Chapter Text
Another defeated challenger.
Weiss Schnee, ice-type specialist and gym leader of Argus city, sighed as another failed opponent sulked away from her. Her Ninetales (only the prettiest breed from Alola) retreated back into its ultra ball, squeaking its name with delight.
When had her last meaningful battle been? It was ages since she’d last been defeated, although seeing as it was her sister, the gym’s previous leader, who did so, that didn’t entirely count. With a quick flourish, she began to pack her potions and balls away, ready to turn it in for the day.
And immediately, another trainer burst in through the door, slipping on the snowy floor and coming to a crashing stop. The trainers around the room ignored him, already tired from a full day of battling, leaving the combatant to approach the gym leader.
“I’m here for your badge!” He cried out, pulling out several of his own pokeballs.
“Alright then,” Weiss muttered, forcing herself into a more combative posture. She threw out a luxury ball, releasing a Lapras, just a tired as she was. “Let’s get this over with.” Her opponent, with all too much confidence, dropped his own ball to the ground, summoning a Jumpluff.
“This will take you out! Just watch!” he yelled out, only for a single Ice Beam to eviscerate the defenseless plant.
“Is that all?”
“No! Watch this!” The challenger threw out a Great Ball, with a Gliscor soon following.
That’s definitely faster, but I can kill it easily. Weiss thought, strategizing her next play. While unlikely, it may have some fighting-type moves. I know it can learn rock moves as well. I just need to tank one hit. I can protect to see what it has.
The Gliscor then proceed to use, out of any move it could have possibly attacked with, ice fang.
“Why didn’t that do anything?” Weiss’s imbecile of an opponent cried out.
It then proceeded to do so again, but only once more as another Ice Beam decimated the creature, who looked its trainer dead in the eyes as it froze over. But why would it use that again-
“Is that choiced!?” Weiss screamed, her voice filled with frustration and distaste.
“Yeah! It’s got choice specs! Pretty cool, right? It could have beaten you easily! Why do you look so disappointed? I know! You’re scared! I can finish you off now! Go, my ace! Win for me!”
A master ball was thrown out, revealing a Pidgey.
* * *
Weiss massaged her temples, exhausted from the long day of constant battles. You’d think that getting five other gym badges would be harder, but nope. It seemed like those were just handed away now. She sauntered into the town’s local hotel, where she was staying until she could afford an actual home. Being a gym leader didn’t seem to pay as well as she thought it would.
Waiting in the lobby, a woman clad in a labcoat turned her head to Weiss.
“Weiss! I’ve been waiting for you.” She spoke, getting on her feet and giving the tired woman a quick hug.
“Blake?! What brings you here? I thought you were studying ruins somewhere.” Weiss spoke back, trying to sound excited through her down demeanor.
“Not anymore. Do you know that Ho-Oh sighting I was investigating? Turned out to be a hoax.” The professor paused, noticing how baggy Weiss’s eyes appeared. “Are you okay? You look…”
“Tired?”
“More like dead. You look like the physical manifestation of a Sludge Bomb.”
“Wow. Thanks, Blake. I feel so much better now,” Weiss grunted, looking like she was about to slaughter someone.
“Sorry, sorry. I just had some quick news I wanted to deliver. I’ll leave you be after.”
“Ugh. Fine, what is it.”
“The 8th gym leader stepped down.”
“Calavera? It’s about time. That crone looked like she was gonna have a heart attack any time now.”
“The league’s having a meeting next week in Beacon City. The Chairman wants everyone to meet her replacement. Not all gym leaders need to be there, but I think it would be a nice break for you. You seem so stressed all the time. A vacation would do wonders for you.”
“Forget it. There’s no point really.” Weiss turned away, trying to hide her defeated visage. “It’s not gonna change anything.”
“Are you sure about this, Weiss? You haven’t been out in a long time.”
“I’m certain. You can go now.”
Blake, sensing she wasn’t wanted, retreated out the door. Weiss groaned and began making her way to her room, her steps heavy and weak. What was Blake thinking? A vacation would be meaningless. She would just be losing chances to find a meaningful battle. She let out a pained moan, akin to a Cubone screeching for its mother. She fumbled through her bag, searching for her room key.
Maybe father was right.
“Wow, you look sad.”
Weiss turned around, only to see a slightly taller woman with short, red-tipped hair and eyes like mirrors. Mirrors reflected the face of someone about to go over the edge. She was wearing a Ranger’s outfit, with a crimson scarf long enough to potentially count as a cloak.
“I said that out loud, didn’t I. Sorry! Sorry!” She pleaded, fiddling with her room’s keycard, failing several times to unlock her room. “Ah, nuts.”
“Do you mind?” Weiss spoke, her voice like sandpaper.
“Eh. Sorry. I’m still not good at this. This whole thing. All I’m really good at is battles.”
Weiss went back to her own door, still not having found her keycard.
“Hey! I know how to cheer you up!” The woman spoke.
Weiss ignored her.
“How about a battle? Those are always fun!”
Weiss ignored her.
“I’m sure you’re great!”
Weiss-
“Come on, please! I bet you’ll-”
“ALRIGHT, I’LL BATTLE YOU!” Weiss screamed, her voice vicious enough to disturb her neighbors.
“Yes! Where do we do it? What about the gym? Is that open?” Whoever this was, she did not stop talking.
“Ugh. I have a key.”
“You do- wait a minute! YOU’RE WEISS SCHNEE! YOU’RE A GYM LEADER!”
“So you know that much at least. So you can wait for tomorrow to battle me.”
“Nah. I’m leaving tomorrow. This is my only chance to fight you.”
Weiss let out a string of curses under her breath (her stats didn’t change though) and led the mysterious woman to the empty gym.
“If I do this,” she spoke, voice shrill and hoarse, “you will leave me alone. Got it?” Her soon-to-be opponent nodded as fast as an Extreme Speed. “Good.” The lights flickered on, revealing an icy arena. Unlike those in Sinnoh or Unova, Weiss designed her gym to not cause potential injury or death. Instead of icy paths and ramps, it was instead a large snow castle with space to battle in the “courtyard.”
“This is so cool! An actual gym!”
“Let’s just get this over with.” The two trainers took their positions and readied their throwing hands. “This will be a standard gym battle. I will use only four pokemon, all of them with my specialized type.”
“Then I’ll only use four as well,” her opponent said, smiling far too much, just like the rest of the day’s challengers.
“Your loss.”
Two ultra balls met, and Weiss’s Frosslass stared death in the face.
A Bisharp took stance without a sound, its gleaming blades sharper than they should have been.
“So you know your typings. That makes you better than most already,” Weiss said, monotone.
The Bisharp charged forward with an intense speed, sharpening its blades against each other and aiming for a kill. The Frosslass glided back, launching a small flame at the steel warrior, engulfing it in a furious blaze. It was not enough, however, as it countered with a series of bladed strikes, precise, and too fast the ghost to react, fainting it instantly.
Weiss stared, her mouth agape and heart pounding. In just two turns, she lost a pokemon. That was fine, however. She could deal with this.
Her Mamoswine took the frosty mage’s place, leaving its ball with a mighty thud. With a thundering roar, it slammed the ground, creating a ripple felt throughout the whole city. The steel knight was smart, however, and it flipped back into its owner’s care, an enraged bird with wings of steel taking its place, dodging the earthquake with ease. The mammoth charged forward with enough force to decimate a building, only for the bird to block it with a powerful force. Seeing the mammoth dazed, the Skarmory was replaced by a jackal with a powerful aura. With a single strike, Lucario defeated the Mamoswine.
Weiss was left with two pokemon left, choosing to send in her Ninetales. The Lucario may have been stronger and faster, but the fox had a trick up its sleeve. Taking a hit from the jackal, who seemed to really enjoy close combat, it retorted with a powerful psychic strike, nearly taking the beast out of commission. It went in for the kill, only for its attack to strike a large, blade-handed bug instead. It didn’t last after a single strike from the Scizor.
It was all up to Lapras.
The dinosaur-like creature braced itself for a strike, only for its enemy to sharpen its blades with what could only be seen as a grin. Weiss’s Lapras, ready to battle, began charging a freezing, frosty beam when a bright glow enveloped the arena.
A Scizorite.
Lapras couldn’t survive a single hit from the bladed behemoth.
Weiss dropped to her knees, thoughts racing back and forth. Did that actually just happen? This was her first loss in forever. And not just a loss at that, a perfect win. Her opponent hadn’t lost a single pokemon!
Her opponent laughed, retrieving her pokemon and almost skipping to the defeated Gym Leader.
“That was a fun fight!” She giggled, beaming with excitement. “I look forward to working with you.”
“Wait,” Weiss gasped, snapping back to reality. “Working with me?”
“Heh. I should probably have introduced myself earlier.” The woman extended one hand towards Weiss, and with the other, she brought out a badge.
“The name’s Ruby Rose! Steel-type specialist and Patch City’s new Gym Leader!” Weiss had no words. Maybe noises, but not words. “Heh. I was only here to wait for a plane, but it was fun meeting you! I assume I’m gonna see you in Beacon?”
“I- uh- errrr-” Weiss gulped hard enough to make a Swalot jealous. “Yes! I’ll be there.”
“Great! I can’t wait!”
Ruby strode out of the gym, each step with more pep than the last. She gave Weiss a quick wave before disappearing and leaving a distraught Weiss behind.
“That fight.” She whispered, her face gleaming with a flustered red. “I-I lost.” She jumped back to her feet, throwing hands into the air, cheering in a manner that would make her sister cringe.
“I LOST!!!”
After a long, long time, maybe longer than a stretching Onix, her high finally went away, and fear took its place. She had just accepted an invite. From a stranger. To something she already declined. Although, if this meant that maybe she could battle Ruby again, she had to chase that high again, didn’t she? Perhaps she was wrong.
Maybe a break would be good for her.