Monferno stood strong against Tetsu's Gravity, showing just how much strength was hidden in her small frame. I had a feeling Monferno would be like this, which is why I wanted Tetsu to cover her Vine Whip in mud. I just hoped it would still serve as some sort of protective buffer against the flames.

"Nice trick, but most Fighting-types won't have trouble with Gravity," Araceli smirked. "Mach Punch!"

"Protect!" I commanded, which Tetsu was barely able to conjure up in time. It shattered, but prevented Monferno from completely closing the distance. "Vine Whip and release Gravity."

Tetsu used the mud-covered vines to entangle Monferno and lift her up in the air. Since Gravity was no longer in effect, Monferno was being dragged around like a ragdoll. The whiplash itself would probably be enough to keep it from thinking clearly.

"Flame Wheel!"

Monferno erupted in flames, trying to get out of Tetsu's grip. But she held on strong. The mud baked under the heat and made it slightly more difficult for Monferno to move. Tetsu then slammed her down head first, adding Gravity once again for extra oomph.

That proved too much for Monferno, knocking her out as blood slowly oozed from her ears and mouth. Araceli rushed over and sprayed a Super Potion before returning Monferno to her Pokéball.

Araceli gave me a scrutinizing glance before saying, "I heard from the Professor you could be a bit ruthless, but Arceus, Marco."

"That just means you're pushing us for the win," I shrugged. While I felt bad, I knew Monferno could have survived worse.

"Monferno is unable to battle. Trainer Araceli, release your last Pokémon."

Darmanitan stomped out, his powerful front limbs leaving imprints on the ground. Damn, Tetsu was definitely at a disadvantage. Monferno was strong, but her small body made it easy for Tetsu to grab hold of her. She wouldn't be able to do the same with Darmanitan. But maybe-

"Begin!"

"Wukong, Taunt!" / "Sp- Start rolling, girl!"

Wukong made a funny face while sticking his tongue out, a wave of dark-tinted energy pulsing out and washing Tetsu before she could start moving. Tetsu continued to move, but now she couldn't set up.

"Flame Charge, my little monkey." / "Use Tackle to dodge, keep your distance!"

Darmanitan was quick for such a bulky Pokémon. It quickly reached Tetsu, who used Tackle to change directions sharply, barely dodging. Darmanitan continued to use Flame Charge, fast this time after the speed boost from the last one.

"Vine Whip!" I yelled, hoping she caught on to what I wanted her to do. There wasn't a lot of mud left after Monferno's Flame Wheel and the two Flame Charges, so Tetsu couldn't protect herself from getting damaged. But instead of taking a direct hit from the hulking Darmanitan, Tetsu grabbed him and used his own momentum against him, sending him over herself and into the ground.

She didn't stop there. Using the slight pause, she sent out a wave of Spikes all around her, with some spores of Leech Seed hidden in there. I barely noticed what she did, but she had used Leech Seed so often I was able to discern when it was on the field. I hadn't the faintest idea when she was able to use both moves at the same time, but it was perfect.

"Fire Punch!" / "Push him back!"

Tetsu then put up a Protect as Darmanitan crashed down with a Fire Punch. It broke through, hitting her with diminished force. Tetsu cried out as she slammed her head into his face, using Iron Head to push him into the Spikes and Leech Seed. Araceli looked very surprised when a bit of green energy flew from Darmanitan to Tetsu. Leech Seed drained Darmanitan of a bit of his energy every 8 seconds, much faster than in previous battles.

"Criss cross, Wukong!" / "Gravity on his arm!"

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Why I hadn't thought about using Gravity on a specific body part for other battles lately, I have no clue. But I remembered and decided to put it to use. Darmanitan beat his chest twice and roared, Normal-type energy swirling around him for a second before he created a low but wide whirlwind of fire. Tetsu couldn't dodge, so it surrounded her as the fire licked at her randomly, causing a bit of damage each time.

Darmanitan then emerged from the whirlwind in a Flame Wheel, smacking Tetsu and sending her into the Fire Spin. She cried in pain, jumping out with ragged breaths. The whirlwind moved to surround her, and Darmanitan once again emerged from the fire with Flame Wheel.

"Self-Destruct!"

Araceli's eyes opened wide at my command. "Get ou-"

*BOOM*

Before she could finish, Tetsu caused a small explosion just as Darmanitan got within an arm's-length distance. It sent him crashing away towards me. Tetsu had obviously fainted, but the explosion cleared the remaining Spikes that hadn't been burned up by the Fire Spin.

Darmanitan slowly stood up before sitting down and clutching himself tightly. He glowed brightly for a few seconds and emerged from the light as a blue stone statue version of itself. Shit.

"Ferrothorn is no longer able to battle. Trainer Marco, bring out your final Pokémon!"

Nautilus floated out slowly, staring at Darmanitan with excited eyes. Darmanitan's face was frozen in an expression of warning, as if telling us we were going to get hurt if we continued.

"Begin!"

"Uproar!" / "Guard Swap!"

Araceli definitely wasn't expecting that one. A rumbling roar came from deep within Darmanitan, who was still frozen in place. Before the sound could reach Nautilus, a beam shot out and hit Darmanitan. The beam retracted just as Uproar hit Nautilus.

"Disable!" / "Up- Taunt!"

That little bit of time Araceli used to change her decision allowed Nautilus to use Disable and prevent Uproar from being used again. He was then hit with Taunt, which was fine because we were going on the offensive now.

"Cut him down, dash and slash!" / "Sunny Day and Inc-"

She didn't finish as Nautilus dashed forward with a Peck and used both of his tentacles to deliver a double Night Slash. In terms of speed, Nautilus and Tetsu could reach roughly the same speeds over a long distance. Nautilus, however, had explosive acceleration thanks to all the training we did with Gravity.

He hit Darmanitan with both, one on the chest and the other on his face. This proved too much for him, reverting back to his normal form before fainting.

"Darmanitan is unable to battle. Trainer Marco wins this challenge. Miss Frye, please transfer any rewards you both agreed upon," the referee said. We hadn't set up any rewards for the win, but Araceli transferred 2,000$, a TR for Power-Up Punch, and a slip for participation in a research study. After that, the referee left.

"Well, damn. Professor Sycamore was right, you are a battling freak. I'm glad you didn't participate in the tournament."

"Yeah, I guess I've been too eager with the training," I chuckled. "What's with the TR and research slip?"

"Oh, I had an extra TR for Power-Up Punch and not a lot of money, so I decided to give you that instead," she explained. "As for the slip, well, seeing how well you've trained your Pokémon and how much they care for you, I thought you might like to take part in our research."

"Research?"

"I'm involved in a study that is trying to bring out the energy of Terastallized Pokémon. We've had some success in the lab, but so far can only reproduce it with Pokémon specific to Paldea," Araceli said. "One thing we want to test is whether the Terastallization phenomena is a natural process that can be done by anyone.

"While we're trying to raise the Pokémon ourselves, like my Fletchinder, we have too many to do so. We're hiring trainers to raise the Pokémon and help, but are currently limited to League agents and staff. Since you're also working under Prof. Sycamore and have quite the Pokémon rearing capabilities, it would be good to include you. However, that's not up to me. That slip will get you an interview."

"All you had to say was free Pokémon," I said, not expecting to get an opportunity like this out of this battle. That was a huge reward.

"Great, send me a message and stop by the hotel whenever you're free. That's where the research team is staying."

After that, she left for her lab. Man, another Pokémon so soon. I'm getting really lucky, I hope I don't almost die again. While I was lost in my thoughts, Nautilus came up to me and smacked my head.

"What the hell?" I yelped.

'Tetsu and Kippy need to see Nurse Joy.'

"Kippy? Who- Oh, right, thanks. Just don't smack me, or else I'll really show you how strong I am in our next spar," I warned him.

'Tch, whatever. Just go heal them," he dismissed me. He's hot and cold, I don't get it. Not that it really mattered. He cared about all of us and was determined to keep us safe, no matter how much he pretended otherwise at times.

I took him and the other two to Nurse Joy. After getting them healed, I went to the canteen. They were always hungry after a fight. After getting them fed up, we went out for a walk up the hill. I knew the city Gym was north of the residential area, in the open area that the monorail traveled over, but exactly where I wasn't sure.

As we walked, there were many Pokémon roaming around us, perfectly unperturbed by our presence. It made sense since Ramos was known for taking more peaceful and unusual methods for solving problems here in Coumarine City. It was very soothing and calming; it felt like one of those nature documentaries on the National Geographic.

We spent a few hours just slowly making our way through the serene environment. By the time we arrived at the giant tree that contained the Coumarine City Gym, I only had about 10 minutes to check-in. The secretary, a plain-looking ginger man, got me settled and told me I could head up.

I looked around for an elevator or stairs, but found none. "Excuse me, how do I get up?"

"You have to climb your way up to the third floor. That's the Gym Test here," he replied with a barely hidden smirk.

Oh. "Thank you."

I looked around to see where I could start. There were many ledges and walkways higher up, but nothing I could easily get to. There were several vines I could use to climb up, but an idea popped into my head. I haven't tried finding my max jump height, and I had many opportunities to jump around here.

I took a few steps back and ran into a double-legged leap. I got up to about 4.5 meters (14.7 feet) and slammed into the tree's trunk, beginning to fall back. I caught myself on one of the ledges, but my grip slipped almost immediately. I grabbed onto a vine that turned out to be surprisingly sturdy. I used that to hoist myself back up. I stepped onto the ledge I fell off of and scanned the area.

From here, I decided to go with the actual Gym Test and try to climb my way up or around. There weren't any vines that went all the way up; instead, they were scattered throughout, along with some more ledges, to make a path towards the top. I decided to go for it as fast as I could.

I grabbed a vine in front of me and swung to the other side, not resisting the urge to cry out like Brendan Fraser in George of the Jungle. I landed on a small walking path, eventually climbing up on the small roots and rocks jutting out of the wall. I made my way along, falling into a rhythm that I commonly got into while working out. I eventually made my way to the top, finding a button on a pedestal.

"What is this, Ninja Warrior?" I mumbled to myself as I pressed the button.