Like No One Ever Was (Pokemon SI)

[Skyfyre]

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"What an exciting match, Elena! Riveting to the final strike." The voice came from Arven's Rotom Phone, and I didn't have it in me to tell him to turn it off as we relaxed in the lounge, once more waiting between matches. We'd already all left to get lunch in the cafeteria as soon as I had returned from my match against Martha, and now we were waiting for my next bout.

"Indeed, Hugo. Nemona certainly didn't disappoint here," the other 'battle analyst' said. "Still, this round was much closer than the previous one. Why do you think that is?" She 'asked,' lobbing her co-host an obviously prepared question. I get why there's such a long break in between, and really, every minute spent resting is to my advantage, giving my team time to rest up, but still. I wish we could just go back into the fight, no more needing to wait.

I pushed those thoughts down, keeping half an ear out for what the analysts had to say. Doubt it'll be anything too useful, but you never know. Maybe they'll have something that will give me a flash of insight I was missing.

Hugo said, "Well, Martha has always been a roadblock in the Elite Four, stopping many a challenge. She used to be ranked second strongest among the Four, and I think we can see from her performance today that she lost that slot to Hassel due to how strong he's become, not any slip-ups on her part."

"Indeed," Elena chirped. "That Destiny Bond was a very tricky maneuver that took the rug out from under Nemona's feet. I feel like she doesn't have the practice dealing with a tricky Trainer like Martha, her team specializing in power."

"Really? Doesn't her team seem to be based around versatility?"

"Hmm, you could say that, but it still leads to the same goal. We've seen a good spread of Moves from all of Nemona's Pokemon, but it all serves to let her hit harder. She excels at finding a Move that her opponent can't easily deal with, like a Super Effective attack, and hammering it in. None of the Moves she's taught her Pokemon lack strength behind them, but we see little of the customizability that other Trainers of her caliber might focus on."

Excuse you?! Miles and I worked plenty hard on their Confuse Wisp, and we used that in the match, thank you very much. Hugo nodded his head. "I guess we'll see then how she fares against Hassel, another power-type Trainer. Will she still have the energy to push through the Dragon Guardian of the Elite Four?"

I grimaced at that, even as that point hit its mark. The words aren't anything I haven't thought of before. Hassel will be a challenge. Dragon Types had been somewhat nerfed over the years, but they were still the most common pseudo-legendary Type for a reason; as a whole, they tended to be immensely powerful.

There was too much in that fight with Martha I wasn't prepared for, and now Athena won't be up for the next round. I was sure she would argue the point if I raised it, but the fact of the matter was that she had put a lot of herself out for that battle. Hmm, maybe I just save her for the finals? No, I'll likely need her against the last member of the Elite Four, especially if I'm bringing in others to cover her absence against Hassel.

I was also hesitant to use Notch in the next round, even with them being a very convenient answer to much of Hassel's team. Despite Destiny Bond being less draining than the beating Athena took, it's still enough that I want to give them a break. Do I save them for Miguel? But that leaves me without a good answer for Turtle's Ace. Ideally I'd like to keep Dun and Notch in fighting shape for the El Primero, but that was looking less and less possible.

"How's the planning going?" Tulip asked deceptively lightly. I blinked, stretching out from the table I'd been hunched over, my hands clasped together and held over my chin as I thought. She must be here to stop me from spiraling further.

"Everyone has a plan till they get punched in the face." That got a bark of laughter from Dendra, and I adopted a small smile. "We're at that phase right now. Just improvising at this point."

"You look like you have everything under control," Kieran muttered, flushing a little as I glanced over the room at him.

"Of course she does; I'd hardly expect my rival to let this slow her down, or she'd hardly be a challenge fit for me," Carmine declared boisterously.

"I'm glad to hear your confidence in your Pokemon's abilities. Looking forward to a match in the future." Carmine looked a little uncertain for a second, gulping for a second before she regained her composure.

"I've- I mean, there's a lot of studying to get into Blueberry. But I'll beat you in every test we have to take! And then I'll focus on training up Sinistcha!" Her bluster came back towards the end, and I chuckled.

My sister cut in. "Speaking of training, what were some of those Moves Martha was using? I tried looking them up, but I couldn't find out what they were called."

Shaking my head, I said, "They might not have official names yet, being Custom Moves and all." At the confused looks I was getting, I explained. "Sometimes Trainers can invent their own Moves for Pokemon on their teams; I call them 'Custom Moves' to differentiate them from Moves any Pokemon of that kind can learn, either naturally or through TMs."

"Wait, if they can't be learned those ways, then how…?" Arven's voice trailed off, his face scrunched up in concentration as he tried to puzzle out my words.

"Well, they aren't normally learned through a Pokemon's development in the wild. Theoretically it's possible to use them, because they do then use the Moves, but- it's a pretty unique process. Technically, some of the current Technical Machine Moves started out as Custom Moves before the Trainers and researchers figured out how to make the process easily learnable to a broad set of Pokemon. Like the Psychic Noise, Martha's Honchkrow used to shut down Nightwing's healing for a bit. That Move started out as a Custom Move until they figured out how to make it into a Technical Machine." I don't know how they made it into a TM, though; I'll have to look that up later.

"Hmph, why don't you have any Custom Moves?" Carmine demanded, and I looked at her aghast.

"Wha-bu- I- gah! Custom Moves aren't the end-all and be-all of a fight! Pokemon can be plenty strong just honing the basics! Also, I do have Custom Moves; I showed off three of them in that fight!" I shouted, waving three fingers in her face.

Kieran stepped in to defuse the situation. "O-oh, wowzers! What Custom Moves have you made?"

Sighing, I stepped back. "You saw The Hand and Force Whip from Athena in that battle. She also knows Dancing Sword, a combination of Detect and Swords Dance, to protect her from harm. Miles used Confuse Wisp there, and Dun has some variations on Yawn."

"What about that Move that Notch used to stop the Stealth Rocks?" Friede asked, joining the conversation.

"That wasn't really a Move; Assault Vest would have prevented any non-damaging Move anyways. It was more, hmm… More like the difference between flexing a muscle and throwing a punch. It had a buildup of energy, but little direction or technique to it."

"Osu!" Dendra cheered at my explanation, and I smiled. Mostly, at least. I'm leaving out how a Pokemon would need Legendary-tier strength to pull off what Notch did in that manner, but the general gist of it works.

"Do you think Martha's Moves could be taught as TMs?" Cyan asked. "She had the weird chains on Destiny Bond and whatever that darkness effect was."

['Annoying'] A psychic voice rang out in my head, and I turned to Tulip before seeing her shaking her head. Glancing over and down, I saw Gothorita chiming in. ['Couldn't see you in there'].

"Heh, yeah, it was annoying, wasn't it? I'd imagine it would be even worse for a Psychic Type." Answering my sister's question, I said, "I think the darkness effect could be taught as a TM. She has multiple Pokemon on her team that can use it, including her Umbreon she didn't use this time. It feels like a Terrain effect to me, something that decreases the accuracy of non-Dark Types and slightly powers up Dark Type attacks. Though it's not perfect." I suspect that it also makes Dark Types more evasive within the darkness, further hampering attacks against them, but Notch overpowered it, and Athena could ignore it with her Aura Sight.

"That altered Destiny Bond though… I don't know. That was a new one; she's never used it in a match before." I suspect if there hadn't been such a big hubaloo about my Gauntlet, she would have saved it to challenge The Great and Powerful Turtle for his spot. "It uses some form of Arena Trap-like effect to stop switches out, and it was from her oldest Spiritomb. Maybe one that was originally sealed by exorcists in the past and learned how to manipulate or copy its cage in some part?"

As I saw people staring at me, I shook my head. "Sorry, just thinking out loud. But no, I don't think that Move can be copied." At least I hope not; it was a pain to deal with. "In any case, I should be focused on Hassel."

"Why do you sound so worried?" I frowned at Friede's words. Do I really look so worried? Didn't mean to, but I'd be lying if I didn't say it was weighing heavily on me. "From everything we've seen, it looks like you're doing well."

I sighed, not able to admit the full truth. This feels like a test I can't just pass, one I have to ace. Like… if I do this, I can prove that I'm capable of stepping up to the role the protagonist took - more than that, even. That I can step in to prevent things from ever getting bad enough to need their actions, that I can save Turo from himself. Of course I would continue to try even if I burnt out here, but then I'd need to rely a lot more heavily on others, which would be 'messy' for several reasons.

I could tell them part of my anxiety, however, so I did so. "Hassel was my teacher. Music teacher, admittedly, but still. I learned a lot from him and even battled him before I began my journey." I let out a long breath. "I lost that fight. I'm hardly going to claim a perfect record, but my losses have been rare, to say the least. I know I've gotten better since then, but he's also improved his own standing in the Elite Four too." And honestly, the Turtle's specific trump card leaves the last member of the Elite Four at a significant advantage over Hassel. I heard even Miguel had serious difficulty beating that guy. So it's hard to pinpoint exactly how strong Hassel is now.

"Basically, with this match I'll find out not just how much I've grown, but how fast my rate of growth is. If I'll be enough," I concluded, catching the barest hint of a frown on the young adult's face. Right, seems weird to be this obsessed with getting stronger at such a young age.

I quickly brightened up, plastering a smile on my face. "But I'm sure it'll be fine. I've got some ideas, and I know my team will do great."

***

Once more, I stepped forth into the battle chamber. Hassel was waiting for me already, standing much as he usually did. He was wearing a green suit jacket over his black and red vest, with beige dress pants. Fancy, but not overly so. I wonder how he chose that as his 'definitive' look? I wondered how a lot of Trainers did, if they tested things out vigorously or just had a vibe and went with it.

"Our challenger arrives! We've talked about how Nemona is a rising star in the music industry, but we haven't mentioned that she was taught by Hassel himself!" The enthusiastic announcer told one of the Rotom Drones as I took my place on the stage. "In a way, this will be more than a chance for a would-be Champion to face off against the Dragon Guardian of the Elite Four, but a battle between student and teacher. Can Nemona keep up her winning streak against the one who taught her?"

"Good to see you again, Hassel." I said, smiling slightly at the man as I tried to push down the butterflies in my stomach.

"You as well. I'll admit that I've been quite eager for our rematch." He grinned broadly as the announcer shouted something meaningless at the 'revelation' that we'd fought before. Studying him, I could tell that he was being honest about that; there was much eagerness and anticipation in his gaze. But that wasn't the only thing he was feeling.

Pride and determination were clear as well, but digging deeper, I saw flickers of uncertainty buried within him as well. I don't think he's uncertain of how well I'll do either. Himself, then? But why?

I could only speculate if he was worried about being humiliated or not making a good showing or the like, but the fact that even he could feel that way helped center me. Intellectually, I knew everyone got nervous, that at some point everyone was afraid in their lives. Seeing it makes a difference though. Knowing that he can be afraid right now but push past that fear helps me do the same.

"Me too; but don't think it'll end like last time!" I cheered brightly.

"We shall see," he said with a smirk, before dropping it and staring at me intently. "I'm sure you've heard people talking about how winning this will make you the youngest Champion ever, but that isn't what you said you desired, was it?"

My confusion only lasted a second as I recalled our first meeting and what I'd said then. "That's right! This is just a step on my path to being the greatest Champion ever." I punctuated my words with a stomp of my foot, the dramatic action/declaration earning a shocked gasp from the announcer. "Now I'll prove it to you." Holding up a Pokeball, I pointed it towards my former music teacher.

He matched me, drawing his own Pokeball and we stared each other down. Any hesitation was gone now; there was no room for doubts here. Geeta called out for us to release our Pokemon and we did so, Hassel sending out his Noivern, while I revealed Notch, sparkling on the battlefield.

The Elite's eyes widened at the bold choice, and I smirked. Weren't expecting that, were you? Now let's see if it pays off. Objectively the situation looked good, and it looked like I might be able to force him into an early switch - of all of Hassel's Pokemon, this one was the least equipped to deal with Notch.

"Trainers ready?" We both nodded, neither of us taking our eyes off the battlefield. "Then we begin in three, two, one… begin!" We were both flying into action the instant Geeta gave the signal.

"Boomburst!/Diamond Storm!" He and I called, and as I heard his command, I resisted the urge to curse before shielding my own ears with a quick application of Aura. Damn, his instincts are good, I thought as the sound washed over everyone. Over and through Phantasm, obviously not doing anything to them as they pretended to be Notch.

For her part, she made a barrage of crystal-clear shards, the Icy Wind looking so very much like Notch's Diamond Storm, dealing decent damage to the Dragon to boot. The illusion was pointless, however, as with his first Move, Hassel had confirmed which Pokemon she truly was. Of course, you didn't trust in your instincts fully, wanted to double-check that, didn't you? The fact that he had included some signal so his Noivern hadn't used the Throat Spray hanging around her neck alongside the fact that Boomburst wouldn't normally be very effective against Notch anyways cinched it.

Still, as smart and logical as that might have seemed, it was a mistake, one he'll regret. We've been training for the better part of a year; she can do more than just hope someone doesn't see through her illusion. "Encore!" I shouted, and Phantasm dropped her illusion, happily clapping and leering at the Flying bat-like Pokemon.

Alarm flashed on Hassel's face. "Air Cutter!" Not the most powerful Move in her arsenal, but it is quick; a single swipe of her wings and she could use something effectual against us. Not fast enough, however, not for the fastest member of my team, and especially not after being slowed down by Icy Wind. Phantasm's Encore locked in, and Noivern was stuck using Boomburst, wailing sound shaking the ground and making my teeth feel weird.

Not trusting my words to reach her over the din, I gave a swift chop of my hand for my next order. The vicious grin etched on Phantasm's face was the only warning Hassel received before she rocketed into a charge, glowing bright green as she crashed into Noivern, knocking the Dragon into the barrier, our foe falling into a heap in front of Hassel.

"C'mon, don't tell me that's all you got?" I taunted Hassel as Phantasm fell to the ground. She was clearly exhausted from the effort, dropping to one knee, panting heavily. It didn't stop her from cackling at the Dragon she had felled, the wounded Pokemon slowly rising up on their foreclaws.

Rather than respond to me, Hassel called, "Switch." Recalling his wounded, Encore-stuck Pokemon, he sent out Dragonite. The orange-scaled Pokemon gave a proud cry, staring down angrily at Phantasm. Right, I guess she did just hurt his teammate pretty badly. He had a Sitrus berry attached to a cord around his neck.

Hassel didn't let his Pokemon give in to their rage right away, however, using the exhaustion to call out, "Dragon Dance."

I clicked my tongue loudly as Dragonite began spinning around, dancing surprisingly gracefully through the air for a Pokemon of his bulk, the lessons learned as a Dragonair clearly not forgotten. "Feels like you're underestimating us, not going for a strike right away. Let's show them why that's a bad idea," I told Phantasm, who howled in response, rising up to her full height.

A glimmer of rage gleamed in her eyes. She doesn't like being looked down on, that's for sure. Can't say I wasn't tempted to recall her anyways though; a pseudo Legendary with a boost to speed and power is no joke. But still, I don't think we need to switch quite yet.

"Extreme Tail," Hassel's deep voice echoed out over the chamber, and almost as soon as I heard the word, Dragonite was in front of Phantasm, swinging his thick tail around to smack into her… only to hit empty air, Phantasm flipping back over the blow.

"What, you think she hasn't experienced that before? Athena forces her to dodge Moves like that all the time," I pointed out while raising a hand up near my lips before bringing it out and down. Phantasm really wasn't a fan of how much faster Athena could be than her with that Move, especially when Athena started mixing it with Moves that could actually hurt my Hisuian Zoroark. Which in turn pushed Phantasm to get good enough to dodge even those kinds of attacks.

Evasiveness was key for Phantasm; despite a great defensive Type combination, she just couldn't last long against repeated, powerful attacks. That's why she was able to, at my signal, start barraging Dragonite with Hyper Voice and creating dozens of illusory clones to hide among on the battlefield. Of course, the trick to any good shell game is to keep the prize tucked up your sleeve.

"Dragonbreath, don't aim for the clones!" Once again, Hassel's instincts were enough to foil our plans, and part of me wondered if he had some natural skill as a Dragon Aura user, or if it was just experience that let him read us so. Most of me was worried about Phantasm as I saw her get clipped by the burning blue flames Dragonite spewed forth, her illusory clones disappearing as she lost concentration.

"Detect," I called out, and her eyes flashed with blue light, maneuvering around the diving Dragon Claw our foe tried to hit her with. Then all of a sudden, Dragonite stumbled mid-air, looking confused. "Now, Bitter Malice!"

Dragonite, who was currently blinded by the illusion of pure darkness Phantasm had layered over him, had no way of dodging the ghostly tendrils that rose up from beneath and lashed into him, sapping his strength.

Not missing a beat, Hassel called out, "Mist!" The water particles that the Dragon Type created were thick, obscuring any vision beyond a foot in front of me, likely even worse within the arena. And that's not even the main point of the Move, just a side effect to stop us from lowering his attack further.

"Ace," I whispered, trusting Phantasm to hear my words. The grunt from Dragonite a second later had me internally cheering that she had both heard and struck him successfully. Those cheers died as I heard Hassel's next command.

"Draco Meteor, leave no room for escape!" I saw flashes of purple amidst the mist, the meteorites flashing down within the arena, likely striking in and around where she had just been. It's how I would teach her to strike, so I doubt Hassel didn't do the same.

The impacts died down, and I wasn't sure what condition Phantasm was in, but I could hear her ragged breathing, so that was good enough for the moment. "Alright, enough of this mist, Icy Wind!"

"Flamethrower!" Hassel called out in turn, and Dragonite let loose a stream of fire, catching the icy shards and cool breeze headed his way, melting through them. The two attacks also did a great job of clearing the air, revealing where our Pokemon were on the battlefield.

Drawing my Pokeball, I called out, "Shadow Sneak!" Forgoing the Icy Wind she was conjuring, Phantasm dived into her shadow, which stretched out long over the ground, before rising up several meters for her to pop out of it and score a quick cut into the Dragon Type. Dragonite had been too caught up with the Flamethrower to dodge, and as it reared back for a counter, I shouted, "Switch!" Quickly recalling Phantasm before any other attacks could get to her.

As I stowed away her Pokeball and drew another, Dragonite began munching on his berry while making multiple twisters with a few flaps of his wings, chasing out the duplicates. Already? But his health is nowhere near low enough to trigger- right, not a game. Hassel must have just trained his Dragonite to eat the berry quickly rather than wait like most Pokemon would - gives him the most out of Multiscale.

Without a word, I released Nightwing, and she shrieked gleefully onto the stage. Sticking her tongue out in a quick (and subtle) Taunt, she flew past him. He gave chase with speed that belied his size, and I was forced to call, "Protect," to fend off the attack. As the barrier ended, Nightwing swooped down and to the side, making a bit of room for our next Move as I saw that the Poison from the Toxic Orb had finally sunk into her.

"Fling," I said, smirking as I heard Hassel call for a Protect. She cackled alongside me as we saw Dragonite stuck in place, caught between the Taunt and attempting to follow his Trainer's command.

Be nice if we could buff here, but there's no time to waste. Nightwing tossed the Toxic Orb hard at the pseudo-Legendary, who couldn't avoid the Fling from so close. The blow caused him to wince slightly, the damage minimal but the effects vital to the state of this match. The Orb shattered against his shoulder, covering him in the deleterious liquid and causing a ripple to pass over his scales.

Good, Multiscale is down, and he's badly Poisoned. "Acrobatics," I ordered, and unburdened from the Toxic Orb, Nightwing flew rapidly around, striking at Dragonite once, twice, thri- getting grabbed out of the air.

Her look of 'Uh oh' summed it all up before Hassel shouted, "Ice Punch!" Dragonite nailed her with his other meaty paw, this one encrusted with ice that did nothing to harm him but heavily hurt my Pokemon.

Nightwing cried in pain, and I winced but didn't pause in ordering a retaliation. "Ice Fang!" Twisting around in his grip, Nightwing opened her jaw wide, clamping down hard on his wrist. This time it was his turn to cry out in pain from the double super-effective Ice Type attack, letting go of her involuntarily.

Hassel, not impaired by the pain, saw the situation a bit more objectively and ordered, "Wrap. Don't let her escape, then keep up the Ice Punches," he announced coldly. Nightwing attempted to fly away, but Dragonite's speed was still boosted, and he was able to wrap his thick tail around her.

It was tempting to call out for Ice Fang again, but I knew that wasn't the best strategy here. "Protect," I decided, letting Dragonite's icy fists slam against Nightwing's barrier to no effect for the moment. His tail was already around her and continued to squeeze, but it did minimal damage, which was healing already from her Ability. Meanwhile, Dragonite's health steadily dropped even as she raged on, the Poison sapping her vitality.

Drawing things out works in my favor, and while Nightwing is pretty good at taking physical hits, that Ice Punch of his hits damn hard. Let's not fight to a pseudo-legendary's strengths. Of course, to do that, Nightwing needs to break free from his grip.

"Knock off!" My words had Nightwing instantly dropping her barrier, her long tail infused with Dark energy, snaking up and smacking down on Dragonite's, the Move forcing an instant release. With the space to maneuver, she dropped immediately after, narrowly dodging Dragonite's Ice Punch. There might be fancier tricks we could have practiced with Protect, and it has some built-in limitations, but the work we put in to switch between its defense and any other Moves, pays off in its own ways here.

"Quick Attack, make some room." My call sees Nightwing blurring away from Dragonite. Hassel had learned from last time and didn't order an Extreme Speed, (rightfully) anticipating that she'd be ready for such a Move. Instead, he called down another Draco Meteor upon Nightwing, who avoided most of the rocks but was still clipped by one of them, the attack doing more damage than I would have thought.

He's definitely lost some power in his special attacks, but considering he already used one… Right, gotta remember that not everyone will be as drained by such an attack, especially a specialist like him. Bahamut could fire off Draco Meteors even quicker than Dragonite, but he'd be lucky to have his second one at even half power from the first.

"Gunk Shot," was my next order, trying to fire back with one of the few ranged attacks she had that I felt would be effective against the Dragonite. Nightwing sent the conjured pile of gunk flying up with a slap of her tail, but our foe proved nimble enough to dodge the shots. "Swords Dance," I called, trying to switch things up. If he tries to close, we still have a bit of time, and once she gets the boost off-

"Get in there, Haze," Hassel ordered, and his Pokemon did so, diving down while the icy Haze rose up around the arena. This Move was hardly as obscuring as the Mist had been, but it was enough to leave the two Pokemon as silhouettes as they clashed.

"Protect," I ordered again, and as the Haze cleared, I saw Nightwing's teal honeycomb barrier straining against Dragonite's attack. Sometimes you can risk a second one, but here, no. I can tell it won't hold one more time. I could see how ragged Dragonite looked; the beatings he had taken and the constant drain from Poison were taking their toll. But in this position, I knew there would be no escape, not before he could land one blow we couldn't afford to take. "Fine, let's do this. Ice Fang!"

The two of them met in one final clash, Dragonite's Ice Punch striking into Nightwing's side as she latched on with Ice Fang into his neck. Ice spread out across both of them, steadily encasing the two until they were both stuck in a small iceberg. They were also both clearly unconscious from the effort.

"Nemona and Hassel's Pokemon are both unable to battle! Trainers, ready your next Pokemon," Geeta called out. That was unexpected. And unfortunate; I'd hoped that Nightwing would be able to hold out longer. Hassel clearly recognized the dangers in that too, however, which was why he pushed his Dragon so hard on the offense.

The power of a pseudo-Legendary in the hands of an Elite. And that's not the only one on his team. Will his next one be Baxcalibur? Or will he suspect I won't be sending Phantasm out this time and sending Noivern back in? ... No, I know who he's sending out next. It's time. Raising my Pokeball, I stared Hassel dead in the eyes, waiting for the count before we simultaneously revealed our chosen Pokemon.

"Oh? What's this? Both Trainers have sent out a Haxorus! But it won't be hard to tell whose Pokemon is whose!" The announcer exclaimed, waving his hand out at our Dragons. His Haxorus had a normal color scheme, with yellowish green plating and black only on the belly, middle of the legs, and tip of the tail. Bahamut, on the other hand, was only a slightly darker shade of black in those spots, the rest of his armor a sparkling black as well, making the red on the edges of his tusks and claws 'pop' even more.

"Look at the coloration on Nemona's Haxorus! What a majestic creature." Bahamut preened at the announcer's words, and I rolled my eyes.

"Yes, you're beautiful. Now focus." He snapped to attention as Geeta finished counting down.

"Begin!" She announced. Bahamut took a step forward before being almost instantly bowled over by a skittering charge from Hassel's Pokemon. Dammit, First Impression!

"Earthquake!" I countered, letting Bahamut make use of his tail, the only appendage he could use effectively from his prone position, to hammer the ground. It made waves along the earth, shaking the arena and knocking the other Haxorus back while Bahamut rose to his feet.

"Dragon Claw," we both called out. There was a synchronized flash of surprise before I caught Hassel's fierce grin. From how my cheeks felt stretched, I was likely grinning too. Let's see how far you've come, Bahamut.

The two dragons tore into each other, claws flashing with a bluish-purple energy as they fought. The ground shook ever so slightly just from how they based themselves against it, trying to gain more power and leverage. Eventually, Bahamut tossed the other Dragon aside. As he took a step back and slid to a more defensive stance, I saw the damage he'd been dealt.

Too deep. Those scratches on his armor go too deep, especially for the damage he did to Hassel's Haxoruus. "Outrage," Hassel called, coming to the same conclusion I had, his word a challenge. 'For a Pokemon built for sheer power, how do you overcome it when faced with a greater force?'

With skill. "Weave and Dragon Claw." Bahamut met the erratic motions of Hassel's Haxorus, running forward, then rolling under the wild sweeps of the enemy. Performing a Dempsey roll, Bahamut ducked under an axe cut, answering with a vicious claw to our foe's less armored belly. Like that it went on, Bahamut dancing around the enraged blows and striking forth with his own, targeted hits.

Even with all his skill, fighting as best as I'd ever seen him, Bahamut couldn't avoid all of the crazed blows the Haxorus threw out, and even the glancing shots were hitting him just as hard as what he could do in return. I suppose this is the difference between us; Hassel is a Dragon Trainer, and I'm a Trainer with a Dragon. Specialists can bring out the most of their chosen Types. The ferocity and power of a Dragon… and also their pride.

That thought clicked something into place and I realized where the rest of his power was coming from. He's trained his Haxorus to master Rivalry. As Abilities went, I preferred the consistent advantage Mold Breaker gave, but Rivalry could give quite the power boost. Especially if it has a more personal component to it, like the challenge I tossed Haxorus' way when I convinced Bahamut to join my team. Clearly, I'd need to do something to level the playing field between them.

Pulling the Tera Orb out of its pouch, I felt it shake heavily as I activated it, the force still causing my arm to tremble, no matter how much I practiced with it. The force wasn't enough to hamper my throw, however, tossing it up over Bahamut just as the other Dragon's rage died down.

Hassel had trained his Pokemon well, letting them break out of the Confusion that should occur at the end of such a rampage, but even still, there was disorientation as he suddenly calmed down to see Bahamut covered by large crystals. Shattering out of them, Bahamut sparkled even brighter than before, his body covered in a crystalline sheen and the top of his head crowned by a red and blue dragon head Tera Jewel 'hat.'

"Full blade style." Lashing out with his tusks, Bahamut performed a modified Dragon Claw - I couldn't even call it a custom Move or the like, still doing what the Move normally did. Just moreso, using his powerful tusks instead of his claws, which, combined with his Terastalization, let my Dragon do a good deal of damage to Hassel's.

The Elite winced, seeing how much stronger Bahamut was now. His hand reached down to his own Tera Orb - only to be stopped by a hiss from his own Haxorus. And there's that Draconic pride. His Haxorus wants to win without using Terastalization, while mine… okay, Bahamut wanted that too. But I had talked things over with him, and he'd been willing to accept that it might not be in the cards. As strong as he had gotten over the past few months, it had only been a few months, while Hassel had been training his Haxorus for years. So we both knew (and accepted) that he might need an edge to win this. And he really wants to win this.

"Outrage!" I shouted, joy in my voice, matched by Bahamut's joyous roar as he charged forward, using his new strength to tear into the other Haxorus. He fought back hard against Bahamut, cutting and tearing into my Pokemon, even breathing Dragonfire out, but doing little that could match our power.

Hassel waited, letting his Pokemon weather the onslaught at first, before midway through calling, "Protect!" A barrier expanded out from his Pokemon, encircling him and warding off mine. Bahamut continued to rage, unable to stop his attacks even as his tusks and claws simply skittered off the barrier, until eventually, that rage petered out, and he was left with a dazed expression on his face.

Letting out a sharp note, I broke Bahamut's Confusion. He performed a barrel roll to the side, making distance from the other Haxorus. Hassel's Haxorus swung with his tusks, cutting through the air where Bahamut had been standing prior, caught off guard by how quickly he had shaken the Confusion off.

"How did-? Ah, I see. Remarkably clever, Miss Nemona. To use your voice like that… As your music teacher, I couldn't be prouder. But you'll need more than that to become a Champion! Dragon Tail!"

"Iron Tail!" I shouted in response, Bahamut's black tail flashing with grey light as he smashed the Steel Type attack into the other Dragon's Dragon Tail. They clashed for a moment until Bahamut overpowered Hassel's Pokemon.

Reeling back for only a second, the Haxorus tried to lunge back with a Crunch, but Bahamut met the Move with an Iron Head. The sharp fangs of our foe bounced off Bahamut's head with a clanging sound, and he winced back. For his part, Bahamut winced, lowering his sinuous neck to rub at the small fang marks on his head.

"Another clever trick, using Steel Type attacks to nullify a Dragon's weakness to their own Type. Avant-garde, as Brassie would say. But subtlety can only carry a Dragon so far; like with art, your Pokemon needs power, needs passion! Haxorus, you've seen the flaws. Outrage, give them no quarter!"

I pursed my lips, desperately racking my mind as the enemy Haxorus came charging in. Despite the mad rush, I was sure that he'd be ready for what we'd pulled before. No dancing around the attacks this time, and if we try to use a Steel Type attack, he'll just tank the hit and use the opportunity to hit Bahamut somewhere he isn't charging Steel Type energy - and that will hurt us a lot more than it hurts him. At the same time, though, we still can't meet him head-on. He's too strong for that.

My mind flashed back to working on songs with Hassel, and I recalled the end of a session where I flopped over the back of my chair. 'How does anyone make and sell music? It's all just… so much! Trying to compose all the lyrics and attach the right notes and instrumental directions and-'

'Patience,' Hassel had said. 'Like any problem, you take it one step at a time. Break the song down into different steps and do those.'

Right, like that. "Breaking Swipe!" Bahamut struck his tail out, sweeping it around and cracking it hard into the side of the enemy's knee. The other Haxorus staggered but continued his charge, biting, clawing, and hacking into Bahamut.

Bahamut fell back but managed to hold out against the onslaught, and I called out. "Outrage as well, you've got this!" With a fierce roar, he threw himself back, just as hard. No, harder now. He's overpowering him now that he's been weakened by Breaking Swipe.

The drawback was that Hassel's Pokemon had dealt more initial damage to Bahamut. The two Haxoruses clashed furiously, each one striking with as much power and rage as they could, before finally, one Dragon stood tall.

Swaying slightly, Bahamut remained, just barely hanging on to consciousness; the other Haxorus collapsed at his feet. My Pokemon gave a mighty roar of victory, proudly cheering his achievement, and I did the same from the other side of the barrier. "You did it! Woohoo!" I shouted, jumping up and down in joy.

"Indeed, well done, Nemona," Hassel congratulated me. "But this fight isn't over just yet," he recalled his fallen Pokemon as he spoke.

I nodded, waiting to see who he'd send out next. The return of his Noivern had me pulling out my Pokeball. "Switch." Honestly, I could recall my Pokemon and keep my last switch in reserve - Bahamut isn't looking too great right now. Still, I want to honor the effort he's put in thus far. Plus, he could land at least one solid blow against Hassel's Baxcalibur, which might be handy if it gets that far.

"Let's rock this." I said, releasing Phantasm back onto the field. This time, though, she looked exactly like my starter.

"Has Dun mastered this trick yet? Boomburst," Hassel called again, and once more sound flooded the field. This time, Phantasm was prepared for it, and she had 'Dun' writhe in agony slightly from the attack.

Gritting my teeth to sell the act, I cried, "Hyper Voice!" A cacophony of sounds filled the air, making it impossible to hear anything else Hassel was saying. Both our Pokemon were getting hurt by the assault, or so it appeared. Phantasm's ghostly nature made her immune to the damage.

I didn't think I gave anything away on my face, but somehow, Hassel figured it out. I read a curse on his lips before he called for a switch, returning his Pokemon to him. The noise died down, and I taunted, "Don't think you can take Dun? Softening him up won't let your ace beat mine, you y'know." Can I cause him to second-guess himself?

"I doubt we'll know, since he's not there," he said, very unamused. The announcer gave a shocked gasp to the side.

"What's this? Has Nemona outbluffed the Dragon Guardian of the Elite Four once more?" He asked rhetorically, and I resisted the urge to snort derisively. I think this is the first time I've fooled him so far, and even then, only for a few moments.

"You are correct, however," the Elite continued. "In that the last Pokemon you've yet to see from me today is my ace. Go, Baxcalibur!" It felt like the temperature dropped even before his icy Dragon had finished materializing from the Pokeball. By the time he had, rearing back and roaring in defiance, we could all definitely feel it. Hassel's Ace looked much the same as it had last time, with the exception of the large red Assault Vest he was wearing, fitted snugly over his body with a large cutout in the back to make room for the blade sticking out of his spine.

His yellow eyes glared down at the illusion of Dun before Hassel said, "Dorsal." I didn't get the reference until Baxcalibur turned around, pointing his back blade over at us. That's fine; he still doesn't know where Phantasm is-

"Get out of there!" I shouted, seeing the blade twitch slightly. Throwing himself backwards, balancing on his tail, which was making a trail of ice to slide across, Baxcalibur charged with a swift Glaive Rush. The spot he was striking at appeared to be empty air, but I knew it was where Phantasm had been hiding.

Forgoing her illusions, she leapt to the side, narrowly avoiding the sharp blade on his back, but still knocked by the rest of Baxcalibur's body as he charged through. Landing on all fours, her mane flared up wildly as she growled at him.

"Focus, he's open now!" I called out. Phantasm stood up, gathering a large sphere of Fighting Type energy above her. Before she could complete the Move against Baxcalibur, still picking himself up, Hassel's Tera orb soared over the arena, breaking open above his Ace.

As the flash of light and crystals faded, Baxcalibur stood tall, Terastalized. He too had Tera'd into a Dragon Type, which meant the Focus Blast hit and was handily shrugged off by the beast, no longer weak to Fighting.

"Play Rough-" I began to call, hoping to take advantage of his remaining weaknesses, but Hassel's next command stopped us cold.

"Ice Shards." Firing off a quick flurry of ice crystals, Phantasm was battered away, the force enough to send her sprawling against the wall. Not waiting for Geeta to call it, I returned my unconscious Pokemon.

"You did great out there, thanks." All right, it comes down to this: Hassel's Ace vs. my starter. "Dun, let's make some noise!" I shouted, tossing the ball in the air. Dun materialized in the air, sucking in a big breath. Baxcalibur turned to face him and was immediately hit by a full-force Boomburst.

"He did learn that trick, by the way!"

"What?"

"What?"

I gave up trying to communicate with the Dragon Trainer as it appeared he wasn't quite as adept at reading lips as I was. On the field, Baxcalibur was moaning with pain. That didn't stop him from shooting out a series of Icicle Spears at Dun, however, two of them hitting and bruising Dun's scales.

"Ancient Power." Dun waved his tail about, conjuring up a number of rocks, shaped just like the Icicle Spears Baxcalibur had just thrown at him. The rocks flew towards the Terastalized Pokemon, hitting him hard but not giving him a boost. I caught a flicker of confusion across Hassel's face before he pushed past it, ordering Ice Beams at my Pokemon.

Must be wondering why we aren't using Boomburst again. With the Normal Type STAB it was an impressive Move. Unfortunately, while Dun had become proficient in it, he couldn't use it continuously, needing to take a break from any voice-based Moves, and even Yawn, after using it. Doesn't take him a long time, though; we could do it again… but that would give away the limitation entirely.

"Rise up and classic." At my command, Dun jumped into the air, leaving behind the slippery ground Baxcalibur had made with his Ice Beams. "What, didn't think we'd notice you trying to put him on unstable footing? Or, uh, unstable bellying?" That saying doesn't work as well when the person in question doesn't have feet or legs.

What did work was rising up, the new elevation forcing our enemies to look up at him, their gaze going straight to the swirly symbol on his belly, which glowed brightly, Paralyzing Baxcalibur. And that's 'Classic,' i.e. how Glare is supposed to be used by a Dundunsparce. Can't say I'm disappointed with how Dun uses it with his 'resting angry face,' but Hassel would have been well and prepared for that.

"Take Down!" He was decent at improvising regardless, so that command saw his Ace rising up in the air and slamming Dun into the ground. My Pokemon gave a small squeaking sound as he gasped out from the impact, while Baxcalibur grunted as he rolled off of him.

"Protect/Glaive Rush!" We called out simultaneously. Being so close, Dun had barely any time to make a barrier before Baxcalibur slammed into him, but he managed it. The sheer force of it pushed the barrier (and Dun inside it) back to the edge of the arena but only shook my starter up a bit, not really hurting him.

As the honeycomb forcefield faded away and Baxcalibur was left sitting there, wide open, I called, "Dragon Rush, curve around!" Dun made a twisty charge, curling around Baxcalibur's tougher back to hit the Dragon with a surprise shot from the front.

He grunted, launching a Dragon Claw at Dun, who twisted around to avoid the attack. Normally having to turn your back on your enemy would be a bad thing, but less so when you've got a drill there. "Hyper Drill."

As his tail spun up, Hassel called, "Glaive Rush!" Spinning on a dime, Baxcalibur rushed with his own back-facing blade, the two attacks colliding in a clash that kicked up a number of sparks between the two. They held for a second before Dun was overpowered, Hassel's Pokemon pushing past and tossing Dun aside. The dragon gave a bellow of triumph before freezing in place.

"Yawn," I said, my lips twitching upwards. This is it, our chance.

"Get out of there!" Hassel shouted, panicked. Baxcalibur tried hard to make some distance between them, but his limbs wouldn't move, the paralysis catching him in place. Dun wasted no time in rushing forward, rising up to exhale a quick yellow cloud into Baxcalibur's face.

For a moment as he backed away, pushing past the paralysis for a moment, I thought he had somehow resisted the move. But as he opened his mouth to cry in defiance, the sound changed halfway through to a yawn, his yellow eyes drooping.

"Outrage! Go all out!" Hassel cried, and I could commend him on making the most of the situation he was in. If we just sat there and took it, he might still win. Well, sit there and take it some way other than Roosting.

At my hand sign, Dun curled up into a tight ball, his six wings flapping down as he recovered. Just as fast as he healed, possibly even faster, Baxcalibur tore into him fiercely, making the most of the time he was conscious. But the wild attacks couldn't beat my starter down fast enough, and soon, as Baxcalibur spun around confused and tired, he fell, snoring lightly before he even hit the ground.

Seeing the claw marks and rends on my Pokemon, I was tempted to tell him to recover more, but I knew that more than healing, we needed to use other Moves in this short opening we had. Already, Hassel was shouting for Baxcalibur to wake up. No switches left, but he's not throwing in the towel here - Baxcalibur's power is insane, and with the Assault Vest, quite tanky too. So let's change that.

"Breaking Swipe, over and over!" Dun uncurled at my command, his tail slapping out left and right. It cracked in at the snoozing Pokemon's joints and weak points, hitting him all over. He especially targeted the dorsal blade on Baxcalibur, hitting it from the side and denting it in two spots.

This got Baxcalibur to wake up with an angry cry, sweeping Dun away with a Dragon Tail. Where before the blow would have hit with bone-breaking force, it was now more like a buffeting wind, tossing Dun back but doing little damage. The Dragon rose to his feet with a pained grunt, glaring down at my land snake Pokemon.

A thousand different options flitted by his face, the man calculating what he needed to do to recover from this. As he said, "Dragon Breath," I knew he had skipped the one that might have let him win.

"Roost." Once more, Dun settled down, tanking the blows. The fire scoured at Dun's scales, but he regenerated quicker than Baxcalibur could hurt him. Once he had healed enough that I felt secure in our victory, I changed tactics.

"Ice Beam, freeze him down." He could have recalled Baxcalibur, I mused, watching the two send out energy attacks at each other. If he had done so, he might have been able to turn things around. With Dun weakened and tired, maybe his Noivern could have scored a quick K.O., and his aerial maneuverability would give him an advantage over the also worn-out Bahamut. I didn't think such a scenario was likely, but it was possible. Here?

Both of our attacks were hitting the other, Dun curling his long tail around and firing the white-blue beam out around at Baxcalibur from it, while he bathed Dun in bluish-purple flames. While Baxcalibur did slightly more damage as a result of his Terastalization and even managed to cause Dun's muscles to seize up, the Ice Beam was also freezing the Elite's Ace solid.

With a heavy sigh, Hassel pulled up his Ball and returned the frozen Dragon to him. "Hassel has returned his Pokemon!" The announcer shouted. "With only one Pokémon left, can Hassel turn things arou-"

"I forfeit."

"Whaaaaat?" Before the announcer could say anything more, Geeta called the end of the match. Marching across the field, I stopped to scratch Dun's head, a quick reward for all the hard work he did before recalling him. Then I continued until I was standing before Hassel, my hand outstretched.

"Thank you," I said with as much sincerity as I could muster. "This was an excellent fight."

"Indeed. You have surpassed me, and your skill on the battlefield was—it was…marbellous!" He sobbed out, the tears flowing freely as he was overcome with emotion. He hugged me, and I reached up to awkwardly pat him on the shoulder.

Yeah, it really was. I'll always treasure this moment.

Spoiler: A/N:

And here we are, the rematch versus Hassel! I hope it was worth the wait; this chapter was a tougher one for me despite having a general idea of how it would unfold. Still, I think it turned out pretty good.

I had originally planned on having it take place in the interlude from Drayton's perspective but didn't even get into writing out the battle before I realized that this really needed to be from Nemona's POV. Too much would get missed in her strategies and feelings from someone else's viewpoint for a match that's so important to her. Hopefully you all enjoyed it as much as I did. Let me know how you're feeling about this match and the Gauntlet in general down below or he Discord to talk about it. And if you like my stuff and want to toss me a bit of money, I have a Kofi and a Patreon, subscribers to the latter get early access to the next ten chapters. Thank you and have a great day.

 

[Skyfyre]

Spoiler: Patreons:

Thank you to my 70 Beginner Tier Patreons and an extra special thanks to RageLord, Nodal_Gravity, Exalted Requiem, and HanShotFirst, my Ace Tier Paterons!

After Hassel had regained his composure, he left with me, heading back out through the League Building. "It is truly something, to see your student surpass you. I never thought I would see it, or at least not this early…" He trailed off. Hmm- oh, right. He was probably trained by his father, the chieftain of the Dragon Tribe. Hassel's stronger than his dad, but they didn't part on good terms, so something like this must be quite new to him.

"Thank you for everything you did." I cut him off before he could wave aside my gratitude. "No, really. I don't think you realize just how much your presence helped push me forward to this stage." I was always aiming to be here, but every little tidbit he'd share after my music lessons and our match before my birthday, it all really led me to being here now.

I paused, as he appeared on the verge of tears again, but with heroic willpower, the artist managed to keep control. "You're welcome. Now, if I may ask for a favor?" I cocked my head to the side, curious about what he could need from me. "Might I join the rest of your friends in rooting you on? Geeta mentioned they were waiting in the lounge. I wished to join you earlier but felt conflicted while you were still a challenger for me. Now that you've beaten me at my best, however-"

"Of course! I'm sure they'd be glad to see you, and I appreciate it a lot too. It's great to know that you're supporting me- o-okay." I said as he burst into sobs again, exclaiming between tears about how hard he would cheer for me. At least I think that's what he's saying; he's a bit hard to understand like this.

When we opened the lounge door, there was a loud wave of celebration that hit us, everyone cheering my victory hard.



"Wonderful! Truly splendid."

"Such Glitterati might and passion on display out there!"

"W-wozers… I've never seen battling like that before."

"That was pretty cool, I guess… But I'll surpass you yet!"

"You were awesome! All like, hyacha! Pow!"

"Never doubted you for a moment."

"OSU!"

"The battlefield truly is the place where your beauty shines the greatest."



And more like that. "You did it! My little sister is going to be a Champion now!" Cyan cried, hugging me. I hugged her back, laughing.

"Not quite; I've still got to defeat one more Elite, then the Champion."

"You don't need to take on the last Elite, though, right?" Friede asked," "You only need to win against three of the four Elite Four."

"That's true, but… I meant what I said earlier. I want to be the greatest Champion ever, not just the youngest. Besides, even if I lose here, I can still take on Miguel." Of course, immediately forfeiting against my next foe would be the smart option. Fighting him is going to leave my Pokemon even more tired. But then, how tired will they be if we have to fight our way down to Area Zero to shut down Turo's machine?

My parents heaped more praise on me, something about 'diamonds being forged under the greatest of pressures.' Not sure that's true anymore now that I have Notch. Cyan gave me a questioning look but accepted the reassuring grin I flashed her without issue. "Now, I know it's a bit early, but who's hungry? Because I've got a feeling my team could eat."

At my words, Dun popped out of his Pokeball. "Duuuuuuun," he groaned, all of his stomachs rumbling. Everyone laughed, and I hugged him tight. "You did good out there. Get your energy back; you'll need it for the finals."

***

Dinner was quite a loud affair, with over a dozen people and all our Pokemon chowing down. Still, the League Building was used to holding far more than us, and most of the staffers weren't in the cafeteria with us. The few that were glanced over at our tables were constantly whispering.

"That's her?"

"She seems so small in person."

"Course she does, she's just a kid."

"Can't believe she's already taking on the Elite Four."

"I know, right? My little girl is busy braiding her hair and watching cartoons."

"Must be nice having a rich family, getting all the rare Pokemon you could want."

"Some people get all the luck… I couldn't even get my fifth badge on my Treasure Hunt."

"Probably faces a lot of pressure to do well too."

"I'm hoping she does well! I've heard Geeta has good things to say about her."

I didn't let any of their words bother me, barely noting them as I ate. My mind was focused on my goals, on victory. Athena, Miles, and Bahamut are good choices. Then maybe Nightwing? She's good, but… ugh, even with Athena and Mega Evolution, we might need Notch to check his Ace. Decisions, decisions.

Looking down at my empty plate, I realized I was still hungry. "Aha, I think I might need seconds."

"Understandable, you've been battling hard all day," Hassel said.

"I know, just… feels weird. I'm just standing there, giving out orders. Physically, it's not like I'm working out a ton." I wonder if this is another aspect of Aura and the like. Trainer's Pokemon form bonds with them, and this can be used to empower them explicitly through things like Battle Bond and Mega Evolution, but perhaps there's more subtle effects as well. I wonder if there would be some way to quantify it? Then you might be able to measure how much Aura someone had, too. Heh, wonder if by whatever units we'd discover if mine would be 'over nine thousand?'

I snorted softly at my own joke, earning a questioning glance from Arven. "Ah, don't worry, it's nothing. Just thought of something absurd," I said as I rose and grabbed another plateful of food. The cafeteria food was quite good, restaurant level, and I wondered if it was like that usually or if they had just upped the level for me and my family. Still well below the usual Glitterati level, but that's a high bar to clear.

After finishing my second dinner, I looked over at my team, who had finished most of their meals. "How's everyone feeling? Ready for our last Elite Four battle?" A chorus of cries and one stoic nod met me. The only one who didn't answer was Radiance, off sulking in the corner. I might not be sure about how ready you are to battle yet, but I don't want to leave you out of the team. Which means having you out for mealtimes and the like, even if we are talking about battles and stuff then.

"All right, let's get back to the room. I've got some plans for what we'll need to do next."

***

Marching back to the arena, I strode through the doors, ready for my last battle here. Miles floated by my side, blasting Megalovania as I entered. Once more, my opponent was already waiting for me, though he had his back turned to me as I approached.

"Nemona Glitterati is back for her final round of the Elite Four! She's already proven she can take on the rest and has earned a chance to take on the El Primero no matter what happens here. This young girl is on fire, but can she possibly defeat the Great and Powerful Tuuuuuuuurtle?!"

At the announcer's words, the lights dimmed, and spotlights blared on the Elite in question. He had white spiky hair that leaned to the left side. Most noticeable, however, was the massive metal plating he wore over his body. It only covered his torso but was too rounded to be a breastplate or the like.

Spinning around suddenly, it would have become apparent, even if I hadn't seen pictures of him before, that the metal was meant to be an homage to a shell. The man had wild red eyes and a button nose. He had rainbow leggings and sleeves on, clashing wildly with the unburnished steel gray shell he wore.

"Indeed. Miss Glitterati, your winning streak ends here! For none can best the Great and Powerful Turtle!" He said in the third person. Does referring to yourself by your title count as third person? Then again, he calls himself 'The Great and Powerful Turtle' everywhere, as if that was his name, ugh.

"We'll see about that, Turtle." I said simply, motioning for Miles to take his place on the field. The Elite narrowed his eyes, crossing his arms weirdly in front of himself.

"You should refer to me by-"

"I'm not going to say the whole thing every time. Honestly, you should be glad I call you Turtle at all, Juan." He reeled back overdramatically from me using his actual name. Geez, so extra. Then again, maybe I'd be more willing to put up with his antics if he'd been the first Trainer I'd faced today, not the penultimate.

Despite his dramatics, I knew the man was powerful; his Ace was noted around the world. I'd studied him intently and knew some of his strategies, but he'd had few public battles since the creation of Tera Orbs. Given his 'theme' I'm not sure if he'll Terastalize for added power on any of his Pokemon or defensively. I've seen him do both, but that's only across three battles.

Recovering himself at Geeta's instruction to ready his Pokemon, he plucked a Pokeball from the belt it was attached to around his large 'shell.' Narrowing his eyes, he released a small yellow Pokemon with a red shell. From the many holes in the shell stuck out four floppy limbs and an equally floppy head.

The Shuckle had a blank expression on his face as he stared at Miles. Definitely one of the Pokemon I thought he might use to counter Miles. Not sure how good or how much he knows of my team, though, so we'll see if this was a good choice on his part or not. I had plans to take advantage of it either way - the only thing that would have been shocking would have been if he had sent out his ace from the start. As far as I know, he always saves her for the end. It might make him predictable in a way, but having a Legendary makes up for many weaknesses.

Geeta counted us down, and I could see the slight tension in his limbs, the same as I felt, both of us getting ready. At the signal, he gave the command first, as I waited to see what he'd do. "Body Press!"

Alright, guess you have been paying attention. Miles had only been shown in this Form in one battle before, so the weaknesses weren't as well known. For someone researching us, though, it was obvious they were part Normal Type like this. To be fair, it's also Shuckle's strongest Move from this position, so I might see why he'd use it here, but it's much too early. Usually he likes to debilitate his foes first.

The reason for that was obvious from how easily Miles dodged around the Fighting Type attack, gliding away and shocking Shuckle as they went. "Thunder Wave," I called out, and Miles sent out a very precise bolt to make Shuckle freeze up for a moment.

He responded by releasing a swarm out from his shell, thousands of tiny insects moving to cover Miles. They'll whittle Miles down and stop me from switching them out. "Hyper Voice and Discharge, fry those bugs."

The sound my Rotom emitted crushed much of the swarm to paste, and the few bugs that persisted were fried by the lightning they emitted. The widespread attacks managed to hit Shuckle as well, but given his high defenses, they did little damage.

"Toxic, show them the terrifying power of the invincible turtle!" Rearing his head back, he hucked a glob of poison at Miles, the Move splashing against their boombox body. Poison seeped through their aura, giving the glow around their body a distinctly purple tinge.

"Sing, all out." Miles swung in, heedless of any attacks, to play a soothing lullaby piece I'd half finished at our foe point-blank.

"Safeguard! No harm can befall Shuckle within his invincible sh- oh he's asleep." Turtle changed his tune suddenly upon seeing his Pokemon had fallen for Miles' Move. No duh. Safeguard is a good Move, but Miles is way too fast for Shuckle. Let's wrap this up-

"Now, crush em!" Turtle declared, leaping up and down, landing with a heavy thud due to all the weight he was carrying. More worrying was the fact that Shuckle had, still asleep, flipped himself up in the air and was headed right for Miles.

"Substitute!!" I cried, and Miles followed, shunting themself backwards through the creation of a Substitute. Despite that, their plasmic arms were still hit, and Miles wobbled from the pain. Damn, Sleep Talk. Once more an Elite uses it when I had no idea their Pokemon knew that Move.

Unlike last time, however, I wasn't going to charge in recklessly. "Switch." I called, returning Miles and sending Athena out. Not wasting a single second, I activated my Keystone, pointing the ring at her. Power flowed out from me through our bond, creating the appearance of a faintly glowing sphere around my Lucario that shattered as she Mega Evolved.

"Folks, this is incredible," The announcer said in awe. "Nemona Glitterati has used her Enhancement Effect of the match, but not to Terastalize! With access to both a Keystone and Lucarioite, Athena has been Mega Evolved, giving her a vast increase in power, though her Types remain the same. She's showcased this once so far in her journey before against Tyme, and it was a showstopper there."

"Flash Cannon," I gasped out, looking up at Athena. Why am I looking up- oh right, fell down a bit. As I'd figured out at dinner, I was tired, and Mega Evolution didn't help with that. Still, I rose to my feet shakily, watching Athena blast Shuckle away, chipping his shell.

"Sleep Talk," Turtle said, his voice a bit strained. Shuckle followed through with a Body Press… aimed off from where Athena stood by a few feet. There we go. Sleep Talk is a useful Move to try and deal with Sleep, but it's not perfect. I've figured out it mostly runs off of what they knew from before the fight. Switching out messes with that.

It wasn't perfect; clearly there was some kind of dreamlike perception they had of the world or some way in which the Move could guide them, since the same Pokemon simply moving around on the battlefield wasn't enough to mess with them. Even so, it gave Athena plenty of time to nail him with another Flash Cannon, cracking even more of Shuckle's shell.

Our foe woke up early, blinking his eyes open and glaring at the Mega Pokemon. A pulse of light shot out from him, moving quickly and sinking into Athena before rebounding back into Shuckle. This was quickly followed by yet another Flash Cannon, but this one hit much weaker. The damage from it was also healed as the Shuckle quickly munched on a berry hidden within his shell.

"Your power is now ours! Show her what you can do with such might backing your incredible armored body, Earthquake." Shuckle slapped a flipper against the ground, the motion looking ridiculous but shaking up the ground easily, pillars of earth smacking into Athena's legs, causing her to flinch in pain.

"Don't let him mess around any more, Thousand Hands, juggle." The final word I whispered, so I doubted anyone but Athena noticed. Both the Elite and his Pokemon, as well as the announcer and referee, were enthralled by the sight of my Lucario rising up in the air, a golden glow surrounding and solidifying around her. The shape of the divine took place, Arceus' image imposed over the battlefield.

Shuckle shook off the Paralysis that had been holding him in place, raising one flipper up to slap the ground once more, before being hit by one of the golden hands. It swept across the field, knocking Shuckle into the arena wall, followed by another that lifted him up into the air. A half dozen more followed, pinning him in place and hitting him over and over again until… he caught one.

"Skitter Smack!" Holding one mighty fist larger than he was in place with his stubby forelegs, he rocketed ahead, kicking off the wall with his back legs, shooting towards the edge of the arena closest to me and bouncing off of that, slamming into Athena hard enough to break her concentration.

Fuck, we worked on making that harder to do because I realized it was a weak point of the technique. And to do that with a Bug Type attack… he must have used Power Trick. "Do you see now, the undeniable power of the tur-"

"Finish this, Hellzone Grenade!" I interrupted the Elite, and Athena shot her hands out, firing off dozens of Aura Spheres. The Turtle called for a Protect, but as the barrier surrounded the shots curved away under Athena's control, to hover in a circle in the air above Shuckle. The turtle Pokemon gulped audibly as Protect flickered around him.

Crossing her paws in front of her, the Aura Sphere hammered down into Shuckle, his barrier shattering like glass as the blasts hit him repeatedly, one after another. After a few seconds, I held up a hand, and Athena stopped, panting hard at the end of the barrage. The dust cleared, revealing Shuckle, conscious for only a second before he gave a pained cry and flopped to the ground, defeated.

"How could you do something to such an innocent and harmless turtle!?" As he spoke, Turtle raised a hand up to his mouth as if to cover his gasp and the other place with the back upon his forehead, as if he was feeling faint.

I raised an eyebrow at the flamboyant man. "Are turtles supposed to be all-powerful or innocent and harmless? Don't think you get it both ways." And I'd definitely say that one leaned closer to all-powerful than harmless. Shuckle wasn't as flashy as the others on his team, but considering how he taught it powerful Moves like Body Press that most Shuckles couldn't learn and all the ways he could mess with things like Power Split and Power Trick, I felt confident that he was the second strongest on Turtle's team.

"Turtle, your Pokemon has fainted; please send out your next Pokemon," Geeta instructed him. He dropped his silly pose to glare at her, likely because she wasn't using the full title he desired for himself. She simply gave the man a hard stare, and he broke first. Yeah, best not to argue with the ref in the middle of a match.

The Elite revealed his next Pokemon, an orange tortoise-esque Pokemon, with a hard gray shell. There were several cherry-red hot vents on the sides of it and a large one out the top, from which white steam billowed out. She was also wearing an Assault Vest, this one done in orange to match her skin and carefully crafted to leave room for the vent holes around her shell. It looked bulky, but I imagined it didn't actually slow her down any more than usual.

Her appearance also brought forth a bright miniature 'sun' within the room, raising the temperature to sweltering degrees. Drought, it'll power up her Moves significantly for as long as it's around. Pretty sure she also knows White Smoke too, from the recordings I've reviewed, so I can't weaken her either.

"Gah, that's a tortoise, not a turtle!" I pointed out angrily. I mean, there probably aren't that many turtle Pokemon so branching out is probably the only way to fit his theme, but still.

"Haha!" He said, twisting his hands dramatically, and in a manner I felt must have broken something. "All turtles may not be tortoises, but all tortoises are turtles."

"Wait, really?"

"Yes, and that is why you will looooose," he declared, drawing the word out. I stared at him hard.

"How, exactly, will my lack of knowledge over a specific family of reptiles cause me to lose a Pokemon battle?" I questioned, my eyes narrowed. He held my gaze before glancing to the side.

"Well, you see, that is… attack! Rapid Spin!" His Torkoal pulled her legs and head into her hard shell, spinning around rapidly towards Athena. A Normal Type attack against a Steel Type? He could just be looking for the speed boost, but-

"Get out of there; they've got range!" I shouted, and Athena leapt away. My timely command meant she was only mildly scorched by the streams of flame spinning out from each of the holes in her shell. Combining Flamethrower with Rapid Spin lets them cover a vast area with their flames, making the most of Athena's weakness and the bright sunlight. Impressive… and something I really don't think knowledge of turtle/tortoise anatomy would help with! It's like pointing out how not knowing about hedgehog physiology would be your downfall when fighting Sonic.

"Eruption!" Torkoal slowed down, stopping and sticking his legs and head back out, heat gathering around him. Athena drifted above, using her Aura to hold herself out of range from the burning circle he'd made before, but she was in much more danger now.

"Switch," I said, recalling Athena before the attack could hit. Torkoal was still slow enough for me to manage it easily, but he couldn't stop the heat he'd built up so easily, instead releasing it, a vast plume of fire roaring up, scorching heat radiating outwards, covering the entire field. That's definitely got some power behind it; I'll have to be careful here. Even with Mega Evolution, there was a serious risk that she might have been knocked out by that attack, even if she had landed a shot of her own to weaken the power of it.

"Go, Bahamut." My shiny Dragon took the stage for the second time today, this time wearing an Assault Vest of his own rather than a Dragon Fang. Feels so expensive to get him and Notch outfitted with these just for single battles, but if it works, then they were well worth the costs. My parents had readily agreed to do so for everything I had needed leading up to this and even raised some good points about how much the name of our family and their companies would improve based on a strong showing here, which helped me feel not quite as guilty about all the money being poured into this. Guess I just have to make sure it was worth it by winning this.

"Dragon Claw/Eruption!" The race between the tortoise and the hare might have ended in the tortoise's favor; the one between the tortoise and the Dragon was handily won by the Dragon. Bahamut dashed over and ripped into her before she was able to fire off her move.

There was indeed a lot of fire there, but as the smoke and haze cleared, it showed that my Pokemon had weathered the Eruption well, only a few scorch marks on his scales. "Outrage, show them the power of a Dragon!" I roared, and Bahamut responded in kind, preparing to tear into the Torkoal.

His rampage was cut short by a quick, "Switch!" And a beam of red light, recalling Torkoal to Turtle's hands. Does he go for her? I wouldn't blame him if he did; she was probably the best bet he had of defeating my Haxorus right now. It would also be a massive mistake, however. Bahamut is strong enough to land at least a few good hits in, and then Turtle is out of Switches as I put in my next Pokemon.

Either wanting to stick to his regular modus operandi or recognizing the trap, Turtle didn't send out his Ace, instead releasing a very familiar blue tortoise-esque Pokemon, with two cannons sticking out of his shell.

This Blastoise was scarred, with one long cut across his face, and didn't waste a second upon hitting the field. Rushing up with speed faster than I or Bahamut anticipated, he rushed up to my Dragon, clapping his stubby hands together right in front of Bahamut's face, the Fake Out causing my Pokemon to flinch backwards.

"Ignore it, Breaking Swipe!" Bahamut swept around, his tail giving him the reach that Blastoise couldn't back away from. The draconic energies sapped at our foe's strength, but Turtle's next Move countered that.

"Shell Smash, break free and show the world your true potential!" Should I voice the fact that he's Jojo posing all the time? Nah, nobody here would get that reference.

With a mighty flex, Blastoise's muscles bulged, expanding and cracking his own shell open. That breaking caused a small White Herb that had been tucked inside near the neck hole of the shell to come fluttering out. He quickly grabbed the item and popped it in his mouth, which almost immediately caused the damaged parts of his shell to glow and repair themselves.

"Breaking Swipe again!" White Herb doesn't last long; we can take down all the attack boosts he got from that. Bahamut swept his tail back and forth, nailing Blastoise the first time but missing the second. The Turtle's Pokemon had much greater speed now and used that to make some distance between Bahamut and himself before aiming his cannons at my Dragon.

"Ice Beam," Turtle announced without any flourish. The twin beams from Blastoise's back did enough of that, chilling Haxorus harshly. The vest staved off the worst of it, however, and a quick mini-Earthquake shattered the ice that threatened to hold him in place.

"Trailblaze, get in close and fast, then Outrage!" Bahamut kicked up a strip of grass and flowers, racing towards Blastoise just like Athena taught him. Ducking low, my Pokemon managed to scoop Blastoise up, flipping him in the air as he rushed by.

"Tuck your head in," Turtle cried, mimicking the motion himself, though to a far lesser degree than Blastoise managed, the Pokemon fully retracting his head inside the shell as he landed back down. I sighed, recognizing what was coming. Not much that we can do about it right now. Even if I ordered Bahamut to retreat, they'd still have gotten the defense boost.

In a rage, Bahamut slashed and tore into the Blastoise, inflicting decent amounts of damage, but not enough to put the Water Type down. Midway through the rampage, Blastoise's head popped back out with incredible force, striking hard into my Haxorus' collarbone. The attack hit hard enough to leave him slouched on one side, but still caught in the fury, he continued his assault with the other half of his body.

"Make some room, Surf!" A tidal wave poured out from Blastoise's back, hydrokinetically shaped into a wave that forced Bahamut back. My Pokemon caught himself halfway across the arena, digging his clawed feet into the ground, and slowly started marching back towards his enemy, roaring… before remembering he was underwater. Please don't drown yourself, Bahamut, I silently prayed.

Spitting out a bunch of water as the wave died down, my Dragon began picking up speed in his charge towards our enemy. "Keep away, Dragon Pulse," Turtle called out hurriedly. Blastoise has a naturally tanky nature, but even he can't deal with the sheer insane offensive power Bahamut can bring to bear at close range… With the Shell Smash boost he's fast enough to play keep away and strike Bahamut down, though.

"Draco Meteor," I called out tiredly. Bahamut glanced back at me for a split second, nodding his head before lifting it up to the heavens and letting out a piercing cry. Dozens of large, purple glowing meteorites appeared at the top of the arena, falling down towards Blastoise as the Elite's Pokemon gathered a beam of Dragon Type energy just outside his mouth. Firing it off, the beam hit my Pokemon at the same time as his attack landed against our foe.

Even before the dust cleared, I was drawing my Pokeball, clear on who had won that clash. Oh, from the ragged gasps of the Blastoise, I could tell all the hits landed had done a significant number on him, but Bahamut was right out.

Recalling him, I sent Miles out onto the field once more. The Poison affecting them hadn't been undone, but it had been held at bay while within the Pokeball. I knew we had to end this fast, and Miles did. Thunder struck down without a command needed, my Pokemon instantly keying onto our foe and his weakness.

Not that Blastoise was much slower in responding, sending out a Hydro Pump that clipped Miles with powerful waves of water pressure. But as his attack waned, Miles kept up the assault.

The Life Orb within their Boombox body drained Miles' vitality even quicker, but it boosted the Thunder, letting them summon huge bolts of blinding lightning down upon Blastoise's head. The blasts continued for a quarter minute before Miles let up, and Blastoise instantly collapsed to the ground.

Faintly, I heard them playing 'Thunderstruck' from waterlogged speakers, and I chuckled. Heh, I remember when I was young, I said I wanted to listen to that song, Back in Black, and I told my mom it was 'by ACDC' very seriously. She said, 'I know that; why do you?'

"You shouldn't smile so freely, young challenger; this battle is only halfways done!" Turtle's words shook me out of that memory. Can't get distracted by stuff like that; gotta focus on the moment. He recalled his Pokemon, sending Torkoal back out, the miniature sun burning brightly once more.

"Sing," I said, clicking my tongue three times. Miles flew in, as if trying to get close to maximize the effectiveness of the Move, before darting out to the side, calling down more Thunder.

Unfortunately for us, they didn't take the bait; instead of Overheat, Turtle shouted, "Inferno!" Miles zipped around the first pillar of flame that threatened to consume them. The second too. But not the third.

Their song turned into a screech of static until they pulled through, flying wildly. Despite the Poison, Life Orb drain, and damage they'd taken, and now the Burn, Miles continued their assault, striking her with repeated bolts of lightning, wearing down her defenses.

Finally, a crack showed, the fiery Pokemon stumbling for a second as they dodged a Thunder. Paralysis. "Eject and Hex!" I called out, realizing this battle was in its final moments. C'mon Miles, just need you to hold on a bit longer.

Torkoal let out a Heat Wave at Miles, but as they dropped their possession, the blast of heat only melted the metal, my Pokemon floating off to the side. Screwing up their plasmic eyes in concentration, they summoned a mass of distorted shadows lashing into the Paralyzed Torkoal. With a faint cry, she dropped to the ground, defeated.

"Bzzzt," Miles gave a weak cheer before joining her, the Burn and Poison attached to Miles' Aura, not their body, and still draining them. They waited, however, for Geeta to announce that Turtle's Pokemon had fallen unconscious first. So that Turtle has to send out a Pokemon first, even though we all know who it's going to be. Always so thoughtful, Miles.

"You did great out there, thank you," I told them as I recalled the second Pokemon to ever join my team. Turtle let out a huff as he recalled his Pokemon, shaking his head.

"You have proven yourself to be a worthy challenger, Nemona Glitterati. But do you think that just because you have a Legendary as well, that it can match up to mine? Perhaps," he admitted, breaking character for a moment in a way that had me blinking in surprise.

Drawing his last Pokeball, he continued. "There's a price to pay for such power, and the difficult path you've chosen will cost you much. Can you pay the cost necessary to match the unstoppable, incredible Enamorus?!" The last word came as he released the Pokemon of the same name out onto the field.

The pictures and videos don't do her justice. Floating in the air was a large, pink, vaguely turtle-shaped Pokemon. While she had four clawed, webbed feet, her snout was somewhat angular with two tufts of white hair that stuck and curled together to look like a heart. That motif carried on in patterns on a coiled pile atop her back, which might be like the thickest part of a shell, but with how part of it stuck up and had a bulbous growth on the end, it looked more like a snake. Her body beneath that was covered in or made of clouds, which were a bit more shell-like, but also less, because of what they were.

Joy and rage. Pain and delight. Humor and melancholy. These emotions and more raged within me, just from her mere presence. And I can tell it's just that, the way those yellow eyes of hers glanced at me once before turning away… she's dismissing me. To be fair, she likely faced many challengers that seemed just like me and had crushed them all before, but I wasn't inclined to be charitable in my current emotional state.

Flaring my Aura, I made a gust of wind around myself, calling on my training to focus my mind. That had her head snapping towards me, but I pushed through the added pressure of the emotional storm, honing in on a logical strategy. Using Notch here means they'll be tired for the next match, and we can't have that. I can't just use Athena right away, though. Enamorus knows Weather Ball, and the sun is still up; I have to wait that out.

My other options weren't great, however. Nightwing and Phantasm were too frail to last long. Dun could do it, might even win by himself, but with how hard he'd been pushed so far, he wouldn't be able to fight in the Champion match if I used him here. This was supposed to be his rest period, but I did let him know that if Miles fell, he might have to step up here.

My hand drifted over to Dun's Pokeball, but before I could grasp it, another one popped open, an intimidating figure appearing beside me. Radiance made an angry buzzing sound as their crosshair eyes locked onto Enamorus.

"Oh, what's this? I don't think I've ever seen a Pokemon like you before," the Elite said, staring curiously at the Paradox Pokemon.

The announcer also chimed in. "Nemona reveals a brand new Pokemon, never seen or heard before! What a twist!" That's not quite true; Iron Moth was seen at least once before, not that it's really the issue here.

"Uh, time out!" I called to Geeta, who waved a hand, signaling a pause in the match.

"What seems to be the issue?" Turtle asked, and I noticed that he had dropped his silly poses from before, sensing the real concern in my voice (and confirming my long-held theory that it was just another part of the 'act' he put on for battling, and not some weird unconscious reflex).

"I- I can't send you out-" I was cut off by them making angry grinding sounds, Radiance pointing their wings towards Enamorus and raising the temperature. The humans gasped from the sudden, sweltering heat that filled the air. The Legendary, on the other claw, simply raised a brow on one of her pale yellow eyes, conjuring a chill wind that instantly cooled everyone down.

Seeing Radiance agitated by the display, I brought their attention back to me. "Hey, calm down." As I spoke, Turtle strode over to us, Geeta approaching as well. Thankfully, the Rotom drones were directed away, giving us a moment of privacy.

"What seems to be the issue?" The final Elite asked and Geeta answered.

"This one wasn't registered for the Elite Gauntlet."

"Now, why haven't you registered this one for battle? They seem plenty strong, even for battles of this caliber." The Elite asked me, and I sighed.

"I-" Excuses died on my throat, especially under the inquisitive gaze Geeta gave me. Yeah, their power doesn't really fit what I said earlier. "We had agreed you wouldn't be fighting here," I said instead, directing my words to my Pokemon.

They gave an irritated gear grinding sound in response. They waved agitatedly at Enamorous, the Legendary Pokemon eyeing them coolly. Clearly, Radiance wanted to prove their strength against this Legendary Fairy.

I really want to get to the bottom of why they're so obsessed with strength. When I first caught them, I'd be tempted to say they were the strongest on my team. As it is, though, it's hard to deny Notch that title, especially with Mega Evolution. Even if it irks some members of the team, like Radiance and Dun. Unlike Dun however, Radiance's anger made me wary of using them, even before the previous issues we had discussed.

"You'll need to return your Pokemon for the match to begin again." Geeta pointed out, and I nodded, though my hand hesitated to reach down for Radiance's Pokeball. Especially after they let out a low, whining sound. So cute! They turned half around, eyes drifting around to look at me, one eye on top of the other from the side of their face. Less cute, more eldritch.

Still, my hand stayed, as I explained to them, "I can't use you here. You aren't registered for this battle-"

"I'll allow it." Turtle's words caused mine and Geeta's heads to snap towards him. "If Nemona is willing to send them out, then I'll accept this Pokemon as her fourth." Right, they'll be my last Pokemon I can use in this fight. No chance to put Dun or Notch in their place if I go with them here.

Glancing up into Radiance's pleading eyes (I assume they're pleading at least; getting their emotions from 'facial expressions' is still difficult due to the lack of most facial features), I tapped their Pokeball, thinking it over. We'll definitely have words after this is done, but with the camera showing them to the world, I suppose the prior points about wanting to conceal their existence are moot. Which just leaves the issue of if I think they're the right choice for this battle.

"You understand what this kind of battle would mean, right? You'll need to give it your all against a Legendary like Enamorus - but you'll also need to hold back from grievous wounds or worse. Are you up for that?"

Slowly, they nodded their head. Trust is a two-way street; if I want them to trust me and follow what I say, then I've got to trust that they can do this too. "Alright then, I'd like to send out Radiance."

Geeta gave me an inscrutable look before agreeing. "Very well. The match will resume."

"Oh, almost forgot; Radiance, here," I said, pulling out and passing them the Booster Energy. "Friede, Orla, and I finished making it after we arrived back home," I told them as I clamped it onto their body. Okay, might be overselling my part there; I had the base concept and some ideas I spitballed, but mechanically those two are leagues ahead of me, and a lot of the testing process had me studying how exactly the things they did worked.

Given the body type of an Iron Moth, there were no shoulders or wing joints to hold it on a necklace (and I thought hanging it off of one of Radiance's red horns looked silly), so Orla had made a small magnet on the back of the orange-capped, grey capsule.

It might not look like much, but that thing packs a lot of power into it. It's only a prototype, but I'm still amazed that they were able to make something like that so quickly, even with Kukui lending the Rising Volt Tacklers an Alolan Raichu to study. That had been my idea. The Surge Surfer Ability gave them a good foundation to study and another data point to compare and contrast with Radiance's Quark Drive, both Abilities that boosted stats while under Electric Terrain. With a bit of trial and error, they'd made the Booster Energy, though we'd only had enough spare material for it on board the Brave Olivine to determine it worked, not really practice with.

Turtle took his place back on the other end of the arena. "I look forward to this battle, young challenger! We've never faced a 'Radiance' before," he loudly announced for the Rotom drones, now hovering back in place, broadcasting the match for the world to see again.

"Same, we've never beaten an Enamorus before," I said, a little cheekily.

"Oho!" He laughed, and I took a deep breath, steadying myself. Alright, here goes. Enamorus reset the weather to place the conditions back as close as they could be to what they were before I paused the match. Not like it hurts us if the sun lasts a bit longer than it would have otherwise. I also knew she was skilled enough with Rain Dance to shut it down if need be too.

"Trainers ready?" Geeta asked, and we both confirmed we were. "Then we begin in three, two, one, begin!" At her last word, before either of us could even speak, Radiance loosed the small charge needed to activate the Booster Energy. The capsule reacted immediately, the two ends clamping down, compressing the tube inside, unleashing its power. A massive charge coursed through Radiance, invigorating and empowering them.

The rest of us weren't still as this happened, Turtle calling out, "Springtide Storm." The Enamorus 'swam' through the air, rising up as she did so before her tail/shell shot out, forming a glowing pink heart in front of her. A localized hurricane with streaks of pink wind whipped around Radiance, knocking them around slightly but hardly throwing them off course.

"Discharge," I called, shielding my eyes in preparation. Radiance hadn't been able to learn Thunder so far, but it hardly mattered with a Discharge as strong as they could make. With the Booster Energy further empowering my Pokemon? It was like they were using Thunder from every point around them, a blinding light filling the arena as they shocked the Legendary.

Enamorus made a sound in between a screech and a squawk as she stumbled back midair. Only a few scorch marks on her body from that; her defense is no joke. On the other hand, to hurt a Legendary that quickly, even minorly, is a very good sign.

The Legendary turtle charged back, something Radiance met by 'hurling' their wings at our enemy like a burning discus. Enamorus clawed and scrabbled at the unusual Fiery Dance and did manage to hit it with the Superpower they'd intended to use against Radiance's main body but landed few blows, further limited in how much damage they could deal by Radiance's Typing. As the wings returned, only two of them showed slight scratches.

"Make some noise, Uproar!" Why is he calling for Uproar- ah, he doesn't know what Radiance's weaknesses are yet. Might just be hoping to overwhelm them with pure power. In the Elite's defense, it was a strategy that had seen him win countless battles, Enamorus's immense power, further enhanced by the Life Orb they wore, was enough to defeat most foes. Not now though, in terms of power, Paradox Pokemon can match or even surpass Legendaries.

"Fiery Dance, burn it up!" Using their incredible speed, Radiance struck, flying up one side of Enamorus, their burning wings cutting into the cloudy body, and then again as they flew back down her other side. They twirled around, doing the Move again, this time spinning gracefully around her while their scorching hot wings all turned in, cutting into our foe and spinning around as they retracted and righted themselves on Radiance's back.

The sudden noise never came, however, with Radiance instead caught by some invisible force that pinned them and crashed them against the ground below. "What?" I questioned aloud even as the pieces fell into place in my mind. Psychic, or maybe Extrasensory. He must have figured out Radiance's Poison Typing and given his Pokemon a hidden command, disguising the Move to drop our guards.

From the screeching noise Radiance was making, it had worked, so I had to give our enemies that. We still landed two Fiery Dances in that time, and at least one of them boosted Radiance's power. Plus, we aren't exactly helpless here. "Struggle Bug! Get out of there and dance again."

There was a moment when I first said my words that I thought they might disobey, a few sparks of electricity jumping off of them. Discharge is a stronger Move, after all. I can see the thought process even if I have a different strategy. Thankfully, they dropped it before I needed to say anything, shaking about within the Psychic grip, and soon breaking it. The Bug Type energies made it hard for her to keep them pinned with a Psychic Type attack, and once free, they shot back up, cutting them with burning wings and growing even hotter once again.

I gasped, panting a little from the sheer heat my Pokemon was exuding, even through the barrier. Those force fields are always better at holding directed attacks and the like, though, not wanting to cut off airflow in or out, so you get situations like this.

"Your robot moth burns bright, but we'll put a damper on your fun through a dance of our own. Let the water pour down!" Enamorus reared up, waving their little claws through the air, and instantly the miniature sun died down. Replacing it were thick, dark clouds, covering all of the upper limits of the arena's barrier. Said clouds quickly unleashed a deluge, almost like a Surf pouring straight down.

Okay, maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but still, I'd be hard-pressed to see anything going on with normal vision. "They want to make themselves easier to zap, then let's go for it, Discharge!" In response, Turtle pulled out his Tera Orb, tossing it high in a perfect arc over his Pokemon.

The wave of lightning that poured out of my Pokemon was far stronger than the one at the beginning of the match, blasting the now Terastalized Enamorus back and crackling dramatically around all the water. More than that, though, cracks began forming even in the arena barrier, something that startled Geeta and had her send out her Espartha to shore it up.

I could barely pay attention to that as, despite being an Elite ranked barrier, an attack strong enough to damage it wasn't enough to put a Legendary down, especially not with the pink heart Tera Jewel 'hat' resting above her head, eliminating her weakness to the Move.

She shot back with an orb of energy that began clear but flashed a deep blue quickly as it formed, flying into Radiance. They screeched mechanically, wings flaring for a split second as they readied themselves to fly back at their attacker before pausing, waiting for my instruction. Good.

"Get above them and Acid Spray." I'd heard one distant rumor that Enamorus might have the Contrary Ability and remembered it vaguely, but everything I'd been able to find out about Turtle's one was that they didn't, so I figured it must be a Hidden Ability. For Pokemon as rare as Enamorus, most Trainers in the real world would never try to unlock a Hidden Ability, let alone have any idea as to what Hidden Ability they might have.

In any case, I felt quite safe in using that Move, and delighted as I saw her howling in pain as the Spray hit. The Move not only caused decent damage due to Enamorus' weakness to it, but from the sizzling sounds and the way her tail/shell/snake was erratically shaking about, it was crippling her defenses.

I froze for a moment as I felt how much it hurt her - literally. The Fairy Type projected her emotions and pain, and I froze up. An overwhelming surge of love and sorrow for her surged within me, despite logically knowing we had to beat her, this blast of emotions far exceeding what she had shown before. How are we supposed to fight her when we feel like this?

For Radiance, it turned out to be fairly easy, the Paradox Pokemon gleefully using Acid Spray again and forcing her to desperately dodge in the air to avoid it. The pride I felt for my Pokemon cracked through the love trying to drown me out, and I latched onto it. Focusing on how great this battle had been going, I recentered myself, forcing those unnatural emotions out once more.

Turtle, dropping any composure remaining, began shouting desperately. "Fly! Get above them, then stop! Springtide Storm, hold them in place! Weather Ball to finish them off!" Enamorus shot up at his commands, flying much faster to get above Radiance, hanging out just below the clouds.

Usually the Move would see her diving back down, but she had enough control to stop herself and get ready for her next Move to trap us in. If they were able to get this off, it'd be game over. Of course, despite the maneuvering trick, she's still much too slow for the jaws of this trap to snap down on us.

"Hurricane, blow away anything that might hold you down, then Lunge up and Take Down!" Spinning in a circle, Radiance's wings blew away the storm that tried to take hold - or at least enough of it that the Paradox Pokemon could casually ignore it as their body shot up in an odd slithering motion that nonetheless smacked them right into Enamorus. Then, they took their wings, hoisting Enamorus up and then pressing down, charging her into the ground with a surprisingly heavy impact given how unsuited they were for physical combat.

Enamorus wasn't able to fire Weather Balls at Radiance from that position, but they thrashed about, a slight draconic energy surrounding them. Outrage, huh? Wouldn't have expected it from a Fairy like them. It worked to our advantage regardless, as I told Radicane, "Sludge Wave, drown them in poison."

"Uh, not literally," I added a split second later. I wasn't sure if they heard or not as a flood of thick sludge poured out of Radiance, far more than could have physically fit within their frame. The purple wave slammed into the Legendary Fairy, causing Enamorus to writhe in pain and disgust, trying to shake it off (they were and did quickly rise above it, however, removing any risk of drowning).

The effects of the Move didn't end there, as slowly, the rain started to turn purple. While usually such contaminants would be purified, the sheer power of Radiance and the potency of the poison they made were so great that some toxins remained even when filtered. Or maybe it's the particles rising up on their own to the clouds, given how low these artificial clouds are, and that's where the water is getting contaminated. I don't know exactly; I'm hardly a meteorologist.

Our enemy was no common 'mon either, however. With a flick of her head, a fae breeze washed over the arena, scrubbing the toxins from the rain pelting her and purifying future rain.

It was only a moment, but that gave Radiance the chance to unleash an Electric Terrain. The constant electricity sparked off the now-purified rain, making a dazzling field, the bright lights covering up all the damage the arena had taken thus far.

A sound escaped the Elite's mouth, halfways between a chuckle and a sigh, the noise drawing my attention to him. He caught my gaze, and I knew that this would be the end of our battle.

"Twister, cut off their escape!" Whirling maroon winds in three miniature tornados moved to encircle my Pokemon.

"Fire Spin, take a hold of the winds and push them off!" With a quick rotation, Radiance conjured up flames that wrapped around the Twisters in spite of the flames weakening their power. It let the Paradox Pokemon control the flames and sent them spiraling to the edges of the arena.

Not letting up, I gave another command before Turtle could. "Sludge Wave!"

He wasn't much more than a beat behind, though, shouting, "Fly above it! The dive down with the storm of spring, the eternal power of the turtle!" He struck a pose that for some reason reminded me a lot of Might Guy from Naruto.

Sweeping my hands out as if to give more power to the Move they would use, I cried out, "DISCHARGE!"

The storm Enamorus pulled around them was enormous, shaking the very edges of the field. At the center of it, our Legendary foe dove down. She was spinning around as she went, like she was the tip of a drill designed to tear down my Pokemon. Radiance's eyes locked onto the Legendary Terastalized Pokemon bearing down on them without an ounce of fear. Wings charged with electrical energy, some of it pulled up from the ground, the rest from Radiance's core, the energy drew in, and right before Enamorus connected… released.

The power from the clash created a massive force, blasting out from the two Pokemon and shattering the enhanced barrier. While the force field dulled most of the force hitting us humans, it was still enough to push me back and knock Turtle flat on his back.

Chaos ensued for a few seconds; annoying shocks and chilling rain assaulted us. More worrying was posion from the Sludge Waves, once contained and now oozing out across the ground. I jumped up, floating above it for half a moment before remembering the cameras were still rolling. I don't want to reveal Aura like this at the very least.

In a maneuver that I hoped seemed natural enough, I slid over a tiny bit and grabbed onto a nearby Rotom Drone, acting like it was supporting my weight. In addition to keeping me away from the deadly sludge, the aerial position also gave me a good vantage point of the arena.

Both Pokemon had fallen down, but while Enamorus was groaning in the mud, Radiance rose up, glowing brightly. White-hot flames covered their body, burning away the last of the clouds as they floated over their fallen foe.

"They're defeated; you've won! Good job!" I shouted out to them. They didn't stop, so I added, "Turtle needs saving!"

The order did the trick, shaking Radiance out of their daze. The slight hesitation as they glanced over at the fallen man indicated some slight murderous feelings, but the flames died down, and they flew over to the fallen man.

I had suspected that they'd help him up or attempt to pick the man up in some way, but instead increased the heat on their wings. Floating in a line across the room, they melted a moat to stall the sludge oozing towards the man. Guess that works too, I thought, watching the Elite struggle with the heavy shell before eventually managing to right himself and recall his fainted Pokemon.

Radiance returned to my side, and I let go of the Rotom Drone, hugging my Pokémon and clinging onto them. "That was amazing. I've never once doubted your power, but your control today was the best I've ever seen. Good job." They gave a tired but triumphant beeping sound in response, puffing up proudly.

Geeta sat atop Espathra, who was both holding the nearby sludge at bay but also telekinetically lifting the announcer on the other side of the room out of danger. Kain was still holding onto his microphone, though, so he lifted it up and announced, "We have our victor! Nemona Glitterati has defeated all of the Elite Four in a row! There's just one match left to determine if she can become Champion and be one of the few Trainers in history to clear the gauntlet. She must defeat a Champion, but not just any Champion-ranked trainer; Nemona has agreed to face down—

The door at the other end of the room opened, and Miguel Worthington strode in dramatically. For once, his wild hair looked neat, his suit sharply pressed. Crossing his arms in front of his chest, he said, "Me. She was to defeat me, the El Primer—what the hell happened here?!"

I just gave my next opponent a sheepish grin and wave from atop Radiance.

Spoiler: A/N:

I always thought that if this were an anime, this episode would be called 'Past vs. Paradox! Hisui's Ancient Guardian versus The Pokemon From the Future!' Or something like that.

Anyways, we've finished with the Elite Four! I had fun making a turtle-themed team for him. Just one battle left for this mega arc, then things will be on a bit of a breather.

What do you think of the OCs I used for the Elite Four now that you've seen them all (and I guess Miguel, since we did see him earlier, though we'll get to see more of him soon)? With the six-year gap and certain elements I've headcanoned, I felt like having most of the canon crew wouldn't make sense here, so we had these people instead. Did it make sense? Did you like them? Would you have preferred the more canon Elite Four instead?

In any case, I hope you enjoyed the battles so far and will do the same for the finale... if you can drag yourselves away from Legends Z-A, haha. I know I'll have some trouble with that and I'm really hyped for the new game/new Megas. If you have any comments on that (or, you know, this story), feel free to leave a message below or on the Discord to talk about it. And if you like my stuff and want to toss me a bit of money, I have a Kofi and a Patreon, subscribers to the latter get early access to the next ten chapters. Thank you and have a great day.

 

[Skyfyre]

Spoiler: Patreons:

Thank you to my 67 Beginner Tier Patreons and an extra special thanks to RageLord, Nodal_Gravity, Exalted Requiem, and HanShotFirst, my Ace Tier Paterons!

"... I see," Miguel said, taking in my explanation for what happened in our battle. The Champion gazed out at the arena room, the door open and League staffers pouring in, trying to figure out what to do with it all. The sludge was cleared up, along with the water that had flooded the room, revealing the vast damage beneath it (part of which was to the drainage systems, which was why the liquid stuck around so long).

The arena itself was torn up, damaged beyond the ability of the material to fix itself, tears and burn marks running across it. The machinery itself had been fried and short-circuited. There was more damage beside it, but it was clear that much, if not the entirety, of the room would need replacement.

"Guess it's a good thing our match won't be taking place here, will it?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"That's true. We've got a special arena to go up to for that, though you still have a while to prepare. I might need some time too; I hadn't expected this one," Miguel commented, glancing at Radiance.

"That's because I hadn't felt they were ready for these kinds of battles," I admitted. "I might have been hasty there." Geeta, standing nearby, gave me a bit of side-eye but didn't comment. Yeah, she noticed how Radiance was acting towards the end of the match and what they were thinking of doing. Even without that, I imagine Radiance's destruction of the arena was borderline acceptable at best.

"I'm glad you reconsidered; it was a truly thrilling match," Turtle chimed in with his own opinion. "We'll need to work harder in the future to match such zeal." Despite the words being of a similar nature as he was when in costume, there were pretty much no over-the-top antics now. Juan had shucked off his turtle shell, revealing a very skinny man underneath. I wonder if he's like this because he lost or if his behavior is more of just an 'on-stage' thing?

Miguel grinned. "I'm looking forward to facing them in our match." Yeah, don't think I can do that. Turtle gave special permission for that since I didn't register Radiance at the beginning. Also, they just fought a Legendary; I'm not throwing them back in the fray. Still, that does give me an idea…

"Nemona…" he hesitated, as if wanting to say one thing before changing his mind. "Rest up well; I want to see everything you've got in our match."

***

That instruction was followed fairly easily; Miguel was the Trainer I had prepared the most for, Radiance's intervention had kept the team out of a tight spot and my plans in place, so there was no need for last-minute strategizing here. I figured out a basic game plan on the way to the lounge room and took a quick two-hour nap (all after ensuring my team was fully healed, of course). Waking up, I shoved a bunch of high-energy snack bars in my mouth, getting ready for the final fight.

My friends and family had tons of encouraging words for me, and I even got calls from Amethio and Lacey. The latter had a bunch of kind words and said how her parents had even given her an extension on her bedtime to watch the finals. I told Lacey I was glad and was going to show her and her Pokemon 'something special.' I explained how I transformed Notch, but I hadn't revealed the Mega Evolution on the group chat yet. Some of them, like my sister, might have connected the dots and realized that I'll be able to Mega Evolve Notch, but I don't think Lacey knows yet. At the very least, she won't have seen a Mega Diancie before.

The former congratulated me stiffly, but with a hint of wonder in his voice. "You've grown even farther than I have," Amethio admitted after a moment.

"I'm sure you're improving too. Maybe try seeing the world more?" I suggested. "My journey did wonders for me." After a few seconds I got a grunt, the boy both accepting the truth of my words but still getting the hint I'd dropped. That the Explorers are stifling and controlling you. I know I can't push too hard, but if my efforts here help him break free of that cult-like group, it would be a nice side benefit.

"I've finished basic training with the Explorers. They're considering sending me out in the field soon."

"Oh. That's… good." It is. He'll be even less likely to cause an immediate break than I'd like, but getting out in the wider world will help expose him to other points of view. "Tell me all about how your first one goes!" As he paused on the other end, I added, "I mean, as much as you're able to-"

"I will. Hopefully, you'll see the good work we do."

If it's so good, why all the need for secrecy? I didn't say that, though. "Alright then, looking forward to it. I've got to get ready for my match now, but thanks for checking in."

"... of course, you're my friend. Bye," he said abruptly as if embarrassed by the admission and hung up. I chuckled at his antics before turning to my team. All of them were released, waiting for me to outline the final plan.

"All of you have fought hard to help us make it here. I want you to be proud of your efforts; every rainy day where we fought through the worst of it, running up and down South Province, every time the heat was blistering, and you did one more set at my behest, it all led up to this. New and old, all of you worked hard and beat the Elite Four. It's one of the highest achievements a Pokemon can ever reach, so I want you all to keep that in mind, no matter what happens next."

All of them were staring at me intently, recognizing I had more to say, but I saw them all practically glowing with pride. "This is the final stretch, and the toughest challenge we've had to date. A six-on-six match with three switches each. Because of that, not all of you will be able to fight here, but don't worry; each of you were instrumental in making it this far."

Miles spoke up before I could continue. "I understand, bzzt. I'll be rooting you all on, but I'm afraid I don't have the energy to fight again." They looked quite drained even as they gave me an encouraging grin. All of them do, honestly, but Miles is probably the tiredest out of the lot of them. Well, aside from…

"Radiance, you're not registered for this battle, so I can't use you against Miguel," I 'explained.' The fact that they didn't resist or get angry, easily accepting the out, told me how tired they were after their battle with Enamorus.

"With that, we're settled then. Notch, Nightwing, Bahamut, Athena, Phantasm, Dun. You'll be fighting against Miguel's Champion team. You ready?" They all gave eager cheers; whatever stiffness that was left in their limbs that even modern medicine couldn't fix was ignored momentarily by newfound vigor and anticipation. "Alright, let's do this!"

***

I rode up the elevator alone, my friends and family having made their way up ahead of me (both for the optics of my dramatic entrance and also due to elevator size constraints). Exiting, I was hit by a brisk wind, and around the large overhang, I could see the night sky illuminated by several bright stars. Huh, I wonder what the constellations for those are. I was hardly a huge space nerd in my past life, but I knew, like, Orion's Belt and the Dippers. Wonder what we have here?

On a more level view, I saw the large roof with a star shaped tile pattern atop it. A League Official directed me to walk across from the elevator on that side to take me to the elevator on the other side, leading up to the section hanging above, where the proper arena was. This roof is so fancy, yet they don't seem to use it for anything special.

The League Building was tall, and as I walked forward, I saw a still sizeable crowd down below in front of it, with tents and the like set up. A few Trainers sat upon flying Pokemon, stationed a good distance away but eagerly pointing and cheering at my arrival. Their cheers were drowned out by how hard my family was cheering, all of them standing near the edge. They were too large a group to join me up there, but they had Rotom Phones streaming from the drones that hovered above and would be able to hear it all, and were looking as excited as I felt.

Radiance and Miles were there too, with Miles in their Boombox form, oddly enough. Gothorita had ventured outside as well, and I could tell that so many people and Pokemon were overwhelming for her, but she had wanted to see this moment too. This match could decide if she joins my team or not. Will decide a lot of issues.

I realized why Miles was in that Form as they began blasting out a tune. The music wasn't one I'd used for any of my matches before or even been in talks with the studio about. Just a tune we had recorded one day, that I admitted I felt unworthy of.

Stopping to look at them, I saw their plasmic mouth move without making any sound to interfere with what they were playing, and I lip-read the words they were trying to say. 'You are worthy.' Thank you, Miles. Everyone, for all of this. For making me… me. With my mind set, I shifted course, enjoying my theme song playing for the upcoming Champion Battle.

"Mind giving me a lift?" I asked Radiance, who nodded. They basked in all the gazes and exclamations as everyone down below watched the Paradox Pokemon lift me up to the diamond shaped top piece, where the mosaic tiled arena was.

Around it stood four League Officials, each with a Psychic Type out to reinforce the barrier around it, in addition to Geeta and her Espathra. At the other end of the field was Miguel, pulling his gloves taut and smirking at my approach.

As I took my place, I couldn't help but seize the moment, pulling on my Aura. A sharp wind cut across the arena, ruffling Miguel's suit and hair while causing my cape to swish dramatically. The diamonds shone in the starlight, earning even more 'oohs' and awe from the crowd.

Kain, the announcer, was still here, off to the very edge to make room, eagerly sweeping a hand out at me as I stepped onto my spot before the arena. "Here we have it, folks, the match you've all been waiting for! Nemona Glitterati, the youngest challenger to ever make it this far on the Gauntlet, versus Miguel Worthington, the El Primero - Top Champion of Paldea! The League has reinforced the arena further this time to hopefully contain the sheer power that these Trainers have. This match will be one for the history books. Are you as excited as I am?!"

With my hearing, I could catch some of the people watching the match streaming way down on the ground, cheering 'Yes!' In response to the announcer's question.

Geeta laid out the rules, making clear mention of one Enhancement Effect allowed for each of us, and I saw Miguel pout slightly at that. He probably wanted us to have two allowed to show off Mega Evolution and Terastalization. Since this is a specific method of challenging the Elite Four and Champion, it probably got shut down on the basis that it would have to be the same for everyone and many future trainers might not have Mega and Key Stones to use something other than Terastalization.

As we were called to ready our Pokemon, I sent Notch out right away. They weren't wearing the vest this time but held a Babiri Berry in one hand. "Oh, a bold choice from Nemona! She's leading with her Legendary Diancie, Notch! This will be giving an advantage to her opponent, but is she simply unconcerned with anything the Champion has to throw at her?!"

Miguel frowned, taking my choice in, thinking hard about it. Didn't expect me to send out my strongest Pokemon first, did you? And especially not to give you a few moments to think about what to send in response. It wasn't as easy a choice as one might think - he did know I could Mega Evolve Notch, so he might think I was baiting him to send out his Salamence, which could Mega Evolve too. Or he might think it was a bluff and that this was Phantasm in disguise.

In the end, at Geeta's prompting, Miguel tossed his Salamence out onto the field, the red and blue dragon giving a mighty roar that nearly hid the shiver of fear she held upon gazing at Notch for the first time. Miguel had taken a page out of Dun's book, and his Salamence was wearing an Expert Belt this time, I noted. Hmm, thought he might have sent Aggron out first instead. A shame. As much as Salamence's Typing made her seem like a bad choice, I actually had answers for every member of his team with Notch.

Geeta began her countdown, and as she gave the signal to start, Miguel and I each held up our Mega Rings. ""Mega Evolve!"" We shouted simultaneously. The announcer was raving about how 'unexpected' this was while the energy spheres around our Pokemon shattered, revealing their new selves.

Salamence's wings had fused to form a large red crescent, some of the grey scales on her body hardening and shifting to form something like a flight pack. Her top head spikes were a bit longer than before, with her limbs tucked in for maximum speed.

She wasn't the only one that got quicker, however; Notch twirled around, showing off their new form and speed. Their white fluff 'dress' extended out further with a pair of veils drifting down on either side, each draped with a pair of pink diamonds on the end. There were far more of those, a vast array of large pink diamonds shooting out past their base (which itself was now one smooth, sparkling pink gem). Atop Notch's head, the pink circular gem there had turned heart-shaped.

I swayed a little from the lost energy triggering the transformation but stayed standing. Just a little more; can't lose it here. I trained my Aura for years for something just like this. Taking a deep breath, I threw myself into the battle.

"Diamond Storm/Iron Head!" Our orders had different levels of energy behind them, but our Pokemon carried them out with the same vigor. Salamence began a steep dive to smash Notch with her head, Steel energy gathering atop it. The flurry of diamonds Notch called forth cut through her, doing far more damage to our enemy than she did to my Pokemon. Can't rely on that forever though; that berry they ate is really only good for one hit.

"Reflect," I called, and Notch called forth a barrier around themself before I could blink, stacking it with the diamond armor they'd already begun to call from the storm. Damn, that's fast. I knew that they were much faster in this form, but Reflect was a Move we'd practiced to have them use quickly even as a Carbink, figuring that their low physical speed wouldn't affect a solely thought-based Move like that. Clearly I had underestimated how much it had, and how hard it must have been to bring that speed for Reflect and Light Screen up.

Of course, Mega Salamence was no slouch in the speed department, twisting in an agile fashion to charge at Notch once more. "Brick Break," Miguel called out as she was almost atop Notch, the Dragon continuing through to land a hard axe-kick with a back foot, shattering the barrier Notch had created and driving them down to the dirt.

['Rude!'] They thought-spoke, shooting back up to grab Salamence by the tail. The Dragon was yanked back, screeching and snapping at Notch, unable to move them. "Consecutive Serious Punches!"

"What?" Miguel asked, baffled as Notch nailed Salamence with a Mega Punch, then let go of her tail and landed another one. They continued alternating left and right, flying after her as she retreated/was pushed back by the blows. Fair, I'd be kinda questioning it too if someone that was once a Carbink suddenly had enough physical might to hold a Mega Salamence in place and be just as fast as them. Becoming a Legendary and then Mega Evolving would do that for you.

It wasn't without its drawbacks, though; Mega Evolving significantly lowered their defenses, a fact I hoped he wouldn't realize in time to take advantage of. "Diamond Storm," I called again as Salamence slipped out of Notch's combo. This time prepared for the speed of the storm, the Dragon managed to slip ahead, weaving around and outpacing the diamonds as she closed with Notch, rage etched across her face.

"Iron Head." A powerful headbutt sent Notch spiraling back through the air, cracking their body slightly even through the rock-hard armor. They aren't a pseudo-Legendary for nothing. Miguel followed up with a cry of Bulldoze. Okay, I see the game plan there.

"Room." Notch tossed their hands out, focusing as Salamence pounded them into the ground. The force roughed Notch up a bit but also slowed them down… just in time for the Trick Room to snap into place. She tried to hit Notch with an Iron Head, but they easily dodged away.

"Diamond Storm," I called out, and Salamence was once more barraged with super sharp shards, this time unable to evade the blow. More diamonds were gathered from the attack, forming a floating shield Notch controlled to interpose between any blow that would approach them.

"Hydro Pump." Said shield was a bit too porous (and slow against the ranged attack) to stop Salamence's deluge that poured over Notch, chipping away at them further. They hadn't been hit much, but I knew I needed to put a stop to this quickly, Salamence having more stamina than my Pokemon.

"Diamond conclave." Conjuring a thousand thin panes in the air, Salamence jerked around trying to dodge them as Notch made even more before realizing they weren't being used to cut the Dragon up. "Dazzling Gleam," I announced, and the crowd gasped, watching as the bright pink light Notch emitted all around was reflected, focused in all on the Mega Salamence.

Blinking the spots clear, I beheld the results of that combo. Reflected off the thousand surfaces, Salamence hovered in the air, but wobbly. In part, that was due to the few holes punched through his crimson wing crescent. Her scales were also burnt and flayed all over her body, revealing raw flesh beneath.

With a howl of pain and anger, the Dragon shot ahead, heedless of the damage she took as she shattered through the diamonds in his way. Wind surrounded her as she soared, colliding heavily with Notch, who staggered back from the blow. The recoil still sent Mega Salamence collapsing to the ground, quickly finished off by a Diamond Storm from Notch.

Despite the victory, I noticed Notch was holding one hand to their torso where the Dragon had hit them, wincing in pain. Aerilate boosts the Moves it converts, but Notch is resistant to Flying attacks. With all the diamond barriers to punch through, it shouldn't be hurting them that hard, unless… I didn't have a good angle for it, but could she have managed an Iron Head right at the end?

I didn't have time to ponder any longer as he sent his next Pokemon out, a lumbering titan of steel plates and hard edges. In addition to the exceptional steel plating atop Aggron's head, he wore a hard hat with a few spiky bolts atop it that looked almost comical compared to the incredibly pointy twin horns sticking out from the Pokemon's head.

"Head Smash," Miguel ordered, and his Pokemon lowered his head and charged wildly at Notch, zipping across the battlefield. Or at least it looks that way from my perspective, with Trick Room up.

"Protect," I said simply, and Notch raised a perfect barrier, absorbing all of the force of that powerful Move. The one downside to Head Smash was the vast recoil one took in turn from it, but Miguel's Pokemon possessed both the Rock Typing to give it a STAB Boost and an Ability that absorbed all the recoil damage he would take in turn.

Of course he has some synergies; he is the Pokemon of a Champion after all. I'm worried that the Rocky Helmet he has might boost the damage as well, somehow. I'd never heard of such synergies with 'head' based Moves before, but as the barrier started to fade, Miguel called for a quick, "Iron Head!" My suspicions were raised even further.

"Block it again, however you can!" Slamming their fists together, Notch reforged the barrier, this time giving it the shape of a multifaceted diamond encasing them. Aggron bashed his skull against the barrier repeatedly but failed to break through.

Unfortunately, he was hardly daunted in his assault, and Trick Room was still up and in his favor. Unable to risk a third Protect in a row, I made a gamble. "Metronome!" Gleefully, Notch waggled a finger back and forth. They loved using this Move, not just for the whimsy of it, but also for being something they wouldn't have been able to use as a Carbink.

Aggron tried to attack again, but as their head was swinging down towards Notch, a glowing part of a leg and foot manifested near the ground, sweeping the Champion Pokemon hard. Metal was dented heavily as he fell to the ground, his blow only clipping Notch (and even that was enough to shear off a few Diamonds).

He gave a small whimper after falling, making me feel a little bad about what was going to happen next (though not enough to hesitate in giving the call). Clenching a fist and raising my hand up, I shouted, "Earth Power!"

The distorted space around the arena flashed once before disappearing, signaling the end of Trick Room, right before the ground Aggron was lying on exploded violently. Hit with two double super effective attacks in a row, Aggron groaned, but at Miguel's command, flipped over and shot a Flash Cannon back at Notch.

Special attacks weren't Aggron's specialty, however; Notch survived the Move, and flew back to make some room, like we'd planned. "Sand Tomb," I called, and Notch swiftly covered the fallen Steel Type in a focused sandstorm that would chip away at Aggron constantly.

And more importantly, stop you from switching him out, I thought with a smirk, seeing Miguel let go of the Pokeball he had gripped. "You held that trick in your back pocket for a while now, haven't you?" Miguel said, a slight grimace on his face even as he ordered another Flash Cannon with a sweep of his arm. Not caught off guard this time, Notch swiftly evaded the blow.

I nodded. I could have shown this Move off during the fight against Daisy, but then you'd be prepared for it. We saved this one specifically for your Aggron. There were other Pokemon on his team it would be effective against too, but Notch had Stomping Tantrum for most of them - this Move was specifically picked for its effectiveness against Aggron.

"Finish this, Earth Power!" I called, and Miguel let out a sharp grin.

"Metal Burst, hit 'em back twice as hard!" Don't think the Move works exactly that way, but it's fine. Notch raised their hand… and scattered a bunch of small, hard rocks all over the arena. Because that's not what we're using either. Aggron, primed to shoot out shards on metal in response to being struck, was unable to do anything to stop it.

"Body Press," Miguel bit out. At that command, Aggron leapt through the air, seeking to crush Notch through his sheer mass. Also takes him out of range of most of the Ground Type Moves that Notch can use, even if the Sand Tomb is following him around.

"Protect." Once more he hit the barrier, and once more he failed to break it. But this time was his last try, as with one great groan, the metal titan fell to the ground with a heavy thud, finally brought low by the continual sand abrasions. As the fine earth particles dissipated from the fainted Pokemon, Miguel recalled them.

"Ha," he let out a hollow chuckle. "I think I may have underestimated Notch there. That match against Martha made them seem far less fearsome than they actually are." Yeah, still kinda salty about that cheap trick, honestly. Maybe I'm just mad that I still can't figure out a way around it; even Mega Evolving wouldn't stop such a Move.

['Saint Nemona's guidance has reforged me into something great, and by our bond, I become a 'powerhouse,' as her holy word would say']. Miguel stared at them for a long second. "What?"

"Uhh, yup, we all do great things together; match going on here," I quickly blurted out, hoping I wouldn't get grilled too closely about Notch's eccentricity.

He chuckled softly, then I heard more chuckling as his Gengar drifted out from his shadow and onto the field. "Alright, I think we've had enough of this shine. Get in close, and you know what to do!" Gengar slipped back into the shadows, snaking across the ground and popping up to hit Notch.

My Pokemon swept back with a wave of diamond destruction, but Gengar slipped away, faster than Notch. She taunted them for a second by sticking her long tongue out at the Legendary before waving her arms, a subtle Psychic wave hitting Notch as she used Hypnosis.

This rebounded completely off of Notch, and at such close range, Gengar had no way to dodge her own Move, falling asleep instantly.

"WHAT! How could-? But you didn't do any-! Magic Bounce? But Diancies don't have that Ability!"

I smirked. "Regular Diancies, sure. But you aren't facing any random Diancie - you're facing a Mega one!" Notch crossed their arms dramatically to match my pose.

"Nemona's Mega Diancie reveals a stunning new Ability! Can anything stand up to a Legendary Pokemon that's been Mega Evolved?" The announcer boomed, and I frowned. Of course there are things that can. Primal Reversion, or even just an inordinately strong Legendary with the right Typing could challenge them. Heck, even a Pokemon that's trained exceptionally, incredibly hard enough, could. I knew that it was Dun's current goal to rise above Notch and reclaim the position as 'strongest' on my team.

Guess I'm most annoyed by the fact that their run is coming to an end, I thought as the El Primero switched his Gengar out. They've done great, but the damage is adding up, and- yeah, that'll be a tough one. Miguel's next Pokemon was revealed to be a large, beige, bipedal Pokemon. He had a white mane and small tusks jutting out from his mouth.

Upon landing on the field, the Stealth Rocks rose up to impale him lightly, and he all but ignored them as minor irritants. This Slaking, unlike most of its species, wasn't lying down but instead stood hunched over, ready to charge.

And charge it did. "High Horsepower!" The Slaking loped towards Notch far faster than something of his bulk should move. Not quicker than Notch, however, who at my command, flew over and landed a textbook, picture-perfect elbow drop in the form of a Body Press.

"Counter," Miguel called, and with Notch right there, Slaking pivoted, rolling out from under the blow and slamming the Legendary down with one meaty hand. Diamond shattered everywhere, as my first Pokemon of the match was hit so hard they broke the sound barrier, crashing into my end of the field. Despite all the precautions, the barrier stretched and broke apart, shattering as Notch flew out. It still drained them of most of their speed, however, so I was able to hop back and catch them as they fell, cradling the unconscious Legendary.

In a low voice I told them, "Awesome performance out there, you dazzled the world." Before I recalled Notch to their Pokeball. Then I leveled my gaze back up, staring down at Miguel, who was looking coolly at me, any fractures in his composure gone. Slaking held the arm that he'd used to shield against the Body Press awkwardly, the limb already swelling and likely broken. He glared in my general direction, panting heavily. This one never really got past that Vigoroth hyper energy stage, did he?

It was more than that, though; I knew well that he'd trained the Slaking out of, or to somewhat resist, his regular Ability. "Alright, Dun, let's see whose Normal Type is stronger." I released what appeared to be the large land snake onto the field, the image of Dun glaring up at Slaking. "I'm thinking Flamethrower will do the trick nicely."

"Dodge it, counter with Hammer Arm," Miguel called out, and Slaking raced around, dodging the flames spewing out towards him, then coming from the side, clenching the fist on his unbroken arm, and bringing it down in a massive hammer blow that Dun narrowly rolled away from, having to cut off his attack in doing so. He continued to chase after Dun, my Pokemon barely escaping, putting everything he had into evasion.

I heard Miguel click his tongue in irritation and figured the game was up. "Hyper Voice, hit him no matter what!" The piercing cry hit Slaking hard, though he tried not to show it.

"Amnesia! Ignore Dun; they're an illusion," Miguel instructed his Pokemon, and Slaking immediately got a dopey look on his face. Yeah, dodging like that was too weird; Dun isn't that quick, but he also has far more stamina and flexibility than that. Realistically, he should have turned the Flamethrower on Slaking and then gotten hit, but either of those events would have broken the illusion.

"Crank up the volume," I said, unconcerned by the boost Slaking had gotten to his Special Defense. All that does is equalize things with the Nasty Plot Phantasm used at the start. The sound-based attack continued to barrage him, but as I saw Slaking's ears start to bleed a little, he ate a Sitrus Berry tucked into his mane, healing back some of the damage he'd taken so far.

"Earthquake" was the Champion's next command, and I hid a smirk. Phantasm knows how to dodge something that telegraphed. The earth shook violently at Slaking's pounding of the ground, as much as Dun could manage at least, but my Ghost was hiding out, likely in a corner somewhere.

Miguel had to shout over the sound of Hyper Voice, the attack continuing. "Cool off and look for her." Sticking his mouth straight up, the Slaking sprayed some water straight up, then ducked his head, letting it fall down on him. Chilling Water, or at least a variant of it, since I don't think it lowers his attack. Truant served a very important purpose for Slakings in helping them cool down, and by pushing a Slaking past that, they needed to find another way to avoid burning up internally. Panting heavily like he did helped, but the Slaking needed to periodically use something like Chilling Water as well.

Slaking had his hands clasped over his ears but seemed unable to find her, Phantasm's illusions too good for him to pierce. Miguel wasn't out of ideas yet, his green eyes lighting up. "Punch the wall." Huh? Why's he doing that? Even if he's guessed she's likely in one of the corner spots to hide from another Earthquake, that's hardly going to shake her loose.

Slaking obeyed obediently, punching the force field hard, sending a ripple racing out across all of it… Save for one spot, two-thirds of the way up in one corner. Crapbaskets.

"Sucker Punch now!/Get out of there!" We both called out. Slaking was once again deceptively quick, slamming a fist coated with Dark Type energy into the spot, shattering her illusion and causing her voice to die out as she whimpered in pain, falling to the ground.

Slaking fell down nearly on top of her, and I called, "Slash!" Her claws dug in deep into the other Normal Type's fur, but he clapped back with a Throat Chop, the blow sending her crumpling down.

Shit, we can't use Hyper Voice anymore; she'll have to U-Turn to get out of there then I'll send out… oh. My plans ground to a halt as I saw that she wasn't rising.

"Nemona's Pokemon has fainted! Challenger, please recall your Pokemon and send out the next one," Geeta directed me. On the wind, I could hear the faintest whispers of doubt about how Miguel's Slaking had taken out two of my Pokemon, but I banished them from my mind.

After recalling Phantasm, I paused, thinking for a second as I took in the sight of Slaking. Though he tried to hide it, the Pokemon was breathing quite heavily and wincing with each breath. He took a lot of damage; he can't have much more left in the tank.

It was a cold comfort after losing Phantasm so quickly, but I wasn't going to let that advantage slip away. Picking up Nightwing's Pokeball, I whispered to it, "Fire Fang." While their senses were muted within the Pokeballs, all Pokemon did still have a vague idea of what was happening beyond them, and if they were listening, like right before a big match they knew about? I was sure she could hear me perfectly as I hurled the ball as hard as I could, tossing it all the way over to Miguel's side of the arena, where it released my Gliscor right behind Slaking.

Not missing a beat, she dropped down onto his back, sinking her burning teeth into Slaking. The Normal Type thrashed about, trying to grab her but had difficulty dislodging her, unable to easily reach the spot on his back she was latched onto. Nightwing also deflected his attacks with her pincers and tail, further hampering him.

Seeing his Pokemon overheat before his eyes, Miguel snapped out, "Body Press, crush her!" In an attempt to dislodge her, the bipedal Pokemon leapt up, trying to land back - and Nightwing - first.

"Protect," I called out, unworried. She unlatched her jaw and had just enough time to form a spherical barrier around herself before Slaking would have landed on her. I noted the speed of the Move got an appraising nod from Miguel - before his eyes widened and he spotted what I had.

As the barrier dropped, Nightwing swooped out, avoiding being crushed by Slaking's bulk as he fell to the ground. There were no more bursts of movement from the mighty Pokemon, as he lay defeated, taken out by the Poison that had spread from the Toxic Orb Nightwing held while she grappled him. Another fun trick I picked up from all the spars we did. If she gets close enough to someone with that item, she can Poison them without having to use Fling.

My Pokemon also Poisoned herself, which was just a bonus here. Miguel weighed his options for a second before sending an odd upside-down blue bug, holding aloft a strange purple and red orb with her feet. Rabsca, a Psychic Bug Type native mostly only to Paldea. I didn't know a ton about this enemy, but prior matches had shown the Top Champion to use her mainly for support.

"Fling," I declared, seeing it as a good opportunity to get rid of the Toxic Orb with super effective damage and Poison her. Rabsca tilted the ball it held and revealed a glittering bright surface to blind Nightwing momentarily, throwing her aim off. Ah, Bright Powder. I'd considered that for Phantasm, but the visual nature of it would give away her illusions immediately over the subtler Lax Incense.

Rabsca used the opportunity to send out a quick pulse of Psychic Energy carrying almost a wave from Rabsca to my Pokemon and then back into herself. That looks like what Shuckle did but slightly different- oh no. Suddenly the Bug Type was zipping around, nailing Nightwing with the same Move Martha had used to nullify my Pokemon's healing earlier today, while Nightwing moved at a comparative snail's pace.

"Switch!" I called, returning my Pokemon. Rabsca continued to zip around the field, clearly enjoying the speed she had stolen from Nightwing. "Go, Athena. Extremespeed." My jackal-esque Pokemon hit the field running, moving like a blur before my eyes as she smashed a paw into Rabsca's body. The Bug bounced back, the motion odd as it flipped off the ball it carried. As she touched the ground, a line was drawn across the earth, stretching to Athena, where it erupted beneath her feet.

She howled in pain from the super effective Earth Power, then raced towards her foe yet again. "Aerial Ace," I called out, and Athena flipped up in the air, striking down unerringly towards Rabsca.

Unable to dodge the attack, she raised a quick Reflect to dampen the power of the blow. Athena followed up smoothly with a chop that broke the shield but did little damage to our foe. The motion did give Rabsca the chance to skitter away, however, and she began blasting my Lucario with Psychic.

"Extremespeed!" My words had Athena rushing ahead, but she faltered, tripping halfway through. What? Did Miguel have some trick- no, he was caught off guard as I was. He recovered quickly, ordering his Pokemon to use another Psychic, but it was clear he hadn't been behind Athena's exhaustion. That one is on me, or rather, the Gauntlet.

All of my Pokemon were tired from the challenges they'd faced thus far, even with how much endurance training they had received from our long practice sessions. Athena was still fighting hard, weaving around the waves of Psychic force with nearly impossible skill, but I heard how ragged her breathing was.

She still has plenty of power, but she needs time to rest. "Rock Tomb," I said, and Athena switched to offense, heaving up massive stones from the arena ground and began hurling them towards Rabsca. The Bug Type attempted to use her Bright Powder to impair my Pokemon's vision only to find Athena's aim struck true even while blinded, her skill with Aura letting her pinpoint anyone even while unable to see.

With Rabsca pinned by some rocks larger than she was, I shouted a quick, "Switch!" Rabsca was forced to pause as I recalled Athena, sending Bahamut out. With a roar, the shiny Dragon barreled down upon his pinned opponent before skidding to a stop as Miguel used his own switch to save Rabsca.

I raised an eyebrow at Miguel, the champion shrugging with a smirk dancing across his face. Maybe he's just trying to make the most of his switches? Could be, but Rabsca was pretty badly hurt; can't see her going that long for another round. There wasn't time to question it any longer as a sleek Jolteon entered the fray, lightning dancing off of his fur.

They might have seemed like an odd choice against my Haxorus, but I doubted Miguel felt Jolteon would fare much better against any of my other remaining Pokemon. All of them know Earthquake too. And on that note… "Earthquake!" I called out, but before Bahamut could stomp his feet, Jolteon unleashed a barrage of pins, aided further by the pair of Loaded Dice hanging on a loop around his neck.

Bahamut treated the strikes as merely an annoyance (though from the way his tail twitched, I knew he actually felt like they really stung) and proceeded to shake the earth. Jolteon attempted to dodge, but when the Move hit the entire arena, he still got tossed around a bit. "Keep moving," Miguel ordered, and Jolteon attempted to do just that - and a bit more. I perceived the slight blue glow around Jolteon as his speed picked up, courtesy of the Agility he used.

"Keep at it; he still can't avoid it all." Jolteon continued to get bashed about while surrounding himself in another Psychic glow, but this one didn't seem to boost his speed at all. What is he going for? As the second Jolteon hit the field, I put the pieces together.

"Swords Dance!" I shouted as a Baton appeared in Jolteon's mouth, the Electric Type racing back to Miguel's side and dropping it in front of Miguel with a satisfied look in his eyes. Miguel mirrored that, using his last Switch to recall Jolteon and send Gengar back out.

Sleepily, the Gengar reached out, grasping a hold of the baton and having all the power Jolteon had built up flowing into her, with even the Substitute Jolteon shifting and becoming a duplicate of Gengar instead.

Bahamut had paused the Swords Dance when the switch had happened, but he used that moment to finish the dance, demonstrating remarkable control over the energies involved. And part of why I went for Swords Dance here over Dragon Dance - the Dragon energy would be too wild to start and stop like that.

"Earthquake," I called once again. If it ain't broke, don't change it. That being said, I also indicated with a slight wave that Haxorus needed to get closer. For a moment, that goal seemed in reach, with Gengar hopping atop the Substitute to let it take the brunt of the Ground attack, the doll construct dissipating as the ground finished shaking.

But before Bahamut could get within claw range of Gengar, she slipped away, zipping across the field and pelting him with Shadow Balls. Though 'pelting' didn't quite do the attacks justice as the massive spheres of distorted power grew as they crossed the air, exploding violently against my Pokemon. "Dragon Dance," I called out, stamping my foot when it became clear that Haxorus couldn't get within melee range of the Gengar.

He went through the sinuous motions for a Dragon Dance as best he could, trying to weave with them to avoid Gengar's powerful attacks, half-succeeding on that front. Once the boost was done, Bahamut followed the hidden second part of my command and used Earthquake. The earth-shaking Move caused Gengar to stumble a little, and Haxorus chased after them, seizing his opportunity. "Shadow Claw," I called out, though he was already gathering the ghostly energy to tear into Gengar.

My Pokemon managed to get close and cut into the Ghost Type, but not before Gengar opened his mouth wide, spraying a mostly transparent gas in the Haxorus. "Again!" I shouted desperately. That Clear Smog took out all of his buffs, but if Bahamut could just land one more hit-

It wasn't to be. Gengar backed away rapidly, and a clever use of Poltergeist at Miguel's command threw Haxorus back to make more space. I called for, "Earthquake," again, but this time, as Bahamut attempted to stomp the ground, the Move fizzled out with no effect.

Wha- ah right, Cursed Body. I realized before she defeated my Dragon with a barrage of Shadow Balls. Always so annoying to fight a buffed-up foe. Usually I just try and stop them before they get that far, but by giving up most of Jolteon's strength, Gengar can go at full force. Of course that cost him a switch… and I still have one left myself.

"Rock the house, Athena." She hit the field once more with a literal earth-shaking effect, an Earthquake upon her entry jostling Gengar. The Ghost Type jumped after a second, letting herself get hit at least a little bit by the attack to trigger her Cursed Body. As she fired off rapid Shadow Balls, I used my last Switch.

Recalling her, I sent out Nightwing right as Gengar was drifting back to the ground. In a flash, Miguel realized what my plan was and shouted, "Curse!" Nightwing cackled as she slapped the ground, once more churning up the arena and hitting the Poison Type hard. Waves of earth obscured my vision for a moment, and I thought we might have avoided the worst of it before I saw Nightwing shudder.

At least Gengar was taken out. Jolteon is weakened, and Rabsca's not looking too hot either, and I've got Dun in my back pocket. Yet, if things are going so well… why is Miguel smiling like that? It wasn't the smile of someone who was losing but having the time of his life, after all, or at least I didn't think so. At least part of it is him having fun, but the rest says he still thinks he's got this.

The El Primero waited the full thirty seconds he was allowed before Rabsca was sent back onto the field, taking advantage of the Curse constantly sapping Nightwing's health (though this was somewhat mitigated by Poison Heal rejuvenating her). His first command was something new. "Revival Wish!" A beacon, like a star, too bright to look at directly, shot out from Rabsca, floating in the air as it slowly drifted down towards Miguel.

I decided to focus on that later. "Acrobatics!" The bright reflected light was somewhat more effective on a nocturnal Pokemon like Nightwing than it would have been on other Pokemon, so she only hit the Bug Type with a few glancing blows that still did serious damage. "Track them by sound," I told her, and she closed her eyes, swooping down upon Rabsca.

"Reflect," Miguel called out, tense. His eyes darted up to the star, still slowly descending towards him. He needs it to reach him before Rabsca gets knocked out!

"Psychic Fangs, crush the barrier, then X-Scissor." With a sound like shattering glass, Nightwing broke through the barrier, clinging to Rabsca, and then sunk her teeth into the foe. That did little damage given Rabsca's Psychic Typing, but the follow-up X-Scissor cut into her hard.

I saw her falter but just barely held on, and Miguel shouted, "Recover!" Glowing white, she began to heal, and I gritted my teeth. So close!

"Crabhammer up, then follow with Acrobatics. Nightwing flicked her up with the sweep of a water-covered tail, knocking her in the air and then flying after her. Darting all around, she hit her foe from every angle, taking the Bug Type out… just as the light had reached Miguel, sinking into a Pokeball on his belt. Was that- did we catch it in time?

No, we didn't, I realized to my dismay as he sent out his final Pokemon. Salamance, once more, entered the field with a proud roar, looking just as strong as she had during the start of the match.

"Get ou-" I began to say before she rocketed by, Dragon Rushing into Nightwing and pinning my Pokemon against the ground.

"Dig out of there," I called, and she slipped down through the well-churned earth, easily escaping his grasp. Miguel called for his Dragon to rise above any counterattacks, and Nightwing burst out of the earth, racing towards him - only to fall flat on her face. There were a few shocked gasps while I just winced. Curse and the previous battles took their toll.

Dun was my only really fresh Pokemon here, but I wanted to drain the top champion's revived Ace first. "Athena, Extremespeed." My Lucario hit the ground, taking a quick short breath before charging ahead. That slight, minuscule pause made her too slow, getting buffeted back as Mega Evolution took hold of Salamence once again.

"What's this?! Miguel has not only brought out another Salamence but is Mega Evolving this one again! What gives?" The announcer shouted. Geeta gave a quick, clipped response, keeping her eyes on the match.

"The Champion revived his previous Salamence with a version of Revival Blessing. This is allowed within the Paldean League. Challenger Nemona needs six knockouts to win." Which is why his Jolteon being so roughed up doesn't matter so long as he didn't faint. "You can only use a single kind of Enhancement Effect on one Pokemon in your team, but there are no rules on how many times you can do so."

At least that's how the wording goes here, because we don't have Gigantamax, and Z-Moves are written under a different sub-clause compared to the other Enhancement Effects. My mind raced through my memories of all the rules I had read. Ever since Freddrick got me disqualified from my first tournament, I always made sure to read through every rule carefully before training for official battles, but even I hadn't realized that exact wording trick.

Clever, very clever - but also foolish. I knew he had Revival Blessing to bring back a member of his team, but his new custom Move brought his Ace back at full health, and now Mega Evolved too. However, he had clearly never fully enacted the strategy before (perhaps due to Salamence's reluctance to Mega Evolve except when she deemed fit). Because of that, Miguel was left gasping, kneeling, and hunched over on the ground, the drain of Mega Evolving twice in a single battle far greater than he anticipated.

"Get in close then Ice Punch!" I ordered, and Athena picked herself up off the ground, jumping towards the Dragon. Salamence, for her part, was also feeling the exhaustion from having Mega Evolved once again in such a short span and was unable to dodge the attack. The punch saw the Flying Type rearing backwards ice radiating out on her body from the point of impact.

The super effective attack didn't hold Salamence back, for long however, as she quickly recovered. With her newfound speed, she snapped out her head, catching Athena's arm within her jaws. How did she- Right, they've been practicing Mega Evolution for years now, she must be more used to it. I know trying something like that with Athena would have left her out of commission for a while - though it looks like that might still be a problem!

"Hang on!" I cried, and the Steel Type's tough body held out against the Dragon's jaws for the moment, Enduring the powerful bite even as flames licked out from our foe's mouth. Athena growled loudly, pulling her free arm back and covering her fist in ice.

Before she could throw it, she was flipped up in the air, and a Hurricane of wind slammed into Athena, knocking her back into the edge of the barrier, the Psychic field flickering from the impact. I thought it was over there, but Athena pushed herself forward, even as the wind continued to press against her.

Her legs tensed hard against the barrier before she made a powerful leap, jumping against the wind. Shooting towards the Elite's Pokemon, she readied another Ice Punch, but as she neared, the force of the wind slowed my Pokemon down, threatening to send her flying back, and out of this fight. Unable to reach physically, she used a construct of Aura, lashing from her paws to the Dragon's wings.

Salamence struggled and writhed, but couldn't break the Auric grip as much as the wind howled and raged under her control. Athena couldn't get any closer either, but with a grin and a calm breath, ice spread across her Force Whip and then onto the wings, icing them over.

With a shriek, Salamence fell, spinning and crashing down to the ground. Athena dropped to the ground, her energy spent, landing in the broken ground in front of Salamence. As my Pokemon struggled to her feet, the Dragon craned her neck around, opening her jaws and unleashing a torrent of fire. The Flamethrower washed over my Pokemon, this super effective Move knocking my weary Lucario out.

I took a second to see Miguel waving away a few League staff and standing up, having caught his second wind. He's ready, I'm ready; it all comes down to this. Strangely, I didn't feel nervous or worried as I tossed Dun's Pokeball out. Possibly because I was too busy running through the options, but still. We can do this. Dun can win.

While I might not have been aware of what his plan was exactly, I'd saved Dun for this moment. He was under strict instructions to follow a very specific plan upon being released, which he did. As he landed upon the field, he was already triggering the Throat Spray he'd been given, helping him roar out a Boomburst that drowned out any orders Miguel gave for a second. The force and speed of the Move stunned Salamence for a second, letting me follow it up with my first command to Dun.

"Hyper Drill!" He slithered quickly, the churned earth and wrecked field doing nothing to impede my starter after all those days training on the beach at home. He struck hard against Salamence, his tail shearing off some of her scales, her wings still too iced over to fly away. Dun has worked hard over these past few weeks to master Boomburst, but even with the Throat Spray, he has difficulty using it twice in a row. We need to break it up with other, non-sound-based Moves in between.

With evasion off the table, Miguel went on offense. "Double-Edge!" The Aerilate boosted Move saw her charging over Dun, as well as breaking off some of the ice holding her down as she shot past.

"Glare," I whispered, carrying the words just to Dun. Salamence was facing away from him after her charge, and without any warning of the Move, she spun around, keen to keep an eye on him for any reprisals, running straight into his full-force Glare, her body seizing up.

Positioning was vital in battles, and especially in a battle like this one. It's why I was working so hard to keep her on the ground, to try and slow her down so Dun could keep up. Ice Spinner is my strongest Move, but with how far away she is from him, he won't land it in time. "Rush in, then wreck her." Dun took the command well, using a Dragon Rush to charge in like riding a wave through the air.

The Move might have been super effective, but it was one they could read well. "Dragon Tail," Miguel called in a hoarse voice, and Salamence spun around, turning her back on Dun and knocking him backwards before he could even land the rush, let alone the Ice Spinner we'd had planned after.

That gap as Dun recovered gave Salamence time to break off the rest of the ice and take to the skies. "Toxic," I called, Dun shooting out globules of poison up through the air. Even Paralyzed, Salamence easily dodged the attack, but I'd never expected it to hit so easily. "Ancient Power!"

The spiky rocks drawn from the ground rose through the air, flying far faster than Toxic. Also flying on paths through the poison as it fell, coating them. Salamence twisted through the air, trying to dodge them, but three of the six spears my Pokemon had called hit, two of those piercing her scales. Not deeply, but enough to take the potent Poison and apply it straight to her bloodstream. Even with only a fraction of the amount the usual attack would have hit a Pokemon with, the vector saw his Dragon Poisoned by the attack.

For a minute we traded ranged attacks. Flamethrowers stopped any Ice Beams we tried. Paralysis is slowing her down, but she's pushing through her muscles locking up. Switching strategies, Dun pelts Salamence with Ancient Power, the enemy unable to block the sharp rocks, but on the other hand, her Dragon Pulses blast away at Dun further.

Each attack they use is so strong. Dun was getting torn up by the Mega's powerful Moves, but he kept on pushing through, despite it all. And then, I saw a faint rush of energy around him; the omni-boost gained as Ancient Power hit Salamence hard.

This triggered a shift, the Top Champion changing tactics. "Draco Meteor!" Miguel shouted, and massive rocks rained down upon the field, hitting the ground so hard the barrier around us shook.

Seeing my Pokemon battered by the powerful attack, I called, "Roost." My hopes for a chance to recover were dashed as Salamence gave up the aerial advantage as Miguel chopped a hand down, diving into another Double-Edge. My smaller Pokemon was knocked aside again, so I called, "Ice Beam."

The frigid beam met a puff of flame from the Dragon as she continued her charge towards Dun. They're looking to end this fast; they don't think they can outlast us. And Miguel was right to think that. With the Paralysis and Poison and Dun's insane endurance, we might chip away at his Mega Pokemon until we won.

"Protect," I called, a moment before Miguel called for Endeavour. Salamence's wings slapped with hidden strength against Dun's barrier, winds swirling all around from each strike. There was so much power behind her blows that I saw microfractures forming in Dun's Protect, despite how freshly it was formed.

"Spin… to the side, away, and Boomburst!" Salamence, following the same script from our last fight, pounced forward, ready to push through an Ice Spinner, only to hit empty air. Dun was facing away from Salamence, towards me, as the powerful sound-based Move shook the stadium, hitting all around.

Across from me on the other end of the field, I saw Miguel shake his head slowly even as he ordered, "Facade," again. He thinks that I blinked, that we gave a possible tie for something 'safer' that couldn't defeat his Pokemon. And now we'll lose, unable to dodge his follow-up from this close. He doesn't know…

"THIS IS IT! YOU CAN DO IT DUNNNNN!!!" I shouted loudly. My voice may not have reached Boomburst's decibels, but I felt like my enthusiasm matched it. Waving my arms about, Dun's powerful tail spun, following the motion. I'd seen Salamence's attack twice already and predicted it perfectly this third time, letting Dun parry the Dragon's wings with his tail.

Tornado-force winds still shot off from the attacks, chipping away at Dun with the force of most Pokemon's regular attacks. It wasn't enough to take him out, Dun holding out and even scraping into the bright red crescent of his foe. More importantly, he continued his Boomburst, barraging the Mega Pokemon. As she took a break with her assault, Dun swiveled at my signal, taking a deep breath and using Boomburst again, stretching himself (literally even) past his usual limits to hit Salamence with everything he had.

She tried to push past it, her claws and fangs reaching out towards Dun, ready to rip him to shreds. The rage in her eyes flickered to fear as Dun continued his assault. The Dragon pushed and pushed against the sound, blowing her back, inching closer and closer… until an inch away, that rage was replaced by fear. Dun's three-segment body allowed him to carry on a Boomburst longer than most any other Pokemon could, and with the last push, blasted the Mega Pokemon away.

Salamence crumpled, tumbling across the field, her Mega Evolution breaking, and she reverted to her base form as she collapsed in the center of the arena. Dun dropped back down, breathing heavily as silence reigned for a second. Then, Geeta raised her hand.

"Nemona Glitterati has defeated six of Miguel's Pokemon. She is the winner, and Paldea's newest Champion ranked Trainer!" Cheers broke out at her words, and I was in a state of shock. We really… did it. Dun seemed to be the same, turning to blink at me, his eyes wide open.

I ran towards him as the barrier dropped (the Psychic Types in the background grumbling at the effort it had taken) before tripping over the churned earth. Not letting that slow me down, I crawled rapidly towards him. "You did it! You're the best! The first Champion-level Dudunsparce." In a softer voice I added, "No doubt about it now; you're the strongest Dudunsparce in the world."

"Dudun! Sparce Dun!" He cried joyously on a scratchy throat, nuzzling into me and knocking me over. Laughing, I splayed my arms out, content to just rest there for a moment and bask in our victory. And maybe pass out? Kinda woozy from how tired I am right now.

The rest of the world wasn't keen to wait, however, but at least the first people weren't unwanted. My friends and family burst out of the elevator, Arven being the first to run up to me, with Cyan and the others not far behind. He was exclaiming excitedly about how I did it, how awesome it was, and just generally jumping around with glee.

Arven lifted me up in the air, grunting heavily as he did so. "Urk! This looked so much easier in the movies," he wheezed, Kieran and Carmen moving to help while Cyan took a picture.

Looking away from Dun, who I was holding aloft, I nodded. "Yeah, movie magic makes everything look easy. Takes hard effort and work!" I said, more to Dun than him. After a few moments of basking, they put me down, and I hugged them and my parents, my teachers, and the Rising Volt Tacklers.

Gothorita also clung close to me. ['Battling like that… scary,] she mentally projected to me. Telepathic communication from a Psychic Pokemon wasn't always clear words; in fact, it usually wasn't. But my experiences with Athena and Notch gave me enough experience translating most of the feelings and sparse images into coherent words. ['But you did good. Still worried for you but trust you.']

"You're trusting I'll be a good Trainer? You want to join me?" She gave the Psychic equivalent of a grumble, an image of a rocky outcropping beside a windswept plain, and a feeling of comfort alongside it. Home. She's saying she misses home, or rather, she will miss it. Despite that, there was a sort of resignation to her words, like she was accepting leaving if it meant being alongside me.

"Well, I'm glad to have you. And you know, you don't have to battle if you don't want to-"

['I do. You're a warrior; you'll seek battles. If I didn't fight with you, I'd be left behind. Besides, you make it seem… less scary. More fun. Want to try.'] I frowned at that, not entirely convinced by her reasoning for the first half, before shaking my head. In any case, it seems like she's chosen her path. We can worry about all that stuff later. Smiling, I brought her in for a close hug, triggering a flash of surprise and then joy from the Pokemon.

The moment was slightly interrupted by a commotion from outside. Peering out through the hug pile and across the night sky, I saw Geeta approaching, carrying a huge gold trophy, almost as tall as I was. My people backed away to give her room to approach.

"It has been quite some time since we've had a new Champion-ranked Trainer ascend in Paldea," she began, her words directed at me, but carrying loudly enough for all the drones to catch. "And never before have we had one so young, or to have won an Elite Gauntlet, before today. In honor of that, a trophy was commissioned by the League in the eventuality of your success." There's a play on words there, I feel. I was too tired to parse the meaning exactly, however.

"Congratulations Nemona Glitterati. Today, you rise to the highest rank a Trainer can hold in this nation. Congratulations, Champion." She passed the trophy over to me, and I swayed slightly before steadying myself and holding it up high.

That action opened the floodgates, a cacophony of cheering and clapping erupted yet again on the stage from my friends and family, the staff, and Miguel and Geeta (the former of which was sitting down, looking ready to pass out as well, but grinning brightly despite that and his defeat). There was tons of exuberant cheering from down below, and the sound of it all distracted me, so I didn't notice right away when a bunch of people flying onto the roof, pushing past the League staff. Some of them just appeared to be fans, but several of them were carrying cameras as they rushed towards us.

With a sigh, I prepared to deal with the barrage of questions being shouted by them until the Kain, the announcer, placed himself between me and them. "STOP! How dare you Houndour this girl! She's clearly exhausted from her battles." He shrieked. That got them to stop for a moment, staring shocked and looking a little ashamed of themselves for a second.

Kain used that opportunity to turn around sharply and shove his microphone in my face. "So, Miss Glitterati, what are your plans now that you're the youngest Champion ranked Trainer in history?"

Reflexively, I turned to my mom in confusion before realizing the 'Miss Glitterati' in this case was me. This gave the reporters enough time to start angrily shouting at the announcer, calling him out for 'cheating' as they tried to push ahead, but finding little progress against the rest of the League staff, who now rallied and literally walled them off with their Psychic Types.

Despite Kain being barred from me along with the rest of them, I answered. "Uh, I guess rest up? It was a long road to get here, and we're all pretty tired. I couldn't be prouder of my team and all the work they put in. Oh! I'll probably be publishing my paper on how to transform a Carbink into Diancie in a few days. Beyond that? This was a momentous occasion for us, but just the next step in our journey. I'm not stopping here."

Using the stunned silence that made, I chuckled and turned around to my friends and family. "Let's go home," I said, and we chuckled, ignoring the reporters' frantic cries and renewed exclamations as we headed off, boarding the Brave Olivine, which had flown around the other side of the League Building.

I gave them a slightly cheeky wave from aboard the ship, Dun doing the same with his tail, and I hugged him tight.

Spoiler: A/N:

Here we are, at long last, the final battle of Nemona's first journey. Not the last of her story, not by a long shot, but we'll be taking a break from battling/intense battles for a while. I've had a fair amount of ideas for smaller, less intense arcs before we get to Blueberry Academy, a lot of stuff for Nemona to do/deal with as the youngest Champion.

Now that we've made it to this milestone, I'd love to hear any feedback you have, looking back on the story so far. What did you like, what didn't you like, were there any parts that felt like they dragged or went by too fast, what was your favorite part/element/character, etc.? Stuff like that.

I also want to thank everyone for coming with me so far on this journey. I know it's been a long haul, and I really appreciate all of your support. It means the world to me. I might not be the greatest writer out there, but every comment, every like, they give me so much motivation to do this. You can comment here or on the Discord. And if you like my stuff and want to toss me a bit of money, I have a Kofi and a Patreon, subscribers to the latter get early access to the next ten chapters. Thank you again, and I hope you're looking forward to the future. It might take me a while, but I've got a lot of fun plans for what will happen there too.

 

[Skyfyre]

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♦ Topic: A New Thread
In: Boards ► Nemona's Elite Gauntlet
Superpower8 (Original Poster) (Verified Eight Gym Badges)
Posted On May 21st 2016:
Things have been getting heated and big enough that I thought this deserved it's own thread. We can do our theorizing over Nemona's attempt here. Maybe some live chatting too, but there will be plenty of time inbetween matches to gush over the fights as well

►GurdurrMyLoins
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Damn, already laying the smack talk on the Woman of Steel. You gotta admire nemona's gumption

►Windinmyhair
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I've said it before and I'll sayit again. It feels wierd seeing Nemona act like that. She's a little kid, but look at what she says to the announcer.

►BenjaminBurton
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I think it's more how she says it than what exactly. You aren't wrong, she has a certain presence to her. Especially with that outfit.

►HailOverSnow
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Sweet Arkeeus, does she have a cape fully covered in diamonds!?! I new her parents were loaded but what the heck?

►Hater4Lyfe
Replied On May 21st 2016:
More signs that this is a conspiracy to let the Glitterati's take over the nation, and then, the world!

Edit: /s, because apparently some people can't take a joke in this thread

►DakraiestNight (Moderator)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Please do not spread conspiracy theories. I want to watch this match, not break out the mod voice

►LightItUp20
Replied On May 21st 2016:
It's beginning! Oh wow, Daisy's using her Tera already? That's a bold move, Whimsicott, let's see if it pays off.

►NoManIsAnOrangeIsland
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Not to ruin a perfectly good quote, but I actually get the play. Nemona led with her Ace. Dun might not look it, but that guy is a powerhouse. With his quadruple power Ground Type Moves, Daisy needed something to level the playing field

►UmbreonEnthusiast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
HOLY SHIT WHAT IS THAT?
Edit: That thing is Notch??

►Sh3ppard
Replied On May 21st 2016:
A Diancie? No freaking way. Well, guess we know how she got all those diamonds for her cape now

►Bigleafenergy
Replied On May 21st 2016:
That's notch, her Carbink! I had no clue they evolved! I love it, they look so cute and happy like that

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
They… don't. That's a Diancie, and yes, there's a connection between the two species but never an evolutionary one established.

►Bigleafenergy
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Well, don't know what to tell you, but that seems to be Notch. She's already said their name and I really don't think her Zoroark could fake all of that
Edit: Plus, thgy've got the same notch on their ear!

►FairyFury6
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I am so CONFLICTED rn!!! Notch is so cool! But I kinda hate Nemona! Why does she get the cool fairy?

►adriontompkins
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Probably because her parents bought one for her. Perks of being rich I guess

►OrdeliaVonFerrem
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I know she said this was Notch, but are we really sure? Just sayin', rich girl shows up with a new Legendary right before her match, looks sus.

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 20161:
She could be misleading us. Would make sense if her parents bought a Legendary for her and she wanted to hide that fact.

What makes more sense: That she somehow uncovered a hidden evolution method to turn a regular Pokemon into a Legendary, or that she used her parents connections and resources to obtain a very powerful Pokemon that was similar to, but vastly improved upon, her old one?

And maybe I'm even being harsh with the 'misleading'. Notch might be their name, in homage to her old Carbink, if she felt particularly sentimental.

►GoodraFan
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Is that a Mega Stone around notch's neck? The Terastalization covered it up pretty well, but running the footage back it looks like that

►BadBisharp
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Bold choice to keep her now fighting type Diancie against a psychic Type… and one that paid off apparently, Daisy wasn't willing to take the chance, even as Notch dozed off.

►IceQueen (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Daisy's Bronzong is incredibly tough, but not super offensive. Given how tough Notch was even before they transformed? Yes, I wouldn't take those odds either. Not that it seemed to have mattered.

►IceShredder
Replied On May 21st 2016:
You hear about Legendarys, even see some minor ones with trainers once in a blue moon, but I didn't really get how strong ther were until now.

►Laylalala (Verified Uva Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Hot damn, she took out Daisy and was barely trying!

►BrawnyBookworm
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Yeah, that's what happens when you have a Legendary on your side. How the heck did she get that?
Edit: lowered the profanity in the original post. Also, yeah, probably money

►GoodraFan
Replied On May 21st 2016:
She's so cool! Wait, is the Diancie a she? I can't tell, I've never seen one before

►Superpower8 (Original Poster) (Verified Eight Gym Badges)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Assuming that is the same Carbink she had before, they didn't present as one gender or the other. But also, I haven't ever seen one before in person either, but uhh are diancies supposed to be that…buff? Feels weird ngl

►AlolaWow
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Damn, that was a one-sided slaughter. I know that she was caught off-guard by a legendary and all, but is Daisy really that… weak?

►Dynamix
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Kinda, yeah. She's not bad or anything, but she's the first Elite Four member you face in Paldea for a reason. It's the others that are a lot tougher, and evne then people say they fall short of th other Elite Four in different region (except Turtle).

►Farmsted54 (Olive Rolling Champion)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Wow, I'm outside and there was practically a mob forming trying to bust into the league building to try and see the Diancie with their own eyes.
Edit: Update, the League officials stopped them and told them off. Most of the crowd is disappointed but seems calm now

►HaxorDeezNuts
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I'm surprised she used them so early. I thought a Legendary would have been her trump card against Martha or Hassel, given the type advantage, or even saved to deal with the Great and Powerful Turtle's own legendary

►Gurumin
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Holding them in reserve is a risk too. It puts a larger drain on the rest of her team. The Gauntlet is an endurance challenge, so she must be confident she can win even without the advantage of surprise.

...


►Jangmore-o
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I was worried for a moment that she was going to be covered in darkness for the whole match. Glad it was just the intro

►MurderOfChivalry
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Get ready to be disappointed. From what ive heard of her, she does this trick durring her matches too

►Dragyourpult
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Damn. Think they'll have something to let us watch it properly? Also, is something up with the audio too? I can't hear the music Miles is playing! C'mon Paldean League, what ar you doing?

►Superpower8 (Original Poster) (Verified Eight Gym Badges)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Yessssssss, go Athena, go!

►Havin'AKarablast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Looks like Nemona's going to sweep this up just as easily as she did against Daisy
Edit: Welp, spoke too soon

►Jangmore-o
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Ugh, the darkness is indeed back and it sucks. I mean, it could be worse, but I kinda hate the nightvision they use to show us the fight, even if it's better than nothing at all. At least we have notch to bring back the lights!

►Hargreavance
Replied On May 21st 2016:
What the heck was that?! Why do Nemona's Pokemon keep fainting?? Is this rigged or something?

►IceQueen (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
'Or something' indeed. Martha is using tricks like Perish song and some sort of custom Destiny bond to take out Nemona's Pokemon. She is a Dark Type specialist for a reason

►Sh3ppard
Replied On May 21st 2016:
That was a crazy trick to take out Notch though. Looks like showing off her legendary backfired for Nemona.

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
it was always a risk, but I don't think anyone expected that. I reviewed some of her old matches in preparation for this, but Martha never demonstrated a Move like that one before

Also, good to see you hear @IceQueen

►Jasminetea43
Replied On May 21st 2016:
She's not the only one with tricks though. Nemona's double bluff with Miles/Phantasm was awesome!

►WinGulliver's Travels (Pokemarket Clerk)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
But will it be enough to stand up to Martha's big bad ace? That Tyrannitar of hers is killer - possibly litterally. I heard a story once that a couple of rangers were trying to hunt that Tyrannitar down after it wrecked a village but Martha swooped in and claimed her for herself.

►Farmsted54 (Olive Rolling Champion)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Oh come on, that's just a dumb rumor. Martha had a Larvitar as her second Pokemon, that's well recorded (though her having three Spiritombs and one of them as her starter is kinda crazy). Besides, as tough as she is, I believe in Miles Athena

►MimiGimmieGhoul
Replied On May 21st 2016:
And the lights are out agin, yay.

►MrMilotic
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Athena has the type advantage to be sure, but is it enough? Especially since- yup, there goes Martha's Tera. I feel like using it on Miles might have been a mistake

►Jangmore-o
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Nah, Athena's got this. And once she wins, Miles will be in position to sweep it up
Edit: okay, I was mostly right. A tie against T-tar is pretty much a win

...


►HaxorDeezNuts
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Alright, it looks like she did make it through. Still, kinda worried for her. If this is how tight a match as it was against the second of the Elite Four, can she really make it all the way to the El Primero?

►Havin'AKarablast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
oh boy, this is going to be good. Hassel has been shooting up the ranks among the Elite Four, while Nemona has been cleaning up the Gyms across the country

►GurdurrMyLoins
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Plus, I heard he actually taught her. A good student v. teacher fight is always grea

►ViridianRoadie
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Ehh, didnt he teach her music, not battling? Still looking forward to the fight tho

►Beafangurl
Replied On May 21st 2016:
What strategies do you think they'll use?

►BrawnyBookworm
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Hard to say. Hassel is a bit more offense orietned than Nemona, but they're both pretty good at focusing on hitting fast and hard. Even if he didn't treach her how to battle, they likely know a fair bit about each other's styles

►HohmaScoop
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Here we go!

►MrMilotic
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Nemona's relying hard on her Diancie to carry her through this, isn't she? I get it, but that might leave them tired out for the tougher fights later on

Edit: I stand corrected, well played Phantasm

►NEOPower
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Damn, I keep on forgetting just how strong and fast Phantasm is. Even without the illusions, she can just tear through an enemy, can't she? Possibly literally; that look in her eyes can be a bit much at times

►Superpower8 (Original Poster) (Verified Eight Gym Badges)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Against Noivern, yeah, Phantasm just has the edge in trickery, speed, and power. But with his Dragonite, there's a lot more bulk for her to deal with, and she's a bit fragile

►Jangmore-o
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Aww man, not this again! I hate it when the battlefield gets covered up and we can't see shit Why'd Hassel do that anyways?

►IceShredder
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I think his dragonite was having trouble finding Phantasm, likely some subtle illusions going on there. Looks like it's clearing up

►NoManIsAnOrangeIsland
Replied On May 21st 2016:
A double knockout, wow. Kinda feels like a bd trade though, doesn't it? Took Nemona Phantasm nd Nightwing to beat his Dragonite.

►Hater4Lyfe
Replied On May 21st 2016:
True, but Phantasm is still in the fight. Anyone's game, really

►HaxorDeezNuts
Replied On May 21st 2016:
oh snap, haxorus v. haxorus! Also, can I just say that I love that Nemona's is shiny? Makes it som uch easier to keep track of who's is who's

►Slacking & Weezing G-A-S-S-I-N-G (Double Battle Ace)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Nemona's might look prettier, but Hassel has the advantage. She neeeded to terastalize to keep up

►UmbreonEnthusiast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Bahamut wins! Yay

►Dynamix
Replied On May 21st 2016:
But now she's down a Tera. Hassel is going to tear through the rest of her team with his ace

►MurderOfChivalry
Replied On May 21st 2016:
We'll see

►NoManIsAnOrangeIsland
Replied On May 21st 2016:
oh boy, the real Dun is here. Right? We're sure this isn't another Fake Out?

►CountryGal27
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Now it is, and I really wish I'd turned down the volume for this match. I'm listening on headphones and there were so many sound moves

►LightItUp20
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Whoa. I knew Dun was tough but I still can't believe he won against Hassel's terastalized ace. That's kinda crazy when you think about it

►Hargreavance
Replied On May 21st 2016:
indeed. Few Trainers could bring out such potential from a Dunsparce

►HaxorDeezNuts
Replied On May 21st 2016:
*Dudunsparce, actually

►Hargreavance
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Okay but I was talking about the entirety of their training and he was a Dunsparce when she first caught him

►PewterPowerPack
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Really, I just thought her parents would have bought her the toughest Pokemon money could buy

►CrossHera
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I want tp laugh at the idea of Dunsparce being one of the 'tough' Pokemon lines… but I can already see breeders advertising that line of Pokemon, so maybe it will be a thing in the future.

►Laylalala (Verified Uva Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
In any case, what do people think of Hassel quitting?

►Havin'AKarablast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Felt reasonable to me. He wasn't going to win this anyways, so why drage it out?

►GurdurrMyLoins
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I would characterize it as nice, while still fair. He clearly did everything he could to push her when it was realistically possible for him to win. While a Gauntlet challenged is designed to drain endurance, and we saw how Daisy tried to punish Nemona at the end of her match, there's no guideline that says any Elite must attempt to wear the challenger down, even after it's clear they lost.

Tl:dr: I'm okay with it

...


►SinnohSurvive
Replied On May 21st 2016:
So uh, can a Paldean give me the deetz on whats this guy's deal? He seems a little… out there

►Windinmyhair
Replied On May 21st 2016:
The 'Great and Powerful Turtle' is honestly a bit of a mystery. He keeps his battle record private, so some people wonder if he ever won any Gym badges. He's undoubtedly the strongest of the Elite Four however, and that's due to one big, Legendary reason

Enamorous is his ace, and she crushes pretty much anyone who fights her. He also doesn't stick to a Type theming, instead having well, a 'Turtle' theme.

Overall, he's weird, strikes random poses, and is the toughest challenge of the Elite four, probably why we have so few Champion ranked Trainers right now. Hard to really describe him better than that.

►Beafangurl
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Oh. Hy wait, if you can lose one of the Elite Four matches and still become a champion, then wouldn't the Gauntlet serve as an easy way to become a Cahmpion?

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Correct and incorrect. Yes, Nemona could just immediately forfeit here and still progress to the next stage (in fact, that would be smart), but that doesn't make it 'easier'. Usually you get weeks or even months to prepare inbetween each Elite match, to tailor your team and strategies to win, and you only need to defeat the Elite Four to get the rank (you can choose to challenge a Champion afterwards, even the Top-Champion if you want, but it's not necessary).

Here, Nemona needs to win three of four against back-to-back Elite challenges, and then defeat a Champion. And she's facing the Top Champion, Miguel O'Hara, a man who already defeated Turtle and the previous top Champion, Blake Hogan.

►HailOverSnow
Replied On May 21st 2016:
What Atticus said is true, though I could see a slight advantage depending on how your team lined up against his (especially that Enamorous), tossing the match there could make a Championship Gauntlet run a ton easier. Turtle gets underestimated a lot, but he's an elite level Trainer even without his Legendary. With her? He's more like a Champion-ranked trainer

►SinnohSurvive
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Wow, says a lot when you need a Legendary to be a champion level trainer. None of the champions we've had needed that

►ZingZapZow
Replied On May 21st 2016:
ugh, do you really have to be like that? He's sure tougher than you (don't see a 'verified champion' by your name), so maybe shut up and enjoy the fight?

►adriontompkins
Replied On May 21st 2016:
That shuckle looks strong. I've got a shuckle back home, very calm, makes berry juice for us, but I don't know, something is different about the Elite's

Edit: Wait, shuckles can learn Body Press!?

►Superpower8 (Original Poster) (Verified Eight Gym Badges)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
It's harder to tell through a tv screen but yeah. People can eventually get a sense for how strong a Pokemon is, just by looking at them. Only really skilled trainers ever manage it with any sort of accuracy, but seeing the difference between an Elite's Pokemon and some family-never-been-on-a-journey Pokemon is a world of difference, enough for anyone to tell

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
They can't learn Body Press normally, by the way. His Shuckle knowing that is a sign of his skill

►Havin'AKarablast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
What about Nemona's skill huh? She's doing great!

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I don't mean to disparage her, she's clearly quite strong too. But there's thousands of people who are going to rave about her and few about her opponents

►SirSchmoopy
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Might be a few more with this one. I wonder if his Legendary is a match for Nemona's?

►MrMilotic
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I'm not sure she'll send out her Legendary. She needs Notch to fight Miguel's beast of a Salamance, especially if he Megas it. But a fight against another Legendary would leave Notch exhausted. She could try to use Dun for either fight, but that'd be risky.

►SirSchmoopy
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Damn, you weren't kidding about him. It looks like Turtle is pushing Nemona harder than anyone else, even before his Legendary. Though that could just be her being more tired.

►FairyFury6
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Whoa, what the heck is that Pokemon?!?

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
It looks like a Volcarona, but not quite. Too shiny and metallic. Another regional variant? Also, why did the match get paused?

►Laylalala (Verified Uva Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
No clue about the pause, but that Pokemon looks familiar somehow

►Dragonmyfeet
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Holy Karp! Look at how strong that 'Radiance' Pokemon is! It's fighting back, pushing back even against a Legendary!!

►Dragyourpult
Replied On May 21st 2016:
She won! I can't believe it, Nemona beat a Legendary

►Superpower8 (Original Poster) (Verified Eight Gym Badges)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
That fight was EPIC!!!!

►Laylalala (Verified Uva Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I can, if only because 'Radiance' is a Legendary too. I finally figured out where I'd seen it before. It's from the Violet Book, Heath having spotted it once two hundred years ago

►Gurumin
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Are they really a Legendary? I don't mean to dismiss them, but Radiance feels like a bit stronger Volcarona. Probably had some massive Type match up favoritism here too. I'd bet that they're either a Fire/Electric or even a Fire/Poison Typing.

►IceQueen (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
The difference between a 'very strong Volcarona' and a Legendary is far thinner than you might expect. I agree with you on the typing though. My thoughts lean towards is being Poison as a secondary Typing, with a slight affinity to Electric attacks.

►MorpekoHUNGRY
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Another Legendary? That's just insane. Look, I don't want to say that she's bought her way to victory or anything but… c'mon man. That's just not fair

►BadBisharp
Replied On May 21st 2016:
It might not be fair but I don't thin k even she could just buy her way into Area Zero. Maybe she's just stupidly lucky on top of being ridiculously rich?

►Julie_Esperanza (Verified League Official)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Nemona didn't find her Radiance in area zero, and we strenuously warn any trainers against going into the Great Crater without proper permissions. It is incredibly dangerous to go there.

►RitchieRich (Temp Banned)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Now we see how it is. This whole Gauntlet is a sham designed to shill Nemona. What dirt do the Glitterati's have on the League, hmmm?

Mod: take a temp ban and cool off. This is not the place for baseless conspiracy theories

►CuteHat3nna
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Okay, I know we shouldn't go hunting for them, but Radiance looks so cool! I wish I could find a Pokemon like that.

►WinGulliver's Travels (Pokemarket Clerk)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I mean, if you want to put int the work, Larvestas can theoretically be found in the Asado Desert.

►KarmaKecleon
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Yeah no thanks. I tried searching for one once and the months fruitlessly spent in the desert were not worth it

►KarmaKecleon
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Actually they were entirely worth it. I met Sssssilicobra there and my beautiful, graceful, intelligent, lovely partner issssss the bessssst thing that ever happened to me

Edit: sorry for the double post, Sili got a hold of my account for a moment.

...

►CuteHat3nna
Replied On May 21st 2016:
It's finally here, the battle we've all been waiting for! Oh man, I'm so excited and nervous right now. And like, yeah, I know I'm not the one fighting, but still! It just feels so momentous, you know?

►ViridianRoadie
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Totes get that. I got shivers right now. Nemona has been doin great but she's already tired.

►Laylalala (Verified Uva Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I think she'll pull through. With two Legendaries on her team, and a solid core to back them up? No way she loses

►OrdeliaVonFerrem
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Let's not get over confident. There was something about her radiance being used in the last match that made the officials question it a bit. Turtle allowed it, but I think that was him giving her a hand. Miguel might not do the same.

►NEOPower
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Hard to say what exactly went on there (they switched the cameras to focus on the announcer there) but in any case I don't think we'll see a Radiance again. They're likely tired out from fighting Enamorous. Of cours, that just means we'll get to see Notch at full power, if you know what i'm talking about.

►Superpower8 (Original Poster) (Verified Eight Gym Badges)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Huh I have (mega) no idea (mega) what you could be referring to Mega Mega MEGA)!

►CountryGal27
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Wait, what? Does Notch have a mega evolution? Wonder why Nemona never used that before

►NoManIsAnOrangeIsland
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Because Notch was a Carbink back then (if that really is notch). Carbinks don't have a Mega Evolution, but Diancies do, supposedly. Admittedly, we've only ever heard of such a thing, which is why they have a Pokedex entry. Apparently a respected Trainer told professor Sycamore of witnessing such a change, but it's never been recorded before today.

Edit: OHMYARCEUS THEY DO HAVE A MEGA AND IT IS GLORIOUS!!!

►MrMilotic
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I mena, I think it's pretty apparent that there's some truth to the matter. I've heard of Diancite stones going for sale, in very legitimate auction houses before. I remember some rich couple buying one from the Porto Marinada auction house almost a year ago for an obscene price

►Cyan_Glitterati (Verified Eight Gym Badges) (Verified Uva Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Yup, that was mom and dad, they got it for Nims for her birthday. She always said she'd find a way to give Notch hands, and she did.

►GoodraFan
Replied On May 21st 2016:
What the heck? Also the match has begunand they both mega'd already!?! And so pretty!!!

►Laylalala (Verified Uva Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Amazing!

►Havin'AKarablast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Spectacular!

►Dragyourpult
Replied On May 21st 2016:
This is craaaaaaazy! Notch was already quite strong but now they're like, absurdly powerful, and so fast too!

►Jangmore-o
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Salamance too. She only got a slight boost in speed from Mega-ing, but it looks like it was enough to let them just outpace Notch.

►GurdurrMyLoins
Replied On May 21st 2016:
But it wasn't enough! Man, that Diancie is insanely strong. I'm a huge Dun fan, but I think it's clear he's been supplanted as Nemona's ace now

►Sh3ppard
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Ouch. Well, gg folks. Miguel fought hard but ain't now way that you come back from a loss like that.

►Hargreavance
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Hey, don't count out yet. The rest of Nemona's team is tired and weak. Miguel is more than his ace.

►AlolaWow
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Yeah, but Nemona's Mega Diancie is still good to go. And man, did you just see that dumb mistake he made, putting his own gengar to sleep? Lol

►Gurumin
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I must say, while I agree with your prediction, it wasn't a dumb mistake. Notch clearly (ha!) had Clear Body at the start of the match, and since no one has even seen a Mega Diancie before today, them having Magic Bounce could not have been anticipated.

►Sabrinaismywaifu
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Tell that to a proper Psychic

►BrawnyBookworm
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Even they wouldn't know about that - Mega Stones can't be predicted by Psychic types or people, so they'd need to try and peer into the future after Notch transformed to see that one coming, which uh, given how strong and fast they are? Not a good idea to get lost in thought

►Windinmyhair
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Damn, i kinda hoped that Notch would sweep the whole thing. That Slaking is strong and fast thou

►NoManIsAnOrangeIsland
Replied On May 21st 2016:
He is. Many refer to 'the King' as Miguel's 'other Ace'. That Slaking's a beast that has swept through Ace teams before

►Beafangurl
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Damn, and Nemona lost Phantasm against him too, and in one hit. What's happening out there?! Pull it together Nemona!

►MrMilotic
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Her team is tired, that's what. Maybe at full strength she could have powered through the hit, bit as it is, Phantasm just lost that critical edge. We might be seeing a reversal of fortune for the young girl.

►HaxorDeezNuts
Replied On May 21st 2016:
No way, look at how she rallied back and just kicked that Slaking's ass! You can do it nemona!

►IceShredder
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I think she's still going to get through this. She's trading pretty evenly now which leaves her in a slightly better position than Miguel is.

►LightItUp20
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Oh damn, a baton pass strat, didn't expect that

Edit: the reason why I (and likely Nemona) wre caught off guard by it was because Miguel's never used such a strategy before with his Jolteon. It was always the fast, targeted removal engine, not the set up

►Slacking & Weezing G-A-S-S-I-N-G (Double Battle Ace)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Seriously, you didn't see a strategy that obvious coming? Lmao

Edit: Okay, fair. Didn't realize Miguel was playing against type

►GurdurrMyLoins
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Yeah, bet even with that, he's still slowly but surely losiing. Jolteon is tired as fuck and once the bug goes down, it's over for him.

►SinnohSurvive
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Whats that Move? I don't really know Rabsca that well?

►Windinmyhair
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I've never seen it before but it looks almost like ohhhhh. That's bad news for Nemona

►WinGulliver's Travels (Pokemarket Clerk)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Huh? Don't leave us hanging!!

Oh shit, revival blessing, but stronger

►Jangmore-o
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Wait, wtf??? How is he allowed to use Slamance again!?! And Mega it too!

►MrMilotic
Replied On May 21st 2016:
the Paldean rules state that he can only bring six Pokemon into the match (Nemona has permission to bring in more as the challenger of the gauntlet) and that whoever wins is the one that scores six knockouts/withdrawls.

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
And to add to that, there's a couple of Pokemon in Paldea that can revive others, though usually only at half strength. It must have been some custom move he used to bring Salamance back at full power. But it looks like the second Mega was really tiring for her - Athena got some good shots in exchange for that

►MurderOfChivalry
Replied On May 21st 2016:
C'mon Dun, pull through!

►Dragonmyfeet
Replied On May 21st 2016:
We believe in you, show them how it's Dun Dun Dun!

►Superpower8 (Original Poster) (Verified Eight Gym Badges)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
The. Was. EPIC!!!

►GoodraFan
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Yeah! Woohoo!

►NoManIsAnOrangeIsland
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I cheered so hard the neighbors had to tell me to keep quiet!

►Havin'AKarablast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Oh man, we did it. The youngest Champion ever

►SinnohSurvive
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Champion ranked, not a true Champion.

►NoManIsAnOrangeIsland
Replied OnMay 21st 2016:
oh shut up!

►BenjaminBurton
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Don't be jealous of a nine year old girl. Or is just because you're wasting your life online while she's out there changing the world?

►SinnohSurvive
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Screw you! Not like you're doing any better.

►DakraiestNight (Moderator)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Mod warning: Cut that out everyone. Let's just be happy for her victory and leave out any personal attacks

►CrossHera
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Ahh, I can't believe it!

►PewterPowerPack
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Aww, I can't believe it. I had a lot of money riding on this.

►Laylalala (Verified Uva Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
And you didn't bet on Nemona? Boooo!

►BadBisharp
Replied On May 21st 2016:
You get what you deserve, buddy

►Jasminetea43
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Notch is soooooo cool!

►FairyFury6
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I know and I hate it

►Windinmyhair
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Huh?
Edit: nvm, just that one guy whos relly salty over her beating Oberon

►Jangmore-o
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Holy Miltank, dod we just see three Legendaries in that Gauntlet? We all knew of Turtle's but the two Nemona had were a surprise.

►Bigleafenergy
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I know it's early, bjut I think she could really be the best of all time. Like, no one has ever been this good, this young, right?

►Sh3ppard
Replied On May 21st 2016:
if you believe that, I have a bridge to Castellia to sell you. Ain't no way someone gets all of that just by sheer chance. A bunch of Professors pushed everything they could to shill this young girl, probably bought for by her rich parents. Wonder how much Friede or Turo sold that Diancie method to her (assuming that she didn't just buy the Diancie and got them to concoct some bogus story).

►IceQueen (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
It's hardly so unbelievable. Legendaries have been seen before. She might be exceptional to have gathered two, but we've seen people who have or had even more, like Frontier Brain Brandon.

►Havin'AKarablast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Even he didn't do it at a young age. I don't care what the doubters say. If she grows even further she could definitely be a world champ. Would be awesome to see a Paldean really shine out there, ya know?

►Jasminetea43
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Oh yeah, definitely. We've had Terastalization for a few years now, but we still haven't seen any major results, what's up with that?

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Don't count your Natus before they hatch. I can admit when I've been mistaken; Nemona had a few trump cards up her sleeves I wasn't aware of. She's done good so far and is likely to do well in the future. But that doesn't mean she will be the best just because of her achievements thus far. More people than just her are aiming for the top.

As for the lack of major results, part of the problem in the issues with Terastalizing outside of Paldea. No international tournament has taken place there in the past decade. Even with the attempts to ferry Tera Orbs out for the big battles, the effect is much weaker outside of the region, as shown with Blake Hogan's infamous loss to Miguel a while back, with his Terastalization fading out halfway through the match, while Miguel's Mega Evolution went on strong.

Then again, Blake challenged the man to face him in Paldea afterwards and look what happened there. My home region might have just had a string of lackluster champions prior to the current era.

►IceQueen (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Indeed. I look forward to seeing how she performs in the future. The Paldean Elite Four aren't anything special, but she could still prove to be a real challenge.

►HaxorDeezNuts
Replied On May 21st 2016:
okay, favorite fights of the Gauntlet?

►Dragyourpult
Replied On May 21st 2016:
oh my Arceus yes! That fight against Miguel was amazing!

►Havin'AKarablast
Replied On May 21st 2016:
I actually liked her fight against the great and Powerful Turtle best. He pushed her almost as far as Miguel did, and had to fight against a complete unknown when she sent out a Radiance.

►Sh3ppard
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Turtle has a few gimmicks but he's nothing without his Legendary. A Taunt or two and his team falls apart.

►NoManIsAnOrangeIsland
Replied On May 21st 2016:
uhuh? How about you try it some time then, tough guy? You don't even have Eight Badges!

►Superpower8 (Original Poster) (Verified Eight Gym Badges)
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Can we try and stay on topic here? Also, the best fight was clearly Hassel. Did you not see the passion in their eyes as they clashed?? Teacher versus Student, a battle for the ages

►GurdurrMyLoins
Replied On May 21st 2016:
That was a great one, but I think the battle against the Great and Powerful Turtle was better

►ZingZapZow
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Might be in the minority, but I liked the Daisy Match. Notch was just such a shock and so amazing to me

►LightItUp20
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Same vibes, btu for me it was Miguel's fight. Mega Notch sent shivers down my spine. That, and it being the final match

►HaxorDeezNuts
Replied On May 21st 2016:
Yeha, that fight rocked (pun intended)

■​

♦ Topic: New Carbink Evolution Found!
In: Boards ► Science & Discovery
BadBisharp (Original Poster)
Posted On May 24th 2016:
So, Nemona Glitterati has another thread dedicated to her as we get confirmation that she did indeed find a way to turn Carbinks into Diancies, and she walks us through step by step on how the process works! This is very exciting, as never before has there been so big, and dare I say it, Legendary, a discovery as this. What do we think of this? Will it change the world? And also the fact that she's gotten a fourth thread dedicated to her already, lol.

►Gurumin
Replied On May 24th 2016:
Wow, Nemona really did the impossible. Possibly literally depending on how reality bending Notch's transformation was. Looking closer at the methodology of it all and Nemona had them use Misty Terrain before the transformation to help tap into their Fairy typing.

►BrawnyBookworm
Replied On May 24th 2016:
ehh, don't want to be a conspiracy theorist, but this 'belief' stuff does feel kinda wonky. I mean, if anyone fails to transform their own , she can just claim they 'didn't believe hard enough

►Sh3ppard
Replied On May 24th 2016:
Same. The League hasn't had their own, proper Professors, confirm this. I'll wait till after they do to make up my mind

►adriontompkins
Replied On May 24th 2016:
I don't really know what to say, to think that a little girl could turn their Pokemon into a Legendary… What do you all think?

►NoManIsAnOrangeIsland
Replied On May 24th 2016:
Feels crazy to me. We sure she didn't have help from others? She's known to be close to two other Professors and they were mentioned in her report.

►Laylalala (Verified Uva Academy Student)
Replied On May 24th 2016:
By itself it doesn't feel so unbelievable, but to be a musician and a Champion Trainer as well? That's just too much. Leave some talent for the rest of us Nemona!

►Beafangurl
Replied On May 24th 2016:
Not really 'too much'. One leads into the other. We saw how having a Diancie let her win the Gauntlet. Maybe music helps give her a better understanding for the rhythm of a fight.

►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 24th 2016:
The research stuff, sure, but the music? Nah. That sorta thinking is just a gimmick. Even for people who can translate a skill like that a little bit, they'll find themselves lost

►GoodraFan
Replied On May 24th 2016:
That's crazy, but I believe in Nemona. She hasn't led us wrong yet. I gotta find me a Carbink and try this out myself!

►Hargreavance
Replied On May 24th 2016:
First off, given the bond and belief needed, this method probably doesn't fit for any casual trying to get a Legendary. Secondly, Carbinks are one of the most heavily restricted Pokemon now, didn't you know?

►GoodraFan
Replied On May 24th 2016:


►Atticus_Roads (Verified Blueberry Academy Student)
Replied On May 24th 2016:
Yup, and given the timing of the recent restrictions, it looks like the International League knew in advance and they definitely believe her. I don't think they'd put checks and inspections on even giving Carbink between family members without them believing this is true.

►Havin'AKarablast
Replied On May 24th 2016:
To answer the original question, I think it doesn't mean much for the average trainer/population. Carbinks were out of reach for most trainers anyways, and this process still doesn't seem easy. Of the few determined, pro Trainers, who have both the means (or already have) and the drive to obtain and train a Carbink, it'll give them a slight leg up battle-wise.

Such a discovery means more for nemona's growing legend, however. She's record breaker, becoming Champion (rank) earlier than any other trainer to date, and through a method designed to be intentionally tougher than other means of doing so. She's an international music sensation, and heiress to one of the richest families in the world. And now she's brought out a discovery that could pave the way or at least serve as a stepping stone to her gaining professorship.

With all that in mind I have to wonder, just how far can she go? How many fields will this wunderkid dominate in the decades to come? And what drives her to work so dang hard? Because for all her gifts and leg ups in the world, it's clear she's quite driven too, and I must wonder: why? What drives the girl who has everything to work so hard?

■​

Spoiler: A/N:

And as a bonus treat, another PHO interlude, to show the reactions around the world to the Elite Gauntlet. Now cleared up and with some of the formating fixed. Hopefully there shouldn't be too many errors in it now (aside from the intentional spelling mistakes to recreate the forum enviornment).

 

[Skyfyre]

Spoiler: Patreons:

Thank you very much for the support from my 66 Beginner Tier Patreons and an extra special thanks to RageLord, Nodal_Gravity, Exalted Requiem, and HanShotFirst, my Ace Tier Paterons!

My Rotom Phone began ringing, the caller ID revealing it to be a call I had suspected would be coming. Honestly it took her longer than I expected given the seriousness she had before. Answering it, I said, "Nemona. I hope your Elite Challenge went well."

The young girl on the other side smiled, nodding rapidly before brushing one of the green strands out of her hair. "You could say that. I beat the Elite Four, and the El Primero."

I blinked. "That would make you the youngest Champion in history, and not just Paldea's history, would it not?"

"Haha," she said with a slightly tired and put-upon expression. "Yuuuuup. I've been hounded by the press ever since. I appreciate others appreciating my hard work and efforts, but it feels like they blow everything out of proportion now. Of course, most of that is also due to the big press release about how to turn a Carbink into a Diancie."

"Oh?" I asked, intrigued. Usually I would be updated instantly on such scientific advancements, but the connection down in Area Zero was sporadic. Sometimes you could go hours with wi-fi and telecommunications uninterrupted, sometimes days without, and in some cases the connection was spotty no matter what tools were used. Occasionally I've found I'll even get texts or emails days before they were sent. My replies never make it to the sender before they send their original message, yet other messages sent at the same time reach other recipients at different times. It's truly fascinating, and a sign that I'm on the right track in my research.

"I'll send you a link to the press release and the papers I wrote up on the subject, but basically I devised a method to enable Carbinks to use Diamond Storm, the signature Move of Diancies and one of the few Moves that isn't naturally shared between the two. Given their shared genetics, how they can come from the same parents, this triggers a transformation from Carbink into Diancie."

"Fascinating. Congratulations, it is rare indeed to come up with such a discovery so young."

"Thank you," she said with a bright grin before pausing. Her eyes grew harder and the mirth on her face slid off like water on a Ducklett's back as she continued. "That's not what I wanted to talk with you about, though."

"Yes, I'll admit that I had a few questions for you as well. How did you know about Iron Moth, and to call me immediately?" It was possible she had read the Violet Book enough to know about Iron Moth, but to assume I had something to do with it-

"You need to shut down your Paradox Machine. Immediately." The demand left me flabbergasted.

"How- how do you know about that?" Did someone spill the beans? No, can't be, none of the scientists down here even know about what I'm truly doing.

"Call it an omen from the future, or a dire warning. I've seen how this plays out, and it's no comedy."

I bristled. "Who are you to-" Taking a deep breath, I brought my emotions in check. "I'll need a bit more to go off of than that to shut this project down." Honestly, I was going to be demanding answers from her already considering how much she slowed things down as it is. I knew it was her too; Miguel had let it slip that Nemona had been the one to ask for the project to be postponed when the Top Champion and Elites had been here to 'secure the area.'

"You need more? Fine then. You'll end up calling a bunch more dangerous Paradox Pokemon. One of them, another Miraidon, ends up killing you. Satisfied?" She wore a grim expression, like she was marching me off to the gallows personally.

Shaking out some shivers, I tried to reason with her. "That still hardly seems like a reason to stop it entirely. I'll presume that your visions were indeed accurate, or at least have proven accurate enough to be a serious concern. That simply means I shouldn't draw any more Miraidons to our time. I appreciate you bringing this concern to me and I understand how it might be worrying-"

The little girl scoffed, staring at me with eyes that seemed too old for her young frame. It has been… quite some time since anyone looked down on me. Not the first time, though. I've been an adult with much acclaim and prestige to my name for some time, but I wasn't always. I forgot how infuriating it is.

"There is a lot more to worry about with that machine than just the loss of your life. In what I saw, your death was only the beginning of the problem." Despite myself, I was morbidly curious to hear where this was going and let her continue. "After you die, the programs you have running the machine continue on in your absence, churning out more and more Paradox Pokemon. The danger they represent becomes a threat to all of Paldea, and eventually your own son is called upon to fix the mess you've left behind."

I didn't wince or flinch back from her words though they cut deep. Nemona has always had a gift for knowing exactly what to say to hurt someone, since as far back as the day we met. Here she manages to inspire worry over the safety of Arven combined with a healthy dose of guilt for my own actions. But I know that is illogical; it's why I left Arven with close contacts to the Glitterati family in the first place, to ensure they could look after him. And all of this was for him in any case.

Logically thinking through the issues helped me maintain my composure. "Once more, I must reiterate that this can all be averted with my demise being avoided. I understand that you are young, and these visions must have been troubling, but we can't just cancel this project. It's more than just my choice; the League has invested much into this expedition-"

"The League doesn't know jack shit about what you're doing down there," Nemona said, pulling a folder of papers from somewhere off screen and waving them at me. "These outline your project to 'study unusual Tera Phenomenon and details surrounding the origins of it.' None of that sounds like 'try to build a time machine that could potentially destroy all of Paldea," the girl deadpanned.

"How did you get access to that?"

"I'm a Champion-ranked Trainer now; comes with its perks. Also its responsibilities, like dealing with threats to the land."

It was my turn to snort dismissively. "Time travel won't destroy Paldea. Science Fiction has much to answer for, but those theories-"

"Don't care about that. Mostly because what you're doing isn't time travel. Just think about how you can't send yourself to the future but can send Pokeballs through and somehow bring back these 'Paradox' Pokemon. About how you can only get the machine to work down in the depths of Area Zero, where the physical laws of the world are distorted. About how time travel is entirely possible well outside of it." In a softer voice she added, "How the only Pokemon you can bring through are the ones you read about in the book that inspired you as a child. It all adds up to the fact that your machine doesn't work like you think it does."

It took every ounce of my control not to scream at her. I could handle the worry, the arrogance of her demands, but the pity? Nemona might be a child, but she goes too far. "Your 'theory' is noted. The time travel almost certainly works through alternate universes, and more study into those dimensional forces needs to be done into the one-way directionality of it. But in this case it should be safe - there's no risk of a paradox from bringing these Pokemon here." It was a theory I wasn't thrilled with however, since it would mean it wasn't me who had sent those messages back in time to that copy of the Violet Book, but rather some other Turo out there in the multiverse.

"I'll admit, it would take a lot of Paradox Pokemon to threaten the entire world, but likely less than you'd think to threaten just Paldea. Already we're seeing how dangerous they are within the Great Crater - I found Radiance after they fought their way out." She shook her head. "The most dangerous place in all the land, so deadly armies have marched in and been swallowed whole… and it couldn't contain one of them. Just imagine what they could do if they ran rampant among the rest of the land."

"You say they're dangerous, yet - with my permission - you have one on your team. Are you saying that you'd be willing to give your Pokemon back?" I asked rhetorically. She's named them, there's no way she'd be willing to part with that Iron Moth now.

"... It was difficult for me to connect and form a bond with Radiance, not impossible. I didn't give them up to the Rangers for a reason, and I'm glad with where we are now. But, I have to accept that not everyone is me. What I was able to do won't be possible for everyone; and others could get seriously hurt. Like the two Ranger Captains that first found and nearly died fighting Radiance."

My lips twitched as I smothered a frown at that news. "There are recordings of these Pokemon well before I made my machine. If they were all such a threat then surely there would have been a recorded incident before now."

"They were recorded as barely seen shadows by one Professor two hundred years ago," the young girl raised her voice before catching herself. "I'm seriously worried that even a few Paradox Pokemon you're bringing in could upset the ecosystem there and lead to serious injuries and harm."

"Your empathy is valiant, but people get hurt all the time, every day. From regular wilderness to even hidden dangers on the streets of our most advanced cities, life is full of peril," I reasoned. "You can't stop all the dangers of the world," I told her.

"Oh shut up!" She shouted. "I know well how dangerous things can be! I've fought poachers and thieves, faced aggressive wild Pokemon - heck, I studied the statistics well before I even considered becoming a Trainer! So yeah, I know there will be dangers and life isn't perfect, but this? The power and aggression Paradox Pokemon tend to have? It's too much, not just risky to individuals but to Paldea as a whole. And this isn't just speculation; I've seen how Radiance reacted when I first encountered them and how I know what the other Miraidon will do. I'd say that there are fair reasons to put a stop to this reckless experiment."

The air between us (as much as there could be such a thing on a video call), was awkward. I hadn't expected her to lash out like that at my words. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Porygon-Z looking concerned for me, but I couldn't focus on that.

Nemona is just a young girl, no matter how smart. How often did I get frustrated with a lack of intelligent peers? With the only 'friends' those who wanted to use me to take credit? I can understand where she's coming from, even if I don't agree.

"Nemona, your warnings are invaluable. And you're correct that I need to take further precautions in my work. I've been pushing things, trying to achieve my dream too quickly. But that dream is a good one!" Her face fell at those words, more than any of my frustration prior caused, and I scrambled to fix things. How do I always say the wrong thing?

"No, it really is! The paradise of the future… it will be a utopia. You could help me! You're not unintelligent and you do somehow know of my plans, of what Paradox Pokemon can do. As a Champion ranked Trainer you could come down here, help keep any Paradox Pokemon that escape in line as we search for the future. Please," I added, and for a second I saw that she was conflicted, biting her lip before…

"Turo, it won't work. Even the AI you build tries to turn against it when it realizes how ruinous your plan will be. I'm not denying that your goal is noble, but… Happily ever after isn't a machine you build, it's a process made each and every day. There's not a miracle to show you how, the secret to life is here and now, with the people who care for you. Like your son-"

"I am doing this for Arven!" I shouted. "Giving him a better life, a life I could never have-"

"Newsflash, he doesn't want that, he wants you." Her voice softened as she continued. "Arven just to be there for him. And I want to help him too, and I'll try to be there for him, but I can't be his parent. Why do you think he's been reaching out to Sada?"

Her words hit me like a gut-punch. Sada? Sada!? She left m- us. She abandoned us and now he's talking to her again? What, does that past fixated fool expect us to do, forget about all the hurt she caused? I have to fix this, however…

"I'm not letting this go. I can understand your concerns, and like civilized people, we can disagree, but Project Paradise will continue. I hope you can accept that." Her face was set like stone at my words.

"I cannot accept that, and more to point, I will not. If I must, I'll leverage every resource that I have to shutting your illegal experiment down."

Calling it 'illegal' is a bit harsh. More like 'unauthorized'; no one made a law stopping time travel after all! "If that was true, why haven't you done so already?" I pointed out. There was no logical reason to try and talk me out of it if she was so dead set on this path.

Her stoic facade cracked and she stared sadly at me through the screen. "Because I wanted to give you the chance to end this yourself. To preserve your reputation and be the parent Arven needs. Heck, I consider you a bit of a friend too. Don't make me do this, please. I don't want to have you carted off to jail or worse." I blanched.

This is not just some young, somewhat intelligent girl I'm conversing with here - Nemona is the strongest Trainer in the land, with parents that control vast amounts of wealth. Stopping me and dragging my good name through the mud, even tossing me in jail, she could do this, easily.

Swallowing, I looked down, unable to meet her eyes any longer. "I still need something to show the League for all my work here," I let out in a near whisper, begging.

"Is there nothing you can find down in Area Zero of all places to wrap up quickly and get back to your son?" The girl demanded.

"... There's a new Tera Type I've found hints of in the Underdepths. Perhaps I could study that for a time," I offered. Those League officials are so enamored with Terastalization, they'd love some silly little distraction like that.

"Only a short time. Come back home, for good, soon." Wordlessly, I nodded. She hung up the call and there was a minute of absolute silence in my lab again before I got up with a screech knocking the chair back.

"Rancid slip of Houndour piss! Where does that arrogant brat get off thinking she can order me around!" I yelled, grabbing my chair and tossing it into the desk. Nothing broke, strength not being my forte, but papers were jostled and fluttered around the small room.

It will be annoying to pick those up and sort them… not that it matters with her little ultimatum. I have to abandon my research? Ridiculous! This is my life's work!

Panting, I attempted to regain my composure. Losing myself to my emotions was an uncommon sensation for me and it took a minute to calm myself down again. If she had just been trying to warn me, I would have been so grateful, but this, this… betrayal cannot be tolerated. I gave her a Tera Orb early, helped her on the path of a Trainer and this is the thanks I get?!

"Pory! Por?" My Porygon-Z floated close, pushing their beak close to my face with worry in their yellow ringed eyes. I forgave them for the intrusion on my personal space - my actions were quite irregular for an outside observer - and waved them off.

Outrage waned in time and logic reasserted itself. I was used to betrayal. From my earliest days, people had taken note of my intellect, and been jealous. Scholars and scientists had attempted to steal or co-opt my designs, and I had learned to be careful with who I trusted. Even those who didn't try to steal from me like my- like Sada eventually turned away from me. Perhaps that is more like what Nemona felt as well. Just a young girl, scared of the visions she's witnessed.

Speculation was pointless for the moment, so I put those thoughts to the side for now as I began working on a plan of action. "Alright, let's look at my options. Giving up is technically the easiest, but unacceptable."

I paced lightly, walking around the cramped lab as I continued to speak aloud, hoping to spark some innovation that would let me find the answer I needed. "Seeking out the Legendary Pokemon she mentioned is an interesting path to the future, but one I can't see as viable. Celebi and Dialga are too well-guarded by their governments, let alone the uncertainty of being able to convince those Pokemon to help me. Pokemon - all living creatures - are too capricious in their desires and thoughts. Technology is the path forward."

With that I turned to the half built Turo AI I had developed down here. The outer frame was half complete, with wires and circuitry exposed in places. The servos to let the AI assistant move on its own weren't finished, but that could be accomplished easily enough. The coding was trickier; at the moment, it was barely more intellectual than Porygon-Z. "And assuming her warnings are true, even an AI patterned on my own mind might betray me, should I complete it."

Nemona kept a straight face throughout most of our discussion, but she was still holding things back from me. She likely knows or has a reasonable guess as to how the AI would deviate from its programming, but she kept it secret. Is she aware of the other measures I was working on or had even theorized? The temporal stasis shield? The Pokeball ID lock? My sketches on a generative hardlight maze? Or anything else I had hoped for in the Paradise Protection Protocols.

Most of those ideas were well out of reach now. I'd be lucky to have enough time to simply complete the AI before the jackbooted League thugs were knocking on my door. "Though I did buy myself a bit of time. Perhaps, if I made the AI and had it work on the problem while I let Area Zero… but then I can't trust it!"

Angrily, I swept my arms across my desk, scattering more pages, pens and other items. "Aghhhh! I'm. So. Close! If I just had a bit more time, then, then I'd have all the time, ha, haha, hahaha…" Impotent tears mixed with absurd laughter as the emotions swirled within me. My dreams, what I've looked for since I was a boy. The inspiration that drove me to pursue science in the first place, practically within reach, now denied.

With slumped shoulders I pulled the chair back in front of my desk, sliding down into it. "There really isn't a way out, is there?" My Pokemon had no answer floating awkwardly, and there were no other scientists here - if I couldn't trust a being made off my own brain then I could hardly trust Jacq's or any of the other scientists working 'with' me.

Whatever advances I gave them will be ignored the moment Nemona goes to talk to the League. She's a Champion now, has the supporting of her ridiculously rich parents, and even has a discovery of her own to present to them.

Uncovering the mysteries around the link between Diancie and Carbink were undoubtedly an impressive achievement, especially for one so young, but hardly as incredible as my inventions and advancements. Teleportation tech that works in distorted space, Steel Type infused metals to make tougher bunkers, the Tera Orbs and so much more-! But it won't be enough. Giving the masses as many 'Mythical' Pokemon as they desire in multiple Diancies will be valued for their combat prowess over my work. Not that my Paradox Pokemon aren't incredibly strong as well!

An idea sparked in me, my eyes turning over to gaze at the Pokeballs held within a chamber in the center of this laboratory. "Nemona hasn't told anyone else about my true research yet. If she were to disappear before then…" The thought was tempting. As fantastical as the others, however. I don't possess the means as a Trainer to defeat the top Champion of our land, even with Paradox Pokemon at my side.

It didn't hurt that the Paradox Pokemon with the most potential I had found, Miraidon, would not be available to me. The one I sent to Arven was too soft to be a fighter, and any future ones I could call would risk my life gravely. The same might be true for any Paradox Pokemon I continue to bring to this time. Assuming Nemona isn't lying of course, and this isn't all a ruse to maintain her dominance in competitive battles.

Another tempting idea, but one I knew wasn't true, or could not be the whole truth. "Her reactions to Miraidon, including knowing its name, could not have been faked. No, the truth is that she, in her misguided way, is almost certainly doing this out of worry for me." It still rankled and felt like a betrayal, but one I blamed her less for. Certainly enough that I can't in good conscience plot her demise for thwarting me. But how do I buy the time I need to prove to her that my design will work?

I stewed on that thought for some time with no answers coming easily. Eventually, I stood up and began gathering the debris I had scattered on the ground. It was more than just paper and pens as I found at my feet, a photo of Arven and myself outside our new lighthouse home, the only photograph I kept out amidst the scientific papers.

"Arven, my beautiful boy. I'm sorry I can't show you that glorious future." He would never betray me. Maybe… maybe that's my answer. My mind raced, a new possibility coming to light.

Arven told me that Nemona is leaving the country to go to a different school. She won't have access to as much information. My son will likely be the greatest source of knowledge she has on my movements. If I can get him to turn on her, to trick her, then I could continue my work!

I held the photo frame up in the air, laughing delightedly. "YES! Arven, you will be my greatest asset to seeing my dream come true! And then, I'll get to show you every… everything…" My voice trailed off as I looked at the photo again.

The laboratory lights hit it at an odd angle, obscuring me in the image, but clearly showing the large crack in the glass that ran through Arven. The picture itself looks undamaged, but it was close. And the exact placement of the damage…

One could hardly call me a religious man. Any Legendaries or Mythical Pokemon were not 'gods' in my mind but simply very powerful biological beings. If Arceus did exist as a god above all, then I felt They did not overly care for what the people or Pokemon down below did. That any supposed signs from them were mere speculation. However, this here, the crack, made by my own anger, after reacting violently for a warning to stop… is it truly a coincidence? Or another sign that I am headed on the wrong path?... Does it matter?

Here I was, sitting alone, at the depths of the world, plotting to turn my son against his best friend all because I was upset that I might be wrong. "How many more years do I spend on this? How much more time do I waste on the present, chasing after a vision of the future?"

There was still no answer, no one else to speak to me, but my question was rhetorical. "If I want to see the future become the paradise I envision it to be, then I shall make it so. One day at a time. 'There's not a miracle to show me how, the secret to life is here and now.'"

With a sigh, I gathered the last of my scattered papers. There is still the issue of what to show the League for my time here, with this project scrapped. I suppose I can actually study the Area Zero Underdepths like I said. The findings regarding Terastalization there were somewhat interesting. Utterly unimportant for my Paradise Project but…

"Hang on a little longer son, I'll be home soon," I said to myself before placing the photo down and leaving the lab.

Spoiler: A/N:

So, this is a big one, with a lot changing in the future from here. As it should, really, since everything has kinda led up to this point. It's been a massive shadow hanging over Nemona's head for the entire story.

Admittedly in the original version, I planned for Turo to go with the 'secretly still trying to achieve his plan and turning Arven against Nemona.' While I think Turo is quite driven/obsessed with the project, I feel like that version had him too manipulative, which isn't really shown in his character. Thinking it over, while still hard to convince, Turo's plans did have a noble intention behind them, and I thought that if pressed hard enough, with foreknowledge to show why it was likely it wouldn't work, that Turo would concede and give up his plans.

Don't worry about a lack of tension in the future. While Nemona will use this opportunity to relax for the next little bit, there will still be challenges and obstacles for her to overcome.