Pokémon Heroes of Hoenn

Brawling With Brawly

I decided to head to the Gym after grabbing a quick lunch, Sapphire and Emerald being sure to follow along. Nobody really knew where Leaf had gone, but we didn't think to much of it. After all, we've only known him for about two days, and we never really confirmed that he'd be traveling with us, so we can't complain if he goes off and does his own thing.
Upon arriving before the Gym, I quickly shoved open the doors, revealing a more unexpected sight.
"You guys said this was the Pokémon Gym..." I muttered, still staring through the doors at what was before us in the so-called Gym.
"It is. Well... it should be..." Emerald said hesitantly, dropping her gaze to the ground.
"Well let me ask you something, Emerald. Do Pokémon Gyms have workout machines in them?!" I snapped, motioning inside the Gym with my hands.
"This one sure does!" someone called from behind us. We jolted around, spotting a tall, buff looking guy with cyan blue hair staring down at us with a grin. "I'm Brawly, nice to meet ya!" the man stated cheerfully.
"That's great- are you the Gym Leader here?" I asked quickly, not really wanting to deal with the small talk.
"I sure am! You must be a challenger. Let me guess, Ruby, right?" Brawly asked cheerfully.
"How do you know my name?" I asked hesitantly, giving the Gym Leader a sceptical look.
"Roxanne and I are good friends! She informed me that you'd probably be coming to challenge me sooner or later, and here you are, so let's not waste any time. Come, I'll take you to the battlefield." Brawly said, motioning us to follow him.
I took my side of the field, waiting for Brawly to take his own. "How does a two on two sound?" Brawly asked, plucking a Pokéball out and spinning it on his fingertip for a moment.
"Just perfect. Poochyena, let's go!!" I called, releasing my first Pokémon. Brawly paused, staring at Poochyena with a dumbfounded look. Cc ,,
"Uhhhhhhh, Ruby? You do know this Gym is a Fighting type Gym... right?" Brawly asked hesitantly. I stared at him for a moment before realization struck, causing me to mentally scolding myself.
How could I have forgotten the Gym's type?! I'm using a Dark type to battle a Fighting type Gym Leader! I'm gonna make all the Gym Leaders think I'm an idiot...
"O-of course I know that, now hurry up and send out a Pokémon!" I called back, trying to cover up my obvious idiocy. Brawly shrugged it off, sending out his Machop with a confident grin.
“Alright then, Machop, Low Kick!!” Brawly ordered.
“Jump over it and roll!” I called out. Poochyena leaped over Machop’s head, rolling like a tire through the dirt and swerving by planting his paws on the ground. “Now, Tackle!!” Poochyena used the energy from the roll and swerve to push itself forward, landing a boosted Tackle attack.
“Nice move! Try this on for size! Use Cross Chop!” Brawly commanded loudly, smirking as he did so. Machop created an “x” with its arms, swinging them at Poochyena at the same time to land a powerful, super effective attack. Poochyena struggled to its feet, glaring up at Machop as it smirked down at it.
“Hey, Poochyena, hang tough! Use Howl!” I called. Poochyena lifted its head high, letting out an empowering Howl. He smirked readily at Machop, scratching at the ground twice to tell me he was ready and raring to go. “Now use Tackle and shift into Bite!” I commanded. Poochyena pushed forward once again, the Howl making its Tackle twice as powerful. As Machop hit the ground, Poochyena bit down on its arm, flinging it into a wall. Machop was no longer able to continue after the continuous attacks, rendering it useless for this battle.
“Nice move, Ruby! Roxanne was right, you are tough! But are you tough enough for my next Pokémon?” Brawly asked teasingly as he pulled out his next Pokéball. I smirked, shifting into a more battle ready position.
"Try me." I deadpanned with a smirk. Brawly nodded, tossing his next Pokéball into the air.
“Alright, Makuhita, it's all on you now!! Use Arm Thrust!!” Brawly cried out enthusiastically. The way he called out to his partner in his time of need sparked something within me, though what it is was beyond me.
“Poochyena, dodge that!” I called back, but I was a little too late. Makuhita grabbed Poochyena by the tail and attacked with a powerful Arm Thrust, causing Poochyena to faint. I returned it to its Pokéball and plucked out Combusken's, staring at it with a look of pure determination. “Let's win this…. Combusken!!” I cried out, mimicking Brawly as I released my partner Pokémon. “Double Kick!” I ordered.
I felt that rush again... that rush I feel whenever a battle gets serious... what is this feeling?
“Counter that with Low Kick!” Brawly called. Combusken dove towards Makuhita to make it seem like our aim was at the front of it. Combusken cleverly landed behind Makuhita, swirling around and landing a powerful Double Kick into its back within seconds.
“Nice one, Combusken!!” I called out, earning a smirk from my partner.
"Don't start celebrating yet! Makuhita, Brick Break!!" Brawly commanded. Makuhita landed a powerful attack straight into Combusken, sending it flying towards a wall.
"Combusken!!" I cried out to it in shock. Combusken jolted its eyes open, flipping just as it was about to hit the wall so that its talons hit instead. Just as its feet came into complete contact with the wall, Combusken pushed off of it, shooting back towards Makuhita with blinding speed. "Use Peck!!" I commanded loudly, feeling the rush course through me as I pumped my fist upwards in the thrill of the battle. Combusken's beak began to glow as it shot straight for Makuhita, the strength of the attack causing the dirt on the field to surround them. When the dust cleared out and Brawly and I could see our Pokémon again, I spotted Makuhita lying on the ground, Combusken hovering over it as it grinned victoriously. I smirked, the rush inside of me calming down as I realized I had won. Brawly returned his partner to its Pokéball, smiling shyly at me as he approached.
"Well, looks like I lost... Let me tell ya, that's one strong Combusken! And coming on top of Machop with a Poochyena? That's something you almost never see! I'll gladly give you this Knuckle Badge." Brawly said cheerfully as he placed the Badge in my hand. I held it to my chest for a moment before pinning it to my bag strap with my Stone Badge.
"Thanks, Brawly. You're a pretty tough trainer yourself." I complemented coolly as I prepared to head to the door. Brawly walked with us outside the Gym, preparing to say our farewells when there was a sudden blast coming from the direction of Granite Cave.
"What was that?!" Sapphire exclaimed, staring off toward the cave in shock.
"Wait a minute... my friend Steven went in there!!" Brawly exclaimed, dashing off towards the cave with a worried frown on his face.
"Let's go!!" Emerald called, sprinting after Brawly. Sapphire and I followed behind, dreading the thought of a possible emergency. What we found wasn't at all what we were expecting, though none of us really knew what to expect, I'm sure it wasn't this.
There was Leaf, slightly beat up as he lie on the back of a huge metal-like Pokémon, holding up a Pokéball as he smiled shyly at us. There was a silvery cyan haired man standing beside him, leaning against the large Pokémon as he panted softly in exhaustion.
"Leaf? What're you doing here? And why are you all banged up?" I questioned, pointing outt his filthy clothes and scratched up face.
"I was trying.... to catch a Pokémon... and I finally got it, thanks to this guy." Leaf stated between gasps of air.
"Steven! You alright, pal?" Brawly asked, running to the other man's side.
"Yes, I believe so, thank you." Steven said softly, regaining a normal breathing pattern.
"What happened here?" Emerald questioned with concern evident in her tone.
"This young boy got attacked by a bunch of wild Pokémon when he was trying to catch one. He only has a Plusle, Minun, and Eevee, so Metagross and I had to step in on the battle. Turned out to be a little bit tougher than I thought." Steven explained calmly.
So that's what that big blue Pokémon is... a Metagross.
"Haha, yeah! But I did manage to catch the Pokémon I wanted!" Leaf exclaimed cheerfully.
"And what Pokémon was that?" I questioned, crossing my arms as I did so.
"Mawile!!" Leaf called, releasing the Pokémon he captured as he spoke. It cried out cheerfully and grinned up at us sweetly. Sapphire and Emerald admired it as I turned to speak with Steven after taking a quick look at its information in the Pokédex.
"You're Steven Stone, right? I have a letter here from the Devon Corporation for you." I stated calmly, handing him the letter. Steven thanked me kindly and slid it in the pocket of his suit, probably wanting to read it in privacy.
This guy must be rich or something, wearing that fancy outfit. I can barely afford what I normally wear. Then again, I've barely won any battles yet, so I don't have an insane amount of money.
We all headed back to the Pokémon Center together, resting up to be prepared for Leaf's battle with Brawly. After Leaf won his Knuckle Badge, Brawly took all of us, including Steven, to Slateport City via his boat. Emerald comforted me as I once again hung over the edge of the boat, seasick as a Growlithe. I glanced back at everyone, spotting Sapphire playing with Mudkip and Leaf staring off at some Wingull with Eevee and Mawile, Plusle and Minun playfully wrestling each other meanwhile. I heard my Pokéballs suddenly pop open and dropped my gaze to see Combusken tug at my shirt and grin warmly while Poochyena nuzzled my leg. Was this their way of saying.... that we're close friends too? I smiled softly back at them, closing my eyes as I relaxed a bit.
I've never had anyone to take care of me... I mean, sure I lived with my mom and dad, but dad mostly treats me like a waste of space and mom always acts like I'm doing something wrong. I always thought that I wasn't important to anyone but myself... but I almost forgot that I'm important to my Pokémon. I'm the one raising them, just like my parents raised me, but I'm going to do better. I promise you, Combusken, Poochyena, I'll raise you to be the best in all of Hoenn!

Then we'll stand at the top together and, at the very end, we'll be the very best... like no one before us ever was.