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[attr="class","athread"]Deep down, she was glad that the Sky Attack went for the rogue instead of herself. The lack of pain was a big plus, but more importantly, it left the bird open for her sword’s special. A katana enhanced by a liquid blade didn’t look like it should have been a table-turned, but Fishious Rend’s power boost from striking fast was enough to ground the songbird, taking two thirds of its health as payment for striking her friend.

The Altaria managed to stand upright, but far too late. Its recovery had left ample time for the rogue to move in and finish the job.

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[attr="class","athread"]She’d already spent her two best ideas, but that had never stopped her from trying before! She stopped short of approaching the sword, standing about six feet away. Charging Anchor Shot summoned a length of chain into her hands – one that she could use to lasso the Honedge. With one mighty yank, she hoped to pull the sword free – or at least stop the sword from reaching to kill her, right?

Wrong.

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[attr="class","athread"]Two advantages lost before the battle had begun. She’d given up her opportunity to choose the best Pokemon to face his, and in turn, he’d chosen counters to her Campers. That Gyarados was going to be a pain, but- ‘That's fine’, she reminded herself, ‘and good practice'. If she couldn’t win without a handicap, then she didn’t deserve to win anyway. Besides, the choices could have been worse. Her Songbird’s Cloud Nine would have put an annoying end to her fun, as would a Pelipper with Drizzle. Maybe he didn’t have them, or maybe he was sparing her the frustration.

She’d figure out which of the two he preferred in short order. The Pidgeot could still attempt to blow away the sands, and if the Gyarados had Rain Dance… Well, she’d cross that bridge when she got to it.

“This’ll be a toughie, but we’ve got this! Goliath, Vamp, start the match!”
[player]http://k007.kiwi6.com/hotlink/pquczd8ixr/23._xxxxx.mp3[/player]
Undeterred by a fellow roaring beast, the Tyranitar released his ability. Harsh winds picked up the sands surrounding his body, embracing the arena in a storm rarely seen outside of Hoenn’s desert. Annie’s Pokemon would weather it without a problem thanks to their types, but the same likely couldn’t be said for the enemy.

“Vamp, get moving!” She’d chosen the two for a reason, which revealed itself once the Gliscor leapt up, spread his wings and dived into the sandstorm. No doubt, the master of avians knew that their kind were gliders, not fliers, relying on the wind to carry them around without a sound. Winds that Goliath had provided to carry the sand around the field. Hearing wouldn’t help them find the scorpion, and the sands made keeping an eye on him difficult. Sand Veil had revealed itself, making their battle a little more difficult.

“Screech on the Pidgeot!” Vamp let the winds carry him to the other end of the field, landing parallel to his enemies. An ear-splitting cry announced his presence to the pair - especially the bird, who he hoped to catch off guard. “Goliath, Rock Slide!” In the absence of a mountain to break apart, the titan raised his arms and created jagged orbs above himself. A flurry of them would fly to rain down upon his enemies.

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[attr="class","athread"]It was a testament to her bird calls that she’d attracted a pair of Staravia to the tower. The would-be assassin was a bother, but seeing as they’d found a shared goal in hunting the birds, she let him be. Getting the items was her priority, and picking an unnecessary fight would only waste time that she needed to join the boss fight.

The one that swooped inside charged at her with a Quick Attack, but not before Intimidate ensured she’d be fighting with a handicap. Not that that worried her – the bird’s eagerness to strike allowed her to counter with a Fishious Rend, spelling the end of its existence.

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[attr="class","athread"]She opened her mouth to argue, but quickly decided that it wasn’t worth the effort. That, and the sight of Farfetch’d sparked frustration within her. Remnants of an especially annoying quest had nestled themselves in her head, and she charged without a second thought. A grounded bird renders the discussion moot, and two Breaking Swipes makes quick work of the mob. “Don’t need ranged attacks. I just need to be good and smart.” And have a few ranged attacks as backup, but he didn’t need to know that yet.

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[attr="class","athread"]She chose the terms, but she had to reveal her Pokemon first. A fair compromise. If her smile didn’t voice her thoughts, a nod and some words would do the trick shortly after. A pair of Pokeballs were withdrawn, and a slight raise of her brow warned the gym leader to step away.

A Gliscor was sent onto the field first. He was right at home amongst his fellow flying-types, though a fixed menacing grin from him didn’t seem to show love for them. Standing at a metre tall, his presence was dwarfed by his partner Pokemon. The Tyranitar was over twice his height, a dirtier shade of green than his kin, and was barely containing his Sand Stream. It swirled around him, as if he were the centre of its spiral galaxy, but once the battle began all bets were off. As always, Goliath announced his arrival with a roar and a stomp that introduced tremors to the arena.

“He’s excited. So am I.”

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[attr="class","athread"]The rumours were true. An outdoor arena, with a special emphasis on fresh air. There’s the slightest of frowns on Annie’s face while his back is turned. She’d realised he likely wouldn’t be happy with her choice of Pokemon. Neither would the avians that made up their audience, if all went to plan.

Oh well. Nobody could accuse her of putting on a boring show, at least.

“Heh, yeah, right…” Uneasy answers stopped short of giving strong agreement, and instead she focused on the reason she was there. “Actually… If it’s all the same to you, I’m really trying to make a name for myself as a double battler! Partnering Pokemon is the key to unlocking new strengths from both of them, y’see. I bet you’ve got two guys that go really well together, so now’d be a great time to put that to the test!” Besides, he totally owed her for letting his Pokemon rob her of oxygen.

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[attr="class","athread"]A smile plastered itself on Annie’s face, but it was born of a creeping anxiety. Fortunately the woman salvaged the conversation before Annie had to. “No worries, no worries! You look pretty young to me, so you’ve got plenty of time!” Katherine had earned a rare compliment from a child that thought most grown-ups had one foot in the grave. “Honestly, if you’d asked me a few months ago what I wanted to do, I’d barely be able to give you an answer, but… this feels right.” A confident nod affirms her own words.

“I’ve got the skill for it, and let’s be real, I’ve got the face too. But more than anything… I think that I could really make a difference! A girl like me’s got a story, and she’s just big-headed enough to think it might help somebody-“

A burst of lava from the floor sent Hocus flying. Annie’s head whipped round, searching for the source of the Earth Power, and she found its source in a living sandcastle. “Shit, this guy’s going to wreck somebody’s house. Hocus?!” The fox landed with a thump several feet away, downed but not out. The girl’s eyes whipped back and forth, thinking through their options. Her fox was at a sore disadvantage… But he was still a Camper, and that meant he was a trooper.

“Get a Fire Blast going!” One hand supported his body as he crouched, while the other wielded his wand to unleash the inferno. Sand was hard to torch, but the Palossand hunching over showed that the flames had done a number on it nonetheless. A thrown Pokeball put an early end to its rampage.

“…Sure hope nobody lived under there.” She hurried over to help Hocus onto his feet, leaving the Pokeball to decide the wildling’s fate.

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[attr="class","athread"]Okay, so maybe Rock Slide hadn’t been the secret to success, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t onto something! When she returned to the sword (ensuring that no glaring eyes met hers, after her little stunt), it was with another ‘brilliant’ idea. She placed both hands on the hilt, looked towards the sky… And used Accelerock. The move didn’t call for a target, only a direction, so in theory she could rocket herself and the sword upwards, right?

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[attr="class","athread"]“I’ll be the judge of that.” She spoke with the final authority on all matters pleasurable – or at least, tried to give that impression. It was easy to believe that she bought into her own words, judging by her smile. Relaxed with a cocky edge, with both eyes closed as she settled into the water-

One opened, then the other. Both were less than impressed with what she’d heard. “I wouldn’t call one class being immune to half the big CCs balanced either. I’d much rather see their success rates dropped. The ranged fighters running around with damaging moves that also have a guaranteed chance to land a status are the lamest thing I’ve seen so far… And the more people see moves like that, the more they’re going to pick them up for their own builds. Pretty soon, every fight is just gonna be a game of who can stop the other person from acting first.” Which sucked for the little warrior, but she didn’t need to say as much; her tone did the talking.

It took Orion dropping the F-bomb for her to lighten up. Quiet giggles were heard as he explained his struggle, and a toothy grin showed itself long before he finished. She was all too eager to share her secret: “You’ve gotta do it like a Hawlucha! Or at least, my Hawlucha. Run straight to your destination. Never take your eyes off your goal. Throw your head back, and just-“ She demonstrated, making sure that the trio could “HAIIIII-LA-YA-LA-YA-LA!”

Without missing a beat, she dropped to a more reasonable volume. “And to everybody else, you look nucking futs, and nobody wants to mess with the nucking futs player. Who knows what they’ll do next! So they watch and stare, but they never act. It’s all about how well you sell the insanity, so confidence is everything.”

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[attr="class","athread"]Steal had a point there… Getting a kill would be a chore if they had to fight against status effects to do anything. Combined with his attack telling her where the man had been hiding… The choice was simple. There was the trouble of the fist-fighter rushing towards her, but the moment the woman changed her mind-

“Watch your back!” She trusted that her ally could hold his own for a few seconds. Her sights turned from the fleeing brawler to the interloper up above. Her sword, still planted into the earth, was pulled towards her. The other end launched a boulder into the air and across the field, rushing to land a Smack Down on him. One way or another, the rock would make him move.

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