After a meal at one of the local restaurants, Seth returned to the Mauville City Gym to register himself for the coming challenge. Kyra, who had exhausted herself in the battle with Trent, was fast asleep on her back safely clutched in his arms. She was heavy but not heavier than his travel pack; carrying her was no trouble.

Stepping into the gym was like entering another world. The style of architecture was vastly different from what he'd seen from the city so far; the walls and floor were colored grey and made of metal coated with various insulators. Electrical wiring ran along the walls beneath wall panels latticed for visibility, powering everything from the LED lights set in the ceiling, to the advanced computer tower set up behind the reception counter.

"Welcome," the man behind the front desk greeted Seth as he approached, causing Kyra to stir from her rest. The man sighed and turned his head to look at him with thinly-veiled irritation. "Are you looking to register for a gym challenge?"

"Yes, sir. What's the soonest I can schedule one?" In response, the man turned the computer monitor to show Seth a detailed timeline of the next few weeks. Seth blanched when he noticed just how booked Wattson was. Every day there were only a few slots open for challenges and most of them were already booked. "Oh wow, he's really busy."

"I should hope he is. The man has dedicated over half of his time to developing our city. The fewer distractions he gets from you trainers, the better." Suddenly the man's attitude made sense. Seth winced, recognizing that this particular man was already negatively disposed towards him, just because he was a trainer.

"If that's the case, why is he still the gym leader?" Seth questioned as he peered through the schedule. The earliest available time slot he could find wasn't for a week. Although seemingly inconvenient, Seth didn't mind too much. The city had plenty of things in it for him to do to kill time. With that in mind, he signed up for the earliest slot, registering all three of his current pokémon for his team.

"Wattson still finds it fun, for some reason. It's his hobby," the man explained, wheeling the monitor back around to face him. "Are you finished here? I was really quite busy managing the electrical systems."

"Yes. Sorry to bother you," Seth turned to leave, feeling uncomfortable. The man grunted but didn't say anything further. Sensing his discomfort, Kyra lifted her head, her eyes hardening into a glare. She lifted an arm, the fins on her head starting to glow. "Kyra, what are you…?"

The cable connecting the monitor to the computer tower slowly began to move, coiling stealthily around the unsuspecting man's leg. With a mischievous smirk, Kyra made a jerking motion with her arm. The man behind the counter suddenly yelped and fell, carrying the mouse and keyboard down with him in a loud crash. At first, Seth was worried, but the man appeared unhurt, a muffled string of curses rising from behind the counter.

Seth quickly ducked out of the gym, the doors sliding shut behind him. "Kyra! That wasn't very nice of you," he scolded her. Yet, he could tell even as the words left his mouth that Kyra felt absolutely no shame. She merely stuck her tongue out, as if to say that the man had deserved her little prank. Seth let out a sigh. "Eric was right; you're a little white demon."

The giggling of the said white demon in his arms filled his ears all the way back out into the streets.

Seth now had a full week to kill before he could challenge the gym. After returning to his hotel, he drafted up a quick plan at the provided desk of what he would do with his time. As he did so, he allowed his pokémon to relax outside of their pokéballs...though Princess took up the majority of the space. Each of them found something to entertain themselves with: Summer took to sniffing through Seth's bag, Kyra read one of the provided books in the room, and Princess napped, her head resting on Seth's lap. Every so often, Seth would lower the pencil and stroke the scales atop her head.

He set his pencil down on the table, the finished plan resting on the desk before him. He leaned back in the chair and yawned; it had been a long active day, and it was late. Seth lightly tapped Princess's snout, waking her. "I need to get up, sweetie." He whispered to her. Princess briefly licked his fingers before removing her head from his lap.

Seth changed into his pajamas and spent a half-hour cleaning his various clothes in the hotel laundromat. He wondered if it might be a good idea in the future to invest in better means of transporting his gear if he ever wanted to buy any souvenirs or clothes over the course of his long journey. Perhaps he'd look into the item storage services the PokeCenters advertised for trainer use.

When he was finished, he climbed into bed and lay there with a sigh. He looked up to see his three pokemon: Kyra, Princess, and Summer - getting ready to join him in sleep as well. A moment of reflection passed over him, and he found himself questioning if the life he had now was, in fact, real, and not the result of a long dream.

Kyra made a questioning hum as she climbed into bed beside him, Seth's odd state of mind flowing through her. She slipped beneath one of his arms and snuggled up against his side, her eyes reflecting the dim light of the room.

"Aw, hey." Seth melted at how cute Kyra appeared to him at that moment. He reached his other hand over to cup her cheek, his fingers sliding through her hair. "Don't worry about me. I'm just marveling at the way my life has turned out. Again. I'm just so lucky to have you three."

Kyra churred softly and brought her self closer, extending her head up to him. Seth felt her desire for affection and couldn't find it in him to decline. He met her in a gentle kiss, enjoying the feeling of her body pressed so close to him after a long day.

Seth cradled her face with one hand as he kissed her, the other brushing her soft green hair out of her face. As he did so, Princess slithered into bed with them. Seth obliging lifted his back just long enough for the serpent to slide beneath the pillows and curl her tail beneath the blankets with them..

He then felt Summer's presence on the bed, the fox hesitantly sneaking onto its edge. Summer's eyes were wide with wonder and curiosity as she watched them. Seth recalled with a start that Summer had never seen him acting this affectionate with his pokémon before, nor had she seen just how far he would go with them.

"Kyra," Seth briefly broke away from his Kirlia, causing her to pout. "Summer's right there. Are you sure you want to—oop!"

He didn't even have enough time to finish his complaint before Kyra leaned forward to kiss him again. He gave a light chuckle—he should have known by now that Kyra thrived on an audience. He still felt embarrassed by the scene he'd caused on the beach.

"You're insatiable," Seth teased Kyra lightly when he had a moment to breathe. He could already feel her small rump grinding against his crotch, dampening his underwear and causing his own body to react, his member stiffening up against her. "Were you like this before you met me?"

Kyra paused at that question, lifting a limb to her chin in thought. She eventually shrugged helplessly. It was a yes or no question, but it seemed like there was more to it than she could truly express one way or the other.

"I think you were always horny," Seth guessed. Sure enough, Kyra nodded instantly with a light blush on her face. "Alright, I won't keep you waiting any longer."

Kyra beamed. Her fins lit up and she tugged down his underwear, his hardened shaft springing up and slapping lightly against her butt, earning a light squeak from her. Seth felt that she was already wet, but he moved a hand down between her slender green legs, his fingers soon brushing against her slit. Kyra's blush deepened and she let out a pleasured coo. She captured his lips in another kiss as she pressed her hips down against his fingers, coating his fingers with her arousal.

Her arms snaked up around his neck, the Kirlia hugging him tightly and laying kiss after kiss upon his lips as Seth's fingers slipped inside of her and gently rubbed against her velvety inner walls. Seth still felt new to this, so he kept his ears open, using her soft churring moans to guide his fingers inside her to her most pleasurable spots.

Kyra squeaked loudly and came when Seht's fingers brushed against her clit, her thighs growing significantly wetter. Seth withdrew his now sticky fingers, chuckling at how adorable Kyra looked with her flushed cheeks and askew hair. He ran his clean hand down her shuddering body affectionately and he kissed her on the head. Despite how wrong this would have felt to him back in Johto, nothing made him feel more content than sharing this moment of intimacy with his partner.

Seth noticed Summer watching them both with an unreadable expression. Summer couldn't see what was going on due to the blankets covering them both, but from Kyra's pleasured cries and her movements, it looked as though she were starting to piece it together.

"Hey, Summer? Is this...nnn...making you uncomfortable?" Seth asked of Summer even as Kyra began telekinetically stroking his shaft. The Vulpix squeaked in surprise upon being addressed. "We can stop if you want. Kyra, well—she just likes an audience."

Summer cocked her head to one side. Seth unconsciously mimicked the motion, confused. Seth turned to Kyra. "I can't tell what she's thinking. Any ideas?"

Kyra caught her breath and briefly gazed at Summer. After a moment, a sense of ambivalent curiosity tempered with shyness and wonder came across to Seth from Kyra's side of their mental link.

"I...guess that means she doesn't mind," Seth concluded. Feeling relieved, he turned his full attention back to Kyra, who had already grabbed his length with her telekinesis to hold it in place. He felt her shifting beneath the covers.

"Whoa, easy there girl. I'm not going anywhere—" Without warning, Kyra lowered herself down upon him, and Seth felt her entrance engulf his length with its warm grip. "Nnnff...ah, that feels so good, Kyra."

Kyra wiggled her butt and clenched her lower muscles with a lustful smirk on her face. Seth locked eyes with her and grasped her limbs with his hands, and then the two of them became one, making love in the light of the city filtering in through the curtains.

The following morning, Seth ate breakfast at the hotel and set out into the city in search of the week's first diversion. Mauville was a big city with plenty to see, so he had no time to lay around idle.

After a few quick errands, Seth made his way to the Garden of Flowing Water, an old tea resort built a long time ago that was now a cultural reserve. Like all the other attractions in the city, he'd learned of it through tourist brochures. It was quite a walk to get there, so Seth hopped aboard the electrically powered tram, which was supposedly designed by Wattson.

Just stepping into the park from the street resulted in an instantaneous change in the atmosphere; the bustle of the streets gave way to a tranquil silence broken only by the tweeting of birds and the trickle of running water. Seth took a deep breath, the air feeling cleaner than before.

Seth took his time ambulating through the garden pathways, his boots plodding on the well-kept dirt. On his left just after entering was a small building containing a gift shop and information center, but that was the only instance of human development in the garden. From there, it was nothing but smooth hills, grassy walkways, and gurgling streams.

It was a small park, with the majority of its area taken up by the large crescent-shaped pond that formed a natural barrier from the rest of the city. Ultimately, Seth made his destination one of the two islands in the pond, where the grass was cleared away to make way for park benches and tables.

"There are no events today, so nobody will be using these," Seth grunted to Kyra as he shifted the benches out of the way, clearing out a suitable space for himself and his pokémon . Once he finished, Seth released Princess and Summer from their respective pokéballs onto the island. "Alright, our gym challenge is in a week, and we've got a lot to cover. We've never faced any electric type pokémon before—unless you count the ones that could use electric type moves."

"Sadly, this means that it would be wrong to use Princess in the coming battle," Seth admitted. Princess slowly closed her eyes and reopened them in acknowledgment of his words. "That leaves it up to the two of you."

Kyra nodded eagerly, while Summer simply looked perplexed.

"Which brings me to my first concern. Summer, I have no idea what you can do," Seth confessed. He reached into his bag and set down a stack of books he'd brought from the library onto the sole bench he'd left in place. They were reference materials to help him train, with titles such as Using Fire-type Pokémon Responsibly and Taking care of your Vulpix. "Would you mind spending a few hours helping familiarize us with your abilities?"

Summer blinked once before slowly nodding.

"Thanks. I know I'm technically supposed to be escorting you to your home, but I'd like to get through this gym first." Seth explained. Summer nodded again. With Kyra helping convey Summer's emotions, he discerned that she wasn't upset. "Let's see...Princess, would you mind being Summer's training partner? You're a water type, so I'm not worried about Summer hurting you on accident."

Princess assented with a soft cry and then she slithered into the clearing opposite Summer. The serpent towered above the much smaller Vulpix; in a normal battle, it was likely Princess could take out a pokémon like Summer in a single hit of her massive tail.

"Let's focus on seeing her abilities for now. Summer, take it easy and show me what you already know how to do. Don't worry about hurting Princess; she can regenerate anything you throw at her—if you even make it past her defenses." Seth directed. Summer's fur bristled and the temperature of the air around her rapidly warmed until flames manifested around her. "Princess, defend yourself, but don't counterattack."

With that, their training session began. Seth quickly learned that the performance he'd seen from Summer against May had been the result of her going all out from the very beginning. This explained why Summer became tired so quickly back then. As her trainer, Seth had to make sure she knew restraint.

Seth learned that Summer possessed a rudimentary control over the fire that burned within her. She could wear it like a cloak around her to defend herself, or attack with it in the form of wisps and embers. She couldn't attack and defend at the same time; Seth wrote that down as something he'd need to work on with her.

Summer could also greatly increase the magnitude of all of her attacks at the risk of rapidly tiring herself out, as Seth had seen before. Her aura would become stronger, and her wisps and embers would become fireballs and burning trails, respectively. Seth decided to name this technique "overdrive," and instructed Summer to use it only on his command. Used at the right time, it could prove very useful in a pinch.

Lastly, Seth tried to get Summer to use that technique she'd used to seal away Crux's foresight. Yet it didn't seem she had full control over it, as she couldn't produce the same effect upon demand. With Kyra helping, Seth managed to glean that against Crux, she'd simply felt terror. That was concerning, but Seth decided he'd take things slowly.

When lunchtime came around, Seth put a momentary halt on his training and used the island upon which they stood for its intended purpose; a picnic. He'd purchased just enough food to feed all four of them comfortably. Yet instead of the bench, he sat in one of Princess's coils, which was more comfortable and intimate to him.

"You spoil me," Seth remarked to Princess as he leaned back against her scales. Princess merely hummed and waved the tip of her tail absentmindedly. A soft breeze swept over the park, carrying the dampened sounds of the city with it. It was so relaxing to him that he soon found himself sleepy. "You know, I think we can rest a bit longer...at least for an hour or so."

The rest of the week passed slowly, each day feeling long and fulfilling. The city of Mauville always had something new for him to do, whenever he needed a break from training. Ultimately, apart from the deadline he set for himself in the form of the gym challenge, there was no need to rush. Therefore, Seth began to loosely follow the plan he'd made.

At the beginning of the first day, Seth woke up early and took his pokémon to a restaurant he'd randomly picked for breakfast. Then, he headed out to the first of many locations he'd picked out. The first such location was the mountain trail that headed up to the shrine at the top of Golden Peak.

Despite Mt. Chimney to the north, Golden Peak was enough of a prominent feature for Mauville that if Seth were to picture the city as a square, the mountain would take up one full quarter of it. That alone was enough for the city to declare massive swaths of it as nature preserves and public parks while naturally setting up radio, TV, and cell towers in strategic and secluded locations.

At the top of the mountain was a shrine where a famous swordsman from the ancient times once stayed with his pokémon in solitude, where he wrote a long book about the martial arts—or more specifically, the art of wielding swords. Translated copies of the book itself were for sale nearly all over Mauville; Seth wondered if any of it would be useful for his pokémon training.

While the majority of the shrine was left untouched, plaques explaining the purpose of various areas were set up, showing where the swordsman had slept, practiced, or wrote. Accompanying each plaque were artist renditions of the swordsman.

All of this was fascinating to Seth, who enjoyed learning about history and culture. It was all part of the exploration process: for example, one shrine was the same as another until its history could bring it to life. As for his pokémon...

Seth could tell that Kyra was more or less humoring him. At first, she liked the idea of a strong fighter having lived here, but upon learning his fighting style, she'd lost interest. As for Summer, she plodded along behind Seth, curiously sniffing at the various objects they came across. Princess more or less remained in one place. The mountain surface was rough and didn't agree with her, so she moved as little as possible.

In the evening, Seth was as worn out as he'd expected, so he intended to spend the rest of the day on activities that were much less strenuous. Seth made his way to the city library to relax and read, starting with the swordsman's book.

He quickly found that parts of it weren't to his taste. The swordsman described an era of chaos and death, where pokémon fought in massive battles against humans and pokémon alike for control of various regions and territories. Seth didn't want to imagine that in the slightest; just knowing that such wars occurred was bad enough.

However, the swordsman's discussions on philosophy and general fighting were of interest to him. One particular passage caught Seth's interest.

"Hm, technical flourishes are excessive, and worrying about such things is pointless when all technique is simply a means of defeating one's opponent," Seth recited to Kyra, who sat on his lap half-dozing. He lightly poked at the top of her head. "So in other words, you shouldn't be showing off so much."

Seth chuckled when Kyra lazily tweaked his nose with her telekinesis.

The rest of the week proceeded in a similar fashion. He started early in the mornings, ate luxuriously for breakfast, proceeded to a new location to explore or train, and ultimately ended the day with a calm and relaxing activity.

The nights quickly became something to look forward to. As long as he could remember, the nights often came too quickly and meant an end to his exploring or the day's activities - often when he wasn't ready to be finished. Yet now that he'd started on this journey, the night meant getting comfortable with his pokémon...and sometimes naughty.

For the duration of the week in Mauville, Kyra was usually content to cuddle with him, but he could always tell whenever she was in the mood. Just as he was getting settled, he'd feel a rush of lust coming from her, and he'd know that she wanted to get naughty with him. Every other night, she'd get underneath the blankets and descend upon Seth's lower half, gently suckling on his shaft and teasing out an orgasm from him with her soft velvety tongue. Additionally, Summer slowly became accustomed to seeing such acts as well, and often watched curiously from one eye as she curled up on the edge of the bed.

In Seth's opinion, there was no better way to end the day than cumming in Kyra's little mouth and drifting off to sleep as she licked him clean.

One evening near the end of the allotted week, Seth decided to visit the Game Corner. He never had a chance to engage in any real gambling before; the closest he ever came was playing card games in early school with chips of no worth.

Seth walked into the front door of the Game Corner. The change in atmosphere was almost palpable; the air was filled with the aroma of snack food and alcohol, and he constantly heard the distraught groans of the losers and the victorious whoops of the lucky few who earned a payout.

"There's no reason for me to bet any real money here," Seth said to Kyra as he presented his identification to the establishment staff. Once his age was proven, he was allowed to purchase the Corner's unique currency referred to as Corner Coins or CC, as well as any of the alcoholic drinks provided at the complementary bar. Despite his words, Seth bought a limited amount of Corner Coins. "At least, not for the purposes of gaining money. I've never been to a casino, so it should at least be fun to experience it, right?"

Seth counted his coins and made the resolution not to purchase any more. If he was going to do this, it was important to be responsible. Then, he made his way to the first open slot machine he could find. They were simplistic in design, consisting of a multicolored rectangular machine made of metal, decorated with bright colors and depictions of popular pokémon. The reels were digitally displayed and were triggered by pulling the lever on the right side of the machine. If any payout was achieved, Seth had no doubt the coins would appear in the metal tray at the bottom.

"Seems simple enough. Get three in a row in any direction, and the jackpot if you manage to activate both Reel Time and line up the red sevens," Seth said to Kyra as he read the rules of the game. "To activate Reel Time, I have to line up these lightning bolt symbols. Then I get anywhere from three to ten spins of Reel Time depending on how many I've lined up."

"It looks like there are odds of a jackpot printed on the side...and they're abysmal," Seth observed wryly. Regardless, he provided the machine with the minimum possible bet. "Makes sense. They're not gonna make any money if they just hand out jackpots. Well, here goes nothing."

Seth's experience with the slot machines went precisely as he expected. Each pull of the lever almost always resulted in nothing, but occasionally he got a small payout of four or so coins - sometimes even ten if he was exceptionally lucky. Once he even managed to land a few spins of Reel Time, but never managed to do anything with it.

"Ah well. It is a casino after all. Come on, Kyra. Let's go try some of the other games." Seth gathered what was left of his coins and walked through the rest of the casino, trying each new machine he came across.

"That went terribly. It seems I just have no luck with gambling. I'm glad I didn't spend very much money here," Seth commented with good humor upon leaving the Game Corner. He was completely out of all of his coins, with nothing to show for it. "Come on, Kyra. Let's get back to the hotel. Tomorrow's the big day, so we need to get plenty of rest."

With nothing but the sound of the passing cars on the street to keep him company, Seth passed by the extravagantly designed Mauville Gym. He paused, glancing up at its golden designs, trepidation for the coming battle welling up within him. This would make his third gym challenge. He'd spent this whole week preparing for it to the best of his ability.

Seth only hoped he'd done enough.

"Right, there was another challenge today, wasn't there?" The unpleasant man at the front desk was still there, and he sounded just as enthusiastic to see Seth as he'd been the first time they'd met. "At least you had the decency to be on time. You are Seth Rhines with your team of Kirlia, Vulpix, and Milotic?"

"That's right." Seth kept his words short and clipped; there was no point in antagonizing this man any further. He was rude, but his priorities were different than Seth's - that's really all there was to it. "What can I expect in the challenge to come?"

"As you know, Wattson is a skilled electrical engineer. Therefore, you'll see this reflected in the structure of the gym ahead. First, you'll need to be briefed on the appropriate safety measures," the man started to explain in a bored tone. He produced an odd uniform colored black and yellow, consisting of a shirt, thick jacket, pants, gloves and boots, which he placed in a neat pile on the counter. "There's a restroom behind me. Go in and change into this."

"What is all this for?" Seth inquired curiously as he looked at the bulky clothing. "I have to wear this to go inside?"

"If you want to risk being electrocuted into a coma, be my guest," the man snapped irritably. "This is all safety gear. As the theme of the gym is electric, it behooves us to make sure you don't get yourselves turned into human lightning rods. I don't need those lawsuits, thank you very much."

"Fair enough. Is getting electrocuted a real risk in there?" Seth asked anxiously. He was presented with a very annoyed stare from the man. "Right, dumb question. Sorry. I'll go get changed now."

"You do that. I'll start the timer once you're done." The man said dismissively as he turned back to the monitor. As Seth moved to the restroom, Kyra lifted one of her arms. Seth promptly pushed it back down.

"Kyra, no."

Seth emerged from the restroom garbed in the provided gear, feeling several pounds heavier. There were thankfully multiple insulated pockets in which he could stash his PokeNav and other essentials that could get damaged by electricity.

"I'm going to keep you in your ball, okay?" Seth knelt down to address Kyra. He winced, feeling her displeasure from that idea. "I know you don't like that, but the guy made it sound like it'd be pretty dangerous in there and I don't want you getting zapped by accident."

Kyra stared back at him, mulling his words over in her head. While clearly displeased, Seth felt grudging acceptance from her. He kissed the top of her head. "I'll make it up to you later," he promised, and then he recalled her to her pokéball, leaving him alone to tackle the challenge.

"You ready? Good—get in there." The man said to him the moment Seth passed through his line of sight. Without even waiting for Seth to respond, he tapped a button on his computer screen, and a small screen above the entrance to the gym proper flickered on, showing the time limit. "Try not to get electrocuted, because I'm not paying your medical bills."

"Duly noted," Seth replied shortly as he sped through the door. He scowled back at the man once he was out of sight. "Ugh, he could've at least waited for me to get inside first. Well, I better hurry. I'm not getting those seconds back."

"Uh…" Seth froze upon seeing what lay ahead. He was staring directly at a wall made of arcing electricity. As he looked around, he found more and more of these walls, making it clear that he was in a maze of electrical hell. "This is...wow."

Each wall, as far as the physical structure was concerned, consisted of a thick pylon made of gray metal situated at each vertex. Along the cardinal directions of these pylons were arrays of small holes, each one spaced a few inches apart from one another and arranged in orderly columns. Every few seconds, each hole emitted a thin arc of electricity that struck the corresponding hole on the opposite pylon. Seth couldn't imagine what something like this must have cost to set up.

He didn't have the time to stand around; Seth tightened the protective gear around himself and walked forward, making sure there was plenty of room between him and each wall. As he navigated the area, his ears were filled with the zapping of the electrical arcs—and the unmistakable sound of an electric guitar. Whoever was playing was incredibly talented; Seth might even have enjoyed it had he not been hyper-focusing on avoiding the electrical arcs.

It wasn't long before he reached a dead end. Seth looked around, finding himself in a roughly circular-shaped room enclosed by golden walls with the only path forward blocked by a set of electrical barriers. The most striking feature of the room was the large metallic spire in the center of the floor. It was colored silver and black and appeared to be made of a mixture of plastic and tempered glass. The spire, which was adorned with various protruding beams tipped by large metal orbs, rose all the way up to the domed ceiling before culminating in a large clear orb that resembled a plasma globe.

"Whoa…" Seth marveled at the sight, watching as the various protruding orbs sparked with power, emitting arcs of electricity out to the nearby pylons. The air was filled with the humming of power, making the hairs on Seth's body stand on end. "It's like a Christmas tree in hell."

He glanced back the way he'd come, but he was certain that there were no other paths he could have taken.

"This means there must be a puzzle for me to solve," Seth determined. He glanced at the spire and approached it slowly, carefully choosing where to place his feet. He eyed each orb warily, unconvinced that he wouldn't be zapped if he drew too close. Yet common sense dictated that the spire must be what he needed to focus upon. After casting his gaze over it, he soon spotted what appeared to be a lever at the top of the spire, just beneath the plasma globe tip. He groaned. "You can't be serious."

Sure enough, the spire was structured in such a way that multiple small platforms and handholds were present, suggesting that it needed to be climbed. Some of the handholds and platforms passed dangerously close to the charged orbs. Seth gulped and looked at his outfit. As thick as it was, it now made sense why he needed to wear it.

Seth put his foot on the first platform, but then he paused as a thought came to him. He released Kyra onto the floor before him, immediately using his hand to keep her from straying too far.

"Be very careful. Without protective gear, this place is a death trap. I don't know how strong the electricity is, but I'm not keen to find out." Seth cautioned her as the Kirlia looked around curiously. He tapped her head lightly and pointed up at the plasma globe. "See that lever up there? Can you pull from here with your telekinesis?"

Kyra spotted the lever and reached her arms upward, her body starting to glow. After a moment of trying, the glow dissipated and Kyra shook her head.

"Out of range. Damn. Alright, how about—" Seth was about to give further instruction, but then Kyra winked out of existence and reappeared on one of the platforms halfway up the spire. Now she was in range, and the lever flipped with a single wave of her arm. "Well, I guess that works."

The plasma globe shut down, and the hum from the spire and its orbs died down to nothing. As a result, the pylons blocking his passage died down, the wall of sparking electricity fading away.

"I'm sure glad I have you around. Climbing that for anyone else would have been a real challenge. I guess this gym isn't really designed for people who have psychic-type pokémon." Seth brushed the top of Kyra's head, earning a rush of pride from her. He glanced ahead at the open doorway. He could still hear the hum of electricity from beyond it. "Come on. I guess I'm going to need you if there are more puzzles like that. Stay close to me, though."

Passing through the doorway ahead led to another section of the electrical maze. Seth decided to play it safe and have Kyra ride by hanging down from his shoulders like she usually did. He made doubly careful to avoid the electrical arcs as he followed the path before him. The way forward meandered along the outside edge of the building. With every step, the sound of the guitar he'd heard earlier grew ever closer.

Seth soon found himself in another large circular room with another spire like the first one. In contrast to the first, this spire was significantly more complex in design and rose higher. Furthermore, some of the protruding beams tipped by orbs were rotating on an axis, making it that much more hazardous to traverse for a normal person. Seth thanked his good fortune that he had a pokémon like Kyra on his side.

There was another obstacle in Seth's path before he could reach the spire—the guitarist that he'd been hearing ever since he'd entered this hellish maze. The dark-skinned woman stood not far from the spire, a bright red B.C. brand seven-string red guitar hanging from her shoulders by a thick black strap. The instrument was plugged into an amplifier setup powered by the spire itself if the thick cord coming connecting the floor to the setup was any indicator.

The woman barely paid any attention to him as he entered. Her fingers danced across the fretboard as she strummed out a powerful riff. Her picking hand was a blur as it leaped from string to string expertly. She was so engrossed in her music that her bosom and forehead were coated with a thin sheen of sweat.

As for the woman herself, she looked to be several years older than Seth. She was clearly of mixed descent, and her hair was long, smooth, and black, with streaks the same shade as her guitar running through it. Her eyes were sea-green, and her nose was pierced six times, consisting of two columns of three tiny metal studs—one on each side of her nose. For her attire, she was dressed in little more than a pair of leather pants and an unzipped sleeveless leather vest covered with pins. To cover her smallish breasts, she wore a tight grey tube-top, with no trace of a bra to be seen.

After she finished her solo, the woman muted her strings and turned off her backing music. She finally gave her full attention to Seth, the woman giving a nod as she looked at him. "So you're the reason I'm actually working today," she commented. "I hope you weren't planning on getting to this electrical monstrosity behind me."

"So you're a gym trainer, then," Seth confirmed. He set Kyra down on the floor beside him. Strangely, she seemed less than interested in fighting this woman. He couldn't blame her; so far, gym trainers only gave him marginally more of a challenge than the average trainer. "I do need to get past you if you don't mind."

"Obviously I do. My job is to keep you out." The woman gave a shrug. She reached for a pokéball at her side and bounced it in one hand. "So come on, show me what you've got. Unless you're trying to tell me that Kirlia is just for show."

"She definitely isn't." Seth felt a hint of annoyance from Kyra, causing him to look at her wryly. Kyra stepped in front of him, bouncing gently from the tip of one of her legs to the other. "The name is Seth, by the way."

"Got it. Mine is Tera. You better remember that-even if you don't see me on the league scene, you'll see me on the rock stage!" The woman announced confidently, and then she hurled her pokéball to the floor, releasing a spherical pokémon known in urban areas as the bane of electricians everywhere: Magnemite. Tera slid her fingers down the length of her guitar while she strummed it rapidly. "Let's rock, Magnemite!"

As the Magnemite tangled with Kyra, Tera supplied a chugging metal rhythm line, making this the first battle Seth had ever fought with an accompanying soundtrack. It was a little surreal, though he had to admit it was cool.

Unfortunately for Kyra, Tera's musical ability far outstripped her ability as a trainer. She and Magnemite relied on a strategy that involved deafening a pokémon with soundwaves before electrocuting them while they were incapacitated...but Kyra had already dealt with a pokémon that fought similarly. With her cry, Kyra easily negated Magnemite's sonic attack and retaliated with swarms of leaves and mental assaults. The Magnemite was sturdy and weathered attacks well but was unable to adapt its strategy in time before Kyra felled it.

"I have to say, that was the most metal battle I've ever been in," Seth commented after the battle ended. Tera smirked at that, the woman not appearing upset by the loss.

"Hah, in more ways than one, given that Magnemite is a steel type," Tera agreed. She shrugged. "Oh well. Even if I lost I still get paid, so I don't really care. The spire is all yours. Not that it'll be that hard with your Kirlia."

"You seem odd for a gym trainer," Seth commented as Kyra easily bypassed the defenses of the spire by teleporting up and around any obstacles that threatened to shock her. "I'm not really seeing much passion, for lack of a better word."

"I'm only just good enough a trainer to be one. But it pays the bills and gets me closer to hitting the stage," she answered. The spire powered down, the hum falling away and all of its attached electronics losing power. "The perks of being a gym trainer are pretty alright. I get to meet new people almost every day and show off to them while also getting some practice in. It's not like I'll ever run out of power."

"You're telling me. Whoever set all this up is both a genius and a maniac at the same time," Seth had to say. "This place is really dangerous."

"Eh, you get used to the way things run once you've been around the gym for as long as I have. Besides, you don't get zapped too hard. There is a failsafe switch in case someone screws up." Tera notably wore no protective gear whatsoever. "Anyway, you better get moving if you want to battle that maniac before time runs out. Even your Kirlia might have to try a little on the third spire."

"Oh, dear. Thanks for the tip." Seth couldn't even imagine how the third spire could be worse than this one. He gave a wave to Tera and moved to pass her...only for her to grab his sleeve. "Wha…?"

"Hold up. Here." Tera slipped him a small slip of paper with a string of numbers on it. It only took Seth a moment to realize that she'd just given him her phone number. He blinked and stared at her, perplexed. It didn't seem like they'd hit it off that well… "Why are you looking at me like that? I'm not getting any younger. Besides—" Tera leaned in to whisper. "—femboys are my kink. It's fun to make them squirm."

"I...thanks?" Seth blushed now that she confirmed that she was, in fact, making advances on him. This made the third person who had referred to him as a femboy. He wasn't sure he liked being labeled that. He turned away from her and moved towards the door, pointedly ignoring the amusement stemming from Kyra's side of their mental link. "I'm not a femboy…"

"If you say so," Tera replied with a quiet snicker. She turned back to her guitar and started to strum on it, though now that the spire was powered down the sound came out acoustic. "Hit me up later if you want. Or don't. Up to you."

"I'm so not used to all this sexual attention," Seth remarked once he'd left that awkward situation behind. He was carrying Kyra again, who was listening to his words attentively. "She was pretty I guess, but it's weird going from not a word on my looks back in Johto to now practically everyone I meet saying something. Hoenn is so...different."

"Not that I'm complaining," Seth said in response to Kyra's curiosity. He tapped her head lightly. "What do you think? Should I hit her up?"

Mostly indifference came from Kyra's end of the link.

"Ah, so you don't care one way or the other. I don't know how I feel about being made to 'squirm,' but maybe the experience might be worth the effort. I'll think about it." Seth reasoned with a hint of discomfort. He snorted with amusement: a few months ago he was bored out of his mind, studying for his next exam, and now he was talking casually about having sex with a random stranger he just met. "If Jasmine could see me now she'd be mortified."

He focused his mind back on the challenge just in time to reach the third spire. He stopped in his tracks, blinking with shock. "Goodness. She wasn't kidding. What am I even looking at?"

He could only describe what was before him as an electrician's worst nightmare. Rather than being just spire, this construct was a misshapen mess that sprawled across the entirety of the room. It was an electrical obstacle course—plain and simple.

There were entire lengths of catwalks that were orbited by several beams tipped with orbs. There were platforms that required one to move quickly or risk getting hit by an orb that rotated horizontally around a nearby pole. There were other platforms that even retracted. Worse, the pathway was constructed in such a way that there was no line of sight to the lever, preventing Kyra from simply teleporting directly to it. Even flying pokémon would have a difficult time with this spire.

There was another gym trainer waiting for Seth, but Kyra tossed aside his Voltorb after a few moments of observing its movements. While the trainer nursed his defeat, Kyra entered the spire and painstakingly teleported her way through the obstacle course bit by bit.

"Does...Wattson just spend his free time building these things?" Seth questioned the trainer standing beside him as Kyra ducks under a swinging beam.

"He does. I don't even know where all this power comes from." The gym trainer seemed just as perplexed.

At long last, Kyra flipped the switch at the top of the spire, and the contraption powered down, allowing the two of them to exit the room. After passing through the exit, Seth found himself at the end of the maze, standing before a normal black push door with a digital placard above the entryway, upon which the remaining time was displayed.

"Whew. That was nerve-wracking." Seth pushed open the final door and entered into the back room, a chime ringing throughout the gym to signal his victory to any onlookers. The door closed behind him.

"Wahahahah! Welcome!" Seth was greeted by a hearty laugh coming from the old man on the other side of the room. With a thick white beard and a balding hairline, he rested against the arm of a couch. He wore a set of battered yellow work pants and a faded black sweater, along with a pair of rounded black spectacles. Seth recognized him immediately from the various brochures he saw back when he'd first entered the city. This was Wattson, the man who served as both gym leader and the city's top electrical engineer. "I hope my maze didn't give you too much trouble, young man. I'm Wattson, the gym leader of Mauville City...though you probably already knew that! Hah!"

"Hello Wattson—" Before Seth could return his greeting, Wattson crossed the length of the room and shook his hand firmly for several seconds. "I'm Seth Rhines. It's a pleasure. Your maze was certainly...interesting."

"Isn't it? This gym is my pride and joy!" Wattson gave another full-bellied laugh at that. "Did you know this place can now double as an auxiliary source of power should the city suffer a blackout? Each spire is its own generator that can provide power to several city blocks!"

"Can they? And you have them shocking gym challengers?" Seth couldn't help but point out. "Tera said they had fail-safes, but…"

"Of course they do! I should know, I tested them all myself to make sure!" Wattson assured him, tapping his head with a finger. Seth raised an eyebrow at that. How many times did this man get electrocuted before he had all the fine-tuning complete? "It's just a little zap. Like getting shocked with a little static. The very instant my devices lose even a single nanowatt of power, they'll shut down hard."

"Hm. I guess I'll take your word for it." It still didn't make much sense to him given the risk, but arguing seemed pointless. Besides, Seth was no electrical engineer, and Wattson was obviously competent at his craft, else the city wouldn't be singing his praises. "So...should we get started with our battle?"

"Ah yes! How could I forget?" Wattson walked over to a set of drawers beside the couch and opened the top one, revealing a large collection of pokéballs of various designs. "First things first! How many badges do you have, son?"

"Two. One from Rustboro, and another from Dewford," Seth answered. He started to take them out to show them to Wattson, but the old man waved him away.

"I trust you. I don't need to see them. Even if you were lying, that would just end up worse for you, eh?" Wattson laughed loudly as he picked out a set of four pokéballs from the drawer. "I'm your third gym, then? I'm going to make sure you get the right level of challenge! Don't want you waltzing up to Flannery all unprepared!"

"Is that another gym leader?" Seth asked.

"That's right! She runs the gym up in Lavaridge Town, by the hot springs. She's a fiery one!" Wattson pinned the pokéballs to his belt, and then he motioned Seth over to the set of double doors on the far end of the room. He shoved them open, and the two of them walked into a hallway that led right out to the stadium. "But don't go getting ahead of yourself; I've no intention of letting you past me so easily!"

"Please don't. Kyra really wants a challenge. She hasn't had one ever since the road from Slateport," Seth remarked, ruffling the hair of the Kirlia walking beside him.

"That's the spirit!" Wattson let out one last booming laugh before the two of them walked out into the stadium, where people were already starting to gather.

Seth moved to take his place, looking around the arena as he did so. The first thing he noticed was the sound the floor made when his shoes tapped against it. The floor was made of a yellowish metal of some sort. He briefly recalled his battle against Roxanne, and made a mental note to watch out for magnetic attacks. He wouldn't put it past Wattson to have a pokémon capable of such.

Apart from the composition of the floor, the arena was fairly standard, being large enough to comfortably house a battle between two pokémon. Seating surrounded the arena, and there was a stand for the announcer set up against the center of the far wall.

"Welcome to today's second challenge, everyone! My name is Jeff Roberts, and I'll be your announcer today!" The announcer began. "Let's give our gym leader, Wattson, a warm welcome!"

Wattson took his place on the far end of the arena, waving cheerfully up to the cheering onlookers. He grasped his first pokéball and released a Voltorb out on the floor, the electrical ball rolling around and glaring at Seth.

"On the other side, we have our newest challenger: Seth Rhines, with a rare Kirlia at his side! How will he stand up against Wattson in today's match!?"

"Are you ready for this?" Seth asked softly of Kyra, who stood just behind him. He felt nothing but excitement from her, which served to encourage him. He grabbed his second pokéball from its spot on his side. "Good. Remember our strategy. We'll be letting Summer lead the charge."

When Kyra nodded, Seth recalled her to her ball and released Summer out onto the field. The Vulpix looked around to get her bearings, and then she spotted the Voltorb across the arena from her. She growled, the air shimmering from the heat rising from her body.

"Challenger Seth has chosen his leading pokémon!" Jeff announced to the onlookers. "Then, if both of you are ready, let's see ourselves a shocking pokémonbattle!"

"Sounds good to me! Are you ready, son?" Wattson called over to Seth.

"As I'll ever be," Seth responded, his mind already coming up with various means to defeat Wattson's Voltorb. "Let's go, Summer."

"Glad to hear it! Now...don't drop your guard now, or I, Wattson, shall electrify you!" Wattson declared. "Voltorb! Show me a frontal assault!"

"Summer! Scout him out!"

The Voltorb rolled across the floor, steadily picking up speed and static electricity as it went. At first Seth thought it was going to charge in a straight line, but a few moments before it reached Summer, the Voltorb bounced high into the air and shot right back down. Summer stepped to the side just in time, the Voltorb slamming into the ground right beside her.

The electricity from the impact surged outwards— but was met by Summer's flame. With a wave of her tails, she sent a wisp of fire coursing over the Voltorb, scuffing and burning its surface.

"Give 'er a spark, Voltorb!" At Wattson's command, the Voltorb gathered the stored static electricity in its body and released it in the form of yellow lightning. Summer backed away and evaded each strike with some difficulty due to the speed of the attack. Once she had enough distance, she formed a ball of fire in front of her nose and fired it back at the Voltorb in retaliation.

The Voltorb surprised Seth by rolling straight forward, speeding up quickly and barreling right through the flame, disregarding the burns it gained in the process. Summer's eyes widened, but she didn't hesitate to act. She lowered her head and broke into a sprint, her paws kicking up little wisps of fire with every step.

Summer lowered her head just before impact, and then the two pokémon slammed into one another. Fire and electricity emanating outwards, briefly obscuring their figures from view. Seth inhaled sharply, wincing at the impact.

"A valiant effort! You know what to do, Voltorb!" Wattson called out an order before the two pokémon even became visible. Once the dust cleared, Seth saw the Voltorb starting to glow.

"Summer! Move!" Seth shouted the moment he saw the glow. He knew enough about Voltorbs to know their greatest tendency. Summer attempted to move, but she appeared dizzy, her body shuddering somewhat as sparks ran along its length. The glow intensified. "Summer!"

Just in time, Summer shook herself out of her disorientation and kicked the glowing Voltorb into the air with her hind legs She followed up by breathing a thin stream of flame towards it in an attempt to push it further away from her.

It was too little too late. The Voltorb detonated with a tumultuous roar, a wave of concussive force erupting from its small form. Despite her efforts, Summer was caught in the blast. She tumbled across the metal floor and slid to a halt, her cries causing Seth's heart to wrench.

"A ferocious self-destruct from Leader Wattson's Voltorb!" Jeff narrated from the announcer's stand. "But it looks like it wasn't enough to keep Challenger Seth's Vulpix down!"

Seth sighed in relief as Summer pushed herself to her feet, her shaking body a testament to the damage she just received. He wanted nothing more than to give her a potion, but there was still much more battle left to go.

"Ah, clever! That should have been a point-blank blast!" Wattson remarked, the man calling Voltorb back to its pokéball. He grabbed his next pokéball, releasing Seth's next foe. "That's alright, I'm just getting started! Take it to him, Electrike!"

This next pokémon was new to Seth, so he made a quick scan of the green canine pokémon standing on the floor in front of Wattson. He had half a second to read the scan results before Electrike suddenly disappeared from his view for a brief moment.

Seth couldn't follow the Electrike with his eyes. One moment it was standing in front of Wattson, and the next it had zipped across the floor in front of Summer, leaving only a streak of lightning in the air behind it as it went.

"Summer, it's really fast!" Seth tried to warn his pokémon, but to his dismay, Summer was still suffering from whatever the Voltorb had done to her after their head-on clash. She couldn't move in time to avoid the Electrike's jaws, which clamped down hard on her side, causing her to cry out. Seth cursed—at this rate, Summer wasn't going to make it much longer. Knowing that fact, there was only one choice left to make. "Summer! Overdrive!"

Summer's eyes glowed and her body erupted with a whirlwind of flames so hot that Electrike had no choice but to back off, nursing multiple burns in the process. Summer went on the offensive, summoning multiple large fireballs and hurling them one after the other at the Electrike.

Despite its burns, Electrike was still very fast. The moment it realized that staying up close was dangerous for it, it turned and zipped back the way it had come, weaving in and out of the explosive fireballs that landed around it. Once there was some distance between them, the Electrike leaped about and released a wave of electrical energy surging forth from its maw. The wave traveled across the ground directly towards Summer. It looked like she was still having trouble moving, but she managed to summon a similar wave of fire and send it forth until the two attacks collided.

Summer didn't wait for the resulting explosion to clear before hurling more fireballs toward where the Electrike had been. Seth couldn't see past the light of the explosion, but he knew that at least one of the fireballs had hit their mark due to the pained yelp he heard.

When the air cleared, the Electrike was revealed to be down on the floor, fainted. Seth glanced at Wattson's belt, noting the presence of two more pokéballs there. He took a deep breath to calm himself. This battle was only halfway over, and he doubted that Wattson had used his ace just yet.

"Not bad, not bad! But that was just the easy part! Are you ready for this, son!?" Wattson released his third pokémon, even as Jeff narrated the switching of the pokémon in the background. Seth's eyes bugged out when he saw the three-meter tall metallic creature before him - the evolved form of Magnemite, Magneton. Summer immediately began to charge up her next attack, but it was over in an instant. "Get her, Magneton!"

The Magneton lit up with electrical might and immediately discharged a blast of lightning towards Summer, whose body chose that very instant to freeze up, forcing her to take the full might of the attack. Seth let out a pained cry as Summer slumped to the floor, defeated.

"Challenger Seth's Vulpix has fallen after putting up a real fight, downing two of Leader Wattson's pokémon!" Jeff declares.

"Good job, Summer," Seth said to her as he recalled her to her pokéball, despite the fact that she couldn't hear him. He now had only one pokémon that could stand up to Wattson's electric-types—it also happened to be his ace. He released her out onto the field without hesitation. "Kyra!"

The Kirlia entered the arena with a twirl, her skirt fluttering as she did so. Kyra's excitement hit Seth like a freight train, helping to raise his spirits after Summer's loss. She bounced from one leg to the next rapidly, already summoning up her psychic energy.

"Don't hold back. This is an evolution, like you," Seth warned her. He felt Kyra's acknowledgment through their link, and he took a step back, allowing her to handle it from here. "Take it down."

No sooner had Kyra entered the field than the Magneton charged up another bolt of lightning. With just as much power as before, the electricity arced across the arena, promising a very painful defeat for any pokémon hit by it. Kyra blinked and lifted a single arm.

The lightning slammed into Kyra's barrier harmlessly, serving only to push her back slightly. Wattson's eyes widened upon seeing that. Kyra gave a small smile, and then she teleported close to Magneton and buffeted it with a wave of psychic power.

The Magneton was hardly affected. It pointed several of its horseshoe magnets at the floor where Kyra stood and zoomed towards the ground at a breakneck pace using the power of magnetism. Kyra twirled to the side to deftly evade, but immediately found herself staring at all three eyes of the Magneton. She squeaked and teleported away just in time to avoid a bolt of lightning shot from its eyes.

The Magneton pointed its magnets at the ground and released a wave of electricity similar in appearance and composition to the one the Electrike had used just before its defeat. The wave surged towards Kyra, but she simply avoided it with ease. Yet as the wave passed by her, it completely reversed its trajectory and surged back towards her.

Kyra teleported here and there to avoid the wave, but each time she did so, the wave would simply follow her across the floor, promising her no rest.

"Wahahah! You can't just avoid my shockwave technique! It'll track you wherever you go, even if you fly!" Wattson boasted as he watched the battle rage on.

As Kyra continued to focus on avoiding the wave, the Magneton swiftly maneuvered the area via its magnetism until it was right behind Kyra just as she avoided the wave's latest assault. Seth yelled out to warn her, but it was too late. The Magneton brought its magnets forward and released a pure sonic blast so loud Seth had to cover his ears.

Kyra was hit head-on by the attack and was knocked flying. Just like Wattson promised, the wave followed her into the air. Kyra hit the ground and rolled over, bringing up her barrier. The wave slammed down into the barrier and burst, showering the floor around her with sparks.

The Magneton moved to finish Kyra off, but the Kirlia was already upright as it zoomed towards her. The Magneton brought its magnets forward and produced a tinny wave of sound that seemed like it bore right into Seth's head, causing him to become slightly disoriented. Kyra counterattacked with a wave of psychic power at the same time, focusing her energies towards whatever mind the Magneton might have.

Both parties were equally affected. The Magneton reeled backward, its eyes rolling around in confusion. Kyra stumbled back, bringing her arms to her head while she tried to get her bearings. As they struggled, both Seth and Wattson cried out encouragement and advice to their pokémon, urging them to break free from their disorientation.

As luck would have it, Kyra was the first to break free. She shook her head free of the fog that had fallen over it, and then she brought her psychic power to bear against Magneton. With a wave of her arm, she slammed a psychic blast directly into the Magneton's center, despite how ineffective it appeared to be.

She didn't let up. She waved her arms one after the other, blasting Magneton steadily backward across the arena back towards Wattson. Each wave of an arm brought another blast of psychic power until finally, she brought both arms up to her head, a visible ball of violet energy forming there.

The Magneton broke free from its confusion just in time to take a focused psybeam emanating directly from Kyra's red head-fins. Magneton skidded backward across the floor, until finally, with a screech of tortured metal, the metallic pokémon hit the floor, all three of its comprising Magnemite rolling limply where they fell.

"Yes!" Seth exulted, pumping a fist in the air. That was rough. As far as he knew, nothing Kyra had was even remotely effective against the Magneton. He was forced to admit to himself that she'd won mostly through quick thinking and a hint of luck. "Good going, Kyra!"

"Yes, very good going! But it's not over yet. I hope you're ready for my ace!" Wattson drew his last pokéball, bouncing it from one hand to the other. Seth gulped; despite how tough the Magneton had been, it still wasn't his ace. He couldn't even imagine what sort of monstrosity awaited him next. "Get out there, Manectric!"

What emerged next was just as imposing as Seth had expected. It, like Electrike, was also canine in appearance but was colored a bright blue with accents of yellow. Atop its head was a yellowish mane that crackled with power so intense that Seth could feel it from where he stood. The pokémon was tall enough to stand chest high with any human, and it possessed well-defined jaws with teeth poking out over its lips. Just by standing on the field, the air quickly became charged with electricity, and Seth could have sworn he even heard thunder booming in the air above them. A quick scan revealed Manectric to be the evolved form of Electrike.

"Let's see you top this! Manectric, fire off a shockwave! Or two. Have a blast!" Wattson ordered, and the Manectric obliged by opening its mouth and howling, a familiar wave of electricity surged across the floor. Seth gaped at how much larger the wave was compared to the ones displayed by Wattson's other pokémon.

Kyra knew better than to try to dodge the wave. This time, she stood her ground and summoned her barrier. Yet she still was unprepared for how strong this wave was compared to the others. The moment the wave collided with her barrier, it forced her back several meters, her legs skidding across the floor as she struggled to stay upright. So far back she was pushed that Seth scrambled away, not keen on being caught in the line of fire.

The wave detonated, and Seth heard the telltale sign of her barrier shattering. Kyra emerged from the light, her eyes flashing with power as she delved into the near future. She winked out of existence and appeared just behind Manectric just as the canine was about to release another shockwave. Kyra winced from the sparks flying from Manectric's mane, but she attacked nonetheless, bringing her arms up to charge up a psybeam.

Manectric didn't give her that time. The moment Kyra appeared behind it, it turned in place and slammed its head into her, electricity bursting from the impact. Kyra cried out and stumbled backward, but she didn't allow herself to stay down. She teleported behind Manectric once again before he could fire off a shockwave and this time opted for a faster attack, raining magical leaves and psychic waves down upon it even as it turned to face her.

"Don't think getting close will save you from my Manectric! Lightning falls where his paws tread!" Wattson declared. Sure enough, a powerful discharge of electricity surged out from Manectric's paws in all directions. Kyra teleported backward just in time thanks to her foresight and she kept up her assault, never letting up despite her growing fatigue.

The Manectric huffed in annoyance as the leaves buffeted its fur, dealing injuries despite the canine's strength. Unfortunately, Kyra's distance gave it plenty of time to release another shockwave, the wave zipping across the floor towards Kyra.

Kyra once again began a series of chain teleports to avoid the wave, yet its progress was only slowed as it reoriented itself to chase her regardless of where she went. Yet her distraction was enough for Manectric to charge its body with a cloak of lightning and break into a run.

Kyra, trapped between the incoming shockwave and the charging Manectric, leaped into the air, her body twisting in midair as she brought her arms up to her head-fins, where a ball of psychic energy slowly formed. Manectric leaped into the air to strike her, all of the power it had charged up focusing into a single point at the tip of its yellow mane. Behind Kyra, the shockwave arced into the air as well, heading directly for her backside.

It all happened at once. Just before the Manectric could collide with her body, Kyra finished charging her psybeam and released it all at once directly into the Manectric's face. An instant later, the shockwave slammed into Kyra from behind, electrifying her with all its considerable power at once.

The two pokémon hit the ground several feet away from each other. Seth, Wattson, and the audience watched with bated breath as the two pokémon struggled to rise, each of them burdened by their considerable injuries. Much to Seth's horror, Kyra collapsed, succumbing to the powerful hit she'd taken and losing consciousness. Yet Manectric stood, shaking off the lingering confusion from the psybeam.

"What an incredible clash! As Challenger Seth's Kirlia falls, both trainers are down to a single pokémon each! The thrilling conclusion to this battle soon approaches!" Jeff roared into the microphone, the announcer sitting on the edge of his seat.

"Come back, Kyra. You did an excellent job," Seth said softly as he recalled her to her pokéball. He glanced down at his final pokéball, the one containing Princess. Despite everything, he was forced to rely on her in this battle, a situation where she was certainly not at an advantage. Yet he had no other choice.

"Is that a water-type? I hope you have some kind of plan!" Wattson observed as Princess took to the field, the serpent's coils landing upon the metallic floor with a muted thump. "Manectric! Don't give it a chance to attack! Shockwave!"

"Princess, look out! You can't dodge that attack!" Seth didn't even get a chance to apologize to her for bringing her out in a battle against electric types before the battle had already begun. As Manectric unleashed another terrifying wave of electrical power, Seth feared that he was going to lose.

Princess began to shimmer with a rainbow of colors down the length of her body as she summoned up her power. She made no motion to dodge or otherwise counterattack against the shockwave coming her way. Seth cried out in vain as the wave slammed into Princess and exploded, the power coursing through her body and leaving a number of serious burns along her body.

"Well, I think that's game, son. Best train up your pokémon and—" Wattson cut off mid-sentence when the light cleared and Princess still remained upright, despite the severe electrical burns covering her body. Both Seth and Wattson stared dumbfounded at Princess as the burns steadily healed. "Wahahah! I can't believe it! There exists a water-type that can stand up after a hit like that! How thrilling!"

Before Manectric could fire off another shockwave, Princess released all of her stored power at once. A veritable tidal wave of water appeared from the air around her and coursed through the room at a high speed. The arena quickly flooded with water, and the already tired Manectric was hit directly by the water, lifting it briefly off of its paws.

That was enough. Princess swam through the traveling wave, following its momentum all the way to Manectric and slamming her body directly into its midsection. Manectric's breath whooshed out of its lungs, and as the water dissipated, it hit the floor hard and didn't rise again.

"Manectric? No way…" Wattson emitted. He reached for his belt, only to find that he had no more pokéballs left. He gazed at his belt for a moment, and then he burst out laughing. "Well, I'll be! I'm out of pokémon! Looks like I lost this one after all!"

With that one statement, the crowd erupted in cheers and the announcer began to hastily give his closing statements. Seth slumped over with disbelief, the breath he'd been unwittingly holding leaving his lungs. He couldn't believe it. By all rights, he should have lost, but Princess had surpassed his expectations. Perhaps type-advantages weren't the end-all-be-all after all when it came to determining the outcome of a match.

Both Seth and Wattson recalled their pokémon to their pokéballs, and then they approached one another in the arena as the onlookers started to filter their way out through the exit.

"That was one thrilling battle, son! Thank you so much for that!" Wattson once again took Seth's hand and shook it firmly, a wide smile on his face. "Your pokémon are tougher than I thought! I really thought I had you there!"

"I thought you did too. Honestly, I thought I was going to lose before your ace even came out," Seth admitted. "Once you took down Kyra, I thought it was over."

"Battles where it's touch and go are the type of battles I want to have, son!" Wattson clapped Seth on the back, giving another laugh. "In fact, I'm so thrilled by that battle, that I want you to come back and face me again once you've got a few more badges under your belt! I think you've got real potential!"

"Thank you, sir. I wouldn't mind coming back…and I know Kyra certainly wouldn't." Seth accepted the compliment graciously, even though he really didn't want to see his pokémon getting so mercilessly electrocuted again.

"I look forward to it then! In the meantime, take this Dynamo Badge from me!" Wattson looked over to see Jeff approaching the two of them with the box holding the badge held closely in his two hands. Wattson took the box from Jeff and presented it to Seth.

Seth opened the box to see what was to be his third badge: a round pin colored both yellow and green, the two colors mixing to form a gradient in the center. He took it, finding it very surreal to hold this prize after such a hard battle. That feeling of surrealness soon passed, to be replaced by a swell of pride in the hard work of his pokémon. He made a mental note to spoil them later with good food.

"Good battle, Seth. Really good battle!" Jeff took a moment to shake Seth's hand as well before he retreated, leaving him with Wattson. "I can't wait to see this again on TV!"

"Speaking of TV, I had a complaint that a certain area of my apartment complex wasn't getting enough power earlier today. If you don't mind, I think it's time I left and got back to work. Don't want my valued customers getting angry at me, after all. Wahahaha!" With one final laugh, Wattson bid Seth farewell, and soon Seth was on his way back out of the gym.

After a visit to the city's Pokémon Center, Seth took his pokémon to a fancy restaurant that marketed specifically to trainers and their pokémon. The menu offered a spread of combination meals containing ingredients both human and pokémon alike could eat, separated out by pokémon type. With their waiter's helpful advice, Seth decided to order a single large seafood dish that they all could eat, consisting of a variety of fish most of which he'd never heard.

'Hm. I didn't think I'd be a fish person, but, this isn't bad," Seth commented after swallowing a bite of salmon. He slowly gazed up at Princess, who was watching him closely. He gulped nervously. "Wait, this isn't weird, is it? What with you being a fish and all. Well, maybe not a fish right now, but technically you once were…"

Princess narrowed her eyes as if displeased. As Seth's heart started to sink, Kyra lifted up a morsel of salmon and moved it up to Princess's mouth. Without changing her expression, Princess gulped down a bite herself. Kyra began squeaking with laughter beside Seth, causing him to sigh.

"You two are awful." His words only caused them further amusement. "No really, I'm new to this, so I was worried! Princess, stop letting Kyra's mischief rub off on you!"

Seth entered his hotel room and shut the door behind him, sighing with relief. After the events of today, he was exhausted. After locking the door, he released Summer and Princess into the room, the two looking tired as well. As Kyra leaped onto the bed and made herself comfortable, Seth began to undress and get ready for bed.

"I still can't believe you tanked such a powerful electric move," Seth marveled once he returned from a quick shower, gazing with awe at Princess and her almost invincible cream-colored body. He ran a hand along her scales, the serpent closing her eyes and enjoying the contact. "You're so strong. I feel bad for underestimating you just because it was an electric gym."

"You too, Summer. You took out two pokémon on your own!" Seth reached down to pick her up, but then stopped halfway. He noticed her already starting to shrink away from his sudden contact on instinct. "Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to move so quickly. Here, I just want to pick you up, is that okay?"

Summer watched Seth closely as the latter made to pick her up again, moving much slower this time. She eyed his every movement, but eventually allowed him to touch her. Her fur was soft to the touch and her body practically emanated heat. Hooking his thumbs beneath her forelegs, he lifted her up and carried her with him to the bed.

"I've been thinking on where to go next, now that I have my third badge." Seth climbed into bed and set Summer on his lap. "Kyra, can you pass me the map?"

The map of Hoenn floated lazily through the air to him, courtesy of the half-dozing Kyra. Seth accepted it and unfolded it out before him. He located Mauville City on the map and traced a line from it to Verdanturf Town. He did the same thing from Mauville to Lavaridge Town.

"Let's see. It's not very far from her to Verdanturf Town at all. I would be able to visit Wally and spend some time there before moving up to face my next gym challenge," Seth mused aloud. He felt Summer stir in his lap, and he recalled his obligation to her. "I'm sorry, Wally, but that'll have to wait."

"Listen up everyone. We're going to be heading to Mt. Chimney next. It's about a day away from here as the murkcrow flies, but it'll probably take much longer to get there, considering it's all uphill, and the nature trail probably winds its way up there along the path of least resistance. I'll probably have to stop for breaks."

He noticed Kyra looking at him with confusion. "Right, I kept talking about how I wanted to see Wally, but Summer comes first. I can't keep her from her family," Seth explained. Summer looked up at him in surprise, a purr-like sound escaping her throat. He met her gaze and gave her a reassuring smile. "I promised I'd help you. I have all the time in the world; no need to rush my visit to Wally."

Summer appeared extremely happy, the fox bouncing in his lap. She leaped from one knee to the other before pouncing on him, knocking him back into the bed. Seth let out a yelp and he chuckled, both surprised and pleased to see this change in her demeanor. Once he was on his back, Summer sat on his chest and gazed at him, her tails waving from side to size. Something felt strange about the way she was looking at him, and even Kyra seemed to notice, the Kirlia sitting up and gazing over at the two of them with interest.

"You plan on cuddling with me tonight?" Seth asked curiously. He glanced at the blankets around him. If Summer did sleep close to him, he likely wouldn't need them due to her body heat. Summer appeared embarrassed, and then she leaned in...and licked him right on the lips. Seth spluttered and recoiled.. Summer leaned back, watching him curiously for a reaction. "What the—!? What was that?"

Summer wilted somewhat, her tails drooping. Seth, perplexed, looked to Kyra for an answer. Instead, he received a withering stare of disapproval from her. It then struck him what was happening.

"Did you just try to kiss me?" Seth asked softly. Summer gave a small whine, averting her gaze from his. Seth's heart melted, a warm feeling welling up from his breast. He guessed that she must have tried imitating what she'd seen Kyra and him doing. He reached out a hand to her cheek, brushing her fur affectionately and turning her head back to him. "That's so adorable. Here, let me show you."

Seth leaned into the nervous Summer and kissed her right on the mouth, turning his head just enough so that he wouldn't bump her nose. Unlike Kyra and Princess, Summer had fur, so this was a new experience for him. He pushed back the rampant thoughts that demanded to know why he was kissing what amounted to a hyper-intelligent fox and allowed himself to meet Summer's feelings with his own.

Summer at first didn't know what to do, but Seth used his fingers to show her what to do. He gently prodded at her jaws until she opened them, allowing them to kiss more closely, and for their tongues to meet in her mouth. She was hot, literally speaking. The moment he began to explore her mouth, he noticed how much warmer she was than anyone he'd ever kissed. He wasn't burned, but the heat did cause him to sweat. As they kissed, her purring returned in full force, the fox vibrating gently on his chest.

"Now that's how you properly kiss," Seth told her once he broke away, a thin trail of saliva briefly connecting their mouths. He could feel some loose fur in his mouth, so he removed it with his fingers. He gently stroked Summer's side as the fox gazed up at him, breathing slightly heavier. "Did you like that?"

Summer's purring increased, giving him his answer.

"I'm glad you trust me enough to be this affectionate with me. Especially considering how much trouble you've had at the hands of other trainers," Seth expressed to her. He scratched gently beneath her chin, causing her to lean into the contact, closing her eyes with pleasure. He still tasted her on his lips. It was weird to think that he'd kissed a fox...but he also wanted more. "Do you want to kiss some more?"

Summer gave a soft cry and she leaned up into him. Her mouth opened and they dove into one another, her scent flooding his nose and her taste filling his mouth. This felt so strange and taboo to him, despite knowing that such actions were accepted in Hoenn. It excited him; as their kiss went on, he could feel himself hardening beneath his underwear. He blushed, knowing how strange it was for him to be turned on by a fox.

Kyra smirked as she noticed his growing arousal. She rolled over on the bed and climbed up his legs to his underwear. She telekinetically slipped them down to free his stiffening cock, which sprung up against Summer's butt. Summer yelped and broke off from the kiss, turning to see what had touched her.

"Kyra, you naughty thing," Seth remarked as the Kirlia stroked his length with her telekinesis. Summer watched what she was doing, her eyes wide with curiosity. Kyra's smugness and mischievous intent traveled across their mental link, and then she wrapped her lips around the tip of his shaft. "Ah...please, don't stop."

Kyra held his cock in place and she took as much of him in as she could, using her tongue to coat it with a slick layer of saliva. She bobbed her head up and down repeatedly, sucking gently as she went. After a few seconds, she took him out of her mouth and presented his cock to the watching Summer.

"Wait, Kyra, are you sure that she wants to…" Seth immediately started to intervene. Summer gazed at his shaft for several seconds before looking at Kyra, who just nodded and made a soft churr. Seth trailed off with a start as Summer gave his tip a tentative lick. "Ah!"

Emboldened by Kyra's encouragement and Seth's response, Summer opened her mouth and imitated what she'd seen Kyra do, taking Seth into her mouth. Seth couldn't help but moan as his length was engulfed in her heat. She was so much hotter than anyone else and it felt incredible.

Just like Kyra, Summer couldn't take all of him in due to the structure of her mouth. However, Kyra surprised Seth by joining in, lowering herself down to lick at the exposed parts of his cock that Summer couldn't reach. As she did so, she used her telekinesis to help instruct Summer on what to do.

"Nnnfff…you're both amazing," Seth breathed as he looked down at the two fo them, working together just to please him. Summer caught on fast thanks to Kyra, and his cock was now sliding in and out of her mouth along her soft and hot tongue, while Kyra suckled gently at his balls and lower shaft. Two sets of eyes gazed up at him while they worked. He couldn't help but reach his hands down to pet their heads. "Such good girls. I'm so lucky."

Princess craned her head down as well, not wanting to be excluded. She couldn't fit her relatively large head down with the other two, so she settled for kissing Seth, her sweet taste filling his mouth. Seth kissed her back eagerly, his breath quickening as Summer and Kyra pleasured him, the smacking and sucking sounds of their ministrations filling the air.

Several minutes passed of this treatment, and Seth squirmed on the bed, his pleasure rising to greater heights with every passing second. He could feel it building up from within. He opened his mouth to warn SUmmer, but Princess's lips proved an excellent gag for him.

"Summe...mmmff….I...mff….I'm gonna….Summer! I can't….I'm…!" Seth struggled to get out around Princess, but it was coming too fast. He couldn't get the words out in time. He helplessly came, his chest heaving and his intense moans muffled by Princess.

Summer yelped and recoiled as his shaft throbbed and released thin streams of seed. The first one got in her mouth, but the rest spurted over her face and hair, leaving her quite a mess. Kyra watched all of this and smirked, leaning forward to lick some of it off of Summer's nose.

"Ha….wow," Seth emitted once Princess gave him a moment to breathe. He noticed Summer's face and winced. "Oh no. I'm so sorry, I tried to warn you, but Princess wouldn't let me talk."

Kyra winked at Princess, who winked back, unbeknownst to Seth.

Seth grabbed a tissue and attempted to wipe his cum off of Summer's face, with limited success. "Oh dear. Here you were being so gracious to me, and I made a mess of you." Despite his words, Summer purred once more after getting over the initial surprise. Seth realized that he wasn't going to be able to get all the cum out so easily. He glanced over to the bathroom. "Come on, let's go get you cleaned up."

With that, Seth took Summer into the bathroom and his latest sexual escapade came to an end.

Author's Note:

Whew! Finally. This chapter was a pain in the half to get out because writer's block hit me and I wanted to do everything but write. It didn't help that Wattson was boring for me to write. It's not like the other gym leaders where I have to build some chemistry for them to have sex later! Though speaking of which, Flannery is next. HMMMM.

I really do enjoy building upon existing towns and fleshing them out with landmarks and history. I have so much information to pull from, thanks to real world similarities and history. And now I get to do the same to Lavaridge, which was my favorite town back in RSE because of the sand and hot springs, which kid me thought was very cool. Even now I like it when games add small details that you can interact with, even if they don't add any real functionality.

As for when I'll get that chapter out...ehehe…I have no idea! I greatly appreciate your patience! Anyway, please give me those reviews! Writing is hard work, and I love knowing that people read it!