Entry for 's competition, depicting the battle that took place in the training gym, at the end of the story me, , and came up with, with Bflat and Da-End as main writers.
Special thanks to for allowing us to use one of her characters, Kreo, in the story.
WARNING: FOLLOWING STORY CONTAINS FOUL LANGUAGE
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Emma Watson sat across from Director Maddox, wide-eyed in disbelief. “You want my team to do what?!”

“Please, just listen, Miss Watson,” Cheyenne said as she paced the room nervously. She peered between her blinds to the quad below, uncertain if this new plan to defeat those damn superdittos would work, but it was their last defense. On her desk, facing the Nidoqueen was a fairly thick manila folder. The stout Flareon reached over her desk, flipping the folder open to reveal various pictures of Team Fanservice in action. “We have been keeping records of your team’s success, and the sheer brute force behind your attacks is astonishing.” She returned to her seat across from the student, elbows resting on the table and her fingers interlocked just beneath her nose, giving an air of confidence that wasn’t really there. “We need a team that won’t just defeat them. We need a team that can demolish them, and your Team seems a prime candidate for the job.”

Emma looked at the pictures in front of her, a sense of pride building inside of her. They’ve been watching my girls, she thought to herself, and they like what they see. She sighed softly, her eyes meeting firmly with the director’s. “Fine,” she said, succumbing to the director’s will. “How long do I have to prepare my team?”

“You have one hour, Miss Watson,” Director Maddox said matter-of-factly. The Nidoqueen stared in disbelief once more.

“Wh-…one hou--?” she stammered, unable to finish the sentence due to the frustration building inside of her. “These things have done serious damage to professors, and you expect my team to be ready in an hour?!” The director rose from her seat, slamming her hands on her desk as flames dramatically burst outward from her collar and tail.

“Miss Watson, due to the grave situation at our doorstep, I find myself with an exceedingly low tolerance for bullshit. As we speak those…monsters…are destroying our training gym. Anyone who sets foot in that room without knowing they are inside finds themselves without so much as a prayer of coming out of there conscious!” By now, the Nidoqueen had fallen meekly back into her own seat, too shocked to form a proper response. Director Maddox eased back, letting out a soft sigh. “Emma, I am sorry for that outburst. But right now, this school desperately needs you and your team. Will you rise to your calling?” Emma, still a little shaken from the unexpected verbal onslaught, nodded softly.

“I will…we will…we’ll do it.” She couldn’t help but worry in that instant that something terrible would happen to her teammates. She would do whatever she had to do to make sure her team made it out in one piece. Director Maddox smiled for the first time since the interview began.

“Thank you, Miss Watson. As a token of gratitude and a token of apology, I’ll give your team 90 minutes to prepare. But I expect you at the training gym by exactly…” she turns to the wall above her door, observing the positions of the hands on the clock. “…4:35 p.m. sharp. Am I clear, Miss Watson?” The Nidoqueen nodded, her voice shaky and soft as she replied.

“We…we won’t let you down, Director, ma’am.”

---

The room was dead still—the buzzing of the overhead lights overpowering the monotonous beep from the heart rate machine. Three of them sat there, trying their best to mentally piece together what had just happened. Across the room, a young, broad man kneeled at a bedside, a silent prayer escaping his lips.

“So…” Kyla broke the silence as she looked up between the other girls, a large band aid covering her swollen right cheek. “What happened after that hyper beam hit?”

Allissandra tried to answer, but the little Plusle could only mumble some barely audible gibberish before Lorna spoke up for her. “I think that’s when they got Val; I last saw her go flying across the arena after that blast before that walking trashcan sucker punched me.”

“They probably ganged up on her after she fell, huh?” Her greenish-blue eyes focused away from the bed and toward the door connecting the small room to where the Jo and Val were. “Those heartless, piece of shit machines…”

“B-b-but…” Alli finally quipped, “How did those r-robots know our every move? W-we t-t-tried every trick we knew and they still saw it coming! We faced that team before and won but those damn tin cans…” She was embraced by the Tyranitar and began breaking down into tears.

“The hell if I know…” Kyla muttered as she shut her eyes before cringing as a sharp pain shot up her spine. “Y-ouch! Watch it, buddy! That was my tail you just put your knee on!” She snapped toward the Nidoking.

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Mikhail whispered sharply as he got up from his kneeling position. “Just…please keep your voice down. She needs rest if she’s ever going to recover.”

“She better, she’s our team captain.” Kyla quickly replied, her voice beginning to break up, “…she fucking better recover…”

“Well, then I suggest you wait and give her the proper rest she needs.” The concerned poison-type said as he quickly walked over and grabbed several medical items off of a shelf. “Hmm…I better have these closer to me in case something happens to her…”

“Mikhail,” Lorna looked at him right in the eyes, “I know she’s your sister and all, but you have to let her heal by herself right now. Those doctors did the best they could and told us to wait.” She continued to comfort the small electric-type. “But the question is…who’s going to tell him?” The room once again turned silent, save for the constant beat of the machine. Lorna looked between the Nidoking and the Dragonair as her face began to show worry. “Someone is going to tell him, right?”

“I’ll do it.” All four heads turned toward Kyla as her injured tail wagged slowly behind her. “I mean…you’re busy with Alli, and Jo’s watching over Val in the next room. I’m the only one who’s not doing anything important around here, so I might as well do this.” She slowly rose from her seat, pausing partway to rub a sore spot on her back before turning toward the bed where she was resting. “He’s gonna be pissed to say the least…hell, I would be too if my lover got beat up like that.” She donned her dress coat over her bruised body and headed for the door. “Stay safe you two…get your rest as well, it’ll be a while before we’re fully healed so just take it easy and...” Kyla made one last look back to the bed where the Nidoqueen was soundly sleeping. “Get well soon, Emma…” She left the room quietly, leaving them to the comfort of their own company and the reassuring machines. She shot a glance toward the end of the hallway, eyes focused on the exit sign glowing overhead. “I’m so not looking forward to this…”

---

Malcolm sat on his bed, thoroughly exhausted as he began tuning his guitar. He had just returned from a training session with an underclassman, and was looking to unwind with a little songwriting. “Glad this day's over with," he sighed softly to himself. He checked each of the strings individually for tuning before creating a gentle tune note by note. It didn’t take long, however, for his creative drive to be disrupted by a knock at his door.

"Hey, is there a Malcolm Weatherby in there?" A feminine voice shouted from the other side. Before Malcolm could decide whether it was worth answering, there came another knock, this one more eagerly and with more force. "Hey, is anyone in there?"

Malcolm sighed in defeat. "Just a sec!" He shouted as he jumped off of the bed, leaving his guitar behind. As he rose from the bed, he wondered who would be bothering him at this hour. Ever since the big mess in the training gym began, most of the students had taken to just going back to the dorms after class or going off campus. Even Emma had been somewhat distant as of late. He sighed once more, letting go of all of his tension before putting on a smile for his as-of-yet unknown visitor. But as he opened the door, all happiness faded as he discovered the identity of his guest to be a very familiar Dragonair. "Oh...it's you. What do you want, slut?" It was no secret that of all of Emma's teammates, Malcolm disliked Kyla the most. Her attitude towards others--like she was queen of the world or something--annoyed him to no end. Why the hell is she at my door, he wondered.

Kyla looked up and right into Malcolm's eyes with an expressionless face. "Hey...mind if I come inside?" she asked softly, her voice lacking that slutty tone she was well known for. It was like she was acting normal for once. "I have to tell you something in private, or at least a place where we can both sit down.” She said the words slowly, almost as if she were in a daze. “…Actually, I feel really tired, so I need to sit down somewhere."

"Fine, come in.” Malcolm said in disdain as he rolled his eyes. “Arceus, I hope you're clean." He took note of the bandage on her face as he stepped aside to let her come in. "What the hell happened to you, slut? Someone finally hand your ass to you in a fight?” He couldn’t help but smirk as the next question came to him. “Or did you sleep with the wrong man this time?"

Kyla simply nodded in reply as she walked inside. "You can say it was something like that..." She found the nearest chair and immediately plopped herself down, causing the furniture to creak under her weight. "...it was a pretty ugly brawl after all." She leaned back in her chair before fixing her eyes on the Ampharos. "You better take a seat; this might knock your ass out cold."

"Whatever is so important that you have to tell me...” He began as he shut the door. He turned toward her, propping himself against the door and crossing his arms. “…I think I'll manage." He began to take note of her change in personality. Maybe a little humbling is all she needed to stop acting like a spoiled brat, he thought to himself.

Kyla shrugged weakly before opening her mouth. "Alright then..." she said, her voice barely above a whisper. She took in a deep breath, keeping her emotions at bay as she continued. "Malcolm, Emma is in the hospital right now. The doctors say she’s in serious condition after being knocked unconscious in a brawl with those damn super-ditto fighting bots."

An ominous silence hung over them, as Malcolm let the news sink in. "She...she what?" The Ampharos was thankful in that moment that he was propped against the door, or else he may very well have collapsed. "She fought those damn machines that have taken over the training gym? Wh--...H-...What the hell were you girls thinking?!" He fell to his knees, the pressure of the news too much for his feet to bear as tears began to form at the corners of his eyes. He kept his gaze to the ground, eyes transfixed in anger as he released his anguish in a ferocious roar.

Kyla immediately got up and embraced Malcolm in a tight hug. "Let it out big guy...just let it all out." She cooed into his ears. "We had no choice but to go in there, the battle coordinator told us we were chosen to take them on. We fought like hell, especially Emma..." she stopped and sniffled to hold back her tears, "She did her best to protect Val after she went down and kept going until her body couldn't take anymore punishment." She hugged the electric-type tighter as she began to sob. "I'm so sorry...we tried our best to protect Emma..."

Malcolm reluctantly accepted the hug, partly because he needed the support, but also because he knew she needed it, too. He fought back the tears. "Emma..." he said softly. He felt a familiar emotion building inside of him--the heartless shell he had formed before Emma made her way in and broke it down. He felt the anger in him receding slightly. His mindset turned methodical. Let my heart worry later, he thought to himself. "...Tell me everything about that fight. Down to the last detail...”

The dragon-type rested her head against his chest as tears flowed down her cheeks. "Just...just give me a minute..." She sobbed loudly for several minutes before calming down enough to speak clearly. "I'm still recovering from it; those memories are way too horrible to speak of right now."

“Yeah, sure…” Malcolm said softly. “Take a moment…” He was shocked at these…sentient emotions coming from the Dragonair. He had never seen her act so…human.

Kyla lost track of time as they stood there together, before fully realized that she had finally stopped crying. "Okay, I think I'm ready..."

---

The usually crowded pathways of the academy were practically deserted once Ray and Annie were finished with class. As they walked together in-step, attached at the hip, Annie had her head resting on the massive Kyogre’s chest lovingly, a soft smile adorning the Gardevoir’s lips as she let her love guide her to their destination—the training gym.

Ray, however, was cautious of the idea of training today. “Uhh…you sure you wanna train today, Annie?” he asked, holding her in his arm delicately.

Annie looked up at him and nodded, her smile brightening. “Well, my teammates aren’t around, and there's nothing else to do around here, so I thought some training might help me clear my thoughts. Want to join me?” She read his emotions, her smile reverting back to its softer origins. “How sweet. You’re worried about those ditto-bots that’ve been attacking everyone as of late, and while you are not afraid to protect me, you believe it would be better to not train in the gym today. But, from what I gather of the bots’ technology, it only attacks when a team is there to challenge, and you and I are not a team. So, I see no threat in using other parts of the equipment.”

Ray chuckled nervously, raising a monstrous hand to scratch the back of his head. “Well, all right, Annie, if you’re sure…” As he stood there, a familiar musk invaded his nostrils, promptly followed by the Kyogre lowering his arm in embarrassment. “But I think I might need a shower first. I reek from class today. Mind if I head back to the dorm real quick and take care of that?” Annie simply laughed at the ordeal.

“Well, if you could use one, far be it for me to stop you,” she replied. “I’ll step inside and wait for you to return.”

Ray chuckled again, placing his hands on the Gardevoir’s shoulders. “Alright, Annie.” He held her head gently against his chest, his thumb stroke her cheek lovingly before pulling back. “I’ll be back soon, dear.” He leaned down to give a hard kiss on her lips. Annie held the kiss firmly for several seconds before breaking it, her much smaller hands placed delicately on his cheeks as she looked into his eyes. She flashed him one last smile before walking towards the door to the facility, waving back at him. Ray waved back and watched her as she entered through the doorway before turning back toward the dorms for his much-needed shower…and to be all freshy for my lady!

As Annie entered the facility, she found the arena to be devoid of all light. She searched the walls desperately for the switch, a curiosity to the gym’s abandonment overpowering her better judgment as she heard a very faint noise across the vast darkness. She gasped, looking back in vain as she continued her search frantically. A faint pink light illuminated her face as she became surrounded by glowing faces…

---

Kyla stared blankly at the floor, tears still flowing freely down her cheeks. “And…and that’s when they took Val and Emma to the hospital…they…” She inhaled sharply, trying to control herself. “…they were hurt pretty bad…”

Malcolm listened intently, fighting back his own tears. This was a painful story to hear, but a necessary one. He reached out, placing a hand on the Dragonair’s shoulder. “Thank you, Kyla, for telling me everything.” He looked over at his nightstand, where Emma’s picture smiled sweetly in his direction. “…I have to ask you for another favor.”

Kyla looked up at him pitifully. “What else can I do? Haven’t I done enough?”

Malcolm placed both hands firmly on her shoulders. “Kyla. Kyla, listen to me. I have an idea; an idea that will destroy these fuckers for good. But I need your help.” He managed a smirk, despite the sadness in his eyes. “What do you say? You think you’re up for some payback?”

A slight glimmer of hope and determination shined in her eyes. She offered a weak smile. “What’s the plan?”

Malcolm grinned broadly. “We need to make a team. Tonight.”

---

Ray sighed softly as the final drops of water fell from the shower head to the floor tiling below. He covered himself with a nearby towel—no need to dry off, being a water-type and all. As he stepped out of the shower, he heard a familiar ringtone. Annie’s calling. She never calls when she’s training. He reached into his shorts pocket, flipping open the phone as he takes a seat on the bench.

“Hey baby. Miss me already?” he asked playfully. On the other end, though, there was lots of noise, as if a huge brawl had broken out—and Annie wasn’t answering him. “…Annie?”

“…He-…elp…” he heard her whisper into the phone. She sounded very weak, as though she were ready to pass out.

The Kyogre jumped up from his seat. “Baby, what’s wrong? Where are you?” A sudden rush of worry and adrenaline filled his veins. What the hell was going on?

“T-…trai-…nnngh…g-“ The line went dead before she could force the words out, but Ray thought he caught enough of the words to know she was still in the training gym. He practically jumped into his shorts, shoving his phone forcefully back into the pocket. He grabbed his tank top, throwing it over his head as he sprinted for the door.

---

Evan Greenfield was enjoying the day like any other. He walked through the quad on campus, his love perched above him on his shoulders just as it had been that first day. As the sun began to say good night to the Viridian City skyline, Evan smiled at the nostalgic moment he loved to recreate. Compared to his gargantuan size, the Mawile above him seemed almost like a child, but those who knew Kreo as well as he did knew otherwise. They had only just begun dating at the beginning of the year, but their relationship grew exponentially in the early months, as he had showered her in a grandiose affection usually reserved for long-time lovers. The two hadn’t been training much as of late, but always kept themselves in the fighter’s mentality, and so maintained their physical and special abilities.

These were qualities that Malcolm noticed from even a great distance, as he tried to have Kyla keep up with him. He was succeeding at this point, though she was several steps behind and very short of breath.

“Hold up,” she panted, desperately gasping for air. “Explain…this plan to me…again.”

Malcolm rolled his eyes, stopping to give the Dragonair the break he knew she was really asking for. “It’s very simple,” he said as he spun on his heels. “The machines have data on the statistics of every PCA-sanctioned team and individual, which is why up until this point anyone who has taken on the machines has been beaten. But if we create a new team and announce ourselves as that team, they shouldn’t be able to counter against us—which makes them pretty useless hunks of metal that we can easily smash. We just need to get a couple of others to help us.” He points back at the couple walking further and further away. “Like them.” He didn’t bother waiting for her to reply, as he continued his pursuit of the couple. “Hey! Wait up!”

Evan stopped in his tracks, turning slightly to look behind him. “Hmm?” He saw a rather lanky Ampharos and a rather curvy Dragonair approaching them, and they seemed in a hurry. Kreo’s attention had been turned in the same direction. “What do you suppose they would want?” he asked her, turning his head in such a way that he didn’t poke her with his horns. The Mawile shrugged in response. The pair slowed to a walk as they got closer, something the Dragonair seemed very thankful for, as she was gasping for breath.

“We need your help,” he said.

---

“So we’re going to go stop the machines in the training gym?” Kreo asked.

“That’s right. Everyone who’s taken them on has either been an individual or a sanctioned team. The fact that we’re going in there as an unidentified team is the colossus to our survival.” The gears in Malcolm’s head began turning as the conversation was interrupted.

“Do any of you hear that?” Kyla asked, causing the group to stop and listen intently. They could faintly hear the sound of someone screaming, and it was coming from the direction of the training gym.

“Let’s hurry,” Malcolm said, prompting the group to race for their destination. As they grew closer to the gym, they could also make out a loud pounding, almost like thunder, and the screaming became more audible.

“Annie! Annie!” they heard a deep voice screaming from the top of their lungs. As the group approached, they spotted a rather buff Kyogre pounding on the doors to the gym. “Damn it!” he shouted in frustration, collapsing against the door.

“Ray?” Evan asked aloud, causing the Kyogre to look up at the group. “What’s going on here, man?”

“Dude, Annie’s in there and she’s hurt. And some fucker—“ he took the opportunity to punch the door one last time, “—locked the doors.”

“Someone’s trapped inside?” Malcolm asked. “We gotta get this door open. Those damn things are probably still attacking her!” Before the Ampharos could give direction, Evan had already put Kreo on the ground, lowering his head and preparing to ram the door with a Zen Headbutt. With a great force, he busted the inner mechanics of the lock while also managing to leave a large dent in the metal door. They slowly opened the door, allowing the fading light of the Viridian dusk into the darkness of the training gym. In the distance, a small, frail silhouette could be seen lying limp on the floor, with what appeared to be glowing orbs surrounding her. Malcolm made a quick analysis of the situation. “I’m guessing those are the machines.”

Evan whistled softly. “Damn, that’s a lot of junk to go through.” Kyla stepped into the darkness, searching for the light switch. She was surprised that none of the machines had come to her, but they were all busy standing over their latest victim in victory, giving her the occasional kick. Ray looked on in horror, trying to rush in to save her.

Malcolm, however, interfered. “Hold on. We need to go in there together. Wait for her to find the lights.” After what felt like a very long pause, the gym was illuminated, revealing the scene for what it truly was—a scene straight from a thriller flick. Blood was spattered all along the walls and floor of the room, some of it dried and staining the paint and hardwood, some of it very fresh. Annie could now be plainly seen, her outfit, hair, and skin caked in her own blood. She was barely conscious, and offered a very weak smile as she saw her saviors had arrived.

As the others entered the gym, Evan grabbed Kreo by her shoulders, whispering softly to her. “Now that we’ve got Ray, I want you to take Annie and get the hell out of here. Get her over to the hospital wing as fast as you can.”

“What?” Kreo said, visibly worried, but her eyes showing a hint of anger. “You can forget it, Evan; I’m not leaving your side!” The Tauros gripped her shoulders a little tighter.

“I don’t want to have to worry about you getting hurt like that, Kreo, and someone needs to take care of her. Ray’s going to want to tear into these things, I know he is. Just…do this for me…please?” His own face was showing hints of worry. Tears began to form at the corner of one of Kreo’s eyes.

“Please…please be careful, okay?” She gave him a quick, but passionate kiss. Thoughts began to flood her mind of losing him to these machines, seeing him bruised and beaten, bloodied and left for dead. For one rare occasion in the Mawile’s life, she was genuinely scared. Evan pulled back, smiling softly down to her.

“No matter what…don’t look back, okay? Just run as fast as you can to the hospital ward.” Tears had begun to form in his eyes now, which made Kreo want to cry even more. “…I love you.”

Kreo wept softly, wrapping her arms as far around him as they would go. “I love you, too. Come back to me in one piece…” The pair moved swiftly toward Annie, with Kreo picking up the lifeless Gardevoir while Evan made sure the two of them made it out of the gym safely. The machines put up very little fight, distracted by the prospect of fresh blood in front of them. As Evan joined the other three near the center of the arena, one of the machines boldly approached, its pink face dimmed by the overhead lighting.

“Please identify…” it said in a hollow tone. The machines were all much smaller than the four of them, coming only to about five feet tall. Their bodies were thin and metallic, shining in the artificial light as if freshly polished. Malcolm cleared his throat. Here goes nothing.

“We…are Team Colossus,” he stated clearly. The machines looked at them in confusion. The one that had spoken before repeated itself.

“Please identify…”

“Team Colossus,” Malcolm said again. The ditto-bot twitched slightly.

“Errrrrorrrrr…team name not recognized…”

Malcolm smirked, reaching out with an electrified hand and grabbing the machine by the neck. “Say goodnight, fuckers.”
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Evan Greenfield, Annie McCormick, Emma and Mikhail Watson (last three not on the picture but used in the story) and art © me
Kyla Portes ©
Malcolm Weatherby, Cheyenne Maddox and Allisandra Blankenship (last two not in the pic, but used in the story) ©
Ray Aquos and Lorna Hardstep (not in the pic, but used in the story) ©
Kreo Lockjaw (not in the pic, but used in the story) ©
Val (not in the pic but used in the story) ©
Johanna Ignus (not in the pic, but used in the story) ©
Super Dittos ©