My Pokémon Journey

by Pokebrawler09

In this world of Pokémon, there have lived two Guardians that had served under Arceus to protect the world and teach humans and Pokémon how to live side by side together. Now in present time, the Guardians have been reincarnated and begin to learn of their destiny. Come along with our heroes as they discover their powers and meet many Pokémon that thrive in this world!

17. Chapter 16: Electric Shock Showdown!

Chapter 16: Electric Shock Showdown!

Taylor's Family Beach House

The sounds of phone alarms and alarm clocks echoed in the house for a moment as the sun rose in the morning sky. My friends slowly rose their groggy heads from their beds, turned off their alarms, and then began to wake up. Zuzu and Celina stayed up in their rooms and took their showers to wake up, and the boys walked downstairs to the kitchen; seeing me cooking breakfast. "Morning, guys." I said to them. "Morning." Pat and Sora replied tiredly as they sat down at the table. "Morning, Tay." Zach replied as he stretched and then walked over to me; seeing me focus on the pancakes on the griddle. "Had a good sleep?" I replied. "Yeah. I did have a good sleep." Pat replied. "Me too! The beds were so comfortable!" Sora replied. "That's great to hear." I replied as I flipped a pancake off the griddle and turned it to the other side. "Whoa! Look at you! Flipping pancakes like a pro!" he replied. I turned to him and smiled; making him smile back.

"Hey, Tay? How's Electivire?" Zach asked me. "He's good. I sent him over to Nurse Joy for a check up and she said that she'll call me back if he's good to go." I replied. "That's good to hear. Hopefully now after all of this, he might find himself a new area to make a home in and finally be free from his past." he replied. "Yeah." I replied. Oh yeah... about that... I kinda forgot to tell them that I actually caught Electivire early this morning. Oh, boy... this secret's going to be a fun one to keep. Eh. I think they'll figure it out once they see me use him in the Gym battle. After thinking about that, the sound of the toaster went off. "Morning." said Zuzu as she and Celina walked into the kitchen. "Morning!" the boys replied. "Wow. It smells good in here! Who's cooking?" Celina replied. "That would be me." I replied.

"Aww~ That's sweet of you, Tay." Zuzu replied. "Thank you, Zuzu." I replied. "So? What's on the menu?" she replied. "Bacon, Ham, Sausage, Eggs, Pancakes, Waffles, Toast, Cinnamon Rolls, Churros, Fruit, and Homemade Doughnuts. Drinks are Milk, Chocolate Milk, Orange Juice, Coffee, Tea, and Hot Chocolate." I replied. "Hot Chocolate!? You can have that for breakfast!?" Sora replied with excitement. "Mhm. Believe it or not, but some people in certain parts of the world actually do drink hot chocolate for breakfast." I replied as I set up the breakfast on the table. "Whoa... that's awesome! May I have some?" he replied. "Of course." I replied. I handed him a cup of hot chocolate and saw the biggest smile on his face. "Watch out, Tay. You give him anything sugar or candy related, he goes on a sugar rush." said Celina. "Really? Well. If it does happen... I'll just use Psychic to hold him down until it stops." I replied. "Smart." she replied with a smile. After that, we all ate breakfast peacefully together. As we ate, Zuzu's phone began to ring.

"Hm?" she said curiously. "Who is it?" Zach replied as Zuzu picked up her phone. "It's Yuya! He wants to FaceTime me!" she said. "Really?" Celina replied curiously. "Mhm!" she replied. She then looked at her screen and tapped the FaceTime button on her screen; seeing Yuya appear. "Yuya! You made it!" she said. "Yep! I sure did! Just got here a few minutes ago and settling in my parent's hotel room. So? What's up, Zuzu? What have you been up too?" he replied. "Not much. I caught two new Pokémon for my team, and have been having such a fun adventure with the gang. How about you? What have you been up to?" she replied. "Not much. Just been traveling and practicing new moves for the Contest. And I even caught myself a Pokémon that loves to battle more than anything." he replied. "A battler, huh? Just like Tay and Celina's teams?" she replied. "Hehe. Yep! Exactly like them! Hm? Hey? Where are you and the gang anyway? Looks like you're in a nice house. Who owns it?" he replied.

"Oh? This place? It's Tay's place." she replied. "What!? No way! She's got a beach house!?" he replied in shock. We laughed happily at his reaction, and then Zuzu showed him all of us. We waved at each other happily, and then Zuzu grabbed his attention. "Her family bought the land of the house many years ago and they rebuilt it to where it is now after Red became Champion five years ago." she said. "Really? That's awesome!" he replied. "Yeah! This house is incredible! It has a beautiful view of the beach from their backyard, plenty of rooms to relax in, and is close to the mall, arcade, and restaurants!" she replied. "She's right, Yuya! This is the best house we have ever seen!" Zach replied. "Wow... I'm actually pretty jealous. Tay! You are very lucky to go there every summer, you know that?" he replied. "A little bit. Try being here for summer birthdays and family reunions... that's a real adventure." I replied.

"I can see that. Must be annoying to be around so many adults that just block your way when you're trying to play with your cousins." he replied. "Mhm." I replied. "Hey, Yuya. Ask your parents if you can come here and stay with us." Celina replied. "Huh!? Really? Are you guys sure?" he replied. "Yeah! It would be great if you stayed with us! Besides, you would have way more fun here than being crammed up in the hotel with your parents and opponents." Pat replied. "Yeah... you might be right on that one." he replied. "Yuya?" Zuzu replied. "Yeah?" he replied curiously. "Do you wanna meet up at the Contest Stadium? That way we all can catch up and ask your parents if you can stay with us?" she replied. "Sure! I've been waiting so long to see you guys again, and want to tell you all the adventures I've had!" he replied. "Awesome! We'll meet you there after lunch!" she replied happily. "Sounds great! And Zuzu? I can't wait to see what your team looks like!" he replied. "Hehe. Thank you, Yuya. And I can't wait to see who you will use for the Contest too." she replied.

They smiled at each other happily, and then Yuya began to here the voices of his parents coming inside the hotel room. "That your parents?" she asked him. "Yep. That's them. They just went on a quick errand with your parents for a bit, and then come back here to pick me up, get me to the Stadium, and sign up for the Contest." he replied. "Alright. We'll be there soon. Let's hope the registration line isn't packed." she replied. "Hopefully. Alright, I better get going and get this sign up over with. Oh! Zuzu! I don't know if you got the message this morning, but they moved the St. Anne dinner from tonight to tomorrow evening." he replied. "They did? How come?" she replied. "Because they want to make sure that all the Contestants are going to show up on time before it. Apparently the judges are waiting for a certain Coordinator named Aaron." he replied. "Aaron?" the group replied curiously. "Yeah. They said he's still on his way from the Sinnoh region. I guess some of them want to give him some special treatment." he replied.

When I heard the name 'Aaron', my mind began to quickly race in fear. Shit... if one of them just spoiled the secret, then I am in huge trouble. "I don't think they'll give him special treatment, Yuya. I think they just want to make sure he arrives safely from the Sinnoh region and gets used to everything first; especially if this will be his first time in the Kanto region." she replied. "Oh. Okay. Now I understand why they would do that. Thanks, Zuzu." he replied. "You're welcome." she replied. "Yuya! Let's go!" said Yuya's Dad in the background. "Coming! Alright. I gotta go. I'll see you guys at the Stadium!" he replied. "Bye, Yuya!" we replied. Zuzu ended the call, smiled to herself, and then looked at us. "Alright, guys. Let's finish breakfast, get cleaned up, changed, and head out to the Stadium!" she said. "Yeah!" the group cheered. After that, we continued to eat breakfast happily together.

Vermilion Contest Stadium- Afternoon

"There we go. Congratulations. You are now qualified to enter and perform in the Vermilion City Contest." said a staff member. "Thank you very much." Yuya replied with a smile. He then left the registration stand and went to his parents. "All set?" his Mom asked him. "Yep! All set!" he replied happily. His parents smiled warmly at him, and then they went outside. "Wow... it sure is packed today." said Mr. Sakaki. "Yeah. Look at the line over there. Ticket sales must be going crazy right now." Mrs. Sakaki replied. "They sure are!" a voice replied happily. They turned to their right and saw Zuzu's parents walking upto them. "Mr. and Mrs. Boyle!" said Yuya happily. "Yuya! You finally made it!" Mr. Boyle replied happily. "Yeah! And I am ready to win the Contest!" he replied happily. He then took out a PokéBall, Quick Ball, and Luxury Ball from his belt, threw them up in the air, watched them open, and saw his Charizard, Boltund, and Flygon appear.

They let out happy sounds and stood by their Trainer. "Oh, wow! Yuya! Your Charmander and Yamper have evolved!" said Mr. Boyle. "Yep! They sure have. And they have grown a lot stronger too." he replied. His Charizard nodded his head in agreement to his Trainer's words, and then saw someone in the distance. "Hm? What's up, Charizard?" he asked him. He stared down who he saw for a moment, and then watched it and its Trainer walk upto the area. Yuya watched the movement as well, and then recognized them. "It's Gong and Samurott! Hey! Gong! Samurott! Over here! It's good to see ya!" he said. "Huh? Yuya! Buddy! You made it!" Gong replied as he turned around, saw Yuya, ran over to him, lifted him up in his arms, and hugged him. "Haha! I'm glad to see you too." he replied as he laughed happily. Gong put him down, and then looked at Gong's Samurott. "Hi there, Samurott." he said. "Samu-rott." Samurott replied happily. "Yuya? Did you just sign up for the Contest?" Gong replied.

"Yep. Just signed up a few minutes ago. How about you? You signed up yet?" he replied. "Yep. Gong signed up yesterday, and encountered Aura, Reed, Sylvio, Zuzu, and your friends." Gong replied. "No way! They've been here since yesterday?" he replied. "Yep. Gong first met them at Reed's family candy and sweets factory, and stopped a theft in there." Gong replied. "They did? That's amazing!" he replied. "And we helped them out." replied a voice. "Huh? Aura! Reed!" he replied as he and Gong turned to their left, and saw them walk upto them. "Well, well. Looks like the gang is all here." said Aura. "Yep. All we need now is Zuzu and the group is complete." Reed replied. "Speaking of Zuzu. Where is she?" Gong replied. "Over here!" replied a voice. The group turned around, and saw Zuzu and my group looking at them happily and waving at them.

Yuya's eyes widened in happiness, and then he ran over to them. "Zuzu!" he said. "Yuya!" Zuzu replied as she ran to him. After the short run, they shared a strong embrace and let their Pokémon interact with each other. "I missed you." she said. "I missed you too, Zuzu." he replied. They let each other go and smiled at each other happily. "Yuya!" said Pat happily. "Hey! Pat! Zach! Celina! Sora! What's up?" he replied happily as he high-fived them. "Not much. Just got ourselves cleaned up at the beach house, and ran over here to find you." Zach replied. "Beach house? Who's beach house were you kids in?" Mr. Sakaki replied as he walked over to the main group. "Taylor's beach house!" Sora replied. "Really? I had no idea that her family has a beach house." he replied. "We didn't either until we came here yesterday. When were walking to a hotel, Tay stopped us and told us she knew where we could stay for a while. So she lead us to near the street of the Stadium and we arrived at her family beach house!" Sora replied.

"Really? That was very nice of her to let you all stay there and be comfortable." Mrs. Sakaki replied. "It sure is." Zuzu replied happily. "Speaking of which. Mom? Dad? Can I stay with them? I wanna catch up with them and know what they have been up too ever since their journeys started." Yuya replied. "Hmm..?" Mr. Sakaki replied; thinking about his answer. "Come on, Yusho. I think it would be a great idea for him to stay there. At least it will be with people we know." Mrs. Sakaki replied. Mr. Sakaki blinked his eyes, smiled, and nodded his head. "Okay, Yuya. You can stay with them." he said. "Really?" Yuya replied happily. "Alright!" my group replied happily. "As long as you follow Taylor's rules of staying in the house and not break anything." he replied. "Got it. I'll listen to her." Yuya replied. "Uh... guys?" Sora replied.

"Hm?" Yuya and the group replied curiously. "Speaking of Tay... where did she go?" he replied. They turned around, and noticed that I wasn't there. "Ah!" said the girls in shock. "Oh no! She must've gotten blocked by the crowd as we walked over here!" Zach replied worriedly. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Calm down, kids! I'm sure Taylor is around here somewhere. We just got to find her together!" Mr. Boyle replied. "Yeah! Great idea, Dad!" Zuzu replied. "Yep. But... before you go find her. You must think of where do you think she might go to if she got separated from you." Mrs. Boyle replied. "She's right. Out of all the notable places here in the City... where do you all think she would go to?" Mrs. Sakaki replied. They thought about it for a few moments, and then came to a conclusion to where I would go off to. "The Gym!" they said in unison. "The Gym?" Mr. Boyle replied.

"Yeah! She went to the Vermilion City Gym!" Zuzu replied. "Yeah! And that means she's actually about to battle Lt. Surge soon!" Celina replied. "What!? She's going to battle Lt. Surge himself!?" Yuya replied surprised. The group nodded their heads yes to his response. "Oh, man... I still remember the stories of what Zarc and Yugo told me when they fought him..." he said. "Oof. Was it bad?" Pat replied. "A little bit." he replied. "Well then. Now that you all know where Taylor would go. Now you have to go after her." Mr. Sakaki replied. "Right!" Yuya and the group replied. "But before we get there... we have to get Yuya's belongings to the beach house." Mrs. Sakaki replied. "Right." the group replied. After that, they said goodbye to everyone around them, grabbed Yuya's belongings, and went back to the beach house. After putting the bags down, Yuya and the group left and went on the search for me. "Hold on, guys!" said a voice. They turned around and then saw Gong, Aura, Reed, and Sylvio run after them. "Hold on? You guys are coming too?" said Yuya. "Of course! Gong wants to see how strong your friend has become ever since we last met!" Gong replied.

"Agreed. I want to see if her skills as a Trainer are like in person ever since her last two Gym battles." Sylvio replied. "Huh!? You've watched her battles!?" Zuzu replied in shock. "Of course. Though I must admit, she is more strategic than anyone I have ever known in battle." he replied. "No need to tell us twice. She's more skilled than most of us in the Academy... including Yuri." Celina replied. "What!? She battles better than Yuri!?" he replied surprised. "Mhm." she and Sora replied. "Well what are we waiting for! Let's see for ourselves if her skills are as good as they say!" Aura replied. "Right!" everyone replied. After that, they all booked it to the Gym.

Outside Vermilion City Gym

"There it is. The Vermilion City Gym." I said. "Pi-ka..." Tetrax replied. "But... I wished that coming here wouldn't involve people blocking the street for most of the time when I tried to get to the Stadium to reunite with Yuya. I was hoping to catch up with him and then come here to the Gym with him and the group, but I guess reality had its own plans for me today, eh bud?" I replied. "Pika-chu." he replied as he nodded his head. As I looked at the Gym, two people standing by a toy shop window turned to their left and saw me for the first time. "Taylor!" said one of the voices happily. "Hm?" I replied curiously as I turned to my right. When I looked in the direction, I recognized the two people for the first time. "Declan! Riley!" I said happily. Riley laughed happily as she ran upto me and then gave me a hug; making me hug her back.

"You made it! Just like you said!" she said. "Yep. I sure did." I replied. We ended the hug, and then Riley petted Tetrax again; making him happy. "Chaa~" he said. She giggled at his reaction and then turned to Declan; seeing him smile at her. "You really like petting him, don't you?" he asked her. "Uh huh! His fur is so soft! Just like your Raichu's fur!" she replied. "Yeah. Just like Raichu's." he replied. I smiled at them, and then I shook Declan's hand. "So, Taylor? What are you doing out here by yourself?" he asked me. "Me? I'm about to head in the Gym and challenge Lt. Surge. But... coming here the way I wanted to didn't go exactly to plan." I replied. "Hm? How come?" he replied. "I was supposed to be at the Contest Stadium with my group reuniting with our friend, Yuya. But before I could even cross the street, people were causing a giant traffic jam and wouldn't let me pass." I replied. "Ah. I getcha." he replied. "Yeah. So, I decided to walk all the way here and wait for them... hoping they would know that I would be here." I replied.

Declan and Riley nodded their heads in understanding, and then we heard the doors of the Gym open. We turned to the doors and saw someone walk out and recognize me. "Hey! Sis! There you are!" said the person. My eyes widened in shock and happiness for a moment, and then I hugged the person. "Red!" I said happily. He laughed happily at my reaction and hugged me back *(A/N: Red is wearing his Thunderbolt Synga Suit from Masters EX)*. "W-What are you doing here?" I asked him as I let him go from the hug. "I came to see you battle Lt. Surge." he replied. "You did!?" I replied surprised. "Yep. I got permission from the Elite 4 to take the day off and came here this morning to come see you." he replied. I couldn't help but smile, and hugged him again. He hugged me back and smiled warmly. "Red? Who are you talking to out there?" said a voice. "I'm talking to Taylor, Mom." he replied. "Huh!?" I replied surprised. We let each other go from the hug and saw our Mom walk out of the door for the first time. "Mom!" I said happily. "Tay!" she replied happily.

We hugged each other for a moment, and then she and Red saw Declan and Riley for the first time. "Hey? I remember you. You're the one who helped out my daughter and her friends in Viridian City." she said to Declan. "Yes, ma'am. I'm Declan. And this is my little sister, Riley." Declan replied. "Hello." Riley replied. "Nice to meet you two. I'm Maya. Taylor and Red's Mom." she replied as she shook their hands. "Mom? Did you come here with Red to watch my battle?" I replied. "Of course. I wouldn't miss it for the world! I've been cheering you on since your first battle back in Pewter City, and saw how strong you were against Brock. But after that win, I knew that I had to come see one of your battles in person when your brother had a day off. So when he scheduled it for today, we booked it here as fast as we could and knew that we had to see you in person and cheer you on with all our might!" she replied. "Aww, Mom! That is very sweet!" I replied happily, and hugged her again; making her smile.

"Hey? What's with all the noise out here?" said a voice. We all turned back to the door, and saw Lt. Surge walk upto us. "Hi, Lt." I said as I let Mom go from the hug. "Ah! There she is!" he replied with a confident smile. We shook hands, and then saluted to each other. "Welcome, Taylor. To the Vermilion City Gym! Home to the strongest Electric type user in the region!" he said. "Thank you. It's an honor to be here." I replied. We smiled at each other, and then he led me inside. "Looks like we're about to get this battle started." said my Mom. "Yeah." Red replied. He, Mom, Declan, and Riley were ready to walk in, but then they heard the sounds of people running towards them. "Hm? Wait... is that... her group?" he said. "Yeah. That's them. And they're reunited with Yuya." Declan replied. The four of them watched my group as they quickly crossed the empty street and saw them at the entrance. "Zach... Yuya... Celina... you know you could've just stopped and waited for us to catch up..." said Pat in a exhausted tone. "Sorry, dude." Zach replied. "Hey? You guys alright?" Red asked them. They turned from each other, saw my brother for the first time in a while, and their eyes widened in shock. "Red!" said most of my group.

He lightly smiled at them, and then saw his Pikachu jump up on his shoulder. "Pi-ka-chu!" he said. "Declan, look! Red has one too!" said Riley happily. Red and the others noticed her reaction, and then Red smiled warmly at her. "She really likes seeing a Pikachu, doesn't she?" Red asked Declan. "Yep. Ever since I my Raichu was a Pikachu, she has been obsessed with them. But she was afraid to touch them and all Pokémon at first, but when your sister let her pet her Pikachu... she has conquered her fear of touching Pokémon ever since." Declan replied. "Really? That's awesome. I'm glad that my sister was able to help her conquer her fear." he replied. "I agree. And that is something that I will forever be grateful to her for." Declan replied. He smiled at him warmly and then shook his hand in thanks. "Hey? Are you all here to watch the battle?" said a Gym official as he looked at them. "Yes, sir. We are." he replied. "Well then, come on in and take your seats. Mr. Smiley is about to introduce the battle onto the livestream." the official replied. After that, everyone came inside the Gym and took their seats.

Inside Vermilion City Gym

"Wow... we got ourselves a crowd in here, huh?" said Sora. "Yeah. But can she handle the pressure of it? This is the first time that a crowd is actually watching her..." Zuzu replied. "She will. All she needs to do is mentally block out the crowd and focus on the battle itself. If the crowd distracts her, then Surge will have the advantage over her." Zach replied. "Right." she replied as she nodded her head. They and the group looked at the battlefield silently, and then saw me walk onto it for the first time. "There she is!" said Pat. "Pi-Pikachu!" both Zuzu and Red's Pikachu's cheered. Tetrax looked to the stands, saw and heard them again, and smiled at them. He gave them a thumbs up, and then turned back to the battlefield; seeing Lt. Surge's Raichu looking at him. "Hey, guys? Is Raichu Surge's ace Pokémon?" Sora replied. "His ace? Huh. That's... that's a good question." Zach replied. "Let's see. According to the Gym Leader blog, Lt. Surge has two ace Pokémon." Pat replied.

"Two!?" the group and Yuya replied in shock. "Yeah. His two ace Pokémon are Raichu and Electabuzz." he replied. "Electabuzz? Didn't we see it with him and Raichu when we met them yesterday?" Celina replied. "Yeah... we did." Sora replied. "Electabuzz, huh? That's physically his strongest Pokémon." Sylvio replied. "Really?" Aura replied curiously. "Yeah. Not many Trainers could get past that thing. Even if they used a Ground-type Pokémon against it, Electabuzz would take them down with ease with Ice Punch. That Pokémon is the reason many beginner Trainers had quit trying the Gym Challenge." he replied; shocking everyone. My friends then looked back at me on the battlefield, and then clutched their hands onto the railing; praying that I win this battle. Yuya blinked his eyes, looked across the room, and saw seven people in cloaks looking at him. Once he saw a red scarf on one of them, he knew exactly who they were. "So they came to see it too..." he said in his thoughts. He watched one of them take their goggles off, and saw a pair of gray eyes looking at him. "Yuto..." he said in his thoughts as he looked at him in shock.

Yuto blinked his eyes, and nodded his head to him; letting him know that he did arrive for this battle. Yuya blinked his eyes, smiled, and nodded back to him; making him lightly smile under his mask. As everyone was settled in, Nico Smiley walked onto the middle of the field, watched the lights shine onto him, and then the livestream cameras turned on; showing the world the footage of the Gym. "Greetings, Trainers all near and far! My name is Nico Smiley and I am here in the beautiful, electrifying Vermilion City Gym, broadcasting to you live a Gym battle that many of you have been anticipating for since her victory at Cerulean City! Today! Our challenger, who rose to the eyes of viewers all around the world with her strategies and sheer willpower against Brock and Misty in her victories at their Gyms! And has inspired Trainers all over the world on how to efficiently use the battlefield to their advantage in battle! Hailing all the way from Pallet Town, it's our challenger: Taylor!" he said.

The crowd cheered and clapped for a moment; making my group whistle and cheer. "Alright, Tay!" said Pat. "You got this, bud!" Zach replied. Red and my Mom smiled warmly at my group as they cheered, and then turned to their right; seeing Blue and Leaf appear. "Hey, babe." said Leaf. "Hey." Red replied. They shared a quick kiss, and then she sat down next to him. "Hey. Look who finally made it." said Blue. "I wouldn't miss it for the world." he replied as he and Blue shared a fist bump. "Thank Arceus the Elite 4 gave you a day off today." Blue replied. "Yeah. As much I love defending my title, I don't want to miss out on moments like this. I want to be the big brother that will always be there for her and help her out in any situation she's stuck in." he replied. "And you also want to see her happy. Especially if she talks about someone she really likes." Blue replied. "Yeah. If it ever comes to that... I hope whoever she has a crush on doesn't break her heart." he replied. "'Cause if they do... you and I will handle the punk who would do that to her." Blue replied. "Yeah." he replied with a nod of his head.

"Aww~ You're a good brother, Red." said Leaf as she rested her head on his shoulder. "Thanks, hun." he replied as he rested his head on top of hers; making her smile. "Not only are you a good big brother. You're also like a father figure to her." Mom replied. "Really?" he replied curiously. "Mhm." she replied. Red was honestly surprised of what Mom had said, smiled warmly at her, and then turned back to me; seeing me ready to fight. "You got this, Sis. I believe in you." he said to himself. He blinked his eyes, and then saw me turn to him, and smile at him; making him do the same. I turned back to the field, and then saw Lt. Surge walk onto his side of the field. "And her opponent. He is the Leader of the Vermilion City Gym. A Army Veteran, and the Master of Electric-type Pokémon in the Kanto Region. The Lightning Lieutenant himself, Lt. Surge!" said Nico. The crowd cheered loudly for him, and he flexed his muscles for them; showing off his confidence.

I watched him silently, and then turned back to Red. Once we locked eyes, he instantly realized I was nervous. "Uh oh... this ain't good..." said Blue worriedly. "Yeah... she's nervous..." Leaf replied worriedly. Red then told me in sign language to block out the noise of the crowd, relax, and stay focused on the battle. Once I saw what he did, I blinked my eyes, took a deep breath, and then nodded my head to him. "Hm? Red? What did you just do?" Leaf asked him. "Talked to her in sign language. I signed to her to block out the crowd, relax, and stay focused." he replied. "Oh? That's amazing. I didn't know that you two can communicate through sign language. Was that part of her therapy session?" she replied. "Mhm. We did sign language classes together for a couple years after one of her doctors told us she might never speak again from everything that happened to her." he replied. "It's true. They've even taught me and my family when we would visit their place and at the League. Even some of our Pokémon know how to do sign language." Blue replied. "Really? Wow... you guys have to teach me and my family sometime." she replied. "We will." Blue replied.

As the cheers calmed down, Nico walked over to my side of the field and saw me turn to look at him. "Taylor. I wish you the best of luck in this battle. As you may have heard from many Trainers... this is where most of their Gym Challenge careers come to an end. But I know that this won't be the end for you. Keep up the strategies and surprise him with Pokémon he would never expect you to use, and soon the Thunder Badge will be in your hands!" he said as he put his hand on my shoulder. "Right. Thank you, Nico." I replied. He patted my shoulder, let his hand go of it, and then went to his seat. I blinked my eyes, took a deep breath, looked out to the crowd, and then saw my group with Yuya for the first time. I smiled happily at them, and then turned back to Lt. Surge as he whistled to me. "Taylor! This battle has been a long time coming!" he said. "It sure has!" I replied. "Heh. You know? Ever since I first met you, I knew that you had something special. A spark that was just ready to unleash a power that I have never seen before. A fire in your heart that burned so fierce that no one could ever stand in your way. And wisdom beyond your years on how you understand and bond with Pokémon. To me, those qualities are something that inspired me to work harder with my team, and show the world how powerful we really are! And now, my team and I will show you just how strong we really are! Not as soldiers, but as partners!" he replied.

"Right back at you, Lt.! It's time we show the world just how strong our bonds with our teams truly are!" I replied. "Pi-Pikachu!" Tetrax replied. "You got it, kid! And with these five Pokémon in my hand, we will see how far we can go beyond as Trainers!" he replied. I smirked at his response and prepared myself for battle. "Bring it on!" I said. "What!? He's going to use five Pokémon in this fight!?" Zuzu replied in shock. "Yeah... and he looks serious about it..." Yuya replied nervously. "Go, Tay! Show him what you're made of!" Celina cheered. "You got this, bud! You can do it!" Zach cheered. The group's Pokémon cheered for us loudly; making Zuzu and Yuya breathe sighs of relief and then smile at each other happily. The group then turned to the field, and then saw the official appear on the field. "This is it." said Zuzu. "Here we go." Yuya replied. "Pi-Pikachu!" Zuzu's Pikachu cheered. Boltund barked alongside her; cheering me on. "Trainers! Time to send out your first Pokémon!" said the official.

"Alright! Electrode! Let's get to work!" Lt. Surge replied as he took out a Fast Ball, threw it up in the air, watched it open, and saw Electrode appear on the field. "Elec-trode." it said. "Ah ha! Staring off this battle is none other than Lt. Surge's Electrode! This feisty Pokémon really knows how to start a battle with a bang! But now, who will our challenger choose to counter this speedy time stopper?" Nico replied. "An Electrode, huh? So that's who he's starting with." I replied. "Huh? Electrode comes out first? This is interesting." Celina replied. "I'll check it out." Yuya replied as he took out his Phone and activated his PokéDex. "Electrode, the Ball Pokémon. An Electric type, and the evolved form of Voltorb. Electrode reacts to stimulation with explosive power. Feared far and wide, it's known as "The Bomb Ball."." said Yuya's PokéDex. "Oh, man... that's his fastest Pokémon." Sylvio replied. "And his most explosive." Aura replied. "How is she going to counter that?" Gong replied. The group looked at him nervously after hearing the entry, and then turned to me; wondering who I will send out first. I stared down Electrode as it looked at me, and then showed a light smirk.

"Okay. If he's going to use Speed to his advantage... I'll just have to slow him down with this! Onix, I choose you!" I said as I took out Onix's PokéBall, threw it up in the air, watched it open, and saw Onix appear on the battlefield. "Oh, it's Onix! Our challenger is starting off on the defensive side of the battlefield! Onix may look slow, but this Pokémon has a defensive power that can make it withstand Electrode's attacks! But what kind of strategy is Taylor planning with Onix?" Nico replied. Onix let out a mighty roar at Electrode; surprising it a little bit. "Alright! Onix is up first!" said Pat. "You've got this, Onix! Show that Electrode what you're made of!" Sora cheered. "Munch-Munchlax!" Munchlax cheered. "Slur-puff-puff!" Slurpuff cheered. "An Onix, huh? That's a smart choice. Electric type attacks won't do anything to him." said Blue. "Yeah. But is he strong enough to handle Electrode's power and speed?" Leaf replied. "Let's hope so. Who knows what Surge has got up his sleeve." Blue replied.

Leaf nodded her head in agreement, and then turned to Red and watched him tap his foot anxiously. "Babe? You alright?" she asked him. "Hm?" he replied curiously as he turned to her. "Your foot is tapping on the floor. You anxious?" she replied. "Huh? Oh... no. I'm not anxious. I'm just..." he replied. "Excited?" she replied. He nodded his head yes to her question. "Hey. It's okay to be excited. I'm excited for her too. We all are. So don't be afraid to cheer her on." she replied. "Yeah." he replied. They smiled warmly at each other, gently held hands, and then looked back at me on the battlefield. "Go get 'em, Tay. Show him just how strong you really are." he said to himself. He lightly smiled, blinked his eyes, and then saw the official raise his hand up in the air. "Battle, begin!" he said.

Battle! Taylor vs. Lt. Surge!

"Let's start it off with a bang, Electrode! Use Rollout!" said Lt. Surge. "Trode! E-lec-trode!" Electrode replied as it used the attack and dashed towards Onix. "Block it with Iron Tail!" I replied. Onix roared loudly, made his tail glow white, and blocked it with his tail as it came close to him. "What!?" Lt. Surge replied surprised. "Now use Dragon Breath!" I replied. Onix roared and used Dragon Breath on Electrode; damaging it and pushing it back to it's Trainers side of the field. "Incredible! Onix had found a way to stop Electrode's Rollout attack and stall it from using it to increase its power! What an incredible strategy!" said Nico. "Heh. Not bad, kid. But let's see how he can handle this! Gyro Ball!" Lt. Surge replied. "Electrode! E-lec-trode!" Electrode replied as it used the attack. "Dodge it!" I replied. Onix dodged the attack with ease, and then watched Electrode bounce around on the walls with the attack, and then hit him; damaging him. "Now use Rollout!" he replied. "Trode! E-lec-trode!" Electrode replied as it used Rollout again, and hit Onix multiple times.

"Oh! What a hit! Electrode has used the walls as springs to get a direct hit on Onix! And that sure looked like it hurt. Can Onix bounce back from the attack? Or will this be the end of Onix's time on the field?" said Nico. "Onix! You okay?" I replied. Onix made a sound and nodded his head; letting me know he's okay. I breathed a sigh of relief, and then looked back at Electrode; seeing electricity crackle on it. "Man... Onix took a lot of hits from that Rollout..." Sora replied. "Yeah. And he's still standing. That Onix must be very sturdy or has a strong defense to take on the barrage of that attack." Gong replied. "Yes. That would definitely be the case. But how long can Onix withstand it before it explodes?" Sylvio replied; shocking the group around him. "If she's going to finish it off, she has to time it before it starts rapidly glowing and smoke itself. Whatever she has planned next, it better be quick and efficient." he replied. The group nodded their heads in agreement to his response, and then saw Onix burrow his way underground.

"Using Dig already? This should finish it off." said Zach. "Yeah. But I have a feeling this isn't over yet." Yuya replied. "Huh?" Zach replied. "Look." he replied as he pointed at Electrode. "So you're trying to Dig up a win, eh? Well that ain't going to happen easily! Electrode! Use Magnet Rise!" Lt. Surge replied. "Trode! Elec-trode!" Electrode replied as it used Magnet Rise to levitate itself in the air. "What!? That's not fair! Now Dig won't be able to hit it! Ground type moves won't work anymore!" Aura replied surprised. "Yes. But now with this move in play... how can Taylor turn it around?" Reed replied. Yuya clutched the railing nervously, and then looked at me; seeing a smirk on my face. "Huh? What is she up too?" he said in his thoughts. "So that's your plan? Sorry, Surge. Looks like that plan ain't going to work! Onix! Use Dragon Breath!" I replied. Onix quickly came out from underground with a fully charged Dragon Breath in his mouth, and fired it on the bottom of Electrode; damaging it.

"Electrode!" it said in pain. "Electrode!" Lt. Surge replied. Electrode hit the top of its head to the railings, and then crashed down to the ground as Onix moved away from it. "Incredible! Taylor and Onix used Dig as a distraction to get Electrode up in the air and surprised it with a fully charged Dragon Breath! That is outstanding teamwork that our challengers have pulled off!" Nico replied. Electrode slowly got itself back up, crackled electricity over itself, and then started to rapidly glow red. My eyes widened in shock as Electrode did this; knowing it is about to explode. "Looks like it wants to end this round already. Alright, Electrode! Use Explosion!" said Lt. Surge. "Onix! Hide with Dig and Sandstorm!" I replied. Onix roared, used Dig to get underground, and then created a Sandstorm shield to protect himself. "I don't think so! Jump in that hole and blast him!" Lt. Surge replied. "Trode! Elec-trode!" Electrode replied as it got close to the hole, but suddenly came to a stop near the hole; seeing the Sandstorm shield blocking its way. "E... Elec... Electrode!" it said as it struggled to move, and then finally used Explosion.

The smoke and sparks filled the battlefield for a moment, and then disappeared a moment later; showing me and Surge still standing from the blast. As we stood tall, Onix appeared from underground, got back on the battlefield, looked down at Electrode, and saw that it had fainted from the attack. The official went over to Electrode, checked its condition, and then raised his hand to my side of the field. "Electrode is unable to battle! Onix is the winner!" he said. "Incredible! The defensive strategy of Taylor and Onix has taken down Lt. Surge's speedy and explosive Electrode! Who would've thought that using Sandstorm to protect yourself underground from Explosion and come out unscathed! Now that, is an impressive strategy!" Nico replied as the crowd cheered. "Alright!" Pat, Sora, Zuzu, Aura, and Reed cheered. "Heh. That was a good battle. Taylor really did have a defensive strategy against Electrode after all, and surprised it with a couple tricks of her own." Sylvio replied. "Mhm. She sure did. She used Onix's defense as his offense, and wore out Electrode after taking the hits from Gyro Ball and Rollout, and knew how to strike it at the most unexpected moment. That left Gong impressed of Taylor's strategy. Gong can already see her as a potential rival, and Champion." Gong replied.

"Yeah! Way to go, Tay! I knew you could do it!" Yuya cheered happily. Zach and Celina smiled at his reaction, and then looked over at my brother; seeing him smile too. "Woo-hoo! Good job, Tay!" said Leaf. Red smiled warmly at her, and then looked to his left; seeing my group looking at him. He smiled at them and gave them a thumbs up; showing them how proud he is. They smiled back and then looked back at the field as Electrode was returned to its Fast Ball. "Great job, old friend. You gave it all you had. Proud of ya. Now take a good rest." said Lt. Surge. He put away its Fast Ball, and then stared down me and Onix; ready for his next move. "Heh. Not bad, kid. I honestly thought that you would go on all out offense strategy against Electrode, but it looked like that you had this planned out." he said. "I guess you can say that." I replied. He lightly smiled at my answer, and then took out a Heavy Ball from his belt.

"Your Onix has battled well, Taylor. But let's see if he can handle this one! Go, Magnezone!" he said as he threw the Heavy Ball up in the air, watched it open, and saw Magnezone appear on the field. "Magne-zone." said Magnezone. "A Magnezone? That's a surprise one." I replied. Onix stared down Magnezone silently as it moved its magnets and locked its eye on him. "What the? Since when did he have a Magnezone?" said Pat. "He's had it ever since it was a Magnemite. But how did he get it to fully evolve?" Celina replied. "Maybe at the Power Plant?" he replied. "Maybe..?" she replied. "Let's see what the PokéDex has to say about it." Zuzu replied as she took out her phone and activated her PokéDex. "Magnezone, the Magnet Area Pokémon. A Electric and Steel type, and the evolved form of Magneton. Magneton evolve into Magnezone in special magnetic fields or by Thunder Stone. Some say that Magnezone receives signals from space via the antenna on its head and that it's being controlled by some mysterious being." said Zuzu's PokéDex.

"Wow... it evolves in two ways. That's cool." Pat replied. "Mhm. Sounds like a perfect Pokémon to add to your team, Pat." Celina replied. "Really?" he replied with blush forming on his face; scratching the back of his neck timidly. "Yeah. Think of all the research possibilities that you could do with Magnezone. You can research all the soundwaves that it sends to outer space, and discover life that is not from our planet and their technology." she replied. He was amazed of what she said, and then smiled happily at her idea. "Yeah... that sounds like a really good idea." he said. Celina smiled warmly at him, and then turned back to the field; seeing Onix ready to fight. "Ready, Onix?" I said. He made a sound and nodded his head yes to my question. "Alright! Use Dig!" I replied. Onix roared and began to hide underground again. "Magnezone! Lock-On!" said Lt. Surge. "Zone! Magne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it stared down Onix, made its eye and magnets glow, and made a red mark glow on Onix; targeting him as he went underground.

"Lock-On? That doesn't sound good..." said Zuzu. "Yeah. With that move, Magnezone's next attack will not miss and hit Onix directly." Aura replied. "And he can't escape from it. If he moves, the attack will curve around and hit him no matter what." Celina replied. Zuzu's eyes widened in shock to her words, and then looked back at me; wondering how I will counter this. A moment later, Onix came back up from underground and tried to hit Magnezone, but watched it dodge with ease; surprising us. "What!?" I said surprised. "Nice try, kid. But the same trick won't work twice! Now, Magnezone! Fire your Flash Cannon!" Lt. Surge replied. "Zone! Mag-ne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it used Flash Cannon on Onix; hitting him directly on the head. "Oh! What a hit! Magnezone's previous use of Lock-On had made its Flash Cannon directly hit Onix on the head and stop the Dig attack! Incredible strategy from Lt. Surge!" said Nico as the crowd reacted to the attack.

Onix roared in pain and began to fall back and shake his head. "Onix! You okay?" I asked him. Onix stopped shaking his head and then roared at Magnezone; ready to fight again. "No way... Onix is still standing... how is that possible? That Lock-On and Flash Cannon combo should've taken him down." said Sylvio. "Hm..? Must be the strong defensive power Onix has from his training with Taylor to endure combinations like that. Or Onix has a strong resolve to keep on standing and fight to win." Gong replied. "Hm..? You might be right, Gong. But how long do you think Onix will keep on fighting?" Sylvio replied. "Who knows... but Gong knows that Onix will keep on standing until a strong hit of Flash Cannon takes him out." Gong replied. Sylvio nodded his head in agreement, and then looked back at Onix; wondering what he will do next.

"Onix! Iron Tail!" I said. He roared, made his tail glow white, and hit Magnezone. "Zone!" Magnezone replied as it was hit and pushed back by the attack. "Incredible! Onix is now showing off his offensive power after withstanding Magnezone's Flash Cannon! But now what is our Challenger's next move against it?" Nico replied. "I don't believe it... that Onix should've been taken down by now from both Electrode and Magnezone's attacks. But he is still standing... like a tank moving on the battlefield after it has been struck by opposing missiles. Heh. Looks like the kid has been studying my battle style after all these years. But she has no idea how powerful Magnezone is. And soon she'll start to understand how powerful my Pokémon truly are!" Lt. Surge replied in his thoughts. He smirked confidently, adjusted his shades, and then pointed at Onix. "Alright, Magnezone! Use Magnet Bomb!" he said. "Zone! Mag-ne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it surrounded itself in sparks of light and electricity, made its magnets flash light blue, and fired multiple light blue orbs of energy from them; hitting Onix successfully.

"Oh! A direct hit! Could this be the end of Onix's streak?" Nico replied as everyone reacted to the attack. Onix roared in pain and was pushed back by the attack. "Onix!" I replied worriedly. "Sorry, Taylor. But this is where it ends for Onix. Magnezone! Flash Cannon!" Lt. Surge replied. "Zone! Magne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it used Flash Cannon, hit Onix in the face, and watched him fall to the ground. The official ran over to Onix, checked his condition, and then raised his hand to Surge's side of the field. "Onix is unable to battle! Magnezone is the winner!" he said. "Amazing! The power of Magnezone's Flash Cannon and Magnet Bomb took down Onix with ease. Even with a type disadvantage, Magnezone used its sheer willpower to take down Onix and win the battle for the Gym Leader!" Nico replied as most of the crowd cheered.

"Aw, man... Onix did so well." Yuya replied. "Yeah. But he came through when Taylor needed him most in this battle. They trusted each other to keep both Electrode and Magnezone in check and at a distance in case one of them had found a way to paralyze him." Zach replied. "Yeah. No matter what happens here, she should be very proud of Onix." Yuya replied. Zach nodded his head in agreement, and then they watched me return Onix to his PokéBall. "You were awesome out there, Onix. Thank you for what you have done today. Now take a good rest." I said. I put his PokéBall away, and then took out another PokéBall. I looked down at it, took a deep breath, and then looked back at Surge and Magnezone. "That Flash Cannon sure is strong... especially with that Lock-On attack to make sure it never misses. And I know with this next Pokémon, it will rely on that combo a lot. I've got to weaken its power fast in order to keep on fighting." I said in my thoughts.

I looked at my friends and family for a moment, blinked my eyes, looked back at Magnezone as it stared at me, and then sent out my second Pokémon from its PokéBall. "Here goes. Nova! I choose you!" I said as I threw the PokéBall up in the air. The PokéBall opened and Nova appeared on the battlefield. "Clefable!" she said as she stood on the field. "And our Challenger's second Pokémon is Clefable! Amazing! Such a rare Pokémon to see up close in person! But don't underestimate its cuteness, folks. Clefable is a powerful Pokémon that Trainers should take very seriously!" Nico replied as the crowd reacted to Nova. "What the? How did she get a Clefable this early? Aren't Clefairy and Clefable hard to find in Mt. Moon?" Blue replied curiously. "Mhm. I know it took us a while to find ours for ourselves for a while." Leaf replied. "Yeah. But what is her plan with this one?" Red replied. "Maybe to weaken Magnezone's Flash Cannon?" Leaf replied curiously. "Maybe..? But how is the question?" he replied.

"We'll find out for ourselves and see what she does. She knows now that Magnezone is a powerful threat. So she's gotta stay at a distance and weaken Magnezone until its Flash Cannon is not powerful anymore." Blue replied. Red and Leaf nodded their heads in agreement, and then looked to my group and began to listen to their conversation. "Alright! Go, Nova! You can do it!" Sora cheered. "Munch-Munchlax!" Munchlax cheered. "Slur-puff-puff!" Slurpuff cheered. "You got this, Nova! We believe in you! You can do it!" Zuzu cheered. "Vul-Vulpix!" Vulpix cheered. "Pi-Pikachu!" Zuzu's Pikachu cheered. "Go, Tay, go!" Yuya cheered. "A Clefable, huh? This should be interesting." Reed replied. "Like a sweet dessert kind of interesting?" Aura replied. "Indeed. But some of Clefable's attacks can be either sweet, spicy, or bitter depending on the situation." Reed replied. "So... you're saying Clefable is a tricky Pokémon to use in this battle?" Sylvio replied.

"Yes. Even with their weakness to Steel-types, Clefable can use Fire-type moves to weaken Magnezone and its Steel-type moves in order to stall it for a while... Taylor needs to be very cautious in this fight. I can tell from Magnezone's battle style that it is not going to give in very easily. She needs to time her attacks just right and then she will defeat it. But if she misses one attack... then Clefable will be done for." Reed replied. Aura and Sylvio's eyes lightly widened in shock to Reed's response, and then looked back at me and Nova; wondering what am I going to do now. "A Clefable, huh? Interesting choice, kid... but let's see if it can take on this! Magnezone! Lock-On!" said Lt. Surge. "Mag! Magne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it used Lock-On again; aiming at Nova's heart. "Clef!" Nova replied as she clutched her hands into fists. "He's using Lock-On again..? Why?" Sora replied curiously. "To scare her with Flash Cannon again." Celina replied. "Really?" he replied. She nodded her head yes to his question. "He knows that Clefable is weak to Steel-types. So he's trying to use that weakness against her and try to make her fall under pressure." she said.

"Will it work?" he replied. "I don't know..? We've only seen them train together with her team. This is Nova's first real battle. Who knows what they have up their sleeve for this one." she replied. Sora nodded his head in understanding, and then looked back at me and Nova; wondering what our plan is. "Alright, Magnezone! Hit it with Flash Cannon!" said Lt. Surge. "Zone! Mag-ne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it used Flash Cannon. "Nova, Light Screen!" I replied. "Clef! Clef-able!" Nova replied as she made her right finger glow light blue and created five transparent square barriers in front of her, and watched the Flash Cannon break one of them. "Wow! Excellent timing from our Challenger! That Light Screen stopped Magnezone's Flash Cannon right in its tracks!" Nico replied as the crowd reacted to it.

"Alright!" Leaf cheered happily. "Good job, sweetheart!" my Mom cheered. "Nice read, sis!" Red cheered. "Pi-Pikachu!" Red's Pikachu cheered. "She timed it perfectly! She knew he was going to do it again! Nice work, kid!" Blue replied as he gave Red a friendly punch on his shoulder. "That's my sister. Always knowing how to time her attacks." Red replied with a smile. "You've taught her well, old friend. But let's see how long the Light Screen lasts." Blue replied. Red nodded his head in agreement, looked back to the field, and saw Magnezone begin to charge up its power. "What in the hell is he up too?" he said in his thoughts. "Heh. So that's how you're going to play, huh kid? Well then... let's see if you can handle this one! Magnezone! Zap Cannon!" Lt. Surge replied. "Zone! Mag-ne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it made a yellow electric orb with a red center with its magnets, and fired it at Nova. "Dodge it!" I replied. "Clef!" Nova replied as she quickly moved away from the attack as it came very close to her. As she dodged it, the attack hit the wall behind me and exploded.

"What!?" Lt. Surge replied in shock. "Now use Mystical Fire!" I replied. "Clef! Clef-able!" Nova replied as she jumped up in the air, made her right finger glow again, made rings of fire in front of her, and breathed out fire from her mouth, and sent it with the rings; hitting Magnezone. "Magnezone!" said Magnezone. "Wow! That was awesome!" Zuzu replied. "So that's what she was planning!" Pat replied. "Alright!" Zach and Yuya cheered. Magnezone fell back towards its Trainer for a moment, and then looked back at Nova. "Zone... Zone... Mag-ne-zone!" it said as it felt its power decrease a bit. "Magnezone? You alright?" Lt. Surge replied. "Zone!" it replied. "Heh. That's good to hear. Now, let's shock them into submission! Zap Cannon!" he replied. "Magnezone! Mag-ne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it used Zap Cannon again. "Push the Light Screen with Psychic!" I replied. "Clefable! Clef-able!" Nova replied as she made her eyes glow light blue and used Psychic to move the Light Screens forward and watched the Zap Cannon destroy all of them; creating an explosion.

As the smoke faded away, I saw Magnezone's red eye brightly glow and aim at us. "There you are. Magnezone! Fire your Magnet Bomb!" said Lt. Surge. "Zone! Mag-ne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it used Magnet Bomb again. "Grab it with Psychic!" I replied. "Clef! Clef-able!" Nova replied as she used Psychic to grab the Magnet Bombs in mid air. "Zone!?" Magnezone replied surprised. "What!? What is this!?" Lt. Surge replied surprised. "Whoa! She stopped the attack from happening!" Aura replied. "Outstanding..." Sylvio replied in a slight, surprised tone. "Alright!" Gong cheered. "Now surround the Magnet Bombs with Mystical Fire!" I replied. "Clef! Clef- " Nova replied as she used Mystical Fire around the Magnet Bombs, and created powerful fireballs in front of her. "Amazing! This is something that I have never seen before in my career! We are all witnessing a battle that no one has ever predicted in history! What will the Gym Leader do in response to this?" Nico replied. "This is it! This is the perfect recipe that Taylor and Nova were planning all along! Once it hits Magnezone, it's finished!" Reed replied. "Come on, Tay! You got it right where you want it!" Zach replied. "War-tortle!" Wartortle replied as he raised his fist in the air happily.

Yuto took off his goggles and looked at me and Nova in amazement; smiling widely under his mask. "This is it, Tay! You got him on the ropes now!" he said happily in his thoughts. Lt. Surge stared at me in shock and surprise for a moment, and then snapped back into reality. "So... this is how strong you have become. You're doing strategies that I have never seen any Trainer do before... and they are pushing me to the edge. Heh. Finally! I have been waiting for a battle like this for a long time! And now it's getting me fired up for even more! Come at me, Taylor! Show me just how powerful you truly are!" he said. I stared at him silently, lightly smirked, turned my hat backwards, and nodded my head to him; making him smirk. "Alright! Let's settle this! Magnezone! Flash Cannon at full power!" he said. "Zone! Mag-ne-zone!" Magnezone replied as it used Flash Cannon again. "This is it, Nova! Fire the attack! Let our attack absorb the Flash Cannon and make it blow!" I replied.

"Clefable! Clef-able!" Nova replied as she fired the attack we stopped and combined at Magnezone. As it flew towards it, the heat of Mystical Fire got close to the Flash Cannon, absorbed its power into the flames, made our attack faster and brighter, and then finally hit Magnezone; creating an explosion. Once the explosion went off, the ceiling windows shattered and fell onto the field; scaring some of the spectators in their seats. Nova and I breathed heavily for a moment, and she walked over to me. "Nova? You okay?" I asked her. "Clef." she replied with a smile and nod of her head. She then used Heal Pulse on us to recharge ourselves, and then winked her eye at me happily; making me do the same. We then looked out to the other side of the field and saw small robots quickly on the field cleaning up the shattered glass. We then heard the fans turn on and blow the smoke away.

After a couple moments of silence, the smoke disappeared and revealed Magnezone laying on the ground. The official ran over to Magnezone, checked its condition, and then raised his hand to my side of the field. "Magnezone is unable to battle! Clefable is the winner!" he said. "Incredible! The strategy that Taylor and Nova pulled off has successfully taken down Magnezone! Their teamwork is simply amazing to witness here in person!" Nico replied as the crowd cheered. "Alright! They did it!" Zuzu cheered happily. "Yeah! Way to go, Nova!" Sora cheered happily. "Great job, Tay!" Celina cheered. "We knew you could do it!" Pat cheered. "Alright! Way to go, Tay!" Yuya cheered. "Great job, buddy!" Zach cheered. Red, Blue, Leaf, and my Mom smiled at my friends happily, and then looked back at me and Nova; seeing us hug each other. "Great job, Nova! I'm so proud of you!" I said happily. "Clef-Clef!" she replied happily. "Pi-Pikachu!" Tetrax replied happily as he joined in on the hug. Red smiled happily at what he was seeing, and then began to tear up. He wiped off a couple tears on his face, and showed a proud grin on his face. After the group hug ended, I turned over to him and saw the smile on his face; making me smile.

I signed to him how happy I am to have him and Mom here alongside our friends to see this and thanked him for supporting me. He signed back to me; saying how proud he is of me, and now I have to fully focus on the battle, I have three Pokémon left to face, and not let the crowd reactions get to my head. I nodded my head in understanding, and looked back to the battlefield; seeing Lt. Surge returning Magnezone back to its Heavy Ball. "Thank you for your service, old friend. You were great out there. Now take a good rest." he said. He put the Heavy Ball away and then took out a Fast Ball. He stared at it silently for a moment, and then looked back at me; seeing me prepare for his next move. "Heh. Look at you. Keeping your head in the game, huh? I'm surprised the crowd hasn't thrown you off a bit." he said. "Yeah. I'm blocking out the noise from the crowd. Don't want the sounds to trigger something in my head in battle. Just like you said in that one interview a couple months ago when you were helping out at the V.A. center." I replied.

"Really? I'm impressed. I guess the lessons from me and our therapists are helping you out a lot." he replied. "Thanks." I replied. "No problem. You know? I have to admit... seeing a kid your age keeping your cool in battles like this... it makes me so proud to see the kid you have become. When we first met, you were a very shy, timid, and anxious kid who was very nervous on starting the sessions and slowly returning to your old self. I still remember the days my Raichu would stay by you and keep you calm during it all; making sure that you wouldn't harm yourself or anyone else. But looking at you now... you've grown up. Not just by the ways of a Trainer... but as a person. You're more relaxed, composed, and more confident in yourself. And it's all because you have the ones that care for you by your side every day to keep your head up, battle your demons, and face the world with a smile on your face. If it wasn't for them... you wouldn't be standing here today. So no matter what happens here today, make sure you take these words I'm telling you to heart. You understand?" he replied.

"Yes, sir." I replied with a warm smile. My friends and family looked at each other, smiled happily, and then looked back at me. Yuto smiled warmly under his mask, turned to his group, and saw the eyes of Yugo, Yuri, Shay, Kite, Lulu, and Rin looking at him. Even though they were wearing masks, he could tell they were smiling too. He nodded his head to them and looked at my Mom and Red; seeing them sign to me that they love me. I signed back to them, and then looked back at Surge. "What the? What did they just do?" he asked. "It's sign language. Remember when you told me a few years ago that you heard from your parents that Taylor might never talk again after the incident?" Shay replied. "Yeah?" he replied curiously. "Lulu? You wanna tell him?" Shay replied. "Sure. Yuto, when Tay started her therapy sessions here in the city... she and her family had to learn to talk in sign language. As she took classes for it, it made her see how many people in the world are deaf, mute, and hard of hearing out there, and she can use sign language to talk to them and not make them feel left out in conversations." she replied.

"Really? That's amazing. Those classes must've changed her perspective of the world big time." he replied. "Mhm. When her Mom told our Moms about the classes, they were eager to learn about it." she replied. "So that's what our parents did sometimes with Tay when they noticed she was quiet? They talked to her through sign language!" Rin replied in a soft, surprised tone. Lulu nodded her head yes to her response. "Wow... she got to learn a whole new language before we did." said Yugo. "Indeed. I think we found a new way to communicate with her if she ever goes silent again." Yuri replied. Rin, Lulu, Yugo, and Yuto nodded their heads in agreement, and then looked out to the field.

"Alright, kid. Now that the sentimental stuff is out of the way... you ready to see who you're facing next?" Lt. Surge asked me. "Yeah. I'm ready for whoever you got next." I replied. "Good! I hope you're ready to face this speedy fella! Go, Jolteon!" he replied as he threw the Fast Ball up in the air, watched it open, and see Jolteon appear on the battlefield. "Jolt-eon!" said Jolteon. "Oh ho! Look at this! The Gym Leader's third Pokémon is Jolteon! These spiky Pokémon are known to give their opponents quite a shock when facing them in battle! Don't underestimate its cuteness, because Jolteon are known to use their spiky fur to attack anyone who agitates them!" Nico replied as the crowd reacted to Jolteon. Jolteon let out a light growl and let little sparks of electricity crackle out from its fur; ready to fight. "Jolteon, huh? Haven't seen him in battle for a while." I said. "Pi-ka." Tetrax replied. I took out my Phone and activated my PokéDex.

"Jolteon, the Lightning Pokémon. An Electric type, and one of the final evolved forms of Eevee. It concentrates the weak electric charges emitted by its cells by absorbing negative ions in the atmosphere to blast out 10,000-volt lightning bolts. If it is angered or startled, the fur all over its body bristles like sharp needles that pierce foes." said my PokéDex. "Jolt-eon." Jolteon replied as he got into his battle position. I put my Phone away, and picked up Nova's PokéBall. "Nova, return." I said. Nova returned to her PokéBall, and I looked down at it silently. "What's this? Taylor has returned Clefable to its Ball already? Does she have a Pokémon that can handle Jolteon's speed and power?" said Nico. "What? She's switching? That's new..." Pat replied. "Maybe she has someone else to take on Jolteon?" Yuya replied. "Maybe..? But who?" he replied. "I guess we'll find out in a minute." Yuya replied. I put Nova's PokéBall away, and took out another PokéBall. "Pika? Pika-Pi?" said Tetrax curiously. "Yep. It's him. And he's got the attacks that can take him on." I replied. "Pi-ka!" he replied with a smile and nod of his head. "Ready to see what he can do after all the training the past few days?" I replied. "Pi!" he replied.

"Alright! Sandshrew! I choose you!" I replied as I threw the PokéBall up in the air, watched it open, and saw Sandshrew appear on the field. "Sand-shrew!" he said. "And there it is! Taylor switched out her powerful Clefable, and sent out Sandshrew! Very interesting choice from our Challenger!" Nico replied as the crowd reacted to Sandshrew. "Alright! She's going with Sandshrew!" Sora replied happily. "Munch!" Munchlax replied happily. "A Sandshrew, huh? When did she catch this one?" Yuya replied. "She caught him in Mt. Moon after seeing him battling Onix." Zuzu replied. "Really?" he replied curiously. "Mhm. She saved him before Onix delivered the finishing blow by catching him. After that, she and her team battled Onix and then caught him." she replied. "Whoa... that's amazing! And after she caught them, did they become friends?" he replied. "Yep. It confused us at first, but then we got to see the gentle sides of them when they bonded with us and our teams. Ever since then, they have been fun companions to be around." she replied.

"That's awesome. I hope we all can find Pokémon like that someday." he replied. She nodded her head in agreement, and then they looked back at the field. "Jolteon! Pin Missile!" said Lt. Surge. "Jolt! Jolt-eon!" Jolteon replied as his fur became spiky and fired multiple yellow needles from itself at Sandshrew. "Counter shield it with Rapid Spin!" I replied. "Shrew! Sand-shrew!" Sandshrew replied as he tucked himself into a ball, and then spun himself around; knocking off and taking some damage from the Pin Missile. "Whoa!" said Yuya surprised. "Since when can they do that?" Gong replied. "I have no idea... but this is cool!" Celina replied. "Yeah! Even though Sandshrew is taking some damage, he's using Rapid Spin to knock most of the attack away from him!" Sora replied. "So this is what she was planning with Sandshrew! This is awesome!" Pat replied.

Sandshrew stopped the Rapid Spin, stood back up, and felt his speed power increase a bit. "So that's how you're gonna play, huh? Well we can do something like that! Jolteon! Use Trailblaze!" Lt. Surge replied. "Jolt! Jolt-eon! Jolt!" Jolteon replied as he stomped his paws on the ground, surrounded himself in grassy green energy, dashed over to Sandshrew, and hit him with the attack. When he jumped away, he felt his speed power increase as well. "Sand!" Sandshrew cried. "Sandshrew!" I replied worriedly. "Now use Pin Missile!" Lt. Surge replied. "Jolt! Jolt-eon!" Jolteon replied as he used Pin Missile again and watched it hit Sandshrew. Sandshrew fell back from the attack and fell down to the ground in pain. "Sandshrew!" I said worriedly. "Pika-chu!" Tetrax replied worriedly. "Sand... Sand-shrew... Sandshrew!" Sandshrew replied as he slowly stood back up and stared down his foe.

"Pi-ka!" Tetrax replied happily. "Shrew!" Sandshrew replied as he turned to us, gave us a thumbs up, and nodded his head; showing us that he is okay. I smiled and nodded my head to him; letting him know that I trust him. "You wanna keep going, buddy?" I asked him. "Shrew!" he replied. "Alright! Use a combination move of Rollout and Rapid Spin!" I replied. "Shrew! Sand-shrew-shrew-shrew-shrew-" he replied as he combined both Rollout and Rapid Spin together, dashed around the field, and hit Jolteon multiple times. "Jolteon!" Jolteon cried. "Ah! Jolteon!" Lt. Surge replied. Jolteon was pushed back from the attack, and stared down Sandshrew as it continued. "Jolteon! Counter it with Trailblaze!" said Lt. Surge. "Jolt! Jolt-eon! Jolt!" Jolteon replied as he used Trailblaze again. "Here he comes!" I replied. "Sand! Sand-shrew!" Sandshrew replied as he dodged the attack, rolled up on one of the metal beams, jumped off, and crashed himself down on Jolteon's back; sending them both down to the ground.

"Incredible! Sandshrew had found a way to stop Jolteon's Trailblaze! That was a spectacular strategy! Perfectly executed!" Nico replied as the crowd reacted to what just happened. "Whoa... I've never thought of doing a strategy like that before..." Blue replied. "Me neither..." Red replied. "Woo hoo! Nice work, Tay!" Leaf cheered happily. "Pi-Pikachu!" Red's Pikachu replied as he jumped up and down happily; cheering me on. As the crowd noise softened, Sandshrew got off of Jolteon's back and took a few steps back, stared at him silently, and then watched him slowly get back up. As he watched him raise his head, he saw a dark purple, shadowy aura from around his mouth. Jolteon blinked his eyes, and then smirked at Sandshrew; shocking him. "What!?" I said surprised. Lt. Surge smirked proudly, and then pointed at Sandshrew. "Ha! You thought you could take him down easily? You haven't seen nothing yet! Jolteon! Use Shadow Ball!" he said. "Jolt! Jolt-eon!" Jolteon replied as he formed a dark purple and black ball of shadowy energy in front of his face, and fired it from his mouth; hitting Sandshrew.

"Sand!" cried Sandshrew. "Sandshrew!" I replied worriedly. Sandshrew was pushed back from the attack and fell to the ground in pain. "Oh! A direct hit in the face from Shadow Ball! How will our Challenger and Sandshrew respond to this? Does Sandshrew have the strength to keep on fighting? Or will this be the end of his grand debut?" said Nico. "Sand... shrew..." Sandshrew replied in pain. "Come on, Sandshrew! You can do it! We believe in you!" Zuzu replied. "Vul-Vulpix!" Vulpix replied. "Pi-ka-chu!" Zuzu's Pikachu replied. All of the Pokémon that the group brought inside the building then let out cries of encouragement to Sandshrew; telling him to get back up and they believe in him to finish the fight. "Whoa... I've never seen them all act like this before..." said Pat. "Same. But it shows that they're not giving up on Sandshrew. They want to see him stand up and keep on going." Celina replied. "Because they believe in him." he replied. She nodded her head in agreement, and then looked at Ivysaur and Nidoran cheering for Sandshrew. "Come on, Sandshrew! You can do it! Everyone believes in you! They know you can do it!" said Celina.

"Yeah! You can do it, Sandshrew! Stand back up and show Jolteon what you're made of!" Pat replied. The cheers of our group echoed in the air for a moment, and Sandshrew began to react to the sound. "Sand..? Sand-Sand-shrew..." he said as he blinked his eyes, lifted his head up, and saw the group cheering for him. He heard the cheers again, blinked his eyes twice, mentally absorbed the voices of confidence in his head, and then began to stand back up. "Jolt..? Jolt-eon?" said Jolteon in a light surprised tone as he watched Sandshrew stand back up. "Sand... shrew... Sand... shrew... Sand! Sand-shrew!" said Sandshrew as he got back his composure, and then let out a powerful cry. As he did this, his body began to glow light blue! I gasped in shock to what I was seeing, and then saw Lt. Surge and Jolteon looking at him in shock as well. "What is this!? It looks like we are witnessing a Evolution in mid battle!" said Nico surprised as the crowd reacted to Sandshrew's evolution.

"Guys! Look!" said Sora as he pointed at Sandshrew. "No way... it's just like what happened at Cerulean City..." Zuzu replied. "Yeah! Just like it 100%! Sandshrew is evolving!" Zach replied. "Alright, Sandshrew!" Celina replied. As Sandshrew body glew, he grew a little taller, his back grew many spikes, and his claws on grew longer and sharper. "Sand-slash!" he said as his evolution stopped and revealed his evolved form. "Ah ha! Amazing! Sandshrew has evolved into Sandslash!" Nico replied excitedly. "Slash! Sandslash!" Sandslash replied. "Whoa... so that's what Sandslash looks like... it looks cool!" Sora replied in awe. "Munch-lax..." Munchlax replied. "Wow... that's awesome!" Pat replied. "Ivy!" Pat's Ivysaur replied. Pat then took out his Phone and activated his PokéDex. "Sandslash, the Mouse Pokémon. A Ground type, and the evolved form of Sandshrew. Sandslash can roll up its body as if it were a ball covered with large spikes. In battle, this Pokémon will try to make the foe flinch by jabbing it with its spines. It then leaps at the stunned foe to tear wildly with its sharp claws. Although they are sharp, its claws and spikes often break off. They grow back the next day, so it is not bothered by the temporary loss." said Pat's PokéDex.

"Slash! Sand! Slash! Sand! Slash!" Sandslash replied as he showed off his claws. He then turned around, looked at me and Tetrax, and saw the shocked and surprised looks on our faces. "Sandslash..." I said. "Slash. Slash-Slash. Sand-slash. Sand-slash!" he replied as he slashed the air with his claws and then raised his right paw up in the air. "Pi-ka..." Tetrax replied. I blinked my eyes silently, knelt down on my right knee, watched Sandslash walk upto me, stare deeply into my eyes, smiled at him, and we shared a fist-claw bump together. "Sandslash? Do you want to continue this battle?" I asked him. "Slash." he replied as he nodded his head. "Alright. Then let's do this! Sandslash! Use Dig!" I replied as I stood up and pointed at Jolteon. "Slash! Sand-slash-slash-slash-slash!" Sandslash replied as he dug a hole in the ground with his claws and traveled underground.

"Ha! Doing the same strategy you did with Onix again? I don't think so! Jolteon! Use Dig!" Lt. Surge replied. "Jolt! Jolt-eon!" Jolteon replied as he dug a hole in the ground and went after Sandslash. A moment later, Jolteon jumped out of the hole Sandslash dug and saw me and Tetrax looking at him. "Jolteon! Jolt? Jolteon?" he replied curiously as he began looking around him. "What!? Where did he go!?" Lt. Surge replied surprised. Before I could say a word, Sandslash appeared from underground; hitting Jolteon in his stomach. "Jolt!" he cried. "Ah! Jolteon!" Lt. Surge replied. Sandslash and I looked up at Jolteon and saw electricity crackle on his body. "Slash." said Sandslash. "Yep. Perfect timing. Now! Absorb his electricity with Metal Claw!" I replied. "Slash! Sand-slash!" Sandslash replied as he jumped up in the air, made his claws glow light blue, and hit Jolteon with the attack. As he did this, Jolteon's electricity was absorbed onto Sandslash's claws and surrounded it in light blue crackles of electricity.

They both landed on the ground, and stared each other down. "Sand... slash... Sand... slash..." said Sandslash tiredly. "Jolt... eon... Jolt... eon..." Jolteon replied tiredly. Sandslash blinked his eyes, looked at his claws as they were still glowing and surrounded with electricity, and then struck a battle pose. Lt. Surge looked at Sandslash surprised for a moment as he breathed heavily, looked at me, and then lightly smirked. "I can't believe it... for the first time in years... I'm actually having fun in a Pokémon battle. I haven't felt this excited in five years when I battled her brother. But... this battle is a lot more difficult than that one. I've never met anyone who would think of strategies like this. It feels like I am back at war... battling soldiers and their Pokémon in ways that I never thought were possible. And she is Commander in Chief... commanding her army on the frontline and coming up with ways to take down my unit that no one can do like the way she does. If she keeps this up for the rest of the Gym Challenge and the Elite 4... Red's title reign would end in a blazing finale." he said in his thoughts as he turned to my brother; watching him from the seats.

Red blinked his eyes, stared at Surge silently with his Pikachu, and tipped his hat to him in respect. Surge nodded his head to him, and then turned back to me. "Alright, Jolteon! One last Shadow Ball and Trailblaze!" he said. "Jolt! Jol-te-on!" Jolteon replied as he used Trailblaze and then fired Shadow Ball. "Sandslash! Thunder Claw!" I replied. "Slash! Slash! Slash! Sand-slash!" Sandslash replied as he ran towards the Shadow Ball, dodged it, watched Jolteon get close to him, and then hit him with the attack; causing an explosion. The crowd covered their eyes from the smoke for a moment, and then uncovered their eyes a few moments later; seeing both Sandslash and Jolteon laying down on the ground. My group held hands in silence and worry for a moment, watched the official run onto the field, check on both Pokémon, and prepared to raise his hands. Before he could say anything, he turned to Sandslash and saw him slowly begin to stand back up.

The girls lightly gasped in shock as Sandslash slowly back up on his feet. "No... way..." said Leaf in a light, shocked tone. "He's standing back up... he withstood the attack... how..?" Blue replied. They looked at each other in shock and confusion for a moment, and then turned to Red and my Mom; seeing them hold each other's hands; praying that Sandslash hangs on and stays standing. "You can do it, Sandslash..." said my Mom nervously. "Come on, little guy... you got this..." Red replied. "Pika-chu..." Red's Pikachu replied. Sandslash blinked his eyes, slowly shook his head, regained his balance, and then looked at Jolteon; seeing him still laying down on the ground. He blinked his eyes again, and then turned to the official; seeing him staring at him in shock. "Sand-slash." he said as he nodded his head to him.

The official blinked his eyes, looked at Sandshrew and Jolteon a couple times, took a deep breath, and then raised his hand to my side of the field. "Jolteon is unable to battle! Sandslash is the winner!" he said. "Incredible! Sandslash has defeated Jolteon in a spectacular finish! That was an amazing battle to watch!" Nico replied as the crowd cheered. "You did it! Sandslash! You were amazing!" I replied happily as I picked up Sandslash and hugged him. "Sand! Sand-Sandslash!" he replied happily as he hugged me back. "Alright!" Zuzu, Celina, Sora, and Pat cheered happily. "Yeah! Way to go!" Gong cheered. "Let's go, Tay!" Zach cheered. Yuya whistled happily, and then saw Yuto's eyes across the room. They locked eyes again, and Yuto gave him a thumbs up; making him smile and do the same. After that moment, he and the group looked down to my side on the field and saw me return Sandslash to his PokéBall.

"She's switching again?" Sylvio asked. "Yeah. After what Sandslash went through, she would want him to rest. Seeing Pokémon in a injured, tired state like that... it would be cruel to let them continue fighting." Gong replied as he crossed his arms. "Samurott." Gong's Samurott replied as he nodded his head. Sylvio nodded his head in understanding, and then turned to Yuya and the group. "So? What's her next move? Is she using her Clefable again?" he asked them. "I... I'm not sure..? She never told us who she will be using for the battle." Zach replied. "I see... she wants to surprise her opponents. To her... it doesn't matter if she has the full type advantage. She always has a wildcard up her sleeve, and tries out many new strategies that no one has ever done before. As long as she can do that... she'll be unstoppable." he replied.

The group was honestly surprised to what Sylvio had said, looked at each other silently, and then looked back at me as I watched Lt. Surge return Jolteon to his Fast Ball. "Thank you for your service, Jolteon. You were excellent. Now take a good rest." he said. He put the Fast Ball away and then took out a PokéBall. "You're good, kid. You're real good. But now... this is where the real test begins! Go, Raichu!" he said as threw the PokéBall in the air, watched it open, and saw Raichu appear on the field. "Rai-Rai!" said Raichu. "Ah ha! There it is! One of Lt. Surge's strongest Pokémon! Raichu!" Nico replied as the crowd cheered loudly for Raichu. "Rai-Rai..." Raichu replied as he let electricity spark out of his cheeks and got into his battle pose. Tetrax and I stared down Raichu silently, and then clutched our hands into fists. "There he is, bud. The time has finally come." I said. "Pi-ka." he replied as he nodded his head. We then turned to each other and stared into each others eyes; knowing now what we have to do.

"You ready, Tet?" I asked him. "Pi!" he replied with a nod of his head. I nodded my head to him, and then we shared a fist bump. As we did this, we felt our hearts and auras connect for a moment. Once we felt it... we knew that it will be our secret weapon. And we will wait until the perfect moment to unleash it. We blinked our eyes twice, smirked at each other, and then I watched him jump off my shoulder and land onto the field. We then jumped side to side on the field for a moment to let loose our nerves and anxiety. "Pi-ka-chu!" he said as he let green electricity spark out of his cheeks. "Alright! Tetrax is up next!" Celina cheered as she, Zuzu, Zach, Pat, and Sora stood up excitedly. "Go, Tetrax! Show Raichu what you're made of!" Zuzu cheered. "Win this one for all the Pikachu!" Zach cheered. Our group's Pokémon cheered loudly for us, and then went silent as they saw Tetrax and Raichu slowly walk around on all four paws the middle of the field; staring each other down. "Pi-ka..." said Tetrax. "Rai-Rai..." Raichu replied.

"Whoa... I've never seen a stare down like this before." said Yugo. "Yeah. I wonder what's going through his head right now? Is he ready to prove that he can overpower his evolved form?" Rin replied. "Maybe..?" Yugo replied. "If that were to be the case, he better be fast to do it. Raichu's are technically stronger than Pikachu's. But if Taylor has helped him training any speed attacks, then Raichu will be overwhelmed by him." Yuri replied. "Yuri's right. In order for Tetrax to win, he needs to be faster than Raichu." Lulu replied. "But if Raichu catches up and overpowers him... then it lights out for Tay." Yugo replied sadly and worriedly; shocking the trio. Once Yuto heard their conversation, he clutched his hands into fists silently; hoping that we beat the odds. As he did this, he felt his powers activate and sense something behind me.

He turned to me with his glowing golden-yellow eyes, and saw Necrozma spiritually behind me for the first time. His eyes widened in shock to see it and its glowing mark on its chest. "What the!? No... it can't be... it has the same Mark as we do! How... how is that possible? Could it be... that Necrozma is connected to our lineage and its history with our ancestors?" he said in his thoughts. He blinked his eyes, turned to me, and saw my Aura shine green and move around me like a current of water in a river. His powers then stopped, and then put his hand to his chest; feeling his heart beating faster than before. "Hm? Yuto? You alright?" Lulu asked him. "Yeah... I'm alright..." he replied as he caught his breath and turned to her. "You sure? You looked like you saw a ghost." she replied. He stayed silent from her response, blinked his eyes, nodded his head yes to her, and then turned back to the battlefield. "Come on, Tay... you got this. I believe in you." he said to himself.

Tetrax and Raichu stood up slowly, dashed towards each other, and then clashed. They threw punches, kicks, and hits from their tails for a few minutes; pushing each other away from the force of the attacks a moment later. "Whoa! They just attacked each other on their own!" said Kite surprised. "Yeah. Looks like this fight will be a serious one. I just hope the little guy can keep up." Shay replied. Kite nodded his head in agreement, and then looked at Yuya and my group; seeing them cheering me on. He blinked his eyes twice, turned to me, and saw a determined look in my eyes. "Come on, kid. Don't let him get to you. Show him the power of the Guardian that lies within you." he said in his thoughts.

"Tetrax! Use Quick Attack!" I said. "Pi! Pi-ka! Pi-ka-Pi-ka-Pi-ka-Pi-ka!" Tetrax replied as he used the attack; hitting Raichu in the stomach. Raichu was pushed back for a second, looked at Tetrax, and smirked at him. "Pi-ka." Tetrax growled. "Raichu! Use Thunderbolt!" Lt. Surge replied. "Rai! Rai-chu!" Raichu replied as he used Thunderbolt. "Dodge it!" I replied. "Pi-ka!" Tetrax replied as he dodged the attack. "Heh. This is your plan with one of your aces, eh? Well let's see if he can handle this! Raichu! Volt Tackle!" Lt. Surge replied. "Rai! Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-" Raichu replied as he surrounded himself in yellow electricity and ran towards Tetrax. "Tet! Use Iron Tail on the ground and hold onto Raichu!" I replied. "Pi-ka! Chu-Pika!" Tetrax replied as he jumped up in the air, made his tail glow a silver-white color, and landed on the ground with his tail. "Rai-Rai-Rai! Rai-chu!" Raichu replied as he hit Tetrax with Volt Tackle, and began to push him towards me. As he pushed him, we saw electricity being sent to the ground, and begin to crack a bit.

"What is this!? It seems that the electricity from Raichu's Volt Tackle is being push down to underground by Tetrax's Iron Tail like a Lightning Rod! And he is holding onto Raichu for dear life!" said Nico as the crowd reacted. As they got near me, Raichu then pushed him up in the air, guided him to one of the metal beams, and they hit it together; making Tetrax take more damage. "Pika!" cried Tetrax. "Tetrax!" I replied worriedly. "Raichu! Grab him with your tail!" Lt. Surge replied. "Rai! Rai-Rai!" Raichu replied as he dived towards Tetrax, and grabbed him with his tail. "Pika!" said Tetrax surprised. "Now spin him around and throw him!" Lt. Surge replied with a smirk. "Rai! Rai-chu!" Raichu replied as he smirked, spun himself and Tetrax around in mid air, and then threw him towards another metal beam. "Pi-ka!" Tetrax replied. "Tet! Spin Dash yourself with Iron Tail!" I replied.

"Pika! Pika-Pika-Pika! Chu! Pika!" Tetrax replied as he curled himself into a ball, made his tail glow silver-white again, moved himself to the beam, spin upwards on it, jumped off of it, went over to Raichu, and then hit him on the head with the attack; sending him to the ground. "What!? Since when did they come up with that!?" said Shay surprised. "I don't know... but that was awesome!" Yugo replied excitedly. "Yeah! Come on, Tetrax! You can do it!" Rin replied excitedly. "Yeah! Unleash the Pika Power!" Yugo replied. As the cheers echoed, the dust settled, and then saw Raichu stand back up from the attack; shocking Tetrax. "Rai..." said Raichu. "Heh. You should've known, kid. Raichu doesn't go down easily." Lt. Surge replied. "Rai-Rai!" Raichu replied. "And now you will see how powerful he really is! Raichu! Pin him down and use Hyper Beam!" Lt. Surge replied.

"Rai! Rai-chu! Rai!" Raichu replied as he pinned Tetrax to the ground with his tail, charged up the attack in front of his mouth, and then fire the attack right in his face. "Pika!" cried Tetrax as he flew over to me. "Tetrax!" I replied worriedly. I caught him in my arms and fell to my knees, and looked down at him worriedly. "Tet..? Buddy..? You alright?" I asked him nervously. He opened his eyes, slowly moved his head towards me, and saw the worried look in my eyes. "Pi... Pika..." he said. He lifted up his right paw, lightly tapped my face, and then put his paw to his heart; tapping it a couple times. My eyes lightly widened in shock to what he just did, and then I felt his aura begin to connect with mine again.

"It's time. This is the moment that he has been waiting for. This is the only way that you two can defeat both Lt. Surge's strongest Pokémon." said Necrozma as it spiritually looked at us. "Necrozma's right. This is the only way we can defeat Raichu and Electabuzz. Mom. We have to do this. They have been waiting to see how much we have grown ever since our training days with them. And now's the time we show them how strong we really are." Tetrax replied. My eyes lightly widened in shock to hear Tetrax agree with Necrozma. Once I took his words to heart, I took a deep breath, nodded my head to him, and then felt our energies fully connect and unite as one. We opened our glowing eyes, and I saw Tetrax's wounds fully heal. "Let's do this... partner." I said. "You've got it, Mom." he replied. He crawled out of my arms, walked onto my shoulder, jumped off of it, made green electricity surround his fist, and then punched the ground as he landed; sending off a powerful shock wave.

Raichu and Lt. Surge lost their balance for a moment, and then saw the two pairs of glowing green eyes for the first time. "Rai!?" said Raichu surprised. "Huh..? What the? What is this power?" Lt. Surge replied curiously. "A power that only we can achieve." me and Tetrax replied. "Is that so? Alright! We accept this challenge! Raichu! Volt Tackle!" Lt. Surge replied. "Rai! Rai-chu! Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-" Raichu replied as he used Volt Tackle. As he came close, Tetrax and I moved our left hands put towards the attack, and stopped Raichu as he hit Tetrax's paw. "What!?" said Lt. Surge surprised. My group and Yuto's group stood up in shock to see what was happening, and then looked at Red as he and his Pikachu stood up in shock; wondering how Tetrax was doing this. "Rai... Rai-Rai!" said Raichu as he tried to push himself forward.

Tetrax stared at him silently, watched his eyes lock with his, charged up his right paw, made an electric fist that was slightly bigger than his own, and then punched Raichu in the face; sending him backwards. "Raichu! Are you alright?" said Lt. Surge. "R-Rai... Raichu... Rai-Rai." Raichu replied as he stood up and stared at Tetrax; wondering what has gone into him. "Whoa!" said Aura. "What is this!?" Sylvio replied in shock. "Astounding... I've never seen a battle like this before." Reed replied. "Gong agrees with you there, Reed. How about you, Yuya?" Gong replied as he turned to Yuya. Yuya's eyes were widened in shock to what just happened, and then turned to me; seeing my eyes glowing. "No way... she can do this too..?" he said softly to himself.

Raichu lightly shook his head, blinked his eyes, cracked his neck, and then got into his battle pose. "Rai. Rai-Rai. Raichu. Rai-chu! Rai!" he said. "You wanna see more? Fine. We'll show you what we can do." me and Tetrax replied. Lt. Surge stared at us silently for a moment, and then pointed at us. "Raichu! Use Thunderbolt!" he said. "Rai! Rai-chu! Rai!" Raichu replied. He let electricity spark out of his cheeks, and then jumped up in the air, and used Thunderbolt at Tetrax. Once he saw it coming, he dodged it with ease. "Rai!?" said Raichu surprised. "What!?" Lt. Surge replied surprised. "Nice try. You really think that Thunderbolt was meant to scare me? I don't think so." me and Tetrax replied. After that, he used Thunderbolt to create some kind of electric wall, and then Electro Ball from above his head, and used its power to throw it at different parts of the wall.

"Raichu! Hyper Beam!" said Lt. Surge. "Rai! Rai-chu!" Raichu replied as he used Hyper Beam. As it came close again, Tetrax dodged and used Quick Attack to hit Raichu from behind, grab his tail, spin him around, and then throw him towards one of the Electro Balls. "Take this! Thunder Pinball!" said me and Tetrax. "Rai-Rai! Rai! Chu! Rai! Chu! Rai!" Raichu replied as he hit one Electro Ball one after another, and then blasted up in the air. "Raichu!" Lt. Surge replied in shock. "Now! Spin Dash Iron Tail!" me and Tetrax replied as he did the attack again, and hit Raichu on his back; sending him down to the ground very quickly. "Oh ho! This is outstanding! Ladies and gentlemen! This is without a doubt, the most shocking Electric-type battle that I have ever seen!" Nico replied as the crowd reacted. Tetrax jumped down to the ground, watched the dust settle, and then saw Raichu slowly stand back up. "...Rai-Rai..." he said. Tetrax lightly growled at Raichu, and then clutched right paw into a fist; ready to see what his opponent will do next.

"Wow... they're really strong..." Lulu replied. "Yeah. It looks like they have been waiting for this moment. But they have no idea how powerful those two are right now." Shay replied. "Huh? What do you mean by that, Shay?" she replied. "Think about it, Lulu. The skill and power that Taylor has with her team is just like how Yuto does with his team. They Synchronize with each other whenever they are in a tough situation, and fight as one." he replied. "But Yuto's only done this when it came to fighting Team Rocket. We've never seen him Synchronize like this before and make move combinations like they do. Do you think when he first saw her do this against Brock that he wanted to test it out more?" she replied.

"Hmm... perhaps. Perhaps he did. But the times we've seen him do this before... it exhausted him very quickly. And then when he saw her do this against Brock, the wild Gyarados, and Misty... he saw that she was never exhausted. It made him realize that she has probably more training experience in Synchronizing than he does." he replied. "Shay? Are you saying that he's jealous?" she replied. He nodded his head yes to her question; making her look at him surprised. She then turned to Yuto and saw him completely focused on me and Tetrax. "Yuto... you really have so much to learn from her." she said in her thoughts. She then turned back to the field, and saw Raichu prepare to use another attack. "Come on, Tay... knock him out with one attack. You can do it." she said to herself as she held her hands.

Tetrax stood tall, cracked his neck, and then turned to see both Red and Zuzu's Pikachu's looking at him. He blinked his glowing green eyes at them, watched them nod their heads, nodded back to them, and then turned to Raichu. "Raichu! Are you alright? Can you still go on?" Lt. Surge asked him. "Rai!" Raichu replied as he turned to him and nodded his head. "Okay. Now! Let's show them how powerful we are!" he replied. "Rai-Rai!" Raichu replied. "Heh! Alright, Raichu! One last Volt Tackle!" he replied. "Rai! Rai-chu! Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-Rai-" Raichu replied as he used Volt Tackle again. "Iron-Volt Tail!" me and Tetrax replied as his tail glew silver-white, absorbed the energy of Raichu's Volt Tackle with it, and then hit him with the attack; sending him flying back to the middle of the field. "Rai-Rai!" cried Raichu. "Raichu!" Lt. Surge replied worriedly.

"Now for the grand finale!" me and Tetrax replied. He then got into his battle stance, charged up his right fist with electricity, dashed towards Raichu, punched and kicked him a couple times, jumped back a few feet, did a zig-zag dash with electricity surrounding him, made an electric fist that was bigger than him, and then punched him with it. "Volt Shock Fist!" we said as the attack was close to him. As the attack landed, an explosion of electricity surrounded the middle of the battlefield; making the crowd cover their eyes. A few moments after the smoke and dust faded, the crowd saw both Tetrax and Raichu standing tall on the field. They blinked their eyes, smirked, and then Raichu fell to the ground. The official ran over to Raichu, checked his condition, and then raised his hand to my side. "Raichu is unable to battle! Pikachu is the winner!" he said.

"Incredible! Amazing! Fantastic! Taylor and her Pikachu have defeated Raichu in brilliant fashion! The attacks that no one thought would be possible! The bond that they share has overwhelmed Raichu and made him fall in defeat! This! This is the incredible power that has made this Challenger so unique!" Nico replied as the crowd cheered. "Alright!" Leaf, Mom, Celina, Zuzu, Pat, and Sora cheered happily. "Great job, kid!" Blue cheered. "Pi-Pikachu!" Red's Pikachu cheered. "Great work, Tay! Tetrax!" Red cheered. As my group cheered, Yuto and his group watched me closely, smiled proudly under their masks, and then saw Tetrax walk upto me, and we did a fist bump and high five/tail. "Tet! You did it! You were amazing!" I said as I knelt down to him and hugged him. "Are you kidding? You were amazing too! We won together as a team!" he replied. I let him go from the hug, watched climb upto my shoulder, and nuzzle my face; making me pet him. "Mom? You know what this means, right? For this match?" he asked me. "Mhm. Four down... and one left to go." I replied.

He nodded his head in agreement, and then watched Lt. Surge return Raichu to his PokéBall. "Thank you for your service, Raichu. You were incredible out there. Now take a good rest." he said. He put the PokéBall away and took out a Quick Ball. "Wow... that Pikachu of yours sure is powerful, huh?" he asked me. "Yeah. He sure is. But he is not powerful alone. As long as he is with friends and family, his true power will defeat anyone that gets in his way." I replied as me and Tetrax's eyes lightly glew. "Pika-chu!" Tetrax replied. "Heh. Powerful and honest. I like it. But now... it's time for you to face your final opponent. Go, Electabuzz!" he replied as he threw the Quick Ball up in the air, watched it open, and we saw Electabuzz appear on the field. "El-ect-a-buzz!" said Electabuzz.

"There it is... Electabuzz..." Gong replied. "The Pokémon that ended many Gym Challenge journeys..." Sylvio replied. As everyone looked at Electabuzz, my group was holding hands with each other; praying that I can win this. Tetrax stared down Electabuzz for a moment, and then he turned around, climbed down my shoulder, went to my Bag, and opened it. "Hm? Tet? What are you doing?" I asked. "This." he replied as he took out a Ultra Ball from my Bag. My eyes widened in surprise as he showed it to me. He carried it in his mouth, jumped back up on my shoulder, and put it in my right hand. He then put his paw on the Ball, and passed down our Aura to it. "Tet... are you saying..." I said. "Yeah. It's time. I'm tagging out of this one and tagging him in. This one is his fight. I know that your bond with him isn't as strong as ours yet, but doing this will give him a little boost to withstand his pre-evolved form." he replied.

"Are you sure?" I replied as all of the Aura on Tetrax transferred to the Ultra Ball. "He is. They both understand how powerful Electabuzz is. And this ability that Tetrax is doing will work. Like he said... your bond with Electivire isn't as strong yet, but this will give him a little boost that he needs in order to win." Necrozma replied. I blinked my eyes, took their words to heart, looked at Tetrax as he returned to normal, and watched him nod his head to me. I regained my composure, nodded my head to him, and then looked back at Electabuzz. "What the? Is that an Ultra Ball..?" Celina asked the group. "Yeah! That is an Ultra Ball! When did she get one?" Zach replied. "I don't know..? But whatever it is... it better be the one to win this thing..." she replied. Zach nodded his head in agreement, and then saw Electabuzz punch the air; anxiously waiting to see his opponent. "He's fired up." he said. "Yeah... but what does Tay have to counter him?" Yuya replied.

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and then prepared to throw the Ultra Ball. "Alright... this is it. This is the one that will help us get the victory and the Thunder Badge. I hope you're ready, Surge... Electabuzz... because this Pokémon is ready to shock the world!" I said as I threw the Ultra Ball up in the air, watched it open, saw green lightning flash in the room, saw Electivire kneeling on one knee, stand up, and then reveal himself from the light. "El-ecti-vire!" he said. The crowd gasped in shock to see him in my team, and began murmuring to themselves about the stories of him. "What!?" Zach, Pat, Zuzu, Celina, and Sora yelled in shock. "Ah! Guys! What's gotten into you!?" Yuya replied surprised. "Dude! Taylor lied to us! She caught the Lightning Demon! How!? How did this happen!?" Pat replied. "I don't know... but she's going to get an earful out of us for this one." Celina replied. The group nodded their heads in agreement to her response, and then looked around at the people; seeing them in shock.

"Looks like they've heard of the stories." said Sora. "Yeah... but have they seen how strong Electivire is?" Zuzu replied. "I don't think so?" he replied. The group then sat down and watched Electivire crack his knuckles and neck for a moment; ready to fight. As he did this, Yuto's group looked at each other in shock, and then watched Yugo take out his Phone; activating his PokéDex. "Electivire, the Thunderbolt Pokémon. An Electric type, and the evolved form of Electabuzz. It pushes the tips of its tails against its foes and then lets loose a high-voltage current of over 20,000 volts. Its foes are burned to a crisp in an instant." said Yugo's PokéDex. "Vire!" yelled Electivire as he thumped his chest with his fists. "Buzz!" Electabuzz replied surprised. "Wow... Electivire is a feisty one, is he?" Yugo replied. "Mhm. But how powerful is he under Taylor's control?" Yuri replied. "I guess we'll have to find out for ourselves." he replied. Yuri nodded his head in agreement, turned back to the field, and stared at me silently. "Okay, Taylor... let's see what you and Electivire can do..." he said to himself.

Electivire stopped thumping his chest, and then got into his battle pose; ready for Electabuzz to come at him. "Vire. Vire-Vire. Elect-i-vire." he said as he motioned his hand at Electabuzz. "Buzz!? Elect! Electabuzz!" Electabuzz replied. "So? You were saving him for this after all? Ha! Perfect. Now with him here, the people of this city will know the true power of the Lightning Demon!" Lt. Surge replied confidently. I stared at them silently, and then saw Electivire turn his head to me. We locked eyes, nodded our heads, and then looked back at our foes. "Alright! Electabuzz! Use Thunder!" said Lt. Surge. "Buzz! E-lect-a-buzz!" Electabuzz replied as electricity crackled from his body, and fired it at Electivire. The crowd's eyes widened in shock to see Electivire stand there and take the hit; wondering what my plan was. After the attack ended, Electivire's body began to glow in a golden aura, and he spun his arms rapidly. "What!? What's going on with him!?" Yuya asked. "It's his signature ability: Motor Drive!" Celina replied. "Motor Drive?" he replied. "Mhm. Whenever Electivire is hit by an Electric-type attack, it absorbs its power and increases its Speed!" she replied.

"Ah! So that must've been her plan all along! he replied. She nodded her head in agreement, and then watched the group cheering us on. Electivire stopped spinning his arms, and smirked at Electabuzz. "El-ect!?" said Electabuzz surprised. "What!? How is that possible!?" Lt. Surge replied. "Incredible! Electivire took that Thunder attack like a lightning rod and increased his Speed power, thanks to its ability: Motor Drive!" Nico replied as the crowd reacted. "Yeah! And now it's our turn to show them what you're made of! Electivire! Thunder Punch!" I replied. "Vire! El-ect-i-vire!" Electivire replied as he used Thunder Punch on Electabuzz; hitting him in the face. Electabuzz was pushed back by the sheer power of the attack for a moment, and then shook off the pain. "Electabuzz! You alright?" Lt. Surge asked him. "Buzz!" he replied. "Alright! Let's get 'em! Ice Punch!" Lt. Surge replied. "Buzz! El-ecta-buzz!" he replied as he used Ice Punch.

"Block it with Iron Tail!" I replied. "Vire! El-ecti-vire!" Electivire replied as he used Iron Tail on Ice Punch; blocking him from hitting his fur. They pushed each other away, and stared each other down. "Keep up the pressure, Electabuzz! Use Ice Punch!" said Lt. Surge. "Electabuzz! El-ecta-buzz!" Electabuzz replied as he used Ice Punch again. "Iron Tail!" I replied. "Vire! Elect-i-vire!" Electivire replied as he used Iron Tail again to stop the Ice Punch. They did this a few more times in a span of nearly three minutes; keeping each other again. They pushed away from each other a moment later, and one of Electivire's tails was partially frozen. "Vire!" he said as he looked at the frozen tail. He then slammed his tail down to the ground, and broke off the ice; unfreezing himself. "Vire!" he said. "Hmph. So that's how he's going to play, huh? Freezing him up to slow him down? Sorry, Surge... but that's not going to work!" I replied.

"Oh yeah? Let's see if he can handle this!? Electabuzz! Use Wild Charge!" Lt. Surge replied. "Buzz! El-ecta-buzz!" Electabuzz replied as he surrounded himself in electricity, stomped his feet a few times, and then dashed towards Electivire. "Grab him!" I replied. "Elect! Electivire!" Electivire replied as he grabbed Electabuzz with his hands and tails. "Buzz!?" Electabuzz yelled in shock. "What!?" Lt. Surge replied surprised. "Whoa!" Pat replied. "She caught him as he got very close!" Zuzu replied. "Now that's what I call perfect timing!" Sora replied. "Mhm. And with that! His Speed is boosted again!" Pat replied. "Yeah! Now with the second boost, Electabuzz won't catch up to him!" he replied. "Yeah!" Pat replied happily. As Electabuzz was trapped, I knew what Surge's plan would be next. "Now throw him back!" I said. "Vire! Elect-i-vire!" Electivire replied as he threw Electabuzz back to Surge's side of the field.

"Electabuzz!" said Lt. Surge worriedly. Electabuzz slowly began to stand back up, looked at me and Electivire, and let out a roaring battle cry. "Heh... alright. He's still got it." he said. He took off his shades, and then saw Electivire run upto Electabuzz; ready to strike. "Electabuzz! Use Protect!" he said. "Buzz! Elect-a-buzz!" Electabuzz replied as a green energy shield surrounded him; protecting him from attacks. "Electivire! Jump up in the air and combine Thunder Punch with Brick Break!" I replied. "Elect! El-ect-i-vire!" Electivire replied as he used his tails to jump up in the air, made his right hand go into a karate chop position, surrounded it with green electricity, aimed at Electabuzz, and hit him directly; destroying the shield. "Yo! That was sick!" said Yugo excitedly. "Yeah it was! Their power is incredible!" Rin replied excitedly as she gave him a side hug; making him blush wildly under his mask. "Come on, Tay! This is it!" Lulu cheered. "You got this, Tay! One more attack and its over!" Yuto cheered.

Both Electivire and Electabuzz went back to their sides of the field, and Electabuzz began to breathe heavily. "He's tired already? Looks like stopping him when using Ice Punch was worth it after all..." I said to myself. I then looked at Lt. Surge and saw him wiping off sweat on his forehead. "Alright, Tay... this is it. Whatever hes got now... we gotta finish this." I said in my thoughts. "Electabuzz! Use Thunder!" he replied. "Buzz! El-ecta-buzz!" Electabuzz replied as he used Thunder. "Electivire! Counter it with Thunder!" I replied. "Vire! El-ecti-vire!" Electivire replied as he used Thunder. The attacks collided on the middle of the field and created an explosion. After the smoke faded, we saw Electabuzz use Wild Charge. "Vire!" said Electivire. "Right! Electivire! Finish it off with Thunder Punch!" I replied. "Vire! Elect-i-vire!" Electivire replied as he fully charged up Thunder Punch, watched Electabuzz get close to him, and then hit him in the face with the attack.

As he was hit, Electabuzz was sent flying to the wall behind Lt. Surge very quickly; breaking it apart from a layer or two. Electabuzz slowly lifted up his head a couple moments later, looked at us, lightly smirked, and then fell to the ground. The official then ran over to check on his condition. As he did this, I walked over to Electivire and stood by him; waiting to see what will happen next. My group and Yuto's group stood up in silence and watched the official closely; hoping that this is it. The official stood up, looked over to me, and then raised his hand to me. "Electabuzz is unable to battle! Electivire is the winner! And that means the victor of this Gym Battle goes to Taylor!" he said. "Ah ha! Amazing! Our Challenger has pulled off an incredible victory! Congratulations to Taylor on her victory, and to both Trainers for showing us the true meaning of Pokémon battles!" Nico replied as the crowd cheered. "Alright! We did it! We really did it!" I replied excitedly. "Vire!" Electivire replied as he picked me and Tetrax up, and hugged us. We laughed happily together and hugged him back.

My group and Yuto's group celebrated happily in the stands, and then my group ran down to the field. Electivire put me down, and I hugged most of my group happily. "Tay! You did it! Congratulations!" said Zach happily. "Thank you, Zach." I replied happily. We shared a good embrace, let go of each other, and did our secret handshake. "Taylor! Congratulations, buddy!" said Yuya happily. I looked behind Zach, saw Yuya physically for the first time, smiled happily. and then went over to him; hugging him happily. "Yuya!" I said happily. He laughed happily at my reaction and hugged me back. "I've missed you." I said. "I've missed you too. Congratulations on your win, buddy. You and your team were incredible." he replied. "Thank you." I replied. We ended the hug, smiled happily at each other, and then saw Lt. Surge walk upto us.

"Taylor. Congratulations. Well done." he said. "Thank you, Lt." I replied. "You and your team were shockingly good. I haven't seen teamwork like that ever since I faced your brother." he replied. "Really? That's very kind of you to say. Thank you." I replied. He nodded his head, and then revealed a Badge in his hand. "Here you go, kiddo. As proof of your victory here, I present to you: the Thunder Badge." he said. I smiled happily at him, saluted to him, watched him salute back, and then picked up the Thunder Badge for the first time. "Alright! I just got: the Thunder Badge!" I said happily as I raised it up in the air. "Pi-Pikachu!" Tetrax replied happily. "Vire-Vire!" Electivire replied happily. After that, I shook hands with Lt. Surge, and heard the crowd clap and cheer happily. As this happened, Yuto's group quietly left the Gym. Once they went outside, they looked back at the building, put down their hoods, masks, and goggles, smiled warmly, and then left the area.

Taylor's Family Beach House- Nighttime

The sounds of the waves gently hitting the shoreline of the beach echoed in the night sky. I sat outside on the patio with my group and Yuya; telling them how I caught Electivire. "So let me get this straight. After you found out that your team was on the beach, Electivire asked you to catch him?" Celina asked me. "Yep." I replied. "Huh... that's very interesting." she replied. "It's true." I replied. Before Celina could say anything... Zuzu took out her paper fan, and hit me in the back of the head; shocking all of us. "Ow! What was that for?" I asked. "That was for keeping Electivire a secret from us!" she replied. I rubbed the back of my head silently after that. "To be honest, Tay. You did deserve that." said Pat. I quickly turned over to him, glared at him, and was prepared to jump on him... but Zach and Yuya held me back.

"Tay! Chill!" said Zach. I growled for a couple seconds; scaring him a little. "Easy there, Tay. Easy." said Yuya. After hearing them tell me to calm down, I gave up and sat back down; making the group breathe sighs of relief. "Geez... that was a close one." said Celina worriedly. "Yeah... I thought she was going to snap again and attack me." Pat replied as he wiped off sweat on his forehead. "Oh no! I didn't even think of that! I'm so sorry!" Zuzu replied worriedly. "No, it's okay Zuzu. It wasn't your fault. I should've watched my mouth on that one. It's all on me." he replied. She and Celina nodded their heads in agreement, and then we heard a whistle. We turned to the doors and saw my Mom, Red, Blue, and Leaf looking at us. "Come on, kids. It's bedtime. You all have a big day tomorrow." said my Mom. "Ah! That's right! The Contest dinner is tomorrow!" Yuya replied. "Oh yeah! I gotta plan my outfit!" Zuzu replied. After that, we went back inside the house.

As the group ran upstairs to their bedrooms, Mom and Red stopped me from following them. "Hold on second, you." said Red as he lightly grabbed my shoulder. "Hm?" I replied curiously as I turned to him. He smiled warmly at me, gently pulled me towards him, and held me in his arms. I was surprised for a moment, and then I hugged him back. "Congrats on your win today, Sis. I am so proud of you." he said. My eyes widened in surprise to the tone of his voice, and I felt my eyes begin to tear up. As the first tears fell, he wiped off a couple tears on my face, and then held me a little tighter. "...Thank you, Red..." I said as I began to cry. "You're welcome, Tay. I love you." he replied. "I love you too." I replied. He smiled warmly, and then looked up behind me; seeing my group looking at us with smiles on their faces. He lightly smiled at them, let me go from the hug, watched me let go, took my hat off, kissed my forehead, and put my hat back on my head.

"Goodnight, Sis." he said. "Goodnight, Bro." I replied. "Make sure you are on your best behavior tomorrow." he replied. "I will." I replied. After that, I went upstairs with my group. "Aww~ That was a cute sibling moment you two had." said Zuzu. I nodded my head in agreement and wiped off the last of my tears. "You okay?" Yuya asked me as he handed me a tissue. "Yeah. I'm okay. I'm just... a little overwhelmed. That's all." I replied. "How come? Just after hearing him say how proud he was got you emotional?" he replied. I nodded my head yes to his question. "You did make him proud, Tay. He's proud of how much you've grown as a Trainer. Not just him... all of us here in this house are proud of you. You've done something that not many people back home could do anymore, and that was winning your third Badge." he replied. "He's right. It showed us that you are much stronger than you realize. It's because of the belief, trust, and teamwork that you and your team did today. If it wasn't for them... you wouldn't even be here right now." Zach replied.

I took their words to heart, and nodded my head in agreement; making them smile. After that, we said our goodnights to each other, and went to our own bedrooms. When I walked into mine, I locked my door, looked at the package on my bed, walked over to it, and opened it up; taking out my Contest costume *(A/N: This costume is based on Sir Aaron's outfit from Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew)*. I studied the outfit and staff for a little bit, and then went into the bathroom; trying on the outfit for the first time. Five minutes later, I looked at myself in the mirror and checked myself out in the costume. "Hmm... not bad... not bad at all." I said. "Pi-Pikachu." Tetrax complimented. Aurasoul complimented as well; making me smile. "Thanks, guys. But I wonder? How can I disguise my face?" I replied. After I said that, my powers then changed my eye color to blue and hid my scar. "Pi-ka..." said Tetrax.

I looked at my face in the mirror and then smiled warmly. "Heh. I gotta admit, My eyes do look good in blue." I said. Both my Pokémon and I laughed happily for a moment, and walked over to the package. "Ah ha. Hey, Aurasoul. Now it's your turn. Check it out. Kinda looks just like mine, does it?" I said as I took out another similar outfit. Aurasoul made a happy sound and nodded his head in agreement. I then put on his hat and cape on him for the first time. "Pi-Pika-Pi!" said Tetrax happily. "Yeah! It's perfect! What do you think, buddy? You like it?" I replied. Aurasoul smiled happily as he looked at himself in the mirror, and nodded his head yes to my question. He then walked over to me, and we shared a fist bump.

"Okay. We've got a few days to practice our moves for the event. And remember. We're doing this for fun and surprising Zuzu and Yuya. It doesn't matter what place we get, as long as we are having fun. Understand?" I said. He made a sound and nodded his head in agreement. I smiled warmly at him, and then we got changed out of our outfits. I changed into some comfortable PJ's, and then went to bed; ready for tomorrow.

Thank you so much for reading Chapter 16 of the story! Man... this Gym battle was a fun one to write. Not only is Lt. Surge one of my favorite Gym Leaders... he also specializes in my favorite Type in Pokémon: Electric! I've always loved the Electric-type ever since I was kid. Seeing how they are both fast and powerful at the same time, it made me fall in love with the type and certain Pokémon of that type: Pikachu, Jolteon, Zapdos, Raikou, Luxray, Electivire, Zekrom, Tapu Koko, Zeraora, Boltund, and Toxtricity for example. So, I had to make sure that I did a Electric Gym battle that I would be proud of making in the story.

And now that soon the Gym battle with Erika is coming up after the Contest... I know that she will set up the perfect team against her. And make sure that I can make the Erika fans happy of the team she will be using for the match ;)

Anyways, thank you so much for reading Chapter 16, and have yourself an awesome day!

Next time, Chapter 17: Dhelmise at Sea. A tragedy strikes the S.S. Anne a day after the Contest dinner, thanks to the Pokémon: Dhelmise. How can the group stop Dhelmise from its destructive motives, and save the people of the sinking ship? Find out in Chapter 17!