Aaron stood on his platform as he stared at the defeated Vaporeon, crumpled against the arena's barriers.
Across cross the water, Mystique floated, her serpentine form battered and winded, wounds marring her once-pristine scales. 'She would have been knocked out if not for her healing moves,' Aaron mused, his brow furrowing. 'Thankfully, those moves take her energy and stamina, or she would have dodged that Aurora Beam. But to think she took down two of my Pokémon…'
The weight of the realization settled heavily on him. 'The kid is no joke. Boss is right to be worried about him. His Milotic is a beast. And there is also the beast of his Machamp and the alpha Tyranitar.' Aaron's mind flickered back to the late-night briefings with his Team Aqua contacts, the hushed warnings about Gladion and not to underestimate the kid in a Pokemon battle.
'I'm trained in real life army combat, but he's a general-type trainer, and he fights better than me in a Pokemon battle.*l' The admission stung, a bitter pill for a man whose military background had forged a steely confidence.
'It seems boss was right that I would lose the battle. My military background made me overconfident. I might be better in a war with no holds barred, but not an expert in a trainer setup battle.'
Aaron's eyes narrowed as he recalibrated his mission. 'Well, now my task is to find more about his Pokémon and their abilities. It's a pity I won't be able to make a fool out of him like originally planned.' The thought was laced with reluctant respect. He wasn't an arrogant fool, despite the brash persona he'd cultivated.
His theatrics from earlier including his threat to Gladion served a dual purpose, carefully calculated to serve Team Aqua's interests while shielding his true affiliations.
First, there was the misdirection.
As Gladion had thought, Aaron was linked to Team Aqua, but there's no evidence to prove it.
If Gladion, a teenager with a champion's reputation, tried to accuse him without proof, the backlash would be swift.
Aaron's military record—decorated, if checkered—would shield him. The league would cry foul, claiming Gladion abused his influence to make baseless arrests.
The military would propose demoting Gladion to a minor gym for using my power unlawfully.
But Gladion hadn't taken the bait. The kid was sharp, turning the battle into a spectacle to stir controversy and rake in profits, all while keeping Aaron's affiliations in the shadows.
The second reason for his bravado was tactical. By making a threat, Aaron forced Gladion to take this fight seriously.
The taunts, the posturing—it was all to draw out Gladion's full arsenal, to expose the depths of his skill and the capabilities of his Pokémon.
Every move Mystique made, every feint and counter, was data Aaron could relay back to his superiors.
Gladion's reputation as someone who beat a regional champion wasn't just talk; he was a puzzle that needed solving, and Aaron was here to gather the pieces.
With a steadying breath, Aaron reached for his next Poké Ball.
"Go, Golduck!" he called, releasing the blue Psychic-type onto one of the floating platforms. Golduck landed with a splash.
Across the water, Gladion's eyes flicked to the new opponent.
'Golduck, huh? They're supposed to be the fastest swimmers. I'll have to change the field to limit his movements.'
"Mystique, Ice Beam on the water!" he commanded.
Mystique, though visibly drained, summoned her strength. Her mouth glowed with icy energy, and a crystalline beam lanced into the sea. The water hissed as it froze, tendrils of frost spreading rapidly, transforming the battlefield into a sheet of ice.
"Golduck, Zen Headbutt on the ice!" Aaron ordered.
Golduck's forehead gem pulsed with psychic energy, its head glowing as it dove forward, slamming into the frozen surface.
The impact reverberated, cracks spiderwebbing through the ice with a sound like breaking glass.
"Now, Psychic!" Aaron followed up, his voice sharp.
Golduck's eyes blazed with violet light as it seized the cracked ice with its mind. Massive chunks tore free, levitating in the air like jagged missiles, then hurtled toward Mystique.
Gladion's grimaced, 'Now that's some serious Psychic power.'
Gladion had one play left to shield her. "Protect!" he shouted.
A shimmering barrier materialized around Mystique. The ice chunks slammed into it, each impact sending tremors through the shield.
But the barrier couldn't hold; the sheer weight of the ice overwhelmed it, cracks splintering across the dome before it shattered.
The remaining chunks crashed into Mystique, her cry echoing as she crumpled under the barrage, her body slumping onto the ice, unconscious.
Gladion raised Mystique's Poké Ball, recalling her in a beam of red light.
'She's improved so much,' he thought, a faint smile breaking through his face.
'Who would have thought that frail Feebas would become such a powerhouse?' Pride swelled in his chest, tempered by the knowledge that the battle was far from over.
He reached for his next ball, "Let's go, Hydros!"
Blastoise emerged with a thunderous roar, landing heavily on the cracked ice. The platform groaned under his weight, and he slammed his massive limbs down, testing the frozen surface. Cracks spread further, but the ice held—for now.
Aaron's eyes flicked to the new contender as he recalled Golduck swiftly.
"Feraligatr, let's do this!" he called, releasing his final Pokémon.
Feraligatr burst onto the battlefield with a primal roar.
The announcer's voice boomed over the speakers, feeding the crowd's frenzy. "We have a water regional starter battle!" he hyped the upcoming battle.
Both trainers locked eyes and simultaneously, they shouted, "Hydro Pump!"
Blastoise's cannons erupted, twin torrents of high-pressure water surging forward. Feraligatr countered with its own, jaws wide as a geyser blasted out.
The streams collided mid-air, a cataclysmic clash that exploded into a misty burst, water spraying across the arena. A fine drizzle settled over the battlefield.
Aaron didn't pause. "Aqua Tail!" he ordered.
"Match it with your own!" Gladion shot back.
Feraligatr charged across the ice, tail glowing with aqueous energy. Blastoise stood his ground, tail whipping up a matching glow.
The two collided in a brutal exchange, tails slamming together with a concussive thud. Feraligatr's strike glanced off Blastoise's shell, absorbing the brunt with minimal damage.
But Blastoise's Aqua Tail landed square on Feraligatr's jaw, a sickening crunch echoing as blood trickled from the crocodile's maw.
Feraligatr staggered but held firm.
"Withdraw!" Gladion commanded.
Blastoise retreated into his shell with a metallic clank, cannons retracting. The shell dropped low, sinking slightly into the ice.
"Now, Rapid Spin!" Gladion called.
Blastoise spun like a top, the shell whirring with dizzying speed, carving grooves in the ice as it barreled toward Feraligatr.
Aaron reacted fast. "Feraligatr, Metal Claw on the ice!"
Feraligatr's claws gleamed with metallic energy, slashing into the frozen surface. The ice shattered beneath him, a jagged hole opening up as he plunged into the water below, narrowly evading the spinning Blastoise. Blastoise barreled past, momentum carrying it forward.
-------Author Notes------
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