The Eon Academy [S.S. Wishmaker Side-Story]

[[Desolate Divine]]

Epilogue Episode 3: March

Spoiler:

“It doesn’t feel real…”

The hallway from the front door was dimly lit by the setting sun, though two figures cast elongated shadows down the long room. After a second, there was a click, before a light turned on, illuminating the room. Dylan stepped forward slowly, followed by Abbee. It was the first Friday of March, Dylan having just been to the builder’s office in Nimbasa City to pick up the keys, before picking Abbee up from the Gym to be there with him when he entered his now-finished home for the first time.

The house itself was a sight Dylan had never seen before, in that it was a home that was brand new. Whilst he lived in the Eon Academy lodge the summer immediately after it was first built, it was not designed to be a home, at least not on its own. It was for many people to live together in a relatively small space, temporarily. Especially during last summer, where between the five now former students and four witches, the communal areas, including the single bathroom and toilet, became crowded, with many opting to instead use the shared facilities built into the student lodges.

This however was a home; a dwelling for Dylan to make his own. This wasn’t a place he stayed at for the sake of being able to work, that he shared with a group of, though friends themselves, colleagues. And unlike Jon and Alyssa’s cottage, which, though was the best home he ever had, was showing its age, and would have been outgrown by the family had Dylan stayed and the couple decided to have more children, this was new, and had the potential to be Dylan’s home for many years. Potentially the rest of his life.

The pair walked through the hallway into the large open living and dining area, where Dylan and Chris spoke months earlier during Chris’ visit to Nimbasa City, although back then, the room was hardly even a room itself. Flicking on the lights revealed that this was no longer the case. The floor was made up of polished floorboards, which looked so clean that Dylan felt a little guilty that he had not taken off his shoes. The walls were a white, up to the point where in a standard house, the ceiling would be, before becoming smooth timber panels. Here however, the ceiling was over twice as high as it should have been, as to one side was a staircase, adjoining the second floor, which overlooked the large room beneath it. In one corner of the room, were three steps that moved into a lower, carpeted section which would be the lounge room. And despite the house making use of multiple floors, this didn’t stop it from making the most of the space the land it sat on allowed. Both the ground and first floor spread outwards from this centralised hub of the house, with various rooms, each placed with a vision in mind. Dylan wanted this to be a home, not just a house. But he wanted it to be a home he could welcome others into. Be it friends or family visiting, or even children one day. Or even someone like what he had been to Jon.

“It looks incredible…” Abbee muttered as she took in the sight. Dylan couldn’t help but grin as he wondered whether she was doing the same thing he was; seeing this empty room, but all the potential it housed. Mentally taking notes of how the walls could be decorated, where the furniture could be placed, or what style of decor would suit.

Abbee was thankful for the good news, of the house being ready. Dylan had been waiting in eager anticipation, and it was almost looking like he wouldn’t have been able to receive the keys until after the weekend. Additionally, the last few months had been less than pleasant at times for her. Despite managing to turn the publicity of the injury at Nimbasa City Gym into good publicity, jumping through hoops to make amends with the injured trainer, which won her over in the eyes of the media and masses, it had hardly been an open and shut case after Bianca had returned home.

In the first week of the new year, Abbee had received a letter from a lawyer representing Tessa, threatening a claim with the Worker’s Rights Board of Unova, citing unfair and unprofessional dismissal, as well as claiming that Tessa had been verbally abused and humiliated. The letter demanded that Tessa be reinstated as a Nimbasa City Gym Trainer, and a formal apology be issued by Abbee herself. Abbee had arranged a time to video-call Justin, who after asking some questions of clarification about the incident itself, Abbee’s response, and the protocol of both the Unova League and Nimbasa City Gym, burst into laughter at the ridiculousness of the threat, knowing that Tessa and her lawyer didn’t have a leg to stand on. Abbee had asked Justin how she should respond, and he answered by writing up a quick document, and sending it to Abbee to sign and send back. The letter Justin drafted had a single word, ’okay’ followed by contact numbers, email addresses and web addresses of the WRBU, effectively telling Tessa to make whatever claims she wanted.

Abbee, despite not usually being that petty, sent the letter back, much to the amusement of all in the group chat that contained the five former students, Jon, Alyssa, Willow and the Diamond Ladies, and never heard back from the lawyer. A month later however, Abbee received a call from the Unova League, requesting an interview, as a complaint had been made about Abbee’s management of the gym.

Whilst Abbee had been furious about this at first, it was made clear that Abbee’s interviewer knew full well that the claim itself was not worth the paper it was printed on. Claims about Abbee’s capacity to run the gym were proven false before the phone call was even made by the number of challengers, badges handed out, assessment of the trainers, and even the social media presence and reputation of the gym. Abbee soon realised that her interviewer was simply making the phone call to tick a box, before he could file the complaint as investigated and resolved.

The most recent episode in the Tessa saga was a long social media post, which Tessa described the trauma of Abbee’s handling of the situation, dismissing her on Christmas Eve, humiliating her in front of the entire staff, and the effect it had on her mental health, as well as her capacity to find other work. Through having her family and friends share it, as well as sharing the post with less than reputable news sites, the post soon went viral, earning all sorts of colourful comments from those in the Eon Academy group chat. Not wanting to respond whilst angry, and Abbee was furious, Abbee waited. To her relief though, a response was not necessary. The first high-profile person to respond to the post was Elesa herself, citing from the Unova League constitution all injuries, incidents and near-misses occurring from a Pokemon or Pokemon battle held on Unova League grounds, or by League employed trainers acting in this capacity must be reported as soon as reasonably possible to the relevant Gym Leader or Pokemon League representative. Even Bianca, the trainer who had been injured at the Gym, which had sparked the entire conflict, posted in support of Abbee, sharing the extent that Abbee went to to make sure that the incident didn’t ruin Bianca’s Christmas and New Year’s Eve, and to personally ensure that she had a great time.

For Abbee, getting the call from Dylan to say he had the keys and would pick her up after work, was good news that she needed to hear. After months of knowing the phone ringing was likely something else that would waste her time and dampen her spirits, this was a welcome change.

“I’ve called Jon to let him know, so they’ll be on their way soon,” Dylan said, pulling Abbee from her thoughts. “I imagine early next week they’ll be here, so until then, I’ll just move the essentials.”

“You’ve been living in a shed for the last four months, with that little, you have created a new standard of minimalism,” Abbee noted. “What in that shed isn’t essentials?”

Dylan chuckled at the implication. Abbee was right. He had been living simply during that time, and would likely be able to move everything he owned into the house that very evening with Abbee and their Pokemon’s help. Granted, Dylan didn’t own much. Other than his car, which needed to be transported via ship to Unova, all Dylan had owned had fit in one suitcase, largely clothes, his phone, laptop and their chargers, as well as a few other bits and pieces. Even all his tools had been put in a toolbox and locked in his car, transported with it.

“He said they wanted to help me move in, and he and Willow have held off visiting Castelia City until they could do both in one trip,” Dylan answered. “Honestly, I think it’s less about helping me move in and more about visiting, seeing the house, and seeing the Zorua.”

The Pokemon were three months old now, and Dylan was spending almost all of his free time not developing parts of the property into observing them and their behaviour. He had selected two of the twelve that would not be leased to trainers, and would not be trained to battle by himself or anyone else. Nor would they be pets. These ones, Dylan planned, would be treated as though wild, wanting to discover what instinctive behaviours may reveal themselves. Jon still hadn’t seen them in person, and was eager to see them. In addition to visiting Dylan, Abbee, seeing the house, helping them settle in, as well as visit the site of the future Eon Academy.

“Well at least you are gonna start looking into furniture while they’re all here,” Abbee remarked. “Gotta get your money’s worth out of them somehow!”

Dylan grinned at the joke knowing that despite the fact Dylan would be housing and feeding them for a week when they visited, and they would likely attempt to try and reimburse him for that, they would be paying far from an insignificant amount of money to fly out with this little notice. But Abbee was right. They would move the belongings already there tonight, and once Jon arrived, they would begin looking into purchasing furniture and turning the empty house into a home.

“So what next?” Abbee asked. “With the house finished, will you put more time into the business?”

“Soon, but not just yet,” Dylan explained. “I want to make sure that when it starts, it doesn’t stall in first gear, but takes off, and I can get by for a little longer if I need to, if the extra time will help with that.”

Abbee nodded in understanding, as she began looking around the large room again. Between Dylan having done well with saving money from his time working at the Academy, as well as a few down-payments for trainers wanting to lease Zorua when they are ready, Dylan had a reasonable amount of savings to draw on for a little longer whilst paying the bills.

Dylan watched as Abbee looked up towards the balcony that overlooked the living area, before speaking up, his voice sounding more nervous than it had around her in years.

“I was thinking…”

Abbee heard the change in tone, before turning, giving Dylan a puzzled expression. The words seemed like they had been said only because if they weren’t, Dylan would have lost the nerve to speak them.

Abbee flashed Dylan a grin, hoping to calm his nerves a little, before Dylan spoke again.

“I was thinking,” Dylan said. “Now that I’m not living in a shed, and actually have a house…”

His words trailed off again, as Abbee realised what he was saying.

“I mean, is there any reason why you’d pay rent, when you could live here?”

The delivery of the question was awkward, as though Dylan were trying his hardest to remove all the implications from what he was actually asking. To distance himself, so that should Abbee say no, he could play it off as nothing.

“I mean, we spend just about all our time outside of work together anyway, and if I hadn’t have been living in the shed, the only reason for you to have gone home was for work,” Dylan said, his words quickening, as he attempted to cover himself, but only making the situation more awkward. “And for what you’re paying in rent, you could easily buy a car and just drive in to work, and you wouldn’t have to pay for public transport either and-”

“So you figure if I’m going to be paying off someone else’s mortgage it may as well be yours?”

The question took Dylan by surprise, silencing him, which was exactly what Abbee had been going for. She grinned.

“No, nothing like that-”

“Dylan, I’ll move in with you,” Abbee said with a laugh. “We both want it to happen eventually, and you’re right. If I’m going to be paying somebody else’s mortgage to live here, it may as well be yours.”

“That’s not what I-” Dylan protested, causing Abbee’s grin to widen.

“I know,” Abbee said with a smile. “But hey, even if it was, I could think of worse…”

Dylan gaped, as Abbee moved towards him, removing his car keys from his pocket.

“Come on, if we want to get this done quickly, we can’t dawdle. Unlike you, I’ve been living in Unova for years, and not as a minimalist,” Abbee explained. “And I don’t particularly feel like sharing your single bed from the shed, so we’ll need to go to my place at some point tonight…”

Hearing Abbee talk so casually about what would need to happen if she is moving in, practically speaking, caused Dylan to breathe a sigh of relief.

“Come on, I’ll drive,” Abbee said. “I better get used to it if I’m going to be driving into work every day…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

Cassandra grinned as the idea began to form in her mind. On the opposite side of the battlefield stood Jarena, and representing her in battle, Yoghurt the Goodra. Yoghurt was Jarena's third and final Pokemon in this battle, however it was also her strongest. It had made short work of Marche, Cassandra's Sandslash, only moments earlier, and with Ace being already beaten, Cassandra's options were limited. None of her team in sheer strength held a candle to what was referred to as a Pseudo-Legendary Pokemon. A Pokemon, like Dylan's Metagross, and most of Chris's Dragon Types, was close in strength to a Legendary Pokemon itself. However, Cassandra was glad that her team were not specially bred, naturally powerful Pokemon, as that allowed her own skills to be what would determine the outcome of this win. And she had a plan that she thought may steal her the win from this precarious situation.

"Go, Nami!"

Cassandra threw the Pokeball forward, and upon opening, it revealed a large feline Pokemon. Nami the Purugly.

Whilst it wasn't obvious initially, Cassandra realised in the final moments of Marche's bout against Yoghurt that the Goodra's ability, Gooey, was wreaking havoc on the Ground Type Pokemon that relied very much on performing heavy hitting physical attacks. Every time Marche made contact, it was smeared with ooze that secreted from Goodra's hide that was slowing it down, providing Yoghurt with more opportunities to attack, and making it harder for Marche to dodge. Cassandra knew Nami was the only Pokemon that would not be devastated by this phenomenon, but also new Nami needed to hold out long enough to be able to make use of it.

"Fake Out!" Cassandra shouted, knowing that this move had to be used immediately or else it would fail. Nami appeared to move to rush Yoghurt, before revealing the movement to be a feint and instead appearing in front of the Goodra, hitting it weakly but with enough of a surprise to stun it for a moment. Cassandra could see the goo attaching to Nami and slowing her down. But this was part of her plan.

"Now Hone Claws!" Cassandra ordered, using the opportunity bought by Yoghurt flinching however knew there would not be many like this.

"Dragon Claw!" Jarena shouted as Yoghurt, in striking range, slashed at Nami with its energy encased claw. Nami took the hit, before regaining composure ready to strike back.

"Hypnosis!"

Nami cried out a musical note that seemed to only affect the Goodra before it. Whilst the attack was not reliable normally, the Hone Claws attack had managed to increase its accuracy, and Yoghurt's eyes quickly began to droop, as it fell into a light sleep.

"Fury Swipes!" Cassandra ordered. "Then Sucker Punch!"

Nami began attacking Yoghurt with a flurry of quick, light attacks, managing to strike four times, and with each one, acquiring more goo, and being slowed further. As the final one struck, Yoghurt seemed to stir, before copping a heavy punch from out of left field. Despite Nami not being the strongest physical attacker, the punch itself seemed to have the power of a Pokemon like Machamp behind it, throwing Yoghurt back and knocking it unconscious. Jarena looked in shock at her Goodra, who she thought would not fall from two very minor attacks and a Sucker Punch.

"That was impressive…"

Both trainers looked to the entrance of the Eon Academy Stadium, which had required rebuilding after the Blackstone attack and were surprised to realise their practise match had a spectator.

"Steven," Cassandra said, almost a little embarrassed that she hadn't realised he had come in. "How long have you been there?"

"Since Jarena's Goodra took to the field," Steven said casually, before looking to Cassandra. "You've both grown drastically since coming here, but that was another level, Cassandra…"

"I'm a bit lost here…" Jarena admitted, looking between her friend and the Hoenn Champion, almost embarrassed to ask. "What exactly was that?"

"May I?" Steven asked. "I need to keep my own analysis skills sharp…"

Cassandra nodded with a grin though had a hunch Steven knew exactly what she had done.

"Certain Purugly have a rare ability called Defiant. Whenever a stat is lowered, their own damaged pride causes their attack power to increase. And whenever Purugly attacked and made contact with Goodra…"

"It's speed was reduced…" Jarena realised, understanding dawning on her. Steven nodded.

"The Fake Out was a free hit and attack boost but Cassandra couldn't overlook the impact using this tactic would have on Purugly's speed, so she instead decided to buy time by using Hypnosis to put Goodra to sleep, and used Hone Claws both for the boost to attack, but also accuracy," Steven continued. "Then Fury Swipes allowed Purugly to maximise its attack, with each hit triggering Goodra's Gooey ability. And then, to make sure this massive reduction in speed didn't give Goodra a chance to attack."

"Cass went for the Sucker Punch…" Jarena said, looking to her friend. "I knew you were brutal, but against me? We're practically family!"

Cassandra grinned, knowing Jarena was drastically overplaying her offence.

"If you want someone to go easy on you, you're in the wrong place…" Cassandra said. "But Steven was spot on."

Steven nodded with a grin, before Cassandra addressed him.

"You here to see Jon?" Cassandra asked. "He, Alyssa, Lili and Willow flew out yesterday to see Dylan and Abbee…"

"Actually, I'm here to see you, Cassandra…"

Cassandra gave Steven a puzzled look. It wasn’t the first time Steven had come to see specifically one of the Diamond Ladies, however it had been nearly eighteen months since the last time. Back then it was about things such as finalising reports from the Spiritwater Crisis, or signing statements in order to reverse their removal from databases that had occurred after their deaths.

Jarena looked between the pair, before nodding to Cassandra’s belt.

“I was going to drive down to the Pokemon Centre to get my Pokemon healed,” Jarena said casually. “Seeing as you brutalised all of them…”

Cassandra nodded, looking past the joke, before unlatching the three Pokeballs she had used and passing them to Jarena, who said goodbye to the pair, leaving her and Steven alone.

“Mind if we talk over a coffee?”

Despite the fact that none of its inhabitants were currently in Hoenn, Cassandra knew she and Steven were welcome in Jon and Alyssa’s kitchen, and made their way towards the cottage, finding themselves at the small kitchen table, having made coffees. Finally, Cassandra’s curiosity got the better of her.

“So what’s going on to warrant a visit from the Champion?” Cassandra asked. Steven nodded, knowing he owed her an explanation.

“It’s about your appeal…”

Cassandra’s eyes widened. Six weeks earlier, she had finally worked up the nerve, with some encouragement from her friends at the Academy, to request her Pokemon League ban be revoked, on the basis of understanding fully the wrongness of her previous actions, and grown from them, wanting the chance to prove that she could leave the past behind her once and for all. It was something Cassandra had been putting off for a little while, unsure if she had grown enough to give merit to her request, and worried that should it be denied, that it may harm her chances of it being granted later. She didn’t want to risk ruining her chances long term by being impatient.

However, she also knew that as much as she enjoyed working at the Academy on the good days, and even didn’t mind working there on the bad days, being a camp intern was not what she wanted to do long term, and she didn’t want to get too comfortable in the role, lest she become complacent. And whilst she knew she still had a lot to learn, she was realising, especially with the others now gone, that there weren’t many people who posed a serious challenge to her. Violet and Jarena were both skilled enough to make her work for a victory, like the one she had won that morning, however, Cassandra couldn’t pretend that the tally was not far more in her favour. And whilst Jon and Steven both would be very difficult opponents if battling uninhibited, Steven was the Hoenn Champion, and even if he had time for practise matches against Cassandra, both knew that practise matches against him too frequently would not be fair. Lesser trainers wanting to face the Hoenn Champion were only granted the privilege if they beat all eight Gyms as well as the Elite Four, and whilst Steven wasn’t restricted in who he could and couldn’t battle in his own time, it would be unfair on trainers who are having to work their way towards facing him if he were willing to battle against Cassandra on the basis of being friends and colleagues. As for Jon, his time was now occupied largely with training Willow, who, despite growing drastically in skill in the last three months, was not at the same level as Cassandra. She knew however that at the rate Willow was improving, that by Christmas, she would be giving Cassandra a run for her money, and Jon hoped that by summer of next year, when the Castelia Eon Academy would open its doors for the first time, she would be strong enough to give him a run as well.

Effectively, the rate she was improving was beginning to taper off, for no reason other than she was running out of appropriate level trainers to battle. She hesitated for a second, before asking the question that was stuck in her mind.

“Has it been rejected?” she asked, unable to hide the anxiety in her voice.

Steven shook his head, as Cassandra breathed a sigh of relief.

“It’s still progressing along. In terms of the preliminary assessment, everything has been smooth sailing,” Steven explained. “The League has little doubt that you are the same trainer you were six years ago, both in terms of skills, but also morals, and want to accept your request, however…”

Cassandra stared intently as her heart skipped a beat at the last words. Steven noticed her reaction, and sighed.

“This isn’t as simple as any other trainer caught cheating in tournaments. Both on the basis that no trainer managed to escape being caught for as long as you did, and no trainer reached such high levels of success and renown from cheating as you did…” Steven continued. “Whilst what you have provided would be enough on its own for a run-of-the-mill stimulants cheat or match-thrower, for you, the League are needing to be more hesitant. Because even with what you, Violet and Jarena did in Alola, and the fact that people, generally speaking, have forgiven you, there are still a significant number who despite everything, haven’t, and honestly never will…”

“So what, for the sake of the ones who are too proud to admit we aren’t still the scum they thought we were, I can’t be given another chance?” Cassandra asked, her tone rising a little.

“Not at all,” Steven explained. “The difference is that for any other cheater that came before you, if the League allowed them another chance and there was a repeat incident, there would hardly be backlash. But in the eyes of the League, if you were given another chance, and were discovered to be cheating again, the backlash would be huge. Sponsorship for the League itself would be at risk, as would people purchasing tickets to events and investing. If the League gives you the benefit of the doubt and are wrong, there is more at stake.”

“So what does this mean pragmatically?” Cassandra asked, finding herself growing frustrated, and knowing it would be unhelpful, deciding to try and focus on a solution.

“It means that the bar we use to determine whether you are fit to return to competition needs to be much higher than average,” Steven began, and when he noticed Cassandra move to speak, interjected, “even in light of what you did in Alola…”

Cassandra, who had been about to ask if what she had done had not been enough, stopped, before taking a frustrated breath.

“So what do I need to do to meet the bar?” Cassandra asked, a little irritably. “To prove that they aren’t making a mistake by giving me a chance.”

Steven’s expression became slightly more uncomfortable, before he answered.

“Because the worst that the three of you did to the League was stealing wins against Regional Champions, the League wants a Regional Champion to assess your suitability and make the call,” Steven explained. “Effectively using their own influence to sway the public.”

“So that’s why you’re here?”

Steven shook his head.

“Jarena beat Lance, but we all know why he won’t be the one assessing you, and whilst it isn’t important that you aren’t the one who beat me, I can’t assess you,” Steven explained, before answering the question Cassandra was about to ask. “I’ve been told that I am too close to both yourself and Jon, and if I were to assess you and approve the appeal, my integrity would come under question. I’d be accused of pulling strings in order to get your ban removed as a personal favour…”

Cassandra now understood what Steven was about to say.

“Because of this, and the fact that you were the one to cheat a win from her, Cynthia will be assessing you and making the decision…”

Cassandra thought over the reality that she was facing. Whilst Cynthia’s demeanour was friendly, especially in media appearances, Cassandra knew that like Steven, she took her job immensely seriously. Unlike Steven however, Cassandra was sure that she would not let personal connections sway her judgement. On both the S.S. Wishmaker and Spiritwater operations, Steven gave Jon far more time, leniency and consideration than he would have any other operative, partially due to knowing of Jon’s skills, but additionally, knowing him personally, and being willing to take a chance on him. Cassandra, despite not thinking less of Cynthia personally for this, did not think Cynthia would have done the same.

Additionally, she knew that despite Steven being no slouch, many considered Cynthia to be the strongest of all Regional Champions, and Cassandra knew that if this was going to be an assessment on whether she had truly shown enough growth and change in attitude to compete again, one thing that would be tested would be her ability to battle well.

“So do I need to travel to Sinnoh?” Cassandra asked.

“No, she will be coming to Hoenn next month,” Steven explained. “She has other business on Mossdeep she needs to attend to, so it lines up well. The only reason she is waiting that long is that there is a challenger who as of yesterday, has six Sinnoh Gym Badges, and Cynthia knows that he won’t dawdle in reaching her for a battle…”

For the first time in that encounter, Cassandra grinned. Chris had already set records that would not be beaten any time soon, namely being the only person in history to have completed three Pokemon League Challenges in four months. Few had completed three to begin with, but most took their time, or took breaks between. The previous record holder had completed three in twelve months. And Chris was showing no signs of slowing down. Cassandra had seen his match against Abbee, with all who remained at the Academy watching the livestream. She had noticed Jon grin at the end, seeming to notice something nobody else had, though when pestered about the source of his amusement, he had refused to divulge. Cassandra knew that if Chris had beaten the sixth Gym, and now had to make the trip to Sunyshore, before backtracking and heading to Snowpoint, and then backtracking again to reach the Sinnoh League, April was likely a safe bet for Cynthia to visit Hoenn.

“So what this means is that you are now working against a deadline,” Steven explained. “Cynthia will be here next month, so you have until then to improve as much as you need to, to prove that you are worth being allowed to compete again…”

Cassandra nodded, feeling a level of determination she hadn’t felt in a while.

“I’ll be ready…”


************************************************** ************************************************** *****

“Charlotte, why am I not surprised to see you here again?”

Thorton, head of the Battle Factory called out as he stepped out to face Charlotte. He couldn’t help but hide the amused grin. Despite the fact that in the three months she had been living in the Battle Zone, she had beaten three of the five Frontier Brains on her first attempt, this was her fourth attempt battling Thorton, for one reason only; the Battle Factory required her to use Rental Pokemon.

And whilst it was frustrating that having made short work of the Battle Arcade, Castle and Hall, Charlotte had struggled so much to conquer the Battle Factory, she was also glad for this. It meant that she was growing stronger, independent of her Pokemon. She could already see her own growth in identifying the strengths and weaknesses of Pokemon, that she thought had already reached near its peak, and additionally, predicting how a trainer would use said Pokemon. Granted, the only trainers she faced were likely unused to the Pokemon they battled with, and as such were no comparison to the championship level trainers she would be facing in the High Seas Tournament come August, who would know their own Pokemon back to front.

“Don’t get the wrong idea Thorton,” Charlotte called out. “I’m just here for your print, and even then, I barely care about that. Honestly, I just need to beat you so I can move on…”

“You make it sound like you know you’re going to win?”

“I’m not immature enough to make promises I can’t guarantee I can keep,” Charlotte retorted. “But I gotta admit, I got a good feeling about today…”

Thorton grinned, intrigued by the battle that was about to take place. Charlotte was eager to win. She knew she had to return home by June, as the lease that she, Barry and Riley held on their villa would expire, and she couldn’t justify keeping it herself, or trying to find new housemates for only a few months. And given she could only battle Thorton after defeating 48 other trainers, she couldn’t keep wasting time on failed attempts, considering it usually took a week for her to rack up enough wins to face the Frontier Brain.

“Well let’s see if today is your day!”

Thoron readied a Pokeball to match the one Charlotte already held ready, and at the referee’s call, both Pokemon were sent out. On Charlotte’s side of the field was Rhyperior, the powerful Ground and Rock Type roaring, ready for a fight. On Thorton’s side was a Miltank.

“Begin!”

“Surf, Miltank!”

Despite Water Type moves naturally being devastating to Rhyperior, Charlotte had made some observations about the Battle Factory Pokemon. Due to the sheer amount of them, their training was specialised towards two attributes at most, normally those that would benefit the Pokemon’s strengths. As such, Charlotte was certain that Miltank, being far from a special attacker, would have been trained to dish out heavier damage in special moves like Surf. Additionally, Rhyperior had the Solid Rock ability, reducing damage of super effective attacks.

“Power-Up Punch!”

Rhyperior rushed through the torrent of water that condensed from the air behind Miltank, before gushing towards Rhyperior, taking the heavy damage from the attack, but managing to land its own heavy hit, striking the Normal Type and increasing its own attack power.

“Surf again!”

Whilst predictability was always a bad idea in a battle, Charlotte didn’t hold this against Thorton. Given Miltank’s typing being resisted by Rhyperior, and any super effective moves dampened, using the same attack was likely his best option. However, this was going to cost him the match.

“Metal Burst!” Charlotte shouted.

A Steel Type variant of Counter, Metal Burst would counter any attack, not just physical ones, however would deal a little less damage than the Fighting Type move. Additionally, it needed to be timed better. In this circumstance though, it would do.

Rhyperior bounded down on Miltank, taking the brunt of the second Surf attack, and converting the damage it took into a silvery white aura around its first, before lunging at Miltank and striking it with all the power it had just suffered at the hands of, and then some. Miltank was tossed back effortlessly, despite its bulky frame, and lay on the ground unconscious.

“Two moves, that’s a new personal best,” Thorton called out, though there was a slight element of patronisation to his tone.

“That is honestly not that unusual when I use my own Pokemon,” Charlotte answered. “Don’t take it personally…”

Thorton laughed, before sending out his next Pokemon. When the light dissipated and Charlotte saw the Pokemon she was facing, she wasn’t sure how to feel. It was one she had seen battle many times, and was familiar with. However she also knew that it was a very powerful Pokemon in it’s own right, and not one to be underestimated, even if on paper, her Rhyperior had the advantage.

Metagross let out a rumbling growl, as Charlotte assessed the matchup. Both Pokemon were evenly matched in terms of physical offence and defence, though Rhyperior had a slight edge, and whilst Rhyperior had immensely higher constitution, Metagross outclassed it in speed, despite being a large and heavy Pokemon. However, Metagross also outclassed Rhyperior in both offence and defence in special moves. Charlotte knew there was only one logical way forward.

“Rhyperior, Drill Run!”

Given the damage it sustained from the battle against Miltank, Rhyperior would likely fall to a special attack like Psychic from Metagross, even if Metagross was more cut out for physical attacks, largely due to Rhyperior having poor defences against them. However, if Rhyperior could get in Metagross’ space, she hoped Thorton would fall into the trap of retaliating with physical attacks.

Rhyperior rushed Metagross, the large spike on its snout spinning intently, before Rhyperior rammed itself headfirst into Metagross. The hit was heavy, pushing Metagross back, however Thorton was unwavering in his cool and collected analysis of the battle in front of him.

“Flash Cannon!”

Metagross roared, before charging and unleashing a silvery-white beam of light, which struck Rhyperior, launching the heavy Rock and Ground Type off its feet and throwing it back unconscious. Charlotte grimaced, however knew that this would be how it ended. She called back Rhyperior, before sending out her second Pokemon.

“Drifblim, I choose you!”

Drifblim was a Pokemon Charlotte had years of experience with, having one herself, that she only stopped using in her everyday team when she needed a Pokemon capable of Mega Evolution, and trained her Gengar instead. However, she still knew exactly where Drifblim were suited.

“Will-O-Wisp!”

“Meteor Mash!”

Metagross leapt forward, its large claws glowing in a silver light, however before it got the opportunity to land the punch, Drifblim shot a spectral orb at the pseudo-Legendary Pokemon, burning it, and reducing the damage it dealt. Metagross struck, although was forced to pull its punch, due to the pain of the burn it had sustained.

“Now Hex!”

Drifblim cried out in glee, as another spectral orb shot from it, striking Metagross hard, dealing more damage due to its burn, but not enough to actually knock it out.

“Thunder Punch!

Whilst Drifblim should have been able to sustain another hit, Charlotte understood why it hadn’t, when it fell, taking the Thunder Punch attack. Meteor Mash had increased Metagross’ attack power, negating some of the effect of the burn. Charlotte however, had chosen Drifblim for a reason.

When Drifblim fell unconscious, a spectral orb involuntarily left its body, rushing into Metagross and hitting it with a surprise attack. Drifblim’s Aftermath Ability. Between the Drill Run, the damage from the burn, Hex, and now this additional hit, Metagross cried out in pain, before collapsing, falling unconscious itself, and leaving the battle sitting at a tie. Both trainers were down to their final Pokemon, which meant that more than ever, this was going to be a match of skill and wits. The better trainer would win.

With both Pokemon returned to their Pokeballs, both Charlotte and Thorton readied their final Pokeballs, before tossing them forward simultaneously.

In front of Charlotte, appeared a Porygon-Z, the digital Pokemon looking to be slightly unhinged due to its corrupted appearance. In front of Thorton was another familiar Pokemon she had battled numerous times. Garchomp. Despite there not being a clear advantage one way or another, Charlotte knew that if Porygon-Z could weather a single hit, the match would be hers. Already, Porygon’s Download Ability, like that of the Genesect she fought last summer, was scanning Garchomp to improve its own chances against it. And having battled Chris’ Garchomp many times before, she knew exactly what was happening.

“Dragon Rush!” Thorton ordered, as Garchomp roared, and began bearing down on Porygon-Z.

“Agility!” Charlotte ordered. “Then Conversion 2!”

“Dragon Claw!” Thorton countered at the same time.

Porygon-Z took the hit, before increasing its own speed to double what was its natural, and then using Conversion 2, the move exclusive to the Porygon line. Conversion 2 would change Porygon’s type to one that either resists, or is immune to the type of damage that hit it most recently. Charlotte knew one type resisted Dragon Type attacks, and one was completely immune. Her chances were fifty-fifty, but regardless, the net result would be a benefit to her.

As Garchomp used Dragon Claw, Porygon-Z flickered for a moment, as the attack struck, but seemed to do no damage.

“Stomping Tantrum!” Thorton commanded, knowing the failed Dragon Claw would empower it, though Charlotte had held off giving her own order, wanting to be able to respond with precision.

“Magnet Rise!” Charlotte commanded, knowing Porygon Z was quick enough to perform the move before Garchomp’s attack struck. “Then Ice Beam!”

Just as Garchomp used Stomping Tantrum, Porygon-Z’s internal magnetism, which caused it to float, shifted, increasing the distance it naturally floated above the ground, causing the attack to miss, before it cried out, unleashing a pale blue beam of light. The beam struck Garchomp, empowered by the activation of Porygon’s Download Ability, causing the second pseudo-Legendary Pokemon to crumble, falling unconscious, as Porygon-Z let out an excited, glitch-like sound, before Charlotte called it back.

“What can I say?” Charlotte said casually. “I had a good feeling…”

Thorton smirked, as he returned Garchomp to its Pokeball. Whilst he knew the connection Charlotte had to two of his rental Pokemon, he was not going to speak against Charlotte’s skill. Effectively, Charlotte’s rental Pokemon were less powerful, and two were far less familiar to her. But with skill and knowledge of her opponent, she had taken the win, one that few do. He withdrew a small, stainless steel case from his pocket, before opening it, and withdrawing a print with a picture of himself, and the Battle Factory on the front, emblazoned with Battle Frontier logos and branding. Placing the card against the case, he quickly signed the back, marking it as official, before handing it to Charlotte.

“All that’s left is the Battle Tower for you, isn’t it?” Thorton asked as he handed the print to Charlotte, to which she nodded. “I’ll have to let Palmer know not to get too comfortable…”

“Thanks Thorton,” Charlotte said with a grin. “I had fun, even if it was losing to you three times in a row…”

Half an hour later, Charlotte sat in a cafe, a large milkshake on the table in front of her, as she admired her second-last Battle Frontier Print. The print itself was practically worthless, a glorified autograph from a trainer only famous for a position they held at the Battle Frontier. And whilst each of the Frontier Brains was a talented trainer, their level was closer to that of the last Gym Leader of a region, with the majority of the challenge being both the sheer amount of subsequent wins a competitor needed to even face them, and the gimmick of whatever facility they were the head of.

Despite all this though, Charlotte couldn’t help but treat it as a little more precious than she knew it was. This had been the hardest to earn by far, and she hoped that was relative to how much she had learnt in order to get it.

Charlotte was pulled from her thoughts by the buzzing sound of her phone, still on silent mode from the challenge, buzzing on the table.

”Chris.”

Despite the fact that she had been tempted to change Chris’ contact to Pain in my a** numerous times over the years, she never had. She knew why, though for a long time, had forced herself not to think of that reason. The call, however, surprised her. Chris was normally one to text, and given his hectic travel and battling schedule, he was texting them individually less than normal, and instead relying on the group chat. Slightly puzzled, Charlotte answered the phone.

“Hey, what’s up?”

”Nothing much,” came Chris’ voice. ”I’m just on my way up to Snowpoint, and had been meaning to call you for days, but kept getting distracted. Had the thought now, and realised if I got distracted again, it wouldn’t happen, so figured I’d call. Is now a bad time?”

“No, now’s fine,” Charlotte answered casually. “You on your way to see Candice and Justin?”

”Candice first, then Justin,” Chris said, causing Charlotte to chuckle. ”Then after that, the Sinnoh League, but that’s why I’m calling you.”

“I’m not sure I follow, but go on…”

”After the Sinnoh League, I need to get my bike shipped to Hoenn, and figure if that’s forcing me to take a break before I start working my way through Hoenn, I’d spend a bit more time in Sinnoh, then take a flight to Hoenn, instead of travelling by boat like I have been. In terms of when I can actually start competing there, it makes no difference, but I know which I’d prefer,” Chris explained casually. He seemed a little distant, which made Charlotte wonder whether she was on hands free inside Chris’ motorbike helmet as he rode. ”You mind if I come visit for a few days?”

This took Charlotte by surprise. Chris knew she was currently living in the Battle Zone, which was out of the way for anyone not looking for a holiday, or looking to compete at the Battle Frontier.

“I mean, sure, but if you’re after a break, wouldn’t you be better off just flying straight to Lilycove and spending some time on the beach there? Or even taking the ferry across to Mossdeep and staying with Jon and Alyssa?” Charlotte said. “It’s just that I imagine you’d be wasting a few days getting here from Canalave, then making your way back to Jubilife for a flight without your bike…”

”I mean, I could,” Chris said. ”But then I wouldn’t get to see you?”

This statement took Charlotte by surprise. Despite the fact they were better friends now than they had ever been, she didn’t think Chris would make that much of a detour just to see her.

”I mean, I got to see Dylan and Abbee when I passed by Nimbasa City, and I’ll be seeing Justin and Candice later this week. Then I’ll be seeing Jon, Alyssa, and all the others when I pass through Mossdeep,” Chris explained. ”You’re the only one I wouldn’t be running into on my way through, and if I don’t see you when I can now, it will be September before I get to see you, and that’s if we aren’t still busy after then…”

Charlotte was silent as she took in Chris’ explanation. She had mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, she wanted to believe that maybe Chris’ reasoning was a convenient excuse and that there was more to it. On the other hand, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to open that can of worms, and was a little relieved that there was a perfectly logical explanation for Chris wanting to spend a few days with her between regions.

”It’s okay if you can’t,” Chris assured. ”I get that I’m not the only one working towards something big-”

“No, it’s fine!” Charlotte said, a little too forcefully. “I have two housemates and no spare rooms, so as long as you don’t mind sleeping on the couch, it’d be good to have you around.”

“You sure?”

“Totally,” Charlotte explained. “Sorry, I just beat the Battle Factory after three failed attempts, so my mind is a little hazy…”

”I’ll have to take a look when I come visit then,” Chris explained. ”I’ll call you when I’ve beaten the Sinnoh League, and give you an ETA then. All depends on how long travel takes, and whether Cynthia is as tough as they say…”

“No stress,” Charlotte answered. “Keep in touch…”

The call ended, though Charlotte couldn’t help but be amused at the redundancy of Chris planning to call after beating the Sinnoh League. Charlotte had ProjectSTN opened as a permanent tab, checking it multiple times a day for updates. She knew that she would be among the first to know.

Charlotte opened her gallery and found the photo taken at the tattoo shop on the day they left Hoenn. Jon and his five original students stood in a line in awkward positions, showing off their new tattoos. Charlotte stood next to Chris in the photo, though awkwardly with her back half to the camera due to the placement of her own emblem. Both of them seemed happy.

There was something that Chris said though that was resonating with Charlotte. This would be the last chance to see each other for nearly five months, and that was only accounting for Chris being busy finishing ProjectSTN, and Charlotte preparing to compete in the High Seas Tournament. After that competition, she had every intention of returning to full time competition, and she knew now that Chris would likely not do the same. He had said himself that Charlotte was the better trainer, and that it was part of the reason he was forging a different path, away from the tournament scene. She wasn’t going to see him at competitions. And she had a hunch that if Chris could pull this off, he may receive a job offer he couldn’t refuse, which would take even more of his time.

As she looked at the photo, she began wondering when she would see each of the others again. Abbee was now established well and truly as Nimbasa City’s Gym Leader, with Dylan very close to starting his business in that area. Justin had just started his job as a police officer in Snowpoint City, and with Candice being the Gym Leader there, would likely stay there as long as she did. Jon and Alyssa had no plan of leaving Hoenn permanently, and Jon was now kept busy preparing Willow to run a second, larger Eon Academy. And whilst Charlotte didn’t know what the Diamond Ladies would do with their lives in any sort of specifics, she figured they’d be spread out to far flung corners of the world.

Charlotte knew that things had changed. It wasn’t just a matter of them not seeing each other during summers anymore. Even if there weren't thousands of miles between them, and lots of money in airfares to visit, each of her dearest friends had established roots in their own part of the world, and disappearing, even if for a well-earned break from life as they know it, was now far harder.

As she considered all this, Charlotte made a decision. All of them, Charlotte felt that she had no unfinished business with. As much as she wanted to see her friends, she knew that even if it were a year or more between seeing them, when she did, things would pick up exactly where they left off. All but one.

“When he comes to see me, I’ll tell him…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

“I’m home…”

Justin closed the door quickly behind him, taking off his shoes in the entryway, and taking off his jacket to hang on the rack just next to the door. Despite the fact that they were getting into spring, Snowpoint would have snow for at least another two weeks before it thawed. And starting work in the last weeks of winter, Justin had picked up this ritual quickly upon returning home. Quickly shutting the door behind him, leaving his shoes at the door, so that he didn’t walk remnants of snow through the house, and hanging up the jacket so that it would dry by morning.

“How was work?”

Candice’s voice came from the lounge, as well as the sound of a keyboard clicking. Every year, Gym Leaders were required to write a report to the Pokemon League, filling them in on any changes such as Gym Trainers coming or going, Candice’s own team of Pokemon changing, or even factors that would cause a change in the League Challenge overall. This year, the snowfall had been far heavier over winter, and as such, less trainers made the trek north to get a badge, many opting to wait out the cold weather and take a break over winter. Even now, the snow had only really started to show signs of melting.

Because of this, it wasn’t uncommon for Candice to be found after work, typing away at her laptop. Whilst she knew Cynthia wouldn’t reduce her paid hours if there weren’t any trainers coming during this section of the year, she wanted to make sure she was working enough to warrant her pay, and as such, was finding other things to benefit the Gym during the quiet season. One idea she had was rewriting the training regime for Gym Trainers and was even hoping to have Justin give a workshop to the Gym Trainers on some Eon Academy style analysis and tactics, and maybe even challenge a few that needed to be humbled a little.

“It was good,” Justin said as he walked into the lounge. Candice shuffled aside, creating some space, as Justin sank into the corner, before Candice moved her laptop from the coffee table to her lap, and slid closer to him. “Nothing too out of the ordinary…”

That day had been spent as a passenger in a patrol car with a more experienced officer, who had taken the lead for the majority, allowing Justin to see someone who had been in the position longer in action. Really, the day had been spent between monitoring traffic with a radar gun, before intercepting a few drivers who were sitting substantially above the speed limit, before being called in to assist another pair of officers who were diverting traffic after a tree came down, having grown weak from the constant weight of winter’s snow, blocking the road.

“Are you sure?” Candice asked, as she decided to clock off for the day herself, and closed her laptop. “You seem to be in really good spirits, for an average day?”

“Am I not normally in good spirits?” Justin joked.

“You are, hence the really,” Candice retorted, earning a chuckle from Justin.

“I’m just really enjoying work,” Justin explained. “I feel like I’m doing something worthwhile, which for a while, I didn’t know I would ever do, and I’m learning heaps on the job.”

“Because fighting off Blackstone last year wasn’t worthwhile enough?” Candice joked.

“If I had to fight Blackstone every day as my nine-to-five, I’d be far from this happy,” Justin answered back, as Candice grinned.

“So what was today’s big lesson?”

Justin grinned, having wanted to share this observation.

“When we were parked by Sycamore Road with the radar gun out, within a minute there was someone driving over the limit,” Justin explained. “But when I pointed it out, Rick told me we don’t bother unless they’re at least ten over…”

Candice grinned at the fact that despite her boyfriend’s intelligence, that he was only understanding this now, something she had clued in on years earlier.

“He said that if we chased down everyone who was even two over, we’d be too busy writing tickets, for people who may have just made a mistake, that we’d miss the person who is less likely to be intentionally over the limit, and is more likely to cause an accident,” Justin explained. “He said that sure, they are breaking the law, but they are low enough risk that we can just let the speed cameras catch them when they do. But if someone is ten or fifteen over, that needs to be addressed immediately. Both for the sake of not letting them think they’re getting away with it, and to prevent an accident…”

Once Justin finished, he noticed Candice’s grin, and returned it with a puzzled expression.

“What?”

“I just think it’s funny that it took a law degree, police training and three months on the job for you to realise that’s what they do,” Candice explained with a laugh. “You never wondered why the cop you didn’t see when you crept over the limit didn’t pull you over?”

“I didn’t drive regularly until I moved here, and when I did, I didn’t speed,” Justin answered, a little shocked that Candice half admitted to occasionally speeding herself. Justin wasn’t that naive to think only hardened criminals broke the speed limit. He was certain that Chris had received multiple fines for speeding since he got his motorbike, and knew that Jon likely sat five or ten above the limit, and had received the odd fine. After all, the man who in his younger years tested Latios’ top speed, would likely view speed limits as suggestions. Dylan would likely view them as suggestions as well, however was observant enough to be able to not get caught. As for Charlotte and Abbee, he had only ever been a passenger to Charlotte in other people’s cars, and though she had her licence now, Abbee didn’t drive. He figured of all of them, Abbee was the least likely to go over the limit. And whilst he was no stranger to being a passenger in Candice’s car, he took for granted the fact that she would obey all road laws.

Candice laughed at Justin’s innocence, as he rolled his eyes. Once he had been in the police force for a year, he could receive training which would allow him to drive patrol cars as high as eighty above the speed limit if he deemed it necessary to perform his duties. Something Candice, nor his friends could claim.

“Laugh all you want, I won’t be the one driving you when you lose your licence,” Justin chided. As Candice feigned shock.

“What’s the point of being with a cop if he can’t even get me out of a speeding fine?”

“We’ll you’re in too deep now,” Justin answered. “You’ve had three years to figure that out, and now I live here…”

Candice grinned, before relenting, and enjoying the quiet time she got to spend with him. This was not something out of the ordinary. She had known that Justin had bad days during training, given the method the training program used to inspire excellence. Justin and the other recruits were pitted against each other for an arbitrary ranking, and Justin, having performed well early on, had effectively had a target placed on his back. There were days where he was furious with his classmates when Candice called, and she had been worried that he would continue to have bad days like that when he started working in Snowpoint. However, in the few weeks Justin had been working, he had always returned from work in a good mood, the worst being exhausted from a night shift.

Zayne had been right about the ranking system. The results of assessments that made up the initial rank, such as the physical assessment, written exam, and Pokemon battling ranking, were removed from the equation, with the only ranking left being the one that was based on how well they performed in their training. Justin had taken the number two spot, and Zayne had taken the first, granted, Justin had helped him with his written work as well as improve in battling. Whilst he knew Chris and Charlotte would be seething at the idea of coming second, he was more than happy with it, though he did find a considerable amount of satisfaction seeing people who were letting the ranking system get the better of their judgement plummet when the final ranks were actually released.

“Honestly, I’m just waiting for the challengers to come back to Snowpoint,” Candice said with a sigh. “I reckon Hoenn’s Elite Four will have more challenges than I do. And what’s the deal? People don’t want to come to Snowpoint during winter? We live here!”

Justin laughed at Candice’s admonishment of trainers waiting for winter to be over before making the trek. Although the temperature wasn’t as cold as the Crown Tundra, where he and Candice first met en route to, he couldn’t help but admit that he’d prefer it if Snowpoint were a little less cold.

“Well I know for sure you’ll have a challenger by the end of the week,” Justin said. “I’m willing to bet he’ll be more excited to see you than me…”

Candice couldn’t help but laugh at Justin’s explanation of the circumstances they would soon find themselves in.

“I mean, it’ll be good to have a challenger, but I think Chris may just embarrass me,” Candice joked. “He beat Abbee when she was going all out, and I know she is already a better trainer than me.”

“True, but I think Abbee may have given him a scare with that…”

“What makes you say that?” Candice asked, genuinely surprised.

“Because there has been a suspicious lack of gloating considering Abbee was likely one of the most difficult battles he fought so far,” Justin said with a grin. “If she didn’t have him on the ropes like she did, he’d have a bit more to say about that battle…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

The battle so far had been close, although Chris had managed to keep ahead the almost entire time. He and Candice had agreed to a standard three on three match, with Candice opening with her Abomasnow, and Chris opening with Hydreigon. She had chosen Abomasnow to open for multiple reasons. The main one being that she didn’t think Chris would open with Charizard. Candice had Regice at her disposal, and Charizard was the only one of Chris’ Pokemon that held anything remotely resembling a type advantage against it, which may not even be enough for it to beat a Legendary Pokemon. As such, she figured that if there was any match she was safe opening with a Pokemon double disadvantaged to fire, it was this one.

Hydreigon beat down Abomasnow with sheer brutality, wearing down the Ice-Grass Type until it fell, and Candice responded by sending out the one non-Ice Type she was allowed on her Gym team; Medicham. Both Justin and Chris knew that Candice had more than just type advantages backing this matchup. Medicham was a powerful and precise Pokemon, which was exactly what Candice had needed against a Pokemon as unhinged as Hydreigon. Medicham made short work of Hydreigon, prompting Chris to send out Lugia, knowing that the Legendary Pokemon would be disadvantaged against Regice, and that there wasn’t going to be a better time to use it.

To Chris’ shock however, Candice managed to use this matchup to even the playing field. By using some well timed Thunder Punch attacks, Medicham was able to paralyse Lugia, buying a precious opportunity to use the powerful, yet deadly if misperformed, Axe Kick, which even against Lugia’s double advantage, was enough to end the matchup, albeit with enough recoil to Medicham to knock it out as well. Now, both trainers faced each other with a Pokeball in hand, each knowing what the other was planning on sending out.

“Charizard, it’s on you!”

“Go Regice!”

The fact that Candice had gotten Chris into this position, where the result of this matchup would determine the battle, was testament to her skills, and despite having a type advantage, Chris knew that Candice held the upper hand. Charizard naturally suited being a fast attacker, be it special or physical attacks, whilst Regice was slow, relying on its defensive capability. Its defence against special attacks was second only to Shuckle, a Pokemon Chris had lost to before on the basis of its incredible defensive capability. And whilst Regice’s ability to take a hit from physical moves was nothing to sneeze at either, it also had attack power in special moves near equal to Charizard. In a straight up offensive battle, Regice would wear Charizard down before Charizard could deliver a match ending hit. Additionally, Chris knew that a drawn out match would not suit.

Despite not being an Elite Four Member or Champion herself, Candice was in a unique position, she was a Gym Leader with a Legendary Pokemon, but was the last one in her sequence, and unlike Abbee who needed to hold back against standard battlers far more, Candice was only one step before the Sinnoh Elite Four. Additionally, Regice matched her Gym’s typing. For all these reasons, Chris was more apprehensive about Regice, who in the four years since being captured, had battled a far wider variety of difficult opponents, far more regularly than Victini.

Because of this however, Chris had made sure he had an idea for how to handle Regice well before he arrived in Sinnoh. Initially it was a simple plan, being to make sure Regice went down before it had a chance to make use of its already impressive stat pool, however with enough time planning, and research into Regice, available thanks to Lauren Mendez of Jubilife University, Chris fleshed it out into something he thought may even take Jon by surprise.

“Belly Drum!” Chris commanded, as Charizard roared, slapping its large claw to its exposed belly, inflicting pain on itself, but using the pain to bring its attack power to its peak. He saw Candice’s eyes widen as she realised what his tactic was and knew he had to time his next move perfectly.

“Protect!” Candice ordered, knowing a heavy hit was coming, and at the same moment, Chris called out Charizard’s next move.

“Substitute, then Fire Punch!”

Regice’s most glaring weakness was its speed, or lack thereof, making it easy for Charizard to act first. As Regice raised the protect barrier, Charizard had vanished, being replaced with a stuffed toy. After a moment, when the barrier flickered out of existence, and Regice was about to receive Candice’s next order, a roar echoed through the gym, as behind the Legendary Titan, Charizard reappeared, its claw engulfed in flames, before being launched into Regice.

In a single hit, Regice was thrown across the battlefield, and toppled over, unmoving, as Candice watched in shock.

“That was brilliant…” Candice said after a moment of silence, before her grin erupted into amused laughter. “I’ve prided myself on not losing a Pokemon to a single hit, and not only did you pull it off, it was against Regice of all Pokemon!”

Candice called Regice back to its Pokeball as Chris made his way forward, Candice’s own delight becoming contagious.

“I knew that was the only way I could beat Regice. In anything even remotely drawn out, Charizard would have been at a huge disadvantage,” Chris explained. “So I put all my planning into finding a way for Charizard to end this as fast as it started…”

“That was brilliant!” Candice said again in shock. “I didn’t even know Charizard could learn Belly Drum, but then using Substitute to trigger its Blaze ability was poetry!”

Chris couldn’t help but grin, impressed she had understood his tactic so quickly.

“In Paldea there is a herb called a Mirror Herb. It can be used to teach a Pokemon a move from other Pokemon that it could inherit. Charizard can inherit Belly Drum from a Snorlax if there is one in its ancestry, though don’t ask me about the logistics of that,” Chris explained, as Candice’s grin disappeared for the first time since the battle ended, being replaced by a grimace at the mental picture Chris had brought to mind. “So I tracked down one of these herbs, found a trainer with a Snorlax who used Belly Drum, got a spit sample, and fed the herb to Charizard. And it worked a treat.”

Candice nodded emphatically, as she began wondering how she could use this information to strengthen her own team.

“I’ll have to tell Justin that I almost had you,” Candice said mischievously. “I’d love to see him go up against that…”

“And if you told him Charizard beat Regice in under ten seconds, he wouldn’t want to try his luck?” Chris asked, as Candice nodded in agreement.

“We’ll see if we can convince him for a match before dinner tonight,” Candice explained. “You’ll have plenty of time to head to the Pokemon Centre before then…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

Justin was thankful that he had chosen to use Alakazam during the battle that Candice had pressed him to give Chris. Both trainers had opted for a sudden death battle, with only one Pokemon each. And whilst Justin was shocked to see Charizard use Belly Drum, he wasted no time in turning the tables on Charizard.

“Speed Swap, then Power Swap!” Justin ordered, as within moments of Charizard’s attack power being boosted, its speed was stolen, and with said stolen speed, its attack boosts were also taken, leaving it even more weakened than it had been earlier.

“Shadow Claw!” Chris ordered, knowing it was his only chance, however had a pretty good idea of how this match would end.

“Taunt!” Justin ordered, preventing Chris from ordering a Protect. “Then Psycho Cut!”

With Charizard’s naturally high speed, and Alakazam’s unnaturally low speed being switched, Chris stood helplessly as Justin prevented him from doing anything to stop the match ending hit, before ordering the hit itself. Charizard lunged forward, striking Alakazam with the Ghost Type slashing attack, which Alakazam, due to being specialised in defensive capability and constitution, at the expense of its natural attack power and speed, wore the hit, before retaliating with a slashing movement of its hand, swiping through the air, creating a telekinetic blade which struck Charizard, knocking it out in a single hit.

“Really?” Candice asked in exasperation. “Did you have to make it look that easy?”

Chris grinned. Even though he knew Justin was an exceptional trainer, like all who came from the Eon Academy, even he had been surprised at how quickly Justin had ended the match.

“Your job involves competitive battling and assessing a trainer's skills. Mine relies on me at times needing to use Pokemon to neutralise a situation before it can get worse,” Justin said with a laugh. “The problem with an all-in tactic like that is that if it doesn’t work as intended, it is dead in the water.”

“Come on, you have to admit, you were lucky to have chosen Alakazam,” Chris retorted.

“Lucky, or did I know you well enough to know that in a sudden death-match, you wouldn’t be dawdling at all?” Justin answered. “I knew you would be running out of the gate at a full sprint, and the best way to stop someone who is doing that is to trip them up.”


Despite the fact that they debated how much of Justin’s win came from luck, Chris knew that Justin had won due to skill alone. He could see that even in the six months since they all left the Eon Academy, Justin had improved immensely in light of his police training. Chris knew it wasn’t just Justin though. Abbee as well had improved, thanks to her time as Gym Leader, practically giving him a win out of the goodness of her heart, and the fact she could remind him of it later. This was especially shocking considering none of Abbee’s opponents at the Nimbasa Gym would be challenging her enough that the battles stretched her. It was something else.

Chris couldn’t help but find it interesting that for so long, he, like so many others considered Jon’s teaching at the Eon Academy to be a specialist program of sorts, helping them grow in their capacity to analyse themselves and their opponents, be creative with tactics and battle outside of the box. The reason this seemed to be so specialised is because it was something not discussed at even the most prestigious battling schools like the College of the North Wind.

What Chris was seeing though was actually the opposite. Jon’s teachings were far from specialised; it just so happened that his first students, with the exception of Dylan and to some degree, Justin, came in already skilled in battling for their age. Instead, they were basic principles that allowed those who learnt them to grow at a faster and deeper rate.

He considered Abbee, whose job now was pushing challenging trainers to their limits in order that they battle at their best and grow from it. Abbee no doubt had sustained the most official losses since leaving the Academy, as a Gym Leader who never loses creates a choke point in the League, however even then, she was able to pose the first real threat to Chris in his own journey by that very skill. Chris hadn’t seen Dylan battle since the pair of them fought Obsidian, the second-in-command of the Blackstone force that attacked the Eon Academy, but the more he thought about it, the more he understood Dylan’s speciality.

Dylan had been considered the wall of the group, being impenetrable and hard to break, however seeing how Dylan coordinated the response to Deoxys attacking, assisted Jon in Alola, and fought to the bitter end to protect the Eon Academy from Blackstone, Chris now realised Dylan was less of a wall, and more of a shield. Whilst Abbee’s own speciality was pushing trainers to their limit so they could grow, Dylan’s was protecting what was dear to him, regardless of what was in front of him.

Justin had specialised in battling in a way that would help him neutralise whatever situation he could find himself in quickly and efficiently, and not be taken by surprise, and Chris himself, had specialised in beating Pokemon Leagues, effectively having to be outnumbered by a factor of five-to-one, and find a way to hold his ground, whilst also pushing back hard enough that he could move forward. He found himself wondering where Charlotte had specialised, given how she’d been spending recent months, and the fact that her path was the one closest to what Jon had been training them for.

The trio went out for dinner, and after a meal, Justin dropped Candice off at home, whilst he and Chris made their way to a bar to catch up on the last few months. As Justin found a booth for the pair, and enjoyed the moment of relaxation, the first since he had gotten up for work that morning, Chris joined him, carrying two glasses. As Justin took his, the smell of rum wafted from it. He tried to hide his concern, however Chris spotted it before he had the chance.

“I’m only having the one,” Chris said, knowing what Justin was concerned about. “Having a repeat of my eighteenth is the last thing I want…”

Justin nodded, trusting that Chris was self-aware enough for things to not go downhill after a single drink. He knew his friend had a tendency of being stubborn, with himself in particular. The fact Chris had said he would only have one, would be enough for him to not have another, even if it was probably safe for him to do. Justin knew that part of the reason Chris let himself go without contact with Jon as long as he did, despite not holding a grudge, was that he felt he had brought this on himself, and he owed it to everyone else to keep his word.

The pair spent the next half hour catching up on the last six months, Chris sharing some of the highs and lows of ProjectSTN so far, and Justin sharing his experience of the Sinnoh Police Academy, and his first few months on the job. As the conversation progressed though, Justin was taken aback slightly by a question asked by Chris.

“How have things been with Candice since moving in?”

By this point, the pair were drinking soft drinks, and Justin had been taking a sip of his as Chris spoke.

“Things have been great,” Justin answered, as he placed the glass down. “We’d been together for three and a half years before then, so it’s not like we had any reservations going into it. It just made sense.”

Chris nodded, understanding where Justin had been coming from. Part of the reason that he and Abbee’s relationship failed was that Abbee had been thinking ahead to the point in their relationship that Justin and Candice were at now, and even further, and seeing the problems that were likely to arise on their current course. Chris however, wanted to wait until they arose to address them, which became a wedge between the pair, even before Chris burnt bridges with herself, Dylan and Jon. And now that he saw Justin and Candice reaching the point that had Abbee worried, and came to terms with the fact that if Dylan’s house was completed, Abbee may be moving in with him as well, he understood even more how right Abbee was to have the concerns she did, and end the relationship. Even if he wasn’t competing in the way he had originally planned, had he and Abbee stayed together, she’d likely have only seen him once since they left the Eon Academy. And if Jon were right about what may happen if Chris were to complete STN, he would be anchored down to one place, far away from her. Despite himself, he found himself grateful that Dylan had decided to move himself to her end of the world. Though Abbee had Victini, her brother travelled to compete, and was based out of Johto, and her parents were gone. Having Dylan with her would likely mean the world to her.

“That’s good,” Chris answered simply. “So there weren’t any big red flags that came up the moment you started living together?”

Chris had meant the question as a joke, but Justin shook his head.

“Honestly, none. The only thing that was even remotely tricky was the fact that the house was hers before I came into the picture, let alone move in. It’s hard to not feel like I’m a tenant in her home, instead of it being my home as well,” Justin explained. “Not that she hasn’t made it abundantly clear that she sees it as my home too. If I wanted to change the decor, or turn the spare room into a study, she’d never make me feel like it’s her house and I can’t do it, but…”

“It’s not the same as having a home you worked to earn,” Chris said finishing the sentence for Justin, realising how difficult that feeling must be. Chris had been single since he and Abbee broke up two and a half year earlier, and the entire time, had no compulsion to look for another relationship. Even this idea of moving in with someone seemed so adult and foreign, given the fact that his own life had not progressed very far in that direction at all. Despite the fact that he was now twenty, he still felt like a child to some degree, even if he had experienced more in the last five years than most people do in their entire lives.

“But it’s not anything worth laying awake at night over, and is something that won’t be a problem forever…” Justin said, pulling Chris from his thoughts, prompting a puzzled look.

“You sound awfully certain about that?” Chris noted. “Don’t get me wrong, I like the optimism, but feelings are pretty unpredictable…”

“I’m not talking about feelings,” Justin said as he took another sip. “Remember why I saved money like an absolute fiend the last few years? Why I took that Coronet job?”

Chris initially didn’t know what Justin was talking about, until he mentioned Coronet Outdoor and Camping, and the ill-fated advertisement Justin featured in years earlier.

“You wanted to save up for a house?”

Justin nodded.

“Candice bought her house in Snowpoint not long after we met. The Gym had been paying her rent in order to keep her in Snowpoint, and she’d saved well in the few years prior to get a deposit,” Justin explained. “But it’s a house that suited someone living by themself, you know? It’s smaller than Jon and Alyssa’s house, only really enough space for one car, and is feeling a little cramped with both of us there. That and it’s close to the Gym, but on the other side of Snowpoint to the police station. I didn’t know it would be like this exactly, but I had an idea it might be ages ago, so started saving money wherever I could.

“So you and her will be looking to buy somewhere else in Snowpoint?” Chris asked. Justin nodded.

“I’ve got about sixty percent of a reasonable deposit, and Candice had about thirty percent saved herself. So at the rate we’re going, it won’t be long before we can afford to buy something between the two of us that suits the pair of us more, move there, and sell Candice’s place to pay off a good chunk of the loan,” Justin explained. “I was paid to do training, and am currently on a provisional contract which ends after three months. After that I’ll get a decent pay-rise which should help.”

Chris nodded, before having another thought.

“When did we get so old that after not seeing each other for six months, we end up talking about deposits, mortgages and the housing market…”

************************************************** ************************************************** *****

There was a clunk as the large circuit breaker was pulled down, allowing power to the large lights of the Stadium at Castelia Ridge Academy. Jon and Willow stood in awe as the lights illuminated the giant battlefield, as well as the thousands of spectator seats. The battlefield was twice the dimensions of that of the Eon Academy, whilst in terms of seating, it could seat over thirty times the amount of spectators. Not even the S.S. Wishmaker had a stadium this large.

“He wasn’t kidding when he told me about the scope of this place…” Jon said in awe. Willow nodded in agreement.

“I almost feel bad that I’ll be the one overseeing this place while you’re looking after the one on Mossdeep. It feels like it should be the other way around,” Willow replied, taking in the sight, and feeling a sense of anxiety that an establishment like this would be run at her discretion.

“Don’t,” Jon answered. “I don’t want to leave Mossdeep any time soon…”

Alyssa and Amelia had stayed back at Dylan’s house, enjoying his hospitality. The four had arrived from Mossdeep a week earlier, where for the majority of the time, they had helped Dylan and Abbee with purchasing and transporting furniture, whilst also looking for a car for Abbee, so that she could drive in to work each day. Whilst Dylan worked from home, his car was a little bit too big and cumbersome to be driving into the city and parking daily. Once things had slowed down however, Jon had rented a car, before he and Willow drove south in order to see the site of the second Eon Academy.

Their intention had been to see the site and assess what work it needed before it would be suitable to be a second Eon Academy. They had arrived at two that afternoon, with the intention being that they would give it a quick inspection, and drive back, arriving back at Dylan’s in time for dinner. However there had been two misconceptions. The first was that they would need more than the two or so hours they had allotted to inspecting the property in order to give it a proper inspection. The property itself was slightly larger than the Eon Academy at Mossdeep City, however unlike the established Academy, which enjoyed separate buildings and open spaces between, this property was mostly covered with buildings, with small communal gardens and shared spaces between. Additionally, when the property had run out of space, the structures were built vertically. Jon looked at the furthest back seats, and how high they were compared to the battlefield. This was only possible because the stadium shared five floors of classrooms and other facilities, with an equally high building nearby for accommodation. They would likely spend at least triple the time they had allocated inspecting the property, and arrive back at Dylan’s some time after midnight.

The second misconception was how much would actually be needed for this Academy to function. From what they had seen so far, there was no significant work needed to make the property viable. Willow had made a point of the fact that the Eon Academy had grown from training thirty-five people in 2019 to two hundred in 2022, and that it may keep expanding, so additional floors may become necessary. Jon however disagreed.

“As much as I’d love to just keep expanding to meet the need, it isn’t viable. If between the two hundred we can house on Mossdeep, and the five hundred who can fit here, we don’t have enough space, we would need to look into a third location, and that would only work if between now and then, we find another person willing to oversee that one,” Jon had said. “It’s okay for us to draw a line in the sand at what we can actually do, and seven hundred people every summer is no small feat…”

The only suggested large-scale work was looking into building an underground carpark, as between summers, they would likely be renting rooms to college students attending Castelia University, and those from other parts of Unova might bring cars. This however was not something that would make or break the first summer for the Castelia Eon Academy.

As the pair wandered the large battlefield, Willow called out to Jon.

“I’ve had another idea…”

Jon turned to face her, knowing that as she had become more accustomed to the idea of running this new Eon Academy, her creativity was worth its weight in gold. She had already suggested numerous ideas that he was now eager to implement on both sites.

“One of the biggest hurdles to this plan was finding somebody who not only you could trust with the Eon Academy image, but who could battle well enough to be worthy of the position to run it,” Willow explained. “And whilst I don’t doubt that you trust me, getting my battling up to scratch in the fifteen months between now and this place opening its doors is going to be a difficult feat-”

“We’re working on that,” Jon interjected, and Willow nodded.

“I’m aware. But I’m also aware that in your first summer, you brought in five battlers, three who were naturally talented and were growing stronger on their own, one naturally talented who needed a gentle kick in the a**, and one who was basically a beginner. And since then, they have grown at an alarming rate,” Willow explained. “What I’m getting towards is whilst the level you will have me at will likely be good enough to teach 99% of the people who come here, it’s the 1% who are like Charlotte and Chris which worry me…”

Jon nodded in understanding, though wasn’t sure he agreed, but figured that Willow wouldn’t be saying this lightly.

“So what’s the idea?”

“I was thinking about Justin’s police training, where they ranked them all as a motive for them to try their hardest, and thought maybe taking a page from that book wouldn’t be a bad idea to solve both problems…”

Jon gave Willow a puzzled look, prompting her to continue.

“What I’m saying is, what if instead of people applying to come to this Eon Academy or the Hoenn one, they are applying for the Eon Academy overall. People who are coming for the first time, and have no recorded battles come here by default and train under me. But those who you know are the best, the top two-hundred, they go to Hoenn and train under you…”

The idea was not one Jon had considered. In his mind, he had figured that students would opt to go to the Eon Academy that was most convenient. And whilst it sounded harsh and sterile to have one Academy be for the better battlers and the other for everyone else, it made sense logistically.

“So if there are people attending the Academy who are close to your level, or theoretically past it-”

“Then they would likely be in the top two-hundred, and would be better suited to your teaching anyway,” Willow explained. “This isn’t without its flaws; we’d need to market it well for people to not react poorly, and I know we’d have people complaining if their friends wound up in Mossdeep but they stayed here, or if we have Mossdeep locals thinking they will go there, but wind up having to come here. But for the small handful it doesn’t suit, it would have benefits for everyone else…”

Jon nodded in understanding, speaking out loud, largely to process his own thoughts.

“The stronger trainers who likely need more of a challenge will be amongst those who are most able to challenge them, and will be in a smaller cohort, so I’ll be able to provide specialised training when it’s warranted. And it will be a motivator for people to make the most of the summer, in order to get to the Mossdeep Academy, or to stay there,” Jon muttered.

“It would mean a heck of a lot of work before summers,” Willow explained. “In terms of assessing students' capability and deciding who goes to which Academy with enough time that parents can actually make arrangements to get them there.”

“We’d also have to be more intentional about age brackets,” Jon explained. “This summer coming up and last summer, I didn’t place any limits of how many campers of each age came, because it’s not like we had underage interns who would be trying to manage students their own age. But let’s say we do this, and of the seven hundred people, three hundred are twelve…”

Thirteen was the youngest age that students could attend the Eon Academy, and Willow knew that whilst there were exceptions to the rule, for example, Abbee being the youngest battler of the original five, and in her first day, beating Dylan, the oldest, Willow knew that generally older battlers were more experienced and more skilled. If they weren’t intentional about who signed up, and allowed three hundred twelve year olds to join, what would likely happen is that if they all became regulars, by the time they were sixteen or seventeen, they would fill Mossdeep completely, allowing no variance in age.

“We’d need to limit it to 140 students of each age,” Willow agreed. “Just so that we end up with an even spread.”

Jon nodded, and found himself ever-thankful that Willow had betrayed Agatha and sought him out. Despite the other interns, past and present, not being unintelligent by any means, Willow was the closest person to Dylan in terms of her creative thinking when it came to running and innovating a facility such as this. Whilst Cassandra had partially filled Dylan’s role, that was largely due to her leadership capabilities. But when it came to logistics such as this, figuring out how they would determine who would be sent where, this was Willow’s strength. And when it came to problems she couldn’t solve through conventional methods, Jon knew that Willow’s knowledge and creativity with Shadowcraft would fill any gaps.

“So fifteen months…” Jon muttered as he took in the sight of the stadium, imagining it filled with students, watching in awe. He looked to Willow, before making up his mind.

“What?” Willow asked, noticing the grin he wore.

“You’ve got little experience battling against Rayquaza, seeing as it can’t let loose back home without there being collateral,” Jon explained. “Well, this is a pretty huge battlefield that needs to be christened…”

Jon unlatched a Pokeball, before standing in the nearby square that marked the position of the trainer in battle.

“Just because we’re in Unova, doesn’t mean training is on pause…”