#senpezeco

As you walk inside the gym you're struck by how dark it is. With a single light bulb every ten feet to light the way the corridor seems to never end, and as you stumble along, trying not to trip on the various discarded pieces of machinery that litter the floor, you hear in the distance the screeching of metal being cut. The low hum of electricity fills the air as you quicken your step, and you begin to wonder if you entered the right place: this doesn't look anything like an official gym. It’s creepy, is what it is. At the end of the corridor you find a heavy vault, and as you approach it slowly opens to reveal a battlefield. At least this looks normal; and as you walk inside you gain a bit of confidence back.

At the far end of the battlefield you find the source of the metallic noises you heard earlier: the gym leader is working, building something. You're not sure what. A robot of some sort, a monster as big as the Aggron that is currently holding it up. Around the gym leader, a few pokemon busy themselves by helping and carrying materials. All steel types, you notice; their armor, skin and shells gleam in the cold, blue light of the arena.

A Skarmory notices you and shrieks, catching the attention of its master who suddenly drops everything and gives you a large, wolfish grin.

"Hey, a visitor. You're here for a challenge?" He speaks in a low, sing-song voice and starts walking in your direction. When you nod in reply to his question, his bright blue eyes shine and he pushes a strand of hair away from his face.

"Great! I'm warning ya, I won't make it easy. I've followed your progress from afar, by the way... I know you've been training hard."

You wonder how exactly he managed to learn anything about you, and how much he knows about the strategy you have planned to win this battle. As you look at the sly grin on his face, you can guess he probably knows everything about it. He laughs - a high-pitched giggle you'd expect to come from a child - and reach in one of the pockets of his long coat before pulling out a pokeball and throwing it in the air. In a flash of light, an Excadrill jumps in the air and lands on the battlefield, making the ground shake. Its claws shine a dull grey and it turns its head toward its master, the two of them exchanging a quick nod.

You're ready to fight.

********

The man who greets you at the entrance of the gym has a strange haircut and a bright red tattoo on his face. It's kind of a silly look, but as you feel the aura of seriousness and strength radiating from him, you understand that underestimating him would be a mistake. You try to make small talk as you two walk inside the gym, but he doesn't seem to want to say anything, replying with nods or shrugs. When you reach the battlefield, he looks at you with a brief smile.

"Good luck. You're going to need it."

You're ready to fight, but the man doesn't move to the other side of the gym: he goes to one of the benches alongside the battlefield and sits. Taking a pokeball from his belt, he opens it and a Lucario appears next to him. The man addresses a few words to it, and then turns his attention to the far left side of the room.

A woman is sitting there, and when she realizes you finally noticed her she stands up and takes a few steps. The smile on her face is confident, and immediately you understand that she's the one running things here, not the man with the Lucario. You turn your head toward him, a bit surprised.

"You thought you were going to fight Yutani?" the woman asks, amused. "He's just a friend, we train together a lot" She turns her head toward Yutani and laughs. "See how much you're improving? Soon people will try to fight you all the time."

The man shrugs, but while he doesn't show much emotion, you think he looks kind of flattered. The gym leader ties her hair into a ponytail and turns her attention back to you.

"I'm Hayden. You think you can beat me? How many badges do you have?"

You have enough. A fighting-type gym won't be an easy challenge, but you know you can do it. Hayden must see the assurance on your face, because she smiles at you. Before she even needs to select a pokeball from her belt, one of them opens and a small Hitmontop jumps out in a blinding flash of light, landing on its feet and spinning gracefully.