Chapter 39: Rematch(1)

It had been nearly a year since the devastating defeat. Gladion could still remember the sting of the loss—how his confidence had shattered when Erza's Arcanine had brought his entire team barring Pupitar to their knees.

The battle had been completely one sided. Gladion's inexperience had been exposed. He had realised that game pokemon battles were nothing compared to real life battles.

He had been outpaced, outsmarted, and ultimately humiliated. The memory of that day had never quite faded, and it had become a driving force for him and his Pokemon ever since.

But now, after countless hours of training, of pushing himself and his Pokémon beyond their limits, he was ready for redemption.

His goal was clear: to face his mom and her Arcanine once more.

The challenge was simple but profound. A rematch. Another 3V1. Gladion had worked hard to build a strategy that would turn the tide, but he knew this battle would test everything he had learned. No more mistakes, no more overconfidence. It was time to prove himself.

Erza, for her part, wasn't surprised when she received the challenge. She'd been waiting for it, sensing that her son's pride wouldn't let him walk away from the past defeat.

Still, there was a sense of nostalgia in her eyes as she remembered herself in himself. She was as stubborn as her son. All fire specialists are.

"Let's see if you've truly changed," Erza mused aloud, a faint smile tugging at her lips. "I won't be going easy on you, Gladion."

Gladion's heart skipped a beat at her words, but he kept his composure. "I wouldn't expect you to."

'It is time to redeem myself. I have been acting stupid all of this time but no more.' Gladion thought to himself

---

The battle began with an air of tension hanging over it. Gladion stood on his side of the field, his hands clasped behind his back, his gaze unwavering.

Erza stood confidently across from him, her posture relaxed, as if the outcome was already decided. Arcanine stood by her side, its fiery eyes locked onto Gladion with a slight smile.

Gladion's threw his first Pokemon out "Mystique, you're up!"

A melodic cry filled the air as Milotic appeared on the battlefield, its shimmering body catching the light. The elegant Pokémon glided gracefully into position, its scales glowing with a soft, ethereal radiance. Erza raised an eyebrow, intrigued by Gladion's choice.

"You're starting with Milotic? Good choice considering the type advantage," she remarked, but there was no sign of worry in her voice.

Gladion smirked, a glint of confidence in his eyes. He did not give Erza any reply and straight away used his first move.

"Mystique, Rain Dance."

With a fluid motion, Milotic began to sway and twist, its movements graceful yet purposeful. The clouds above darkened, and soon, a gentle but steady rain began to fall.

Erza's eyes narrowed slightly. "Rain dance, huh? Interesting."

Before she could issue any commands, Gladion pulled back. "Return, Mystique," he called, recalling Milotic to its Pokéball before Arcanine could act.

Erza was taken aback, her brow furrowing. "What are you—"

Gladion's voice interrupted her. "I'm not making the same mistake twice."

With a decisive gesture, Gladion sent out his next Pokémon. "Go, Guy!"

He was going to use Mystique's rain dance to reduce the effectiveness and power of Arcanine's fire type moves for the rest of the match.

Out came Guy—his Machoke who immediately started flexing his muscles and using Bulk up without any commands from Gladion. They had already decided upon their strategy.

Guy clenched his fists, his muscles visibly expanding as he powered up. The air around him seemed to hum with energy, and despite the rain, there was an undeniable sense of anticipation as the battle truly began.

Erza took a deep breath and called out, "Arcanine, Extreme Speed!"

The Fire-type shot forward like a bolt of lightning, moving faster than most could comprehend. Gladion's heart raced. Arcanine was fast, but he had trained his pokemon for this. They could handle it now. At least, that's what he told himself.

"Guy, Counter with Karate Chop!"

The Machoke surged forward, his chop aimed directly at Arcanine. It wasn't as fast as the Fire-type's Extreme Speed, but it was surprisingly close. Guy's gravity training as well as some reflex training had paid off—his reflexes were sharper, his speed was nothing to scoff at for a Machoke and his strikes more precise.

The Karate Chop landed, striking Arcanine's side with a satisfying thud, forcing it to stumble back slightly.

Gwen, who was watching from the sidelines, let out a low whistle.

'Alright, Glady and his Machoke have definitely gotten faster. Arcanine's not having it easy this time.'

Erza's keen eye immediately noticed the difference. Machop's movements were faster, sharper, more precise – a stark contrast to its previous lumbering style.

The secret Gravity training with Chansey had transformed the Pokémon's fundamental approach to movement. Of course, She knew the secret training that her son did. Nothing escapes her 'mom eyes'. Though she was quite surprised about the fact that Chansey could learn Gravity and it could be used to train like that.

'Machoke's speed has certainly improved. by a large margin.' She thought

"Arcanine, Flamethrower!" Erza ordered despite being surprised by Machoke's speed herself.

The Fire-type unleashed a stream of scorching flames, its intensity enough to turn the rain into steam.

Guy, quick on his feet, jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding the flames, but it wasn't enough. The heat seared his shoulder, leaving him with a shallow burn. Guy winced but didn't falter.

'Arcanine and mom are holding back.' Gladion realised this as he saw the shallow burn. Arcanine was a top class elite Pokemon after all.

"Keep your focus, Guy!" Gladion shouted. He would make his mom regret going easy on him.

"Close in on him. And then use, Thunder Punch!"

Erza decided to not give any commands. She had to hold back a little. She had to remember that she was fighting someone without a single badge.

Guy's arm crackled with electricity, and he lunged at Arcanine with a determined look in his eyes. The electric energy coursed through Guy's fist as it collided with Arcanine's chest, sending a jolt of electricity through the Fire-type. Arcanine staggered back, clearly affected by the attack.

But Erza wasn't going to let her prized Pokémon stay down. "Arcanine, Fire Fang!"

With incredible speed, Arcanine closed the distance between itself and Guy, its canines glowing with fire. He struck guy who had to use his immense strength to get Arcanine of him.

Guy staggered but he remained standing. The rain dance had lowered the power of Arcanine's fire fang coupled with the fact that he was holding back, made the move a lot less dangerous.

Gladion clenched his teeth, his mind racing. Arcanine was fast, but Guy was no slouch. He just had to time his attacks better.

"Guy, Combo move : Explosion Punch" Gladion commanded seeing that Arcanine was very close to Guy.

Guy, battered but determined, struck with his left hand first, a fiery blast of power connecting with Arcanine who was very close to him. The explosion of heat from the Fire Punch sent Arcanine flying back, but it wasn't enough to finish the battle.

Before Arcanine could recover and was still covered with little flames from the fire punch, Guy followed up with his right hand, the Thunder Punch landing with a blinding explosion of electric energy.

And when Fire meets electricity, it causes an Explosion.

The combination attack was devastating. The resulting blast enveloped both Pokémon in a swirl of heat and electricity.

Arcanine yelped as the dual attacks overwhelmed it, the electricity and fire combining to deal significant damage. But even as it fell, it wasn't out. The elite Pokémon staggered back to its feet, panting heavily but still very much in the fight. He had taken a lot of damage from that move though.

Erza's professional poker face remained, but internally, she was impressed. 'He's studying type interactions, understanding how moves can complement each other beyond their basic descriptions. Guy has even managed to use two different types of energies at the same time. Remarkable'

Gwen groaned from the sidelines. 'Damn, That was a hell of a combo. But Arcanine's still standing. Looks like Guy's in for a rough finish.'

"Arcanine, finish this with Flare Blitz!"

The Fire-type, now desperate to finish the battle, charged forward in an explosion of flames. Guy, exhausted from the previous attacks, tried to brace himself, but he was too slow to react. The Flare Blitz struck with a powerful burst, engulfing Machoke in an inferno of fire.

Gladion winced as Guy was sent flying. The Fighting-type hit the ground with a heavy thud, unmoving.

"Guy!" Gladion's voice cracked as he recalled Machoke to his Pokéball. "You did your best."

Erza took a deep breath, her eyes narrowing in on Gladion's next move. He still had two more Pokémon left, the battle was far from over.

Gwen let out an audible sigh. "Man, Gladion, has gotten so much better. But mom's still a step ahead. He is gonna need something special to win this."

Gladion's eyes were fixed on the battlefield, his focus unbroken. He wasn't done yet. Not by a long shot.

-----Author Notes-------

Thankyou Fallacha, Brian Barrett, and Dragon Lord for supporting me.

Y'all can read 12 extra chapters on my pat*reon.

https://pat reon.com/mrmime24

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