Might be the last chapter of the week, enjoy!
| Rio POV |
Second gym of the journey—oh yeah! We totally got this.
I crouch in front of Torchic, grabbing her shoulders like a proud coach before the big game.
"Remember what I told you, Featherbrain. You go in there and curb stomp those gravel eaters, you hear me?!"
"CHII!" she chirps with the fiery resolve of a chicken ready for war.
I'm so proud I could almost cry…
May throws a fist into the air beside us. "Alright! Let's do this, guys!"
I glance at her. "May, you are no longer part of this team. Please stop including yourself and trying to take credit for my hard work."
"Don't be like that, there's no 'I' in team, plus- Hey, where are you going?! Wait for me!"
And I'm already halfway through the hallway to our next badge, I've never failed a quest, don't let this be the first one Torchic!
| Gym Interior |
We step through the doors and are greeted by smooth stone walls, polished tiles, and the scent of crushed gravel and professionalism. Roxanne stands at the far end of the arena—prim, proper, and about to get steamrolled by poultry.
She adjusts her comically large red bow, stepping forward with a welcoming smile. "Welcome to the Rustboro Gym. You must be the challengers. I'm Roxanne, and I—"
Her eyes land on me.
She freezes.
"Oh. My goodness," she gasps, crouching slightly and holding a hand to her cheek. "A shiny Riolu?! How adorable! Your fur's such a healthy sheen, and that little scowl—aaahh! Can I pet you?"
I blink.
"No."
"You can talk?!"
"...No." I glance sideways at Ralts, you know, you don't have to connect everyone we meet to our telepath group chat.
"C'mon! I want to pat you, just once? I'll be gentle!"
"Absolutely not. I'm armed."
May sighs loudly from behind me, already dragging her hand down her face. "Yeah, this is about what I expected…"
Roxanne straightens up, a little flustered but still beaming. "Well, ahem, in any case! Let's begin the match, shall we?"
She gestures toward the battlefield. "A one-on-one match, standard League rules. Choose your Pokémon!"
May steps forward—until I casually stick my paw out and block her.
"Featherbrain," I say, nodding at Torchic, "time to shine."
Torchic flaps her wings and struts to the field like she's about to drop the hottest mixtape of 2025.
May freezes mid-step, betrayed. "Wait—I was going to—! This is my gym badge!"
"Yeah," I say over my shoulder. "And it's my chicken."
"You stole my moment!"
"I trained the fighter."
"You're not even the trainer!"
"Semantics. Ratio. L. Get a life."
Torchic hops into position, eyes narrowed. Roxanne sends out her first Pokémon—Geodude—and the battle begins.
I cross my arms and call out calmly, "Torchic. Remember to mind your surroundings. Give em' hell."
"CHIIIII!"
The flames roar.
May sulks louder in the background.
I grin.
Geodude grumbles, floating forward like a sentient potato with fists. Torchic lowers her stance, little claws scraping the polished floor. Her eyes are locked in. This isn't the same goofball from before—this is a tiny war machine. My tiny war machine.
Roxanne adjusts her bow. "Geodude, Defense Curl!"
The rock ball tenses, flexing like it's trying to impress a boulder.
I click my tongue. "Torchic. Ember. Center mass. Hit it before it finishes flexing."
"CHIIIIIIII!!"
A jet of fire erupts from her beak—far more intense than before. It slams into Geodude's chest mid-curl. The rock recoils, stunned.
"Follow-up!" I shout. "Don't stop 'til I say!"
Torchic doesn't need to be told twice. She's already dashing in, fire trailing off her feathers as she leaps and headbutts the rocky brute square in the face. Not very effective? Tell that to Geodude, who just spun in midair.
Roxanne recovers. "Rock Tomb!"
The arena trembles. Chunks of stone erupt from the floor—slabs of rock falling toward my chicken like angry meteors.
"DODGE!" I bark. "Speed boost pattern Gamma!"
Torchic chirps once, then weaves through the collapsing rockfall like a feathered missile. A few singe her feathers, but she's out the other side before the dust settles.
She skids across the floor, panting, smoke trailing behind her. Then she grins.
Roxanne blinks. "W-what?"
"Roxanne." I nod solemnly. "My chicken has trained in the art of suplex."
"What—"
"NOW!"
Torchic bolts forward. Geodude's still turning to follow her—too late. She ducks under one of his arms, hops, grabs him with her tiny wings, and with a squawk of primal fury…
SLAMS HIM INTO THE ARENA FLOOR.
The impact echoes like a thunderclap. Dust explodes outward.
Silence.
Then:
Thud.
Geodude's out cold.
Roxanne stares, slack-jawed.May lets out a stunned gasp behind me.Ralts claps politely from the corner, like she's watching ballet.
I lift my head high, pride swelling in my chest as a smile creeps across my muzzle."She was trained by the best Fighting-type in the world. What'd you expect?"
Roxanne blinks.
Once.
Twice.
Then flails as she scrambles toward the downed Geodude. "W-Wait! That was—! That was one hit! I didn't even get to issue a command!"
She looks up at Torchic like she just witnessed a Ho-oh themselves descend from the heavens. "That shouldn't be possible! I have degrees in geology and battle theory!"
"And I have a PHD in Kick-Yo-Ass kung fu, deal with it."
Torchic fluffs her feathers and puffs out her chest like she's about to ask for royalties.
"You did good too Featherbrain."
May, standing behind me, slowly lowers her Pokédex without saying a word.
"…Did—did she just slam dunk a Geodude?"
"Yup."
"I—I didn't even teach her that move."
"She learned it in the streets."
May furrows her brow, clearly trying to process. "But… she never listens to me when I tell her to dodge. Or aim. Or stop eating pebbles off the floor."
I pat her gently on the arm. "She listens when it matters."
May looks down at her Poké Ball, then at me, then at Torchic—now standing triumphantly on Geodude's flattened face.
"…Am I even the trainer anymore?"
I just smile.
"Welcome to the club."
Roxanne carefully recalls her poor Geodude, then exhales, adjusting her bow with trembling hands. "Alright. Fine. Fine. You want a fight?"
She reaches for her next Poké Ball with a flash of resolve. "Let's see how your chicken handles this—Nosepass, battle stations!"
The Poké Ball pops open in a gleam of red light, revealing a giant easter island statue, with limbs and an attitude. It lands with a thud, glaring at Torchic like she owes it money. Our feathered protagonist has met a tough match-up! Will she come out on top? Or will she fall where she stands in an electrocuted heap? Find out next time in Dragon Ball Z!
"Nose pass! Use Charge!"
Or not...
Nosepass crackles with electricity, its rocky bulk glowing faintly as it begins to charge power.
May yelps. "Wait—Charge? Isn't that going to make its next attack even stronger?!"
"Yup," I say, deadpan. "We should be terrified."
May grips the rail. "Then why are you smiling?!"
"Because…" I point dramatically. "She doesn't care."
Torchic's already in motion, eyes blazing like miniature suns. She rears back, inhaling so hard you'd think she was about to summon a solar flare.
"FLAMETHROWER!!"
A column of fire bursts from her beak with the rage of a thousand volcanoes. The heat hits like a truck. Roxanne's jaw drops as the flames engulf Nosepass completely, the light casting huge shadows across the gym walls.
For a moment, all we can see is a swirling inferno.
Then…
CRACK.
A section of the gym wall behind Nosepass splits from the sheer heatwave. The flames die down—leaving behind a smouldering Nosepass, now sporting what looks like second-degree rock burns.
It groans.
Then tips forward.
BOOM.
The arena shakes.
Silence again.
Roxanne doesn't say anything. Just stares. Her expression blank.
Then she carefully pulls out her whistle and gives a shaky little tweet.
"…Nosepass is unable to battle. The challenger wins."
Torchic screeches triumphantly, hopping in a tiny, furious circle like she just won the featherweight championship of the world.
May stares at the battlefield in stunned silence. Then looks at Torchic. Then at me.
"…What the hell did you do to her?"
"Fed her some chili peppers before the fight."
"…Really?"
I squint. Are you seriously that gullible?
Word count: 1387
Poor Roxxane, imagine studying pokemon battles for years just for pyro the flaming chick to melt through your team.
MC: I trained her well!
She would have gone way farther without you...