[attr="class","starrytop"]

[attr="class","starrytop2"]

[attr="class","frlastconttop"]

[attr="class","frlastcontmid"]



[break]

She cracked open a tin of mints—chewed through the chalky confections just to feel her teeth ache.[break][break]

“Been trying to give them an outlet,” and Bailey knew her words would be barely legible as her Steel-type pounded his fists to his chest; a war drum. Blackened blood rose to the surface, bubbling from the cracks and from the scars that had tarnished the polish of his steel coat. When it flushed down his body, it did not stain red.[break][break]

Her efforts were wasted. The Aggron's frustrations were unending.[break][break]

Another roar. Another reverberation. Alpha screamed with such a strength that she can hear the strain; rage that could have only been matched by a wild pokemon driven to the brink.[break][break]

That was what their pokemon had become. Wild.[break][break]

The summoning of the Alakazam signaled the end. Her eyes transferred from one feral pokemon to the other, letting her teeth shine as she gave a satisfied smile. “All in?” A bad joke.[break][break]

Aggron tore forward, bounding to the tainted psychic without a hint of self-regard. His body was lowered, head angled so that his steel horns would be at the peak of his charge; she could hear the scrapings of his claws and the sight of dirt as it was wrenched from the ground in clumps.[break][break]

The psybeam hit dead-on; rainbow lights refracting from her Aggron's helm as he pushed through its onslaught, subjecting himself to the damage with only a grunt to express the damage he had sustained.[break][break]

One metal hand clenched, forearm reverberating with a tremor that made his armor plating splinter.[break][break]



A swing as the fist would be retched upward, curving with the heavy pokemon's momentum as he would throw himself into the uppercut; its target was the Alazazam's jaw, wanting to steer the pokemon from the sanctity of the ground.[break][break]

But he was not done yet. Pushing himself into the second strike, the Aggron would have overexerted itself if it were not for his stubborn, rocky exterior as he would bring down the second fist as if it were a hammer to the psychic's shoulder.[break][break]

[attr="class","frlastconttag2"]

[attr="class","starrytop"]

[attr="class","starrytop2"]

[attr="class","frlastconttop"]

[attr="class","frlastcontmid"]



[break]

Bailey would have shouted an order, but she knew it would have been a waste of time; however, her stare remained fixated on the battle, oblivious to anyone that was watching.[break][break]

Her Aggron was caught in the moment. His trainer was long forgotten. His focus had sharpened to the strange tremble that laced his arm, keeping him from executing his downward strike as he had intended—his purple eyes shifting from the ground up, spying his opponent as the Alakazam suspended himself.[break][break]

Their hostilities would have been equal at that moment; his maw parted to release a screech that was so shrill, it made Bailey's head tremble from across the room.[break][break]



And with that declaration, the Aggron would launch himself up from the ground with one hard push; swinging at the hip to wretch his tail forward as it was coated in a silvery sheen; an attack that was meant to slap the Alakazam back to the ground, where it would be back in his grasp.[break][break]



"What'd you say?!" Bailey shouted with her hands clasped to her head, still hearing the ringing from the Metal Sound. "I can't hear shit!"

[attr="class","frlastconttag2"]

[attr="class","starrytop"]

[attr="class","starrytop2"]

[attr="class","frlastconttop"]

[attr="class","frlastcontmid"]



[break]

Humiliation would not daunt him.[break][break]

Psychic struck him to the ground with its invisible force, driving up the ground and letting it disperse into the air from its wake. Rippling clouds of sand would have obscured the Aggron from sight as the second psychic burst to divid it. Rushing winds was the only indicator of the bolt of energy, followed by a sheen of white as the shape of the Aggron's hand became visible—and then the ghostly shield that he held above himself, cut like the face of a diamond with its sharp, angular slopes.[break][break]



Protect had stopped the second strike, but it would not stop another. The Aggron rumbled, letting the sound catch in his throat, as the poison threatened to boil over. Attack was raised from every strike... and Bailey Cooper knew that her pokemon was drawing close to his limit.[break][break]

And he would be all the stronger for it, until it would finally overwhelm him.[break][break]

She opened her jaw, hoping that the motion would make her ears pop. Her hearing had been shot—the attack of Mossdeep had lingered as a low ringing that refused to fade. Maybe she'd need hearing aides when she was older. Maybe this was punishment for listening to loud music.[break][break]

“Sorry about the windows—but hey, that's a just another business expense, right?” Because she would not pay to have them replaced.[break][break]

Another guttural wail as Aggron threw himself back into the fight, chasing after his teleporting foe. The future sight would tell one truth: out of all the countless outcomes, the Aggron would never relent from this aggression. No matter the actions taken, no matter how hard he was slammed or thrashed across this gym, he would pick himself back up.[break][break]

Double Edge was still unusable. He settled for Iron Tail. The empowered appendage snagged a sharp, jagged chunk of the battlefield that had been raised from his impact—snagged from the outer edge of the crater that he pulled himself out from.[break][break]



“Uh, dude you might wanna—” the word “duck” had lingered on her tongue, but was not spoken as the Aggron hurled the rock as if it were a javelin.

[attr="class","frlastconttag2"]

[attr="class","starrytop"]

[attr="class","starrytop2"]