Chapter 4

Ecruteak City Gym

There are surprisingly few rules that Gyms have to abide by when it comes to accepting challengers and the issuing of Badges. Essentially, as long as one can submit a plan to the Pokémon League about what you wanna do, how you're going to do it, and you can convince the big wigs to sign off on it, then you're basically allowed carte blanche on running your own house.

Of course, that last requirement can sometimes be a little hard to get. If you submit plans that are a bit too out there as far as the norm goes, then you won't get that magical red stamp of approval and the League starts digging into your business in a way that no one really wants to deal with.

Gym Leader Morty is a bit more hands-off than most. He's somehow convinced the League to buy off that he doesn't actually have to be present for the first and second level Badge challenges, instead delegating that responsibility to one of his Gym Trainers, an old woman in her seventies named Edith. 'Whom might I say is very entertaining to watch.'

"Oooooo spirits be with me," the grandma chants, waving two candles about in an intricate display while her white cloak flutters from an invisible wind. "Ooooo spirits, Gastly I summon thee!"

A Lv. 13 Ghost floats up through the floor, smiling mischievously from center stage. "Gaaaas! Gaaaas!" The 'mon laughs outwardly, its ethereal voice stretching across the room.

The junior trainer at the other end of the arena audibly gulps. "Y-you're not gonna scare me!" the ten year old spouts with a false bluster. "W-we got this Natu! Start off with a Leer! Just like we practiced!"

"Ooooo a curse, a curse, a Curse upon thee!" Edith intones with a spindly finger outstretched, really diving into this channeler 'character' of hers. It's easy to see that the woman just loves this part of her job.

Gastly seems to get almost struck by the command, withering into something lesser. No doubt that'd be the cutting of his own HP. Meanwhile though, something about the Natu's shadow just changed. It's difficult to put into words. It's darker somehow. More foreboding. Ominous.

At my side, Simon watches the fight with rapt attention, even if he does seem to be fretting with worry over the challenger Natu's well-being. Other than the fellow members of his own species back in Unova, today will be the first time he'll be witnessing other Ghost-types in action. There are some abilities, such as the Curse we just saw, that I doubt he'll ever be able to use 'His temperament is just too kind for it. He doesn't have a malicious bone in his body.' , but I'm holding out hope he'll at least pick up something or other about his innate type-energy.

After a few minutes a Night Shade from the small bird manages to put the Gastly down, but when Edith pulls out her next 'mon -coincidentally a second Lv. 13 Gastly- it's the Psychic type who can no longer hold on. The Curse having finally taxed it too much.

A Lv. 11 Spearow is thrown out by the junior birdkeeper to close but… it just can't get there. Smog scores an early Poison against the Normal-type and from there the Ghost just plays keep away until the fight simply ends.

"Ooooo do not cry young one," Edith plays up her character as she comforts the child, moaning and intoning as she seemingly 'attunes' with the spirit realm. "I sense much potential in you! Yes..yeeesss. You will train. Traaaaain and overcome! Ooooooo!"

The boy stifles his tears. "Do you.." he wipes his eyes with his sleeve. "Do you really think I can? That I can get a Gym Badge?"

A tap on my shoulder has me turn my head to one of the staff, a bald man dressed as a purple-clad monk clutching a set of prayer beads. "Your match is up next sir. As a reminder, at the fourth badge level you will be facing three Gym trainers back to back, each of whom will be limited to one Pokémon. Only if you surpass all three challenges will you reserve a slot to face Leader Morty."

I pop my back as I stand up. "Yeah yeah, I read the rules." Simon instinctively reaches for my hand as it hangs by my side -much like a child would his parent- and I let him grasp it. "I don't suppose Morty's in house right now is he?"

The monk nods minutely. "He is not sir. He's continuing some personal research at the Burned Tower. However, our rules do allow for you to attempt this part of the challenge without him present."

"Very well. Let's get this show on the road."

Hahaha!

Oh my god. That's hilarious!

I approve! Yes! That's how you can weed out some scrubs!

The first Gym Trainer came at me with a Misdreavus. It was a perfectly fine 'mon for a fourth level challenge and we felled it without too much difficulty. It did attempt a little trap with Destiny Bond right at the end there but a trap's not a trap if you can see it coming.

The second Gym Trainer however, strolled straight up to the podium, didn't even offer a greeting, and with all the confidence in the world…tossed out a Shedinja.

A Shedinja wearing Safety Goggles.

'And now he's just standing there. Arms crossed and offering me the first move.'

For those not in the know, let me provide the briefest explanation. Shedinja is a Bug/Ghost Pokémon who just so happens to have the lowest HP stat in existence. To compensate for this, it was gifted the most overpowered, hax, busted, 'devs pls nerf this', ability to ever grace a 'mon on the face of the planet.

Wonder Guard.

An ability that states that all moves used on this Pokémon that aren't Super-Effective shall have no effect.

If you face a Shedinja and your roster just doesn't have a way to counter it…then you lose. It'll probably boost its stats with a few setup moves like Swords Dance and then proceed to sweep you. You'll be powerless to do anything about it.

As for the Safety Goggles, well that's just this man being a little cheeky. It's a Held Item that gives the wearer immunity to weather effects. I employed Sandstorm in the first fight and this trainer wants to see if I can get past him without using that little loophole in Shedinja's vulnerability.

'I appreciate that Morty's put an obstacle like this in his Gym's lineup. It's important that less experienced trainers learn that they have to be knowledgeable about all Pokémon, not just the ones on their own teams.'

Unfortunately for Mr. Gym Trainer over there, he has chosen the absolute worst opponent to try this tactic on.

You see, most Pokémon... don't actually have a lot of type coverage in their arsenals. Water Pokémon mostly learn Water moves. They might have an Ice move mixed in. Or maybe a Dark or a Fighting one. And of course just about everything has access to some of the more basic Normal attacks.

But for the most part? For the most part they just learn attacks belonging to their intrinsic types. You can reasonably expect a Grass/Poison type that you're facing off against to stick to Grass and Poison moves.

In this aspect, the Gligar/Gliscor family are freaks. Preternatural experts of type-energy manipulation. So long as it comes with the caveat of the move being used to bite or smash an opponent's face in, there's almost nothing they can't do.

You want Fighting? There's both Brick Break and Sky Uppercut in their pool. Poison more your speed? Would you prefer it in Sting, Tail, Jab, or Cross Poison variety? Steel? How does Metal Claw sound? You might even raise your Attack stat while you're at it.

Night Slash. X-Scissor. Crabhammer. All the elemental Fang attacks including the Psychic one. The list just goes on. The Gligar family has access to heavy damage dealing moves of every single Type on the chart with the three notable exceptions of Grass, Ghost, and Fairy. And frankly, I'm in the camp that believes that those are only still outstanding because no one's tried to teach any to a Gligar yet.

Speaking of which, if you can keep a secret, just between you and me?

We've been working on Power Whip.

Don't tell Prof. Oak.

"Up to you Vlad." I say with a grin. "Though I'd say pen it in with Rock Tomb and then an Acrobatics or Fire Fang if it tries to escape."

"Gligar!"

Ecruteak Dance Theater, Nighttime

I bring the small saucer to my lips and sip at the…well it's not sake, but it's definitely some type of rice-based alcohol. Either way, the warmth it puts in my throat is a welcome way to end the evening.

The third match had been a rather straightforward one. Haunter Vs Krokorok. The ability Levitate protected from a lot of our long distance options, though honestly on this particular matchup, up close and personal was the preferred method anyway. 'The physical Defense of the Gengar-line is one of the worst in the region. Their immunity to Normal and Fighting often leads to overconfidence.'

Even so though, there had been a chance right at the end there for it all to go sour.. Paralysis was inflicted by a Lick -which also happened to be a crit- and for a second I thought I was about to be the victim of good ol' classic RNG. Luckily though, K. Rool managed to push through and land a doubled base power Payback right after that managed to close things out.

I swirl my drink around in the dish. 'Sometimes, this stuff really does just come down to luck.'

Up on the stage the iconic 'Five Kimono Girls' are going through one of their routines. I haven't been paying too much attention to the plot but I believe the play's a tragedy. A classic 'doomed lovers never to be' type thing. There's some practical stage effects that I'd conservatively label as 'impressive' but the real work is coming from the girls' 'Eeveelutions' off screen.

Jolteon's Pin Missile combined with Flareon's Ember to indicate a manor being attacked by flaming arrows.

Umbreon's Moonlight and Vaporeon's Aurora Beam to create a winter night for the protagonist to weep at her window from.

Espeon doing the heavy work by psychically shifting one item here or another over there.

I smile into my drink. 'And those Hoenn Contest kiddies think they're all hot shit. I'd like to see them try and pull that 'grace and beauty' nonsense against competition like this.'

"Mind if I join you?"

I tilt my head back to see the local big boss himself gesturing at the cushion next to me. Morty is a blond man dressed in black and purples with an admittedly pretty sick scarf draped down over one side of his chest. His eyes are half-lidded, and while that's usually meant to represent desire or perhaps exhaustion, on the Ghost specialist it is more a sign that the man is supremely relaxed.

Just totally at zen with the world around him.

"Please, go ahead." I offer, pouring him a small drink myself from one of the spare dishes. "Come to scope out your next challenger?"

The man hums mildly. "Not really the words I'd use. Just wanted to pop my head in." The Gym Leader takes a seat and leans back on his hands. From within his shirt an unusually small Shuppet pokes its head out, "Shu? Shup shu?" The newborn Ghost peers my way, staring at me with wide innocent eyes…and then proceeds to blow a raspberry right at my face.

"Gah!" My arm goes up to shield and the Gym Leaders laughs in a manner too carefree. "Be nice," he gently chides to the 'mon, scratching the top of it's head with one finger and pushing it back down. "Miki seems to like you."

"Is that so?" I snark, wiping a few bits of spittle away from my cheek. "Could've fooled me."

The Gym Leader laughs again. "No, not Shuppet." His head gestures to the stage. "Up there. The one in the red."

Turning my head I look more closely at the Kimono Girl in question, the owner of Flareon if I'm not mistaken. It's pretty subtle…but yes. I suppose she does keep glancing this way. Inspecting the audience right where I'm sitting.

'Nice.' "Think I should do anything about it?"

"Up to you." Morty shrugs. "She burns pretty hot so don't expect anything to last. Goes through men like she's changing clothes. Some fellas like that level of passion though. Something about how a flame's only beautiful because it's fleeting."

'Hm.' I mull over the idea. "Nah. I prefer my women a bit more cold. It's so much more satisfying when you finally thaw them out, make your way past that stern veneer and see a side that's only reserved for you, wouldn't you say?"

For a while there's a bit of companionable silence. Just two dudes sitting comfortably in a dim room, watching pretty girls dance on stage while accompanying music plays in the background.

It was definitely a lot classier now than the times where that had happened back in my first world.

"I'm a little worried about our match tomorrow." I eventually admit after some time.

Morty doesn't outwardly react. "Don't think your team can cut it? My people said you did rather well today."

I shake my head. "It's not that. I'm more afraid -and I'm really sorry as this is about to sound pompous and arrogant as hell- I'm more afraid for the Gym's Pokémon." When Morty's eyebrows screw up I rush to continue, "My greatest weakness as a trainer right now is that my team is atrociously unbalanced. K. Rool , my Krokorok, is really the only one of my five right now who you'd label at about a 'fourth level' contender. And while he's great, -really he is- I'm pretty doubtful he could take on the entire team you'll be fielding."

My hand comes down to rest over Gligar's Pokéball, a home he only ever resides in while he's sleeping. "If K. Rool falls then I've got to go to Vlad. He's the only one I could say has my 100% trust for something like this. He's got all the control he'll ever need and in regards to power he's a 'mon I'd be comfortable taking to the Silver Conference right now. If I had to make a prediction for our match tomorrow, I'd say K. Rool takes it as far as he can and then Vlad brings it home."

Fingers move from Pokéball to Great Ball. "The problem begins if for some reason Vlad falters. Ma Ma, my Ursaring… she listens to me most of the time. She always listens when she's calm. But there have been moments. Times where her blood gets up or Guts activates when we weren't expecting it and.. And if that happens I'll be forced to withdraw her. If not it would only take one critical hit Night Slash to… to do something a trip to the Poké Center can't undo. Then finally there's my ace, Grundy. And no. Just no. He can't come out when you'll only be fielding fourth badge Pokémon. I can't allow that to happen. Ma Ma's got a temper issue, but Grundy, he likes violence. He loves it."

"Grundy?" He questions the name.

I grunt under my breath. "A little joke to myself. First saw him on a Monday. Caught him on a Tuesday. It..it would take too long to explain, don't worry about it."

The Gym Leader hums thoughtfully, digesting the information. "Has he always been that way? Outside of Dragon-types or certain species like Gyarados, that type of aggression is pretty uncommon."

"When I first encountered him a year ago he was goring a rival Nidorino. Used his heavier weight to get the belly exposed, pinned him down and then…" I trail off as the mental image paints itself.

Morty frowns, finally taking a sip of his own drink that I poured earlier. "Was it mating season? When Nidorino's enter their yearly rut, their hormone levels can sometimes-"

"He was only a Nidoran at the time." I cut him off, letting the implications of that statement hang in the air.
'I sometimes wonder if I bit off more than I could chew with him. It was just so shocking to see a real 'Alpha Pokémon'. They're more rare than shinies here. I had to catch it.'

"That's only four." Morty eventually notes. "Earlier you mentioned five. And on your belt I count six. Does that Net Ball not have anything in it?"

"No, that's.." I grimace, swallowing uncomfortably. "That's a Quagsire. I don't…I don't really want to talk about him right now. Suffice to say he can't be used for battling."

Morty raises an eyebrow. "Just 'a Quagsire'? No nickname like the others?"

"Just Quagsire." I confirm. "If you have to know, I'm sure you can find the incident in the League's database somewhere." I sigh tiredly. "Your Gym Leader permissions should have access to it."

The man thankfully lets the subject drop. "So then that just leaves your Golett then. The one I heard watched with you in the audience today. Why does he not count?"

"You know his species?" I ask.

"I share an online correspondence with Shauntal, one of the Elite Four over in Unova." Morty admits. "There's not many of us Ghost specialists out there. It's nice to speak to someone that.." he searches for the right words. "..isn't Agatha."

I lower my head to hide my smirk. 'You go Morty. Go for the 'qt goth gf'. I believe in you.' "Well regardless of how you know, using Simon is a non-starter. He's even stronger than K. Rool, but he has no confidence. I couldn't even get him to battle a wild Yanma a few days ago. He just tucked his head in and hid. I'm..honestly at a bit of a loss at what to do with him. He does fine when we team train. It's just when he's against someone unfamiliar that he…" I end the sentence short, going back to sipping at my drink.

Morty turns his head up toward the ceiling, seemingly looking at something no one else can see, and then chuckles just once. "You know, most trainers we see going through the Gym circuit have 'maybe one, sometimes two' issues that they need to work on with their teams. More so, that friction is usually caused by certain types not getting along. Fire and Water as a basic example. It's an odd thing to see a type specialist with a full roster of problems."

"Well gee," I snort, "Thanks for the words of confidence." I side-eye a mild glare at the man. "And it's not the full roster. I have no issues with Vlad and K. Rool." A single errant drop of alcohol hits the table as I empty the last of the tokkuri bottle into my dish. "..overly arrogant little shithead that the latter may be sometimes." I add under my breath.

Morty smiles at that, and chooses to climb back to his feet. "Don't worry about any of my team members tomorrow." his hand clasps my shoulder. "I use the same general group for both the fourth and fifth challenge level so they're likely a little tougher than you're imagining. We can handle an opponent getting a little rowdy if need be." His fingers tighten just slightly. "And use that Golett against my last Pokémon tomorrow." he almost orders. "I bet I can get the little guy what he needs."