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May of Ordinance (fifth part)
May 20th, 2015
May 20th, 2015
"McCloud, start with a quick Reflect."
Nori smirked. Time to open with a bang. "Demon, Earth Power."
And this caught literally everyone but Nori's Pokemon off-guard. Nobody - and most importantly, not Tono - was expecting them to open with their best move right out of the gate.
"McCloud, get out of there!" the nerd warned.
But there was no avoiding it, let alone when stationary to use Reflect swiftly. While the electric fox did manage to get up the mystical wall, the ground erupted beneath his feet before he could even think to take evasive action. A direct hit!
"You...!" Tono cursed. His Pokemon was already feeling the battle seven seconds into it. "Return fire! The strongest Thunderbolt you can give!"
They were ready for that. "Duck behind a pillar, my Demon."
The Nidorina dashed off, but McCloud was too quick. Nori wasn't concerned at his Pokemon being zapped. She shook it off for the most part.
"Approach," he told her, letting her decide how.
Tono snorted. "Meet it with a Thunder Fang."
The Demon sliced with Cut, only managing a glancing blow. Right after, McCloud bit her with electrified fangs. Yet she somersaulted over the Jolteon's body and starting kicking.
"Double Kick?" Tono mused. "Roll over and do the same."
McCloud flipped onto its back. The audience was traded to the amusing sight of both Pokemon using the same attack in a different way. Feet were meeting feet, the Demon getting the better–
Wait! "It's coming!"
"Thunder Wave."
The Demon also realized, creatively countering by turning her kicking into a push. The weak burst of electricity went wild as McCloud was flipped onto his feet, somehow hitting the floor and the ceiling without getting anywhere near the Demon.
Tono harrumphed. "Once more."
The Demon was already off and running. She got a considerable distance away before McCloud gathered his bearings, and was able to avoid this with a simple hop to the side. The boy huffed. They could NOT afford paralysis this early in the battle. That said, the Demon actually was hitting her foes legs during that exchange, but not strongly enough.
"So you understand my strategy," Tono remarked. "Perhaps you're not as dull as I believed. But..." And with this he turned to his Pokemon. "McCloud. Fire Pin Missile all around the Demon."
Nori figured this was coming. The Jolteon got down and tensed up. The Demon charged, only to be cut off by a barrage of electric needles fired right in front. Her reaction was instant, yet so was McCloud's. He guessed correctly, cutting her off as she went to the left, then spreading more to the right. They were everywhere but behind her.
The boy raised a hand as she was backing out. His instinct turned out correct given Tono's next order.
"Now hit it. Thunder Wave."
"Jump over?" Nori asked, uncertain if his Pokemon could actually pull this off. He waited and...yes, should could! A perfect and clean jump over the burst!
"Very well," said Tono. "McCloud, Agility and Thunderbolt." And here came that. It looked kind of like a makeshift Swift Bolt or much faster Wild Charge.
"R-roll away!" Nori stammered. There was no way out of this. They were either going to be struck by the Pokemon, or had to go into the spines willingly! The Demon understood, taking a dive just as McCloud went for a jumping tackle. She hissed as the needles dug into her body, but the bigger problem was Tono's wicked grin.
"Right where we want you," he said. "Hyper Voice."
McCloud let out an ear-piercing shriek as the Demon was rolling and shaking some of the spikes off. She had no chance to do anything about this. Yet to Nori's delight, she regained her bearings at once and lunged.
"What!?" Tono blurted, as his Pokemon was nicked by a Shadow Claw. "Body Slam!" He jumped up to make the attack, but the Demon ran beneath.
"Cut its legs out!" said Nori as she whirled around. She did just that, landing a solid blow. "Excellent!" She was able to land a second, this one a paw strike.
"Escape, McCloud!" warned Tono, before the Demon could go in for a third. He did so, darting away from his opponent and out of melee. Undeterred by those blows.
Fine by Nori. "Keep your distance and wait for the chance."
What followed next was about a minute and a half long exchange where neither Pokemon managed to land a hit. The Demon goaded them to come closer, which McCloud and Tono refused to. The pillars came in handy as cover. Stall, that was the strategy. The longer the fight went on, the more it would be in their favor. But how long would it take to tire them out?
"Why don't you come closer, coward?" Nori taunted.
"Not a chance," replied Tono. "Hyper Voice."
Well, worth a try. The Demon ducked back behind a pillar in irritation, covering her ears as best she could. Because of that, she barely if at all felt it.
"You've been doing well to keep up thus far, but it is time to show you the difference in our abilities." Nori didn't like the look in Tono's eyes. "Agility. Encircle it."
McCloud bolted off. He started running circles around the pillar, picking up so much speed that he became nothing more than a white and yellow blur dashing around at two or three revolutions per second. They'd trapped the Demon, again. She might be able to jump out of there, but it wasn't likely. Might even be dangerous.
The Demon ran up to strike the whirling Jolteon, but Tono said, "Light it up."
At once, the Jolteon began emitting electricity once more, effectively creating a ring of electricity around the Demon. She went for a Shadow Claw, but McCloud didn't even seem to feel it. They were completely stuck!
Nori glanced down at a concerned Pachi, and suddenly relaxed. This was actually playing into his hands. Tono's Pokemon wasn't doing anything but running around tiring himself out, right?
It seemed the Demon was about to do something. Earth Power, from how she was posing. He nodded his approval. May as well.
"Now direct the Thunderbolt inwards!"
What?! McCloud did just that, turning the interior of the ring into a circle of doom. The Demon's response was to cling onto the pillar in the split interval when it was blocking the electricity. It worked to escape, and she was poised to jump onto her foe as soon as the attack halted.
Tono pointed. "Thunder Wave."
The Jolteon had trouble stopping, but easily blasted the charging Demon. She tensed up, her Shadow Claw swing only grazing McCloud - but it was enough for the electric fox to panic and scamper away while he could.
"Not yet," Nori said. "We're, uh, not done yet!" He masked his order for the Demon not to eat the Cheri Berry that she was hiding in her mouth right away. She glared. "Shut up and trust me!" he yelled.
"Is this a miscommunication between trainer and Pokemon?" Tono taunted.
"She's listening!" She wasn't happy about her stiff muscles, but she was begrudgingly going along with it. They had to time this right to surprise them. Better yet, Tono may not have realized the Demon wasn't using biting moves. And something else didn't escape his notice. McCloud had taken a moment to catch his breath after all that.
"Get ready to Skull Bash," said Nori.
She squatted down and...tensed up. Tono laughed evilly.
"Hidden Power, McCloud."
Great, was it a mistake not to use it immediately? She was in no condition to evade the circling balls of energy that emerged from the electric fox. At least he knew that one was Water type.
"Next, Thunderbolt."
Pachi clutched Nori's leg. He glanced down at the nervous squirrel, who yelled a warning to his comrade. The Demon thankfully barely evaded this, albeit clumsily. She spared Pachi a glare.
"Rush in with a Body Slam," Tono said, surprisingly bringing the battle back in close. He was up to something...
"Block this one, Demon," Nori urged.
McCloud rushed forward. The teal beast readied herself, and managed to use sheer power to shove the electric fox away as he jumped at her.
"Iron Tail, McCloud."
The Jolteon was like greased lightning, able to twirl around and catch her with his spiky tails before she could get her guard up again. She stumbled back a step, and Tono's next order came right on impact.
"Finish it. Thunderbolt."
Nori thought fast. "Poison Jab the throat."
The Demon lunged, her front left paw glowing purple, making contact before her foe could act. She prickled herself on the Jolteon's spiny neck - where electricity was mainly generated - but her foe was way worse off. McCloud was left coughing and gasping for air, the move interrupted.
What to do? Eat the berry, or get back now? "Now..." He looked closer and saw his Pokemon starting to shake as she tried to follow through.
"Fall back, McCloud." Tono maintained his composure, and worse, so did his Pokemon. "Are you well?" A nod in response. "Good. No nonsense with poison that would need Refreshing."
If only he were that lucky. "You're the nonsense one!"
"This is not nonsense. It is intelligent, high-level strategy."
"It's stupid!"
As the trainers were exchanging words, McCloud was showing off a cruel side of his own, playing keep-away from the slowed Demon.
The Gym Trainer dismissively waved a hand. "This is the difference between you and me, fraud."
"Shut up and make a mistake already!"
"Pathetic," said Tono. "A pathetic tactic of a desperate imbecile who knows the end is in sight." He turned to his Pokemon, arms crossed. "It is time to end this, McCloud. Trap that Demon with an encircling Hidden Power."
McCloud summoned innumerable energy globes. A stark contrast to its earlier use, he threw them out in an odd pattern as to restrict movement.
"Wait," said Nori. The Demon probably could crash through them like she did with the Pin Missiles, but with the battle starting to exact its toll, he wanted to have her avoid damage.
Tono put his fingers together, indicating this was the wrong move. "Finish it. Shadow Ball." If he noticed the brief sheen fading over his Pokemon, he didn't care.
It was now or never. "Now."
It happened all at once. McCloud opened his maw, the darkness rising from his throat into another, larger ball. The Demon bit into her Cheri Berry and swallowed. It started taking effect immediately, and she didn't need to be told what to do next. On pure adrenaline, she skidded beneath the Shadow Ball and went headfirst into Jolteon, sending him careening back. The crowd and Pachi cheered. The electric fox rolled to his feet, but was about to get a claw to the face.
"Agility," Tono calmly replied. And the fox charged away, making the Demon swipe air. "Cheap play."
"Yeah?" Nori twirled his hand and pointed as the last bit of stiffness left his Pokemon's muscles. "Reflect's down, paralysis is gone, and we're not going to let you get them back up!"
"It won't be necessary." He turned to McCloud. "This charade's gone on long enough. End it with Thunderous Iron Tail."
He was actually using that?!
"What the hell?! Behind!" He frantically pointed in a panic as the crowd gasped. The Demon nodded and went to do so as their foe launched into the air. He doubted she could dodge this, so she had to take cover! A combination move that comes down with pinpoint accuracy. Haruna countered it, but he didn't have a Hydro Cannon!
It did little good. McCloud struck with the sound of a thunderclap, and with about as much force as one. He crashed into the pillar - the same pillar struck by that Torterra yesterday. The electric fox cried out as the object buckled and ultimately got knocked loose. The Demon whirled around to pounce, before noticing and eyeing the pillar warily. The whole thing teetered precariously before toppling entirely.
Volkner flinched and took several steps away. McCloud scurried a considerable distance before stumbling to the floor. Many people covered their ears in anticipation of the deafening sound. They could only watch in shock, much like Nori. While the pillars were lighter than one might expect, it still shook the entire building as it crashed down. Nori cringed, closing an eye as his ears started ringing. Pachi hugged his trainer's leg for dear life, startled by the shaking. And Tono just stood there like a badass, glasses glimmering in the light as his hair billowed.
Soon, the reverb stopped. It'd been ten seconds since impact. McCloud had managed to crawl back to his feet, wincing and whining from the pain of crashing tail-first into a solid object. But there was no sign of the Demon. There was no way she got crushed beneath. There was no way. Right?
Unable to shake the dread, Nori took two tentative steps forward. He stopped when Volkner ran over to do so. The man vaguely nodded.
"The Demon can still continue."
The boy nearly collapsed in relief. He only didn't do so because Tono gave another order, forcing him to keep focus.
"Jump over after her and use Thunderbolt," he calmly said. Yet his Pokemon was slow to respond; his exhaustion was showing, and there had to be some bad recoil on that move. "Come on, McCloud! Just a little more!"
The Demon gave them no time. She leaped atop the fallen pillar, and at that brief moment where she was standing tall, Nori finally noticed his Pokemon wasn't much better off. Her body had a bit of bruising and a nasty electrical burn across her midsection. Yet unlike her foe, she was unbothered by her injuries. She roared and came down on the Jolteon.
A Cut. A Body Slam. Even a Crunch. The Demon was fighting like a wild beast. McCloud was desperately evading, yet still being clipped by the barrage of attacks.
"Stop it!" Tono yelled, furious and focused. "Clamp on with Thunder Fang!"
McCloud opened his mouth and snapped down on her front left shoulder as she went for another Crunch. She countered this with a blow to the underside with her front right paw.
"So do you know our strategy?" Nori asked, with a cheeky grin.
"I realized a while ago. Tiring McCloud out isn't going to work, as–" Tono was attentive enough to notice his Pokemon had been grabbed.
This was it! This was their chance! "Right now, Earth Power!"
"Thunderbolt!"
The Demon focused all of her efforts into executing this one attack, as McCloud gathered whatever energy he could muster. Both trainers leaned in close to see which would come first.
It was the Jolteon's move. Nori tensed as his Pokemon was lit up by electricity coursing through her entire body. McCloud roared, straining to give the attack everything he could. The Demon remained silent, not giving their opponents the satisfaction of hearing her pain. The attack lasted two seconds, but it felt like forever to Nori.
When it faded, McCloud was left panting. The Demon was on her feet, yet was unmoving. Her eyes slowly closed.
Tono harrumphed and crossed his arms, turning away in triumph. Nori shut his own eyes, tight. The battle was over. He'd lost, and Tono had won.
Seconds later, there was an explosion.
The boy snapped to. Both Pokemon were flipped back from the epicenter of the blast. The Demon was barely caught by her own attack and landed in a crouch, but McCloud took another direct hit. The crowd gasped, and the nerd spun back around, furious. Everyone was on the edge of their seat, some literally. Nori took some steps towards his Pokemon, something Tono did as well. They were as close as they could safely get to the battle.
Both battlers were still. Volkner watched, giving it time.
Nori's Pokemon rose, forcing herself up in one motion, legs shuddering. The boy cheered, as did the spectators. Their opponent remained splayed out on his belly. The Gym Leader was about to call it, when Tono shouted.
"McCloud!"
Hearing his trainer's encouragement, the Jolteon's head snapped up. The audience got even louder. He unsteadily rose, somehow also finding his way to his feet. And right as he was doing so, the Demon lunged.
"Yes!" Nori whooped.
"Stop it with Hyper Voice!" a fired-up Tono commanded.
The next attack would decide the battle. If McCloud got this off, it was probably over. Likewise, if the Demon got to him, he was finished.
The Jolteon glared furiously at his clumsily approaching opponent. The Demon wasn't running, doing more of a power walk. It wasn't fast enough. McCloud inhaled deeply, keeping his eyes trained on his opponent the whole time. Readying the devastating shout that would end the battle.
And he coughed.
A moment after, his voice bellowed through the room. It was not from the attack, but from being throttled by the Demon. It was barely an attack, just wildly swinging for the throat. The electric fox's screams turned to gurgled choking as the vicious Nidorina wildly beat down McCloud with claws, paws, and even bashing her head against him. All he could do in self-defense was emit feeble sparks. For a moment, Nori was worried his Pokemon was going back to her nigh-murderous roots.
It soon fell silent. The Demon hardly looked like the victor, struggling for breath. But she was conscious, supporting herself upright atop the comatose form of McCloud.
Nori realized it right away, but it took longer for the result to register with others. When the applause started, Tono fell to his hands and knees, speechless. Volkner applauded. "McCloud can't continue!" he announced with delighted approval. "That means Nori and the Demon are the winners!"
"Ridiculous! McCloud can still fight!" Tono insisted, over the roar of the crowd. He ran over to his Pokemon, shoving the Demon off. The Nidorina backed away, shaking her head at Tono waving McCloud up. "Get up! Get up, please! Open your eyes, McCloud!"
The Jolteon actually opened his eyes. "Yes! I knew it!" the Gym Trainer cried. "Now, to your feet!"
"Tono," Volkner said. "Give it up."
"No! We haven't lost! We couldn't have lost! Not to him!" The Jolteon sadly shook his head and closed his eyes once more, relaxing on the floor. "McCloud? McCloud?! No, no, no, no, no. Ridiculous. Ridiculous!" He shook his Pokemon in desperation, as if McCloud had died. "This can't be happening. I won't accept this!" Tono jumped up, brandishing another Poke Ball. "Two-on-two! I want a two-on-two!"
"Tono, it's over," said Volkner comfortingly, at least for him.
"No, you can't leave it like this! This is too ridiculous!"
Nori felt...well. He didn't feel bad. Did this make him a bad person, not feeling anything about destroying a trainer? Maybe it was because it was Tono.
"So who's the fraud now?" he asked, as politely as he could. He looked at Tono expectantly. "All that talk and I still beat you. Do you have something to say to me?"
"I, in fact, do!" the teenager declared, taking off his glasses to wipe tears from his eyes. "You got lucky. Ridiculously lucky. You used underhanded tacti–"
"Yeah, you sound like a sore loser to me!" Okay, now he didn't feel bad about not feeling bad. "I won, and you lost! I won, you lost!" He lurched like a caveman. "Me win, you lose!" The boy laughed with Pachi. "We did it! We beat Tono! Woohoo!"
He raised his arms into the air for several seconds before bringing them down to chest level. Pachi jumped for joy. Even the Demon got into it, walking before him and standing as tall and proud as she could in her condition. And through it all, the crowd was clapping and cheering for their victory. There was no longer any doubt. He was decent at this battling thing after all! And everyone knew it!
"That's enough, Nori."
They were silenced by Kallisto rising and sharply cutting in. The head Gym Trainer was staring at them with disapproval. Nori returned the look with a sly smile, as Pachi continued to squeak and hop, ignorant or uncaring of the sudden mood shift.
"You're acting crazy," the heterochromic teen said. "You barely defeated Tono, and you're celebrating like you just became Champion. It's not that much to boast about."
Thankfully, he didn't have to speak up in his defense, as Volkner did it for him. "Kallisto, you've had several lucky wins yourself."
"I guess, but I was going to say." And with this Kallisto gave a genuine smile. "It's still your victory, Nori. Enjoy it."
Nori nodded as the cheering resumed. Tono managed to his feet, sulking away in shame. Kallisto followed close behind, no doubt to console his best friend.
Volkner sighed and shook his head, turning to address the crowd. "I wasn't expecting that pillar to be knocked over. Third time that's ever happened. We'll have a thirty to forty minute break while the maintenance crews put it back up." He didn't say it, but it was clear from the look in his eyes he was going to give them a stern talking to.
No kidding, thought Nori. That move had to have insane power to do that - even if it was loose from yesterday. The pillars were hollow, not as heavy as one might think, and actually simply inserted into holes in the Gym's floor. Kallisto once recounted a story about a Slaking's Giga Impact shattering a pillar when they were too secure, with the shrapnel injuring Eddie and Volkner. Hence why they were designed to fall in a cardinal direction if struck too hard. They were far enough away from the walls, plus there was extra safety preventing the ones near the crowd from falling in their direction. Still, what the hell was that?
---
While a fair amount of the crowd kept their seats during the impromptu intermission, enough did get up that Nori waited for them to funnel out. Some of them went to the concession stand, some left to get food from one of the nearby restaurants, while others did so to either stretch their legs or curb boredom.
The right hallway of the Gym had a few extra amenities for guests. Public restrooms, vending machines, and a healing machine. Nothing that would make people loiter around. For whatever reason, Nori decided to leave in that direction for once. As he did so, someone immediately caught sight of him. A single person in the hallway. It seemed evident Yuki was waiting for just such an occurrence, as he came running in full barrel.
"Nori!" he cried out. The boy stepped away on reflex, but Yuki grabbed him into a full on, rib-crushingly tight victory hug. "You're amazing! I lo–" His words were temporarily choked away. "I like, knew you could do it!"
"Th-thank you?" Nori sputtered. His arms were being pinned, so he couldn't really reciprocate even if he wanted to. It reminded him of Lux, just the boy hugging him now was much more eager. He glanced down at Pachi, who was simply smiling. "But why–"
Yuki quickly let go, blushing slightly. Probably embarrassed at his impulsive reaction, Nori thought. The strawberry blond boy looked around, as if seeing if anyone was trying to sneak up? It was just them in the hallway, until the door swung open the moment Yuki turned to face him.
"'Ey, what's good?" Radovan came marching into the hall, smirking and clapping.
Yuki jumped. "Well, I better get going," he hastily said, cautiously eyeing Tono's old rival. "Better to be late than miss the whole day..."
"Yeah, good idea."
Yuki chuckled. "See you this afternoon!"
As his friend in the news club left, Radovan gave a thumbs-up.
"Nice goin'. Ya crushed dat dweeb."
"Thanks." Nori tucked some hair behind his ears. It was starting to grow out some again. "By the way, I'm wondering. Why bully Tono? Not that I have a problem with it, I just want to know your history."
Radovan shrugged. "Dere ain't much to talk about. We was total opposites back when we was kids. He was serious and a learner, and I was de class clown and an at'lete. Ya wit' me? He t'ought he was better den everyone, especially me."
"So he was bullying you first?" Nori could see Tono doing something like that.
"Right?" came the reply. "But I turned it 'round on him, and people was wit' me dere. Didn't like dat, right? Could dish it out but couldn't take it. And dat's how our feud got its start."
"Ah, so he was asking for it?" Nori knew smarter kids often get picked on in school. But it's way worse for those who make everyone else know it. Heck, Nori himself had made fun of some of those types...
"Exactly dat," confirmed Radovan. "Had no problem pushin' 'em around some for fun after dat. You got it?"
"I guess so." He wasn't sure about Radovan still pushing Tono around, but supposed there was no sense worrying about it. "Well, thanks. Nice talking to you, but I should go get the Demon healed."
Radovan scratched his head. "Dat's what ya callin' her?"
He shrugged. "Yeah, I did sort of make her media tag her real nickname. But she likes it."
"Ha, quirky. Get why Tono T had trouble with ya. Ya dig?"
Another person who said that. It made clear Tono didn't seem to expect that much out of him. Yet Nori proved him wrong. And yet at the same time, the boy had a strange new respect for Tono after battling him. He was the real deal, and forced Nori to up his game to compete. In a way, that helped him get better.
---
Nori had a gut feeling, so he went to the medical room rather than the healing machine. He wasn't sure why, but the presence of both Tono and Kallisto seemed to confirm his instincts. The nerd fired him a dirty look as he stepped inside. McCloud was lying on the medical bed, being checked over by Coach Norling.
"Good, you're here," said the coach. "Wanted to have a look at the Demon." Despite all the times he came to see Betsy-Ann, he'd interacted with the retired athlete surprisingly little. And given what'd happened, he wanted to keep further interaction to a minimum.
"Yes, what's up?" the boy asked, a little ruder than he intended. Nori still partially blamed the coach for his friend's dismissal from the Gym, regardless of reasons. If he didn't believe what they were saying, he should've stood up.
Kallisto turned to him, expression blank. Tono's arms and legs were bent. He was clenching his fists and tensing his muscles so hard that he was shaking. For a moment, Nori feared the worst.
"McCloud sustained some fractures in the caudal vertebrae and coccyx." The coach was ultimately the one to speak.
"What are those?" the boy asked.
"It means the tail bones!" Tono snapped. "You should know, you violent vermin!"
"Oh, from hitting the pillar." Now that he knew what they were, yeah, that made sense. Still, he didn't expect the Jolteon to actually injure himself doing that. He seemed just fine for the rest of the battle. Although then again, adrenaline and will to win could've been masking it.
"It won't require any surgery or bandaging, but you should have him rest for a week or two."
"No!" the nerd argued. "I have two more battles coming up today, and I need McCloud's help in them!"
The electric fox nodded, managing to his feet. Yet as he did so, he winced and nearly fell off the bed. Kallisto jumped into action to catch the Pokemon, but it proved unnecessary. McCloud grit his teeth and remained standing in a show of determination.
"See?" Tono gestured. "He is prepared as well."
With this, the head Gym Trainer put a hand on his friend's shoulder, "Tono, no," he quietly said. "Listen to the coach. Let McCloud get the rest he needs. The last thing you want to do is push him too hard and end up getting him hurt even worse."
Tono shut his eyes tight. He growled. "This is your fault, Nori Carino."
"How is it my fault? You're the one who ordered that attack!" Nori stated. The simple facts were biting enough that the nerd got even madder. "You're just a whiny, crybaby sore loser!"
"There's such a thing as being a sore winner, Nori," Kallisto harshly fired back. Nori tensed up. The head Gym Trainer said that in a way he'd never had before. As if he was genuinely angry. It quickly faded before Nori could make further sense of it. "But there's no sense in playing the blame game here. All I know is, McCloud needs rest."
Tono conceded and recalled his Pokemon. "You are correct. Let us get out of here. I will need to change my strategy for Haruna and Radovan now."
As he was leaving, Nori muttered, "Still your fault for using that, you stupid moron."
Kallisto overheard on the way out the door. "Yeah," he rasped. "He probably shouldn't have had McCloud do that."
The boy tilted his head. "You're agreeing with me?"
The head Gym Trainer shrugged. "Maybe it was frustration, or trying to counter your stalling." Come to think of it, Tono did say the battle had gone on long enough. Not what he intended to have happen, but if that's how it turned out...
As Kallisto left, Nori lowered his head. He was feeling bad about this, and wasn't sure why. It was just Tono's Pokemon, and the only person who did anything wrong was Tono himself in ordering that ridiculously strong move. Pokemon sometimes did get badly hurt in a battle, something that needed more nursing than a healing machine could give. It was a simple fact. So maybe it was empathy.
"Okay, so you wanted to see my Pokemon?" he asked, trying to take his mind off it. Nori still trusted the coach as a medical expert, even if he held something of a grudge.
Coach Norling nodded. "First, put the Demon in the healing machine."
He did as instructed, placing her Great Ball in one of the slots of the device. A faint white glow washed over it as the machine did its work. "Now, let's take a look at her."
Over the next several minutes, the coach meticulously examined every part of the teal monster. She was displeased at the checkup, and while Pachi's soothing encouragement only annoyed her, she relaxed once Nori told her to.
The coach nodded. "She still has a little bit of bruising," he said, to the boy's relief. Nothing serious. "Might still want to have her rest until tomorrow. Outside of her ball if you can."
Although she would most likely be game for more fighting, Nori agreed. "Sounds good. Besides, it's hard to top that battle. May as well end on a high note, even if I'm ending early."
---
Because of this, Nori did not do any battling for the rest of the day, despite Pachi's eagerness and quite a few challenges being thrown at them. He actually asked one of the women why, and she replied that it was for the thrill. Whatever their reasons, the Demon's mild injury gave him an excuse to turn all of them down. All he did was watch from the balconies.
During the 3pm intermission - timing unchanged by the impromptu one - he went downstairs to sit in the lobby and wait for Yuki. Sure enough, the strawberry blond boy showed up at 3:18pm.
"Hey, Yuki!" He went over to his friend as he was walking through the door.
"Nori!" He waved. "So how's things been?"
"Pretty good. Had to step out of battling, though. Both the Demon and McCloud got hurt in that fight and need some real rest, not just healing machine rest." His friend nodded. "How about you? Get in trouble for skipping?"
"Not really, I told my homeroom teacher I had an appointment yesterday. He didn't ask for any details."
Nori smirked. A technical truth. "By the way, did you want to talk to me earlier, before Radovan interrupted?"
"Yeah, I did. But, um..." And with this, he turned away. "Maybe I should go get a good seat while I still can. We can talk later."
Nori nodded. Made sense, especially if it would take a while to talk about. "Sure. What's it about, curiously?"
Yuki hemmed and hawed. "Well, we'll talk later," he insisted.
A strange response, but he understood. "Sure, I can wait."
##########
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And the second Gym Trainer battle done. This one was more difficult to figure out; hard to write brawn vs brains from the other end. I almost didn't keep the pillar thing, but I worked it into the overall flow and had the battle happen the previous day to make it more viable. Particularly since it works into Tono's flaws as a trainer and more importantly, stood out.
Tono Takuma's Roster:
- Jolteon (McCloud) {Ace}, Girafarig (Gracie) {#2}, Raichu (Munchie), Pincurchin (Urina), Mothim (Mothula), Golduck (Drake), Flygon (Tiki), Grimmsnarl (Zoma), Heliolisk (Kiryu), Seviper (David) / Chansey (Lala), weaker ones
He's the only Gym Trainer with nicknames, with a stated theme around video games. They're also the most fleshed out; all his Pokemon save two (so far) were seen in action at some point. He has a wider variety to fit his more tactical theme, but the implied consequence is lower levels. And from saying he handles weaker challengers, Tono certainly has some unseen Pokemon he uses for them.
Tono Takuma's Roster:
- Jolteon (McCloud) {Ace}, Girafarig (Gracie) {#2}, Raichu (Munchie), Pincurchin (Urina), Mothim (Mothula), Golduck (Drake), Flygon (Tiki), Grimmsnarl (Zoma), Heliolisk (Kiryu), Seviper (David) / Chansey (Lala), weaker ones
He's the only Gym Trainer with nicknames, with a stated theme around video games. They're also the most fleshed out; all his Pokemon save two (so far) were seen in action at some point. He has a wider variety to fit his more tactical theme, but the implied consequence is lower levels. And from saying he handles weaker challengers, Tono certainly has some unseen Pokemon he uses for them.
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I'm probably picking it unless its evo is bad.