Chapter 135 (Patreon)

The figure in the midst of the snowstorm was an Electivire. Its heavy upper half almost made it look ape-like, but the yellow fur and black markings clearly signaled it to be the evolution of Electabuzz. A pair of black tendrils whipped around on its back as its head rapidly glanced around, trying to find its target.

Behind it, its trainer, Volkner, looked on with tension clear in his expression. He had spiky blonde hair and wore a thick blue jacket. As it stood, Volkner was my target for the match. After getting through the rest of his eight-star team, only Electivire was left.

With a strategy currently being enacted, I said nothing. Ninetales and I had already gone over our plan in the days before this battle. I trusted her to be successful, but more importantly, I didn't want to call anything out to ruin her plans.

Electivire continued to glance around nervously until it seemed Volkner had enough. A hand was thrown forward into a dramatic point as he called out to his Pokémon.

"Electivire! Motor Punch!" he yelled.

In response, Electivire held its arms out and roared. Around it, an electric Discharge expanded out in all directions. The electricity was so strong and so dense that Dedenne would only ever be able to dream of using such a powerful move.

Then, despite our expectations, the attack was suddenly sucked back into Electivire, completely being consumed by its ability, Motor Drive.

Something whirred inside of Electivire, and one fist was brought up into the air. It sparked once, then twice, then completely lit up in an insanely powerful Thunder Punch that turned the room white.

"There!" Volker screamed.

Electivire lunged forward, making the most of the speed provided to it by Motor Drive. It closed in on the silhouette it saw in the snowstorm and crashed its fist into it.

The shattering of ice rang out.

It wasn't Ninetales, but a small ice statue she created.

The weather parted just enough to reveal her right next to Electivire.

"Blizzard!" I yelled.

Not unlike how Electivire sucked in its own electricity, the entire snowstorm moved to condense around Ninetales. The skies cleared up in favor of making her into a walking snowglobe whose freezing contents were launched right into Electivire.

The Electric Type tried its best to create a pulse of electricity around it to withstand the attack. However, it had expended almost all its energy only a moment before and fell to the ground, half-frozen over and unconscious.

"Gym Leader Volkner has no Pokémon able to battle. Challenger Alex wins!"

Ninetales used Agility to dash across the field and run up the side of the raised platform I was standing on. I had no time to react at all before I was bowled over by the freezing form of Ninetales.

"Yes, yes!" I laughed. "That's our eighth! Please, Ninetales! You're cold!"

She backed off with a small whine and puffed up her chest. Ninetales looked as proud as ever at her victory. Despite Electivire being the sole member of Volkner's personal team being used in this battle, she managed to get out relatively unscathed.

Only relatively, though. Her fur was somewhat singed by the two Charge Beams she took.

The platform lowered back to the ground level, where Ninetales hopped out to merrily run around me. Volkner, looking to be in a good mood despite his loss.

He extended his hand, and I shook it.

"Great battle, Alex. I'm glad we were able to have this."

"Same here, Volkner. I'm glad you got out of your funk."

He smiled at me, and I did my best to smile back. Truthfully, coming to Sunyshore had been somewhat of a disappointment, as I had visited the Gym only to see the badges were being handed out to anyone who took the Gym Trial. There was no need to actually succeed, and the Gym Leader wasn't taking any challenges.

Thankfully, I remembered enough from the anime that I simply left the city for a few days. After spending time training, Ash had already visited and left, cheering up Volkner and motivating him to bring the Gym back in order.

"Honestly, I think that Ampharos of yours was the most impressive of the bunch. I never expected a Counter, and neither did Azumarill."

"That's what I've trained her for. Try to set up against her, and you'll only knock out yourself."

I made a mental note to apologize to Azumarill later, as she was the only member of my team to faint. Since we were only fighting Volkner's eight star team, I thought she had a chance to sweep with Belly Drum. That was a mistake.

If we had faced Volkner's personal team, I might have used a different strategy, but as the most powerful Gym Leader in Sinnoh, Volkner's team was a bit too strong to be reasonably used in a Gym Battle.

"Before I forget, here," Volkner said. "The Beacon Badge. This proves you've triumphed over my Gym."

The Beacon Badge was a silver lighthouse that had a shining yellow light glowing at its top. I smiled upon receiving it and quickly put it away.

With that, we had earned our final badge, and our place in the Conference was secured.

I thanked Volkner before heading out, Ninetales at my side.

"For our next steps in training, continuing Sheer Cold is going to be a must," I said to her as we walked. "I would have liked to use the move there instead of Blizzard, but it wasn't worth the risk."

Ninetales nodded her head. I could tell she was still running high off her victory by the bounce in her step, but her face was locked into a determined expression.

"Another thing: while not crucial for our plans, it might be worth helping Gardevoir learn Moon—"

My words fell out of my mouth before I could continue. The sliding glass doors of the Gym seemed to be almost completely shadowed over with the sheer presence of the man entering the room.

Tobias strode inwards, his blood red cape flowing around him with each step.

Wordlessly, I banked a sharp turn with Ninetales and we moved back into the Gym to join the audience.

I practically bumped into Volkner in the hallway leading up.

"Wait, Alex? Why are you back?"

I practically let out a sigh of relief at the blonde man's presence.

"I was going to join the audience, but I'll make this quick: make sure to use your personal team for the next match. The fight won't be worth it, otherwise."

The Gym Leader opened his mouth to ask why, but upon seeing my serious expression, he closed it and gave me a stiff nod.

He turned back around, presumably to collect his team, while Ninetales and I joined the sparse audience in the elevated seating on the edge of the field.

We said nothing. We sat and waited in silence. Most Gym Battles were spaced apart every hour, but it was possible for them to be closer together based on the number of Pokémon a Gym Leader fields. With Volkner in specific, Sunyshore City was a port city and let him obtain Pokémon from around the globe. Likely, the battle would start any moment.

"Ninetales, be on high alert," I whispered. "Tobias's battles aren't recorded, so they aren't available online. Since this is the first League he's competed in, this might be our only chance to see his team in action."

She gave me another firm nod. We continued to stare ahead.

Volkner was the first to appear on the field, exiting from a door that lead deeper into the Gym Behind him. He positioned himself on his trainer platform and stared at a Pokéball he held in his hand, almost concerned.

The door creaked open opposite to him. With a constant gait, Tobias moved to his own platform, and a yellow-jacketed referee spoke up on the side.

"This will be a battle between Gym Leader Volkner and Challenger Tobias. Each side will use six Pokémon each, and the battle ends when all of one trainer's Pokémon are fainted. There are no limits on switching and..."

The referee paused for a moment.

"Mega Evolution is allowed."

At that, several members of the crowd leaned forward, extremely interested in the match that was about to happen. If only they knew.

"When you're ready, send out your Pokémon," the referee announced.

The moment the referee said that, Volkner sent out the Pokémon he was holding.

"Pincurchin," he said.

My eyebrows rose. A Galarian Pokémon like that was especially rare in the region.

Pincurchin was a small, grub-like Pokémon with a black body and yellow-tipped spikes. It tended to dwell in or near the ocean, and as a pure Electric Type, it slotted well into Volkner's team.

What helped it as well was its hidden ability, Electric Surge, which coated the field in sparks and set up an Electric Terrain upon being sent out.

Tobias threw no Pokéball. His shadow expanded out from under him as a flickering, ghostly form grew out of it.

The lights in the room dimmed. A red eye glowed in the darkness. Darkrai emerged.

The moment the referee called for the battle to start, Volkner moved to return his Pokémon.

That proved to be a mistake.

"Pursuit."

Tobias's voice was surprisingly normal, but it still felt ominous in its own way. As the light from the Pokéball encompassed the tiny Electric Type, Darkrai shot forward and reached a hand out towards it.

Shadows coalesced around the extended appendage, forming a claw that grabbed Pincurchin in its grip. The light of the Pokéball broke as Pinchurchin failed to be returned. Darkrai gave it a squeeze before tossing it to Volkner's feet.

"That's one," I whispered.

Ninetales continued to stare ahead.

Volkner returned his fainted Pokémon with a frown on his face, clearly having wanted a successful return to make the most out of Pincurchin's easy Electric Terrain. Coming out to replace it was an Ampharos, though a different one than I had faced. Not only was it taller, but the yellow Pokémon had several scars on its body, and the bright red bulb on its tail glowed with a light the previous did not have.

Volkner didn't wait. He pulled back the sleeve of his blue jacket to reveal a Key Stone.

"Ampharos. To victory," he announced.

Across from Volkner, Tobias pulled his hand to the side. His Pokémain remained unmoving, content to wait.

I wasn't sure where Ampharos was keeping its Ampharosite, but that hardly mattered in the face of  such important results. As a rainbow light shined out from the Pokémon, a flowing white mane grew out of Ampharos’s head, and its tail expanded out to be just as fluffy.

The white hair sparked with electricity. There was a palpable sense of power as it faced off against its foe.

“Thunder,” Volkner ordered.

I felt all the hair on my body stand on its end.

From Ampharos’s position on the field, a blinding blast of thunderous electricity shot out and impacted Darkrai’s position. The Legendary Pokémon spun to shift out of the way, but the Mega Pokémon kept up its attack to track it.

Like a laser beam chasing its foe, the Thunder was a persistent attack that followed Darkrai’s movement but was ever so slightly too slow.

Darkrai was on Ampharos in moments. Volkner managed to give his order first.

“Discharge.”

“Dark Pulse.”

Both Pokémon exploded outwards. Every bit of Ampharos’s power was sent out into the air, boosted even further by the benefits of the Electric Terrain below. Darkrai, however, tried its best to counter it with its own burst of Dark Type energy, but with all the odds stacked in Ampharos’s favor, Darkrai's attack lost out.

Seeing that, my own heart started to beat faster.

“It’s possible,” I whispered excitedly.

Despite that, Darkrai was still up.

“Thunderbolt!” Volkner yelled.

Thunderbolt was a much faster move than Thunder, as it used less power at once. I would have expected Ampharos to need time to recharge after Discharge, but it seemed I was underestimating the level of training it had. Despite having been told to use Thunderbolt, Ampharos never got its attack off as Darkrai slipped in and landed a Sucker Punch.

That Sucker Punch wasn’t an attack on its own. Instead, like I had practiced with Mawile, Darkrai slipped in before the attack even started, and then its clawed hand wrapped around Ampharos’s neck.

The Electric Type’s eyes went wide. Darkrai dragged it closer and stared at it with its singular exposed, red eye. In its other hand, a Shadow Ball formed as the Pokémon slammed the attack into Ampharos’s chest.

Darkrai was forced to let go when a quick Thunder Shock zapped its hand. Ampharos was panting, clutching its neck from the combo it just sustained.

Volkner grit his teeth in frustration.

“Cotton Guard,” he said.

Ampharos’s body puffed up into a mass of white fluff not unlike Altaria’s own. Each bit of hair sparked like the rest of its body. It seemed he was planning something. Too bad he didn’t get the chance.

At this point, the Electric Terrain wore off. The battlefield lost the charge sent into it by Pincurchin before it. Darkrai locked eyes with Ampharos as the Mega Pokémon stiffened. Something dark connected their shadows, and Ampharos crumpled to the floor.

Slowly, Darkrai drifted forward. It began to lift up its arms to prepare to use Dream Eater, but the pained-looking Ampharos was returned.

“I’m withdrawing Ampharos from the match,” Volkner announced.

Tobias closed his eyes confidently. The referee waved a flag to signify that loss.

“Darkrai has to be beaten before any terrain stopping sleep wears off,” I whispered. “Volkner didn’t use Charge or any set up moves there. Thunder might have worked if it had more backing it. Gardevoir doesn’t have quite the power to match what Ampharos displayed here, but if he uses buffing moves...”

I continued to quietly go over my plans as Volkner’s hand hovered over his waist. Darkrai looked injured, but Volkner still had four Pokémon left. Despite that, the Gym Leader seemed hesitant to send anyone else out.

“Jolteon,” he eventually decided.

The electric eeveelution hit the field with a motivated growl. Its spiked fur stood on its ends as it prepared itself to battle a Legendary Pokémon.

The referee waved a flag. Darkrai rushed forward, Jolteon stiffened, and it fell asleep.

The Pokémon’s eyes clenched closed as it moaned in pain. Darkrai’s ability, Bad Dreams, caused it to take damage while being unconscious. As the Legendary Pokémon lingered over the unconscious Jolteon, sickly purple energy left Jolteon’s body to enter Darkrai’s.

Its wounds began to heal.

“Misty Terrain needs to be used faster if we’re to succeed,” I noted.

Ninetales nodded next to me.

Jolteon quickly fainted to Darkrai’s specialty as the Legendary Pokémon seemed to be looking much healthier. Volkner returned his third Pokémon with a sigh, then sent out his fourth without even thinking.

“Explosion,” he ordered.

The Electrode burst.

The sudden orders meant Darkrai didn’t have time to dodge. I stood up from my seat to walk forward, my hands gripping the rails.

When the smoke cleared, my eyes didn’t leave the battlefield.

Darkrai was still conscious.

I wanted to curse at that moment. My strategy hinged on taking out Darkrai in a similar method, and now I was doubting myself. Darkrai seemed extremely injured, however, but its healing from Jolteon meant it was just barely still up. The darkness that flowed off its body was flickering, and the Legendary was clutching one arm in pain.

Volkner returned his fourth Pokémon. And then—

And then.

Tobias returned his Darkrai.

It wasn’t fainted, which was a bad sign for me, but it was being forced to switch out. I had no confirmation as to if Tobias had his Latios, and I had no clue what other Pokémon Tobias had on his team. What Pokémon he sent out here meant I would need to adjust my strategy accordingly. The information I could gain would be invaluable.

Tobias didn’t send out his Latios.

Instead, he sent out a Salamence.

If this was just a normal Salamence, I wouldn’t have blinked an eye. I had seen one in action when my team fought Hunter J, and, as a Dragon Type, my team would have the advantage.

The issue was the plated necklace around its neck. It was a plated necklace not unlike Altaria’s own.

Volkner sent out his fifth Pokémon, a Luxray, as Tobias held up his hand. Rather than having a dedicated ring, earring, or bracelet, he simply held the Key Stone itself in his hand. The stone on Salamence’s neck glowed as its quadrupedal body became sleeker, its wings became a solid crescent, and its head took on characteristics reminiscent of Rayquaza itself.

Darkrai. Latios. Mega Salamence.

Those were three Pokémon my team would need to beat.

I sat back down to watch the fight, strategies being formed and adjusted in my head.

To start the battle, both Luxray and the Mega Salamence growled at each other. Each Pokémon tried to cow the other with intimidation, but both were too focused on their own attempt to suffer the effects.

Salamence was the first to move, zooming forward without orders. Its body seemed to slice through the air as if it weren’t there, and despite looking like a glider, it was capable of hovering in one place.

It zipped towards Luxray to slice its wing into the Electric Type once, then twice. The Dual Wingbeats practically tore into the poor Pokémon, using the entire force of the dragon behind it.

Luxray dug its claws into the floor to try to resist the attack then burst with Discharge. The wide-ranged move managed to hit Salamence and knock it to the side, but the Mega Pokémon’s movement was hardly affected.

“Ice Fang!” Volkner called out.

Salamence swept back towards its foe with its front legs forward to unleash a Dragon Claw, but Luxray was waiting. With surprising speed, it leapt up to bite down on one of Salamence’s wings, trying its best to take down the Mega Pokémon to the floor with a super effective attack.

No one expected Salamence to keep flying and bring Luxray into the air with it.

The room was an enclosed space, so Salamence’s mobility was limited. It was still able to gain a decent height as Luxray was held above the ground. The Electric Type desperately tried to maintain its grip, but all that did was give Salamence an opening to tear into it with that previously prepared Dragon Claw.

The attack hit the Luxray’s exposed stomach, dealing critical damage, and Luxray began to fall. It was still conscious as it tried to twist around the air to land on its feet while also bursting with a second Discharge, but a Dragon Breath overtook it and burned it with dark flames.

That powerful move combined with the fall damage took out Luxray.

With the defeat of that Pokémon, Salamence suddenly roared its name into the air. A few people in the audience covered their ears, and Ninetales’s ears went back. With a victory under its belt, Salamence was pumped and ready to go. Clearly, it had been trained to have its hidden ability, Moxie, which made it stronger for every enemy it took out.

Volkner’s final Pokémon, a Raichu, didn’t manage to withstand Salamence for long. To its credit, the strategy of trying to paralyze it did seem to affect its flight, but Salamence simply chose to slam into Raichu and deal with it in melee instead of flying around.

As Volkner, defeated, returned his last Pokémon, I leaned closer to Ninetales.

“I think...” I started. “You might have to take that on.”

Ninetales stiffened and stared at the Mega Salamence. Light flashed and shattered around it as its Mega Form was canceled, and Tobias returned it to its Pokéball. Slowly, Ninetales nodded. Out of all of my Pokémon, her chances to faint a Mega Salamence was the highest. I had no clue if Sheer Cold would work against it, but with a four times Type Advantage, I hoped she’d be able to get it weak enough to work.

I continued to sit in the audience to watch as Tobias and Volkner shook hands. Volkner looked less stressed now that the battle was over, but a bit of the tension remained. A copy of the badge I had just earned was handed over, and Tobias gratefully pocketed it.

I stared at him while Tobias walked away from the arena. As he put his hand on the door handle, he paused.

His head slowly turned until he locked eyes with me. I felt my body still for just a moment.

Then, Tobias left the room.

We had a lot to practice.

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Author Note:

Pokémon (and people) mentioned in this chapter (contains spoilers):
Ampharos
Darkrai
Electivire
Electrode
Jolteon
Latios
Luxray
Pincurchin
Raichu
Salamence

Volkner

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