“This! This isn’t fair!” Whitney cried out as she glared at me.

“I won.” I reminded her and that only made her angrier. Her face went red as she glared at me.

“You shouldn’t have! My Miltank can’t lose to some!” She trailed off waving at me, and then she stomped off, whipping around and marching away…

“My badge?” I called after her, but she was gone stomping to her Gym building and entering with a loud slam of the door.

“Is Whitney okay?” Bugsy asked, and I looked at him incredulously.

“Her!? I’m the one that should be getting a badge! Hey, come back!” I demanded running to the gym but the door was locked, and after a minute of banging she didn’t come back out.

“I think she’ll come out… Eventually?” Bugsy tried to offer but I glared and huffed and just pulled up my goggles and shrugged.

“Forget it. I’m taking Lucario to the pokemon center.” I grumbled and stomped off. I’d have to talk to someone else if Whitney really was going to refuse to give me the star badge.

Grumbling all the way about prissy farm girls I stomped into the Pokemon center and felt something relax as Nurse Joy greeted me.

Kanto or Johto it hardly mattered. Nurse Joy was always there.

Passing over my pokemon I flopped on the couch of the Pokemon center and considered the battle.

Sleep Talk was a good move to combo with rest, but you had no control of what move your pokemon did. For Whitney to have her Miltank use Rollout… Was it chance, she had gotten it in one, or training?

I think training. There was no hesitation or surprise or delight on her face as the sleep Rollout had started. She knew it would happen.

That’s… Really impressive.

Too bad she was also a massive butt.

I shook it off, no point in getting angry. I’d complain about it later or something. I looked at Bugsy who was looking a little antsy.

Heh. Antsy.

“You okay?”

“Yeah! I’m fine… I just.. I’ll be back okay?” He said and rose up and I watched as he stomped off.

Huh, I guess the kid had a bit of spine to him after all.

—--

“And that’s why Lance is actually a Flying Type trainer, pretending to be a Dragon Master.” I whispered to the group of children. Once my team was returned to me, I headed out back to check out the battling area, and ended up impressing everyone with Dragonite.

So they had instantly assumed I was a member of the Blackthorne Clan, and so I had made sure to use that assumption to spread the truth!

“But Lance is a Dragon Master! That’s why he’s so cool! And wears the cape!”

“A cape that flaps in the breeze… Like a Flying Type master!” I denied instantly as I crouched among the small group of boys. “Think of Falkner! He has his flowy Kimono right? It’s the same thing! To test the wind!”

“B-But Lance is so cool!”

“Yeah! He isn’t some lame flying type Master!” Another called out.

“Then explain how all of his pokemon are Flying type?” I asked and stumped the kids.

Which instantly got a reaction as many young kids don’t like being proven wrong they started raging.

“You’re wrong! Stupid!”

“No! You’re stupid!” I argued back and the boy that said it glared and reached for a pokeball before looking over at Dragonite and slumping.

Yeah sorry kid, staking it on a Pokemon battle isn’t going to work against me! Mwahahaha!

“Vicky?”

“Oh? Bugsy, welcome ba-Oh it’s you.” I grumbled as I rose up. Bugsy was walking over with a blank faced Whitney.

“That’s right.” She said as she sped up, walking past Bugsy without issue, her longer legs putting in work.

Then she stopped in front of me and breathed in and out.

“Congratulations on your victory. You defeated me, and earned this.” She said then and held out a Plain Badge.

One that I didn’t take.

She looked at me, and I looked at her.

“I defeated your strongest team.” I reminded her, and she winced her hand closing on the Plain Badge a moment before putting it in her pocket and pulling out another.

This one had the Star.

“You… You earned this.” She said, struggling to get the words out.

Gently I took the badge. Looking it over. A fine addition to my collection, I decided.

I pulled off my pack and pulled out my Badge case, and placed it inside.

Then I looked at her. She was struggling to control her emotions, but I was going to be the bigger person.

“You have an amazing Pokemon in your Miltank. That sleep talk combo was crazy. I can’t imagine the amount of training with Rest and Sleep Talk it took to get a pokemon to always choose a specific move.”

“A long time.” She answered and I nodded, as she did as well. Then she turned away.

Bugsy remained watching her go with a look on his face that I’ve seen on plenty of boys before.

“Thank you Bugsy.” I answered then and he jerked a bit at the sound of my voice.

“Oh, it’s no problem! I… I can’t have anyone thinking the Johto Gym Leaders aren’t good honorable people!” He demurred looking a little embarrassed.

“I know. Whitney was just surprised. I never thought I wouldn’t end up getting my badge.”

“Good! Yeah…” He trailed off watching Whitney and I smiled a bit.

“At least she’ll remember who you are now.”

“Yeah.” He whispered a bit breathily before freezing up and turning to look at me, and my evil smirk.

“Bugsy and Whitney~” I started, and the kids who had been watching in awe as I got a badge instantly jumped in, like all tiny terrors would!

“Sitting in a Tree! K.I.S-”

“I’m not!” Bugsy yelled interrupting them and they burst into a sprint running away giggling as Bugsy chased them for a minute.

Heh.

—--

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“There it is!” I shouted over the wind, happy at the sight of Cianwood City coming up out of the waves.

We hadn’t gotten lost, but Dragonite and I did have to follow the direction a ship was coming from to get the right angle.

And there it was.

“Great!” Bugsy called out. We hadn’t been riding on Dragonite for long, but I think the wonder of it had mostly run out by now, and the ocean crossing a massive bay didn’t really feel very entertaining.

As we came in for a landing on the beach I made sure to keep an eye out over the town.

Chuck the Gym Leader was a fighting type specialist and he had a Dojo style gym. There were a few buildings I could see that were likely the right one, but more importantly, I spotted the Pokemon Center.

We landed with a soft puff of air as Dragonite flapped her wings to stop her momentum, and soon Bugsy and I were on the sand stretching out and happy to have feet on the ground again.

It hadn’t been a long flight, but it was still a flight.

“Wow. We just crossed the entire bay in what, an hour?” Bugsy asked and I shrugged.

“Something like that, but it was mostly because Dragonite didn’t know exactly where the city was. So we went a bit slower so we didn’t miss it.”

“Dragonite is so amazing.” Bugsy said and of course my girl preened at the words tilting her head back and huffing happily.

“Yeah she’s amazing. You ready for a rest?” I asked her and she nodded, but then she slapped a hand on her bicep at the same time while giving me a confident look. “Ah, still ready for a battle? Well don’t worry, I’ll be putting my faith in your punch power for this battle if I call you.”

“Drag!” She chirped happily at the idea, and disappeared into the Pokeball a moment later.

“Ah! The beach here is pretty nice.” I mentioned, as I looked around. Cianwood had a pretty heavy duty concrete barrier against the ocean, but the beach was both delightfully empty, not full of tourists like Cinnabar, and it was just miles of golden sand.

“Yeah it is nice. Most people just go to Goldenrod, it’s famous for its beaches, but I guess Cianwood is pretty nice too. Too bad it’s too cold to really enjoy.” Bugsy mentioned, and I nodded shivering a bit myself. Winter wasn’t just coming, Winter was here.

“Hey! Don’t go in the water!” A voice called from up above them. I looked up and saw an older woman waving at us frantically. I shrugged and headed up the concrete steps.

“Hello!” I greeted her and she sighed.

“Good. It’s Tentacool breeding season right now. The beach is closed down to keep anyone from getting hurt.” She explained and I just nodded. Jellyfish swarm, gotcha.

“O-oh!” Bugsy whispered, sounding startled as he heard the news though. “That could have been bad.” He muttered as he stared back over the water.

“Eh. I’m not that worried.” I said and then at the woman's glare I raised my hands. “Not that I’m planning on testing it! Jeeze.” I whispered as she stopped glaring. “Tentacool don’t usually come out to the beach and it’s not like I was going to jump in.”

“Now… I saw you two come in on that Dragonite. Is there something you two need in Cianwood? We don’t do tourists much.” She asked and I grinned brightly.

“First the Pokemon Center, and then we are here to visit the Gym! I’m challenging Chuck!”

“Ah, trainers. A bit late aren’t you?”

“I have a Dragonite, distance is irrelevant.” I answered back and that earned me a guffaw from the older women.

“You’re an interesting one aren’t you Blackthorne? Alright, Pokemon Center is down there, and Chucks Gym is just a bit beyond it.” She confirmed, and then turned away heading back to a little cafe on the side of the street above the beach before I could deny being a Blackthorne.

That was kinda annoying, but at least in the future no one would make that mistake again once I blew up the Conference.

“Pokemon Center!” I called out hand raised and Bugsy sighed as he chased after me.

—--

I spent a few hours relaxing in the Pokemon center giving Dragonite time to cool down from her flight, and Lucario more time to rest after her battle.

But then it was time.

“Thank you Nurse Joy! I love you!” I called out happily as I left the pokemon center, to the amused giggles of the pink haired nurse.

Cianwood Nurse Joy was super nice! After hearing I was going to fight Chuck she had checked over my team and even worked with Dragonite a bit, to make sure her wings were ready for a battle after a flight.

“This’ll be your fifth badge.” Bugsy mentioned casually as I stalked forward, I slowed a bit and met his eyes.

“Yep! What’s up?”

“It’s just… You’ve already gathered five Badges… Star Badges! You’re a really strong trainer.” He added and when I just waited for him to actually say something he finally got it out.

“I want to fight you again.” He said and I blinked at his admittance. “I’ve been watching you battle… And I want to battle you again. I won’t… I won’t lose next time.”

I looked him over, at his confidence, and smirked.

“After I beat Clair. I’ll look forward to it!” I told him and got a nod in turn.

Another battle against Bugsy? Sounds fun!

But then we were there. The Gym. I grinned as it had a bell out front, along with a sigh. ‘Challengers should ring the bell to announce themselves.’

I rang it instantly, it rang soft and gentle. A nice noise.

“Mwahahaha!” A voice shot out from inside and Bugsy jumped but my smile just grew as Chuck came stomping out the entrance of the house beside the Gym.

“Who has come to challenge me!?” He shouted rambunctiously, and I raised my hand.

“I'm your challenger today! Victoria Ferrous!”

“I am Chuck of the Cianwood City Gym! I accept!”

“Yes!” Finally a Gym Leader that just was there to battle without any other nonsense! “Chuck! I want to fight your strongest team! Hold nothing back!”

“Hahaha! You wish to challenge my strongest team? Are you sure? I will blow you away with martial training and pure muscle!” He roared out, but I couldn’t help but look down at his gut, that was a bit… Big.

“I do!” I shouted out, deciding to keep the energy instead of calling him out.

“VERY WELL!” He roared and raced back into the gym and I rushed to follow him without a word.

Our eyes had met, a battle was inevitable after all!

We raced into a large dojo-like battle arena and I was getting excited but then Chuck suddenly yelled out.

“Honey!? Where are my pokeballs?”

And I slumped as I realized the man had completely lost his own team.

—--

After a long search Chuck had realized his main team's Pokeballs were at the Pokemon Center for a checkup, and while we waited, Chuck’s wife fed Bugsy and I dinner.

And it was a lot of food, but that woman could cook.

Finally, afterwards, the Pokemon had arrived as Nurse Joy had given Chuck a look for calling and asking her to deliver them.

Yikes.

And then we battled.

“Lu! Lucario!” She shouted as Chucks Machamp charged in.

“Maaaachamp!” The pokemon roared as the two fighting types tore into each other. While Machamp tore into the area with overwhelming power, Lucario and I were using a different method.

“Keep it up! Detect through!” I called out, as Lucario was using the move to see what would come next and dodge around.

“Pin her down Machamp!” Chuck roared and Lucario struggled. Type weakness to fighting, against a truly powerful fighting type made things a bit hard on her.

“Now!” I called, and Lucario switched from Detect. Just as she was struck by a painful Mach punch, she shifted, and then spun with the attack. Her foot coming out and smashing into Machamps chin with so much force the much much larger pokemon was lifted straight off the floor.

“C-Counter!” Chuck roared out in shock and then delight laughing happily as Lucario completed her spin and landed and then fell to one knee.

Chuck and I both watched, but Machamp was out, and his shoulders slumped a small amount.

“Amazing! Using Detect first? I see. I understand! You used it until you were sure you were taking a hit that Lucario would still be standing after, and was strong enough to knock out Machamp?”

“That’s right! Lucario actually has a type weakness to fighting moves because of her Steel Type! So if she was going to win, it had to be decisive!”

“Mwahahaha! Such spirit! Excellent! Planning out a battle before it begins is an excellent start! But you haven’t defeated me yet, and your Lucario can not do the same move again! I hope you are ready!”

I laughed as the man shouted out. He was definitely full of energy, but I hadn’t really planned it specifically. I looked at Lucario and she looked at me.

She nodded, and I raised the pokeball to return her.

It had actually been her idea.

Lucario knew how to fight after all. I was just polishing her up and strengthening her up. That and teaching her to fight Pokemon battles, and not just feral fighting.

But I placed her back on my belt and reached for another pokemon.

The last Pokemon I think I would be using in today's match.

“Sorry Chuck. But you are the perfect fight to let my next pokemon really stretch her legs. So this match? It’s already over.” I said playing the heel a bit to the man which he delighted in, flexing his chest and raising his arms.

“Then you will be surprised at the power of Fighting Pokemon!”

Then I tossed a pokeball, and a Goddess descended.

—--

Afterwards it was quiet. Even Bugsy was too shocked to call the match.

Chansey was standing there unharmed in a now destroyed arena bouncing lightly on her toes and looking as usual like she was just happy to be there. Chansey heals OP, Please don't nerf!

Before her lay her last foe. The poor Polywrath was completely flat faced into the ground before the power of the Goddess.

“T-thats?” Chuck whispered, having progressively lost his energy as the battle continued, shock replacing it.

“Chansey! I love you!” I shouted out, as I charged and jumped into a big hug. I guess I was feeling affectionate today. Chansey swung me around and we both giggled as we hugged tight.

“What was that!?” Bugsy finally let loose, unable to stop himself, and I turned and smirked at him.

“Chansey, is… Strong.” I decided and Chansey perked up standing up straight. She nodded her head in agreement beside me.

Chuck suddenly took a step forward and then another as he approached and Chansey and I looked as he fell to his knees and grabbed Chanseys flipper.

“A-Amazing! You’re perfect!” The man started crying and I blinked before smiling proudly as I made out “Perfect physique.” And “A goddess.” In there.

So Chuck had seen it too. Chansey was truly a goddess descended upon us mere mortals to achieve peak gains.

—--

“And there.” He confirmed handing off the Storm Badge, with star. “With this! You have proof that you have defeated me! Chuck of Cianwood City! The Storm Badge is proof of your accomplishment, and of your excellent training! I vow to train 24 hours a day to reach nirvana! A goddess has shown the way!” He cheered out and I laughed in delight at his excitement.

“Chan-Chansey chanse.” Chansey spoke, waving a flipper at him in embarrassment.

But I was glad I had chosen to give Chansey a chance to stretch her legs here. For one Chuck understood.

For another?

I glanced at Chansey and our eyes met.

Understanding passed and I grinned in delight as she looked equally happy. She had really enjoyed this. A battle. A workout for her, but more importantly, she had gone through five additional Pokemon. This was the longest amount of time she had spent battling outside training with the team.

For once Chansey was the absolute victor of this match, and she had definitely enjoyed it. She truly had found her battling spirit working with Koga, and our bond had grown ever stronger.

“Chanse?” She asked pointing and I nodded offering the badge to her, which she took and looked it over. I noticed she smiled brighter, happier as she looked down on the badge, no doubt seeing her own face reflected in the star.

“We did it.” I said smiling as Chansey looked up from the badge to me. She nodded slowly, but her spreading smile told me the truth.

She reached out and grabbed me, and I laughed in delight as she spun me around while hugging me tight.

I hugged her back and we both laughed in delight. “We did it Chansey! We won the badge!” I called out cheering, and then there was something more. A flash, a connection and I blinked back the white light as I felt the flippers holding me grow and change.

I gasped as I looked up in the same gentle eyes. As she looked down on me.

“Blissey!”

“Blissey!”

We shouted together and instantly started moving. Dancing around in delight, my hands in her flippers as we cheered and celebrated.