by happenstance rover is mashed by the descending limb of machamp, its smoldering fist striking against its lacerating petals as it continued its dance. adrian grimaces at the prospect, though is unsure as to the extent of the damage as vileplume's figure disappears beneath the brunt of the fist. "rover, hang in there!" it was all he could hope for.

other matters demanded his attention however; with its jaws still locked against the purchase of machamp's flesh, gyarados sees past its foe, even detecting the primeape rushing it. its is a guttural growl that rumbles in its throat, promising retribution even as its teeth strive to keep a hold on the macho physique before it.

"FUROR, EARTHQUAKE!" he couldn't allow noah to steal his momentum.

its tail lifts at a measured pace as it's rushed, held aloft where it clings to machamp, before slamming back towards the arena with a surging force. its blunt strike against the ground causes it to give away beneath them, fissuring and shaking the ground with tremendous force that would disrupt their footwork.

[attr="class","pkspr"][attr="class","pokesprite pokemon vileplume"][attr="class","pokesprite pokemon gyarados color shiny"]
noah faber

rover using petal dance struck by machamp (EFFECT SPORE?)
furor used earthquake to disrupt primeape

petals scatter like haina desert jewels. they adorn the brief gale cast by the mega machamp's materialized fist. on this broiling wind, EFFECT SPORES bloom and settle on grey skin.

noah's fists are tight. frustration lies quietly between each white knuckle as the gym leader shouts, "smart, man!"

the whole ring quakes. as the canvas rocks violently as if it were a hungry wave, his primeape and machamp stumble and blister. a WIDE GUARD is attempted— but fails as PARALYSIS stalls its movements. still, the machamp attempts to swing its ridged head hard to knock its forehead on the fish.

a weak primeape huffs and rushes for the vileplume. it ROLE PLAYS, receiving rover's ability to scatter spores of its own, catching several particles as they finally descend into the air.

"agh." noah says. "don't give up, cobra!"

[attr="class","pkspr"][attr="class","pokesprite pokemon machamp-gmax"][attr="class","pokesprite pokemon primeape"]

Adrian Malcolm

machamp paralyzed by effect spore but tries to physically knock its head on the gyarados / primeape roleplays vileplume to take effect spore as it runs toward it

"furor, push back! you're stronger!" leveling their brows to one another, the augmented machamp and gyarados bash heads, the latter's trident crest driven by the propelling force of its waterfall attack. adrian continues to harbor reservations, biding his time rather than showing his full hand just yet. but he's anxious to seize the opportunity and cement what he believes will be his undisputed victory....

the primeape still gives him pause. it charges rover, emulating its ability through role play. and to make matters worse, rover now teeters around in a flitting, stumbling dance in a confused daze. $#!&.

rover cannot help but allow its head to droop as every effort to lift it upright is stifled by its delirium. with its lumbering petals shifting unpredictably so, it is like an organic, fibrous shield flailing about uncontrollably. if he lucked out, primeape mightn't be able to get around it to land the telling blow. "rover, eyes up! strength sap!"

lH2BHHkG

[attr="class","pkspr"][attr="class","pokesprite pokemon vileplume"][attr="class","pokesprite pokemon gyarados color shiny"]
noah faber

rover is confused; ordered to use strength sap (roll for outcome)
furor used waterfall as a counterforce to cobra's headbutt

the festive glow from noah's megastone fades. he does not push his pokemon further— and despite his pride being on the line of this regulation match, he practices cool reservation. the calm pools cold in his shoes.

his life is already carnival enough; recklessness plays like a merry-go-round running off its track.

"COUNTER!" noah shouts hoarsely.

the machamp's form begins to diminish as water surges across its battle hardened front. however, an uppercut cuts through the water, rechanneling furor's strength through cobra's fist.

his PRIMEAPE is sapped of strength and a tortured wail is expelled from deep within its fur. the weakened monkey looks to noah with a knowing look.

a shrill cry comes loudly as it summons a STONE EDGE behind rover. the stones attempt to burst from their initial positions, scattering and arcing toward the primeape too as it limps as close as it can to the gyarados to KO itself with its own move.

in the process, EFFECT SPORES scatter toward the gyarados as the primeape falls.

[attr="class","pkspr"][attr="class","pokesprite pokemon machamp"][attr="class","pokesprite pokemon primeape"]

Adrian Malcolm

machamp loses mega / counters waterfall ; primeape is sapped of strength / stone edge on vileplume, angled in a way to hit itself too so that it can effect spore gyarados (you choose what you want to happen np np!!)

"what're you doing!?" adrian had never seen a trainer compel their pokemon to fall on its own sword, so to speak. excepting ghost-types, but then he doubted the relevant concerns still applied. as primeape proved determined—dead set—to drive a stone against itself and rover by proxy... it was cruel, but more over, it threatened a dwindling advantage he could ill afford to lose. he's gone mad.

cobra deftly diverted the full fledged might of furor's waterfall, however its physical form had been diminished as the extent of its limits were reached, and it regressed from its mega evolved state.

adrian's eyes fixated on furor, poised to deal the telling blow, when it seems taken aback; the spores had reached it. where normally it acted with unrestrained aggression, it now seemed to hold back, perhaps wracked with pain or stricken by paralytic spores. the glint in his eyes died like smoldering ashes as the color in them dulled. yet upon his wrist, the keystone gave off a radiant sheen as adrian pumped his fist in recognition.

"furor, it's all on you!" ...don't let me down... transfiguring into its most potent evolutionary form, furor became the apex, its body bursting into a hulking mass perhaps twice its usual size. in the moment the change overtook it, the symptoms of the effect spores began to recede, but its vulnerability went up drastically...

"D R A G O N T A I L !"

[attr="class","pkspr"][attr="class","pokesprite pokemon gyarados-mega color shiny"]
noah faber

rover and primeape faint^(?); furor contracts effect spore
furor mega evolves_{(1 of 3)}, recovers from effect spore, gains mold breaker
furor uses dragon tail to put some distance on machamp's physical attacks

noah breathes in sharply, seeing the gyarados grow within the constrained space. a frightening expansion. an indigo wave that swells to a dry neck. the gym leader's adam's apple falls underneath the cool sea surface— as he watches his machamp stand firm.

"DYNAMIC PUNCH!" noah shouts.

tail meets fist— and swiftly overwhelms. the metal fence rattles as noah's machamp careens into it. its whole body sprawled out like a starfish before it falls onto the canvas: a limp grey mound.

as the battle concludes, noah can hear his own breath.

"nice try, buddy." noah recalls his machamp and hops off his small podium, badge in hand.

Adrian Malcolm

congratulations!

they did it. they won the gym battle, close as it was.

furor blares a triumphant roar before its form dissipates, regressing to its natural state before adrian can withdraw it into a pokeball. stepping down from his podium he would approach noah, and although he should be smiling...

he cannot. adrian wears something between a grimace and a somber stare, pacing the distance over to noah, perhaps expecting a pat on the back and for the badge to be shoved into his hands. however meaningful, it is lacking a particular something for him.

i wish you were here, girl.

noah faber

the badge is warmed in noah's hand like a haina desert jewel. as he moves close, noah's own grin dampens to a flicker of some frown.

"what's wrong?" noah says. his fingers curl just before adrian's chest. an open palm is the bed for the other's badge.

a gym trainer walks by in background. noah nods, steering his head toward the back before turning to adrian.

a hand lands on the other's shoulder with a squeeze. "getting this emotional from a gym win?" noah laughs.

his gym trainer arrives with a blue open box housing a pokeball.

Adrian Malcolm

"i still miss her." noah had helped him to bury her memory; to move past howitzer, though he'd never let go. it was for her that he frowned, wishing she had been here, been the one to secure their next victory on this same stage.

taking the badge from noah's palm, he rolled it between his fingers, feeling the smooth finish of the metal.

adrian received the knockout badge!

"...it would've been our second badge from hoenn." he can't let go of the sentimentality of it, dwelling on the badge for a time before noticing the gym trainer approaching with a blue box. seeing as he already held his badge, curiosity got the better of him. it wasn't unheard of for a gym leader to bestow secondary gifts to trainers, but...

"what's in the box?" maybe it was just potions for machamp and primeape.

noah faber

"howitzer." softly, he utters her name. a somber canonization.

noah remembers that day. packing artifact after artifact into old brown boxes. and although one may experience such departures as warm remembrances— noah wonders if the other sees it as an abandonment of theodicy. no vindication. if god is cold, it is because the fires he leaves in his wake are unseen.

"a gift to you for... well, surpassing me." noah laughs both self-consciously and proud. "the navel rock dojo and i communicate all the time, so... thought it would be nice to get you something special, buddy."

on cue, the kubfu releases itself from its ball. its headband is tight above its determined mug as it meets its new master.

Adrian Malcolm

yeah. though he'll always miss her, little moments like these helped to remind him that he could move forward without her. she wasn't his only strength or reason to go on; she simply stood beside him from the beginning, and in his eyes deserved to see it through to the end. in her absence he would simply have to carry the torch by his lonesome.

to finish what they'd started, creating meaning in her loss.

"don't get all gushy and spoil me, now," he chided to noah. for a moment he simply awaited the box to be opened, only to find his brows shooting up in astonishment. aren't these things...? they were a galarian import, if he recalled correctly, and a prized pokemon who were rarely entrusted to another's care.

reaching out a hand, adrian finds himself pausing, before shooting a concerned glance past the kubfu towards noah, his brows furled. are you sure? but noah is the look of determination and would doubtlessly chastise him for second guessing the sincerity of the gesture. his hand clenches into a fist, and he braces his knuckles against the kubfu's, solidifying their first greeting. "...do they have a name i should know?"

noah faber

"they're called kubfu. super fighters. like literally, dude." noah pats above his own heart, a gloved palm beating against the firm curve of his chest. "they've got an organ that like, generates fighting spirit."

the kubfu is patient. brows are furrowed— but perhaps, it is hiding insecurity and anxiousness, for the bear has a lot to live up to in its steadily expanding arena.

"'course, you could name the kubfu whatever. if that's what you meant." noah crosses his arms.

Adrian Malcolm

adrian nodded before reaching for the kubfu's pokeball, stowing it on his belt but opting to leave the creature free of the vessel for the time being. "i'll have to think on that." it wasn't like him not to impulsively name something, but this seemed auspicious enough to call for more consideration.

"thanks, noah, i'm... not sure what to say." he knew them to be rare, and even rarer still were the trainers trusted with raising one. noah must've held him in high esteem, or hoped to spoil him. kubfu kept its eyes on adrian, perhaps sizing him up; determining for itself if it would follow him. adrian would have to earn that.

"i'll have to try and have him trained up and ready for the tournament coming up," adrian interjected coolly, before casting a query their way with a hopeful gaze.

"are you going to be there? and not just as security," he spat disapprovingly, recalling how caught up with tauros noah had been during the vital spirit festival.

noah faber