CartecTNN
patreon
The New Normal - 6-6
🕑 Added 2023-11-06 12:21:25 +0000 UTCThe New Normal – 6-6 – Battle for Mt Pyre
Allowing Port to rest, this time I travelled on Zephyr as he flew over to Mt. Pyre. We prioritised speed over anything else, as I was determined to arrive before the grunts launched their assault. My Pokémon were not in the best condition, but at least this time we were going to be fighting on solid ground, where I could properly utilize the full scope of my team.
My injury still stung, and I was admittedly exhausted as I came down from my previous burst of adrenaline, but I still soldiered on.
Even if the Orbs had been switched out for fakes, and Mt. Pyre had long since been evacuated and cleared of any civilians, the grunts would still be able to cause chaos if they weren’t dealt with. Or worse, if the grunts discovered that the Orb was a fake, then who knows how they would act next?
At least their focus was temporarily focused on Mt Pyre and the Orbs for now. This made them predictable and easier to defend against. If they decided to just cause widespread chaos like Team Rocket did back in Indigo, then the situation in Hoenn would become far worse.
However, as Mt Pyre came into view, I noticed that a huge flock of flying Pokémon were swarming down from above as all sorts of attacks were exchanged. Most noticeably, I spotted Drake’s Blastoise suddenly fire off a huge torrent of water that shredded through the grunts’ lines, blasting many of their Golbats out of the air as Blastoise sweeped the skies with its Hydro Pump.
At the same time, Drake’s Salamence was a true beast as it dove straight into the centre of the grunts. It was like a whirlwind of destruction as its Dragon Claws dismantled the grunts’ assault, each rake of its claws bringing down another one of the grunt’s Pokémon.
And while Drake’s Pokémon were certainly the star of the show, the small army of Jennys that had gathered here were also helping. While Drake was primarily focused on taking down their flyers, the Jennys dealt with any stragglers that decided to fight on the ground. Their Arcanine mauled and overwhelmed the grunts’ Mightyena and occasionally assisted with the aerial battle by sending out streams of flames that scorched a few unaware Golbat or Weezing in its path.
Not wanting to be left out of the battle, I dove in as well, staying low to the ground so that I could release my own Pokémon.
“Tyrant, Smough! Support the Jennys!” “The rest of you, focus down the flyers!”
My three bruisers emerged with a collective roar that stunned the battlefield. I could feel the gaze of every trainer fall upon me for a moment, evidently realizing what my entrance into the battle meant for their success.
The three bruisers landed on the summit with an audible bang, and Smough even managed to adjust himself so that he crushed a Mightyena underneath his full weight as he landed. Tyrant immediately took off, throwing himself straight into the middle of the fight as he grabbed a Mightyena into a chokehold before smashing it into another Mightyena. Simultaneously, Smough charged in as he grabbed a large slab of rock from the ground and fired it straight into a group of Mightyena, blasting them face-first and knocking them out.
A Camerupt tried to fight back with an Eruption, spewing out a geyser of fire and lava from its back. But an unamused Smough simply tanked through it, hardly even flinching as the scorching lava stuck to his body. The Camerupt shot Smough a fearful look at the lack of damage before a devastating Hammer Arm came smashing down into Camerupt’s head, burying it into the ground.
The rest of my team moved in to support Drake and the Jennys in their battle. And for a while, I was too busy focusing on the battle and my feeling of vicious satisfaction at seeing the grunts’ assault crumble at the sheer might of our Pokémon.
Vordt joined up with Drake’s Blastoise and Kingdra and together they formed the main trio that were tasked with primarily shooting down the enemy flyers. They positioned themselves right next to the fake orbs and Vordt launched an unending barrage of rocks that filled the sky, while Blastoise and Kingdra fired off sweeping beams of Ice and Water that tore through anything unlucky enough to be caught in its path.
Luna and Klaus switched roles as Luna took on more of an offensive role as she carefully manipulated Gravity in a large area, sending large groups of Golbats and Weezings coming crashing down into the ground. In the meanwhile, Klaus formed a large Light Screen as he protected the Jennys and their Pokémon from an incoming barrage of lava and rocks from the other Camerupts. Immediately after, Klaus retaliated with an earth-shattering Earth Power that sent powerful tremors towards the Camerupts, knocking them out of the fight.
But then, a couple of Mightyena had broken free from the rest of the Jennys and dove straight towards me. But before they could even reach me, a sudden Dragon Pulse from Drake’s Altaria shot down from above and blasted the Mightyena out. Altaria gave me a small nod before swooping back into the fight in the skies, firing Air Slashes towards a group of Weezing before they could flood the area with their Poison Gas.
But then, as my rationality returned to me, I realized something.
This assault by the grunts was never going to work. There were too many things that could have gone wrong for them.
Firstly, they communicated such plans over the phone, when they knew that their bases were being raided and their grunts were being captured. There was barely even an attempt to try to hide the message from unwanted eyes. Any reasonably competent leader should have expected for these messages to have been intercepted and for us to be ready.
Secondly, they must have expected us to increase the defences around Mt Pyre ever since their first failed attempt to sneak the orbs out. Attacking into extra-prepared positions, when you knew your grunts had weaker Pokémon than your opponent, was a terrible idea.
So then why did they choose to attack like this? When they must have expected this attack to be doomed from the very beginning. These criminals have been avoiding getting themselves entangled in a straight-up fight for some time, so why would they commit to one right now?
But as I looked around, and I saw how a huge group of Jennys had gathered here to fight back against the grunts’, alongside both Drake and I, the pieces clicked into my head.
This was a distraction. The purpose of this entire doomed assault was to force us to respond the Hoenn League to respond to their attempt and to cover the retreat of their leaders and most of their other high priority assets. Of course, we still had other patrols on the lookout for any criminals trying to escape, but we had pulled most of Hoenn’s law enforcement here to Mt Pyre to hold off against their assault.
This was a plan that could only be achieved by these insane fanatics. After all, the common criminal would not be so self-sacrificing as to agree to such a plan.
Shit. This realization left a bitter taste in my mouth, but I forcefully pushed those thoughts aside for the time being as I refocused on the fight ahead of me. My wounded arm served as a constant reminder of the dangers of being overconfident, and I refused to allow myself to fall victim to my own hubris again.
I couldn’t leave the fight now, not while it was still raging on, so I committed to wiping these grunts away so that we could refocus ourselves to arresting those that are trying to flee from Hoenn.
The fight didn’t last much longer, and the grunts quickly found themselves overpowered as their numbers dwindled while ours remained strong. None of them even managed to get close to touching the replica Orbs.
I approached Drake as he descended from his Salamence, a deep frown on his face.
“Drake, good work out there.” I told him, “But this entire battle has been nothing more than-”
“A distraction?” He cut me off, his frown deepening, “Yes, I guessed that halfway during the battle as well. I don’t have much fucking respect for criminals, but even I know that they aren’t normally this idiotic. They’re probably covering for their leaders to retreat. Fucking fanatics.”
“We better try to stop them.” I stated, but then I looked around and saw all of the fallen grunts and their Pokémon. But more importantly, I noticed that our fighting had accidentally torn up many of the graves that were buried around the summit.
I frowned, “On second thought, I think we need to clean all this up first. This is not the sort of collateral damage that we want to be showing in the news.”
Drake followed where I was looking and nodded, “…Aye, what a fucking mess this was. And it’s not like we could have avoided causing this damage considering how many of them there were.” His gaze turned sad as he saw all of the destroyed graves, “I think you’re right…we can’t leave Mt. Pyre like this.”
He sighed, “Okay, let me talk to the Jennys a bit and see if we can redistribute the patrols to try to catch anyone trying to escape from Hoenn, but I’m not liking our chances. And I’m also going to call Wallace and inform him of what just happened.”
And so Drake dialled up Wallace and explained everything to him. However, to my surprise, Drake suddenly passed his phone to me and switched it to speaker mode.
“Hello? Can everyone hear me?” I heard Wallace’s voice filtering through the speakers.
“I can.” I replied, “How can I help you, Champion Wallace?”
“Ah, good. Now, Drake has filled me in on what happened at Mt Pyre and the situation that you got yourselves caught up with beforehand. He also informed me that the current situation at Mt Pyre…isn’t looking great. Is that correct?”
“Aye. It looks like a tornado smashed through everything.” Drake responded, “It’s not a pretty sight.”
“Hmm…that’s not great. I’m not looking forward to what the headlines look like when they hear about this.” Wallace commented thoughtfully, “However, I’m not about to leave you two in the lurch for this. You both have been doing a great job repelling the threat of these criminals while having a hand tied behind your back, so I think it’s about time that I step in and take responsibility as your Champion.”
“I’ll be heading over to Mt Pyre now, where I will be inviting over the press to make an announcement commending your actions.” Wallace explained, “I will also be shifting the blame for this damage over to the criminals. I’m not about to let you both be slandered in the news for something that was out of your control.”
“Thank you, Wallace.” Drake replied respectfully, “We appreciate your assistance.”
“Think nothing of it. It is merely my duty as Champion.” He waved us off, “The committee might not be in favour of escalating the situation any further, but they cannot stop me from doing something like this. Regardless, I’ll see you all soon. Oh, and get ready to answer some questions. You both are bound to be asked a few.” We both stated that we understood.
After hanging up the call, the two of us continued coordinating with the Jennys to ensure all of the grunts were securely arrested and sent off for questioning and imprisonment. Then, we tried to tidy up the surrounding areas as best we could, cleaning up some of the loose rubble. Just so that when the reporters got here, the immediate area wouldn’t look so much like it had just been through a warzone. Even though that was exactly what happened.
A familiar sounding cry called out from the skies. I looked up and saw a Mantine descending gracefully from the skies, carrying a man dressed in eye-catching and colourful clothing. I couldn’t help but note that the Mantine was significantly more intimidating than my own Port, clearly trained for battle.
The Jennys all bowed slightly in respect as the Champion of Hoenn landed on the summit of Mt Pyre.
He made sure to respectfully wave off the signs of respect before requesting everyone to continue their duties before he turned to us. “Drake, well done out there!” He smiled at the Elite Four member, “I knew I could count on you to handle these criminals. I’m very pleased to see that my trust wasn’t misplaced. You’ve done a fantastic job, very much like the hero that I know you are.” Drake gave Wallace a slight nod, but I could tell that he was pleased by Wallace’s words.
“And John, it’s lovely to finally see you in person.” He turned to me with a bright and genuine smile, “You have done much for the continued prosperity of Hoenn, even when it was not your responsibility to help out. As the Champion of Hoenn, we sincerely thank you for all that you have done for us.”
“I was only doing what I had to in order to stop these criminals from causing more damage.” I tried to say humbly, “Please don’t put me on a pedestal for my actions. I’m sure any other member of the Elite Four would have done the same. From both regions.”
Now that I was actually seeing him in person, my first impression of Wallace was that he was remarkably similar to Lance, although there were several key differences. Both of them just radiated with charisma and presence, making it so that they were easily the centre of attention at any given time.
However, where Lance achieved this through his strength of character and unrelenting pride, Wallace had this easy grace to him that granted him this noble mystique. It was like he was born to be a celebrity. Yet, much like how Lance was far more than a prideful brute, there was an unmistakable gleam of intelligence in Wallace’s eyes, carefully observing his surroundings and taking a measure of everything around him.
“Your humbleness is only another sign of your good character. However, there is no need for you to downplay your magnificent contributions, for I will ensure that you are properly awarded for your actions!” He said graciously, “Nevertheless, we will speak more about this matter later. I believe we have a press conference to prepare for.”
Then he looked around and took in the devastation and destruction that had taken place here as a result of our battle, a small frown forming on his face. “Whoof. There really was a big fight taking place here, huh? I guess you can’t underestimate the tenacity of fanatics.”
He turned back to the two of us, “Drake, John, I need another rundown of everything that has happened thus far and what your plans are for dealing with what comes next. I want to make sure we are on the same page.”
And so we summarized what had taken place over the past few days, going over our thought process and all of the revelations that we had uncovered leading up to today’s battle. Wallace just listened silently, his face one of careful consideration.
“…I understand, thank you for your thorough explanation.” He said after we were finished. He turned to see that the reporters were flooding in, and shot us a wry smile, “Don’t worry, I’ll handle these reporters. I believe it is showtime!”
The reporters all swarmed around Wallace, who made sure to stand on a rock to use as a makeshift speaking platform. For extra dramatic effect, he even released his Walrein just to hang about in the background and look intimidating. “My good people of Hoenn! Over the past few days, our fair region has been the subject of many heinous and malicious attacks from evil criminals and thugs that sought to disturb and disrupt the peace and security that we have fought so hard to maintain!”
“And today, they have struck hard! Driven by their insatiable avarice and battered ego, they sought to try to steal the famous Red and Blue Orbs by launching a full on aerial assault! Unfortunately, in their spite, the criminals showed off their malice as they decided to unleash a trail of destruction, destroying the many treasured graves and memories that were stored here on Mt Pyre. These criminals defiledHoenn’s resting place for our treasured Pokémon! Disturbing the peaceful rest and slumbered that they should have been allowed! All for their greed!” Wallace’s face transformed into one of genuine sorrow as he gestured towards the destructions that surrounded him.
The sheer emotion in Wallace’s words were undeniable, to the point where I was caught up in the emotions of the crowd. He was an excellent orator, and I had no doubt that his words had the effect that he wanted them to have.
Through his excellent and careful construction of a specific narrative, he placed the blame for the destruction strictly on the heads of the criminals and their failed attack, absolving us of any responsibility. But more importantly than that, he was able to direct the emotions of the crowd to one filled with righteous anger at the criminals and their actions.
And it was clearly working. The crowd were horrified as they took in the sheer devastation, with ripped up and smashed gravestones and caskets littering the place. That horror quickly turned into anger, but it wasn’t directed at us.
And Wallace leveraged that anger excellently, “BUT! Thanks to the bravery of the Jennys, Elite Drake, and Elite John, all of whom have been working extremely hard over the past few days to repel and capture these criminals, have managed to fight back and punish these criminals for their reckless greed! Thanks to their efforts, the criminals who participated in this heinous attack have all found themselves in shackles and imprisoned for their actions!” There was a huge wave of applause from the crowd, and Wallace waited carefully for it to die down before continuing.
“YET! The fight isn’t over. The criminals are still out there, lurking in whatever dark hole they crawled out of. As such, the Hoenn Police will be continuing their hard work in ensuring that all these criminals are captured and given their righteous punishment for their actions!”
“MOREOVER! As Champion of Hoenn, I promise to enact new policies in the future that will aim to crack down harder on these criminals and prevent them from taking root in our region. And I believe that working closely with other regions to share resources and intelligence is the best way forwards to achieve this! I have been in active communication with Champion Lance, and we believe we have something in store that will greatly improve our abilities with dealing with these threats in the future!” The applause grew to deafening heights, with many reporters now actively cheering in support of Wallace’s words.
Wallace waited patiently for the applause to die down, before gesturing for me to come on stage. I shook my head at him, but he gave me a look that insisted for me to do so. Reluctantly, I complied and joined him on his makeshift platform.
“However, I would be remiss if I overlooked the heroic actions of our Indigo Elite Four member!” He announced grandly as he gestured for me to stand in front of him, “Even though he isn’t from Hoenn, John quickly answered the call for help when it was asked of him, dropping everything he was doing and immediately making his way to help out. And he played an active and essential role in helping stop the threat of these criminals from causing further damage on our beloved region.”
I had to do my best to not let the embarrassment show on my face. I didn’t mind being complimented, but this was way too far!
“Aye! And he even came to fight in Mt Pyre despite having just been injured in an ambush too! Smashed them up for the attempt real good too!” Drake shouted out from behind us, and I wanted to strangle him. Fortunately, the crowd was all too busy looking shock to notice the sudden look I gave Drake.
Wallace only nodded in agreement, “Yes, and so, as Champion of Hoenn, I thank John on behalf of our grateful region for your assistance and support during these troubled times! This just goes to show the heights that we can achieve through international cooperation. And Hoenn will always welcome our friends from Indigo and are ready and willing to lend a helping hand if they ever ask for it!”
The crowd went wild once again, and Wallace used that opportunity to whisper to me, “Anything I can do in my personal capacity as Champion, and I will. Just ask for us at any time, and I will do my best to come and help.” He finished off his sentence by patting me twice on the shoulder.
I thanked him quietly and allowed him to finish off the rest of his speech, carefully stepping away from the spotlight. I took the moment to think over everything that had happened today.
From a rapid series of raids, to getting out an ambush, to being caught up in a full out assault against Mt Pyre. Today was a very busy day, and I just wanted to find a bed and get some rest.
Although we fell for the evil team’s distractions, we undoubtedly brought down many of their numbers and resources after their failed attack. I was confident that they wouldn’t be able to recover from this, or launch something of this scale, for a VERY long time.
And while they continued to retreat, we would be there to ensure that all they had were destroyed and reclaimed. Every asset, every facility, all would be found and turned over.
We would bleed them out of Hoenn. One step at a time.
A.N. John gets the acknowledgement from Hoenn for his actions! And Wallace finally takes the stage! I hope you enjoyed the interactions and the speech! The evil teams are fully on the backfoot now, and they’re almost out of places to hide and run.
This chapter has been BETAed by Allute! Cheers!
Comments
Mike Trevino
John is becoming an international hero 👀, hope his sis is proud. Her big bro is out there representing Indigo wonderfully.
