"Little one, come over here!"
Maylene excitedly beckoned to her little Machop.
This little Machop was the child of her main Pokémon, with exceptional potential.
Although it had just hatched, because of good nutrition it had quickly grown to a level-four Pokémon, only one step away from level five.
At that level, battling shouldn't be too unreasonable, right?
Hearing Maylene's call, the just-awakened little Machop rubbed its sleepy eyes and wobbled over to the side of the ring.
'So happy~'
'Just woke up and the master summoned me, is there something tasty today?'
'Mom and Dad and the master all said to eat well so I can grow big.'
'I love eating with the master the most!'
"Machop~"
The little Machop sped up and by the time it reached the ring it was basically running.
It ran to the ring's side and looked up at Maylene excitedly.
'What are we eating today?'
Maylene crouched down, patted Machop's head, her gaze resolute as if entrusting a legacy, "Little Machop, today there's a very important task for you."
"Machop?"
The little Machop blinked, puzzled, and sucked a finger thoughtfully.
After a brief thought, it thumped its chest and let out a fighting-type magnanimous call.
The meaning was simple, 'I eat what you eat, drink what you drink, whatever you need, just say it!'
"Then I won't be polite, okay?", Maylene stood and pressed the remote.
The ring slowly rose, lifting Maylene to the trainer's position.
Opposite little Machop, a Popplio had already taken its place without anyone noticing.
"Machop, have a thrilling, exhilarating battle with Popplio!"
Machop: "???"
He stared at Maylene in disbelief.
'Wait, I was only born a month ago!'
'Even if I eat your food, drink your water, and train with you, you still can't treat a baby like this, right?'
"It's fine, come on Machop, the opponent is only around level sixteen."
Machop: "..."
'You know the opponent is almost level sixteen!!'
Accompanied by a gentle electronic referee voice, the battle between Machop and Popplio was set.
Popplio opposite Machop also fell into a daze for a moment.
'No, why is this opponent so weak?'
Having learned Water Gun and sensing a strange energy in its body, Popplio thought for a moment after seeing Machop.
He was a baby too and felt it was rude to spray Water Gun at another baby…
"Don't hesitate, start the battle!"
Maylene waved her hand, not willing to waste Axel and the others' time.
"This match is a 1v1 battle. When one side's HP is depleted, a victor is decided."
"My Machop's level isn't high, but its father is outstanding."
"I hope Miss Platinum will give it her all!"
After speaking, Maylene immediately took a battle stance.
"Machop, use Bullet Punch and get close to the opponent!"
Although she hadn't specially trained Machop's moves, Machop had inherited Bullet Punch and Abyssal Roll since birth.
In practice, the very fast Bullet Punch combined with the close-range Abyssal Roll could form a neat little combo.
So Maylene was confident she could fulfill her Gym Leader duties and give the opponent an exhilarating fight.
On the other side, Platinum saw the opponent use Bullet Punch and knew they weren't holding back, so she inhaled deeply and entered a battle stance.
"Popplio, use Wa—"
Halfway through the command, Platinum's voice suddenly stopped.
As a trainer, she suddenly felt some incredible energy gathering in the sky.
As if it could fall down at any moment.
Not only her, the little Machop opposite also looked up.
As a Pokémon, its danger-sensing was even clearer than Platinum's.
Others present were puzzled why the two Pokémon suddenly paused mid-fight.
Only Rayquaza, already back inside Axel's Poké Ball, kept slapping his forehead.
["Huh! Did I forget something just now?"]
["Old dragon's memory is troublesome, always feels worse than before..."]
Rayquaza thought for several seconds and, finding no answer, gave up and dozed a bit on the big bed inside the Poké Ball.
At the same time, a piercing whistling came from above the gym.
Dense black clouds had gathered in the sky, darkening the evening.
With gusting winds, endless dark purple energy condensed within the clouds and thundered.
It was the meteor swarm Rayquaza had summoned earlier while battling Maylene.
But Rayquaza's control over dragon-type moves was so strong that he hadn't let the meteor swarm fall immediately; he'd set a time for them to drop.
Rayquaza planned to deliver the "killing blow" to Maylene's Pokémon when the battle heated up.
He hadn't expected Maylene's Pokémon to be so fragile, the battle ended before the meteor swarm fell.
Now, the skills were falling.
BOOM!
The fist-shaped emblem above the Fighting Gym was instantly destroyed, followed by explosions.
Axel didn't hesitate; he grabbed Glastrier's mane and the two of them burst through the roof, charging toward the meteor swarm.
An endless blizzard spread, colliding with the meteors in the sky.
Flint reacted quickly too, running out with Infernape.
The flames around him roared; Infernape was engulfed in flames and dashed toward the sky.
Explosion Flame, one of the most powerful fire moves.
This move's power is rated around 150 points; once used it causes a brief energy loss of control and you can't use other moves.
It's a no-retreat, all-or-nothing technique.
But facing that terrifying meteor swarm, Flint couldn't think of any way to stop it.
Blizzard, Meteor Shower, Explosion Flame, three forces collided and formed a terrifying three-colored explosion in the sky.
Under Glastrier and Infernape's interception, most meteors were destroyed.
Only some fragmented dragon energy fell through the gaps in the roof, aimed right at the two little fighters on the ring.
"Pop-plio! Pop-plio! Pop-plio!"
"Machop! Machop! Machop!"
Popplio and little Machop looked up at the sky, voices urgent, their little legs spinning like windmills as they frantically dodged the falling meteors.
Axel glanced at the hole in the roof and fell into thought.
Compared to the meteor swarm's range, that hole was nothing.
Yet most meteor fragments fell through that very hole, aimed at Popplio.
'So the anime joke about Aura Sphere aiming is real?'
'Then why did his Pokémon work so hard practicing meteor-targeting precision? What was the point?'
If he'd known, he would've just raised a Popplio himself.
Throw it out in battle, wouldn't that be great?
═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═❀═
patreon.com/AmbitiousTranslator
🥳Joining Patreon keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please consider joining.🥰 You can access upto 20 advance chapter through Patreon.