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Description
WARNING - From now on, if you haven't read the rest of the chapters yet,
I suggest reading those first. There are important things happening/coming up in the story,
and reading those before the rest of the story just isn't as much fun as the other way around.

Counterbalanced - Chapter 34

Zigzagoon barked wildly as he appeared in a flash of light, excited to be out again.
He was greeted by the sound of Gray Guardian children cheering for him from the sidelines.
Encouraged by their enthusiasm, he ferociously growled at the other side of the battlefield, where two of Burgh's Pokémon were waiting for the battle to begin.

Zigzagoon tilted his head when Oshawott appeared next to him, surprised by the water-Pokémon's presence. They looked back at their trainers, standing side by side at one end of the battlefield.

Yena waved at them.

"We'll be fighting Burgh at the same time! Let's work together, okay?"

She turned to Alex.

"I just thought of this. I don't know every single whistle signal you use in battles…"

Alex frowned, understanding that this would seriously set them back.

"There goes the element of surpri-… Wait."

The vague outlines of a plan formed inside her head.
She leaned closer to Yena, speaking softly.

"I could at least start with the signals, then change back to normal commands as soon as Oshawott joins the battle. It gives us a bit of a headstart… What do you think?"

Yena nodded once.

"Sounds good to me. Now let's see what we're up against…"

She got out her red Pokédex, and pointed it at the Pokémon on the other side of the battlefield.

Its metallic voice told them:
'Whirlipede, the evolved form of Venipede. It's protected by a hard shell.
When attacked, Whirlipede can spin around at high speed to smash into opponents.'

Alex studied the gray Pokémon.

"I've seen a Whirlipede fight before, those spikes on its body are dangerous.
We'll have to be really careful with that one."

She had barely finished speaking, when Yena's Pokédex continued:

'Dwebble, the Rock Inn Pokémon. It uses rocks as a protective shell. Dwebble can make rock easier to carve by producing a liquid from its mouth. If its rock breaks, it will be agitated until it locates a replacement.'

Another quick response by Alex.

"It specializes in rocks. A Rock-type. Water's one of its weaknesses.
We should make Oshawott attack Dwebble, and let Zigzagoon deal with Whirlipede."

She glanced at Yena, expecting her to cling to every bit of advise that was given to her.
But the blond girl merely nodded, observing Whirlipede and Dwebble with a determined look.

"Right."

The referee seemed to sense that they were just about ready to start. He was one of Burgh's friends, and the gym leader had convinced him to go along with the unconventional 2-1 battle.

So the man on the sidelines raised his arms, to get everyone's attention.

"This is an official gym battle between Castelia City's gym leader and the challengers, Alex and Yena Zenouveau. Upon winning, both trainers will receive the Insect Badge, along with 2760 Pokédollars. Each side will be using three Pokémon. The battle is over when three Pokémon on either side are unable to continue fighting, or when either the challengers or the gym leader give up. If these rules are clear, the battle may commence!"

---

Burgh's eyes widened as Zigzagoon leaped forward after a short whistle from Alex.
The Pokémon jumped in zigzags, changing directions after each sound coming from its owner.

The gym leader had two Pokémon to command, and quickly started to do so.

"If we can't figure out what attack is coming, neither should they…! Dwebble, use Sand-Attack!"

The battlefield's sandy ground was perfectly suited for that tactic.
The crab-like Pokémon spun around fast, easily kicking up a blinding cloud of dust.

With both Dwebble and Whirlipede concealed, Alex let Zigzagoon slow down, then stand still.
Yena's clear voice rang over the battlefield, choosing a long-range attack.

"Oshawott, use your Water Gun! Try aiming for every place where they could be hiding!"

Powerful beams of water flew past Zigzagoon, standing halfway the battlefield.
The water punched temporary holes in the dust, but no other effects could be heard or seen.
Silence reigned Burgh's side of the grounds for a moment, until…

"Whirlipede, start your Steamroller attack…!"

Yena cast a quick look at Alex.

"What does that do…?"

Alex' dark eyes were completely focused on Zigzagoon.

"This could be bad."

The ominous sound of things scraping along the ground fast came from the vast, brown cloud.
It reminded Alex of a car, pulling up fast, and with a shock, she realised what attack was coming.

"Zigzagoon, get ready…!"

The words had hardly left her mouth, when Whirlipede shot out of the cloud of dust, rotating its body like a tire, the spikes sticking out of its shell, looking dangerously sharp. It headed straight for Zigzagoon. Alex' Pokémon yelped in shock, and jumped aside, but not far enough. He would certainly have been hit by the attack, if a strong jet of water from Oshawott hadn't pushed Whirlipede aside just enough.

The Bug-Pokémon had missed Zigzagoon, but didn't slow down. The magenta rings decorating the gray segments of its body were reduced to a blur as Whirlipede circled around, and took a second attempt at running over its small, brown opponent.

But this time, Alex was ready for it. She whistled loudly, and the tone she produced went from high to low. Her Pokémon responded immediately, clawing into the sandy ground, quickly disappearing out of sight as he dug a tunnel.

Needless to say, Whirlipede missed its target again.
Burgh, on the other side of the slowly settling dust, called out to his Pokémon:

"Go for Oshawott instead, Whirlipede! Dwebble, use your Dig attack as well!"

Alex groaned as she heard his words. Two Pokémon, fighting it out underground.
It strongly reminded her of her gym battle against Chili, which had been slightly traumatic.
She shook her head, pulling herself together. This was different. Dwebble was a Bug-Pokémon, and was highly unlikely to know any Fire-type attacks, like Pansear had done.

Alex felt Yena's hand on her arm as the blond girl prepared herself to command Oshawott, and it drew her back into the situation. Dwebble and Zigzagoon hadn't found eachother yet, so she still had some time. A perfect situation for whistled commands, as Dwebble wouldn't understand where Alex was leading Zigzagoon.

As Alex carefully chosen whistles soared over the battlefield, Yena focused on her own Pokémon's situation. The first time Whirlipede had gone for Oshawott, the water-Pokémon had blasted water against at its rotating opponent, slowing it down enough to jump aside in time. But Whirlipede had barely sustained any damage, as the water had only hit its hard shell.

Yena bit her lip. This was no good. Oshawott and Zigzagoon were not fighting the right Pokémon.
She should be taking on Dwebble, while Alex had said that Zigzagoon would deal with Whirlipede.

She slightly pulled Alex' arm, and the girl leaned closer, still concentrating on directing Zigzagoon.

"Alex… This isn't working, we should switch opponents."

The brown-haired girl nodded, not prepared to stop her constant stream of whistles. But she kept a close eye on Whirlipede. The Bug-Pokémon had circled around twice now, hindered by Oshawott's attack both times. But the otter-Pokémon was getting tired.

When she finished a complicated series of tones, she gasped for air, and quickly hissed at Yena:

"When Zigzagoon appears… Have Oshawott fill the tunnel with water."

She then brought her fingers back to her mouth, and when Whirlipede approached Oshawott again, two loud, sharp tones drove Zigzagoon to the surface. Perfectly timed and executed, the raccoon-like Pokémon tackled Whirlipede as he raced by.

Whirlipede produced an earsplitting screech as he landed on his side, but even the loudest noise wouldn't stop Zigzagoon. The Pokémon bit down hard on the softer, dark gray part, causing the Bug-Pokémon to squeal even louder.

Yena, relieved to see such a threatening Pokémon down for the moment, was quick to command:

"Oshawott! Use Water Gun on the tunnel, fill it with water!"

She could see why Alex had insisted on it. If Dwebble had found Zigzagoon's tunnel, the Pokémon would certainly follow it, hoping it would lead to its opponent. The water that was now going in the ground gave her a safe feeling, knowing nothing else could come from the hole.

But her heartbeat sped up, as she suddenly heard Burgh's voice:

"Dwebble! Use X-Scissor on Zigzagoon!"

Still trying to take out the squirming Whirlipede, Zigzagoon was an easy target. The Pokémon looked up when he heard his name, but it was too late. The ground next to them started to shake, before it burst open, and Dwebble flew out of it at high speed. It hadn't followed Zigzagoon's tunnel, but had dug alongside it.

Jumping up to Zigzagoon, its orange claws started to glow light blue.
Alex frantically yelled something, but Dwebble gave Zigzagoon no time to comply.
At the last moment, the Bug-Pokémon crossed its claws, mercilessly slamming into its opponent head on.

Her hand still on Alex' arm, Yena could feel how a shock went through the girl, as her Pokémon flew back, blood gushing out of the wounds on its face. Zigzagoon tumbled to the ground, crying out, immediately trying to get back up. But the Pokémon was in pain, and blinded by the blood in its eyes.

Yena squeezed Alex' arm, and the girl seemed to snap back to reality at the sound of her voice.

"Call him back."

Alex' nodded weakly, holding out Zigzagoon's Pokéball. A bright red beam shot from the round object, enveloping the wobbly Pokémon, that disappeared from the battlefield a second later.

In the time it took Alex to reach for Tauros' Pokéball, Yena saw how Dwebble was helping Whirlipede back up.
She growled.

"Oh no, you don't… Oshawott, Water Gun, now!"

Oshawott had been ready for her command, and a powerful beam of water hit both Pokémon, hard.

---

The referee closely observed both of the soaked Pokémon, estimating if they'd be able to continue to fight. After a couple of seconds, Whirlipede slowly started rolling back to Burgh, as if he wanted to re-group. The Water-type attack had done the most damage to Dwebble, struggling to get back up.

Yena gave a sigh of relief as the man at the sidelines came to the conclusion:

"Dwebble is no longer able to fight. Please use another Pokémon."

They could hear Burgh's voice as he called Dwebble back.

"Well done. Leavanny will take it from here."

Then, louder:

"Looks like we're even, so far."

---

Tauros was angrily sniffing, even mooing at Whirlipede and Leavanny at some point, as if to intimidate them. His front right hoof scraped over the ground, and his tails moved restlessly. Oshawott, standing next to the bull, looked up and seemed happy that Tauros was on his side.

Also new on the battlefield, Leavanny was eyeing its opponents just as much.
The green and yellow Pokémon was quite tall, and had a soft, friendly expression on its face.
But Alex was in no mood to be influenced by this.

Still feeling upset about Zigzagoon's defeat, she hissed at Yena:

"Oshawott should watch out for Leavanny, it's bound to know some Grass-attacks.
We won't give them another chance to surprise us…!"

Burgh's voice rang over the battlefield.

"I don't know if you guys are ready for it, but I'm starting now!"

The gym leader took a deep breath, then commanded:

"Whirlipede, full steam ahead! Go for Oshawott, you can take him!
Leavanny, Tauros is dangerous, immobilize him with String Shot!"

Alex fiercely encouraged her Pokémon to go all out:

"Tauros, don't hold back! Trample those Pokémon, crush them if you must…!"

That's all Tauros needed. With a ferocious cry, he whipped its three tails, scraped his hoof along the ground once more, and stormed forwards. From the other side of the battlefield, the forward motion was copied by Whirlipede, rolling right past Tauros as it went for Oshawott.

But Oshawott had already learned how to parry Whirlipede's attack. The strong jet of water bounced right off the Bug-Pokémon's hard shell, but slowed him down enough for Oshawott to jump aside.

Yena shook Alex' arm.

"Oshawott can't take on Whirlipede like this, they're just going in circles all the time…"

She couldn't tell if Alex had heard her words or not, as she was caught up in her own Pokémon's troubles.
Tauros had stormed for Leavanny, but the leafy Pokémon had released a stream of white string from its mouth, aiming for the bull's legs, hoping to let Tauros trip and fall. Tauros, hindered by the pieces of sticky thread around its legs, had circled around until he was out of Leavanny's reach.

Her mind racing, Alex went for a different strategy before Burgh gave Leavanny another command.

"Tauros! Take on Whirlipede, instead!"

But Burgh didn't keep quiet for long.

"Leavanny, Razor Leaf, go for Oshawott! Whirlipede… Take Tauros' challenge, you can win!"

Leavanny looked quite elegant as it twirled around, but the real threat quickly became clear as the Bug-Pokémon released a series of sharp leaves, that went flying for Oshawott at high speed.

There was little to nothing Oshawott could do to avoid such an amount of projectiles.

"Get down, Oshawott!"

The blue otter-like Pokémon threw himself on the ground, rolling up to a ball to make himself as small as possible. The razorsharp leaves struck the earth around him, whipping up a small cloud of dust. Yena thought she heard a cry of pain coming from Oshawott, but she couldn't be sure, because on that moment, Tauros and Whirlipede collided.

The storming Pokémon had been building up as much speed as the length of the battlefield would give them. Tauros had lowered its head, the silver-colored horns facing the Bug-Pokémon. Whirlipede had a whole series of sharp spikes on its body, outnumbering Tauros in that, but had also been weakened by Zigzagoon's attack from before.

…With an incredible amount of power, the two Pokémon smashed into eachother.

---

Yena couldn't remember being so caught-up in a Pokémon battle before, almost forgetting to breathe.
She discovered she'd been squeezing Alex' arm, but the other girl barely seemed to notice.

With the dust slowly settling, an eerie, pained cry could be heard in the middle of it, sending chills down everyone's spines. Burgh and Leavanny, on the other side of the battlefield, were also intentely staring and listening, waiting for the result of the clash.

Because Oshawott had been close to them as he was overwhelmed by Leavanny's Razor Leaf attack, Alex and Yena could see the water-Pokémon before Burgh could. The small, blue Pokémon had scrambled back to its feet, and even though he was bleeding from some cuts and scratches, he seemed to be fine. He looked back at Yena, then nodded.

Like she'd done once before, Yena wished that she knew some sign language to signal to Oshawott to attack Leavanny without the Pokémon seeing it coming. A spoken command would be noticed immediately. But Oshawott seemed to really be waiting for any sign from her, so she decided to give it a shot. Trying to move as inconspicuously as possible, Yena made a tiny gesture with her hand, as if she was throwing a frisbee. To her delight, Oshawott immediately nodded, then jumped away and disappeared into the dust. Alex stirred beside her. She'd seen what had happened, but now the last bits of dust were clearing up.

…Tauros was standing, bleeding quite badly from both his head and front legs, but he was proudly holding his head up high, staring at Burgh and Leavanny, as if he was inviting them to challenge him some more. A few feet away was Whirlipede, completely knocked out. Taking on a strong Tauros in a head on confrontation like that had been one bridge too far.

Burgh ground his teeth, reluctantly calling back Whirlipede.

"Looks like it's just you now, Leavanny…"

It was that moment where he realised that Oshawott seemed to be missing from the scene.

"Wait. Where's…"

But Tauros had started running again, heading straight for Leavanny.
Not as fast as before, and slightly limping, but still powerful.
Burgh had to deal with this situation, before he could thinking about Oshawott's sudden absence.

"Leavanny, that attack is the most dangerous! Tie up his legs with your String Shot…!"

Even with Alex yelling at him from the other side of the battlefield, Tauros never even attempted to dodge the sticky, white string fired from Leavanny's mouth. Everyone in the gym could feel the ground shake as Tauros' legs were glued together, and he helplessly fell down in the sand.

A moment of silence, where even the onlookers held their breath.

Burgh, who seemed pleasantly surprised with the result, was the first one to speak.

"Nicely done. Now…"

But Tauros had been close to collapsing anyway.
He had his reasons for storming for Leavanny one last time. A surprise attack.
Oshawott had been small enough to cling to his manes near his back, without Burgh and Leavanny noticing. Now that the large, brown Pokémon was down, it was time for one last move.

Having trained this move all week, Oshawott removed its scalchop from its belly, and forcefully flung the shell at Leavanny. The results from its intense training were clear – the scalchop cut deeply into Leavanny's chest.

Burgh's last Pokémon squealed in pain and shock, before stumbling backwards. With sluggish movements, it pulled out the scalchop, revealing a deep gash in its skin. With a surprised look on its face, Leavanny started to collapse.

Burgh may have been shocked by this last move, but he responded to his fainting Pokémon adequately by calling Leavanny back. The referee almost forgot to speak, before slowly raising his hand to Alex and Yena.

"That concludes this battle…! I hereby declare Yena and Alex Zenouveau to be the winners of this battle! They have officially earned the Insect Badge, along with 2760 Pokédollars! Congratulations!"

The two girls at the other side of the battlefield barely registered the referee's words, both leaving their places to meet their Pokémon. Yena was met by Oshawott halfway. She hugged the small otter-Pokémon closely, hardly able to contain her pride. Then she saw Alex kneel down next to Tauros, checking over her Pokémon, her hands inspecting the wounds on its head.

Tauros sniffed and mooed at his owner as soon as Alex reached him, his eyes still bright and alert.
Alex sighed of relief, carefully stroking Tauros' head where he wasn't hurt.

"That was a brave move, Tauros… Maybe even a reckless one."

Her own words somehow rang a bell in her head, and she looked around.
The applause from the Gray Guardians only just started to get through to her.
Some of them started to run across the battlegrounds, wanting to be part of the event as much as possible.
Had they really been standing at the sides of the battlefield all this time…? She couldn't remember hearing any cheers or shouts from them, and she couldn't believe how focused she'd been. Slightly overwhelmed, Alex turned back to Tauros.

…
…
…

Then, a hand on her right shoulder.
He'd come from a different side than she'd expected.

"Congratulations. I knew you'd make it."

His words seemed to finally unlock the relief and happiness that went with a victorious battle.
Still sitting next to Tauros in the dirt, Alex looked up to Quinn, and grinned.

Description
WARNING - From now on, if you haven't read the rest of the chapters yet,
I suggest reading those first. There are important things happening/coming up in the story,
and reading those before the rest of the story just isn't as much fun as the other way around.

Counterbalanced - Chapter 34

Zigzagoon barked wildly as he appeared in a flash of light, excited to be out again.
He was greeted by the sound of Gray Guardian children cheering for him from the sidelines.
Encouraged by their enthusiasm, he ferociously growled at the other side of the battlefield, where two of Burgh's Pokémon were waiting for the battle to begin.

Zigzagoon tilted his head when Oshawott appeared next to him, surprised by the water-Pokémon's presence. They looked back at their trainers, standing side by side at one end of the battlefield.

Yena waved at them.

"We'll be fighting Burgh at the same time! Let's work together, okay?"

She turned to Alex.

"I just thought of this. I don't know every single whistle signal you use in battles…"

Alex frowned, understanding that this would seriously set them back.

"There goes the element of surpri-… Wait."

The vague outlines of a plan formed inside her head.
She leaned closer to Yena, speaking softly.

"I could at least start with the signals, then change back to normal commands as soon as Oshawott joins the battle. It gives us a bit of a headstart… What do you think?"

Yena nodded once.

"Sounds good to me. Now let's see what we're up against…"

She got out her red Pokédex, and pointed it at the Pokémon on the other side of the battlefield.

Its metallic voice told them:
'Whirlipede, the evolved form of Venipede. It's protected by a hard shell.
When attacked, Whirlipede can spin around at high speed to smash into opponents.'

Alex studied the gray Pokémon.

"I've seen a Whirlipede fight before, those spikes on its body are dangerous.
We'll have to be really careful with that one."

She had barely finished speaking, when Yena's Pokédex continued:

'Dwebble, the Rock Inn Pokémon. It uses rocks as a protective shell. Dwebble can make rock easier to carve by producing a liquid from its mouth. If its rock breaks, it will be agitated until it locates a replacement.'

Another quick response by Alex.

"It specializes in rocks. A Rock-type. Water's one of its weaknesses.
We should make Oshawott attack Dwebble, and let Zigzagoon deal with Whirlipede."

She glanced at Yena, expecting her to cling to every bit of advise that was given to her.
But the blond girl merely nodded, observing Whirlipede and Dwebble with a determined look.

"Right."

The referee seemed to sense that they were just about ready to start. He was one of Burgh's friends, and the gym leader had convinced him to go along with the unconventional 2-1 battle.

So the man on the sidelines raised his arms, to get everyone's attention.

"This is an official gym battle between Castelia City's gym leader and the challengers, Alex and Yena Zenouveau. Upon winning, both trainers will receive the Insect Badge, along with 2760 Pokédollars. Each side will be using three Pokémon. The battle is over when three Pokémon on either side are unable to continue fighting, or when either the challengers or the gym leader give up. If these rules are clear, the battle may commence!"

---

Burgh's eyes widened as Zigzagoon leaped forward after a short whistle from Alex.
The Pokémon jumped in zigzags, changing directions after each sound coming from its owner.

The gym leader had two Pokémon to command, and quickly started to do so.

"If we can't figure out what attack is coming, neither should they…! Dwebble, use Sand-Attack!"

The battlefield's sandy ground was perfectly suited for that tactic.
The crab-like Pokémon spun around fast, easily kicking up a blinding cloud of dust.

With both Dwebble and Whirlipede concealed, Alex let Zigzagoon slow down, then stand still.
Yena's clear voice rang over the battlefield, choosing a long-range attack.

"Oshawott, use your Water Gun! Try aiming for every place where they could be hiding!"

Powerful beams of water flew past Zigzagoon, standing halfway the battlefield.
The water punched temporary holes in the dust, but no other effects could be heard or seen.
Silence reigned Burgh's side of the grounds for a moment, until…

"Whirlipede, start your Steamroller attack…!"

Yena cast a quick look at Alex.

"What does that do…?"

Alex' dark eyes were completely focused on Zigzagoon.

"This could be bad."

The ominous sound of things scraping along the ground fast came from the vast, brown cloud.
It reminded Alex of a car, pulling up fast, and with a shock, she realised what attack was coming.

"Zigzagoon, get ready…!"

The words had hardly left her mouth, when Whirlipede shot out of the cloud of dust, rotating its body like a tire, the spikes sticking out of its shell, looking dangerously sharp. It headed straight for Zigzagoon. Alex' Pokémon yelped in shock, and jumped aside, but not far enough. He would certainly have been hit by the attack, if a strong jet of water from Oshawott hadn't pushed Whirlipede aside just enough.

The Bug-Pokémon had missed Zigzagoon, but didn't slow down. The magenta rings decorating the gray segments of its body were reduced to a blur as Whirlipede circled around, and took a second attempt at running over its small, brown opponent.

But this time, Alex was ready for it. She whistled loudly, and the tone she produced went from high to low. Her Pokémon responded immediately, clawing into the sandy ground, quickly disappearing out of sight as he dug a tunnel.

Needless to say, Whirlipede missed its target again.
Burgh, on the other side of the slowly settling dust, called out to his Pokémon:

"Go for Oshawott instead, Whirlipede! Dwebble, use your Dig attack as well!"

Alex groaned as she heard his words. Two Pokémon, fighting it out underground.
It strongly reminded her of her gym battle against Chili, which had been slightly traumatic.
She shook her head, pulling herself together. This was different. Dwebble was a Bug-Pokémon, and was highly unlikely to know any Fire-type attacks, like Pansear had done.

Alex felt Yena's hand on her arm as the blond girl prepared herself to command Oshawott, and it drew her back into the situation. Dwebble and Zigzagoon hadn't found eachother yet, so she still had some time. A perfect situation for whistled commands, as Dwebble wouldn't understand where Alex was leading Zigzagoon.

As Alex carefully chosen whistles soared over the battlefield, Yena focused on her own Pokémon's situation. The first time Whirlipede had gone for Oshawott, the water-Pokémon had blasted water against at its rotating opponent, slowing it down enough to jump aside in time. But Whirlipede had barely sustained any damage, as the water had only hit its hard shell.

Yena bit her lip. This was no good. Oshawott and Zigzagoon were not fighting the right Pokémon.
She should be taking on Dwebble, while Alex had said that Zigzagoon would deal with Whirlipede.

She slightly pulled Alex' arm, and the girl leaned closer, still concentrating on directing Zigzagoon.

"Alex… This isn't working, we should switch opponents."

The brown-haired girl nodded, not prepared to stop her constant stream of whistles. But she kept a close eye on Whirlipede. The Bug-Pokémon had circled around twice now, hindered by Oshawott's attack both times. But the otter-Pokémon was getting tired.

When she finished a complicated series of tones, she gasped for air, and quickly hissed at Yena:

"When Zigzagoon appears… Have Oshawott fill the tunnel with water."

She then brought her fingers back to her mouth, and when Whirlipede approached Oshawott again, two loud, sharp tones drove Zigzagoon to the surface. Perfectly timed and executed, the raccoon-like Pokémon tackled Whirlipede as he raced by.

Whirlipede produced an earsplitting screech as he landed on his side, but even the loudest noise wouldn't stop Zigzagoon. The Pokémon bit down hard on the softer, dark gray part, causing the Bug-Pokémon to squeal even louder.

Yena, relieved to see such a threatening Pokémon down for the moment, was quick to command:

"Oshawott! Use Water Gun on the tunnel, fill it with water!"

She could see why Alex had insisted on it. If Dwebble had found Zigzagoon's tunnel, the Pokémon would certainly follow it, hoping it would lead to its opponent. The water that was now going in the ground gave her a safe feeling, knowing nothing else could come from the hole.

But her heartbeat sped up, as she suddenly heard Burgh's voice:

"Dwebble! Use X-Scissor on Zigzagoon!"

Still trying to take out the squirming Whirlipede, Zigzagoon was an easy target. The Pokémon looked up when he heard his name, but it was too late. The ground next to them started to shake, before it burst open, and Dwebble flew out of it at high speed. It hadn't followed Zigzagoon's tunnel, but had dug alongside it.

Jumping up to Zigzagoon, its orange claws started to glow light blue.
Alex frantically yelled something, but Dwebble gave Zigzagoon no time to comply.
At the last moment, the Bug-Pokémon crossed its claws, mercilessly slamming into its opponent head on.

Her hand still on Alex' arm, Yena could feel how a shock went through the girl, as her Pokémon flew back, blood gushing out of the wounds on its face. Zigzagoon tumbled to the ground, crying out, immediately trying to get back up. But the Pokémon was in pain, and blinded by the blood in its eyes.

Yena squeezed Alex' arm, and the girl seemed to snap back to reality at the sound of her voice.

"Call him back."

Alex' nodded weakly, holding out Zigzagoon's Pokéball. A bright red beam shot from the round object, enveloping the wobbly Pokémon, that disappeared from the battlefield a second later.

In the time it took Alex to reach for Tauros' Pokéball, Yena saw how Dwebble was helping Whirlipede back up.
She growled.

"Oh no, you don't… Oshawott, Water Gun, now!"

Oshawott had been ready for her command, and a powerful beam of water hit both Pokémon, hard.

---

The referee closely observed both of the soaked Pokémon, estimating if they'd be able to continue to fight. After a couple of seconds, Whirlipede slowly started rolling back to Burgh, as if he wanted to re-group. The Water-type attack had done the most damage to Dwebble, struggling to get back up.

Yena gave a sigh of relief as the man at the sidelines came to the conclusion:

"Dwebble is no longer able to fight. Please use another Pokémon."

They could hear Burgh's voice as he called Dwebble back.

"Well done. Leavanny will take it from here."

Then, louder:

"Looks like we're even, so far."

---

Tauros was angrily sniffing, even mooing at Whirlipede and Leavanny at some point, as if to intimidate them. His front right hoof scraped over the ground, and his tails moved restlessly. Oshawott, standing next to the bull, looked up and seemed happy that Tauros was on his side.

Also new on the battlefield, Leavanny was eyeing its opponents just as much.
The green and yellow Pokémon was quite tall, and had a soft, friendly expression on its face.
But Alex was in no mood to be influenced by this.

Still feeling upset about Zigzagoon's defeat, she hissed at Yena:

"Oshawott should watch out for Leavanny, it's bound to know some Grass-attacks.
We won't give them another chance to surprise us…!"

Burgh's voice rang over the battlefield.

"I don't know if you guys are ready for it, but I'm starting now!"

The gym leader took a deep breath, then commanded:

"Whirlipede, full steam ahead! Go for Oshawott, you can take him!
Leavanny, Tauros is dangerous, immobilize him with String Shot!"

Alex fiercely encouraged her Pokémon to go all out:

"Tauros, don't hold back! Trample those Pokémon, crush them if you must…!"

That's all Tauros needed. With a ferocious cry, he whipped its three tails, scraped his hoof along the ground once more, and stormed forwards. From the other side of the battlefield, the forward motion was copied by Whirlipede, rolling right past Tauros as it went for Oshawott.

But Oshawott had already learned how to parry Whirlipede's attack. The strong jet of water bounced right off the Bug-Pokémon's hard shell, but slowed him down enough for Oshawott to jump aside.

Yena shook Alex' arm.

"Oshawott can't take on Whirlipede like this, they're just going in circles all the time…"

She couldn't tell if Alex had heard her words or not, as she was caught up in her own Pokémon's troubles.
Tauros had stormed for Leavanny, but the leafy Pokémon had released a stream of white string from its mouth, aiming for the bull's legs, hoping to let Tauros trip and fall. Tauros, hindered by the pieces of sticky thread around its legs, had circled around until he was out of Leavanny's reach.

Her mind racing, Alex went for a different strategy before Burgh gave Leavanny another command.

"Tauros! Take on Whirlipede, instead!"

But Burgh didn't keep quiet for long.

"Leavanny, Razor Leaf, go for Oshawott! Whirlipede… Take Tauros' challenge, you can win!"

Leavanny looked quite elegant as it twirled around, but the real threat quickly became clear as the Bug-Pokémon released a series of sharp leaves, that went flying for Oshawott at high speed.

There was little to nothing Oshawott could do to avoid such an amount of projectiles.

"Get down, Oshawott!"

The blue otter-like Pokémon threw himself on the ground, rolling up to a ball to make himself as small as possible. The razorsharp leaves struck the earth around him, whipping up a small cloud of dust. Yena thought she heard a cry of pain coming from Oshawott, but she couldn't be sure, because on that moment, Tauros and Whirlipede collided.

The storming Pokémon had been building up as much speed as the length of the battlefield would give them. Tauros had lowered its head, the silver-colored horns facing the Bug-Pokémon. Whirlipede had a whole series of sharp spikes on its body, outnumbering Tauros in that, but had also been weakened by Zigzagoon's attack from before.

…With an incredible amount of power, the two Pokémon smashed into eachother.

---

Yena couldn't remember being so caught-up in a Pokémon battle before, almost forgetting to breathe.
She discovered she'd been squeezing Alex' arm, but the other girl barely seemed to notice.

With the dust slowly settling, an eerie, pained cry could be heard in the middle of it, sending chills down everyone's spines. Burgh and Leavanny, on the other side of the battlefield, were also intentely staring and listening, waiting for the result of the clash.

Because Oshawott had been close to them as he was overwhelmed by Leavanny's Razor Leaf attack, Alex and Yena could see the water-Pokémon before Burgh could. The small, blue Pokémon had scrambled back to its feet, and even though he was bleeding from some cuts and scratches, he seemed to be fine. He looked back at Yena, then nodded.

Like she'd done once before, Yena wished that she knew some sign language to signal to Oshawott to attack Leavanny without the Pokémon seeing it coming. A spoken command would be noticed immediately. But Oshawott seemed to really be waiting for any sign from her, so she decided to give it a shot. Trying to move as inconspicuously as possible, Yena made a tiny gesture with her hand, as if she was throwing a frisbee. To her delight, Oshawott immediately nodded, then jumped away and disappeared into the dust. Alex stirred beside her. She'd seen what had happened, but now the last bits of dust were clearing up.

…Tauros was standing, bleeding quite badly from both his head and front legs, but he was proudly holding his head up high, staring at Burgh and Leavanny, as if he was inviting them to challenge him some more. A few feet away was Whirlipede, completely knocked out. Taking on a strong Tauros in a head on confrontation like that had been one bridge too far.

Burgh ground his teeth, reluctantly calling back Whirlipede.

"Looks like it's just you now, Leavanny…"

It was that moment where he realised that Oshawott seemed to be missing from the scene.

"Wait. Where's…"

But Tauros had started running again, heading straight for Leavanny.
Not as fast as before, and slightly limping, but still powerful.
Burgh had to deal with this situation, before he could thinking about Oshawott's sudden absence.

"Leavanny, that attack is the most dangerous! Tie up his legs with your String Shot…!"

Even with Alex yelling at him from the other side of the battlefield, Tauros never even attempted to dodge the sticky, white string fired from Leavanny's mouth. Everyone in the gym could feel the ground shake as Tauros' legs were glued together, and he helplessly fell down in the sand.

A moment of silence, where even the onlookers held their breath.

Burgh, who seemed pleasantly surprised with the result, was the first one to speak.

"Nicely done. Now…"

But Tauros had been close to collapsing anyway.
He had his reasons for storming for Leavanny one last time. A surprise attack.
Oshawott had been small enough to cling to his manes near his back, without Burgh and Leavanny noticing. Now that the large, brown Pokémon was down, it was time for one last move.

Having trained this move all week, Oshawott removed its scalchop from its belly, and forcefully flung the shell at Leavanny. The results from its intense training were clear – the scalchop cut deeply into Leavanny's chest.

Burgh's last Pokémon squealed in pain and shock, before stumbling backwards. With sluggish movements, it pulled out the scalchop, revealing a deep gash in its skin. With a surprised look on its face, Leavanny started to collapse.

Burgh may have been shocked by this last move, but he responded to his fainting Pokémon adequately by calling Leavanny back. The referee almost forgot to speak, before slowly raising his hand to Alex and Yena.

"That concludes this battle…! I hereby declare Yena and Alex Zenouveau to be the winners of this battle! They have officially earned the Insect Badge, along with 2760 Pokédollars! Congratulations!"

The two girls at the other side of the battlefield barely registered the referee's words, both leaving their places to meet their Pokémon. Yena was met by Oshawott halfway. She hugged the small otter-Pokémon closely, hardly able to contain her pride. Then she saw Alex kneel down next to Tauros, checking over her Pokémon, her hands inspecting the wounds on its head.

Tauros sniffed and mooed at his owner as soon as Alex reached him, his eyes still bright and alert.
Alex sighed of relief, carefully stroking Tauros' head where he wasn't hurt.

"That was a brave move, Tauros… Maybe even a reckless one."

Her own words somehow rang a bell in her head, and she looked around.
The applause from the Gray Guardians only just started to get through to her.
Some of them started to run across the battlegrounds, wanting to be part of the event as much as possible.
Had they really been standing at the sides of the battlefield all this time…? She couldn't remember hearing any cheers or shouts from them, and she couldn't believe how focused she'd been. Slightly overwhelmed, Alex turned back to Tauros.

…
…
…

Then, a hand on her right shoulder.
He'd come from a different side than she'd expected.

"Congratulations. I knew you'd make it."

His words seemed to finally unlock the relief and happiness that went with a victorious battle.
Still sitting next to Tauros in the dirt, Alex looked up to Quinn, and grinned.