"Okay, Miss Morris! Thank you for being patient! Your Jigglypuff is back up and raring to go!" Avril smiled at the Nurse as she walked back to the counter carrying a tray of poké balls. Right after she had qualified for the tournament proper and received the pass that would allow her to enter the main event, the blonde had made her way straight to the Pokémon Center to get her Jigglypuff healed from the battle against Malorie's Mudsdale. "Also, your Shuppet and Noibat are back up to fighting health as well, so it looks like your whole team is back together now."
"Good work, as to be expected," Avril replied, taking the three poké balls off the tray. "Thank you very much."
"It's no problem at all," the nurse said, waving the blonde off. "I hope you have fun in the tournament, dear! I wish I was off so I could watch it all myself! I'll be rooting for both you and your Jigglypuff!"
Avril thanked the nurse one more time before slowly starting to make her way towards the doors of the Pokémon Center. To be honest, she was feeling a bit more at ease about this tournament for the time being. Sure, she was a bit mad at Robin initially with how she had more or less forced her to enter... However now that she had managed to win the exhibition match against Sasha, the younger of the Morris sisters suddenly felt a lot more at ease about the whole thing for the time being. After all, it was just a friendly little tournament. In a sense, it was much less stressing than battling Team Cinder or even a gym leader. At least in this regard, there was nothing truly at stake such as her own life or whether or not she'd be able to continue her journey to reach the Pokémon League. It might even prove to be a good stress reliever.
"Ready to head back to the gym?" The familiar face of the town's beloved Gym Leader asks her Lucario, who answers with a happy growl. The night is young, they still have time for a few more challengers, and with the influx of trainers showing up for the tournament, there's bound to be more. In fact…
Korrina smiles at the blond trainer walking away from the counter. She had arrived at the tournament to give her support to Viola, when she saw this feisty young woman battling Ranger Sasha. "Hey!" She calls, waving in hopes of getting Avril's attention. Without taking the time to see if Avril would respond, she jogs to her side. "You're the trainer with the Jigglypuff, right?"
Avril paused, turning to face the girl running up to her. Was this a spectator from the exhibition match? Well, it had to be. That was the only place in Shalour that Avril had battled with Mint that actually had spectators.
Avril gave the other girl a quick nod. "Yes, I am. Can I help you with something um..."
"You were amazing!" Korrina states enthusiastically. When Sasha's new Rockruff charged Jigglypuff with an Iron Head, she thought the balloon Pokemon was done for, but then they turned it around! Not to mention the way she held her own against that Mudsdale. "Totally blew me out of the water!" She dials her enthusiasm back a notch, folding her hands behind her back. "You're gonna challenge the Shalour Gym, right?"
"Well, I mean... It is on my todo list, yeah," Avril replied. She was a bit taken back by this girl's enthusiasm. Clearly she had a lot of passion for battles if she thought that fight was so exciting. "I kinda meant to do it earlier, but um... well, I guess you already know that something else kinda got in the way. Heh..."
"Then I accept your challenge!" So much for keeping herself dialed back, she simply can't help it in the face of someone who's shown such skill. "I've got some time now, if you're not busy?" Maybe she wants to prep for the tournament instead? But what better way to prep than by battling more!
"W-Wait a minute... You're the gym leader?" Avril questioned. Korrina, if she remembered right. She had never actually seen her in person, just her heard her name a few times here or there. Emma used to talk a bit about her back in the day too. That's when it all snapped into place for Avril. Of course it was Korrina. If anyone had a love for battling that intense, it would be her. "I mean... I do have the tournament in a bit, but..." She paused, glancing at the clock on the wall. She had roughly an hour before she needed to be there for her match. As long as she didn't use Mint, then Avril was sure everything would probably be fine. "...Sure, I guess I can fit in the time for it."
"Great! I'll meet you there. Do you know about the rules? Should I go over them now?" The tournament starts soon, right? There's no time for things like pausing to take breaths between words.
"Um... Sure, lemme hear 'em," Avril replied, trying her best to keep up with the girl. A fast mover and a fast talker, that much was certain. "What, a multi-battle? No falling off the stage?"
"It's one-vee-one, with two Pokemon each." Korrina skates with slow strides. "My gym's a huge skating rink. I'll be skating around it, and the Pokemon have to keep running at all times, and
you have to keep up with them. I lend out pairs of skates to trainers who don't have any. Some people ride Pokemon." Her face wrinkles very briefly as she speaks, it's not technically against the rules, though it does kind of crush the spirit of her challenge. "Or just run-- they don't usually fair too well." They usually end up collapsing by the battle's halfway point. "If one of us stops moving, or your Pokemon fall too far behind you lose, but you can't like...throw a rock on me to stop me from skating, that's illegal. And murder."
"I... think calling it murder might be a bit extreme, but point taken," Avril replied. She offered Korrina a friendly smile. "I guess it's a good thing I know how to skate. Granted I've never actually tried battling at the same time, but I think I can manage. It actually sounds pretty fun."
"I think so!" Korrina grins. Standing still while your Pokemon bust their rumps, darting around the ring for you, is hardly fair (also boring). A trainer needs to understand how hard their Pokemon work for them. "We'll hook you up with a great pair of skates, and then it's right to the good part!"
Avril watched as the excited girl skated right out the door, no doubt making a beeline straight for her gym. If anything, she had to admire Korrina's moxie. The gym leader definitely had energy to spare, and then some. Deciding that it probably wouldn't be a good idea to keep Korrina waiting, Avril picked up her pace and made her way towards the gym. She had a feeling that this match was definitely going to be one of her most exciting battles yet.
Keeping up with Grant and Viola's, the Shalour City gym was yet again unlike anything Avril could have expected. The entire building was made up to look like a massive skating park inside. The blonde trainer found herself wondering just how the gym leaders managed to afford all these crazy designs and interior choices. Avril was no financial expert, but she had a feeling that this sort of decorating had to cost a pretty penny.
"Korrina...?!!" Avril called out, announcing her presence to the bubbly gym leader. "It's me, Avril! Are you here?!"
A clacking, followed by a thunderous, rolling sound as Korrina quickly skates towards Avril. There's a huge smile on her face when she sees her fellow blonde, and she skids to a halt only inches from her opponent. "You made it!" She seems incredibly excited for someone who was talking to this girl only mere minutes ago.
"Okay! We do things a little differently here. We each choose our Pokemon before the match, and we register them into this computer." Korrina would likely be bouncing if she wasn't on skates. "I've already registered mine. Once you've picked your team, come meet me in the rink. See you soon!~" The Gym Leader waves eagerly as she pivots, then takes off back towards the arena.
"But I..." Avril began, only to watch as Korrina took off out of sight. The trainer sighed, turning her attention back to the bracelet on her left wrist. "Hmm... I don't even know what kind of Pokémon this girl uses... I guess an obvious pick would be Shino, so..."
The girl began to reach for her newly evolved Greninja's poké ball, however she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks. A sudden thought began to run through Avril's mind, causing her to think back to the battle against her father at the tower earlier that day. It wasn't that she was afraid of Shino being hurt or anything. He had proven himself to be a very powerful member of her team. What caused the girl to suddenly reconsider entering the frog into the battle was the state of her other team members. While she would never call them outright weak, the battle with her father had shown Avril that there was a... definite power gap in regards to several members of the team. In fact, Shino was practically on an entirely different playing field than the rest, especially now that he was fully evolved. She wasn't going to be able to get anywhere if she kept relying on only his strength alone.
"Sorry, Shino... I think I'm gonna let you take your break for just a bit longer," Avril decided. The girl reached for two different poké balls and tossed them both out in front of her. Radar the Noibat and Marble the Flaaffy both took shape in front of the girl, both Pokémon taken by surprise at their surroundings. "Hey you two... Are you ready to get ourselves a new badge? Because I think I can really use your help right now."
Marble let out an excited mewl, the sheep Pokémon clearly happy to be of use to her trainer. She was practically bouncing in place with joy at the very thought. Radar on the other remained quite a bit calmer than his teammate. The bat Pokémon perched on Avril's shoulder, thinking it over for a moment before responding to the girl with a quick nod. Avril gave both of the Pokémon a smile before the trio made their way up to the rink where Korrina was waiting for them.
"Alright, I think we're ready," Avril said as she reached the top of the stairs.
"These your guys?" A flying type and an electric type, not the best matchup for her own, but most people that come into her gym have a flying type or two: They quickly learn that type matchups aren't everything. She's got plenty of tricks up her own sleeve to get around an aerial assault. "Looking good!"
With a slight push off, Korrina rolls backwards towards the opposite side of the rink, where she gestures to a hanging piece of machinery in the middle, somewhat resembling a traffic sign. "Once you see the green light, you start moving, and you don't stop until we've decided a winner. Otherwise, you forfeit."
Avril nodded and made her way over towards the starting line. She used to skate all the time back when she was younger along with Robin. Of course, it had been a few years since then. The last time the girl could remember actually being on a pair was back before she ran away to enlist in the Aquacorde Trainer's Academy. Thankfully, the girl didn't seem to be too rusty on the skates. Granted, her legs were a bit shaky as she made her way over towards the line, but the longer she moved around in the skates, the more stable she seemed to get.
Avril's Pokémon made their way beside her. Marble went as far as to do a few stretches as she prepared for the battle ahead. Radar however, remained perched on Avril's shoulder. He gave a cautious look towards Korrina, the Noibat more than just a bit curious at who his opponents were going to be.
"Okay, I'm ready..." Avril said, bracing herself for the upcoming battle.
The rink suddenly got absolutely silent. Both girls stared up at the light, their eyes not blinking once as if they were afraid they would miss the signal otherwise. With a bright flash of green, both Avril and Korrina, as well as Avril's Pokémon took off!
"Ready, Hawlucha? Let's make this a good one!" Korrina beams as she calls her Pokemon forward: The Flying Luchador bursting from his Pokeball and gliding above the rink. His powerful eyes focus intensely on Avril, as well as her Pokemon. He seems just as eager to fight as his excitable trainer, though his is a far more reserved, pensive excitement.
"Go get him, Radar!" Avril called, the Noibat in question flying off of her shoulder as she did so. "Attack that Hawlucha with Air Cutter!"
The small Noibat let out a small, yet fierce screech as he began to rapidly flap his wings. A surprisingly strong burst of wind began to kick up as he flapped, before he suddenly shot it forward. A barrage of sharp, blade-like wind gusts all aimed for the Hawlucha as he did so.
"Let's dodge with agility!" Korrina calls out, and her Pokemon begins to fly forward, gaining speed as his body darts from side to side of the arena. If they can't land an attack, they can't win, and Noibat's little wings will have to go into overdrive to keep up with Hawlucha.
"Radar, don't let that speed intimidate you! Match it with an Agility of your own!" Avril called out. The Noibat followed suit with the Hawlucha, his smaller body darting about in an attempt to make himself more difficult to hit as well. Of course, Radar had one sharp advantage on his side... his tiny size would make him a much more difficult target to hit. "Now, swoop in with a Wing Attack!"
Radar screeched and zipped over to the Hawlucha as quickly as he could.
"Hawlucha, Aerial Ace!" Korrina shouts excitedly. Radar might be small, but that hardly matters with a move like Aerial Ace, which is guaranteed to hit. Even better, the bat's tiny size will have him easily overpowered by Hawlucha's larger wing-- at least in theory.
Hawlucha turns to fly towards Radar, his feathers taking on a sharp shimmer as his wing collides with Radar's own. The force of the blow is enough to knock Radar back, causing the bat to screech in surprise. He barely managed to keep himself airborne, but the bat seemed adamant in staying in the battle. He began to flap his small wings faster, narrowing his eyes at the Hawlucha as he got closer to the bird once more.
"Radar, use Agility again and then go for a Razor Wind!" Avril shouted.
The Noibat screeched in response, his body jiving back and forth and his speed increasing even more. Without warning, the Noibat suddenly dove down in front of Korinna's Hawlucha, a barrage of razor sharp wind slicing up against the gym leader's Pokémon.
"Hawlucha, you use agility, too! And then Flying Press!" Korrina shouts excitedly.
The masked fighter begins to flit back and forth, with each shift his speedy increasing. When Noibat dives down, Hawlucha takes higher to the skies. Several slices of wind clash against his body as he descends on the little bat, intent on crushing him beneath his bulkier body.
"Radar, try and dodge it!" Avril cried out. The little Noibat tried his best to get out of the way, but the larger size of his opponent did not leave him with much room to fly away from the oncoming attack. A loud screech echoed out into the room as the Hawlucha crashed into Radar, sending him flying across the make-shift rink with ease. Avril winced at the attack results, watching as despite his injuries that her Noibat was trying to still continue the battle. Not wanting to see the small bat get hurt further, Avril quickly grabbed hold of the bat's poké ball and called him back. "N-No more, Radar... Come on back..."
"That was excellent, Hawlucha!" Korrina cheers for her Pokemon, who glides down to fly beside his trainer, offering a thumbs up in response. Sparkling blue eyes flit back to Avril, the teen skater gaining speed due to her excitement. "Show me what else you've got!"
"I'm just getting started," Avril replied back. "Let's go Marble!" With a loud wail of excitement, the sheep Pokémon charged out onto the field. The Flaaffy began running as quickly as she could, wanting to do her best to try and please her trainer. "Alright Marble, give it a zap with Thunder Shock!"
Marble took aim at Hawlucha, static building up around her fluffy head all the while. A happy mewl escaped her mouth as she shot off a quick zap of electricity.
"Okay, show 'em what you got, Machoke!" Korrina cries as her next Pokemon makes his debut. As he hits the ground, the swirling energy floods into him, taking on the speed from Hawlucha's double Agilities. "Let's start with Karate Chop!"
The bulky Pokemon darts towards Marble with an incredible amount of speed for one so bulky, his arm thrusting forward to chop at the tiny sheep's middle.
"Marble, try to knock him back with Iron Tail!" Avril called out.
The Flaaffy quickly spun around, taking a swing at the charging Machoke. As her tail moved, it took on a metallic shimmer, its weight seeming to increase drastically in the process.
"Machoke, Close Combat!" Korrina cries. With Flaaffy's Thunder Shocks being able to attack from so far away, they might not have this chance again.
Machoke instantly becomes a fury of arm movements, barraging the electric type with a multitude of frantic, powerful punches, leaving itself wide open for a number of retaliations-- if Marble can sustain the hit.
Avril watched with bated breath as her Flaaffy took every blow. The wails of pain didn't make the spectacle any easier to watch, either. However despite it all, Marble managed to keep up and moving. Pain was etched all over the Flaaffy's face, but she still seemed determined to finish the battle against the Machoke.
"Marble, now! Go for a Thunder Wave!" Avril shouted.
Marble wasted no time in hopping onto the Machoke, wrapping her arms and legs around the muscular Pokémon in the process. The sheep Pokémon discharged a blast of electrical energy, all the while Korrina's Machoke desperately tried to pry her off. The longer Marble shocked the Machoke with her Thunder Wave however, the slower and more sluggish his movements became. It was as if every movement he made was taking a great deal of concentration and energy. Once she was pleased with her attack, Marble hopped off of the Machoke's back and quickly took to scrambling ahead of the Machoke. With a loud groan, the Machoke's movements slowed down to a complete stop before he toppled over, completely unable to move.
Machoke has fallen too far behind. By league rules, Machoke is unable to battle. The robotic voice calls out.
"Great job, Machoke. Rest up." Korrina smiles as she returns her fighter to his poké ball. "Alright, Hawlucha, let's finish this up!"
The luchador bursts back out from his poké ball, a look of sheer determination. One way or another, this battle's coming to an end very soon, they're both down to their last Pokemon, both have taken a considerable amount of damage. "Let's do Swords Dance, and follow it up with Flying Press!"
Hawlucha flies upward, his body spinning in an elegant formation, wings growing sharper and shinier, and once he reaches high enough, he descends onto the electric sheep.
"Marble, Take Down now!" Avril ordered.
The Flaaffy spins around upon Avril's command, taking aim at the descending Hawlucha. With a loud wail, the sheep Pokémon launched herself up at Korrina's Pokémon. The two opponents quickly closing space between each other, until the duo crashed in a powerful exchange of blows. Avril spun around, her eyes focusing on the duo as the collided with each other. Despite the two skating trainers, the room suddenly became so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
The Pokemon collide with a powerful clash of force, grappling against one another as they descend back towards the rink. The silence is broken with a loud crash, both Pokémon lying on the ground, unable to move.
Flaaffy and Hawlucha are unable to battle. The winner is the challenger! The robotic voice rings out, causing Korrina to look up in surprise. Winner? No, this should be a draw-- No...Radar was never officially announced fainted, so...that's that. The blonde skids to a stop to catch her breath, her vibrant smile instantly returning. "You heard 'em. I knew you'd be a great fight!"
Avril came to a stop of her own, the girl surprised by the announcement just as much as Korrina. In all her focus on the battle and keeping herself moving, the girl had completely forgotten that she recalled her Noibat before he fainted from the battle. A sigh of relief escaped her lips as she took a moment to calm down, before returning her focus back to the gym leader.
"You were a great one yourself," Avril replied, smiling at Korrina all the while. "For a moment, I thought you totally had me there."
"That's when you know you've found something great." Korrina returns Hawlucha as she skates to Avril's side. "When you're so focused on what's right in front of you that you forget everything else." What could be better? The Gym Leader reaches into her pocket, then reaches for Avril's hand, where she places the sparkling new gym badge against her palm. "Avril, I'm proud to present you with the Rumble Badge!"
Avril felt a sense of pride as she took the badge from Korrina. While this wasn't the first badge she had collected by any means, there was something about it that just felt... special. Maybe it was on account of the fact that she had won this one without relying on Shino... Maybe it was because there was just something about the girl in front of her that just felt so much more... inviting than Grant and Viola. Avril really couldn't put her finger on it, but she definitely knew that there was something else there.
"Thanks, I'll take it with pride," Avril replied. She took a moment to recall her Flaaffy, giving Marble and Radar's poké balls a warm smile. "Thanks you two, I couldn't have done it without you."
Just then, a sudden announcement coming from the tournament could be heard from outside. Avril quickly recognized the voice as Steven Stone's. "Alright, everyone! It's time now for our next match! Will Robin Morris and Sky Kingfisher please report to the arena!"
"Oh! The tournament! I almost forgot all about it!" Avril exclaimed. She blushed lightly, turning to face Korrina one more time. "I... I hate to run like this, but... I mean, I'd stay and chat a while, but... My sister, you see... She's also in the tournament and..."
"Say no more! Get going, and good luck! I'll be cheering for you." There's no promise that she won't have another challenger, so she can't say she'll be there in person, but that doesn't mean she can't root for her in spirit! And listen to the announcements from the nearby stadium, that too. She holds her arm out once more for a pre-tournament-good-luck-high-five. "Go get 'em!"
Avril gave Korrina a high-five, before she turned and made her way out of the gym. She had a good feeling that the remaining tournament was going to be something that she wouldn't forget for a long time. After her battle with Korrina, she was definitely pumped to show just what she could do out there.
Avril received the Rumble Badge!