Joseph's ribs still ached from his tragic parkour faceplant, but he was too hyped to care. The backyard course was still half-dismantled — sad, crooked cones toppled next to the broken plank bridge — but today's show had nothing to do with obstacle courses.
It was time for the next big thing.
He sat cross-legged on his bed, Tyrunt snoring at his feet, Riolu perched on the headboard like an excited gremlin, and Rotom projecting poll results on the wall.
"Alright, team! The chat voted. This time, they wanna see us battle random trainers around town — live. No rehearsals, no retakes. Just raw, chaotic, Viewer Battle content."
Riolu flexed his tiny fists, tail wagging. Tyrunt cracked one eye open, grumbled something that sounded like "Ugh, more work?", and rolled over.
Rotom cackled overhead, adding a dramatic "BATTLE MODE ENGAGED!" sticker with tiny flames.
Joseph's PokéGear pinged with messages from local trainers. Turns out, advertising "Hey, battle me on stream for 5 minutes of fame!" was a guaranteed way to attract a whole circus of wannabe battlers.
Some were normal kids who just wanted practice. Others? Total weirdos hoping to meme their way to viral status.
Joseph set up his mobile cam rig — Rotom, of course, was in charge of all the shots. He stood in the small town square, a little patch of brickwork near the Pokémon Center fountain, Tyrunt and Riolu by his side.
"Eetvee fam! Say hi to our very first Viewer Battle Challenger — Carter from down the road!" Joseph announced dramatically.
Carter, a scrawny kid with huge glasses and a baseball cap, waved nervously at the camera. He released a Butterfree with a flourish.
"Alright, Tyrunt! You're up first — let's show them what you got!" Joseph pointed like a kid playing pirate.
Tyrunt lumbered forward, tail wagging. He squinted up at the fluttering Butterfree like he was sizing up a snack.
"Okay, big guy, remember — we've been working on Rock Tomb. You got this!"
Chat spammed:
"ROCK TOMB TIME!!" "SMASH THAT BUTTERFREE" "Tyrunt gonna eat it 😂"
Carter squeaked, "Butterfree, use Sleep Powder!"
Butterfree's wings glowed, glittering dust wafting down like a gentle snowstorm. Tyrunt sniffed it — and immediately toppled over, snoring.
Rotom zoomed in on his snoozing face, replaying the exact moment his eyes drooped shut in slow motion with dramatic violin music.
"ROTOM!" Joseph barked, cheeks pink. "Don't do me like that!"
Rotom added a huge "SLEEPY KING" caption.
Riolu, meanwhile, tugged at Joseph's pant leg, bouncing impatiently. The chat exploded:
"SEND IN RIOLU" "Tyrunt needs a nap anyway 😂" "Let the puppy fight!"
"Alright, alright! Riolu, you're up!"
Joseph recalled Tyrunt, who stayed snoring in his PokéBall. Riolu popped forward, eyes locked on Butterfree with laser focus.
"Quick Attack, now!"
Riolu blurred forward, zig-zagging up the fountain's ledges and launching himself off the top for a spectacular mid-air tackle. Butterfree went down like a feather in the breeze.
Joseph stared, wide-eyed. "Holy crap — nice!"
Rotom replayed it from three angles, with dramatic anime speed lines. The chat cheered:
"NINJA DOG STRIKES AGAIN" "He's built different" "Tyrunt could never 😂"
Carter gave him a shy thumbs-up. "Wow, your Riolu's so cool."
Joseph ruffled Riolu's ears as the puppy puffed out his chest smugly.
The next battle was less dignified. A girl named Mina challenged him with a Ditto that immediately transformed into Riolu — creating a mirror match.
But Ditto-Riolu just stood there making fart noises with its mouth. The real Riolu punched it once. Ditto-Riolu face-planted dramatically and bounced like jelly.
Rotom added a slow-motion "BRUH" every time Ditto wobbled.
Chat lost its collective mind:
"THE WORST DITTO EVER" "Ban this trainer LMAO" "10/10 content"
Then came Old Man Hiroshi, a local retiree who claimed he'd "teach the youth a lesson in true battling." He released a Magikarp. Just a Magikarp.
Joseph blinked. "Um. Are you sure that's your only Pokémon?"
Hiroshi wagged a finger. "Don't underestimate Magikarp, young man! It's—"
Riolu tapped the Magikarp. It fainted. Joseph tried not to laugh. Rotom projected a massive "EPIC WIN" sticker.
Hiroshi shrugged, completely unbothered. "Welp, that's enough excitement for today." He tottered off, whistling a folksy tune.
As the sun dipped behind the Pokémon Center, Joseph was ready to wrap up. His follower count had jumped again, chat was flooding with memes, and his PokéGear buzzed non-stop with clips of Tyrunt's nap moment.
Then someone unexpected stepped forward — a girl about Joseph's age, hair pulled into a high ponytail, eyes bright with mischief.
"Hey! You're the EeTvee guy, right?" she said, pointing at him. "Battle me. Let's make it interesting — loser buys the winner ice cream."
The chat instantly lost its mind:
"RIVAL ALERT" "Is this a ship???" "BATTLE HER NOW"
Joseph laughed awkwardly. "Uh, sure? What's your name?"
"Diana. And I've got just the Pokémon to humble you and your stream."
She tossed a PokéBall — and out popped a smug-looking Shinx, sparks dancing around its fur.
Joseph grinned. "Oh, it's on."
Diana's Shinx darted around the square, crackling with electricity. Riolu matched it step for step, eyes glinting with the thrill of a real challenge.
"Quick Attack, Riolu — then dodge left!"
"Shinx, Spark!"
They collided in a flash of blue and yellow light — Rotom captured every spark, adding anime speed lines and a dramatic slow-mo replay that made it look ten times cooler.
The townsfolk who'd gathered were clapping and cheering now, phones out to record. The chat spammed:
"THIS IS PEAK CONTENT" "OMG RIVAL ARC???" "JOSEPH YOU BETTER WIN"
But Joseph was too focused to notice the stream. He locked eyes with Diana, both of them grinning.
Riolu backflipped out of the clash, panting but fired up. Shinx skidded, growled, then charged again.
Tyrunt's PokéBall twitched on Joseph's belt, and he laughed. "No way, buddy — you're still grounded for that nap."
Rotom hovered above the battlefield, projecting a big "CLASH OF THE CUTE" banner for the viewers.
As the fight raged on, Joseph realized he wasn't just entertaining people anymore — he was really battling. Making mistakes. Learning. Growing. And sharing every goofy second with the world.
His Pokémon — sleepy dino, ninja puppy, troll camera — were all part of it.
This is what EeTvee is about, he thought, ducking a stray Spark attack that zapped a bush into ashes. All of us. Doing life together. One hilarious disaster at a time.
And when he finally won or lost this battle? He'd clip it, meme it, and do it all again tomorrow.
Because the EeTvee show was just getting started.
ADVANCED CHAPTERS:
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