Ship to Olivine City
Jackson and Leafeon were watching over the railing, looking at where they were heading to with easy-going expressions. Finally, with Jackson's eyesight, he saw far off the destination. "There it is: Olivine City!" Jackson declared, pointing beyond the horizon.
"We're nearing our destination." Leafeon muttered, looking back at their new third member of the party, "This is gonna be your first city outside of Alto Mare you have been to.
The disguised Pokémon, now naming herself Lyanne in her human form, was looking up into the sky, where she saw a couple of Wingull flying above her, a sort of somber expression across her face. She had been this way for a while now. Jackson and Leafeon looked to her, then to one another, then back at her again as Jackson asked, "You okay?"
"Hm?" Lyanne looked to Jackson, hearing his voice, before answering, "Oh, yeah. Sorry about that."
"You already homesick?" he asked her.
"Not really." she replied, "I was more thinking about what you told me on the way over...about your past."
"Oh..." Jackson understood, looking down, sort of regretting himself. She wanted to know more about Jackson before. He hesitated, not sure at first, but her insistency won him over, and he told the story of his past in his home world, and how he lost his reputation as a hero. He spoke about how it broke him, and how he learned to repair his trust in himself and in others as being a trainer.
"I knew you were a pretty unique trainer, but to have something like that as your past." Lyanne muttered, turning fully to him as he looked up, "I know you aren't lying. You are far stronger than I realized. My past is sad, but yours..."
"Yeah, but that's why I'm on this journey." Jackson told her, "I am gonna improve myself. Become better than I was. And thankfully, I have my team by my side to do that. That's why I am tackling the gyms and seeing the world."
"So, in a way, both of us are going on this journey to improve ourselves." Lyanne understood, looking at the water flying beneath them, "I might be a little guilty saying this, but I am glad that I am not the only one who has a lot to improve on."
"Hey, I'm in the same boat." Jackson agreed.
"You ARE on the same boat." Leafeon joked.
"I meant, I'm glad I am on a journey of self-discovery, too." Jackson corrected, glaring at Leafeon, "Let's start by seeing how Ampharos is doing, then take on Jasmine at her gym."
"Sixth badge, here we come!" Leafeon declared, as the ship was getting closer to the port city.
(Insert 'STAND UP' by Twill (full version))
Music Intro
(Traveling through shining golden tunnel of energy, leading out into space with many world, all of which different colors, with the central world being the Pokémon world. The logo 'Jackson in Johto' appears on screen, before the camera passes through the arch of the 'n' from 'in, going into the world, through the clouds, where the glowing shadow of Ho-Oh can be seen, to the sea, where the shadow of Lugia is flying beneath the waters, before reaching the shoreline, getting blinded by the sun.)
Yeah, stand up boys!
Come on, face forward
(Jackson stands up, with Quilava at his side, followed by Dewott, Weavile, and Scyther, all of which expressing their unique personalities to Jackson.)
The call enveloping you is your guide
Step towards tomorrow
(Dewott gets angry at Weavile for trying to act so cool, while Jackson rolls his eyes before he, Quilava and Scyther took off ahead, with Weavile following behind, ignoring Dewott, who panicked and ran to not be left behind.)
Yeah, stand up girls!
At the end of what's more than real
(Leafeon rises up with Lyanne as Jackson and the boys pass by. The two look to one another, before giggling at the sight of the boys, before looking to the sky.)
We'll grab a light that's been covered by thick clouds
(Camera goes up into the starry sky, where a ball of light was slowly falling down, with the image of Gardevoir inside, her eyes slowly opening up as she looked up.)
How we spend our days before isn't good enough
(Camera passes by still images of all the companions and gym leaders that he has met or will meet in the future, including Cypher at the end of the pictures, while Jackson, Lyanne, Leafeon, and the rest of his current team walked along the bottom of the screen.)
At full speed
We can blast through
Even the highest wall
(Team Rocket suddenly appears, with the four admins of Team Rocket standing together, with the images of their ace Pokémon at their side, and the satellite system right above them.)
Stand up for your dream!
(Jackson draws his sword, while Lyanne turns into her Latias form, and the rest of his team ready to fight together.)
Be enthusiastic at what you do, no matter what it is
(Jackson rushes forward as he slashes his blade against Team Rocket grunts, followed by a spin kick, sending them flying, while Leafeon leaps up and unleashes a forward somersault Leaf Blade, taking out their Pokémon.)
Push your way through to make an opening
(Weavile unleashes an Ice Punch as Dewott throws a Water Pulse at a different direction, followed by the pair unleashing simultaneous Night Slashes. Quilava leaps through their attack, going into a Flame Charge.)
No matter how far
The answer you're seeking is
Stand up for your dream!
(Scyther flies in, unleashing an X-Scissor, followed by a Vacuum Wave, before Latias flies above him, unleashing a Mist Ball, sending it ahead. The attacks all created an explosion that consumed the scene in smoke.)
Even if my feeling show weakness
Your voice that I hear close by
(In the burning Ecruteak City, a serious Jackson raced along the path with Leafeon and Quilava at his side, towards the two towers, where a deranged Ho-Oh and Lugia were at, unleashing Aeroblast and Sacred Fire onto the city.)
Gives me courage and strength
I can go the distance
(Jackson leaps high, landing on Latias's back as they flew off, with the rest of the team leaping with him before encased in a stream of their signature colors, before the screen turn white, with a crystal blue Pokéball with a gold and silver sword crossing behind it the only thing remaining.)
Olivine City
The ship finally docked along the port, and the passengers got off. Jackson, Lyanne, and Leafeon were amongst the group, Lyanne looking about with great curiosity.
"This isn't too big of a difference from home." she pointed out, "Maybe different design, but..."
Jackson made a hushing noise as he put a finger to his mouth, indicating her to shush. "You are still speaking in Pokémon." he whispered, noticing some people staring. He began pushing Lyanne away from the scene, making sure they were far away, and not around people.
"Sorry. I guess I forgot." Lyanne muttered.
"It would be nice if you could speak normally in a crowd." Jackson muttered, "But now, it sounds like a mute and deaf human singer."
"Odd comparison." Leafeon muttered.
"For now, watch out for people around you." Jackson told Lyanne, who nodded in approval.
Suddenly, Jackson's stomach growled, and he looked a bit embarrassed. "Who's making the weird sound, now?" Leafeon asked amusingly. Lyanne giggled at this statement.
"Hey, give me a break. There were no snacks on the ship!" Jackson argued, blushing slightly, before pulling out his tablet, pulling up the Olivine City food section, "Fortunately, there's a really good kebab cart that goes around to the east side of Olivine. Let's go there." He put away the tablet, waving the pair to follow him.
A while later, the trio finally made it to the traveling kebab cart, grabbing a few skewers for them to share. They sat down in a private place, Jackson taking a bite of the roasted Pinap berry and a piece of meat together, while Leafeon had some Pokémon food for herself. Lyanne took a bite of the mushroom on her skewer, eating it.
"Delicious!" she stated, "The seasoning is different than what they have in Alto Mare!"
"Are you okay eating human food?" Jackson asked.
"It's fine. Humans and Pokémon are able to eat similar foods." Lyanne assured him, "Fruits, vegetables, meats, even breads. I have no problem with it. In fact, Bianca and Lorenzo have been getting me to taste some normal human food just so I'd look more the part when in disguise."
"Clever thinking." Jackson admitted, pointing an empty skewer towards her, "Maybe we should improve on it. If you only could speak like a normal human. Maybe I should think about creating a device that can create that effect."
"You can do that?" Lyanne asked, surprised.
"Jackson is really capable of doing almost anything." Leafeon noted, "I mean, I've seen him create all sorts of things, so it wouldn't surprise me."
"I've never created something like that before, so I will have to go through some blueprint making before I could make it." Jackson took another bite of his last skewer, "I could ask Tails again, too. Well, I'll have to think about it, anyway."
"Take your time, Jackson. I can wait." Lyanne told him.
As he finished his meat, he looked to the road, and saw someone that was familiar to him. It was none other than the gym leader Jasmine, who looked deep in thought as she was passing by. "That's Jasmine." Jackson noticed, standing up and making his way towards her, "Hey, Jasmine!"
The young gym leader stopped and turned, before beaming at the sight of him. "Jackson, it's you!" she noticed.
"Yeah. Took a while to get back, but I did." he replied, stopping in front of her, "Did Ampharos get the medicine?"
"Yep. Amphy is doing a lot better now." Jasmine replied, appreciating the fact he was worried about her, "I can't thank you enough for what you done."
"Sure, no problem." Jackson replied as Leafeon joined his side, with Lyanne bringing up the rear, "I had quite the adventure going to Cianwood City and back."
Jasmine looked curiously at Lyanne, who waved a hand to her. "And... who is she?" Jasmine asked, looking a bit suspicious.
"Oh, right. I should introduce you." Jackson realized, waving a hand to her, "This is Lyanne. She came from Alto Mare. She never left the city before, so she decided to come with me."
"Oh, really?" Jasmine asked, walking around to get a good look at her, "And... what's your relationship with Jackson?" Lyanne looked hesitant, not able to answer her.
"Lyanne is mute, so she can't answer you." Jackson further explained, "But as for our relationship, we're just friends."
"Hmm..." Jasmine looked suspicious, before backing off and saying, "Well, it hasn't been that long, so I can only assume you just met." Jackson looked very confused, while Jasmine looked to see his expression, before shaking her head, and smiling again, "Whatever. Forget about that. Nice to meet you, Lyanne." She raised a hand to her, and she shook it.
"I wonder..." Leafeon muttered, looking between the pair, before Jackson asked, "So, what are you doing here? I thought you would either be at the gym or the lighthouse."
"Well, I actually have been invited to a grand re-opening." Jasmine explained, pointing off into the distance, where the large tower among other buildings were far ahead, "The Battle Tower is opening its doors again, and they asked me to appear as a guest to commemorate the reopening."
"The Battle Tower?" Jackson echoed, looking to it.
"Yep. It's one of the five facilities in the Battle Frontier." Jasmine explained, "Do you know about it?"
"I looked, but didn't read into it, yet." Jackson answered, "Why don't you tell me about it as we make our way over there."
"Sure thing." the gym leader answered excitedly, before guiding Jackson and the girls over along the path, "The Battle Frontier was founded not too long ago. It is designed to test experienced trainers of all sorts on their skills and capabilities as trainers in all sorts of ways. There are five facilities where trainers go to; The Battle Factory, the Battle Arcade, the Battle Castle, the Battle Hall, and the Battle Tower."
"That sounds pretty fun." Jackson stated, "I wouldn't mind taking it on."
"Jackson, you know you are dealing with tons of different trainers and Pokémon." Leafeon argued, "I bet a lot of them would be far stronger than you and I."
"True, but that's part of the experience." Jackson argued.
"Actually..." Jasmine turned to him, realizing something, "You might be able to help me out with something."
"Oh?"
"Yeah. You see, when they invited me over to the Battle Tower's reopening, they told me it was gonna be a Tag Team Battle. They said I could invite anybody I wanted, but none of the trainers working with me at my gym would be strong enough to compete alongside me. But if you are wanting to test yourself against other experienced trainers, I don't mind inviting you as my partner."
Jackson stopped and paused at the invitation. He did want to get to the gym battle with Jasmine, now that he was aware that Ampharos was okay. However, he couldn't pass up such a great opportunity. He had to go and try his skills against experienced trainers. After all, he did this all sorts of times in the past against all sorts of robots and whatnot that were skilled and strong in all sorts of ways. Jackson's slightly more cynical side did tell him that it was also a way to see Jasmine's Pokémon in action, too.
"I'm in." Jackson replied to her invite, giving a fist pump, "I can't wait to blade things up a notch at the Battle Tower!"
"Blade?" Jasmine echoed, kinda confused, before shaking her head to dismiss that, "No matter. I'm happy to have you come along. And what about Lyanne? Is she a trainer?" The two looked to her, who shook her head. Lyanne was a Pokémon, so it would be odd if she was a trainer.
It took a few minutes, but they made their way to the Battle Frontier, which made Jackson think of a crossover between a small city and a theme park. It was festive, full of exciting trainers, but instead of rides, five buildings became the main focus around the place. There was one that was literally a castle, a rectangular building with four towers that had checkered tops, a circular building with a slightly lopsided thin cone top, a sort of mechanical-like building with a sort of 'crown' like a Machop, and the one they were heading to, which was in the far back. It was the tallest building of them all. The Battle Tower.
"This place is very lively!" Leafeon stated.
"If there are lots of trainers coming here to test their strength, I would be lively, too." Jackson agreed, looking about, before looking ahead to the tall tower, "That's our destination, right?"
"Yep. That is the Battle Tower." Jasmine explained, "It was one of the biggest parts of the Battle Frontier. I bet everyone will be excited for its reopening."
"Based on the line ahead..." Jackson noted, looking to see a crowd surrounding the entrance to the Battle Tower, "...I think you might be understating it."
Jackson and the girls looked to see how everyone was crowding the entrance, not sure of how to get around it. "I could just use my Air Shoes to blast over the crowd." Jackson muttered to himself, "But that'll cause attention. Maybe we should do something else."
"Excuse me. You must be Jasmine." a woman in a red suit suddenly approached the group, who turned to her.
"Yes, I am." the Gym Leader answered.
"Tycoon Palmer wanted me to wait for you out here in order to bring you in." the lady told her, "Did you manage to bring someone as your tag team partner for your match?"
"This boy, right here." Jasmine answered, waving a hand to Jackson, "His name is Jackson. It's thanks to him that Amphy is doing much better now."
"I see." the lady understood, "Well then, Jackson, if you would follow me."
"Understood." he replied, as the four made their way around the crowd, where they went to a side entrance into the Battle Tower.
They reached the entrance hall, where they saw all the trainers that were within the tower, either waiting for their turn, or going up to take on different parts of the tower. As they made their way in, they saw a small crowd was gathered up around a tall man with spiky blonde hair and orange eyes. He wore a green coat with gold buttons, a white turtleneck shirt underneath, brown pants, and black boots and gloves.
"I look forward to see how far you all will go." the man addressed the group, before seeing Jasmine and the others arrive, "If you make it far, I'll be waiting to challenge you!" he told the group, before making his way over to the gym leader.
"Tycoon Palmer, I have brought Jasmine." the lady addressed him.
"Thank you." the man called Palmer responded, and as the lady left, he turned to Jasmine, smiling as he said, "I'm glad you took time out of your business to come and partake in the reopening of the Battle Tower."
"I look forward to this." Jasmine replied with a smile.
Palmer looked to Jackson as he asked, "Am I assume that this is your partner?"
"Yes, sir." Jackson answered, "I am Jackson Alpphire. I'm participating as Jasmine's tag team partner in this reopening. I look forward to seeing how far I can go in this place!"
Palmer looked straight into his eyes, before giving a smirk as he said, "I look forward to seeing it, too. You got a good pair of eyes on you." He turned and walked away, leaving the team alone.
"Even Palmer sees some potential in you?" Jasmine asked, "That is an honor."
"Thanks, but..." Jackson watched him walk away, exiting through a set of mechanical sliding doors, "I never got to ask, but who is he?"
'He didn't bother asking when he was here?!'Lyanne and Leafeon mentally questioned his timing.
Jasmine, deciding not to be perplexed as the other girls, replied, "That's Palmer, the Tower Tycoon of the Battle Tower. In other words, he is the head of the tower, and the strongest one here."
Jackson was amazed, looking back at the door Palmer exited. 'So, he's the one to beat in this place, huh?' Jackson understood, 'I couldn't even tell he was that tough. Maybe it's because I wasn't fighting him yet. Either way, I hope I get a chance to challenge him.'
They went to the registration desk, filling out a form to prepare for the Tag Team battle. "Thank you." the lady who guided them was now helping them as the desk, "Now, all is left to do is choose your Pokémon for participation. You must pick two each."
"Well, if I wanna go with my best, I think I should have Leafeon in my team." Jackson noted, looking down at Leafeon, who smiled in approval. As disrespectful as it somewhat sounded, he wasn't lying. After all, she had all the experience from the other world plus having two abilities by the grace of Arceus under her fur.
He turned to Jasmine as he asked, "How about you? What Pokémon are you registering?"
"I plan to use my Magneton and my Steelix in the battle." she replied, placing in their names into the form.
Jackson already remembered Magneton from the first time he met her, but he didn't remember Steelix. He pulled out his Pokédex to examine the Pokémon. "Steelix. The Iron Snake Pokemon, and the evolved form of Onix. Steelix lives even further underground than Onix. This Pokémon is known to dig toward the earth's core. There are records of this Pokémon reaching a depth of over six-tenths of a mile underground."
"Okay, that's pretty impressive." Jackson muttered.
"Right? I'm glad you appreciate my Steelix!" she commended Jackson, "Her body is cold, hard, and sharp. Plus, she is so strong. Just so you are aware, she is my ace when we battle one another at my gym."
"Then I'd better pay attention to her." Jackson understood, "As for what I know, both Magneton and Steelix, being Steel-types, are weak to Ground and Fire-types. So, I'll choose Dewott as my second Pokémon as coverage for that weakness."
"Good plan." Jasmine agreed with his choice.
"Okay, I will hold onto your other Pokemon down here." the receptionist told the pair.
While Jasmine handed her Pokemon over, Jackson intervened by saying, "Actually, I'll have Lyanne hold onto my team. There are monitors where she can watch our matches, right?"
"That is correct." the receptionist answered.
Jackson pulled out his remaining team, being Weavile, Quilava and Scyther, and had them around Lyanne. "Watch our fight, and take care of Lyanne and one another, okay?" he told the trio.
"Understood." "We got it." "Of course, sensei." Weavile, Quilava, and Scyther answered one at a time. Lyanne nodded to thank him for what he was doing. Jasmine puffed her cheeks slightly as a sign of jealousy.
"Now, if you would just follow me. I will lead you to your floor." the receptionist told the pair and Leafeon, and she led them to the elevator, where they were brought up to an area about halfway up the tower. When they arrived, they encountered two trainers that they would be facing were already there, waiting for them. Both of them were younger than Jackson, with one in a turned back baseball cap and shorts, and the other looking like a bug-catcher.
"We're facing Olivine's Gym Leader first?!" the bug-catcher asked, "That seems a bit tough."
"Nah, we got this!" the other boy answered, "Bet that other guy is not so tough."
"Don't count on it." Leafeon muttered.
"Yeah, we're ready to blade things up a notch!" Jackson declared, turning to Jasmine, "With a blade that is cold, hard and sharp as steel. Right, Jasmine?"
Jasmine smiled as she liked how he blended his apparent catchphrase into what she said before. "Of course. We'll answer their battle with a clang!"
"The rules for this match are as follows!" an announcer over the speaker called to the group, "The battle will be a tag team match with two pairs of trainers facing off one another. Each trainer will use two Pokémon each. The battle will be decided when one or both sides are unable to continue. In addition, the winners of each match will have their Pokémon recovered between each match. Trainers, ready your first Pokémon!"
The four trainers pulled out their Pokéballs as a referee came into the room via elevator, before raising a hand as he shouted, "I will be the referee for this match. Trainers, you may begin the match!"
"Raticate, go!"
"Pinsir, it's on!"
The two opponent trainers called out their Pokémon, who looked ready to fight.
"Leafeon, you're on!" Jackson called out, putting his ball away as Leafeon leapt out.
"Steelix, now!" Jasmine called out, tossing her ball, and out came a very large Pokémon, which fit the description of an iron snake, its body made up of steel boulders, while three parts had a pair of spikes sticking out to the sides.
"Raticate, Hyper Fang on Leafeon!" the youngster ordered.
"Pinsir, Brick Break on Steelix!" the bug-catcher called out. Both of their Pokémon charged forward, with fangs and arms glowing to attack their target.
"Leafeon, Sunny Day!" Jackson shouted, and Leafeon unleashed a burst of sunlight that shot into the air, shining down onto the field. With that in effect, she easily evaded the Hyper Fang, bouncing off its back to make it collapse.
"Steelix, Fire Fang!" Jasmine called out. Her partner's fangs opened up, igniting in flames that were boosted thanks to the sun as it came down onto Pinsir as he swung his fist. There was an explosion, and Pinsir was sent flying back in pain.
"Pinsir, no!" the bug-catcher called out.
"Leafeon, Leaf Blade!" Jackson called out.
"Take this!" Leafeon shouted, instantly coming back to Raticate, swinging her glowing tail that sent him flying into the wall behind Jackson, where it collapsed to the ground, unable to continue.
"Steelix, Iron Tail!" Jasmine shouted.
"THE FINISHING BLOW!" Steelix roared, turning its tail metallic, before swinging its body to amplify the swing, striking Pinsir, and sent it flying, crashing at the bug-catcher's feet, in the same state as Raticate.
"Raticate and Pinsir are unable to battle!" the referee announced.
"No way!" the two boys exclaimed as one.
"Nice going, Jackson." Jasmine commended her partner, "You and Leafeon are an amazing pair. And that Sunny Day really helped my Steelix."
"I'm very impressed by that Iron Tail." Jackson stated as the boys returned their Pokémon to their balls, "Looks like a powerful attack."
"If you want, I could teach you how to use it at some point." she told Jackson, "I bet Leafeon is able to learn it."
"Hm..." Jackson paused at that idea, before calling out, "Hey, Leafeon. Come over here a second."
"We're in the middle of a battle, Jackson." she told him as she raced over.
"I just want you to notice, whenever you can, on Steelix using Iron Tail." he whispered to Leafeon, "Since you move fast already, I bet it would be a great substitute for Quick Attack."
"Oh? That's not a bad idea." Leafeon replied, looking to Steelix, who eyed her from behind.
"Don't relax with us, just yet!" the youngster shouted, before he and his partner tossed out their next Pokémon to the field, which were Butterfree and Growlithe.
"Might need to learn it sooner than later." Leafeon muttered.
"Yeah. Grass-type moves won't do much to them." Jackson agreed, before looking to Jasmine, "If you can set it up, can you knock them down?"
"Of course. I have the perfect move for that." she answered.
"Great, then let's do it, Leafeon! Quick Attack!" Jackson ordered, and Leafeon shot like a bullet towards the two opponents.
"Butterfree, Silver Wind!" "Growlithe, Flamethrower!" the two opponents' Pokémon unleashed their long-ranged attacks, but Leafeon easily dodged the attack, veering and leaping left and right to evade the two attacks from hitting her. She then leapt up and bashed into Butterfree, knocking it to the floor.
"Sweep Growlithe. Leaf Blade!" Jackson shouted, and as her front paws touched the ground, she used a Leaf Blade that swept underneath Growlithe, making him fall forward.
"How can a Leafeon move like that?!" the bug-catcher gasped.
"Oh, no! Look out!" his partner cried as Leafeon backed away, while Jackson nodded to Jasmine to go for it.
"Alright, Steelix. Stone Edge!" Jasmine ordered.
"YOU'RE DONE!" Steelix bellowed, slamming his tail into the ground, as blue glowing stalagmites shot out of the ground along a line, until they hit both Butterfree and Growlithe, knocking them into the air, before they crashed to the ground, unable to continue.
"Butterfree and Growlithe are unable to battle!" the referee announced, "Therefore, the winner of this round go to Jackson and Jasmine!"
"Hilt yeah!" Jackson cheered, giving a fist pump.
"We can't relax yet." Jasmine warned him, "We still got a ways to go. Stay sharp."
"I know. I'm just excited." Jackson answered her, "Don't worry. I'll stay sharp."
Down below, Lyanne was in one of the waiting rooms on the first floor with the rest of Jackson's Pokémon, watching the pair go over and heal up their Pokémon with the referee. "Jackson made it look easy." Weavile huffed with a smirk.
"Yeah, he and that other girl are pretty tough together." Quilava pointed out.
"Sensei is only starting, you know." Scyther argued, "I bet there are harder opponents than them."
Lyanne watched as Jackson and Jasmine's Pokémon were healed and given back to them. "So, this is Jackson's skill as a trainer." she understood, "I only saw a little bit of it before, but now, I am seeing how well he can fight." She watched as a rich couple appeared next on the battlefield to face them, tossing out a Sudowoodo and a Rapidash, while Jackson called out Dewott, while Jasmine called out Magneton onto the battlefield, before their match got underway.
Jackson and Jasmine were going through all the trainers rather well, together. Jackson should've expected that Jasmine was a strong trainer, what with her being a gym leader and all that. Turns out, he was right, as while Steelix was physically bulky and delivered strong blows, Magneton was a clever long-ranged fighter, even halted enemies in their tracks with the agonizing Metal Sound and Thunder Wave.
Jackson was working around Jasmine's team pretty well, with Leafeon's skills and strength allowing her to work together with Steelix and Magneton, while Dewott was more or less fighting next to them instead of with them. However, he was covering Jasmine's team's weaknesses with his Water Pulse and Razor Shell, while trying to finish up matches with Night Slash. All the while, Leafeon took every chance she had to watch when Steelix unleashed his Iron Tail, her tail flicking as she saw the movements and saw the kind of focus the Steel/Ground-type had.
And it wasn't that the opponents they faced were weak. Far from it, there were some that really tested both Jasmine and Jackson out, based on teamwork or just pure strength, even knocking one or two of their Pokémon out, from time to time. However, between Jasmine's skills as a gym leader, Jackson's team going through his hard training sessions to be physically stronger than normal, and their teamwork improving with each battle, they were able to beat the opponents that came their way.
After a great amount of time, Jackson and Jasmine high-fived one another, as Jasmine cheered, "Yes! That's 20 wins in a row!"
"I really lost track of how many battles there were." Jackson stated, looking at the other end of the battlefield, "It is exciting, and quite the challenge for me."
"We make a good team." Jasmine told him, "It's a shame that I'll have to beat you when it's time for our gym battle."
"Hey, let's be allies today." Jackson responded, "Tomorrow is when I slice up YOUR team to earn my sixth badge." Jasmine was happy to see that all these battles had not dampened his confidence.
"Jackson, don't cause any friction between our teams, yet." Leafeon muttered.
"I'm not causing friction! We're friendly rivals." Jackson argued, before getting down to her and whispering, "By the way, are you able to figure out how to use Iron Tail yet?"
"I was watching Steelix a lot, both on and off the field." the Verdant Pokémon answered, "I wanna try using it in our next battle."
"Okay. Let's see if you mastered it." Jackson told her, "I was watching it, too, so I'll help out if you can't pull it off on your own."
"What are you talking about?" Jasmine asked curiously.
"Hopefully, you'll find out." the swordsman answered, as the elevator door opened to reveal their next opponents.
Who came out surprised the pair. It was Palmer, and his partner was a kid a little less than Jackson's age, with fluffy hair the same color as Palmer's, along with the same-colored eyes. He wore an orange and white-striped, short-sleeved shirt, a green scarf wrapped around his neck, draping down in front, black pants, brown shoes, and a brown bag with the shoulder strap wrapped around the opposite shoulder.
"Alright! These are our opponents?" the boy asked.
"We're already facing you?!" Jackson gasped, as he and Jasmine were surprised. This was a fight they weren't expecting today.