She’d been so distracted by thoughts of a life she could never live that she had barely looked at the man – boy – she was challenging. His voice snapped her out of her daze and her eyes snapped to a familiar face. Surprise overtook what had just been a dull look. “Alec?” A moment’s pause heralded a fire relit in her eyes. “So you’re behind this! Think you’re going to get the edge up over me by getting a whole gym for yourself? Hah!” In the span of seconds, she was back to her regular self, shouting and wildly gesturing and mildly accusing anybody in her path.

“You’ve played yourself! Once I beat you, I’ll be one step closer to my goal.” In her head, a rivalry had already been established. That, or that was how she regarded everybody around her. “Down to business, I like it! I’ve got four guys with me here, and I’m a big fan of double battles! Great way to show how well me and my Camp work as a team, if you’ll allow it!”

A slight squint of the eyes, and another pause. Her smile faded some, and with it her voice lowered to a begruded grumble. “Oh, and… Congrats on getting your own gym, I guess. It's a very honourable position and I bet it wasn't easy to get.”

❤ wizz

“But when you put it like that, it sounds so simple! ‘I told a guy I’d get a gym, and then I just went and did it!’” She strolled up the steps behind him, having left her worries and stresses behind. Money might have been an issue for her, but there was no shortage of confidence as they approached the arena.

A few minutes of climbing took them to the top of the tower, and her to the challenger’s position. Finally, she felt in her element, and it showed. While Alec explained the rules, she took off her backpack and started stretching. One arm crossed the other as she nodded to him, several times in a row. “Sounds pretty normal to me. As long as you’re ready for the challenge, so am I!”

[player]http://k007.kiwi6.com/hotlink/pquczd8ixr/23._xxxxx.mp3[/player]
To nobody’s surprise, she found herself facing a pair of dragons. If anything, the sight of fierce beasts roaring onto battle only made her smile grow. She had the advantage of owning a Kommo-O, and while she’d yet to see a Salamence in battle, there was no better time to change that. Her hands dropped to her pockets, retrieving a pair of capsules. “Goliath, Bastion, let’s make a name for ourselves!”

Goliath was most likely to steal gazes. Between a height that easily dwarfed his trainer, a deep roar to match the dragons before him and a paler green that made it stand out even from other Tyranitar, the titan practically demanded the attention. His roar heralded the arrival of desert sands onto the battlefield, as each stomp of his feet spread the Sand Stream into the battlefield. In seconds, it spread onto the field, a ticking clock for any beast maladapted for the raging sands.

Annie to sending out a Pokemon that couldn’t bear being buffeted would be a terrible show of her talent, but the glossy shell of her golden Forretress’ seemed to shield it from the weather. The living shell stared don his enemies, his low growl trying to compete with his armoured ally.

“Let’s make this one to remember.”

❤ wizz

[player]http://k007.kiwi6.com/hotlink/pquczd8ixr/23._xxxxx.mp3[/player]
If the wide-eyed look Annie and Bastion shared was any indication, they were off to a bad start. The Forretress had one glaring weakness, and Alec wasted no time in exploiting it. “Goliath!” She didn’t need to finish a command; training had taught the titan that that level of concern that early into a fight only meant one thing. It likely came as no surprise to the dragon tamer that a Tyranitar wasn’t the fastest of Pokemon, but his strength allowed him one mighty jump, landing in front of his partner to bear the heat. What should have been a critical blow for Bastion was much less so for the Armour Pokemon, but combined with the Clanging Scales that followed suit, he looked annoyed mere seconds into the battle. It wouldn't last long, for the sandstorm bolstered the defenses of a beast already lauded for its strength, but it was an early warning that the gym leader meant business.

Behind them, Annie could be seen biting her lip, if only for a second.. Concern and sympathy weren’t the traits that earned a Tyranitar’s respect, so neither of those would be voiced. “Alright, I see how this is gonna go. Bastion, Toxic Spikes!” The shell was even slower than his battle partner, but without legs, he made do with hopping out from behind Goliath. Its two frontal cannons fired violet orbs towards the enemy’s side, but they exploded short of reaching them, into an army of same-coloured caltrops. They sunk but a centimetre into the ground, seemingly settling themselves into the battlefield, and making themselves a stubborn presence on the enemy’s side if they hoped to cross over.

“Goliath, Rock Slide on Rex! Take him out of the sky!” In the absence of a cave wall, he raised his arms and summoned rocks out of nothing, several feet above his person. The array of rocks were sent flying towards the winged beast. Fortunately for Annie, boulders flew much faster than either of her Pokemon, but would it be fast enough?

❤ wizz

[player]http://k007.kiwi6.com/hotlink/pquczd8ixr/23._xxxxx.mp3[/player]
Oh, Protect. Annie’s favourite least favourite move. “Practical, but super lame,” she scoffed, folding her arms as the glared at the shield. Her feeling towards the move didn’t change that it would bring an abrupt end to most of her battle plans. Only most, though. As long as Bastion was on the field, and the sandstorm chipped away at her enemies, all she had to do was run out the clock. With that in mind, it wasn’t too surprising that his words wouldn’t make her waver.

Goliath held steadfast as the gym leader gave his commands, shifting his glance back towards Annie. Her face had steeled, knowing enough from her own Kommo-o to realise that what came next was going to suck… But they could make the most of it. That was what Annie did best, after all. Still, there was something to be said for the man commanding his Pokemon to cross the field, without regard for the array of poisonous spikes she’d spread moments before. She wasn’t going to call him out on something that could only benefit her, but whether or not the poison would take hold remained to be seen.

“Dragon Dance.” The Tyranitar gained a glow to match the beast charging his way. “Get ready.” He snarled, staring down what was sure to be the source of a world of pain. “Grab him!” The sound of the dragon hitting dinosaur echoed throughout the hall, as did the roar of a Goliath greatly wounded. Ken succeeded in felling the beast, but he was only down, not out. Following through on his trainer’s orders, he wrapped his arms around the Kommo-o as he dropped, attempting to pull him to the ground, or at least on top of him, leaving him exposed to a-

“Ice Fang!” Bolstered by the Dragon Dance, and too arrogant to let the damage wind him, Goliath opened his maw wide. Glimmers of ice shards could be caught amongst his fangs before he sank them into the foe that dared challenge him… Even if he meant he didn’t have long left in the fight. Both trainer and Pokemon understood as much. In fact, the Tyranitar embraced it as a sign that the world knew it was a threat.

That left the unassuming Bastion, bound to be next on the chopping block. “Bas, get an Iron Defense going.” Cannons and eyes withdrew into a closed shell, which coated itself in a metallic sheen. It wasn’t quite as show-stopping as his partner’s wrestling show, but the Forretress had a part to play, and it was doing it well.

❤ wizz

[player]http://k007.kiwi6.com/hotlink/pquczd8ixr/23._xxxxx.mp3[/player]
Goliath didn’t need any further orders. With his prey trapped in his grasp, he’d already decided that only one of them would walk out of the scuffle. The heart of the sandstorm only partially obscured the sight of two titans thrashing about, with Annie’s dinosaur undeterred by the Iron Defense. If one Ice Fang didn’t do the trick, then two had to make a dent. Another Outrage forced him to read his head back, and for a moment it seemed that their battle had come to an end… He raised his head again, mustering the ice shards within his mouth, but the pain caught up to him before he could commit to one last attack. Goliath lay back on the floor, defeated, but his end did nothing to quell the sands.

Annie’s gaze was elsewhere. The Flamethrower was expected, and in the absence of a living shield, her prediction had lessened what could have been a knockout blow. Another rush of fire could take him out of the fight, and even by (or especially by) gym leader’s standards, Alec didn’t seem keen on letting her Pokemon stay standing. “You’re going out like a champ, Bastion! Get up there with a Gyro Ball!”

The mass of shell that was Forretress wasn’t well known for its speed, which could only help it when it came to using the move. He launched himself into the air, rapidly spinning until its body was but a blur of pink and red. 120 kilograms of spinning steel was dead-set on slamming into the Salamence’s back, with no regard for a counterattack or the toxic spikes waiting for them below.

That left the trainer, purse-lipped, to regard her fallen fighter. “Did your job well,” she muttered, returning him to his Pokeball. In his place, an Excadrill was summoned. Another Pokemon immune to the weather, Quake immediately set his sights on the Salamence. “Get ready, buddy. We got the slow set-ups out of the way. Now I’ll need you to kick some butt.”

❤ wizz

[player]http://k007.kiwi6.com/hotlink/pquczd8ixr/23._xxxxx.mp3[/player]
It came as no surprise to anybody that Bastion was dealt a finishing blow, but seeing her beast taken out still brought a twitch to Annie’s eye. At the very least, things weren’t looking completely hopeless. With one of Alec’s Pokemon down, something close to a smile returned to her face, marred and masked by the tough battle before her. “I thought this would be an easy match, but you’re really making me work for this.” Her sentence was punctuated by the thud of a Forretress hiding the ground, unable to force itself upright.

“Sturdy as ever, Bas. Don’t worry, we’ve got this.” A few words of motivation were enough to bring out her smirk as she returned the Pokemon. Her final Pokemon took its place – a fierce-faced Lucario. He shifted into a fighting stance, but Annie’s commands stopped him short of moving in. “Hold tight, Cairo. Quake, use Dig!” When the Excadrill dived into the ground, his claws and head combining to form one oversized blade, there was no question as to why he was the Drill King. “Wait. Aren’t we up high? …I sure hope this floor is thick, because I don’t have repair money.”

She kept a careful eye on the Goodra. If it was anything like her Escargoo, the forecast was about to get hectic…

❤ wizz