The flash of light blinded Inyssa. Even without being able to see anything she felt the tremor in her bones while the ground of the arena shook violently as if an earthquake were roaring underneath them. A cloud of dust fell over them and covered the entire arena, falling even upon the stands. Inyssa had to squint to find their Pokemon amidst the chaos. And when she finally laid eyes upon them, a gasp got caught in her throat.

Both Shadi and Kitsune lay collapsed on the sand. The Abra was completely still, unconscious, while her Pokemon was weakly trying to get up, her resistance to grass moves being the only reason she was still standing. Her red body was covered in burn marks and a few drops of blood fell to the ground under her.

Inyssa clicked her tongue. Of course... how could she forget about Solar Beam? Using Sunny day to charge it faster was a very common strategy, especially for grass-type specialists. She'd gotten too cocky; all she could do now was make sure it didn't happen again.

"That... was amazing!" Barry's whispered turned into a scream, a huge smile on his face. "Niss did you see that? I've never a Solar Beam in real in real life, it looked just like one of those cool attacks in anime!"

"Barry, shut up!" She snapped at him, her brain still trying to come up with a strategy. "Listen, do you have your Buizel?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah." He took one of his newest Pokeballs from his belt. "But he's water type, I don't think he'll get much done here."

"Just trust me." She approached him, and whispered something in his ear. "... did you get that?"

He nodded, and pointed Kitsune's Pokeball towards his body. "Yeah! That sounds like a good plan." The small fox Pokemon came back to him, and he threw the new one towards the field. "Razen, come out!"

The Buizel materialized on the field, arms crossed. His resolve seemed to falter at the sight of what he had to face, but only for a moment.

Inyssa looked at Shadi, who had just finished getting up and was now breathing deeply and unevenly, barely conscious. She thought her plan through three more times, and while she admitted it wasn't perfect they really didn't have that many choices.

"Wow, thanks for bringing my Cherrim a free snack there, boy!" Gardenia shouted from the other side. "Solar Beam one more time!"

Once again the flower Pokemon flew upwards, his body glistening with the energy of the sun. Inyssa bit her lip, she had no time to think anymore.

"Shadi, use Fury cutter, but don't attack anyone!" The words felt crazy coming out of her mouth, and her Pokemon's expression told her she shared the sentiment. "Just trust me, charge the attack and turn towards your partner!"

The Kricketune did as she was told, only with a bit of hesitation turning towards Razen, crossing her scythes in an X shape. Being the fifth time she used the attack consecutively the power was stronger than ever, so much that Shadi was having trouble containing it in the state she was in. It swirled outwards in dark red ribbons, cutting through the sand around her.

"Razen, it's your turn," Barry exclaimed, "Water Gun at Shadi!"

The Buizel inhaled deeply before expelling a torrent of water from his mouth toward his partner. Inyssa couldn't help but smile at Gardenia's bewildered expression, and she mentally crossed her fingers for this to work.

The moment Razen's attack hit Shadi the water began to evaporate, turning to steam due to the incredible amount of energy in her scythes. A cloud of mist rose from her exhausted body and filled the entire stadium, blocking everyone's view and rising towards the open roof, where it hid the light of the sun and cancelled Cherrim's attack.

"Oh you clever little shits." Gardenia whispered, not being able to contain a laugh. "Nice, very nice."

The light disappeared from the Cherrim's body. The flower Pokemon fell to the ground and painfully started to squirm, not being able to maintain his true form anymore. The petals behind his head started contracting once again until they fully covered his body, now making him look the same as when he had come out of his Pokeball.

"Shadi quick, attack them before the steam dissolves!" Inyssa ordered.

Only half concious and with ragged breath the Kricketune turned towards the Cherrim and Turtwig. The power from her previous attack was still on her scythes, and without moving an inch she formed an X once again, and took a deep breath. Mist gathered around her feet like a tiny hurricane and pressure started building at her feet. And yet...

"That... doesn't look like Fury Cutter," Barry leaned forward, furrowed brow.

"It's not." Inyssa lifted her chin and let out a small chuckle. "It's X-Scissor."

Shadi looked backwards once, and her eyes met with Inyssa's. She could see her mustache twitching into a weak smile, pride shining in her eyes. She didn't understand Pokemon language, but Inyssa could see a Thanks in that gaze. Without hesitating the Kricketune slashed the air in front of her, and a cross shaped projectile of green energy flew towards Gardenia's Pokemon, leaving a trail of sand on its path. Cherrim and Turtwig desperately tried to run away, but they were too slow and the attack too powerful. The impact raised another cloud of dust as both Pokemon hit the ground, not being able to fight anymore.

In that moment, Inyssa could swear she heard a weak, proud laugh coming from Shadi, just before her body collapsed. She put a hand on her chest, a warm feeling growing inside her. She raised her Pokeball and returned her to it, allowing her to rest.

"You did so, so well," she whispered, her nose crinkling. "Good job."

"Oh man!" Gardenia threw both arms up toward the sky, and to Inyssa it seemed like she was enjoying the battle a little too much. "Gotta admit, it's been a while since I had to fight this hard against a couple of novices. You two are wonderful, I'm kinda sad this is almost over!" She returned both Pokemon to their respective balls, and with a bit of fanfare took the last one out of her pocket. "But this has gone on for too long and I do have other challengers, so I'm afraid I'll have to cut this short."

Gardenia punched the air in front of her, Pokeball in hand, and it opened up on a flash of light which dropped to the floor, forming an unfamiliar shape. Her last Pokemon was almost as tall as her, slim and shiny green, with white hair and what looked like two rose bouquets on his hands. His mouth was covered with a green bandana and a red scarf was tied around his neck, flowing with the cold wind. He looked quite similar to the Roselia she'd summoned before, but just different enough to raise Inyssa's suspicions.

"Say hello to Roserade." Gardenia introduced her Pokemon. "He will be ending this battle now."

Inyssa froze for a second, not sure of what to do. If that thing was Roselia's evolution then it meant it was a fully evolved Pokemon, and she remembered too well what happened the last time she faced against one of those. Her eyes drifted upwards to her hat, where Steven was still sitting, a nervous expression on his tiny face. She was planning on using him for this battle, but...

The small bird Pokemon hadn't evolved yet, something he should've done already according to her estimates. He was too weak to fight something like that, and she knew that if that thing got a single hit on Barry's Buizel the water Pokemon would be defeated instantly. Maybe she could use Enma just this once, she thought. She would have time to train Steven later, she didn't have to...

She felt the weight of Shadi's Pokeball in her hand, and she looked down toward it. She remembered how weak she had been when Inyssa found her at the door of that Pokemon Center. If she'd never given her a chance, would she have become as strong as she was now?

"Steven, it's your turn," she said. "Are you up for it?"

She heard Enma's hmph behind her, but she decided to ignore it. Steven awkwardly shifted his body a couple times, and finally jumped off her hat, extending his wings and flying towards the arena, his eyebrows knit together in worry. She felt a knot in her stomach, still not sure if she was making the right choice, but it was too late to back down now.

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"Our best bet is rushing that thing as fast as possible," she told both Pokemon and Barry, attempting to sound more confident than she was. "Use Aerial Ace!"

"Razen, Aqua Jet!" Barry joined her scream, fist punching forward.

The Buizel moved like lightning, blurring into a smear as he rushed to attack the Roserade. His body was fully covered in a mantle of water, and before his opponent had time to dodge he launched himself at his stomach, toppling him backwards and making him lose his balance. Above them Steven soared to their location, his wings sharp as knives. The impact finally managed to knock the Roserade down to the floor, where he let out a low sigh of pain, receiving only moderate damage from those attacks.

"One attack that never misses and another one that always strikes first," Gardenia spoke under her breath. "Well, I think I know which one I should take care of first. Roserade, use Energy Ball on the Starly!"

Roserade stood up almost instantly, his tiny legs dancing through the sand beneath him like a ballerina. He raised the hand that contained the blue roses and pointed it towards Steven; a vibrant, pulsing orb of green energy formed in front of him, easily twice the size as the target of such attack. The bird Pokemon watched this and started flying in circles around the arena, panic dictating his actions. But the Roserade was calm, and without moving an inch he aimed at a particular spot in the air, and fired.

Inyssa stared, her eyes opened wide as the ball of energy made direct contact, exploding upon touch with Steven's body and blowing him out of the sky. His wings lost strength and he dove towards the left side of the arena, slamming into the sand. Her brain took a couple seconds to register what had happened, and part of her hoped that she would see her Pokemon stand up defiantly like Shadi had. But the Starly was motionless, only his chest moving up and down slowly, mirroring his irregular breathing.

"...Ah." Barry muttered, nervously glancing at her. "But... shouldn't he resist that attack? Energy Ball is grass type, right?"

She didn't answer, not that she would've been able to. She could feel ice in her throat and a shiver in her spine as the realization came to her.

She'd lost the fight.

"Don't worry Niss, I'll avenge him!" Barry tried to reassure her, and immediately turned towards his foes. "Razen, Aqua Jet again!"

But Inyssa wasn't paying attention. With weakness weighing her down she slowly raised the hand with Steven's Pokeball and returned him to it. She stared directly at it, the sounds of the fight booming around her, and she couldn't help but feel a pint of irritation. No, she thought, Steven wasn't at fault for that, she was the one who had sent him to a losing battle. But then again, she had thought that type advantage would tip the scale in his favor, and she could have never imagined he would go down so easily against an attack he resisted. Shame crept up on her at the thought of how angry she felt, and she mentally cursed herself for it. She would not put the blame of her failures on anyone else, even if...

She chased all thoughts away from inside her head and put the Pokeball back in her belt, turning towards the battle once more. To her surprise the Buizel was still holding his own against the powerful grass Pokemon, his quick feet being only barely enough for him to avoid most of his attacks.

"Alright this isn't working, I think we need a change of strategy," Gardenia spoke to herself, a hand on her chin. "Use Grass Knot on him!"

The Roserade put both hands against the sand. The ground shook, and all around the Buizel it broke apart, dozens of small vines slithering towards him. It was sudden enough to catch him off guard, and one of the vines grabbed him by the ankle, grounding him. Three others soon followed, spiraling around his torso and his other leg, immobilizing him completely. Without needing orders the Roserade aimed his free hand towards Razen and shot another Energy Ball. The attack flew at him like a cannonball.

"Razen, Sonic Boom on the vines!" Barry screamed, rushing his words.

The Buizel allowed himself a coy smile as he spun, his two tails glistening with power and cutting all the vines binding him. With only moments to spare he inhaled deeply, shooting a torrent of water into the ground, propelling himself high enough to avoid the Energy Ball, which kept traveling forward and dissipated into the air.

"That was so sick!" Barry jumped in place excitedly. "Aqua Jet one more time!"

In mid air the Buizel set his eyes on his opponent, and with a powerful slap of his tails he boosted himself towards him, his body covering itself once more with water. The Roserade tried to side-step it but Razen had much more control over his trajectory thanks to gravity being on his side. He slammed into Roserade's stomach with enough strength to send him flying, burying part of him in the sand. Inyssa feared he would get up any moment and destroy the Buizel, but Roserade's body lay still, now unconscious.

A few seconds of silence passed, and then the sound of clapping filled the arena, the people on the stands cheering and yelling at Barry and his Pokemon for achieving victory. Gardenia contemplated the result for a moment, and after returning her last Pokemon to his ball she started walking towards them, a proud smile on her face.

"I... I did it!" Barry yelled in a high pitched voice. "Niss! Niss did you see that? I won! I won with type disadvantage against Gardenia!"

She forced herself to give Barry a smile which didn't extend to her eyes. She wanted to be happy for him, she wanted to go towards him and give him a hug, but her mind was elsewhere. The image of failure danced inside her head, becoming more prominent the more she tried not to think about it.

"That was amazing," she said, voice plain. "Good job, Barry."

A persistent clap approached them, and they both turned around to see Gardenia and Sarah near them, the first with a reddish face and breathing quickly, and the other one calm and reassuring, her expression that of pride.

"I can't thank you kids enough for that." The Gym leader performed a short bow, only half sarcastically. "That was intense! It's been a long time since I got such a challenge from novice trainers. I can still feel my heart throbbing in my chest!" She put both hands on her face, eyes closed and a blush on her cheeks. Inyssa and Barry almost took a step back out of concern alone. Was she a different person from the Gardenia they'd met last night?

"Yes... quite." Sarah coughed, slightly perplexed by her partner's behavior. "A very impressive display, I have to say."

Inyssa had to suppress a laugh , and as her and Barry's eyes met, she was pretty sure they had a brief mental conversation.

She's hot, Barry's body language seemed to say.

Hell yeah she is, Inyssa's eyes replied.

Gardenia finally composed herself. Only slightly ashamed, she approached both trainers, and with a flick of her wrist she produced something out of the pocket in her poncho.

"As proof of your mastery over this establishment, I hereby... uh..." She frowned. "Damn, I forgot the speech I was supposed to give. Anyway, here are your Forest Badges."

She handed them both a small, metal emblem with the shape of three rhombuses stuck together, emerald stones filling the insides, making them look like trees. The badge rested on Inyssa's right hand, feeling a lot heavier than it was.

"But I lost the battle," she couldn't help to say, a knot in her stomach. "Maybe I shouldn't..."

"Don't be ridiculous!" Gardenia's yell made her jump in place. "A double battle is a pact between two trainers, and if one of them wins, then both of them do. You pulled your weight wonderfully at the start of the battle. Hell, your Kricketune took out three of my Pokemon!" she yelled with a decisive tone. "And while your Starly went down quickly, his Aerial Ace was still paramount to this victory."

"Yeah Niss, come on! I couldn't have done it without you," Barry gave her back a pat strong enough to sting. "Also I'm now tied with you on points, so it wouldn't be beneficial for me if you fought her again and won."

She adjusted her hat, slightly misplaced by Barry's enthusiastic pat, and tried to hide a smile. Her thoughts were still cloudy and dark, but she figured she'd have time to figure them out later. Now it was time to celebrate.

"Thanks," she whispered, voice barely audible.

Sarah placed her hands together, a tired smile forming on her lips. "I'd say you two deserve a prize. I have a few hours before I have to return to the office, so we might as well take advantage of that. How does a meal on the Smokey Camerupt sound? We can order a nice barbecue, and if you get bored the Game Corner is only a block away."

"Damn, that sounds good," Gardenia whispered, eyes going wide. "Mind if I join you later? After I get through my work shift of course."

"Yeah! That sounds great mom!" Barry bumped her on the shoulder, laugh on his eyes. "Right Niss?"

Inyssa closed her eyes for a moment, allowing herself a weak smile.

"Yeah, that would be lovel..."

The ground shook beneath her. Only a little bit, a simple burr which escalated from the sand beneath her to her feet, and then through her entire body. She froze for a second, mouth still open, and looked up to the people around her. Both Sarah and Gardenia blinked confusedly, and next to her Barry had stopped moving in place.

"What was that?" Sarah spoke, her voice cracking slightly. "Did you feel..."

She felt the explosion in her bones before she heard it. The resulting force of it caught her off guard, making her fall backwards towards the sand. She felt the vibrations in the floor beneath her hands and the powerful sound deafened her for a moment, throwing her mind into disarray. Screams rung around her as the kids in the Gym started to yell and the lights of the floor turned off, now only the sunlight above them lighting the place. A hand grabbed her by the shoulder and helped her up, her eyes still spinning. When she could see clearly once more Barry's face appeared in front of hers, his previous smile gone and replaced with an expression of fear.

"What the fuck!?" she heard Gardenia scream in front of her.

"What was that?" Sarah's face appeared at her side, contorted into a mask of confusion and anxiety. "It felt like..." her voice slowly dissipated as she looked upwards, eyes opening as wide as they could."Oh no..."

Inyssa followed her gaze, and she couldn't help but gasp at the sight. From the open roof of the arena she could see a dark pillar of smoke being carried by the wind, coming from the north of town. It looked eerily similar to the one she'd seen when she was flying towards Floaroma. A myriad of images and colors flashed in her eyes, from the pink of Metchi's hair to the cold red of Mars' eyes, back in the Windworks. The rational part of her mind told her there was no way it was happening again, they would not be stupid enough to attack Eterna City while both the Association's police and the Gym leader were nearby, it was probably just an unrelated incident.

"Galactic..." The word came out of her mouth without her realizing it, disappearing into the commotion around her.

Her body moved on its own and Inyssa ran towards the exit as fast as she could, her mind a hurricane of thoughts and Sarah's worried scream ringing in her ears.