[ti]open[/ti]Heads or tails

Taylor arrived in the arena just as her opponent was slapping her cheeks as though to break free of some intrusive thought or other. She blinked in confusion at the action, before shrugging it off as the stranger turned to greet her. “Hello Momo, I’m Taylor.” The newer player’s greeting was much warmer than the professional one her opponent used; she always had been absolute garbage at stoic sternness. Was she being lulled into a false sense of ease by the other player’s youthful, innocent appearance? Definitely. Would it backfire on her? Almost certainly.

She nodded once with a smile at the next words, before sending out Archimedes and Mushu. She was reaching to release Dinah too, when she noticed the other player stepping forwards herself and clocked that she too was a Black Belt. “Oh!” She breathed, leaving the Espeon out of the fight and taking a step forwards herself. “This will be the first time I’ve tried joining a battle myself,” she explained, not counting the wild Pokémon encounters she’d helped with. “I hope you’ll forgive any clumsiness!” She really didn’t have any training in self defence or martial arts in the real world. From what she’d read, that didn’t matter here, but the way Momo was moving looked very fluid and practiced.

She nodded once as Momo made it clear she was ready to begin. The first move was theirs. Mushu moved first, carefully taking stock of the arena in which they found themselves before making his decision. Closing the small amount of distance between himself and Taylor, he wound his way up her body via her leg until he reached her upper dominant arm. Settling there, he wrapped himself around the limb like a supportive brace and watched her, a flinty glint in his eye. The positioning would bring him closer to the action, but would also leave him free to heal and support his trainer as needed.

Realistically it probably would have made the most sense for Taylor to target the Doduo with fighting moves, but to engage the Pokemon when another trainer was on the field just felt cheap. So it was that the newly buffed woman burst into motion in Momo’s direction, rather than Hiyoko’s. Where the other Black Belt stood strong and immovable, Taylor embodied speed. She fought not with her bare hands but with the staff her avatar carried everywhere with her. The style was characteristic of no one particular discipline of martial arts, but rather a blend, pulling from various influences to which she’d been exposed and could recall only subconsciously.

As Taylor exploded into motion, so too did the Rufflet. Certainly slower than his trainer, Archimedes nevertheless launched his own attack, lifting a short distance into the air before falling upon the Lilligant, aiming to pummel her with his wing.

SPOILER: Click to show

{BREAKDOWN}
RUFFLET (290/300 HP) Active
Damaged by Charge Atk for -10 HP
- Round #1 (use a Pokemon with a Refresh bonus)

DRATINI (130/150 HP) Active
Damaged by Heal for -20 HP
Buffed Taylor
- Round #1 (observe your environment carefully)

TAYLOR (147/150 HP) Active
Damaged by Recoil Fast Atk for -40 HP
Healed by Dratini for +37 HP
Used Recoil
- Round #1 (get a running start)