The New Normal - A Pokémon SI

by CartecFF

For most, becoming a member of the Elite 4 would be the culmination of their Journey. A great achievement that solidified your status in the annals of history. For me, it was just the start of my journey. Hopefully, everything stays Normal. A pre-canon self-insert into the world of Pokémon. Inspired by Hard Enough. Crossposted SB/QQ. Updates every Mon/Fri. Short Interludes on Wed.

98. The New Normal - 5-13

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 – 5-13 – Fighting Power

I hesitated for a moment before sending out my next Pokémon, which I had planned to be Zephyr. Originally, I had hoped to send out Zephyr to finish off whatever weakened Pokémon that Luna would have been dealing with, since I was confident that Zephyr should be able to evade enough attacks from one of Bruno's injured Pokémon.

From the research that I had done, I had seen countless times how Bruno's Pokémon were able to secure a victory despite going against Flying types, reversing the Fighting type's normally unfavourable conditions, and striking the offending Flyer out of the sky with precise attacks.

But now, I was wondering if Zephyr could actually deal with an uninjured Pokémon from Bruno.

However, after taking a moment to think things through a bit and going over Bruno's entire team once again, I realized that it didn't matter if I sent out Zephyr next or not. I recognized that, despite differences regarding strength, speed, and bulk, ALL of Bruno's Pokémon fought the same way and with similar anti-air techniques. Therefore, it didn't really matter WHEN I chose to send out Zephyr, as any Pokémon that Bruno chose would try to knock Zephyr out of the air by firing rocks at him.

With that decided, I grabbed hold of his Premier Ball as I got ready to send him in. As I looked up, I felt Bruno's eyes scanning me. I refused to meet his stares as I readied myself mentally for the next round.

"TRAINERS, ARE YOU READY?!" The announcer hyped up as our 30 seconds were nearly up. We both nodded. "BEGIN!"

"IN THE AIR, ZEPHYR!"

"Hitmonchan, go!"

Foregoing any posturing, and just like when I went up against Drake, Zephyr emerged from his Premier Ball as he immediately screeched out and acknowledged my hidden command to swoop high up into the air and begin setting up with Work Up.

However, Bruno wasn't going to make things easy for me.

"Stone Edge, Hitmonchan. Punch it down."

Just like with Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan began tearing up the arena as large slabs of rocks floated around it. Then, with a hammering strike from her fists, one for each rock, she launched each slab like a missile that shot towards Zephyr, cutting through the air like bullets.

Even with all the training that we did against Vordt and his Stone Edge, I was unpleasantly surprised at just how close those rocks were to knocking Zephyr out of the air. Each rock narrowly whistled by Zephyr, despite his impressive flying speed. While Hitmonchan could not match the sheer volume of rocks that Vordt could fire off, but by physically slamming each rock forwards with its fists like it was doing, it meant that each rock shot through the air with dangerously fast speeds.

Instead of an overwhelming barrage of rocks, Hitmonchan fired them off like sniper rounds. Precise and deadly.

I had hoped that my practice with Zephyr against Vordt would make it easier to dodge past the rocks. It was one thing to witness this technique over a screen, but now, seeing it in person like this, I began to truly understand how Bruno was able to bring down the many Flying types that were commonly arrayed against him.

Despite Zeyphr's best and admirable efforts in utilizing the full range of his aerial manoeuvrability, performing an impressive combination of swoops, dives, and swerves to dodge out of the way, each slam of Hitmonchan's fists only caused more rocks to shoot forwards. As the rocks continued to fly, I was uncomfortable allowing this situation to continue any further as the pressure started to build up. Furthermore, Zephyr had quickly abandoned his attempts to setup with Work Up, as he couldn't afford to distract himself and was forced to dedicate all of his focus into purely dodging.

My fists clenched as I realized the horrible situation Zephyr was in. Unable to set up with Work Ups, Zephyr was effectively wasting time until one rock eventually knocked it out of the air.

I was tempted to swap Zephyr out, but I feared giving Bruno the opportunity to allow his Pokémon to set up. His Focus Energy boosted Hitmonlee was practically able to land critical hits with every one of its attacks, and I didn't want to face down another of his Pokémon like that. So the only option was to risk everything and go on the offensive.

It was now a matter of choosing between two bad choices, and I wasn't given any time to decide between them. I allowed myself a second to think, before an idea popped into my head and I discarded my hesitation and gave a new command, trusting in Zephyr's abilities.

"Fall into a dive, Zephyr! And set up Agility!"

"Knock it out, Hitmonchan."

With an affirmative screech, Zephyr began an almost meteoric descent out of the sky, diving down in a straight line as quickly as possible while his eyes shut in concentration as he began to set up with Agility.

I knew that Zephyr couldn't afford to slow down or else he would be struck out of the sky with consecutive impacts from the fired rocks. So instead, I ordered him to dive straight down like an arrow so that he could maintain his speed while also giving him the opportunity to set up.

Of course, now that Zephyr was moving almost perfectly in a straight line, Hitmonchan was given free reign to smash Zephyr out of the air with a perfectly shot slab of rock. However, I was betting on the fact that Zephyr could set up his Agility faster than Hitmonchan could line up a shot.

It was a huge risk. And I'm sure Bruno knew it too. Zephyr just had to hang on.

My eyes locked on to Zephyr's falling figure as I started unconsciously gritting my teeth in anticipation. I could hear the signature SLAM from Hitmonchan's fist launching yet another rock at my vulnerable Zephyr, and I had to hold back a wince as the rock narrowly missed him.

My fists clenched even tighter as another rock barely missed Zephyr.

I started holding my breath as the third rock almost clipped him in the wings.

And then, just as the pink glow surrounding Zephyr started fading, signifying the completion of his Agility, my frown deepened as a rock nailed him in his left wing. Zephyr let out a painful screech as he tumbled uncontrollably out of the air. He was hit!

I steeled myself and gave my next order, knowing that the next few moments would make-or-break the fight.

"Air Slash, Zephyr, then Roost! You need to cut down those rocks while you heal yourself up!"

"Move in closer and fire off more rocks, Hitmonchan."

Hitmonchan gave off a quick nod before it started sprinting towards Zephyr's falling figure, all the while maintaining its barrage of rocks as it swung its fists repeatedly. In the meanwhile, in a display of incredible discipline, Zephyr ignored the pain while he held off the incoming boulders by cutting them out of the air with powerful Air Slashes with its uninjured wing.

Hitmonchan easily sidestepped out of the way of any Air Slashes that came its way, not even hindered by Zephyr's attacks.

Rocks continued to fly and be slashed out of the sky in equal measure, and luckily for Zephyr, Hitmonchan's ability to perform geokinesis was slowly weakening as time went on as its' reserves of rock energy waned; allowing him to actually fend off the reduced volley without being knocked out.

After a moment of tense back and forth, Zephyr managed to land safely on the ground as he rapidly began healing up with Roost. However, he was barely able to begin the healing process as Hitmonchan quickly closed the distance.

"Mach Punch, Hitmonchan. Strike it while it's vulnerable!"

"Wing Attack, Zephyr. You have to block it!"

Fist struck wing as both Pokémon's attacks collided against each other. Here, type advantages once again proved fortunate for me as Zephyr managed to hold off against the much more powerful Hitmonchan simply through the fact that his Wing Attack was supereffective and resistant against Hitmonchan's Mach Punch.

Zephyr struggled and tried to bash Hitmonchan with its wing, but Hitmonchan simply ducked under the way before it dedicated even more raw power and punched even harder. One punch suddenly turned into a barrage as Hitmonchan landed a flurry of explosive punches on Zephyr. A Protect shield instinctively formed in front of Zephyr, only to be immediately shattered by a Brick Break from Hitmonchan, who continued laying into Zephyr with a brutal series of punches.

The whole exchange barely lasted over a second, but as Zephyr cried out once again, I knew I had to quickly find a way to make space for Zephyr to heal up so that he could fly again. Otherwise, with just a few more hits, Hitmonchan would have pummelled Zephyr into the ground.

My mind flashed through all of Zephyr's known moves before I found an answer.

"WHIRLWIND, ZEPHYR! PUSH IT AWAY!"

"Close Combat, Hitmonchan! Knock it down, NOW!"

Zephyr covered himself with a wing as he began gathering up a huge storm of wind within his bosom. Realizing what he was doing, Hitmonchan's punches intensified as its fists started glowing white, but it only managed to land a few punches from its savage pummelling before Zephyr unleashed his tidal wave of stored wind.

A huge torrent of wind unleashed itself directly at Hitmonchan, instantly blowing back loose rocks and clouds of dust. It tried to stand firm, placing its feet wide as it shielded itself from the howling winds with its fists, but it ultimately proved futile.

As if it was nothing more than a dust in the wind, Hitmonchan was carried away by the gale winds and was almost pinned against the far wall of the arena as the howling whirlwind engulfed the entire arena. Cries could be heard in the audience as some of their food items were knocked aside as well, the psychic barriers failing to completely stop the pressure from the winds.

Almost immediately after pushing Hitmonchan back, Zephyr immediately cancelled the Whirlwind and shifted his focus back to healing himself up.

"Get back in there, Hitmonchan! Don't let it heal!"

As the Whirlwind died down, Hitmonchan pulled itself off the ground and rushed back into the fight, leaping over much of the scattered debris as its eyes flashed with eagerness as it sought to interrupt Zephyr's healing with another ruthless pummelling. However, even while sprinting as fast as it could, the distance between Hitmonchan and Zephyr was too great for it to close the distance in time before Zephyr finished healing.

Thus, seconds before Hitmonchan reached striking distance, Zephyr let out a triumphant squawk as he swooped into the air, his wing now recovered sufficiently so that he could fly again.

Despite this, I knew that I didn't hold the advantage here. Even with the speed boost provided by Agility, it would only take one lucky strike from one of Hitmonchan's rocks to knock Zephyr out of the air once again. And I doubt that Bruno would be so merciful as to allow him to heal once more.

Therefore, I couldn't allow Hitmonchan to continue firing off rocks.

"Brave Bird, Zephyr! Keep up the pressure!"

"Get ready to Counter, Hitmonchan. Brace yourself."

Zephyr immediately pivoted and swooped high into the air before beginning his Agility-boosted rapid descent out of the sky once again, cutting through the air like a knife through butter. Seeing its prey was looking to come to it instead, Hitmonchan paused its pursuit and stood firmly still.

An orange aura began to surround Hitmonchan's still figure as it waited for Zephyr to get into its striking range. Its legs were spread slightly apart, its fists were raised to its head, and its eyes were alight with pure concentration as Hitmonchan tracked Zephyr descent through the sky. It was ready and waiting, seeking to deliver a devastating counterattack to knock Zephyr out.

It was now just a matter of execution; there was no strategy left to be had. We both knew what the other intended. Could Zephyr's speed and agility overcome Hitmonchan's concentration so that he could land a decisive Brave Bird? Or would Hitmonchan's battle senses be sufficient to predict and react to Zephyr's incoming assault and punish him for entering its' striking range?

I didn't even have time to hesitate as Zephyr suddenly shot forwards with an additional burst of speed and rammed straight into the waiting fists of Hitmonchan…

BUT THEY BOTH MISSED!

My eyes blinked rapidly as I tried to confirm what just happened. From what I saw, Hitmonchan had intended to pivot out of the way of the attack and retaliate with a devastating punch; but it failed to account for the sudden burst of speed and mistimed its counterattack. On the other hand, Zephyr failed to realize that Hitmonchan was going to dodge and misjudged his angle of the attack.

As a result, both Pokémon seemed to only manage to land glancing blows against each other. I quickly turned my eyes to Zephyr and saw that while he was suddenly favouring his right side more than his left, he was still able to fly and continue attacking. Likewise, Hitmonchan's left arm was flailing slightly, as it if couldn't really put much strength into it.

Seeing Hitmonchan's injuries, a part of me wanted to play it safe and spam Hitmonchan down with long range attacks. But then I was reminded of the fact that Hitmonchan didn't need BOTH hands to punch rocks like they were bullets, so I recognized that I couldn't take the risk. The battle had to be over NOW.

"ONCE MORE, ZEPHYR! PUT EVERYTHING INTO IT!"

"Get ready, Hitmonchan. No more chances."

Zephyr gave off one last affirmative screech as he performed an aerial somersault to position himself into yet another dive. A silver-aura encased him as he plunged downwards at such blistering fast speeds that he was little more than a silver blur.

In the meanwhile, Hitmonchan repositioned itself once again as it stoically prepared to meet Zephyr's all-out strike. Its right fist, the one that remained uninjured, began to glow as it readied its own avenging strike. This time, Hitmonchan's eyes seemed to promise as they flared in determination, it wouldn't miss.

Then, with another sonic boom, Zephyr launched itself forwards just as Hitmonchan thrust forwards with its fist as the two Pokémon collided against each other.

There was no cloud of dust, no dramatic explosion. But the instant that both Pokémon impacted against each other, they collapsed near instantly like they were puppets that had their strings cut.

It was almost too quick to see, but I thought I caught a glimpse of Zephyr's wing smashing straight into Hitmonchan's core, while Hitmonchan's fist landed a precise strike that found purchase in the side of Zephyr's face. Both landed direct blows against the other, and they both fainted instantly.

It was a double knockout.

A solemn silence descended onto the arena momentarily as the crowd attempted to process what they just saw. Of course, the announcer quickly dispelled the silence as he made himself known again.

"ANNND WHAT A DEVESTATING AND HEART-PUMPING ENDING TO THAT SPECTACULAR BATTLE! A SURPRISING DOUBLE KNOCKOUT FOR BOTH TRAINERS YET AGAIN! THIS HAS BEEN AN INCREDIBLE MATCH TO WATCH! THE SCORE IS NOW 3-2!" His voice thundered across the arena. "AND NOW, EACH TRAINERS HAS 30 SECONDS TO SEND OUT THEIR NEXT POKEMON!"

I withdrew Zephyr into his Premier Ball before whispering a few words to him. "Great job, Zephyr. You did better than I could have ever hoped for." His Premier Ball wiggled slightly, giving me all the acknowledgement I needed.

And now, with Bruno's trio of Hitmon's already knocked out, that left him with his Primeape, Hariyama, and Machamp. Annoyingly, I couldn't be sure which one Bruno would choose to send out next. At least I was confident that it wouldn't be Machamp.

If it was his Hariyama, then I would want to send out a faster Pokémon that could take advantage of Hariyama's terrible speed. Klaus would be the best option there to wear it down at a distance.

If it was his Primeape, then I would be more confident sending out one of my bruisers to fight against it, since it didn't hit as hard as Hariyama and had much less endurance. However, I knew from my research that it was surprisingly fast for a Pokémon not normally known for its speed and would easily catch an unprepared trainer unawares. Thus, I felt that I would have a better chance sending out Smough or Vordt to win against Primeape, relying on their overwhelming bulk to withstand against its attacks.

No matter which I decided, I had to commit to the decision because I couldn't afford to give Bruno time to set up when I swapped out. But I only had 30 seconds to choose.

In the end, I felt that I had better odds if Klaus matched up against Primeape than if Smough or maybe Vordt matched up against Hariyama. The former still had his type advantage, and he could hopefully still wear Primeape down with ranged attacks. I should still be able to pull out a win with him.

"TRAINERS, YOUR 30 SECONDS ARE NEARLY UP!" The announcer's voice cut in, "ARE YOU READY?!" I clutched tightly onto Klaus' Premier Ball and nodded.

"RELEASE!"

"Klaus, prove your training."

"Primeape, exploit your rage."

I cursed to myself as my guess proved wrong. Primeape came out from his Pokéball while hardly making a noise. It was unnerving to see a Pokémon that was normally full of rage and furious energy to be so calm and still. It spoke to the sheer amount of training that Bruno must have put his Primeape through to be able to achieve such mastery and control over its inherent rage.

The only hint of its signature rage was in its eyes, which were shining with restrained anger that was begging to be released, like a volcano waiting to erupt. To give credit to Klaus, he met Primeape's smouldering glares with a proud and dismissive snort, holding his head high as he emerged from his Premier Ball.

But just seeing the threatening aura that Primeape was exuding, combining with my memories of just how brutal Bruno's Pokémon were at close range, I had absolutely no intention to allow Klaus to get anywhere close to him. My plan was to just wear it down at a distance, and I started to enact it.

"To the air, Klaus! Set up with Calm Mind!"

Klaus immediately took to the air as he began forming floating Psychic platforms to leap from. But Bruno was not going to give Klaus any opportunity to set up.

"Stone Edge, Primeape. Just like we practiced!"

Stones began levitating around Primeape just like they did with all of Bruno's other Pokémon, before Primeape began hurling them like a pitcher. Klaus quickly began leaping away to dodge the rocks, but quickly realized that Primeape wasn't aiming to hit him.

Instead, Primeape was cunningly using those thrown rocks to shatter the Psychic platforms as soon as they formed, giving no opportunity for Klaus to escape into the sky. I grimaced as I understood Bruno's plan; he was looking to deny Klaus the ability to blast down his Primeape from above and forcing Klaus to remain grounded, where Primeape was able to reach him.

Fortunately, Klaus was able to finish channelling the Calm Mind just as the final psychic platform shattered from Primeape's rock missiles, forcing Klaus back down onto the ground as he tumbled out of the air. And Bruno rapidly took advantage of this.

"Close in, Primeape! Savage it!"

"Psychic, Klaus! And back off!"

Klaus quickly righted himself before firing off a boosted blast of Psychic towards Primeape, hoping to knock it away as he swiftly backpedalled away from the approaching Primeape. Yet, with an almost dismissive reaction, Primeape formed a large orb of Dark energy in its hands before punching towards the incoming Psychic, causing an explosion of darkness that safely dispelled it without interrupting Primeape's charge.

I frowned instinctively. This ability to just nullify my Psychic attacks was annoyingly impressive, and I didn't want to know just how much time Bruno put into this to be able to perfect it to this level. But, now with my supereffective attack nullified, I needed some other way to bring down Primeape.

But as I saw Primeape maintain its unrelenting charge towards Klaus, I realized what I had to do.

"AGAIN KLAUS! AND GET CLOSE TO IT!"

Displaying the full trust that he had in me, Klaus immediately pivoted away from his retreat and charged unquestioningly towards Primeape. As the two got closer, another blast of Psychic energy shot forwards from Klaus, only to be nullified once again by another swipe of Dark energy.

However, just before the two collided, I shouted out my next command.

"THUNDER WAVE, KLAUS! AND ZEN HEADBUTT!"

Just as Primeape was about to unleash its rage in the form of devastatingly powerful punches, Klaus sent out a small wave of electricity that Primeape was unable to dodge. As the sudden jolt of electricity coursed through it, Primeape's muscles were locked in place, greatly slowing down its movements as it became paralyzed.

But Primeape's willpower showed itself at this very moment as it forcefully pushed through the paralysis and savagely slammed its fist straight into Klaus, who was looking to follow up with a Zen Headbutt. The Close Combat struck Klaus hard, and he let out a bellow of pain as he cancelled his Zen Headbutt. Recognizing that staying in close range would be bad, Klaus immediately moved to retreat, but Primeape stepped forwards as it prepared another haymaker into Klaus' retreating form.

Luckily for Klaus, the paralysis took hold once more before Primeape could follow-up, hindering it for just long enough for Klaus to exit its immediate striking range as a follow-up punch narrowly fell short.

Just from that one exchange, I nodded towards Klaus at his decision to get out of range; there was no way we were going to get the better of any close-range exchanges. Even with just that one strike, the damage to Klaus was concerning, with Klaus now breathing hard with a visible limp as he staggered away in retreat, no longer galloping like he used to. A SINGLE hit did that!

But, even with his injuries, I was confident that this was a worthwhile trade for Klaus. Primeape HAD to be paralyzed to cut down on its speed and mobility. With no way to heal itself, the paralysis would cripple its' ability to close the distance and buy Klaus more time to blast it at range.

Klaus' new limp might be problematic, but I hoped that Primeape's own paralysis would make up for any loss of mobility on Klaus' end. That, and overwhelming firepower.

"Sunny Day, Klaus! AND SOLAR BEAM!"

"Rush it down, Primeape! Charge through it!"

With a defiant bellow, Klaus sent out a beam of light towards the sky that dispelled any clouds, causing the arena to be blanketed by a harsh sunlight. Immediately after, his horns began glowing brightly as radiant energy gathered within them.

In the meanwhile, Primeape exploded forwards with furious wrath in a burst of speed while valiantly pushing through the effects of paralysis. Its eyes were now completely consumed with rage, and it kept picking up speed as its now unleashed rage further drove it forwards. It looked completely unbothered by the attack that was about to come its way.

"RELEASE!"

On my command, Klaus released all of its stored energy as a wide gold beam of light cut through the arena, illuminating the entire battlefield in blinding radiant light as it shot straight towards Primeape. Primeape made no effort to even dodge as he took the Solar Beam head on, only stumblingly slightly as the beam impacted it.

And yet, it refused to be pushed back. With a howl of pure rage and frustration, it pushed against the Solar Beam and demonstrated its raw defiance by taking a step forwards. And another. And another.

And even though the Solar Beam gradually grew wider and brighter and was now almost boring a hole through Primeape, Primeape refused to fall. Refused to stop. Refused to allow the target of its rage to win. Even as Primeape caught fire from the intense ray of energy, it continued to push forwards. It was a figure of pure determination.

My jaws and fists clenched anxiously as I watched Primeape continued to fight against the Solar Beam. Klaus was straining himself to the limits as he continued channelling his Solar Beam as best he could. I recognized that I couldn't shift tactics now, as cancelling the Solar Beam would leave Klaus too vulnerable to the incoming Primeape. No, there was no going back now.

I gritted my teeth. I had never intended for this to become a battle of wills; I had expected Primeape to try to block or dodge! I wanted to wear it down over time! Not this!

But now both trainers were now forced to watch helplessly once again as our Pokémon determined their own fates. The battle was no longer in our hands.

Primeape continued to press forwards, each step seemingly more laborious than the last as the damage built up, and his energy and willpower gradually failed him. I was almost certain it was running off pure rage now, literally being too angry to go down. But at the same time, Klaus' Solar Beam was weakening as he began to tire, and his reserves began to dwindle. The once brilliant beam of radiant light was now dim and narrow.

I stared with tense anticipation as Primeape eventually got into striking range. It was stumbling heavily, almost like it was drunk, and both of its eyes were almost sealed shut from the injuries. But it held on for long enough for Klaus' Solar Beam to peter out, and as Klaus collapsed from exhaustion, I knew the battle was lost.

"Seismic Toss, Primeape! Throw it!" Bruno shouted out unnecessarily.

With whatever vestige of energy that it had left, Primeape lifted my exhausted Klaus and hurled him ruthlessly into the psychic barriers with a Seismic Toss. Klaus slammed into them, his body twitching as it did. But he did not get back up.

Fortunately for me, Klaus' fall meant that Primeape no longer had a target for its ire, and it too collapsed as the injuries and exhaustion finally kicked in. It was yet another double knockout, and this time I was deeply unsatisfied with it.

I shut out the announcer and the cheering audience as I withdrew Klaus. I gave him a few terse, but sincere, words of praise before I put away his Premier Ball. My mind racing with thoughts about what to do next.

The score was now 4-3, and while I still had a lead, Bruno's two remaining Pokémon were his two greatest fighters, his Hariyama and his Machamp. And I was all out of Pokémon that resisted Fighting types.

I could feel the self-doubt and uncertainty creeping up into my mind before I clamped down HARD on it.

'No.' I said to myself, 'Have faith in your team. You didn't train your trio of bruisers so much just to expect them to lose. No, they will bring you victory, just as you trained them to do.'

That's right. I reaffirmed my strength in my team, cursing at myself for ever doubting their capabilities. I still had my lead. And so what if Hariyama's or Machamp's typing countered my team? So what if Bruno put up a better fight than I expected? Plans always went wrong, and besides…

He hadn't met Vordt and Tyrant yet.

A.N. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I really wanted to highlight just how much of a tough opponent Bruno is for John, and how things in battle don't always go as planned.

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!