Upon A New Horizon Part IX
The train ride to Santalune City was smooth sailing as our heroes took the time to relax and enjoy the scenery while Katie and Meadow were lost in their thoughts, thinking of strategies and deciding which Pokémon should be best suited to go up against each of the first Gym Leader’s first Pokémon.
Alicia on the other hand took her time to share a good look at her badge together with her Pokémon as the train entered a tunnel leading from Johto to Hoenn.
“I can't believe we won our first Gym battle.” Alicia cheerfully spoke. “Thanks to you guys, we did it.”
She pets her Dewott, Aki and Anubis, her newly evolved Lucario wearing the dark blue bracelet around his arm with an empty slot where the Mega Stone will be placed once she and the others complete the subject their PE teacher Mr. Smith trains.
“Dewott!” Aki beamed, rubbing the back of his head.
“Lucario!” Anubis first bumped with Alicia, as per say, “I’m ready for everything.”
“What about you guys?” Rachel asked from the cabin across from where Katie and Alicia were sitting in. “Any ideas what we could do to help out Meadow?”
Meadow was sitting next to Arturo, holding onto Eevee like her life depended on the Normal-Type alone, Sobble meekly perched on her shoulder and on the verge of making himself invisible.
“I would say we could train by doing a battle but I don't think there's a battlefield on this train nor would it be allowed to battle inside it.” Alicia responded nervously.
“Besides, none of us have any Bug-Type Pokémon.” Arturo informed the others. “Viola specializes in Bug-Type, remember?”
“We all do.” Katie acknowledged. “And… from what I’ve heard, Viola has a Surskit on her team, which is also partly a Water-Type.”
“Which means Vulpix, being purely a Fire-Type, is weak against it.” Rachel replied.
“Th-that’s what I-I’m afraid of.” Meadow said meekly. “A-and all I have is Sobble, who’s also a Water-Type and I’m unsure if I can send Eevee out to battle without breaking down in a panic attack…”
“Sobble…” Sobble uttered nervously.
“Vee…” Eevee said in sympathy.
Alicia thought, her Lucario synchronised with her gesture as she spoke, “Isn't there any Electric Pokémon near the city or maybe Flying-Types?”
“I think so…” Katie considered. “I believe there’s a handful of good Flying-Types like a Fletchling near the city.”
“That’s a perfect opportunity for you to train with Ali’s Lucario, Katie.” Arturo responded.
“Yeah! Since Korrina’s practically has the same move set, you can handle what it can dish out!” Rachel exclaimed.
“Are you ready, Anubis?” Alicia asked her Lucario.
“Lucario!” Anubis nodded, grabbing her hand in response before they high fived.
“I’m sure we can squeeze in some training once we find a good Flying-Type Meadow can catch and train for her Gym Challenge.” Katie said.
As the train left the tunnel through the loudspeaker the following information was announced.
“Dear passengers, we just entered the Kalos Region.”
The group gathered up their things and recalled their Pokémon (except for Eevee due to being Meadow's service Pokémon after all) into their PokéBalls before preparing to get off.
“Huh?” Alicia tried to recall Anubis into his Friend Ball. “Anubis do you want to stay outside of your PokéBall?”
“Lucario!” Anubis agreed with her statement.
“Looks like he wants to join your side.” Arturo responded to her question.
“Or it seems to me he’s ready for the training.” Rachel added in.
“Looks like it.” Katie noted. “We’ll let the rest of our Pokémon out for some fresh air and some emotional support once we find a good spot to train.”
Alicia agreed with her best friend. Anubis wouldn't stay inside his PokéBall for too long anyway.
Like the rest of the passengers the group walked out of the cabin or stood up from their seats, gathering their stuff before going to the entrance and exit area of the train.
“The arrival of Santalune City Main Station occurs in five minutes.”
The loudspeaker announced as the first passengers waited in front of the door.
“Man, it's full!” Rachel grumbled. “Why are they so eager to leave this train? It's only the first city with the first gym in this region”
Thankfully, the amount of passengers on board declined once the doors opened to the platform of the small train station Santalune City has.
Relieved, the gang breathed in exhaustion but in excitement as well. Especially Meadow.
No pushing from behind their backs or their sides, no stressful calls or blames just peace and quiet.
Well kinda, peace and quiet if it wasn't for a group of fan girls squealing in front of a promotional poster for the Masters Champion Tournament Finals.
The promotional posters had a variety of famous trainers like Lance, Cynthia, Diantha and, the cause of the squealing from the girls, Leon from the Galar Region on it.
“That would be the answer to your question, Rachel.” Alicia stated.
“Lucario!” Anubis nodded in agreement.
“I suppose news of the finals being held in the Kalos Region due to the blackout in the Wyndon Stadium in Galar certainly spread like wildfire.” Arturo commented.
“I… didn’t think there would be so many Leon fans in Kalos as much as some back home or even in the Academy all in one sitting.” Katie said as she sweatdropped.
“Whaddya expect, the guy’s pretty much a heartthrob this time round.” Rachel shrugged with her hands behind her back. She then smirked slyly as she teasingly gave Katie a sidelong glance. “Really can’t say I blame ‘em. Although, if I have to guess, I think Leon’s ideal girlfriend would be a pretty strong Pokémon Trainer.”
A faint red blush tainted Katie’s face at Rachel’s teasing claim.
Meadow, not understanding Rachel was jokingly teasing at Katie’s expense, meekly said, “I-I’m sure Leon’s potential g-girlfriend would also be a good balance of being a nice person, who’s good with kids and loves and cares about Pokémon as much as he does.”
Katie’s face was entirely a luminescent red as she pulled her hat over her eyes, her fluster level overloaded.
“Lucario!” Anubis barked as he spotted something in the distance.
“What is it Anubis?” Alicia asked, trying her best to see what her Lucario was looking at.
“H-huh?” Katie uttered, recovering from her flustered state, lifting her hat up a bit to see what her friend’s Lucario had spotted.
“Is that a battlefield?” Alicia asked before she pointed to what seems to be a large area near the train station.
“Wow, that's a lot of battlefields for a small town like Santalune City.” Rachel whistled, astonished at the size of it. “Looks like the city wants to hype up the citizens before the big final happens.”
“I wonder if we could use it to train?” Alicia wondered before a man wearing a white suit with the Kalos League Logo printed on it answered her question.
“Of course. We have set up this training area for students from all of the Pokémon Academies all over the regions to hone in their training skills for their Gym Challenges as well.” He explained.
“Nice!” Rachel smirks. “This is the perfect time to train right, Scorbunny?”
“Scor!” Her Scorbunny agreed.
“That means we can get to work on training for my Gym Challenge with Korrina.” Katie smiled over to Alicia.
“Pop! Pop!” Nalu barked in excitement.
“I hope you're ready.” Alicia smiled back.
“Lucario!” Anubis agreed.
Rachel turns to Meadow, asking, “Wanna do some training to get your Vulpix into shape for your battle with Viola?”
Uhh… I-I’d like to b-but… umm…” Meadow stammered.
“We were going to see if we can find a Flying-Type Pokémon for Meadow to catch.” Arturo finished for her. “We’ll be back when we can while Katie and Alicia train.”
“Fennekin.” His Fennekin added.
Both Meadow and Arturo walked away into the outskirts of town to go look for a Flying-Type Pokémon.
“Aw dang it, totally forgot.” Rachel pouted. “Guess we’re gonna have to wait for a bit, bud.”
“Scorbunny…” Scorbunny sighed.
“Well, at least you could be our referee for the meantime.” Alicia suggested.
“Yeah, that would mean a lot.” Katie added.
“Sure thing guys!” Rachel responded with a thumbs up.
The three students walked up to an empty battlefield nearby to start with Katie's Gym training.
“I will not hold back.” Alicia informed Katie before Anubis walked up to the battlefield. “As far as my father told me, Korrina is known for being hard as a rock when it comes to battling Gym Challengers like us.”
“Cario!” Anubis agreed with her, ready to battle.
“I’ll keep that in mind.” Katie noted as she sent out Glimmer.
The unicorn-like Pokémon snorted as she shook herself, ready for battle.
“You're ready, Anubis?” Alicia asked.
“Lucario!” Anubis responded with a positive bark.
“Okay, ready? Battle begin!” Rachel shouted.
“Glimmer! Use Tackle!” Katie ordered.
Neighing, Glimmer charged forward to tackle Anubis.
But Anubis jumped over the Galarian Ponyta before the tackle attack could hurt the Fighting and Steel-Type.
“Cario!” Without any spoken orders given by its trainer, the Lucario fired an Aura Sphere against Glimmer.
Glimmer whinnied as the attack hit on impact.
Before her Galarian Ponyta could respond to Katie's worried cries, Anubis had already summoned a bone staff from his paws, ready to strike at any second.
“Dodge and use Fairy Wind!” Katie called out.
Glimmer regained her bearings on command and dodged the swing of the aura bone staff, her fluffy mane and tail aglow with multiple colors of pink and yellow as she summoned a glittering wind of pink fairy dust.
Anubis struggles a little bit before flying off, losing the bone staff as he landed on the ground in front of Alicia.
“That's a good counter.” Alicia responded. “But remember a Fairy-Type move like Fairy Wind isn't effective against a Steel-Type Pokémon like Anubis.”
Katie mentally slapped herself. In her desperation, she nearly forgot that Fairy-Types are severely weak against Steel-Types and Fairy Wind has zero effect on Lucario.
Anubis shakes the particles from the Fairywind of his head before he prepares to use a Steel-Type Attack known as Flash Canon.
“Rrrraaaahhh!” Anubis roared.
“Counter with Confusion!” Katie shouted.
Glimmer’s tiny horn glowed, but rather using the psychic energy to grab the Lucario just like with Meadow’s Vulpix back at the academy, a beam of violet light shot out from her horn, clashing into the Flash Cannon, overpowering it and blasted into Anubis.
“That… was no Confusion attack!” Rachel exclaimed.
“I think it's Psybeam.” Alicia stated.
“Lucario!” Anubis growled, slightly weakened by the attack but still able to fight.
“Okay, let’s take this new move for a test run!” Katie declared.
“Same here Anubis, let's try out how strong Flash Cannon is!” Alicia agreed with her best friend.
“Use Psybeam again!” Katie commanded.
Snorting, Glimmer lowered her head and fired another blast of her new attack from her horn.
Anubis prepared to release a glowing light ball between his paws before firing it at his opponent.
Both moves hit head on as they engaged in a Beam-O-War, neither backing down and trying to overpower one another.
“Scorbunny!” Rachel's Scorbunny jumped in excitement as another dust cloud blocked the view of the battlefield.
Katie grunted as she held her hat down with her hand to keep the winds of the explosion from throwing it off while shielding herself from the dust. Nalu was clinging onto her leg from behind as the Sea Lion Pokémon kept herself sheltered behind her trainer.
Alicia uses her arms to shield her face from the dust cloud, while Trix, her Zorua, hides behind her legs.
“Oh, jeez that looks intense!” Rachel yelled, holding her own baseball cap from being blasted off from the wind.
“Scor!” Scorbunny strained while clinging onto his trainer’s leg like a lifeline.
The wind eventually died down as the dust cleared away. Both Pokémon were standing. Slightly bruised but not too much.
Anubis was slightly weakened, but not close to faint at any second.
Glimmer looked exhausted from pushing the latest Flash Cannon back with Psybeam.
“Both look exhausted but ready to battle.” Alicia responded before she noticed something was wrong with Glimmer and Anubis.
Both Pokémon staggered back and forth.
“Could this mean?” Rachel questioned herself.
Both Pokémon collapsed in exhaustion as Anubis fell onto his knees while Glimmer fell down onto the knees of her front legs.
“Glimmer!” Katie gasped, running over to her Galarian Ponyta.
“Anubis!” Alicia rushed to her Lucario’s side, checking for any wounds he could have gotten from the battle.
Much to the relief of both girls, neither of them were severely hurt. Tired out but unhurt.
“Is it a tie? Or should I say Anubis or either Glimmer had won?” Rachel questioned herself before she could even decide who was the winner.
“I-I think it’s a draw?” Katie guessed.
“I mean, neither Glimmer nor Anubis fully collapsed and are unable to get back up like Pokémon usually do if they faint, so I think it's a tie.” Alicia analysed the end of the battle before coming up with a fair and square draw.
“Okay then, a draw it is then.” Rachel declared.
“You did great, Anubis.” Alicia cheered her Lucario. “And you learned a new attack that's awesome!”.
“Lu! Lucario!” Anubis blushed.
“You did well, too, Glimmer.” Katie said softly to her Galarian Ponyta. “You even used a new attack that can be of some extra help.”
Glimmer nickered softly as Katie ran her hand through her mane.
As Anubis stood up from the ground his ears picked up something coming from the woods.
“Anubis what's wrong?” Alicia asked.
Lucario stared into the woods, scanning the environment before calming down like it was nothing.
“Maybe he must have sensed something?” Katie suggested.
“Or someone.” Rachel responded, pointing to Arturo and Meadow coming from the woods with a new friend on their hands or shoulder.
“Ducklett!” The small blue duckling Pokémon quacked.
“Oh, a Ducklett!” Alicia smiled upon seeing the Flying and Water-Type Pokémon, sitting on Meadows shoulder.
“That’s a Pokémon all the way from Unova, right?” Katie.
“It sure is.” Rachel answered her question “We have a few of these near my hometown.”
Katie takes out her Rotom Phone to analyze Meadow’s new Pokémon on the PokéDex app.
“Ducklett, the Water Bird Pokémon, a Water and Flying Type. It’s not very good at flying yet. It watches the dances of its Swanna parents to learn how to move its wings.”
“It looks so cute.” Alicia admitted. “What moves does it have?”
“From the battle to catch it, we have witnessed it knows Water Gun, Wing Attack, Water Pulse and Aerial Ace.” Arturo answered.
“That’s great!” Katie beamed. “As long as it knows two Flying-Type attacks, taking down Viola’s Surskit should be an easy breeze. Pun not intended of course.”
Suddenly, a large explosion interrupted the gang’s conversation.
“What was that?” Alicia wondered, looking for the source of the explosion.
“I-I don’t know!” Katie stammered in shock.
“Malamar!” A Pokémon named Malamar grunted in pain, coming from the source of the explosion.
“Oh no! Malamar!” Its trainer cried out in concern.
“Wait a minute, that voice…” Rachel recognized the voice from somewhere. “Yeah, it’s him!”
“James!” Rachel responded.
“As in James from Team… er, I mean Rocket News?!” Katie gasped.
Arturo looked at the battlefield where the battle was taking part of to notice another figure. “Wait, the red-haired man over there is that…”
The cloud dusts settled to reveal the two Trainers battling each other were none other but James and the Indigo League Champ Lance.
“I-Isn’t that L-Lance from the Kanto Region?” Meadow asked in shock.
Alicia nodded “Yeah, he is the Champ.” She responded as she held Trix in her arms to watch the battle like the rest of the gang and the passengers.
“Since when did James’s Inkay evolve into a Malamar?” Katie inquired in confusion. “
“And since when is it able to Mega Evolve?” Arturo added once he spotted the bracelet the Pokémon wore with a Mega Stone inside of it.
Meadow meekly got out her Rontom Phone to analyze the Malamar.
“Malamar, the Overturning Pokémon, a Dark and Psychic type, and the evolved form of Inkay. Its hypnotic powers are dangerously strong. Anyone who falls under Malamar’s control loses their memories surrounding the event.”
“Yeesh, creepy.” Rachel shuddered.
“You okay, Malamar?” James asked worriedly.
Malamar grimaced before glancing over at his trainer with a gentle (as gentle as a Malamar can express) look of reassurance.
“Malamar!” The Dark and Psychic-Type nodded.
“Your Malamar had gotten stronger than the last time we battled.” Lance commented.
“Last time?!” Rachel exclaimed in disbelief.
“They battled before?” Alicia gasped, baffled.
James smirked in reply to Lance as he stated, “Well, last time we didn’t have this!”
With no second to waste, he revealed his own Key Stone embraced on the rose pin on the label of his suit.
“Looks like he traded in the Mega Ring for something a bit more surprising.” Katie said. “And to think that pin was just a reference to the times he holds a rose during the recital of the old Team Rocket motto.”
“So a Mega Evolution Battle it is!” Lance smirked revealing his own Mega Ring.
“Okay, Malamar, let’s show ‘em what you can really do!” James declared as he touched the Key Stone in his rose pin, activating Malamar’s Mega Evolution. “Let’s go! Mega Evolve!”
“Let’s show them your wings, Dragonite!” Lance touched the Key Stone on his Mega Ring to activate the Mega Evolution too. “Mega Evolve!”
Both Malamar and Dragonite glowed in a beautiful glowing red light, changing their Form as they perform their Mega Evolution.
“Malamar!” Shouted Malamar as he became Mega Malamar.
“ROOOAAARRR!” Lance’s Dragonite roared once its Mega Evolution was complete.
“Aww, Mega Dragonite looks so adorable!” Rachel squealed.
“Eevee!” Her Eevee agreed.
“And its wings are so beautiful!” Katie added in.
“Popplio.” Nalu breathed, awestruck.
“Really can’t say the same about Mega Malamar.” Rachel shuddered. “Creepy.”
Alicia gulped in response as she agreed, “Yeah… but the colors…” Her eyes glowed just like Mega Malamar’s body.
“Ali? Alicia!” Katie cried in alarm.
“I think Mega Malamar’s hypnotizing her without realizing it!” Arturo gasped.
“Dewott!” Aki escaped from his PokéBall, shaking its Trainer’s leg to wake her up from the accidental hypnosis.
It didn’t work though. The glow grew brighter than before.
“Nalu! Quick! Snap her out of it with Water Gun!” Katie yelled frantically.
“Sob-Sobble! H-help out by using your W-Water Gun too!” Meadow cried.
“Pop!” Nalu splashed Alicia’s face with the use of Water Gun.
“Sobble!” Sobble used his own Water Gun to strength the attempt to snap Alicia out of it.
The hypnosis weakened once the two Water Gun attacks hit her in the face, waking her up.
“Huh? W-What just happened?” She asked nervously once she noticed the worried expressions of her friends and Pokémon’s faces.
“You almost turned into a zombie, that’s what happened!” Rachel exclaimed.
“What? You’re kidding, right?” She asked.
Katie shook her head nervously as she explained, “No. You were completely out of it. You were somehow hypnotized by Mega Malamar despite not even facing your direction.”
“Maybe it’s the ability?” Arturo suggested. “Some Pokémon learn new abilities once they Mega Evolve.”
“R-really?” Meadow asked. “Is that why M-Mega Malamar had unintentionally hypnotized Alicia?”
“That could be the case.” Arturo nodded.
“Oh jeez, I didn’t want to worry you guys.” Alicia sweatdropped in reply.
“It’s not your fault, Ali.” Katie said in reassurance. “None of us could have seen that coming. And we all now know some drawbacks of adding a Malamar into our team and having it Mega Evolve.”
As the group were discussing the ability Mega Malamar has, James’s Malamar uses Ice Beam against Lance Mega Dragonite.
“It knows Ice Beam?!” Katie exclaimed in disbelief.
“I didn’t know it could learn that move either.” Alicia responded.
“Use Hyper Beam!” Lance shouted.
Dragonite opens its mouth to form a large, yellow ball before it turns into a beam of light hitting the Mega Malamar fair and square.
“Malamar….” The Dark and Psychic-Type fainted once the dust settled, ending the battle between the News Reporter and former Team Rocket Grunt James and the Indigo League Champ Lance.
“Malamar is unable to battle! The victory goes to Dragonite and its trainer, Lance, the Champion of the Indigo League!” The referee announced.
The crowd of people surrounding the battlefield clapped and cheered for the victory of Lance.
“Lance is so amazing!” A woman fawned.
“Nothing less you would expect from a champion.” A man commented.
At the sidelines of the battlefield, Meowth, Jessie and her Wobbuffet had been watching James’s battle with Lance.
“Looks like James and Malamar lost again.” Jessie sighed.
Neither Meowth nor Wobbuffet answered as they were both in a hypnotic daze from the accidental hypnosis from the battle earlier. Groaning in annoyance, Jessie got out a frying pan and whacked both Pokémon over the head with it.
“Ow! What was dat for?!” Meowth snapped, rubbing his head as a bump formed in it.
“Wobbu…!” Wobbuffet moaned.
James returns his Malamar, accepting a defeat once again. Yet the smile on his face indicates the enjoyment he had during the battle and how much stronger he got from the last time he battled Lance.
“That was an incredible battle as usual Lance.” James shook hands with the Kanto Champ.
“As you did too.” Lance smiled. “You most certainly came such a long way since you have taken up an honest work as Rocket News.”
James blushed in response to the Champ’s statement before he returned to Jessie, Meowth and Wobbuffet.
The latter two received not only a beating from Jessie but also a large bump on their heads.
“You didn’t have to hit us THAT hard, y’know!” Meowth complained. “It ain’t our fault that Malamar is still yet to keep his hypnotic ability under control!”
“Wobbuffet!” Wobbuffet added in while saluting.
“You do know there's no other way to wake you two up!” Jessie angrily yelled.
“Malamar….” James’s Malamar shyly responded.
Meanwhile, Lance noticed a familiar face in the crowd.
“Is that James Powell’s daughter?” He spoke, wondering if his eyes were playing tricks on him or if the hypnosis of Mega Malamar were affecting him too.
He then realized that he was seeing well and clearly when he saw Alicia, busy talking with her friends.
“My eyes aren't playing tricks on me Dragonite, that's our little girl over there!” He pointed to Alicia.
Lance's Dragonite couldn't hold back his excitement to see Alicia.
“Rooohhh!” He gurgled before flying towards a surprised and scared looking Alicia.
“Woah!” Alicia screamed while she and Trix were dragged off by Lance's Dragonite.
“Wha-! He-hey!” Rachel protested as she and her friends hurried after the excited Dragonite as he carried Alicia off. “Hold up!”
“W-Where’s she g-going?” Meadow nervously wonders.
As if in answer, the happily excited Dragonite set Alicia back down as the other students reached them.
“Hey, buddy Dragonite, I missed you too.” Alicia blushes in response to Dragonite’s hug.
“Rooohhh!” Dragonite crooned.
Arturo wondered though who that Dragonite belongs to.
“That would be mine.” A male voice responded from behind the group.
Rachel turned around first, gasping in shock “No way!”
“Ch-Ch-Chamapion Lance!” Meadow stuttered.
“The one and only.” He smirked.
“I-it’s an honor to actually meet you.” Katie said shyly. “I have seen so many of your battles on live television. I really enjoyed your battle with Leon in the previous championship. Your Dragonite was incredible and you nearly came so close to actually beating him.”
Lance smiled happily for all the praises he received from Katie. “Oh, that's nice to hear you like my battles, especially the one with Leon.” He responded.
He paused as he looked at Katie carefully when he noticed her Popplio in her arms.
“You must be Katie Gemwing from Silverwood in the Galar Region, am I right?” He asked.
Katie blushed. “Y-y-yes, of course. But… how did you-?”
“Oh, Alicia told me all about you and the others.” Lance laughed, unknowing that Alicia's cheeks blushed even more than before.
“You… both know each other?” Arturo inquired curiously.
“Yeah, Lance is my uncle. Not biological of course.” Alicia sheepishly responded to his question.
“Dude, you sure have quite a famous connection!” Rachel exclaimed.
“You can thank my dad for that.” Alicia added.
“Eh, no wonder Thomas is such a jerk to you.” Rachel said bluntly. “Jealous much?”
Lance blinked in confusion, unsure who that Thomas person is.
“Who's Thomas?” He asked.
“He’s the son of Clay, the Driftveil Gym Leader in the Unova Region.” Katie explained. “Clay has battled with Mr. Powell a few times. Thomas wasn’t… exactly the best of friends with Alicia.”
Lance nodded in response before asking, “Why would Clay’s son bully Alicia?”
“Well….” Alicia wasn't sure what to say but her friends helped her out.
“He’s-” Arturo started before Katie interrupted him.
“It’s complicated.” Katie explained. “We really don’t know the primary reason why Thomas is bullying Alicia. It’s likely he doesn’t take his father’s losses very well as Clay did.”
“But he also bullies the other students at the academy and dismisses their Pokémon as being ‘weak’.” Rachel added in while making air quotes at the mention of Thomas claiming the other students’ Pokémon are weak.
Lance frowned in disapproval upon hearing all of this. “That must be the reason why you remained quiet, Alicia.”
“I-I don’t think it’s a good idea to stay quiet about these things, Alicia.” Meadow spoke up. “Th-that’s how bullies always get their way. If you d-don’t tell an adult you trust like your p-parents, Thomas will keep picking on you.”
“I know, but I don't want any of you guys to be his next victim.” Alicia responded, holding Trix tight in her arms.
Aki and Anubis understandably stood by her side as did her friends and their Pokémon.
“I think it’s a little too late for that when I stood up for that boy with the Charmander back at the academy.” Katie confessed.
“You mean David?” Arturo asked.
“You met?” Rachel asked back.
“He’s my roommate.” Arturo responded. “He might be on the shy side, but he has great knowledge about Pokémon and good strategies. Maybe more so in his sleep.”
“I heard his Charmender evolved during his Gym Battle.” Alicia mentioned.
“Th-that’s amazing.” Meadow gasped. “T-Thomas is wrong; Charmander is a very strong P-Pokémon when it’s w-well trained by a c-caring Trainer.”
“And so did your Oshawott and Riolu.” Lance observed.
“Dewott!” Aki blushed, rubbing the back of his head.
“Lucario!” Anubis smiled.
“You all will grow stronger with each battle you win or lose.” Lance motivated the gang.
“We appreciate it.” Arturo replied.
“We sure do.” Rachel responded.
Lance smiled before he stared at Meadow, already knowing she will be the next student to battle her next Gym Leader.
“You must be here to challenge Viola, right?” He asked her, even though he already knew the answer.
“Y-y-yes…” Meadow answered meekly, holding Eevee.
“I wish you good luck.” He holds his hand out.
Meadow timidly lifts her own hand up. She hesitates before she takes his hand, shaking it.
“Th-thank you…” She spoke.
“Should we train you first, Meadow or are you ready to visit the Gym Leader?” Arturo asked, offering her a training session Alicia did for Katie.
“If it’s okay, I-I’d like to give my Ducklett some proper tr-training since I’m going to need her to be strong enough to go up against Viola’s Surskit.” Meadow answered. “From w-what I’ve heard, Surskit can be pretty fast when in contact with water.”
“Alright, we can do that.” Rachel responded with an exciting yell as she offered to be the referee this time, giving Alicia and Katie time to relax and watch the battle.
As Meadow and Arturo stationed themselves at the battlefield to train, Katie glanced over to see Rocket News were settled at a nearby picnic area, settling down for some lunch.
“If you may pardon me, Lance, but how is it that you seem to know Rocket News?” She inquired.
“Oh, I just love to see their news channel and interviews. I got their interest after they interviewed me.” Lance answered.
“Told ya they’re famous across the regions.” Alicia said to Katie, not noticing Jessie, James and Meowth started to fight over the last sandwich in the background in a comical fashion.
“I must say they’re certainly a far cry from their days as Team Rocket.” Katie commented.
“Alright, let's begin with the battle.” Rachel announced to start with the battle between Meadow's newly caught Ducklett and Arturo’s Fennekin.
“Fennekin, it's your turn!” Arturo releases his Fennekin from its PokéBall.
“Fennekin!” The fox-like Pokémon barked.
“You’re… you’re up, D-Ducklett.” Meadow stammered, holding her hands out for her new Ducklett to waddle off onto the battlefield.
“Duck. Ducklett.” Ducklett quaked, waddling along.
The battle begins and Alicia notices someone strange in the group of people surrounding the battlefield, watching the two students fight.
“Is there something wrong?” Katie asked.
Alicia nods “I see Viola in the group of people over there.” Alicia pointed out to a woman holding a camera as she took a few pictures of the battle. A Meadow Pattern Vivillion is seen fluttering beside her.
“How did she get here?” Katie gasped in surprise.
“She's a fast one.” Lance chuckled to himself.
Alicia looked rather confused at her uncle’s response. “Don't tell me you told her that her challenger is here.”
“Guilty as charged.” Lance sheepishly responded to Alicia’s question.
“G-go Ducklett! Use Water Gun!” Meadow cried.
“Ducklett!!!” The Water Gun directly hit Fennekin.
“Fen!” She yelped as the attack caused a lot of damage to Fire-Type Pokémon.
“Fennekin!” Arturo shouted.
The Fox-like Pokémon tried to stand up after she got tumbled by the powerful Water Gun Ducklett had shot before.
“Something tells me Fennekin will soon evolve.” Alicia whispered
“How can you be so sure?” Katie asked.
“Well, I noticed each time a Pokémon struggles against an opponent it will evolve.” Alicia explained as Fennekin stood on her four legs, slightly bruised from the fight but ready to continue.
“Fenneeee….” As she stood up, the Fire-Type suddenly started to glow bright blue.
The transformation began as Fennekin suddenly stood up on two legs, the stubby limbs growing longer and leaner, gaining visible paws and four-fingered hands, her form taking on a much more bipedal form. And what appeared to be a twig formed in the folds of the longer and fluffier tail.
“Braixen!” Cried the newly evolved Fire-Type as the light cleared.
“See, I knew it would evolve.” Alicia commented before her Smart Rotom analysis the newly evolved Pokémon.
“Braxien, the Fox Pokémon, a Fire-Type and the evolved form of Fennekin. When the twig is plucked from its tail, friction sets the twig alight. The flame is used to send signals to its allies.”
“What a needed detail.” Alicia commented.
“I’ll say.” Katie agreed.
Arturo was thrilled to see his first partner Pokémon evolve right in front of his eyes.
And especially the new attack she learned when Braixen unsheathes her twig from her tail, a purple energy beam streaming out.
“That's Psybeam.” Arturo noticed as Meadow ordered her Ducklett to dodge the attack.
“U-use Water Gun a-again!” Meadow yelled.
But this time, the Water Gun didn't hit the Fire-Type. The Fox Pokémon dodged the attack before using the newly learned move, Psybeam against the Ducklett.
“Duck!” The Water and Flying type quaked in agony, getting thrown back from the blast.
Meadow started to panic. She wasn't sure what to do next.
Eevee padded up to her trainer and gently pawed at Medow’s leg.
“Eevee! Vee!” Eevee softly spoke to calm her trainer down.
Meadow settled to take a steady breath before she changed tactics.
“Use Aerial Ace!” She cried.
Managing to recover from the Psybeam, Ducklett flapped her small wings and charged forward. The Water Bird Pokémon’s speed was incomparable to Arturo’s Braixen.
“DUCK… LETT!” Ducklett delivered a fierce blow as a breeze struck her newly evolved opponent.
“Braixen!” The Fire-Type yelped as the Water and Flying-Type hit her multiple times before she could use any other attack.
“Woah, looks like Meadow had learned from her last battle with Glimmer.” Alicia commented on the battle.
“Dewott!” Aki clapped to cheer Ducklett on.
“Use Wing Attack!” Meadow ordered, devoid of her usual stuttered.
Ducklett struck her opponent with a slap of a wing, throwing Braixen back.
“Braixen…” Once the Fire-Type fell on the ground the battle was over as Braixen fainted and Ducklett had won.
“Braixen is unable to battle! The victory goes to Ducklett!” Rachel declared.
“Ducklett!” The tiny duck Pokémon quacked before sitting on Meadow’s shoulder like Trix does on Alicia’s shoulder.
“That’s a really amazing battle!” Katie applauded.
“Congrats Meadow!” Alicia clapped.
“Lucario!” Anubis cheered too.
Arturo walked up to his defeated and evolved Braixen, who didn’t take the loss well. She felt bad that she had let her trainer down despite her evolution and newly learned attack.
“You did great too, Braixen.” Arturo cheered his partner up.
“Braixen…” Braixen sighed, smiling tiredly.
“That was merveilleuse!” A female voice said, the woman who said it coming up to the group.
Everyone turned to see an elegantly dressed woman with light blue hair done up into a ponytail in beaded pearls to resemble the hairstyle of a Primarina approaching them. At her side was a Swanna, Ducklett’s evolved form and a Primarina.
Rachel spat out her drink again on her partner Scorbunny in shock.
“Ms. Azur?!” She exclaimed, shocked to see the famous actor from Sinnoh right in front of the group.
“Scorbunny…” Scorbunny groaned, dripping wet.
Rachel sweatdropped. “Sorry, pal.”
The people who watched the battle earlier were star struck to see the actress right here and there before them.
“Is it really Azur?” A brown-haired man with a Machoke by his side asked a woman next to him with a Lopunny as her partner.
“I can’t believe it’s her!” The Lopunny’s trainer cried.
“Her Swanna and Primarina are so beautiful!” A girl with a Fletchling on her shoulder gushed. “But her Milotic is best known in all of her movies!”
The people moved closer towards the group, asking for either autographs or pictures of Azur and her Pokémon.
“Mon amie! I would like to give you autographs and photos.” Ms. Azur spoke, “But my students come first.”
From the picnic area, Rocket News slumped in disappointment just as they were stealthily approaching Azur with their equipment in a comical fashion.
“So much for an interview…” Jessie moaned.
“Guess this will have to wait after the Gym Challenge is over.” James sighed.
Meowth blinked in shock “Hey, isn’t that black-haired girl the daughter of James Powell?”
Jessie and James perked up, their curious eyes zeroing in on Alicia as Trix was perched on her shoulder and Aki was at her side.
“You're right!” Jessie responded before she got an idea. “Hey, maybe we should interview her after the Gym challenge is done.”
A comical PokéBall opening sound occurred as her Wobbuffet popped up behind her.
“Wobbuffet!” The Patient Pokémon chimes in.
“Sounds good to me.” James replied.
The crowd parted to allow Azur to approach her students and Lance. Both Nalu and Ducklett looked awestruck as they both saw Primarina and Swanna, getting all starry-eyed.
“Bonjour.” Azur greeted. “I’m very happy you have made it. I certainly hope your train ride over to Kalos went well.”
“It sure was great.” Alicia replied. “I've never been in Kalos before if I’m honest.”
“Dewott!” Aki nervously barked.
“Oh, I’m certain visiting different regions can be a bit overwhelming the first time round, chère.” Azur said. “But speaking from experience, you’ll get used to it. Kalos is a beautiful place full of experience and many excitement and adventures around every corner.”
“Swanna!” Swanna quacked in agreement.
“Primarina!” Primarina sang.
“Pop!” Nalu barked, admiring how beautiful and confident Azur’s Primarina is.
Meadow’s Ducklett was sharing the same sentiment about Swanna.
“Dewott?” Aki on the other hand noticed the charming face Azur’s Primarina glanced at him. He wasn’t so sure what to do or say.
“Looks like somebody’s got an admirer.” Rachel teased.
“Looks like Primarina is interested in your Dewott.” Arturo analysed. “A common thing between Pokémon of a different gender.”
“I knew that Primarina’s a girl.” Katie claimed. “Primarina is as beautiful up close as I had hoped.”
She takes out her Rotom Phone to analyse Primarina on the PokéDex app.
“Primarina, the Soloist Pokémon, a Water and Fairy type, and the final evolved form of Popplio. Also known as a songstress, it has a fantastic look on moonlit nights when it leads its colony in song.”
“So, once your Popplio evolves, she’ll look like this?” Rachel gasped. “That’s awesome!”
“Popplio! Pop! Pop!” Nalu cheered, clapping her flippers in excitement.
“We still have a long way to go since Nalu’s yet to evolve into a Brionne. But we’ll get there.” Katie said.
“Oh, no worries, chère, I have a feeling it won’t be long.” Azur said with a knowing smile.
While the others were busy speaking about Nalu’s final evolution, Azur’s Primarina tried to come a little bit closer to Aki.
“Dewott!” He hid behind Alicia, trying to avoid the Soloist Pokémon.
“Oh, boy…” Alicia sighed, stuck in the middle.
“Primarina! Mon ami!” Azur scolded. “Please let that Dewott be. Now’s not the time and place.”
“Prima…” Her Primarina sighed, leaving the worried looking Aki alone to join her trainer’s side.
“Tellement désolé.” Azur apologized. “My Primarina tends to be a hopeless romantic and she can be easily enamoured by either a Dewott or a Samurott due to my previous movie where she co-acted with a Samurott for a scene where their characters fall in love.”
“Eh… it's alright, I guess Aki isn’t easy to win over.” Alicia shyly responded as Aki still hid behind her legs before Anubis tried to cheer him up.
“W-wow, Ms. Azur, your S-Swanna is just as b-beautiful.” Meadow stammered as her Ducklett waddled over to Swanna for a closer look and a proper interaction.
“Ducklett!” the Duck-like Pokémon quacked.
Meadow got out her Rotom Phone to learn a bit more about the swan-like Pokémon.
“Swanna, the White Bird Pokémon, a Flying and Water type, and the evolved form of Ducklett. Despite its elegant appearance, Swanna can flap its wings strongly and fly for thousands of miles.”
“Swanna!” The Swanna greeted the little Ducklett, gracefully petting the tiny feather on her head.
“I-isn’t that amazing, D-Ducklett?” Meadow asked. “One d-day, you’ll evolve into a Swanna, too.”
“Ducklett!” Her Ducklett quacked happily.
“So, you’re here to help out Meadow and Katie with their Gym Challenge, right?” Alicia asked.
“Of course. It’s every teacher’s duty to lend his or her students support per Gym Challenge.” Azur replied. “And to be honest, it doesn’t hurt for me to pay a visit to my childhood home.”
Rachel nodded. “Yeah, Ms. Azur was born in Kalos.”
“That would explain the kalos-accent.” Arturo analysed.
“Guilty as charged.” Azur giggled.
“Wow! Such beautiful Pokémon you’ve got there!” Someone exclaimed.
Everyone turned to see Viola approaching them, camera in hand and her Vivillion fluttering beside her. The Gym Leader happily observed both Primarina and Swanna.
“I have seen so many photos of Primarina, but never got to see one in real life!” Viola exclaimed. “The closest I got to see one in action was in one of your movies! And your Swanna’s well taken care of because you can tell how shiny the feathers are! Mind if I take a couple of snapshots?”
“Bien sûr, I’m usually busy with my acting career or teaching my students.” Azur commented.
“Oh, of course.” Viola said sheepishly. She then noticed the students, particularly Meadow. “You must be Meadow. You’re here to challenge me, right?”
Meadow sheepishly nodded “Y-Y-Yes….”
“I gotta say, your Ducklett’s tough stuff, and you just caught it.” Viola stated. “And it has taken a proper shine to you. That’s a good sign that you have a good bond with your Pokémon.”
“I agree with Ms. Viola here.” Arturo agreed. “Meadow, your Ducklett was strong enough to defeat my Braixen after it evolved.”
“Braixen!” Arturo’s Braixen agreed.
“That is truly an impressive feat.” Ms. Azur added in. “Still, perhaps you would all like to check in at the local Pokémon Center to rest up? Your Pokémon will need to be to form for your Gym Battle.”
“Glimmer is rather tired out from the training with Anubis.” Katie admitted as Glimmer nickered.
“Yeah, Anubis could take a rest too.” Alicia agreed.
“Lucario!” The Aura Pokémon barked in response.
“Great! I’ll be over at my Gym to make preparations.” Viola beamed. “Take all the time you need.”
She rushed past a couple of people to return to her Gym as her Vivillion fluttered along behind her.
“I think I should take my leave as well. I need to get ready for the finals.” Lance spoke up. “Perhaps you all would like to come see them since you’re all here?”
“Wait, don't tell me you got backstage tickets for all of us?” Alicia gasped.
“Lucario?” Anubis gaped his mouth in shock.
Aki though still hid behind Alicia while trying to avoid the small lovely stares of Ms. Azur's Primarina.
“Primarina.” She giggled, lovely dovely.
“Oh, Primarina… what am I going to do with you, chère?” Ms. Azur sighed in exasperation.
“Actually, your dad asked me to give them to you and your friends as he needs some ‘emotional support’.” Lance explained as he handed each of the students the said backstage passes before Jumpin onto Dragonite’s back. “He really misses you, Alicia.”
“Roooooh!” Dragonite howled as he took into the with his trainer, disappearing into the cloudy sky above Santalune City.
“Whoooa! Free backstage passes!” Rachel exclaimed. “Your dad is the BEST, Ali!”
“Thanks…” Alicia sheepishly replied.
“I can’t believe it… that means we get to see Leon battle live too!” Katie yelled in excitement as her eyes sparkled. “Live! In an actual stadium!”
“We will probably see him and the other Champs in the backstage area if I remember correctly what the ticket included.” Alicia whispered.
“Oh…” Katie said sheepishly. “But at least we’ll still get to see his matches live as well as your dad’s.”
“I can’t wait to see what your dad has in store.” Arturo responded excitedly.
“Braixen!” His Braixen barked excitedly too.
“Y-Y-Yeah, I wonder what M-Mr… err, I-I-I mean your dad planned to win this battle.” Meadow stuttered.
“It would be cool to see him and Leon battle live.” Rachel commented. “It’d be even more awesome than how it’s shown on TV.”
“First things first though, we should head to the Pokémon Center as Ms. Azur suggested we do it before it's time for Meadow’s Gym battle.” Arturo informed Rachel and the others.
“Yeah. The finals can wait since I still have my own Gym Challenge well.” Katie agreed. “Especially since it takes place at Korrina’s town.”
“Should we go now? The sun is starting to set.” Alicia pointed out to the sky turning into a beautiful color of orange and magenta.
“We’d better.” Arturo confirmed. “It’s been a long day and our Pokémon could do with some feeding and proper rest after all that training.”
Alicia yawned. “I really need some sleep and take a bath before hitting the pillow.”
“Yeah, I could go for a hot shower myself.” Katie added in. “And I feel like I’ve been hit by a Yawn attack. I’m about to fall over any minute.”
Rachel nodded in agreement as her Scorbunny almost hit the floor before it shook its head to stay awake for a little longer.
The students, their teacher and their Pokémon trudged all the way over to the local Pokémon Center to rest up their Pokémon before making their preparations for bed.
As the sliding door opens up, the local Nurse Joy greets the group and their teacher.
“Hello, I’m Nurse Joy.” She greets the group with a smile and friendly wave.
“Wigglytuff!” Her assistant nurse Pokémon, Wigglytuff chirped cheerily.
“How can I help you today?” Nurse Joy asked.
“We would like our Pokémon to be healed up after some training, please.” Katie requested as she set the Heal Ball containing Glimmer on the counter in the special PokéBall tray.
Alicia returned her Lucario, Anubis back into his Friendball before she placed it in the empty place of another PokéBall tray.
Rachel, Arturo and Meadow followed suit with Ducklett and Braixen before Nurse Joy and her partner Wigglytuff walked through the door right behind them.
“Just wait a few minutes please. I’ll be back in a second.” She informed the group, giving them time to rest on the benches and seats in the entrance area of the Pokémon Center.
“What a day…” Rachel mumbled as she slumped against the backrest of her seat.
“I could drink something.” Alicia added before resting on the nearest seat next to Rachel and Katie.
“Well, there is a cafe just over there.” Arturo informed as he pointed at an actual cafe across from him and the others.
“To be honest, I think I’ll grab a soda.” Katie said as she got up to help herself to a cold can of soda, paying for it.
“I prefer a Oranberry juice.” Alicia said before she got herself a can of Oranberry flavored juice.
Meadow got a strawberry flavored Moomoo Milk while Arturo chose some Fresh Water and Rachel grabbed a can of lemonade.
“Mes chers amis.” Ms. Azur walked up to her students with a bag filled with croissants and other pastries and sweets from the Kalos Region. “You all did great today and deserve some sweet treats.”
She smiled, handing over the bag to Meadow first.
“Th-thank you, Ms. Azur…” Meadow said, taking out a couple of croissants for Sobble, Eevee and Vulpix.
“Yes, thank you. They do look delicious.” Katie added as she handed out a pastry to Nalu.
Alicia took out two croissants with vanilla filling for herself and Anubis. “I hope he likes it.”
Anubis accepts the vanilla croissant and takes a bite. His ruby red eyes lit up, sparkling with delight as the flavor exploded in his mouth.
“Lucario!” He barked in joy, taking another bite in the flaky pastry.
“It certainly looks like he does.” Katie observed as Nalu happily nibbled away at a chocolate croissant.
Alicia smiled as she saw Anubis happily eating the croissant while she gave her other two Pokémon some sweet treats as well.
“Is it g-good?” Meadow asked as Sobble, Eevee and Vulpix ate some strawberry themed pastries, to which they all happily responded.
Once everyone’s Pokémon made a full recovery from their training and finished snacking on the treats, they all got ready for bed to rest up for Meadow’s Gym Challenge tomorrow.
