"Espeon defends gym, solo, for 125 days (Story below)"

#PokemonGO: ​He was finally knocked out within a day or two of this cap.TL;DR: Historic flooding locks others out of a gym for months, enabling my Espeon to be there for a total of aprx. 125 daysAs many in Canada and the midwestern US may know, this year saw some extreme flooding along the Missisipi/Missouri watershed. Many flat midwestern states were underwater for a long time, levees were breaking down and all hell was going loose. Because our house was up on a hill, we were virtually unaffected. The road below, however - and the riverside parks - had no way of resisting this blessing.A nearby large park run by the Department of Conservation covers 500-some acres, flat as can be (it's naturally a floodplain), with a mix of agriculture, prairies, and forests. At the end of its drive trail is a platform, from which one can view the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers. The flooding from about May to June ended up being the second highest recorded of all time, second only to the "Great Flood of '93".Before the flooding began, my family and I, as we do, visited this quiet and beautiful natural area. A Mystic gym happened to be available for a new Pokemon at the viewing platform, so I put my strongest available Pokemon in.Some battles obviously took place, because the other Pokemon - I think a Pinsir and something else? - vanished, but Espeon held on. About a week passes and Espeon's still holding on to this gym, since not a lot of people visit this time of year. Then the flood's full swing begins.Within days, all the riverside parks, including the conservation area, are well and truly underwater at 40-some feet of running water (where flood stage typically "begins" at 30.) Espeon is still at the gym, which is many feet below the waves.For the next two months (ish), the water stays right where it is, gradually growing in height before finally receding away over the last week of June and first part of July. Espeon is still at the gym after the water recedes, because huge marshes and puddles are everywhere, the ground being completely saturated. Not to mention the fact that most roads, even solid ones, are washed away and need to be repaired. My family and I wait patiently for the park's repairs to finish and the park to reopen, and I'm wondering every day when Espeon will finally be able to return.Finally, tonight, I open PoGo and see "(Espeon) has been knocked out! +50"He's finally home. His name has been changed to Susanoo in honor of the event, and I'll be "giving" him a badge of heroism. Fanart incoming, I'll edit this post with a link. via /r/pokemongo https://ift.tt/2Y6ooqN