Draco: Was just informed about the Project Voltage crossover and squeed like a fangirl. This gratuitous fangame might not be quite as absurd as I had thought.
PRE-SUBMIT EDIT: Yes, I started writing this chapter shortly after the project began. Summer sucks, okay? END PRE-SUBMIT EDIT
Pokémon and all related properties © Nintendo. Virtual Singers of Piapro Studio © Crypton Future Media.
Drinks on Me
There was an island off the east coast of Pokétopia, with forestry surrounding the base of an active volcano. Jeanne had been rather surprised to hear that the next Colosseum was built upon the volcano's slope - near enough to the peak that there was a series of expansive lifts to carry challengers or spectators to and from the Colosseum - and still more surprised when she heard that it had been constructed to replace a Colosseum that had formerly been stationed above the peak. As she rode the lift, she did everything in her power not to draw attention to herself... and though she wasn't completely successful, the only person who seemed to recognize her was courteous enough not to make a scene of it.
There were separate lobbies here for challengers and spectators - the reasoning for which became clear when Jeanne stepped into the former. There was a small table set up in the middle, with a couple chairs sitting around it; a tea set was laid out on the table, and a brunette woman dressed in red was seated with a drink. On seeing Jeanne arrive, she lowered her cup with a smile. "Well, hello there. Your timing is excellent."
"Hi," Jeanne returned. "Does that mean I have the hour right?"
"Yes," Meiko confirmed. "But more importantly, I just finished the pot." Jeanne double-took as Meiko got to her feet. "That leaves me good and ready for what's to come. Hope you give me a good show, and a better battle!"
"I can try my best," Jeanne promised, and Meiko grinned as she started towards the battlefield entrance.
+x+x+x+
"Pokétopia, can you hear me?!"
A loud roar in the affirmative echoed from the crowd in response to Meiko's call; the sun was shining down intensely on the battlefield as Jeanne eyed up her opponent's Battle Pass on the screen. "No way... that's gotta be bait, right?" A Charizard, Incineroar, and Cinderace were staring off of the lineup next to a Lucario, Greninja, and Decidueye, and Jeanne couldn't help but observe that this was the first Trainer she'd seen in a Colosseum who seemed to have a type specialty. Remembering that Double Battles called for at least four Pokémon, she made a point to have Primarina on her team but not in the vanguard, just in case.
"Glad to see the heat hasn't ruined your mood!" Meiko praised. "Keep it up - our combatants are ready to get your blood pumping with some amazing battles, and I want you to show them your appreciation!"
The crowd cheered in joy.
Meiko swept a hand skyward with a flourish. "Then let's see some action!"
She started towards the red corner as the doors opened; Jeanne stepped out as her opponent - a tall figure in white whose pass had identified him as Handel - stepped forward. A sinister laugh emerged from him as he raised his hands, and Jeanne noted that a pristine white glove covered each as he brandished his Poké Balls - one seized from above with a solid grip, one resting in his palm with his fingers curled around it at erratic angles.
"...Creepy," Jeanne muttered, readying her own Poké Balls.
The two sent out their Pokémon; one of her opponents was a Fire-type, but the other could've had the type advantage if she'd sent out Primarina. "For the blue corner: Archeops, Goodra! For the red corner: Charizard, Lucario!" The Aura Pokémon took a ready stance, and blue burned on his palms as the Flame Pokémon stomped angrily. "Let's have it!"
"Ready?" Handel had a dominating voice, and thrust a finger forward. "Go!"
"Wreck the flier first!" Jeanne commanded.
Charizard started to soar forward as Lucario took a defensive stance, phantoms of Double Team spreading out around him; Archeops dropped down and dug his talons into the Coliseum surface, and stones of Ancient Power surged up, flying towards the incoming opponent. The Flame Pokémon took two rocks and seized the third, arcing towards Goodra and smashing it against the Dragon-type's stomach - and in the same instant as Goodra stumbled back, a bolt of Thunder came down to knock Charizard out of the sky.
"Thunder claps down!" Meiko called. "The blue corner has already pulled ahead!"
As Handel withdrew the Flame Pokémon, Archeops soared forward, making to bombard Lucario with Acrobatics. The image of the Aura Pokémon vanished under his talons, and an Aura Sphere slammed into the First Bird Pokémon from the side, leaving him reeling; Handel quickly sent out a Greninja, and before Goodra could try to attack the new arrival, the Ninja Pokémon brought its hands together, obscuring itself with a puff of smoke.
The second bolt of Thunder was less accurate than the first, slamming down outside the cloud; when it faded, a man-sized Substitute was standing where Greninja had been. Jeanne quickly made to withdraw Archeops, and Handel's Lucario turned his attention to Goodra, vanishing in a blitz of Extreme Speed and bombarding the Dragon Pokémon with blows. Volcarona was sent out on Jeanne's side of the field, and the intense sunlight was a great boon; Goodra loosed a Hyper Beam into the Substitute, and as soon as the doll vanished to expose Greninja, he begun flinging Water Shuriken at Volcarona, hitting once, twice, thrice.
The stars were so much less effective in the sunlight, but the same could not be said for the Force Palm that Lucario finished off Goodra with. As Jeanne withdrew him, Volcarona loosed a powerful Solar Beam that ascended heavenward and then seared down onto Greninja. Handel made to withdraw him as the Sun Pokémon turned her attention onto Lucario; Jeanne sent out Primarina, her opponent sent out Incineroar, and the Heel Pokémon's expression made it abundantly clear that the weather wasn't to his favour as much as he would have liked. In fact, it was to his detriment; Volcarona leapt forward in a Fiery Dance, and the sunlight intensified the flames to sear Lucario down to nothing, leaving Incineroar alone on the field.
"The red corner is down to their last Pokémon!" Meiko proclaimed. "Can they clutch this victory?"
With a huff, Primarina stood up on her tail, and an ephemeral moon appeared above her; Incineroar tried to brace himself for the blow, but Volcarona loosed a Bug Buzz that echoed across the battlefield and battered him off-balance. He had no chance to correct before Primarina loosed a blast of Fairy magic his way, and the attack slammed into him hard enough to leave him tumbling backwards, skidding across the ground on his face.
"Shone down with a Moonblast!" Meiko mused; Handel gave a yell of pain as though he had been the one struck, falling to his knees even as he held out his last Poké Ball to withdraw Incineroar. "And with that, the blue corner claims a definitive victory!" With a grin, Jeanne dashed forward, high-fiving Primarina's fin and one of Volcarona's wings. "Here's hoping to see the challenger keep it up in the battles to come!"
"Definitely!" Jeanne called out, withdrawing her Pokémon. "We're going all the way!"
+x+x+x+
The battles that followed were much closer victories than her first one, but Jeanne was able to make good on her promise all the same - culminating in Froslass finishing off her last two opponents in a single Blizzard, leaving her alone on the battlefield.
"And down they go!" The Snow Land Pokémon curtsied to the crowd as the battle ended, though Jeanne called her back with a muttering of 'Showoff' when she started blowing kisses. "The blue corner just barely claimed this victory! Which," Meiko added as Jeanne made to return, "if I count correctly, means that it's time for the final match!"
Healing up her team, Jeanne glanced at the Battle Pass displayed for her opponent, wondering what she might expect from this one.
"She's all yours."
"Thank you!" called a male voice that Jeanne recognized as Kaito's; she quickly reclaimed her team from the healing machine and started out into the battlefield. "It's time for our Colosseum Leader to take the stage! Her opponent: the challenger who has overcome all who stood in her way!"
Meiko brandished a Poké Ball in each hand, and the light gleamed off the Z-Power Ring on her left wrist. "Better be ready," she taunted. "I'm about to bring the heat."
"Can't be worse than that first match!" Jeanne taunted back.
The two hurled their Balls forward; the Aura Pokémon found himself staring down a cursed teapot, and the Soloist Pokémon was faced with a mess of gears. "Lucario, Primarina for the blue corner! Polteageist, Klinklang for the red corner!"
"Wreck that songstress!" Meiko commanded.
"Get what you can!" Jeanne warned.
Lucario drew its paws back, and aura welled between them as voltage began to converge between Klinklang's gears; Primarina knew she had the disadvantage here, but had no intention of wasting her time on the field, unleashing a Hydro Pump that carved a line across the Colosseum and slammed into Polteageist. To her displeasure, the Black Tea Pokémon immediately retaliated with a Giga Drain, energy flowing out of Primarina and unmaking a good deal of the damage she'd taken; Klinklang loosed a Zap Cannon to follow up, but the blast soared past the Water-type and slammed into the wall of the Colosseum.
The Gear Pokémon wasn't so lucky; Lucario hurled an Aura Sphere forward, and it slammed into Klinklang, leaving its gears knocking. Trading glances with Primarina, the Aura Pokémon elected to switch targets, charging towards Polteageist and loosing a Dark Pulse that left the Ghost-type reeling; Primarina swiftly rose up on her tail and loosed a Sparkling Aria, finishing her off and leaving Klinklang on its last legs, yet barely bothering the still-fresh Lucario. The Gear Pokémon's next shot, however, landed dead-on, swiftly knocking out Primarina amidst the devastating voltage.
"Blasted by Zap Cannon!" Kaito called. "The blue corner's lead didn't last long!"
Lucario had a mind to change that; as Primarina and Polteageist were withdrawn, he charged towards Klinklang, bombarding it with Close Combat and throwing it to the ground. Jeanne sent out Archeops and found Meiko sending out a Coalossal before withdrawing Klinklang; Lucario found himself backing up uncertainly as the Coal Pokémon eyed him up, then lunged forward in an attempt to land a Meteor Mash before he was wiped out. No such luck - Coalossal leapt into the air with a surprising amount of bounce, and was wreathed in flames before coming down hard on the Aura Pokémon.
"Melted down by Heat Crash!" Kaito sounded liked he'd felt that one. "The red corner is determined to keep this even!"
Archeops quickly descended talons-first, unleashing an Earthquake to shake Coalossal up while he had no allies to endanger; Meiko only smirked as Lucario was withdrawn; brandishing her next Poké Ball. "Let's see what you've got!"
She hurled the ball forward - and a towering white Pokémon emerged from it. No, Jeanne realized, an Ultra Beast - skinny and insectoid, with wings that flowed down behind her like a human woman's hair. The Pheromosa narrowed her eyes haughtily at the battlefield, and Archeops looked most displeased when he saw the Z-Crystal that the Ultra Beast was holding in one hand.
"...Right then," Jeanne realized, seizing her last Poké Ball in her right hand. "Not taking any chances!"
She held out the Ball to her side, and power flowed into it from her Dynamax Band. After a moment, its form enlarged, and she seized it two-handed and hurled it behind her; Goodra emerged, and his form swelled with power until he was looming over the battlefield.
Jeanne turned back to the battlefield, aiming one hand forward. "Wreck them!"
Coalossal had no intention of letting them do anything of the sort; a bombardment of Rock Blasts started flying at Archeops, stopping him from soaring forward. With an angry cry, he called down a Rock Slide, battering both him and Pheromosa as the Lissome Pokémon made to charge at the supersized Dragon-type; she managed to fight her way through the descending stones, but Coalossal wasn't so lucky, knocked out by the cave-in.
The Ultra Beast's Lunge connected with Goodra, with enough force to leave him stumbling despite the Dynamax; he swiftly retaliated with a ferocious Max Strike that left Pheromosa stumbling back. Meiko was in a furious mood as she withdrew Coalossal. "Alright, then! No more playing around!"
"Oh!" Kaito's yell of surprise echoed around the Colosseum as Meiko crossed her arms before her, and her Z-Power Ring shone as she thrust them forward. "Looks like our Colosseum Leader isn't pulling any punches!"
Meiko brought her hands back and then swung them forward again, this time with her fingers interlocked with each other like fangs as she pulled them apart. Z-Power gathered around Pheromosa, and dragon mist swarmed around her legs as she twisted into a flurry of kicks, flinging forth a drake of pure energy. The figure twisted through the air before zeroing in on Goodra, and as it made contact it burst with enough light to consume his Dynamaxed form - and a blast of light emerged from Goodra himself as the Dynamax wore off.
He was still shrinking when Archeops soared in on Pheromosa from behind; the Ultra Beast realized too late that the battle wasn't over, and found herself bombarded with agile blows from the First Bird Pokémon until she was flung to the ground. Meiko's jaw fell open as she realized her ace in the hole had been knocked out, and Jeanne withdrew the knocked-out Goodra with a grin.
"Outmaneuvered by Acrobatics!" Kaito exclaimed. "The battle has ended, and the blue corner has seized victory from the jaws of defeat!" Meiko withdrew the unconscious Pheromosa as he continued, "And that, ladies and gentlemen, means the challenger has overcome Volcano Colosseum!"
With a groan, Meiko stepped forward with a sigh. "I'm gonna need a drink after that," she mused. Offering her hand; "Well-earned."
"Says the one who made me work for it," Jeanne retorted, accepting the hand and shaking it.
Draco: Just as a toothpick substitutes for Ujiyasu's pipe in Conquest, I'm having tea substitute for Meiko's sake in Grand Stage. (She does run a café in Street Sekai, so "Meiko with a hot drink" has precedent.)
Shamelessly going to admit that 'Handel' is a giant Smash reference. Lucario, Charizard, Greninja, and Incineroar are, of course, the fully-evolved non-legendary Pokémon fighters. Decidueye and Cinderace, on the other hand, are the Pokémon I wish had gotten in as fighters. Decidueye is probably the more reasonable of the two, because it was in the running before they settled on Incineroar; Cinderace MIGHT have gotten in as a DLC fighter if Decidueye had been the Alola representative, but Incineroar makes two Fire-types already.
Arena details - Volcano Colosseum may randomly have harsh sunlight, Camouflage will make your Pokémon a Fire-type, Nature Power will turn into Lava Plume, and Secret Power may inflict a burn on the opponent. Colosseum Mode battles take place in broad daylight, and you need to earn you first win in Double Battles.
Meiko's team consists of Polteageist, Sableye, Klinklang, Alomomola, Coalossal, and a Pheromosa with a Dragonium-Z.