The New Normal - 7-2

The New Normal – 7-2 – A Coincidental Meeting

I woke up slightly later than I usually did as I finally refilled my energies after all my hard work in Hoenn. Once I was suitably refreshed, I enjoyed a quick but pleasant breakfast with my parents, where I spent most of the time relaying my ‘adventures’ in Hoenn to them and reassuring them that I wasn’t in any real danger.

Naturally, I don’t think I was very successful on that. I could only blame the dramatization of the news on that front.

Still, my parents eventually had to make their way to work, freeing me from their worrying. As promised, I made my way to Pewter City to visit Karen; I was excited to see her after spending quite some time in infrequent contact.

Port descended in the outskirts of Pewter City a short while later, careful to not accidentally attract the unwanted attention of the crowds. I had made a token attempt to disguise myself, though with my level of fame I doubt it would stand up to any real scrutiny.

I texted Karen to signal my arrival as I steadily made my way to the Pewter Gym. As I got closer, one of my eyebrows raised as I realized just how different it was to how I remembered it. Sure, the exterior looked very similar, but it no longer gave off that aura of decay and deterioration. Instead, it looked well maintained and, most importantly, exuded a sense of professionalism befitting a Gym.

However, just before I could make my way into the Gym where Karen was waiting for me, I was interrupted by a shout.

“John! Is that you?” A person with a VERY upper-class accent called out from behind me, dashing all of my hopes of staying anonymous. Fortunately, the Gym was relatively quiet at this time of the circuit, so I didn’t immediately draw a crowd like I had feared. Trying to keep the irritation off my face, I turned around to see who was calling out to me. But it was someone I had not at all expected.

“Steven? Steven Stone?” I spluttered incomprehensibly, shock evident on my face.

“Haha! Who else could it be?” He answered with a wide grin as he spread his arms out wide, before extending one out to shake “It’s an honour to meet you, John. You have my sincerest gratitude for your efforts in Hoenn. And, on a more personal level, thank you for protecting my father. I don’t know what I would have done had he gotten himself in trouble.”

“Ah, it’s not a problem, but I appreciate it anyways.” I replied as I shook his hand, using the opportunity to take a quick glance over his appearance. What immediately stood out the most was his outfit. It was very similar to the custom-made suit that he wore in the games, but now that I was looking at it up close, it was immediately obvious that it was made of, unsurprisingly, VERY expensive material.

In fact, his whole outfit was a very delicate balance between staying simple enough to not draw the eye, while also being a walking demonstration of his wealth.

I wondered if he came up with the outfit himself, or if he had it specifically tailored by a professional.

I was pretty certain that his suit was worth more than everything we owned back when I was younger, before I went on my journey. Coupled with his very notable upper-class posh accent, Steven was the poster boy of ‘rich upper-class boy born with a diamond spoon’.

Of course, that was only his surface level appearance. Even if I didn’t know about his formidable strength from the games, I could see from his eyes that he remained sharp, with barely a hint of the arrogance that you would expect from someone of his wealth. And despite the genuine friendly appearance he put on, he couldn’t completely hide the cunning gleam of a businessman, one that was ready to gouge his opponent to maximize his own gain. His hands were also surprisingly callous, hinting towards someone that enjoyed getting their hands dirty far more than his outward rich boy persona might imply.

Eventually, after a moment of mutual analysis and observations, we both let go of the other. Steven spoke up first, breaking up into a sheepish smile, “It truly is a fortunate coincidence that we have met here today. I had always been hoping that we could, but I suppose our schedules were never in sync.”

“Yeah, I’ve been pretty busy.” I replied, slightly apologetically. He was quick to wave me off though.

“Do not concern yourselves overmuch. Me out of all people would never dare to blame you for your unavailability. Besides, you hardly seem like the type of person that says they are busy when in fact they are doing nothing more than merely procrastinating.” He said with the tone of someone who had experienced that exact scenario far too many times.

He shook his head, “Nevertheless, it is seems I had picked a very opportune time to finally challenge the Pewter Gym. I am unsure if you have been following my progress through the Indigo Gyms.” I shook my head apologetically, but he simply continued unbothered, “Now that I have passed through and defeated your…less powerful Gyms, I felt like now was the best time to challenge someone that I understand has been in close contact with you. I already have the match booked against Karen.”

I raised an eyebrow, “You think you can win?” I knew that Karen wasn’t fighting at her full strength as a Gym Leader. She didn’t need to when she only had to fight up to the 8th badge level. Still, she was no pushover.

Though I suppose that I shouldn’t be saying that to the future Champion of Hoenn.

“Her fighting style is certainly unusual, but I still foresee my eventual victory nonetheless.” Steven stated, with only the slightest hint of boasting in his voice. “Now, if I were to fight Elite Agatha, then I’m certain that would be an entirely different story.”

“Haha! Those are some fighting words!” Another voice suddenly entered into the conversation. I turned to look at our sudden intruder before my eyes widened into surprise.

“Sidney?!” I blurted out in surprise as the Dark type Elite Four casually sauntered over to us. He had his hands in his pockets and a very relaxed look on his face. “You finally came over to visit Karen?”

“Yep! I told you I would.” He nodded, before giving Steven an inspecting look, “And what do we have here? I had heard the Devon heir was running around Indigo, but I didn’t expect to see him in person.”

“Elite Sidney, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance. It seems like I have managed to luck out more than I thought today.” Steven greeted formally with a firm handshake, “But I expect you to be seeing me more often soon enough.”

“Oh? And why is that?” Sidney asked with a knowing smile, as if he already knew the answer.

“I’m here to prove myself.” Steven answered with a sharp look in his eye, “I have…higher ambitions than just being the heir to Devon Corp. As I’m sure you’ll find out very shortly.”

“Hah! I like that look in your eye, kid. Very well then, I’ll be happy to wait for your challenge.” Sidney grinned viciously, “You better not disappoint me.”

“Likewise.” Steven shot back, “I won’t be satisfied if you prove too easy of a challenge.” Their eyes narrowed challengingly as they stared each other down.

I decided to step in before things got too heated, “Anyways, what are you doing here, Sidney? Finally looking to speak to Karen?”

Sidney released himself from his staring contest against Steven as he turned to me, “Sure. I finally had some free time, so I might as well.” He looked back at Steven, “You here to battle her, I assume?”

“That is correct.” Steven confirmed.

“Great. I’d love to watch. Then hopefully I’ll find some time to speak to her about a match between us. I’ve been excited about this ever since I got here.” He spoke.

“Speak about what?” Karen’s familiar voice entered into the conversation as she came out of the backdoor of the Gym, “And what are you all standing out here for? Conspiring against me or something?”

I snorted, “Hardly. Though it looks like you have a few challengers.” I gestured to Steven and Sidney.

“Challengers? For the Gym? Or something more than that?” She asked as she stared at the two of them with a calculating look in her eye. “And I’m fairly sure I recognize the both of you. You’re Steven Stone and Elite Sidney, isn’t that right?”

“We are.” Steven replied for the both of them. “And I’m just here to challenge the Gym.”

“Well I’m here for a bit more than that.” Sidney remarked with an eager grin, “Say, Karen, I heard you were a great up-and-coming Dark type specialist.”

“I am.” Karen confirmed, her voice full of confidence in your abilities, “Why? Looking to test yourself against me?” She asked challengingly.

Another grin broke out on Sidney’s face “I sure am. It’s been a while since I’ve found a Dark type specialist who could reach such a level. I’ve figured that I might as well test myself out against another up-and-coming Dark type trainer.” He tried to hide it, but there was a distinct eagerness in his tone that betrayed his true feelings on the matter.

“I accept.” Karen replied without blinking, “Running the Gym has been amazing for my administrative skills, but I would very much like to flex my battling abilities again. It’s been tough having to hold back.”

“Excellent.” Sidney shot Karen a smile full of teeth, “Then how about we get to the battle right this second-”

“Hold on just a moment, if you may.” Steven interrupted as he stepped between the two of them, “Why don’t we make this a bigger event?” My eyes lit up with understanding.

“You mean…another show match?” I voiced out.

Steven nodded, “Exactly. Hosting a charity match has been on my mind for some time ever since the raids took place in Hoenn. I was inspired by the great success of your charity match against Giovanni, and I thought this would be both a great opportunity to donate money and to generate good PR for Devon Corp. Of course, this is only if you two agree.” He explained honestly.

I just nodded in mute surprise. Leave it to Steven to take advantage of something like this. This was the heir of the largest business in Hoenn in action; always ready to grab an opportunity and twist it for his own benefit. At least it was a for a good cause.

Karen and Sidney shared a look of surprise at the sudden suggestion before they both turned to each other. After a moment of silent communication, they nodded.

“That’s a good idea.” Karen said for the both of them, “But I haven’t a clue how to arrange something like this.”

“Leave it to me.” Steven replied, tapping his fist on his chest, “Consider your battle fully sponsored and hosted by Devon Corp. I can arrange all the details for you.”

“Heh. Leave it to the heir to make something out of nothing.” Sidney quipped, “But I approve. And I thank you for your help, Steven.”

Steven waved him off, “Think nothing of it. Devon Corp benefits off this too, so if anything, I was just taking advantage of an opportunity.”

Then he checked his watch, “Hmmm…Unfortunately, while I would not dare dream of cutting this conversation short, I do hope we can get to that Gym battle, Karen. Time does not stop for anyone.”

Karen’s eyes shot up in alarm. “Oh shit, you’re right. Come, please head inside. If you don’t mind, I want to speak to John here for a moment.”

Steven nodded and moved to enter the Gym, though Sidney shook his head. “I won’t be spectating. Now that we have our match, I don’t want to spoil myself by seeing your abilities first hand. I’d like to see if I can adapt to your fighting style on the spot. I’ll stick to watching your old recordings to study up.”

Karen nodded, “That’s fine, and I appreciate the sportsmanship. In that case, thank you for coming, and I’ll be looking forward to our battle.”

The two of them shared a nod before Sidney walked away. As soon as he left, I spoke up.

“So…that wasn’t what I had expected when I came here?” I commented dryly.

“No kidding.” Karen chuckled, “Didn’t even know Sidney was even here.” She clenched her fist, “Damn, now I’m getting nervous. Maybe I was a bit too hasty in agreeing. Though the old hag would never let me live it down if I turned down such an opportunity.”

I nodded sympathetically, “So, what did you want to speak about?” I asked, blatantly changing the topic.

She winced and hesitated, causing me to immediately adopt a look of concern. “…Is there something wrong?” I asked again carefully.”

“Agatha fell over a few days ago.” She replied without a preamble, worry and concern evident in her tone.

I stared at her in shock, my voice not coming out for a moment. Karen nodded at my expression.

“She appears fine now, but she got very lucky that she didn’t hit her head on anything. But I’ve still been carefully looking after her just to be safe.” She tried to hide it, but I could tell that she was very concerned for her ‘grandmother’. Despite the situation, that just caused me to smile.

“I’m glad you care.” I said sincerely.

She let out a heavy sigh, “Yes. I do. But you don’t need to bring this up with her, I’m sure she’ll say she’s fine.”

I nodded and she continued, “Anyways, you going to stick around for our match?”

I checked the time, and sure enough I still had plenty of time before my scheduled meeting with mayor Henry. “Sure.” I responded, “Lead the way.”

I followed after Karen into the Gym. As soon as I did, I noticed that THIS was where most of the work went into. The interior looked far different from what it was before. But in a good way.

The battle arena and spectator stands were completely redone, with additional safety features added in as well as a VIP viewing box, which I was being escorted to. Not only that, but the Gym as a whole looked far cleaner, and the few Pokémon that I saw being employed by the Gym trainers looked healthy and hale.

I could really feel the effort that Karen and Agatha had put into the Gym. And I said as much to her.

Karen snorted, “I wasn’t about to tarnish my record by doing a bad job of this. And that old hag isn’t much help either; all she does is order me to do things while she lays back and does nothing.”

I nodded; that was about what I expected of Agatha.

“And besides, I felt bad. For Brock and his siblings.” She continued, “…The fact that their parents ran off on them…it really rubs me the wrong way. So, I’ve been doing my best for them as well.”

I patted Karen on the shoulder, “Then you’re a better person than most.” Karen stayed silent but returned a nice smile towards me.

Eventually, as I stepped past a small brown-haired kid that exchanged a wave with Karen, I found myself inside the new VIP box, where Agatha was already seated.

“I’ll let you two keep each other company.” Karen said amusedly before leaving me with Agatha.

As soon as she left, my eyes instinctively went to check over Agatha, making sure that she was okay. Before I could look her over though, her cane smacked reproachfully at my leg.

“Careful now, you don’t want Karen to get jealous at you ogling someone else. Let alone someone my age.” She said with a mocking grin, “Nothing’s more terrible than a woman scorned, after all.”

“Sorry.” I replied, rubbing at my leg from where she hit me, “Just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

At my words, her grin fell. She looked around, checking to make sure that Karen wasn’t able to overhear her. “I got lucky that day, John.” She admitted with a degree of vulnerability that I really didn’t expect from her, “If I had hit anything, I don’t think I’d be walking around like this.”

I looked at her with concern, “But you’re fine now, right?”

She let out a bitter scoff, “My legs creak more than they used to, and just climbing up these few steps to this VIP box nearly killed me. And soon enough I’m going to go to sleep and never wake up. No, boy, I am not doing fine.” She spat out scathingly, “Try as hard as I like, I can’t run away from old age. This is likely my last year in the League.”

I sat down, stunned at her words. I knew that Agatha was old and already planning around her retirement, but I never could imagine her actually retiring. She always held herself with such strength that I didn’t realize that she could even be plagued by something like old age. It was a sobering and unpleasant realisation.

Even though she frequently poked and needled me, I admitted that I cared for her in a weird way. She was like my ornery grandmother.

WHACK!

“OW! WHAT THE FUCK!” I shouted out in surprise as she whacked me hard on the shin with her cane.

“Language!” She chided sarcastically, ignoring the glare I shot her as I rubbed my leg, “Also, you don’t need to stare at me with such pity in your eyes. I do not want it.”

I frowned, partially from the pain, “I was just looking out for you. Retirement doesn’t suit you.”

“HAH! You’re right about that.” She barked out bitterly, “Expect to see me more often if I do retire. Annoying you and Karen will be the only thing keeping me from being bored out of my mind.”

That caused me to shudder; despite my earlier words, I could only handle Agatha in small doses.

Agatha seemed to be pleased by my reaction, as she broke out into a wide grin before patting the seat closer to her, “Come, sit closer. Karen’s about to start her battle against that rich boy.”

I did so. “Who do you think’s going to win?” I asked, shifting away from our previous conversation.

“Who cares?” Agatha responded dismissively, “It’s just a Gym match. I already instructed Karen to never reveal all her trump cards here, so she’ll be holding back. And from what I’ve seen of Steven, he’s a smart one. He’ll be doing the same.”

I nodded, accepting the point. Ultimately, these Gym badges battles weren’t all that meaningful outside of bragging rights, which I doubt either of them cared about. I knew Steven’s ambitions laid in Hoenn, while Karen gained nothing from such a victory either.

“Did you know Sidney challenged Karen just now? It’s going to be a big charity match.” I said to Agatha.

She snorted, “Of course I did. I didn’t say anything because I approve. She needs other people to challenge herself against besides you. And Sidney would make a fine opponent for her.”

“Think she’ll win against Sidney?” I asked, curious about her opinion.

“After all the work I’ve put in with her?! She better!” Agatha remarked. “She’s my apprentice. Can’t have her tarnishing my reputation with a loss.”

“Sidney is not someone she can expect to walk all over, though. He’s a competent Elite Four of his own.” I replied with concern, “But I know that Karen is very strong too.”

Agatha snorted, “Do you think we’ve just been sitting around doing nothing? Of course she’s strong! And she’s even stronger than you think she is.”

Our conversation was interrupted as the referee made his presence known, declaring the rules of the fight. It was just a standard 3v3, and before long, both trainers had already sent out their Pokémon.

Karen sent out her Crawdaunt and Steven sent out a Mawile, proving Agatha’s words right. Neither were using their powerhouses, and it was obvious that both trainers were just using this opportunity to train up their weaker Pokémon.

Steven started off the battle by trying to power up with a Swords Dance, only to be quickly interrupted as Crawdaunt fired off a Taunt. Enraged, Mawile broke off from its attempt to set up and charged at Crawdaunt, only to be slammed with an Aqua Jet.

Knowing that Mawile was disoriented, Crawdaunt pressed on the advantage by following up with a powerful Crabhammer that smashed Mawile into the ground. Before it could continue attacking though, Mawile counterattacked by swinging its massive jaws around and savagely bashed the surprised Crawdaunt, flinging it away.

Crawdaunt quickly recovered and tried to rush Mawile down with an Aqua Jet, but a supereffective Thunder Fang was all that greeted it. Mawile immediately tried to press on with a Brick Break, but Crawdaunt managed to retreat backwards with another burst of speed from Aqua Jet.

Their exchange of attacks continued on for a while longer. But what was evidently clear was that both Pokémon were very evenly matched.

As expected of both Pokémon that weren’t quite at the Elite level, they weren’t hitting as hard as they could be, nor did they have access to many special strategies. But I felt that Crawdaunt had the advantage here, being able to out-speed and out-maneuverer the Mawile with his rapid application of Aqua Jet that proved vital. And that extra mobility was what really sealed Crawdaunt’s eventual victory.

“Could be better, but good enough considering how new it is.” Agatha commented as observed the Crawdaunt, “Hits hard enough, but needs more agility training.”

“Seems a bit on the frailer side.” I added, “I would have hoped that it could take more hits.”

“True.” She agreed, “Still, it has plenty of potential to grow.”

The two of us fell back into silence as Karen and Steven started off their next battle, with Steven sending out his Skarmory. Despite Crawdaunt’s injuries, Karen chose to keep it in the fight since it still had some fight left in it.

I wasn’t very sure about that decision, because Skarmory was quick to take advantage of Crawdaunt’s weakened state by taking to the skies and setting up. In response, Karen ordered Crawdaunt to start setting up with a Swords Dance of its own.

However, Skarmory quickly proved to be more capable of taking advantage of its boosts. With its greater speed, mobility, and control of the skies, Skarmory launched a devastating offensive of hit-and-run attacks that proved overwhelming for the already injured Crawdaunt.

To Crawdaunt’s credit, it was throwing its claws around with respectable strength, but it just couldn’t land a good hit on the Skarmory as the steel bird used its wings proficiently like a shield, blocking many of Crawdaunt’s attempts to attack and evading the rest. After a while Skarmory managed to strike Crawdaunt down by a critical X-Scissor that slashed through Crawdaunt’s back.

“Feh. She shouldn’t have kept it out.” Agatha grumbled, “Should’ve just withdrawn it and started off fresh.”

I shrugged, “Maybe she wanted to test its limits.” I suggested.

Agatha grumbled a little more but said nothing, letting the topic drop just as Karen sent out her next Pokémon. A small, unassuming rock emerged from her Pokéball, eliciting a confused look from Steven before he jerked back in surprise as a vortex of spirits exploded out from it.

Skarmory reacted first, reacting to this new threat by diving forward with a powerful Brave Bird. However, it was quickly forced to spin away before it got caught in the grip of Spiritomb’s Hypnosis. It wasn’t hard to recognize how devastating it would be put to sleep in a match like this.

Now far more cautious than before, Skarmory circled around Spiritomb as if hunting for an opportunity to strike. But Spiritomb didn’t remain idle, and large claws emerged from the shadows and slashed at Skarmory, who narrowly managed to dodge. As the shadows receded from the missed attack, Skarmory shot forwards once again, trying to strike at Spiritomb before it could fight back.

Except that was exactly what Spiritomb had been waiting for. With a haunting cacophony of ghastly cackles, a malicious aura erupting from within the vortex of ghosts that quickly engulfed the diving Skarmory with a deadly Curse. Skarmory’s impressive defenses, far more than what could be seen on a regular Skarmory, was useless against the indirect damage from Curse.

But Skarmory continued its dive and slammed hard into Spiritomb with a Steel Wing, striking so hard that it managed to rip out the floor from beneath Spiritomb.

And coupled with Spiritomb’s own self-damage from Curse, nearly knocked it out.

Yet Spiritomb managed to hold on, before letting out another dreadful laugh as it fired off a small beam of energy that linked itself with Skarmory, draining its health with a Pain Split until they were both at an even level.

Realizing that Skarmory’s health was being rapidly sapped with the combination of both Pain Split and Curse, Steven ordered Skarmory to go all-out in hopes of knocking out Spiritomb before it could heal up and Skarmory fell to the Curse.

Rushing forwards in a dive once again, Skarmory burst forwards with another Brave Bird, with its wings positioned in front of itself as a protective shield. In response, Spiritomb fired off another ray of Hypnosis, trying to put Skarmory to sleep once again. However, just before the Hypnosis managed to land, Skarmory let out a piercing Metal Sound that disrupted the Hypnosis rays, allowing Skarmory the time to smash into the exposed Spiritomb with all of its might.

Its earlier boost from the Swords Dance came into play here, as Spiritomb was launched across the arena from the impact alone. Not wanting to risk it being able to hold on, Skarmory charged at it once more, finishing Spiritomb off with a final Steel Wing that put the amalgamation of ghosts to rest.

Just as it did, Skarmory fell over while letting out a painful cry as it was consumed by a malicious aura from a hidden Destiny Bond, a final parting gift from the fallen Spiritomb.

This time, Agatha had nothing to say outside of a small, satisfied smile. I guess she was pleased about how Karen managed to utilize the strength of Ghost types.

It was not hard to smell the bias.

And finally, the Karen and Steven sent out their last Pokémon, a Umbreon and Aggron respectively. Amusingly, this reminded me of the first time I saw Karen battle against Gym Leader Roy of Rustboro. There, Roy’s Aggron went down to a very clever trap from Karen, so I wondered if I was about to see a repeat performance here.

But I was quickly disabused of that notion when Steven made his first move.

“Ferrous Storm!”

With a roar, Aggron unleashed a torrent of razor-sharp rocks, all covered with piercing steel. Umbreon, taken completely by surprise at the intensity of the attack, instinctively dodged to the side.

However, that put it right into the path of Aggron’s Focus Blasts, which it had pre-emptively fired. It was only out of pure luck that Umbreon emerged with only a glancing blow; the Focus Blasts notorious inaccuracy saving him.

Umbreon quickly retaliated with a Thunder Wave, hoping to slow down the Aggron by paralyzing it. But Steven showed off Aggron’s training once again as a huge rock wall formed instantly in front of it, protecting it from the Thunder Wave.

Still, Umbreon did not remain passive, and took the opportunity to set up a Reflect. Then, Umbreon tried setting up a Light Screen as well before Aggron came bursting through its own rock wall an incredible burst of speed. Unbeknownst to Karen, Aggron had used the rock wall to conceal itself and used the time to setup with an Autonomize, greatly boosting its speed.

That extra speed allowed Aggron to rapidly close the distance to Umbreon. Umbreon tried to fall back with a disruptive Sand Attack, but Aggron swept it all away and slashed down with a brutal Metal Claw. Umbreon cried out in pain, yet still managed to fire off a Thunder Wave at Aggron before it could follow up with an Iron Head.

Aggron instantly stiffened up as the electricity coursed through its body. Making use of the sudden opportunity, Umbreon pulled itself up and fired off a Confuse Ray at Aggron.

Aggron stumbled backwards as the confusion took hold; its head swaying from side to side as it attempted to reorient itself. Just like with her match against Roy, Karen ordered Umbreon forwards to finish Aggron off with a series of supereffective Double Kicks.

But this time, her opponent was not as helpless. The moment Umbreon got close enough, Steven sprung his trap.

“Ferrous Storm again! Around you!”

Steven’s words somehow broke through Aggron’s state of confusion, which was a remarkable sign of how much it trusted its trainer. With yet another roar, a storm of steel-tipped rocks exploded out from Aggron, with itself as the epicentre.

Aggron too was damaged by its own attack, but it was so extremely resistant to rock type attacks that the damage was hardly noticeable. In the meanwhile, Umbreon, completely caught off-guard by the surprised attacks, had his health ripped to shreds as the tornado of rocks sliced into him.

Karen tried to get Umbreon to Dig out of the way, but an unlucky sharp rock struck it critically in the leg, knocking Umbreon over and leaving him vulnerable to the rock-steel vortex. It soon proved unable to withstand the cage of steel and was promptly knocked out.

And with that, the fight was over. I watched as Karen approached Steven, both of them sporting satisfied smiles, as they shook hands.

“Any thoughts on that?” I asked Agatha, thinking she would be disappointed about Karen’s loss.

To my surprise, she wasn’t. “She performed well. She might have gotten overconfident when Umbreon landed that confusion, but she’ll learn from this. Even if she doesn’t, I’ll be sure to drill it into her.”

“Otherwise, she probably should have chosen a less passive Pokémon to fight against an Aggron. Though she can’t be blamed for that; she wasn’t allowed to switch with her final Pokémon and she couldn’t have known what Pokémon Steven was going to use.” Agatha explained.

I nodded, “What about Steven? That was a pretty strong performance.” I was understating it here. Even knowing that he was a future Champion, his Aggron was remarkably impressive. Umbreon WAS a good matchup for it, but even then, its performance was oppressive.

Agatha let out an amused chuckle at my question, “Let’s just say that I’m glad that Steven isn’t from Indigo. I’m honestly not confident in Karen’s chances if they both fought against each other with their full strengths.”

“Not trusting in your apprentice?” I chided, though inwardly agreed with her words.

Agatha shook her head, “I know talent when I see one. And diamond-fed spoon or not, Steven has earned his strength. He’ll be making waves in the future, I guarantee it.”

Agatha wouldn’t know how right she’d be.

A.N. So for this chapter, I wanted to experiment with a shorter description of a fight. I had initially planned for making the fight between Karen and Steven last a full chapter, but decided against it because the fight wasn’t going to be them fighting at full strength. So dedicating a full chapter towards it seemed a little too much.

Still, I hoped you enjoyed my more ‘summarized’ fight instead. Even thought they were both holding back, I hoped I showcased a little of Steven’s impressive strength. We’ll be seeing more of him soon.

And yes, Karen v Sidney! This was a fight that I had considered for a while, and now I’m putting it in action.

This chapter has been BETAed by Allute!