Pokémon Academy: Ch 3: Winter Cup [IC]

[Jory]

{Jacob and Mareek}

The Trainer began to protest, but then shut his mouth as he realized that with Danielle's natural ditziness and James's habit of hiding in dark corners, it was no small surprise that no one else had gotten there. He scratched the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. "Yeah, well... You know, I can't really argue with you. But with that said, Avis is really good at finding people. Uncannily good, actually. It's almost like she's taking orders from someone who knows where everyone is at all times. Like a robot or something," he trailed off. His head then perked back up. "Anyway, I guess I'll just wait here with you," he said before taking a seat against the wall.

Spitfyre continued eating his snack, blissfully unaware of the Porygon2's machinations. He did give the duck-looking thing a once-over, thinking that it looked somewhat familiar. Realizing that it was the same Porygon he defeated in battle not too long ago he simply kept eating, not overly concerned about its presence.

[Commander]

Henry didn't really know what else to do so he muttered "Thanks," just enough so that Lana could hear it. It was a bit hidden, but a smile could be seen on his face. Rosie, on the other hand, wasn't so secretive. Immediately, crouched her head under the girl's hand and rubbed against it. Henry rolled his eyes seeing this. If this was an opportunity to grab attention, Rosie would almost always take it. "Anyways, I should probably get something to eat. If I don't feed that Venonat soon, she's bound to try and steal something from another trainer. Though I do feel kind of bad pulling you away from everyone. If you need to, you can take Rosie with you. She's pretty good at finding people and she seems to really like you." Henry noticed the Delcatty was barely able to keep herself in place as she really enjoyed finding people. It's was kind of her way of showing off.

[Jory]

{Zephyr}

Alvin smirked as the Sneasel took to the air once more. Perfect, he thought, his shit-eating grin only growing wider as Rogue left the ground. "You really shouldn't have let me distract you like that, Raiza. Your defenses are down!" Hera looked back to Alvin and nodded, cocking both arms back and taking careful aim at her opponent. "Now, activate our strategy! Smack Down and Focus Blast volley!" Alvin shouted. The Heracross fired a glowing white sphere directly into the Sneasel's parabolic arc with the full intent of intercepting the Dark-Ice type and sending her crashing into the water. Hera then fired a Focus Blast at the platform the Sneasel was aiming for, taking out a huge chunk of the landing surface. "You're finished!" Alvin bragged.

[Azeria]

Thomas and Iblis

Seeing the small Larvesta use her latent psychic powers,Iblis nodded an screeched once more. He used psychic to move Corona a bit to the right before creating a red orb of flames,once again closing his eyes,the orb started growing and it erupted in a stream of fire threathening to burn the wall up before Iblis opened his eyes and screeched before the flames disipated at his will. Once again Iblis screeched and asked if Corona was up to try it herself.

"Seems like Iblis is really into this,anyways,besides teaching your Larvesta psychic,all I could really reccomend are more powerfull fire type moves like Flamethrower or Flare Blitz since Larvesta's physical strenght is superior to that of a Volcarona for some odd reason"Thomas said while remembering how physically violent Iblis was when he was a Larvesta...ah the good times they had back in their youth.

[DarkLight]

{Danielle, Corona and Zared}

Corona released her focus once Iblis called for her attention. She managed to see her small flames fizz out before she was placed to the side by a Psychic once again. After witnessing another demonstration, the young moth clapped as the warm stream of fire disappeared. Corona chirped enthusiastically at the challenge; she wanted to make the pretty flames too! She then closed her eyes once again to form the fire orb...

Seeing the red orb, Zared moved back to Danielle once again to avoid a burn and watched as mentor and student continue practicing. It looks like he doesn't need to worry about Iblis and Corona now. So, there is still one thing left for them to do... He tapped Danielle on the leg to get her attention and pointed to the direction of the stadium.

---------------

"That's true; I wonder why that is the case myself..." Danielle agreed with the veteran trainer. In her mind, Corona would be better off with Flamethrower if she were to evolve. It would also be easier for the baby moth to learn since Flamethrower is a powered up version of Incinerate. However, Flare Blitz could show off Corona beautifully, especially if she decides to learn Quiver Dance. So many options, yet only one Pokemon...

"Hmm? What's up, boy?" Danielle looked down at the Mawile poking her. She saw him pointing to the announcer's booth before he went still once again. "Oh no! I forgot about that!" She was about to run to pick up the firebug when she saw Corona attempting to enlarge her small ball of fire (with limited success). It wouldn't do to distract her; there is nobody on her current team that is capable of teaching Corona the powerful move so far. But she needed to talk to Professor Cadmus too...

"Zared, you're basically the prime witness; go ahead and meet up with Mareek and Java. I'll be there in a few minutes."

After Zared ran off to the annnouncer's booth, Danielle turned her attention back to Corona, who managed to release a miniature version of Iblis' stream of fire. She then collapsed on her ground in exhaustion. The tiny Larvesta soon glowed a pale white (Morning Sun) before she raised her head back up and chirped at her elder.

"Mr. Nerfion, umm...Is it okay to allow Corona to stay with you and Iblis for a while? I actually have some business to attend to but I don't want to interrupt them... I'll come back and pick her up as soon as its over, I promise!"

------------------

If they looked down the hall, Mareek and Jacob should see a tall Mawile running towards them. Zared gave the company a wave before he managed to reach them.

[Felicity]

Commander

Lana giggled at the lovely Delcatty, fussing her for a while before standing uo again and smiling at Henry again. "I think i'll be fine. To be honest, I should be in the stands rooting for Raiza," Lana admitted "so I think I'm going to rush over and see If I can catch the last of her battle." Lana explained before turning and walking away, looking back with a smile as she waved a farewell to Henry.

Trainer Red

"Surprise!" From behind Kenny came a rather large student who immediately dragged him to a small corner away from prying eyes, pushing him in so his back was to the wall.. There were a couple of other students there preventing Kenny from escaping, a small girl with glasses who kept fidgeting and looking around and a boy who looked to be calm and in control. Evidently the ring leader. The larger student, more fat than muscle, stood still, evidently nervous but not fidgeting like the girl.

"We have a bone to pick with you and your illusionist." The boy said, his face impassive and his voice as stern as a 14 year old voice can be.

[Azeria]

Thomas and Iblis

"That's perfectly alright,I'll have to go back to the stands soon anyways so if you want any help with your Larvesta find me later today or tommorow"Uncle Thomas responded with a chuckle before looking towards the screen that showed the current battle. "Heh,the youth of today shows so much promise,seems like their leaving us in the dust ne Iblis?"He asked his Volcarona who merely emitted a screech that sounded like a chuckle.

James

Having been walking rather slowly through the corridor James arrived at the Announcers booth and noticed Mareek and Jacob. Not really in the mood to talk he just stood next to the wall and waited for now.

[K_H]

Kenny looked at the other students, somewhat irked.

"I am just not in the mood for any nonsense. If you want to talk to me, you should do it in a more public place." however, since you've so rudely done what you did, what is it you want to talk to me about?

Edited March 26, 2015 by Trainer Red

[Felicity]

Trainer Red

The boys calm face took on an angry demeanour now. "We give the utmost of no fucks about your mood. We're here to tell you to get rid of that Arceus-damned Zorua you have. We've seen you fight, we don't think you can be trusted with it's abilities. Who's to say you won't abuse it's abilities in a battle, or fuck over a coordinator because you felt like it? We think it's Bouffalantshit that the teachers let a student have that cheatsy of a pokemon." As the boy let loose his tirade, his companions nodded along, Ringleader became more infuriated as he spoke, gesturing wildly as he spoke.

((Note:This isn't a punishment, you won't have to drop Zoro as a result of this interaction))

Claude

Claude didn't really know, or want to say anything to that. "Well, it's none of my business, just please don't berate my friends again..." He looked at Veronicas shoes rather than her face, he couldn't muster the courage or motivation to look her in the eyes, he just didn't want to be there much more...

[DarkLight]

{Danielle and Corona}

Danielle gave Uncle Thomas and Iblis a bow to signal her gratitude. "That would be great! Thank so much sir!" She then rushed over to pick up her little bug, who chirped in surprise. "Don't worry, I'll let you practice with Iblis after we talked to Professor Cadmus, okay?" Once Corona is comfortable in her arms, she raced to the announcer's booth.

"Hey guys! Sorry I'm late! I got sidetracked by Mr. Nerfion; he and his Volcarona was offering to help teach Psychic to Corona here." Danielle announced to Jacob, Mareek and James.

[Chim]

DarkLight, Azery, Jory and Zerron

Devin studied the Duskull's behavior. “There aren't many Duskulls around so I'd say you belong to James.” It was a simple statement before Avis drew his attention. “You want me to follow you?” The Dragon specialist followed the Murkrow's instructions and ended up at the booth where a few students were gathered.

“What's going on here?”

TurboAura

The woman was tall. Very tall. She almost could rival Devin Cadmus in height. She wore a very strict expression on her face that said she was displeased with Robert's behavior. Her black hair tied in a knot and brown hair completed the strict teacher look. Robert had no way to recognize Madame Plumeau and since she didn't wear any of her contest outfits or had her usual smile on her face, he should probably be worried.

“He speaks the truth,” another voice popped up. A boy in a wheelchair made his way towards Robert. “The Breloom that just fled, punched straight to the wall without using a move. I doubt a firstyear's Pokémon is strong enough at this point to do that.” He reached Plumeau and stopped for a second. “How rude of me. I forgot to introduce myself; Jaime Reeves, at your service!” He made a small and polite bow as far as his wheelchair allowed the movement.

Madame Plumeau, surprised by the newcomer's polite behavior, seemed to be inclined to believe this boy. Her face cleared up a little. “Without a move? Probably hers,” she said with a disapproving look. This time Robert could hear a clear Kalosion (French) accent. “I should warn Professor Redwood.” She made a quick turn on her high heels and headed back.

So that was Madame Plumeau? And did the boy say his name is Reeves?

Tacos, Slade

Phoebe grumbled words neither of the boys could hear but finally calmed down when her Blastoise appeared in the medic room. “You really want to know?” she sighed. “It isn't something dumb as a discussion about the better type. She just used that to break the ice and get you guys on her side by using humor. Or something that has to count as humor...” The angry tone in the water type trainer's voice was still there. Every trace of her normal happy, loud and straightforward self was gone. “We grew up together. Her mom, the daughter of the old Champion Franck Walker, and mine are best friends. My family owns the local water gym while her mother owns a flower shop. She also specializes in grass types, and has skill, but she never had the ambition to pursue a career. Veronica was inspired by both her mother and grandfather from a young age. She wants the best of both worlds so she aims to become the new Champion with her grass types. Anyway to cut a long story short; we grew up as best friends until she showed me her true colors. But instead of taking my word for it, why don't I show you two? Come after the battles are done to the gym if you're curious and I will show you what she's made of.”

After her explanation the water type expert stared at the screen to watch Raiza's battle. “We still have some time before your battle,” she said to Ryan. “I can already tell you the last part of the story. Do any of you know how a new Elite Four Member is chosen?”

Dobby, Murdoc

“My god you two are dull. Don't you believe me? Did perhaps Phoebe say anything? She hates my guts ever since I showed her what a real trainer is like and trashed her ace,” she boasted. The Elite Four Member was overreacting and lying, but there was no way for Claude or Kage to actually know. “You know what? Make it to the finals and I will show you real power. I can even give you some pointers to raise that Cottonee of yours.”

Zerron (Galen)

A small paper was tied to one of the Zubat's tails. The bat landed on Galen's shoulder so he could take it. Idiots during the trip blew it. Students found clues, including your brother. Proceed with caution.

[Sutoratosu]

Java((Before Zared's arrival))

Yes, that's right... just let the little dragon keep eating. Java wouldn't be surprised if the fire type didn't even recognize him... not in the least bit; victors seldom took the time to learn the faces of those who had fallen before them. But enough... it was honestly beginning to disturb the normal type how much this was getting to him- just being in the same presence of the beast. He'd never be able to focus on the next fight if he... hey... wait a minute...

A small chime reminiscent of what one would get to signify an incoming email rang from Mareek's pocket. "We need to make it to the finals..." blared across the screen in bold size 12 times new roman... So much for not getting overly wrapped up in the vendetta. "So that that thing and I-"

"What the hell are you going on about all of a sudden?" Mareek whispered hoarsely... though he took a glance over at the complacent spitfyre nearby and instantly had a hunch. "Oh god damnit. Java, look, it was months ago, you haven't lost since... granted that's because you've mostly been training instead of actually fighting- but still... just let it go already."

"Don't fucking sit here and tell me to let something go when here you are, high and mighty, plotting to dismantle the IP from the inside out all because of something that happened years ago!"

"..." He glared at the screen, fingers moving to take out the battery of the device.

"Wait, Wait!- I apologize... that was low. I... don't know why, but I simply can't just... 'let it go'. Not until I have another chance to face... him. I can't explain it, it's like... I must do it..."

"You're not going to let this go until I say yes, are you?"

"..."

"God, that upgrade might as well have been the Dubious Disk itself..." "Fine." He sighed, shaking his head. Pitch still a whisper. "Fine... but you realize that even assuming we get that far- I'm more likely to use you against that Lapras, right? because both Erce and Nemo are far more suited to deal with the Charmeleon... especially Nemo."

"Swap us then-"

He was finding it hard to believe what he was reading now- swap them? swap them? why, it had been Java who'd come up with that match-up scenario in the first place, afterall... "Yeah, because Cubone v Lapras went over so well the last time... one of you would have to double up if you're going to pawn off that one on poor Nemo-"

"Oh please, the boy isn't defenseless... he has stone sentinels in his arsenal-"

"And that lapras has an area attack that could make pretty short work of him; while you're perfectly suited to turn it completely against her-"

"LOOK!" Blared across the screen. Java floated over in front of the boy's face, staring daggers. He couldn't just go along with it, could he? What did he care whether or not it worked or failed, he'd already said this was nothing more than a test, and damn it... Java was going to take the test all the way to last question, there was no settling for bailing out before the finale, not to him... "If you're so concerned about your oh so precious little orphan... then I will spend the night teaching him how to generate electricity himself so that he can use Thunder Punch, if that's what it will take... the whole night if needed"

"Wait, do you mean that," Mareek asked. "You really think that in a single night, you can teach him that, on top of the work we already have to do with Ancient Power?"

"Of course I mean it..." Java responded in the text, eyes beginning to smolder just a bit. "All night long, I will drill him- it honestly shouldn't be too difficult. He has Lightning rod as his ability, and from earlier training he already is versed enough in how to channel Electricity through his body and control it, case and point being Ancient Lightning... I simply need to teach him how to generate the charge himself instead of being reliant on an outside source for it. A few hits from Discharge to prime him, then I'll explain the process I myself use... as many times as necessary, until he starts to grasp it." The scowl on his duck-like face changed into a beam of determined energy as he let off a small charge in demonstration, body beginning to glow a faint golden... "He most likely wont have as much grasp or mastery over the move in comparison to my abilities, but I can assure you, by morning... he will know how to create an electric charge all on his own"

"The only question is whether or not it'll be strong enough to actually make a difference... but fine, if you're really that Vehement about it..." "Alright, go ahead Java..." He finally sighed. "Teach him... go on and aim for the finals, but just know I have three conditions- 1: you train him yourself, me and Erce will handle the Ancient Power, but you're on your own on the last front... 2: I don;t care what outcome there is or if we even make it to the finals, but you don't bring this up again regardless of win or lose out there, got me? You said you needed one more shot, you'll get it, but after that you have to stop beating this dead Rapidash. And 3... you have to get Nemo's consent first. And I have to see it, non of this, 'well, he said he was alright with it' crap... those sound good to you? cause if not..."

"Fine, fine, whatever..." The program said hastily. "I'll take your terms... just watch me train him..."

"God knows how this whole thing is gonna turn out..." Mareek mused, returning his dex to his pocket as a somewhat placated Java went back to staring at the object of his... fixation. One last shot... that's all he had, and he had to make it count... Nemo would learn, oh yes he would... for Java was more than serious about going all night with the training- not like he needed sleep. It helped being a computer program at times...

* * * * * * *

Mareek

Mareek said nothing as the professor finally appeared, though he noted the still absent Lana... though, he could honestly focus on that later, and he wasn't entirely sure whether she knew anything about this even- either way, it was time to get right to why they were there.

"So...You gonna get this started, Robertson? it was your idea, after all..." He thought to himself, looking over at Jacob Expectantly.

Galen

"Years and years after I finally managed to get out of rocket, and I'm still plagued by fools..." He balled the message in his fist, shaking his head in disgust. "It should've been simple, they just had to stay out of sight while they carried it all out, leave no evidence... dumb asses were too sloppy, too careless..." "Eh, all of you," He called suddenly, addresing both Sarah and Matt and the Fox. "Nevermind, Enough. we're done here for now- I'll come back and get more data myself later... our jobs have just gotten harder thanks to few morons who can't even carry out a simple mission right..." "And it looks like Mareek's getting dragged into this afterall, even after I've gone and told the three of them to stay away... so much for that idea, didn't even matter in the end. And here I was, hoping against hope I could avoid that particular encounter..."

[Azeria]

Hearing his uncle being mentioned,James perked up moving forward and turning over towards Danielle."Oh,so you met my uncle,huh..interesting. anyways,since this is Jacob's idea,i'll just wait for him to start the whole conversation"He said before returning Liona to her pokeball. Why would Uncle Thomas be out of the stands long enough for Danielle to find him though...did HE call him?James thought before shaking his head,no point in thinking about it now,he'd ask Uncle Thomas later.

[Tacos]

Ryan frowned throughout Phoebe's story, feeling sorry for the girl. "I'm sure it's incredibly difficult to consider someone your friend and realize that it was never really the case. I'm sorry that you had to experience that, Ms. Phoebe. As for picking an Elite Four Member?" Ryan's eyebrows furrowed and he thought for a moment. "I can't say I know for sure, but if I had to take a guess, it would probably be that the gym leaders of Ymora are scouted or something to see who is most worthy. At least, that's what it seemed like during your conversation, since you said you weren't in Ymora at the time or something."

[Commander]

Henry watched Lana walk away when he suddenly realized something. "Crap! I'm missing Raiza's battle. I really don't want to miss both of them." He was about to head back when a Venonat popped out of her Poke Ball. "I don't have time for this. If you want, I'll let you eat all the berries I have left in my backpack while her battle is going on." The Venonat glared at her trainer for a minute but complied as she followed Rosie back into the stadium. Secretly, she had eaten all the berries a little bit ago, but this would be a good way to get out of that little scolding.

[Chevaleresse]

"Yknow, people tend to like you better if you don't attack their boyfriend's Pokemon." Kage wasn't in the mood to hear her excuses. Acting like that for any reason gave you a lot of information about the person doing so. "I don't care if Ludicolo did it on his own, it's still your fault for apparently not being able to raise a Pokemon with enough restraint." He couldn't imagine Pokemon that reached that kind of power being poorly raised, but then again, criminal organizations did that very thing to push their Pokemon past their limits. . .

[Aurorix]

Slade leaned against the counter while listening to Phoebe's story. He view of Veronica worsened after that. Not only was she naive, she was also a backstabber. "I honestly know nothing on how the Elite four works in Ymora. I barely know anything about how Kanto's Elite four register and I lived there." Slade said with a little chuckle while scratching the back of his head. "Though I assume they would have a tournament with strong mono-type trainers to see who's the best or something along the lines of that."

[Jory]

{Outside Announcer's Booth- Jacob, Mareek, Danielle, James, Professor Cadmus}

Jacob looked up at Professor Cadmus, relieved that they'd finally gotten a hold of the busy man. "Professor Cadmus, you know Mareek and me. We're both great students and we both care about this school." Jacob looked toward Mareek and nodded, glad to have the other young man with him. "That's why we're coming to you about this. Danielle, James, Mareek, and I all have misgivings about another student. It's not because of his personality. A lot of us like him," he continued. "Do you remember that Donphan stampede? We... Well, we think it was a distraction. We think someone wanted him to get separated from the group to meet with him. Why else would a Skarmory be with him? It's not like the bird could have carried him, and they're hardly known for their compassion. We think there's an organized group trying to get into the school for some reason or another, that they gave him the Skarmory, and that they're using the Winter Cup as cover to do it. And Evan Reeves is their contact inside the school. He has an extra Poke Ball on his belt. He's keeping one of his Pokemon secret, Professor Cadmus. No one's ever seen it before. We think they gave him that one, too. He's also a loner. He's always brooding. It would make sense for them to target someone like him. We don't think he's a bad kid, Professor. We think he got mixed up in something bad and now he's in over his head. We need to help him!" he finished.

"Please, at least help us look into it. And if we're wrong then we're wrong and that's our mistake, but we can't just sit by and do nothing while he makes a decision he'll regret for the rest of his life." Jacob looked to his friends, making sure he did a good job explaining the situation. He then turned back to the Professor, looking the man in the eyes and trying to tell what he made of all this. Now we just hope that he believes us. Otherwise we're on our own and Henry of all people was right, he thought to himself as he awaited the Elite Four member's response.

[Zephyrus the Priestess]

Shootshootshootshootshoot-- "Rogue, PIC," Raiza said, calmly. The Dark-Ice type's claws hardened into ice again as she spun, blowing frigid winds to further thicken the blocks of ice that Rogue then thrust forward as though she were in a dive. With the increase in momentum, the Sneasel sailed further and just barely missed the Focus Blast, though still hurtling into the water. "Oh, sorry, were you saying something, Alvin?" she said, glancing up across the field at her opponent for a second. "No? Thought not."

[TurboAura]

Robert sighed in relief as the woman left, glad that he wasn't going to end up blamed for the wall just because he checked to find out what it was. He then turned to face Jaime. "Thank you for that, I doubt I would have had any chance if you hadn't come in."

'Jaime Reeves, huh? Hmm, does that mean he's related to Evan... Oh, it doesn't matter right now, the guy just helped me out either way.' "Oh, uh my name's Robert if it matters."

Edited March 27, 2015 by TurboAura

[Jory]

{Zephyr}

"That's a bold strategy, Raiza. Unfortunately for you, it'll be much harder for you to avoid our attacks now that you're in the water!" Hera took her cue from this and began peppering the water and the area just above the Sneasel with Pin Missiles. It was beginning to look like just running around and trying to avoid attacks wasn't as good a strategy as Raiza must have thought, because the Heracross still hadn't taken any damage and her Sneasel was now being pressed hard on the defensive.

[Zephyrus the Priestess]

"All right, I'll admit it, I've been kind of pressured and I really hate thinking under pressure. Drives a girl crazy, you know?" Raiza blurted out, though her eyes followed a steady stream of bubbles and what looked like glittering ice scattering across the water's surface towards floating chunks of ice away from the Pin Missile barrage. Looks like all that stamina training and running around paid off after all. "... But you know what? You wouldn't fall for our first strategies... So, we're done playing damsel in distress. I didn't really want to resort to this, cause it's such an overused tactic..." Right as she spoke, Rogue pulled herself up onto the ice floes, huffing, taking deep breaths of air to recover faster from the swim. "And you're right. Sneasel are surefooted on ice-- and there sure is a frikton of ice in the water now. Freeze the water with Icy Wind and hit fast and hard with Aerial Ace!" Immediately, the Dark-Ice type moved quickly, loosing Icy Wind on the near sub-zero water whose surface froze over almost instantly. Ice was natural terrain for Rogue and it made it easier to speed up, if she even needed to with the after-effects of Agility still lingering from earlier. Zigzagging in an attempt to confound Hera in case she tried to throw anything-- literally and figuratively-- Rogue closed the distance and the air around her claw, cocked back, seemed to shimmer with energy, threatening to strike the Bug-Fighting type if she didn't move fast.

[K_H]

Kenny simply waited for the Ringleader to stop, and then spoke in a calm tone.

"Well, the amount of f*cks you give about my mood is how many f*cks I give about your stupid request and what you think, you Arceus-forsaken idiots. It's my team, and I can do whatever I like with it. Besides, who's to say you wouldn't do the things you're claiming that I'm doing if you had a Zorua on your Team, crybaby?"

That last bit was directed specifically at the Ringleader.

Edited March 27, 2015 by Trainer Red

[Jory]

{Zephyr}

Alvin laughed loudly as the Sneasel rushed directly in. "I already told you, Raiza. There's just no way your Sneasel is going to beat Hera by charging in head-on! If there's one thing Heracross are renowned for, it's their brute strength!" He then pointed at the field and pumped his other fist triumphantly. "Hera, Brick Break! Show that pesky little runt who's really in charge!" The Heracross cocked her arm back. It began glowing white as she thrust it forward, meeting the Sneasel's Aerial Ace head-on. The ice underneath Hera began to crack as the blows met, then the energy built up burst outward in a shockwave. The impact of Hera's Brick Break sent Rogue flying backward as Hera slid backward across the ice still on her feet, the shortsighted strategy of running directly into a double weakness not really working in Raiza's favor.

Alvin sneered at the result, his Heracross damaged but definitely still in fighting shape while the Sneasel seemed to have gotten the worse of the encounter. "Is that really the best you can do? You'll never make it to the next stage in the tournament if you don't think before you attack!"

[Zephyrus the Priestess]

Well. That was some reaction time. And a horrible plan indeed. Not to mention the fact that they'd revealed their ace-- literally. "Rogue! Rogue, sweetie, are you all right?" she cried out, clearly alarmed. This was always a failsafe way to break her nonchalant facade. On her side of the platform, the Sneasel clearly struggled to get up...

... It hurt. Rogue's body was shaking all over from the shock of the impact. Head bowed as she was hunched over, she winced. The lack of bulk did nothing to help soften her natural dual weakness to Fighting-type moves. To add insult to injury, this snot-nosed brat was taunting her Trainer... He had been, since the battle started. Coughing a bit, the Dark-Ice type hated herself... this was supposed to be her debut on the job with Raiza. It was always her Ghost-Fire type partner who often took the limelight in battle and even with Raiza. It was evident that he was the favorite, and Rogue had no grudges about it-- after all, Raiza had him ever since he was nothing more but an Egg. And here was her chance, finally. Here it was, only to be blown to snowflakes by this beetle on steroids. Lucifer... Toothless... She shook her head, trying to muster her strength in frustration. Those two pushed themselves for this event. Lucifer fell in the first round, and the Dark-Dragon shouldered the rest of the battle single-handedly to get the team to where they were... only for it to end here?

No. It wasn't over yet. She couldn't let them down-- Raiza, Lucifer, Toothless, and even little Achylx. It was never something she thought about often enough, but they were her first family in what felt like forever. The astonishment she felt that day when a dark blue-haired girl picked up her Pokeball and just gushed, fawning over her lovingly, as though they'd known each other for life... Like two friends reuniting. Something of the like.

It hurt... But... Pain was a message-- a really, really annoying and persistent message-- that could be ignored. That was something Raiza said once during training. And there was definitely a way to beat this herculean bug... slowly... easy does it... one leg up after the other...

"Rogue-- A-Are you sure about this?" came Raiza's choked up cry, as she watched the defiant Sneasel force herself into a crouch and... slowly, onto both shaky legs. Looking back and meeting the Trainer with hardened, glistening ruby eyes, the Dark-Ice type barely nodded, before turning to face her opponent. "... All right. Let's do this, then!" Rogue... I didn't know she was this resolute, Raiza thought, memories of training sessions where Lucifer and Toothless would be the ones to push themselves while the Dark-Ice type hung back, watching the two with concern. Even in conflicts between Achylx and Toothless, she would often step in as a mediator... As a result, the Trainer never thought Rogue the type to like fighting. I've sorely underestimated her. I've got to believe in her more. "Circle around out of Heracross' reach with Agility while blowing Icy Wind!" The Sneasel's eyes lit up, realizing that Raiza thought exactly the same thing she did. There was a way to beat this hulk of a bug. Putting the plan into motion, Rogue skated across the ice once more, almost a blur, while blowing gusts of frosty air at her opponent. It took all her strength and her body protested in agony, but she kept on going around and around, just out of the bug's appendages. What had to be done was to slow Hera down or at least her reaction time, so Rogue could move in for the kill-- she had one shot at this. Soon enough, it was as though Hera was trapped in a miniature icy tornado.