Arthur stood outside the gym, his two Pokemon on his belt. He could practically feel their excitement adding to his own. He had made the appointment last night after coming back from his last day of training. Brendan had not come back, sending a text saying that he was staying out on Route that night, but that he wished the young Trainer luck. It was extremely early in the day, the later appointments all having been booked up. Arthur preferred it this way anyway, that way if he won he could spend the rest of the day treating his Pokemon, and if he lost, they could go over what the problems were and try again the next day.

Entering the building, he was met with a small reception and waiting area. It had a handful of seats, along with the desk that the receptionist sat at. There were two doors, one going to the left, the other to the right. Arthur approached the tired-looking clerk. "Hi, my name is Arthur, I am here for the seven am gym challenge."

The Clerk asked for his Trainer license, and he gladly gave it. After a few moments of tapping at the computer and a scan of the license, it was handed back to him. "You understand this is a two on two battle, yes? You brought both your Pokemon with you?" The Clerk asked in a monotone voice as if they had given this speech a thousand times.

"Yes, I have both my Pokemon with me," Arthur said, feeling the nerves in his stomach begin to twist and turn as he put his license away.

"Good. Go through the door on your left, Roxanne will be with you in a moment." The Clerk told Arthur before going back to their computer. Following the instructions, the young Trainer took the left door, leading out through a corridor and into a large stadium. It was a Pokemon Battle Field surrounded by stadium stands, with an open top to allow light or field moves in. The Battle Field itself was covered in large rocks and had patches of uneven rocky terrain. Clearly, Rock Types would have the best advantage here, naturally being able to move over the rocky terrain without hassle, while other types would either have to go around or slow down.

Taking a position in the Trainer box, Arthur waited for his opponent. She came out a few moments later, a coffee in one hand. A referee followed her, taking a position to the side of the arena, a Kadabra following behind him. Even if there were no audience, safety procedures had to be followed. Even for a low-level battle like this.

"I haven't had a match this early in a while," Roxanne said after taking a sip of her coffee. Arthur personally hated the stuff, but he also consumed soft drinks like it was water whenever he could, so he wasn't exactly a good judge of drink."Would you mind if I recorded this battle for teaching purposes?" Roxanne asked, taking another sip of coffee. Arthur nodded his assent, not really trusting his own voice at the moment. "Well, let's get this started Ref. Please start the battle."

"This will be a two on two battle between Gym leader Roxanne and Challenger Arthur. The challenger is allowed one swap, while the Gym Leader is allowed none. Please send out your first Pokemon." Roxanne sent out a Geodude while Arthur sent out Zangoose. Once both Pokemon were in a battle stance, the Referee called "BEGIN!"

"Rock Tomb!" Roxanne called out instantly, the Geodude following orders and ripping rocks out of the ground, throwing them at Zangoose.

"Close the gap, use Hone Claws while running!" Arthur called. Zangoose did its best to follow orders, and while it was faster than Geodude, it was also the one closing the gap while its opponent attacked with impunity. Most of the rocks were dodged, but one clipped Zangoose on the shoulder, sending the cat Pokemon stumbling, ending up with her catching another rock to the legs, causing her to fall over. The rest of the Rock Tomb came quickly.

"Metal Claw! If you can't dodge, take them out!" Arthur called out, hoping that Zangoose could pull it off. The skill difference between a regular trainer and a Gym leader was already apparent. Geodude was just more skilled than others of its kind, aiming its rocks to where they would be most efficient and predicting where Zangoose would move to, rather than just throwing them center mass and hoping for the best.

Zangoose quickly got to her feet, her claws shining with steel energy. The first rock came in, and she struck at it with all her power, obliterating it into smaller pieces that all bounced off her outer coat harmlessly. Step by step, she slowly approached the Geodude, slowed by the rock she took to the leg.

"Geodude, stay out of its range and keep hitting it with Rock Tomb" Geodude began to move backwards, however, it still needed to throw its rocks, so it moved slower than Zangoose. The cat Pokemon noticed this, and a vicious smile played on its face. Every step brought the Geodude closer and closer to its inevitable demise. When they were roughly two meters apart, Roxanne swapped it up.

"Sandstorm." She called, noticeably paying more attention to the battle now. The Geodude followed the order, throwing the last rock and then crying out its name as it unleashed its Rock Type energy.

"Hit it with Metal Claw! Don't let it set up!" Arthur called, but it was too late. Geodude only took a moment to change the weather of the battle. The Metal Claw still connected, dealing massive damage to the enemy Pokemon. The mix of Hone Claws boosted the attack damage mixed with the Supper Effective Steel Typing of the move almost knocking the Geodude out in a single hit, "Again!" Arthur called, barely able to make the pair out in the sand.

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"Explosion," Roxanne called calmly. She knew that she was going to lose this round, and had decided to set up for her next Pokemon and take Zangoose out. The Metal Claw descended upon the Geodude as it began to glow bright white. However, Zangoose was not fast enough, and without a speed-boosting move to escape, there was no way to survive. Both Pokemon fainted in a massive explosion.

"Your Zangoose is very well trained. It is normally difficult for new trainers to tame them, yet yours listened to you perfectly. I'd say you have some real potential. If I hadn't taught Geodude Explosion, I'd say Zangoose would have had a fair chance of sweeping my whole team, even with Sandstorm buffering them." Roxanne called over the harsh winds of the Sandstorm. Both Trainers recalled their respective Pokemon and sent out their second and last Pokemon.

Nuzleaf verus Nosepass.

Instantly, Nuzleaf took some small amount of damage from the Sandstrom. There was no hesitation in the calls this time, as Arthur gave a command instantly alongside Roxanne. "Fakeout!" "Thunder Wave"

Nuzleaf flashed forwards, assisted by the Dark Type energy flowing through him, and appeared directly in front of Nosepass. It was lucky that Nuzleaf was much quicker than the other Pokemon because just as he struck it looked like Nosepass was ready to unleash its attack. Nuzleaf's hands came together right in front of Nosepass' face, Dark Energy being unleashed and causing the opposing Pokemon to flinch, its move failing at the last moment.

"Leech Seed" Arthur called out, while Roxanne called out her own move that Arthur didn't catch. Nuzleaf was still quicker, and the seeds struck the body of the Nosepass, digging in with tiny vines. That's when the Thunder Wave hit. It did no damage, but it stunned Nuzleaf, causing them to become slower, occasionally freezing up entirely.

"Razor Leaf!" Arthur called, hoping to do some serious damage before Nosepass could take the lead, however, sparks of electricity appeared all over Nuzleaf's body, causing it to freeze up.

"Tackle!" Roxanne commanded, her Pokemon throwing its massive bulk against the much smaller Pokemon. Nuzleaf was sent sprawling, struggling to get back up. However, some of the damage was soon healed, as the Leech Seed took effect and green orbs floated out of Nosepass' body and into Nuzleaf. The seeds did noticeable damage too, being Super Effective. However, for every point of health that was healed, the Sandstorm that was raging away took it back away.

"Again, Razor Leaf!" "Ignore the pain, Tackle." The two trainers both called out at once. The Nosepass flew in as quickly as it could, while Nuzleaf tried his best to move past the electricity running through him. This time it was Nuzleaf who got the attack off, just barely making it in time. The leaves struck the ground type, dealing Super Effective damage. However, the Tackle still went through, launching Nuzleaf once more. This was followed up by the Leech Seed activating once more.

Both Pokemon were not looking their best. Nuzleaf had very low defenses, even if it was being healed every attack, the weather move Sandstorm negated any healing done. The fact it couldn't negate any of the force by trying to dodge was adding up. However, Nosepass was looking worse. The Ground Pokemon was clearly almost beaten. Cracks had formed all over its body and its floated unsteadily. That's when Arthur got an idea. If his Pokemon couldn't move properly, then why bother moving?

"Tackle!" Roxanne called out again, it was her only move that wasn't Not Very Effective. As the Ground Pokemon got closer and closer, Arthur looked to hesitate, but in truth, he was only waiting.

"NOW! ASTONISH!" Arthur screamed just as Nosepass was going to hit. Nuzlock opened his mouth and screamed. It was insanely loud and also filled with Ghost Type energy. Best of all, it caught Nosepass off guard, causing it to flinch. "Now, finish it with Absorb!" Nuzlock instantly went from screaming to sucking the lifeforce directly out of Nosepass. The move was Super Effective and managed to finish the Ground Type off. The Sandstorm died shortly after.

The pair of Trainers recalled their Pokemon and walked to the center of the field, meeting in the middle. "Well done Arthur, you battled extremely well. Not many people can fight so well in a Sandstorm while Paralyzed."

Arthur felt a blush creep up on him from being complimented, but he played it off in a way he thought was cool. "I just called out the moves, my Pokemon did all the hard work, they deserve the real thanks."

"Indeed they do. You can collect your badge and prize money from the front desk. If I may offer some advice though?" Roxanne asked. Arthur nodded his consent. "Buy some TM's. Your Pokemon lack diversity and proper strategy. Zangoose is a Physical Normal Type, meaning it can learn moves from a variety of Types. I recommend the elemental punches, Fire, Ice, and Thunder Punch. It would give them a great variety of attacks that would catch most Trainers off guard. Not only that but if you can afford it, get the ranged versions too. Thunder, Blizzard, and Fireblast. While they are Special moves, they are all very powerful and would give a much-needed ranged option. Finally, I'd get Thunderwave for stopping faster opponents and Protect, to prevent taking so much damage. If you had Protect, you could have stopped my Explosion and not lost your Zangoose."

Arthur took all the knowledge in like a sponge. It wasn't often a Gym Leader gave advice, so it was best to listen well. "Next is your Nuzleaf. It is clearly strong, but I'd still recommend some TM's. Giga Drain for one, it would be easy for your Pokemon to learn, already knowing Absorb and naturally learning Mega Drain. Double Team is another I'd recommend learning. Your Nuzleaf can't take many hits, so don't let it get hit. Throw in Energy Ball, Shadow Ball, and Dark Pulse for some ranged attack variety, and Nuzleaf would be a killer on the battlefield. Attacking from illusions, always moving, they would be near impossible to pin down. Finish them off with Solar Beam, and you have your Ace Pokemon. Once it evolves anyway."

Arthur felt like he should be writing this down, but he had nothing to take notes on. "Thank you very much, I'll look into getting some TM's for my Pokemon. They can be expensive, so it might take a while, but I'll make sure to keep it in mind."

With that, the pair of Trainers shook hands and departed to their respective exits. Arthur collected his badge and prize money from the desk, the Clerk offering a half-assed congratulations. Arthur couldn't quite describe what he was feeling. A mix of excitement and pride from winning, worry over the state of his Pokemon, and anxiety over the next gym battle. If they were all that difficult, he doubted he would be able to finish them all. For now though, he needed to get his Pokemon healed.