Pokémon Heroes of Hoenn

Firing Up Flannery

"So, this is Lavaridge Town's Gym, huh?" Emerald questioned coolly, staring up at the building as we stood before it.
"Right... the last Gym standing in my way before I face my father." I muttered to myself.
"You ready to challenge this place, pal? We're with ya every step of the way!" Leaf exclaimed cheerfully, wrapping an arm around my shoulder in a brotherly manner. I flashed him a soft smile, feeling a little relieved to know they all had my back. I took a deep breath before pushing open the doors to the Gym, a strong wave of heat surrounding me as I did so.
A girl with wild red hair waited for me on the other end of the battlefield, standing with her back to me as she seemingly thought to herself.
"Are you the Gym Leader? I'm Ruby of Goldenrod City in the Johto region. I'm here to challenge the Lavaridge Town Gym." I stated calmly, a look of determination in my eyes.
"Y-yeah! I-I'm the Lavaridge Town Gym Leader! Th-the Gym Leader of Lavaridge! I-I mean, the Leader of Lavaridge Gym!" the girl stuttered out.
"Hey, hey, calm yourself. Would you give me your name before you lose your marbles?" I asked, giving the girl an impatient look.
"R-right. I'm Flannery." the girl stated softly, taking a deep breath to relax herself a bit.
"Okay then, Flannery, how many Pokémon are permitted in this battle?" I questioned as if I was talking to a little kid.
"Three." Flannery murmured.
"Alright then. Can I have a Gym battle now?" I asked.
"Yeah, sorry. I-I'll battle with you." Flannery muttered, taking her place on the battlefield.
"Finally." I muttered, taking my side of the field.
"She seems a bit nervous, is she really the Gym Leader here?" Fire murmured with a concerned tone.
"Maybe she's just starting out?" Crys questioned.
"Who knows, let's just see how this plays out." Silver stated dismissively, taking a seat with everyone in the bright red bleachers. I had no trouble defeating Flannery's Slugma and
Numel with just Mightyena, even though we have no type advantage or particular strategy. Flannery now released her partner, Torkoal, her legs shaking nervously as she kept her battle stance. I groaned, rolling my eyes before locking my gaze with Flannery.
"You haven't been at this long, have you?" I asked. Flannery sighed in defeat, the tough pose she was trying to keep wavered into a more vulnerable one.
That's an obvious yes.
"Come on, Flannery! It doesn't matter how long you've been a Gym Leader! You've got to give your challengers your all, or else they'll just look down on you! Let me see your real power!" I exclaimed loudly, obviously sparking something in Flannery. Her eyes snapped into a determined gaze and she took a battle stance once more. I smirked, knowing I was no longer facing the Flannery we had met at the entrance.
"Torkoal, use Flamethrower!" Flannery ordered with more power in her tone.
"Mightyena, Shadow Ball!" I commanded. The attacks collided, causing a small blast that damaged both Pokémon. "Keep it up, Mightyena! Use Bite!" I called out.
"Torkoal, Sunny Day then use Flamethrower!" Flannery commanded. Torkoal flashed a bright light, somehow causing the sunlight to grow increasingly brighter. Mightyena shielded its eyes, leaving it vulnerable to the Flamethrower. The attack's power was boosted by the Sunny Day, causing Mightyena to faint instantly from the force of the Flamethrower. I returned Mightyena to its Pokéball, releasing Manectric to get a shot at a Gym battle.
"This is the kind of battle I wanted to have! Manectric, use Shock Wave!" I commanded. The attack did a decent amount of damage but Torkoal wasn't letting up just yet. "Alright then, give 'em a Thunder Fang!" I called out. Manectric gave a slight nod before pushing forward, electricity surrounding its muzzle as it charged for Torkoal at full speed.
"Torkoal, use Overheat!" Flannery commanded enthusiastically. Torkoal blasted Manectric back with a powerful fire attack that a Flamethrower could not compare with, causing my second Pokémon to faint. I returned Manectric without a word, clutching Combusken's Pokéball in my hand as I stared at its bright red upper half.
"She knocked out Ruby's second Pokémon..." Leaf muttered.
"Yeah, and in one hit, too." Emerald added nervously.
"Just who is this Gym Leader?" Fire questioned, staring off at the battlefield intently.
"Alright Combusken, let's go!" I called, releasing my partner from its Pokéball. I smirked at Flannery, earning a grin in return. "Now this is the kind of Gym Battle I want to fight in. Both teams giving it their very best, even if one completely overpowers the other. But don't think you'll beat me, we're aiming for the top! Combusken, Double Kick!" I commanded.
Combusken shot forward, landing a powerful Double Kick into Torkoal's side. We did quite a lot of damage, but obviously not enough, since Torkoal was still standing.
"Nice try! Our turn! Use Overheat, Torkoal!" Flannery ordered.
"Block it!" I cried out. Combusken threw up its arms at the last second before Overheat surrounded it completely, reducing the damage of the attack, but not by much. When Torkoal seized its attack, Combusken slowly lowered its arm, burns and bruises visible all over it. He gritted his teeth, planting his talons firmly after stumbling a bit. After taking a heavy breath, Combusken raised its arms in a battle pose once more, shooting Torkoal a look that showed it meant business.
"It's still standing after an Overheat attack?!" Flannery gasped. I smirked, taking a step forward as I prepared to call out my next attack.
"Flamethrower!!" I ordered. Powered up by the still effective Sunny Day, Flamethrower did an amazing amount of damage for a move that's not very effective. Torkoal was barely standing for a moment before falling forward on its face, calling it a win for me. Flannery returned her Torkoal as everyone cheered me on, a sad smile on her face as she returned her gaze to me.
"Great match, Ruby. I guess I should thank you. I just recently became a Gym Leader, so my confidence in my abilities was running low. But you helped me see that if I'm not confident, I'm not helping my challengers or myself. I'd say you really deserve the first ever Heat Badge I've ever given out." Flannery stated cheerfully, handing me said Badge. I nodded in response, pinning the Heat Badge on my bag strap next to the other two. Flannery waved us off as we exited the Gym, the rest of us heading to the Pokémon Center to call it a day.
Leaf got his Heat Badge the next day, afterwards we stood at the center of town, preparing to leave for Petalburgh City so I could finally face my father.
"So, next stop, Petalburgh City. You sure you're ready to face your dad, Ruby?" Emerald asked with a slightly concerned tone.
"Yeah. I'm ready to show him just how strong I've become." I confirmed, my fist tightening slightly at the thought of facing my father.
"In such a short amount of time too. I gotta admit, you're getting Badges just as fast if not faster than I did!" Fire exclaimed with a grin. I smiled softly in response, adjusting the strap of my bag a bit as I did so.
"That's because we had delays almost everyday." Silver teased.
Welcome to my world, Silv...
"Well we're not gettin' any closer to Petalburgh City by just standing here! Come on, let's go!" Leaf called, running ahead a bit before waving back for us to follow. Sapphire clutched the Egg Incubator in her arms, smiling cheerfully before nodding her head in agreement with Leaf. I shrugged, giving chase to the blonde haired boy as I gave a light chuckle. Everyone soon joined in, racing back to Mauville City together as we laughed and enjoyed the heat of the afternoon sunlight.

Now I can finally show dad just what I'm made of. He'll finally get to meet the new and improved Ruby!