Battle for Glory

Swole-POV:

It's the final few hours before my fight. I am dressed. Cleaned. Teeth are brushed. The girls wait for me to pick them up in their rooms.

My phone's screen stares back at me. There is still no message from Akari. Last seen, over a month-- Just now. It turned green. She's online?!

I press the button to call Akari.

It rings for a while... A long while... Maybe it was just a technical fluke?

"Hello? Who is there?" Her voice rings out from the phone's speakers. 

"Hey, Akari. It's me."

"Swole?"

"Yes."

"Swole! I am so glad to hear you again!"

Another voice sounds out in the background before Akari resumes speaking. "Let me turn on the 'camera'."

I listen to the noise of her fumbling with her phone for another while.

Suddenly her face appears on my screen. I see her looking back at me with the brightest smile on her face. 

She hides part of her straight, dark blue hair under a neatly placed headscarf. Her kimono appears to be a lot cleaner and newer since the last time I saw her. And it's red now. It does a good job at highlighting her beautiful pale skin. The color contrasts nicely with her eyes and hair.

"How are you doing!?" She looks perfect. "We haven't talked in such a long time, future husband." Her wink is so cute.

"I'm doing alright. I'm going to win my second badge in an hour."

I can see her fumble around with some junk on a writing desk before she places her phone on it and gives me her full attention.

"I am relieved to know you are doing alright. I was worried every day that something could have happened to you... Nothing bad happened, right? Nothing that you want to get off your chest?"

Does she know? "Nnno. Nothing. All good." I make sure my bad hand isn't showing on the screen, and not to open my mouth too widely to show the broken molar.

"That is good." She looks at me some more. I can see her eyes move from my jaw to my hair and eyes. Her smile widens. But somehow it always stays polite and refined.

"How is your mission going on route 218?"

"We have completely conquered back the route. Work has begun to rebuild the infrastructure." She beams in pride as she lists off her accomplishments. "Your father, Cynthia and the professors had been unsuccessfully trying to drive off the Alpha Regirock for over a week." 

Alpha? I assume she means the giant Regirock we saw.

... All those trainers couldn't beat it?

"But because of our adventure with Lucario, I knew about Mew and her Tree of Life. While they held Regirock in check, I managed to sneak through and strike a deal with Mew. She calmed down her guardians... And then Team Galactic awarded us the entire area around the Tree of Life to govern over it for my contribution!"

"Alpha Regirock? 'Us'?"

"Correct. It was decided to name these extremely large variants of pokemon 'Alpha' pokemon. Cynthia came up with that idea. And by 'us', I mean you and me."

"... Did you say 'me'!? What did I do? It should be yours!"

"But we are going to marry soon. What I own, you own as well." She said it as if it were the most obvious statement in the history of statements.

I need to keep in mind that she is an extremely traditional woman. The consequences of our marriage might mean that she is willing to sacrifice a lot more than I am comfortable with... I need to step up as a man and do my part of the role. 

"Is there a way I can help you? I'm doing jobs on the side for some quick money. I hope to catch a good opportunity and then make even more money with it."

"Don't worry about it." She says, but that phrase always does the exact opposite to me. "Your father has agreed to help us financially." He did? "We are on our way to Eterna City right now to hire construction workers and settlers. I'm building my own town. Can you believe it?!"

"That's impressive. Very impressive, actually." It's the kind of opportunity I will need to look out for to build up my income.

It's no wonder that pokemon trainers are almost all rich, with barely any exceptions. Trainers are the only people who take the kind of risk that puts them in the middle of pokemon who want to eat you. 

The greatest rewards often come from taking the greatest risks, after all... And I still remember that old conviction I once had. That I wanted to become less cautious. To take on more risks for greater rewards.

And look at me now. A cook. Chump change per day as a reward for a cushy job. Why? Because I want to avoid more trauma? Fuck that.

But still, "I think you might be the only person to go from being poor to being the owner of their own town within a few months. You're remarkable."

She nods in a reserved but still cute manner. "Not just any old town. A town placed directly between two major cities in Sinnoh and in the middle of Sandgem Town and Canalave City: The majority of western Sinnoh's economy must travel through our territory. If we do it right, we will be rich! In addition to what your family already owns! Nobility is in our grasp!"

I don't actually know what we own. My father told me not to meddle in his business until I had proven myself.

"You said you're going to Eterna City?"

"Correct. To the Team Galactic headquarters. They can help us get citizens who aren't traitors. I honestly don't want anything to do with the people who have fled the route. And, another reason for going there, Team Galactic currently has the greatest prices to hire workers."

It's because they got a blank cheque from the Platinum family.

"Once we are done here," I say. "We will use route 206 to move straight to Eterna City. By done here, I mean once I have my badge, and once the girls have finished their contest. Perhaps we will see each other again."

"That would be great! I can only hope... But tell me, how are Zoey and Dawn doing?"

"They... seem to be alright. But I don't think that's the case. Zoey had a near-death experience in Alamos Town and lost her arm in the process." Her eyes widen in shock as I tell her about all the things that happened in Alamos Town.

Half of it sounds completely made up as I retell it. Like an insane fever dream. Yet the things that happened still seem so clear in my mind.

"That's terrible." She says and rubs a tear away. "Please don't disappear into other dimensions again."

"Haha, I will try."

"Don't try. Just do it. Speaking of doing it, are you nervous about your gym battle?"

Did she see me check the time for the hundredth time?

I don't think it's possible not to be nervous before a gym battle. "No. I'm confident I will win."

"That's good. I'm sure you will win too. I will ask your father if we can have the day off to watch your fight on the tea bee." 

"You mean the TV? Where exactly are you right now?"

"We have arrived at Chocovine Town this morning and checked into the hostel just moments before you called. I was actually looking for the button to call you when you did. It was the first thing I planned to do, but you were faster."

That's so cute.

"Sorry for stealing the opportunity." She pouts. "By the way, how is Marley doing?"

"Oh. Marley died in battle."

"What?!"

"No, I haven't!" Her voice comes from somewhere in Akari's room before she squeezes herself into the view of the camera. "Hi, Swole! I'm still alive."

"Apologies. That was a joke. But she does wear funeral attire now."

She wears a goth-lolita dress.

"It's not for funerals! It's stylish. You're such a grandma."

"B T W." Akari says each letter out loud, and it infuriates Marley. "You never explained why you think Dawn and Zoey aren't doing alright now. We lost track of that."

"You're right. For the most part, the girls do seem to be mostly alright. But I caught Zoey staring at her stump and prosthetic. And I can tell that Dawn really regrets having acted like an ass to Zoey. I'm sure Dawn will get over it soon, especially since she actually started changing her act... But I'm at a loss with Zoey. She doesn't want to talk about it. But I think the loss of her arm is eating her up."

Akari looks to be deep in thought for a moment. I take the opportunity to look at my phone and see that I still have 10 minutes before I need to get going.

"I have seen many men return to our village with lost limbs. It was before we escaped the war in Kanto and before we were sent to Sinnoh as settlers. All of them had the same problem: A lack of purpose."

"Purpose?"

"Yes. The men would wallow in their houses. Only doing what their wives told them to do. They lost their drive to do things altogether with their limbs. Coddling, telling them to man up, leaving them alone; Nothing worked. Some died and left their widows behind to fend for themselves."

That sounds terrible.

"The ones who survived all had something in common: They managed to find their purpose once more. They realized their missing limbs made life difficult but not bad. It becomes harder, but success also becomes more rewarding in itself. Those with missing legs got peg legs so they could work the fields again, and they did their best to achieve the same as their neighbors."

"So, she needs a win? Her purpose was to become a top coordinator."

"Perhaps. Or perhaps she just needs to become a loving wife instead." She winks in a cute manner again.

I will try to train with her first. If that fails, I can still make her my wife. Akari has good ideas.

My alarm beeps, and my team stirs awake on our bed. "I need to get going. It was great to talk with you again, Akari."

"I wholeheartedly agree. Farewell, until we see each other again."

"Farewell, my maiden." She blushes before asking Marley to help her end the call.

... "Alright. Let's go, girls. Buneary, you can stay outside your pokeball, since the first round starts with you."

---

Footfalls from the hard soles of my dress shoes on the solid rock floor echo through the long, cavernous tunnels. I managed to spot the Rotom drone the moment I stepped out of the service shaft elevator. My back straightens a little more. I need to improve my posture to perfection.

None of the gym's workers accost me on my way. They are all absent. It's only Buneary and me on our way to the gym's underground arena.

Salandit and Riolu are relaxing in their pokeballs balls, awaiting their turns.

In my mind, I go through the message I received on the way here once more. It was a suggestion, rather than a set of instructions, to enter the arena directly. The plan sees no break for me in the changing room.

I don't know if that was good advice to follow. I'm really starting to feel the pressure.

My heart beats faster with each step. And I can't even talk with Buneary to calm my nerves because they are already watching! I have a reputation as a brutal and cool villain to uphold. I can't show any weakness!

They turned the brightness of the wall-mounted oil lamps down, and I have to focus not to stumble on the dark, uneven path.

As I get closer to the arena, another noise adds to the constant sound of blood rushing in my ears. Chatter. People are talking. And the announcer's voice comes out of a set of speakers.

I make my entry into the arena. The light briefly blinds me, but I ignore it, keep my stride, and take up my position on the battlefield.

Roark already stands at the ready with his arms crossed over in front of his chest.

"-- Versus! The villain of Canalave, the hero of Alamos: Swole Solo from Twinleaf Town!"

The audience's cheers echo around the cavernous battlefield; It's like the noise of a thousand people assaulting my ears at once, even though it's really more like one hundred. I can still hear the girls shouting their encouragement louder than everyone else.

The solid rock beneath my feet changes to the familiar loose sand of the battle arena. After walking a few more steps, I find myself in the challenger's position, marked on the ground.

"Will he humiliate yet another gym on his track of infamy? Or will Roark achieve what his brother's best trainer couldn't!? Release your pokemon so we can find out!"

"Cranidos, show them what we are made of!"

Roark secretly held a pokeball in his hand. He stretches out one of his arms, the ball pops open, still in his hand, and releases a red beam to the ground before returning to his cool, unbothered pose. The beam materializes a blue and gray, dinosaur-like pokemon with his skull, or rather his cranium, polished to a sheen.

He stomps twice, kicks up a puff of dust, and roars for the audience.

I don't need to say anything. Buneary hops off my shoulder and silently lands on the soil with just a soft thud. But the intimidating and threatening visage on her face is enough to get Cranidos to reconsider his bravado. She lets out a low growl and snarls at him.

We have a simple strategy for the first fight. The culmination of our past weeks of training. I am sure Buneary has the opening strategy still in her head... Just to make sure, I try and tell her the order through aura one last time.

Through the corners of my eyes, I watch and wait for the referee to begin the match. But he's still waiting for something.

"You kicked up quite a lot of news, boy." Roark relaxed voice reaches me from the other side. His unbothered manner, 'boy'... I'm starting to think people are conspiring against me. I'm a man! Why does everyone still call me a boy?!

"It's enough to consider letting you into the big league early."

Wait.

Is he serious?

Or is that part of his act?

This is unprecedented!

A newb allowed in the big league? Not even Cynthia got to fight a gym leader's personal pokemon until her eigth badge!

But I don't let the surprise show.

"Big league, kiddie-league. It doesn't matter to me." I lie through my teeth. That's the boldest fucking lie ever. It totally does! "I will fight my way to the platinum league. None of you can stop me."

"Big talk for a big boy." That cocky grin pisses me off! "Let's see you deal with these pokemon first."

Cranidos roars once more.

"That piss-poor excuse is the pokemon you're sending to deal with me?" A woman standing behind him, in the shadows and out of view of the cameras, frantically motions with her hands to tell me to watch my language. "Do you want to lose against me? If that is a sign of things to come, then it will be an easy match."

Ahhh! That was way too cocky! My career is fucked if I lose!

Roark gives a subtle nod. The referee takes it as the sign to begin the match.

---

"Are you ready!?"

I give the announcer my own, less subtle nod.

"And go!"

"Start off with Scary Face!"

A de-buff move... Perfect! Buneary has already begun collecting the normal type energy to counterattack. Just after I finish that thought, I lose track of her as she zooms over the battlefield at breakneck pace.

"It looks like the challenger came prepared! A clean hit with Fake Out-- And then the follow-up with Jump Kick right after! Unbelievable speed!"

Roark remains calm and collected as he waits for the effect to run out. 

Buneary follows up with Double Kick.

Cranidos can't defend himself from the onslaught. His power is still locked away, and even if it wasn't, his movements are too predictable to dodge Buneary's quick feet.

"Now! Iron Head!" His pokemon's cranium starts glowing a metallic white.

"Back!"

Buneary hops a meter back, but he just runs after her.

I make sure to keep an eye out for Buneary's footing.

"Again!" The process repeats. An angry Cranidos chases after her, trying to return the huge damage we dished out earlier.

But she keeps jumping. Like a rabbit, she skips over the arena, bouncing away at seemingly random angles and forcing him to keep adjusting his aim. A few times she puts the obstacle boulders of the arena between the two pokemon and he has to slow down to run around it before continuing his chase. 

The whole time, we're draining his stamina while waiting for the cooldown of Fake Out to refresh.

But after just a few more hops, Buneary reached the corner of the arena. Her pursuer lets off a blast of steam from his nostrils before charging the rest of the way.

I wait for the right moment. "Protect!" And his head bounces against our shield. 

He's reeling! "Low Sweep!"

"Protect!" Their timing was even better! The expanding sphere of Protect pushes Buneary off and causes a stumble.

"Get up--"

"Stone Edge!"

"Use Bounce and get out of there!"

"Switch to Stealth Rock!"

A burst of flying-type energy boosts Buneary into the air as sharp boulders grow and follow her from the ground. After just a moment, they stop their rapid ascent. No more energy fuels the jagged rock's growth.

Instead, smaller, spiked stones materialize in the middle of the air and spread themselves evenly on my side of the battlefield before becoming invisible.

Buneary still can't use Bounce to attack. It was too weak and lost all its power on the way up. Only her momentum pushed her ever closer to the ceiling.

At our current level, it's nothing but an improved Splash; But that was exactly what we needed.

"Kick off the stalactite and use Jump Kick!"

She reorients herself in the air by using her ears as counterweight. She angles herself so her feet get hold of the cave ceiling's ornamental - or rather strategic - stalactites.

She kicks off, turns around, and rushes to the ground at breakneck speed. Like a divine punishment, she comes from above: One leg ahead, poised to smite Cranidos...

He finishes Stealth Rock...

"Assurance!"

A move that deals more damage if we hit him first.

"Continue. Then dodge like we practiced!" We're not aborting. Jump Kick is a huge damage opportunity.

It's super effective and has a high base strength.

Boom!

Jump Kick connects. Buneary slammed down and struck his solid head. He reels back for just a moment, seemingly in pain, but the dark energy forming around the impact site tells me otherwise.

As soon as Buneary hits the ground, she looks up at her opponent and sees his head slamming down again.

"And Cranidos missed! Incredible footwork by Buneary! She danced right past it!"

"Low Sweep!"

"Headbutt!"

Cranidos is faster, but Buneary avoids a direct clash. She tanks the strike to her shoulder, braces her legs to keep going, and then slams her tiny foot against his ankles.

His heavy body rotates. Gravity takes its toll.

With a heavy thud, he falls on his side, where his legs struggle to purchase grip on the loose soil.

She didn't need me to tell her to follow up with Double Kick. She lands two more hits against the struggling pokemon, each one kicking up more dust in the process.

The referee moves his position to look past the dust, where he sees the swirls in Cranidos' eyes. He hits a button, and the buzzer ends the round, just moments before Buneary was about to deliver another attack.

The audience erupts in cheers and applause. "The challenger wins the first round!"

Visible joy appears in Buneary's eyes. But she remembers that there are a few more rounds before we can celebrate, and she quickly wipes her grin off again.

I still whisper "good job" to her and watch her hops become a little more energetic as she returns to her place on our side of the arena.

We're up by one. Which, if our opponent was a regular trainer, would be an amazing start. We would practically have the win in the bag already... But Roark isn't a regular trainer. 

Far from it.

This wasn't his personal pokemon, still, their teamwork was already insane. The timing on Protect! And Stealth Rock too! Perfect timing and decision-making. Just incredible!

"Cranidos, return." He calls out before a red beam envelops the downed pokemon. "Well done, Cranidos. But you're going to work on your accuracy later."

I wonder: Do gym leaders coach their assistants personally? It would explain how Cranidos was able to seamlessly swap from Stone Edge to Stealth Rock--

Oh no. Stealth Rock! I forgot about what it means to have that on the battlefield! We're fucked!

It will be super effective against Salandit! As soon as I swap her in, the floating, invisible rocks will smash into her and take out a massive chunk of her HP!

I put a lot of strain on her fighting type... Buneary also took a Headbutt and she used Protect around 2 minutes ago.

3 more minutes at most before we can use it again. And around 12 minutes for Fake Out... We're not in the greatest position to continue fighting.

Should I give her a break?

But it would mean Stealth Rock deals damage to whoever replaces her. And then later, Buneary will be hit by Stealth Rock as well. And she would hate a retreat, I think. She's not the kind of pokemon who would want to pull out. Of battle.

I can see Roark looking at me. Judging me. Waiting for me to make even more mistakes. I need to think this through.

My options are to swap or to stay.

... Staying is the best choice. Stealth Rock makes the difference.

I meet Roark's eyes. He nods back at me. It's like he could tell exactly what I was thinking. 

"Lunatone!" He grabs a pokeball from his belt and flashes two more belts filled with pokeballs in the process. "It's your turn!"

Lunatone? The floating, crescent-shaped pokemon pops out of a regular pokeball.

A special attacker with relatively weak physical defenses, a strong special defense, and a secondary psychic type that makes it weak against the dark type of Buneary's Fling; But strong against Riolu's fighting type. And it's strong against Salandit's fire type too.

Buneary has become the obvious choice. The only reasonable option. Swapping out would be incredibly stupid now.

---

Narrator-POV:

'He sent out his ace as his first pokemon.' Between the rounds of the battle, gym leader Roark goes over the situation in his head. 'What a curious choice. Stealth Rock should be challenging enough to test his decisions.'

His eyes travel over the battlefield. The boulders, the stalactites. 'Good, instinctive use of the environment.' Then to the pokeballs on his third belt. 'An over-reliance on super-effective moves. But it worked well enough for now.'

Finally, they land on his temporary partner-pokemon. 'Close combat seems to be his specialty. Let's see him deal with a ranged opponent.'

"Are you ready!?" The announcer's voice blasts through the speakers.

The audience uses the opportunity to shout their good luck wishes, cheer for the hero of the people, or to rally against the platinum league's newest villain.

The gym leader gives a firm nod. Swole follows up with his own confident affirmation.

Buneary is at her place. Legs tensed, ready to run at any moment. Lunatone floats in place, ready to take an order.

"Begin!"

"Psyshock!"

A smirk crosses Roark's face, while a frown can be seen flittering over Swole's. Lunatone was specifically drafted for the team to bait Buneary into the fight.

Psychic orbs appear out of thin air all around Buneary before they crystallize into solid objects. Psyshock deals physical damage, however, its damage output scales with Lunatone's special attack values.

"Get behind cover with Quick Attack!"

The cloud of psychic chunks implodes: Every piece rushes to the center of mass and slices through the air with Buneary still in the middle of the attack. 

But Buneary is fast enough to avoid a direct hit. A few chunks still chip away at her body. One shard just barely breaks through her meager defenses completely. Blood begins staining her fur.

A devastating attack, despite it being just a glancing hit.

"Float up to get a better angle." Roark commands. 

He sees his opponent move his mouth in what could only be a stealthy order.

The rock-type trainer might specialize in pokemon of the rock type, but that does not mean his knowledge of all pokemon is lacking in any way, shape or form. 

His mind quickly moves over every move that Buneary could know, dismisses every move that is exclusive to the highest level of pokemon, removes the expensive TM moves, then subtracts every non-optimal move for the situation, and finally adds in the previous exchange for consideration.

'Defense Curl, to deal with Psyshock. And Agility once her defenses are maxed out.' He concludes in a fraction of a second. "Two can play that game! Lunatone, use Harden!"

His assessment is almost correct. Buneary would follow up with Agility if she knew the move. But he overestimated the time she had spent training under Swole's tutelage. It would take a lot longer than just 3 months to learn that move. Thus Agility is still unknown to her.

As such, both pokemon spend their time maxing out their defenses. Lunatone hardens twice, while Buneary improves her physical defense three times.

'A battle of attrition. But she is still exhausted from the previous round and took damage twice... I don't think he realizes how close he is to a sweeping defeat.'

"Follow up with Rock Polish!"

"Stop it with Fling!"

'Hah! They don't even have access to Agility yet? The sweep is in the bag. Once Buneary is out of the picture, Lunatone counters every other of his pokemon. That's why you don't start out with your ace, boy.'

"... Bune!" The pokemon complains about a clear lack of throwable objects. No rocks, no shards, just sand and boulders that are way too large to throw.

In the meantime, the rough surface of Lunatone's body smooths itself out; The polished surface reflects the ceiling lights hanging from the stalactites above. Its speed rises sharply, movements become quicker, attacks will come out faster, and recovery time between attacks is reduced.

"Get an angle on her and use Moonblast."

"Go left!"

Buneary follows the order and instinctively understands which 'left' her trainer meant.

'He's evading line of sight. Stalling for time. Waiting to use Protect again. Judging by her level, I have 2 minutes before they are ready.'

"Change to Confusion. Knock her out of her cover! Then follow up with Moonblast!"

Lunatone's eyes begin to glow with a blue light, preparing to use an area of effect move on the boulder Buneary is using as a shield.

"Back!" Sand is thrown into the air where Buneary stood just moments ago. "Dodge with Quick Attack, then get into melee!"

The moon-shaped orb shoots through the air right after, but Buneary simply steps aside with incredible reflexes and then runs along the arena to get directly underneath Lunatone.

"Bounce!"

'Not effective.' "Ignore it. Use Rock Throw."

But Buneary is still faster. Despite Rock Polish, Bounce takes her up into the air like a rocket, she shoots right past Lunatone, clinging onto a stalactite "Splash!" before jumping off to the next. 

Rock Throw, meant to be the physical, uninterruptible reply to Bounce is too slow and its aim is too bad. Lunatone throws a soccer ball-sized boulder into the ceiling, missing Buneary but smashing into a couple of stalactites and causing a rock slide.

Buneary, with most of her footholds falling to the ground, has no other option than "Jump Attack!"

She redirects her final splash and drop-kicks her opponent.

Boom!

The move connects, Lunatone sails to the ground like a comet, slamming into a boulder and coming to a halt after cratering it.

"Bite through the pain. Use Hypnosis!"

"Buneary! Look away!"

But it was already too late. The speed-boosted pokemon's eyes started glowing in the usual psychic blue.

Just a moment later, Buneary falls out of the sky. Asleep. Her body impacts the ground, but the unnatural sleep will not let her out of its clutches.

"Nooo! Wake up!"

"Heal yourself with Moonlight." Roark orders before switching his attention to his challenger. "It looks like I win."

"Buneary!" The trainer ignores the taunt. However, his pokemon still cannot hear him. "Please! Wake up!"

But it is of no use. "No more banter? In that case, Lunatone, finish the fight with Psyshock." 

Roark knows the battle is over. Lunatone's Hypnosis lasts for a minute at least at this level. 'A full-power Psyshock or two should end the match and then the battle is as good as mine.'

Purple orbs of pure psychic power appear all around Buneary's unconscious form. Then they crystallize and become solid matter. And then--

Buneary! Wake up and dodge!

Like a shockwave, the command travels through the arena at the speed of sound. Buneary's ears twitch, Roark's mouth drops open, and a certain older trainer startles awake in the audience. Only his crippled body prevents him from sleepily dodging as if his life depends on it.

But nothing stops Buneary. Her eyes snap open, the attack collapses on her. But she thinks quickly. With the help of a hasty Double Hit, she deflects a good portion of the damage.

However, she did not manage to defend her back. Yet another couple of wounds open themselves. More blood streams out and stains her fur a little further.

"Use Fling!" Buneary picks up a piece of the broken stalactites and throws it with all her anger-fueled power.

Round two of the fight begins. But Roark is still distracted by the strongest display of aura the world has seen in over a hundred years.

Fling strikes true. 

"Quick Attack, and then Dizzy Punch!"

An excited grin spreads itself on Roark's face. His dream of the sweep is dying, yet it only causes his desire to win to grow further.

"Power Gem! Blast her away!" 

Within a few moments, Lunatone gathered the energy needed for her attack and paid back the last attack with dividends. A veritable curtain of stones blasts forth and spreads out like a wall to stop the advancing predator.

"Go through it and continue!"

Mania takes hold of our hero. He felt the bond to his pokemon grow ever stronger over the course of the battle, their desires mixing themselves together into an insane need for victory. 

Buneary pierces the attack with her own body, encased in a meager shell of Quick Attack as her only shield. But once in range, she strikes her opponent in the eye with Dizzy Punch.

Critical hit.

Not very effective.

Lunatone quickly shakes off the attempted confusion status.

"Confusion! And get some distance!"

"Grapple!"

'Grapple? What kind of move is that?!'

But it is not a move. Buneary simply jumps on Lunatone's floating body and holds on as Confusion pulls and pushes at her body. Her arms slip off the smooth surface, but her ears hold on for longer, until dark spots appear all over her damaged body. 

Every single wound has become a source for the dark type energy. It causes Lunatone's psychic grasp on Buneary to shatter like glass.

And then Buneary bites. Her teeth make a harsh sound as they scrape along the rocky body. A piece of Lunatone's shell chips off.

'Did she just learn Bite!?' Are the thoughts of the inexperienced hero.

'It was Payback!' Roark replies to the silent question in his mind.

"Moonblast! Get her off of you already!"

With its trainer hurrying it along, Lunatone does her best to charge up a counterattack as fast as it can. 

Unlike most pokemon, who use their hands to summon Moonblast, Lunatone's whole moon-shaped body is the source of the attack. 

No matter where Buneary crawled, the attack still hit her.

Once again, the bunny flies off from the hit. Lunatone doesn't waste a single moment. As soon as it's free, it rushes off and away as fast as its speed-boosted body allows.

The moment after Buneary's body stopped tumbling across the ground, she gets up on her legs again but can only watch her opponent hover away.

Her breaths are labored. A drop of blood falls and soaks into the sand beneath her every few seconds. But still, she pulls herself together and gets back into a fighting stance.

Phantom pain covers Swole from head to toe at the sight of his partner's battered state. Any normal pokemon would have passed out by now. Any normal trainer would have returned his pokemon to reduce her suffering.

On the surface of his mind, the trainer justifies his choice, with Buneary never accepting a retreat anyway. Even deeper in his mind, he just wants to win more than anything. A loss is unacceptable, a second place, unimaginable.

But much deeper, he has no choice but to keep going. Because of his aura, he is not fully himself anymore.

Each person a human meets in their life leaves an impact on their soul. A tiny bit of influence that, one day, can change one decision to another.

But a trainer is different. A trainer seeks to form strong bonds with their pokemon. Their pokemon's behavior changes. They become more mellow, gain human-like interests. They learn to talk with each other and their trainers.

But it goes the other way too. And right now, his bond with Buneary is stronger than it has ever been before.

Her desire to win, by all means, is his desire. And his drive to fight against all odds is hers.

And neither of them wastes a single thought on giving up.

"Buneary! Get back in there!"

She replies by biting through the pain in her leg and sprinting back across the battlefield.

"No way." Roark is baffled at their display of determination. "Use Rock Throw and keep your distance!"

"Continue, Buneary!"

A solid rock materializes in front of Lunatone; Sand comes from nothing, rotates around an invisible center, building gravel, clumping together, and finally shaping itself into a baseball-sized rock.

Exhaustion has caught up to the floating pokemon too. The stone does not manage to reach its previous size. It is still perfectly sized to sail through the air in a flat arc, aiming straight for Buneary's face.

"Catch it! And use it for Fling!"

Buneary jumps ahead, trusting her trainer's plan and thrusting herself into the path of the projectile.

She braces herself for impact, readies her paws and ears, and utilizes her momentum to cancel that of the deceptively powerful rock. The rock-type energy runs its course and opens up another wound. 

"But then it stops in its tracks! Buneary caught it! I can't believe what I'm seeing! Are we really looking at the match of the kiddie-league right now? This could be the match of the season!" The crowd goes wild as the twists and turns of events unfold themselves.

Thick, dark energy covers the rock before Buneary throws it back with all her might. Not a moment after the solid ball leaves her paw, she continues her sprint.

The rock did not stop being perfectly sized to sail through the air. Once again it arcs across the battlefield, this time, aiming for its creator and preparing to take it down.

"Dodge!"

Lunatone simply floats to the side. The attack misses. But it still blows a crater into an obstacle a few meters behind it. Impressive, but not functional.

"Now! Jump Kick!"

Except, it was part of our hero's plan! Without any hesitation, he exploits the predictable path of his enemy!

Jump Kick lands, Lunatone slams into the ground, and another piece of its shell breaks off in the flurry of Double Kick that follows right after.

"Send her off again with Moonblast!"

"Protect! And keep fighting!"

'4 minutes 30 seconds.' Roark has a sixth sense for timing. 'It will fail. Game over, boy. It was a good battle.' He finally has the win in his bag. He even forgets for a moment that it is still his challenger's first pokemon.

Or rather, he thought he had the win in his bag.

Because Protect succeeds! Moonblast slams uselessly into a semi-transparent shell.

Buneary follows up her defense by pummeling her opponent relentlessly. Chaining one move into the next, skipping breaths, biting through the pain. Dizzy Punch, Double Hit, Pound and Double Kick, Low Sweep, even regular kicks and strikes.

She uses everything she has in her flailing.

But each strike grows weaker and weaker.

And then... it ends.

Buneary runs out of steam. She takes a deep breath.

She has won. Her opponent lies on the ground. The referee buzzes the end of the round.

Buneary can only stare at the results of her work.

Spittle froths at the corners of her mouth. Sweat and blood foam in her fur. Her body has overheated, and her brain is starved of precious oxygen.

Her body finished the battle for her. 

It took her a full dozen seconds to realize that she had won.

"Wrryyyyy..." She croaks out a victory cry and returns to her spot on her trainer's side of the arena.

Immediately, she falls to her butt and catches her breath. Her ears fall forward. Her head wants to follow, but she keeps holding it up, high and proud.

"Good job, Buneary. Incredible job. You're amazing."

She keeps looking at her enemy.

"... Bune."

"Not done yet? A-are you sure? You know you deserve a break after that, right?"

"Bune."

"..."

Roark silently watches his opponent after returning Lunatone. He knows the referee is waiting for him. But he still takes his time.

In his opinion, Swole has already earned his badge. Cranidos was last year's ace, and Lunatone was supposed to be this year's.

He thinks about who to send out last.

He could send out one of his assistant's pokemon, Larvitar. It's a weaker option. Effectively giving up the battle and handing over the badge.

But during his opening statement, he did not lie. He really did consider allowing Swole to enter the big league early. He wants to test him.

"Alright, Buneary." Swole has made his mind up. "If you can get up to your feet, I will let you have one more battle."

"In that case." Roark moves his hand. From the belt hidden under his gym outfit, he pulls out another pokeball. He cannot keep the excited grin from his face as he makes up his mind. "Onix! It's your turn!" 

The newest member of his personal team makes his public debut.

---

Swole-POV:

She doesn't want to return. 

I can tell she wants a warrior's defeat.

But I won't let another pokemon just stomp her into the ground. "Alright, Buneary. If you can back up to your feet, I will let you have one more battle." If she can't fight back, she's out.

In response, she struggles to get back to her feet. It's hard to watch, but it fills me with a sense of pride at the same time.

"In that case," Roark's voice catches my attention. He opens up his uniform to reveal two more sets of belts, filled completely with pokeballs. He carries a total of 15 pokemon on his person. 12 personal team members and three temporary pokemon for the match.

Curious... For some reason, his hand doesn't move to the same belt that carries Cranidos or Lunatone.

An insane-looking grin appears on his face. "Onix! It's your turn!"

A premier ball is quickly unclipped from his second belt and thrown as high as he can manage. Just before it hits the ceiling, the ball pokeball pops open, shooting a red beam to the ground, where it quickly takes up the shape of an enormous pokemon.

When the red light disappears, an Onix appears in its place. The head of the massive beast almost touches the ceiling as he lets out a wicked roar. I feel the impact through my legs when his tail smacks the ground.

"Let's see how you manage one of my personal pokemon!"

Fffuck me.

~"Fffuck me." She voices my thoughts.

A second, much harder smack of his tail on the ground causes Buneary to bounce and my legs to almost buckle from surprise.

The announcer looks at our pokemon choices with concern. His head keeps swapping between looking at Onix and Buneary. "Are you both sure about this?"

I'm not. Deep down, I know that size doesn't mean everything. However, I won't lie to myself: That monstrosity is intimidating. 

And he's one of his personal pokemon, so he must be exceptionally strong!

We might not be able to beat him at all!

"Don't insult the man and his pokemon's honor, Jimbob." 

I waited too long. Roark answered for me. Now I'm stuck! 

"Call out your Solrock and be the referee for our glorious battle."

Fuck! Alright! I will stay with my initial idea to keep Buneary going. We're going to maximize our damage output and then go out with one final, glorious Flail.

"Are you both ready?" The announcer has moved to the other side of the arena, closer to the audience. A rock floats next to him that resembles a sun. It's Solrock. He - Jimbob, his parents must hate him - would most likely be the trainer of Lunatone as well, if his theme is anything to go by.

Solrock is ready to protect the audience at any moment.

Roark seems ready. "More than ready!" He proclaims before putting on the cockiest smile I have ever seen on anyone.

"We're ready!" And then I whisper just for Buneary: "You're the best."

~"I know."

"No, you're not." Roark shouts across the arena. "I know you're not ready for this. Take as much time as you need. You need more than a few seconds to get ready for a serious fight."

"But, sir. The audience is waiting." Jimbob questions his boss' decisions.

"And they can wait a little longer. This is now a professional match. They already got more than they paid for with their tickets."

"The committee won't like that..."

"They never like it when I battle. And they can suc-- say sorry to my face."

They banter some more to distract the audience, but I ignore it all.

I need to think about the battle.

Onix.

What do I know about him? Insane defense. Mediocre speed. Buneary can definitely run circles around him, however, our hits won't do any damage.

A special attack would be the perfect answer. Like Riolu's Aura Sphere. But Buneary doesn't have anything-- 

No wait. She has one. We just never train it because her special attack value is abysmal. In this fight, it might be the strongest move we have.

His typing is ground and rock. Double-weak against grass and water. Neither of those are in my team.

He is weak against fighting, ground, ice and steel. Riolu has Ice Beam, Vacuum Wave, Metal Claw and Aura Sphere. All of them are very effective. Only Metal Claw has to get through his insane defense.

Buneary only has Jump Kick, Low Sweep and Double Kick.

In terms of typing, the match is clear in my mind: 

Buneary chips away as much as she can. Then Salandit won't survive long, thanks to Stealth Rock. But she will be able to fight long enough to use Fake Out, Toxic and maybe even Will-O-Wisp.

And then, finally, Riolu can win the match.

... But that's in a perfect world. If I know anything for certain, it's that the world is far less than perfect. It's cruel.

How could the plan fail? Rock Polish. A move that every Onix learns very early. The move that made my decision to go to Canalave City first. It could turn him from an immobile tank into a fast, deadly, gigantic rock snake.

I might be underestimating his damage. I need to treat every attack like it could end the match and dodge as much as we can. Buneary had time to catch her breath and shouldn't have much of an issue with that anymore. But Salandit and Riolu both suck at dodging.

Salandit simply sucks at it, while Riolu still has issues when it comes to coordinating complex movements. I think her body and mind don't match perfectly.

If I can't keep them at a distance, the match might be over faster than I'd like.

What is his ability... I can only remember Onix's most common ability is Sturdy. Which prevents defeat for a short while. Meaning, if Aura Sphere would defeat him, he would still be standing and could take me out... But Toxic should take care of that.

I can't think of anything else.

A bead of sweat rolls down my face. A Rotom drone films me closely... I need to ignore it.

This might be filmed and televised live. But as Roark said, this is a serious match. I can't waste a single thought on style or optics.

"Buneary?" She turns her head to look at me. "We're going to win this."

~"I know."

I love her confidence. "And don't worry. I have a plan."

A sly smile appears on her lips. ~"You always have."

I don't stop my own smile from growing in response. The voice that tells me to keep my act up falls on deaf ears. Her confidence in me is amazing.

I take a deep breath.

"We're ready!"

---

Jimbob, the announcer, looks to his boss for a final confirmation.

Roark grin and nods. After letting him calm down, he looks a little less insane. He stopped looking like a creature in a skinsuit anymore. Instead, his face shows... pride?

I take one last deep breath. The real battle is about to begin.

"Alright." Jimbob says. "The battle begins... Now!"

"Quick Attack!"

"Rock Polish!" Of course.

Buneary sprints across the battlefield's rubble. Over the broken stalactites, between the boulder obstacles, and across the remaining patches of sand. All the while, Onix's rough exterior smooths out bit by bit.

Just moments before she enters striking distance against Onix, she twists her ears around and awaits the next part of my order.

"Change to Draining Kiss, now!"

"Finish Rock Polish, and then switch to Dragon Dance!"

D-dragon Dance?! It's going to make his attacks even stronger and faster at the same time!

"Go for the head! Make it count while we can!" Buneary hops the final distance and lands on one of the rough boulders that make up Onix's body.

Even with Rock Polish still going on, the pads on her paws find grip easily and she continues up. One, two, three jumps from one boulder to the next to scale his body.

Onix tries and twist his head to escape her approaching attack, but he is far too heavy. His body is too sluggish, his inertia is too strong. He cannot escape Buneary.

She is nimble enough to reach his face, where she gives him a big, critical smooch. Pink energy flows into his body and comes back out as green orbs that travel back to heal her.

"Dragon Dance, now!"

As if he waited for the signal, Onix suddenly stretches his body out the rest of the way. His head scrapes against the ceiling, and, like a snake, he begins to dance, swaying his body back and forth. At the same time, each part of his body twists along its own axis.

Faster and faster, the pieces of his body spin in alternating directions. One boulder spins clockwise, the next counterclockwise, et cetera.

Dragon-type-infused winds travel up and around his body like a twister. They tear Buneary off and toss her eight meters to the ground.

She lands on her feet. Her legs buckle on impact. She has to brace herself with her paws before pushing herself upright again.

The winds of Dragon Dance prickle with power over my skin. Worried shouting of audience members tickles at my ears, but I ignore it all and concentrate on the match.

Jump Kick might be the only move that's powerful enough to pierce that storm. Or perhaps Fling, if Buneary could predict the path of the projectile well enough-- 

Never mind. The winds move too erratically for her. It's just a waste of precious energy.

"Wait until the storm is over, then get back in and use Low Sweep!"

Low Sweep, a move that becomes stronger against heavier pokemon. And this must be one of the heaviest pokemon I have ever seen.

Roark screams at the top of his lungs to overcome the noise of his pokemon's attack. "Don't worry about it! Just focus on our training! Use Earthquake when you're ready!"

Earthquake!? "Forget Low Sweep! Use Bounce and Jump Kick instead!"

Fucking earthquake, underground with an audience nearby!? Is he insane?!

Dragon Dance ends in an instant. His movements stop, his segments snap back into position, realigning themselves. Even the wind simply disappears after a single moment.

Without the twister in the way, I can see his eyes glaring down at us, making me feel a chill run through my spine.

I brace myself for the upcoming move.

Buneary blasts into the air but once again loses the shell of flying-type energy right after taking off. The move fails, but it will still protect her from Earthquake--

Wait what?!

That's not Earthquake!

Onix materializes a boulder in front of him! And he's about to throw it!

He tricked me!

It's Rock Throw!

Roark laughs in my face! "It's Smack Down!"

That's even worse!

The rock is as tall as I am!

It sails through the air, smacking into Buneary. As soon as it touched her, the move's secondary effect took hold.

As if gravity had quadrupled only for her, she plummets to the ground, where her impact kicks up a plume of sand. Her legs buckled completely. She lies flat on her stomach.

Only through pure determination can she struggle back up again. 

And because of Draining Kiss' healing effects. It gave her the energy back that allows her to keep going.

But she's grounded now. Jumping, flying, floating, nothing of that sort works while under the effect of Smack Down.

"Onix, use Bind!"

"Buneary, Jump--" Damn it! That will fail! "Defend yourself with Double Kick!"

She stumbles and falls after instinctively trying to hop to walk! 

Smack Down countered everything!

Onix has become a lot faster too. With an unreasonable speed, considering his massive body, he forms a large circle around Buneary with his body.

She can't jump. There is no way out.

Buneary lets out a few desperate kicks while Onix closes the encirclement to dish out the final bits and pieces of damage.

Except, we have one more move! "Use Flail!"

She is completely wrapped up in Onix's grasp. But still, the bright white light of Flail manages to shine through the holes that his stony body can't close.

I can only imagine how she kicks and punches in a desperate attempt to escape his hold.

Bits and pieces of his body flake off every time the sound of a strike reaches my ears. Despite his insane defense and the non-effective move, Flail - one of the strongest moves in the right circumstances - still manages to chip away at him.

But then the light fades.

Buneary is obviously KO. Onix lets go of her before an accident can happen.

The referee moves in and checks up on Buneary. She lies on her stomach, her back rising and falling with each of her labored breaths.

It looks like her ears are twitching.

I can still feel her desire to win.

"Buneary is not yet KO!" He announces.

As if his voice startled Buneary awake again, she presses her paws against the ground, grits her teeth, and grunts and growls in pain as she slowly gets back up.

Her eyes are dead to the world. Unfocused, she looks around to find Onix. Once her eyes find him, she gets ready to fight once more.

"Challenger," Jimbob turns to me. "You decide. Will you recall your pokemon?"

... Buneary is out of commission. She can barely stand. Her normal-type pool is completely exhausted after Flail. She can't jump. She can't even hop to move. 

Her fairy type is still good. Fling too. Maybe Low Sweep?

But she'd need to stand on one leg for that move. I doubt she can handle that anymore. All our fighting-type choices are out the window too.

"Challenger?"

"Let him think, Jimbob. Or I'm docking your wage!"

"Alright, alright! Calm down!"

Do I even want to continue subjecting her to that? It's cruel. For what? Just for a little bit more damage? 

She already did a great job. An absolutely amazing job, even.

She looks at me, awaiting my decision.

A single hit will knock her out. Of that, I am certain.

But I can feel it. Deep within my heart, I can feel her desire to keep going. 

We ran away once, but never again.

We have lost once... And we won't lose ever again.

"We keep fighting. Until the end."

I made my choice. Buneary approves of it and looks ahead again. Her body is battered and broken, but she still oozes the confidence I know and love from her.

"Are you serious?"

"Yes. And we will win!"

"Wrryyyyy!" Buneary lets out her victory cry and holds nothing back!

"We are never going down! And we will become the next champions!"

Suddenly, I feel it. 

Our bond has become unbreakable. 

I don't even need to concentrate on my aura to see it with my very own eyes. 

The literal bond that connects our souls: It glows brighter than ever!

And then Buneary begins to glow as well. Like a second sun appearing in the middle of this shady cave, she starts to glow in a bright white light. My body wants to look away to protect my eyes, but I will not miss this moment!

Buneary is evolving!

The greatest sense of pride I have ever experienced wrestles control over my body and eyes. I keep them locked, staring into the new sun. 

Her body becomes shapeless. Nothing but a white blob, almost like an egg that grows and keeps growing. 

She becomes as tall as me before she stops. Then her limbs extend from the light. First, her arms and legs. And then her ears extend from her head, making her taller than me. They reach for the sky before folding over and plopping back down, reaching down to her hips.

The egg-like shape twists and thins out, her legs become thick thighs, her waist takes shape, a little bunny tail sprouts.

As soon as it happened, the light fades away again. 

The world turns darker.

I blink and fail to see. Only the afterimage of her new body is visible. But some soft light breaks through at the edges of my vision. I'm not blind. And I have a feeling, like aura protects my body enough that I can't get blind from something simple like that.

After a few more blinks, the world regains its color.

Lopunny stands in front of me. She twists her torso to turn around and grin back at me. Her hands, with their fluffy growths, are at her hips, and--

And she has breasts. Very small, completely covered in fur; But there is no way around it!

With her ears, she is almost twice as tall as a normal Lopunny should be. 1 meter 20. That's the average size. But she is even taller than I am!

Her tail shakes and pulls my attention south. She looks amazing.

My pokemon evolved and became sexy somehow! Gulp-- I mean, good grief!

"Challenger?!"

"Yes!?" I got startled.

"The battle will resume once I give the signal."

"Alright."

"Okay. Sir?" He looks at his boss for confirmation, who inspects me closely before giving his approval.

Everyone gets back to their rightful places and then waits for the signal.

"And go!"

"Fling!"

"Dodge!"

Dodge? Hah! There is no way Onix could dodge that. It's like hitting the broad side of a barn!

Lopunny bends over to pick up a rock. Her wounds have disappeared. Her muscles have become more pronounced, even through her fur. It's making her figure stand out more-- I mean, she's healthier again! That's the thing that stands out! Not her figure!

We can fight again!

Then, like a professional athlete, she pulls back the rock, twists and bends her torso, moves her legs, and throws the rock with a tremendous speed! Her ears flop around from the motion of her throw.

That's going to be a sweet hit!

It's not like the heavy pokemon that takes up a good tenth of the arena could dodge such a swift and well-aimed attack.

He just doesn't have the speed to twist and contort his body fast enough to let the rock sail past the segments of his body.

... "Huh!?"

He did exactly that!

"I see you are confused about what is going on." Roark pisses me off with that disgustingly smug face of his. 

He's not even holding back at all. Just openly letting his smug aura exude.

"You see, I caught Onix in the wilderness. And I just happened to catch the only Onix in the world with the ability..." 

He's waiting for the dramatic effect, which does nothing but annoy me more. "Lopunny, catch them off-guard with Jump Kick while he's busy talking."

"His ability is Weak Armor!" He reveals... This is really bad news. 

"You see, every time Onix is hit with a physical attack, all you do is help polish him some more. His defense falls with each hit... But his speed rises in turn! And with Flail, you managed to completely stumble into my trap! Dodge that attack, Onix! Haha! You didn't think I would see that, huh!?"

In the last moment, Onix swooped around the battlefield like an impossibly large and fast snake. He effectively swapped places with Lopunny, whose surprise Jump Kick missed and caused damage to herself.

"What a dastardly trick by the challenger. What a villainous character! ..." I hear the announcer, but I ignore him.

My mind is preoccupied. I saw something that doesn't fit.

Lopunny damaged herself.

Because of... Jump Kick.

A move that shouldn't have worked in the first place.

Did the grounded effect not persist through evolution?

And the negative part of Weak Armor... His defense must be as low as it can be right now!

Does Roark not see that we're close to a win now?

"All we need is a few solid hits, and the win will be ours, Lopunny! Treat it like our training! Onix might be a little bigger." A lot. "And a little faster." A lot faster than me. "But this is not any different than our sparring sessions. Clean hits and minimal power until I say otherwise-- And dodge up!"

Lopunny jumps up at the last moment. Rock Throw sails through the air where she stood before. 

"Didn't think I would see that? Huh!?" I throw his line right back at him. Meanwhile, Lopunny gracefully lands on the sand.

Jimbob has his mouth open in disbelief. "Boss! How the hell am I supposed to make you look like the hero when you keep doing that cr-- stuff!?"

The audience actually laughs at that. I use the moment to get back in the right state with my head.

He might be fast, but Lopunny should be able to keep up. Her much longer legs should have made her much faster. And her longer arms have finally turned Dizzy Punch into a much more viable option. Can't forget that.

"Start with Quick Attack."

And the chase begins.

"Counter with Rock Throw! And get more distance!"

"Use the obstacle as cover!" She knows which one.

Boom Three-quarters of the massive boulder fractures into pieces as the rock smacks into its side.

"Left."

It's the shortest distance around the obstacle to her target.

"Faster."

They are in the open now. No more obstacles to hide behind.

"Sand Tomb! Cover the whole arena!"

Shit. "Use the stalactites! Run across them!"

Did they become stalagmites after they fell to the ground?

Already, Onix's attack affects the sand. The arena turned from a pit of loose, but stable, sand into a hole of quicksand.

The broken rock pillars begin to sink into the ground.

It's eating up all of our footholds! Once they are gone, we won't be able to move without risking another Smack Down grounding us!

But Lopunny still has so much space to cross before reaching Onix.

It's 'the floor is lava'! But I know what I need to do, I was best at it when the guys and I played it!

"Double Kick, the middle of that stalactite!"

Her stomp follows without question. She breaks the one she's standing on into two pieces. The kick pushes the middle section deeper into the quicksand; In turn, it raises the edges up in the air.

"Kick it!"

She kicks the piece in front of her, sending it sailing for a few meters and creating another, fresher foothold between herself and Onix. She realizes what my plan is and jumps to the new island, to get closer to Onix.

"Use Smack Down!" Sand Tomb ends.

Almost immediately after giving the order, the rock is summoned and thrown to fly into Lopunny, trying to intercept her before she can jump from her final foothold to her target.

"Use Splash to dodge over it!"

Without a second to spare, she shoots off the platform, even surprising herself with the height she gains when she quickly approaches the ceiling.

Lopunny angles herself before she impacts it and then bounces off towards her goal. 

Like a comet, she races back down.

"Dodge! And then Heavy Slam!"

Onix contorts his body and allows Buneary to fly past him.

"Roll!" Right after twisting away, he turns around and slams his body to the ground, trying to pancake her before she even touches the ground.

But our training wasn't for nothing. She took and copied one of my moves I developed to fight her, and now she makes it her own.

Her landing transitions into a perfect dodge roll, using her arms to take the fall and dodging Onix's attack.

His body lies flat on the ground in striking distance. "Dizzy Punch!"

She charges a right hook and punches one of Onix's upper segments, a follow-up with Double Hit before he can race away. Pain is visible on his face as he retreats with some pain visible in his face.

His defense has been weakened enough that even non-effective moves deal good damage. But still, he avoided the confusion.

"Get your face away from her, and use Dragon Tail!"

"Counter with Low Kick! Put everything in it!"

She lets out a growl in confirmation. She readies her leg to kick the same way a human would, except hers begins to shine in a brown light from the fighting type energy.

Onix sweeps his tail around his body. It sparkles and is encased in the purple mix of fire and lightning that makes up the dragon type. Like a whip, it attacks Lopunny.

Lopunny is not afraid. She crosses the move's path with her own leg.

BOOM The arena shakes with the clash. I feel the moves' power vibrate all over my bones.

The brown color of her move is barely visible against her brown fur, so it almost looks like a normal, furry leg stopping the oncoming storm of an attack in its tracks.

The pokemon stay like that for a moment, each one expending their power in a tug of war until the first move gives out.

And the winner is... Low Kick.

Like dousing a flame, the sparkly light show suddenly ends. The clash is over and Low Kick's effect takes its toll.

His massive body begins to move.

Low Kick is stronger against heavier targets.

He lets out a terrible screech as his body tips over more and more until his segments begin to crash into the ground one after another. Each one causing the ground to shake and blow a plume of dust into the air.

"It's not over yet!" Roark roars so he can be heard over the echoing noise of his fallen pokemon. "Rock Tomb!"

"Prevent it with Fake Out!"

Please! I hope it works! It felt like forever since the last one! The move must be ready again.

Lopunny was faster because she didn't have to move from her spot. But I couldn't tell if her move worked or not. 

"Follow up with Double Kick." I can only hope it worked.

But the missing meteor shower of rocks that fall down on the two of them clues me in.

"Finish it with Jump Kick!"

"Get out of there!"

The slithery snake tries to escape, but Jump Kick still connects with the tip of his tail. 

Another explosive noise rings in my ears. Its echoes still buzz when they are replaced by the buzzer that ends the match.