//------------------------------// // Towards the Final Gym // Story: My Little Pokémon: Grander World // by Amarvax //------------------------------// Equestria. Ponyville. Day. Following the event that involved Darkrai and Cresselia, at last, Fluttershy returned home, meeting with her animals and Pokemon. But along the way, travelling from Sinnoh to Equestria, she returned with gifts that were being carried by her, Audino, Bayleef and Raboot. "Here you go! I brought you all something!" Like a grandma giving her grandchildren gifts after coming to viist, Fluttershy would grant these to the vast majority of Pokemon within the Pokemon House. And the Pokemon were elated. Elated to see her again and to receive some gifts. They all stormed over to the pegasus and her teammates, ready to receive whatever she got them, frantically crying and jumping about. "Okay, you'll all get one." "Oh, let me get one!" Something was out of the ordinary here. Someone spoke with the crowd of Pokemon. That was none other than Scootaloo as she raised her hoof through the pile of Pocket Monsters. Her friends could also be seen within the crowd. Sweetie Bellea nd Apple Bloom. "Sorry. But I only brought gifts that cater to Pokemon." Unfortunately, nothing that caters to ponies were here for the three of them, making them collectively pout. "Aww..." "It's great to be back. You'll love what I have to tell you about Darkrai and Cresselia. By the way...are Team Rocket around? I haven't seen them recently." Fluttershy navigated her head across the area, searching for Team Rocket. "They're the ones who told me about Cresselia too." "Mm-mm. Haven't seen them anywhere." Scootaloo climbed up a Snorlax. "Their ship is even gone. Maybe they went back with Zecora since she's teaching them, right?" "I guess so. I'm going to miss them when they head back. They've been a lot of help here." Fluttershy smiled as a large part of her would miss Team Rocket. "But...I think I'll be seeing them again. They just can't take their minds off Pikachu, can they?" "So anyway! Tell us about what happened with Cresselia and Darkrai!" Sweetie Belle yelled, wanting to hear about this story as soon as possible. "Then I'll tell you my story. I just got my 5th Gym Badge." Scootaloo proudly said. "It was a close one, but I pulled it off. Just three more to go." "Alright, alright. Let's make it quick though before we head to the Pokemon School today. So...Here's what happened." Fluttershy cleared her throat, preparing to share her short journey across Sinnoh which took a few days and had a rather explosive ending. Rainbow Dash's Home. Speaking of Gym Battles, Rainbow Dash was currently holding her badge case, observing the badges she's managed to collect during her career as a Pokemon Trainer. The Veld Badge. Earned by battling Gardenia, who was the temporary Grass Gym Leader for Equestria until Roseluck took that position. The Soak Badge. Earned by taking on Misty, who was also a temporary trainer there until another Water-Gym Leader by the name of Nessa took the position. The first two were straightforward but the third was the first major obstacle she had to get through. The Blazing Badge. When she first lost to Sunset Shimmer and managed to win a second time, earning her this third Gym Badge. The Velocity Badge. A badge that perfectly fit the pegasus as it was against Zecora, who used swift Pokemon as her theme. Rainbow Dash, being adept in speed, managed to come out on top, earning her this badge. The Climate Badge. Focused on both Double Battles and the Weather. When battling a fellow Wonderbolt by the name of Soarin, she was victorious with the perfect synergy of her Pokemon when they teamed up. The Capricious Badge. Focused on unpredictability. When encountering Ms Harshwinny, she had lost the first time, slowing her down a bit and managed to win a second time. And so far, her hardest battle, despite winning it on her first go was none other than the Stache Badge. When taking on Mayor Mare who battled with facial hair Pokemon, this was the penultimate Gym Badge before the final one. A remarkable achievement. Hard work and growing with her Pokemon led to these victories. She even grew from the losses, improving as a Trainer. Now, there was just one final Gym Badge that was a complete mystery. That final Gym Badge was the ticket to entering the Equestria League and with the opportunity to become Equestria's first Champion. "Just one more Gym Badge to go." Rainbow Dash said before closing her Gym Badge Case, which had one empty spot. "I just have to get past whoever it is." "Whim! Whimsi!" Appearing with an energetic voice was Whimsicott as she latched onto Rainbow Dash's head. "Whimsicott!" "Yeah, yeah, I hear ya, Whimsicott. You want an opportunity. Well, don't worry. I'll have you battle in the final Gym." Rainbow Dash understood Whimsicott immediately. The hyperactive Windveiled Pokemon was eager to take a crack at her first and final Gym Battle. "But you gotta be ready. You haven't battled as much, have you?" "Whim?" "Let's head over to the Pokemon School. We can fix that. And then, it's off to the final Gym." Rainbow Dash would hold the Grass-Fairy-Type. Canterlot. Canterlot Castle. Day. Arriving at the Pokemon School on this day were many students from across Equestria, here to further expand their knowledge of Pokemon. Watching them all gather in the school for a new day was Luna, who was a part of it, but rarely ever shows up. She pressed her face against the window with her eyes rapidly moving, eyeing down everyone. "Aren't you going to join them, Luna?" Celestia asked, approaching her sister who was glued to the window. "Then again, I don't think I've ever seen you there." "I was given a private teacher, but I am my own teacher. Currently, I'm watching for potential challengers who I'll have to eliminate on my path to becoming the Equestrian Champion." Luna explained, bluntly explaining what she was up to. "Hm. Alright then." Celestia went with it. "How close are you, actually? Until the League has enough contestants for the preliminaries, I can already predict that you've cleared all the Gyms and are ready to enter the League?" "No. Not at all." Luna shook her head. "I've yet to challenge that final Gym. I've been holding out on it for a while, actually until I was ready. I've been watching everypony grow as Pokemon Trainers since then and growing myself. And the growth levels are tremendous." "Hm. They are." Celestia smiled, closing her eyes as the strength of Equestria's Pokemon Trainers certainly shot up. Though a majority of them were not battles, they managed to show off some impressive skills. "Perhaps it's the Cutie Marks. Maybe those are a factor in how fast they've grown. Maybe." "But I think I've wasted enough time." Luna looked back at Celestia. "The worlds are united now and I believe this is the perfect opportunity to challenge that Final Gym. What better time is there?" "I'll be rooting for you~" Celestia used her magic to generate a flag with Luna's face. Perfectly constructed and made out of an ethereal aura. "So, who is the final Gym Leader exactly? It has to be someone who is strong enough for practically anyone. We don't exactly have an Elite 4 yet after all. We'll be installing that once the first Equestria League Champion is born." "Apparently..." Luna would use her magic to unveil a sheet of paper. On it, the Eight Gym Badges were shown along with the Gym Leaders. Roseluck, Nessa, Sunset Shimmer, Zecora, Soarin, Ms Harshwhinny and Mayor Mare all had their faces next to their respective Gym Badges. And there was one final face with one final badge, right next to the face of this individual. It was none other than the expert Pokemon Doctor and even Breeder. "It seems to be Brock." "Oh, him?" Celestia leaned her long neck forward, glancing at the roadmap. "I didn't think he'd be the last one. He works at the Pokemon School, doesn't he?" "A Pokemon Doctor back at Kanto and a Breeder here at the Pokemon School," Luna replied. "He was a Gym Leader in his day though. The very first that many challenge as well." "Careful. Ash's travelling companions are veritable juggernauts in their own right. Especially since this is the Last Gym before the League, I'm positive Brock will use everything against you. More than what everyone else previously used." "I have nothing to fear. I have all of my Pokemon with me." Luna wrapped up the sheet. "All my years of training are going to pay off for this very moment. Four years but still a good enough amount of time, even for an alicorn such as myself. I shall burn off a bit more of my time to train before I encounter him. Wish me luck!" Luna would then depart from here via teleportation, excited to take on the final gym. Over at the Pokemon School, classes would occur with Brawly and Roxanne being the primary teachers for today. Roxanne was mainly focusing on the history of the Pokemon World, diving deeper into it since there was still so much to learn. "Ransei is in the shape of Arceus for a reason," said Roxanne, teaching them about the Ransei Region. "The people that found it once saw Arceus in a vision. Most of Ransei's inhabitants are descended from the people of Arche Valley, but they share a connection to the Creator Deity differently." "Mmm..." Meanwhile, while this lesson was going on, Rainbow Dash was twiddling her hooves. Her tail was wagging rapidly, brushing against Carrot Top's hoof, which was visibly annoying her. The pegasus was eager to leave as soon as possible just to challenge that Final Gym. Much like Luna, she was too elated. Twilight noticed Rainbow Dash's frantic twiddling with her tail moving constantly. To at least free Carrot Top from this annoyance, Twilight used her magic to hold Rainbow Dash's tail in place. A smile graced Carrot Top's face, relieved to be free from that irritating brushing. "But shaping a region in a shape of a Pokemon is easier than it looks, actually." Roxanne continued. "Granted, not many actually do it but it's possible." "Really? Can we make a region that looks like a Pokemon one day?" Fluttershy questioned. "I say it's easy but it all depends on its inhabitants. Ransei was a rather empty region until it was found. The descendants from Arche Valley poured all of their faith and belief into Arceus and the shape of that region was made. It's certainly bigger than Arche Valley to warrant this kind of shape." Roxanne explained. "The shape was already there but it wasn't until it became populated that it matched Arceus. In this world, belief can get you pretty far." "So...could I have a region that looks like a Milotic?" Rarity asked, bringing up her own Milotic as she already imagined how beautiful it would look. "That'd be wonderful!" "It could happen. It'd be a strange region to be in with how Milotic is shaped though. Not many pathways when I think about it. For the future generations, I'd suggest thinking of a Pokemon that stands on all fours. Much like Arceus. You'll have more space and less to worry about. Ransei once had 17 Kingdoms because of Arceus' shape." "What about amorphous Pokemon? Like Ditto?" Twilight asked. "Then that's just a normal region." Roxanne shrugged as a Ditto-shaped Region wouldn't be any different from most other regions due to how blob-like the Normal-Type Pokemon was. "Now, we're going to be learning about each of these 17 Kingdoms and all of their Warlords. From the Aurora Region to the Dragnor Region at the very end. Let's go through only one. Just one kingdom has a lot of story behind it. The rest will be gradual over the days." "That's not so bad..." Rainbow Dash said as she could deal with one kingdom for a day. As long as it wasn't multiple. Her excitement to get to that Final Gym Battle was also making her rather impatient. Despite this, she paid attention to her lesson. Anything that involves Pokemon was too good to ignore. Hours passed. Knowledge of the Aurora Region had yet to be fully understood by everyone. There was a lot to unpack, meaning this lesson would transition into the coming days. All the while, Princess Luna was busy getting some extra training in. She was training around Deerling Forest. Not too far from Canterlot. As for Rainbow Dash, the Pokemon School had their break sessions, giving Rainbow Dash the opportunity to practice as well. While Rainbow Dash's friends went to chatter amongst each other, the pegasus chose to stay on her own, getting in some training with her Pokemon. Both trainers were practising intensively for this. Whimsicott, who was among Rainbow Dash's fastest Pokemon now despite being new, was being chased by Whirlipede. Both were growing their speed together as Rainbow Dash could always depend on that factor. The Curlipede Pokemon would roll across the field when chasing Whimsicott. The two had raced before which ended in Whimsicott joining the team after all. Luna had every single Pokemon she caught over the past 4 years train together in ways they only knew. The Pokemon from Deerling Forest would gather to watch these Pokemon train, having something enjoyable to gaze at. Darkrai was exempt from this training, noticeably, staying in the shadows as always. But one could argue that his concentration and connection with the shadows are what makes him so consistently skilled. All this and the afternoon would soon become young. "Alright! We're ready!" Together, across different parts of Equestria, Rainbow Dash and Princess Luna collectively said the same thing, feeling that they were finally ready. Winsome Falls. Afternoon. The location of the final Gym was known to many and yet no one has ever approached it, mainly due to the massive obstacle that was the 2nd Gym. And that location was Winsome Falls. A verdant and bright location composed of multiple rainbow-coloured waterfalls. The final destination for Equestrian Pokemon Trainers and the way to Brock. Immediately after finishing her time at the Pokemon School, Rainbow Dash would waste no time, rushing to Winsome Falls with her friends following. "You were in a rush back there, Rainbow Dash. I've never seen you so impatient." Twilight pointed out, recalling Rainbow Dash's movements back at Roxanne's class. "And yet, you still got down a lot about Aurora." "I know. I'm too psyched for this! This is it!" Rainbow Dash trusted her hooves into the air. "Just one more victory and the Equestria Leauge is as good as mine!" "That's the Gym right there!" Ash noticed the Gym up ahead. Next to the waterfalls, this Gym shared the same shape as most Gyms. Dome-shaped to the core. However, when looking at it, Ash noticed how it resembled a Kanto Gym more than Equestrian Gym which had varying designs depending on the theming. Being out here at Winsome Falls, which can sometimes be seen as a camping sight, a few ponies could be found here. But none of them were here for the Gym. "Excellent. I'll close things off just like how I started it." Rainbow Dash grinned, rubbing her hooves together. This meant only one thing. Rainbow Dash was the first to ever approach this Gym as a challenger. Much like how she was the first one to take on the very first Gym, she would be the first to take on the last. Fairly fitting. "I think not, Rainbow Dash." At least, that's how it would appear. Someone else was on her level. And that someone was the Princess of the Moon, Luna. She descended, flying next to Rainbow Dash at the same pace. "I'll be taking on that Gym first. That way, you can learn from me and make no mistakes." "Princess Luna? You're just now about to challenge it?" Rainbow Dash said. "I thought you already did. You blazed through most of the Gyms after all." "I stumbled a bit towards the end. But now I'm her to finish things. And I was already expecting you to be here, Rainbow Dash. I've been viewing everyone's growth and you've certainly grown to substantial heights." Luna replied. "I actually expected either Spitfire or Daylight Blazer to show up here first, but both seem to be occupied." "Yeah well, I'm going first. I wanna be the first one to win it since I was the first to enter a Gym Battle. Maybe you could take some pointers from me, Princess Luna." Rainbow Dash proudly said, lifting her head in front of royalty. "Hm?" But it wasn't the fact that she was acting high and mighty in front of royalty that made Luna narrow her eyes. Far from it. Luna could care less as she saw Rainbow Dash and her friends as equals. It was the fact that Rainbow Dash was planning to outdo her in this upcoming battle. "We shall see. I would love to spearhead the beginning of the Equestria League, being known as the trainer that outdid all of the Gyms. If you must know...I haven't lost once." "It's true." Twilight Sparkle confirmed this instantly. "Everyone's at least lost to some of the Gym Leaders, Rainbow Dash. Even you. Princess Luna here has a perfect track record, winning in all of her Gym Battles." "Yeah, I know that." Rainbow Dash grumbled. "I'll admit though. The second one caught me off guard when I first challenged it and the fifth was definitely hard on the eyes. My Pokemons' eyes, I mean." Luna added. "Here's what I propose. The first Equestria Champion should have a perfect streak, wouldn't you agree? I'd love to become an idol. A symbol for future trainers who wish to reach the top. Not that I'd let them beat me." "Yeah, because I'll beat you." Rainbow Dash flew ahead, giving a strong retort to Luna. "Hoh? I expect us to face each other in the Pokemon League when we get there." Luna would then speed up as the two of them were flying at an equal pace once more. "And by that, I mean I will defeat you in the quarterfinals before anything else. If you're lucky, you could end up as an Elite 4 Member. Just shy away from the Champion." "As if." Rainbow Dash would reply once more as the two of them were pressing against each other. Both were trying to get ahead, competing vigorously even if they were in a battle at the moment. Ash and the others could see how determined they were to emerge victorious. A rivalry between the two of them had been shown and it was only for Pokemon Battles and nothing more. "It would be highly embarrassing if they both lost in the league..." Rarity chuckled while the bickering of the pegasus and the alicorn nodded. Her friends agreed. If they both ended up losing in the end, then it would be a striking blow to the gut. But if anything, that would only fuel their rivalry and drive to be victorious the next time. "It'll be me that wins!" In unison they roared at each other, declaring who would win it all. The moment they both barged through those doors, the final Gym Leader was there, waiting for them. "I've been waiting for the first challenger. It's about time." The voice of Brock said as he stood there with arms crossed, wearing his doctor uniform. "Oh...No way!" Ash couldn't believe his eyes. Like many, he had no idea who the final Gym Leader was until he saw him for the first time. A good friend who he's travelled with for so long and a highly-skilled Pokemon Doctor and Breeder. "Brock!" "Pika-Chu!" "Hey." Pewter City's Brock the Rock. When meeting with his friends who were thrown off by who ended up being the Final Gym Leader, aside from Luna, he gave them a bright smile. But that smile was also something to exhibit an aura. An aura that basically told the two challengers that they had entered a dangerous zone. Everything was riding on this. The Final Gym before the Equestria League. As the journey continues. Chapter 49 End.