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POSTED ON Mar 22, 2024 8:59:19 GMT

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the very next day, cian makes the long trek back to ever grande, a city full of memories both pleasant and sad, and walks up the many steps of the pokemon league before finally arriving at kyle lopez's battling chambers.

the top champion's battling chambers.

"it's time."

like a professional poker dealer, he lays the steel briefcase down, kneeling down to flick it open. inside are six pokeballs, each polished with care and love. he rotates the briefcase, showing them to the top champion.

"take your pick, my friend."

[attr="class","vctchampiontag"]kyle lopez

[attr="class","vctchampionpkmn"] ribbit (m) protean - double team, hydro pump, smokescreen, substitute, lick, smack down | WATER TERA

jingjok (f) protean - sucker punch, shadow sneak, power-up punch, recover, disable, toxic, substitute | SYGNA SYCNED + GHOST TERA

oldtree (m) natural cure - shadow claw, ingrain, wood hammer, phantom force, horn leech, curse

hopps (m) libero - bounce, flame charge, trailblaze, high jump kick, gunk shot, electro ball | FIGHTING TERA

maurice (f) telepathy - reflect, psychic noise, pain split, shadow ball, thunder, energy ball

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POSTED ON Mar 22, 2024 9:22:18 GMT

the screen on his chamber lights up as kyle turns it on. what it shows are cian's pokemon he chose for the battle, taking out the element of surprise.

"let's go ditto and oranguru," he tells cian. "i'm not sure why you're letting me choose though. just because you'll pass doesn't mean that i'll go easy."

despite his words, he chooses the pair of pokemon that can prove themselves difficult to maneuver around.

he releases his politoed and his glaceon to match cian's pokemon. together, they have no synergy. but it's the best choice if he were to face the two pokemon he had chosen.

cian still has the option not to pick the ones kyle chose though.

"ah, wait, were you trying to do something funny back there?" he guesses it would have been different if he didn't know what the pokemon inside each ball was.

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POSTED ON Mar 22, 2024 9:48:35 GMT

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"oh."

all he can do is stare at the screen that flickers on to reveal his choices. somewhere along the way, he must have forgotten that he had to register them into the system, but perhaps he was simply hopeful that kyle would play along.

in addition to making cian feel embarrassed, kyle also proceeds to choose the one pairing that doesn't make sense. for moments, cian debates actually using that combo.

"forget about it! no need to bring that up again. ever."

screw it. might as well win this challenge in style.

two pokeballs pop open, revealing the shiny duo. instantly, ditto TRANSFORMS into politoed, favoring it as it's most familiar with that species as cian has one as well. DRIZZLE activates, pouring rain but their mood does not dampen.

"by the way, when i beat ya, will you treat me to mcpognalds?"

already, oranguru is quick with the REFLECT.

[attr="class","vctchampiontag"]kyle lopez

[attr="class","vctchampionpkmn"] goop (-) drizzle - perish song, scald, mud bomb, encore, whirlpool, protect

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POSTED ON Mar 22, 2024 9:56:37 GMT

cian's ditto chose the wrong pokemon to copy.

"why not?" he engages in the banter. "but if you don't do your best, i'll be forced to fail you. i can treat you to ice cream if that happens. i'm talking the fancy ice cream places around here."

it was a bait that he dangles in front of cian, but knowing his resolve, he probably won't take it. bummer.

as rain drips down, a barrier appears in front of the oranguru, getting ready to defend against all attacks. they'll need it, since kyle will set up the tempo if cian doesn't opt for it.

"encore, politoed!" he orders his frog before moving on to his fox, "and glaceon, freeze-dry!"

the politoed claps its hands in front of the oranguru, forcing cian to either stay in and waste precious turns doing basically nothing, or switch out.

if it doesn't, he'll have to fight it with just his ditto, who now faces a super effective freeze-dry from kyle's pokemon.

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POSTED ON Mar 22, 2024 10:03:23 GMT

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"no way. you know i always give it my all."

the top champion deserves nothing less, after all, as even a sliver of that could result with cian losing the entire thing which would suck considering all the work he's put in to get here. ice cream wouldn't soften that blow, but he supposes it might help.

when the order is delivered to politoed, cian is quick to snap into battle, his mind racing as he calls out to his ditto.

"wait, shields up!"

thankfully, PROTECT forms in time to save oranguru from having to use the same move over and over again. sadly, FREEZE-DRY drains ditto's life quickly.

oranguru will have to make up for it with a jolt of THUNDER.

[attr="class","vctchampiontag"]kyle lopez

[attr="class","vctchampionpkmn"] goop (-) drizzle - perish song, scald, mud bomb, encore, whirlpool, protect

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POSTED ON Mar 22, 2024 10:12:32 GMT

thunder hits the politoed hard, but it manages to take it. however, it leaves it on its last legs as quick as the battle starts.

"encore again!"

this time, the target changes. the politoed looks at its counterpart and encores its protect. it's one of the consequences of playing hero.

"glaceon, you target the other guy this time."

using the rain, the glaceon releases its water pulse at the oranguru. increased water volume from the precipitation bombards the ape with a bigger attack, splashing maurice with a rain boosted move.

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POSTED ON Mar 22, 2024 10:24:33 GMT

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"dude that's so dirty."

but he can't really complain about it as it's fair and legal, the double ENCORE hitting harder than it would because oranguru had known TAUNT not too long ago. for some reason, it'd decided to forget it.

facepalming at the same realization, oranguru lets out a series of grunts that grow louder as it's doused in a WATER PULSE. it doesn't have rabies but it's not a fan of the water, it seems, as it screams back with another THUNDER at politoed again except this time it comes from the depths of its large gut.

stuck PROTECTING, ditto is useless.

[attr="class","vctchampiontag"]kyle lopez

[attr="class","vctchampionpkmn"] goop (-) drizzle - perish song, scald, mud bomb, encore, whirlpool, protect

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POSTED ON Mar 22, 2024 10:38:29 GMT

"isn't that your weakness?"

cian doesn't find himself fitting with rocket for a reason. there's a few levels of straightforward that people do in a fight, but cian takes another angle for it with his honest approach on things.

"this is still a champion assessment. we're still trying to see how you deal with things you're not used to dealing with."

despite using similar team templates as cian on his gym, kyle spins it in different ways that utilizes its pokemon more than just their reliance on weather. cian's familiar with how battles with weather go, and kyle waits for his challenger to bring out that experience into play to adapt to the situation.

"one more time!"

the glaceon, knowing that using protect consecutively was going to affect into nothing, runs at the transformed ditto and fires its freeze-dry up close.

kyle staggers the timing and keeps the momentum on his side. the politoed encores the maurice into another thunder at the cost of its field time. the second strike of the psychic-type knocks the pokemon out.

a manectric replaces the pokemon, finding it in a nice position against the pokemon named maurice.

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POSTED ON Mar 25, 2024 3:30:53 GMT

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"i know," he calls out in response, smiling despite the truth behind the champion's words, "i just like being dramatic."

on paper, CIAN MAHER is a very easy trainer to counter, his team revolves around the weather, often focusing on double-battles to leverage synergy and partnership. take that away and his biggest strength becomes his biggest weakness.

on paper, anyways. it's always different in practice, and cian's showing exactly how now.

FREEZE-DRY may faint ditto but its fate had been decided from the moment ENCORE struck. with oranguru all on its own, it continues firing off a THUNDER against manectric's LIGHTNING ROD.

the first round will go to kyle as soon as oranguru faints.

"interesting."

[attr="class","vctchampiontag"]kyle lopez

[attr="class","vctchampionpkmn"] goop (-) drizzle - perish song, scald, mud bomb, encore, whirlpool, protect

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POSTED ON Mar 25, 2024 5:43:36 GMT

the boost for the manectric comes, and with lightning rod helping it, even a move not meant for damage can be used as such.

charge beam finishes off the oranguru, putting an end to its misery.

"three versus two," kyle narrates. "how will the hoenn hotshot come back from this now?"

he had forgotten that cian had added another h to his acronym once again.

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POSTED ON Mar 25, 2024 6:50:08 GMT

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"you forgot handsome."

as does everyone, so he can't be too mad given how new the addition is. but this is kyle lopez, his friend, his buddy, so for them to forget once again after being corrected at least three times must mean it's meant as a slight on triple h.

they'll have to pay for that.

three against two, cian assumes the role of the underdog; a familiar role he has found himself cast in time and time again.

"easily."

he huffs, calling out his final two pokemon.

"watch."

froakie's DOUBLE TEAM fans out, calling back to their bread and butter during the vital city tournament, and all at once, they LICK manectric, intending to keep it busy to pave the way for raboot to close in.

FLAME CHARGE takes raboot crashing into glaceon.

[attr="class","vctchampiontag"]kyle lopez

[attr="class","vctchampionpkmn"] ribbit (m) protean - double team, hydro pump, smokescreen, substitute, lick, smack down | WATER TERA

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POSTED ON Mar 25, 2024 8:19:27 GMT

two ranged attackers have their spaces invaded by the speedsters of cian's team. both of them taking their first damage of the fight.

"oho?" there's surprise, waiting for the extra stuff that cian will do with these pokemon. "and what are you going to do after i do this?"

kyle whistles a tune.

the manectric discharges, spreading its electricity all over the place, frying each pokemon in the field, more particularly the clones of the froakie to get rid of them.

the glaceon finds itself on the receiving end after being hurt by flame charge. it sets up a mirror coat in the midst of being shocked, reflecting back electricity to the manectric, as well as the opposing pokemon around them.

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POSTED ON Mar 25, 2024 8:27:09 GMT

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what will they do once DISCHARGE sweeps across the battlefield to clear all the froakie clones?

"we persist."

his expression is determined, brave with friendly defiance as he nods at his froakie. once again, it DOUBLE TEAMS, splitting apart into numerous clones. together, they close in, charging with their arms behind their backs to SMACK DOWN the manectric.

"we fight."

raboot does not relent. it stays close to glaceon, not allowing it a moment to recover. it lunges low, then up for a HIGH JUMP KICK to try and knock it out.

"we conquer. but not that kinda conquer."

[attr="class","vctchampiontag"]kyle lopez

[attr="class","vctchampionpkmn"] ribbit (m) protean - double team, hydro pump, smokescreen, substitute, lick, smack down | WATER TERA

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POSTED ON Mar 25, 2024 8:44:03 GMT

"using high jump kick again? that's ballsy."

kyle was tempted to do the same gag as he did from yesterday, but he lets events play out this time. the glaceon puts up a barrier to defend against it, only for it to break when the raboot crashes.

the ice-type's feet struggle to get back up, but kyle recalls it before it can try.

what remains on the barrier protects the manectric from the rocks that the froakie threw, and had he not been an electric-type, it certainly could have been paralyzed.

on its place, it charges, ready to make use of the last bit of rain.

"but you really should be using other tricks." kyle calls out his mightyena. "or i'll start punishing your predictability."

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