Today was going to be .... interesting, to say the least. In fact, Alec didn't really know how to feel in regard to getting his old lifestyle back. Ever since that day, barely escaping from Team Rocket while being only but a mere inch away from death, he thought that he'd never be able to regain what he had lost that day. His Gym, his love for battling - all of it. However, here he was, standing in the center of the football-sized arena as the stands had begun to gradually fill themselves with people. Hell, he thought earlier that just touching the walls of the stadium would reduce it to dust. The other staff that had been hired on for his Gym were also slightly worried that they'd get on Alec's bad side.

However, believe it or not, Alec was actually patient. Despite it being the grand opening of his Gym, he seemed less stressed, rather than the opposite. He even congratulated most if not all of the staff on the great work they had been doing so far. What's more, is that the enormous crowd that came to see the first-ever match of Alec's new gym was what surprised him the most. Then again, his former gym was just a hoity-toity resort, where only tourists would spend their vacations at. The only ones that'd witnessed his gym challenges were him, and his opponents. Admittedly, looking back on it now, choosing such an idea for a gym was bad.... not to mention that DAMN LOAN! He still had to pay that thing off! Talk about regretting your own life choices ...

However, Alec couldn't afford to think about that stuff right now. All that mattered, was making sure that the audience as well as the Gym challenger feeling at home. Speaking of which, The gym challenger soon arrived, a male possibly a little bit younger than him, walking towards him. "I see you made it here without getting lost," Alec smirked, his question obviously playful as well as rhetorical. "Alec Foster - Fallarbor's new Gym Leader." Alec said, holding out a hand for the younger man to shake. "You requested a four-on-four double battle right?"

---

Isaac Merlo

Alec's smirk grew at Isaac's joke. "I think I'm gonna like this guy," Alec thought as he shook his hand. "Pleasure to meet ya dude. Welcome to my gym. I hope you're ready," Alec said just before the entire crowd's cheers of excitement began to roar throughout the vicinity. 'cause it sure looks like they are," Alec said. Truth be told, something like this wasn't his style, but he figured it was better than nothing. Once Alec had gotten the confirmation he needed, Isaac asked him a question of his own.

Alec'hmmed' for a good moment, bringing his right hand underneath his chin. From the looks of it, Isaac seemed like he could figure out the obvious stuff, such as 'no killing', or 'having your attacks directed at the stands'. Things of that nature were straightforward enough to where even a six-year-old could even understand. "The only thing you should know from this point is that you, the challenger, get to go first," Alec said, seemingly taking his position for the battle. Hopefully, Isaac would do the same.

As soon as Alec stood in place once more, he quickly pulled out two pokeballs, tossing them out in front of him, an Espeon from the left and a teal-colored Sceptile from the right materializing a few feet in front of their master. "Alright. Show us what ya got," Alec gave Isaac a smirk. Alec had no idea what Isaac's battle strategy was, but neither did Isaac know about his - just the way Alec liked it.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

TL;DR:
- Alec likes Isaac's joke and thinks the two em will get along.
- Alec tells Isaac he gets to make the first move, then sends out Luna the Espeon & Nat the Shiny Sceptile.

Isaac Merlo

Alec held his grin, liking how Isaac was able to handle the crowd. In fact, Alec knew that he wasn't talented in that regard. Regardless, at least his gym challenger seemed to be doing it just fine. It'd have to be something that Alec himself would have to get used to doing.

Once Alec released his pokemon, Isaac immediately followed suit right after, bringing out a Fennekin with a peculiar coating as well as a Scolipede. A rather odd pairing, however, Alec was curious how Isaac's own choices would affect the outcome of the battle. Luna stood there calm and collect, gathering her psychic energy while Nat stood there silently as well, watching both of his opponent's movements closely. The thing about Alec's pokemon is that they were trained to not make the first move in a battle, with the exception of a small few. Isaac's Scolipede was gathering its speed, with the help of its SPEED BOOST.

Meanwhile, the shiny Fennekin seemed to be taking the Scolipede for a ride, using the poisonous bug's own speed to increase its own. Impressive, Alec thought to himself as he took note of the Fennekin hopping off the Scolipede while the bug kept moving. Once the Fenniken had landed right in front of Luna, however, it vanished just as soon as it landed, replacing itself with the charging Scolipede.

"However," Alec continued his own train of thought, just as Luna released her built-up PSYCHIC energy the moment the switch between the opposing allies took place.

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The Scolipede was frozen mid-air, hovering an inch or two above the ground, with its MEGAHORN attack only barely meeting its mark by an inch. Luna's intense stare as her psychic energy suspended it slightly above the ground's surface, devoid of being able to move. Then, without warning, the psychic energy that had the bug suspended threw it backward violently. Meanwhile, Nat made his own move, having lunged at Fennekin with its own natural speed, giving it a swift DRAGON CLAW, attempting to send it flying into the scolipede flying backward.

I wouldn't underestimate these two, Alec's train of thought finally finished just as his Sceptile and Espeon acted accordingly. It was clear that his two pokemon worked well with one another, however, it wasn't anything new to Alec. He knew exactly what they were and weren't capable of, which is exactly why trained all of his battle-ready pokemon the best he could. Nothing less should be expected from a Gym Leader's pokemon anyhow, right?

---

SPOILER: Click to show

TL;DR:
- Luna the Espeon releases her Psychic attack on the Scolipede from the moment the ALLY SWITCH from Isaac's Fennekin switches them between one another, making Luna safe from the Scolipede's Megahorn by a mere inch, then proceeds to make it fly backward w/ the same Psychic energy.

- At the same time as Luna attacks the Scolipede, Nat the Sceptile lunges forward and attempts to hit the shiny Fenniken with a Dragon Claw, which would send it flying into Scolipde that was violently thrown backward by Luna the Espeon's attack.

Isaac Merlo

The crowd roared with excitement as soon as the battle kicked off, becoming louder than before the match started. At least they were enjoying themselves, Alec thought to himself. He had listened to Isaac's words, yet still silent, not saying anything since before the battle began. It was then that Alec had begun to realize that he was communicating with his pokemon in a manner to which only they understood, however, it became clear to Alec once the Scolipede had broken into a ROLLOUT. He and his pokemon like to work outside the box. They just keep getting more and more interesting," Alec thought, his smirk turning into a grin. This battle did in fact just start, but Alec couldn't help but feel like it had been going on for hours. Not that, that was a bad thing. If it were, then why would he be grinning?

The scolipede had used Luna's own mental prowess against it in order for it to use Rollout as a means to break its falls in a safer way, resulting in the poisonous bug taking less than it normally would've. That's not all though. The Fennekin that Nat had attempted to strike with its DRAGON CLAW, using his own size against it. The Fennekin, due to its small size had countered, attempting to strike Nat with HEAT WAVE. But that still wasn't good enough, as Nat the Sceptile was able to DETECT the danger from the Heat Wave attack before it was unleashed, using its speed to take a giant leap backward, protecting itself by jumping to a safe distance.

Luna had taken this opportunity to attack, jumping into the air. With a violent swish of her forked tail, she launched a SWIFT attack, raining energy in the shape of stars not just on the Fennekin that failed to hurt Nat, but also the Scolipede who had just received damage from Luna's own PSYCHIC.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

TL;DR:
- Alec is impressed by Isaac's as well as his pokemon's own adaptability in the battle.

- Nat the Sceptile uses Detect, protecting itself from the Heat Wave by taking a gigantic leap backward out of the attack's reach.

- Luna then jumps into the air, raining down a Swift attack on both the Scolipede and Fenniken, and since Swift doesn't miss, the attack meets its mark on both of Isaac's Pokemon.

Isaac Merlo

Alec held his smirk, despite the circumstances. Isaac's Scolipede had once again used its own speed to try and ensure a clean hit with its MEGAHORN, but what it failed to realize, was that Nat the Sceptile was quite agile himself, not to mention that he had the high ground, so to speak. Nat the Sceptile swiftly plunged an ENERGY BALL that had formed in its hand, thrusting it forward into the Scolipede's own attack. The impact from both attacks colliding with one another forced both backward from one another. This allowed Nat the Sceptile to not only land safely as well as absorb the brunt of the Scolipede's own attack, but also deal some more damage to the poisonous bug as well.

What's more was that Isaac's Fennekin had seemed to be fixated on dealing with the Espeon, rushing forward, attempting to also use its small body and speed to try and have Luna use her Psychic powers a little too early, however, too was also a failed attempt, seeing as that she was still rather calm and collected. As soon as the Fennekin backed up once it was close enough, unleashing yet another HEAT WAVE onto her, she unleashed her PSYCHIC powers just at that moment as well, having both her and the fennekin take damage simultaneously as well. Sure, Espeon took yet another hit, however, if it meant she could deliver a hit as well then so be it. What was that phrase again? 'All's fair in love and war'? With Nat moving backward from where he and the Scolipede attacked, it also meant he was also safe from Fennekin's attack.

As the crowd seemed to still cheer excitedly, Alec started to wonder why Isaac had chosen a pokemon that wasn't fully evolved. He wasn't thinking that it was not fit to keep up with the battle. Far from it, actually. With its ability to use ALLY SWITCH as well as be able to make successful hits on his Esepeon. No, something told him that there was more too than what Alec knew so far. Although, he wasn't curious so that he could use it to his advantage to call out to his pokemon as a means to warn them, no. He was just curious for his own sake. Besides, Alec's Sceptile as well as his Espeon haven't been able to cut loose like this in a long while. It was clear that they were enjoying the battle, just as much as Alec was. Hopefully, Isaac and his pokemon felt the same way.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

TL;DR:
- Nat the Sceptile plunges an Energy Ball formed in its hand into the Scolipede's Megahorn attack causing it to absorb most of the impact, dealing damage to Scolipede, as well as having the impact from the collision of both attacks to have both of them be pushed backward, allowing Nat to avoid Fennekin's Heat Wave.

- Isaac's Fennekin attacks using Heat Wave. The attack hits Luna the Espeon, however, Luna unleashes her Psychic attack at the same time the Fennekin unleashed its own attack, causing both of them to take damage as well.

- Alec is curious about Isaac's Fennekin, not for the sake of the battle, but for his own curiosity. Either way, he continues to silently watch the battle, also hoping that Isaac and his pokemon are having fun as well.

Isaac Merlo

Alec's and Isaac's still competed with one another for supremacy, all four of them trying their absolute best to acheive victory. What's more was that Nat and Luna weren't giving their all in this battle, or at least, not yet. Due to the Scolipede's maximized speed, it was able to POISON Nat with its Toxic, while scurrying away attempting to hopefully bait Nat the Sceptile to go after it.

Then there was the other showdown between Isaac's Fennekin, as well as Luna the Espeon. The PSYCHIC attack that Luna had delivered simultaneously along with the opposing HEAT WAVE met their marks. Luna was hurt, however, she had plenty of strength left to fight, Unlike Nat. Alec knew that because of it being unable to dodge the poisonous gas spreading toward it would soon faint. Despite this, Nat was trying to hold out for long as possible until the poison that invaded its body would take its toll on him. Isaac's Fennekin also seemed to be down for the count as well.

Isaac was even about to call the shiny Fennekin back to its Pokeball, but then something spectacular happened. Alec knew immediately what the glow surrounding its body meant. It was evolving. Even the crowd grew silent, watching in awe as the small fox started to stand, and then the glow shot out, practically dissipating as soon as it did so, revealing a shiny Braixen in place.

"It looks like Miyuki is tryna say it's not gonna go down without a fight," Alec had finally spoken toward Isaac, unable to continue being silent. The excitement he felt radiating throughout his body was just simply too much to contain anymore. "Well, then. It seems like it's time for us not to hold back either! Luna! Nat! Give 'em all ya got! No holding back this time!" Alec said as his grin grew wider. Luna and Nat nodded, their eyes staring intently at their adversaries.

[player]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/971225190564507658/1087054595542487120/Fiend__with_Official_Lyrics_Sephirot_Theme_Final_Fantasy_XIV_1-compressed.mp3[/player]

The Sceptile, seemingly regaining its own vigor for battle within that moment, furiously pounded its own fists together, then slammed them both onto the ground. The impact seemed to make the ground rumble, instantly sprouting vines as thick as trees from various parts of the battlefield, while it was being contained within the general vicinity of the four pokemon. This was Nat's most powerful move - FRENZY PLANT!

The thick vines that sprouted from the earth also gave Luna the Espeon the ability to jump on them, allowing her to successfully dodge the Rockslide produced by the opposing Braixen's own PSYCHIC attack. However, she didn't stay on the thick vines for long, jumping off of it as soon as she reached a safe height. With a swish of her Tail, Luna had once again fired a SWIFT attack once more, one portion of the barrage of stars falling down on the newly-evolved Braixen, while the other barrage for the Scolipede, entwined itself around the thick vines produced by Nat's own Frenzy Plant. With the two attacks combined, and with the Frenzy Plant coming in seemingly every possible direction towards the poisonous bug, it was surely going to get hit by the Swift, if not by Nat's own Attack.

After Nat's energy had finally caught up with it, it fell to the ground, the poison finally making it unable to battle. Alec smiled lightly, swiftly taking Nat's Pokeball; returning it so that it could rest. "You did an amazing job, Nat. Rest easy," Alec said, placing it back on his belt, then grabbing yet another Pokeball. He proceeded to toss it out in front of him, it boomerangs back to his hands once an Aegislash appeared in front of Alec, allowing him to catch it.

"You've also done well," Speaking to Isaac once again. The crowd also seemed to agree with him, getting ever-so louder ever since Braixen finished its evolution process. However, the real question was whether or not the Braixen was still able to battle after Luna had attacked once again with her Swift attack. Alec knew that the Scolipede was surely done just like his Sceptile was, but he wasn't completely sure about the Braixen. Its evolution gave it enough energy to possibly have it keep going, but Alec figured to wait for the dust cloud that surrounded it from his Espeon's attack to go away. Even Luna, now on the ground again, safely landing on all fours, swished its tail back and forth, seemingly eager.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

TL;DR:
- Alec, unable to contain his excitement, finally speaks to Isaac. He also tells Nat and Luna to go all out and not hold back any longer.

- Nat the Sceptile obliges, using Frenzy Plant to attack the Scolipede, while also giving Luna the opportunity to hop on one of the thick vines sprouting near it; effectively dodging the Rockslide created by the newly-evolved Braixen.

- Luna the Espeon then proceeds to jump off the vine once it reaches a fairly safe height, Attacking both the Braixen and Scolipede with Swift. Due to the combination of Nat's Frenzy Plant and Swift gunning toward the Scolipede, making swift hit for sure, if not the Frenzy Plant.

- Nat the Sceptile finally succumbs to poison from the Scolipede's poison, fainting. Double KO on Alec's Sceptile and Isaac's Scolipede!

- Alec is unsure though whether or not Isaac's Braixen survived Luna the Espeon's Swift attack.

- Alec returns Nat the Sceptile and brings out Maximus, the Aegislash; revealing his 3rd Pokemon for the battle.

Isaac Merlo

Alec had thought that the Scolipede belonging to Isaac had fallen, however, he was somewhat surprised when what came out, bursting through the thick tree-branch-like vines was a Metagross. Alec had then turned, hearing Isaac speak to him once more, revealing that Scolipede had used BATON PASS, a move that allowed for it to be switched instantaneously with the massive hunk of metal. "Oh? Is that so? Then I'm flattered that you've managed to bring out you're strongest so early in the game," Alec said grinning. Alec wasn't also feigned from knowing a Metagross's full potential. They were far more durable than most steel types, as well as being flexible, due to their Psychic Typing. Alec also knew that the speed that Scolipede had, had been transferred to the Metagross, making it much faster. However, just because it was fast, did not mean it was 'unbeatable'. Alec had also considered that it may very well may possess the capability to Mega Evolve, making it even stronger.

While Isaac did seem to save his Scolipede due to quick thinking, he was also in a bit of a bind himself. His Braixen was also near its limit, despite having just evolved. Sure, Isaac brought out not just his strongest pokemon, but a pokemon in well enough condition to fight in place of the Scolipede out on the field, but he was still about to have his Braixen faint. What's more, is that Isaac had chosen for his Braixen to attack his Aegislash rather than Luna. If it had chosen to attack Espeon, then the chances of Alec losing would have been set in stone, granted it was still unclear as to who exactly would win the match just yet.

Despite Luna's prowess with her psychic abilities, she wasn't able to contain her psychic energy well enough to suppress things that were intangible, such as fire, which was the Braixen's choice, attacking the leftover vines from Nat's FRENZY PLANT with a FIRE BLAST. Alec had yet to answer Isaac, wanting to watch with curiosity, seeing that the attack produced by the Braixen was indeed for his sword. However, Aegislash wasn't just a sword. it was a shield as well, just as it was going to prove. It kept its SHIELD STANCE, producing a KING'S SHIELD - protective barrier, from the fiery attack while Luna danced around the falling debris, once again using SWIFT. Even if the Braixen managed to use ALLY SWITCH with the Metagross, it would still be faced with a defeat due to the attacking both of his pokemon. Luna's attack was also able to slice through the falling debris, due to it being weakened by the flames that scorched them, making Luna more able to dodge the remaining unscathed debris.

Once the finishing blow was dealt with to the fallen Braixen, Alec had finally spoken to Isaac. "It may be your strongest pokemon, but that doesn't mean I'll hand ya the victory right away. Show me what you got with this new round!" Alec said, his grin having not changed. After all, this battle only just started getting good.

---

SPOILER: Click to show

TL;DR:
- Alec is fully aware of the threat that now lies before him, being Isaac's Metagross. However, despite this, he and his pokemon are still determined to give the battle his all.

- Maximus defends against Braixen's use of Fire Blast with King's Shield, protecting itself from damage, while Espeon attacks both the Metagross and Braixen with Swift.

Isaac Merlo