Gage remembered a phrase that Grace loved to use. She said it so often, yet he hardly seemed to notice. The Girafarig guessed it was because it sounded ridiculous coming from her mouth. It sounded ridiculous coming from anyone's mouth, but especially "Veteran Warrior Grace". From the moment he met the mystery Pokemon (who introduced herself as Ace), the phrase kept popping in his mind. Gage thought it was appropriate for the situation.

"You done goofed."

Three minutes into the fight and Ace already had him dancing like a marionette. He ran circles around her, narrowly avoiding the rapid succession of Shadow Balls speeding towards him. Gage had his hands over his head, yelping each time one struck him. They weren't strong; Ace was willingly using less energy so that she could shoot more. But his Psychic nature didn't react well to the darkness of her attacks, sending a chill throughout his form each time he came into contact with it. It was only because of his dual Normal nature that he could still run at this point.

"I thought you wanted to fight! Come on, hit me with your best shot!" Ace cried out, sending another Shadow Ball that Gage dropped to avoid. I did, and it did nothing. His Thunderbolt, which he spent weeks with Ampharos just to attempt to learn, nearly tickled her. Tickled. Her.

The Girafarig popped a purple tablet on his tongue, swallowing quickly. He felt a sudden rush of energy, the hair on his arms and neck standing. Ace had already made Gage wasted fourteen potions. Potions that had taken half a year to collect since he had a student's salary. Gage counted the tablets, hiding within the stalks to gather his thoughts. He had six Potions and one Super Potion. Gage cursed and shoved the items back into his pocket.

In terms of power the gap seemed endless. Thunderbolt had been his strongest move, and it did nothing to her. And Gage couldn't run forever; he would tire down eventually. No, he had to be smart. There had to be some chink in her armour. The Girafarig ran through his Moveset again.

"I thought you were a Girafarig! Should I call you Sandslash? Come out, come out, wherever you are Sandslash!" Gage didn't take the bait. At least she insulted him with a Pokemon that evolved.

He didn't know what she was; that put him at a disadvantage. He didn't know what type she was., or what moves she had, save for Shadow Ball and that light thing that nearly knocked out the Gligar.

The Gligar.

Gage had forgotten the kid was there; his eyes flicked to the sky, where the Gligar hung to avoid stray Shadow Balls. The gears within his mind began to spin; he would have to be really lucky.

In terms of power, she was eons away. In terms of speed, she might keep up and she knew it. In terms of Moves, she took the cake with that Dazzling Gleam.

That left Gage with outsmarting her.

The Girafarig leapt up suddenly. Ace's back was turned to him. He sent a weak Thunderbolt at the back of her head, forcing it forward a bit. She quickly spun, smirked, and instantly formed two Shadow Balls. "You, uh, smell like feet!" Gage called to her. He never insulted people; it wasn't his strong suit. Ace just rolled her eyes and tossed the spheres at Gage.

In that split second, the Girafarig flung his hands out, his irises flashing blue. Ace had her hands on her hips with a smirk as he ducked and rolled, the orbs only a breath away before he moved. "And that did what?"

"This." Gage ran forward, keeping his head low as if to headbutt her. Ace crossed her arms over her stomach.

Gage straightened up. "Confusion." His irises changed again, forming a swirl of colors. Ace winced and clenched her eyes shut; it was either blind herself or face the invisible force that struck you once the attack was completed.

Checkmate.

Gage leapt onto her shoulders, sending her to the ground as he leapt into the air. The Gligar, watching the whole thing, yelped as the Girafarig suddenly grabbed his ankles; his wings started flapping quicker to keep them aloft.

Ace was on her feet again, eyes trained on Gage. He began swinging from Gligar's ankles. "How's the weather?"

"Cloudy with a chance of pain." Ace was suddenly knocked off her feet, shock flashing over he features. Future Sight had taken effect.

Gage released the Gligar, soumersaulting briefly before sticking his foot out, letting gravity do its job. Ace passed under him just as he was about to connect with the ground.

"Stomp!" A hoof made of what seemed to be fog surrounded his foot, connecting with Ace's torso and sending her into the ground.

Gage bounced on one foot away from Ace's unconcious form, wincing. The previously hoofed foot might've been sprained.

Gage suddenly laughed, the sound evoking chiming bells. He won! The Girafarig turned to face the mystery Pokemon-

For a brief second he was blind. Then he found himself waking up with an throbbing head and a throbbing ankle and a throbbing everything. His eyes were pointed at the sky. What...?

"One more hit and I would've gone down." Gage turned his head towards the voice. Ace and the Gligar were sitting beside him, the mystery Pokemon in a more casual postion compared to the Gligar's stiff, robotic one. Ace rubbed her torso where Gage Stomped her. "I'll have to remember not to hold back with you."

This caught Gage's attention. "You were holding back?" His voice came out as a croak.

"Well, yeah. You're like, what, level 13? 14?"

"13."

"I'm a level 25. I could've used Dazzling Gleam and ended that fight before you could say Hoenn."

She said it like it meant nothing. It probably was nothing to her. But to Gage it was like being hit by a bag of bricks. His eyes were wide as he watched her lean back. He was like a speck of dirt to her. Maybe a twig. Level 25 didn't seem like much, but each level was the equivalent of a year's worth of training, no matter how long it took to achieve it. Gage's plan, the plan he half-assed at the last second, was a fluke. Pure, blind luck.

The Girfarig let his head drop in defeat. Grace would be disgusted.

"Don't let it bother you!" Ace encouraged. "It takes a lot to level up; everyone knows that. Tell him Woody."

Gage noticed that the Gligar's cheeks reddened. "I told you to stop calling me that..."

"You told me to stop calling you Woodster, which I did."

"My name is Edge." Whether the Gligar was addressing him or Ace, Gage wasn't sure.

"Edge isn't a cute name." She pinched the Gligar's cheek, which was redder than a Ponyta's mane by now.

"Ace," Gage interupted. She glanced at him, her brow quirked. "Make me stronger."

"I can't make you do anything." Ace rose and brushed grass off her bum. "But if you want to get stronger, I'll help you. I can be the Lamain to your Wrecker." She offered him a hand.

"Didn't Wrecker lose to...everyone?" Gage took her hand, letting her pull him up.

"Well yeah, but we can't all be Feldspar the Immovables."

Edge watched the two with a bit of a frown. "You said I'd be the next Feldspar the Immovable."

"Did I? Oh well. You're both Wreckers now."