“Oh yeah, has he now?” Navy’s smiling the same old smile. Erin cheers at the sight of the familiar trainer. Mizuho’s eyes fall on the tiny Gible. She licks her lips.[break][break]
“Alright then, Champ-in-the-making. Let’s see what you’ve got. You’d better think fast. This gal means business.”[break][break]
Mizuho is unrelenting. She evolved through leisure rather than strife, but that doesn’t make her any weaker than Navy’s other fully evolved Pokemon. She’s still carved out a niche for herself on Navy’s team. A premier poisoner, she opens her mouth. Poison spills out of her gullet. A torrent of the stuff is launched with the force of a water gun at Gubli.[break][break]
Venoshock is a hell of a thing. He doesn’t give her the luxury of the first move. That’s the tiny taste of the gym challenge awaiting her that he affords Kara.

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+ Kara Li

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She’s not lying, the little guy is fast. Gible are renowned for their speed. They only grow faster with age and evolution. By the time one evolves into a Garchomp, they’re faster than anything that big has any right to be.[break][break]
Neither trainer nor Pokemon seem particularly perturbed. The thing about kids is that they have a lot of energy, but they crash hard when they tucker out. Navy and Mizuho aren’t that close, but their mindsets are synced up on this matter.[break][break]
“There’s a problem with this strat.” He’s forced to say as the Gible bulldozes over Mizuho, made far less impressive by the size difference between the two. His Salazzle takes advantage of the proximity between herself and her opponent. Unleashing a toxic cloud, she aims to poison the poor little deal.[break][break]
“Corrosion’s a heck of a thing.”

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Putting his hands in his pocket, the gym leader gives a confident smile. Gubli’s whimper of pain gives his own heart a pang of sorrow, but he can’t let that show. Mizuho is rubbing her side, where the little Gible bulldozed over her. For a baby, he packs a mean punch. Give the little guy some proper training and he’s going to be a real terror.[break][break]
“I think the poison’s taken. This is my victory already, Kara.” He boldly declares. “She can just retreat outside the sandstorm. Until he’s given an antidote, Gubli’s going to grow progressively weaker and weaker. Did you ever study up like I told you? Mizuho here’s a fire and poison type. Poison types are especially dangerous. My best gym trainer’s a poison type specialist.”[break][break]
Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki is murder on a battlefield with her poison Pokemon. Navy can’t hold a candle to her on that front. Such is the price he pays for being a generalist in a world of specialists.[break][break]
Mizuho listens to her trainer’s impromptu instructions, retreating outside of the sandstorm, hovering on the edge of the pitch. Per official League rules, that might take some points away from him. Team Rocket little cares about points or fair play.
“Don’t worry, he’s not in any immediate danger. He’ll pass out, but it takes a while for this poison to kill. An antidote you can buy at any Pokemart can cure him right up.”[break][break]
He hopes she’ll take this for what it is: a good lesson.[break][break]
“Huh. I should look into terastallization. That’d be real handy when dealing with sandstorms, turning my Pokemon into steel-types.” He thinks out loud, critiquing his own tactics.

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+ Kara Li

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Neither the trainer nor Pokemon expect what comes next. It earns her Navy’s admiration and Mizuho’s ire. Gunmetal eyes shoot open at what she says. Finishing this one way or the other…[break][break]
That’s more than trainer talk. That’s a warrior’s spirit. So often, in his day to day life, Navy looks relaxed. The consummate, career big brother. An easygoing guy who can work hard and play hard. Her words light the same fire in him that Rocket grunt did in the caves they’re standing over.[break][break]
Mizuho is knocked off balance by the rumbling of the earth. She’s hot, knocked out of the pitch. If Gubli was grown up, that attack would have crushed her. Only now does Navy realize…[break][break]
Whether she realized it or not…[break][break]
She counter-picked him.[break][break]
The smile broadens.[break][break]
“Clever girl.” Taking his hand out of his pocket, Navy points into the sandstorm. Mizuho’s seeing stars. One more hit like that and she’s out. A baby almost took out a fully-grown Pokemon, a gym leader’s Pokemon. There’s victory in that alone.[break][break]
“Alright, Mizuho. We’ve got one move left in the tank. Let’s make it count. Dragon Pulse.” While no dragon herself, Mizuho’s line must have traces of dragon blood. Opening her mouth, a pulse of pure power exits, rolling over the pitch. Thanks to the inhibitors built into the field, it doesn’t extend to the cheering crowd, but it reverberates across the pitch. Even a creature veiled in sand is sure to be hit by that.[break][break]

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+ Kara Li

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“Man.” Navy says, impressed. “That fella’s got spirit. Can’t wait to see what he’s like when he evolves.” Vortigern’s going to hate Gubli. They’re the antithesis of one another, a king of the wild and a prince raised with human love.[break][break]
There will be time to reflect on such high notions later. For now, Navy rushes to Gubli’s side. The antidote is already in his hands. They’re universal and even work on Nihilego venom. It’s prudent to keep a few vials around. Pulling it out, he finds a serviceable patch of skin and injects the antidote directly into Gubli’s bloodstream.[break][break]
While it wouldn’t restore Gubli’s strength, they’d need to visit a Pokemon Center for that, it did its job. Around them, the crowd cheers. It’s a spirited performance, a battle worth telling their friends about. Dewford hasn’t seen a match like that in years. The battle beneath the sea hardly counted. No one was smiling that day except the psychopaths on both sides.[break][break]
“Heh. Man. My gym can’t open soon enough. It’ll be fun to have you take the challenge. You did really, really well.” Navy states the opinion of the crowd for her plainly.

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+ Kara Li

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They’re pretty words. Words that resound with his own heart. He’s not the sort of person who likes to lose, either. He’s got a promise to keep, after all. Still, she’s in tears. The tears remind him of Gabe, too.[break][break]
“My brother cried the first time I beat him, too.” Navy muses. “He had this Gyarados – big, scary guy. Raised him from when he was a little Magikarp we bought on the street. Ironsides, my Skarmory, beat him soundly. Guess he thought he’d win his first fight.” He sounds nostalgic, but his lips curl towards stern neutrality.[break][break]
“You’ve gotta accept that you’re going to lose sometimes. You’re going to be overwhelmed. I’ve told you this before, but you’re going to meet plenty of trainers here who don’t play fair. Get stronger. Get as strong as you can. You’re gonna need to be that strong. There are plenty of people who are still better trainers than me. Come at me as many times as you want, Kara. I’ll be waiting.” He offers the girl a fist bump while she cradles her friend, a promise that she can train with him as much as she needs along her journey.

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+ Kara Li

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