Jay was one of the last people to make their way off the boat. Unlike the others, he felt no rush to begin the challenge right away. If the others were good enough, it wouldn't matter if they started first or last. The weak would be weeded out soon enough either way. Jay reached behind his back to release Ava from her pokeball when a trainer ran forward and challenged him to a battle. His hand moved away from the pokeball's release button.

He wasn't really in the mood to battle, but it would be a good warm-up after being cooped up inside the ship for so long. Jay didn't have to worry about his skills getting dull, but he did put value in learning new techniques from his opponents. Battling was always about getting better. "Fine, I'll battle you," he said, accepting the challenge. He was a man bound by title to etiquette after all.

Another man, another trainer probably, stepped forward. Jay had seen him scanning the faces of each person as trainers had disembarked the boat to begin their own Master Trainer challenge. He wondered who this man was.

[b]"Alrighty then, if it's a battle I'll referee. Two pokemon each. The first to take down both opponents pokemon is the winner. Are you ready?"[/b]

Jay nodded, his piercing green eyes remaining on his challenger. "Yes, I'm ready."

The challengeing trainer gave Jay a grin. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out a pokeball and then launched it forward towards the ground. A bright light came out from the ball and a Skarmory appeared. The Skarmory cocked it's head upwards at the sky and let out a very piercing screech.

The Challenger then looked at the blonde haired man and called out, "Your turn."

Jay stepped forward as a black and gold pokeball fell from his belt. The place he had been standing turned into a swirling vortex of crimson flame. The creature inside spread its wings, and the flames were sucked back into its red and gray plumage.

The pokemon's luxury ball bounced back into Jay's outstreched hand. "Acedia, take your time with this one. I don't want him to blink and miss everything." The Talonflame alighted to the ground without a sound, smoldering wings now cold pressed against its sides. The bird's eyes, a clearer blue than the sky above, met the sharp yellow eyes of the bird of steel. "He won't learn anything if he can't see why he lost," Jay said.

The moment the trainer saw that Jay sent out a Talonflame a look of disappointment appeared. Using a pokemon that was strong against his pokemon. A fundemental of battle, but something that was going to make the match so unentertaining.

[b]"Damn, I wasn't expecting to see a fire type pokemon."[/b], he said and sighed, [b]"Alright Skarmory use Steel Wing"[/b]

The Skarmory cawed into the air and began flapping it's wings strongly. It's large metal frame lifted up into the air and it soared up high. Once it had reached it's peak, it's steel-cladded wings shown a very exquisite light. Skarmory then arched its' body downwards and nose dived straight towards Jay's Talonflame. Using it's wing like a blade it took a swipe at the enemy pokemon.

Jay shielded his eyes from the sun as he looked upwards, but otherwise did nothing. A trainer who needed to tell his pokemon what to do, simply did not know his pokemon well enough to win. The crimson and gray bird was motionless up until the last possible instant. The Skarmory's sword-like feathers were splitting the air only a few feet from Acedia's blue eyes. Those eyes hadn't left the other bird's once. Acedia. The name was ironic. He moved.

The metal bird's wings cut nothing, what it had been aiming for had vanished. Jay felt the air around him surge forward in a sudden updraft. High above, exactly where the ex-champion had been staring into the sky, Acedia flew, both his wings scattering the light from the sun with a metallic sheen. As Steel Wing faded, the bird's wings began to smolder again as they usually did. Only then did the sound ring out. It was the sound of metal striking metal.

The blow had caused Skarmory to launched backwards a couple of feet. A very impressive blow for a move that wasn't very effective. After a few moments of being down, his Skarmory popped back up and was looking extremely furious to have missed his attack and be struck at the same time.

[b]"Skarmory use Metal Sound!"[/b]

The trainer decided that it might be better to go into a more defensive type strategy. Pure offensive wasn't the correct way of going about this.

Skarmory cocked it's head directly at Acedia and began to let out an ear piercing screech. The sound of running knives against the inner edges of a fork would be the closest thing to describe this deafing noise. It's piercing noise was sent throughout the small area of town they were in. Giving both him and Geoffrey a terrible headache.

The Trainer knew that if he kept trying to use moves that hit the Talonflame head on it was going to miss almost every time. Using a move that was unavoidable is the only possible way of going about it.

[b]"So what do you think of that!?"[/b], the opposing trianer said cockily.

"I think it's annoying as hell is what I think.", Geoffrey called back to the trainer. 

Jay covered his face with his hand. Using a move that lowers special defense wouldn't help much if he couldn't touch Acedia. He shook his head and looked at the arrogant amature. "Acedia, show him a little of your speed."

The bird screeched, and its wings began to burn hotter. Flame Charge. A plume of fire exploded behind Ace's wings as he shot downward at the heavy bird of steel. He was moving even faster than he had just seconds ago.

Skarmory wasn't able to move out of the way fast enough and the Flame Charge hit the steel bird directly. The Skarmory flew backwards towards it trainer and with only two hits the pokemon was down and out. It laid there fainted from the sheer power of the hit.

The trainer looked down at his Skarmory with an astonished face. How could one of his best pokemon be knocked out with only two hits. Who was this guy that he was facing. Knowing that this Talonflame of his was extremely powerful he knew he was going to have to pull out a counter pokemon.

[b]"Go Rhyperior!"[/b], he shouted out as he tossed a great ball forward.

A white light launched out from the center of the ball revealing his very large Rhyperior.

Once the pokemon had been released the trainer the called out, [b]"Rhyperior use Rock Wrecker!"[/b]

Upon recieving its' orders the Rhyperior slammed its' fist into the ground below it and began to rip the earth up using brute strength. Once a very large portion of the ground had been pulled from the area Rhyperior threw its' arms back and launched the land towards Acedia.

Jay counted under his breath as his view of Acedia was blocked by the mass of earth and rock. "Three... two... one..." The piece of land exploded, an arrow of flame blasting out of the cloud of dust right down at the huge Rhyperior. Hm, Jay had expected Ace to go with Brave Bird instead of Flare Blitz. He must have wanted to ignite pretty bad if he was ignoring the fact that there was no way his attack would KO the opponent's pokemon.

The Rhyperior being as heavy as it was could not avoid the attack, so the flaming bird slammed right into its' chest. But since it was a fire type move no damage was hardly done to its' solid body. Though with the bird being as close as it was, it meant that Rhyperior could easily do a quick physical attack.

[b]"Rhyperior use Take Down!"[/b]

Rhyperior using its' large hands gripped onto the bird and slammed it straight into the crater that was infront of its' massive body. Using the weight of his arm alone was enough to send around a ton of pressure down on the bird pokemon. Even though it was a normal type move, the trainer was hoping that his Rhyperior sent enough strength into it to knock the Talonflame out.

Jay shook his head. Acedia could outspeed a jet, but his two strongest attacks left him weakened and vulnerable to being hit, just like what had just happened. It didn't take very much to knock Ace out, which is why he relied so much on his unrivaled speed to avoid everything and attack first. His defeat had been his own fault. A red light surrounded Acedia as he was pulled back into his black and gold pokeball. Jay took another luxury ball from his belt and tossed it into the air.

"Luxuria, you're up." A stream of clear water droped out of the pokeball and to the ground, shaping into a blue cat-like creature. The Vaporeon looked up at the hulking Rhyperior with curiosity. Luxuria looked back at Jay and cocked her head. The ex-champion sighed. "Yes, that is your opponent." Lux just mewed and strolled up to the beast and licked its leg. Jay sighed again. She was always like this.

[b]"Rhyperior use STOMP!"[/b], the opposing trainer shouted out with such gusto to his pokemon.

The Rhyperior lifted up the leg that was being licked and then immediate shot it downwards towards the Vaporean below it.

Luxuria was crushed beneath the massive leg's weight. There was no sign of the blue pokemon though. A few seconds later, streams of water poured out from under the Rhyperior's massive foot and recollected into the shape of a Vaporeon. She mewed again.

"Lux, stop playing around. Finish this battle." The Vaporeon visibly pouted, its fins drooping. The cat-like creature's form dissolved at the same time as the surrounding area was blanketed in a cloud of Mist. Luxuria's ultimate defense and offense: Mist Armor. A combination attack using Mist and Acid Armor to make the effect even more potent.

"Now," Jay said. Inside the cloud of white Mist, it was as if a laser light show was turned on. The beams came from every direction, rapid-fire, each lasting a fraction of a second before fading out and being replaced by another coming from an entirely different location inside the cloud. Then the beams stopped, and the mist disappeared, and Luxuria dropped to the ground before a completely frozen, completely defeated Rhyperior.

The trainer recalled his fainted Rhyperior ashamed of how bad of a trainer he was compared to the other trainer. Once the battle was over he just ran off with a single tear in his eye. All of his hopes and dreams crushed by a single trainer beating him without even speaking a single word to his pokemon.

"And with that, the Winner is.....Blonde Guy! Yeah, I never actually caught your name.", Geoffrey said to the winning trainer.

The winner recalled his Vaporeon and replaced the pokeball onto his belt. He was reminded that he still had to let Ava out. She would be angry at him for battling without letting her out first. Could he just not tell her? No, Lux would definitely brag to Ava about her win. She would ask how Acedia got knocked out too. Damn, it looked like there was no avoiding it.

He looked at the trainer who had acted as referee for the match, though he hadn't actually been necessary. "My name is Jay Rayne. I am Unova's ex-Champion." Still, he could put off letting Ava out for a little while more.