Pokemon Slate Gray

Season 2 - Episode 13: The Merciless Mayor

Slate stared at the letter, weighing his options. "I'm doing it," he decided. "I'm battling Mayor Douglas today!"

"You can't be serious?" April exclaimed. "It's at seven o'clock. That's four hours from now!"

"What's the alternative? Rescheduling my match?" Slate replied. "What if I have to wait another month? What if that one gets canceled too? No way. I'm battling today!"

April raised her hand to her chin thoughtfully. "Well, you won't have time to bond with your new Beakon. That pretty much rules out using it in the battle, which is a shame because a Flying-type might have been helpful. As for your other Pokémon..."

The girl had a point, annoying though it was. Meeting Beakon would have to wait, Crimsant was still playing up, and Larvoid hadn't learned any new moves. "I know, but Eevee and Cryote are ready," said Slate. "I was probably going to use them anyway."

"Okay," April conceded, "but we better go to the Gym now and secure your spot before someone else does."

***

After a brisk walk to City Hall, Slate spoke to the Gym Receptionist and accepted the still-vacant opening in the mayor's schedule. With his match confirmed for that evening, he released Eevee and Cryote, and they ran to the park for some last-minute training.

April, who was uninterested in running, eventually met up with the three of them at Slate's usual training spot. There, he had the idea to use his Larvoid and her Larvibe to assist with their efforts. Among other things, he had his pale-red bug and April's pale-yellow one use their String Shot in tandem like a jump rope, which Eevee and Cryote dived in and out of to improve their agility.

Rodenki joined in with this at first but soon grew tired and returned to April's hood to snooze. April had released her Mossym too but returned it to its Silph Ball after she grew wary of fending off her green admirer with an errant branch.

"What's the verdict?" asked April a couple of hours later as she fed seeds to her Zunshin.

"I think we've done all we can for now," said Slate, his hands on his hips as he surveyed his panting partners with a satisfied smile. "What do you think, guys? Are we going to win?"

They barked loudly and happily in reply, which made Slate beam with pride.

"Well, there's not long to go. You should let Eevee and Cryote rest up," April cautioned.

Slate agreed, praised his Pokémon, and thanked the bugs for their assistance.

***

After giving his Pokémon a healing cycle back at the Center, Slate returned to his room. Unable to relax, he spent much of the remaining time before the match pacing around his room, considering battle strategy. He did this until April knocked at his door, and they set off together for City Hall once more.

Slate was excited for the match. He hadn't technically won the Chemical Badge from Bella, so facing Mayor Douglas would be his first real foray into the Gym Challenge. He felt ready for it, though. He also felt it was time to move on from Pistachion City and get back to his journey.

Comfy though their living conditions were, he and April hadn't progressed with their investigation since meeting with Looker. As far as they could tell, Team Shade wasn't working out of Silph Co. HQ, and if what April had been reading in the newspapers was accurate, there were still missing people to be found, including Joseph Quinn.

There was a nagging concern in the back of Slate's mind, though. As he and April entered City Hall, he couldn't help wondering, what if he lost the battle with the mayor? Would that mean he wasn't ready? What would it take before he was truly prepared for the challenges that lay ahead of him?