The last time we left our heroes, Taylor's battle against Gardenia started to reach its fever pitch! It's now time to see what new power that Ziggy's awakening will hold! But first, what does our audience think?

Kopi Pov

Over a year of being in this Pokemon world of ours has taught me that we truly take for granted what we have. So much time wasted, so many egos temporarily boosted, and for what? To move ahead by dragging everyone else down? To uphold a selfish pedestal that meant nothing in the grand scheme? As someone with a life of violence, I always hated that commonality with humanity. The commonality of how they feel chained despite the freedom right in front of them is something I despise. But I guess now I finally get it because I haven't been free from Apex in both mind and body.

That feeling became all the more apparent as I saw the intense light coming from Ziggy. All these sensations and discoveries I made last year meant nothing at the excitement I felt now. Because for the first time, I finally got to see what I would experience countless times in the face of so many opponents, the euphoria that came from the chaos of combat. The hot breaths that collected from rigorous exhaustion, the sting of wounds so deep that they carve into your very being, the tensed tendons that would whip out in the air if cut. The rushing blood made you feel like your body surge like it was on fire and most of all, the high of knowing when pushed to the brink, you can still soar so much higher.

All that came rushing back to me like a freight train as the battle that waged before I left, my human skin bubbling like hot soup. Once again, my core lit up with simmering energy, slowing the world down to a sickening crawl as my body twitched in anticipation, almost wanting to join in myself. Because through such a battle, I saw these 2's ideals on full display in an expression beyond simple understanding. As if I could see what they were thinking on a HD video. I don't know if it were Sage's influence or my recent battles, but something has awoken in me, an excitement that I don't even know myself. But I still managed to keep myself under control as I saw the smiling gym leader Gardenia was looking at the pulsing light like a predator looking at prey. At that moment, I realized that just like me, she was hiding a power far greater than previously shown, one that was clawing to make way as it enjoyed the battle more and more.

Taylor Pov

In this short Pokémon journey, I've already been cornered more times than I can even count. And from it, I learned from Mr.Kopi that when in battle, it's due or die. And yet, in that split second before the light came, I hesitated to withdraw Ziggy. Call it instinct or my Speleology curiosity, but I just couldn't; I had to see this all through to the end. Because despite all those hits, Ziggy hasn't failed me yet, so that I won't fail him for his sake! My judgment proved to be all the more correct as the light came with a rousing wind followed by a prideful roar that started to force back the! That roar quickly let the light shimmer off to reveal Ziggy's new form: Linoone before I could even absorb the mayhem though Gardenia already was about to sound her attack.

However, before she could finish it, Ziggy was already gone, becoming a brown streak that managed to clip Cacena, blowing away the half-formed sandstorm like it was nothing! However, that runaway speed quickly turned into a double-edged sword, as Ziggy crashed into the side only a couple of feet away from Gardenia! Shards of reinforced glass nearly hit Gardenia, but for some unknown reason, the glass stopped half short as if an unknown force stepped in. Either way, I had to step in.

"Ziggy, stop!"

However, Ziggy didn't follow my commands, rushing in once again while completely ignoring his grave wounds. However, Gardenia kept her cool as her next set of commands fired off even faster than Ziggy! Cacena, in response, rose in the air from a bombardment of pin missiles aimed straight towards Ziggy! The attack didn't stop Ziggy, though, only fueling his stubbornness all the more as he started to leap towards the Cacena. In that pivotal moment, Cacena's began to whirl with whips of a sandstorm to deliver one fatal combination! The next thing I know, a needle arm and drain punch combo sent Ziggy sent throttling right behind so fast that by the time I turned around, he already fainted upon painfully bouncing against the wall! At that point, my frustration and despair collected together like raindrops while Gardenia did nothing but clap.

"What an amazing evolution Taylor! I can tell you, and your Pokemon have excellent chemistry. It reminds me of my beloved Grass types, but I'm sorry to say that it only gets harder from here. Your fastest Pokemon quickly got undone by a little push, your type advantage ace is critically injured, and I already know what your Nidoran is capable of. So tell me, little seed, how do you plan on growing from here?"

I was about to say something, but hesitation once again claimed before I could say a word. Instantly my mind flashed back to my previous gym battle, one in which I nearly lost if it weren't for Mr. Kopi's intervention. But I refuse to depend on him again! Realizing that there was no other choice, I decided to count on the first ally I've made in this journey.

"Golett, show your stuff!"

With a triumphant pose, Golett landed on the scene. The earlier fast tempo soon slowed down to a grinding halt. As for a good 10 seconds, Golett and Cacena stared at each other with steel-like tension.

"Ah, so that's your final Pokemon; I can see why you didn't bring him out now. Type disadvantage with my lovely Grass-type will get you cut to the stalk."

Despite the threat, I already knew that she was lying. Cacena had already taken tons of damage from Ziggy, and his moves were gridlocked. Pin missile, a bug-type action, wasn't effective against a ground type. Needle arm and Sandstorm wouldn't even work due to the ghost and ground typing, which means that the only thing we'll have to worry about Drain Punch. Still, that didn't stop Cacena from firing off another pin missile attack along with a forward charge! But that was going to be her mistake. Unlike in Oreburgh City, Golett was now fully rested, and I've been forced to train him even harder to catch up with the rest, hidden power or not!

With a quick iron defense, Golett stood his ground, blocking the various projectiles with only minor damage. However, when the last shot came, I decided to fight back-ordering Golett to catch one of the previous projectiles and curve the shot with a pound attack to give more speed to it! Cacnea in distress stopped dead in its tracks to use a hasty needle arm, deflecting the attack with all its effort upwards! However, Golett jumped up and intercepted the shot, throwing it back with a whiff of shadow punch! The attack was so fast that the explosion sent them back hard! I was about to finish them off with another pound attack from above, but a timely sandstorm once again gave Gardenia the advantage. A dense cloud of dust blanketed the grassy field. I almost thought that a repeat of Ducklett would happen, but I was ready now. So Golett sat there with a repeated iron defense, growing more sturdy while Cacena lurked for a potent offense. It had already far too much damage to risk a wasted attack; I could feel it in my bones, that it wanted to wait.

This means that when I saw the moment of truth, I already knew what to do! Instead of giving him an actual order, I decided to speak Golett's language. All I asked was for Golett to provide me with a pose, and in a miracle, he responded instantly, making a majestic twirling pose out of Cacena's fast punch! Despite the added evasiveness and sandstorm, Cacena still couldn't escape Golett. Dramatically unleashed another pound attack followed with a shadow punch so powerful that it sent the runaway Cacnea to a small series of tree branches! Before the Pokemon could recover, I kept up the momentum, having Golett unleash his new ace move to seal the deal: Stomping Ground! Like a cannonball, Golett jumped up into the air, only to immediately descend to the ground twice as quickly, crashing through the branches and bodying into Cacnea so hard that they descended into a crater! All fighting left Cacnea as it fell into unconscious.

Despite not even being able to say a word Golett made his victory known to all by pointing directly at Gardenia. I couldn't help but give a small chuckle at sight before retrieving him back in his Pokeball. Once again, the battle's tempo slowed to a crawl, as both Gardenia and I stood in a standstill like we were in a western standoff. A ray of light shined on Gardenia, making her seem almost mythical. So much so that their final words were this.

"Don't get cocky, Taylor; this rose still has a couple of thorns left!"

The battle between Gardenia and Taylor has finally reached a final stretch. Which one of these ferocious females will win the day? Find out next time as the journey continues ever forward!