{"sf1_id":829337,"sf2_id":null,"title":"Contest Part 3","author":"Volcan MacAingeal","words":14028,"posted_at":"2015-03-11T13:25:00.000Z","tags":["Dewott","Greninja","Swampert","arcanine","blastoise","blaziken","combat","competition","grovyle","lucario","ninetales","pokemon","samurott","vaporeon","zoroark"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/829337-contest-part-3","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/829337","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=829337\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"","content":"\nKaen proceeded to hide out in Volcan's room, keeping well out\nof sight of the rest of his team as Luke and Volcan returned to the\nbattlefield; the next round was announced to start soon, with Team Valiant vs.\nTeam Sickle, meaning their Grovyle friend had won his battle with Team Venom.\nVolcan chuckled suddenly as the two walked back. \"Yanno,\nI think I might sit this one out; give one of the others a shot,\" he said.\n\"But I'm looking forward to seeing this one nonetheless.\"\n\"Fair enough.\" Luke returned. \"I think Hank\nand Katsumoto will be joining me this time; unless you'd like to go in my place\nKage.\"\nKage shook his head. \"I'm not interested...\"\nVolcan looked off to the side, spotting Sickle and his\ncomrades talking amongst themselves. \"Hey, Serena, Katsu; you guys watched\ntheir battle. Did you see anything about them we ought to know?\" He asked.\n\"Well, when Sickle fought that Seviper I noticed he\nmoved quite quickly, and seemed to enjoy using a strafing tactic,\"\nexplained Serena. \"He was attacking that snake with seeds from his mouth,\nfrustrating him before going in and finishing him off.\"\n\"A Bullet Seed attack...nifty.\" Luke returned.\n\"Anything else?\"\n\"Well we didn't see much about Howler,\" said\nSerena. \"He was fast, and I mean almost blindingly so; he was too hard to\nfollow, and defeated the Nidorino he was fighting in almost no time at all. As\nfor Blaster, he was a living wall; his opponent kept attacking him again and\nagain, but he never even flinched, and knocked them down with just two attacks;\nthe first was a punch, the other, a blast from his cannons.\"\n\"An all-rounder, a speed-demon and a tank,\" said\nVolcan, rubbing his chin. \"Sickle has a good setup on his team; Grass,\nWater and Fire are fairly universal in effectiveness if used together, and\nthrow in their varying skillset these guys are ready for anything.\"\n\"Sickle has massed quite a three man cell...I'm very\nimpressed.\" Luke admitted. \n\"It will be a good battle...\" Katsu added.\nVolcan looked at Luke. \"So who will you pick for those\nodds?\"\n\"Myself, Hank and Katsumoto.\" Luke quickly\nanswered.\n\"And who against who?\" Volcan asked.\n\"Well if Blaster has a high defense, then Katsumoto has\nthe physical strength to break through that defense...Hank will probably fight\nHowler, and I will fight Sickle.\"\nVolcan nodded, satisfied with the setup. \"Hank would be\nbest to take on a speedster; even if he can't keep up with him, his illusions\ncan trip him up, leave him vulnerable.\"\n\"Damn fuckin straight.\" Hank added, seeming\nappearing out of nowhere beside Volcan. \"BOO!\"\n\"FWAH!!!\" Volcan jumped away in fright. \"You\nlittle shit!\"\nHank burst out laughing and slapped his knee. \"HAH!!\nThat look on yer face men! PRICELESS!!\"\nVolcan grumbled under his breath, and even Serena allowed\nherself a small snicker at how jumpy Volcan was. \"If Hank ever meets Pavan\nand Korban, I can see them getting along quite well.\"\n\"If they're anything like me, then yea we'll get along\nJUUUUST fine...provided they don't mind a few jumpscares every so often.\"\nHank said with a devious grin\nVolcan glanced up at the fighting platform again, his\nexpression softening once more. \"Look; Blaster's coming up,\" he said.\n\"Looks like they're literally opening with their big gun.\"\n\"So it would seem...\" Luke returned, then he looked\nto Katsumoto. \"You're up.\"\nKatsu nodded softly and glanced ahead at his opponent, slowly\nstepping out toward the ring. Upon standing before Blaster, he shot him that\ntrademark glare all Samurott possessed, one that could quell an entire squabble\nwith just a glance.\nBlaster stepped back slightly, standing defensively as if\nexpecting Katsu to attack, but then grinned. \"Ha... made me flinch,\"\nhe admitted. \"You've got quite a pair of eyes there.\"\nKatsu slowly reared up on his hind legs, then in a flash he\nquickly drew his Seamitars on his forearms and held them at the ready. \"I've\nbeen told you have a sturdy defense...\"\n\"Well, why don't you find out?\" Blaster asked,\nproducing his cannons. \"But don't think that means I lack offense\ntoo.\"\nLeon, who was hosting the battle in the absence of Kaen,\nstood with his flippers crossed at the end. \"Today, we see a true contest\nof offense versus defense; Team Sickle's 'Blaster' versus Team Valiant's\nKatsumoto; which one will come out the winner?\" Leon held up a flipper.\n\"Now, this battle is elimination-style; best of three is the victor.\nNow...\" He brought down his flipper. \"BEGIN!\"\nKatsu then shot forward quickly with Aqua Jet, taking one\nslice at Blaster's armoured front with Razor Shell, then he lowered hsi head\nand went to spear him with his Shellmet with a Megahorn.\nNeither attack broke Blaster's shell, however; they barely\neven scratched it, and Blaster only grinned at Katsu. \"Not good\nenough,\" he said, before he aimed his cannons at Katsu and hit him with a\nWater Pulse, knocking him back with its concussive force. He grunted and\nskidded as he was knocked back, then he roared and knocked the attack away with\njust his forearm and flexed his body a bit before rearing his blades back and\nattacking with his own Water Pulse, this one aimed right at Blaster's face.\nBlaster withdrew into his shell, letting the hard surface\ntake the Water Pulse, which bounced off harmlessly. Rather than emerge from his\nshell, though, Blaster began spinning rapidly, whirling faster and faster in\nplace before he suddenly shot forward with a powerful, moving Rapid Spin.\nKatsu charged forward as well, rearing his blades back and\nslamming them into Blaster's spinning shell with X-Scissor. Katsu's blades\nsparked when they made contact with Blaster's shell, yet he managed to hold his\nfooting, not once skidding back despite the force he was exposed to. Suddenly,\nBlaster stopped spinning, with the hole for his arm aimed directly at Katsu's\nface. Out came his fist, like the popping of a Jack in the Box, and struck\nKatsu square between the eyes. \n\"Peekaboo!\" Blaster called from inside his shell.\nHe grunted and staggered back from the blow, shaking his head\na little and regaining his form, holding his blades once more at the ready.\nBlaster spun away a little, and then emerged from his shell.\n\"I admit, you hit pretty hard,\" he said. \"But so do I!\" He\naimed his cannons again. \"Hydro Pump!\" And fired two massive bullets\nof water from his cannons.\nKatsu smirked, tilting to the side to let the first bullet\npass him by, then he faced the second and swung his right blade at it. He\nskidded back a bit as he took the attack head on, then he let out a furious\nroar and slowly began powering through the blast, ultimately cleaving it in\nhalf and charging through it. He then jumped up and kicked at Blaster's face\nbefore coming down with another X-Scissor against his chest, this time applying\nmore strength in his swings.\nBlaster was knocked onto his back; not a good position for a\nturtle to be in, as his limbs weren't long enough to reach around to get him\nback up. He flailed helplessly as he lay there, but then retracted into his\nshell again, firing his cannons and sending himself sliding towards Katsu.\nKatsu quickly leapt up and over Blaster, then upon landing\nquickly turned and reared his blades back, then swung them forward adn\ndischarged his own Hydro Pump at Blaster while he was still sliding forward. The\nattack had an unexpected effect. As it hit Blaster's shell, it sent him sliding\noff course, nearly bringing him to the edge before he spun around and popped\nhis head out, opening his mouth and firing an ice beam, which he used to form a\nramp at the edge that, as he slid into it, sent him airborne at an angle that\nhe was back upright again as he landed, and grinned at Katsu.\n\"Not bad at all,\" the Blastoise complimented.\n\"Same\nto you;you're very resourceful.\" He returned, actually putting on a wide\ngrin. \"My blood is absolutely boiling right now...\"\nBlaster chuckled. \"Then let's kick this up a\nnotch!\" He declared as he lowered his cannons and fired at the ground,\ncreating a tsunami that rushed towards Katsu, the Surf wide enough to cover\nmost of the battlefield.\n\"THAT'S more like it!!\" He roared, then he shot\ntoward it with another Aqua Jet, slamming into the wave and pushing hard to\npower through the tidal wave and toward his target.\nBut the instant he emerged from the wave, he found Blaster\nalready waiting for him, his head lowered. \"I knew you'd try that,\"\nhe said before he used his arms and legs to propel himself forward, attempting\nto Skull Bash Katsu.\nKatsu bashed into Blaster's Skull Bash, though rather than\nrecoil from the attack, he stayed his ground, pushing back through his own\nShellmet and gritting his teeth as he fought through the pain he just endured.\nTheir eyes met as the battle became a contest of strength;\nthe fellow team members of both fighters watched in keen anticipation as they\nwaited to see who would win the contest.\n\"Wait... what if Blaster just shoots him again while\nthey're clashing?\" Serena asked.\n\"I don't think he can,\" said Volcan. \"Look at\nthe way the cannons jut out of his shell; with that placement, he can't angle\nthem close enough to hit something that's between them at point-blank\nrange.\"\nKatsu then surprised everyone by discarding his swords,\nrearign both his arms back and slamming them against Blaster's shoulders. The\napplied force he sent out was enough to allow the hulking Samurott to start\npushing Blaster back slowly. Blaster grit his teeth as he dug his hands and\nfeet into the arena, trying to resist Katsu's pushing, but the incredible\nstrength of the Samurott was somehow pushing him back! Sickle and Howler both\nlooked awestruck as they saw their strongest fighter being out muscled by a Pokémon\nsmaller than himself.\n\"Come on, Katsu!\" Volcan cheered.\n\"You can win!\" Serena called out as well, excited\nby Katsu's feat of strength and determination.\nKatsu then roared out furiously, quickly rearing his right\narm back and socking Blaster clean in his jaw. With the Blastoise stunned,\nKatsu then wrapped his arms around Blaster's body and lifted him up over his\nhead, then hurled him as hard as he could toward the edge of the ring.\nBlaster bellowed out in a mix of shock and fright as he was\nlaunched through the air, every spectator watching in disbelief as Blaster\nsoared out of the ring -which nearly proved to be a mistake for a lone-standing\nHoundour, who barked out in terror before dashing out of Blaster's trajectory\nas the Blastoise hit the deck with a thunderous crash.\nKatsu then pounded his chest once and roared triumphantly before\nhe calmed himself down and lowered back to all fours again. He walked over and\nretrieved his sword, swinging each once before sheathing them back in his\nforearms like a traditional samurai.\n\"Yeah-HA!\" Volcan barked, jumping high into the air\nwith joy.\n\"He won!\" Serena cheered.\n\"That was awesome!\" Volcan added.\nSickle and Howler both looked slightly disappointed, but...\nnot in an unhappy way. Their expressions still bore some anticipation for their\nupcoming battles, and Sickle nodded to Howler, signalling the Arcanine to step\ninto the arena now.\nMeanwhile, Blaster was getting back to his feet, rubbing his\nhead a little. \"Have to admit... was not expecting that,\" he stated,\nturning around and starting to make his way back to the other side of the arena\nwhere Sickle waited. Along the way, his gaze met Katsu's, and the Blastoise\nonly smiled at him, mouthing the words 'Good fight' to him as they passed each\nother.\nKatsu nodded back in return, slowly walking back toward his\nside of the arena, a confident smirk present on his face as he rejoined his\nteam.\nSerena practically squealed with delight as she strode over\nto Katsu and rubbed her head against his leg. \"You did great, Katsu,\"\nshe said. \"I knew you'd win.\"\nKatsu gently brought an arm around Serena and nuzzled her\nhead gently in return, smiling warmly down at her.\nVolcan glanced at Luke with a smile of his own plastered on\nhis face, whispering to the Lucario, \"Well those two sure grew close didn't\nthey?\" He asked.\nLuke smiled as he saw them so close already, glancing back to\nVolcan for a moment. \"Seems so. Perhaps they spent a night getting to know\nmore about one another...\"\n\"Well, I'm actually glad to see it,\" said Volcan.\n\"They both deserve someone.\"\nLuke's ear twitched a little and his grin seemed to broaden.\n\"...Are you suggesting they're dating?\"\n\"Come on man, look at them,\" stated Volcan, his\nsmile growing wider. \"Serena's not even that close to anyone on my team;\nshe's always too shy, yet there she is nuzzling Katsu, and he's always struck\nme as the stoic warrior type, but look at him. He actually looks happy to be\nnear her.\"\nLuke turned his gaze back to the two of them. \"Well\nbelieve it or not, Katsumoto isn't as stoic as you might think; that's more\nKage's shtick.\" He returned. \"He's actually rather outgoing and gentle\nwhen he's not in battle.\"\n\"But have you ever seen him actually get that close to\nsomeone?\" Volcan asked. \"Trust me Luke; those two aren't just dating,\nthey're developing feelings for one another.\" His smile faded.\n\"Which... actually worries me.\"\nLuke slowly sighed. \"I know.\" He agreed.\n\"...If they get too close, they might not want to leave each other.\"\nVolcan\nnodded. \"Yeah... one of us may lose a team member.\" He frowned.\n\"But... I just don't have the heart to come between them; ever since my\nfriends and I saved Serena from the I.T.O.U.E, she always seemed so distant;\neven though she wanted to see the surface world she was always so intimidated\nby it, shying away from everyone. For the first time since I met her, she's\nactually opening up to someone.\"\nLuke nodded. \"And far be it from me to intervene in\nsomething as precious as love.\" He returned. \"For now, it would\nprobably be best to let them stay together...only time will tell if they view\neach other the way you and I see them...\"\nVolcan nodded, and turned his attention back to the arena,\nwatching as Hank made his way up to face Howler. \"Let's see how THIS goes,\nthen\" he stated.\n\"Indeed.\" Luke returned, crossing his arms as\nHowler and Hank faced one another at the arena\nHowler faced Hank with a deadpan expression, saying nothing\nas the two watched each other, waiting for Leon to announce the start of the\nfight. The Empoleon stepped out to introduce the fighters. \"Here we have a\nbattle of opposites, ladies and gentlemen; the Trickster of Team Valiant, Hank,\nvs. the stoic and silent Howler of Team Sickle; whatever the reason for his\nname, we'll see who's 'howling' at the end of this match, won't we?\" He\nstepped back, raising his flipper. \"Ready...?\" He asked.\nHowler only\nnodded, once more not speaking... Volcan eyed the Arcanine curiously as he\nstood there, waiting for the call to begin.\n\"Odd... the guy doesn't say a darn thing; he's even more\nquiet than Kage,\" said the Blaziken, though quickly looked over at the\nGreninja. \"No offense,\" he assured.\n\"None taken.\" Kage returned.\nHank hopped back a little and raised his claws in\npreparation, grinning deviously as he winked at Leon to signal he was ready.\n\"Begin!\"\nAnd just like that, Howler was gone, and Hank felt something\nhit him in the back, launching him halfway across the ring -ironically landing\nright where Howler had been less than a second before.\n\"What the??!\" Volcan demanded. \"I-I-I... I\ndidn't even see him twitch!\"\nEven Luke's eyes widened when he saw what just happened.\n\"That speed... he's even faster than Eagle Eye.!\"\nHank quicky skidded to a halt and grunted, cracking his back\na bit and lifting his claws again, now watching his opponent more closely. Howler\nstood very plainly, as if he wasn't anticipating any danger from Hank, and\nsimply watched him, again wordlessly. However, now that Howler was closer to\ntheir side of the field, Volcan got a closer look at the Arcanine, and\nsomething seemed to catch his attention. \n\"Luke... look at Howler's neck,\" he directed.\nLuke glanced to Volcna for a moment, then back at Howler and\nnarrowed his eyes to get a clearer look at what Volcan had seen. And there,\nhidden just barely beneath Howler's fur, was a long slit, cut horizonally\nacross his neck, no fur growing from it and, although faded -clearly several\nyears old at least, it was still visible to those with a keen eye.\nLuke narrowed his eyes a little further upon seeing that slit\nalong his neck. \"....So that's how it is then...\"\nVolcan nodded. \"It looks like someone tried to slit his\nthroat,\" he said. \"This just makes him even more deadly... because\nnow Hank has absolutely no way of hearing him when he moves.\"\n\"Indeed...I have faith in him, but I don't think Hank\nwill win this fight.\" Luke admitted\n\"Oh boy...\" muttered Volcan.\nHowler then opened his mouth and exhaled a Flamethrower\nattack at Hank. The Zoroark retaliated by thrusting his claws out and\ndischarged a Shadow Ball, the attack struck the stream of flames before\nexploding in a large plume of smoke and debris. There was silence, and then\nHowler seemed to spontaneously appear in front of Hank, so suddenly it was as\nthough he had teleported, and then lunged forward with a Fire Fang.\nHank received the nasty chomp, crying out as he was bit with\nthe Fire Fang. Then he smirked and grinned at Howler. \"Psyche.\" He\nsaid as he then faded out of existance.\nHowler closed his mouth, flicking up his ears and sniffing as\nhe tried to locate Hank, standing patiently as he waited for the Zoroark to\nreveal himself...\nHank then quickly appeared at his side and slashed at Howler\nwith a Night Slash with his claws, then quickly faded into nothingness again.\nHe repeated the same attack again on his other side and slashed one more time,\nthen he appeared over Howler, waiting for him to look up before unleashing a\npunishing Night Daze from above, shrouding Howler in a blast of dark energy,\nalso serving to lower his accuracy slightly.\nHowler shook his head, trying to clear it after suffering the\nonslaught, but as soon as he located Hank, his body ignited and he rushed at\nhim with Flame Charge. Hank once again took the hit and yelped as he was sent\nback. He landed on his back, then quickly hopped back to his feet and countered\nwith a Dark Pulse from his mouth, only for Howler to vanish again, once more\nappearing in front of Hank, opening his mouth and unleashing a blast of violet\nenergy that burst forth with tremendous force.\n\"FUCK!!\" Hank roared, unable to conjure another\nIllusion in time and taking the blast full force, skidding onto his back again\nwith a grunt. He got back to his feet once more, though slower this time and\npanting a bit from the damage he sustained. \"The fuck's this guy on, Ice\nskates or something??\"\nHowler breathed in again, this time attacking with yet\nanother Flamethrower.\nHank grinned. \"Not this time!\" He roared, quickly\ndarting in and landing a Sucker Punch on his jaw before Howler could discharge\nthe flame attack, then he kicked Howler in the air and quickly darted after\nhim, nailing him with a quick Fury Swipes, each time he clawed at him he\nvanished and appeared at another spot around the Arcanine.\nBut Howler wasn't going for it this time; gritting his teeth\nthrough the pain of Hank's onslaught, the Arcanine flipped around to where he\ncould smell Hank, and let loose another Dragon Pulse at the Zoroark.\n\"Oh COME ON!!\" He roared before he was hit again,\nfalling back toward the ground with a hard crash. He coughed and slowly rolled\nonto his front, trying to push himself back up on his feet. But Howler, now\nback down on the ground, rushed in and placed his paw harshly on Hank's back,\npinning him down, one leg raised ready to strike him if he tried to get up.\nHank grunted and grit his teeth, glaring defiantly back up at\nHowler. \"Fuck you...\"\nThe Arcanine glared, and then swept his paws under Hank\nbefore throwing him into the air, swinging around and hitting the Zoroark with\na well-placed Double-Kick as he came back down. Hank coughed when he was hit by\nthe Double Kick, flying through the air and skidding along the ground until he\ncame close to the arena's edge. He panted more laboriously as he propped himself\nup on his elbows.\nOf course, Howler was too smart to try running at Hank now,\nwith him so close to the edge; it was too risky, especially when dealing with a\nZoroark. So instead, he discharged another Flamethrower, hoping to end the\nbattle while still safely in the middle of the ring.\n\"Shit...\" he grumbled as the Flames nailed him,\nsetting him ablaze and throwing him out of the ring.\nWith that, Howler relaxed, and turned to Leon, who raised up\nhis hand and called the match. \"Out of bounds! The winner is Team Sickle's\nspeedster, Howler!\"\nLuke grimaced for a moment. \"Damn...it's one-all\nnow...\" Luke muttered.\n\"And I don't think Sickle's going down easily either\nway,\" said Volcan as he walked over to help Hank. \"You okay\nman?\" He asked.\n\"Just a wounded ego...\" He said as he flashed\nVolcan a small grin.\n\"We've got some tough competition here, after all,\"\nhe said, offering Hank a hand. \"Can't win 'em all. You gave it a good try\nthough, for what it's worth.\"\n\"Eh, I guess...\" He returned\nHowler stepped off of the arena, turning to Sickle as the\nGrovyle began to step into the arena as well, raising his paw to tap t against\nSickle's clenched hand as he stepped aside, allowing the Grovyle to ascend the\nstairs, looking very determined.\nSerena looked at Luke. \"It's all up to you now,\"\nshe said.\nLuke nodded. \"There's no way I'll lose here...\" He\nreturned as he too approached the ring, standing before Sickle.\nThe Grovyle met Luke's gaze, and for a moment, it was like\nthere was a surge of energy between the two as they stared each other down,\nneither one saying anything for a long, uncomfortable moment.\nThen, Sickle finally broke the silence. \"Seems we did\nend up facing each other after all,\" he stated.\n\"So it would seem...\" Luke returned, then he\nclenched his paws tight. \"Nothing personal Sickle....but I simply cannot\nafford to lose here today...\"\n\"That makes two of us,\" said Sickle. \"I've\ncome this far... and though if there's anyone I'd be honored to lose against,\nthat'd be you, I'm not going to let that happen.\" He smiled.\n\"Whatever happens though, you have my respect, always.\"\n\"As you have mine.\" Luke returned with a smile of\nhis own, then he slowly adopted his fighting stance and took a deep breath to\ncalm his nerves.\nSickle adopted one as well, sliding his feet apart and\npositioning his arms in a half closed position, both of them held forward at an\nangle, the leaves on his arms swaying as a gust of wind raced around them, as\nif the very air itself was eager to see the outcome of this fight.\nVolcan and Serena watched as the battle was about to begin,\ntheir eyes fixed on the two fighters. Serena glanced over at Katsu and Kage who\nwere standing beside her, trying to determine their thoughts by studying their\nfacial expressions. Both of them were looking straight ahead at the arena, with\nKage having his arms crossed and having a more collected composure, while Katsu\ndid show some signs of concern, but otherwise remained steadfast, putting his\nfaith into his team leader claiming their victory today.\nSickle then made the first move as Leon declared the battle\nto begin; he began to strafe -the same way Serena had warned Luke about during\nSickle's battle with Team Venom, and as she said, he fired Bullet Seed from his\nmouth as he ran to the side, showering Luke with dozens of projectiles per\nsecond.\nLuke countered with a new attack. He quickly brought his arms\nin front of him, then quickly spread them apart. In his paws was now what\nlooked like a long bone composed of his own aura, which he triwled expertly and\nused it to deflect the bullet seeds coming at him, sometimes even back at\nSickle\nBut the Grovyle easily dodged the bullets knocked back at him\nby jumping, holding his arms at his sides and his legs tightly together as he\nspiralled through the air, the seeds passing around him harmlessly, before he\nfront-flipped and landed back on his feet.\n\"Dayum, that guy is agile,\" said Volcan.\nLuke quickly thrust one paw forward and fired a few Aura\nSpheres from his paw, then he charged forward, twirling his bone in his paw as\nhe charged toward Sickle after his projectiles Once more, Sickle dodged and\nweaved around the Aura Spheres, reading their trajectories fluently, before he\ntriggered leaf blade and lunged at Luke, his forearm meeting Luke's bone-staff.\n\n\"You're quick, but not precise,\" he remarked,\nsmiling confidently.\n\"Who said I had to be...?\" He returned with a\nsmirk, then he glanced behind him and saw his spheres circle around and head\nfor Sickle's backside. Luke quickly shoved the Grovyle away from him and into\nthe oncoming projectiles.\nSickle, having not noticed the spheres yet, slid back, and\neyed Luke suspiciously. It didn't take long for the Grovyle to notice that Luke\nwasn't looking -at- him, he was looking PAST him! He looked over his shoulder,\nand saw the spheres coming back. Reacting fast, Sickle once more sprang into\nthe air, twisting himself about so that the Spheres missed him -albeit one that\nglanced across his flank, making him wince. He turned to face Luke, eyeing him\nquizzically.\n\"Gotta admit, didn't see that one coming,\" he said.\n\"First Lucario I ever met that could actually direct their Aura Sphere's.\"\n\"A little trick I picked up from my son...\" Luke\nreturned, twirling his bone staff. \"The difference being is I don't have\nto make any sort of motion to telegraph that I'm redirecting them.\"\nSickle smiled. \"Your son must be quite a genius to\ndevelop something like that,\" he said, before returning to his fighting\nstance. \"But it'll take more than that to beat me, my friend.\"\n\"Actually, he's a construction worker.\" Luke\nreplied plainly, holding his weapon behind him with his offhand paw held\noutward.\n\"Still, it's impressive,\" returned Sickle, before\nhe suddenly crouched down, standing as if about to break into a run... and then\nshot forward, his body a blur as he moved; he wasn't as fast a Howler, but he\nstill moved with impressive speed as he zig-zagged across the arena towards\nLuke, appearing on the left, right, left, left, right, before stopping just out\nof reach of him, only to bank off to the side and fire another Bullet Seed at\nhis legs.\nLuke was fast on his feet as well, quickly hopping back from\nwhere the seeds would have hit, then he darted to Sickle's blindside with his\nExtreme Speed, taking a swing at him with his bone staff This time not even\nSickle could react quickly enough, taking the hit directly in his side, making\nhim stumble, but he managed to correct himself. \n\"Dang; didn't think you'd be that fast,\" he said.\n\"Still not quite as quick as Howler but you'd give him quite a race.\"\nLuke appeared behind him after he finished his statement.\n\"You're pretty fast on your feet as well. Not many Grovyle can move as\nquickly as you...\" He returned.\nSickle spun\naround and swiped at Luke with another Leaf Blade. Luke this time raised his\narm and blocked Sickle's wrist, still staring at him calmly. \"Good\nreaction time too.\"\n\"Well, I train with Howler all the time,\" stated\nSickle. \"Helped me speed up and develop my reflexes, and training with\nBlaster gave me excellent stamina; I can do this all day!\" And at that, he\nsuddenly jumped back from Luke, only to dash forward again, dashing under his\nguard and Headbutting him in the stomach.\nLuke grunted and skidded back, then he darted back toward\nSickle and returned the strike with a Force Palm to his chest. \"So can\nI...\"\nSickle stumbled back from the hit once again, and looked back\nat Luke. But, rather than having a competitive or frustrated glare... it looked\nlike Sickle was actually enjoying the fight... like he had found himself a\nrival he stood on even ground with, as someone to really test his mettle\nagainst. \"Well... clearly I'm not going to beat you fighting you head-on,\nand with that metal skin fighting you from a distance won't work too well\neither...\" He narrowed his eyes. \"So... I'm going to have to bring\neverything I learned to this fight and come up with a new strategy.\"\nLuke nodded,\nstanding tall with his bone staff still in paw. \"I was wondering when this\nfight would start getting serious...I think we've had more than enough time for\na warm up.\"\n\"So confident... but let's see how long that\nlasts!\" He dashed forward again with a Quick Attack, following it up with\nanother Leaf Blade that clashed with Luke's staff, but then he changed\ndirection of his attack, using a False Swipe to throw Luke off, and immediately\nfollowing it up with a Low Sweep. Luke stumbled from the False Swipe, then\ngrunted as his feet were swept and he fell on his back. He twirled his staff\ndefensively over him as he got back up in order to keep Sickle at bay, then he\nfired a set of Aura Spheres at Sickle, then darted to his rear and fired a few\nmore before he vanished again.\nSickle wasn't falling for it this time. Instead of trying to\ndodge around the Spheres, he sprang up, soaring over them, and then fired\nanother Bullet Seed at Luke, attempting to break his focus to keep him from\nredirecting the Aura Spheres at him. Luke appeared and twirled his bone to\ndeflect the seeds coming at him, then the aura spheres collided into one\nanother, leaving behind a large cloud of smoke that obscured the Lucario from\nview.\nSickle landed back down on the ground, and shut his eyes.\n\"With that Aura Sense of his, this dust won't hide me,\" Sickle\nmuttered to himself, and so shut his eyes, listening carefully and\nconcentrating on trying to sense where Luke was...\nHe then felt something smack him in the face, then again at\nhis back, then once more at his chest, all in rapid succession. Then the smoke\ncleared upon the sound of a large gathering of energy being formed. When the\nsmoke did clear, Luke was holding a large Aura Sphere in both paws over his\nhead, letting out a short roar as he hurled the large sphere at Sickle.\nNot even Sickle had time to dodge this attack, though he\ntried to do so, getting out of the way of the sphere to avoid a direct hit, but\nthe following explosion launched him through the air, too dazed by the blast to\nfocus, he landed dangerously close to the edge, sliding the rest of the way and\nfalling from the platform of the ring, landing on his back as he fell over the\nedge, and let out a long groan, dazed from the shockwave that had launched him.\nLuke let out a sigh as he straightened up, then he strode over toward Sickle\nand looked down at him, checking to see if he was ok.\nThe Grovyle rolled onto his back, slowly sitting up with the\nhelp of his teammates as they came over to him. He looked up at Luke, giving\nhim a weak smile. \"Didn't even get to use my trump card... not that it\nwould've mattered; that Aura Sphere could've knocked out Dialga,\" He\nwinked at Luke, giving him a thumbs up. \"I concede; nice job, Luke.\"\nLuke smiled and lowered his paw down to him to help him back\nto his feet. \"Thanks...you performed splendidly as well...I look forward\nto our next encounter...\"\nSickle reached up and grasped Luke's paw, letting the Lucario\nhelp him to his feet and stand at eye level with him, and Sickle nodded to him.\n\"So do I,\" he said. \"Congratulations, Luke; you guys move on to\ntake on Team Warmachine.\" He looked towards Torolf, who was watching from\nthe platform above with an intent expression. \"Just be careful man... I\nhave every confidence in you, but that guy is relentless. Don't give him an\ninch, or he'll flatten you.\"\n\"Trust me.\" He said with a bit of a growl, leering\nup at Torolf. \"I plan to return the favour 100 fold...\"\nTorolf only glared back at Luke, and turned to Leon, who had\nalready called the match; the two looked at one another for a moment,\nexchanging whispers, before Torolf turned away. Leon turned back to the crowds,\nholding up his arms as he spoke. \"I am proud to announce, that Team Valiant\nis the winner of our contest, and have won the rare honour of battling Team\nWarmachine at our Island!\"\nWait, island?\"\nEven Sickle looked surprised. \"An island? I never heard\nabout that,\" he said.\n\"We are twenty four hours out from our home, where a far\nbigger arena awaits the final showdown,\" Leon went on. \"Team Valiant,\nI speak on behalf of Team Warmachine when I say, prepare yourselves well, for\nwe shall battle with no holds barred! And to all contestants who wish to\nspectate, I say, place your bets, make your peace, and look forward to the\ngreatest Pokémon Battles in history, because Team Warmachine is bringing its\nmightiest warriors to face Team Valiant, for they deserve no less!\"\nThe entire ship exploded with applause and roars of\nanticipation; the cries of the other Pokemon aboard were so loud it was as\nthough they were standing in a sound-proofed room with the speakers of a stereo\non full blast, which made Howler wince somewhat, having rather sensitive\nhearing.\nLuke flattened his ears and sneered a little before turning\naway to rejoin his team.\n~~~~~\nSix hours later...\nVolcan requested Luke call a meeting of his team, so that\nthey could discuss tomorrow's battle ahead of time. They met in a secluded area\nof the ship after everyone should've been asleep -in the lower decks, near the\nengine room but far enough away from it the working machinery wouldn't drown\nout their voices, and concealed behind a stack of crates in a store room.\n\"Okay, should be safe for us to talk here,\" stated\nVolcan.\n\"You sure nobody knows where we are?\" Serena asked.\n\"Only Kaen; he told us to wait for him here while he\nwent to get something,\" replied Volcan.\n\"He did say we were going to need an edge.\" Luke\nadded as he crossed his arms. \"Wonder what he has in mind.\"\n\"Preferably not something that could risk\ndisqualification...\" Katsu returned.\n\"Nah I don't think he's THAT stupid.\" Hank added\nin. \"The guy seems honest enough, and if Luke here likes him, then that's\nenough reason fer me to give him a chance.\"\n\"I trust him too,\" agreed Volcan. \"And, after\nwhat Timber nearly did to him, he has every reason to want to leave his team.\nAnd we're going to help him...\" He punched a clenched fist into the open\npalm of his other hand. \"By pummeling those bastards so deep into the\nground  they'll think they're\nfossils...\" He frowned. \"Great; now I sound like Tristan,\" he\nmumbled.\n\"Well regardless, let's hope he doesn't take too long.\"\nLuke returned as he peeked around a corner. \"Even though others are\nasleep, there's a chance someone might walk in on us and accuse us of cheating.\"\n\"It's just a strategy meeting; we're not doing anything\nagainst the rules,\" said Volcan. \"Anyway, let's get to it; we need to\ndecide who's going up against who tomorrow, because I have a feeling if we're\nnot specific about it, we just might lose.\"\n\"So far we know of Torolf, The Gardevoir and Gallade\nteam, Leon, Oceana, and Timber.\" Luke explained.  \n\"I shall take Leon.\" Kage stated first. \"We\nhaven't seen his abilities yet, but I can deduce them much faster than any of\nyou.\"\n\"SOMEONE'S confident.\" Hank muttered.\n\"Actually, we have seen some of them,\" Volcan\ncorrected. \"When he helped Torolf and Timber take on Sol, we got a slight\nlook at his abilities. The guy doesn't fight like his team mates; he takes his\ntime, analyzes and adapts to his opponent, and he's clearly pretty sturdy; he\nlet Sol strike him, before turning his own power right back at him, so I'm\ngoing to go out on a limb and say, 'Counter-Specialist', for Leon.\"\n\"With that information, I will still take Leon.\"\nKage reinstated.\nSuddenly, the door opened, and Volcan promptly shushed\neveryone, and leaned back against the crates. Being the tallest of the seven,\nhe peered over top of them to see who it was. Someone let out a whistle, and\nVolcan returned it, relaxing as Kaen appeared around the corner.\n\"Good spot, guys,\" the Charmeleon complimented.\n\"How's the meeting going?\"\n\"Just started. But with you here, we might get some\ninsight,\" said Volcan.\n\"You will, actually; I was eavesdropping on a meeting\nbetween Torolf and Leon before I came down. They're planning who to bring to\nthe fight tomorrow to take you guys on.\" He frowned. \"Just as I\nfeared, he's bringing in Shamshir, the team's best fighter next to\nTorolf.\"\n\"What can you tell us about Shamshir?\" Serena\nasked.\n\"He was the third member of Team Warmachine, joining up\nwith Torolf and Maggie when they were still a low-ranking team,\" explained\nKaen. \"He was still a Scyther back then, but aside from evolving he's\nlargely the same; he's strong, quick, and a little scary if I can be honest.\nPlus, aside from Torolf, he's the only guy on the team with a Mega Stone. He\nactually got his first, so he's had a lot more time to train with his mega\nevolution than Torolf has.\"\n\"That poses a problem.\" Katsu stated. \"All of\nus have some way to compensate for a mega evolution, but with that being said,\nonly Luke can mega evolve...\"\nEagle Eye sighed. \"Quite a disadvantage. A Mega Evo\nmakes all the difference in a fight.\"\n\"Not for long,\" said Kaen, holding up his paw.\n\"Because I happen to have something that can help.\" He opened his\npaw, and revealed in it, a shiny round stone with a red, twisting shape in the\ncenter. \"Nabbed this from my room before one of the guys could go rooting\naround for it; it's a Blazikenite.\"\nLuke's eyes widened at the sight, then a smile slowly formed\non his face. \"Well this evens things out...\" Luke said, then turned\nto Volcan. \"It's your lucky day...\"\n\"Wait... so you mean if I use that stone, I can mega\nevolve like you can?\" Volcan asked. \"You sure I could even use\nit?\"\n\"You can.\" Luke returned. \"All you have to\nreally do is believe in yourself and it will answer your call.\"\nVolcan looked at the stone as Kaen held it out to him,\naccepting it from him and looking at it skeptically. But then, he seemed to\nhave a thought; he looked at Kaen. \"Wait... won't we be disqualified if\nTorolf thinks we stole one of the contest prizes?\"\nKaen shook his head. \"He can't. We never specified what kinds\nof stones were being offered as prizes,\" he replied. \"Even if we had,\nthat stone belongs to me; I'm the one who found it, but since I can't use it, I\nmight as well give it to someone who can.\"\n\"Hey I ain't gonna look a gift Rapidash in the\nmouth.\" Hank returned. \"If it'll help us beat these fucks down, then\nI say we take it.\"\n\"Agreed.\" Kage concurred. \"Against this\nopposition we will need every advantage we cna get.\"\n\"In that case,\" said Volcan, having a thought,\nlooking at Kaen. \"What else can you tell us about Shamshir; his species, I\nmean? I'm not familiar with... what was it?\"\n\"He's a Scizor,\" replied Kaen. \"A bug/steel\ntype.\"\nVolcan nodded. \"Then I'm ideal for taking him on,\"\nhe said.\nKaen's jaw dropped. \"YOU?! Beat Shamshir? No offense pal\nbut that guy's a master of combat; you sure you're ready to fight him?\"\n\"I'm the only one who can,\" stated Volcan.\n\"Eagle Eye might be fast enough to keep up with him, but from the sounds\nof things we're going to need more than speed to beat him. I might be able to\nmake up the difference.\"\n\"Hey don't sell me short, rookie. I can hit hard if I\nwant to.\" Eagle Eye stated defensively.\n\"It ain't worth the risk bird boy.\" Hank retorted.\n\"Yeah,\" stated Kaen. \"I saw your fight with\nWhirl from the Hitmon-Champs; if you couldn't even beat him, you'd get crushed\nby Shamshir.\"\nEagle Eye grumbled and turned his head away. \"Yea sure\njust kill me ego even more why dontcha...\" He grumbled.\n\"There's someone else on the team you might be ideal\nagainst, though,\" said Kaen. \"I heard Torolf say he's bringing in two\nothers along with Shamshir. He's called in Razor, our flier; he's a Skarmory,\nfast and sturdy but he's a tad overconfident.\"\nEagle Eye perked up some when he heard that, then grinned.\n\"Heh, well we'll see who's the fastest once I'M finished with him!\"\n\"That got his confidence back.\" Katsu muttered.\n\"The other is another guy who's been on the team a\nwhile,\" Kaen continued. \"The team regularly just calls him Redfang;\nhe's a Mightyena, and a damn tough one. He knows Ice Fang, somehow; whenever\nthe guys went up against a Dragon-Type he was our go-to for it.\"\n\"Well then I guess I'll take im.\" Hank piped up.\n\"I'ma need SOMETHING ta redeem myself with.\"\n\"So,\" Volcan began, looking at the group.\n\"Kage against Leon, Hank against Redfang, me against Shamshir, Luke\nagainst Torolf and Eagle Eye against Razor... that just leaves Katsu to take on\nTimber then.\"\nKatsu nodded silently in response. Luke glanced to Kaen.\n\"Seems we have our set up...any other advice you have for us?\"\nKaen crossed his arms, thinking. \"Well, let's see,\"\nhe began, tapping his claws against his bicep. \"Razor is headstrong, like\nI said, but he's quick; loves to do fly-by strikes, especially Steel Wing and\nSky Attack. He's got a tough hide but that's what makes him overconfident;\nthinks he's an unstoppable force.\"\n\"Well I got tons of Fire on my side, and NO one is\nfaster than me!\" Eagle Eye stated confidently. \"I'll be flying\ncircles around that bastard\"\n\"See, that kind of headstrong is what Razor is\ntoo,\" Kaen stated. \"You wanna beat him you have to outsmart him,\notherwise you two will be at a stalemate.\"\n\"I'll just wait for him to slip up. Can't be TOO\nhard.\" He returned\n\"We'll see about that,\" said Kaen, before he went\non. \"As for Redfang, well, he's quicker than most Mightyena, though still\nnothing compared to Razor. His strength however is in his jaws; that guy bites\nlike a steel trap, and if he gets a hold of you you're going to have a helluva\ntime shaking him off. He's also mean; when he's in a fight he's just plain\nnasty and not someone you want to get on the bad side of. However, he's pretty\nweak against distance fighters as long as they can keep out of range; his only\ndistance attack is Shadow Ball but he's not very good at it.\"\n\"Why's that?\" Serena asked.\n\"He's missing one eye; can't aim worth a damn,\"\nreplied Kaen, pointing at his left eye.\n\"Pfft. A flaw like that makes him easy pickings fer my\nFlamethrower and Night Daze...not ta mention my Illusions.\" Hank added in\nwith a confident grin.\n\"Careful,\" said Kaen. \"You might be able to\nfool his one eye but you can't fool his nose; he's quite a tracker.\"\n\"How come we didn't see him, Razor or Shamshir on the\nship?\" Volcan asked.\n\"Razor doesn't like hanging out on boats; he prefers to\nalways be on the go. Pretty restless guy, really,\" Kaen explained.\n\"As for Redfang, he hates crowds; doesn't like being at these contests.\nPlus, as Maggie put it, he tends to be a little volatile; you even bump him and\nhe's snapping at you like an angry Sharpedo.\"\n\"Yikes... quite an attitude,\" said Volcan.\n\"And as for Shamshir, he doesn't like the contests,\"\nstated Kaen. \"He prefers to spend his time training on the island; he\npractices his skills day in and day out.\"\n\"Then he and I share some common interest.\" Katsu\nadmitted. \"Tis a shame he is in league with these attention seekeres.\"\nKaen gave Katsu a dirty look, reminding the Samurott that, up until that\nmorning, he had been one of those 'attention seekers' as well. \"My\napologies...\" Katsu returned, lowering his head.\nKaen waved it off. \"Eh, I'll get over it,\" he said.\n\"Anyway... there's not much more about Shamshir I can tell you. The guy\nkeeps to himself; even though he's been on the team longer, he has a private\ntraining ground on the island, where he spends most of his time, so I don't\neven know how he fights. And anytime I went with him on a job, he took his\nopponents down so fast I barely got to see him in action.\" \nHe shook his head. \"That's about all I know... but now,\nLeon. You saw part of his roster against that nasty Typhlosion. Well, unlike\nsome of the others, he's not a head-on attacker; the guy relies on stamina and\na sturdy defense, along with turning the attacks of his opponents right back at\nthem -as you saw when he used Bide, but he also knows Mirror Coat, and he's\nbalanced as both an in-close and long-distance attacker. His only flaw, he's\nslow; short legs will do that, but he -does- know Aqua Jet so he can still come\nat you or bail out if he wants.\"\n\"I have the shadows as my ally...\" Kage returned.\n\"Leon being a half steel typing also means I can swing my blade full force\nwithout risk of death or dismemberment...\"\n\"Just remember man, he's waiting for you to\nattack,\" Kaen pointed out. \"Doesn't matter how fast or sneaky you\nare, this guy is persceptive; he's always going to be ready to counter you as\nsoon as you come at him.\"\n\"Alright... and what about Timber?\" Volcan asked.\n\"Timber, as you saw, has a nasty streak to him too; not\nas bad as Redfang but this guy is still meaner than a hive of Beedrill,\"\nexplained Kaen. \"But he's not reckless, just brutal; he'll be aiming to\nknock you out fast, and he's tough, REALLY tough; can take a ton of damage\nbefore you even see him starting to wear out.\"\nKatsu smirked lightly. \"Clearly he hasn't challenged\nanyone like me.\" He returned, pounding his chest a bit.\n\"Oh trust me, he has,\" stated Kaen. \"Just\nremember; his specialty is Dual Chop, but he's not without some distance\nfighting too, and he's quicker than he looks. But aside from high attack\nstrength, he's also got a thick hide, like Razor.\" He rubbed his chin.\n\"Thinking of it, I'd say Timber's probably the most well-balanced of the\nteam; a perfect scaling of Attack, Defense and Speed.\"\n\"I have yet to encounter a hide my blades can't cut\nthrough.\" Katsu returned. \"Make no mistake, I will not underestimate\nhim...but I will emerge victorious against Timber...that is a promise.\"\nVolcan nudged Katsu. \"Blaster,\" he reminded,\nregarding Katsu's comment about 'a hide his blades couldn't cut through'.\n\"Blaster wears a shell. That hardly counts...\" He\nreturned.\n\"Well, Timber's armor isn't as tough as Blaster's shell,\nthat I'm sure of,\" said Kaen. \"But don't underestimate it; this guy\ntook a Flamethrower attack from Groudon and stepped out of it with only a few\nminor burns, so that hide is thick.\"\n\"Well a dragon type IS resistant to fire...\" Luke\nstated. \"So that doesn't really surprise me that much.\"\n\"It was still Groudon, pal,\" said Kaen. \"Hard\nto take a hit from the God of the Continents... anyway that's about all I can\ntell you. You want to know about Torolf, look no further than the rumors; that\none about him dragging a Wailord out of the ocean? True. He's got ridiculous\nstrength and stamina, able to power through pretty much any opponent.\"\n\"I trained with the most powerful Nidoking all my life.\"\nLuke returned. \"It will be a tough battle no doubt, but I swear I will\nmake him understand what it means to be a Rescue Team even if it kills me.\"\n\"Whoa, don't need to go THAT far man,\" said Kaen.\n\"But I'd say Torolf is long overdue for some humbling, that's for\nsure.\" He scowled. \"One thing else is for sure. I'm done with\nWarmachine; I don't know where I'll go next but it's gotta be better than\nhere.\"\n\"That part is your choice to make Kaen...\" Luke\nreturned. \"It's your life. You choose what you want to do with it...I only\nwish you the best of luck in finding your purpose.\"\nKaen nodded. \"I appreciate it... I just can't believe I\nbought into this crap for so long...\"\n\"What was it really, that made you change your\nmind?\" Volcan asked.\nKaen looked over at Kage. \"Him.\"\nKage glanced over to Kaen silently.\n\"Whoa heh, ya got an admirer Forggie.\" Hank jested,\nnudging his side a little.\n\"Interesting...\" Katsu muttered. \"How did Kage\ninspire you, if I may ask?\"\n\"Well, really, it was the way he fought,\" said\nKaen. \"All throughout the competition, I saw so much bluster, everyone ramming\ninto each other recklessly; it was all a good show, but overtime everything\njust started to look the same. I see Boxer from the Hitmon-Champs pummel\nVolcan; he gets back up and utterly pulverizes Boxer -nice comeback, but not\nsomething I haven't seen before. I saw Katsu take on Blaster, successfully\noutmuscling a Pokemon much larger than him and almost twice as heavy;\nimpressive, but pretty much just another wrestling match. But Kage... he\nactually fought with something other than muscles or flashy moves; he actually\noutmaneuvered his opponents, knowing their over-reliance on their own strength\nwas their flaw, and used it to his advantage, taking down Rigel and Trish\nwithout even taking a hit. THAT, to me, was awesome.\n\"But...\" he went on. \"Despite how amazing a\nperformance I found it, when I heard the crowds booing him, it finally dawned\non me what these contests were. Just one big fiasco for everyone to show how\ntough they are, and the guys of Warmachine are the worst of it. Torolf has\nnever lost a battle, and he knows that brings attention to him because people\nwho want to fight him think that, if they beat him, suddenly they get the fame,\nbut every damn time they end up being shipped off to the ER, and he always\nmakes quite a spectacle of it. The others, they're no different; I don't think\nit matters to Shamshir or Leon but everyone else is just in it for the glory;\nALL of these fighters that came here, except you guys, were just here to prove\nhow tough they were... and that's when I finally understood.\"\n\"So you're saying you liked how Kage fought, because he\nfought using the mind -both his and his opponent's, to his advantage?\"\nVolcan analyzed.\nKaen nodded. \"That'd be about the best way to shorten\nit. He did some flashy moves too, but all of them had substance; tricking his\nopponent into leaving themselves open, or making them tire themselves while he\nkeeps going without needing a second wind. It's brilliant, really.\"\n\"As I told Trish, power is meaningless if you don't use\nit correctly...\" He stated. \"I believe a sharp mind defeats brute\nstrength.\"\n\"My friend Vinge says -and have proved, the same\nthing,\" said Volcan. \"Our first fight with each other was undecided,\nbut after that I've never beaten him once, because he reads my every move like\nI'm a book.\"\nKaen nodded. \"For that, I think Kage was treated\nunfairly... and that finally did it for me. If these guys can't see an\nexcellent fighter when he's standing right in front of them -if all they want\nto see is a glorified scrap, then I don't belong here. I'm a Charmeleon after\nall; we're a warrior species, and I admire all forms of combat. It's actually a\ngoal of mine to learn every method of fighting in the world; to become an\nexpert on the subject, and pass it on to others. I thought I'd find that with\nWarmachine but, I guess not.\"\n\"Then you leaving was a wise decision on your\npart...\" Kage stated.\nEagle Eye and Hank glanced at Kage in shock, then back at\nKaen. \"Duuuuude... Kage just fuckin complimented you man; that's a fuckin\nrarity.\" Hank stated.\nVolcan smiled at Kaen. \"You're on the right track\nnow,\" he stated.\n\"I'm feeling that too,\" said Kaen. \"And that's\nwhy I'm helping you guys beat Team Warmachine; it's about time someone knocked\nthem off their high perch, just this once.\"\nVolcan smiled and held up a clenched fist. \"And I\nguarantee you, that beatdown is coming soon.\"\n\"A-Fuckin-Men.\" Hank chimed in.\n\"Agreed...\" Katsu also stated.\nKaen smiled. \"I'm going to enjoy it,\" he said, and\nlet out a yawn. \"Alright, it's getting late, so, I think I'm going to turn\nin. I suggest you guys do the same; you'll need all your strength\ntomorrow.\" His brow furrowed. \"Warmachine may be blusterous and lost\nwhat it means to be a Rescue Team, but make no mistake; they've stood\nundefeated for this long for a good reason. You guys have come far; I'd hate to\nsee that brought to a sudden stop.\"\n\"It won't be,\" promised Volcan.\nKaen nodded. \"Oh, by the way; before I came down, I\nheard from Oceana about the Single Fights; it appears your pal Wade beat the\nother finalists; he's the last man standing now, and tomorrow he'll be fighting\ntoo, against Kurtia.\"\n\"Who's Kurtia?\" Volcan asked.\n\"Our team's resident Ninetales; she's the trickiest\nmember of Team Warmachine,\" said Kaen. \"Don't be fooled by the fact\nshe's a Fire Type; she's got a lot more than fire on her side.\"\n\"Wade is an adaptable fighter; he will not lose.\"\nKage stated, keeping his arms crossed and his gaze ahead.\n\"For his sake, I hope not,\" said Kaen. \"But if\nhe's not ready for her mind games, he'll go down hard.\"\n\"As I said....he will not lose.....\"\n\"At least we'll get to see him fight first before we\ntake on Team Warmachine,\" said Volcan.\n\"Indeed; it should be a spectacle to watch.\" Katsu\nreturned, then he yawned. \"Mff...I think it's time to retire for the night.\"\nVolcan nodded. \"Alright; anybody else have anything to\nadd?\" He inquired, looking at everyone once more.\nThey all shook their heads. \"I think we've said all we\nhave to say.\" Luke spoke. \"All that remains is for us to prepare for\ntomorrow.\"\n\"Then let's go rest up,\" said Volcan. \"As Kaen\nsaid, we're going to need everything to take on Team Warmachine.\"\nAnd with that, the meeting ended. The group walked together\nas they passed through the corridors, making their way back up to the upper\ndecks until they reached their cabins. The sun had long since set, leaving the\nship alight only by lamp placements and the moonlight above; it was eerily\nquiet, barring the sound of the waves as the boat sailed on. \nVolcan and Luke were the last to their rooms, but just as\nLuke was about to head into his cabin, Volcan called out to him, catching his attention.\n\"Luke... do you really think we can win?\" He asked. \"I mean,\nfrom what Kaen said, these guys are not all bluster; they're tough. They've\nbeaten everyone who has ever challenged them; how can be sure we won't just be\nanother notch in the blade -so to speak?\"\nLuke let out a long sigh. \"To be honest, Volcan, I'm wondering\nthe same thing myself, but that doesn't mean I'm about to turn tail, not after\nwhat we've seen.\" He said as he turned to face Volcan. \"I swore to\nKaen I'd show those bastards they don't deserve to even be called a Rescue\nTeam... No matter what the odds, my team and I will NEVER give up.\" He\nstated firmly.\nVolcan saw the determination in Luke's eyes, and was briefly\nreminded of himself, back in his true body, when he showed such similar\ndetermination in the face of odds as great -if not greater, than this... With a\ndeep breath, he nodded to Luke. \"Then I'll see it through,\" he said.\n\"Whether or not I can beat Shamshir, I won't back down now.\"\nLuke nodded. \"Good; now get some rest Volcan.\" He\nsaid as he turned back toward his room.\nAs Luke's door closed behind him, Volcan raised his hand to\nlook once more at the Blazikenite given to him by Kaen. If he could harness its\npower, it'd give him an edge against many members of Team Warmachine... but\nwhether or not it'd be enough, he knew it depended on him.\nClenching his hand around the stone, his brow furrowed with\ngreater determination than ever. \"I won't let them down.\" He said,\nfirmly, and stepped into his room, seating himself at the table and getting to\nwork creating a fastening for the stone, so that he could keep it on him at all\ntimes.\n~~~~~\nThe following day...\nThe ship was starting to slow down, spurring all passengers\ninto action. Many eagerly peered over the side of the ship to look upon the\nisland getaway of Team Warmachine, and they saw a wonder of nature... The\nisland, or islands if you counted a second, lower-down islet with what appeared\nto be an old-fashioned colisseum built upon it. But on the main portion of the\nisland, a vast expanse greeted them; a great mansion, which almost looked like\na castle, stood at the back of the island, while at the fore, there was the\ndock where the ship was approaching, a small plantation, and even a large\nstatue near the mansion that was soon identified as being a sculpture of Team\nWar Machine's original 3 members; Maggie, Torolf, and Shamshir.\nVolcan scowled as he looked upon the island. \"I'll give\nthem this much; they sure know how to build an island paradise,\" he\nstated. \"But that statue; talk about a king-sized ego!\"\n\"Ain't that the damn truth.\" Hank added. \"Permission\nto smash it to pieces?\"\n\"I wish,\" agreed Volcan. \"We'll just have to\nsettle for the real thing.\"\n\"Agreed.\" Katsu stated. \"Crumbling a statue would\nonly be a hollow victory; for now we must restrain ourselves until we face out\nadversaries in the ring.\"\n\"Something tells me we won't have to wait long,\"\nsaid Serena, a worried expression on her face.\nVolcan peered off towards the mansion, and narrowed his eyes\nas something caught his attention on the roof of the building. The rest of Team\nValiant also glanced toward the roof of the building, some having to narrow\ntheir eyes to get a better glimpse of the roof.\nAnd atop the building stood a long figure, whose body seemed\nto reflect the sunlight beaming from above. None of them except Eagle Eye could\nget a clear look from the distance they were, but whoever it was had a rather\ninsectoid figure to them; with Eagle Eye's great eyesight, he saw the figure\nwas a Scizor, standing absolutely motionless and watching the ship as it\napproached.\n\"Hey, that looks like that scizor fuck Kaen warned us\nabout.\" He stated. \"Guy's just standing there. Hell I'd probably say\nhe's even more focused that Kage right no-OW!!\" He winced when Kage\nslapped him upside the head with his tongue.\n\"You talk too much...\" He said in a low tone.\n\"So, that's Shamshir,\" stated Volcan. \"I can\nbarely see the guy and he's already sending a chill up my back.\"\n\"I know the feeling.\" Luke admitted. \"Just\nseeing him there is making me anxious as well.\"\nVolcan touched the shoulder-strap he wore across his chest,\nwhich he had fashioned the previous night as a mount for his mega stone, which\nnow lay hidden under another piece of leather across his chest, before turning\nhis gaze back to the building again, although started as he felt the ship\nfinally come to a halt, peering over towards the dock, where some crewhands had\ntossed a rope down to a pair of Machamp. The gangplank was raised, and Team\nWarmachine themselves were the first to disembark, except for Kaen, who was\nnowhere to be found.\n\"Well... this is it guys.\" Luke said as he backed\nup from the railing. \"We've come too far to back down now.\"\n\"Time to force feed these guys a humbling\nass-kicking,\" stated Volcan, before he led the way over to the gang-plank,\nbeing the first of the team to begin his descent.\nDuring the trek, they heard Oceana's voice -amplified by a\nspeaker from the ship, calling out. \"Everyone, welcome to Team\nWarmachine's private island; I would like to take this opportunity now to\ninform anyone who wants to see our little slice of paradise, a complimentary\ntour will be made available to all when the tournament's last round ends.\nPlease follow Leon to the Colisseum where this contest will be decided.\"\nThe Empoleon waved to the crowds to get their attention, and\nstarted walking across the massive dock to a cobblestone footpath that led\nalong the shore of the island towards the Colisseum.\n\"They even have tours. my Arceus these guys must think\nthey're fuckin royalty.\" Eagle Eye muttered as they disembarked the ship\nand followed the path to the colisseum.\n\"Least they don't charge for them,\" remarked\nVolcan. \"Besides, if they didn't offer tours it'd tempt people to go\nwandering around on their own and they could get into trouble for that.\"\nHank then had a devious grin on his face, though Luke glanced\nover and frowned at him, shaking his head sternly. Hank shrugged his shoulders.\n\"Whut? Not like I was gonna do it.\"\n\"You were thinking it though...\" Luke returned.\nSerena looked at Katsu, a worried expression on her face.\n\"All I can do is wish you guys luck... but please, be careful.\"\nKatsu glanced down to Serena, then gently leaned down and\nnuzzled her gently. \"We will try, Serena; there's no guarentee we will walk\naway with minor injuries. We are prepared to fight until the end.\"\nBefore long, the crowd was led to the arena. Spectators were\nsent in one direction, while Luke's team was led in another by Leon, who\nstopped at a door down a short corridor. He opened the door, and courteously\nheld it for them. \n\"You may wait in here until the preparations are\nfinished; there are showers, a stocked fridge and the like if you so require\nthem. We will call you on an intercom when the battles begin.\"\nLuke nodded toward him, then he and his team entered the room\nand took a gander around the place. Hank hopped onto a couch and let out a sigh\nas he relaxed. \"Credit where it's due...these guys know how to live in the\nlap of luxury...\"\n\"Dude shut up...\" Eagle Eye retorted as he flew\naround the room for a bit before landing and heading for the fridge for a bite\nto eat.\nVolcan found himself a spot on another couch, glancing around\nthe room; as Leon had stated, there was a fridge, a shower room, and even a hot\ntub over by one wall, while a trio of neatly arranged sofa's and a coffee table\nwere over by the other, with an open space occupied only by a punching bag\nhanging by several dense chains from the ceiling. \"Heh... kinda reminds me\nof Louise's house; expensive stuff and everything.\"\n\"Who?\" Luke asked as he himself took a seat on the\nadjacent couch.\n\"Oh, my friend Tsume's dad; rich guy, dealing in real\nestate,\" said Volcan. \"His house has stuff like this too -except the\npunching bag.\"\n\"I see.\" Luke nodded, then looked ahead and flattened\nhis ears as his mind drifted off.\nSerena noticed Luke's ears flatten, and tilted her head in\ncuriosity as she regarded him. \"Are you okay?\" She asked.\n\"Just letting my mind wander I suppose...\" He\nreturned. \"It helps me to focus for later...\"\nAt that moment, the door opened; everyone, thinking it may\nhave been one of Warmachine's members coming to tell them the fight was\nstarting -only to remember shortly after they'd be called by intercom- only to\nfind two familiar faces walking in; one of them was Kaen, and the other was\nSickle, who was still bandaged up from his fight with Luke, but he seemed\nalright.\n\"Ah, good; you guys are here,\" said Kaen.\n\"Glad my old team hasn't stooped so low as to pull dirty tricks to\nwin.\"\n\"They're probably still confident they'll win without\nsuch tactics,\" said Volcan. \"But I agree; I'm glad they aren't\nplaying dirty.\"\nKatsu narrowed his eyes at Kaen. \"So they have resorted\nto using low tactics to win before then, have they?\"\n\"No; they've never gone that far, but honestly, I think\nyou guys have made them a little nervous,\" replied Kaen. \"You guys\nsoared through that contest with flying colors, with only a few losses of any\nnote. And your buddy Wade has left a similar impression; his battle will be\ncoming up first against Kurtia; you'll be able to watch it on those.\" He\npointed at a trio of televisions hanging above the sofas. \"He dominated\nthe single division, and I think between him and all of you guys, they're\nactually afraid they might lose.\" He actually grinned at that. \"And I'm\nlovin' seeing them sweat, I won't lie.\"\n\"Feeling's mutual man!\" Hank called over as he\nlooked over toward teh televisions. \"10 bucks says the little man\ndominates his final match.\"\nSickle stepped forward. \"I'll take that bet; I've seen\nKurtia in action before and I know what she can do.\"\n\"Yea? Care to enlighten us?\" Hank said, leaning\nforward and resting his arms on his knees.\n\"Well I'm sure Kaen told you about her,\" began\nSickle. \"But I saw her on a job once. She's quick-footed and very sneaky;\ndamn good with Hex, Hypnosis and Dream Eater, especially for a Fire Type. But\nto top it off she's also got quite the fire attacks too; the ones I've seen her\nuse most frequently are Will-o-Wisp and Fire Spin.\"\n\"Whoa...fuck she sounds tricky.\" Hank returned.\n\"Might give the kid a hard time actually...\"\n\"Agreed,\" said Sickle. \"She took down quite a\nfew Pokémon when I saw her in action; none of them even got the chance to fight\nback.\"\n\"Wade will not give her the chance...\" Kage\nreturned sternly.\n\"For his sake, I hope not,\" said Kaen. \"Most\npeople who walk away from a fight with her take days, even weeks to\nrecover.\"\n\"Wade is quick footed and adaptable; I personally\noversaw his training...\"\n\"And Kurtia oversaw mine,\" Kaen pointed out.\n\"That speed I demonstrated when I tested Katsu, that was thanks to her,\nand she's three times quicker than even me.\"\nKage was silent for a moment, then turned back to the Tv's\nagain. \"...He will win...\"\n\"How long until his match starts?\" Volcan asked.\n\"Should be any moment,\" said Kaen, walking over to\nthe TV's and reaching up with a claw to switch on one, which somehow switched\non all 3 as well, and gave a view of the arena from three separate angles.\n\"Talk\nabout a bird's eye view.\" Hank muttered.\n\"Like YOU'D know!\" Eagle Eye squawked back at him,\nthen turned back toward the screens\n\"Any advantage Wade might have over Kurtia besides\ntype?\" Volcan asked.\n\"Well if he can somehow close the distance he might\nmanage a quick finish,\" admitted Kaen. \"Kurtia's not very good at\nfighting up close; she's honed her skills entirely for distance fighting.\nThat's still a big if; like I said, she's fast.\"\n\"Well Wade's Aqua Jet does allow him to move faster than\nany other Dewott.\" Luke stated. \"And the Scalchops he has are\nanchored to his arms, which allow him to fight up close or at a distance, as\nwell as help close a gap quickly...\"\n\"He'll have to make full use of those, then,\" said\nKaen. \"Don't get me wrong; I admit, the guy's tough. But I'm just saying,\ndon't get your hopes too high.\"\n\"Have faith, Kaen.\" Katsu returned. \"One way\nor another, he will triumph...I'm sure of it.\"\nFinally, the match was announced to begin soon...\nIn the arena...\nWade was called out to the field, to face his final opponent\nfrom Team Warmachine's cast. When he arrived, he found a female Ninetales\nwaiting for him, flicking her tails idly as she watched him enter the arena,\nher eyes showing no emotion whatsoever; nothing to give him any means to\ndetermine her thoughts.\nWade stood before her and took a short breath to calm himself\ndown, then gently put his paws together in front of him and bowed to his\nopponent before looking back up at her, not uttering a single word...\nThe Ninetales stood up on all fours, dusting the ground\nbehind her with her tails before she smiled. \"Let's try to keep this\ninteresting,\" she said as the announcement began.\n\"And now, we move onto the finals for the Single\nDivision; many great fighters fought one-on-one in this tournament, but none\nhave stood out more than the prodigetic Wade of Team Valiant -ironic that both\nhe and his team made it to the final rounds. Could this be a testament to their\ngreat skill, Pokémon of all shapes and sizes? Well, on this day, we will find\nout, when Wade fights the team Trickster, Kurtia! Type advantage or not, this\nwill, without a doubt, be a battle of the decade! Combatants, face each\nother!\"\nKurtia poised herself in a wide-legged stance, her fur\nbristling and gaze hardening as she faced Wade, her eyes seeming to glow as she\nstared him down. Even if Wade was a Water Type, and she a Fire Type, the Dewott\nknew he was in for quite a battle against her.\nWade quickly hopped back and drew his Scalchops within a\nblink of an eye, crouching low and leering at Kurtia intently, standing completely\nstill as he waited for the signal to begin.\nAnd then, it came, and immediately, Kurtia attacked, casting\nHypnosis at Wade right off the bat, trying to put him to sleep. The second she\nmoved though, Wade quickly darted to her flank with Aqua Jet, skidding to a\nhalt and quickly firing off a Scald at her side. He then twirled his weapons\nand darted forward, weaving from side to side quickly to make him a harder\ntarget to hit as he approached.\nBut just as he fired the Scald, she jumped away, and as he\ncharged at her again, her eyes gleamed once more. In that moment, she suddenly\nseemed to split into two, and then again and again and again, continuing to\nseparate until there were suddenly 9 of her, surrounding Wade and leaving him\nconfused to the identity of the real one.\nWade skidded to a halt and glanced around him, immediately\nrecognizing the move as Double Team. He stayed still for a moment, then quickly\nshot into the air and discharged several small Water Pulses down at the many Ninetails\nbelow him, all of them reaching their targets simultaneously.\nMuch to his dismay, however... none of them were the real\nKurtia; all nine illusions vanished, without the real one being revealed. \n\"Where are you looking?\" He heard behind him, and\nsuddenly felt something very hot touch his back. \"Will-o-Wisp...\" The\nNinetales whispered, maliciously, as the Dewott's flesh was burnt by her\nsurprise attack.\nWade cringed and quickly shot back down to the ground,\nignoring the pain as best he could. He then was surounded in a faint gleam,\nthen he started twirling his scalchops by the gauze attached to them.\n\"You're too late,\" Kurtia called coldly as she cast\na Hex at Wade, immediately assailing him with ghostly power, which also caused\nhis burn to flare up violently, causing him incredible pain.\nWade cried out and doubled over in pain as the Hex caused him\nimmeasureable pain. Slowly he fell to one knee and panted hard as he endured\nthe pain as best he could, ecen gripping his scalchops so tight his claws dug\ninto them.\n\"Now... I conclude this fight,\" Kurtia called,\nbefore inhaling deeply, holding it, and exhaling a Flamethrower of red-hot\nflames towards Wade, flames so intense the ground almost seared from the heat\nas the flames soared towards him.\nIn that instant, Wade quickly flashed open his eyes and stood\non his feet, ignoring the pain completely as a surge of adrenaline coursed\nthrough him. He quickly weaved a few signs and took a deep breath, then he\ndischarged a large Hydro Pump from his mouth, colliding with and even pushing\nthe Flamethrower back toward Kurtia.\nKurtia's eyes widened in clear surprise. Closing her mouth,\nshe dodged to the side to evade the Hydro Pump, but kept her eyes on Wade.\n\"Impressive fortitude,\" she complimented. \"But how long can you\nfight your way through that searing agony?\"\nWade then panted a little, then he weaved one more sign and\ncreated two doubles of him. A Double Team. He then knelt on his knees and\nclosed his eyes as his body doubles charged in quickly, swinging their\nscalchops at Kurtia with superb speed and skill. While they were keeping Kurtia\nbusy, Wade seemed to have entered a deep, meditative state, taking slow deep\nbreaths\nKurtia ducked away from the doubles with an uninterested look\non her face, spitting an Ember at one and striking it square in the forehead,\nas it took only one blow to vanish a body double. The one that was struck\nvanished as soon as it was hit. The other then zoomed in from behind and landed\na nasty cut on her back with a Razor Shell attack. It then weaved a sign and\nadded to the pain with a Scald attack to where she was cut.\nShe growled as she took the attack, and turned on the other\none, hitting it with another Ember, making it vanish once again, and turned her\nattention back to wade. \"You don't want to make me angry,\" she\ngrowled.\nWade was still in what looked like a meditative state, his\neyes still closed and his breathing still steady. With his guard down, she cast\nanother hypnosis at him. Wade then shot his eyes open with a twitch of his ear.\nHe then quickly leapt up and over Kurtia with his Aqua Jet, hurling his\nScalchops down at her flanks. He tugged on the gauze and yanked himself back\ndown, stomping HARD on her wound, then quickly retracted his Scalchops from the\nground and turned to slice her tails a little before blasting away with another\nAqua Jet, skidding to a halt and stancing himself. There was no longer a pained\nexpression on his face. Once more he had a collected, calm composure, no longer\naffected by the Will-o-Wisp's burn.\nThe initial stomp caught her completely off guard, but she\nsuccessfully evaded the slice to her tails -particularly desperate to do so at\nthat, and watched as he gained some more distance from her. She sneered at him,\nand her eyes glowed once more as she reared back her head, a faint glow forming\naround her, before she relaxed and resumed staring back at him with a calmed\nmind.\nWade was being cautious now. He knew he had to get in close,\nbut with that glow around his opponent, he had a gut feeling he wouldn't be\nable to attack relentlessly anymore...He also knew she was more of a distance\ncombatant than he was, which put him at more of a disadvantage.\nAnd then, she opened her mouth, lobbing a Fireball through\nthe air, which struck the ground halfway towards Wade. Upon impact, however, it\nexploded, and sent countless smaller fireballs all over the arena; a Flame\nBurst!\nOn instinct, Wade darted all around the place to prevent\nbeing hit by the attacks. He retaliated by shooting a Water Pulse at one of the\nfireballs, crashing into the attack and creating a plume of steam that slowly\nfell over them, obscuring each other from sight.\nKurtia backed away, keeping clear of the steam cloud, knowing\nshe could get ambushed inside it of it, and watched carefully in case Wade came\ndashing out to attack her. Sure enough he did, charging at her full tilt from\nthe steam, his scalchops ready to strike the second he got close. She\nretaliated by casting a Confuse Ray at him; he grimaced and felt dazed, his\nstep wobbling a little and he swung his weapons prematurely.\nWith his\nattack left clumsy, she easily stepped out of his path, and gave him a kick in\nthe back that sent him stumbling forward, laughing at his Confusion. He grunted\nfrom both attacks, however, the second the Confusion hit, he disappeared in a\npuff of smoke, leaving behind a Poké Doll in his place.\n\"What the...?!\" She demanded, not expecting a\nSubstitution.\n\"I have you now...\" Wade said from behind her. When\nshe turned, he slammed his elbow clean into her chest, then kicked her high up\nin the air. He then charged after her and held his scalchops out at his sides.\n\"Fall into a deep slumber....RAGNAROK!!\" He roared, then in a flash\nhe was gone. Kurtia was then bombarded by nigh instant slashes all along her\nbody, all of them omnidirectional before Wade appeared over her again and\nkicked her back to the ground. Wade then darted back to the ground as well,\nlanding in a crouch and quickly turning to face his opponent once again,\nkeeping his weapons at the ready.\nShe was down... completely caught off guard by the attack, it\nhad left her stunned and immobile. \"The trickster... tricked...\" she\nsaid. \"Oh the shame of it all...\" And then chuckled, looking at Wade.\n\"You... are really something else, young one -and do not be offended... I\nhave lived long, so all are 'young ones' to me...\" She let her eyes close,\nresting for a moment. \"One day... you will be a fantastic warrior.\"\n\"The...\" Leon paused as he made the announcement,\nand reluctantly put up his flipper. \"The match is over; the winner is\nWade... congratulations!\"\nThe audience sat in stunned silence until the word\n'Congratulations' was said, and then roared with applause, stamping forepaws\nand clapping hands as they cheered for Wade. As he stood, taking in the praise,\nsomething landed by his leg, and he looked over to see a Full Restore had been\ndropped at his side.\nWade sheathed his weapons on his hips and glanced at the Full\nRestore at his feet, then up to Kurtia laying still. He then closed his eyes\nand sighed, slowly kneeling down and taking the full restore in his paws, then\nwalking over to Kurtia and applying the medicine to her wounds.\nThe audience was equally not expecting such an act of\nkindness and only cheered him on further. Looking up towards the stands, he saw\nBlaster, the Blastoise from Team Sickle, nodding in approval to him, and there\nwas just enough of the full restore left for Wade to use on himself when he\nneeded it.\nKurtia stood up shakily, getting back up onto all four of her\npaws and taking a deep breath, turning to Wade with an expression of disbelief\nthat soon turned to one of gratitude. She leaned over and gave him a kiss on\nthe forehead, which sent a pleasant, yet tingly feeling over him. She turned to\nthe audience, and called out with her voiced raised for all to hear. \"Let\nit be remembered that I, Kurtia of Team Warmachine, met my match against this\namazing prodigy!\" She called. \"Let it be known that he is not only a\ngreat warrior, but a generous soul! And now, on behalf of Team Warmachine, I\nwish to personally present him with his prize!\"\nA short moment later, in a flash of light, Sage appeared on\nthe field, carrying in her grasp a small, glass-covered box. And within that\nbox were ten Mega Stones, each one of a varying type, there was a Pidgeotite, a\nSceptilite, a Houndoomite, a Swampertite, a Charizardite X, an Alakazite, a\nSalamencite, an Absolite, a Galladite and a Gengarite.\n\"You may now choose one of these ten Mega Stones,\"\nKurtia stated, leading Sage over to Wade to let him see the stones. \"I\nknow your species does not possess a Mega Evolution... but perhaps you have a\nfriend somewhere who would make use of one of these. Whatever you decide, you\nhave earned this prize.\"\nWade looked at each stone for a considerable amount of time.\n\"Then he slowly reached up to take one, but instead touched the glass cover\nof the box and closed it. \"I'm not interested in taking any prize.\" He\nsaid rather humbly. \"The main reason I came to this tournament was to test\nmy limits and push myself beyond them; through my time here, I have met many\nopponents that have challenged me in various ways, and have helped me improve\nas a warrior. With each battle, I grow closer to my goal.\" He then took a\nstep back from Sage and Kurtia. \"You have my respect and my gratitude.\"\nKurtia smiled, and nodded to Sage, telling her she could\ndepart. \"Well, far be it from me to let you leave without at least some manner of prize,\" she said.\n\"So, even if you will not accept one of the stones, let me at least offer\nyou this; when you leave this island with your team mates, regardless of how\nthe final match ends, I give ownership of my personal mini-yacht over to your\nteam captain. I have no doubt that he will find use of a boat in some way, be\nit travelling to new rescue mission, or simply just something for him and his\nfamily to enjoy. I have little use of the yacht, as I found I am not so fond of\nocean travel, really, so rather than let it collect barnacles, I may as well\ngive it to one of you.\"\nWade nodded and put his paws together, bowing once more to\nKurtia before turning back and heading for the exit of the arena.\nShe bowed her head to him as well prior to his departure.\nSage, who had stayed, looked at Kurtia. \"Are you so sure he has earned\nit?\" She asked.\n\"Those Mega Stones are worth far more than that\nyacht,\" stated Kurtia. \"As far as I'm concerned, I am hardly giving\nhim a worthy prize for his success in defeating me. But, I accept this loss...\nand you know, I look forward to seeing what else his team can do.\"\n","previous":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/829336-contest-part-2.json"}