And we're back! After a week off to update "RWBY: Omni Force", it's time to continue "The Challenge of a Lifetime"! When we last left this story, Calvin had just beaten Guzma in their second battle, not only saving the kidnapped Yungoos, but also obtaining a Buginium Z! But now the question is, what is Team Skull plotting by luring him and Erika to Po Town?
Answers to that and more are coming in today's chapter! Enjoy!
POKÉMON SUN & MOON
THE CHALLENGE OF A LIFETIME
Nanu stood out in the middle of Po Town, letting the rain wash over him as he stared ahead at the mansion. Some time ago, he had heard an explosion when coming to check on Calvin's progress at Erika's insistent request. A lot of the Team Skull members had scurried off by him. He hadn't seen Guzma though.
'They still in there?' he wondered inwardly. He then took of another coming out and heading towards him. It was Hannah's Yungoos.
"Yunnngggg…" he shivered out in fright, cowering behind the kahuna's left leg.
"Hm," he huffed, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his pants, "Whatever happened in there must've really spooked ya…" he concluded, looking ahead. Another pair of figures emerged. They were Calvin and Incineroar.
"Ah, Mister Nanu!" the capped trial-goer called out, hurrying over with the Heel Pokémon.
"So you actually made it out alive…" the sheriff noted, sounding somewhat impressed, "This the little guy you were looking for?" he guessed, glancing down at Yungoos.
"Y-Yuhhh…" he stammered out, still trembling.
"Must've been real spooked to latch onto someone as coldhearted as me…" the kahuna noted rather bluntly to Calvin's surprise, "Anyways, looks like you scared off the whole town…" he pointed out as he looked about the houses.
"Yeah…" the Ketchum boy responded, "After I beat Guzma, they just all took off…" he recalled. Nanu lightly gasped.
"You beat him again?" he questioned, receiving a nod in reply. He blinked in disbelief.
'This kid…' he uttered through his thoughts.
"Heyyy!" a familiar voice called out, getting their attentions. Calvin widened his eyes upon seeing that it was Acerola coming towards them. "You got Yungoos back, Calvin!" she noted excitedly, "Thanks!" she exclaimed with gratitude.
"A-Acerola?!" the capped trial-goer stammered in shock.
"And here comes the noise again…" Nanu muttered out. The trial captain giggled as she approached.
"Looks like you got Uncle Nanu's help too, huh?" she guessed, looking over to the sheriff.
"I don't remember you being my niece…" he grumbled out.
"Hey, hold on a sec…" Calvin insisted.
"Oh, you're such a stick in the mud!" Acerola argued, putting her hands onto her hips as she faced the kahuna, "Weren't you the one who decided to move here to keep an eye on Team Skull?" she wondered rhetorically, arching a teasing eyebrow.
"…The rent's real cheap out here," he pointed out in response, "Nobody'd wanna live near a bunch of thugs like them…" he mentioned.
"Um, excuse me…" the Ketchum boy tried to say.
"You can say all you want…" the trial captain began to the sheriff, "but I know you started living out here to help make sure that Team Skull doesn't get up to any serious trouble," she told him.
"Huh…" he groaned out, "Could you let it go already?" he insisted, "The sooner you and the kid leave, the sooner the noise'll go away…" he pointed out.
"RAAAWWWWRRR!" Incineroar suddenly roared, making him and Acerola flinch in surprise.
"Thanks, Incineroar…" Calvin said in gratitude, giving her a smile.
"Ah, sorry about that, Calvin…" the trial captain apologized, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly, "We didn't mean to ignore you…" she added assuredly.
"It's okay," the Ketchum boy reassured, "But what are you doing here?" he inquired.
"Hm?" Acerola uttered in confusion, "Well, I came to check in on you and Erika…" she told him, "Why?" she asked, arching an eyebrow.
'This is bad…!' the capped trial-goer inwardly realized.
"We need to head back to the Aether House right now!" he exclaimed as a response.
"Huh?" the trial captain said, blinking as she was quite perplexed. Nanu was, too.
"What's the rush for, kid?" he asked of him.
"I think Team Skull was trying to lure me and Erika away along with you, Acerola!" he pointed out in response, causing the trial captain to gasp sharply.
"Oh no!" she yelped in realization, "The kids!" she remembered with a horrified look on her face.
"And Hau and Lillie…!" Calvin added in recollection. He quickly pulled out his Ride Pager. After a moment, he opened the silver Poké Ball to make a bluish light expel from it onto the ground, shaping into form and dissipating to reveal a Charizard with a harness upon his back.
"Roawrr!" he exclaimed, breathing out a puff of fire. In the meantime, the capped trial-goer returned Incineroar to her Poké Ball in a beam of red light.
"Sorry to have to leave so soon, Mister Nanu…" he apologized before he and Acerola boarded the Flame Pokémon's back, with the latter carrying Yungoos in her arms, "Can you let my sister know what's going on?" he requested.
"Yeah, sure… whatever…" he muttered in response, rubbing the back of his neck. He watched as Charizard took off with the two passengers soaring off towards the south. "Hm," the kahuna huffed afterwards. Calvin had done something he hadn't expected. He beat Guzma a second time. And the proof was all around him with Team Skull entire absence from Po Town. "Huh…" he groaned out, letting off a smirk afterwards, "Guess I'm gonna have to go all out for the kid's sake…" he realized.
OPENING
Insert "Eden Through the Rough" by Takanori Nishikawa
Opens with both Calvin and Erika throwing on their respective caps as they run down a rainy road together. The Pokémon logo then appears, followed by 'The Challenge of a Lifetime' being written in a glowing, rainy blue underneath it.
We continue with Calvin observing his Z-Crystal collection as his Pokémon look on with him. They then take a look ahead down the road, seeing the likes of Team Skull, Gladion, Plumeria, and finally Guzma ahead of them. Calvin hurries forward alongside his Pokémon, all while leaving his twin sister behind.
She's standing out in the rain by herself, crying as she feels the shadows of her father and older sister cast over her, making her feel like she's inadequate. It isn't until Starbright hops into her arms and wipes away a tear that she starts to smile, seeing her Pokémon gather alongside her.
As the opening continues, we get various shots of Sina and Dexio at their lab on Route 16, the Ula'ula Meadow, the police station where Nanu and his plethora of Alolan Meowth live, and finally Po Town under its rainy sky as its littered with Team Skull members. We see Calvin enter the town, having a determined look upon his face.
The scene changes to Mimi using Shadow Claw to take down the grunts' Pokémon, fighting alongside Poliwag and Togedemaru. In the meantime, their trainer has Toucannon use Beak Blast on Plumeria's Alolan Muk before Gumshoos attacks her Salazzle with Take Down.
Back with Erika, she commands Primarina against Nanu's Honchkrow, who's easily weaving around her Sparkling Aria in order to land a Sky Attack. The island kahuna exhales with frustration, knowing that his opponent can do better.
We then see Guzma and Calvin meet again inside the Shady House, where the former's Golisopod duels against the latter's Incineroar in a clash of Poison Jabs and Darkest Lariats. The battle comes to a point where Golisopod uses Liquidation to try and counter Incineroar's Inferno Overdrive. A fierce blast results from the collision, engulfing the house in smoke.
When the second verse begins, we see a determined Lillie being led away by Team Skull. From afar, Hau lies upon his knees with his Decidueye and Alolan Raichu fainted beside him, crying as he failed to protect her. We go various cuts of Trent training with his Greninja on Mount Hokulani, Paige doing pushups alongside her Blaziken at the outskirts of Malie City, and Pyrrha overlooking the horizon from the Hau'oli City beachfront, standing alongside a Lapras and a Typhlosion.
The scene changes to Erika pumping her fist forward, commanding her Alolan Sandshrew as he uses Ice Ball to take down a Gible, followed by Palossand blasting a Krokorok away with Earth Power. They follow their trainer as she makes her way to the Ruins of Abundance, where Tapu Bulu lies in wait…
We then see Gladion command Null to attack Calvin, who counters by sending in Mimi. After they clash for a moment, Gladion and Calvin share a glance. What follows is the two of them along with Hau and Trent venturing throughout Aether Paradise, coming across several employees and having to battle them. All the while, we see Lillie clutch her duffel bag tightly as she comes face to face with Lusamine, who grins evilly.
Elsewhere in Sinnoh, we see Leslie curiously looking at the Pokédex journal before stopping at a cliff that faces towards Mt. Coronet in the distance. The page she's on in the journal has a meticulous drawing of the mountain ahead. The camera pans back to unveil a pair of ghostly figures that are standing alongside her.
The opening ends with Erika, Paige and Pyrrha arriving at Aether Paradise, joining the boys in the raid ahead…
END OPENING
Dark Reckoning
The night sky was completely clear by the time Charizard glided down to the Aether House, landing safely before his passengers disembarked. Calvin was quick to grab the silver Poké Ball off of the Ride Pager.
"Thanks for getting us here, Charizard," he said in gratitude. The Flame Pokémon nodded before he was recalled in a beam of red light. The Ketchum boy clicked the Poké Ball back into place on the device, followed by jogging over to the steps with Acerola. He gasped lightly upon seeing that there was little damage to the surrounding area. Nevertheless, there did appear to have been a battle.
"We should check and see if they're okay!" the trial captain insisted, receiving a nod in response from the Ketchum boy. They hurried up the steps and opened the double doors. "Is everyone al—?"
"ACEROLA!" Hunter and Hannah wailed out, having tears fly out from their eyes as they went over to the trial captain, sobbing into her patchwork dress.
"Whoa, whoa!" she yelped in surprise, "What happened, you two?" she asked, crouching down to their eye level as they stepped away. The little girl sniffled.
"After you left, Team Skull showed up with that mean lady again…" she noted, "Hau tried fighting them by himself, but…" she continued, causing Calvin to blink in shock.
"Hau!" he called out, running over to see his ponytailed cousin and his Decidueye lying against the wall with sad, depressed looks on their faces.
"I'm sorry… everyone…" he apologized as he trembled with frustration. The capped trial gave him a sympathetic expression. This was the second time he had lost to Team Skull at all within just two days. Why wouldn't he be upset with himself?
"Wait a minute…" Acerola uttered upon noticing something, looking back and forth, "where's Lillie?" she inquired with an arched eyebrow. Hannah's lips quivered.
"She…She…" she tried to say, shutting her teary eyes.
"Those Team Skull guys took her!" Hunter suddenly bawled out.
"What?!" both Acerola and Calvin exclaimed simultaneously, widening their eyes.
"After Plumeria beat me again, she stepped in and promised to go with Team Skull if they didn't hurt us…" Hau explained, getting their attentions, "She isn't even a trainer and she…!" he tried to say, gritting his teeth in frustration before slamming his left fist against the wall, "I hate this…!" he admitted with tears pricking the corners of his eyes, "I was too weak to do anything…!" he whimpered out.
"Hau…" his cousin uttered worriedly. And then he remembered something. Lillie had Nebby with her. And in that sense, Team Skull now had it. "And they've got Nebby, too…!" he realized with a grimace.
"WHAT?!" another voice exclaimed as the doors burst open to everyone's surprise. Standing there with a fierce look in his eyes was none other than Gladion. "So Lillie was the one who had Cosmog?!" he inquired angrily.
"Gladion…" Calvin uttered in shock, "Wait, you know Lillie?!" he questioned, blinking rapidly out of surprise.
"Now both her… and Cosmog…!" the Team Skull enforcer growled as his fists trembled with rage, "I warned you about this…!" he pointed out in a snarl, grabbing the Premier Ball off of his belt and enlarging it, "What the hell is wrong with you?!" he shouted, flinging the spherical container forward. It popped open, with the light coming forth from it dissipating to reveal Null.
"Rrrrr…" it growled, glaring ahead at Calvin.
"Hey, hold on a second…!" he insisted. But his shouts appeared to fall on deaf ears as the chimera-like creature charged towards him. He crossed his arms over his face to brace himself from the incoming impact as he shut his eyes. However, a bluish light shot out from his shorts, coming into form in front of him. It dissipated to reveal Incineroar, who held her hands out to stop Null, keeping it back from her trainer.
"Rawwwrrr!" she roared, pushing the chimera-like creature back before making her arms glow a bright orange. She crossed them and lunged forward, swinging them out to strike Null in an x-shaped formation as it slid back along the floor in a grunt.
"Rrrrrr…" it growled angrily. The Heel Pokémon wasn't nearly intimidated, taking a ready stance if necessary. At that moment, Gladion appeared to be calming down as he steadied his breath.
"Sorry…" he apologized, lowering his head with shame for a moment, "But I told you!" he shouted, "Cosmog could spell disaster for Alola if it's in the wrong hands!" he pointed out in frustration.
"We didn't let it happen!" Hau suddenly exclaimed, shooting up onto his feet.
"Sidge!" Decidueye squawked in agreement as he got onto his feet as well.
"Lillie left to save us!" Hunter argued.
"That's right!" Hannah chimed in, "If there's anyone to be mad at, it's those Team Skull guys!" she pointed out emphatically. Gladion blinked. Hearing everyone made him realize he had gone a little too far.
"Huh…" he sighed, holding out his Premier Ball, "Null, come back," he said, returning the chimera-like creature to its Poké Ball in a beam of red light, putting it back onto his belt after shrinking it a moment later. He then looked out towards Calvin. They stared each other down for what felt like several minutes.
"So, can we talk like adults now?" the Ketchum boy inquired seriously. The Team Skull enforcer took a deep breath.
"Yeah," he responded assuredly, "I'm still shocked that all of you let Lillie get captured, especially with strong you are…" he pointed out, narrowing his eyes onto Calvin.
"That's because I wasn't here," he noted with a shake of his head, much to Gladion's surprise, "Neither was Erika," he added, "Team Skull kidnapped one of the Pokémon from this place, so we went to go get it back…" he explained.
"So they lured you out with bait…" the enforcer realized.
"Wait, you didn't know?!" Hau inquired in shock.
"They don't always tell me everything…" Gladion muttered as a reply, "And besides, I'm not actually a part of Team Skull, remember?" he noted, raising an eyebrow. Calvin recalled their first meeting when the grunt had mentioned that the blonde-haired boy wasn't really a part of the gangster-like group. "Anyways…" he continued, "we need to get Lillie and Cosmog back as soon as possible," he insisted, "I've got a ship in Malie we can take right now," he mentioned, starting to walk off, "Come on!" he beckoned.
"Hey, wait just a sec…!" the Ketchum boy tried to say, only to see Acerola walk over and grab Gladion by his wrist, getting his attention.
"Let go!" he yelled in demand.
"No," she responded firmly to his surprise. Calvin and Hau were just as astonished to see the serious look in the trial captain's eyes. "It's late," she pointed out, "You can try and hide your exhaustion all you want," she remarked, "but I can tell you're just as pooped as these two probably are," she noted, "So you'll sleep here until morning," she decided firmly, letting go of him. He stared at her in complete shock, watching as she walked over to tend to Yungoos with Hannah. He then looked over to Calvin and Hau.
"Huh…" he sighed out in resignation, "Fine, we'll leave tomorrow morning," he said, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his hoodie, "Get as much rest as you need," he advised. Hau seemed a little hesitant about joining forces with Gladion of all people, especially with the mystery of how he knew Lillie. But even so, he wanted to rescue her. His cousin did, too.
"Right," he responded finally with a nod.
"And what about your sister?" the blonde-haired boy inquired, causing the capped trial-goer to blink in surprise. He recalled all of the frustrations Erika had gone through Ula'ula, whether it her losses to Team Skull or Nanu. He looked down in thought.
"I don't think she'll be coming…" he concluded sadly after a moment.
"Huh…" Gladion sighed, "Well, the three of us should be fine enough," he assured, heading into one of the rooms. Calvin and Hau glanced over to each other and nodded. Whether the call was right or not, they weren't going to just let Lillie stay in Team Skull's clutches…
X
"Wow…" Dawn uttered out, exiting her car, "Feels like it's been forever since we came out here…" she noted while shutting the door.
"Yeah," Ash agreed. He and the top coordinator had just arrived in Solaceon Town at the behest of Rowan. After Leslie's latest discoveries from the second of the journals, the Pokémon professor decided it'd be for the best to travel to the inferred place of origin for the village that had been written of. The Unova Champion Master exited the parked car and looked over towards the ruins in the distance.
"Didn't you get trapped in that place way back when, Dad?" she inquired curiously.
"Yep…" he sheepishly answered, rubbing the back of his capped head, "It was more to go and save Dawn since she got herself stuck in there," he pointed out. His old traveling companion puffed out her cheeks as she pouted.
"Not like it was my fault…" she grumbled, hearing him chuckle. Meanwhile, Leslie took out the third journal of the series from her bag. It had a blue hardcover, which she opened to view the first page. She blinked in surprise and then smiled to see that it was another sketch of Typhlosion followed by some writing.
'It has been but a week since I have left the village…' she read, 'Honestly, I am glad to be on my own adventure instead of being tethered,' she continued, 'I've only been able to discover so many morePokémon in the wilderness down in the south,' she read on, 'Most of them are the same as those I've already obtained,' she noted, 'I'm already almost out of Poké Balls…' she mentioned on, 'Had it not been for Typhlosion, I would be completely alone on this journey…' she finished. Leslie turned the page.
There was a dense fog settling in. Thanks to Typhlosion's flames, Hikari found herself able to wander about the woods. Most of the Pokémon that wound up dwelling in the area were ones she had already captured. She decided to save her remaining Poké Balls for perhaps one that she had never encountered. Though the chances were looking slim…
"Phraaahh?" the Volcano Pokémon beside her asked, getting her attention as she was scribbling a few notes into her journal. She gave off an assured smile.
"You needn't worry, Typhlosion," she told him, petting his head to make him purr with delight, "We'll return to the village in due time…" she promised, "Though honestly…" she continued, coming to a stop as she closed her hardcover and looked down in deep thought, "I wonder if the chieftain will brand me as a deserter and have the village not welcome me back…" she said quietly. Her partner looked at her in concern before she stuffed her journal back into her sash and pressed onward. The fog grew thicker.
She was growing all the more frustrated with herself. She shouldn't have lost to Shinji that day. Rather… Quilava shouldn't have lost to Decidueye. It was her fault that he fell in battle. Even with the final attack he pulled off, he was too weak to do enough to defeat his foe. She hadn't trained him like Shinji did with his Pokémon. That was her trial. The fog became even thicker.
"Typhlosion, I think we may need to turn back…" Hikari noted as she turned… to find that the Volcano Pokémon was not behind her, "Typhlosion?" she said, blinking in surprise, "Typhlosion?!" she screamed, sounding panicked. The fog had gotten so thick, she couldn't even tell where she was. So she just ran through it, hyperventilating. The last thing she needed at this point was to be separated from anyone, let alone her own partner. But as she took another step… she splashed into water.
Her eyes bugged open in shock as she held her breath, quickly swimming up to the surface. Upon reaching it in a splash, she gasped quickly for air. She looked around to see that most of the fog had parted away, revealing that she had fallen into a lake. She couldn't see the shoreline though, but she did find something else. On a small slab of land was what appeared to be a cavern. Instinctively, she swam towards it.
She crawled up onto the shore, catching her breath before wringing out her sleeves. She quickly checked her journal, relieved to find that none of her writings her damaged, even though there were only a few inside. Stuffing it back into her sash, she then approached the cavern and cautiously entered. She readied a Poké Ball in her head, unclasping its lock. Opening it up, Hikari let the light from it form upon the ground before dissipating to reveal a Kricketune.
"Crick~!" he sang out in greeting.
"Be ready for anything, Kricketune," his master advised as she crouched down beside him.
"Krikah!" he chirped as a response with a nod. They ventured further into the cave, making certain to keep a watchful eye on their surroundings at all times. Hikari noticed the puddles strewn about the ground. They were shaped in such a way that wasn't normal. Almost as if they were a symbol for something. And then…
"Mehhhh!" a voice squeaked out.
"What was that?!" the young woman yelped.
"K-Krikahhh…" Kricketune stuttered, unsure of what could've been making such a noise. All of a sudden, his master spotted something float down in front of her. She slowly widened her eyes.
It was a small, gray, fairy-like Pokémon. It had two tails that each had a red jewel encrusted in them. It also had a partially magenta face with four long, drooping appendages like hair and another red gem encrusted in its forehead. Its appearance made Hikari's eyes shake in disbelief.
"Mesprit?!" Leslie exclaimed in shock, about to flip to the next page.
"Leslie, are you coming?" her father inquired from afar, catching her attention as she perked up.
"Y-Yeah!" she stuttered in response, putting the journal back into her bag before following Ash and Dawn towards the ruins in the near distance.
X
Gladion sighed impatiently as he stood at the docks beside a black boat that had the Team Skull insignia upon it. Even with Calvin and Hau's word that they'd join him, he hated the fact that they were holding him up. He glanced back towards the Pokémon Center nearby. Inside, the Ketchum boy was on a video call with Kukui.
"They got Lillie?!" he exclaimed in disbelief through the line.
"Yeah, I'm sorry…" Calvin apologized as confirmation, "She wanted to make sure no one else could get hurt, so she let them take her and Nebby willingly…" he told him.
"I see…" he responded, "I'm worried about how Team Skull found out about Nebby at all…" he admitted, putting his right hand onto his chin in thought, "But you and Hau are going to try and find her?" he guessed. The capped trial-goer nodded.
"We have an idea as to where they might've gone, so we're gonna head there first," he said, "Thanks for getting me the Pokémon I think I'll need," he added in gratitude to the professor.
"No problem," he replied with a grin, "Be careful out there, okay?" he advised before ending the call, letting the screen go blank on Calvin's end. He let out a long sigh.
'Why didn't I tell him that we're working with Gladion?' he asked himself. Maybe it was a little presumptuous to trust the former enforcer of Team Skull. But he seemed really serious about stopping whatever the group was planning. Either way, if it meant helping save Lillie, then it was worth it. Taking a deep breath to reaffirm himself, the Ketchum boy headed out of the Pokémon Center. A few moments later, Gladion saw him come towards the docks.
"You're late," he remarked bluntly.
"Sorry…" Calvin apologized, rubbing the back of his head.
"And what about Hau?" the blonde-haired boy asked.
"He'll come," the capped trial-goer assured in response. Gladion blinked and looked off to the side in thought.
"That guy's an interesting one for sure…" he admitted to Calvin's surprise, "He's standing in Hala's shadow and trying to be his equal…" he noted, "I could never do that…" he confessed, "And then…" he continued, recalling just how determined the ponytailed boy seemed last night about going to save Lillie and Cosmog, "He's not the same guy I met on Akala, is he?" he guessed.
"Yeah," the Ketchum boy confirmed, "We've all changed since then," he added, remembering just how frustrating things had been for him during the first two islands of his trials. Losing in his grand trial match against Olivia granted him a new perspective when it came to getting stronger. And so he did.
He wound up winning his rematch with his team, followed by emerging victorious from the Aether Tournament and the trials ahead on Ula'ula. And along the way, he bested Guzma twice. He was a different person from before. He was much more confident in himself.
"Anyways, is that our boat?" he inquired, pointing towards the black vessel on the water. Gladion exhaled a sigh.
"I know it's not really conspicuous…" he admitted, "but we don't have a choice," he pointed out.
"Yeah…" Calvin concurred, narrowing his eyes as he thought of something, "Where exactly are we going to go though?" he inquired. The blonde-haired boy was about to answer, but then blinked in surprise upon noticing a figure coming towards them.
"Geez…" Nanu's gruff voice muttered out, causing the Ketchum boy to turn in surprise to see him approach, "As if things were just fine and dandy with Team Skull gone…" he began, "now I find out they're a bunch of kidnappers?" he questioned aloud, rubbing the back of his neck, "Good grief…" he grumbled out.
"Officer Nanu…" Gladion uttered in surprise, with his eyes slowly widening.
"What are you doing here?" Calvin asked as he blinked.
"You already completed the two trials on this damn island, but never got to fight the kahuna, right?" the sheriff questioned back, putting his hands onto his hips as he looked over to the capped trial-goer.
"Uh… yeah…" he confirmed, quite confused as to what the grey-haired man was getting at. A smirk appeared upon his face.
"Well, you're lookin' at him right now," he pointed out, "I'm Ula'ula's kahuna," he told the Ketchum boy. He blinked twice.
"HUH?!" he yelped in shock, stumbling back a step.
"Your sister seemed a little more shocked…" Nanu noted, arching an eyebrow.
"I… well, uh…" Calvin stammered out, trying to recompose himself as he shook his head.
"I always thought that Molayne guy was the kahuna here…" Gladion chimed in as he stepped forward.
"Ah… well…" Nanu began, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head, "it's a real pain to deal with assigning the trial captains and whatnot, so I left it to that guy…" he explained to their surprise, "I barely do a damn thing when it comes to the kinds of trials they do…" he mentioned. A drop of sweat trickled down the Ketchum boy's head.
'Is a kahuna seriously this lazy?' he wondered through his thoughts.
"Anyways…" the sheriff continued stepping forward as he looked to the capped trial-goer, "before you go, battle me," he requested, causing him to blink in surprise, "You won't be able to finish the island challenge without beating all four of the kahunas, right?" he guessed rhetorically, letting off a smirk.
"Officer Nanu, we don't have time for any of this!" Gladion pointed out insistently.
"No, it's fine," Calvin said.
"It's not!" the blonde-haired boy argued, "Every second we waste here, Cosmog is—!" He stopped himself upon noticing the determined look in the Ketchum boy's eyes.
"I understand, Gladion," he assured in response, "We'll try not to make this long," he vowed, stepping forward and grabbing a Poké Ball off of his belt, "Besides…" he continued, remembering how Nanu had defeated Erika yesterday in the middle of the rainy weather, "I need to pay you back for what you did to my sister," he declared with a fierce look in his eyes.
"Oh?" the kahuna uttered in surprise, arching an eyebrow as he smirked, "So this isn't just a grand trial for you, huh?" he guessed. Calvin shook his head, enlarging the Poké Ball in his hand by pressing its center button.
"It's also for my sister's sake," he firmly stated. Moments later, he and Nanu stood about a dozen yards apart from each other. The latter of the two took hold of an Ultra Ball in his right hand, enlarging it before flipping it forward. It popped open, with the light from it forming upon the ground before dissipating to reveal a Krokorok.
"Krah!" he exclaimed, crossing his arms over his chest.
'Krokorok, huh?' Calvin noted inwardly, 'She might not be the best choice to start with, but…' he continued through his thoughts, rearing his right arm back.
"Incineroar, I choose you!" he exclaimed, throwing the Poké Ball forward. It opened up, with its light spilling onto the ground in front of the Desert Croc Pokémon before dissipating to reveal the Heel Pokémon.
"Sehh, rawr!" she roared out, crossing her arms over her chest as she huffed at her opponent, who blinked twice in surprise.
"K-Krahkaahh…?" he stammered out as he backed up a step.
"A Fire-type against a Ground-type?" Nanu noted aloud, "Are you an idiot?" he wondered with a smirk.
"You'll have to find out…" Calvin retorted, narrowing his eyes, "You ready, Incineroar?" he asked of his partner.
"Rawwwrrr!" she yelled in response, taking on a ready stance.
"Start with Flamethrower!" her trainer instructed while pointing forward. The Heel Pokémon's flame belt ignited before she unleashed a spray of fire from it towards her target.
"Dig," Nanu said simply. In an instant, Krokorok dug into the ground to evade the incoming flames with ease. Incineroar growled in frustration, glancing around for a sign of her foe. All of a sudden, she noticed the ground crack beneath her feet. She failed to react in time as the Desert Croc Pokémon burst up and landed a fierce uppercut to her chin with his left arm, followed by kicking her back.
"Sinnn…" she hissed out, gritting her teeth as she faltered slightly.
"Now Crunch!" Nanu ordered. Krokorok made his teeth glow a bright white and sharpen, charging out at the Heel Pokémon.
"Knock him back with Darkest Lariat!" Calvin instructed quickly. Incineroar made dark red flames ignite upon her hands, followed by crouching down before spinning forward. Her opponent bit into her left hand, making her grimace. However, she steeled herself as she kept spinning rapidly with her foe still attached, swinging him around before flinging him away as he tumbled along the ground.
Gladion blinked in surprise. He hadn't realized just how much ingenuity Calvin had when it had to battling. It wasn't something he had seen from their first encounter.
"Fire Fang!" the capped trial-goer ordered, sticking his right hand out. The Heel Pokémon's teeth glowed a bright red before flames billowed in her mouth. She charged forwards towards Krokorok.
"Swagger," Nanu instructed with a snap of his fingers. With a wicked grin, the Desert Croc Pokémon had a reddish light outline his body as he glared at his incoming foe. She blinked in surprise before suddenly finding a reddish aura flowing up her form. What followed was her stumbling around crazily as she grabbed at her head.
"Incineroar!" her trainer cried out. Gladion narrowed his eyes.
'Using Swagger to confuse Incineroar, who's already focused on attacking physically…' he noted inwardly, 'Nanu's clever,' he concluded through his thoughts. The Heel Pokémon continued to stumble about the dockyard before accidentally hitting the side wall, causing her to yelp in pain. Seeing that, the kahuna cracked a grin.
"Assurance!" he yelled out. Having a glint appear in his eyes before a dark, shadowy aura shrouded his body, Krokorok hurried out and slammed his tail mightily into his foe, sending her tumbling back along the ground before she came to a stop upon her stomach. She gritted her teeth as she slowly got herself back onto her feet.
"Are you okay, Incineroar?" Calvin asked in concern.
"Rawr…" she responded with a nod. Her trainer sighed in relief, but then gave off a frustrated look. He had sent the Heel Pokémon into battle initially because he thought Nanu would use his Persian first.
"By the way, this is a three-on-three match," the kahuna told him, getting his attention as he blinked in surprise, "It'd be a waste to just leave a battle like this to a one-on-one," he mentioned with a smirk. Gladion seemed irritated by the update, as it meant that they'd be spending more time on the docks than getting to where they needed to go. As for Calvin, he let off a sigh of resignation. He held his Poké Ball out.
"Incineroar, take a breather," he advised, returning her to the spherical container in a beam of red light. She seemed reluctant about the move, but ultimately allowed herself to be called back. "I'll bring you out later for sure," her trainer promised before setting the Poké Ball back onto his belt, followed by grabbing the Net Ball and enlarging it.
"A Net Ball?" Gladion uttered, blinking in surprise. The Ketchum boy reared his arm back.
"Come on out, Araquanid!" he yelled, flinging the Poké Ball forward. It popped open, with its bluish light spilling out onto the ground, dissipating to reveal the Water Bubble Pokémon.
"Kwaaahhh!" he exclaimed. Krokorok took a nervous step back.
"Stay calm, Krokorok," his trainer advised, getting his attention.
'Well, I didn't put up a rule against switches…' he noted inwardly, rubbing the back of his neck, 'Guess he's gonna play this a little smarter now…' he realized as he smirked.
"Araquanid, Spider Web!" Calvin quickly instructed. The Water Bubble Pokémon leapt up, aiming his spinneret forward before unleashing a sticky thread that split into a net that was about to ensnare his target.
"Dig!" Nanu commanded. Krokorok was quick to burrow into the ground again, avoiding the webbing as it flew by. However, the Ketchum boy smirked.
"Use Liquidation on the hole!" he called out. Nanu blinked in surprise. He watched as Araquanid had water swirl about each of his legs before jumping up and landing down over the hole in the ground. The water sprayed through it, causing the ground to shatter nearby as Krokorok was sent high into the air like being shot out of a geyser.
"KRAAAAAAHHHH!" he shrieked as he began falling towards the ground.
"Now use Lunge!" Calvin ordered. A yellowish-green light surrounded Araquanid as he jumped out at his opponent.
"Crunch!" Nanu commanded. Regaining his composure, Krokorok made his teeth glow a bright white and sharpen as he positioned himself in a way that he was diving towards his foe. As they crossed paths, the Water Bubble Pokémon wound up bitten at his middle right leg before managing to slam his opponent down to the ground in a flurry of dust. Once it cleared, it revealed the Desert Croc Pokémon lying on the ground beneath him with swirls in his eyes.
"Alright!" Calvin exclaimed upon seeing that his teammate had emerged victorious.
"Kwah!" he squeaked excitedly.
"Huh…" Nanu groaned, returning Krokorok to his Ultra Ball in a beam of red light, "Not bad, kid," he complimented, "Then again, any Water or Bug-type would've done my Krokorok in…" he claimed while rubbing the back of his head.
'Is he trying to say that we're just winning thanks to luck?' the Ketchum boy wondered inwardly as another drop of sweat rolled down his head. The kahuna readied another Ultra Ball, enlarging it with the press of its button.
"Anyways, battle's not over just yet," he pointed out before flinging the spherical container forward. As it opened, the light from it went onto the ground, dissipating to reveal a Sableye.
"Say!" she exclaimed with a wide grin upon her face.
"Sableye, huh?" Calvin uttered out, narrowing his eyes.
'Since she's a Dark-and-Ghost-type, we won't be able to land a super effective blow…' he realized, 'So, we'll have to rely on our strength right now!' he decided inwardly, sharing a nod with Araquanid.
X
"Hmm…" Leslie hummed as she looked about the town's surroundings. It wasn't much of an urban area as she thought, but it certainly wasn't rural anymore. "Is this really the place?" she wondered aloud. In all honesty, she wanted to just pull out the journal and read more of when Hikari encountered Mesprit, one of the legendary lake guardians of Sinnoh. But she also wanted to learn as much as she could for the sake of researching the region's long history. In the meantime, her father and Dawn were standing near the Dialga and Palkia statues at the ruins.
"You say it's been a while…" the former of the two started to say while adjusting his cap, catching the top coordinator's attention, "I say it feels like only yesterday…" he admitted.
"I guess everyone's got different feelings about being here," she noted in response, looking over to see Pikachu and Piplup running about the grass as they were seemingly playing a game of tag. Her smile soon turned into a small frown. "Hey, uh… Ash?" she said, causing him to perk up as he blinked.
"Yeah, what's up?" he asked, turning to her. Upon noticing her frown, he blinked in surprise.
"Do you… remember how I got super frustrated around my contests back both here and Hearthome?" she inquired of him.
"…Yeah…" he answered honestly, "Dawn, that's—"
"Looking back, I feel like I was such a baby for just almost giving up on being a coordinator altogether…" she admitted, interjecting her old travelling companion, "And you… well…" she continued, starting to smile again, "you never really gave up," she pointed out, "Even after all the tough battles you had, you still pressed on to the very end," she mentioned, "You kept participating in league after league…" she kept going, "I think you're really something for that," she finished with a smile.
"Well…" Ash began to respond, "I had a great cheerleader at my side," he noted. Dawn giggled.
"By the way, where'd Leslie head off to?" she asked as she looked around the ruins.
"Uh… I dunno…" the Pokémon Master replied honestly as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, "Leslie?" he called out. Overhearing his trainer's yell, Pikachu looked around for the white-haired woman as well. She was sitting down on a bench, opening up the journal back to the page where she left off. After encountering Mesprit, it seemed as if Hikari was challenging the Emotion Pokémon to a battle. However…
"H…How…?" Hikari stammered in disbelief. Fainted before her were her teammates in Kricketune and Floatzel within the cavern. Gallade, who had been barely managing to hold his own against Mesprit, breathed heavily as he stared down the fairy-like creature. It giggled, disappearing from his sight as he blinked in surprise. He frantically looked around for a sign of it, grimacing all the while. He suddenly found himself encased in a pink light, outlining his body.
"Gaahhh…!" he grunted, trying to break free of the psychic hold upon him. Unfortunately, he found himself lifted into the air and thrown hard against the wall in a pained yell. He fell onto the ground, groaning in agony. His master couldn't find it in herself to call out to him. She was being tested against a Pokémon's raw power she had yet to ever see. Even the strongest ones she captured were no match for Mesprit. Tears welled up in her eyes.
"Meh?" the Emotion Pokémon uttered as she reappeared, hearing her whimper as her tears dripped onto the cavern floor.
"I can't…" she cried, "I'm… not strong enough at all for this…" she sobbed out. Mesprit blinked in surprise, floating down to the young woman curiously. But as it approached, it was suddenly met by a stream of flames, forcing it to fall back. Feeling the fire's warmth, Hikari perked up and looked over to see that Typhlosion had arrived, with flames bursting out mightily from his back.
"BRAAAHHH!" he roared.
"Typhlosion…" his master uttered in surprise as tears pricked the corners of her eyes. Mesprit took on a serious expression as it floated back. It made its tails glow a bright gold before it swung them out, unleashing a flurry of energy stars. The Volcano Pokémon reacted by spraying more flames from his mouth, incinerating the incoming energy stars. He then dashed forward, becoming surrounded in streaks of white aura. His opponent made its eyes glow a bright pink as it was about to counter, but found itself struck back as he charged right into it, sending it crashing into the wall hard.
"Mehhh…" it grunted out as it winced.
"Ty fro!" Typholosion exclaimed fiercely, exhaling a puff of fire. His master was left amazed by his resilience. He looked back at her, giving her a reassuring grin and nod. What followed was him closing his hands into fists and making orbs of yellow electricity appear around them.
He lunged out towards the Emotion Pokémon, who quickly stuck out its hands to project a blue force field of energy to block its foe's punches. It grimaced, making the appendages upon its head stick up and glow a bright blue. Four small wormholes appeared above it, followed by it shooting blasts of electrified psychic energy into them.
"What kind of tactic is that…?" Hikari wondered aloud, having never seen such a move before as the wormholes disappeared. However, it was giving Typhlosion the advantage for the moment as he struck Mesprit over and over with his electrically-covered fists, blowing it back. Electricity sparked around its body as it winced. The Volcano Pokémon smirked, thinking that he had gained a significant advantage. But then, the wormholes reappeared. "Ah!" Hikari gasped, "Typholosion, look out!" she screamed. It was too late though.
Blasts of electrically-charged psychic energy rained down from the wormholes, all striking the Volcano Pokémon in fierce explosions as he yelled in agony. Its opponent grinned, readying its tails again as they glowed a bright gold. Just as the smoke subsided, Typhlosion found himself bombarded fly a flurry of gold energy stars. His master looked on with worry as her eyes shook.
She wanted to instruct him in some way, but didn't know what exactly to do. Rather, she didn't think she could. Her loss to Shinji still weighed on her mind as a failure of her capability to do battle with her Pokémon. That was becoming evidently true in this situation. But even so…
"Mehh, spreeee!" Mesprit exclaimed, making its eyes glow a bright pink. An aura of the same color outlined its opponent, making him grimace as he gnashed his teeth together. He tried to withstand the psychic hold his foe had on him. But ultimately, he found himself flung back towards the wall.
Hikari saw as her eyes slowly widened. Without thinking, she moved. She ran over to catch Typhlosion from behind as they both crashed into the wall. The Emotion Pokémon was stunned by the act. Meanwhile, the Volcano Pokémon widened his eyes in shock upon realizing that his master had crashed against the wall with him.
"Ty, tyy froh?!" he immediately asked in concern. Though she grimaced while holding onto her left arm gingerly, Hikari found it in herself to smile.
"I will be fine…" she assured to him, "But more importantly, I am sorry," she apologized, making him blink in surprise, "I could not find the strength to fight with you…" she confessed, "But I will now," she confirmed, standing up. Typhlosion grinned, giving her a nod as he also stood upright.
"BRAAAHHH!" he roared out as his flames billowed out from his back.
"Mehhh…" Mesprit uttered, seemingly prepared to take whatever attack would be coming its way next. Hikari closed her eyes. She recalled the last move that her partner had used in their losing battle against Shinji and his Decidueye, where his flames had burned so brightly.
"Use your full might, Typhlosion!" she insisted, sticking her right hand out, "Burn a path to victory!" she declared fiercely.
"Ty… FRAAAAAAHHHHH!" the Volcano Pokémon exclaimed as the flames at his back flared up mightily. Fire surrounded him entirely, burning brightly as the heat made his foe wince. Hikari felt her tears evaporate from the intense heat. But she smiled through it. For once, it felt like she and Typhlosion were acting as a true team. A massive fireball was formed in front of his mouth. Mesprit gasped, quickly making its eyes shine a bright pink. Its opponent unleashed the fireball, striking in a fierce explosion.
It took a moment for the smoke to clear away. The Volcano Pokémon had smoke expelling from his back instead of fire now. His master took notice.
'It must be an added effect of that technique…' she concluded inwardly.
"Mehhh…" the voice of Mesprit squeaked out, catching her attention as she gasped. The smoke finally cleared to reveal the Emotion Pokémon still floating ahead of them. It was burned, but not defeated. It flew over towards them, approaching Hikari slowly. She was hesitant for a moment as she stepped back, but then reached her left out. The fairy-like creature floated down and let her hand touch its head, with her palm over its jewel. It closed its eyes. The young woman slightly gasped in surprise. But then she smiled.
"Would you like to come with us, little one?" she inquired of Mesprit, catching its attention as it perked up.
"Meh!" it exclaimed happily in response as it flew about the open cavern air, twirling about excitedly. Hikari laughed with relief. Her emotions were tested. But now, she was reaffirmed thanks to the Emotion Pokémon…
"Wow…" Leslie uttered, looking at the sketch of Mesprit upon the page she was reading. Hikari had befriended one of the legendary lake guardians of Sinnoh. The white-haired woman was about to learn more as she started to turn the page. But suddenly, she felt a pair of hands grab her chest and squeeze. "EEP!" she yelped loudly as she shivered in surprise, blushing a mad red, "Alright, who the hell—?!" She stopped shouting upon whipping around to see the pair of disembodied hands waving towards her. "AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" she shrieked out. Ash and Dawn widened their eyes in surprise upon overhearing her scream. She scampered up from the bench, trembling at the sight of the hands.
"Set, you can't just surprise her like that…" a female voice chimed in, causing Leslie to perk up in surprise upon recognizing it.
"Aw, but I thought it'd be funny!" another voice claimed as a response. The Unova Champion Master turned around to find Mackenzie Tategami there alongside a handless Setsuna Tokage. "Besides, I bet you'd like it yourself…" the Lizard Tail Splitter Quirk user remarked, elbowing her girlfriend teasingly before her hands returned to her body.
"…Only if I was in the mood…" the Equestrian Magic user retorted, glancing away with a sheepish blush across her cheeks. Her girlfriend grinned. However, she then noticed Leslie approach with an irritated look upon her face.
"Um… sorry?" she apologized unsurely. The white-haired woman raised the blue hardcover in her hands, smacking Setsuna with it atop her head.
"DON'T TOUCH MY CHEST!" she shouted angrily.
"Told you…" Mackenzie muttered out as her girlfriend rubbed the back of her head, wincing in agony.
"Sorry, sorry…" she apologized repeatedly. Leslie sighed in frustration.
"What are you even doing here, Mack?" she inquired to her friend, arching an eyebrow.
"Well, you know how Raya & Rae's wedding's coming up?" she questioned back.
"Yeah, and I didn't hear about it from them…" Leslie muttered as a response while glancing off to the side.
"They're gonna start getting themselves fitted for dresses along the bridesmaids and maid of honor," Mackenzie told her. She still looked away.
"And I'm guessing they want me as a bridesmaid?" she inferred, arching an eyebrow.
"Nope," the Equestrian Magic user replied, causing her friend to blink in surprise, "You're the maid of honor," she pointed out. A look of shock came across the Unova Champion Master's face. She… was the maid of honor? For the wedding of her two best friends? She could hardly believe it…
"Congrats, babe!" Setsuna remarked with a thumbs up and a wink. That snapped Leslie out of her stupor as she glanced over at the Lizard Tail Splitter Quirk user incredulously.
"Don't call me 'babe'…" she insisted firmly, earning a nervous chuckle out of the dark green-haired woman, "So, when's the fitting happening?" she asked curiously.
"In a couple days back in C-City," Mackenzie replied, "You know the place," she mentioned with a chuckle.
"Darn right I do…" Leslie remarked, sharing a laugh with her friend.
"So…" Setsuna chimed in curiously as she stepped forward, "whatcha' got there?" she wondered aloud, taking notice of the journal in the Unova Champion Master's right hand.
"Oh, this?" she guessed, holding the blue hardcover up, "It's actually journal detailing some history about this place," she explained, "Here, check out some of these drawings!" she insisted, opening the journal up to a page of Typhlosion.
"Whoa, cool!" the Lizard Tail Splitter Quirk user exclaimed upon seeing it, eyeing it curiously. Meanwhile, Pikachu, Piplup, Ash and Dawn arrived to find the white-haired woman laughing alongside her friends. Her father smiled, glad to see that she was enjoying herself.
X
"Spider Web!" Calvin called out, pumping his right fist forward. Turning around, the Water Bubble Pokémon unleashed a strand of sticky thread from his spinneret towards his opponent, having it split into a net about to ensnare her.
"Shadow Claw," Nanu instructed. With a wide grin, the Darkness Pokémon had a dark, claw-like aura outlined in purple shroud both of her arms. She lunged out and slashed the sticky thread apart before it could entrap her, landing down safely.
"Say bel!" she exclaimed. The Ketchum boy grimaced.
'Sableye's gonna be a bit tougher to deal with since he's a smaller target…' he realized inwardly, balling his hands into fists as Araquanid turned around to face his foe, 'We'll have to hit hard and fast!' he concluded through his thoughts.
"Araquanid, Lunge!" he commanded. A yellowish-green aura shrouded the Water Bubble Pokémon before he leapt up, about to slam his body against his foe as he was coming down.
"Power Gem!" Nanu ordered, causing Calvin to gasp lightly in surprise as his eyes widened. From the gemstone at the center of her stomach, Sableye unleashed a pale pink beam of light surrounded by white sparkling energy. It struck her target's underside, causing him to fall onto the ground.
"Araquanid!" the Ketchum boy cried out.
"Now Shadow Ball!" the kahuna commanded. The Darkness Pokémon had a ball of purple-and-black energy with purple sparks appear upon her hands, making it larger before throwing it out towards her foe. It struck in an explosion of grey smoke, causing him to slide back.
"Kwaaahhh…" he groaned out, shaking his head.
"Stay calm, Araquanid!" his trainer advised, "Use Aqua Ring!" he instructed. Rings of water orbited around the Water Bubble Pokémon, making a greenish, healing light flow up his body.
"Heh," Nanu chuckled, "You sure that's the move you wanna make?" he wondered aloud, "Dark Pulse," he commanded simply.
"Say!" Sableye responded, readying what appeared to be black and purple circles of energy upon her hands. She fired out a beam of them.
"Counter it with Liquidation!" Calvin called out. Standing on just his middle and back legs, Araquanid had water swirl around his front limbs before he thrust them out into the beam of purple and black circles, striking them in a fierce blast of smoke. Nanu huffed with a light grin.
"Not bad, kid," he remarked, "But you can't rely on luck forever," he noted, "Power Gem," he instructed. Quickly, the Darkness Pokémon readied her stomach's gemstone as it glowed brightly. She unleashed a pale pink beam of energy surrounded by white, sparkling light. It tore through the smoke and struck Araquanid in another blast.
"Araquanid!" the Ketchum boy exclaimed. The smoke was slow to settle. But once it did clear, it revealed that the Water Bubble Pokémon was lying upon the ground unconscious. Gladion blinked in surprise from afar. He had seen Araquanid in battle from the matches he had watched in the Aether Tournament.
'Officer Nanu's definitely skilled in strength, so it makes sense that he'd have the proper counters for weaknesses against Dark-types,' he noted inwardly while narrowing his eyes. He watched as Calvin returned Araquanid to the Net Ball in a beam of red light.
"Thanks for all your hard work, Araquanid," he said in gratitude, putting the spherical container back onto his belt after shrinking it. He looked out to see the wide grin on Sableye's face.
'Things didn't work out in the end…' he realized, closing his eyes in thought, 'I could bring Incineroar back out…' he noted to himself, 'but there's that Power Gem that could do a lot of damage…' he remembered. After a moment, he opened his eyes. 'I've got it!' he concluded, pulling off another Poké Ball from his belt and enlarging it with the press of its button. He reared his arm back.
"I choose you!" he yelled, throwing the spherical container forward. It popped open, with its bluish light spilling forth onto the ground and dissipating to reveal Mimi as sparkles around her form.
"Mee!" she squeaked delightedly.
"A Mimikyu?" Gladion uttered in surprise, arching an eyebrow.
"A Fairy-type, huh?" Nanu noted as he blinked, "Good choice against my Sableye…" he mentioned with a grin, "But you're just as at much of a disadvantage against a Ghost-type," he pointed out.
"That doesn't matter to us!" Calvin proclaimed in response, "You ready to battle, Mimi?" he inquired of the shiny Disguise Pokémon.
"Keeeuuu!" she responded eagerly as she moved forward.
"Okay, then start with Shadow Sneak!" her trainer commanded. The Mimikyu had a black shadow with red eyes move out from beneath her cloak, sliding under Sableye and rising up. It then struck her several times with its claw-like appendages, making her grimace.
"Not a bad start…" Nanu remarked, "Shadow Ball!" he commanded. Leaping up, the Darkness Pokémon prepared another purple-and-black ball of energy with purple sparks upon her hands. She shot it out towards her foe.
"Dodge and use Mimic!" the Ketchum boy instructed. Mimi leapt back to evade the ball of energy, having a glint appear in her eyes as she remembered the move that was just used.
"Power Gem!" the kahuna ordered quickly.
"Use Shadow Ball!" Calvin commanded. Sableye unleashed a pale pink beam with a sparkling white light surrounding it from the gemstone upon her stomach. Meanwhile, her foe prepared her own purple-and-black ball of energy with purple sparks, firing it out. Both attacks collided in a fierce explosion of smoke
"Now Shadow Claw!" Nanu yelled. Leaping through the smoke, the Darkness Pokémon had a shadowy aura shroud her left arm with a purple outline. She caught Mimi by surprise as she slashed mightily at her. A moment of silence went by… and then the costume of the shiny Disguise Pokémon had its head droop limply backwards.
"M-Meee…?" she stuttered out upon noticing, tearing up a little.
"Uh oh…" Calvin uttered, remembering the last instance in which the Mimikyu's disguise had been busted.
"Keeuuuuu…" she growled at her opponent, who immediately backed off and grimaced.
"S-Say bel?" she stuttered out.
"Mimi, Shadow Claw!" the Ketchum boy ordered. In almost an instant, the shiny Disguise Pokémon had a claw-like appendage shoot out from underneath her rag, being cloaked in a shadowy aura with a purple outline. Sableye didn't even have a chance to react as he was struck fiercely in the stomach, being sent flying back.
"Ah!" her trainer gasped, while Gladion widened his eyes.
"Now Play Rough!" Calvin commanded, pumping his right fist forward. The Mimikyu rushed forward angrily, closing in on her foe just as she hit the ground. Before she could even get a moment to recover, the Darkness Pokémon found herself struck over and over by her opponent, becoming enveloped in grey smoke. Once it finally subsided, it revealed her lying upon the ground while groaning in agony. She was defeated.
"Heh," Nanu chuckled, quite impressed with such overwhelming power. From afar, Gladion was still surprised. Mimi had gone on an enraged tear after her costume had been broken. She whimpered as she tried to reset it.
"Great work, Mimi!" her trainer complimented as he jogged over and crouched down behind, helping set the head of her disguise back on with the sound of a pop.
"Mee!" she squeaked gratefully in response.
"Caught us by surprise there, kid…" the kahuna admitted while returning his Sableye to her Ultra Ball in a beam of red light, "That little one's tougher than she looks," he pointed out while rubbing the back of his head sheepishly, "Still, you've got one more obstacle left," he mentioned, "Pretty sure you know who it is, too…" he added with a smirk. Calvin took on a serious expression.
"We're ready!" he confirmed.
"Keeuuu!" Mimi hissed out in agreement. They watched as Nanu readied another Ultra Ball, enlarging it with the press of its center button. He reared his arm back and threw the spherical container forward. It popped open, with its light spilling forth onto the ground. Shaping into form, it dissipated to reveal his Persian.
"Purrrr…" she hissed out.
'It's finally her turn, huh?' Calvin noted through his thoughts, balling his hands into fists.
"Mimi, be careful!" he advised to the shiny Disguise Pokémon.
"Keeuu!" she squeaked in response with a nod to her trainer. This last battle was certainly going to be a challenge…
X
"Meowwww…" one of the Alolan Meowth purred as he and the others inside the police station were busy chowing away at the bowls of Pokémon food laid out before them. In the meantime, Erika was getting herself dressed, now wearing the first outfit she donned when vacationing in Alola. It was silly, but she needed a change. She had been trying to act too much like her father instead of just being herself. And she knew that was what held her and her Pokémon back. Her last few victories were thanks to luck, not her own strength and strategy.
"Are you okay, zzt?" Rotom asked in concern as it floated over to her side, seeing that she was holding her floral hat in her hands. She let out a small sigh.
"I'm… not entirely sure…" she admitted, "These past few days, I just haven't really been the same as I used to be when it came to this stuff…" she pointed out, "Maybe it was Calvin pulling ahead and me rushing…" she suggested, "or maybe I just got really scared after what happened in Malie…" she inferred on. Another sigh left her lips.
"I don't think that'zzz a bad thing, Erika…" the Pokédex assured to her, "Since you wanna help your Pokémon get stronger, thizzz plan of yourzzz might be for the best!" it pointed out excitedly. A small grin tugged at its user's lips.
"I hope you're right," she responded, putting her hat back on. Her hair wasn't the same as it was before just yet, but she did let it fall freely from its romantic tuck. She needed to just be herself. "Okay…" she uttered, slinging her bag over her shoulder, "Ready to go through a desert?" she inquired to her Pokédex.
"So long azzz I don't get sand in my circuitzzz, I'm ready!" it confirmed as a reply, making her giggle. The two of them then left the police station a few moments later, heading down the puddled path of Route 16 as the partly cloudy sky loomed over them. Back at the docks in Malie City, Gladion narrowed his eyes onto the staring match between Mimi and Persian.
'I'd say that Calvin's Mimikyu has the advantage here…' he noted inwardly, 'but Nanu likely knows how to counter a Fairy-type as he would a Bug-type,' he realized through his thoughts, 'This could go either way…' he concluded.
"Let's start things off!" the Ketchum boy declared, balling his right hand into a fist. "Shadow Ball!" he ordered. Leaping up, the shiny Disguise Pokémon readied a purple-and-black ball of energy with purple sparks in front of herself. She fired it out towards her target.
"Power Gem," Nanu instructed. The jewel upon the Alolan Classy Cat Pokémon's forehead glowed a bright white. It unleashed a light-blue beam of energy with a whitish aura shimmering around it, striking the incoming ball in a blast of grey smoke.
"Ergh…" Calvin growled in frustration, realizing that the battle wouldn't be as easy as he hoped, "Shadow Sneak!" he commanded.
"Dark Pulse," Nanu said simply. Mimi had her shadow extend outward and head past her foe. However, she wasn't remotely intimidated. She fired off a beam of purple and black circles from her mouth, striking the Mimikyu as she stumbled back in a pained squeak, while her shadow dissipated.
"Mimi!" her trainer cried out, seeing her fall onto her back. Thankfully, her costume hadn't been broken as she stood back up, having an angered look upon her face.
'Persian's a lot tougher than I thought she'd be!' Calvin inwardly admitted while grimacing, 'We have to end this quickly!' he concluded through his thoughts.
"Mimi, Play Rough!" he ordered, pumping his right fist forward. The shiny Disguise Pokémon hurried forward, ready to match her opponent with a super effective attack. However, Nanu cracked a smirk.
"Iron Tail," he instructed. Calvin widened his eyes and gasped. The Alolan Classy Cat Pokémon had her tail shine a bright silvery white. Just as the Mimikyu closed in on her, she swung her tail out and struck her back in an instant, sending her tumbling along the ground.
"Mimi, no!" her trainer screamed.
"One more time, Persian!" Nanu called out. With her tail still glowing a silvery white, the Alolan Classy Cat Pokémon leapt out and somersaulted before slamming it down against her opponent, creating a burst of dust that veiled them both. Once it subsided moments later, it revealed Persian looming over a dazed Mimikyu, who had swirls in her eyes.
"Mimi!" Calvin cried out, hurrying over and crouching down to pick up the defeated shiny Disguise Pokémon in his arms.
"Mee…" she squeaked out sadly, ashamed of herself for losing.
"Don't worry, you did great," the capped trial-goer assured, pulling out a Poké Ball, "Now take a nice long rest," he insisted, "You've earned it," he added, returning the Mimikyu to her spherical container in a beam of red light.
"Now we've got one left each, huh?" Nanu chimed in as a guess, getting his attention as he stood up, "I gotta ask," he continued, causing the Ketchum boy to blink in surprise, "why do you really wanna do this island challenge stuff?" he questioned curiously, "Sometimes, it's not so bad to just kick back and relax…" he pointed out. Calvin actually found himself thinking seriously about the question. At first, he wasn't someone who enjoyed interacting with Pokémon. They were just always there in his childhood. But upon actually getting to play, eat, and battle alongside them… he grew attached.
"Because I'd be doing a disservice to the people and Pokémon that've helped me get this far," he finally answered. The kahuna blinked before cracking a grin.
"You're a strange one…" he admitted, rubbing the back of his head, "Well, you better give me a good final match to prove that point," he advised to his opponent, who readied a Poké Ball in his right hand, enlarging it with the press of its button.
"I will!" he responded as he smiled, "Let's go, Incineroar!" he exclaimed, throwing the spherical container out. It popped open, with its light spilling forth onto the ground before dissipating to reveal the Heel Pokémon.
"RAAAAWWWRRR!" she roared proudly, expelling a puff of fire from her flame belt.
"Purrr…" Persian hissed. She and her opponent shared a fierce glare with each other, prepared to battle.
"Power Gem!" Nanu commanded, swinging his left arm out. The Alolan Classy Cat Pokémon's jewel shined a bright white, releasing a light-blue beam surrounded by a whitish aura.
"Counter with Flamethrower!" Calvin yelled. Incineroar unleashed a blast of fire from her flame belt, striking the incoming beam in a fierce explosion as they intercepted each other.
"Ah!" Gladion gasped, bracing himself from the rush of air that followed. Nanu's grin grew.
'This kid…' he uttered inwardly.
"Persian, Thunderbolt!" he ordered. Leaping through the smoke, the Alolan Classy Cat Pokémon had yellow electricity spark all along her body before she unleashed a bolt of lightning towards her foe. It struck, sending her sliding back as she gnashed her teeth together in pain.
"Rrrrr…" she growled out.
"Use Cross Chop!" her trainer commanded. Taking on a lunging and making her arms glow a bright orange before crossing them, Incineroar leapt forward.
"Iron Tail!" Nanu called out. Persian made her tail glow a silvery white as she swung it out to intercept her opponent's crossed arms. They were at a deadlock with each other, gnashing their teeth as they pushed as hard as they could. Ultimately, the Heel Pokémon won as she swung her arms out to send her foe flying back before she landed upon her feet.
"Sheeaahhhnnn…" she hissed out angrily.
"Power Gem!" her trainer ordered. The Alolan Classy Cat Pokémon made her jewel shine brightly again before unleashing a light-blue beam surrounded by a white aura towards her target.
"Dodge and use Fire Fang!" Calvin called out quickly. Incineroar leapt above the incoming beam as it struck the ground in a burst of dust. She then made her teeth glow a bright red as her mouth billowed with orange flames. Coming down, she bit hard into her foe's torso, creating an explosion that made her tumble back along the ground.
"Purrrr…!" she growled out, angrily gritting her teeth as she got onto her feet. Nanu was stunned at just how in control of the battle Incineroar was. And it was all thanks to her trainer's instruction.
'Guess I'm gonna have to use that after all…' he realized as he smirked. The Ketchum boy blinked in surprise to see cross his arms over his face, making the Darkinium Z upon his Z-Ring shine brightly.
"Consider this your lucky day, kid!" he remarked, "It's usually once in a blue moon I pull this trick off!" he pointed out, swinging his arms. Calvin noticed that the pose he was performing wasn't much unlike the one Acerola showed him for the Ghostium Z. It made him look like a zombie coming out from the ground and yelling. The dark purple aura that had been building around him shot out in streaks towards Persian, merging with her body before the Z-Move symbol flashed in front of her.
'A Dark-type Z-Move…' the capped trial-goer noted to himself, 'Even if it's not very effective, we can't take any chances!' he decided inwardly.
"Incineroar, be ready!" he called out to the Heel Pokémon.
"Sehh, rawr!" she responded, taking a prepared stance.
"Black Hole Eclipse," Nanu said, simply snapping his fingers. Persian raised her head and had a spiraling sphere of purple, red, and black energy from just above her jewel. She had it shoot up into the air, having it suddenly expand into what looked a miniature black hole, sucking mightily. Calvin had to grab his cap to keep it from getting pulled in, while Incineroar felt her feet slide towards it.
'That doesn't seem like it'll be easy to defeat…' Gladion noted inwardly from afar while bracing himself from the sudden rush of wind, 'What's he going to do?' he wondered through his thoughts. The Ketchum grimaced. This was much more intimidating than the All-Out Pummeling or the Continental Crush his Pokémon had faced before. But thinking about both Z-Moves he had faced made him wonder… could he break through this one?
'Araquanid's Hydro Vortex stopped Lycanroc's Continental Crush back then…' he recalled, 'Then if we use a move that's super effective…!' he continued to realize.
"Incineroar!" he yelled, getting the Heel Pokémon's attention as she looked over to her trainer. He was setting the Fightinium Z onto his Z-Power Ring. "Let's blast our way through!" he insisted as he crossed his arms, making the Z-Crystal flash brightly. A wide grin crossed Incineroar's face.
"Rawr!" she exclaimed, crossing her arms like her trainer did. She posed with him, mimicking his movements down to the punches they threw out one after another, all while the black hole expanded further, pulling on her. An orange aura that had been building around Calvin shot out in streaks to the Heel Pokémon, merging with her body before the Z-Move symbol flashed in front of herself.
"We're gonna break down that black hole and win this!" the capped trial-goer declared fiercely, "ALL-OUT… PUMMELING!" he bellowed. Rearing her fists back, Incineroar unleashed a flurry of orange, fist-shaped projections as she punched at the open air. They flew into the black hole, making it reverberate as Nanu and Gladion looked on in disbelief. "GOOOO!" Calvin exclaimed. With an orange aura enveloping her body, the Heel Pokémon rushed forward. Surprisingly though, she was heading straight into the black hole. Everyone watched as she collided with it, resulting in a powerful implosion. Grey smoke spread about the air, slowly dissipating. But once it did, it revealed a scraped but grinning Incineroar.
"PURR?!" Persian yelped in shock, while both her trainer and Gladion gasped.
"Way to go, Incineroar!" Calvin complimented proudly, "Now let's finish this with Flamethrower!" he commanded. A red, blazing aura started to build up around the Heel Pokémon's body as her flame belt burned brightly. She then unleashed a massive blast of fire from it down towards Persian. She had no time to move as the flames engulfed herself, followed by an explosion. The resulting smoke died out just before Incineroar landed, revealing that her opponent was lying on her side with swirls in her eyes.
"RAAAAHHHWWWRRR!" she roared out proudly in victory, raising her arms up.
"Alright!" her trainer exclaimed with a pump of his right fist. Meanwhile, Nanu returned Persian to her Ultra Ball in a beam of red light. He stared at it for a moment before cracking a small grin.
'Yeah… he's Ketchum's kid alright…' he concluded through his thoughts. A few minutes later, he stamped a page of Calvin's Trainer Passport.
"There you go," he said, handing the identification back to him, "And you should get yourself a Z-Crystal too, right?" he guessed, pulling out a Darkinium Z from his pocket. Both the capped trial-goer and Incineroar grinned excitedly at the sight of it. "Although…" the kahuna began, "you two aren't as dark as I am…" he pointed out to their surprise before he put the Z-Crystal away, "I think this one's more up to your speed," he decided, taking out another Z-Crystal from his jacket pocket. It was red, having a black symbol in the shape of an Incineroar's head. Both she and her trainer blinked in surprise as the latter took it into his hands.
"What kind of Z-Crystal is this?" he inquired curiously.
"An Incinium Z," Nanu answered, putting his hands onto his hips, "As long as your Incineroar knows that Darkest Lariat move, she'll be able to use that Z-Move," he told him.
"Whoa…" Calvin uttered out, having never seen a Z-Crystal that was for a specific Pokémon since the Lycanium Z he gave to Erika.
"By the way, the pose for it's the same one I did for that Black Hole Eclipse…" the kahuna mentioned while rubbing the back of his head, "I'm not gonna show you how to do it again…" he added firmly.
"Huh?" the Ketchum boy uttered in surprise, blinking rapidly.
"Anyways, congrats or whatever…" Nanu grumbled out, turning around and walking off, "Good luck the rest of the way," he remarked in farewell as he waved with his left hand, "Oh, and Gladion," he continued, catching the former Team Skull enforcer's attention, "if you were really trying to get stronger…" he kept going, "what the heck were you relying on Team Skull for?" he inquired. The blonde-haired boy blinked in surprise at the question. He didn't have an answer. At least not one quick enough before the kahuna departed.
"Huh…" he sighed.
"Sorry if that took a little too long…" Calvin apologized, making him perk up.
"No, it's fine," he assured with a shake of his head, "You know…" he began, "I never really understood what Z-Moves were about and why trainers always used them…" he confessed, causing the Ketchum boy to blink in surprise, "But… I guess after seeing your battle," he kept going, letting off a small grin, "I think they're really cool," he admitted. The capped trial-goer smiled, glad to have somewhat swayed Gladion into being less of a brooder.
"HEYYY!" a familiar voice called out, catching their attentions as they looked to see Hau hurrying over, "Sorry I'm late!" he apologized, coming to a stop as he approached the boys.
"Good to see you, Hau," his cousin greeted, "You doing okay?" he asked of him.
"Yeah, a bit better…" he responded while holding his hands together behind his head, "And I'm ready to go save Lillie!" he declared additionally.
"Hm," Gladion scoffed, "You better not go saying this'll be fun…" he advised seriously.
"I know," the ponytailed boy assured in response, "If Team Skull's really doing something this bad, I gotta up my game to help stop them," he firmly told the former enforcer. He was somewhat surprised by the change in his demeanor, having only remembered how energetic he was. "Anyways, where could they have taken Lillie?" Hau asked, changing the subject, "It couldn't have been Po Town…" he pointed out, "Cal and Eri were already there…" he recalled. The Ketchum boy blinked in surprise.
'That's right…' he realized, 'Where could they have gone…?' he wondered inwardly.
"…It'll be Aether Paradise," Gladion confirmed to his comrades. They both gasped.
"What?!" they exclaimed simultaneously.
X
Walking through the pathway leading to the mansion at the end of the artificial island, Lillie was being guided by Wicke alongside Milo and Selene. The spectacled assistant glanced back at the blonde-haired girl, giving her a warm smile.
"It is so good to see you again, Lady Lillie…" she remarked gratefully, "When you left, the pres—"
"Wicke, please," Lillie interjected in a firm tone while clutching her duffel bag's strap tightly. She was doing everything in her willpower to not break. For Nebby's sake, she had to be strong. They entered the mansion. She could hear footsteps approaching. Turning her head towards the left set of stairs, the blonde-haired girl saw Lusamine make her way down.
"If you'd please," she requested in a somewhat cold tone. The employees all bowed respectfully, stepping back. Lillie kept the grip on her duffel bag's strap tight as the Aether Foundation president approached her. With a gulp, she steeled herself.
"Hello… Mother…" she finally greeted.
ENDING
Insert "Hold Me Now" by Red
We open with a younger Gladion and a younger Lillie sitting on the floor at the end of a bed in a dark, white room. The latter is crying into the former's chest as he holds her close out of sympathy. Cut to present day, Gladion stands alongside Null and his other Pokémon as they look out onto the horizon. He balls his trembling left hand into a fist.
Meanwhile, we see Lillie clutching the strap of her duffel bag tightly as she's led down a hallway by Team Skull grunts and Aether Foundation employees. Upon reaching the end, she meets Lusamine, who glowers at her with contempt. Nevertheless, Lillie has a determined visage.
The scene changes to Calvin and Hau battling against Elio and Selene inside Aether Paradise, while Gladion and Trent face Faba and another Aether Foundation employee. As their fights continue, Plumeria and the grunts of Team Skull are confronted by Paige and Pyrrha. In the meantime, Erika goes to fight Guzma.
As the chorus kicks in, Gladion commands Null to use X-Scissor on Faba's Hypno, while Trent's Skarmory takes out a Ledian with an Aerial Ace. Elio's Pupitar comes up against Calvin's Steenee, who uses Magical Leaf to knock him back. Selene has Corsola use Surf, but it winds up rendered useless by Raichu's Discharge.
The music picks up into the third verse, with Pyrrha's Typhlosion landing a Thunder Punch on Plumeria's Salazzle, while Paige's Blaziken and Electabuzz work together to take down the Pokémon of the Team Skull grunts. Guzma cackles as his Golisopod appears to be winning against Erika's Lycanroc, but he steels himself, slamming his right fist against the ground to strike back with a powerful Stone Edge.
The final scene has Gladion, Lillie, Calvin and Erika entering Lusamine's collection room. We see the Aether Foundation president raise up the containment case Nebby is trapped inside before the group the group pays witness to her unleashing its power to create an Ultra Wormhole…
END ENDING
DUN-DUN-DUN! And we're finally into the Aether Foundation part of the story! We're also getting closer to the halfway point! I'm on a roll lately!
But aside from all that jazz, I've got a couple things to notify you guys on. First, as seen on the schedule, the next two weeks will be dedicated to "RWBY: Omni Force" chapters. Second, I'm going to making a new rule when it comes to short requests. For the six of you who I've picked to be collaboration partners for my Infinity Stone stories, I ask that you now provide any scenes for those stories via DocX from now on. This is only to avoid spoilers going forward for other readers.
That's all from me! Here's a preview as to what you'll see next time!
SUMMARY
Learning that Lillie is at Aether Paradise, Calvin travels with Hau and Gladion there to rescue her! But just what is the Aether Foundation really up to?
Meanwhile, Erika heads out to the Haina Desert in search of the Ruins of Abundance! Hoping to get some much needed training for her and her Pokémon, she's going to come face to face with Tapu Bulu! How will she fare?!
END SUMMARY
See you all later!