"By the way, where's your cousin? She's still not here."
Outside the gym, Caleb, having just finished assigning moves, was already itching for battle.
No trainer can resist testing out a new move set right away.
"Let's give it a little more time—my cousin is usually very punctual," Fiona said, though a trace of worry crept into her voice. Hopefully, nothing had happened to delay her on the road...
"What kind of Pokémon does your cousin use, by the way? Give me a hint."
If it was a Fighting type, he might as well forfeit. Chansey's base physical defense stat was 5, and as a Normal-type, she was naturally weak to Fighting moves. Against any Fighting-type Pokémon, she'd be at a massive disadvantage.
When facing a special attacker, Chansey could be called the "Wall of Sighs." But against a physical attacker—especially a Fighting-type physical attacker—she might as well be made of paper.
"I'm not exactly sure either. It's been a long time since I last saw my cousin," Fiona said, then added reassuringly, "But don't worry. Your family's paid so much in taxes to the League, they wouldn't make things hard for you. At worst, you'll be up against something like a Pidgeotto or a Fearow."
"Is that so..." Caleb responded, but he still didn't feel too confident inside.
"Oh no!"
Suddenly, Fiona shouted.
"What is it? Don't scare me like that."
Caleb jumped at her outburst.
"I forgot—we don't have a referee!"
A gym without a referee is like a restaurant with no waitstaff.
"What do we do?"
Caleb started to panic too. The gym's previous owner had given the old ref an early vacation since there hadn't been any challengers in a while—told him to go enjoy his retirement in peace.
"Wait, didn't you take the referee certification test, Fiona?"
That thought suddenly popped into Caleb's head.
"Hehe, just messing with you." Fiona put on a playful expression. "If you beg me, maybe I'll be kind enough to help you out."
Hmph. A real man of honor would never...
"Please, Fiona, be the ref. I'll pay you 50,000 a month."
Caleb had no pride to spare. No referee meant no battle. No battle meant instant failure.
"Well, since you're begging me, I suppose I can do it."
Besides, the people in Solaceon Town weren't big on battles anyway, and it had been ages since anyone had challenged the gym. The Pokémon Center was practically just decoration.
Acting as a ref for Caleb now and then? No big deal.
"Ahem."
A cough cut through their conversation.
At some point, a figure had appeared before them.
She looked nearly identical to Fiona, apart from having a more mature figure—as if they came from the same mold.
But unlike Fiona's cheerful innocence, this woman radiated an undeniable air of authority and seriousness.
"Cousin!" Fiona's eyes widened with shock. Then her expression turned sheepish and slightly flustered. "When did you get here?"
"I arrived while you two were making a scene," Ivy Joy replied with deadpan sincerity.
At that, Fiona's face flushed bright red.
"Are you my cousin Fiona's boyfriend?" Ivy Joy asked, turning her sharp gaze to Caleb and giving him a quick up-and-down look.
"No, ma'am," Caleb replied honestly.
But in that moment, locking eyes with her, he felt an overwhelming pressure—a strange, stifling intensity that made him uneasy.
Fiona: "?"
"I'm the Gym Leader here," Caleb added.
Ivy Joy blinked in surprise, then quickly gave a knowing, meaningful smile. "I'm Ivy Joy, Senior Inspector from the Pokémon League. Here's my badge."
She flashed her credentials.
"I don't like wasting time, so let's get straight to the point. If you don't meet the standards, I'll report it accordingly. Don't expect Fiona to vouch for you."
Only after Ivy Joy entered the gym did Caleb dare ask Fiona, "Is your cousin always like this?"
Her aura was so intense, he felt like she might summon some terrifying Pokémon any second now.
But Fiona didn't answer. She huffed and stomped after her cousin without even turning back.
"Okay then. Guess the whole family's like that..."
...
"1v1 sound good to you?"
"Sure."
Facing Ivy Joy's natural intimidation aura, Caleb answered meekly.
Once the two of them were standing on opposite sides of the battlefield, Fiona stepped into the ref's spot with two flags in hand.
"Now commencing the Solaceon Town Gym challenge. The challenger is Senior League Inspector Ivy Joy.
Battle format is 1v1. When one side's Pokémon is unable to continue, the other side wins."
"Battle start!"
Caleb skipped the usual pre-battle speech all Gym Leaders are supposed to give. First, he hadn't thought of one. Second, it just felt... cringe.
With a flash of white light, a large pink egg rolled onto the battlefield.
Ivy Joy, being part of the Joy family herself, was intimately familiar with Chansey. She had even trained one of her own.
And because of that, she knew just how bad Chansey was at fighting. Never mind the moves—the personality alone was a huge problem.
Chansey was just too kind-hearted.
But a battle is a battle. She wasn't going to hold back just because the opponent was a Chansey.
"In that case, I'll go with this one."
Ivy Joy pulled a Poké Ball from her waist and tossed it into the air. A flash of light revealed a red, jet-like Pokémon hovering in front of her.
Its upper body was white, lower body and face red, with jet wings and fin-like limbs. A blue triangle glowed on its chest.
It was none other than the legendary Pokémon—Latias.
What the actual—?!
Caleb cursed internally, but as a properly trained and professional Gym Leader, he of course didn't say that out loud.
Instead, he shot a look over at Fiona at the ref stand—his expression practically yelling: This is what you meant by "don't worry"?
Fiona stuck out her tongue, trying to defuse the situation with a cutesy face.
Who could've guessed that after a year of not seeing her cousin, she'd show up and throw down with a literal Legendary?
What a mess.
Beep~ Latias. Psychic/Dragon-type. Infinite Pokémon
Ability: Levitate
Known Moves: Stored Power, Baby-Doll Eyes, Helping Hand, Recover, Confusion, Tailwind, Dragon Breath, Wish, Mist Ball, Zen Headbutt, Dragon Pulse, Ice Beam, Calm Mind, Water Pulse
Entry: Data unavailable.
Too clean.
This was the first time Caleb had ever seen a Latias like this.
Just looking at the Pokédex entry made him feel like—okay, maybe I got this.
He composed himself and said, "Challenger goes first."
"In that case—Latias, use Dragon Pulse!" Ivy Joy showed no mercy.
"Chansey, Light Screen!"
Light Screen could reduce the damage taken from special attacks—perfect against a special attacker like Latias. This was about as direct a counter as it got.
Just before the Dragon Pulse struck, a pink energy barrier materialized in front of Chansey.
Boom!
Dragon energy exploded across the field.
When the smoke cleared, Chansey scratched its round head. Well, tried to—its arms were too short, so it gave up.
That little gesture said it all: Dragon Pulse had done about as much damage as a tickle.
"Latias, use Zen Headbutt!"
Unlike the Bug Catchers and Youngsters you'd meet on the road, a senior inspector like Ivy Joy adapted instantly.
Realizing special attacks weren't working, she went in for melee.
But seriously—was Chansey always this tanky?
Latias focused its psychic energy at its forehead and dashed forward at incredible speed.
Caleb could only catch a red blur streaking through the air.
And since Light Screen only blocked special attacks, it offered no protection against a physical move like Zen Headbutt.
With a powerful crash, Chansey tumbled backwards like a giant bowling ball, rolling several meters before stopping at the edge of the field.
"It's over. Caleb doesn't stand a chance."
In the ref's corner, Fiona was starting to panic. Maybe the gym was doomed after all?
She had already suspected as much the moment Latias appeared. After all, that's a legendary. Only Elite Four members or Champions could stand a chance.
But just then, Latias flinched and shook its head as if in pain. A strange purplish glow flickered across its face.
"Latias!"
Ivy Joy instantly noticed something was wrong.
Poisoned?! When did that happen?!
Her expression darkened. Judging by the signs, it wasn't just any poison—it was toxic. The kind that grows more dangerous over time.
On the other side, seeing Latias poisoned, Caleb's lips curled into a slight smile.
As the Poison-type Gym Leader, teaching his Pokémon Toxic?
Perfectly reasonable.