[attr="class","danny"]"i'll take mine medium rare. we can't forget about the drinks either. i might have like ten drinks that night to celebrate."

he releases the creature from its capsule and prepares.

"right, eggheads! i know we've only battled together a few times but i'm gonna need your help here. see that man over there? he's a GOON. a MENACE. we need to stop him."

all three exeggutor heads nod in unison, though he's unsure if all of them truly understand the gravity of the situation.

this is the first battle between childhood friends — between rivals.

"right. set up your defense and then toss an egg at them!"

exeggutor shimmies, shaking its thick trunk to conjure up a wall of REFLECT. it then squats down low, plops something onto the ground, then turns and kicks an EGG BOMB towards the poliwrath.

[attr="class","noodles"]Greyson Connors

DANNY HALL

a frown shapes greyon's lips. he had expected danny to take advantage of the fact he revealed his pokemon first, but this was going to be more difficult than he realized.

but, he wouldn't have it any other way.

"you certainly came prepared," he says, complimenting his friend. "minus the dollar store insults." greyson gives the waiting poliwrath an approving nod and the battle truly begins.

as his opponents reflect goes into play, he pushes the type-advantage from his mind with AMNESIA. with a body made entirely out of muscle, arco pushes himself from his spot in the dirt, moving to close the distance between himself and the exeggutor. the DODGE is easy, a simple duck on an unstoppable warpath.

[attr="class","danny"]"hold it back and bomb the shit out of them!"

three heads nod in unison and all six eyes start to glow in a murky purple, pulsating an EXTRASENSORY potent enough to hold back even the mightiest of pokemon. actually, it does more than that: the psychic-move looks to slam the poliwrath into the ground.

at the same time, another egg pops out, and just like before it's kicked towards the poliwrath, delivering a not-so-subtle EGG BOMB.

"i only have so many pokemon, grey boy! it's just the luck of the draw."

[attr="class","noodles"]Greyson Connors

DANNY HALL

danny's plan is sound, if not a bit heavy-handed. if he thought he could brute force his way to victory, he was going to be sorely mistaken.

"push through, arco!"

the poliwrath grunts, the white of his gloves taking on a tan-colored hue. the ground in front of the advancing water-type rises, his EARTH POWER creating a thick wall of dirt and grass. it takes the brunt of the psychic attack, but for good measure, he summons from the swirl on his chest, a devastating HYDRO PUMP that propels the large piece of land hurtling towards his opponent.

the explosion from the exeggutor's egg bomb blasts half of it to dust and debris, but that leaves more than enough to cause some pain.

his line of sight blocked by the earthen wall, he cups his hand and shouts, "keep up danny boy!"

he knew better than to get cocky but the adrenaline that pumped through his blood told him... this was going to be a blast.

and stealing his line? that was the icing on top.

[attr="class","danny"]his mind flicks through the many recordings of pokemon battles he's watched growing up. he remembers one in particular mainly due to the similarities it shares to their current battle: a striker versus a tank.

he opens his mouth to bark orders right as a large piece of land smacks against exeggutor, damaging. it lets out a soft grunt before shaking it off.

"move back! keep your distance!"

exeggutor's not fast, not by any means, but its two legs pedal backwards, creating some distance between it and the poliwrath.

"now force them back!"

two more EXTRASENSORY fire off. one looks to tie poliwrath's ankles up, tripping it, and the other looks to further push them into the ground.

"also that's my line, what the fuck?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Greyson Connors

DANNY HALL

the difficulty with closing in on your opponent was simple- how to close the distance effectively, and safely. danny had put thought into his choice. not only did he have the type-advantage, he was also able to utilize their massive range discrepancies. it was likely his plan to whittle down the poliwrath from afar all while maintaining that range.

it was an effective strategy only so long as that distance was actually maintained.

"keep going arco! do not let him stop you!" greyson's voice roars across the battlefield, blood rushing to his ears. arco responds with a savage throat rumbling yell. again, he summons EARTH POWER defensively, only this time reducing its size in favor of increasing it's thickness. it blocks the first psychic-attack aimed for his feet.

he doesn't stop, instead moving around the knee high block.

the poliwrath, empowered by the AMNESIA from earlier, takes the brunt of the second extrasensory. if his defense wasn't strengthened, it actually might've stopped his advance instead of merely slowing it. but, if there was one thing he had over the exeggutor, it was strength. a pokemon with zero percent body fat. arco was a being of pure muscle; a domineering force on the battlefield.

where he wanted to go, he did.

as he closes the distance on the much slower pokemon, his gloved fist tightens for a DYNAMIC PUNCH. with any luck, he'd land his blow and the monster would be confused.

[attr="class","danny"]"drop to the ground!"

surprisingly, exeggutor's legs give out in time and it falls to the ground. the DYNAMIC PUNCH grazes by, smacking past the ends of its leaves.

"sleep it!"

all six eyes pulse once again, this time in a confusing yellow and red and purple as it attempts to lock eyes with the poliwrath for a HYPNOSIS.

[attr="class","noodles"]Greyson Connors

DANNY HALL

arco follows through with his punch, grazing the exeggutor. it leads him a step, then two, away before he takes control of his movement again. when greyson hear danny's next command, he sucks in a breathe.

"don't let him! keep yourself awake!"

the poliwrath locks eyes with the exeggutor, a deep sense of exhaustion rolling over him. it takes every ounce of his being to punch himself in the gut, the resounding echo the beginnings of a BELLY DRUM. the resulting blows are enough to keep him standing, his body surging with the adrenaline and strength of his ability.

the cost was high. his breath came heavy and bruises were beginning to form, but now he was a breathes distance away. and his opponent?

on its ass.

arco rears back again for a massively empowered DYNAMIC PUNCH.

[attr="class","danny"]well. there's little else to do but to take the DYNAMIC PUNCH. it'll bring exeggutor close to fainting but at least it'll leave the poliwrath susceptible to close range attacks.

"take it and shit your bombs!"

the REFLECT lessens the severity of the DYNAMIC PUNCH. the ground cracks under the pressure, giving in, but exeggutor holds on as only one perfect sized EGG BOMB slips out, exploding right underneath the poliwrath. the other egg is likely still stuck somewhere, lost to the CONFUSION.

[attr="class","noodles"]Greyson Connors

DANNY HALL

the confusion saves what little arco has left in the tank. had both bombs exploded, there was little doubt in the outcome.

luckily, that wasn't the case.

the concussive force of the egg, in lieu with the proximity, forces the poliwrath back a good five to seven feet. his arms, chest and legs exhibiting signs of heavy damage, most notably was the severe limp in his left leg.

he wouldn't be approaching quickly anymore. this was the poliwrath's last chance.

with one hand, arco summons his EARTH POWER, the ground around the exeggutor lifting to surround it in a cupping-like motion, meant solely to keep him in place for what happens next. with his other free hand, he summons forth another HYDRO PUMP straight into the only opening left.

by the time the attack would make it, the poliwrath already lie on it's back. unconscious.

[attr="class","danny"]"heal! heal! heal!"

danny shouts the repeated order so loud that his voice cracks by the second. but it pays off because exeggutor understands, nods, and does its best to battle the CONFUSION to channel the forces of nature.

its leaves fan out as it begins to draw in the sun. the first attempt fails, and danny can tell by the way its leaves droop slightly, but the second attempt to suck in the MOONLIGHT succeeds. exeggutor feels revitalized just in time to survive the HYDRO PUMP.

the impact sends it out of the cup-shaped ground. it flies for a bit then smacks into the ground, but it stands not long after that, still conscious.

"looks like that's one zero to me! who's next, grey boy?"

[attr="class","noodles"]Greyson Connors

DANNY HALL

arco's final act isn't enough. a grim line tracing his lips, greyson recalls the poliwrath back.

"that was a good fight. but don't get too ahead of yourself, danny." greyson reminds his old friend, hand already going for his next pokemon. "you had all the advantages in the world and still managed to barely squeak by."

he tosses the orb in front of him, a titanic steelix taking the field. when her snake-like body moves, the earth shakes.

"finish what arco started!" greyson commands. chlo moves to obey.

ground in a small area around her vibrates as the steelix exerts her will into her earth. directly in front of her, and where the poliwrath's earlier defensive wall crumbled, shards of rock rise and orient themselves in the exeggutor's direction. the STONE EDGE propels forward at breakneck speeds, a dozen fist sized rocks all with a single target in mind.

meanwhile, beneath the exeggutor, much like how she did the same day danny met the pokemon, another hidden STONE EDGE forms under the thin layer of crust beneath the grass- and psychic-type. it propels upwards at the same speed, each as deadly as the last.

by the time he'd notice, she hoped it'd be too late.