I approached the man and handed him my badge case. He confirmed the badges were valid and then opened the door to the next room.
I walked inside and entered a massive battlefield. The field was made of stone tiles and was the size of two gym battlefields. There was some sort of glass off to the sides of my part of the battlefield. Wonder what that's for.
I walked a little further into the empty room when the other door slid open. From it, five trainers emerged. Four of them stayed back by the entrance while a man with spiky red hair walked up to me.
The man was dressed in a navy blue outfit with a red cape billowing at his back. The way his face was structured reminded me a bit of Clair. "Hello there challenger. I am Lance. We are the Elite Five."
My eyes widened and Lance chuckled slightly. "I'm sure it's quite a shock, but there are five of us. Bruno recently returned from a long absence and so we've changed our system to accommodate this."
Sure enough, the muscly man was standing in the back with the other three trainers. "So I have to fight five of you now?" I confirmed.
Lance shook his head. "Not quite. Allow me to explain, we've changed how the Elite Challenge works quite a bit. Now, you will battle all of us in rapid succession. Each member besides myself will use three Pokémon and you'll constantly be facing different members one after another. When you call back a Pokémon they're allowed to rest on the sideline." Lance pointed at the glass.
"Resting here will slowly restore their health and stamina." He explained. "But, if your Pokémon is defeated they aren't allowed to battle for the rest of the match. Once you beat all 12 of their Pokémon you will face me in one final battle and then you will be permitted to take on the Champion. Make sense?"
It was a lot to take in but I understood the basic idea so I nodded. Lance smiled again. "Good to hear! Now, whenever you're ready the battle will begin." Lance walked back across the battlefield and I got to my spot.
An older man dressed as a ninja with teal spiky hair called out the first Pokémon. An Ariados. The large spider Pokémon was mostly red with black rings around its body.
Koga's poison types were known for whittling down whatever Pokémon they hit, so I wanted to take it out as quickly as possible. I started off with Magcargo to accomplish this.
Koga folded his arms. "Ariados, use Sludge Bomb!" His voice was gravely and his gaze was sharp. Ariados fired a ball of poison at Magcargo
"Counter with Flamethrower!" I told him. Magcargo spewed flames from his mouth into the ball of sludge and overwhelmed it. The flames continued and slammed into Ariados. "Rollout!"
Magcargo began spinning just as Ariados landed from the last attack and barreled towards the foe. "Poison Jab!" Koga shouted.
Ariados tried slamming one of its feet into the incoming shell but the attack bounced off and Ariados was plowed into.
Magcargo turned around and landed another hit on Ariados. This was enough to defeat the Pokémon entirely.
Koga returned his Pokémon and Bruno stepped forward. "Hitmontop, let's go!" Bruno shouted and he sent out a brown and blue Pokémon with a top-shaped head.
Magcargo had stayed in his shell and another hit from him would be stronger than ever. "Rollout!"
Bruno closed his eyes as my Pokémon approached his and let Hitmontop he hit. Bruno's Pokemon went flying into the air and Magcargo prepared for another Rollout.
Bruno's eyes snapped open and he suddenly shouted. "Use Focus Blast!" A blue sphere appeared in Hitmontop's hands and he threw it down at Magcargo.
The attack exploded and knocked Magcargo over. Hitmontop landed while Magcargo got out of his shell and back upright. "Triple Kick!"
Hitmontop jumped onto its head and spun over to my Pokémon, kicking it three times in the face. Hitmontop retreated from the foe but suddenly briefly erupted with flames.
Magcargo's ability had burned Hitmontop. "That's what I'm talking about! Use Flamethrower!"
"Rapid Spin!" Bruno's Pokemon started to spin just as Magcargo's flames were about to reach him. The spin seemed to deflect the fire for the most part.
Hitmontop came to a stop and took some burn damage. "Now's our chance! Use Rock Slide!" Magcargo shouted its names and stones started to fall from above.
Hitmontop was crushed by one of the boulders and fainted as the attack subsided. That's two down. I told myself.
The next Elite Four member to battle was Will. He had purple hair and was wearing a mask to cover most of his facial features. The trainer was dressed like a magician to compliment his usage of Psychic Pokémon.
Will sent out a Slowking for his first Pokémon. Slowking were bipedal pink Pokémon with white shells on their heads and very potent psychic powers.
I decided to switch out Magcargo for Meganium so he could get some much-needed rest. "Meganium use Vine Whip!" We started off the battle by immediately getting some damage in. "Body Slam!"
Meganium charged forward at the Pokémon and jumped up to slam into it. Will began to laugh. "Icy Wind! Surely you didn't think we'd be beaten so easily? Water Pulse after that!"
Slowking fired a gust of ice-cold wind from his mouth that stopped Meganium in her tracks. Slowking then threw a ball of water into Meganium which knocked her over. "Finish this with a Psychic my Slowking!
This is bad! If that hits it could be over for Meganium! "Meganium use Petal Blizzard! Don't get up just do it!" Meganium conjured a storm of petals around her which left Will speechless. "Now fire them at Slowking!"
The cluster of petals all flew into Slowking and scored us yet another win. The final member of the Elite Four sent out her first Pokémon after his defeat.
Karen had cool blue hair that went down to her waist and wore a golden crop top and white pants. Her Pokémon was an Umbreon. I decided to give Meganium a break and Heracross a chance to fight another Umbreon.
"Heracross use Bulk Up!" Heracross immediately increased its attack and defense.
Karen shrugged. "Umbreon use Confuse Ray!" The rings on Umbreon's body all started to glow in a strange pattern.
The pattern began to entrance Heracross. "Heracross close your eyes!" I told him. My Pokémon willed himself to listen and look away from the attack. Something wasn't right about that move. "Charge in and use Brick Break! Go fast!"
Heracross blindly rushed down at Umbreon. Upon noticing the attack wasn't working, the Pokémon stopped the Confuse Ray. "Now open your eyes and hit them!" Heracross regained his sight and slammed an arm into Umbreon. "Bulk Up again!"
Heracross increased his strength again while Umbreon crashed into a wall. Karen glared at us. "We aren't finished yet! Use Shadow Claw!" Umbreon leaped off from the wall and started running at Heracross.
"Take the hit and finish this with Megahorn!" Umbreon struck Heracross but barely did any damage. Heracross returned by throwing Umbreon into the ceiling with his horn attack.
Umbreon crash-landed on the ground unconscious and Karen rolled her eyes while returning it. That's four down and I haven't lost any Pokémon yet!
Koga called out a Crobat and I was about to return Heracross but he shook his head. "You sure buddy?" Heracross nodded. "Sounds good! Bulk Up!" Heracross increased his strength and defense yet again.
"Crobat use Mean Look and then Wing Attack!" Koga brought his arm down as he said this.
A red wave erupted from Crobat and settled on Heracross. After that, it flew towards my Pokémon with a vengeance. Mean Look means we can't get out of this fight until one of the two Pokémon is defeated... I hope Heracross can manage on his own.
"Draw them in and use Brick Break! Then follow up with Horn Attack!" Crobat's wing struck Heracross's side but it did little to my Pokémon.
Heracross hit Crobat across the face and then jammed the Pokémon into the ground with his horn. "Air Slash!" Koga shouted. Crobat propelled itself backward with a blast of air.
The move went right through Heracross's defense and hit him with full power. I was worried he would be defeated right there but he managed to hang on. "Wrap this up and use Megahorn!"
Crobat was flying way slower than usual from all the damage so Heracross could easily strike it with his horn and finish another battle off.
Heracross definitely needed a break at that point so I called him back while Bruno sent out a Poliwrath.
Poliwrath was a large blue Pokémon with giant fists and a black and white swirl on his body that made up his mouth. I sent in Meganium and the next battle began.
"Start us off strong with Petal Blizzard!" I commanded. Meganium immediately charged in surrounded by petals and overwhelmed Poliwrath.
Bruno remained expressionless and waited for the attack to subside. "Now Poliwrath, use Submission!" Poliwrath began punching Meganium over and over.
I winced as I watched my Grass Type be struck over and over again. "Vine Whip!"
"Block it," Bruno ordered. Poliwrath took the vine attacks with his arms and roared. "Ice Punch!" Poliwrath was suddenly moving again and punched Meganium in the chest.
The damage was finally too much for her and my first Pokémon was defeated. I felt the nerves rise up as I tried to think of my next plan.
I sent out Espeon and prepared for the worst. "Use Throat Chop!" Bruno's Pokémon started charging at Espeon and closing the distance quickly.
"Stop him with Shadow Ball like we've done before!" I called to her. Espeon threw several small projectiles at the Poliwrath but they had little effect.
Poliwrath brought its arms down on Espeon's throat and I was worried she would faint right there. Fortunately, she didn't and got right back up. "Psychic!"
Espeon picked up Bruno's second Pokémon and threw it onto the ground. Poliwrath fainted and Karen immediately called out her Houndoom.
The imposing Pokémon was a bloodhound with black fur and two long winding horns on its head. I called back Espeon and sent out Quagsire.
"Quagsire use Surf!" Quagsire created a wave and rode it into the Houndoom to start off the battle
Karen scoffed as the wave finished. "Houndoom use Crunch!" Houndoom shook off the water and lunged for Quagsire.
I grinned. "Quagsire guard like when you battle Raikou! Then use Surf again!" Quagsire coated his fist in ice and let Houndoom bite down on it.
Quagsire then conjured a ball of water in his free hand and threw it into Houndoom's chest. The Pokémon was pushed all the way onto the other side of the battlefield.
Karen's eyes flared with anger. "Houndoom use Hyper Voice!" Her Houndoom began howling and the howls seemed to do considerable damage to Quagsire. "Now use Flamethrower!"
Quagsire was engulfed in flames shortly after recovering from the Hyper Voice attack. "Earthquake to finish this!" I shouted to him.
Quagsire hurriedly slammed his foot onto the ground and the shockwave immediately knocked Houndoom out upon reaching it.
Karen was fuming while Quagsire strolled back to me. Just six more Pokémon to go! We've got this! Will decided to go next and sent out an Espeon.
I decided to mirror him and sent my own Espeon back in. "Espeon use Iron Tail!"
Espeon began running towards Will's Pokémon and he shook his head. "Use Psychic and make her... disappear!" Espeon suddenly was brought into the air and tossed away again.
I racked my brain trying to think of a way in. "Use Shadow Ball!" Espeon tossed several small purple balls into the opposing Espeon.
Will snapped his fingers as the attack finished. "Use Thunderbolt!" His Espeon began to crackle with electricity and then electrocuted my Espeon.
I could tell she was getting tired but now we had a chance to finish this. "Use Iron Tail!" Espeon ran in during the opening and slammed her tail into Will's Pokémon. "Hyper Beam!"
Espeon turned to face her opponent and fired the devastating attack. "Jump over it and use Shadow Ball!" Will's Espeon gracefully leaped over the attack and bombarded my Pokémon with Shadow Balls until she was defeated.
That's two down now... we can't give up! I decided to take a risky move and send out my secret weapon for Lance early, Sneasel. "Use Ice Shard!"
Sneasel was immediately able to get off some early damage. "Now use Double Team!" Sneasel began to copy himself repeatedly and they surrounded the Espeon.
Will's eyes darted around frantically. "Use Psychic to destroy the copies!" His Espeon sent out a massive wave of psychic power the immediately dissipated the copies but had no effect on the original.
I grinned. "Use Night Slash!" Sneasel charged in and slammed his purple blade into Espeon's side. It groaned and then fell over. Just four Pokémon left.
Karen threw out the next Poké Ball and sent out a Vileplume. Vileplume were dark blue Pokémon with giant red flowers on their heads. I had Sneasel come back and chose Magcargo to battle the Grass and Poison Type.
Karen grinned instead of her normal scowl. She was up to something. "Vileplume use Solarbeam!"
Vileplume began to charge up the powerful grass attack, leaving it wide open. "Alright, Magcargo use Rock Slide!" Magcargo dropped several boulders onto Vileplume and the Pokémon made no attempt to dodge.
Karen's final Pokémon pulled itself out of the rocks and unleashed the attack on Magcargo. The beam was powerful but Magcargo still had plenty of stamina left. "Use Flamethrower!"
"Dodge it!" Karen's Pokémon easily leaped out of the flames' path.
I needed to wrap this fight up quickly. "Try Body Slam!"
Karen's smile widened as Magcargo threw his body at Vileplume. "Drain Punch!" Vileplume swung its fist into Magcargo's underbelly just as it jumped on top of it.
Vileplume threw Magcargo away from it and seemed to be stronger than before. Shoot! She must be trying to draw me in! I scanned the battlefield and realized Vileplume was still nearby the rocks and had an idea.
"Magcargo use Rollout!" Magcargo began to charge right towards the Vileplume and Karen started laughing. "Now stop and get on your side! Then keep spinning and use Flamethrower!"
Karen's jaw dropped as Magcargo executed my instructions. Vileplume tried to block the waves of flames and was pushed back up against the rocks. "Now get up and hit them with Flamethrower!"
Magcargo came to a stop and gave Vileplume a taste of his full power fire attack at close quarters. After that, we had defeated our first Elite Four member.
Karen angrily returned her Pokémon while I had Magcargo take a break. Will called out a Xatu so I sent in Sneasel to deal with it.
Xatu was a bird Pokémon with green feathers and white wings. It balanced on two feet and barley moved at all. "Go Xatu, use Tailwind!"
Will's Pokémon got into the air and a powerful wind started to swell around it. "Use Ice Punch!" Sneasel leaped into the air and uppercut Xatu.
Xatu lost its control and fell out of the air while Sneasel landed gracefully. "Now use Ice Shard!" With the wind still blowing, Sneasel hit the downed Xatu with his quick ice attack.
"Xatu use Air Slash!" Will's Pokémon shot back up and quickly hit Sneasel with an air current. Wow, that Tailwind made it fast! We need to stop it right now!
"Sneasel get on his back and use Night Slash!" Sneasel jumped into the air and landed on Xatu's back. The two began to fall out of the sky and Sneasel jammed his blade into its back.
Xatu crashed onto the ground and fainted, bringing us to only three Pokémon we had to fight.
Koga brought out his final Pokémon next. The Pokémon was a green and yellow fish Pokémon with spikes on its body and a small tail.
I decided to go with Quagsire for this battle. "Use Pin Missile!" Qwilfish quickly launched its spikes into Quagsire's body right off the bat.
Tailwind hadn't gone away yet and I would have to deal with the speed boost it gave Qwilfish. "Earthquake!" Quagsire was able to get in some solid damage with his attack.
Koga's Pokémon shrugged off the damage. "Use Aqua Tail!" Qwilfish swam through the air and struck Quagsire in the face with its tail before swimming away.
"Iron Tail!" Quagsire started charging for the Pokémon while focusing his power into his tail.
Koga stood tall and stared us down. "Use Pin Missile again!" Quagsire ran straight ahead while Qwilfish pelted it with more pins.
Quagsire finally reached the Pokémon and knocked it into the air with his tail attack. "Now use Aqua Tail!" As Qwilfish was falling, it hit Quagsire on the head with its tail again.
I could tell Quagsire was running out of stamina but the Tailwind seemed to finally vanish. "Earthquake!" Quagsire fiercely shook the ground and this attack was finally enough to best Qwilfish.
Koga stepped back and my final challenge before Lance appeared on the battlefield. Bruno had sent out a Machamp. The fighting machine had four muscly arms and it was built to take on any Pokémon imaginable.
I tried to think of the optimal way to damage it with Quagsire's limited stamina. "Use Surf! Don't ride the wave!" I told him. Quagsire sent out the tidal wave which washed over Machamp.
Maybe if we can keep him away for long enough we can drain his energy? "Use Earthquake!" Quagsire wasted no time unleashing his powerful ground attack again but I could tell he was nearly completely out of strength.
Machamp took both of these attacks fully but seemed no worse for wear. Bruno pointed at Quagsire. "Use Dynamic Punch!" Machamp charged ahead with all four of its fists at the ready.
There was no way Quagsire would be able to endure a blow like that. "Ice Punch! Hit him hard!" I shouted.
Quagsire managed to punch Machamp in the chest before it could hit him with one of its fists. The attack seemed to do little to stop the Pokémon but any damage was important at this point.
I cursed myself for losing Espeon so soon and returned my third Pokémon. I looked at my remaining three and Magcargo slid forward.
"If you want to battle, you're more than welcome to buddy," I told him and sent him in. "Start with Rock Slide!"
Rocks began to fall above Machamp. "Dynamic Punch and break them all!" Bruno shouted. His Pokémon shattered the stones with each punch.
But, this left him wide open. "Flamethrower!" Magcargo fired the attack at the unsuspecting foe and Machamp was briefly engulfed in flames.
Bruno's cold exterior seemed to be cracking and he was now passionately watching the battle. "Machamp use Thunder Punch!"
His Pokémon came charging from the flames with its fists all sparking with electricity. "At the last second use Rollout and go right under him!" Just as Machamp prepared to strike, Magcargo tucked into his shell and evaded all the fists, ending up behind Machamp. "Now use Body Slam!"
Magcargo leaped up and threw his entire body onto Machamp. The Fighting Type fell over with Magcargo on top which couldn't have been comfortable. "Now use Rollout! Hurry and hit him multiple times!"
Magcargo jumped off Machamp and started spinning around in his shell. While Machamp was trying to get up, Magcargo got in two easy hits
Machamp shoved itself onto its feet and prepared for Magcargo's third time around. At this point, it was all or nothing. It had to have been almost defeated.
"Flaming Rollout! Full power!"
Bruno's eyes widened as Magcargo's shell erupted into flames and sped toward Machamp. "Cross Chop! Don't hold back!"
Machamp brought its four arms together and they clashed against Magcargo's shell. The two Pokémon were clearly giving it all they had. I could feel the tension between them.
Sparks started flying from the clash and it soon erupted into a massive explosion. Smoke covered the battlefield for a brief moment but when it cleared, both Pokémon were unable to battle.
Bruno returned Machamp and smiled at me. "That was a wonderful battle. I look forward to seeing you fight against Lance."
The Dragon Master stepped forward and brushed his cape aside. "Very impressive. But now, it's time to really put your skills to the test!" With that, he sent out his Dragonite.