I was stunned enough dealing with that revelation that I could barely pay attention to Mary getting her Mareep back, nor meeting Cheren for the first time (though I was glad and impressed respectively). The Gym Leader made it clear that he ‘appreciated the help we gave but could handle the situation from here.’ I’m pretty sure that’s the polite way of saying ‘we don’t want to make an international incident of this because you did good, but stop getting involved now, please.’
Part of me wanted to anyways, thinking of how I could call Iris and ask to join, but…
“Something on your mind?” Molly asked, sliding up to me while I leaned over the railing. Friede had offered his expertise in getting the Dunsparce situated back where they belonged but told the crew they could drop me off back at school. The Brave Olivine makes good progress, even when going against the wind, I noted.
“Surprised it’s you asking that and not Sohdayo,” I said lightly, trying to gather my emotions before properly answering.
The doctor-in-training scoffed. “He left just a bit ago, ‘pursuing his own truth,’ or whatever. The teenage girl had clearly gotten tired of the man’s ‘creative interpretations.’ Honestly, I’m not a huge fan of that either, but I can see how it would really rub some people the wrong way.
“Just readying myself for a battle ahead.” I might not be taking down the entire smuggling ring, but there’s one arrogant asshole that I can beat. “One that note, if you could help fix them up, that would be appreciated, Molly.” None of my Pokemon had been badly hurt by the poachers but there was a collection of scrapes and bruises they’d received, and it wouldn’t do to be at anything less than my best.
“I’d be glad to,” she said, leading me down to her office. “Perhaps I misheard you, but did you think my name is spelled with a ‘y’?”
“It isn’t?”
“No, it’s Mollie,” she said, spelling it out for me.
“Ah, whoops.” I was silent then, just watching Mollie work. She was quite skilled, and at another time, I’d ask her about the individual treatments, the particular polstices and the like that she used to help heal my Pokemon fast, or why certain foods were recommended to help them regain their strength. All I can think about right now though, is how anyone, even a jerk like Atticus, could be involved in something so horrible.
As I looked out the window and saw the school on the horizon, I knew I’d have my answers soon enough.
***
“ATTICUS!” I shouted as I entered the Club Room, watching with more than a little satisfaction as the boy startle, nearly falling out of his chair. Everyone else was looking a little panicked at the noise, hands dropping to Pokeballs and legs tensing as fight or flight instincts kicked in. The only one who didn’t seem so shocked was Elsa, who gave away little beyond raising an eyebrow as if to say ‘you better have a good reason for this.’
“Nemona,” Atticus began, trying to regain his composure. “There’s hardly any need to shout like that here. It’s quite childish, rea-”
“I’d say there’s plenty of reasons, since you’ve been buying Pokemon from poachers.” The room had been somewhat silent before, but now it was as if that silence felt heavier, somehow. All eyes turned to Atticus, wondering what he’d have to say to this serious accusation. And it is serious. This is way bigger than school kids being bullies and jerks.
The boy bristled, getting up and towering over me. “How dare you make such an accusation of me? I could see you suspended for such baseless claims.” Then, he sneered. “Or is this just some attempt to push me out of the way? Have you realized you can’t beat me so you’re resorting to-”
“How baseless is this?” I said, waving a hand for Miles to display some of the files I had copied. “Reciepts with your name on them, from poachers I caught not a few hours ago. Pokemon you bought and sold to them!” It was difficult to keep my voice even as my mind wondered just how badly those Pokemon might have been treated by the poachers.
“I-” he stiffened, clearly ready to deny it, but as he scanned the list, he stopped. Then he read further. Eventually, he stopped, looking like he had swallowed a lemon. “It appears, assuming you speak true, that one of my more common trading partners has been involved in criminal activities.”
There were gasps all around the room at that, and even Elsa narrowed her eyes. He was quick to add “I claim no knowledge of what they were doing and of course, won’t be trading with them in the future.” I peered deeply at him, drawing on my Aura and hoping it could tell me the truth. I can’t be a hundred percent certain, he might be the best liar ever, but… I think he really didn’t know about it.
Then, he opened his mouth, muttering lowly. “What a bother, I’ll have to find someone else to get a Zorua from. But not that onerous a loss - those fools hadn’t even known how to get a Hisuian one-”
I grabbed him by the collar, pushing his back into the table. “Do you even give a damn about the Pokemon!?” I demanded. “All the ones you sell and toss aside, like they’re just things to you-” with some difficulty, he managed to break free from my grip. He was older and taller than me, but I was strong enough that he’d still had to work at it.
“Get off of me! That behaviour is ridiculous - you don’t have any right to question me like that! In fact, if you’re going to behave that way, you should be expelled from the club! Isn’t that right, Champion?” He said, turning to Elsa, all of us following, wondering what she would say.
The white-haired girl rose from her throne, marching over to me, her blue eyes piercing in their stare. Then, without saying a word to me, she turned, staring up at Atticus. “I believe Nemona asked you a question. Answer it.” Her words were cold and cutting, offering no reprieve for the young man.
“Wha-what?” he said, looking at Elsa as if it was the first time he’d seen her. It might be, or at least the first time he’s looked at her without his own preconceptions coloring his view.
The silence of the room was broken by Charlotte, the girl laughing at him. “Are you using Cotton Guard on your ears?” She jeered, talking as she took another bite from her steak. “You heard her.”
“I see how it is now, you three, with your Legendaries, lording it over the rest of us,” Atticus spat. “As if the fact that you were lucky makes any of you a better Trainer than me. Better than any of us,” he tried, looking around for support from his peers. Perhaps it would have worked, if he were more likeable, if Atticus had anyone that actually supported him. Then again, I thought as the temperature dropped around us. Perhaps not even then. No one is keen to stand against Elsa, and no one brave enough truly thinks he’s on the right side of things.
“Answer. The. Question.”
“... I have done nothing wrong, by any League laws or school rules,” the boy said mulishly, turning his head from the girl. And still not answering the question, I see. Does he think that’s better than telling the truth? It might be better than lying, but not by much.
Before Elsa could punish him, I stepped in, not wanting to be denied the pleasure of crushing this fool myself. “I challenge you to a battle for your title.” Miles put the request through for me, and Atticus scowled.
“Fine. It doesn’t prove anything, but I will accept. And hopefully, once this is done, you’ll think twice before acting like this again. It will only take me fifteen minutes to ready my team,” he said, accepting the request. What? Worried that I’ll switch out the Pokeballs again? I don’t need that to beat you.
The boy left, and Elsa returned to her seat, but she gave me a slight nod before she did so. Feels weird being on the same side as her, but not bad.
***
The crowd, as I reached the topside arena, was huge, the stadium packed. Even more people filled it up, having rushed off of the elevator with me and I was certain yet more would be coming. The rumors are spreading like wildfire, and from what I heard, getting more outlandish with each retelling.
I felt a little bad when I caught wind of one version, which was that this was an ‘honor duel’ after Atticus had tried to steal one of my Pokemon (the tales split before my ears, the students arguing whether it had been Dun, Notch, or Radiance, Atticus had supposedly tried to take). Not that bad though; the truth would come out properly soon enough, and there were just as many tales that I had tried to bad mouth Atticus and he had challenged me, and everything in between.
My opponent was already waiting for me in the field. Neither of us minced words now, simply confirming the rules of battle. He specified only Terastalization, does he think that will help him win? I could understand why some of my opponents thought that - Notch was truly terrifying when Mega Evolved - but Terastalization offered many benefits as well. Including a new advantage courtesy of Turo, sent while I was working with Kieran on evolving his starter. This feels like the perfect time to unveil it publicly.
Elsa stepped in to officiate the match, keeping her words neutral, her tone even, despite Atticus glaring at her. I kept my attention fixed ahead, raising my Pokeballs up at the last second, not giving Atticus time to change his. I might not know which Pokemon he’s sending out, but he can’t adjust to Dun and Bahamut. Atticus didn’t seem worried, however, nodding at the sight.
On the signal, we both released them, and I saw that he had sent out an unlikely duo. The small, joyful, pink Clefairy danced around, while beside her a dark-furred Tauros stomped the ground in a show of Intimidation, fire sparking from where his hooves hit the ground. Bahamut met it with a hiss of his own, the light catching on the Clear Amulet he wore, while Dun shifted back from the display.
For just a moment, I caught my opponent’s face twist to a frown. Fifteen minutes isn’t enough time to change the registry of their Pokeballs, but it was enough time to hop into the school’s general store and switch up their items. Atticus was smart enough to realize that this meant a change in strategy from me, particularly from Dun.
We didn’t have time to think on it or strategize further, with Elsa announcing the beginning of the battle. “The fight will commence in three, two, one, begin!”
“Boost opening,” I said, smacking my left hand in a fist into my right open palm. Dun began inhaling air to prepare for a sound based attack, while Bahamut began the first two steps of a Dragon Dance, before abandoning the feint and rushing straight at Clefairy.
Atticus had already told his Pokemon “Work Up! Encore!” The thought was clear; get my Haxorus stuck dancing and his boosted Paldean Tauros would make short work of Dun, even after the Throat Spray boost. It wasn’t what he got however, Haxorus rushing over and leaning down to beat the Fairy Type with a powerful Iron Head. Weakly, Clefairy still managed to lock Haxorus into that Move, clapping her hands together, but the sudden aggression put him on the back foot. Dun expertly aimed his Hyper Voice, blasting them with the attack, boosted by his Throat Spray.
Clefairy’s Friend Guard helped protect her teammate, while her Eviolite gave her a bit of protection of her own, but she still wasn’t doing well as we gave our next set of orders.
“Moonblast! Close Combat!” Atticus cried out as I raised my Tera Orb.
“Boomburst!” I told Dun, tossing the Tera Orb over his head, and watching as he Terastalized to something new. Rather than a single, static hat indicative of his new Type, there was a blue and teal turtle like figure, with a Tera Symbol above Dun’s head. The turtle however, was mostly obscured by the eighteen differently colored Hexagons floating around him, each one representing a different Type.
“Abort! Raging Bull!” Atticus called out, fearing the new Terastalization and that this was a trap. But that left Tauros in an awkward position, having divert his attack into a flaming charge which graze across Dun’s side. Bahamut smacked Clefairy with another Iron Head while Dun let loose a horrifying sound, knocking out the Clefairy and hurting the Tauros and Bahamut both. Unfortunate, but there’s no way to protect Bahamut here - and the strike stopped Clefairy from firing her Moonblast, so there’s that.
He returned his fallen Pokemon, and I could see Atticus calculating, trying to figure out how to deal with this, wondering why I hadn’t recalled Bahamut. I have plenty of Pokemon that would resist another Boomburst, but I’m not going to be doing that Move again. Not that he could know, without understanding how this trick works.
“What kind of Terastalization is that?” Atticus asked as he recalled his Clefairy.
“This is the Stellar Terastalization, it embodies the power of all the Types,” I declared, earning gasps from the crowd and a glare from Atticus. A hint, but not enough information to go off of. Must be frustrating for him.
“Go, Ferrothorn!” Atticus declared, releasing an odd, spikey metal Pokemon, with barbed vines hanging out the top. He’d placed the Steel Type right inbetween Bahamut and the other Pokemon. “Rocks!”
I switched out Bahamut, recognizing the bad match up here, especially while stuck with Encore. What I hadn’t realized was that the command he gave was to both of his Pokemon, Ferrothorns throwing up a set of Stealth Rocks to drift along the field while Tauros called down a Rock Slide on Dun’s head. Unfortunately, that caused him to flinch, disrupting the Hurricane he’d been building to.
“Again!” I told him as I sent Testudinidae out. She winced as the stones flew around, digging into her, but muscled past the pain. Her entrance brought voluminous smoke and the sun, shining down brightly on the field. Unfortunate to walk into that weakness, but other than the Stealth Rocks, Test really is a great counter here.
Something that I knew Atticus was well aware of as well, so I took the opportunity to direct her to use Rapid Spin, while Dun attempted to use Hurricane again. Predictably, Atticus called for Ferrothorn to “Protect!” And they attempted to block a blow that never came in. Another Rock Slide from Atticus’ other Pokemon connected against Dun, but Test remarkably weaved around it, pulling in all the Stealth Rocks and launching them far away before bumping against Tauros. Dun’s Hurricane wasn’t stopped this time, doing massive damage again, Atticus’ Tauros barely holding on.
“So powerful - it doesn’t boost as much for any one Type, but a slight boost to all?” Atticus spoke his thoughts aloud, already beginning to put the pieces together. I wonder if he’ll figure out soon- “Close Combat!” He declared, pointing at Dun. That Stellar Terastalization does nothing defensively. It was a drawback, though, for a Pokemon with as wide a Move Pool as Dun’s and only a single weakness, not a crippling one.
“Switch targets, Dun, Flamethrower! Scorching Sands!” Tauros trampled over Dun with a vicious Close Combat, but it wasn’t enough to defeat my Starter. I thought the Flamethrower would be enough to take out Ferrothorn in one hit, given Dun’s advantages and their weakness, but the Black Belt they had been wearing burnt off, revealing itself to be a Focus Sash that them cling on long enough to land a devastating Body Press into Dun, shattering his Terastalization and defeating my first Pokemon.
Atticus had little time to cheer however, as his Tauros was swept away by burning sands. I moved quickly, returning Dun to his Pokeball and pulling out both Radiance’s and Phantasm’s Pokeballs. “Go, Radiance!” I shouted, the crowd roariing behind me. I prayed that none of them would give the game away as I palmed Phantasm’s Pokeball after sending her out, instead making a show of returning Radiance’s to my belt, right as the sand particles from Test’s last attack cleared the air. The smoke isn’t though, and that also helped make it harder to see. Now to find out if it was enough. For her part, Phantasm put on a good show of being Radiance, even managing to get the illusionary Booster Energy to ‘trigger’ and make a cackle of electricity around her.
Watching as Ditto took the shape of a Hisuian Zoroark, much to their confusion, I couldn’t help but laugh. “What, did you think I needed Radiance to beat you?” Phantasm dropped her disguise as well, taunting them. And it looks like his Ditto knows Imposter. Did they know it back then and were suppressed by Weezing or is this new? In any case, I think we got this.
“You’ll need a lot more than this!” He shouted back before ordering his Ditto, “Shadow Ball the Torkoal!” The Life Orb the now transformed Ditto held glowed with power as they gathered their attack.
“Flare Blitz, Knock-Off!” I responded. The copycat was just a fraction faster, firing a massive Shadow Ball that dealt heavy damage into Testudinidae before Phantasm could reach them, harshly smacking aside the Life Orb, which cracked as it hit the ground. Torkoal’s blazing charge was stopped by a well timed Protect, and then, the Life Orb blasted off. A freak accident from the energy within being released and pushing it off from just the wrong angle to fly across the arena and hit Test in the head, knocking her out.
Both me and my foe stopped, blinking in disbelief for a moment. Then, he broke it by letting out a short laugh. “Ha! Finally, something is going my way for once.”
“Take all the lucky breaks you can get; I’d say you need them, but they still won’t be enough,” I replied, recalling my unconscious Torkoal. “Athena, you know what to do,” I said, and released my Lucario. Deciding discretion was the better part of valor, Atticus switched his Ferrothorn, releasing an odd, penguin-looking Pokemon with a blocky, ice cube head, in their place.
“Belly Drum!” He called out, his Eiscue beating heavily on her belly to power up. Not wanting to let that happen, I ordered Athena to attack, while in the background, Phantasm dueled her doppleganger.
Rushing in with an Extremespeed, Eiscue met it by adjusting his neck slightly, taking the blow literally head on. The force shattered the ice, revealing a small, round blue head underneath that ice cube, with a long antenna like hair pointing up. Already I could see it chewing on a Sitrus Berry to recover from the damage Belly Drum had done (while she looked shocked from the Extremespeed, it appeared to have done little damage).
“Meteor Mash!” I tried, but without the blocky ice cube slowing her down, Eiscue was much faster than Athena now, zipping around the arena on her belly, pushed along by a powerful stream of water she was generating. This Liquidation rammed into my Fighting Type, knocking her clean off her feet. At least Phantasm’s battle is going better.
On the other side of the arena, the Hisuian Zoroark and Ditto clashed. My Pokemon had the upper claw, using her illusions far more effectively than Ditto, who barely knew how to use them. They’ve copied all of her strengths and weaknesses, but the creativity and memory needed to use Illusions effectively takes a lot of practice and innate talent that Ditto clearly doesn’t have. That, and with a bit of practice, Zoroarks can just sorta push through other illusions. I brought Athena in because I thought she could sense the Ditto and help Phantasm out, but it looks like it’ll be the other way around.
“Obscure,” I called out, and suddenly Eiscue began slipping and sliding all around the arena, careening helplessly into the barriers. The Ditto was off-balance too, but unfortunately entirely blocking out their sight was enough to push them to figure out how to pierce illusions made by ‘fellow’ Zoroarks.
That only spared one of his Pokemon, however. Now effectively blind, Athena wailed on the Eiscue with powerful punches, doing significant damage to her. “Hit back when she hits you!” Atticus called out. A sensible strategy, but still easily countered.
“Back off, use Force Whip to hit from the sides!” The Aura construct smacked the Eiscue back and forth, not giving them enough of an idea of where to strike. Lashing out blindly, another supercharged Liquidation ended up clipping Athena, but without a direct hit, it wasn’t able to knock her out. The return Aura Sphere, however, did do so against Eiscue.
Distracted by the illusions she was casting over the other foe and Ditto having adapted to this fighting style, it seemed like Atticus’ Pokemon would win that match, until they missed, making a bafflingly off-target strike. Lax Incense, not a proper illusion, but it can mess with other Pokemon’s senses. Phantasm capitalized on that whiff, pushing the Ditto off balance and knocking them down and out with a Foul Play.
The teenage boy standing opposite me was starting to sweat, even though Test’s artificial sun had long since faded. He could tell that his chances for winning were getting narrower and narrower. He didn’t give up though, tossing his last two Pokemon out: The already damaged Ferrothorn, and a floating beige insect, with a white almost complete halo above their head. This Shedinja was held further aloft by a red Air Balloon, lifting them well into the sky. Wait, he can’t be using that strategy, can he?
“Bitter Malice, Close Combat!” I called out, hoping that my Pokemon would be fast enough. Unfortunately, he had predicted that and was already tossing his Tera Orb into the air, before I’d even gotten out the first word.
In a dazzling burst of light, the Tera Electric Shedinja was revealed to the world, Phantasm’s Bitter Malice passing harmlessly through the Wonder Guarded bug. Their return Night Slash defeated Phantasm. Athena scored a knock-out against Ferrothorn, leaving dents in her armored shell but recoiled back from the sharp spikes that punctured her paws.
“Lucario,” she groaned as I recalled her. She might just be able to fight, but there’s no point here - Athena doesn’t have the right Moves to take out this foe. Across the field, Atticus was boasting, his fears of defeat foolishly shelved for now.
“How do you like it? My invincible Pokemon! Nothing can harm Shedinja now!” He declared proudly. I tried very hard not to laugh as I sent out Miles and Bahamut.
“Dragon Claw!” I shouted, and before Shedinja could respond, Bahamut leapt into the air. With a mighty cleave, he brought his claws down on the Tera Electric Type and sent the bug crashing to the ground, the Terastalization literally shattering off of them.
“What?” Atticus said, blinking in shock. So much for your ‘invincible’ Pokemon. Probably could have used Confuse Wisp too for Confusion and Burn. Or Trick; both to remove immunities and to give them a Life Orb and knock themselves out. Or I could have sent Notch in to make a sandstorm… but this was good too.
“Mold Breaker, bitch!” I shouted, throwing my arms out for emphasis. Then, internally cringing, as I saw the number of phones pointed my way, having recorded the match. I got too caught up in this. That’s definitely going to end up a meme soon.
“Nemona Glitterati is the winner!” Elsa announced, the note of satisfaction in her voice subtle, but unmistakable. I waved a hand out to the crowd and they cheered, the sound deafening.
As it died down, Atticus tried to pick up his tattered pride. “You may have won my spot, but I’ll reclaim it soon enough. I just need a new strategy, better Pokemon.” I glared at him and he spat, “What? I didn’t do anything wrong, you can’t kick me out of the club or bring charges against me or- or anything!” He shouted, looking between me and Elsa, as if daring one of us to contradict him. He’s right that he hasn’t broken any laws, but I think even he knows, deep down, what he’s doing isn’t right.
Elsa opted not to address him, deliberately turning past the young man and ignoring him. I felt a shift in the crowd as all the other students followed suit. The power the Champion of the League Club has. Her opinion instantly sways the others.
Admittedly, it wasn’t a hard feeling to have. No one wanted to support a loser, Atticus wasn’t well-liked among the student body, and his views were awful. But it was still a display of her power, and something I wanted. To improve the school and make it better for everyone. That’s for another day. Right now, I’m one step closer to my goal.
A/N: And down falls Atticus! Been a long time coming (especially for me, as I was thinking of this guy getting his comeuppance all the way back in his first appearance, during the Junior Journey). Maybe not exactly in this manner, but all the same.
It is a downfall, even if there’s no direct punishment from authority figures here. Atticus has lost the respect he so craves and been humiliated. More to the point, there really couldn’t be a direct strike from the teachers or law enforcement, because Atticus is the kind of slimeball who will always try to stay at least just on the edge of the law. Much of how he treats his Pokemon is looked down on, but he tries to keep it non-criminal, if only for his own sake.