"Magneton is unable to battle!"
"All three of Gym Leader Wattson's Pokémon are unable to battle. The winner is the challenger—Gary!"
Referee Walter announced the result.
Gary had defeated Wattson in a clean sweep.
"Ha-ha-ha! I really lost to you. Young Trainers these days are incredible," Wattson said, still wearing his trademark grin.
Although he'd been thoroughly outmatched, the battle had been intense enough for Wattson to accept the outcome without bitterness.
"You flatter me, Mr. Wattson. You were testing my strength—as a Gym Leader should. If you'd used your true ace Pokémon, I might not have stood a chance," Gary answered modestly.
"Ha-ha-ha! You're very diplomatic."
Wattson's mood brightened even further at Gary's compliment—while referee Walter silently noted that the three Pokémon Gary had just defeated were in fact Wattson's strongest battlers.
"This is the Dynamo Badge—proof that you've conquered the Mauville Gym," Wattson said, handing over the badge.
"Thank you!"
Gary accepted it.
[Ding! Mission complete. Rewards have been sent to your Space Backpack.]
"See you next time."
With the mission finished, Gary didn't linger and took his leave.
Outside the Mauville Gym, Gary immediately checked his reward.
[Superior Life Orb – When the holder uses a damaging move, it loses 10% of its HP, but the move's power is increased by 100%.]
"A 100-percent boost? That's crazy," Gary muttered.
The best type-boosting items normally enhanced moves by only 50%. A Life Orb that doubled the power of every move was nearly broken.
If Blastoise held one and used Hydro Cannon, the effective base power would hit 375—on par with Explosion from most Pokémon.
Impressive as it was, Gary still wished for another Mega Stone, or at least a Z-Crystal.
Next, he had to choose his Electric-type TM.
"System, I'll take Thunder Punch."
[Ding! Exchange complete.]
He chose without hesitation. Thunder Punch was versatile and could be learned by many Pokémon. Most of the other Electric-type moves in the list were either signature attacks or locked to species he didn't own.
After collecting the TM, Gary returned to the Pokémon Center, healed Breloom and Grovyle, and taught both of them Thunder Punch.
Even Ralts could learn it, but Gary decided it was still too early for her.
Lairon would gain two more move slots after evolving into Aggron, and could learn Thunder Punch then.
Slakoth was also compatible, so Gary taught it the move right away.
For the first time, Slakoth's perpetually blank face showed a hint of surprise—albeit in slow motion.
"I know you're impressed. It's fine—just be yourself," Gary chuckled.
During the week they'd spent in Verdanturf Town, Gary had discovered just how difficult it was to raise a Slakoth. Despite a specialized training program, the sloth had only gained one level. He decided not to waste any more time.
Slakoth evolves into Vigoroth at Level 18.
His Slakoth was currently Level 11—seven levels short. Burning seven Low-Grade Rare Candies was a fair trade.
The Gym battle had rewarded him with ten, so he used seven of them on Slakoth.
Moments later:
[Lv. 18 Slakoth ♂ – Champion Potential]
The level-up trigger was met.
Slakoth's lazy expression sharpened, and his entire body glowed white.
The light of evolution spread over him. The prone sloth suddenly stood upright, grew taller until he was nearly eye-level with Gary, and filled out with corded muscle.
When the glow faded, a vigorous Vigoroth stood in Slakoth's place. Snow-white fur, brown stripes, razor-sharp black claws, and a tuft of crimson hair between the eyes gave him a wild, energetic look.
"Vii-gor!" he cried—no longer the lethargic grunt of before.
Gary opened his Pokédex:
Pokémon: Vigoroth ♂
Type: Normal
Level: 18
Potential: Champion
Ability:Vital Spirit – Brimming with energy; cannot fall asleep.
Moves: Scratch · Yawn · Slack Off · Headbutt · Amnesia · Fury Swipes
TMs/Tutors: Dynamic Punch · Ice Punch · Rest · Body Slam · Shadow Claw · Thunderbolt · Fire Blast · Sunny Day · Rock Slide · Power-Up Punch · Thunder Punch
Friendship: 255 / 255
No new level-up moves yet, but at least his friendship was maxed out.
Given how slothful Slaking could be, expecting them to master their entire move pool on their own was unrealistic. Gary would take what he could get.
"Gary!"
Just as he was about to return his Pokémon and grab lunch, a familiar voice called out.
He turned and saw a boy he'd met back at Professor Birch's lab—Brendan.
"Brendan!" Gary greeted him, surprised.
Nearly two months had passed since they'd parted in Littleroot Town. Meeting again in Mauville City was quite the coincidence.
"Wow, you evolved a Vigoroth!" Brendan said, his eyes sparkling—he'd seen the whole evolution take place.
"Yeah, it just happened," Gary replied.
"Then let's battle! I'm way stronger than I was back in Oldale!" Brendan declared.
Losing to Gary back then still stung, and he'd grown a lot since. Meeting again and not battling would be a waste.