John's Team
Tyrant - Slaking
Vordt - Ursaluna
Smough - Snorlax
Klee - Blissey
Port - Mantine
Zephyr - Pidgeot
Klaus - Wyrdeer
Luna - Clefable
Pixel - Porygon2
Euphie - Eevee
Ornstein - D-Zigzagoon
The New Normal – 5-12 – A Fighting Fight
I arrived at the Indigo Plateau where my fight against Bruno would be hosted in less than an hour. The previous week had flown by quickly, yet fruitfully, as I continued pushing my Pokémon in preparation for the battle against Bruno. I had politely called off and delayed any unessential meetings in order to not distract myself from the coming battle, which thankfully they were accommodating.
After all the complications with the Gym, Agatha and Karen had apparently settled in quite well in running the Pewter Gym. Though considering the amusing texts that I had received from Karen, Agatha was apparently disgusted with the sheer incompetence that she discovered within the Gym. Unsurprisingly, she forcibly roped Karen into helping to sort out through all the backlog of paperwork.
As she told me, despite all of the work that needed to be done, Agatha was hanging back and getting Karen to do all the work. I heard that Agatha was supposed to be 'overseeing' the work done to make sure it was all done properly, but that sounded just like a justified excuse to me. It was delegation at its finest.
The side effect of Karen's new role was that she was far too busy to train together, but that was along the lines that we expected. And with how poor the state of the Pewter Gym was and how they were behind in their paperwork, Karen was forced to work through the nights to get everything in order. I even heard that Agatha authorised the hiring of a few extra temporary assistants to help out with the work. I guess this was all the 'leadership experience' that Agatha wanted Karen to gain.
I did not envy her. I didn't think anyone sane would actually voluntarily subject themselves to paperwork.
Despite this, from the reports that I got from Karen, she found the entire experience of running a Gym to be novel and interesting. Sure, she complained about how hectic and busy it was, and how it caused her to have a constant headache, but she still found the work very fulfilling.
Still, she told me that she never really saw herself as a Gym Leader in the long-term, as administration and paperwork weren't really what she enjoyed doing, and she really wasn't used to having to hold back as much as she did for the 1st Badge challenges. She said that after the first battle, it quickly became monotonous and a chore to do. However, she recognized the value of Agatha's plans and would do her best, even if it greatly pained her at times.
Furthermore, she sympathized greatly with Brock and the other children's situation with their parents walking out on them. "I've seen this situation far too many times." She told me over the phone one night, "So if there is anything I can do to make these kids have a more comfortable future, then I will."
She reminded me that the situation brought up many unpleasant similarities to the stories she was told while she was in the orphanage and was determined to improve the Gym to be the best that it could be before their time as regent was over. At least so that the kids could have a slightly brighter future ahead of them.
It was a mixture of spite and sympathy that drove her, and I encouraged her all the way. I was happy and proud to see Karen working towards an objective like that. I wished her all the best.
"Elite John, please make your way to the waiting area." A League official approached me, "Your battle is about to begin."
I gave him a nod and made my way to waiting area, my six Premier Balls carefully fastened to my belt. I pulled my thoughts away from Karen and focused on the battle ahead. I knew I was ready; I had studied and trained extensively for this battle.
Now it was time to put that effort into use and secure myself a convincing victory.
I sat back down in the waiting area and passed the time idly by going over my plans and thoughts once again. Unlike when I was sat waiting for my battle against Drake, I wasn't as nervous as I was then.
Perhaps it was arrogance, but I liked to believe that I had developed a newfound confidence. A confidence that was born from my previous victories, which served as proof that my Pokémon most certainly had what it takes to win.
I reminded myself constantly to not underestimate Bruno. He made it into the Elite Four in canon, and so I knew to never treat him lightly.
He was a threat, but I was confident that I could overcome him as well.
"Elite John, it's time." Another official said to me. I wordlessly got up from my seat, and the official escorted me through a small tunnel into the arena, where I was promptly greeted by the blinding sunlight and the roars and cheers of the crowd.
As I shielded my eyes from the bright sunlight, I saw that many in the audience were waving or displaying my posters.
"YOU GOT THIS JOHN!" I heard someone scream out,
"YEAH, YOU WON'T LOSE!" Another cried out.
"SHOW THAT JOHTONIAN WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A TRAINER!" Another cheered.
I felt a smile form on my face as I felt their support wash over me. The cheers of supporters from the audience only bolstered my desire to win; I would not let myself disappoint my supporters by losing here.
On the other side of the field, my opponent walked onto the field. Bruno received muted cheers from the crowd, but I felt that he barely registered the crowd; his eyes were locked onto me, as if he was trying to observe my every movement. It was a gaze lacking in hostility, but to simply size me up and to take my full measure.
After a moment, he nodded, satisfied in what he saw. I didn't have time to think about what that meant before the announcer made his presence known.
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WELCOME ONE AND ALL TO THIS EXCITING MATCH! NOT LONG AFTER OUR PREVIOUS CHALLENGE BETWEEN NOW ELITE LORELEI AND WALKER, WE HAVE A NEW CHALLENGER SEEKING TO MAKE HIS MARK ON THE WORLD BY CHALLENGING A MEMBER OF THE ELITE FOUR!"
"NOW PLEASE WELCOME OUR DEFENDING MEMBER OF THE ELITE FOUR, THE HERO OF OLIVINE, ELITE JOHN!!" The cheers from the crowd were deafening, but I did my best to ignore them, even though a part of me wanted to cringe at the nickname. I gave the crowd a small wave, but now was not the time to acknowledge them and bask in the attention. Now was a time for focus. I could celebrate after my victory.
"AND HIS OPPONENT AND CHALLENGER, PLEASE WELCOME THE YEAR BEFORE LAST'S WINNER OF THE INDIGO CONFERENCE, AND A FIGHTING TYPE SPECIALIST, BRUNO!" His reception was expectedly rather tepid, but he seemingly paid no attention to that. His posture was firm, yet relaxed. But every part of him screamed discipline.
This was a man that looked like he could stare down a Dragon and not flinch.
I zoned out the announcer, who began once again listing the rules and how the battle would be a 6v6 with 3 switches as usual and stared down Bruno. He was far bigger than me, and almost seemed like he was formed out of pure muscle. But I refused to let him intimidate me.
Drake's Dragons couldn't unnerve me, so what was his Fighting types to a Dragon?
"AND NOW, IT'S TIME TO START THE BATTLE! LET'S COUNT DOWN TOGETHER!" The crowd roared out in approval.
"THREE!" I took a deep breath and let a feeling of calm wash over me.
"TWO!" I clutched onto my chosen Premier Ball, remembering the plan that I had laid out for this battle.
"ONE!" We both released our Pokémon.
On his side, a Hitmontop landed gracefully on the arena, spinning repeatedly as it balanced nimbly on the tip of its head. As it spun, it began kicking the air as if it was dancing, but each kick was delivered with such precision that it belied the technique and strength behind them.
On my side, Luna emerged from her Premier Ball with a wide smile, which quickly morphed into determination as she observed her opponent. I had spent the most time training with Luna out of all of the Pokémon on my team, so I was confident in her ability to secure an early lead.
Bruno made the first move.
"Fake Out, Hitmontop."
"Cosmic Power, Luna."
Hitmontop rapidly spun on the spot before it flung itself towards Luna, arms outstretched. Luna immediately began channelling mystical energies within herself, only to be almost immediately interrupted as Hitmontop clapped its hands right in front of her, causing her to flinch.
Before I could give another command, Hitmontop immediately followed up with a powerful straight jab to the gut. Luna cried out in pain as she stumbled backwards from the attack. Immediately afterwards, Hitmontop performed an impressive somersault kick and backflipped away from Luna, exiting her immediate range and creating distance.
I frowned at the sudden retreat. I had hoped that his Hitmontop would have sensed Luna's weakness and committed further into attacking. Before the battle, I had discussed with Luna my plan to have Luna fake her injuries by making it seem that she was weaker than she was to Fighting type attacks, hopefully causing Bruno's Pokémon to overcommit. But it seemed like Hitmontop chose to play safe and scout.
I knew that, with all the training that I had done, Luna's Moonblast was a formidable attack that was more than capable of badly wounding or even instantly knocking out Bruno's squishier Fighting types. While Hitmontop was the most defensive of the trio, I highly doubted that it could withstand a direct hit from a supereffective Moonblast. Or if it could, it would be severely injured afterwards.
I just needed to bait it in so that I could land it.
"Reflect, Luna!"
"Close in, Hitmontop."
Hitmontop flung itself forwards while spinning once again as it rapidly closed in on Luna. A shimmer of light barely managed to manifest in front of Luna before it was promptly shattered by a Brick Break from Hitmontop, kicking down from above and slamming its leg into Luna's skull. But Luna brushed the attack off.
"Psychic, Luna!"
"Fall back with U-Turn, Hitmontop."
Showing off its impressive reaction speeds, Hitmontop immediately threw a kick to Luna's face, knocking her back, and used it as a springboard to create distance from Luna. Then, showing off its pure martial ability, it began to spin mid-air to control its descent so that it could dive out of the way of the incoming Psychic, narrowly avoiding it.
"AGAIN, LUNA!"
"Power through, Hitmontop!"
Hitmontop spun and dashed right back into the fray, charging straight towards Luna. Luna let out a cry as she fired off a powerful Psychic that ripped through the ground of the arena. But Hitmontop continued its charge stoically as it began to channel Dark energy in one of its palms.
And then, just as the Psychic was about to land, it thrust its Dark-infused arm forwards, shattering the incoming Psychic as it dissipated on the Dark type attack. Bruno immediately exploited this vulnerability.
"Close Combat, Hitmontop! Follow through and commit!"
Making use of the sudden opening where Luna wouldn't be able to fire off another attack, Hitmontop closed in on Luna and began delivering a series of devastating punches straight into Luna; each punch powerful enough to cause an audible 'thump' as they impacted explosively on Luna.
Against a standard Normal type Pokémon, Hitmontop would have knocked them out already. Close Combat was already a very powerful attack, but Bruno had clearly trained up his Hitmontop to be able to deliver punches that were somehow even more destructive. He must have thought that the pain from receiving the supereffective Close Combat would stifle any attempts to counterattack. Which meant that his victory should have been secured.
Unfortunately for him, he had put Hitmontop exactly where I had wanted it.
"GRAVITY, LUNA! INTO MOONBLAST!"
"FALL BACK, HITMONTOP! PROTECT!"
Bruno's eyes widened slightly as he ordered his Hitmontop to fall back, clearly not expecting Luna to be able to form a counterattack at this moment.
However, the sudden shift in gravity slammed down on Hitmontop, slowing its normally agile movements as it struggled to adapt to the intense gravity. Hitmontop stumbled in its attempt to escape, tripping over its legs as they failed to move as it wanted them to.
And Luna was able to take advantage of Hitmontop's self-entanglement to charge up a blindingly large Moonblast, the light from the attack casting a huge shadow across the arena. Luna shot Hitmontop a victorious grin as she launched the orb of heavily condescended Fairy energy straight at her.
Unable to escape or dodge out of the way in time, Hitmontop formed a last-ditch Protect shield. Yet, the flimsy shield did little to protect it against the Moonblast, which crashed through it with contemptuous ease and ruthlessly detonated on Hitmontop, launching it across the arena as a crater formed where it once stood.
The crowd gasped at the sudden turnaround. But, surprisingly, despite being hit by such a devastating supereffective move, Hitmontop refused to go down just yet as it twitched slightly on the ground. Using what remains of its energy, it struggled to pull itself up as it continued to be pressed down by the intense gravity. It wasn't knocked out yet, but clearly could not fight any further.
I commanded Luna to cut off the Gravity, but before I could order her to finish it off, Bruno raised Hitmontop's Pokéball.
"Retire yourself, Hitmontop. You have lost today."
The crowd let out a cheer as Bruno retired his Hitmontop, understanding that it wouldn't be able to push itself any further. The announcer cut in over the crowd.
"WHAT A START TO THIS FIGHT! IN A SURPRISING TURNAROUND FROM JOHN'S CLEFABLE, IT MANAGED TO WITHSTAND THE SUPEREFFECTIVE CLOSE COMBAT FROM BRUNO'S HITMONTOP AND RETILIATED, KNOCKING OUT THE LATTER WITH A SINGLE MOVE! THIS PUTS THE SCORE AT 1-0!"
The announcer paused dramatically for the crowd, before continuing, "CHALLENGER BRUNO NOW HAS 30 SECONDS TO CHOOSE HIS NEXT POKEMON! I WONDER WHAT IT'LL BE!"
While Bruno pondered about his next Pokémon, I took the time to observe Luna's state. She had a big grin plastered on her face, but one of her eyes was unable to open fully. Furthermore, she seemed to be favouring her right side more, and had a small limp. I guess even with a resistance to Fighting type moves, Bruno's attacks really hit hard.
Still, Luna remained in fighting condition, and I trusted that she would be able to stay in the fight.
In the corner of my eye, I noticed that Bruno was eyeing Luna warily, as if he was trying to understand how she managed to tank through a Close Combat like that. Evidently, he was gauging whether she could endure through another. Bruno was far more than a musclehead.
And just before his 30 seconds was up, Bruno sent out his next Pokémon.
"Hitmonlee, avenge your partner."
His Hitmonlee appeared on the arena bouncing on the balls of its feet while firing off a series of kicks in the air, just like Hitmontop did. However, while Hitmontop's kicks were nimbler and came from multiple angles, Hitmonlee's kicks were quicker and seemed to cut through the air itself. The difference in power was staggering.
Bruno made the first move.
"Focus Energy, Hitmonlee. Concentrate, and gather up your strength."
"Softboiled, Luna. Heal yourself."
Bruno surprisingly gave me the opportunity to heal up Luna. I would have thought that he would capitalize on Luna's wounded state and pressure her so that she couldn't heal. And yet, he chose to spend time setting up instead and allowing Luna to restore most of her injuries.
A strange choice. It was almost like he was trying to give his Pokémon more of a challenge.
"Mach Punch, Hitmonlee. Close in."
"Icy Wind, Luna! Slow it down."
One of Hitmonlee's fists began glowing as it suddenly dived towards Luna. In response, Luna began letting out a freezing gust of wind that would have slowed the incoming Hitmonlee. However, seeing the attack coming, Bruno quickly switched tactics.
"Switch to Blaze Kick, Hitmonlee. Use the momentum."
Still being driven forward by the momentum from its Mach Punch, Hitmonlee quickly transitioned into a spinning kick of flames, burning through the incoming Icy Wind and striking directly at Luna's side.
Luna let out a genuine cry of pain from that attack, not like the fake ones she did against Hitmontop, and stumbled to the side. Bruno rapidly capitalized on that opportunity.
"Mega Kick, Hitmonlee."
"PROTECT!"
And yet, my order came too late. With near instantaneous reactions, Hitmonlee kicked through the air like a speeding bullet, smashing critically against Luna with an audible crack and causing her to careen backwards through the air as she crashed into the psychic shields of the arena.
I casted a worried look at Luna, unsure if she was able to continue the fight. Fortunately, despite being blasted backwards, Luna proved that her training was worthwhile as she pulled herself up with only a slight stumble from where she had fallen. I shot her a proud grin at that.
Seeing that Luna was still in the fight, Bruno gave his next command.
"Stone Edge, Hitmonlee."
"Psychic, Luna. Blast through them."
Hitmonlee began lifting up huge rocks around it, before kicking them towards Luna like they were huge projectiles. They flew with incredible accuracy, and I knew that Bruno had perfected his use of rocks as projectiles as counters for potential flyers. The rocks weren't voluminous, like with Vordt or Tyranitar, but rather they just flew with blisteringly fast speeds and with dangerous sniper-like precision. This was a clear example of quality over quantity.
Even Zephyr would have a hard time dodging past such accurate rocks flying at such high speed.
However, before they even managed to get close, Luna fired off a destructive Psychic that ripped through the incoming rocks like they were nothing more than chunks of loose gravel, dissipating the incoming volley of rocks entirely.
"Earthquake and close the distance with a Mach Punch, Hitmonlee. You can't fight from afar!"
Hitmonlee pivoted out of the way of the incoming Psychic before it stomped on the ground with one of its legs. A terrible tremor shot through the ground, as a huge crack started snaking its way towards Luna.
"Protect, Luna!"
A circular shield formed around Luna just in time to protect herself against the Earthquake, but Hitmonlee exploited Luna's inability to attack by getting in close and timed it perfectly so that it struck Luna critically in the face with its fist just as the Protect shield dissipated.
"Low Sweep, Hitmonlee. Trip her up."
"Zen Headbutt, Luna. Knock it away!"
Luna recovered quickly and began channelling Psychic energy in the dome of her head, but before she could strike at Hitmonlee, it swept its powerful legs underneath Luna and knocked her off her feet. She fell helplessly onto the ground, and before she could pull herself up and reorient herself, Hitmonlee quickly followed up with a devastating series of kicks that all struck at Luna's critical points, the previous Focus Energy paying dividends right now as Hitmonlee narrowed down Luna's weak points.
I winced as I watched helplessly as Luna fell to the ground while being brutally hammered by an onslaught of kicks. Despite all the training that we had done, Luna still wasn't the best at fighting at close range. She had neither the physique nor the speed to take advantage of a close-range fight. If this kept up for even a short while longer, I knew that Luna would be knocked out even with her resistance to Fighting type moves.
I struggled to think of something, before my eyes flashed as I remembered what Hitmontop did to separate itself from Luna earlier.
"Psychic, Luna! Blast yourself away!"
Luna admirably pushed through the pain as she unleashed a blast of Psychic energy that detonated right in front of her. The force from the attack launched Luna backwards through the air, and more importantly, separating herself from Hitmonlee. Her injuries were severe, but Luna valiantly stood tall despite her battered body. She may have been on her last legs, but she wouldn't fall just yet.
In the meanwhile, Hitmonlee was unable to react in time to the sudden explosion of Psychic energy and was blasted backwards as well. Hitmonlee briefly fell onto a knee, its lack of endurance proving crippling as it struggled to recover its stance after tanking through one supereffective Psychic. Although its injuries looked far less serious than Luna's, I recognized that another good hit might be enough to take out the Hitmonlee.
Both Pokémon were injured, but neither refused to fall just yet. But I felt it in my gut that the next round of attacks would decide the victor.
A strange sense of calm settled down on me as I analysed what Bruno's next move would be. I was confident he would try to get in close once again; since that was what he had been doing every time and I knew that he had no long-ranged attacks to rely on. Thus, the question was how could I knock out Hitmonlee in close-range when it was superior at fighting in close range over Luna?
Then, my mind flashed back to my fight against Giovanni, and the odd training that I did in preparation for the match. And I had my solution.
"Mach Punch, Hitmonlee. Again!"
Almost feeling like déjà vu, Hitmonlee sped towards Luna with fist extended as it threatened to strike Luna with yet another critical attack. But this time, I waited patiently for Hitmonlee to strike, hoping that Luna's inherent resistance to Fighting type attacks would be sufficient at keeping her on her feet.
Hitmonlee crashed into Luna with a powerful strike of his fist, landing a savage blow that struck Luna critically. Luna skidded back, letting out a cry of pain, but held on enough to launch her own counterattack.
"Zen Headbutt, Luna! Meet it head on!"
Luna's psychically infused head descended downwards like a hammer, but to my surprise, Hitmonlee reacted quicker than I expected and struck at Luna's head with a Dark-infused kick, which knocked her backwards and also SOMEHOW nullified the attack entirely. Luna's head snapped backwards from the blow, and she wobbled in confusion before fortunately pulling herself together.
I was shocked at Hitmonlee's reaction speed to not only recover from its attack but to also nullify Luna's; it was an incredible display of discipline and focus. But I knew that we were at the critical moment in the fight.
"Play Rough, Luna!"
"Dispel it with another kick, Hitmonlee!"
Dark energy rapidly formed around one of Hitmonlee's legs, wrapping around it like a bandage before it was thrust out like a spear at my charging Luna. However, this time Bruno was the one to be surprised, as instead of dispersing the Psychic energy like he did with the Zen Headbutt, Luna's Play Rough seemed to cut right through the Dark energy.
But even after being caught out by surprise, Hitmonlee quickly surrounded itself with an orange glow as it instantly prepared a Counter just moments before Luna crashed into it with a Play Rough.
Both Pokémon fell onto the ground from the attack, and Hitmonlee let out a grunt of pain as it was struck by the supereffective move. And yet, channelling its mental discipline, it directed the stored energy from the Counter and retaliated with a brutal Mega Kick that critically smashed into Luna's side.
Luna was launched away by the attack, and this time, I knew she wouldn't be getting up. She slammed painfully into the psychic barriers with a loud cry of pain, and unfortunately slumped over; her injuries proving too much to handle. With a sigh, I grabbed Luna's Premier Ball and withdrew my fainted Pokémon from the fight.
Seeing my Luna go down, Bruno pondered things over for a moment before eventually deciding to also withdraw his severely injured Hitmonlee, retiring from the battle. He likely realized it was only going to be detrimental to leave it in the fight.
Even though that was the smarter move for him to do, I still breathed a small sigh of relief as Hitmonlee vanished into its Pokéball. What a monster that was.
"AND BOTH TRAINERS HAVE RETIRED THEIR POKEMON, AND WHAT A SHOW THAT WE JUST GOT!" The announcer's voice boomed out. "IN A DOUBLE KNOCKOUT, BOTH POKEMON HAVE GONE DOWN AFTER A BRUTAL CLOSE-RANGE BATTLE! THE MATCH IS NOW AT 2-1! EACH TRAINER HAS 30 SECONDS TO SEND OUT THEIR NEXT POKEMON!"
The crowd cheered wildly at the effective double knock out, but I didn't have it in me to join in on their enthusiasm. I wasn't disappointed at Luna's performance, but I was hoping that Luna could have achieved more with her hidden typing and resistances.
I recognized that, if it weren't for the element of surprise, Luna would not have won in that final exchange, and probably would have just been knocked out unceremoniously. Bruno must have expected Play Rough to be a Psychic type move like Zen Headbutt, and it was only the surprising fact that my Fairy type attack nullified his Dark type move that secured me a double knockout.
Still, I took a breath to calm myself down. Things don't always go to plan, and Luna HAD secured me a one Pokémon lead over Bruno.
I just had to make sure that lead could sustain itself.
A.N. John's finally capitalizing on his Fairy type meta-knowledge here! Yet, Bruno's Pokémon are undoubtedly better at close-range combat, so I hoped the fight balanced itself out. I hope you were satisfied with how the fight played out.
Unfortunately, there will be no Wednesday chapter. Once again, I am sorry about this.
This chapter has been BETAed by Allute! Big thanks! And to anyone who wants to support me, please check out my p atreon at CartecTNN where you can read 8 advanced chapters! Thanks to those who have supported me already!