"Alright, Tetsu, grab onto the rail with Metal Claw and climb up," I instructed my metal ball of spikes. "Don't crush it. The fines are too expensive."
"Ferro!"
Nautilus and I waited at the edge of a roof, watching Tetsu slowly make her way up. It was great training for her because it needed finesse and tight energy control. Nova stood at a vent, sniffing the scents wafting from the restaurant inside the building. The battle against Pierre was our only battle yesterday.
I used the free time to run Tetsu through some mock battles against Nova. She held nothing back, which meant Tetsu rapidly learned how to move on land and avoid her Embers. Using Gravity and Metal Claw, Tetsu proved to be as agile as Nova once she got going. But it took her far too long to get to that point, and she still struggled with finer energy control and manipulation.
*crrrrack*
*clang*
"Damnit, that's another 400$." Her Metal Claws did a decent amount of damage to Nova given her Fire typing, but they still weren't ready for daily life other than transportation. "It's okay, baby girl. You'll get it eventually. Go a bit slower after taking some breaths, okay?"
"Seed…"
She was getting frustrated, but she needed to learn to get past it if she wanted to improve. After a few minutes, she tried again. She started swinging and catapulted herself up instead of climbing up like I'd asked her to. "Ferro!"
I laughed and rubbed the top of her head. "Well, that's one way of doing it. I told you you'd get it."
We sat on the roof of the building in Jaune Plaza, watching over the city. People ran and walked, alone or in groups, as they went from destination to destination. There was a party right below us. It looked like they were celebrating a birthday. We caught a few Trainer battles, most of the tournament matches. I saw couples holding hands, and my heart fluttered for a moment. Tetsu rolled over to me and snuggled closer, taking my mind off the lonely thoughts. "Isn't this such a scenic view?"
They muttered something in agreement, even Nova. "It's almost like a picture. If you look hard enough, you can see-. Holy shit, is that Trevor?"
I saw the redheaded side character walk out of a house near the plaza. A tiny human ran after him, a joyful grin spread across his face. Trevor turned around and picked up his son, at least I assumed that was his son. They both had bright orange hair, wore dark green shirts, and their smiles were identical from what I could see.
"I wonder what he's doing now," I mumbled to myself as I pulled my phone out. A quick search revealed my guy is an active Elite Four member, serving as the final obstacle before Trainers could challenge Calem. He used a fossil team, with the only exception being his ace in Florges. "I love that for him. I can't wait to battle him. The three of you will get us that win, for sure."
*ding*
"Oh, finally. Let's see who I'm fighting this time."
Opponent: Mélanie Chabert, 1 Badge
Pokémon: Noibat, Spewpa, Sandile
Location: Jaune Plaza
10 Minutes to Initiate Tournament Battle
Start Battle?
Yes No
I tapped yes, and my phone showed the other person also accepted. I got a notification about a lab assistant showing up soon. Before I could look for my opponent, I heard, "Sorry, ma poupette. I have to look for my next battle."
"Aww, Mélanie, we are going to cut the cake!"
"Damn," I said. "I'm interrupting the birthday party. Well, it's not like we have to go far away."
I looked at Tetsu. "Baby girl, you think you can use Gravity to make me lighter?"
"Ferro!" she said, humming in agreement.
"Perfect. Let's not keep them waiting." I returned Nautilus and Nova, grabbed Tetsu, and jumped down. I heard a few screams, but then Tetsu hummed again as I felt the familiar prickling sensation of her Gravity. Instead of feeling intense pressure, I felt much lighter and practically floated down. People stared as I slowly landed right next to the party table.
"Sorry for the dramatic entrance," I said with a bow. "Miss Chabert, let's give the birthday girl a show as she enjoys her cake." Mélanie looked older than most Trainers but probably wasn't older than twenty-two. She wore a simple lavender dress, black flats, and had her brunette hair tied into a waterfall braid.
She looked flustered, but the birthday girl's squeals of excitement brought a smile to the Trainer. "Oui, let's have a great battle for Ange." She turned to the girl. "Save me a slice, okay. I'll be finished soon."
We stepped away from the building and into the grassy area. Further into the plaza, I saw a about half of the park sectioned off with energy barriers. A large '8' was embedded in the barrier, and many wild Pokémon moved inside.
"That is Wild Zone 8, developed by Quasartico Inc. If you're looking for a Ground-Type, that is the perfect place to look," Mélanie advised.
"Thank you for the suggestion," I replied. "I'll definitely take a look after beating you."
She smiled. "Confident. That's good. That means we'll have a great battle."
"I hope so," I said as the lab assistant approached.
"Good, you're both ready," he said, panting lightly. "Trainers Marco and Mélanie, this will be a two-versus-two double battle. Held Items are allowed for the battle, but other items are forbidden. The battle will continue until one Trainer forfeits, both Pokémon on one side are knocked out, or the ten-minute time limit has expired, whichever occurs first. Do you understand the battle rules?"
We both nodded. A double battle made it more interesting since we couldn't switch into a favorable matchup. If I had to guess, she'd send out Noibat and Sandile. But Spewpa could be her starter and, most likely, stronger Pokémon.
"Trainers, release your Pokémon!"
"Let's do this, Sandy and Vivi!"
"You're up, Nautilus and Tetsu!"
A small, tan crocodile and gray bug with a fuzzy white cocoon appeared opposite my own Pokémon. Mélanie smiled slightly, but she forced a neutral expression quickly.
"Trainers, are you ready?"
We both nodded, and the birthday girl shouted her encouragement to my opponent.
"Start!"
"Gravity on Nautilus! Pluck!" / "Sandy use Dig! Vivi, Iro-!"
She didn't get to finish her orders. Nautilus flew forward, nearly as fast as Pierre's Hitmonlee. He crashed into Spewpa and delivered a devastating Pluck to her face as Sandy the Sandile disappeared underground.
"Tetsu, get in the air and ready Leech Seed!" Nautilus didn't need me to tell him what to do. He'd already delivered several Pecks by the time I finished telling Tetsu what to do.
"Spewpa is unable to battle!"
Unfortunately, my instructions didn't do much to help her. Sandy popped up before she got too far off the ground and slammed into her with the Ground-Type Energy of Dig. The Ground type also took some damage from Tetsu's Iron Barbs ability, but it wasn't much. Tetsu released the Leech Seed she'd been holding but missed because the desert croc went back underground.
"Nautilus, get Disable ready. Tetsu, I want you to sense Sandile with Anticipation. The croc will have to come up again if they want to win!" Mélanie grimaced at the revelation. She had one Pokémon left, she was on a timer, and my Pokémon were ready. We still had eight minutes, which was a lot of time for her to figure something out.
"Dig into Mud Shot!"
Tetsu shuddered right before Sandile burst out, letting Nautilus fire the Disable in time. She couldn't go back down, but that didn't seem to matter. The Mud Shot sent Tetsu flying away. She caught herself with Metal Claw, but she was pretty banged up from the three hits.
"Sand Tomb the squid!"
"Tetsu, Gravity on the sand! Peck as fast as you can and get some damage in!"
Sandile started collecting dirt and sand for the move, but Tetsu's use of Gravity made it much more difficult. Nautilus moved quickly, practically flying as he came and went. Each Peck left a bruise on the croc's hide.
Out of nowhere, white light burst out of Sandile and blinded us.
"You're fucking kidding me," I said, cursing my luck. Tetsu and Nautilus both paused what they were doing, letting Sandile evolve. Mélanie and her sister cried out in excitement. This probably fucked my chances of winning. She looked at her phone, smiled widely, and didn't even wait for the evolution to finish before she started the fight again.
"Dig!" The newly evolved Krokorok dived into the ground. I didn't have a chance to blink before it reappeared and knocked Tetsu out.
"Ferroseed is unable to battle! Both Trainers are down to their final Pokémon."
Krokorok roared into the air, and I saw a faint red light shimmer around her body for a few seconds. 'Fuck, that was Moxie.'
"Go after the squid! Dig!"
"Nautilus, we're gonna have to wing this one. Do you remember the Ledian we fought? That's what we're going for."
The moment Krokorok broke the ground's surface, Nautilus Disabled the move. The energy dispersed, leaving the larger croc in the air for a moment. Nautilus used that moment to deliver a Peck. This one was different. There was way more Flying-Type Energy in it, he moved much faster than he should have, and my phone dinged just a second after he used the move. That sent the Ground-type careening toward the ground.
Nautilus moved in with another Aerial Ace, but Mélanie was ready. "Skitter Smack!"
Nautilus didn't have full control of the move, so he couldn't stop it like he would a Peck or Pluck. Krokorok didn't seem to have mastered the Bug-Type move either, based on how long it took for her to gather the energy for it. I was hoping for a situation like this. Nautilus would take heavy damage and retaliate with Payback, securing the win.
But Krokorok was behind Nautilus, the Bug-Type move almost ready to hit. That was a Moxie-boosted, quadruple-effective attack that Nautilus needed to tank if we wanted to win. I almost chose not to risk it, but we didn't have any other tricks to pull. When I looked at Nautilus, all I saw was determination and grit. He was ready. If I pulled back now, what was I really telling him?
Krokorok's claw glowed a light green as it moved forward. 'Fuck it. Let's do it.'
"Payback!"
Nautilus quickly gathered the Dark-Type Energy. Krokorok might resist the attack, but she' already taken a decent amount of damage and the move's power was doubled. Her claw made contact, and I saw it cut deep into Nautilus' mantle. His eyes bulged, but he roared like a warrior and slapped the crocodile away. She tumbled across the floor as Nautilus slumped onto the ground. Neither moved for nearly ten seconds.
Right before the lab assistant made the call for a draw, Nautilus barely lifted his head and glared at his opponent. "Inkay!"
"Krokorok is unable to battle! The winner is Trainer Pérez!"