work?"

Lilith frowned as she hummed. "Hmm, well, I can usually tell because I have a link with everyone who had been to the Astral Planes before. If they want to come back, I can sense it and decide to transport them here."

"Oh, okay…" Chef DK looked down as he seemed contemplative. "Been a while, wonder how they're doing?"

Suddenly, Lilith's orb shined brightly, catching her and Chef DK's attention. "Oh! I can feel it! Lord Corrin's calling for me! Hold on!"

"Already?! Damn, speak of the devil!" Chef DK grinned.

Lilith curled up atop her orb as it shined brightly with her eyes. In the center of the fortress, not too far from them, a hemisphere of light energy fluxed into view before dissipating. Corrin, Evan, and the rest of their exhausted entourage made their grand venture back, and save for Rinkah and Hayato, they all looked worse for wear. Behind them were the numerous Flying-type Pokémon that they've defeated earlier that they took with them.

"My god…never thought I'd miss this place so much…!" Evan breathed heavily, looking ready to collapse any second.

"I think I have blisters." Freya muttered.

"Girl, you don't even wanna know where I got my blisters at!" Damon exclaimed.

Though he looked out of breath, Corrin managed to keep himself more upright than the rest of his party. "We're finally back…Lilith?"

Lilith floated up to him with a warm smile. "Welcome back, Lord Corrin! I trust that your adventure went well!"

Corrin nodded. "Yeah, you can say that. We've managed to find some to bring back while we were at it." He looked over his shoulder at the numerous Flying-type Pokémon, who all craned their heads and floated about aimlessly in wonder of their new surroundings.

"That's great! A very fruitful venture indeed!" She turned towards Rinkah and Hayato. "And I see you've also come with allies. A pleasure to meet you."

Hayato shirked back in shock. "A…a dragon?"

"I didn't expect to see something like this to be here. I've hardly heard of their existences, let alone seen any." Rinkah admitted.

Chef DK walked up to them, looking mildly happy to see the main company back again. "Oh, hey guys! Glad you made it back!" The majority of the group looked to be struggling to say anything as they were ready to fall over. He raised a brow. "…you guys good?"

"Fo', do we look good to you?!" Damon exasperated his sarcasm.

"No, not really. Hehe, you kinda look like you ran a marathon through hell…"

"So…many…stairs." Evan grunted. "I don't think I can walk anymore."

"Me neither…" Freya lost the strength in her plump legs, falling onto her large behind. Evan, Damon, Sakura, Felicia, even Felicia fell to their backsides unable to stand. The others didn't even have the strength to put them back on their feet, even with Gunter and Subaki's stallions at their aid.

"Uh…guys? You good?" He only got tired groans in response. "…you guys need water?"

"Yes, please." Evan exasperated.

"O-Okay! I'll go get a couple pitchers and you guys can just relax! You can work out the rest later." Without haste, Chef DK hurried back to the mess hall. "Farfetch'd! Munchlax! Get out some pitchers and run the cold water!"

"Thank you!" Corrin yelled back. He, like the others, didn't have much strength to stand and fell to a knee. "Gngh…Evan."

"Yeah…?"

"I…think it's best that we lie down for a while."

"You said it. Forget the baths…I just want a nap."

Shortly after, Chef DK rushed back, holding up four pitchers of fresh, cold water. "Okay, I got you guys some water. Here, drink up."

Everyone made a dash for the pitchers, grabbing them like their lives depended on them.

"OH SHIT!" Chef DK pulled away as he watched the group didn't even have the decency to use manners. They held the pitchers over their mouths and unleashed volumes of cold water down their throats. Everyone felt their bodies go into a euphoric shock as the cold liquid revitalized their bodies.

By the time Chef DK realized it, the pitchers that were filled nearly a minute ago were all emptied and laid in front of him. He blinked as he processed the information. "…so I take it you were thirsty?"

Damon sighed loudly. "Dat was some good ass water, fo'. Now, I needa chill." He sauntered his way back towards his living quarters.

"Lilith…for Rinkah and Hayato too…please." Corrin panted.

Lilith nodded. "Of course." With fresh Dragon Veins thanks to the berries she's consumed and the ones Corrin, Azura, and Sakura had accumulated from the real world, Lilith managed to channel them through her orb. A brief magnitude erupted as her eyes glowed.

When it all settled, besides the many duplexes and small homes sat up for the party members, another one on the far corner appeared from a set of runes that faded. It looked as identical as the rest, but this one had the space for Rinkah and Hayato.

Hayato's eyes widened. "Woah! Did she just-!" He looked over to see everyone sauntering, if not crawling, back to their respective homes. They didn't even have the strength to stand upright at this point! "Hey! Where you guys going?!"

"Better let them be for now. They're tired." Rinkah advised, turning towards him. "C'mon, let's check this place out."

Hayato shrugged. "Yeah, sure thing!"

Meanwhile, the others crawled their way back to their respective homes. Corrin barely had the strength to stand, but he was able to get up to his house. Thankfully for Evan and Freya, theirs was near foot level, so they had it easier and made it behind the makeshift door and to their beds.

"Ugh…home sweet home…" Evan muttered, plopping onto the bed on his stomach.

"You said it…" Freya followed his example, blacking out the moment her body met the soft sheets.

The two were immediately asleep, as were the rest of the party members. After a very long trek, they rightfully earned the elating rest.

14 Hours Later

Evan was lying in bed in a rather tired position, his body positioned on his side with his beanie turned sideways. He would have been mistaken for dead by any normal eyes had it not been for the soft, long breaths he took in and out of his nostrils.

Eventually, it came to a point that he had to wake up. His eyes slowly opened as he groaned loudly. He turned on his blanket over onto his other side, which was a big mistake that put him onto the wooden floor. "Gmmmm…" Even then, he was still too tired to feel any pain.

Eventually though, after what felt like a couple minutes of dozing on a less than comfortable position, Evan sat up. "Okay…I'm up. I'm up, I'm up…" He got to his feet with help from leaning against his bed. When he was up, he immediately felt the weakness in his legs. They were so sore he almost fell over again. "I'm gonna be feeling that for a while…"

When he looked over, he saw Freya was still asleep, her lips parted and her eyes closed. She looked completely worn out.

"What time is it?" When he went towards the opening to their treehouse, he peered out and saw that the sky was brightening up again. "Wasn't it barely evening when we got back?" He yawned as he scratched the back of his neck. "Must have been out longer than I thought."

Chef DK walked up to him, already up and wide awake. "Oh, hey Evan, I was just about to wake you. Man, you guys were out."

"Oh…hey Chef DK." Evan mumbled back. "How long were we out for?"

"I wanna say over 12 hours. It was close to supper when you got back. Slept the whole night away, huh?"

Evan opened his mouth and yawned loudly. "Yeah, sorry about that. It was rough."

Chef DK slowly nodded in understanding. "I bet. Well I made breakfast if you're hungry. Probably should eat something."

"Yeah…you're right. I'll get Freya up and we'll…limp over there."

"Well you better hurry, those scrambled eggs aren't going to stay warm forever, you know." Chef DK headed back towards the mess hall, leaving Evan to sigh and walk back inside to awaken his roommate.

He looked over Freya and leaned in. He placed a hand on her shoulder and nudged her. "Freya…Freya, time to get up. Come on."

"Mmmm…" Freya turned from her side onto her back, groggily opening her eyes. The way her long black hair was tossed to her side and her robe exposing her thick, chocolate-skinned thighs made her look more sexy than anything.

"Rise and shine, Sleeping Beauty. Breakfast is ready."

"Evan…?" She groaned.

"Can you get up with those blisters on your feet?"

"I think so…" She tossed herself onto her other side, managing to sit upright. When she got up, she immediately felt her feet sore that it hard to stand upright. She almost fell over had it not been for Evan supporting her.

"Easy there." He wrapped an arm around her torso, trying his best to support her. She draped an arm around his shoulder to support herself on him. "Okay, let's go."

"Thanks, Evan…"

"Yeah, no problem." He ignored how heavy she was leaning onto him with her ample bust pressed to his chest. It'd feel great if he wasn't feeling half-dead. The two lethargically supported the other as they made their way towards the mess hall.

Eventually, the two were able to arrive at their designation. They found a table, with their peers sitting around them with all their Pokémon out. With breakfast on the way, this was good time for the Pokémon to be engaging in conversations.

"(Man, all those battles yesterday were so thrilling! This was fun!)" Monferno chimed, turning towards Corrin's Riolu. "(Especially you, you sure showed me up with that last move!)"

"(It was a hardy gambit, I admit. But it paid off, and I thank you for your assistance.)" Riolu humbly bowed to him.

Monferno smirked eagerly. "(No problem! Even though I really wanted to get the last swing in…hey, maybe we can battle each other soon!)"

"(Should our Trainers opt to train, I won't object. You should try and bare a sense of patience. That energy is best suited for battle.)"

Wartortle turned towards Butterfree. "(If you're talking about battles, it's Butterfree who took the reins this time.)"

Butterfree looked shocked. "(I-I wouldn't say that. I was at a type disadvantage the whole time.)"

"(Yeah, but your Electroweb made the big difference. Between you and Carkol, they hardly got close to any of us. Really, you both deserve more credit than any of us out there.)"

"(Si, I hate to admit it, but you have given me quite the challenge indeed. Both of you.)" Hawlucha admitted, nodding in respects. "(I tip my beak to you.)"

"(See? Take the glory for once. Eat big today.)" Wartortle urged.

Butterfree stood on his feet, looking down sheepishly. "(…a-alright, I you say so…I guess I did exceptional, heh.)"

"(…)" Carkol remained silent, but his silent nod confirmed he acknowledged the credibility as well.

"(So I guess you're my teammate, right?)" Freya's newest Pokémon, Trapinch, inquired, looking at Carkol.

Carkol turned slightly towards her with a blank stare.

Trapinch blinked, looking only irritated. "(You deaf or something?)"

"(He doesn't talk much.)" Butterfree advised.

"(Oh…guess that explains it.)" Trapinch stomped on the ground. "(Well, I'm hungry! When's our food gonna be here?!)"

Riolu scoffed. "(Apparently, Monferno isn't the only one who is in need of a certain virtue.)"

"(Wow, look at all of us! So many new faces here to play with!)" Brionne ogled across the mess hall's new residence and Pokémon that were gathered around her.

Chef DK walked around, passing a plate for Evan. "Here you go, Evan. Your share."

"Thank you." Evan looked down at his meal, which looked to be a sizeable amount of scrambled eggs with shredded cheddar cheese melted on top. Looking inside, he could tell there were some bits of what looked like crackers, for reasons he couldn't understand. But compared to what Chef DK made last time, it was a vast improvement. 'Well, at least it won't make me sick.'

Freya's plate was presented by Munchlax, much to her surprise. "Oh, thank you." She thanked the Pokémon.

Evan turned towards the Munchlax. "Oh, is that Munchlax yours, Chef DK?"

"Yeah, sure is. Gave me some trouble at first, but I think we're over it." The chef admitted. "Trust me, you don't wanna know how long it took to make him not eat what's in front of him."

"(…I still wanna eat.)" Munchlax stated. "(Yummy chef make more for me.)"

"I'll make some more for you soon, just help me pass the rest out and I'll make it then." He warned Munchlax. "God, I swear. Doesn't make it easy."

With help from Farfetch'd and Munchlax passing out the meal, everyone was able to eat their questionable eggs. It was an acquired taste, some could admit to that, but the eggs had a gooey texture, but cooked enough that they weren't raw. The cheese added flavor, and the crackers gave it some extra crunch. Overall, it wasn't as terrible as one would think.

Damon's lips smacked as he was downing his share. "Mm, fo', about time we get something good from all dis work!"

"(You said it. Was worried that I would becoming nothing but pure skin and bones.)" Scraggy added, holding up his skin pants. "(Then these would definitely not fit me.)"

"Yeah, you get it. Hey, ole' chef! Can we get another round over here?!"

Chef DK perked up from behind the counter. "Huh? Done already? Man, you must have been hungry, huh? Yeah, yeah, I'll make you some more."

"Alright, thanks!"

"It would seem that we have some hardy appetites here." Gunter acknowledged.

"I don't blame them. After all the walking and traveling we had to do, I think we've overstepped ourselves." Corrin acknowledged. "But wait…" He looked around, peering left and right at the people in the mess hall. "Does anybody know where Keith and Nathan are?"

"Hm? Oh! Now that you've mentioned it, I haven't seen them around." Felicia realized.

"They must still be in the real world collecting Pokémon with the transporter the doctor entrusted them with." Azura noted. "And as you know, time flows much faster here…we may not hear from them for some time."

"I see…" Corrin frowned. He almost forgot that time was much different between both realities. Who knows how much more time would come and go before they run into their friends again? Hopefully it wouldn't be too long; after all, even they have limits that they should keep track of.

The doors to the mess hall flung open as Poopenschmir made himself known. "Oh! Greetings, everyone!" He exclaimed in his thick Russian accent, prancing his way over towards everyone.

Corrin offered him a smile. "Hello, Doctor Poopenschmir. It's been some time, hasn't it?"

"Yes, it indeed has. So then, since you have returned, tell me…" He smiled expectantly. "Did anyone find anymore Immersifier fragments?"

For a moment, everyone paused and looked towards the other. Some of them – Rinkah and Hayato particularly – didn't even understand what he meant. The others either didn't find any or forgot completely because they were so engrossed in their detour to the Wind Tribe Village.

"Sorry, doctor dude, ain't gots anything." Damon shrugged.

Azura frowned. "Yes, apologies. Afraid we've came up short this time in finding anything involving the Immersifier."

As if like a switch was turned off, Poopenschmir's cheerful demeanor turned to a sulk. "I-I see…that is unfortunate…"

"Well I mean, Nathan and Keith are out there still. Maybe they'll have better luck than us." Evan proposed a bright side.

Poopenschmir's eyes widened at the revelation Evan provided. "Oh…yes, you are right! Yes, there is hope indeed! Just have to be a little more patient, and we shall see!" He skipped away, looking cheerful.

Chef DK came around with another fresh plate in hand for Damon. "Well that was a first. I don't normally see the doctor out and about his lab. Been a couple of months in this place. Sure needed fresh air." He put the plate down in front of Damon. "Here you go, man."

"Oh, thanks fo'. You best!" Damon praised the chef before picking up his utensil and eating away.

As Freya was getting her fill of breakfast, on the far side of the table, Hayato squeezed himself into a chair smoothly. He cleared his throat once while glancing at Freya. When that wasn't loud enough, he scooted closer slowly, until he was right beside her. He put on a brave face and cockily smirked at her.

"Hey."

Hearing the greeting, Freya looked towards her left. "Hm? Yeah?"

"Sorry, couldn't help but notice you there." Hayato greeted coolly, looking at his knuckles before rubbing them on his shirt. "So you're one of these 'Special Trainers' I've been told about, right?"

Freya nodded. "I am. I'm Freya."

"Freya…" He parroted her name with a singsong chime, like they soothed his fluttering heart. "Such a beautiful name, befitting that of a goddess. Ah~, I could listen to that voice all day."

"Um…okay…?" Freya blinked, showing no visible interests in his obvious show of swooning over her.

Hayato sat back in his seat casually. "Yup, so not sure if you've heard, but I'm Hayato. Not to brag or anything, but I'm kind of a prodigy when comes to the art of Divining in the Wind Tribe Village. People say that I'm gifted." He craned his head towards her. "If you'd like, I can show you some spells some-"

As Freya was barely invested in his swooning, she felt a very soft, cold touch to her arm and looked over at her Snom present. "Oh, what is it, Snom? You hungry?" She picked out a pinch of a cracker and some egg and held it up to Snom's stubby mouth. "Here you go."

Snom moved her body closer, eating away at the food offered to her. To her delight, it seemed to taste pretty good. "(Mm, this human food isn't bad at all…maybe could be refrigerated a little though.)"

"H-hey, are you listening?!" Hayato found Freya's attention no longer on him, much to his chagrin.

She turned back towards him. "Hm? Sorry, what was that last part again?"

Hayato furrowed his brow as he turned away, his cheeks partially pink. "I-its nothing. Another time."

"I think it's fair to say that I'm a natural at this Pokémon Battling!" Subaki boasted, reveling in his recent triumph in their battle against the Wind Tribe.

Hana folded her arms, scoffing. "Hmph! Please, you wouldn't know the first thing about handling that thing if it wasn't for Evan pointing everything out for you!"

Subaki glared at her while smirking. "Oh really? Well I still fared better than you. Says plenty of who the superior retainer is, don't you?)"

Off to the side, Hana's Machop was sitting down, shoving his share of berries that Chef DK stockpiled for months for everybody. Subaki's comment did a number on his pride. "(Hmph! They just got lucky.)"

"Uh, guys. Please, let's just drop this for now." Sakura insisted.

Hana huffed. "Er, right…"

Subaki sighed. "Suppose I shall refrain. But…I will admit, Evan truly was a splendid tactician out there. Such skills of a Pokémon Trainer indeed."

Evan rubbed the back of his head. "You're just sugarcoating it. I still made some mistakes out there." For a moment, he thought of his brief dual against Hayato head-on. He could have easily avoided that, but he blamed his lack of rest for his few instances of narrow-minded tactics.

Azura shook her head. "Don't be so modest. You've come up with such great plans. We'd probably be having a harder time if it wasn't for you."

"She's right. Being around all these Pokémon is easier thanks to you and Freya." Sakura admitted, with Audino hugging her. "Hehe…literally."

"I'd have to agree. I'm sure we'd be having a far worse affair thinking that Pokémon would be just another force to take out. But thanks to you and Larvitar, I think otherwise." Gunter acknowledged, turning to pat his Larvitar's head.

"Evan…" Corrin looked at him with a serious smile. "Believe it or not, we really do appreciate you. Don't sell yourself short. We think you're a great Trainer we can learn from."

Evan blinked. He honestly wasn't sure of what to say in response, but even if he tried to compliment back, he figured it'd just bounce back to him. He looked back at his Wartortle and Butterfree, then back at Corrin and sighed. "Fine, you win. Guess I'll do my best."

Freya leaned into Evan, their shoulders touching. "There we go, champ. A little pick-me-up to brighten our horizons." She smirked, causing Hayato to flinch in his seat.

"Heh…yeah."

Wartortle smirked at the sight before glancing at Butterfree. "(Heh…guess you're not the only one who's modest around here.)"

"(I guess so.)" Butterfree hummed.

With the conclusion of their breakfast, the majority of the party ended up taking their leisure towards another place in mind – the bathhouse. Since they all were too tired to move yesterday, they opted to take baths as soon as possible. Which meant right after breakfast.

The hot water against their dirtied, fatigued bodies felt like heaven. No better word could describe how they felt. The pain and the agony in their legs still lingered, but compared to earlier, it was far more tolerable.

Still, enough of their fill was met. Evan was amongst the many to get out first and change into his regular clothes since his battle attire needed to get washed. He sauntered his way out the bathhouse with his arms stretched above his head.

"Mmmmm! Man…I really needed that. I always keep forgetting how great baths feel after such a long time." He walked across the castle domain until he came close to the Lottery Shop. "Oh, the Lottery Shop." He blinked once before looking around. "…I mean, it's not like I have nothing to do…and I don't lose anything out of it." Convincing himself, he knew what to do. "Might as well see what they have."

Evan walked into the Lottery Shop, only to find somebody had beaten him to it.

"Alright, fo, let's get it today! Something good!" Before Evan was Damon, who was ready to spin for his prize. He did so, the roulette quickly churning to a halt. "Gimme good, gimme good…"

The wheel stopped and spat out a bronze nugget. He snickered as he inserted it into the hole and watched it disappear. He waited until he heard a clang in a cubby adjacent to him and opened it up to see his new prize.

"Alright, let's see…" When he peered inside, it was nothing more than an orange and yellow striped soda can with an easy-open lid atop. When he picked it up, he saw that it read 'Lemonade'…or as close as he could understand it with his illiteracy. "Hm, dis Bluk Berry Juice?" He opened the lid and started sipping from it, quickly telling what it was. "Ah, dat ain't Bluk Berry Juice! Dat be Lemonade…oh well, sweet like Bluk Berry. I'll take it."

"(Aye, save some for me up dere!)" Scraggy complained.

"Yeah, yeah, I hears you down dere. I'll saves some for ye, lil' Scrags."

"Oh, hey Damon." Evan greeted him.

After taking another sweet, satisfying sip of his revitalizing beverage, Damon turned towards him. "Hm? Oh, you, lil' beanie man. What's happenin', fo'?"

Evan shrugged. "Nothing, just figured I would get a daily spin in while I'm up." He looked at the Lemonade in his hands. "And I see you won a prize already."

"Yeah man, it actually ain't dat bad. Could have been better, like Bluk Berry Juice, but I ain't complaining. You wanna spin?"

"Yeah, sure." Evan moved forward as Damon stepped off to the side. He reached out towards the lever and spun it. The spinner made consistent clicks as it spun clockwise until it slowed down. When it did, it eventually halted, spitting out a silver nugget.

"Silver?" Evan blinked at his draw, picking it up.

"Oh, what you gonna get?" Damon asked.

"We'll see." Evan reached over and inserted the silver nugget. When he did, he waited for several seconds like his ally did prior to him. When he heard a loud clang beside him in the cubby, he watched it open up to reveal his prize.

It was a small black disc, no different than the one Felicia won the last time she did her draw. However, a keen difference this time was that the inner ring was bright purple, with the side having a label that read. 'TR 57: Poison Jab'.

"What the…?" Evan muttered as he inspected his winnings. "Hey, didn't Felicia win something like this before? What was it again? A 'TR'?"

Damon slurped from his can for the umpteenth time before passing it down towards Scraggy. "I don't know, I can tell you dat right now."

Evan looked down at his prize again with heavy inquiry. 'Huh…I wonder of Bellsprout can learn this move? It'd make her a lot more effective in battle.' It made sense when he thought about it. Bellsprout was part Poison-type after all, it was a no-brainer to him that it would make sense. He chose not to dawdle and brought out his Bellsprout right then and there.

"(Huh? The heck is going on now?)" The Flower Pokémon turned about, noticing her Trainer holding a black disc. "(The heck's that for?)"

"Bellsprout, hold still for me. I wanna try and see if you can learn this move." Evan instructed as he held out the TR to her.

"(It better be something that isn't annoying.)" She huffed. Bellsprout held out a leaf when the TR was within reach. This instantly invoked a bright light, which overtook the entire TR itself.

Evan was so shocked that he pulled back. The TR clung to Bellsprout as she remained still. He, Damon, and Scraggy watched as the TR eventually brightened to where it shattered like glass that faded into the air. Bellsprout blinked as she looked unharmed by the disc shattering.

"Wha-?! It shattered!?" Evan gasped.

"Fo', I thought dat dese TMs er whatever were supposed to not break!" Damon exclaimed.

"I thought so, too…I guess it's different with TRs. Maybe they're meant for a single use after all." Evan frowned. To him it was kind of disappointing to know that certain attacks could only be taught once. But at least this confirmed what a TR was in the end.

"Well man, least your weed got a new move. Guess dat's fine." Damon shrugged.

"(Uh, who you calling a weed again, you lowlife, back-alley jackass?)" Bellsprout sassily countered, putting her leaves to her sides.

"(Ooooh~, girl gots a tongue inside dat flower!)" Scraggy awed.

The curtains soon opened, revealing Corrin and Riolu. "Hey, what's all the commotion in here?" Corrin started.

"Oh, hey Corrin." Evan greeted. "Damon and I just learned that these TRs can only be used one time before they break."

He blinked. "TRs…? Like that one disc Felicia won?"

"Yeah, that! Anyways, so apparently TMs can used as many times as you want, but TRs are a one-time use. Hmmm…" He looked down at the ground, his head spinning with ideas. "Now that I think about it, we've all probably got a few TMs on us already. I mean, I know I have some…wait!" His eyes widened at an idea. "Oh, Corrin! I think I have an idea!"

"What is it?" Corrin listened carefully. He knew that whatever idea Evan had, he'd listen.

"Well, you remember how I said before that Fighting-types are weak to Flying-types, right?"

"Right…?"

"But in most cases, Fighting-types can learn Rock-type attack by TM…and apparently TR. So what I'm trying to say is…" He pulled out a brown disc from his pocket, which was something he had found the same time he had caught Bellsprout. "We can teach your Riolu this TM for Rock Tomb. That'll surely help."

Corrin's eyes widened, recalling what Evan said. "Evan…that might work! Okay then." He looked down at Riolu. "What do you say, Riolu, want to learn Rock Tomb?"

"(If you insist that it will further increase our chances of success in our future endeavors, I will humbly obliged to your words.)" Riolu turned towards the TM Evan had in hand and stood firmly still, confirming that he was ready.

"Alright, stay still…" Evan kneeled and presented the TM to Riolu, the latter's paw reaching to touch it and accept the power. A light radiated for several seconds, but unlike with the TR, the TM didn't break.

After several seconds, the light faded as Riolu opened his eyes. He looked down at his palms to feel a small difference in his potential.

"Did it work?" Corrin questioned.

Evan nodded. "Yeah, it worked. Well, at the very least you have a fighting chance against Flying-types."

Corrin proudly smiled. "Thanks, Evan. You know, it would be best if everyone could benefit from these TMs."

"I mean, you're right about that, but only certain Pokémon can learn certain TMs. Some can't even learn some until they evolve. But…" He paused as he was thinking of an alternative. "Oh, I got it! How about we use the Accessory Shop?"

"The Accessory Shop?" Corrin parroted.

"Fo', ain't dat place for clothes or whatever?" Damon reasoned.

"I mean, yeah, but it's not like we have a warehouse. And when you think about it, TMs and TRs are kinda like accessories…"

Damon smacked his lips as he rolled his eyes left and right. "Uuuuh…eh, aitz, guess I'll give you dat one, fo'."

Corrin smiled in agreement. "Great idea, Evan. I'll let the others know about this. That way all our TMs we want to learn will be in one place and we can go there whenever we want."

"Exactly."

"Well, you go and do dat, I'll be going and making more ammo. Oh yeah…" Damon reached back and pulled out numerous discs that he had with him, giving them to Evan. "Yo, lil' beanie man. Do me a solid and drop dese off den for me. Thanks!"

Evan blinked, not even getting a second to back out. "Uh, o-okay…?"

Bellsprout rolled her eyes. "(Pushover.)"

With that, Corrin and Riolu exited, with Evan following behind and Damon going to the Armory to work on getting more bullets prepared.

Corrin took his liberties elsewhere alongside Riolu, the two looking around while Evan went his own way to drop off the TMs he was entrusted with. With him tending to his own matters at the moment, Corrin came to a realization.

"I think we should Rinkah and Hayato. We should let them in on how to battle…oh!" Not far from him, he recognized his certain retainer. "Felicia."

"Oh, Lord Corrin! Good to see you!" Felicia chimed, standing upright and politely bowing towards him.

He smiled back. "Great to see you too. Say, have you seen Rinkah or Hayato around by chance?"

Felicia blinked, raising a brow. "Hmmm…well, not particularly." She then clapped her hands together. "Oh! But now that you mention it, I think I saw Gunter head into the arena with Subaki a few moments ago."

"Gunter and Subaki? Why?" Even Corrin would admit that he didn't expect such a duo to head into the arena. At the very least, this piqued his curiosity.

"I'm sure that they're both trying to better understand their Pokémon is all. Maybe they're battling right now."

"Got it, thanks for letting me know." Corrin smiled and thanked his retainer before heading off in the direction of the battle area.

With nothing to do at the time, Felicia picked up her skirt and followed after him. "Wait up! I'm coming too!"

Once Corrin and Felicia made it inside the arena's confines, they entered the tunnel that led straight out towards the light brimming far ahead. They both exited and covered their eyes. Once the light faded enough to where their eyes could painfully adjust, they blinked and saw Gunter and Subaki opposite of each other.

Corvisquire ascended into the air to gain a distance from Larvitar below. The raven cawed loudly as her beak glowed bright white and she dove after Larvitar. The smaller, heavier Pokémon stood her ground as her hardened exterior took the literal pecking order that Corvisquire dished out. However, the attack hardly fazed her opponent, much to her chagrin. She was abruptly countered by Larvitar when dark energy manifested in her horn and struck Corvisquire like a spear straight into her chest, sending her careening back into the air.

"(Try handling this!)" Larvitar spread her legs as an orange-brown outline enveloped her body. She stomped on the ground between both feet, making the earth shudder and dust kicking up with her force. Until finally, she pressed firmly on her left heel, sending pieces of shattered ground spearheading at Corvisquire.

Corvisquire squawked in worry, but when she closed her eyes and braced for the impact…nothing happened. "(Hm?)" She looked as the stones touched her body, but her plumage absorbed it and caused the fragments to diminish.

"Hm…it would seem that my Ground-type attacks have no effect on this type of Pokémon." Gunter realized.

"So it would seem, Sir Gunter." Subaki remarked, frowning. "Still, to think that much of her attacks would do so little on yours…"

"H-hold on!" Sakura, who was off to the side observing their training, came up with Audino waddling behind. "Let Audino and I heal you. You both have been working really hard."

Gunter turned towards her with a smile. "Ah, Lady Sakura. Much appreciated, but you mustn't worry. Dear Larvitar here hasn't sustained much damage from our battle so far."

"(Yeah, I'm okay. I mean it stings a little, but a nap and I'll be good as new!)" Larvitar insisted. If one could measure her HP, she would only have a small fraction of it gone, more accurately 4/5 remaining.

Sakura clutched her staff, uncertain to a fault. But she chose not to go against it. "O-okay then. We'll treat Corvisquire then. Audino, Heal Pulse…please?"

Audino smiled softly as she turned towards Corvisquire. She brought her hands together to manifest a pink orb of soothing energy before pushing it outwards. Waves of the energy reached Corvisquire, who felt a wave of relaxation wash over her as her injuries healed up.

"Thank you, Lady Sakura! I am grateful under your care!" Subaki beamed.

"It's no problem, really." Sakura sheepishly smiled.

"(Wow, I feel as light as a feather now! Wait…but I'm all feathers…)" Corvisquire trailed off at her own self-inflicted confusion. She was so taken back that she was surprised when Audino came up and embraced her. "(O-Oh! W-what are you doing?! I-I mean you're so fluffy and soft, but…)"

"Hey, what's going on here?" Corrin decided to make his presence known as he walked up towards Gunter and Subaki. The two turned and saw their ringleader approach with curiosity in mind.

"Ah, Milord. Good to see you. We were undergoing some training to understand more of these Pokémon types." Gunter stated.

"Indeed. But if this were to continue, I would certainly master this in no time!" Subaki chimed. "As a proud retainer of noble blood, I won't settle for any less than perfection! For Lady Sakura's sake!"

"Um…t-thank you, Subaki…?" Sakura didn't know what to say, and rightfully so.

"That said, I must battle more to achieve this level." He then got an idea as he looked at Corrin's Riolu. "Ah, I have an idea! Corrin, was it? Let us battle!"

"You sure?" Corrin blinked at the sudden proposal. It was so out of the blue, but at the same time, felt appropriate given the circumstances that they came here. 'This might actually be a good time to try out that TM move Riolu just learned against Flying-types.' He cleared his throat as he quickly made a follow-up. "Well then, guess if we're to get stronger. Sure, we're ready."

"Excellent! Haha!"

"Don't think you can start with us!" Corrin and the others heard the shout and turned towards the tunnel. From there, they saw Rinkah alongside Monferno. And not just them, but also Hayato, Kaze, Hana, Chef DK, Azura, Evan, and Freya all accounted for.

"You guys all came?" Corrin blinked, visibly stunned.

Kaze nodded. "Indeed. Evan informed us on the sharing of these TMs that many of us agreed on. We all came here to get more experience. Please, allow us to observe."

Hayato scoffed, "Not that I won't pick up faster than anyone else, but I think a demonstration would suffice."

Corrin nodded in understanding. "Alright then, let's do it!"

In a couple of minutes, the people who weren't battling went back through the tunnel, where there was a stairwell on the side that would take them to the stands that sat above. With front row seats, everyone took their positions with their Pokémon out to observe how a proper battle should be.

On the field below, Corrin and Subaki were on opposite sides of the field marked with white paint. The perimeter was rectangular, with a Poké Ball symbol in the center, something that they didn't pick up on until Evan pointed it out. Once they were in position, Azura stepped forward.

"Alright, both of you fight well. This shall be single combat between two Pokémon. No interference." She stated clearly for everyone to understand.

"We understand." Corrin confirmed.

"Very well. Corvisquire, let us do proud!" Subaki boasted.

"Sheesh, he's already got a big head. Hope Corrin knocks him down a peg." Hana mused.

"H-Hana…!" Sakura gasped.

Hana meekly giggled. "It's fine, it's fine. Sorry. Still, I hope to see more of how Pokémon battle." She glanced over to find her Machop not even bothering to sit down. He was gripping the bleachers as he looked like he wanted to be in that arena himself. 'I need to better myself quick so I don't fall behind.'

"If I recall, Corvisquire is a Flying-type, right?" Freya asked Evan.

"Yeah, I checked. So that means Corrin's Riolu is at a disadvantage since he's a Fighting-type. But he also has that new move…we'll see just how effective it is."

With no need to hold back, Azura stepped away. "Alright…begin!"

"The one who's swift is the one who strikes hardest! Corvisquire, use your Fury Attack!" Subaki shouted. Corvisquire complied as her beak glowed white and glided down after her flightless foe.

"Riolu, dodge it!" Corrin shouted, to which Riolu obliged. He weaved back and forth, evading Corvisquire's beak. It helped with his aura anticipating his foe's advances.

"(Hold! Still! Already!)" Corvisquire complained in between her jabs, only for Riolu to go in the opposite direction. "(Phooey! You're such a slippery dog!)"

"(I am a bipedal canine, not a mutt.)" Riolu clarified.

"Use Metal Claw!" Corrin commanded. Riolu complied with the command as he brought his arms in front and crossed them, summoning metallic energy claws that clocked Corvisquire's beak. With her momentum deflected off the Steel-type move, Riolu separated his claws and slashed at exposed stomach, sending her careening away.

"Nice shot." Rinkah admitted.

"And it's good defense, too. Metal Claw is a Steel-type attack, so it goes great against Normal and Flying-type attacks to reduce damage." Evan stated.

Kaze turned towards them. "I'm curious, how many types of Pokémon are there exactly?"

"About 18. All of them are weak and strong to others. You'll pick them up the more you battle."

As Corvisquire steadied herself, Subaki swiped his arm. "That was a good move, but now we must return fire! Corvisquire, use your Pluck!" At the command, Corvisquire's beak glowed brightly again. This time, she beamed directly for Riolu with her beak darting straight for his tiny waist.

Corrin balled his fists as he watched his opponent head his way towards him. 'This is it! Time for that new move!' He spread his heels and reached out towards Riolu. "Now Riolu, use Rock Tomb!"

Riolu focused hard on Corvisquire, waiting for the right moment. His body was outlined in white energy as he brought his arms overhead. He cried out as silver-white energy materialized out of thin air right before everyone's eyes and turned into large solid stones. He threw the boulders directly at Corvisquire, who was too close and met her head-on.

"(Oh no…GAH!)" The boulders bombarded her heavily, enveloping her in dust and pebbles that flaked her feathers. She flung backwards and struck the ground hard and slid on her back in front of Subaki's feet. All while a blue aura enveloped her and reduced her Speed.

"Corvisquire?!" Subaki panicked, seeing his Pokémon take such large amounts of damage.

"Woah, you weren't kidding!" Felicia gasped. "So Flying-types are weak to attacks related to rocks?!"

"That's right. Now Corrin's Riolu has a defense against Flying-type Pokémon. It's common for Pokémon to learn moves to counter types they would struggle against." Evan explained.

"I see. That is very helpful indeed." Gunter acknowledged.

"H-Hang in there, Corvisquire! Subaki!" Sakura meekly cheered.

Corvisquire twinged as she struggled to her talons. "(O-ow…okay, that really hurt.)" She shook her head and gave Riolu a stern glare. "(Hey! How could a little dog like you be able to heft such boulders?! That's uncool!)"

Riolu scoffed. "(I will only say this a second time, I am not a flea-bitten mutt!)"

"That looked great, Riolu. Keep it up." Corrin praised his Pokémon, but knew he had to keep going. "Alright, use Work Up!"

Riolu balled his fists as a ferocious red aura engulfed his body. A red aura appeared soon after, enhancing his Attack and Special Attack.

"(That so? But you look like a dog. I mean, the floppy ears, the nose, paws…could have fooled me.)" Corvisquire continued to reason, not at all realizing that she was offending Riolu by the syllable. "(Besides, shouldn't all dogs be on all fours? Must feel weird being on two feet, right?)"

Riolu's brow twitched as he felt his anger rise. "(I'm starting to lose my patience with you and your naïve squabbles!)" Unbeknownst to him, a thick red tock mark appeared on his head. It didn't go unnoticed by others who observed the visible stress symbol.

"It seems that Lord Corrin's Riolu is riled up." Kaze observed.

Evan saw the symbol, his eyes widened. "Oh! I think I know this one! That's Taunt." He explained.

"Taunt?" Felicia parroted.

"Yeah, so what happens now that Riolu is affected by Taunt is that he can only use offensive moves. So that means he can't use Work Up until the Taunt wears off. It's helpful against defensive opponents who rely on status moves."

"That makes sense. I'd be riled up too if someone taunted me." Rinkah boasted.

"(Come on little guy, get in a good swing for me down there!)" Monferno howled at Riolu.

Corrin didn't know why Riolu looked so worked up, but he had a good feeling that it wasn't anything that can be shrugged off. 'We'll have to keep attacking!' He reached out and made another command. "Riolu, use Rock Tomb one more time!"

Riolu's body outlined in white energy once more, summoning large boulders that had a slightly thicker white outline. He pushed forward, hurling all the boulders at Corvisquire. The Raven Pokémon only caught on when the boulders were drawing near that this could be very bad if they struck her.

"(Not today!)" Despite how her Speed was dropped, she was still fast enough to ascend over the boulders that struck the ground. They crumbled to bits, whereas she sailed above and barreled for Riolu.

"Excellent! Now, use your Pluck!" Subaki commanded. Corvisquire's beak glowed bright once more, and this time, she got the range in to spearhead Riolu in the waist with her attack. The impact had enough kick to send Riolu on his back sliding back towards Corrin as his health depleted drastically.

"Riolu!" Corrin fretted.

Riolu grunted as he was trying to get up. He grunted in pain, feeling much of his stamina speared out by that single attack. "(I-I'm okay…)" He steadied himself upright and glared at Corvisquire. "(I admit, you are a worthy opponent. So that's why I will increase my own strength…and get stronger from here!)"

"(Oh, really? How you gonna do that?)" Corvisquire inquired.

"(Like this!)" Riolu balled his fists tightly as winds were circulating into his paws, forming two spheres. The spheres condensed to where they were compressed whirlwinds ready to be launched.

Corrin's eyes widened in shock. "What's this? A-another new move?"

Evan pulled out his PokéDex to verify what was going on. "Hang on, let me see…" He saw the information before looking back at Corrin. "Corrin, that's Vacuum Wave!"

Riolu didn't bother shifting his body about like he did with Feint. He instead retained his position and forcefully punched at Corvisquire, firing the wind as a compressed beam at her. The beams of wind struck her with force from his enhanced Special Attack.

"Man, talk about knocking the wind out!" Hayato chimed.

Everyone watched as Corvisquire careened backwards, her health steadily depleted to where there was hardly anything left. She looked exhausted, and her feathers were ruffled, a sign of her wear and fatigue.

"Hang in there, Corvisquire! One more hit and victory shall be ours!" Subaki encouraged. "Use Pluck!"

'We need to finish this now!' Corrin thought. "Riolu, use Rock Tomb!"

Corvisquire flew in with all her might, her beak glowing bright white. Riolu's body outlined in the same color as he summoned large boulders. He hurled them with all his might in a bombastic barrage at his avian opponent. Corvisquire beamed in as fast as she could around the boulders, actually managing to get around a couple.

However, the last Rock Tomb boulder came too close, and she was struck hard despite her beak jutted outwards.

"Corvisquire!" Subaki called out in horror from the hit. He could only watch in shock as the dust and rocks fell, along with Corvisquire.

Everyone watching was in shock as the dust settled into the earth. Azura stepped closer to check on Corvisquire's condition. When she was laying on her stomach with swirling eyes, that was all she needed to see.

"That settles it, Corrin and Riolu are the winners!" Azura gracefully announced, gesturing towards the new victors.

The people that watched gave a round of applause, with some minor cheers and respectful bows to what they saw was a real Pokémon battle. Rinkah and Monferno – especially the latter – were so fired up and excited at what they witnessed.

"That was a great battle, Corrin. Great job!" Evan grinned.

Freya nodded in agreement. "Your Riolu did great, too. Learning a new move on top of another one was a great convenience."

"Congratulations and well done, Milord." Felicia chirped.

"Thanks guys, really appreciate it." Corrin looked down at Riolu, who walked up to him. "You especially, Riolu. Great work."

Riolu smiled pridefully, nodding. "(Likewise, my friend. Now, we will be able to achieve our goals at a faster pace than before. Let us keep working harder…)" He found himself cringing from the pain. "(…after some much needed rest.)"

Subaki walked over and kneeled before his unconscious Corvisquire. He picked her up and grunted mournfully. "How utterly shameful…to feel this defeat like this…my sincerest apologies."

"I-it's okay, Subaki. You and Corvisquire did great out there!" Sakura encouraged, turning towards Hana. "Right?"

Hana shrugged. "Fine, I'll admit it, you were pretty good out there."

Subaki held his head high. "I swear to you, Lady Sakura, I won't fail in front of you again. I shall learn from this experience well, and get stronger yet!"

"Heh, well now I'm kinda pumped too from seeing that display." Rinkah mused. She turned her attention towards Evan, who sat close by. "Now I wanna battle. And I think I want you as my opponent, Evan."

"You sure?" Evan inquired.

Rinkah shrugged with a smirk. "Why not? You're a Pokémon Trainer? Makes sense to learn from one. Besides, I've always wanted to see what it would be like to take you on." She then turned towards Freya. "That goes for you too, Freya."

"Me?" she quipped.

"Yeah. Let's make it a two-on-two. That is a rule, right?"

Evan nodded. "Uh, yeah. That's called a Double Battle. It's legal."

Kaze stood up, arms folded in front of him. "In that case, I would like to partake as well. Evan, I wish to have you as my opponent as well. I'll learn as much as I can from you."

Evan turned towards Freya. "What do you say, wanna give it a go?"

Freya glanced at him, smirking. "Sure, why not." Unbeknownst to her, Hayato was still looking at her with a dreamy expression.

Once Corrin and Subaki exited the arena, they went up to the stands to meet up with everybody else who went to observe the next battle. This time, they were all watching Evan and Freya against Rinkah and Kaze, all sides ready. With Monferno and Frogadier out, that left Evan and Freya to make their choices.

"Give them a fight they won't forget, Monferno!" Rinkah shouted to her partner.

Monferno held up his fists energetically. "(You got it! C'mon, show me what you've got!)"

"Support the best you can, Frogadier." Kaze encouraged.

"(Right behind you!)" Frogadier croaked, his blank eyes turning serious as he bent his knees to take an action pose.

"I wonder which Pokémon Evan and Freya will use?" Sakura inquired, her Audino cuddling next to her.

"They both have quite a few. It can be anyone's guess." Felicia noted.

"Be very observant. It's best to look at this and understand how two wielders of these Pokémon work together to overcome their opponents." Gunter encouraged.

"He's right, we have to learn as much as we can if we're to get stronger." Corrin insisted.

While everyone was readying themselves to observe and learn carefully from this, Evan and Freya saw their opponents at the ready, both muttering to themselves about something.

"So, you got that?" Evan muttered.

Freya nodded. "I think so. Alright, let's do it then."

They both pulled out their Pokémon Balls, readying their choices.

"Bellsprout, go!"

"Go, Drizzile!"

The two Pokémon appeared side-by-side in front of their respective Trainers.

"(Is this seriously happening?)" Bellsprout chided at the irony. "(Am I really fighting a monkey and frog, and I'm besides a lizard. Why so I have to be the outlier here?!)"

"(I-I don't know, but I'm sorry?!)" Drizzile timidly fretted at her ally's sassy nature, not the best combo in terms of personality for her.

"(Aw, I actually wanted to face that turtle man. Oh well, guess you'll do.)" Monferno shrugged off his disappointment in hopes of an epic battle.

Seeing all the Pokémon in place, Azura raised both her arms up. "You may now…commence!"

"Alright, time to try out these attacks I've memorized!" Rinkah didn't hesitate taking the initiative. "Monferno, use Flamethrower on Bellsprout!"

Monferno didn't hesitate as he careened his head back and puffed his cheeks. He lurched forward, spewing broiling flames directly at Bellsprout.

"Freya!" Evan called out.

"I got you! Drizzile, counter with Water Pulse!" She commanded. Drizzile swallowed a lump, put she composed herself and brought her hands together to generated a hemisphere of dense blue water. She fired it at the oncoming blaze, cutting it off from its course towards Bellsprout. The two attacks met, cancelling each other out and making a burst of steam between Bellsprout and Monferno.

"(Oh great, now I'm gonna be a steamed vegetable. Just my damn glorious day!)" Bellsprout groaned.

Kaze narrowed his eyes. "Intercept the support! Frogadier, use Quick Attack!"

"(Let's see how fast you can keep up with me!)" Frogadier's enveloped his body in bright blue outlines, swiftly beaming straight ahead towards Drizzile. The speed was so incredible that not even Drizzile would prepare for it. The attack met its mark and shoved her back several feet, making her grunt in distress.

'While the steam is giving us cover!' Evan hurriedly reached out for the steam wall. "Bellsprout, quick! Use Sleep Powder on Monferno!"

"(I second that! Nighty night, monkey!)" Bellsprout leaned back and inhaled. When she exhaled, a large cloud of green pollen expelled out of her mouth and blew through the steam cloud, heading right towards Monferno.

With the steam as cover, Monferno couldn't see anything. "(Where's that weed go…?)" She then noticed something strange about the steam, about how it was expanding towards her and turning green. "(Huh…? What the-?!)" Before she realized it, the pollen mixed with hot air quickly clung to her. She found herself unable to escape it and felt a wave of drowsiness overtake her. In a matter of seconds, she fell to her stomach, her eyes shut as she fell fast asleep.

"Monferno?!" Rinkah gasped. "Hey, why's he sleeping?!"

"That's because we use Sleep Powder. It puts Pokémon to sleep." Evan informed. "It won't knock it out, so it's still technically able to battle…but it's not very useful right now."

Rinkah bit her bottom lip in frustration. This was the last thing that she needed. Evan played her good.

"Alright Freya, go!" Evan shouted to his teammate.

"Right. Drizzile, use Whirlpool on Monferno!" Freya commanded. Drizzile complied, bringing her hands together to summon a medium-sized whirlpool over her head. She threw the swirling vortex at the sleeping Monferno, who was unable to do anything since he was still asleep. The super-effective attack met its mark, swirling him in its liquid wake and suppressing him in place.

Seeing the play, Corrin gasped. "Now I get it! With Bellsprout putting its weakness to sleep, and Freya's Drizzile trapping her and dealing consistent damage, they're trying to single Kaze out."

"That's crafty." Subaki admitted.

"And kinda cruel." Hana chimed.

Kaze frowned heavily, knowing his partner was suffering. "Sorry Rinkah, we shall cover for you until Monferno is well again." He swiped his arm across. "Frogadier, use Water Pulse on Bellsprout!"

"(Let's see how you like this!)" Frogadier brought his hands together and manifested a sphere of water. He jumped into the air and threw the sphere at Bellsprout, who used both her leaves to brace for the attack. The impact resulted in a bright blue explosion that swallowed her.

When it quickly receded though, unlike what Kaze and Frogadier had thought, Bellsprout only appeared slightly bothered. "(A little rough, but thanks for watering my leaves.)"

"It wasn't very effective?" Kaze was stunned at the folly.

"Use Growth!" Evan commanded. Bellsprout harrumphed as she stood still. Her cells began expanding, making waves of energy flourish as a red aura spiked her Attack and Special Attack.

Meanwhile, Monferno was still fast asleep, the Whirlpool spinning around him and taking away more of his health.

"C'mon, wake up already…" Rinkah grunted.

"Use Water Pulse on Monferno!" Freya commanded. Once again, Drizzile brought her hands together, generating a hemisphere of water.

"Frogadier, intercept with your own!" Kaze encouraged. Like Drizzile, Frogadier brought his hands together and conjured a compressed water sphere.

The two launched their attacks at the same time, both heading for their intended targets. As Drizzile's Water Pulse was heading towards the incapacitated Monferno, Frogadier's sphere struck it halfway across the field, resulting in a large blue eruption of mist causing the atmosphere to shaken with increased humidity.

"Now Bellsprout, use Magical Leaf!" Evan called out.

Bellsprout scoffed. "(One of my new tricks? About time.)" Bellsprout's leaves glowed bright green as she faced Frogadier. She swiped her leaves, sending multiple light green glowing leaves at her amphibious foe.

Frogadier's eyes widened in shock at the incoming attack. He made an attempt to jump over the leafy barrage, but the leaves made a sharp turn and followed his path. "(How-?!)" Before he could get answers, the sharp leaves jutted into him from below, sending him skyrocketing with a pained croak across the field in front of Kaze with a thud.

Hayato gasped, looking mortified by what he saw. "How did that happen?!"

"It looks like certain attacks have a homing instinct." Corrin stated. "Evan did say that some attacks are different, like some are faster than others…I think this one doesn't miss."

"Frogadier, can you stand?" Kaze frowned in concerns as his Frogadier took massive damage from that one attack. It practically cut his HP in the upper yellow section.

Meanwhile, Monferno was still asleep, the Whirlpool once again, taking more of his health.

"Damnit, wake the hell up already!" Rinkah complained. "Man…this isn't fair."

"Focus, Rinkah. This battle isn't over yet." Kaze advised her.

Rinkah's scrunched brow loosened. "…yeah, you're right. We still got some health left. Keep stalling until Monferno gets back up. We'll make a comeback."

Kaze nodded. "I understand." He reached out at Drizzile. "Frogadier, use Smokescreen!" Frogadier complied, opening his maw wide to expel thick black smoke at Drizzile. The smoke swallowed her, making her cover her face, as well as a blue aura depleting her accuracy.

"Drizzile, use Water Gun on Monferno!" Freya called out.

Even though Drizzile was partially blinded, she tried her best to scope for her general direction. She made a water balloon in one hand and popped it, sending a gush of water streaming through the smoke. However, the water's trajectory was slightly off, hitting the spot next to the swirling Whirlpool vortex. "(D-did I get him?)"

Evan reached his arm out for Frogadier. "Bellsprout, use Magical Leaf!"

"(Sorry froggy, but you're croaked!)" Bellsprout's leaves glowed bright green once more, generating smaller leaves that she projected directly at Frogadier.

Knowing that he wouldn't be able to evade the attack, and that his Water Pulse wouldn't be an ideal match, Frogadier bravely stood there, bracing for the attack. "(…I'm sorry. I hope I bought you enough time.)" With those words, he closed his eyes as the glowing leaves met his body, pelting him with force that sent him flying backwards with a pained cry.

"Frogadier!" Kaze cried out as he witnessed his partner's merciless assault. He watched as Frogadier landed in front of him, his mouth open and his eyes swirling. He took it as a sign of defeat. "Please…forgive me."

"They took out Frogadier!" Felicia gasped.

"I see, so that's why Evan chose Bellsprout then. A Pokémon with the ability to put others to sleep and apparently effective on Water-types if I am observing this correctly." Gunter acknowledged.

"W-woah…amazing…" Sakura only gawked at the display.

"You think so, Milady? Seems rather sad to be taken out by a weed." Hana mumbled.

"D-don't say that! Kaze and Frogadier did their best out there! I'm sure Rinkah will do her best…" She looked out towards the field again, seeing Monferno still swept up by the swirling vortex. "I hope…"

Kaze returned Frogadier to his Poké Ball, turning towards Rinkah. "I'm sorry, please forgive us for not being more useful."

"Don't worry about it. It ain't over yet." Rinkah smirked. "And speaking of which…"

Despite how the vortex was still swirling around Monferno, his eyes fluttered open. He groaned as he pushed himself off the ground onto his feet. "(Gnnngh…man, what a painful dream. Feels like I'm still spinning…)" His eyes widened at the realization. "(Wait…the hell's happening?! Where'd this whirlpool come from?!)"

"Monferno's up! Now Rinkah's game in the game!" Corrin grinned. He almost completely forgot how enticing seeing a Pokémon Battle was when he wasn't the one battling.

She reached out towards Drizzile. "If we're weak to water attacks, the best thing to do is take that out first! Monferno, use Mach Punch!"

Monferno shook off his momentary confusion to focus on his opponents. He faced Drizzile and balled his glowing blue fist. "(Guess you're the wise gal that trapped me in here? I'll set you straight!)" He bolted for her with the Whirlpool still surrounding him. He closed the gap quickly, pulling his fist forward and slugging Drizzile in the face. The heavy impact had an airwave that signaled a critical hit that put her to the floor in pain.

"Drizzile!" Freya worried.

"(O-owww…that one really hurt!)" Drizzile covered her face as she was in pain. That attack took a good chunk of her HP down to the low yellow area, as well as knock out any of her confidence. A blue aura enveloped her body, indicating her Torrent Ability was kicking in.

"Use Water Gun!" Freya commanded, which Drizzile powered through to make a water balloon in a hand and squeezed it. Despite how it had a greater volume thanks to Torrent being active, it was still short on its mark by a foot in the opposite direction.

"(Hahaha! Try aiming!)" Monferno hollered, only for the vortex to overtake him. "(Gngh…! Man, I really hate this!)"

"Our turn! Bellsprout!" Evan called out to his Bellsprout, who had leaves at the ready. "Use Poison Jab!"

Bellsprout grunted loudly as her leaves glowed again, only instead of green they turned bright purple with seeping venom. She brought one leaf back and cried out with all her might, jutting the leaf through the swirling water into Monferno, who thought he could tank it because of his superior typing and evolution.

Big mistake.

With the partial increase from Growth, Poison Jab struck a chord in Monferno, causing his mouth to gawk wide open as he felt the poisonous sting of that attack flow through him. He stood completely still as Bellsprout pulled her leaf away. When she did, there was a silence that followed to see what would happen.

Bellsprout looked up as Monferno's face had a tinge of purple in it. The poison from Poison Jab actually kicked in, causing toxic bubbles to blossom out of him. The Playful Pokémon didn't move, even when the poison sapped at his HP.

To everyone's shock, the Whirlpool subsided around Monferno as he twitched. He looked down at Bellsprout, his eyes hazy and blurred from his fading focus. "(Heh, well now…guess you've got tougher roots than I thought.)" With those words spoken, his eyes rolled back as he fell backwards with a loud thud.

Rinkah gasped. "Monferno?!"

Azura closed in and overlooked Monferno. When she saw the swirls in his eyes, she hummed in acknowledgement. "Monferno is unable to continue, as such, both Evan and Freya are victorious!"

"Freya, we won! Up top!" Evan held his hand up to his teammate.

Freya smirked back at him, equally as happy. "Sure did, all thanks to your usual brains." She returned the high-five, their palms gripped tight against the other.

Once again, Hayato felt a tense sting as he saw the sight. His right eye twitched as he saw how merry Freya seemed to be with the guy that bested him before. 'Evan…'

"(W-we actually won…?)" Drizzile rubbed her eyes to make certain that she wasn't seeing things. Once the blurriness in them faded, she saw Monferno unconscious. "(W-we actually did! That's so cool!)" She turned towards Bellsprout with a palm stretched out. "(Um…up top?)"

Bellsprout rolled her eyes. "(Fine…just this once.)" She looked away as she held up a leaf to high-five her timid yet happy ally. Though I one looked closely, her mouth curved into a small smirk.

Rinkah used her Poké Ball to return Monferno, a sad smile on her face. "You did your best out there, please rest." She turned towards Evan and Freya. "Well now, you're even better than I thought! Now I really wanna get stronger with Monferno!"

"As I do with Frogadier. Evan, Freya, thank you for letting us be your opponents today. We have learned a lot from this. Please, continue to teach us more." Kaze implored.

Evan agreed without hesitation. "Sure, we can do that. I mean, that's why we're here, right?"

Azura walked up beside them. "Right. I, too, wish to partake in more battles with Brionne. However, it's best that we tend to your Pokémon. I believe rest for them is needed."

"Yeah, I gotcha." Rinkah understood and started walking away with Kaze.], both going to ensure their Pokémon's health was up to speed after some rest.

Corrin walked up to Evan, looking greatly impressed. "That was a great show you put on, Evan."

"Thanks Corrin, couldn't have done it without Freya and Drizzile supporting Bellsprout." He turned towards his Pokémon. "You did a great job out there, Bellsprout. I'm really proud of you."

Bellsprout shrugged. "(Heh, color me impressed with myself. Guess I'll be sleeping well tonight after all.)"

Evan turned towards Corrin, looking more serious. "Corrin, listen. I know we have a mission, and our time isn't exactly infinite in this dimension, but we really need to level up while we can. The others are still learning about Pokémon, and there's stronger ones out there. So we might have to stay here a while until everyone is up to speed. You agree?"

Corrin frowned, taking Evan's suggestion to heart. While he was anxious about the whole incident with Valla coming in a few months and needing all the allies they can get, he knew that to get their cooperation, they would have to at least be able to understand what they're getting themselves into. They needed to get stronger and better master their usage of Pokémon as well as hone their own skills.

After a few seconds of contemplating the inquiry, a decision was made. "Yes, you're right. We shouldn't jump back in so soon. We need to make sure everyone is rested up and ready for what's coming next."

"Exactly." Evan nodded. 'Besides, I need to work on using my Killing Edge.'

"Hey, you!"

Just when Evan was ready to take a breather, the harsh tone got him to turn around. When he did, he saw Hayato present, his hands to his hips and a stern leer fixed solemnly on Evan. He was giving off a crude, challenging vibe that made the Trainer less than comfortable.

"Uh…can I help you?" Evan responded back unsurely.

Hayato harrumphed. "Okay, I admit, you might have the skills today to stand besides Freya…" He then raised an arm, pointing an accusing finger directly at his nose. "But I won't lose to you. You hear me?! We'll see who the better man is in the end that'll stand beside her! Just you wait! Hmph!" Without giving Evan the chance to speak his mind, he turned and walked away, his nose in the air and chest puffed out.

Evan blinked as he watched him leave, feeling extremely uncomfortable. "Uh…o-okay?" He leaned in towards Freya. "I don't think he plans on getting along well with me."

"It'll be okay. I'm sure he's just challenged. Boys are like that." Freya teased, playfully tapping Evan's cheek. "Of course, you're mature and go at a pace everyone can follow. Just focus on that."

Evan sighed. "Right…after our blisters heal."

"Yeah, definitely."

Though they were able to take it easy for now, they knew they could lie down forever. It was only going to get harder from here.

Party Data:

Evan

-Wartortle (Male)

Lv: 23

Item: None

Nature: Mild

Ability: Torrent

Moves: Tackle, Protect, Water Pulse, Bite

-Butterfree (Male)

Lv: 22

Item: None

Nature: Modest

Ability: Compound Eyes

Moves: Poison Powder, Gust, Electroweb, Psybeam

-Growlithe (Male)

Lv: 19

Item: None

Nature: Bashful

Ability: Intimidate

Moves: Ember, Flame Wheel, Howl, Bite

-Bellsprout (Female)

Lv 20

Item: Miracle Seed

Nature: Sassy

Ability: Chlorophyll

Moves: Magical Leaf, Growth, Poison Jab, Sleep Powder

Freya

-Drizzile (Female)

Lv: 22

Item: None

Nature: Timid

Ability: Torrent

Moves: Water Pulse, Whirlpool, Water Gun, Bind

-Carkol (Male)

Lv: 23

Item: None

Nature: Quiet

Ability: Steam Engine

Moves: Flame Charge, Smokescreen, Ancient Power, Smack Down

-Snom (Female)

Lv: 19

Item: Snowball

Nature: Bold

Ability: Shield Dust

Moves: Powder Snow, Struggle Bug

-Trapinch (Female)

Lv: 22

Item: None

Nature: Hasty

Ability: Arena Trap

Moves: Bite, Mud-Slap, Sand Tomb, Bulldoze

Corrin

-Riolu (Male)

Lv: 24

Item: None

Nature: Serious

Ability: Steadfast

Moves: Work Up, Rock Tomb, Metal Claw, Vacuum Wave

Gunter

-Larvitar (Female)

Lv: 23

Item: None

Nature: Careful

Ability: Guts

Moves: Payback, Stomping Tantrum, Scary Face, Rock Slide

Kaze

-Frogadier (Male)

Lv: 23

Item: None

Nature: Adamant

Ability: Torrent

Moves: Quick Attack, Lick, Water Pulse, Smokescreen

Subaki

-Corvisquire (Female)

Lv: 22

Item: None

Nature: Naïve

Ability: Unnerve

Moves: Taunt, Hone Claws, Fury Attack, Pluck

Rinkah

-Monferno (Male)

Lv: 24

Item: None

Nature: Bold

Ability: Blaze

Moves: Power-Up Punch, Mach Punch, Flamethrower, Flame Wheel

Only included the Trainers that were active this chapter in terms of battling in the Party Data.

I know Gen 9 doesn't have TRs like they did in Gen 8, but considering that I've stuck with it until now, and that there are vastly different TMs in Gen 9 than there were in Gen 8, I'm gonna stick to the general TM/TR list in Gen 8. I will include Gen 9 Pokémon though in the future in case you were wondering.

Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! Feel free to share your thoughts!