Now that I've got Gliscor back in my party, I can call the full team out for a last minute pep-talk before the gym. Okay everyone...come on out!
ELEKID: Full-team pow-wow? Tom doesn't usually do this unless a gym badge is on the line. Look lively, folks--what the hell happened here?!
PIDGEOTTO: Yeah, how you like me now, bitch? C'mon...gimme an Ice Punch. I'll eat that shit up.
Okay, guys...this one's gonna be big. Based on what we've experienced thus far in the Cythos gyms, we're gonna get fucked up.
ELEKID: This...does not sound like a pep-talk.
We need to understand exactly what we each have to do if we want to come out of this victorious. We need to work as a cohesive unit, understand our roles, and try to fulfill them as best as we possibly can as a team.
ELEKID: Okay, that sounds more like it.
Pinsir, you're going to be my wall. I know you can take a hit like a champ and keep dealing consistently heavy blows, so I am probably going to lead with you.
PINSIR: I shall toss all of the things.
Nidorino, you are definitely going to see some action. You're role will be support. If one of your teammates falls, you're gonna get called out and you're going to hammer that weakened opponent into the ground. You might not make it to the last round, but you're going to be crucial in getting to that last round.
ELEKID: Please don't say that.
Elekid, I know you're expecting to be my steady rock, but damn it...after Isis, I can't risk you getting hurt like that again. Every time I send you out in the gym, you're fighting the strongest foe the leader has to offer...and I nearly lose you every time. For this gym, Pidgeotto is going to be my rock.
ELEKID: I...okay. I understand--
PIDGEOTTO: Yeah! Dethroned, motherfucker! This is my house...MY house!
And Gliscor...you're my ace-in-the-hole. If nothing else works and we're facing defeat, I need you to unleash that new move you just learned.
GLISCOR: Sky Attack! Yeah--!
But you need to learn a new command.
GLISCOR: ...oh?
I'm certain that Tyre will be expecting you to whip out some kind of Flying-type attack, but I don't want you getting knocked out before you can unleash that move. Therefore, we need to convince Tyre that we're charging for an attack, but it would be unwise for it to attack you while you do that. So, when I want you to use Sky Attack, I'm going to tell you to use the attack "Bide". Bide doubles the damage inflicted on the biding Pokemon and unleashes it on the opponent. I've heard some trainers fresh from Mount Moon talk about getting that move machine from Pewter City.
GLISCOR: Bide...okay. Got it.
CHINCHOU: What...what do I do?
Ah yes! Chinchou! Seeing what you did to that Venipede in the park, I want to keep you onboard as a complicator.
CHINCHOU: ...what?
If there's a foe too difficult for anyone else to take down, I'm going to send you out to paralyze it. I don't know of a single Fighting-type who is also a Ground-type, so you should be able to let off a Thunder Wave without a hitch...provided this opponent doesn't pummel you into the ground.
CHINCHOU: I--
And if you get another chance to throw out an attack, it will be Confuse Ray. Keep them as incapacitated as possible. Once you let those two attacks fly, I'll switch you out before you end up in the intensive care unit.
CHINCHOU: ...oh--
Does everyone understand what needs to happen in order to secure another victory for Team Cedar?
PIDGEOTTO: Fuck yeah.
NIDORINO: Understood.
CHINCHOU: I--
PINSIR: Toss and throw and TOSS!
GLISCOR: Roger!
CHINCHOU: Umm--
ELEKID: You can count on me. I'm not afraid of the risks--
CHINCHOU: I am afraid of the risks--
Great! Let's go--oh, I've still got Bagon's Poke Ball. I better put this little guy in the PC before I head over to the gym.
Here we go. I'll just--
Jess? Is...is everything okay? You're just kind of...sitting there. And staring at the floor. And not blinking.
Sheila seems in good spirits...
But Caesar looks concerned. Did something happen--?
Kevin! Hey, do you know what happened to--
Those I.C.U. modules...they're all full? I don't understand. I've never seen them all full before unless there was some kind of disaster that hit the city. I know you said that Reaver was in one, but the other five--?
Sheila and Caesar. Jess...that's the rest of your team, isn't it? Roses, Murk...Soot, Judgment...Frostbite. Did...did Tyre do this? Christ, this must be why she was fine with us leaving for the desert at noon tomorrow...all of her Pokemon are practically in comas!
Massacred?! Kevin, this is serious. How the hell are we supposed to all cross the desert on bikes if Tyre is wiping the floor with our--?
A badge? Jess...you won? I knew you were going to have trouble going in, specializing in Dark-types, but how--?
The Ditto. You used it to transform into Tyre's strongest Pokemon, didn't you--?
"Are any of them dead?"! Is that how you ask a question like that! For fuck's sake--!
He could have killed them...but you say he pulled his punches? God...I don't know...
Jess. Is there anything you can tell me about this gym that I should know? Anything about the Pokemon that did this to your team?
You led with Roses against his last Pokemon, but when you paralyzed it...it got...stronger? And the signature attack of the gym leader...the TM move: what did he give you?
Brick Break. It's powerful...and you say he has a very interesting way of using it? Great. Thank you. I wouldn't want to ask you about any more details.
Pidgeotto...come out here.
Yeah, he evolved, Jess. He evolved doing what he loved: fighting dangerous gang members in the street.
TOM: Pidgeotto, I want you to look at this.
PIDGEOTTO: Okay, what am I--woah.
TOM: These are Jess's Pokemon. This is who she brought to face Tyre. This is what Tyre did to them.
PIDGEOTTO: Fucking hell...
TOM: This is why I need you. This is why I need you to be strong in there. Look at them. Look at what he did to them. Look at what he'll try to do to you, and what his apprentices will try to do to you.
PIDGEOTTO: I...no, that won't be me--
TOM: I need you to know what you're going to face in there...and I need you to get angry. Get angry for them. Can you do that?
PIDGEOTTO: Yes--
TOM: Can. You. Do. That.
PIDGEOTTO: ...I will show him the meaning of fury.
Pidgeotto....return. It's time.
The bike path is empty. Nothing standing between me and Tyre except a few yards of pavement.
~~PRODIGA: The thing to remember is that everyone has a chance at greatness, but you can only decide who you'll be tomorrow. ~~
Tyre...I'm ready.
