Once more, Marcus stood on the opposite end of a battlefield from his opponent. They were surrounded on one side by Coumarine City and on three sides by thick forest; between them lay a field of grass that looked surprisingly fresh. Then again, this was the city of the Grass-type gym; perhaps the Gym Leader routinely grew new grass to replace the old grass in the area.
That actually sounded remarkably plausible, now that Kriesh thought of it.
The main difference was that Kriesh was out of her Luxury Ball this time, watching with piercing eyes as she scanned the field, noting Calem's odd serenity in the face of the battle and Marcus's nervous but determined expression. Phantump had been recalled, leaving Kriesh alone to watch.
Calem was surprisingly unlike Serena, considering they'd been traveling together for a while if Serena was to be believed. He had scarcely said a word after Marcus had accepted his challenge, whereas Serena had been quite willing to make small talk with Marcus. He walked with a surprisingly formal air, yet moved in a somewhat hurried fashion, as if he couldn't wait to get to the actual battling part.
Kriesh turned a searching eye to Calem. He stood tall, four Pokeballs clustered around his waist and one in his hand, eyes locked on Marcus and filled with the fire of battle.
Calem had lost the coin flip, meaning he would have to release first. But he seemed confident all the same.
"Ready?" Marcus asked. Kriesh's Trainer looked a little nervous. Understandable, given what Serena had told him about Calem. Everyone on the team knew this would be a difficult battle.
But they'd faced difficult battles before.
Calem nodded in answer to Marcus's query. Without a word, he sent out a large, blue-grey Pokemon that Kriesh immediately recognized. She'd seen a pod of them in Kanto; even Team Rocket had chosen to leave them alone, as they were a rare, endangered species and an attack on them would bring forces that normally turned a blind eye down upon Team Rocket.
"A Lapras…" Marcus seemed equally surprised to see the Transport Pokemon on Calem's side of the field. "Skorupi. Let's give you a turn."
Kriesh recognized what Marcus was going for; Lapras were known to be rather slow, and Skorupi was excellent at taking advantage of slow opponents.
Calem didn't say a word. Lapras raised its long, snakelike head to look at Skorupi. "Song of Disorientation," it crooned, and it began to sing.
A gentle stream of Ghost energy swam lazily from its mouth as it sang, its voice melodic and calm, soothing and beautiful. Yet there was just a minor hint of discordance, so subtle that Kriesh barely even noticed the wrongness behind the note until the Ghost energy was almost halfway to Skorupi.
"Don't get near that," Marcus warned. "Dodge and pepper it."
Skorupi scuttled sideways, allowing the Ghost energy to float past him, firing off a Pierce as he did so. Lapras's head followed him, looking quite calm even as the Bug energy-tipped spikes struck it. "Song of Clouding." The notes that emanated from Lapras this time was smoother, with not a trace of discordance. A cloud of mist spewed from its open mouth and ballooned outwards, concealing Lapras entirely from view.
"Keep firing!" Marcus told Skorupi. "Get ready to dodge!"
"Song of Precipitation." A keening wail came from the mist. Skorupi hissed as a droplet of water fell onto his body, followed by more. The sunny sky now flowed with localized raindrops.
Skorupi nonetheless fired another Pierce into the mist. But there was no impact.
"Surf's Up!"
The voice that came from the mist sounded different from Lapras. Kriesh had little time to ponder that, for her attention was attracted by the massive wave of water that flew from the cloud, gathering up pooled raindrops as it surged towards Skorupi. "Up and over!" Marcus cried. Skorupi crouched and leaped upwards, but unfortunately his leap wasn't strong enough. The crest of the wave struck him directly in the face, throwing him onto his back and drenching him.
"Wave Punch!"
The Pokemon that lunged out of the mist, fist drawn back, was not Lapras but a fierce-looking Wartortle. Unable to stand in time to dodge, Skorupi was decked straight in the belly with an agonizing-sounding crunch.
"Grasp!" Skorupi gasped, firing off a surge of Bug energy. Wartortle halted and raised his hand; a barrier seemingly made of pure water rose up in front of him. "Wall of Waves!" he cried, deflecting Grasp with little effort.
Kriesh's eyes narrowed as Skorupi struggled to his feet. She also noticed Marcus with clenched fists, glaring at the cloud of mist that hid Calem from view and that Calem had clearly used to obscure his switch. Was that even a legal tactic? Kriesh couldn't help but wonder, so furious did Marcus look.
"Skorupi, back in there!" Marcus shouted. "Get in melee with it!"
Skorupi lunged at Wartortle, pincers glinting with Dark energy. "Wave Tail!" Wartortle retorted, spinning to smack Skorupi with a tail covered in Water energy. Quickly, Skorupi abandoned the attack and dove sideways; it was at once clear that Wartortle had overcommitted to the attack.
A roar of pain came from Wartortle's throat as Skorupi drove his claws into Wartortle's side. "Rip. Rend." Jaws swathed in Poison energy clamped around Wartortle's leg.
Wartortle howled in agony and staggered, kicking out wildly in an attempt to get the clawing, biting form of Skorupi off. Kriesh frowned, unable to help but notice it was acting more like a Wild Pokemon than a Trained one.
And Calem still had not opened his mouth once. In fact, could he even see through the mist? Kriesh craned her neck and saw him, loosely clutching a Pokeball in one hand and-
Was he yawning?
Disgust ran through Kriesh as she turned back towards the battle just as Wartortle finally realized that his wild struggles weren't going to get the job done. "Whirlpool Spin!" he cried, and then he was spinning insanely fast, so fast Skorupi could not keep his hold.
Again, Skorupi was flung to the ground. "Wave Blast!" Wartortle growled, firing a burst of Water energy from one outstretched claw at the flying Skorupi. Flying ungainly, Skorupi could not dodge, and the blast of water literally washed him away.
Kriesh frowned. Wartortle appeared to be moving faster than he had before. Then she spotted the sheen of Water energy surrounding him. That Whirlpool Spin must have enhanced his speed.
Skorupi did not get back up. After a moment Marcus recalled him. Wartortle allowed himself a small fist-pump in victory, then turned to see the mist obscuring him from the view of his Trainer. "Wave Dispersal," he growled, sending a small torrent of Water energy from his other claw, dispersing the mist.
Calem smirked as he saw Wartortle standing alone on the field. "Good work, Wartortle," he said. "Stay out. Take the next one."
"Got it." Wartortle crouched, planting his feet, and readied for the next battle.
Kriesh had to admit that Wartortle was quite strong, even if he fought like a Wild Pokemon. Skorupi was simply not hardy enough to take advantage of that.
But as Marcus sent Medicham out, Kriesh knew that he'd thought of the same thing; Medicham, with her raw power and speed, might work where Skorupi hadn't.
Calem and Wartortle met the arrival of Medicham with a raised eyebrow and a clenching of fists, respectively. Wartortle, who had spent the entire fight with Skorupi looking down at his opponent, now had to look up to see Medicham's face.
"Medicham, it took out Skorupi," said Marcus. "Finish it quickly."
Medicham obliged, rushing forward with feet splashing water as she went for Wartortle. Wartortle lunged, swinging a Wave Tail at the oncoming Medicham, and looked stunned as Medicham used Psychic Dodge, flipping over the Wave Tail and landing right next to Wartortle.
"Fighting Strike!" Medicham twisted and slammed a Fighting energy-covered palm into Wartortle's chest. The Turtle Pokemon skidded backwards.
"Surf's Up!" This time Kriesh could see it as Wartortle summoned up a massive wave of Water energy and flung it forwards. Again Medicham used Psychic Dodge, flinging herself up and over the massive wave. As she landed, Wartortle charged forwards, firing off a Wave Blast as he did so. Medicham ducked and countered with a right cross that bounced off a hastily raised Wall of Waves.
Now Wartortle twisted - "Wave Crunch!" - and snapped his jaws at Medicham's outstretched arm. Medicham yanked it away, and in that moment Wartortle slammed her in the gut with a Wave Punch.
Kriesh grimaced. Wartortle was making irritatingly good use of his speed boost from Whirlpool Spin. Ordinarily, he probably wouldn't have been able to keep up with Medicham like this.
"Low Sweep!" Marcus ordered. Even as Medicham reeled under the brutal Wave Punch, she stuck out her foot and swept Wartortle's legs with a Fighting Trip. Wartortle stumbled, and in that moment Medicham recovered and launched herself at Wartortle with a Fighting Strike.
"Protect," said Calem with what sounded almost like a sigh, the first order he'd given his Pokemon in the entire battle.
It was clear from the widening of his eyes that he was shocked when Medicham let out a cry of "Piercing Strike!" and shattered the upraised Wall of Waves as if it were nothing. Medicham's Fighting Strike rocketed into Wartortle's face. Wartortle flew backwards, skipping like a stone across the ground, and came to rest at Calem's feet.
"Get up." At that simple order, Wartortle rose shakily. "Wave Blast!" he cried, repeating his earlier single burst of Water energy.
It was a simple attack that Medicham easily sidestepped with Psychic Avoidance, an attack that Wartortle should have known would be easily avoided. Again, Wartortle was fighting like a Wild Pokemon, despite its clear strength. "Fighting Strike!" Medicham cried again, rushing Wartortle as fast as she could.
Faster than Kriesh could see, Calem recalled Wartortle and sent out another Pokemon. "Take Down," he ordered.
A crack split the air as Medicham's palm impacted against the newly-released Quilladin's energy-wreathed body. Both of them staggered, Medicham grasping her wrist in agony while Quilladin shook its head, trying to clear it.
Calem watched impassively, again giving no instruction.
"Spike Barrage!" Quilladin cried, having recovered somewhat from the blow to the head it had suffered. One upraised arm fired a flurry of spines at the still-staggering Medicham. Caught off-balance, Medicham only barely managed to dodge with a hasty Psychic Dodge, and even then one of the spines ripped a line down her back as she twisted away.
"Spike Roller!" Quilladin hurled himself forwards, curling into a ball on his way forwards, and rolled towards Medicham with shocking speed.
"Meet it! Take it down!" Marcus ordered, sensing that Medicham was still off-balance from her earlier dodge. Medicham lunged, sweeping her leg out in a Fighting Trip-
And saw it sweep through empty air as Calem recalled Quilladin. As Medicham stumbled from the failed attack, Calem threw Wartortle back out. "Mega Punch."
With a swift and brutal Wave Punch, Wartortle slammed his left fist into the staggering Medicham's gut, then finished her off with a point-blank Water Blast to the face.
Marcus was now actively glaring at Calem. Without his gaze leaving Calem's face, he recalled Medicham and sent out Shellder.
Kriesh noticed that Wartortle was breathing heavily. He'd taken some heavy hits from Medicham, even if he hadn't fallen yet. This should be an easy knockout for Shellder.
But Shellder had scarcely entered the battlefield when Calem gave his order. "Toxic."
"Poison Wave!" Wartortle raised one arm and fired a thick glob of Poison energy right at the still-materializing Shellder. "Protect!" Marcus called, but Shellder was not prepared yet; before he could even focus on his opponent, the Poison energy splattered all over him. A surprised squeak elicited a smirk from Calem and an even worse glare from Marcus.
Kriesh could tell that Marcus was dying to give Calem a piece of his mind, but for the moment he reigned his temper in. "Shellder," he growled, "take that thing out. Now."
"Offensive Shell!" Even as poison seeped into his system, Shellder lunged towards Wartortle, only to bounce off a Wall of Waves. As soon as he landed, a Water Blast flew from Shellder, but Wartortle countered with a Wave Blast, overpowering Shellder's attack; only an Impenetrable Shell saved Shellder from being deluged.
"Surf's Up!" Another wave of water surged forth. Shellder countered with a Defensive Shell, locking the water out, but even so the wave picked him up and threw him back across the field.
As Shellder emerged from his shell, Kriesh could see he was perspiring as Toxic took effect. Wartortle, though, had dropped into an exhausted crouch. His wounds were hampering him, and he'd done the bulk of the fighting for Calem so far; even he could not last forever.
"Supersonic. Don't let him stall you out."
At that, Shellder, who had been about to charge again, instead paused. Kriesh winced in anticipation, while Wartortle clapped his hands to his ears just as Shellder let out a Sonic Blast. Thankfully, it was properly aimed, and so while Kriesh merely heard a low whine, Wartortle stumbled and snarled in pain. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to have the desired effect of dazing, instead merely causing a headache for Wartortle, judging by how it winced and clapped a hand to its head.
Shellder tried to take advantage of the opening, letting loose with a flurry of Water Blasts and Ice Flurries, but Wartortle was more ready than Shellder had expected. The Turtle Pokemon continued to play defensive, blocking some attacks with quick Wave Blasts and others with upraised Walls of Waves. But with each block, Kriesh could see him losing energy, growing more and more tired. His movements became more sluggish, his attacks less reflexive. The volume of ranged attacks was slowly but surely breaking his defenses.
Even as Wartortle faltered, its energy failing it, Calem said nothing.
But even as his attacks drove through Wartortle's defenses, Shellder was also weakening swiftly as the Toxic took greater and greater hold. Kriesh realized her talons were digging into the ground as she watched, tension filling her heart.
Which one would break first?
In the end, exhausted from his brutal fights with Medicham and Skorupi, Wartortle was the first to break, a Water Blast ripping through his guard and finally, finally, sending him to the ground. Calem recalled him instantly.
And sent nothing new out.
Marcus breathed in and out shakily as Shellder tried vainly to keep standing. It took ten seconds before he finally fell under the Toxic's influence. Only then did Calem send out his next Pokemon, a strong and muscular-looking Lucario.
"Kriesh," said Marcus, fury filling every word he uttered, "you can do this."
Kriesh shifted in front of Marcus, wings and claws ready, and stared down the Lucario that Calem had sent out.
She hadn't fought Korrina's, but she had heard a lot about it from Medicham. It would be a difficult opponent even with her type advantage, and packed the same Detect that Medicham possessed. Indeed, Medicham had compared it to fighting herself.
Kriesh had faced Medicham, and though she'd won, it had been tremendously difficult. Could she really take down a Fighting-type of similar power, if not greater, and then deal with the Lapras and Quilladin that Calem still had?
Probably not. But she had no intention of not trying.
"Hyper Beam!"
Marcus's voice was definitely more snappish than usual, tinged with anger and stress. Kriesh opened fire with a Beam Impact, fully expecting Lucario to dodge. Indeed, it did, sidestepping the Beam Impact with a murmur of "Aura Avoidance" and spinning to face Kriesh.
Its eyes widened as it beheld the rapidly charging Kriesh. "Sky Impact!" Kriesh screeched triumphantly.
"Lucario. Do it," Calem ordered.
Lucario clenched his fists as Calem raised a fist up, revealing some kind of multicolored thing on his hand. "Innermost Aura: Release," Lucario growled. "Mega Evolution."
The Lucario seemed to explode with light, nearly blinding Kriesh. "Aura Stone Strike," came a voice from the light. That was the last thing Kriesh heard before the earth in front of her leaped upwards and clocked her in the chin.
She was flipped over onto her back as her chin exploded in pain. Groaning, Kriesh raised her head and beheld Lucario…only he was changed. Small tendrils, looking somewhat like scarves, extended out from his body and head. Parts of him now glowed red, and he looked even more muscular than before. Worst of all, he was surrounded by a clear glow of blue Aura, and Kriesh could feel the power radiating off of him.
"Finish it."
Lucario charged, every muscle pumping and Aura flickering. "Sky Impact!" Kriesh cried, hurling herself into the air, but Lucario was so fast that even at top speed she felt his fist brush her tail feathers. Lucario twisted on one foot. "Aura Sphere!" he bellowed, his voice deeper than before.
"Flurry Impact!" Kriesh cried, firing all three of the black rays at the oncoming blue sphere. To her surprise, though they impacted, the sphere continued to press, if slowly.
How powerful was this Lucario?
"Aura Scream!" Lucario crossed his arms, and in the next moment Kriesh's ears were assailed by a horrific screech, akin to Supersonic but somehow even worse. She closed her eyes reflexively, trying desperately to force the sound out of her mind.
Someone was shouting something that she could not hear. What she did hear, however, was the crack of at least two ribs as something plowed straight into her chest.
She opened her eyes to see that in the throes of deafness, she had fallen back down to the ground, and that she was now folded around an Aura-covered fist.
"Damn," she muttered succinctly.
"Aura Strike Barrage!"
"Stop! Kriesh forfeits!"
Even as Kriesh readied for a last attack she knew wouldn't hit fast enough, Lucario retreated at Marcus's words. Kriesh collapsed to the ground, coughing around the pain ripping through her chest.
The glow from Calem's wrist faded as Lucario disappeared from the field. Kriesh looked back towards Marcus, afraid of what she would see. Indeed, he was clearly struggling to control his temper, and from the tone of his voice it was only barely working.
"What was that?"
Calem raised an eyebrow at Marcus's peeved tone. "A battle, that I believe I won."
"How did you get all those rare Pokemon?" Marcus asked. "I mean, two Starters, a Lapras, and a Mega-capable Lucario with a Mega Stone? That's some really powerful stuff for a four-badge Trainer."
Calem tossed Lucario's Pokeball up and caught it again before answering. "They were given to me."
"Given?"
"Yeah," said Calem. "The professor gave me my Starters, Korrina gave me Lucario, and I got Lapras from a random Trainer who, I guess, just wanted to give me his Lapras. I didn't ask questions."
"So you didn't even catch any of them?" Anger was now clearly threatening to overpower and engulf Marcus.
"Nope," said Calem. "Didn't need to. Barely even needed to train them. Lapras and Lucario are already really strong. Sure, the Starters needed some training, but they've got some real power even without that."
"But…then what's the point?" Marcus asked.
"The point?" Calem sounded genuinely puzzled.
"Where's the fun in using a team that other people have trained for you?" Marcus asked furiously, finally losing his temper entirely. "How is that fun or fair to either you or the Trainers that battle you? Your Pokemon are quite clearly far more powerful than a four-badge Trainer's Pokemon have any right to be, because they were trained by people who are far stronger than you and then handed to you! Not to mention most of what you do to support them are cheap tactics like rapid, unannounced switches! Like switching your Quilladin out of the way of an attack from my Medicham! How is that fair to all the other Trainers who actually play by the rules, spend ages working with teams that they catch and train themselves over weeks, even months, and haven't had overpowered Pokemon just handed to them on a silver platter?"
Calem's eyes narrowed in fury. "Look, Marcus," he said, "I don't see how my battling isn't fair. I didn't steal these Pokemon. I didn't beg, or threaten…I didn't even ask for any of these Pokemon. But I use them anyway because they're better than the ones I caught myself. And I don't see any reason not to use the best Pokemon I have. You didn't use your Phantump because he was a new catch, and thus weaker than the rest of your team. How is that different? And all those so-called 'cheap tactics' are perfectly legal. You can scour the League Rulebooks if you want. You will find that I am allowed to recall and send in Pokemon whenever I wish, according to the established rule of 'substitutions allowed', which is allowed in sanctioned battling, and which we agreed to before this battle started. So I didn't beat you because of 'unfairness'. I beat you because my Pokemon and my tactics are better than yours. Simply put, I am a stronger Trainer than you, something that I believe I just proved. And what's your response? Why, to whine and cry about how 'unfair' the match was because my Pokemon are 'overpowered' and my tactics are 'cheap'. Do you actually have a reason for why me using the best Pokemon I have and the best tactics I can come up with is supposedly 'unfair'? Or are you just being a sore loser?"
Marcus opened his mouth for a rebuttal, but nothing came out. Though anger still rippled across his features, he didn't seem to be able to muster an argument that wouldn't dig himself deeper.
"That's what I thought," Calem muttered, turning away and beginning to walk towards the Pokemon Center.
And so Marcus was left alone with Kriesh. Kriesh sighed, anger surging through her at the sight of the conflict in Marcus's eyes.
"I guess he's right," said Marcus. "I was being a whiny jerk. But…how is anybody supposed to beat him?"
"That bad, huh?"
Kriesh turned to see Serena walking up to Marcus, a sympathetic expression on her face.
"Go away, Serena," Marcus said, not even turning.
"Look, I get it," said Serena. "He's…difficult."
"It just doesn't make sense!" Marcus's voice was rising again. "He's not paying attention to common Trainer etiquette, he's using Pokemon that are way more powerful than anything else at this level…how is anybody even supposed to beat him?"
Serena sighed. "It's…it's not gonna be easy. Trust me, I know. I've fought against him, I've fought alongside him…" She paused. "How much do you know about Team Flare?"
Kriesh's eyes narrowed at the name, at the memory of a snarling Manectric and an uncontrollable Ursaring, of her flock, caged and helpless-
"Too much," Marcus growled.
"Well," Serena said, "Calem and I fought them. A group of them were trying to steal Pokemon from a cave by Cyllage. That's how I met Diantha…and that's when Calem decided he needed to prioritize winning. Because he lost. We lost. We only avoided getting our Pokemon taken because Absol pulled out Perish Song. If he hadn't had that…"
Marcus and Kriesh both shuddered at the thought.
"Well, after that, it was like Calem closed himself off," said Serena. "Started using tactics that he hadn't previously, started focusing more on assembling a strong team. He caught a whole bunch of Pokemon…but then he already had Wartortle and Quilladin, and he got Amaura from Grant and Lucario from Korrina, and then he got Lapras…"
"I didn't realize…it was about Team Flare," said Marcus. "But…but it's still not fair to everyone else."
"No, it's not," said Serena. "But he's right. Nothing in the rules says what he's doing is illegal. He calls it 'pragmatism'. As long as he keeps winning, he'll keep using those Pokemon and those tactics because they get results. And, like you said, it's almost impossible to beat him."
"Almost," said Marcus; now Kriesh noticed that his voice was developing a steely tone. "Kriesh?" he said, turning to Kriesh with a fresh glint in his eyes.
"Yeah?" Kriesh squawked.
"We're going to beat Calem," said Marcus. "And that's a promise."
"Here's the thing."
Kriesh looked around at the assembled forces of the team. Medicham, Shellder, Skorupi, even Phantump, all clustered in front of Marcus.
"Calem didn't beat us because his Pokemon were stronger," said Marcus. "He beat us because he played dirty. And as long as he wins, he's gonna keep doing that. So we're going to have to make sure he doesn't keep winning. Which means we're going to have to train a lot more if we want to beat him. But we've got some advantages, the biggest of which is that he's lazy. His Pokemon are going to get stronger, but not as quickly as we can. Eventually, we'll catch up. And, because of his laziness, his Pokemon are fighting like Wild Pokemon, not trained ones. We can take advantage of those weaknesses. Next time we meet Calem, we will beat him. You got that?"
His team nodded.
"Phantump, you and I are gonna work to see how you fight," said Marcus. "The Grass Gym is up next. Ramos…well, he has a reputation for being one of the easier Gym Leaders. I'm confident that Kriesh and Skorupi should be able to win on their own. If I like what I see, I'll put you in as my third."
"Sounds fun!" Phantump nodded enthusiastically.
"The rest of you four, pair up," said Marcus. "Focus on strength, speed, and finding openings."
The training was nothing new, merely toughening themselves up. It was something Kriesh had always found tiring; a combination of her artificial evolution and not having to really push herself for a year meant that her endurance, even after several days of working on it, was not up to par. But this time around, it was even more so. Everyone seemed to be pushing themselves a little bit harder than before.
It made sense. They had lost before, but those had been different. This time around, they'd gone in as a team, fully functional, fully rested, and at their best. And they'd still lost 4-1, with very little damage on any of his Pokemon except Wartortle. It hadn't even been a close fight.
Every so often, Kriesh would look over her shoulder to watch Marcus work with Phantump. Her repertoire was clearly based around catching enemies off guard, debilitating them with precise strikes of Ghost energy or simply by wrapping them in draining vines. Once, Kriesh looked over to see Phantump latching onto the ground with several vines, the grass around her vines browned and wilting as Phantump seemed to draw energy directly from the earth itself.
Kriesh turned her head towards Medicham, who was taking a short breather after an exhausting exchange with Shellder. "She's doing well."
"Indeed," said Medicham.
"Excuse me?" Phantump swiveled towards them. "I'm a him. Not a her."
"Sorry, Phantump!" Medicham called.
"I didn't realize his hearing was that good," Kriesh whispered.
"I thought he was a her," Medicham responded.
"Pierce." A Bug energy-tipped spike sprouted from both their backs.
"Skorupi!" Medicham and Kriesh rounded on the Bug-type.
"Ya had yer backs turned," Skorupi growled.
Medicham glanced at Kriesh, who glanced back. "You go right, I go left?"
"Sounds good to me," said Kriesh.
Skorupi gulped. "Well, on the other hand, ah may have overreached a little bit…"
And so the day went on.
It was late afternoon by the time Marcus called a stop. "Good work, everyone," he said. "Phantump, you'll be joining Kriesh and Skorupi in the Gym tomorrow."
"Awesome!" Phantump cried.
Marcus recalled them one by one. As he turned towards Kriesh, the Fearow's eyes narrowed. For a split second, she could have sworn she saw a pair of white eyes watching her from a faraway bush.
Then Marcus recalled her, and she brushed the thought from her mind. It was probably nothing.
She was close.
The trio of Team Flare Grunts had been the last piece in the puzzle. It was a good thing that Aliana and Mable were already heading to the Power Plant; since Betrayer-Of-Kin was on Mable's team, this had given her the perfect excuse to play the scout.
At least, that was what Mable believed. In reality, Betrayer-Of-Kin's mission was going to get a little more…messy. Hopefully not too messy.
Then again, Betrayer-Of-Kin thought as she surveyed the area, Marcus wasn't nearly as strong as some of the other Trainers she'd killed.
The indications of the fight that had taken place here was evidence enough of that. The trees and bushes were damaged, sure, ripped and scorched, but not destroyed.
Oh, Aliana and Mable had been furious when those three Grunts returned. Not just that the Grunts had exposed themselves, potentially jeopardizing the entire Power Plant operation, for the sake of a bunch of random Skorupi, but that they'd lost, and left behind all of their Pokemon as well. Some small part of Betrayer-Of-Kin had wondered if they were still there, undisturbed, but no; a trio of Ace Trainers were busily rounding up all of the clearing's occupants, separating the Skorupi and the Team Flare Pokemon, the former to be returned to their swarm, the latter to be rehabilitated or imprisoned.
All of the Team Flare Pokemon were there. All except the Houndoom, who seemed to have already disappeared. Strange, but negligible; it was probably off in the woods somewhere, wandering around, lost in a daze and dying of hunger or thirst.
Betrayer-Of-Kin had seen enough. While it was unlikely that the Ace Trainers had seen her, it wasn't beyond the realm of possibility. And so she stepped back, taking care not to brush against any loud branches or leaves, and resumed her journey towards Coumarine City.
Towards Marcus.
Third arc done! Honestly, I'm not sure about this chapter; I took a few risks writing it, and I think it turned out well, but if you all could let me know what you thought of it, and of this arc in general, please do let me know in a review.
The 'every-other-day' update schedule is working out quite well so far. I should be continuing it for the foreseeable future.
See you in two days for the start of the fourth arc, otherwise known as 'Converging Paths'!