Ever Play Competitive - Chapter 17
...
Beta: Gerald of Revea

-Cynthia-

He was gone.

Steven was already on his way back to Hoenn, not even an hour after their 'battle'.

She had been anticipating this battle for days. Countless hours of battle strategy on how to best defeat the steel-type master. She had mapped out the best moves to use for each situation, and now?

Nothing. She had won because of Steven's sheer laziness.

She skipped the denial stage entirely; she wasn't angry, she was livid. She had been excited to have a truly good battle today, and what did she get in return? The metaphorical middle finger.

On an intellectual level, she knew she couldn't go to Hoenn. Not for another few months. If she did, she would take the first opportunity to find Steven's next dig site and have Garchomp use Earthquake.

That would still be one of the tamer responses compared to what she had cooked up in her head.

'The sheer audacity of it,' she scowled, anger and disappointment battling in equal measure. 'Why didn't you bow out earlier?'

She started to wonder if this was personal. That it wasn't laziness why he withdrew from the battle, but something she had done to him, but she couldn't for the life of her think of a time she offended the man. They barely spoke, and when she had spoken with him, she had been nothing but cordial.

'So why now? I didn't even get the chance to-' she thought, before she saw everything click into place.

She was being used—a pawn in Steven's game.

Steven had no ego. No pride. He had no issue playing the fool if it worked in his favour at the end of the day. He didn't like his position as Champion, and Hoenn had made it very hard for him to simply resign.

So he devised a three-pronged attack. Instead of losing outright, he withdrew. Now people will speculate that he was 'too scared' to battle her. Wallace, Hoenn's strongest Gym Leader, had already made it through to the next round. Doesn't matter what the truth is, people will form a narrative that Wallace, at the very least, is a stronger trainer than Steven. And so, the people of Hoenn would be much more accepting of a new champion rather than Steven resigning out of the blue.

Steven would probably be resigning within the week.

So caught up in her musings, she hadn't noticed Cloud approaching her, Pokéball in hand.

"You, me, a quick double battle. You in?"

She was in love.

-Cloud-

"Alright!" I grinned, rubbing my hands together. "This is gonna be a quick double battle. You can only choose four of them, and it's a win-by-knockout. Sound good?"

"Anything you say."

What the fuck?

Shaking my head, I double-checked that I brought the right Pokémon to this little battle. Satisfied I had, I gave the signal to Cynthia.

Whether or not I win this battle doesn't matter. This is just a way for both of us to blow off some steam.

Cynthia looked… murderous after Steven resigned. It was a saving grace that Cynthia had self-control. So when I came across her looking down in the dumps, I provided a solution.

I was just happy I could use some of my other Pokémon. As much as I love Dracovish & Eggman, it was boring using only the two of them to battle. I couldn't understand how people could get six Pokémon and use only those six Pokémon for the rest of their lives.

It's also my first double battle in quite a long time. I am not nearly as good in double battles as I am in singles. You have too many options in double battles, and when going against a skilled opponent, they can destroy you if you don't know what you are doing.

It's funny, I could probably have won the tournament if it were Doubles and only relied on Dive Cats.

'Well, if no one else used the strategy,' I mused, shaking my head. "You ready?"

Cynthia didn't respond verbally; instead, widening her smile as she tossed out her first two Pokémon.

'Togekiss and Spiritomb?' I wondered, trying to guess what strategy she was cooking up, but coming up short. I never used them in any of my own teams, though fighting against Togekiss can sometimes feel like pulling teeth.

'I really need to go back to Unova,' I couldn't help but think, feeling nostalgic as my Braviary and Amoonguss shimmered into existence.

I didn't often battle with Pepsi, even when he was a Rufflet. While he liked to battle, it was only occasionally.

Caplock, on the other hand, is a cunt. A massive cunt. It brings him joy every time he puts a Pokémon to sleep, and moreso if it is done to an entire team.

Since Sleep Clause (a rule that means that only one Pokémon can be asleep on a team at a time) doesn't exist, I could have abused the fuck out of it during the tournament. The only reason I haven't is because of Red & RNG.

With the move Spore, a Pokémon can be asleep for 1-3 turns. Red is Red; I wouldn't benefit from it while battling him.

Cynthia's eyes lit up as soon as she saw both of them, eyeing them with interest.

'Does she have a Braviary yet?' I wondered, hoping to see later on in the battle. Especially how it compares to my own. But before I ask that question, Cynthia got ahead of herself.

"Spiritomb, use Dark Pulse on Braviary! Togekiss, Dazzling Gleam!"

Shit, I forgot about spread moves. "Use Brave Bird on Togekiss! Follow up with Spore!"

'It's faster,' I frowned, seeing Togekiss getting the attack off before Pepsi could get in close. Caplock also got hurt by the attack, but not as badly as Pepsi.

While spread moves like Surf, Rock Slide & Dazzling Gleam can hit multiple Pokémon, they come at a cost of their power, being a quarter less powerful when the attack hits multiple Pokémon.

Brave Bird connected, Pepsi slamming into Togekiss like a rocket as the two jousted in the air. Pepsi didn't come out of the attack unscathed, the recoil damage creeping up on him.

Spiritomb went for the finish, Dark Pulse launching Pepsi backwards, and he would have hit a tree if I hadn't returned him to his Pokéball.

While I was stopping Pepsi from a bad landing, Caplock wasn't idle, using Spore on Togekiss, the Pokémon sleepily falling to the ground.

"Not bad," I nodded, the first point going to Cynthia, in which she just hummed appreciatively.

Despite losing the first Pokémon, this battle was still fairly even. Togekiss was temporarily out of commission and is only one strong attack away from being knocked out.

Not wasting any more time, I sent out my third Pokémon, Ryu, silently making his presence known as he took to the sky.

And the battle resumed once more.

Cynthia returned Togekiss, quickly sending out her third Pokémon.

"Ryu, Dragon Dance! Caplock, Spore!"

"Use Will-O-Wisp on Dragonite!"

Before any attack could go through, Cynthia sent out her third Pokémon, her Garchomp, taking to the field with a roar.

Ryu obeyed my command, using Dragon Dance to power himself up, only for the full effect to be negated by Will-O-Wisp.

The burn status condition reduces the power of all physical attacking moves by two stages, making Ryu's attacks only be half as powerful as they should be. Not only that, but it would also remove any effect the Multiscale ability would have in the long term.

I overrely on Multiscale paired with Roost. The ability allows Pokémon to take much less damage from attacks while the Pokémon is at full HP and full HP only.

While burn is active, Multiscale would never last a full turn. Burn chips away a sixteenth of health from any Pokémon affected by it per turn.

I'd be in trouble if Ryu were using any other item.

Spore hit Garchomp, the Dragon-type Pokémon letting out a growl before falling asleep and onto the floor.

Ryu tensed as Burn flared through his body, pain wracking his nerves, but in the same instant he recovered, cancelling the damage as quickly as it came.

Because if there was one thing I loved about the item leftovers?

It heals.

It heals exactly the amount of damage Burn does each turn.

-Cynthia-

'This is how a battle should be!'

On paper, she was winning. She had knocked out Braviary on turn one, but that was hardly the case.

She was on the backfoot.

'When was the last time I was on the backfoot?'

"Spiritomb, Dark Pulse on Dragonite!" She called out, returning Garchomp as she did so, switching back to Togekiss. She didn't think he would wake up so soon; he was being used as a metaphorical lamb to the slaughter, so she could use Milotic to defeat the pair of them.

The worst part? Cloud still hasn't used his final Pokémon.

"Dance and Spore, once more!"

After Dragonite once again used Dragon Dance, it was hit by Dark Pulse, though the Pokémon seemingly shrugged the attack off.

Cloud must have been expecting her to use her final Pokémon, considering how Amoonguss targeted Togekiss instead of Spiritomb.

"Roost. Use Spore on Spiritomb!"

"Air Slash and Dark Pulse. Target Amoonguss!"

Togekiss didn't wake up, much to her annoyance. Though if there was any upside, it was that the Dark Pulse was a critical hit.

It still wasn't strong enough to wipe the smug look off of Amoonguss' face.

'That Dragonite,' she couldn't help but think, recalling Cloud's battle with Geeta. While it might not be the strongest in terms of raw power, it was the most durable Pokémon she had ever seen, perhaps on par with Steven's Metagross.

She couldn't understand how it was capable of taking Subzero-Slammer and just shrugging it off. That Avalugg was trained by a Champion, it just didn't seem possible.

Which is why she didn't think Togekiss would be able to take it down, despite the type advantage. Dragonite has only used Roost and Dragon Dance so far. The only damaging move Cloud has used in the entire battle was Brave Bird. If Dragonite still had Dragon Tail and Brick Break, Togekiss could take the Brick Break. Using Dragon Tail would be even better, considering it wouldn't work.

However, so focused she was on Dragonite, she dismissed Amoonguss as a threat from the beginning. A complete mistake on her part, considering it has put half her team to sleep.

'Three quarters,' she corrected herself, watching Spore send Spiritomb straight to sleep.

Amoonguss was being used as Cloud's support from the very beginning, allowing Dragonite to default to Dragon Dance. This match would have been near unwinnable if Dragonite hadn't gotten burned.

She had been hoping Togekiss would wake up, but that was just poor luck. If she thought Togekiss wouldn't wake up, she would have signaled Spiritomb to use Destiny Bond, likely removing Cloud's strongest Pokémon from the field.

But that wasn't Togekiss' fault. That was her fault for not being right.

"Rock Slide, Synthesis!"

'What!' "Togekiss, Air Slash on Amoonguss. Spiritomb, follow up with Dark Pulse!"

As Rock Slide crashed into the two Pokémon unimpeded, she pressed her lips into a thin line as Togekiss fainted. While hurt and still asleep, Spiritomb held on.

"Back to square one, huh?" Cloud smirked, making her snap back into the moment, a sheepish smile on her lips.

Hardly so, most of her team were still asleep, Spiritomb had taken a hit as well, while Amoonguss had likely recovered fully from Synthesis and Dragonite from Roost.

If she hadn't taught Spiritomb Will-O-Wisp, the battle would have gone even worse for her.

'When was the last time?' she wondered, thinking of a time she was actually losing a Pokémon battle. It must have been-, no, it had been years.

Years since she has felt this thrill.

Cloud was exactly what she was looking for.

A challenger.

The gap between herself and anyone else in Sinnoh was too wide. It didn't stop at Sinnoh; it was most of the world (product of being a champion, of course).

She had traveled all over the world, searching for someone who didn't make battles feel like a chore. She was falling out of love with battles, and hated how she couldn't just start over again from the beginning.

And after years of the well-worn routine, it was starting to come back.

Her love for the game.

But just because she wanted to be challenged, to be pushed to her limits, doesn't change one key detail.

She didn't want to lose.

And she would never forfeit her pride.

The Four Powers. Mega Evolution, Z-Moves, Dynamaxing, and Terastalization. Of the four, Dynamaxing was out of the question. But the other three? Acceptable.

Cloud hasn't used any of them in his battles. She has only seen Cloud use Terastalization, and that was during his battle with Geeta. He also had a Mega Stone of some sort, and she didn't doubt Cloud had at least one Z-Crystal.

Despite not using them himself, he has actively encouraged people to use them. However, despite having the time to prepare for the tournament, many trainers have not used them either.

Some trainers have been going by a type of 'Gentlemen's agreement', refraining from using the powers altogether. Smarter ones have been using them since the first round. She didn't use them because she never needed to.

'Until now,' she corrected herself, sending Milotic into battle.

Despite being on the losing end of the battle, she couldn't help but think she was being looked down on. His Dragonite was here, but what about the Pokémon he used in the tournament? That he wasn't using his 'strongest' Pokémon annoyed her in a way she couldn't describe.

She was a champion. She was one of the strongest trainers in the world.

So why was Cloud looking down on her?

"You will regret that," she whispered, raising her arm into the air.

Terastalization, the ability to change a Pokémon's typing for one Pokémon per battle. Matches have been won and lost when used improperly. An offensive Pokémon can instantly become defensive and vice-versa.

When she found out Milotic's Tera type, she didn't think she would ever use it, not for a defensive Pokémon like Milotic.

'I was stupid for making assumptions.'

On her wrist, a second crystal started to glow.

-Cloud-

'I have been sleeping on double battles,' I couldn't help but think, watching Cynthia terastalize her Milotic. I never liked them before, but I was loving this battle.

"Spore and Rock Slide!" I called out, Ryu nodding as he slammed his tail into the ground, causing a rock avalanche to hit Spiritomb and Milotic.

Despite the type disadvantage, Milotic took the attack better than Spiritomb. While now awake, Spiritomb needed a moment to recover from Rock Slide, having flinched after getting hit.

'She hasn't called out an attack,' I noticed, only to watch Cynthia moving through a choreographed routine, one that I was far too familiar with.

I looked at Caplock, who was breaking out into a cold sweat, leaning back as Milotic retained more and more power. Ryu, on the otherhand was preparing to take the attack head-on.

Except Ryu wasn't the target.

"Subzero-Slammer!"

Caplock turned to stare with a look of betrayal as the attack came towards him. Immediately, I went to grab his Pokéball, but I wasn't quick enough to stop him from getting hit by the attack.

He was blasted backwards, slamming into the tree behind him, only for that to capsize. He was pushed further back, hurtling towards another tree, but I was able to return him before he could be sent back further.

I'm pretty sure I just saw his life flash before his eyes there. "That's 2-1 to you."

"Why do you hold back?"

Hearing the words felt like an accusation, but Cynthia sounded more curious than anything else.

"You have stronger Pokémon than what you have used. You have used them in the tournament. I don't understand why you used Braviary when it's clear it hasn't battled in months."

She gestured towards her arm, where a circlet of gems decorated her wrist. "It's not just any of the four trainer powers, it's your Pokémon too. You own legendaries, but don't use them. Why?

I hesitated before giving my response. In truth, it felt unfair; the only people I had no qualms going all out against were Red and Psyclone.

I hadn't used any of the gimmicks in the tournament so far. I was keeping each Pokémon's Tera-type hidden; there are usually better items for my Pokémon than Z-Crystals and I couldn't Mega-Evolve my Pokémon.

Out of those three, mega-stones were rare to find. It comes down to luck for those. For legendary Pokémon?

Every legendary Pokémon is unique; there will never be more than one.

Everyone can recreate my team under the right circumstances; the only exception would be with Dovahkin. If I started using legendary Pokémon in my battles, how can they improve?

"There's no fun in battling like that," I scratched my cheek, feeling a bit embarrassed. "What's the point in battling if you know every time you do, you're going to win?"

-Cynthia-

'I reached the top and found the world below- but no one beside me.'

She couldn't recall where she heard the words before, but it was a line that stuck with her. Her solution was to wait until someone joined her.

What was Cloud's solution to this? Simple, he took a few steps back and offered a ladder.

Under Cloud's supervision, Geeta has improved drastically. She was never a poor trainer, but it was like night and day compared to how she battled only a few months ago.

Unlike her, Cloud was actively trying to make better trainers, whether it be in a general sense with his streams or Geeta with personal tutelage.

He isn't battling with the best chance of winning; he's forcibly limited himself to enjoy the battle more.

She couldn't stand it.

Every opponent she had ever fought had to bring their all against her. She strained to remember the last time she had to try to win.

'So this is how it feels to be on the other side of the coin?' she mused, eyeing the Pokéballs on Cloud's belt.

She was having fun. Almost too much fun, and the battle wasn't over yet. Her body was quivering. And the idea that Cloud can go even further?

The thought was intoxicating.

But she couldn't just demand Cloud use his strongest Pokémon. Cloud hated being told what to do. Ask politely? Probably wouldn't work either.

For a few moments, she was quiet, contemplating her next action carefully, before finally deciding on her course of action.

If she wanted Cloud to use his strongest, she needed to get on his level.

She needed to get crafty.

"Then how about a wager?" she asked, making Cloud raise his eyebrows. "When the battle is over, and when you lose, you owe me one favor, anything I ask for."

When. It implied she thought she would win. Truthfully, she wasn't sure; however, it had the intended effect.

"Oh? And when I win?" Cloud smirked, and she had to hide her smile as he seized the opportunity as quickly as it came.

What Cloud hated, was his ego being bruised. He didn't shout and get angry; instead, he planned the downfall of whoever wronged him, striking whoever hurt his feelings back tenfold. Geeta was still paying the consequences of that. Even though it worked in her favour, she doubted Geeta saw it that way.

Despite this, she could still see the hesitation in his eyes, likely thinking she was planning some sort of trap.

"Turnabout is fair play," she shrugged, a glint in her eyes. "There is no shame in refusing."

"Nah, I'm game!" Cloud grinned, snatching a Pokéball from his waist. "No take backs!"

Perfect.

Cloud wordlessly threw the Pokéball, and she had to stop and stare at the creature.

She recognized it as soon as she saw it. Zacian; a Pokémon that is still heatly debated on whether or not it even exists.

Galar: A History was published last year, and it quickly became a source of controversy. Some people claimed outright that it should be labelled a work of fiction.

It was widely believed that two human heroes saved Galar during the Darkest Day. Galar: A History claimed it was two legendary Pokémon, Zacian and Zamazenta, and that this true history was lost to time.

Its most controversial claim was that there are statues behind the mural in Stow-on-Side town, depicting the legendary Pokémon of the Sword and Shield.

And it was correct.

The author remains anonymous, and she truly hated that. She had so many questions, and they remained unanswered.

But she could worry about that later; she had a battle to get to.

And Cloud fell right into her trap.

-Cloud-

"Rock Slide! Zacian, use Play Rough on Spiritomb!"

"Use Ice Beam Dragonite and Will-O-Wisp on Zacian!"

Zacian had the potential to be the strongest Pokémon on my team.

Zacian-Crowned is considered one of the strongest Pokémon in competitive history, only narrowly being beaten out by Mega-Rayquaza (another Pokémon I sadly couldn't get).

But the sword rejects him.

When I found Zacian, he had none of the power, strength, and valor a legendary Pokémon should have. What he did have was the moveset, something that should have been impossible for a level two Pokémon.

When I tried giving Zacian the Rusted Sword (the sword Zacian needs to become Zacian-Crowned), nothing happened. Even after all the training, it still rejects him.

I tried finding Zamazenta to see if it was like that for both of them, but couldn't find him either.

So instead of him being the strongest Pokémon on my team, he was much weaker.

He was only the second strongest.

But the best Pokémon to beat Cynthia, and whatever plan she was cooking up.

The attacks came swiftly and brutally. Spiritomb was taken out by Play Rough, even though it managed to dodge the Rock Slide. Millotic managed to tank another Rock Slide, firing off the Ice Beam in retaliation.

Ryu grunted as the attack hit him, his claws digging into the dirt as the attack pushed him back. It hurt, but Multiscale stopped it from becoming a finishing blow.

"That's 2-2," I smirked, enjoying myself more than I should. Cynthia said nothing, only smiling as she sent out Garchomp.

It was still asleep, Spore-spam being the broken ability that it is, got Cynthia's strongest Pokémon before it could be a threat.

The battle ends in this turn.

As soon as I had that thought, Cynthia made the first move, raising her arm as one of the gems started to glow, Garchomp following suit.

'Delaying the inevitable,' I shrugged, deciding not to interfere in the moment.

I stared.

"That's not what Mega-Garchomp is supposed to look like!" I blurted, eyeing the Pokémon in fascination.

It looked closer to an ancient variant rather than its own Mega-Evolution. Its arms weren't the pair of scythes I was expecting; instead having five white claws protruding from each arm, looking much closer to a pair of saws than scythes. It looked sleeker, as if it traded bulk for speed.

Image of Mega Garchomp Z

It was still a Dragon-Type, but I couldn't tell its secondary. Flying, maybe?

Then I saw Garchomp's eyes snap open, and I didn't hesitate.

"Rock Slide and Play Rough! Aim for Garchomp!" Cynthia's gaze held mine, and a small, confident smile tugged at her lips.

"Garchomp, use-"

"STOP!"

What?

"Please, stop! All of you!" Rotom shouted, my Pokémon taking the order as a demand.

"Milotic, Garchomp, stand down," Cynthia gritted out as she glared at Rotom. "Why did you…" she trailed off, looking into the distance. I followed her gaze, my eyes landing on Wyndom Stadium.

And the cloud of smoke rising from its shattered dome.

"We're under attack!"

-Cyrus-

A joint operation.

He never thought peaceful co-operation was a possibility with other organizations. All previous attempts have failed; their goals were too different, and every conversation was a debate on which had the better ideology.

So, when Team Plasma had approached Team Galactic, intending to take Cloud's legendary Pokémon, he was surprised, especially considering how power-hungry their leader, Ghetsis, was rumoured to be.

The two teams came to an agreement. Both teams would obtain all legendary Pokémon belonging to their region.

In truth, all he wished for was Uxie; the rest have little use.

He knew Cloud didn't have Dialga or Palkia; if he did, he would have been arrogant enough to let the world know. He wouldn't be stuck using a wingless dragon when the better alternative was there.

Team Galactic already obtained Mespirit and Azelf, and because of Cloud's actions, their plans to forge the Red Chain had been stalled for months.

What Team Plasma wanted with Kyurem? He didn't care; it wouldn't matter after he created the perfect world.

Cloud had shown a group of ten Pokéballs in the opening ceremony, all in a glass casket. Within contained a variety of Pokéballs, with the rarest was the Master Ball.

And where was Cloud keeping these Pokémon?

They never left the stadium. The dunce decided he would livestream to the prize at all times, right until the winner claims them all.

How the stream has thousands of concurrent viewers, he would never understand; to the viewers, it would be no different than looking at a picture.

'That will change soon,' he reminded himself, frowning as he came across the first location.

There were at least seven different rooms the livestream could be in, all of which were close to where Cloud had been spectating from.

Their main goal was the extraction of the legendary Pokémon. If he had to, he would force the issue.

He paused after having that thought, wondering what action Cloud would take.

If he kidnapped Sonia, Meowth, and Cyclone, demanded Cloud's legendary Pokémon, what would he do?

He frowned, slowly started putting pieces into places and not liking the picture.

If he did so, he didn't think Cloud would bat an eye. Not after his gamble with Geeta.

As soon as he finished that thought, alarms started to flare, a tremor reverberated throughout the building, making him scowl.

"It's too early," he grunted, scowling at Team Plasma's incompetence. "Change of plan, knock down every door with force."

"Sir! It's here!"

That was…surprisingly quick.

Wordlessly, he entered the near-empty room, populated with only a camera, a light, and a collection of Pokéballs.

"Well done," he nodded, Mars beaming at the praise. "Collect and extract."

As his team quickly entered the room, they hurriedly turned off Cloud's camera before going to grab the Pokémon.

As he approached, he reveled in the moment. For months, Team Galactic has been stagnant, not making any progress without the third key.

And after all this time, he could finally move forward.

As soon as he had the thought, a noise echoed throughout the room, the door they entered from slamming shut.

They turned around, only to see nothing there. Mars jumped as a deep chuckle reverberated throughout the room.

"What do we have here?"

-Cloud-

"There's no way," I muttered, my hand inching down my face. "There's no way you could have expected this to happen."

"All according to plan."

"You are full of shit," I scowled, and I could feel the waves of amusement rolling off of him. "So this is why you wanted that stream? So the legendaries could act as bait?"

"You can always rely on the greed of humanity."

There wasn't even any Pokémon in the Pokéballs; it was there for show. The big prize for winning.

And when I win, people will be none the wiser.

"And what's the point of all this?" I ask, making Psyclone look at me weirdly. "Why haven't you gotten rid of them yet?"

"Unlike those that tried before, Cyrus is leverage," Psyclone said while interlacing his fingers, making me stare at him blankly. "Cyrus isn't the first, and he certainly won't be the last."

He changed the screen on the computer, this time showing Ghetsis, the leader of Team Plasma.

"You're going to ransom them back to their teams," I stated, making him nod.

"Team Galactic have legendary Pokémon. I want them. Team Plasma has a legendary Pokémon, I want it."

"That might actually work," I groaned, hating that everything would start to make sense.

"Team Galactic and Plasma will have to make a choice. Their legendaries or their leader. I want to see what they value more."

"Good luck with that," I yawned, meaning it. "Why do you want so many legendaries anyway?"

Psyclone said nothing, just staring at me.

"Okay!" I put my hands up, "I understand that part, but you aren't even training any of them for your own team."

"It's not what they are, it's what they know."

"Cryptic as always," I muttered. "Alright, here's hoping you get your legendaries."

I left Psyclone to his devices, taking in the damage done by Team Plasma and Team Galactic.

Today's matches were postponed, being moved until tomorrow as construction workers put everything back in place. Team Galactic did mostly minimal damage; a few broken doors, a few bugged cameras, small-time stuff.

Team Plasma, on the other hand, was worse. Much worse.

The members of Team Plasma came here to try to free as many Pokémon as possible. They came across a storage room full of trainer Pokémon and released them all.

They did the same when they came across a trainer, they would take their Pokéballs and try convince the Pokémon they were free. Worst of all, some escaped with the Pokéballs, and the in-built protection of stealing Pokémon was still active, meaning some people couldn't just get new Pokéballs and recapture them.

A lot of people are panicking about losing their Pokémon. While rare, some Pokémon have abandoned their trainer altogether.

It was a shitshow, but still salvageable. And most importantly? I wasn't getting blamed. Turns out, it's a very bad idea to attack an area that has the strongest trainers in the world.

I was more annoyed that I couldn't finish that battle with Cynthia. I really could have used that favor.

If she looked murderous after the battle with Steven, it was worse after our battle ended prematurely.

It was the opposite; she looked entirely too calm. Disposing of the Team Galactic grunts entirely too dispassionately.

That woman could be entirely too scary. I almost had a heart attack the first time I met her.

Scary, but hot.

"Did Team Plasma even want the legendaries in the first place?" I muttered, trying to understand their actions but coming up short. Team Galactic seemed more interested in getting my legendaries, while Team Plasma wanted to 'free' as many Pokémon as possible.

Which made it seem even weirder for me, Team Plasma has been much more peaceful in comparison to the other villain teams; it seemed entirely out of character for the Team Plasma of this world to act so brazenly. If it were Neo-Team Plasma, I would understand better, but N was still around.

Heck, N is still in the tournament, and I certainly didn't see him fighting.

Heading outside, I let out a small yawn as the cold air hit me, enjoying the fresh air of the night.

Police encompassed the area, taking statements, watching the grunts, and just making sure everyone was safe.

My eyes lit up as I saw a familiar blonde approach me.

"I'm sorry about this," Cynthia sighed, gesturing to a group of Team Galactic grunts. "I should have disposed of Team Galactic months ago. The fault lies with me."

"Nah, it's fine," I wave her off. "I'm more annoyed that they interrupted our battle than anything else. You're good at double battles," I praised, making her smile faintly.

"You as well. Tell me, if our battle wasn't interrupted, would you have won?"

Probably. "Don't know, never seen a Mega-Garchomp like that before." I shrugged. "Go with whatever answer you want to hear most," I say, making her giggle, turning slightly to meet my eyes.

"Thank you, Cloud."

She cupped my face, making my body go still as she leaned in closely, her lips brushing against my cheek in a sudden, lingering kiss.

"It was the best battle I had in years."

The fuck?

Words failed to escape me as Cynthia walked away and headed back inside. I felt my cheeks turn red as I stared after her, trying to figure out how that happened.

My trance was broken when a group of Team Galactic members started to cheer.