I'll be honest - I'm not entirely fond of Chapter 76. I enjoyed writing it, to be sure, and I feel like I got down what I wanted to get down, but it feels wrong somehow, and looking back at it, I feel like it's one of the weakest chapters in this fic.
So, to make up for it, I present to you this 12,000 word behemoth of a chapter.
Seriously, why do I even bother trying to keep to a target word count anymore?
Wind filled Kriesh's wings as she soared through the midmorning sky, flying above the great towers and numerous streets of Lumiose City. At this height, Kriesh could see that the entire city was laid out like a massive wheel, the Prism Tower in the center and countless streets radiating out from it in a circle, buildings of all shapes and sizes rising up between them. Here and there Kriesh could see grassy patches, and Trainers and Pokemon walked all over the city, looking like ants from this height.
It should have been enjoyable. And yet it wasn't. For Kriesh couldn't help but remember last time she'd been in flight like this. Her encounter with Valerie and Jaya, her capture by the Firebreather Swarm…
Last time Marcus wasn't with me.
The Trainer was riding on Kriesh's back, held in place by the straps of Flying energy that came with the Fly technique. He would be attending this battle alone. He'd asked Connie, Theo, and Serena if they wanted to come - they might not have been able to fit on Kriesh, but Calem could have teleported them - but Connie had spoken up, explaining that the Gym Leader rematch was not a place for the Gym Trainers; most Gym Leaders preferred more privacy for their rematches.
She's definitely quite knowledgeable about these things. Though, having been a Gym Trainer for several years, that's to be expected. All the same, though, I'm sure Marcus wishes he had them along.
It was clear he'd grown accustomed to having an audience during his battles.
"Almost there, Kriesh," said Marcus as Kriesh winged past the Prism Tower, twisting her head away to avoid the sun reflecting into her eyes. Kriesh knew the intent was to soothe her after the fairly lengthy flight, but Fly was far from a draining technique; Kriesh could have kept going for another hour at least before fatigue even began to set in.
Still, she welcomed the encouragement. It soothed her. Reminded her that Marcus was here. That no Firebreather Swarm would be coming this time.
Lumiose City rapidly disappeared behind them, replaced with the swampy terrain of Route 14. This is where we met Heliolisk, Kriesh recalled. Her eyes narrowed. When was the last time I thought of him?
She drove him from her mind. Unlike the still very much alive Ripper, Heliolisk was long gone, buried under the rubble of Team Flare's base at Geosenge. Last she'd heard, cleanup efforts were still ongoing. Idly Kriesh wondered if they'd found his body yet.
Now they were low enough that a few Trainers on the path saw them flying overhead. Kriesh felt slightly embarrassed at the pointing and surprised cries. At one point a Trainer, dressed in a flight suit and riding a Tropius, rose up next to them and offered a battle. Marcus agreed, as long as the Trainer waited until he was done with his business in Laverre. The Trainer grinned and descended; the thought of that battle awaiting once Marcus had finished his rematch with Valerie excited Kriesh and spurred her onwards.
At last Laverre City came within view, the familiar pink-walled Gym with the tree growing out the top clearly visible in the center. At Marcus's urging, Kriesh descended; by now she was fairly experienced with flying, and she landed on the street in front of the Gym with nary a bobble, drawing a few interested glances from passersby.
"Good work, Kriesh," said Marcus, hopping off her back. "I'm gonna recall you now, okay? I'll release you again once we get to wherever we're battling - you can watch with the rest of the team."
Kriesh nodded in acceptance. Marcus recalled her into her Luxury Ball, then quickly stepped into the Gym. Kriesh remembered that this Gym had been laid out as a bunch of small rooms, linked together via panels that summoned a teleporting Clefable.
Right on cue, that very Clefable warped into the center of the room. "Hello. Yes, you can understand me. I have been trained to - oh, it's you."
"You remember me?" Marcus asked.
"Valerie's been waiting for you," said Clefable. "Do you mind if I take you to her?"
"Not at all," said Marcus. Clefable waddled up to Marcus, raised up a hand to touch his pants leg, and in a flash they were standing in another room.
Valerie was incredibly recognizable; by now Kriesh was legitimately wondering if she ever took that costume of hers off. It was a pretty costume, the pink and yellow and black combining to form a beautiful display, but Kriesh could not imagine that Valerie didn't find it unwieldy in some way. The Laverre City Gym Leader was sitting behind a small desk, looking over some papers with a small frown on her face; she looked up at the sound of Clefable teleporting in, and the frown disappeared as she beheld the Trainer standing next to the teleporting Fairy-type.
"Ah, Marcus," Valerie said lightly. "It is good to see you again. I have a feeling I know what you're here for."
"You bet," said Marcus. "I'm ready when you are."
"I have no doubt," said Valerie. "I am prepared as well - I've been keeping my real team on me. Shall we?"
"Sure thing," said Marcus. "Where are we headed?"
In answer, Valerie stepped out from behind the small desk. "Clefable, field 4. An outdoor battle strikes my fancy today."
Clefable nodded. "Right away, mistress Valerie." Valerie stepped up to Clefable; Clefable reached out, touched one hand to Marcus and the other to Valerie, and once more teleported, this time outside.
Kriesh wasted no time in surveying their surroundings. They were standing in a lush grassy plain that Kriesh estimated was a couple hundred feet across and a hundred feet wide, with forest on two sides and the buildings of Laverre City on the other two. "If you will give me a few minutes to brief my team," said Valerie. Marcus accepted with a nod. "Clefable, please return to your post," Valerie added.
As Valerie turned and stepped away, leaving Clefable to disappear into thin air with the telltale sound of teleportation, Marcus glanced at the four Luxury Balls on his belt that held his four Dark-types. "Remember, you've discussed this," he said. "Stick to the plan. Pangoro first, the rest as you go along. Pangoro, remember, prioritize Bullet Punch, but don't be afraid to mix it up…"
Kriesh's mind wandered as Marcus continued to speak to the four Dark-types. She'd heard the strategy; the four of them had spent a large part of yesterday at dinner discussing it. Rather, she focused on a road she could see to her right; at least three Trainers had stopped moving, eyes wide as they beheld their Gym Leader and another Trainer standing on the field, clearly recognizing that a battle was about to take place.
As Kriesh watched, a fourth Trainer moved out from behind a nearby building and began striding over towards them. Kriesh's eyes swiveled towards the Trainer. The new arrival was female, with brown hair that shone in the sunlight, and was walking with clear purpose. Kriesh felt the stirrings of recognition, but couldn't place the figure at first. But as the figure moved closer, more of her features coming into view, the feelings grew more and more, and then with a jolt a name slid into Kriesh's head and she gasped.
Jaya? What's she doing here? Didn't she already battle Valerie?
All of her worries suddenly surged forth again. She wasn't ready for this meeting! She barely noticed Marcus seeing Jaya stepping up. "Hello," he said uncertainly.
"Hi," said Jaya. "Hi, Valerie."
"Hello, Jaya," said Valerie. "Marcus, this is Jaya; Jaya, Marcus. You two will be getting to know each other quite well in the next couple weeks, I believe."
"You're doing the Gym Exam too?" Jaya asked.
"Yeah," said Marcus. "You here to battle Valerie as well?"
"No, already did that," said Jaya. "I'm just staying in Laverre. Only a week or so left until the Gym Exam...heading somewhere else would just feel like a waste of time at this point, at least to me."
"I get it," said Marcus. "So...Jaya, huh? I think I've heard the name somewhere, but I'm afraid I can't place it."
"Type specialty?" Jaya asked.
"Dark," said Marcus. "You?"
"Flying," said Jaya. "That's actually why I'm here…I saw you come in."
Kriesh felt her heart drop to the deepest pit of her stomach; she muttered a string of rapid-fire curses. Please don't send me out, please don't send me out…
"So you saw Kriesh?" Marcus asked.
"That's your Fearow's name?" Jaya asked. Marcus nodded; Jaya smiled slightly. "You the nicknaming type, too?"
"Not really," said Marcus. "She just told me that's what she wanted to be called."
Jaya snickered. "Can I…see her?"
Damn it!
"Sure," said Marcus. "Come on out, Kriesh."
And then Kriesh was standing out on the field, facing a Trainer she had always dreamed of seeing again and yet wanted nothing more than to run away from.
Kriesh breathed in deeply, fought back the nervousness that threatened to strangle her and forced herself to stare up into Jaya's eyes. The expression she saw swept all that nervousness away; she remembered the sadness and regret from their last meeting, but up close, Kriesh could see wistfulness glistening in her eyes, and she instinctively knew that memories of a calm, trouble-less past were sweeping through Jaya's mind.
Oh, Jaya…it's been so long…
"Hello, Kriesh." Jaya knelt down, reaching out a hand. Marcus started, mouth opening; Jaya's hand touched Kriesh's cheek, her fingers reaching for the spot between the end of her beak and her eye. The spot she'd always rubbed when Kriesh was only a Spearow. For a few moments she was Three again, leaning into Jaya's soft touch as the woman gently brushed her fingers along the side of her face.
Marcus's mouth closed. "I…can't say I've ever seen her do that," he said.
Jaya looked up. "The Spearow line likes to be brushed on this spot," she said. "The sweet spot's different for other Flying-types - Pidgeot, for example, enjoy being petted on the black curved shape behind their eyes, and Dodrio prefer under the central chin, just to name a few."
"I'll have to try it sometime," said Marcus.
Jaya shifted and touched her hand to the same spot on the other side of Kriesh's face. "Does she fly often?"
"Not…as much as she'd prefer," Marcus admitted. "I tried letting her out on a solo flight once…she wound up getting assaulted by a gang of wild Pokemon, and since then I've been a bit more cautious."
"Fair enough," said Jaya. "You don't just use her to fly, then?"
"No, she's one of my strongest battlers," said Marcus.
"Marcus." Valerie's voice broke in. "I am ready for our battle."
"Yes, right, sorry," said Marcus. "So…you staying here?"
"Of course," said Jaya. "After all, it always pays to scope out the competition."
"Well, then, I'll be sure to give you a show." Marcus released the rest of his team, save for his four Dark-types. "All right, you know the drill. Watch and learn. Don't interfere."
Kriesh's eyes followed the rest of the team as they moved to the side of the field. Medicham and Kamado both shot slightly worried glances at Kriesh and Jaya as they moved. Kriesh took another deep breath, her nervousness flaring up again.
"It's okay," she heard Jaya whisper. "Don't be scared."
Kriesh looked back up at Jaya. The brown-haired woman's smile grew saddened. "You remind me of someone I knew," said Jaya. "A long time ago."
Kriesh saw a tear drip from Jaya's left eye, and instinctively shifted her beak forwards, gently wiping it away. Jaya stared at her. "She…she used to do that," the brown-haired woman whispered. "Whenever I was sad…"
Alarm filled Kriesh. Jaya…I want you to recognize me so badly…and yet at the same time I don't. Because I'm scared…scared that I'll have to choose between you and Marcus.
But thankfully, after a few moments, Jaya sighed. "Thank you, Kriesh," she said, rising to her feet. "I'll let my team out to watch as well, if that's all right."
Kriesh looked to Medicham. "Medicham," she said. "Ja…she wants to release her Pokemon nearby. Just letting you know."
"No problem," said Medicham.
Kriesh turned back to Jaya and nodded; smiling, Jaya ran her fingers across the half-dozen small blue-and-white Pokeballs that lay on her waist, and six Pokemon materialized. The Talonflame, Flare, that Kriesh remembered from Jaya's battle with Valerie emerged first; alongside him came a Skarmory, Crobat, Unfeazant, Sigilyph, and Emolga. The half-dozen Flying-types quickly settled down next to the field, standing a short distance away from Marcus's team.
As Jaya moved over to her team and sat down on the grass, Kriesh stepped next to Medicham. The Fighting/Psychic-type's gaze was locked on the field as Marcus and Valerie squared off. But as Kriesh sat down, Medicham's telepathic voice sounded in her head. "That's her, isn't it?"
Kriesh half-considered denying it, but knew it would be fruitless; Medicham's query was quite clearly rhetorical. "Yeah," she responded.
Medicham paused for a moment. "I understand," she said. "It's a shock, I know. But…take it from me. Don't let something as foolish as this weigh you down."
Kriesh sighed. "I'll…think about it, okay?"
"All right," said Medicham reluctantly. Kriesh felt a stab of guilt as she turned away from Medicham; she'd been lucky that Marcus hadn't really recognized Jaya's name, and yet at the same time she felt ashamed for allowing that ignorance to remain.
I can handle that later, Kriesh thought. But as the battle began and both combatants released their first Pokemon - Pangoro for Marcus, an Azumarill for Valerie - Kriesh's gaze swiveled back towards Jaya, who was focused on Pangoro with an analytic expression on her face.
I'm glad you're doing well, Jaya. And…Kriesh sighed. Even though I don't want to have to choose between you and Marcus, I'm glad I get to see you again.
Pangoro eyed his opponent with no small amount of trepidation. The rotund, squat Water/Fairy-type didn't look like that much of a threat. Its stubby limbs, happy expression, and twitching black nose didn't do much to sell its threat level either.
Pangoro knew that this Azumarill would not be a pushover. That much was a given, considering they were facing a team that was meant to spar against the Elite Four. But it was hard to imagine how strong this Pokemon could be.
"Interesting," said Valerie. "A Dark/Fighting-type to face a Fairy-type Trainer?"
"It's not like I'm gonna hand-craft my team specifically to beat you," said Marcus.
Valerie smiled widely. "Good. As the challenger, you make the first move."
"All right!" Marcus grinned. "Pangoro, this is serious, okay? So let's start off with a Work Up!"
Pangoro crouched; with a snarl of "Battle Aura", he allowed energy to flow from his body, bursting forth around him in an aura, strengthening his power. Over the past two months, he and Marcus had worked together to enhance Battle Aura; Marcus's goal had been to transform what had once been a last-ditch gambit into a more instinctive strength-boosting move, and though it felt strange to use Battle Aura so early in a fight, Pangoro would freely admit that it was nowhere near the massive drain on his stamina that it had been two months ago.
"Setting up, are we?" Valerie asked. "Well, let's not beat around the bush, shall we? Azumarill, Belly Drum!"
The rotund Water/Fairy-type nodded slowly as he processed the order. He raised one foot and slammed it into the ground, creating a small crater into which the foot sank. Then he did the same with the other. Clenching his fists, Azumarill spread his arms, exposing his full girth.
Pangoro had no idea what Azumarill was doing, but he had no intention of letting it happen. His Battle Aura flaring around him, Pangoro lunged, feet pounding across the arena as he raised a fist, using Iron Fist to harden his knuckles to the rigidity and power of a solid steel block. "Iron Fist: Crushing Blow!"
Azumarill, eyes narrowed, raised both arms and brought them down into his own stomach.
A hollow boom echoed out from Azumarill; he staggered, his improvised foothills keeping him standing as he spat out a small mouthful of blood. Azumarill doubled over, hanging for a moment, seemingly overcome by his own technique.
And then he raised his head to the sky and roared as an aura of power burst forth from his body, radiating outwards in a blaze of gray-white Normal energy. The entire ground seemed to shake under the force of Azumarill's roar, and the wind from the aura buffeted Pangoro a bit, slowing him down. He gritted his teeth and continued onwards, fist drawn back.
He was so close.
Pangoro leaped, bringing his Crushing Blow down onto Azumarill's form. Azumarill's eyes flashed with light and he brought one of his stubby arms up to meet Pangoro's fist. Pangoro threw his punch, expecting it to shatter Azumarill's guard, maybe along with his arm.
But Azumarill's arm took the attack and held. Azumarill didn't even flinch. He smirked at Pangoro, though blood still dripped from his mouth.
"What…" Pangoro couldn't believe it. Sure, Crushing Blow wasn't his most powerful attack, but enhanced with Iron Fist and Battle Aura it should still hurt. Yet it seemed Azumarill's fist wasn't even stinging. In fact, Pangoro's fist was stinging slightly, as if he'd attempted to punch a solid steel structure.
"Surprised?" Azumarill asked. "I may not look like much, but Belly Drum allows me to draw out my latent strength; at the cost of quite a bit of stamina and a few broken ribs, my strength is quadrupled. And that's not even factoring in my Ability, Huge Power, which allows me to multiply my strength by two! With Huge Power and Belly Drum combined, that brings me up to eight times my normal strength!"
"Eight times?" Pangoro snarled.
"Time to show you a taste of my true power!" Azumarill grinned. "Huge Power: Dazzling Wave!"
In a flash, Azumarill hauled back with his other arm, surrounded it with Fairy and Water energy, and flung it in an uppercut straight into Pangoro's chin.
Pangoro felt pain rip through his face as his lower jaw shattered under Azumarill's punch; he let out a strangled roar of pain as he felt his feet leave the ground and his body go sailing through the air, somersaulting as it flew. He saw sky, then ground, and then sky again as his body crashed back down to the ground, sending up a massive spray of earth and dust. Pangoro groaned; his jaw was definitely broken, and a fresh wave of pain jolted through his body as he attempted to rise.
The audience collectively groaned in sympathy. Pangoro could hear whispers from the sideline. "What in the…one attack…he took down Pangoro in one attack?"
"Pangoro?" Marcus called, sudden nervousness in his voice. Though Pangoro knew he hadn't expected to win, he definitely hadn't expected that quick of a fight. "You okay?"
Pangoro forced himself to rise, putting his feet under him and raising himself off the ground. "I can still fight," he growled through his askew jaw.
There was a pause as Medicham telepathically translated from the sidelines. Marcus nodded. "Okay," he said. "Don't just rush in this time. Another hit like that and I'm recalling you."
Another hit like that and I won't be conscious enough to complain. Pangoro glared at the grinning Azumarill, raising one arm to wipe some blood off his face.
Azumarill raised one arm, revealing a large yellow Sitrus Berry. He shoved it into his mouth and bit down on it, sighing as the pain wracking him eased somewhat from the healing juices of the Sitrus Berry. He swallowed, then spoke. "I have to say, I'm a little surprised you're still standing after that," said Azumarill. "But I know your type. Raw strength, nothing more. And no amount of raw strength can overcome me once I've used Belly Drum."
"Yeah," Pangoro growled. "You're right. But that Belly Drum didn't leave you well off. Even after that Sitrus Berry, a few good hits and you'll be finished."
"True," said Azumarill. "But if you think I'm gonna let you land those hits, you're wrong. Tether Wave!"
Azumarill raised one arm and fired a tendril of Water energy from it. The tendril coiled as it flew, blossoming in midair to form a raging twisting river that lunged towards Pangoro's legs. A trapping move, meant to pin him in place while Azumarill dealt a finishing blow. He was already charging, not even waiting for his tether to hit.
Pangoro grinned through his bloody teeth. If Azumarill thought he was nothing but raw strength, the Water/Fairy-type was sorely mistaken.
"Crushing Blast!" Pangoro raised his left arm and fired a blast of Fighting energy at the oncoming tether, causing it to explode in a spray of Water energy. As it exploded he braced himself, planting his feet in the ground as Azumarill burst through the dissipating remnants of his own attack.
"Don't think I'm going to let you get off any sort of attack!" Azumarill spat. "I'll finish you off with a quick priority move! Huge Power: Swift Wave!" His body surrounded itself with Water energy as the Water/Fairy-type lunged for Pangoro's stomach.
Pangoro gritted his teeth as Azumarill closed. "I don't care about your priority move. I've got my own. Iron Fist: Bullet Blow!"
Pangoro's fist was just a hair faster than Azumarill's body. Azumarill spat blood as his body crumpled around Pangoro's punch, his feet coming so close to Pangoro's body that Pangoro felt them ruffle his fur. "Iron Fist: Bullet Blow!" Pangoro snarled, withdrawing his fist from Azumarill's stomach and hauling back with his other, readying a second swift punch to finish his opponent off.
But Azumarill's eyes flashed open in an instant. A Protect barrier sprang up, deflecting Pangoro's punch, and in that moment Azumarill dropped to the ground in a crouch. The Water/Fairy-type looked exhausted already - Belly Drum had definitely badly impacted his stamina - but determination filled his expression as he glared at Pangoro. "Geyser Wave!" Raising both hands, Azumarill expelled a recognizable Hydro Pump straight at Pangoro's face.
Pangoro raised his Iron Fist-enhanced forearm in front of himself to block Azumarill's attack, but even so it sent him stumbling backwards. Thank Arceus he can't enhance his ranged attacks with Huge Power or Belly Drum…even so, it's not like I can take many more of those even if I block them. "Dark Pulse!" Marcus ordered; quickly, Pangoro released the attack with a snarl of "Rending Blast!", forcing Azumarill to break off a charge Pangoro would never have been able to stop in favor of unleashing a quick blast of Water energy - a defensive Surf - to block the attack.
It gave Pangoro enough time to recover, but Azumarill was already flying at him as he set his stance once more. Pangoro harbored no illusions that the same trick would work twice. But that was okay. He had another one.
"Iron Fist: Bullet Blows!" Pangoro raised his arms, coating them in Steel energy, and unleashed a rapid-fire series of fast, super-effective punches upon the oncoming Azumarill.
"Superpower!" Valerie called.
Azumarill's fists flared with Fighting and Water energy. "Huge Power: Multi-Fist Wave Pummel!"
The problem with using Bullet Punch as a rapid-fire barrage, Pangoro knew, was that it ironically sacrificed speed. Oh, sure, it practically presented a solid wall of flying fists that was nearly impenetrable and could deliver brutal blows to anyone who came next to it; that was the reason he'd used the technique, after all. But the fact that it was essentially a solid wall meant that it could be undone by techniques made to break through steel walls.
And a counter-barrage of fists, enhanced with Fighting energy to give Azumarill super-effectiveness on top of his eightfold-increased strength, would break through any steel wall.
The instant the duel began, Pangoro knew he'd already lost. Punch after punch impacted against Azumarill's flying fists, and each one hurt. Pangoro was reminded of his fight with Scrafty, with the fellow Dark/Fighting-type's Moxie-boosted strength allowing his punches to break Pangoro's arms. Pangoro had toughened up a lot since then, but even so, a few punches in the right place and history would repeat.
If this duel of flying fists went on for any longer, Pangoro was done for.
"Low Sweep!" Marcus called. Pangoro at once broke off his barrage of fists and went for the swift tripping kick, but Azumarill reacted the instant his solid steel wall went down. "Huge Power: Swift Wave!"
Azumarill had the speed advantage; before Pangoro could even begin to launch another Bullet Blow, he felt Azumarill's fist cannon into his stomach, doubling him over.
"Huge Power: Dazzling Wave!"
Azumarill's other fist came at him from the side, and utter agony was the last thing Pangoro knew.
That was quick, Liepard thought as she watched Marcus recall Pangoro. Understandable, considering that Azumarill's impressive strength. But he's quite wounded. A couple more hits and he'll be finished.
And I know exactly how to deliver those hits.
"Liepard, you're in." Liepard had expected to be released. Drapion's stall-based style would just fall in the face of Azumarill's sheer might, and Houndoom's type disadvantage and frailty relative to Pangoro meant that a single eight-times boosted Water-type attack would probably be enough to severely injure him, if not outright knock him out. Liepard was the fastest member of the team, and Marcus knew that there would be no overpowering Azumarill, only outmaneuvering him.
"I see you are utilizing your new recruits first," Valerie commented.
"Is that a bad thing?" Marcus asked.
Valerie chuckled softly. "It's your battle. You decide. Azumarill, Hydro Pump."
"Dodge and Pursuit. Don't let it get close," Marcus ordered swiftly.
"Geyser Wave!"
Liepard twisted and sprang out of the way of the powerful blast of Water energy. "Poursuite!" she cried, flinging the seeking rays from her jaws. Azumarill raised a hand. "Wave Storm!" A flurry of Water Guns burst out from Azumarill's upraised fist, slamming into the seeking rays of Dark energy and dissipating them before they could hit.
"Tether Wave!" Azumarill lunged even as he fired the coiling tendril of Water energy, aiming the tether at Liepard's legs. "Farceur: Imitateur," Liepard hissed. A similar coiling tendril of energy burst from Liepard's body, slamming into Azumarill's attack. The explosion of Water energy blocked Azumarill from Liepard's sight, but Liepard smirked, for she knew it would also block her from Azumarill's sight.
Gathering her hind legs under her, Liepard leaped forwards, gathering Dark energy on her paws. Azumarill exploded out of the dissipating clash of Water energy. "Huge Power: Swift Wave!"
He hadn't expected to meet Liepard's paw. "Tranche Ventouse."
The Dark-type priority move rammed into Azumarill's face and sent him staggering. Azumarill twisted, throwing an energy-less punch at Liepard, but Liepard was swift enough to duck the blow. "Tranche Viceuse!" she cried, unleashing another swipe that carved red lines across Azumarill's stomach.
"Huge Power: Swift Wave!"
"Tranche Ventouse!"
Again Liepard's Dark-type priority move was faster than Azumarill's Water-type one. The Water/Fairy-type doubled over, coughing blood. He was still standing, something that irritated Liepard somewhat. The ineffective nature of Sucker Punch was the only reason Azumarill was standing right now, but no other move Liepard knew could outspeed Azumarill's Aqua Jets.
Still, one more good blow should do it.
"Azumarill, focus," Valerie urged. "Aqua Jet - follow my orders closely."
"Liepard, Assist!" Marcus cried. "Try and bring him down quick!"
"Farceur. Aider: Houndoom!" Liepard hissed. She knew the Dark/Fire-type had plenty of ranged attacks that would finish Azumarill off, no matter how not-very-effective they were. Unfortunately, Assist whiffed; her jaws flared with Fire energy as she accessed Fire Fang, not a very helpful attack for this situation.
"Huge Power: Swift Wave!" Azumarill pounced, taking full advantage of the whiffed move to charge, Water energy-enhanced fist drawn back.
"Tranche Ventouse!" Liepard lunged with a Sucker Punch, knowing there was no other way to counter Azumarill's move.
Valerie and Marcus cried out at the exact same time. "Protect!" "Left!"
Liepard skidded, hurling herself to the side even as her Dark energy-enhanced priority move slammed into an impenetrable barrier. Azumarill's Aqua Jet sailed over her head as Liepard twisted beneath his left fist.
"Whirlpool, left!" Valerie ordered as Azumarill's body flew past Liepard.
"Tether Wave!" Azumarill cried, raising his right paw towards Liepard as he skidded to a halt. This time Liepard's speed was only enough for her to bring up one paw to take the attack. The tendril coiled tightly around Liepard's outstretched paw. "Gotcha!" Azumarill cried, grasping his other paw around the base of the tendril. Then he yanked, and Liepard realized that in this situation, his eightfold-increased strength would in fact come into play.
The tug was hard enough that Liepard felt her leg dislocate even as she was sent flying uncontrollably forwards. Damn it…I got cocky. I didn't think Azumarill could even touch me…
"Finish it!" Valerie cried.
"I don't think so!" Marcus retorted. "Liepard, Copycat! Aim for the leg!"
Liepard clenched her jaws as her eyes fell upon Azumarill. The Water/Fairy-type had one Fairy energy-enhanced fist readied to strike her the instant she came within his range. "Farceur: Imitateur!" A line of Dark energy passed from Azumarill to Liepard, and just like last time, an identical coiling tendril of Water energy flew from Liepard's paw at Azumarill's leg.
Azumarill raised his other arm, deflecting the copied whirlpool with a swift Protect, but in that moment Liepard saw a glint of triumph in Marcus's eyes. Now I see…now I understand Marcus's plan.
Liepard raised all four paws and allowed them to take the impact as she landed sideways on Azumarill's Protect. The tendril released her leg as she bounced off the Protect and landed on the ground. "Surf, over!" Valerie called; with a bellow of "Spreading Wave!", Azumarill unleashed a massive wave of Water energy that crested over the Protect and came down onto Liepard even as she struggled to rise.
No way I'm evading that, Liepard realized. She grinned. But I don't need to.
Because before her eyes, Azumarill's Protect was fading, exposing him.
"Farceur. Aider: Houndoom."
What she got seemed to be recompense for her earlier failure in full. A blast of Poison energy, foul-tasting and worse-smelling, burst from her jaws and flew at Azumarill. Sludge Bomb. Lucky me.
"Azumarill, watch out!" Valerie cried.
Azumarill saw the Sludge Bomb coming. "Huge Power: Swift Wave!" Bereft of any ranged attack that could come out fast enough, Azumarill simply surrounded himself with Water energy and hurled himself straight into the attack.
What is he doing?
The Surf slammed into Liepard, sending her stumbling backwards under the powerful wave. It hurt, but thankfully it wasn't boosted by Azumarill's strength. Liepard could take that. She burst out of the wave as it receded, sputtering. Where's Azumarill? Under the wave?
And then the rapidly dissipating remnants of Azumarill's Surf erupted as Azumarill's body flew out.
Liepard realized two things. Firstly, Azumarill was unconscious; the Aqua Jet hadn't been enough to protect him from the Assist-granted Sludge Bomb, and the impact had been enough to knock Azumarill out.
Secondly, Azumarill's unconscious body, still boosted to eight times its usual strength, was flying directly towards Liepard, propelled by the momentum of his last-ditch priority move.
He never intended to stop the Sludge Bomb, Liepard realized. That Aqua Jet was a last-ditch gamble. A sacrificial ploy to take me out.
No Sucker Punch will stop the momentum he's carrying. And I can't leap out of the way in time. I hate to admit it…but that is quite a wonderful ploy. There's almost no way I can evade.
Almost.
Liepard's voice rose in tandem with Marcus's. "Farceur: Remplaçant!" "Substitute!"
Substitute was an incredibly tricky move. Essentially, it allowed the user to raise an illusory, but solid, decoy of themselves formed out of Normal energy near them. It was an incredibly draining move, though, for the sheer amount of energy necessary to use the move had a detrimental impact on the user's stamina, and the act of drawing that energy out had the potential to cause quite a bit of pain. Substitute was meant to be used over a period of several seconds, in order to drain the user's energy bit by bit, decreasing the amount of pain they'd have to endure. It was like tearing off a bandage; doing it slowly was a lot less painful than doing it quickly.
For that reason, it wasn't an especially popular move in combat, and Liepard preferred not to use it in the midst of a battle. Liepard knew that it was a useful move in her arsenal - after all, Prankster meant that she could form a Substitute in a split second. But she also knew this was going to hurt.
Not as much as taking Azumarill's unconscious, strength-boosted body to the face would, though.
In a flash Liepard forced the Normal energy out of her body; she bit back an agonized cry as her entire body flared with pain. The duplicate arose in front of her, and Azumarill's unconscious form slammed into it, bouncing off as the Substitute dissipated. The power of the impact was enough to cause yet another explosion of Water energy, the force of which sent Liepard stumbling backwards, but as Azumarill fell onto his back, groaning feebly, Liepard knew she'd won.
It had come at a heavy cost - between that powerful Surf and the energy she'd sacrificed for the split-second Substitute, Liepard harbored no illusions she'd be able to last very long against another of Valerie's Pokemon - but she'd won.
A frenzy of clapping and cheering filled Liepard's ears as she rose from her crouch. Liepard drank in the praise, grateful for the excitement that took some of the edge off the pain she was feeling. She could see the Flying-type Trainer sitting on the sidelines - Jaya, she recalled - frowning slightly.
"Not bad," said Valerie, recalling Azumarill. "Your adaptation is noted. Clemont told me about his Gym battle with you. Said that you froze up in the face of his Heliolisk's successful gambit - I am pleased to see you have moved past that."
"Thanks," Marcus said, sounding slightly embarrassed at Valerie's comment.
"But," said Valerie, "that was the easy part. Let's see if you can handle something a little more…tricky. Mr. Mime, come out."
Liepard narrowed her eyes as she beheld the strange-looking Psychic/Fairy-type emerge onto the field, face spread in a wide smile as he eyed his opponent. A Mr. Mime was indeed a tricky opponent, and if Valerie's comments were accurate, this one's power level was even higher than Azumarill's.
"Are you just using your Gym Leader team?" Marcus asked. "I thought you said you'd be using your real team."
"My Gym Leader team is my real team, Marcus," said Valerie. "It is merely that in this battle, they are allowed to use their full power - their entire movesets, plus items to enhance their abilities even further. A Gym Leader is regulated by the League to four Pokemon - five, in Wulfric's case. Obviously, a Gym Leader is allowed to own more than four Pokemon, but since a Gym Leader's job effectively forces them to devote most of their time to their Gym Leader team, Gym Leaders often leave the extra Pokemon in the care of friends or relatives, or elsewhere."
Liepard noticed that Medicham and the rest of the team on the sidelines looked somewhat worried by that statement.
"Do you own more than four Pokemon?" Marcus asked.
"I do," said Valerie. "I took the Gym Challenge in Johto, my home region, before becoming a Gym Leader even crossed my mind. And back then, I didn't just use Fairy-types." Her voice took on a wistful tone. "Xatu, Bellossom, and Misdreavus are still very dear to me, and I visit them often, but Johto is their home, and when I was invited to Kalos to become a Gym Leader, they and I agreed that it would be best if they remained there with my relatives."
Valerie's demeanor brightened. "But enough. We have a battle to continue, do we not?"
"Yes, we do," said Marcus. "All right, Liepard, from what I remember, this thing can turn intangible. You're going to have to rush him, hit him with so many attacks that he can't keep up."
That Liepard could do. Fury Swipes should be quite proficient in this matchup.
"Mr. Mime, you know what to do," said Valerie. Marcus grimaced.
As Liepard hurled herself forwards, Mr. Mime waved his hands in the air. Liepard spotted a piece of light green matter attached to a small band around one of Mr. Mime's arms. A Light Clay, Liepard realized. Normally when utilizing Reflect and Light Screen, one must maintain concentration on them, disrupting their other Psychic powers. But a Light Clay is able to sustain those screens all by itself, no concentration required. Liepard held back a snarl as Mr. Mime conjured forth the dual barrier of Reflect and Light Sceen around himself, their protection bathing him in a psychic glow. This isn't going to be fun.
Then a blast of Fairy energy burst forth from Mr. Mime's body, expanding as it flew so that Liepard had no chance of dodging.
"Farceur: Imitateur!" Liepard copied the attack and fired it back, dissipating the blast. She kept going, plowing through the remnants of that clash; her eyes beheld Mr. Mime standing where he was, his expression unchanged.
Intangibility, hm? Let's see how that fares against this.
"Tranche Furieuse!" Liepard lunged, paws flaring with Normal energy, ready to strike with a flurry that would overwhelm whatever defense Mr. Mime could present.
At least, that was the plan.
Mr. Mime stuck out a hand, and a section of the ground directly under Liepard suddenly lost all solidity.
She cried out in surprise and alarm as her front legs sunk into the ground. It was still there, the earth as forbidding as ever, and yet she could not feel it; it was as if-
As if it was intangible. Marcus's didn't mention that!
Mr. Mime waved another hand, and Liepard felt the ground resolidify around her legs just as her stomach was about to sink into the earth. In an instant she was buried up to her shoulders in the earth. Snarling, she tried to wrench herself free, but raw strength was not her strong suit, and she was unable to shift the vast amount of earth entrapping her front legs.
A sound of movement disturbed Liepard. She looked up to see Mr. Mime staring at her, one hand reaching out to almost touch her face, his palm lighting up with Fighting energy.
"Merde," Liepard murmured, unable to do anything to escape the Focus Blast that Mr. Mime tossed right between her eyes.
Houndoom let out a disappointed snarl as he saw Liepard's unconscious body being recalled from Mr. Mime's trap. He hadn't expected her to win, but he'd been hoping the pure Dark-type could deal at least some damage before going down.
"Once again, it pleases me that you have learned from previous battles," said Valerie. "It is an important trait to have…but you cannot rely on it. After all, you are not the only one who can learn."
"Since when could Mr. Mime do that?" Marcus asked.
"Filter gives Mr. Mime the power of intangibility," Valerie explained. "While in our Gym Battle he only used it to give himself intangibility, in truth he can cause anything to become intangible. You see, Marcus, that Abilities are not necessarily limited to what one immediately thinks of when they learn about them."
Houndoom frowned at that. Flash Fire seemed like such a simple Ability - control over Fire energy would never not be a good thing - and he had been following Medicham's example in trying to create objects with it. But was there more to it than that? Food for thought.
"All right, then," said Marcus. "Guess melee won't work too well…Houndoom, you're up!"
Houndoom materialized on the field with eyes narrowed at Mr. Mime. Marcus was right; no way was he getting anywhere near that thing. And yet, with the defensive abilities Houndoom knew Mr. Mime had and the Light Clay-sustained screens that still enveloped his body, at range it would take a very long time to deal with Mr. Mime.
Overwhelm him.
"Flash Fire: Flame Storm!" Houndoom let fly with a barrage of Embers, grasping onto them with Flash Fire in midair. With his level of control, it wasn't easy, but he still managed to manipulate them, expanding them into a vaguely hemispherical cloud before hurling them from several different directions at Mr. Mime, staggered so that he couldn't just turn intangible and allow all of the Fire energy-formed motes to pass through his body.
He was disappointed when Mr. Mime simply unleashed an overpowered Psychic that collected all the Embers and dispersed them in midair. "Thunderbolt," Valerie ordered; Mr. Mime let fly with a blisteringly fast blast of Electric energy that Houndoom met with a Flame Tongue. His innate capabilities with Fire energy would have given him the advantage, but Mr. Mime's greater power meant that the two attacks were stalemated.
At least until Mr. Mime waved another hand, and even though Houndoom was still firing his Flame Tongue, the Thunderbolt suddenly burst forth as if it was encountering no resistance whatsoever, blasting through the center of the Flame Tongue and scoring a direct hit on Houndoom's face.
Houndoom staggered, but managed to keep his footing. Did he…did he just turn my attack intangible? How many uses does that Ability of his have?
As Houndoom glared at Mr. Mime once more, he spotted the Psychic/Fairy-type stooping, breathing in and out hard. So using his Ability in that way is difficult for him…at least there's that.
But even as Houndoom raised himself, shaking his head to clear the pain that the blast of Electric energy had caused, Mr. Mime arose as well, Fighting energy glinting in both hands. The Psychic/Fairy-type swiftly fired two Focus Blasts at Houndoom, and Houndoom was at once forced onto the defensive. He twisted, avoiding one of the blasts of Fighting energy and countering the other with a well-placed Flame Tongue.
Mr. Mime pressed, unleashing a barrage of attacks that Houndoom was hard-pressed to avoid. Another blast of Fighting energy went sailing past Houndoom's cheek, another Thunderbolt passed so close Houndoom felt the hairs on his back stand on end from the Electric energy, and he was forced to unleash another Flame Tongue to counter a Dazzling Gleam, nearly costing him a hit from another blast of Fighting energy. This is getting nowhere! There's no way I can beat him in a ranged duel, not with his arsenal!
Marcus seemed to think the same thing. "Inferno!" he cried. "Then get in close!"
"Flash Fire: Flame Surge!" Houndoom snarled, unleashing a massive blaze of Fire energy from his jaws. He manipulated it as it flew, expanding it to engulf Mr. Mime. Try deflecting this with Psychic.
He didn't see what happened to Mr. Mime as the Psychic/Fairy-type disappeared under the flames of his Flame Surge. But the lack of pained cries indicated that he'd escaped somehow. Tapping into his Ability once more, Houndoom dispersed the flames, expecting to see Mr. Mime encased in some kind of barrier.
Instead, Mr. Mime wasn't there at all.
"What?" Houndoom snarled. He could see Marcus was similarly surprised, while Valerie was chuckling behind one hand and the audience were watching intently. What in Distortion just happened? Where did that Mr. Mime go?
"Brick Break," Valerie ordered.
Houndoom's eyes widened in shock as Mr. Mime leaped upwards from the earth directly in front of him, one hand drawn back; he didn't have any time to react before Mr. Mime slammed a Fighting energy-infused palm into his forehead. Again Houndoom was sent skidding backwards; he at least retained enough presence of mind to deflect Mr. Mime's follow-up Focus Blast with a Flame Tongue, but now he was really starting to feel the pain.
He turned himself intangible and dropped through the ground…but then how did he stop himself from falling? And furthermore, when he turns intangible like he did in Drapion's fight with him, how does he stop himself from dropping through the ground?
He shook his head. No time to ponder the inner workings of Mr. Mime's Ability; the second half of Marcus's command was still unfulfilled.
Get in close.
"Dark Jaws!" Houndoom leaped at Mr. Mime, teeth flaring with Dark energy as he sailed through the air. Mr. Mime saw him coming, and only now did he finally activate the basic use of Filter, turning himself intangible and allowing Houndoom's flying body to fly right through him.
Houndoom had expected it, though, and twisted even as he flew. As he landed, readying for another attack, a thought came to him.
What if he's not turning entirely intangible? What if his body's turning intangible…but his feet aren't? That would prevent him from falling through the ground…
But it leaves his feet vulnerable. If I can bait him into that again, then target the feet, I'll actually be able to land a hit on this thing.
"Dark Pummel!" Houndoom unleashed a flurry of Dark-type strikes on Mr. Mime, but the Psychic/Fairy-type was once again prepared. A barrier of Psychic energy - a Protect - flew up between Houndoom and Mr. Mime, and as Houndoom scrabbled against it, Mr. Mime stepped backwards, forming another blast of Fighting energy in his left hand.
"Flash Fire: Flame Surge!" Houndoom unleashed another massive burst of Fire energy as the Protect dropped and Mr. Mime fired his Focus Blast. The consuming wave of flames swallowed the Fighting energy whole, and this time Houndoom saw Mr. Mime as he turned intangible, dropping into the ground and avoiding the Flame Surge entirely.
He's probably making his feet solid under there as well. That's how he stops falling partway underground.
"I know that trick this time, Valerie!" Marcus cried. "Houndoom, get ready - let's use those new moves we've been trying out!"
"Right!" Houndoom growled, bracing himself. His power to form constructs with his Ability was as of yet too untested for him to use it consistently, but even a single shield would do wonders against Mr. Mime's next attack.
But where is he coming from?
And then pain suddenly exploded across Houndoom's stomach as Mr. Mime leaped out of the earth directly underneath him, one fist outstretched and planted in Houndoom's midsection. Houndoom was tossed into the air, flailing wildly. "Flamethrower, underneath you!" Marcus cried.
Marcus's order brought Houndoom back to reality; swiftly, he twisted in midair, glaring down at Mr. Mime beneath him. "Flash Fire: Flame Tongue!"
Mr. Mime raised his head, looking up at the oncoming flames. Grinning, he raised an arm into the air and summoned a Protect. But in that moment, Houndoom tapped into Flash Fire, grasping the flames and splitting them into two streams, arcing around Mr. Mime's Protect and coming at him from either side.
"Substitute!" Valerie's swift order was met with an eruption of Normal energy coming from Mr. Mime. The Psychic/Fairy-type stumbled backwards as the coalescing streams impacted the Normal energy-formed duplicate. As it had been with Liepard, Mr. Mime had clearly not come away unscathed from creating such a quick Substitute. It may have been self-inflicted, but at least it was damage, the first Mr. Mime had taken in this entire battle.
Houndoom grinned, a second before gravity began to reassert itself and he realized he was still in the air.
"Oh, craaaaa-" His snarl was cut off by the crash as he landed, sending up a spray of dust as he slammed into the ground. Growling, he rose to his feet, trying his best to ignore the pain that now seemed spread across his entire body.
Mr. Mime had not been idle. Even as the dust cleared, Mr. Mime unleashed another barrage of mingled ranged attacks that Houndoom had to scurry away from. This time, though, Houndoom had a plan. First things first. Draw him into a close-range fight.
"Dark Surge!" Houndoom growled, lunging forwards before the Dark-type ranged attack had even hit its mark. He couldn't launch another Flame Surge, or Mr. Mime would just retreat underground again. Sure enough, Mr. Mime simply blasted the Dark Surge away with a wave of Fairy energy; Houndoom unleashed a Flame Storm to deflect the remnants of that attack and dove through, jaws flaring with Fire energy.
Mr. Mime leaped forwards, turning intangible with Filter as he did so and allowing Houndoom to dive through his dematerialized body. Houndoom grinned. Just as planned.
"Flash Fire: Flame Blade!"
The Fire energy curling around Houndoom's jaws swept outwards, coalescing into the vague shape of a sword. Even as Houndoom soared through Mr. Mime's intangible body, the sword remained, suspended in midair. Houndoom landed on the ground, twisted, and with a swift mental effort, plunged his Flame Blade down through Mr. Mime's intangible body and into his foot.
From Mr. Mime's sudden howl of pain, he'd been right on the money about Filter's limitations.
Valerie's eyes widened as Mr. Mime screamed; the noise was incredibly unnerving after Mr. Mime's constant silence, and it actually startled Houndoom somewhat. Blood sprayed from Mr. Mime's foot as the Flame Blade seared into the wound, causing even more pain as it effectively cauterized the wound. Houndoom would have winced in sympathy if Mr. Mime's fighting style hadn't been so annoying; as it was, Houndoom couldn't help but feel a sense of catharsis at finally, finally, managing a solid hit against the frustratingly evasive Psychic/Fairy-type.
That euphoria faded as Mr. Mime turned to face Houndoom, the glare on the Psychic/Fairy-type's face downright murderous. He jabbed both hands out, and it was only then that Houndoom realized he had all four paws on the ground and wasn't moving.
Crap.
The ground fell out from beneath him, and just like Liepard, Houndoom plunged for a couple of terrifying seconds before the earth resolidified. Unlike Liepard, all four legs were consumed in the dirt, sunk in thigh-deep.
Mr. Mime grinned nastily, spreading both hands to reveal gathering Focus Blasts. Houndoom gritted his teeth. "Flash Fire…"
Mr. Mime tossed both Focus Blasts, the two spheres of Fighting energy twirling artfully around one another as they arced towards Houndoom.
"Flame Barrier."
To Houndoom's profound relief, Fire energy burst out from his jaws and spread into a rectangular barrier; both Focus Blasts impacted against it, and the sheer power behind the technique would have been enough to break through had Houndoom not poured more Fire energy from his jaws into the barrier, keeping it standing against the attack.
I think I can land one more hit against this thing. But I have to get it to attack me in melee.
No sooner had the thought run through his head than an explosion of Psychic energy ripped through the barrier, revealing Mr. Mime leaping for Houndoom's immobilized body, hand drawn back for a Fighting energy-infused open-palm strike.
"Wait, Mr. Mime!" Valerie cried, but Mr. Mime's anger at Houndoom had overridden common sense. Houndoom grinned as Mr. Mime's palm streaked out.
"Got you. Solar Surge."
The Power Herb around his neck flashed. After two months, and with plenty of tutelage from Kriesh, Houndoom had finally managed to do it. He'd decreased the time he needed to use Solar Surge without his Power Herb to the time he'd initially taken to use Solar Surge with it. Which meant that with the Power Herb, he could summon forth a Solar Surge in so little time that it practically resembled a priority move.
And at this distance, in his state, Mr. Mime had no time to defend.
Mr. Mime screamed again, an unearthly scream, but Houndoom barely had time to grin before Mr. Mime's palm slammed into his forehead once again, and this time it was enough to send him tumbling headlong into unconsciousness.
"Drapion. You're last."
Drapion grinned as he was finally unleashed onto the battlefield. His opponent stood before him, looking like an absolute wreck.
Mr. Mime was staggering. His left foot had a gaping, bloody wound that still had smoke rising from it. The upper half of his body was seared from Houndoom's last Solar Surge. And from the trembling of his legs and the rapid rise and fall of his chest, he was barely keeping himself from toppling to the ground.
But Mr. Mime was still standing. Reflect and Light Screen still wreathed his body in a purple glow, still kept sustained by that Light Clay of his all this time. And he looked absolutely livid.
"Mr. Mime," said Valerie. "Would you like to be recalled?"
Mr. Mime turned to look at his Trainer. He stared at her for a moment and gave a swift shake of his head.
"Very well," said Valerie. "Be careful. You have faced this one before; you know his capabilities."
Mr. Mime's grin was savage as he turned to face Drapion. The Psychic/Fairy-type clenched his fists. Drapion crouched warily; the calm, calculating, and cheerful Mr. Mime was gone, replaced with a wrathful monster that Drapion had no doubt was mulling over the best ways to inflict maximum pain on his new opponent. Mr. Mime's face was shrouded in shadows. Drapion watched him, knowing he was plotting something. The only question was what.
Wait a minute. He's plotting…nastily…
"Are ya kiddin' me?" Drapion snarled as an aura of Ghost energy blazed to life around Mr. Mime.
"Nasty Plot!" Marcus realized out loud the same thing Drapion had just figured out.
"Indeed," said Valerie. "You should feel honored…Mr. Mime only uses that when he gets very serious."
Drapion gulped. Somehow I don't feel honored.
With one final smirk, Mr. Mime let fly with a barrage of ranged attacks that flew at Drapion veritably crackling with power. Nasty Plot was a complicated technique that created an energy reserve in the mind of the user, allowing them to pour more energy and therefore power into their ranged attacks. Drapion had heard it was regarded as one of the most powerful strength-boosting moves in the world, able to turn any ranged attacker into a nigh-unstoppable force.
There's no way I'm standing back here and letting him bombard me with those boosted attacks. I have to get up close.
"Block!" Drapion snarled. "Burrow!" As his Protect barrier deflected a blast of mixed Fairy and Electric energy, Drapion raised his arms and slammed them into the ground, disappearing into the earth as Mr. Mime's barrage sailed overhead.
Drapion moved forwards, tunneling through the ground. He couldn't hear Mr. Mime above him. The silence unnerved him even more than the look on Mr. Mime's face had. Where is he? Why can't I detect him? Drapion moved forwards, shoving earth aside, but still no motion came from above him.
He has to be here somewhere. But if he's above me, I would have heard him moving. Which means he's not above me…
A cold chill ran down Drapion's spine. Slowly, he turned as best he could in the confines of his tunnel to look back at the narrow corridor he'd made.
Mr. Mime wasn't entirely shrouded in shadow. Sure, the faint beams of sunlight streaming in from above backlit his body, allowing his piercing white eyes and their tiny black pupils to stand out against the darkness that wreathed his form. But Drapion could just barely make out Mr. Mime's features - the tightly clenched fists, the not-quite calm posture, the smile that was ever so slightly too wide for his face.
Not much could scare Drapion. The Swarmlord, evil Legendaries…those frightened him. But most of the time, he'd face whatever threatened him with, if anything, a feeling of thrill, excitement for what he knew would be a difficult but enjoyable fight.
But as Mr. Mime began to slowly step down the tunnel towards him, Drapion felt utter terror strike at his heart and freeze his limbs solid.
The dark specter approached, readying two Focus Blasts, one in each hand. Drapion shrank back against the tunnel wall behind him. He was trapped, stuck in a prison of his own making, at the complete mercy of this monster of a Mr. Mime…
Wait a minute.
Drapion peered closer at Mr. Mime. At his wounded foot, his singed body, his stumble as he stalked towards Drapion.
"Yer…" Drapion snarled. "Yer so wounded ya can barely stand…" He peeled himself away from the wall. "Ya think ya can beat me like this?"
Mr. Mime's smile, if possible, grew even wider.
"Ah don't think so," Drapion snarled. "Ya think ya got me trapped? Well…yer dead wrong. Yer the one who's trapped. Rend!"
Drapion launched himself at Mr. Mime. Mr. Mime tossed his twin blasts of Fighting energy at Drapion, but Drapion countered with a swift Protect, taking the two blasts and continuing onwards. Mr. Mime's eyes widened; he unleashed a swift blast of Fairy energy at Drapion, but Drapion plowed right through it, ignoring the stinging against his face.
His jaws clamped down on Mr. Mime, and a gout of Normal energy exploded in his face.
Damn it! Substitute!
Ass the burst of Normal energy dissipated, Drapion saw the real Mr. Mime, the too-wide smile still adorning his face, standing practically arm's length away, the Ghost-type aura of Nasty Plot enshrouding him, both hands outstretched in front of him, wrists together and palms facing outwards, fingers cupped slightly, Normal energy glowing brightly in them.
Oh, crap.
The Hyper Beam exploded out from Mr. Mime's hands. "Battle Armor!" Drapion snarled, summoning as many chitin reserves as he could to cover his face, but even so the blisteringly powerful attack drove into him and sent him skidding back down the tunnel. More than that, Drapion felt pain sear across his face as the Nasty Plot-boosted Hyper Beam struck him, and then his back as it sent him into the wall of his tunnel. Drapion roared out in agony.
I can't let him win!
The thought burst through his mind as the beam receded. Drapion opened his eyes to see Mr. Mime priming another dual Focus Blast. "Pierce!" he bellowed. "No Escape! Blast!"
A flurry of Bug energy-laced spines, seeking Dark-type rays, and an X-shaped burst of Poison energy flew down the tunnel at Mr. Mime. Mr. Mime crouched, then leaped upwards, disappearing into the roof via Filter. The spikes missed entirely, as did the blast, while the seeking rays curved upwards only to break against the ceiling of the tunnel.
And then Mr. Mime dropped back into view, dropping his Filter as he landed nearer to Drapion, his Focus Blasts still primed. It was an impressive maneuver, Drapion had to admit. And if he'd been at full health, it would have worked perfectly.
But Mr. Mime's foot was still injured. And as he landed, for the tiniest of moments, all of his weight was on that injured foot. Mr. Mime staggered, emanating a gasp of pain.
That's all I need.
Drapion charged once more, and this time there was no escape for Mr. Mime.
Oh, sure, he tried. A Protect barrier stymied Drapion for just a moment, and in that moment Mr. Mime did the same trick he'd done against Houndoom, dropping back and firing a Focus Blast the instant the barrier went down. But whereas Houndoom had been forced to break off his attack, Drapion simply activated his Battle Armor and charged straight through it. In this narrow, cramped tunnel, there was no way Mr. Mime could dodge with Filter; Drapion would just step on his still-tangible feet.
So instead, Mr. Mime flung himself forwards with a terrifying shriek, firing a Fighting energy-enhanced palm into Drapion's face in the vain hope that it would stop him.
It hurt. It hurt like Distortion. But Drapion came on, head lowered, and slammed it into Mr. Mime. Mr. Mime staggered, gagging, and Drapion hauled back, summoning his chitinous reserves to his left arm.
"Battle Armor: Slam."
Drapion threw his punch as hard as he could into Mr. Mime's midsection, and Mr. Mime was sent flying down the length of the tunnel, arms and legs outstretched comically, the evil grin finally, finally, gone from his face.
He slammed into the opposite wall, bounced off, and fell to the ground face-first, lying motionless on the dirt. Drapion sagged. Adrenaline had been keeping him going, but now he could feel the full extent of the pain ripping through his body. He was more built to take melee strikes; those Nasty Plot-boosted ranged attacks had not done wonders for his health, and though his Black Sludge was working, numbing the pain and closing his wounds, it could only help so much.
Slowly, Drapion rose. He ambled towards Mr. Mime's body, picked it up, and with a great heave tossed it out onto the surface. As he arose himself, he caught Marcus trying and failing to hide a sigh of relief; the cheers of the crowd were music to his ears as he blinked in the sudden burst of sunlight.
Valerie recalled Mr. Mime. "I won't pretend to know what happened down there," she said. "But whatever it was, I'm sure it was impressive. You've raised a very good team, Marcus."
"Thanks," said Marcus. "Drapion…you good to go a little longer?"
Drapion knew he was in pain, but he knew he also still had stamina left in his body. He nodded. "Yeah."
Valerie looked a little surprised, but nonetheless, her fingers went to another Pokeball. "If that's the case…let's finish it quickly. Mawile, don't hold back."
Drapion recognized the toothy Steel-Fairy-type from the Gym Battle. Houndoom had beaten her last time, so Drapion hadn't fought her himself, but he had a pretty good idea of her strategy; a lot of biting, with occasional ranged attacks to spice things up.
Valerie raised the left wing of her costume, which glowed in the morning light. "Mawile? If you please."
Her wing suddenly shone even brighter, bursting forth with rainbow colors. Mawile grinned. "Gladly. I…call upon…the power of…Mega Evolution!"
Rainbow light exploded out of Mawile's body. Marcus's jaw dropped. "A Mega Mawile?"
"Correct," said Valerie. "You have faced this before, have you not?"
"Yeah," said Marcus. "When I was facing Emma…she got it from you, didn't she?"
Valerie grinned. "Of course. She was my star pupil, after all."
The rainbow light surrounding Mawile faded, and Mega Mawile appeared in the midst of the dissipating light. She was exactly how Drapion remembered Emma's being. Quickly, he racked his brain, trying to remember how his fight with Emma's Mega Mawile had gone.
Badly, he remembered morosely. Emma's Mega Mawile had beaten him into the ground in only a few attacks, her gigantic jaws tearing through his defenses and giving her enough reach that not even his long arms could land a hit before she did. Even Dig had failed when Mega Mawile had simply slammed her jaws against the ground so hard it ruptured beneath her, in an approximation of Earthquake that had left Drapion wide open to a finishing bite.
But I've improved since then.
"No Escape!" Drapion snarled. Naturally, Mega Mawile simply deflected it with a Protect. Drapion was already charging, flames rippling across his jaws. "Fire Rend!" he snarled, readying himself for his next move. If she tries to use her range, I'll block with Protect; if she goes for a ranged attack, I'll deflect with Battle Armor and go for a twisting Slam-
"Huge Power: Retaliation Bite."
In the space of half a second, it was all over. One moment Mega Mawile was crouching, staring down Drapion; the next moment, her gigantic mouth enclosed around his face, her uncountable teeth flaring with Dark energy. Sucker Punch! Drapion felt the flames in his mouth flicker and die. Snarling, he drew back his arms, but even as he did so he felt his legs leave the ground as Mega Mawile raised him into the air.
"Huge Power: Iron Slam."
Mega Mawile slammed Drapion back down to the earth, then twisted her head to the side and tossed him back across the arena. Drapion felt himself land on the ground, felt himself bounce once, twice, and then come to a stop. He groaned; he could feel darkness encroaching on his vision, and he tried to fight it off, but even as he raised his head, he saw Mega Mawile raise one stubby hand towards him.
"Iron Shot."
Agony split Drapion's face down the middle, and the darkness finally overcame him.
Seeker-Of-Endings watched closely as Marcus recalled Drapion's unconscious body. Valerie raised the wing of her costume again; rainbow light flashed and Mega Mawile devolved, returning to her base form. Valerie recalled her into her Pokeball, then looked back up at Marcus.
"I have to ask," she said. "Why did you keep your Drapion out in a losing battle?"
"I asked him if he wanted to," said Marcus. "He said yes."
"But why ask him?" Valerie asked. "You knew he was on his last legs. You knew there was no way he could handle another member of my team. It is good to listen to your Pokemon, and to trust in them, but sometimes the Trainer knows better. So why ask?"
"Because…because I didn't know the capabilities of your other two Pokemon," said Marcus. "And…I wanted to learn. I wanted to figure out what your Pokemon were capable of, so that I could help my Pokemon learn how to overcome them next time."
A brief few moments passed. Seeker-Of-Endings felt a pang of nervousness. If Valerie refused to pass Marcus, that would put the Heralds' entire plan in jeopardy.
And then Valerie smiled. "That is a good answer," she said. "The fact that you did ask your Pokemon shows that you would have recalled him if he refused. That, more than anything, shows that you care about your Pokemon just as much as you care about gaining that kind of information. Congratulations. You have passed this stage of your test…which, unless I'm mistaken, is your final stage?"
"Yes, it is," said Marcus, barely holding back a smile from his face.
"Then I will see you next week for the start of the Gym Exam," said Valerie. "Don't be late."
Seeker-Of-Endings sighed, relieved. Marcus's path was still intact. Now all that remained was the Gym Exam proper. The part with the most variables, the most things that could go wrong.
We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Let's just live in the moment for now.
After the battle's end, Marcus quickly released Kriesh to fly back home. He had no reason to remain in Laverre, and both he and Kriesh recalled the promise he'd made to that one Trainer with the Tropius. But as Marcus hopped on Kriesh's back, Kriesh spotted Jaya moving towards them. "Marcus?"
"Yeah?" Marcus asked, looking over, keeping one hand on the Flying energy-formed reins.
"I just wanted to say…I'm looking forward to the competition," Jaya said with a grin. "You might just actually be a match for me."
Marcus chuckled. "Glad you enjoyed the show," he said. "See you next week?"
"Yeah, see you," said Jaya. "And it was good meeting you, Kriesh."
Kriesh smiled and nodded, knowing the brown-haired woman couldn't understand her.
"All right, Kriesh, let's go," said Marcus. Kriesh spread her wings wide and launched herself off the ground, rising up from the earth and leaving Laverre City behind her.
In a week or so, the Gym Exam would truly begin. And Kriesh knew Medicham was right. She couldn't put this off forever; sooner or later, she would have to make the very choice she dreaded.
But not yet.
The thought crossed Kriesh's mind. He can find out on his own. I don't need to hurry it along.
Nodding slightly, Kriesh angled her body down Route 14, eyes searching for the Trainer with the Tropius. She couldn't wait for the battle now. At the very least it would help take her mind off Jaya, and the guilt that now tugged at her body with every wingbeat.
As the Fearow and her Trainer flew away, and Jaya turned her steps towards the Laverre City hotel she was staying at until the Gym Exam started, a telepathic communication passed from one of her Wing Balls to another.
"Flare?"
"Yes, Totem?" the Talonflame responded mentally.
"The Fearow…Kriesh…you saw how it impacted the mistress, correct?"
Flare sighed. "Yes. You know what happened with her old flock of Spearow."
"Of course," said Totem. "But…the thing is…you know how I sometimes…interface with the telepathic conversations of others by accident?"
"Yes, you're a Sigilyph," said Flare. "It's what you do."
"See…Kriesh had a telepathic conversation with the Medicham on her team," said Totem. "And from what I heard, they knew the mistress. Could it be that Kriesh is one of those Spearow? From her old flock?"
Flare shook his head. "There could be any number of explanations."
"But the old flock was lost in Kalos," said Totem. "Now, here we are, back in Kalos, and here comes a Fearow who seems to know the mistress. Even you have to admit…that would be a fairly unlikely coincidence."
A long pause. At last Flare's voice came back through the telepathic link. "Should we tell Jaya?"
"No," said Totem. "The last thing the mistress needs is such a distraction so close to the Gym Exam. This is what she has been working towards for two years. We will tell her afterwards."
"Are you sure?" Flare asked.
"Positive," said Totem.
Again a long pause. "Very well," said Flare. "I don't like it…not at all. But if it means Jaya fulfilling her dream…then Kriesh's secret stays with us."
Totem nodded; the Sigilyph's multicolored lines pulsed within his Wing Ball. "Agreed."
And there we have it. The final chapter of the Downtime Arc...at least, that was what I initially planned.
But see, two months did kinda pass during that arc, and it's not like the rest of the world just paused for that amount of time. So this isn't actually the end of the Downtime Arc, because I still have to address just what's been going on elsewhere, with minor things like the impending Ultra Beast invasion to worry about.
As a result, though this chapter is the end of Marcus's part of the Downtime Arc, the real end of the arc will be next chapter. See you all then.