[Wakino+] Popping the Gym Leader's Cherry

A year has passed since the crew of the Mutiny returned from space. Most of those involved have settled into new ways of life, though for some only temporarily. Development of Melanie's school chugs away steadily, but to her relief, the gym has been completed. In fact, she currently awaits the arrival of her first ever trainer. Off to the side in the spectating area sit Gramps, Knox, Mitsuko, Eliza, Rhenea, and Carlos. Gramps and Knox seem to be having a spirited debate, though she can't tell what about. In any case, it's clear in Anakoni's stern but warm expression that he's accepted Knox as part of the family. Mitsuko, Eliza, and Rhenea are chatting together quietly (maybe not very quietly in Mitsuko's case), with an occasional smile or thumbs up to Melanie when they catch her looking over. Carlos has a clipboard in his lap and seems to be taking notes while looking around the room with a harsh glar- oh god, he's looking this way, don't make eye contact so the telepath doesn't steal your soul! She averts her gaze to the pokeballs she has ominously slotted into a pedestal of sorts, not that it actually does anything. Unbeknownst to her, Mistral watches on from the rafters. Berry Island had grown (almost disappointingly) secure, so she welcomed some time away.

In the entrance lobby and well out of Melanie's line of sight, Nilly, Jasmine, Nani, and Nathan compare their personal experiences with the PIRATES members aboard the Mutiny. Nilly, seemingly hitting on Nathan in the strangest ways possible, was still trying to cement her place as a person and had decided she would try to find a mate. Frequently saying the word "mate" like this to everyone she met, however, was making that difficult. For his part, Nathan was weathering the strange courting ritual quite well, opting to remain polite. He was still trying to find his place as well, and despite his obvious uneasiness around Melanie, he was intrigued by the concept of her school. Jasmine had dropped in to visit Knox while between jobs, and Nani had been dutifully constructing a shrine to Fuujin.

The general aesthetic of the gym would best be described as a dark and decrepit ruin, though with a regal flair, not terribly unlike where they found themselves during the final battle for the cannon. At the top is the leader's platform, where Melanie currently stands. It's made out of a dark marble-like material that seems to have been attuned somehow to the Ghost typing; periodically wispy, spectral strands seem to try to claw their way out. Many ghost pokemon are able to phase into it and find it to be a rather enjoyable experience, leading it to host as an occasional home for a significant number of vagrant ghosts. On the opposite side of the arena, and with a considerable height disadvantage, sits the challenger's platform. It's constructed from a juxtaposing luminescent material with an extravagant luster. Three disjointed platforms stand perpendicularly between them. Each of these is a more neutral and simplistic shade of grey, made out of what seems to be some manner of unpolished granite that is unnervingly cool to the touch. Each of these three platforms is separated by a significant, but not unmanageable, gap and bears a monolithic stone ring somewhere upon its surface, standing erect like some manner of natural portal.

But this wouldn't be fun if the battleground was simply three separate platforms, would it? The portals periodically activate with an energy similar to that which courses through the leader's platform. Shadowy hands reach through these portals and grab at anything nearby, sometimes to yank them through the portal, other times just to harass their prey. This has led to a number of compromising situations for Melanie, though Knox found these situations to be hilarious. Ghost pokemon are left alone by the hands and are able to pass through the portals at will. But perhaps the more curious oddity is the short river which snakes around the gaps between the platforms. And to clarify: this is not one continuous stream, but rather a smaller segment which actively travels around the field as if by magic. Far from a work of the supernatural, this river is an engineering marvel provided by Lecia as something of a welcoming gift for Melanie's induction into the League. It uses a machine that is able to directly and subtly manipulate water in a controlled and remote manner. She has dubbed the concept "hydromagnetism", similar to electromagnetism, and she's theorized that similar capabilities might be technically possible for each of the other elemental typings. As the implementation in Melanie's gym was the technology's premiere appearance, Lecia's been hard at work implementing the technology in other capacities, such as in public works projects as an effective means of filtering water. Mel affectionately refers to the machine as Charon and the water it manipulates as Styx.

Just as the first minute after the agreed upon meeting time passes, a young man comes flying into the room apologizing as he gasps for breath. He's a stocky kid, but not due to a lack of discipline. Melanie had guessed he was somewhere around 16. He was a Sepia native and had just barely missed the window to challenge Shadow Claw, but he was quick to immediately learn about the new ghost leader and had arrived in the Crags just as the opening ceremony for Melanie's gym had concluded. Though she'd only talked to the boy once before, she'd pegged his personality as somewhere between Knox's and Mako's. The thing she found strangest was that he had both an interest in the occult and the martial arts. With helpful advice from Rhenea and Carlos, Melanie had dutifully trained a wide range of pokemon to accommodate the varying levels of skill of her challengers. Trainers only needed 2 badges to challenge her, as it had been decided that newer trainers not yet familiar with the ghost type may easily be disheartened. She was at first a little disappointed that she was not reserved for endgame gym challenges, like Rhenea was, but once she realized it meant she could work with a wider variety of pokemon, including some newer spirits from abroad, she was happy with the decision.

Melanie clears her throat and takes a deep breath. Her normally timid expression becomes a ferocious gaze as she sizes up the challenger before her: her first challenger. "You remember the rules?" Her voice booms across the gym. Knox had been helping her with public speaking and her fear of socializing. There was some irony in it, on account of his own brusk personality. He had wanted to help Melanie embrace her more confident side: the side that simply didn't care whether something was possible in reality because she'd do it anyways, the side that inspired him, and the side that he'd fallen in love with. That's certainly not to say he didn't enjoy her timid side as well, in fact he reveled in the juxtaposition of the two faces of Melanie Ipu. "Yep! Er, I mean, yes, ma'am." The boy withers somewhat under her gaze and almost sighs in relief out loud when she turns to glance at Knox. Three pokemon, 1v1, non-interference. Up until the last minute, she'd planned on having interference battles with no restrictions whatsoever. She loved the feeling of fighting beside her pokemon, and she believed the closest a trainer could get with their partners was by taking a hit meant for the other. Furthermore, she was not a fan of the restrictions attached to non-interference League battling. She didn't think it did a good job of highlighting the union between trainers and pokemon, and she wanted to see people operating at their full power.

But she wasn't supposed to have interference battles. The League would have preferred she didn't, at least not for the first year, but there was no actual rule preventing it. However, that's not what held her back. About a month prior, Melanie finally carried out her promise to a particularly unfortunate Skiddo. And Knox had finally made good on his promise to knock Mel up. A pregnancy test was hardly even necessary: that first night, she had a particularly vivid dream. It didn't take much for her to recognize the snowy forest she was in. Nor did it take much for her to recognize the three figures who stood before her, but she couldn't help but avert her gaze and tremble. It was her first "trip" to the Dream World in their revised reality, and she hadn't intended on getting mixed up with godhood ever again. As Melanie turned back to face her guests, quivering and trying to apologize, she was met immediately with the motherly embrace of Ululane. She tried blubbering again but was quieted with a loving shush. "It's okay," she reassured Melanie. "You're okay. We're not mad at you, Melanie. In fact, we're indebted to you." Ululane took a step back and smiled at her, still maintaining a hold on her shoulders. Melanie couldn't help but notice Ululane's resemblances to herself, her appearance as Ululane, and Luna. There are plenty of other features, likely due to the various perceptions held by worshippers.

"I exist because of your inspiration. Nicholas may have been the one to make the final invocation, but it is you who made me. And it was you who brought Haumea back to us. And it was you who worked to extol the virtues of Nuakea, a particularly difficult thing for you at the time. I know you have no interest in becoming part of the pantheon now, but know that we still support you. You need not fear our wrath every time you lie down to sleep. We will be there when you need us." She smiled again and Haumea nodded. "In fact, soon you'll probably see me so often you'll get sick of me!" Nuakea exclaimed with a cheeky grin. Melanie looked between the three with confusion plain her face. "I'm...going to...wait...what? What are you talking...about..." Mel trailed off as Nuakea stepped to the side, revealing a small goat child. "M-Mommy?" The child squeaked and took a few tentative steps towards her. "I believe you made a promise, did you not? A promise to raise this child and give them another chance at life? A life full of love instead of pain?" Ululane explained rhetorically. Melanie dropped to her knees and traded quizzical looks with the child. "That's...that's right. I was supposed to...wait, that means I'm..." She gave the child an incredulous look before a smile broke out across her face. "I'm...going to be your...mother." She embraced the child and a warm light washed over the two of them. The next think she remembered, she was lying curled up in bed against a snoring Knox, who was promptly and violently awoken in her excitement.

"Um, excuse me, ma'am? Are we battling?" The youth timidly inquires. Melanie's daydream ends with a pang of embarrassment and a view of Knox's amused face. She snaps back to attention and puts her hand on a pokeball. "Er, YES...yes we are. As I said before, a limit of three pokemon, one at a time, no direct interference, and the first to have all three of their pokemon knocked out loses. Good luck." The kid nods and Mel turns to Eliza. Thus far, they've only managed to employ a dedicated receptionist for the gym, no one else, so Eliza stands up with a smile and gives a countdown. As she reaches zero, two pokeballs fly into the center of the arena: a greatball and what appears to be a commissioned half-black, half-green pokeball with a subtle 'M' pattern between the colors. From the greatball, a fierce looking Pangoro emerges, but its glare is nothing compared to that of the exceptionally intimidating Haunter coming from the other side. Its maniacal cackle causes the Pangoro to hesitate. The kid gives the Haunter a concerned look for a second before visibly relaxing. "Pain, end it quickly with a Crunch!" The Pangoro nods and approaches the unconcerned looking Haunter, which continues to mock the punch panda with all manner of faces. It suddenly jumps forward and successfully lands a vicious bite on the ethereal ghost, tearing away at its ectoplasmic body. The Haunter howls in pain before suddenly revealing a sick grin. Melanie speaks a single word, "Counter." The torn away spectral rags suddenly reveal themselves to be two pairs of claws in addition to the Haunter's usual "limbs". It proceeds to pummel the Pangoro from all directions, leaving it in critical condition. "Show it your real might, Po Junior. Shadow Punch." Po the Second gives a frightening laugh as all of its claws condense into one larger fist which proceeds to slam into Pain with more force than a Haunter should ordinarily be capable of. While the challenger recalls his unconscious pokemon, Po Jr. goes on a victory march through one of the portals.

The kid muses to himself, "Oh, wow, that was...different." Mel smirks. After considering his options carefully, the kid throws out a premiere ball. "Focus! We're bringing out the big guns early!" With that, he slaps a gem embedded in his belt and the Medicham radiates with power. Unable to reach its foe at the moment, it works itself up to prepare for combat. With a shrieking giggle, the Haunter does similarly, sharpening its claws and fading into the shadows. The Medicham scans the room with a serious expression, waiting for its adversary to make the first move. "Shadow Punch." The ghost suddenly appears from behind and shreds its opponent in a flurry of claws. It laughs again as its victim fal- "Endure it, Focus! Zen Headbutt!" Po Jr. is promptly rocketed into the ground from the force of a telekinetic headbutt by a barely conscious Medicham. Melanie smirks. "Oh, this is going to be fun." She recalls the Haunter and tosses out another customized pokeball onto the field and out comes an exceptionally sharp Doublade.

The Medicham sizes up its new opponent and takes the time to recover some of the catastrophic damage that was done to it. The Doublade watches Focus carefully for a second before it sheds the dead weight of its sheathes. "Karma." The unencumbered blades swiftly launch forth to retaliate against the enemy as punishment for defeating Po Jr. "Detect!" Focus predicts the attack in time to block it. "Shadow Claw." The blades make a follow-up attack, but the Medicham's near prescient focus barely allows it to evade the attack, it uses the opportunity to grapple with the Doublade. "Prepare it for your namesake finisher! Focus Punch!" Melanie grins as Focus begins to draw power into its fist. "Elder Blades, you know what to do." The swords flash with an ominous magic just as the Medicham's fist makes cataclysmic contact. When the dust settles, both fighters are down. "Wait, what hap-...oh." The challenger's brow furrows as he realizes what the Doublade did. He can't make anymore mistakes.

Melanie laughs, "Oh my, down to both of our final pokemon! This is fun!" The kid's grip on his last pokeball tightens. "Well, then sorry ma'am, but I'll have to beat you now!" The last two pokeballs are launched into the arena. The trainer's ultra ball reveals a very serious Girafarig, causing Melanie to recoil slightly. Her own pokeball reveals a Marowak, though it seems to be darker than usual and the ends of its club are on fire. The pokemon had been a gift from Phantasia during her own travels. Both pokemon immediately prepare for battle: the Girafarig stomps around to gets its blood going and the Marowak performs a threatening war dance. The kid is able to make a reasonable guess as to the nature of this Marowak. "Crunch it, Seer!" The Girafarig dashes to the Marowak and feints a bite with its front head while it's back head delivers the real attack. The Marowak weathers the attack, but its body shimmers as the rear head's jaw seems to get clamped shut. "Hope you weren't relying on that. Hades, Flame Charge." The Marowak spins its club before slamming it against the Girafarig, dealing a staggering amount of damage. Seer can hardly stay up, but it's clear that despite the Marowak's vigor, Hades took a fair amount of damage as well.

"Alright, last round, let's go!" Melanie shouts as she leans forward to get a better look at the combatants. "Hades, Flare Blitz!" With the extra momentum from its previous attack, the Marowak becomes a vicious storm of fire. The Girafarig's injuries are clearly slowing it down and it flinches as it anticipates the incoming attack. "Divine intervention!" The kid yells out just as Marowak's club is about to make contact. Suddenly, a wave of psychic energy bursts from the Girafarig, causing Hades to misstep in its dance. Carlos gives a knowing smirk. Its momentum throws it wide of Seer. "Now make it pay for its arrogance!" Reinvigorated, Seer cunningly stomps a hoof in the Marowak's way, causing it to accidentally strike itself with its full power. The foul (though perfectly legal) play leaves the Marowak out cold at the feet of the exhausted, but standing, Girafarig. Both trainers stare at the battlefield in disbelief. The kid looks up at Melanie. Melanie looks down at the kid. After a few seconds of awkward staring, Melanie starts to laugh and begins applauding the kid, as do the spectators. "Oh man, that was AWESOME! I was worried that I was going to just kick your ass, or you'd kick my ass, but that was so cool! Well done!" The kid quirks an eyebrow at Melanie. He'd heard some stories and definitely thought she'd be...crazier? "Um...thank you...ma'am?"

As the battle ends, the river Styx drops down below and the spectral portals dissipate. Melanie very nearly leaps down from her platform casually, but she pauses and puts a hand on her belly. Instead, she looks straight down at the platform. "Hey, Fu-Go, can I get a hand?" The Drifblim suddenly rises and carries her down before the rather intimidated challenger. She reaches into a pocket and pulls out a badge depicting a dragon eating itself. "Hey kid, congratulations, you just got the first Limbo Badge." He carefully plucks it from her and examines it as though it were a precious heirloom. He looks back up at her, now realizing that she doesn't really seem to be THAT much older than him. It's reassuring, he thinks, to know that with hard work, even young people are capable of great things. "Thank you, ma'am." Perhaps becoming Champion is a lot more feasible than he thought. Filled with inspiration, the kid marches on to his next challenge.