Our heroes are continuing on their journey to Newmex City for Davis' seventh gym battle. At the moment now, they stopped for some lunch.
"Hey, have you thought about what you're going to do about your next gym battle?" Tetsu said as he was eating. "You plan on winning by luck again?" When he said that, Davis nearly choked on his sandwich.
"What do you mean luck?! You've seen me win my gym battles." Davis said.
"Well, take your last gym battle for example. If things had gone differently, you would have had a hard time winning." Tetsu said. "With you only needing two badges, those last two aren't going to be easy to get. You could be in over your head."
"Says the gym leader I did beat!" Davis said. "I win with skill, not just luck!"
"Hold that thought for minute." Cletus said as he stopped this from escalating. "Take a look there." They all spotted a flyer on a sign for something important. "Pokemon League Orientate."
"What's that?" Davis asked.
"It says here that you go through a couple tests. It's not a gym, but they do have an official badge." Cletus said. "If you pass the test, you earn yourself the badge and it helps you qualify for the Centros League."
"Perfect!" Davis said. "That will show you, Tetsu, that I don't just have luck on my side. If I can pass this test, I can also take on the Newmex Gym and have all eight badges." This sounds like a great deal to Davis, but it might not be as easy as you think.
Pokemon
It's a battle, win or lose
It's the friends you make
It's the road you choose
We've got the right stuff
So make your mind up
And find the courage inside of you.
If you're strong, you'll survive
And you'll keep your dream alive
Let the battle begin
Pokemon
Be the best you can be and find your destiny
It's the master plan
The power's in your hand
Pokemon
(Davis' voice) Put to the Test
"Welcome. I see that you are here for the test. Very good." Davis went to the center that this test was being held in. Once there, he was met with a man in blue sweats with a gold P on his chest with him having short brown hair. It also sounded like he had an accent. "I am Coach Redding. I will be the proctor for these exams. Just simply fill out this application."
"No problem." Davis said as he filled out all the paperwork.
"And here is your assigned number." Redding said as Davis was given number 18.
"Sweet! Eighteen's my number when I played soccer!" Davis said.
"One more thing. You will have to leave your pokemon with me." Redding said. "You are not allowed to use them for this exam."
"I'm not? How am I going to battle?" Davis said.
"Davis, this isn't a gym. You might not even need to battle." Tetsu pointed out.
"If that's the case, I can just stay with Cletus and Tetsu since they're not taking this exam." Imperialdramon said.
"There will be two portions to this exam. If you pass, you will earn this." Redding said as he held up a ruby with a gold P on it. "This badge is an official badge that you can use to enter the Centros League."
"Sweet. I'll have my seventh badge sooner than I thought." Davis said as he was looking forward to this.
"Now, we will soon begin the computer portion of the test." Redding said.
"Wait. Computer portion?" Davis said as this part of the test actually seems to have him nervous.
...
The Classroom
Davis went to take part in the first part of the test, but this might not be to his strength. It's an actual test using computers. This might be tough for Davis, but he's going through with it.
"Okay. Just calm down and take it easy." Davis told himself. "It's just a dumb test. How hard can it really be?" Just like that, he jinxed it.
"Listen up!" Coach Redding called as he was starting. "The purpose of this test is to see if you have both the knowledge and the skill to really be a great pokemon trainer. The Centros League is no game. It is a serious competition and you must be ready for it. That is why I am here. It is my job to make sure you are truly ready for it. By passing this test, it will show that you are ready for whatever it is the Centros League has in store for you."
"Boy, he's serious." Davis said. "Just what kind of test is he going to put us through exactly?"
"We will now begin the first part of the test." Redding said. "If you turn to the screen in the front of the class, you will see a series of images that appear on the screen. For this part of the test, you must identify what pokemon it is. Simply input your answer on your computer and submit it."
"That doesn't sound so bad." Davis said as he's starting to gain his confidence.
"Let's begin. Please identify what part of a pokemon this is from." Redding said as he started the test and showed what looked like the shadow of an elephant trunk.
"I know that. That looks like the nose of a Donphan." Davis said as he input his answer of it being Donphan on the screen. He was sure that was it. What else could it be.
"The answer...the hand of a Poliwhirl." Coach Redding said by showing the image. Davis nearly fell out of his seat from the answer. Based on the angle of the picture, it only looked like it was a trunk. "Next picture. What pokemon does this flame belong to?" He showed the picture of a flame and it looked like it was on an orange tail.
"That's got to be Charmander or one of it's evolved forms." Davis said as he put in his answer.
"The answer...Monferno." Redding said. Davis got it wrong again. "You should be able to tell because it's tail is slender than a Charmander's."
"You've got to be kidding. How was anyone suppose to know that just from a picture?" Davis questioned.
"Next picture. What pokemon is this?" Redding asked as he showed a red circle.
"That's got to be the top of a Voltorb." Davis said as he sure's he got it now.
"The answer...Hitmochan because of it's boxing glove." Redding said. That was strike three for Davis.
"This is harder than I thought." Tetsu said as they stood outside and watched, starting to feel bad for Davis.
"He's making it so you have to know every little detail about every pokemon." Cletus said.
"Excuse me!" Davis called as he raised his hand. "I don't understand, Coach Redding. What's the point of a test like this?"
"It's quite simple. You must know every detail about pokemon, even the smallest ones." Redding explained. "The more you know, the more you can use that information. You must memorize all those details. The more you know, the more you will win!"
"Yeah, but who can remember every tiny detail about every pokemon?" Davis whispered. This is only the beginning of the test, but it was harder than it looked. Every picture he showed looked obvious, but they ended up being tricked questions and were a completely different pokemon. Each one seemed harder than the last. It went on until they finally reached the final question. "Finally. I didn't think we would ever finish." He said as he felt like he could relax from that mess.
"Now! Turn your computer for the fifty question test!" Redding called.
"Say what?!" Davis said in shock. He turned his computer and saw there was a lot more, and the questions looked difficult. What has Davis gotten himself into?
...
The Center
"Oh man." Davis said. When he finally got finished, he got out of there and collapsed on a bench. "I already got a major headache. That was unbelievable."
"Check it out. The scores are already up." Cletus said. Thanks to the computer, the tests have already been graded and scored up on a monitor.
"Where am I?" Davis said as he looked around for his picture.
"Uh... Davis..." Tetsu said as he found Davis and pointed to him. Davis got one of the lowest scores there was. That didn't look good for him.
"It's okay, Davis. That test looked hard." Cletus assured. "This Coach Redding is really trying to push you to the mental limits. Even I would have had hard time answering some of those questions."
"Ready yourselves! We will soon begin the battle portion of this exam!" Redding alerted.
"Battle?! Finally!" Davis said as he had a chance to shine there.
...
The Battlefield
All those who were participating now have a chance to battle. They battled against the instructors and battled using whatever pokemon they have. This was part of the test that Davis can handle.
"Go ahead and choose which ever one you want." Redding said as he showed a variety of belts with three pokeballs each. Davis had to choose one, but had no way of knowing what pokemon he was getting.
"I really can't use my own pokemon?" Davis questioned.
"No. A real trainer must be able to adapt to any situation with any pokemon." Redding claimed. "You will be given a slip of paper inside the pokeballs so you'll know what attacks your pokemon can use. You just need to choose."
"Fine. I guess I'll take these ones." Davis said as he chose them at random.
"Very good, and I will be your opponent. Time to begin." Redding said. The two of them went on the battlefield. Since Davis really has no idea what pokemon he has, he'll have to be smart about this. "Understand boy that you do much better by winning."
"That's what I plan to do. So let's go." Davis said.
"Very well. Here is my first pokemon. Let's go, Simisear!" Redding called.
"Simisear!"
"Simisear... That's a fire-type. Let's hope this one can take the heat. Let's go!" Davis called as he made his first choice.
"Eevee!"
"An Eevee!" Davis said as he was surprsied to see that.
"An Eevee... Not bad." Tetsu said as he and the others watched.
"Let's just see how it does." Cletus said. Davis grabbed the slip of paper and saw what attacks could be used.
"Let's do this. Eevee, start out by using Quick Attack!" Davis said. Eevee charged straight at Simisear with great speed and smashed right into Simisear.
"You'll have to do better than that! Simisear, Fury Swipes!" Redding ordered.
"Dodge it with Dig!" Davis ordered. Eevee moved away from Simisear. Just as Simisear was about to attack, Eevee dived into the ground and started digging. Then, Eevee burst right out of the ground and tackled Simisear with some damage being done.
"Simisear, Flame Burst!" Redding ordered. Simisear unleashed a blast of fire and did managed to hit Eevee with it, but Eevee was able to hang in there.
"Shadow Ball!" Davis called. Eevee fired a dark orb and blasted Simisear with it. It was enough to knock out Simisear and the first win goes to Davis. "That's one down!"
"It's a little early for you to celebrate." Redding said as they brought back their pokemon. "Here comes my second pokemon. Go, Simipour!"
"Simipour!"
"This time it's Simipour. That's a water-type, isn't it?" Imperialdramon said.
"It is. I bet I know who the last pokemon is, but who is Davis going to use?" Cletus questioned.
"Let's go!" Davis called as he chose his second mystery pokemon.
"Meowth!"
"A Meowth?!" Davis said as he was less thrill about that one.
"Out of all the pokemon in the world, why did it have to be that one?" Imperialdramon questioned.
"Well, this one certainly looks tougher than the Meowth I know." Davis said as he looked over some of Meowth's attacks. "Meowth, let's start by using Slash!" Meowth jumped in the air and was getting ready to slash right against Simipour.
"Water Gun!" Redding called. Simipour shot some water and blasted Meowth right out of the air. Just like any cat, it also didn't like getting wet. "Now use Low Sweep!" Simipour didn't wait around and attacked again. Simipour smashed its foot against Meowth. That was an effective hit and Meowth was taken out just like that. "It looks like the win is mine this time."
"That figures since he was battling with a Meowth." Imperialdramon said since he didn't expect anything less. They both brought back their pokemon and were getting ready for their last battle.
"Fighting-type attacks are very effective against normal-type pokemon, but you can't let that stop you." Redding said. "So, now that it's tied one to one. What will you do?"
"You're about to find out. Time for the last battle." Davis said.
"Very well. Let's go, Simisage!" Redding called as he chose his last pokemon.
"Simisage!"
"I knew it! His last pokemon is Simisage!" Cletus said.
"I hope that last pokemon is one Davis can use against it." Tetsu said. "If it's a water-type or rock-type, Davis is in real trouble."
"Here goes nothing. I choose you!" Davis called as he chose his last pokemon.
"Pikachu!"
"No way! It's Pikachu!" Davis said as he couldn't believe he got that pokemon. "This is gonna be awesome! Pikachu use Thunderbolt!" He ordered. "Ooh! That felt great!" Pikachu used the attack and zapped Simisage, but Simisage was enduring the attack. "Why is that... Aw! I forgot! Electric-type attacks aren't that effective against grass-types!"
"How could you make a mistake like that? Simisage, show him what happens from that mistake!" Redding ordered. "Use your Seed Bomb!" Simisage gathered grass power in its hands and threw it right at Pikachu. The attack detonated and Pikachu was sent flying from that attack.
"Stay tough! Let's use Slam!" Davis said. Pikachu landed on his feet and went on the attack. Pikachu jumped right at Simisage and slammed his tail right against Simisage.
"You'll have to do better than that. Simisage, Shadow Claw!" Redding ordered. Simisage had a shadowy claw form around its hand and slashed against Pikachu. Pikachu took some damage, but was still standing. "Is that really the best you can do? I'm rather disappointed." Davis didn't like how this was going. He needs to think of something, but what can he do with a pokemon he knows little about. He tried to figure something out until he saw it right in front of him.
"You think I'm at my best? I'm not. This is!" Davis claimed. "Pikachu, run in circles around Simisage! Using a combination of Double Team and Agility!" Pikachu followed through and used both attacks. Pikachu was running circles around Simisage and multiple images around Simisage. Simisage was completely surrounded by Pikachus everywhere. It didn't know where to turn or where to attack.
"There's so many! It's impossible to tell which one is the real one!" Redding said as he didn't know where to attack either.
"Now use Slam!" Davis called. Pikachu jumped right at Simisage from behind, grabbed it, and threw Simisage right to the ground. "Now use Thunderbolt at full power!" Pikachu unleashed all the electric power he had and gave Simisage a great shock. Simisage couldn't hold out against it and took it out. This battle was now over. "Oh yeah! That's how I battle!"
"Very impressive there." Redding said as he liked what he saw.
...
The Center
"Davis, it was a most impressive battle." Redding said. All the battles have been fought and scored. Redding was most pleased with how Davis battled. "You adapted to the situation well and you pulled off great maneuvers. You do have a talent for battling."
"Does that mean I pass?!" Davis said.
"No. You battled well, but the rest of your scores were lousy." Redding said as he didn't sugarcoat it.
"It's okay, Davis. It would seem your true genius shows when you battle." Tetsu said. "You're more about action and instinct rather than overthinking things."
"Thanks, Tetsu." Davis said as he was glad to hear Tetsu admit to that.
"Everyone has their own strengths weaknesses. There's nothing to be ashamed of." Redding claimed. "So, I can expect you tomorrow? If you study harder, you might be able to pass then. You do get an unlimited amount of chances to try again. If you want to be the best, you must know as much as you can."
"You know, I think I'll get my badges the old fashion way than go through this again." Davis said as he really didn't want to go through that test again.
Although Davis didn't get that seventh badge as soon as he liked, he challenged himself. He might not be smart when it comes to testing, but he can be a great battler. So, deciding to get his seventh badge at the Newmex Gym, our heroes continue on with their journey.
To Be Continued...