Disclaimer: Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, Creatures, and Satoshi Tajiri.
Chapter Ten: Second Badge of Knowledge
"And right over here, we have the skeleton of the Dragon-Type Pokémon. Many centuries ago, it was said to have fallen from an accident while flying around the world." Said Hawes, the assistant director of the Nacrene Museum. He takes pride in guiding visitors on a tour around the historic place, showing them everything there is to know about their precious artifacts.
"Yes. As you can see, this Dragon-Type Pokémon is larger than any other Pokémon as of today." He narrated.
"Ah!" The visitors were awed at the sheer size of the fossilized dragon.
"Um... Excuse me!" Someone raised their hand through the crowd.
"Yes?" He turns to see a little preschooler slightly next to a glass case.
"What's this?" She points at a peculiar white stone inside the case.
"Oh, this? It's an ordinary old stone. It was found near the desert, but other than the fact that it's old, it doesn't seem to have any value..." He explained.
"We only display it because it's rather pretty to look at." He added, admiring the design of the old stone.
"Hmm... It does look kinda pretty." The preschooler agreed.
"Yes, it does!"
"Very Interesting!"
The visitors all agreed that it is a pretty sight. Why, it seemed like it have been carved by ancient warriors.
"Moving on, we have the meteorite!" He directed all the visitors over to their next display. All...
Except one.
"Just an ordinary stone?" He questioned. A certain green-haired boy became fascinated by the old stone as if there is something of value to it. The question is what?
How very interesting...
[Nacrene City]
[A city established in restored storehouses built 100 years ago.]
A homely city of art & history, known for its old warehouses that were built over 100 years ago. A bustling place where people can express their artistic talents among the many warehouses.
Hilda decides to rest up at the Pokémon Center before she can take a tour around the city. She meets up with her friends who also stop by to rest. While Cheren, wanting to get ahead of the gym, decides to read some books for battle strategies, she went to have a conversation with Bianca who happily feeds her Pokémon some berries from the food court.
"...And I guess after the incident in Dreamyard, Munna wanted to stay with me. So, I caught her and named her 'Mushi'. I think she liked it." Bianca commented.
"I can see that." Hilda smiled, referring to her Munna, or 'Mushi', who happily lays on her lap while she feeds her.
While they talk, the rest of their Pokémon are enjoying their berries. Some of them happily chow down their favorite berries, while others are simply resting. Peggy is taking one peaceful nap by the table that the girls sit on. Purrloin, who is now referred to as 'Ronaldo', sees that the rodent's mouth is left wide open, and at that moment, he grew a devious grin.
He thinks to himself. This is going to be fun...
He swipes a deep blue berry, a Chesto Berry, from the bowl and pretends to try to crack it open. Oscar noticed the dark cat struggling to crack open the shell and walked towards him.
"Osha. Oshawott? (Do you need some help?)" He asked.
"Purr. Purrloin. Purr? (Yes... I can't seem to open it. Won't you help a friend out?)" He requested, giving him fake pleading eyes. Oscar was moved by his look and nodded.
"Osha! (Ok!)" He smiled.
Oscar takes his scalchop from his chest and slams it at the berry, breaking its outer shell and splitting it in half to reveal its softer insides.
"Purrloin! (Thank!)"
"Oshawott! (No Problem!)"
Ronaldo sneakily nears the sleeping rodent and scoops up the soft, mushy flesh with his claws. He then slowly dumps it in her mouth and proceeds to nuzzle her nose with his tail, causing Peggy to close her mouth in response.
[!]
Suddenly, her eyes open in shock as she feels an unpleasant taste in her mouth; unpleasant enough to force her to be fully awake. She nearly vomited at the taste and rushed to find the nearest trash can. Everyone turned to the commotion and sees Ronaldo laughing at the rodent's mishap.
"Oshawott! (You tricked me!)" Oscar protested.
"Hey! Cheren!" Hilda complained.
"Ronaldo!" Cheren reproached, expressing disapproval at his Pokémon's prank.
"Purrloin? Purrloin... (Did I do that? Sorry...)" He purred as he apologized, giving off a fake innocent look in his eyes. It fooled both trainers and they give him a quick forgiving look. Oscar, however, was not buying his look again and grumbled at his trainer's gullibility.
Sucker! He thought as he chuckled and sprint onto his table, inadvertently knocking a large tri-fold paper away. Peggy rapidly splashes water from her bowl to clean off that disgusting taste on her tongue. Just then, the paper lands next to her and she stops her action to stare at it curiously.
"Patrat? (What's this?)" She wondered. She slowly picked up the curious paper, a 'brochure' as humans call it, and reads the bold words in front of her.
"P-Pat... R-Rat...? (N-Nacrene... M-Museum...?)" She gradually opens up the folds to see some written details about the museum and a lot of pictures of the exhibit. Briefly forgetting about the taste, she sits herself down and focuses on reading more of the brochure with newfound interest.
Cheren closes his book. "Well, I guess I should get going."
"Already?" Bianca asked.
"If I don't get to the museum now, it will close this evening." He explains as he returns all of his Pokémon to their ball.
"The museum?" Hilda questioned.
"The Nacrene City Museum. I'm interested in meeting the director of the museum." He concludes, leaving the table where the girls sit and walking out of the center. Hilda couldn't exactly understand his enthusiasm for a museum.
I don't get what he's so excited about... Hilda pondered in confusion. Suddenly, she feels small paws pulling her leg. She looks down and sees Peggy trying to catch her attention with the brochure in her hands.
"What's this?" Hilda opens the brochure Peggy hands her and sees pictures of the museum and various artifacts that are displayed there.
She reads the summary. "Welcome to the Nacrene Museum! A place of knowledge and discovery, where we preserve all of life's history! You'll never find a more fulfilling quest than the exploring wonders of Unova!"
She then looks down to see a picture of a confident woman. It states that she is Lenora, director of the museum.
"Hey! Maybe your Pokémon wants you to take her there!" Bianca beamed. Hilda, however, frowned a little.
"I don't know. Museums are not my thing..." She drawled as she gaze upon Peggy pleading eyes. The small rodent is curious about all the artifacts it has and wants to go to the museum. Hilda looked back at her other Pokémon and sees them nodding to her, signaling her to say 'yes'.
She simply sighed. "I guess we could stop by after the tour this one time."
Peggy wagged her tail in happiness and gleefully hugs her teammate, who are just giving their nod of approval. Hilda couldn't help but smile at her excitement. She'll always find museums boring, but she couldn't turn down the pleading eyes of her Pokémon. As a trainer, she'll do what she can to make her Pokémon happy.
Hilda explores the warehouses with Peggy by her side, and she can see why this city is known as "A Pearl of a Place". Many of the artists & architects are all over the place, inspired to create something visionary & new. They stop in front of a large cement building.
"This must be the museum." She assumed. She takes a look at the brochure again, making sure to identify the building.
She reads. "It says here that the museum is also the-"
"Oof!" She wasn't looking where she was going and accidentally collided with someone. It seems like that 'someone' just came out of the main entrance of the museum.
"Oh, excuse m-"
However, she froze at the tall person close in front of her. She could have sworn she'd seen that light-green hair from somewhere.
"Hello again." He greeted.
Now she realized that 'someone' in front of her is N, the strange boy from Accumula Town. She didn't think they would meet again after their battle. She slowly backs away from this strange closeness.
"Oh... It's you! N, is it? What... brings you here?" She awkwardly asked, sensing something unusual about him.
"I... want to see things that no one else can see." He replied.
"I don't quite follow..." She responds, tilting her head in confusion. He simply turns to the museum.
"The ideals of Pokémon inside Poké Balls, the truths of how Trainers should be, and a future where Pokémon have become perfect..." He described boldly. He then turns to stare at her confused face.
"Do you feel the same?" He asked. She couldn't seem to come up with an answer, since she didn't know what to make of his question.
"Yes...?" She slowly replied. He, however, can sense her hesitating in her answer.
"Is that so? Well, I think my friends and I should test you to see if you can see this future too." He challenged. Suddenly, on cue, three Pokémon jumped out from the bushes around the museum. She studied the trio for a moment: one of them, a Pidove, is at his side but she was unsure about the two new Pokémon next to him, a small tadpole-like creature, and a beaver-like creature with a piece of wood in its arm. She quickly takes out her Pokédex and scanned the two other Pokémon.
[Tympole]
[The Tadpole Pokémon]
[They warn others of danger by vibrating their cheeks to create a high-pitched sound.]
[Timburr]
[The Muscular Pokémon]
[It fights by swinging a piece of lumber around. It is close to evolving when it can handle the lumber without difficulty.]
He's got two new Pokémon? Hmm... She pondered.
"If it's a battle you want, then I accept!" She calls out Oscar & Joules onto her side as Peggy takes her battle position as well. It seems like this was going to be a triple battle!
[Battle Start!]
[Hilda VS N]
For the first start of the battle, things have been relatively alright for her Pokémon. Joules has an easy time with Tympole, merely using his move Shock Wave against it to score a quick win. Peggy is having a relatively tough round with Pidove but thanks to her newly learned move Work Up, she can handle herself just fine to win this battle. Oscar, however, is surprisingly having a hard time with Timburr, who is much stronger than their two other opponents.
"Use Razor Shell!" She commands. Oscar unleashes his bladed scalchop against the Timburr's lumber, almost throwing the beaver off. Suddenly, the beaver swipes his leg from underneath and throws the otter off-balance, dropping his scalchop in the process. He then uses his lumber to hit Oscar by his right side, roughly throwing him back.
"Oscar!"
Oscar attempts to stand up from the ground, but he stumbles at the pain in his right side. Joules noticed this and went over to defend him while facing off against Timburr.
"Hurry Joules! Use Quick Attack!"
The zebra dashed towards the beaver at blinding speed and slams his mane at its body, striking it down. The beaver struggles to get up but fell back down with swirls in its eyes, defeated.
[Battle Finish!]
[Winner: Hilda]
It seems like I cannot see the future yet... The world is still to be determined... N reasoned. Hilda was busy cradling her partner while pulling out a new super potion she just bought, spraying the medicine onto his right side.
"Hang in there Oscar." She cooed, in an attempt to soothe him. Just as she comforts her partner, she turns to N who was also soothing his Pokémon. Strangely enough, they all looked sadly at him.
"Thank you all for your assistance. You're free to go." He encouraged. Hilda stood surprised at seeing all his Pokémon run back to the trees.
He lets them go?
"Right now, my friends aren't strong enough to save all Pokémon. Maybe I can't solve the equation that will change the world." He murmured.
"Uhh... What are you talking about?" She questioned, perplexed by his sentence.
"I need power... Enough power to make anyone agree with me." He decided, just as he was about to leave the area. However, he stopped for a moment...
The stone... Zekrom...
"Now I know what power I need... Zekrom!" He revealed. Hilda, however, couldn't help but chuckle at his revelation.
"Zekrom?" She giggled.
"The legendary Pokémon that, along with the hero, created the Unova region. Perhaps it's my turn to become that hero-" He concluded.
And you and I will be friends! He smiled, turning away from the brunette.
"Until we meet again, my friend!" He finally walks away, knowing that things between them are going to be interesting...
Hilda still stood there, confused at his odd jabbering about wanting to change things, especially the black dragon Zekrom.
Legendary Pokémon? But that's just a fairytale myth. She queried that revelation. It couldn't be possible at this time of day. Suddenly, she remembers Oscar in her arms and continues to spray the super potion at his right side.
"Oscar. Are you okay?"
"Osha... (Yeah...)" He slowly nods, reassuring her that he will be alright. Although, he might want to avoid using his right hand for a while. She smiled and took out his Poké Ball.
"You did your best. Take it easy for a while." She reassured, recalling the sea otter into his ball. She also takes out Joule's Poké Ball.
"Great job Joules!" She praised the zebra. He simply nods as she recalls him into his ball as well. When she's finished, she stares at one of the Poké Ball statues similar to the one from Striaton, with a bronze plaque that says:
[Nacrene City Pokémon Gym]
[An Archeologist with Backbone]
So, the museum is also a gym... She assumed. She turns to Peggy, who is just ecstatic to enter the museum.
She smiled. "Well, we might as well go in."
She pushed open the large door and almost immediately, she was amazed by the sheer size of the museum, as well as the exquisite design of the main lobby. She sees a thin man staring in front of a giant fossil.
"Wow! Whenever I look at this skeleton, I'm... fascinated." He commented. Just then, he turns to see a trainer and her Pokémon walk in from the entrance.
[!]
"Welcome! I'm Hawes, the assistant director of the museum." He introduced. She had to assume that he was in charge of the museum but if he was the assistant director, then where is the director?
"Nice to meet you!"
"Since you were kind enough to visit, I'll give you a tour of the museum." He offered.
"That's okay, we can find our way around." She reassured.
"Please, I insist." He implored. She should insist otherwise but she looks at Peggy with pleading eyes, wanting to learn more about the exhibits.
She sighed boringly. "Okay then. Lead the way."
Hawes proceeds to describe a lot of the artifacts around the exhibit, especially the giant Dragon Pokémon fossil. Hilda grew rather bored of his monotonous lectures about the exhibit, almost feeling the need to fall asleep right away. But Peggy was enjoying her time listening to his lectures, taking in every little detail about each artifact he presents. She was enthusiastic to learn more about its history and needless to say, it appears that Hawes is giving a tour to the Pokémon rather than its trainer. Lastly, they stop in front of a glass case, containing a round, white stone.
"...And here, we have just a plain, old stone that was found in the desert. Truth be told, we're not entirely sure what value it has but it is pretty to look at." He commented. While he rambles on about its appearances, Hilda couldn't help but stare intently at the white stone, as if mesmerized by its mystifying presence.
"I see..." She mumbled, wondering about its true value without understanding why.
...Hilda...
"Hmm?" She blinks and looks around to see where that voice was coming from but saw nothing. Hawes noticed her confusion.
"Is something the matter?" He asked. She merely shakes her head.
"No. I thought I heard something..." She claimed. Before they move on, she looks back at the stone one last time. She could have sworn she heard a low voice from somewhere... Finally, they make their way back to the main lobby.
"And that concludes the tour! I hope you enjoy it! Are there any questions?" At that moment, she takes the brochure from her bag.
"It says here that there's supposed to be a gym. Do you happen to know where that is?" She asked.
"Certainly!" He pointed out the top floor that's just across her, where a large open entrance is stationed at.
"The Pokémon Gym is just beyond here. At the end of the Gym, a very young and kind Gym Leader is waiting. She just so happens to be my wife!" He advised.
"I got you!" She nods, as she and her Pokémon begin to head up the stairs to start her gym challenge.
"P-Patrat! (T-Thank you!)" Peggy nods to the asst. director, who simply smiles at them.
"Good luck young trainer!" Hawes called out.
They finally make it up through the large hallway, where they see a familiar man in a white jacket next to the same Pokémon Gym statues.
"Hello there!" He greeted.
"Clyde!" Hilda smiled, recognizing the man from the first gym.
"Shh!"
"Shh!"
She turned to glare at whoever shushed her until she notices there are several rows of bookshelves and tables where people are silently reading. The museum doesn't just have a gym, it also has a library.
"A Pokémon Gym where a Leader waits for a challenger at the back of the museum... It has a great atmosphere, doesn't it?" He added.
"I guess so."
"All Trainers in this Gym use Normal-type Pokémon. This is just between you and me... Normal-type Pokémon are weak against Fighting-type Pokémon." He whispered. Too bad for Hilda, she doesn't have any fighting Pokémon.
"Now, I will explain about the Gym itself!" He points to the bookshelves.
"In this Pokémon Gym, if you answer questions hidden in books, you can move forward. To start with, read this book!" He hands her a light brown book titled 'Nice to Meet You, Pokémon' to get started.
"Aw, what?" She complained.
"If you don't know where the book is, please ask anyone! Good luck!" He gives her a thumbs-up to wish her good luck, the latter of which she groans internally at her challenge. This might take a while...
Several minutes passed and many school trainers quietly read their books in the famous Nacrene library. Hilda, however, fell asleep within the first 5 minutes of reading the first passage.
Thump!
[!]
She wakes up abruptly at the sound of someone placing down a heavy book. She groans in frustration.
"It's no use! I'm a total loss to literature!" She irately whined to herself. Meanwhile, Peggy happily read some of the books her trainer had been forced to find. One of the most interesting books was about the type of berries. She looks at all the kinds of berries there are to eat until her eyes land on one particular berry:
The Chesto Berry.
She grimaces internally at the memories of its taste from earlier. But then she spots a passage about its effects and reads it gradually. In the meantime, Hilda blandly reads a part of the book when she spots something peculiar.
"Huh?" It appears that there's a small note between the pages.
Hey! There's a writing inside! She thought as she pulls it out and reads the written note:
Pokémon Trainers!
I am the Gym Leader, Lenora!
I hid four memos in this library. Each of them has a question.
Can you solve the questions and come find me?
Now, this is the first question!
Q: What is the first Pokémon you met in this Gym?
The hint is... on a bookshelf in the middle row!
Now, try to find it!
It was at this moment that she finally realized what the guide meant to explain.
"I get it! By finding clues in the memos, I should be able to find the gym leader!" She deducted with Peggy. They made their way to a bookshelf in the middle row, where they spot one particular book that stood apart from all the rest. Hilda was going to grab it but unexpectedly, another hand grab the book before she could react to it. She turns to spot the brown-hair girl, with a blue dress and pairs of glasses, reading the book. The girl turned to her confused face.
"I'm sorry... Were you going to read this book?" She asked, smiling at the trainer.
"Yes!"
"I'll let you read this book if..." Slowly, she reaches for her Poké Ball from her backpack.
"You can beat me in a battle!" She challenged. Hilda should have expected this kind of challenge to happen. After all, they are in a Pokémon Gym, but she also knows that they're in a library. Still, she shouldn't complain about it, as everyone doesn't seem to mind if there is a battle happening.
"I accept!"
That's what Hilda ends up doing for her entire challenge. Each time she searches for a memo, she battles an opponent who is just waiting for her to prove herself worthy of the gym leader. For the battle itself, she has an easy time since most of her opponent's team consists of Patrats & Lillipups, but the real challenge is finding the books themselves. She reads the memos that give her hints about the next book. It took forever but finally; she finds a bookshelf from the far ends of the library and reads the last memo:
You've managed to get here. Well done!
You seem to have wisdom as well as strength!
I look forward to our battle!
- Gym Leader Lenora
Click!
Suddenly, the bookshelf gradually shifts apart from where Hilda stands, revealing some sort of opening from underneath the shelf.
There's a switch under the book! She thought. The hidden switch has revealed a secret staircase that will lead directly to the gym leader, where she eagerly awaits to have her battle there.
"Peggy! You ready?" Hilda asked. The rodent couldn't help but feel nervous about this. She was going to meet the director and not only will they meet her but battle her. Still, she tries to put on a brave face.
"Pat! (Yeah!)" She nods to her trainer. They both make their way downstairs to wherever the secret passageway leads to. As they descend, they hear a faint sound of clashing and banging.
"...Attack!..."
"...Dodge it!..."
It sounds like somebody's having a battle right now. They finally made it to the end, where they find themselves in an exquisite office. Over by the left corner, they spot a ground-like battlefield, where there's a battle going on.
"Ronaldo! Use Assist!"
Ronaldo raises a paw that's beginning to glow white and points it at another Pokémon on the other side of the field. He unleashes a strong burst of wind toward his opponent, but the Pokémon confidently stood its ground while enduring the attack. They both see Cheren on the field with Ronaldo while facing off against...
Lenora! They thought simultaneously.
They get a good look at a confident woman with curly hair and an apron over her shoulders. This must be the gym leader Lenora. And over by her side is a Pokémon that slightly resembles Peggy but taller and with reddish-brown fur & yellow lines all over itself. Hilda takes out her Pokédex and scanned the Pokémon.
[Watchog]
[The Lookout Pokémon, and the evolved form of Patrat]
[When they see an enemy, their tails stand high, and they spit the seeds of berries stored in their cheek pouches.]
That's amazing... Peggy was star-struck by the Watchog's impressive stand against an attack like that.
Let's watch the whole battle. She decided, just to see what they were up against.
"Impressive! Let's see if you can handle this! Use Retaliate!" She commanded. The tall meerkat responds and jumps up into the air to deliver a high jump kick at the dark cat. Ronaldo struggles to move from the attack but manages to stand back up. He then takes an Oran Berry from behind him and eats it, healing his strains a bit. Peggy watches his actions with interest.
He ate the berry to heal himself... She noted.
"Alright! Use Fury Swipes!" Cheren ordered. Purrloin speedily dashed at the opponent and his claws sharpens to unleash a rush of slashes. Now that he finished eating the berry, his body became nimbler, granting him extra speed. The tall rodent was overwhelmed by the attack and fainted on the ground it stood.
"The winner of this match is Challenger Cheren!" Clyde announced. Cheren simply tips his glasses with pride, satisfied by the result of the battle.
"Well, you must have studied to use those moves effectively. Congratulations!" Lenora smiled. She reaches for her apron pocket to present something to him.
"For your efforts today, I present to you the Basic Badge!" She announced as she gives him a golden rectangular badge with lines to split the grape color plates between it. Hilda watches her friend proudly take the badge and thinks to herself:
How exactly am I going to deal with that? She contemplates. However, she turns to her side to notice her Pokémon missing.
She panicked. "W-What? Where did she go?"
Lenora's Watchog gets up from the ground and cleans itself up, but then notices a Patrat, with a white silk scarf, staring eagerly at it with starry eyes.
"Patrat! Pat! Pat! Rat! Patrat! (Hi there! That move you used was amazing! I know you lost but that was so cool!)" Peggy praised the meerkat. Watchog didn't know what to expect of the small rodent, but it couldn't help but be impressed at her enthusiasm.
"Wat! Watchog! (Why thank you!)" It grinned with its arms crossed. Lenora couldn't help but smile at the eager Pokémon, but Cheren recognized the Pokémon by the silk scarf around her neck.
Isn't that...? Right on cue, Hilda appears before them.
"There you are! I'm so sorry about that! My Pokémon's a big fan! I hope it's not too much of a bother to you." She apologized.
"No, not at all! Welcome!" Lenora gives her hands out as she welcomes the new trainer and her Pokémon.
"You must be Lenora!"
"That's right! Director of the Nacrene Museum and this here's Gym Leader!" She introduced herself. Cheren is impressed that she managed to make it this far.
"So, you made it here as well?" He asked.
"Yeah. I saw your battle and I got to say... Nice!" She compliments, giving him a thumbs-up.
"I take it you two know each other?" Lenora presumed.
"We're friends." Hilda answered.
"Indeed..." He then reaches for something in his jacket.
"Here! You might need this." He hands her a deep blue berry to her hand. This was the Chesto Berry from the Pokémon Center.
"Have one of your Pokémon hold this and if it ever falls asleep, it will wake up immediately. Good luck!" He salutes her as he walks out of the field. This leaves Hilda with Lenora, so she turns to her.
"So... Are we going to get this challenge started?"
"Well, after my Pokémon heal, we can start the challenge." She suggested.
"That's fair." Hilda nods but she realizes she needs to come up with something before she starts battling. She turns to her Pokémon and shows her the Chesto Berry.
"Peggy. Would you like to hold it?" She offered.
Peggy stared at the berry and almost vomits at the mere thought of eating it again, but then she realize that there was a reason why the boy gave it to her...
It's worth a shot. She nods to her, taking the berry from her hand and storing it in her mouth just in case she needs it. Hilda begins thinking of a strategy to deal with the gym leader's Pokémon because chances are, this may be a tough one to get through but hopefully, she can pull it off well.
After a few minutes have passed, they were finally ready to start the gym battle. Hilda stood on one side of the field while Lenora confidently stood on the other side. Clyde walks up between both sides.
"The battle between Gym leader Lenora and challenger Hilda will now commence. This will be a single-format battle, but challengers can switch out their Pokémon at any time. Whoever defeats their team first wins."
"Do you have what it takes to defeat me?" Lenora challenged.
"It won't hurt to try!" Hilda declared.
"Well then, challenger, I'm going to research how you battle with the Pokémon you've so lovingly raised!"
"Let the challenge begin!"
[Battle Start!]
[Hilda VS Lenora]
"Let's go Herdier!" Lenora calls out, throwing her Poké Ball into the air to release a scruffy dog with thick, dark blue fur.
"Hrruff! (Alright!)" It barked.
"Hmm..." Hilda takes out her Pokédex and scans the dog in front of her.
[Herdier]
[The Loyal Dog Pokémon, and the evolved form of Lillipup]
[It has black, cape-like fur that is very hard and decreases the amount of damage it receives.]
"Okay then! Go Joules!" She calls out the zebra from his ball onto the field.
"Blitz! (Ready!)"
"Start with Quick Attack!" She commanded. The zebra swiftly dashed towards the dog with blinding speed and rams his mane at it. Herdier was thrown back but quickly got back up with ease.
"Now, with that move, I'm starting to see what kind of trainer you are!" Lenora observed.
"There's more to it than just that!"
"Let's find out! Herdier! Take Down!" The dog's body super-charge and slams itself at the zebra. Joules slid across the ground as he takes a lot of damage from the attack.
"Are you ok, Joules?" Hilda called out. The zebra slowly stood up and nods. She realized she's gonna need to change things up a bit.
"Use Bite!" The dog's fang sharpens and charges toward the zebra.
"Dodge and use Charge!" Joules jumps out of the dog's fangs and begins charging electricity through his mane, powering up his body.
"Bite again!" The dog's fang sharpens again and charged toward the zebra.
Almost... Hilda anticipated. Joule's mane glows brightly.
"Now! Use Shock Wave!" She ordered on cue. The zebra unleashes a zig-zagging bolt of electricity, shocking the unexpecting dog. With the extra charge-up, his lightning powers have increased by double. So, the attack was enough to take down Herdier, defeating it in an instant.
"Way to go Joules!" She cheered. Joules nods as he stood proud of his power. Lenora silently recalls Herdier, but she is impressed with the trainer's strategy.
"No matter how grim the situation is, I'll use my research skills to find a winning strategy!" She sends out her ace Watchog, who has its arms crossed and a serious look to show that it's ready to give them its all.
"Use Retaliate!" She commands. The meerkat jumps up into the air to deliver a high jump kick at the zebra. Additionally, its body has toughened to bear more strength in its attack. This shocked Joules that the attack has given him too much damage and he fell to the ground, defeated.
"No! Joules!" Hilda was baffled by the result. The damage wasn't like that a minute ago.
How did it deal so much damage now? She questioned.
"That's the power of Retaliation! It not only does damage to my opponents but its powers double after my Pokémon faints. So that's twice the damage!" Lenora explained. Hilda finds out that this may prove to be difficult if she doesn't think of something fast.
"Joules! Return!" She recalls Joules into his ball and reaching for Oscar's ball. Hopefully, he's recovered enough to be able to battle.
"You're up Oscar!" She calls out the sea otter, whose right arm is slightly strained but is pumped up and ready for battle.
"Use Water Gun!"
"Osha! (Right!)" He nods and shoots a surge of water at the meerkat, who took the attack but is otherwise still standing.
"Crunch! Let's Go!" Watchog's buck teeth sharpen and dash toward the otter.
"Oscar! Razor Shell!"
I better use my left hand. Oscar grabs his scalchop using his left hand and unleashes a blue blade of water at the meerkat's teeth, holding its attack off. However, his hand struggles to hold onto the shell and unfortunately, temporarily loses his hold from the attack. Watchog seizes the opportunity and sinks its fangs into the otter's body, causing some damage to him. The meerkat throws the otter far into the ground.
"Oscar!"
Oscar struggles to stand up from the ground from strains across his body. This was not good. He can't keep fighting like this if he doesn't master his left hand soon...
Forgive me... Oscar preps his shell to his straining right hand as he takes a battle stance at his opponent. Hilda is concerned about his right hand, but she trusts him to be able to battle.
"Use Razor Shell again!" She commanded. Oscar dashed across the field and sends a rush of slashes at his opponent while the latter attempts to dodge all of the slashes. However, it faltered slightly to receive damage from the attack, reducing its defenses by a bit. Lenora speculated that she'll need to think fast as the otter approach the meerkat to deliver the finishing blow.
"Watchog! Use Hypnosis!" Lenora directed. The meerkat's red-and-yellow eyes begin glowing red and aim their power at Oscar. Hilda's eyes grew in alarm.
"Oscar! Look Out!" She warned, But Oscar was too late to react, and his eyes flashed red as well, forcing him to stop. He begins to feel drowsy and starts to slowly lie down on the ground.
No... I can't... Sleep... Oscar thinks before losing consciousness.
"No! You can't fall asleep now! Wake Up!" She calls out. However, Oscar is still snoring to sleep. At this point, it was hopeless. She's gonna have to switch to her last healthy Pokémon:
Peggy.
She recalls her sleeping partner and reaches for Peggy's ball. It all comes to Peggy and frankly, she's a little nervous about this. Nevertheless, she takes a deep breath and clutches it firmly.
"You can do this Peggy!" She calls out to the small rodent, who tries to ready her battle stance. However, she sees that she's facing off against Watchog, whom she just admired seconds ago.
"Do you believe your Pokémon can win this?" Lenora asked.
"Of course! She may not look like it, but I believe in her, and that's enough for me to keep fighting!" She inspired. Peggy is touched by her trainer's faith in her, and the gym leader couldn't help but admire the challenger's resolve.
"Well then, show me what you got!" She dared.
"Watcho! Wat! (Give me your best shot kid!)" Watchog challenged, gesturing to Peggy to 'Bring it on!'.
"Peggy, watch out for Hypnosis! It'll make you fall asleep!" Hilda warned. It was at that moment Peggy remembered the berry she was holding...
I understand now. Peggy closed her eyes and takes a deep breath. She musters up all the courage she has in her, and she opens her eyes to glare fiercely. She knows what she has to do...
"Peggy! Use Work-Up!" Hilda ordered. The rodent's body starts glowing red as it charges its power up.
"Watchog! Use Retaliate!" The meerkat jumped at the rodent to deliver a high jump kick.
"Peggy! Use Bide!" Peggy's body slowly begins to glow red just as the meerkat delivers its attack on her. However, she remains standing and charging up her powers. Lenora recognized what move she was using and turns to Watchog.
"Watchog! Use Hypnosis!" The meerkat's red-and-yellow eyes begin glowing red and aim their power at Peggy. Hilda grew tensed as she watched her Pokémon grow drowsy and her body stops charging the attack.
Oh no... This is not good! Hilda thought. Peggy is slowly falling asleep. If she doesn't act quickly, they'll lose the match.
Gotta... Eat... The berry...! Peggy struggles to reach for the berry in her mouth as she lies down on the ground. Silence befell the entire gym as they wait for the results.
Come on Peggy... Hilda prayed for her Pokémon to wake up.
Crack!
"Huh?" Hilda's eyes lit up. In her Pokémon's last course of action before losing consciousness, she cracks open the hard shell of the berry, letting out the soft flesh. The flesh briefly touched her tongue and...
[!]
Peggy's red-and-yellow eyes suddenly open and she squeals in disgust as she's jumping up and down from the ground. Hilda brightens at her Pokémon waking up.
The Chesto Berry works!
Meanwhile, Lenora observed the Patrat spit out the hard blue berry and she was amazed at how well she, along with her trainer, pulled it off.
Now that's impressive... She commended.
"You ready Peggy?" Hilda called out. The rodent nods in resolve.
"Pat! (Yeah!)" She cried.
"Now use Tackle!" Peggy's charged at the meerkat to deliver a full-powered tackle. Lenora has determined to give it her all for their last stand.
"Watchog! Use Crunch!" She commanded. The meerkat's fangs sharpens and charged at the rodent. The two are charging close to each other to deliver the final blow.
"Let's Go!"
Peggy makes a surprising move to jump from underneath the tall meerkat and delivers a full-powered headbutt at the latter. This causes both of them to falter back in dizziness and collapse right on the ground. Everyone froze in silence as they watch in anticipation of the fallen Pokémon...
Slowly, Peggy stands up while Watchog stays on the ground with swirls in its eyes, defeated.
She won!
[Battle Finish!]
[Winner: Hilda]
"The winner of this match is Challenger Hilda!" Clyde announced.
"Peggy... You did it!" Hilda cheered. She runs over to give her Pokémon a big hug, while the rodent smiled and shed a bit of a stray tear because this was the first time she's ever won a big battle before. While they celebrate, Lenora walks over to Watchog, who's recovering from the headbutt but can stare at the trainer's Pokémon with regard.
"Watchog! (Very impressive!)" It chirped as it acknowledges the rodent's strength. Lenora grins as she recalls her ace into its ball and turns to Hilda.
"My theory about you was correct. You're more than just talented... You're motivated! I salute you!" She saluted, giving new respect to Hilda and her Pokémon. Hilda & Peggy become bashful at the salute, showing their appreciation for the gesture.
Later at the gym leader's main office, Lenora stood in front of Hilda & Peggy as she presents something in her hand.
"Your fighting style is so enchanting. It is charming. You are a Pokémon Trainer worthy of receiving this Basic Badge!" She announced to them as she gives Hilda the same badge that Cheren received earlier; a golden rectangular badge with lines to split the grape color plates between it. Hilda marveled at her second badge.
"Thank you!"
"Now if you have two Badges, traded Pokémon up to Lv. 30 will obey you." She explains.
"Here, I also want you to have this TM." She hands her a small disk labeled 'TM67 - Retaliate'.
"Retaliate does a lot more damage if an ally fainted the turn before you use it! If you master the timing, you can defeat even strong opponents." She explains.
"I'll put it to good use!"
Meanwhile, back at the exhibit, Cheren decided to stick around for a bit until his friend receives her badge. However, he spots something unusual rolling on the floor. He takes a closer look at the object and his eyes widen.
It's a bomb!
Boom!
The bomb releases white smog all over the main lobby, alarming everyone of the unexpecting assault. Suddenly, a swarm of men in pawn-like uniforms came out of the smoke and starts flooding the museum. Everybody became terrified of the invaders, but Cheren instantly recognized the uniforms.
Team Plasma! He tensed as he glares at the evil team surrounding them. Hawes grows frightened of the intruders and runs to the hidden stairwell. He managed to find his wife with the successful challenger.
"Deeear! Dear! Come quickly!" He panicked. They all turned to the flustering assistant director.
"What's going on?" Lenora asked, confused about her husband's flustering.
"Somebody is threatening to steal some bones!"
"What? Oh no, they're not! Come on!" She quickly ascends the stair to get to the bottom of this robbery! Hilda, Peggy, and Hawes followed suit as they made it out of the library and into the main lobby.
"Wait just a minute! Who do you think you are?"
[!]
They spot Lenora in front of a rally of Team Plasma grunts along with Cheren, who is just as defiant as always. They make their way downstairs to meet with them.
"So you have come, Gym Leader. We of Team Plasma shall claim this museum's Dragon Skull in the name of Pokémon Liberation!" One grunt declares, pointing at the dragon fossil. Hilda gave a skeptical glare at their ridiculous plan involving a fossil.
"You can't be serious!" Hilda objected.
"Oh really? Well, to show that we're serious, we'll steal it right before your eyes!" He affirms, signaling the other troopers to turn towards the fossil with smoke bombs in their hands.
"Alright! Smoke screen!" They throw the smoke bombs at once and gases of white smog flood the entire museum. Everyone covers their eyes and mouths as they suffocate under the smothering smoke.
Crack!
"Cheren!" Hilda coughed. Cheren attempts to reach for his belt for his Poké Ball.
"Wilbur! Use Gust Attack! Quick!" He wheezed, sending out his Pidove up into the air. Pidove, or Wilbur, sends out a powerful force of wind all around the main lobby, clearing out the white smog. When the smoke clears out, everyone turns to stare at the dragon fossil.
[!]
"The Dragon's Skull! It's gone!" Lenora exclaimed. What was supposed to be the majestic display of a large dragon is now missing a vital part of the assembly: The head!
"We have to go after them!" She declared, running off to the door without a second thought. Hilda contemplates what to do with Team Plasma when she spots her Pokémon running off with Lenora.
"Peggy! Wait up!" She runs off to where they were heading when her eyes catch an unusual sight: The glass case next to the stairs is broken and the spot where the white stone is supposed to be is empty...
That's strange... The stone is gone too.
"Everybody, stay calm and leave in an orderly fashion. Repeat..." Hawes orders all the visitors of the museum to safely evacuate the premise in response to the sudden robbery. Meanwhile, Hilda catches up on the exit to find Lenora and Peggy searching for the robbers left-to-right but alas, their search became fruitless.
Lenora sighed. "Where could they have gone?"
"My, my... This is quite the event that's happening."
[?]
They turn to face a thin man with outlandish clothes resembling leaves. He seems to be observing the distress of the city.
"Good day, Lenora. Find any good Fossils lately?" He greeted.
"Oh! This is a surprising visit! Are you suffering from artist's block again?" Lenora asked, who was not expecting him to visit so soon.
"You know each other?" Hilda presumed.
"Hilda! This is Burgh. He may not look like it, but he's Castelia City's Gym Leader!" She introduced the trainer to her artist friend, whom they've known each other for years.
"Well, I'm just looking for a change of pace. Although, things seem hectic around here. What's up?"
"What's up?! Someone just walked in here and stole a part of the exhibit, that's what's up!" Lenora affirmed with sarcasm. Just then, Bianca shows up where she sees everybody leaving the museum. She finds her friends next to the exit and goes over to them.
"Hilda! Cheren!" She called. They turn to find their friend coming over to them.
"Bianca!" They said simultaneously.
"What's going on here? Is there some kind of problem?" She asked. Lenora noticed the blond girl with a green beret.
"And she is...?"
"She's also my friend." Hilda confirmed. Lenora takes a good minute to examine the new girl and concludes that she is a trainer as well.
"I see... Ok then, let's split up and search. I'll head this way." She initiated, pointing out the direction she will head to. She turns to Cheren and Bianca.
"I need you and Bianca to guard the museum." She instructed. She then turns to Burgh and Hilda.
"Burgh and Hilda, you two search Pinwheel Forest! Got it? Burgh, you show the way!" She instructs the artist, expecting him to help out the trainer. She finally turns to everyone.
"Everyone, I'm counting on you!" She runs off to the far west side of the city to begin her search. Burgh coolly turns to the brunette trainer.
"Uh-huh. Hilda, is it?" He presumed.
"Yep, that's me." She confirmed, a little unsure about the gym leader.
"Are you raring to round up our robbers?" He proposed.
"Well..." She drawled, turning to her friends who gives her a serious look.
"Hilda... Be careful out there!" Cheren urged.
"Yeah! We'll protect the museum!" Bianca beamed. Hilda nods at their willingness to guard the museum. She turns to Peggy, who is resolved to recover the fossil from Team Plasma.
"Patrat! (Let's do it!)" She gives off a determined glare. Hilda acknowledges this and turns to Burgh.
"Right! Let's go!" She affirmed her resolve. Hilda and Burgh finally make their way to the end of the city, where the next road will lead to Pinwheel Forest. There's no telling what danger lies ahead of the thick mossy jungle but whatever happens, they must retrieve the stolen artifact from Team Plasma...
No matter what!
Hilda's team:
[1.]
Name: Oshawott ("Oscar")
Type: Water
Brave Nature, "Strong willed"
[2.]
Name: Patrat ("Peggy")
Type: Normal
Timid Nature, "Highly curious"
[3.]
Name: Blitzle ("Joules")
Type: Electric
Hardy Nature, "Likes to run"