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There were a few laughs from the crowd, but they weren't the kind Salieri would've wanted. Korrina narrowed her eyes and smiled. 'Needs work. Same rules as last time?'

Hawlucha appeared in a flash of light, his red rose between his lips. He raised his arms and drew applause, then let them fall. Finally, he opened his eyes, and smiled when he saw Reynard.

[Ahh, chica, it has been too long. My heart, it has not stopped throbbing since our last encounter.] Hawlucha placed his claws across his chest, walked further into the arena. [Perhaps, when you lose this time we could spend a lil time together? And this Hawlucha promises, you will lose.]

Korrina's opening move was Taunt. If Hawlucha's words cut deep enough, Reynard wouldn't be able to use support moves for a while, and the initial shift in dynamics ought to open up a window. A window of opportunity. Hawlucha would dash diagonally, aiming to close some distance between him and Reynard without making himself an easy target for her attacks. While he was doing this, he would flick his claws open, honing them, increasing his accuracy and attack power.

'Oooh, tricks,' Korrina grinned. It was a bit of showmanship to cover up her surprise. This was not the same person who'd battled her yesterday. She guessed Zack had a point; this wasn't a fight she could drag out.

Hawlucha didn't miss a beat when the rain came down. He was battling a Vaporeon, water was to be expected. Korrina had him use "Fling!" to counter the Ice Beam, which meant they were getting serious already. He swiped his rose from his mouth and launched it like a bullet at the Ice Beam. A 10 power Fling wasn't going to stop the beam, but as the ice encased the rose, it refracted Reynard's attack for a split second, sending miniature beams across the arena randomly, and slowed the attack. Unburdened, Hawlucha's speed doubled and he zipped across the arena like a shot, letting the Ice Beam soar past him.

He darted up to Reynard before she could recover, lifted off the ground while running and turned upside down. The wrestling pokémon got above the water type, then drove his foot down acrobatically. With his Attack boosted, Acrobatics would take off the majority of Reynard's health, assuming it hit.

The Tower of Mastery - Earlier

Sunlight had barely broken the horizon and the tower's training yard was already in shambles. Tucked behind the tower, it was a place of serenity, where trainees could go to meditate and further their spiritualism. Unfortunately for whoever had done the landscaping, it was also the perfect place to train pokémon. Zack started the day early. Too restless to sleep for more than a few hours, he dragged his team down to the yard when it was still dark and lined them up like recruits at bootcamp. One by one they demonstrated each of their moves as Zack paced up and down the line.

'Stop,' he commanded, and his pokémon halted at once. Except for Fatass, who contributed a Snore and was recalled for his effort. 'Not bad. Not great, but we're getting there.'

Serene and Lethal nodded while Hazard explored her haunted nostrils for some ghostly snot. Malis snorted flame when Zack walked past. The trainer ignored it. He had treated Malis like s**t with the intention of cultivating the fire type's innate brutality. He could handle the pokémon not liking him, and Malis had done everything Zack had asked so far. The respect was there. Zack crossed his good arm over his sling.

'Lethal and Serene are partners. Hazard and Malis are partners. I want you to have a double battle, but listen out. When you hear me cl-' Zack paused. He couldn't clap anymore. Stupid broken arm. 'When you hear me say "change" it's a free for all. When I say "change" again, you're back to your teams. Anyone who gets a knock out gets fed. Clear?'

Zack could tell from the way Lethal started frothing, and how Hazard and Malis started paying attention that the rules were clear. The pokémon paired off on opposite ends of the courtyard, and under the light of the moon began their battle. It was a test of endurance and intelligence. So far he'd carried his pokémon strategically, but he needed to know that they could make smart calls when the pressure was on.

Malis performed surprisingly well, putting his dodge training on Route 4 to good use. Serene and Lethal focused on him at the start, hoping to take out the weaker of his pair so Hazard would crumble later, but the ghost type didn't make it easy for them. She continually pressured Lethal with Thunderbolts, forcing the Clawitzer into aerial Aqua Jets just to dodge, and opened Serene up for Malis's melee assault.

The first time Zack shouted change, Malis was just about to take Serene down with an explosive Fire Punch, but the change command distracted him and she was able to Teleport away. Both Hazard and Lethal attempted to capitalise on his distraction by blasting him to bits. The fire type dropped a Smokescreen and countered with Flame Burst, engulfing both opponents with a fiery blast while he leaped clear.

Zack called for change again, and the battle continued, with each phase growing shorter and more intense. It nearly fell apart after one call to regroup. Hazard had caught Malis with a blow just as the free for all ended, and the fire type took it personally. He hit back with Slash, but simply phased through the ghost type, who roared with laughter. Embarrassed, Malis went after Hazard for real, unleashing a Flamethrower before leaping after Hazard during her dodge, and grabbing her with a pair of flaming fists.

His weight brought her down to the ground, and the two pokémon became a lock of scrambling limbs as they ripped and tore at each other. Zack wished he had a whistle. Instead he sprinted over, shouting for them to stop, then drove his foot into Malis's ribs and unhooked the Charmeleon from his prey.

Malis flew, tried to right himself mid air, but slipped on the landing, hitting the deck chin-first. Hazard peeled herself off the floor, her ghostly form half-shredded while Serene and Lethal didn't know where to look. Zack released a deep breath, started back to his spot on the sidelines, and said, 'Change.'

It took a second for his pokémon to understand, but the sounds of combat resumed behind the trainer. He glanced at Malis, who eyed Zack with hatred and nearly got taken out by Serene's Psychic for the trouble. Zack leaned against a stone pillar, his mood ruined. He managed to not jump when someone whistled above him.

'Wow. Brutal.' Some blonde girl. His skin crawled as the memory of the volcano made an unwelcome return. She looked familiar too, except dressed in the robes of a tower villager. Then it clicked.
'You're that gym leader. Korrina.'
'Good memory. Only, it's Successor Korrina when I'm at the tower,' Korrina said. She jumped off the walkway that overlooked the courtyard and landed in front of Zack. 'So you're one of my grandfather's guests. Are you supposed to be out here without your babysitter?'

Zack took a second to follow along, then grinned, 'Are you gonna tell on me?'
'Not for that. But you totally wrecked my courtyard,' Korrina said, turning to where Zack's team were training, the sky turning pink behind them. She raised her eyebrows in appreciation when Malis nailed Serene with Fire Blast and took her out of the running. 'Ever thought about challenging the league?'
'And get followed by adoring scrubs for the rest of my life? No thanks. Change!'

Malis and Hazard pivoted and turned on Lethal, who immediately began evasive maneuvers.

'Suuuuch a waste,' Korrina groaned. 'My grandfather said you can mega evolve your pokémon despite being a total butthole with them.'
Zack looked at her sidelong. 'And those are the exact words he used.'
'My point is you shouldn't hide your light. I'm a gym leader, I see potential every day. It sucks when it gets wasted.'
'I've had this lecture before,' Zack said. 'I'm happy where I am. Besides, it's not my potential you should be worried about.'

'Don't tell me,' Korrina held up her hands. 'I should be worried about Salieri. You saw her battle yesterday, she's a joke.'
'Yeah,' said Zack. 'I thought so too, but then I got to know her. If you let your guard down, she'll crush you.'

Shalour City Gym - Now

Hawlucha's foot smashed through the arena's icy floor, sending up a spray of jagged shards. The air was still cold from Reynard's Icy Wind, but not cold enough to inflict damage. Dios mío, it was close. Hawlucha could use his claws to avoid slipping, but the ice was not ideal, nor the rain, which soaked his feathers through.

Korrina was mildly impressed by the Hydro Drill. One hit from that and this battle would be over. So the trick was to not get hit. As it came toward Hawlucha, she commanded a 'Dig!' and the bird man punched the frozen terrain, sending up a blast of ice and rubble. He tunneled inside, letting the Hydro Drill crash into the arena floor above him. Hawlucha raced through the underground before burrowing up a short distance behind Reynard, already spinning through the air and activating Swords Dance.

Reynard snarled when Hawlucha burrowed through the ice and out of sight. Instinct told her to jump through the hole after him, chase him down and defeat him underground. She intended to do just that.

"Wait, Reynard! Acid Armor!"

The Vaporeon reared her head back at Salieri. Instinct pulled her one way, and the command pulled her another. Sal knew Hawlucha wouldn't Dig too deep, lest he risk damaging the foundation of his trainer's Gym. He'd be above ground soon, but Dig bought them time. Time they could use to buff Rey in the face of Hawlucha's Unburden.

"Do it! Then charge!"

Gritting her teeth, Reynard obliged against her instinct. A flurry of raindrops flew at her and became a coat on her body, thickening her Defense. The rain stopped dropping onto the ground, instead stalling above the arena and collecting into an amorphous, floating blob at Reynard's will.

Salieri's eyes darted side to side, attempting to locate where Hawlucha would rise while Reynard tried to do the same. Finally, the ice began to crack behind Rey. "There! Surf's UP!"

As Hawlucha rose and danced Reynard let gravity work its magic on the cloud of water above them, giving it just a little guidance and shape as it fell. It turned into a blanket of Surf that would crash into the whole icy ring.

Waves crashed up and off the iced boxing ring, chill to the touch. It bounced and splashed off the floor. Reynard couldn't match Hawlucha's speed, so she had to stand her ground. Like twitching a muscle, she was already recollecting the water around her as a response when Hawlucha used Tailwind, and drops converged into small hovering orbs around her as the Rain was allowed to proceed once more.

The Surf landed everywhere but a small gap around Reynard herself, which Hawlucha closed into with his impressive speed. More than impressive. To Salieri, who gripped the guardrail of her trainer box in excitement, that speed was glorious. Even Durendal wasn't that fast without Fleché. She couldn't wait to make him that fast.

But this was no time for standing around in awe. This was trouble. Hawlucha had the speed and the moves to shutdown and blitz Reynard if they took a misstep. And Reynard couldn't muster up the same type of power before Hawlucha could close the gap. With Hawlucha's mobility Korrina could land a game ending combo.

Sal wasn't sure what the option was, until Hawlucha said 'Chica'.

At that instant, Salieri and Reynard got the same savage smiles and twinkles in their eyes. "REY! Own your power!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Just ten minutes ago, Salieri was going over strategy with Reynard at the bleachers. Once Rey started listening, she found her human burden didn't have such bad ideas.

"Changing the environment helps us, but we need something to deter his...seduction tech," Sal trailed out, lacking a better term. "I don't know how this works for you guys, but did he have an accent? It sounded like-"
Rey angrily splashed a foot onto the bench, her watery cheeks growing pink. [Get to the point!]
"What? Losing your cool already?" Sal wagged a knowing finger at her dog. "Last time you let him dictate the pace. He played you, you lost your head, and, well-"
[I know, I KNOW.]
"Here's the thing, Reynard. This is a battle, okay? No matter what he says out there, you're there to kick his a**. Guys, guys can say one thing, and be really sweet, and cute about it. And then they go and say something so stupid and you just wanna..." Sal pretended to wring out a throat with a playful 'Grrrr' and laughed uncomfortably. "You know what I mean? They're just...but sometimes you just, you know. Grrrr."

Reynard lolled her head to the side, shaking it with disapproval as the subtext surfaced. [I think you're talking about something else, now.]
Salieri shook it off. "Okay. Okay, back on track. It is just a battle, but knowing that won't help you against his moves. Against an opponent like this, you need to make sure you set the pace. Turning their Gym into our playground is part of that. We know that just one look at his crazy bird libido and you go from water to Jello. But that's how we know that he's going to use those moves, because he loves those moves. And Rey, what's the number one weakness of a narcissist?"

The Vaporeon was getting it, but she wasn't quite there yet. It was on the tip of her tongue, the edge of her brain. Sal dropped her fist into her open palm, grinning. "It's themselves."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Reynard needed more time to gather the water to make another Hydro Pump. With the amount of water she had, and Salieri's new tactic, she had enough to turn Hawlucha's Entrainment into time.

The orbs that floated in front of her converged again and formed one swirling sheet of water between the two of them. It rippled and reflected Hawlucha's reflection, where he watched himself dance in the airborne mirror, unable to see the sheet getting thicker from Reynard's side as she charged. It still looked flimsy from his side.

Hawlucha's showmanship required the target to pay attention. In a battle, it was almost impossible to ignore, and doing so opened one up to attacks. For Rey, it was a risk worth taking in this scenario. With the water acting as a mirror, Hawlucha would see a distorted image of Vaporeon thanks to Hone Claws and a reflection of himself, while the water bubbled from Rey's side so she didn't see the dance at all. Salieri was her pair of eyes right now.

Reynard compressed the water from behind while Hawlucha Entrained himself to have his own abilities. She was sure some part of him enjoyed watching himself dance.

With that borrowed time, Reynard made up for how fast he closed the gap, and primed a frothy white Hydro Pump. The dense mass of water swirled, sloshed, and turned into a fist the size of her that would plow at Hawlucha from point blank range when his dance ended and Sal said "Launch!"

If Hawlucha launched his kick, Rey wouldn't give an inch in order to contend that power with her own, intending to take the hit for it. It would blast her into the frozen ropes, but if they traded off, her Hydro Pump would take him out in one shot.

Reynard flicked her head back proudly, giving the impression of a smug hair flip with her fins while turning away her blushing cheeks. [It's-It's not like I care what you think, or anything, baaaaka.]

"YES!" Sal cried, pumping her fist and jumping onto the ice before the trainer box even lowered. That had been a fast paced battle, and the threat level ramped up from both sides before Salieri even knew it. It was touch and go for a minute near the end.

The six or so people watching from the sidelines and bleachers politely clapped as she dropped to her knees, power sliding to Reynard on the ice and giving Rey's waiting tail a high five.

"Now that's what I'm talking about, actual dawg!" Rey rolled her eyes at the sentiment, but couldn't help enjoying herself as well. Then Salieri got Korrina's ice spray in her face, and Rey took the opportunity to snicker.

Sal caught the badge and stood up, turning it over in her fingers. Three badges down in the first week. If she kept up the pace, she'd definitely have all eight before the League finale. She wiped the slush from her face. "What, you don't like ice skating?"

Now both humans were as soaked as Reynard, since the sprinklers didn't stop. "Okay, Rey, cut it out."

Reynard hadn't been consciously maintaining the sprinklers the whole fight. She just built up the water pressure in the beginning to open the valves, letting the pumps do the rest. [Are you kidding me?]
"...you might wanna find the off switch for that. It's in the fusebox out back, probably." Sal told Korrina sheepishly as she returned her Pokémon and hopped off the ring. She knew for sure, she had to check if there were even sprinklers installed before the match had started. Sal clicked her rollerblades open. "Bye!"

And Salieri would get on the nearest rail and grind her way to the exit, out the door in a flash.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The summer sun would help speed along the drying process, and Salieri basked in it when she stepped outside of the Gym. Now that the match was taken care of, her earlier concerns couldn't be kept at bay anymore. There was business to attend to. Lately, it felt like there was always business to attend to.

If Benedict had texted her back, she hadn't received the message yet. Salieri preferred to blame her old Pokégear rather than believe it was because something happened to him. Had he taken on that Curse after all? Hearing it from Mia yesterday made her cringe. She didn't like going up against her more unsavory enemies without a proverbial bullet in the chamber as insurance, but this was like holding a live grenade. Anything could happen. The longer she didn't hear from him, the more concerned she became.

Salieri began walking to a café she had seen yesterday that had thankfully not been destroyed when Zack fought Ska, because it seemed like one of the few places to get a smoothie in town and she needed to wash out the taste of coffee in her mouth. While walking, she almost mulled over the issue with Matheson, but that was small potatoes compared to Skarada's proposal hanging over her head.

Her former captain had called Zack's bluff about the Sablenite being in the ocean. Maybe he had actually scoured the waters. It was possible, the Fishbone had the technology and Pokémon for deep sea excavation. Either way, he was going to make a move sooner or later, but he offered her a choice: he would give her Prou and Ivan if she handed over the Sablenite. Otherwise, he would come and find it himself.

Salieri didn't trust him for a second, and she was willing to bet he didn't trust her either. She hadn't talked it over with anyone else yet. It had been tempting to scour the Tower grounds last night for the Sablenite, but Gurkinn had been kind to her. She couldn't sleep in his domain and steal from under his nose. It wouldn't be right.

There had to be a good way to get everything she wanted.

Tower Of Mastery

"Hey, I-wow, you tore this place apart."

It hadn't been hard for Salieri to find Zack around the Tower. The smell of burning led her to the training yards, where he sat on a bench near his Pokémon. Salieri approached him, smoothie in one hand and Oberon tucked under her other arm.

It was still a little weird for Salieri to see Zack in a new, better light. At least she couldn't really feel his Aura inside her anymore. Now that she got a good look at his full team, she could see the potential that backed up his smack talk.

"Whoever mows the lawn here is gonna be pissed," said Sal, taking a sip while gesturing to the upturned grass and tiles and everything.

"It worked that time, but I don't think the rest of the Gym leaders will let me near their sprinklers." All of the shattered pots and plants were a chore to clean. Salieri saw it as an opportunity instead as she let go of Oberon, letting the Cleffa bounce to the floor. Her personal alien had also become her party's healer, and a reliable one for a baby. Salieri felt it was time to start leveling Oberon up, but while the opportunity was there she wanted to teach Oberon a new move.

"You can put people back together, and that's great, but other stuff breaks too." Salieri slowed down her speech for comprehension's sake, and made circular gestures with her hands. "On Earth, people use the same stuff over and over. It's called Recycling. Trash gets turned back into the stuff it was before." She pointed to one of the broken flower pots. "I want you to learn the move Recycle. Try healing that pot over there with your brain. Go on."

Princess Atomicka understood what everyone was saying just fine, and she didn't appreciate that Salieri talked to her like a baby. Then again, this meatsack didn't know better. None of the meatsacks knew better, since they hadn't developed a global incinerator to turn their unwanted materials into malleable stardust yet. What a strange planet.

Still, she skipped over to the pot and tried to do what Salieri said. Her Heal Pulse caused the flowers that had drooped to stand up straighter, but it did nothing for the pot. For the first time since landing on Earth, Atomicka was actually stumped. She rubbed her hands together and tried again.

"That'll take her a while," Sal mused to herself as she sat on the other end of the bench, watching the Pokémon. Soon she'd start her own training session.

"Have you heard from Benedict?"