The day before the show battle, Steven and I found out we were both in Veilstone, and decided to meet up. The only thing I was able to say after he shared his harrowing tale was "I'm sorry."
He gave me a soft smile in response and gazed down into his cup of tea.
"There is... no reason to blame yourself, Alex. As the ex-Champion of Hoenn, I have had my share of difficult battles. While the events in Alamos far surpassed my past experiences with Legendary Pokémon, the outcome was still much better than what happened during Kyogre’s attack on Mossdeep. Thanks to the assistance of the Ace Trainers present for the Contest, the people of the town were all evacuated safely, and all damage caused to Alamos was undone by Palkia."
"But I should have known more,” I said. “I should have been able to give you a bigger heads up. Rather than just a warning, I should have tried harder to remember more, and maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad. What I hate most is that after that Darkrai encounter, there's still going to be two more major events with Legendaries: one with Giratina, and one with Arceus."
"I remember you mentioning those," Steven said. "Do you truly not recall any more details?"
I shook my head.
"I only watched the movies detailing them a single time, back when I was younger. Even more, I never watched the Arceus one. The only thing I remember is that a Shaymin is going to fight a Giratina, and even then, I’m not sure that actually happens. I'm wondering if it's even worth it for you to try to make things better."
I slumped in my chair and let my head fall back.
"I mean...” I sighed. “I think Darkrai lived in the movie.”
Steven stayed quiet. I was thankful this coffee shop was high end enough for private meetings. No one could see or hear our reactions.
He stood up to walk and stare out the window that overlooked the Veilstone street out front. Steven had actually been in Veilstone longer than me, since he was trying to stay relatively close to Ash, just in case. He’d been able to mine in The Underground a few times, but not nearly as much as he’d like.
The guilt of knowing what Steven had been going through, especially with Darkrai, almost physically hurt me.
"I didn't know Darkrai in anything other than a professional capacity. Like other members of its species, it was introverted at best. Darkrai was capable of speaking in only a few clipped words at a time, but that was enough to express simple ideas.
"Darkrai was a being of love, rather than just of shadow. It loved its gardens. It loved the people. It loved its home. I know you say it survived in what you originally saw, but is that actually true? We have no understanding of how the events that occurred here were translated into the media of your world, so perhaps it is a reasonable assumption that its survival was included to appease the younger demographic?
"Darkrai sacrificed itself for the town, delaying the fight just long enough for Oración to play. I desperately wish that Darkrai survived, like you said, and it simply decided to hide, but still, I am unsure. Surely it would have given us a sign, at least?"
"I don't know," I said. "Palkia brought back the plants, right? Plants are living things, so if it did that, then maybe it brought back Darkrai, too. Doesn't that imply doing so would be in its power?"
Steven stayed quiet for a few moments.
"Maybe," he said solemnly.
Steven stared out the window for a while longer before returning to his seat. Once there, he took a long sip of his tea that drained the rest of the cup’s contents before looking back to me with a much more placid expression on his face.
"And how are you, Alex? Your training has gone well, I presume?"
"Well, mostly," I replied.
"Do tell."
Steven laced his fingers in his lap, and I shifted around uncomfortably.
"Everyone on my team is stronger—significantly so. Outside of general improvements, there've been new developments with both moves and strategies. It's hard to detail everything, but the highlights include Whimsicott's clever use of Nature Power and Kirlia's evolution into a, well, Kirlia."
"I'm sensing a 'but,'" Steven said.
I grimaced.
"Well, we lost recently."
He raised an eyebrow.
"I was battling with that one trainer I told you about, Paul. He's been making steps in the right direction, so I decided to fulfill his request to fight. As a trainer with much more experience than me, he performed really well, but ultimately the battle was decided between both Whimsicott and his Magmar getting poisoned.
"Whimsicott pushed to stay up as long as possible, but eventually, he withdrew due to not being able to withstand the pain for much longer. Magmar, however, pushed and pushed and lasted through the pain to stay conscious for as long as possible, rendering itself immobile. Since Whimsicott willingly withdrew before Magmar fainted, Paul won.
"The issue is, Paul took that victory... badly,” I continued. “He insulted me and stormed off afterwards. His brother, Reggie, said Paul needed time to adjust, but I just don't know."
"Don't know what?" Steven asked.
"I don't know if I made a mistake by losing," I said.
Steven frowned slightly and shifted back in his seat.
“That’s a bold claim, Alex, but you have to remember that someone else’s reaction is not your responsibility. You said yourself that Paul was making steps in the right direction, so I very much doubt a simple unexpected response would undo all of your efforts. Keep trying, and I’m sure your efforts will bear fruit. They always have in the past, I've found.”
I gave Steven a small smile.
“Thank you. I guess this could just be the nerves talking. I have that big match tomorrow, after all.”
Steven chuckled.
“I suppose. Two months of practice is nothing to scoff at, though. In a battle that you and your partners are putting your full efforts in, I have no doubts you might find that you’ve been underestimating yourselves. I doubt a loss like what happened with Paul is in the cards for you tomorrow.”
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I hadn’t talked to my opponent, Maylene, much before this match. I did show up to her Gym to talk beforehand, but she seemed disconnected and mostly went along with my suggestions without much input.
Just like the last show battle, there would be some agreements in place. Like last time, stacking offensive buffs wouldn’t be done, entry hazards would be left out of our plans, and Pokémon wouldn’t be switched out except to force a Mega Pokémon match up. A big and unexpected agreement popped up when Maylene suddenly blurted out “no birds.”
Coaxing an explanation out of her, I began to understand what the problem was. Basically, flying Pokémon made it difficult for her team of grounded Fighting Types to fight back. She had her counter strategies, of course, but the issue was that it was simply uninteresting to watch. This battle was meant to be entertaining, so banning Pokémon that needed to fly to attack was necessary for the sake of the audience.
As a result, Altaria would not be competing as a member of my team this time around. Additionally, Florges and Whimsicott would be staying close to the ground.
Maylene didn’t bring up any other rules, and we exchanged knowledge of our team members beforehand, too. She would be using a Hitmontop, a Breloom, a Machamp, an Infernape, a Lucario, and a Medicham.
Medicham would be the last Pokémon she used, which would go against Mawile. Their battle would be the anticipated Mega Pokémon match.
On the date our match was set, I arrived at the stadium and took up my post. This place was comparable to the main arena of the Hoenn Conference, and it was located right in the center of the city. It was big, modern, and reserved for events like this specfically, partially funded by the local Gym just to host public tournaments between Fighting Types.
Maylene was young for a Gym Leader. Classically, the local Veilstone Gym would have their strongest member be in charge; for right now, that duty fell to her. She was only a teen, and when I first met her, she didn’t quite have the confidence required of a Gym Leader. However, coming into the arena, she looked more than ready to battle, bouncing between her feet while dressed in her loose workout outfit.
Out of all of the show battles I had scheduled, she was technically the weakest, with her team sitting at a low nine stars. For her in particular, Maylene would be fighting an uphill battle since she’d be fighting with a Type disadvantage as well.
However, unlike Roark, her Pokémon would be her actual team she’s spent years building up and training. None of them were recently resurrected fossils with high innate power but little training, but professional Fighting Types that had even held classes in her Gym in the past.
Even with the odds in our favor, especially with our training on Iron Island catching us up, I wasn’t going to make the same mistake as I had done in the battle against Paul. This was through and through a professional battle and not something to treat casually. We were here to win (and also to put on a good show).
People slowly funnelled into the audience, and over time, the seats filled up. Vendors meandered around, shouting about their goods, loose conversations echoed around the arena, and a large screen over the battlefield itself showed highlights of matches both Maylene and I had competed in in the past.
I tried to look around to see if I saw any familiar faces, but this place was too large to accurately identify individuals. After a bit, I glanced up at a closed-off room that hung over the normal seats where guests of the competitors and well-connected individuals could sit. There, I knew Steven would be watching, and alongside him would be Ponyta and also Paul’s brother, Reggie. I had felt it appropriate to invite him after all the information he gave me about Fairy Type biology.
I noticed that Maylene waved to the same box I had looked at. She had a big smile on her face when she did.
A pair of announcers started bouncing banter off each other as the battle approached. A lot of what they were saying went in one ear and out the other, however. Their words consisted of meaningless predictions and generic hype, so not much was relevant to me. They did, however, mention my past sponsorship by a Pokémart and Marty specifically, so even though he wasn’t sponsoring me any more, I was glad he was getting credit.
Then, Professor Sycamore appeared on the monitor above the field, where he gave a short speech about the competitors of this match. Notably, he didn’t mention me being a Mega Evolution Master. I’d made it clear to him that I should not be given that title in advertisements. I was glad to see he was already adapting.
After that, the match began.
Maylene and I both knew how we would start, and we both knew how we would end. Going with the pair of Pokémon we agreed on, appearing on the field was a large, gray, four-armed Fighting Type, and across from it was Azumarill, who matched its gaze with a grin.
Both Pokémon flexed for the audience. Maylene’s Machamp rippled from the strain, and for Azumarill, her muscles weren’t as visible, but the fact they came up at all through her Thick Fat made that impressive in its own right.
The audience cheered. Both Pokémon stomped forward.
To start it out, Machamp stepped out to take a wide stance the moment Azumarill dashed forward with Aqua Jet. As she did, she used Aqua Ring to prepare herself with a bit of healing that would offset the burn of her Life Orb. Machamp was similarly equipped with an item, wearing a Black Belt around its head that would help enhance its Fighting Type moves.
Bringing a fist forward, she roared with all her might and aimed to use Aqua Jet’s momentum to land a punch right into Machamp’s chest. With speeds matching her own, Machamp brought an arm forward to block, using a Quick Guard that prevented the Aqua Jet attack from landing.
However, despite stopping the attack, the force of the move pushed Machamp back a few feet. It turned its hand to look at it, shocked, most likely seeing a red mark forming from Azumarill’s raw power.
The audience cheered. Azumarill ran forward again.
The resulting exchange was one that neither Maylene or I needed to send orders into. Azumarill launched blow after blow towards Machamp, but it used its multitude of arms to repeatedly deflect. With Azumarill’s two fists outnumbered by Machamp’s four, the battle quickly shifted into a moderately hard to follow exchange where Azumarill would occasionally duck and weave under Machamp’s punches with Splash, and Machamp would constantly block but suffer glancing damage from Azumarill’s blows.
Machamp was slow but powerful, and Azumarill took advantage of that. All the practice we had manipulating our opponent’s balance came into play here as she forced Machamp to go on defense. Finally, after she landed a few decent grazes with Liquidation, Maylene yelled out a command, trying to correct her Pokémon’s strategy to better handle Azumarill’s offense.
“Vacuum Wave!”
That was an odd command considering the move Vacuum Wave was closer to a special attack than a physical attack. Machamp changed how it was punching to begin to attack using air currents rather than direct blows. Small gusts of winds and miniature tornadoes formed around its attacks, creating pushing forces that interrupted Azumarill’s Splashes and threw her off balance.
With that opening created, Machamp was able to pull back a fist and land a solid Drain Punch right across Azumarill’s face. The Fighting Type move absorbed some of her vitality to reinvigorate Machamp, and knocked Azumarill away as well.
Her head had been pushed back by the impact, but after only a moment, she snapped her body forward to properly face Machamp once again. With a grin of malicious glee, Azumaril swiped an arm across her mouth before rushing forward with a completely different move.
I specified the move for her to use, this time.
“Play Rough!”
Azumarill’s body glowed with the pink energy of the Fairy Type, but the raw power she was giving off meant the glow was closer to white than anything else. The sheer effort she was putting into this move was not to be underestimated. Both Machamp and Maylene clearly saw what was coming.
“Protect!” Maylene hurriedly yelled.
Machamp brought up its arms to brace itself, forming a pair of cross-shapes in front of it. The Play Rough slammed into them, dealing no damage, but that was when Azumarill grabbed on.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Machamp’s eyes went wide. I didn’t think anyone expected this but me.
Azumarill lifted Machamp up.
With a roar to put a Dragon Type to shame, Azumarill heaved and dragged Machamp into the air above her head. Maylene tried to order Machamp to use Close Combat, but the flurry of blows sent her way didn’t stop her before she slammed Machamp into the ground behind her.
A bit of dust was pushed up in the air from the impact, but Azumarill didn’t leave it there. The moment Machamp touched the ground, she let go of it and jumped high in the air, using Aqua Jet to launch herself to a ridiculous height.
Machamp pushed to its feet, trying to ready itself for this attack. It wasn’t enough.
Using Aqua Jet once more, Azumarill increased her momentum to far outpace what she normally could get with just gravity alone and twisted to her side with her elbow aimed down. Using Play Rough, her elbow glowed with Fairy Type energy of a similar level to before as it smashed into Machamp with as much force as she could muster.
There was a cracking sound as the floor literally broke under the resulting impact, and a wave was sent throughout the Fighting Type’s body. Unable to hold through that ridiculously powerful attack, Machamp crumbled to the ground, fainting from Azumarill’s power.
The audience roared with excitement. For an opener, it was certainly something.
Maylene grinned with excitement to have such a strong opponent to begin the match with. She returned her Machamp, and sent out Breloom rather quickly. She couldn’t afford to linger with her decision since Azumarill was constantly passively healing with Aqua Ring.
Appearing with a flash was the kangaroo-like Breloom, complete with its mushroom head and spore-filled seeds on its tail. It had a bright grin on its face as it hopped between each foot, mimicking Maylene’s own stance as it readied itself for battle.
Maylene ran her thumb over her lips.
"Breloom, focus on your flip strategy,” she ordered.
The key word she used was interesting to me, simply because I didn't understand it. Breloom gave a happy smirk and pulled back one of its stubby but clawed arms to ready a punch. After a brief moment to aim, its Mach Punch carried it forward right into Azumarill’s stomach, moving far too fast for her to respond.
The air was knocked out of Azumarill, but she was still able to grab the tail Breloom sent her way immediately after. She locked it in place without the swipe finishing the already quite injured Water Type off, but as it turned out, the tail swipe wasn’t the attack.
Instead, the seed pods on Breloom’s tail burst to release the spores contained within. The appropriately named “Spore” attack was intended to put Azumarill to sleep, forcing me to hide my smile when I saw what had occurred.
I didn't want to appear too cocky in front of such a big audience.
Azumarill hadn't been a big presence on my team recently, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t training. Professor Sycamore’s lab had Pokémon from many different trainers there, and she had been spending her time sparring whenever she could. As a result, she probably had the most battle experience out of everyone in my team, but most importantly, she had plenty of experience with Grass Types.
That meant her Sap Sipper ability was fully up and running.
Rather than being put to sleep, the Spore attack invigorated her. Azumarill breathed in deeply and used the energy contained within the move to enhance her own strength inside, Breloom putting itself into a much worse position than it was before.
And then, the unthinkable happened. Maylene called out to try to stop Breloom once she realized what had happened, but she was too slow. More seed pods burst on Breloom’s tail, but this time, instead of using Spore, it was a Seed Bomb attack that Breloom had used to try to get a quick and cheeky faint off against Azumarill.
She was buffed even further, and took minimal damage from the move. Her grip on Breloom’s tail tightened.
“Play Rough!” I yelled.
I found out then what the “flip” of Maylene’s flip strategy was.
Using her enhanced strength from Sap Sipper, Azumarill dragged Breloom with its tail and spun it around her. Fairy Type energy leaked in through her hands to deal super effective damage, and then she pulled Breloom’s tail back before slamming it on the ground ahead of her.
The best I could describe it was Breloom exploded.
Counter was a move that took the energy of any physical attack that hit and sent it back at whoever had attacked twofold. With the Fairy Type energy Azumarill commanded combined with the boost from Sap Sipper, the Counter contained a ridiculous amount of power behind it that easily finished off Azumarill after all the damage she had already taken previously.
The blast caused her to be launched over the field and skip across the dirt. I returned her to her Dive Ball when she came to a rest near my feet. Breloom pushed into a standing position and tried to bounce between its feet. It only wobbled instead.
"Good job turning her Sap Sipper around against her. That Counter was really powerful," I said.
“Might not have been expected, but that’s just Breloom making the most out of a bad situation! Watch, Breloom’s going to take out your next Pokémon as well!”
Not saying anything else, I sent out my second Pokémon, Whimsicott. He saw his opponent’s injured state and smiled.
I specifically chose Whimsicott here since he was immune to Breloom's Spore as a Grass Type. Technically, Misty Terrain could serve the same purpose to provide an immunity, but for this battle, I wanted Whimsicott to use status condition moves, so that wasn’t in our strategy. Grassy Terrain wouldn’t be used here either, since it had the potential to buff Breloom’s Grass Type moves a bit too much.
The strategy I would be employing with Whimsicott was basic yet effective. It was time to have him go on pure offense.
"Cotton Spore. Moonblast spam," I ordered.
Whimsicott giggled and threw chunks of fluff forward, all of them aimed at Breloom's feet. Breloom dodged in a rather interesting way; it used Mach Punch's momentum to carry itself away from all instances of the move.
Just like how Whimsicott was immune to Breloom’s Spore, Breloom was immune to Whimsicott’s powders. The bursts of status condition inflicting puffs did nothing to affect the Breloom as it zig-zagged across the field to make its way towards Whimsicott.
Once close, Breloom flicked its tail up and sent several large seeds forward towards Whimsicott. The Seed Bomb burst a foot away from Whimsicott, causing him to pause momentarily, but that brief moment was enough to let Breloom move in.
The Pokémon lunged forward and smashed a claw into Whimsicott’s face with Force Palm. My Pokémon was sent back, only for Breloom to chase it and repeat its attack again.
"Whimsicott! Try to use Moonblast!” I called out.
Whimsicott wasn't able to form a Moonblast, but he was able to send out a small Fairy Wind. The sparkling mist hit Breloom's face and caused it to rear back from the super effective damage. A break in the offense created, Whimsicott then launched a Moonblast forward and just barely managed to knock Breloom out, finishing it off after all the damage Azumarill had done.
Maylene’s Pokémon had all been up close and personal so far. Their moves were clear demonstrations of their innate strength, although Breloom hadn’t had a chance to show off much of its Fighting Type skill set. I imagined that the next Pokémon Maylene sent out, Infernape, would be extraordinarily tough for Whimsicott to beat.
This time, however, he actually had an answer to a Fire Type, unlike what had happened against Paul’s Magmar.
Whimsicott used Cotton Spore just like he had done with Breloom, but this time, the powders he hid within the cotton actually took effect. Most of the moves were seared away with bursts of Flamethrower from the Fire Type’s mouth, but clouds of poison lingered in the air, and Infernape suffered from the condition inflicted with Poison Powder.
Still, though, it ran forward, hands over legs, rushing at my Pokémon. Whimsicott barely had time to move back before it grabbed him, its hands clutching the fluff on the top of his head and lighting aflame with Fire Punch. It proceeded to run around and swing him about, smashing him into the floor like a child with a doll.
Infernape might not have been fighting like a trained Fighting Type, but it was clear it had specialized in making the most out of its chaotic, simian nature in combat.
With Infernape being a powerful Fire Type he could hardly handle, Whimsicott tried to use his new move, Psychic, to escape. It was from a TM and he had a good grasp on it, but it wasn’t as strong as his other moves. Honestly, it was barely even telekinesis at this point, instead being a wave of compressed space he sent forward at Infernape.
The attack tore into its captor, but despite the super effective damage, it was able to push through. Annoyed at Whimsicott’s persistence, Infernape lifted him up and breathed out a close-ranged Flamethrower that he wasn’t able to Protect from due to his proximity.
His unconscious body was tossed into the air like refuse by Infernape. I returned him to his Great Ball.
Carbink came out next.
Since we agreed on no birds, Carbink was my replacement for Altaria. They still weren't quite the level as the rest of my team, but their defenses were absolutely enormous and could honestly withstand attacks from Pokémon as strong as Azumarill. That meant that for this battle, Carbink was a great choice.
Infernape charged forward and lunged to grab Carbink just like it had done with Whimsicott. A Reflect popped up, blocking the initial lunge, so instead Infernape tried to use Flamethrower again.
Carbink created a Light Screen to block that, too. Infernape repeatedly stomped its hands and feet on the ground with annoyance.
“Look for a burn! Go aflame!” Maylene shouted.
Jumping back to make some room, Infernape reared back and howled, its flaming air increasing in intensity, and its fists covering themselves with fire. It moved back forward with its Blaze activated, trying its best to use Fire Punch to hit Carbink. Carbink simply let Infernape continuously wear itself down, its rapid actions serving to cause the poison from Whimsicott to pump around its body even faster.
No significant damage was made against Carbink, despite its efforts. After a long period of repeated punches, Infernape eventually fell from a combination of exhaustion, poison, and the chip damage from Carbink’s own attacks.
Maylene sent out her Lucario. I was starting to notice a pattern with her choices, generally relying on Type advantage to make her decision.
Carbink performed well, but Lucario demonstrated that even their use of screens had a weakness. The jackal Pokémon formed a glowing bone rod in its hands with Bone Rush, and, using that conjured weapon, smashed into Carbink with Brick Break.
The move shattered through the barriers they had created, opening them up for Lucario to land an even more powerful attack. Its bone glowed with Steel Type energy that hurtled downwards, using Meteor Mash to land a hit right in Carbink’s center of mass and sending them crashing into the ground.
That move wasn’t enough to make Carbink faint, and they tried to retaliate with Dazzling Gleam. However, a second smack with Bone Rush through the flash finished them off, and I returned them to their ball.
Carbink had an unfortunate match up there, but had done well against Infernape. If they were ever able to learn Toxic, Lucario would still be a bad matchup for them since it was immune to the Poisoned condition as a Steel Type.
Well, Carbink was still improving, and this match had been good practice for them anyway.
I sent Ninetales out then. She didn’t even wait for my commands before jumping into action.
Ninetales immediately brought up her snow to defend herself the moment Lucario closed in. The Fighting Type let its Bone Rush club dissipate to focus on enhancing its paws with Steel Type energy with Metal Claw.
In an exchange of martial arts, Lucario swiped and clawed at Ninetales, even throwing in a few kicks in an attempt to make use of the Type that would deal four times effective damage against her.
Even with a few direct hits, Ninetales held steady.
With Lucario so close, it was easy for her to send a Confuse Ray its way, forcing it to focus more on aiming to land through its confusion. Lucario was one of those Pokémon that could see through illusions using its Aura Sense, but Confuse Ray could still throw off its balance ever so slightly to make battling Ninetales a pain.
Ninetales shifted to offense at this point.
With Lucario still fighting but struggling to land a blow, she snuck a few Icy Winds around its feet to slow down its speed. That gave Ninetales an advantage to flash with Dazzling Gleam, which was enhanced by Lucario’s confusion, sending it stumbling back.
“Close Combat!” Maylene yelled.
So she’s bringing out the big moves, hm?
Lucario charged forward to unleash one of the most powerful Fighting Type moves against Ninetales, but she used Agility to keep her distance. Close Combat had a flaw in that it required its user to get close for the combat, so keeping her distance meant it couldn’t be used. This was something we prepared beforehand with the knowledge we were going up against a Fighting Type trainer. It was a counter strategy specifically for this move that only really worked when Ninetales’s opponents were both slowed and confused.
Seeing it not working, Maylene went for a different command.
“Aura Sphere!”
This was a bit worse for us, since the move tracked its opponent’s aura to always land. Even an Ice Beam didn’t delay the attack, and it went crashing into Ninetales.
At this point, Ninetales had sustained a few injuries, so she used her Snow Cloak to disappear into the fog. Lucario’s eyes glowed briefly and it snapped its head towards Ninetales’s position, using its aura sight to track her past her ability.
However, thinking it had outmatched her with its enhanced senses meant it would be more easily taken off guard.
I didn’t need to say anything for Ninetales to send an Ice Beam at Lucario’s legs, causing the already chilled appendages to freeze to the ground and send Lucario to the floor from the interrupted movement. She then took advantage of its prone form to launch a Moonblast its way, and while it tried its best to last through that, a second Moonblast finished it off.
Lucario was returned to its Pokéball, leaving Ninetales alone on the field.
At this point, Maylene had two Pokémon left, whereas I had three. What was worse for her is that all Pokémon I had left were my stronger attackers, with the exception of Azumarill. The only choice she had left was Hitmontop, and I already knew this wouldn’t go her way.
Ninetales had trained for too long to lose against a Fighting Type like it.
For this match, Ninetales resumed hiding in her snow, not bothering to even use Aurora Veil. Hitmontop tried to charge at her, but her hidden position let her unleash an unexpected Ice Beam that caught a foot just like what had happened against Lucario. Hitmontop tried to use one leg to break the ice while its leg-like tail stabilized it, but that's when Ninetales moved in.
It didn’t see her approach until it was too late; Ninetales released a Dazzling Gleam that seared into Hitmontop from only a few inches away. Through its blindness, it tried to unleash a kick to get back at her, but a fast use of Aurora Veil blocked the damage before it could land.
It flexed its leg and shattered the ice, leaping forward and landing on its head to spin like a top towards Ninetales. She rapidly leaped back to avoid its spinning Triple Kick, but honestly, this was a great circumstance for Ninetales.
She kept her distance while Hitmontop kept after her. An order from Maylene caused it to shift from Triple Kick to Rapid Spin, the move not landing but still increasing its speed. To counter that, Ninetales repeatedly used Icy Wind, but it was slowly gaining speed rather than losing it.
However, Hitmontop was getting weaker. It was time to finish this off.
“Moonblast! Full power!” I yelled.
When Ninetales used Moonblast, she generally went for speed rather than full power. It was what let her hit Lucario twice before it got up, the first hurting it, and the second finishing it off. However, with her dash away from Hitmontop, she was able to take the time and effort to bring as much as she could into this attack, creating a sphere that glowed an even more brilliant white than what Azumarill had done.
It was clear Ninetales was putting all of her practice into this move. Likely, her insights from getting struck by Xerneas were contributing as well.
Maylene saw the power of the potential super effective attack and called for Hitmontop to defend itself. It hopped in the air to twist and land on its feet, but it was too slow to prepare an attack to knock it in the side.
A brilliant, Legendary-tier Moonblast slammed into Hitmontop’s face. It wobbled on its legs before falling.
The audience cheered even more than before.
Maylene had one Pokémon left whereas I still had half my team. Ninetales had demonstrated a power I didn’t even realize she had, and neither did she based on how happy she was acting. My team’s Fairy Type moves were starting to reach a level few could match, and I could only imagine what power Florges might be wielding now.
Too bad it seemed like she wouldn't be participating in the next round.
Per our agreement, Ninetales was returned and the snow faded away. Neither Maylene nor I sent out our Pokémon just yet. Maylene simply stood there and stared over the field.
“Alex, this battle has been far more difficult than I expected,” she said.
The audience cheered.
“However, you won’t take out my last Pokémon that easily. Since I only have one team member left, I think it’s time to give the audience what they want. It’s time! Let’s Mega Evolve!” she shouted.
The audience became uproarious at her comment, Maylene displaying showmanship I didn’t expect. She once more sent a smile to the room that overlooked the field before sending out her Medicham, which had a bracelet containing a Medichamite on its wrist.
Of course, since Altaria was out of the picture, it was Mawile’s turn to play.
She appeared on the field as well, and almost simultaneously, Maylene and I Mega Evolved our Pokémon.
Mawile became taller while her jaws split in two, and Medicham’s legs became thicker while also gaining a set of arm-like ribbons that floated behind it. Those arm ribbons clenched into fists before relaxing again, all while Medicham left its actual arms pressed together in front of its chest.
The first clash wasn’t the melee clash most would have expected, but rather, an exchange of ranged moves. Mawile turned around to have both of her jaws face Medicham while Medicham formed pulsating white spheres in the palms of the hands floating behind its back. Like a pair of artillery cannons, Mawile’s mouths opened up to send forward powerful Shadow Balls, her new TM move, forward at Medicham while the Fighting and Psychic Type sent Focus Blasts back her way.
The attacks exploded in the air, neither side landing their moves. Mawile was able to attack faster than Medicham, but Medicham was able to prepare more attacks at once to counter her moves.
With the initial ranged barrage failing, Mawile heaved her jaws back up to dash forward at Medicham, and Medicham did the same.
Maylene and I both yelled out for attacks.
“Hi Jump Kick!”
“Crunch!”
Medicham jumped in the air, closing its eyes and causing a gem in the center of the headdress it gained in its Mega Evolution to glow. I could tell it was trying to disguise a Mind Reader, but my experience with Laura already let me know it’d try to do something like that.
Mawile knew what I had meant with Crunch when I said it, too.
Medicham sailed down with the intention of slamming into Mawile, but Mawile was ready for the incoming attack. It looked like it would hit, but her jaws snapped forward before it could, grabbing onto the extended leg and smashing it into the ground.
“Fire Punch!” Maylene yelled.
Mawile’s second set of jaws wrapped around Medicham’s chest and bit down with Crunch, but its four arms were set ablaze and repeatedly punched into Mawile.
Her proximity to her foe meant Mawile wasn’t able to use Iron Defense on her jaws to block the attack. She was forced to take super effective damage while trying her best to do the same with Psychic Fangs against Medicham.
“Recover!” Maylene shouted.
I cursed at our mistake of not using Taunt, and called for Mawile to use it. Medicham managed to heal partially with Recover before the Taunt interrupted it, so it went back to using Fire Punch to wear Mawile down.
With its four ribbon arms attacking, I didn’t have a plan on how we could beat it.
Then I got a really stupid idea.
“Mawile, repeatedly use Sucker Punch!”
It was a dumb strategy that basically just had Mawile striking Medicham before it used each of its attacks, but, somehow, it worked.
While Mawile wasn’t making full use of her jaws any more, she was now attacking at a moderately comparable rate, hitting Medicham with a quick Dark Type jab in the moment before it attacked with Fire Punch. Their exchange became less of Mawile acting as a punching bag while Medicham laid into her, and more of an exchange of blows between proper fighters on the field.
However, Mawile was losing. The super effective, constant rain of Fire Type damage was becoming too much, and we needed to change things up if we wanted to win. Mawile had only lasted this long through the power provided by Mega Evolution, and based on how tired I was starting to feel, she was likely to faint soon.
“Mawile, you can do it!” I yelled as a code word.
Mawile gave me an imperceptible nod, and the next time she used Sucker Punch, she missed and fell to the floor. Tears fell from her eyes, but Medicham didn’t let up.
“Like we’d fall for that! We know Mawile knows Fake Tears!” Maylene shouted.
Mawile continued to cry and moved her jaws up to defend herself with Iron Defense as she laid on the floor. I personally pretended to look horrified as she cried harder and harder under Medicham’s blows.
I mean, this was fake, but I was starting to be convinced, myself.
Thankfully, by falling to the ground like this, her defense had skyrocketed since she only needed to protect from above, her jaws and Iron Defense practically sealing her weaker, main body away from Medicham’s constant blows. Even though Maylene called us out, Mawile still hadn’t stopped crying, which had put the seed of doubt in both her and her Pokémon’s mind.
While Medicham didn’t let up, there was a moment its fist stilled. That was when we moved.
“Un-Mega, Mawile!”
Removing a Mega Form was a lot faster than entering it, so when Mega Medicham punched, its ribbon fist went right over the much smaller non-Mega Mawile’s head. It was stunned from what happened, Mawile’s shift after crying making it seem almost as if she were surrendering, but that wasn’t the case.
Taking a move out of Whimsicott’s playbook, something went thunk.
Medicham blinked a few times just to process the completely ridiculous situation that just happened.
Mawile had used her Mawilite, but in a way I doubted anyone ever expected. She had thrown it with Fling right at Medicham.
This move was only possible if Mawile wasn’t Mega Evolved, since otherwise the Mega Stone was basically locked on Mawile’s form. Medicham wasn’t expecting it, and as a result, it wasn’t expecting the Iron Head that landed right into its stomach. Medicham keeled over in pain, flinching from the attack, and the last thing it saw before fainting was Mawile smashing her singular jaws into its head from above.
The audience cheered, but also laughed a bit from the silly outcome. I knew part of the reason Professor Sycamore had set up these show battles was to ensure Mega Evolution wouldn’t be feared. Based on the reaction to what had happened, I was sure I just made Mega Evolution significantly less scary in everyone’s eyes. I was also sure that if Professor Sycamore was watching, like he most likely was, he would be laughing just as hard as some of the people in the audience.
Mawile was heavily injured with one of her eyes swollen shut, but she still held up her arms in victory before falling back onto her butt to rest. Medicham was unconscious and was returned to its Pokéball, Maylene moving onto the field after it.
“I’m very confused,” Maylene said.
I shrugged.
“I mean it worked,” I replied.
She just shook her head and laughed before reaching into her pocket.
“Well that’s not how I expected that battle to go, so congratulations on beating me. I was sure I would put up more of a fight, but at the same time, I was also sure no one would ever willingly unevolve their Mega Pokémon in the middle of the battle.”
“That’s why it’s the perfect strategy.”
Our mics were on, so the audience could hear what we were saying. Practically each line was met with cheers or laughs. Maylene and I turned to wave to the audience as she quietly slipped her Gym’s badge into my hand.
This time around, I had asked for our battle to be treated as my Gym Challenge for the city. I had declined it against Roark to let my newer team members get practice, but since they were quickly catching up, I didn’t have the need to decline it this time around.
The Cobble Badge, a red-orange badge that almost looked like a set of bricks, was now in my possession, which meant it would be time to head out from Veilstone soon.
The only thought in my head as I left the field wasn’t about the battle, but my future plans.
Based on what I remembered from the anime, wasn’t the Wallace Cup soon?