Mitchel and Luciana stared at me like an alien, as they had for the last ten minutes.
"I already told you both, I didn't plan to make her that angry. In fact, I wasn't expecting Tetsu to do so well since it was her first battle."
"Her first battle?" Luciana gave me a concerned look. "Did you hatch her from an egg?"
"Yes, about three months ago. I only started training her like two or three weeks ago," I answered. My time here was already blurring and felt much longer than just three months. Mitchel suddenly started coughing, tapping his chest with his hand to help clear it.
"Oh, that makes sense," she replied. Then her eyes grew wide. "You've only been training her for three weeks?!"
"Marco, how the hell have you already trained her to the point of going toe-to-toe with an Elite Four's kid's ace?" Mitchel asked. "That's insane!"
My mind blanked. "Cathy is an Elite Four's kid?"
"Yeah, she's Siebold's kid," Mitchel answered, staring at me the same way he did the first day he tutored me.
"Why does that make sense?" I put my face in my hands. "And pissed her off to the point she tried to attack a Trainer. Will this affect my battle with Siebold?"
"Luckily, he's not an Elite Four member anymore. He retired a few years ago," Luciana said between sips of her coffee. She stirred in some extra sugar before continuing. "You'll be fine in an Elite Four challenge. However, I'm sure you're already banned from Restaurant Le Yeah."
"I can do without. It's overpriced anyway," I sighed. 'Why am I getting on the bad side of important people's kids?'
*BZRRRT*
*BZRRRT*
*BZRRRT*
"Well, that's my battle," Luciana said. "Yours is happening at the same time, right?"
I nodded. "Good luck. Neither of you are allowed to lose until we battle." They both smiled. Luciana nodded and left, leaving me with Mitchel. "You should watch her match."
"Why?" Mitchel asked.
"You're definitely losing to me, so there's no point in studying my battle," I smirked.
Mitchel frowned. "I'll watch her battle, but I'm definitely catching the moment you lose in person. I'll have my phone ready to record!"
With that announcement, he ran to catch up to Luciana. I looked at my phone, reading the details of my battle again.
Quarter Finals: Battle #4
Marco Pérez vs. Lucas Manon
Location: Centrico Plaza @ 8:30am
Format: Singles – Full Teams
Lucas had three Pokémon as well. They were great Pokémon for battling, but his battle strategy was very straightforward. His Pokémon were fast physical attackers, which meant Tetsu was going to experience being a proper tank.
Knowing I was sending her out to practice getting beat up made me feel bad, but I knew she wanted to help and battle. Her eyes sparkled differently when I told her about the battles Nova and Nautilus experienced. She thoroughly enjoyed the battle against Lombre and radiated pride when I celebrated the win with her. Holding out on her any longer probably wouldn't do her any good.
After paying our bill, I left for Vert Plaza. It was sunny and hot, but the occasional breeze made the walk much more comfortable. I recognized a few faces from the lightning round in the crowd. Most of them ignored me, but a few waved or wished me luck.
There were several Sycamore Labs personnel setting up tables and stands not too far from the battlefield. Once Lucas and I finished, the rest of the tournament was happening here.
Once at the field, I saw Lucas and the same lab assistant as my previous match waiting for me. A small crowd gathered, waiting for the battle to start. Lucas and I both stepped up to Trainer boxes drawn in chalk. I released Tetsu. On the opposite side of the field, a Rockruff appeared.
I ignored everything else as the lab assistant explained the rules. I focused on Lucas, his grim expression fueling me. Was it terrible that my confidence was being fed by a fourteen-year-old worrying about my team being too strong? Probably. Did it matter? No. Being a Trainer meant your strength determined how far you could go. Characteristics like age didn't matter when you could handle and train a Pokémon easily capable of destroying buildings.
I saw movement in the crowd. A few individuals pushed others out of the way so they could watch, phones scanning the field and crowd. I saw people in the crowd trying to force themselves back to the front but were pulled back. A few green berets moved around in the back. Something was off.
"Trainer Marco, this is your last chance! Are you ready to battle?"
My head snapped to the lab assistant, her curly black hair bouncing with each gust of wind. "Yes, sorry. I'm ready."
She mumbled something under her breath. "Begin!"
"Howl!" / "Stealth Rock and Spikes!"
Lucas' eyes widened. "Roar!"
A wave rippled across the field, visibly distorting the air. The moment it hit Tetsu, she forced herself back into her PokéBall. I grabbed Nautilus' ball and released him. At least Tetsu set up her hazards.
As soon as Nautilus appeared, Rockruff made a Scary Face. I smiled. "Hypnosis!" I called out. Nautilus shot forward, faster than I've ever seen him. He appeared behind Rockruff and delivered a point-blank Hypnosis.
Instead of falling asleep, Rockruff bit Nautilus with jaws covered in Dark-type Energy. "Payback!"
The response was immediate. Nautilus smacked Rockruff into the field, where Spikes and Stealth Rocks found themselves in the puppy's right back leg. "Pluck! You already know!" I shouted.
I wasn't worried about the Rockruff. Nautilus could handle the fight without me. I scanned the crowd again. There weren't any green berets, but I did find several people with PokéBalls in their hands. I looked over at Lucas. His eyes kept sweeping the sidelines. When our eyes met, I gave him the slightest of head nods. 'I see it too,' I thought to myself, hoping he got my message.
"Hey, get your hands off me!" someone shouted behind me.
"Rockruff is unable to battle! Trainer Lucas, please send out your next Pokémon!"
A Pawniard came out next. Stealth Rocks and Spikes swarmed the tiny body of blades. I saw more movement near the buildings, closer to the announcement area that was being set up.
"Begin!"
"Iron Defense!" / "Aerial Ace into Pluck!"
I saw a flash of light behind Lucas, and a Scyther appeared, ready to strike him down. Lucas' eyes widened, his mouth moving as he pointed at me. Or behind. "Change targets!"
Nautilus didn't miss a beat. He flew past Lucas toward the Scyther. Pawniard rushed as well, Metal Claw gleaming. Lucas and I both dove to the side as our Pokémon dealt with our attackers. Nautilus crashed into Scyther, delivering a flurry of Plucks and Pecks that quickly knocked it out. Pawniard crashed into a Drapion, Slashing and Metal Clawing it into oblivion. More Pokémon were released as Team Flux grunts stepped out from the crowd.
I saw nearly thirty Pokémon, with only a handful of evolved Pokémon like Kirlia, Fletchinder, Ninjask, and an Altaria. Half of the Pokémon turned to the crowd, stopping the Trainers from releasing their own Pokémon.
The lab assistant released a Monferno and Darmanitan and target the Altaria and two Ninjask. I released Tetsu and Nova. Nova walked over to me, his third Pokémon, a Medicham, already attacking.
"Nova, Incinerate the Ninjask and help the ref! Tetsu, Leech Seed any Pokémon you can except for our friends. Gravity if someone is in trouble. Nautilus, I trust you to kick ass. Come back if you need to heal."
Nova and Nautilus moved, while I grabbed Tetsu and ran around with her. She spat Leech Seed at every Pokémon I pointed out, using Gravity to help as needed. As soon as we sprang into action, the battlefield grew chaotic. The Pokémon watching the crowd turned to fight us, but then the Trainers released their Pokémon, and then it was pandemonium.
I quickly lost track of Nova and Nautilus, but I was fully confident they'd find me if they got hurt. Instead of just standing and waiting, I searched for Team Flux members. Each time I found one, I punched them unconscious and recalled their Pokémon. Sometimes it helped Lucas or a random Trainer when I did so. Sometimes, the grunt's Pokémon was already knocked out and getting trampled.
It looked like things were calming down and going well for us. Nautilus found me first, several of his tentacles bent in sharp angles. As I sprayed a Potion on him and rubbed it into his injuries, Nova showed up. Her nose was leaking blood, and she was panting hard. I picked her up immediately, spraying her with another Potion before pinching her now with a shirt from my bag. "Let's get your nose to stop bleeding," I said as I tipped her head forward.
"Ah, fuck it!" a grunt yelled. A light flashed from where I saw the ref's Darmanitan battling the Altaria. Colorful energy poured out of and swirled around the Dragon, growing until it dwarfed the Zen Mode Darmanitan.
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A/N: Poll Time!
Which Pokémon won't be Dragon the team down too much?
Kommo-o
Goodra
Cyclizar
Dracozolt