CHAPTER 16 — Starting Line

"Bring the mist."

"Make it snow."

While the field was flooded by a wave of pink mist, the sky above darkened instantly with clouds as snow began fluttering down. Pryce and I had both wasted no time in setting up the field to our liking.

"Icy Wind," Pryce ordered next.

Dewgong bellowed as chilled air rushed forth from its mouth, spreading rapidly outwards and freezing everything in its path. I remained silent as Taffy simply stood there and took the Icy Wind head on. A purple light emanated from his body as he concentrated, adding a Stockpile. Frost tried to cling to his body, but the Misty Terrain melted all of it instantly. Pryce frowned when he realized his freeze strategy wasn't working and switched tactics.

"Aurora Beam."

"Bounce it," I finally said.

A beautiful but deadly rainbow-colored beam shot towards Taffy. Instead of dodging or countering, he stood still and inhaled.

The referee's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as Taffy inflated to the size of a Snorlax. The transition was so fast and smooth that it was like he hadn't moved at all. Dewgong's Aurora Beam deflected off Taffy's rubbery stomach and slammed back into its caster, making it snarl with annoyance. I snapped my fingers.

"Fireball."

Fire crackled to life along Taffy's hands before spreading. It rose and rose, eventually enveloping all of his body in a writhing coat of flames. The Wigglytuff deflated slightly to a more reasonable size, and then he bounced.

He jumped upwards first and ricocheted off the ceiling, slamming into Dewgong before it could so much as blink. Its Thick Fat meant that it shrugged off the fiery attack like it was nothing, but Taffy was not done.

No, he went back for more and became a living fireball of terror.

He was like a ping pong ball as he ricocheted off the ceiling, the sides of the barrier, and every surface available, all the while amassing incredible speed and power. The fire from his body created sizzling spots on the snowy field whenever he bounced off it.

From all directions and trajectories, Taffy slammed into Dewgong repeatedly. It roared and swiped at Taffy each time with a glowing tail or flipper, but Taffy was too fast for it to hit. Every impact inflicted fresh pain and burned off more of the fat insulating it. The hits were stacking up real fast, and Pryce realized this.

"Blizzard!" he snapped as Taffy bounced forward again.

A howling storm of ice and snow tore through the arena in an instant. This was a signature and staple move that all of Pryce's Pokemon knew and had mastered, and there was no escaping it at such close quarters. Taffy was blown back by the sheer power of frigid gales that sliced at him and went spinning through the air.

"Drop with Gyro and get in close," I said quickly.

Silver energy swirled around Taffy as he deftly rotated mid-air. His newfound weight made him plummet instantly to the ground, and he began barreling forward through all the snow and wind even as more cuts appeared on his body.

"Ice Bubble," Pryce ordered coldly.

Spheres of water wrapped in thin layers of ice were blown out of Dewgong's mouth, but they flew forward more like bowling balls as they crashed into Taffy one after another. He tanked through the hits and kept rolling without veering off course.

Pryce clicked his tongue. "Aqua Tail! Slam it away!"

"Shock 'em," I responded with a grin.

Dewgong slid forward across the snow and used its momentum to spin wildly, whipping a tail wrapped in water at my incoming Pokemon. Taffy waited until the limb was a mere inch from his face.

Then he disappeared.

To be precise, he shrunk down with Minimize to avoid the blow. He reappeared an instant later and grabbed Dewgong's tail, yanking the sea lion toward him with a murderous glint in his adorable eyes.

"Aurora Beam—" Pryce yelled, but he was far too late.

Sparks flew as Taffy smashed a Thunder Punch into Dewgong's tail. A howl of pain tore itself from the sea lion's throat as it began thrashing wildly. Its webbed tail smacked Taffy's face hard enough that he was forced to let go, but Taffy quickly lit his fists with fire and punched Dewgong two more times.

The sea lion finally had enough and swung down with an Aqua Tail, hammering Taffy so hard that the earth cracked and buckled underneath him. He fell into the small crater as Dewgong began to slide away.

Its Thick Fat was almost all gone.

"Hyper Voice! Don't let it escape!" I ordered.

Taffy jumped out of the hole and screamed at the retreating Dewgong, but it bore with the debilitating sound waves and slid further out of range.

"Aqua Ring. Make a wall!" Pryce barked.

My eyes narrowed as small droplets of water began swirling around Dewgong. With a bellow, it formed a wall of layered ice around itself. It was bunkering down and slowly healing itself, and we needed to stop it.

"Fireball. Smash it down, Taffy."

Taffy inflated, lit himself on fire once more, and began bouncing across the field. It took a few crashes, but he managed to melt the sturdy dome Dewgong had surrounded itself with. The instant the structure fell apart, Dewgong blasted Taffy in the face with a rapid-fire Ice Beam.

He grunted and fell down one last time, body slamming Dewgong with flames that danced across every inch of its body. He bounced back out of range before Pryce's Pokemon could retaliate.

Dewgong's precious fur was a smoking mess by this point. Not even the Aqua Ring it had going on could heal it fast enough.

It was about time to wrap things up.

"Nasty Plot," I said in a loud voice.

Dark energy swirled around Taffy as he smirked, boosting his strength. Pryce scowled and brought his cane down sharply.

"Ice Shard."

Razor sharp pieces of ice zoomed forward in a desperate bid to stop Taffy from buffing himself. Pryce had handed me an opportunity to end the fight on a silver platter.

I spoke a single word.

"Pop."

If the referee was surprised before, now he was really shocked as Taffy suddenly inflated so much that he took up the entirety of my half of the field.

Taffy understood what I wanted and let go of the shimmering fairy aura he normally kept around his body. The storm of ice darts flew towards him. They pierced through his fur—

And the world roared.

An ear-splitting boom rang out as massive, invisible shock waves flew outwards from the point of impact on Taffy's fur. They slammed Dewgong up into the barrier in front of Pryce before it crashed to the ground in an undignified heap, kicking up a storm of snow and dust. Pryce's stoic mask fell as he flinched back in surprise. The shock waves were so powerful that the barrier around the field shattered instantly, though it was quickly reformed by the League's Alakazam.

All of it happened in a mere instant.

Essentially, Taffy was like a balloon that had a hole made in it. That hole grew faster than the speed of sound and broke the sound barrier, creating a sonic boom.

In this case, a very powerful sonic boom due to his extreme inflation.

I didn't wait for Pryce to recover. I quickly spoke my next command.

"Hyper Beam."

Taffy instantly deflated. A humongous beam of pulsating energy ripped through the air and struck Dewgong as it was picking itself up, incinerating the last of its protective fur.

The bulky sea lion finally collapsed.

"Dewgong is unable to battle. Leader Pryce, you have thirty seconds to send out your second Pokemon…"

Pryce recalled his Dewgong with an unreadable expression. His fingers hovered over his belt of Pokeballs as he thought about who to choose next. Taffy took advantage of Pryce's moment of hesitation to glow brightly, bringing his Stockpile count up to two.

Seeing Taffy set up must have snapped Pryce back to attention, because he quickly threw out his second Pokemon.

Another member of Pryce's team I was familiar with appeared on the field. It was a red Pokemon covered with white feathers that could be commonly found in the Ice Path near Mahogany Town. The old Delibird leered at us and grasped its tail tightly, puffing itself up. I was a little surprised to see it hadn't retired from battling yet to be honest.

Its species was not commonly seen in high tier battles either, but Pryce and his Delibird were famous and the one exception. This was not a regular-sized Delibird either. It stood a full foot taller than the average for its species.

Both Pryce and I ordered our Pokemon to refresh the weather and terrain respectively. Neither of us wanted to be blindsided during the middle of the match.

I gave my order as soon as the mist had been strengthened. With Delibird, Pryce had one tried and true strategy that he loved using and that I assumed would come out here.

"Pin it!" I yelled.

Taffy's eyes glowed as he threw his hands forward and tried to lock Delibird in place with Gravity.

Unfortunately, Pryce's Delibird was one of his fastest Pokemon.

"Start a Blizzard. Exploding Spears!" Pryce barked, confirming my earlier suspicions.

Delibird leaped up into the air before Taffy could slam a change of gravity on him. The snow that had been falling gently to the earth turned into a raging storm in an instant, and it was going to keep going for several painful minutes. Delibird was a master of prolonging the weather. Everything inside the barrier became obscured by blinding white including our Pokemon.

I kept my panic to a minimum. This fell within my expectations of what Pryce would pull during our battle.

"Taffy!" I yelled into the storm, hoping he could hear me. Nothing but howling winds answered. "Pixel World! Go on the offensive!"

Even if he hadn't heard my voice, I was pretty sure Taffy would eventually follow a similar line of thinking to me on how to beat up Delibird. We'd gone through lots of battles before, and this was not the first time I hadn't been there to offer guidance in a match.

All I could do now was believe in him and wait.

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Taffy hummed to himself as he hopped in place. He'd lost sight of the damn bird the moment it ascended and turned the snowstorm up a few notches. The Blizzard was powerful and cut deeply into his fur, but he just swallowed audibly and let his earlier Stockpiles heal up the damage he'd taken so far.

At least his eyes were thankfully unaffected by all the ice and snow. They were protected by a layer of tears that instantly washed all debris away. He looked around to try and locate his target only to have no luck. The storm was too thick. He knew the bird had a way to navigate it, though. Why else would it have summoned such a tempest?

He couldn't even hear Arin either. There was nothing but cold, biting wind in his face and ears.

He was on his own for this one.

Taffy glowed and built up his Stockpile count from zero again. Just as the rush of energy left him, he felt his skin prickle uncomfortably. By sheer instinct alone, he rolled to the side with Gyro Ball just in time.

Two spears made of hardened ice dropped down from above and exploded on impact with the ground.

The blasts rocked the entire field from how powerful they were. Haze billowed outwards, but Taffy could still see smoking craters amid the snow.

There was no time to stare. More spears were dropping fast out of the sky, and Taffy kicked into high gear as he rolled left and right to dodge them. His mind went into overdrive as he tried to figure out a plan.

The Delibird was obviously hiding far up in the sky to keep himself out of harm's way and to maximize the speed and power of his bombardment. Taffy could have bounced or floated up to get to the bird like he normally would choose to do, but the Blizzard's winds were too strong and would just push him downward.

He would have liked to pull out the sonic boom move again, but that wasn't something that he could do more than once or twice a match. It required him to actually let sharp objects or moves penetrate his fur which, needless to say, was more than a little painful for him. Even now, he felt the phantom pain of those Ice Shards digging into him.

Maybe he could—

Taffy grunted in pain as one, two, three icicles crashed onto him from above and exploded. He hadn't swerved fast enough. There was intense ringing in his ears as he skidded awkwardly across the snow, but he quickly picked himself back up and began rolling again. He ignored the aching pain of his newfound injuries. He had to keep moving. Staying idle would just be an act of self-destruction.

He couldn't bounce or float normally in these abnormal weather conditions, but what if he changed the rules?

Oops, Taffy thought as he laughed merrily to himself. He couldn't believe he hadn't thought about this strategy sooner. Arin probably would have told him to do the same thing.

It was Pixel World time.

He dodged the latest wave of frozen spears and rolled to an abrupt halt, eyes focused on himself and his barren surroundings. He barely registered the two icicles speeding down towards his head.

Taffy drew on his Beliefs and felt the Pull of the world. It was time to get this show on the road.

He opened his mouth and sang, and the world bent to his will.

The very air rippled and screamed silently as an unseen force spread outwards from his body. Everything screeched to a halt for the briefest of seconds. The snow, the ice, the falling icicle spears—

And then it all went flying up instead of down.

Taffy had wrapped the entire arena in a massive Gravity, and now he had free reign. He bounced up with a friendly smile — or maniacal, depending on how you looked at it — and flew towards the now visible and clearly panicked Delibird. He even laughed as a few of its own spears exploded against it.

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The moment I saw the snowstorm pause in place, I knew Taffy had figured out what to do. It was exactly what I would have called for. I let out an internal whoop of excitement as the entire Blizzard reversed.

The snowstorm began flickering in and out of existence as snow flew upwards. When it finally began to die down a few seconds later and some visibility returned, I saw exactly why.

Delibird was flying around erratically as if it suddenly had no idea which direction was which. Something invisible suddenly uppercutted its chin making it spin backwards. A moment later, Taffy appeared on the other side and smashed a Fire Punch into its back. He disappeared as the Delibird fired an Ice Beam.

That invisible something was actually Taffy. He was attacking while in his Minimized form. He normally just used it to dodge attacks, but he could also attack with it. Whenever Taffy shrunk, his density increased exponentially which gave him increased strength. Basically, he could hit as hard as a truck when he was small. We often combined this ability with the manipulation of Gravity to give Taffy free reign to do whatever the heck he wanted. We had given this technique the name Pixel World.

I sneaked a glance at the other side of the field and saw Pryce's frustrated expression. He had no idea what was going on.

In the arena, Taffy continued alternating attacking between big and small forms to keep Delibird confused. Eventually, Taffy snapped a separate Gravity field on Delibird and slammed it all the way down to the ground. The remnants of the Blizzard disappeared the moment the bird crashed.

As it struggled underneath the shift in gravity, Taffy curled up and spun downwards in a Gyro Ball. Pryce finally made a move.

"Exploding Shards!" he bellowed.

Delibird's eyes glowed. With a determined screech, it barely managed to dig into its bag-like tail and open it wide. Out came a flurry of jagged pieces of ice. They spun upwards in the air and popped against Taffy's skin as he descended, and the whole sky filled with smoke from the multiple explosions that went off. A second later, Taffy tumbled to the ground with charred fur. His hold on the arena's and Delibird's Gravities vanished.

"BRAVE ICE! Take it out!" Pryce yelled as he slapped his cane against the ground.

The instant I heard the word 'brave' come out of Pryce's mouth, I'd already begun to shout my own command. "GIGA IMPACT!"

There was no way to dodge, not with Delibird's speed. Taffy had to fight back here.

Air so cold that it warped the space around it wrapped around Delibird as it blitzed forward like a speeding rocket. It even froze the field in its wake. Taffy was undeterred by the incoming menace. He shot up from the ground to meet the bird head-on, bouncing forward with his whole body lit up in such a vibrant shade of yellow that I almost had to avert my gaze.

The ensuing collision broke the field's barrier instantly.

Nothing could be seen on the field as smoke filled every inch and corner of it from the explosion of energy. Some of it even leaked out of the field's boundaries before the League Alakazam put a new barrier in place.

My fist was clenched as I waited for the smoke to thin out. I was sure Pryce was wondering the same thing as me.

After a few long seconds, the air finally cleared and allowed us to see the aftermath.

Most of the snow had melted from the impact. The Misty Terrain had petered out, and there was no longer snow falling from the sky either. My gaze went to the two Pokemon in the middle of the field.

Taffy stood above Delibird's smoking husk on the ground. He barely managed to let out a cry of satisfaction before he, too, fell to the ground with smoke emanating from his body.

It was a double knockout.

"Delibird and Wigglytuff are both unable to battle. As Delibird fainted first, Leader Pryce, you will have to release your next Pokemon before your opponent. You have thirty seconds to send out your third Pokemon. Leader Arin, you have thirty seconds to send out your second Pokemon after your opponent releases his."

I was smiling as I recalled Taffy. He had handled not just one, but two Champion-level Pokemon by himself. He had made the best entrance possible.

The world would surely have a different view of not just Wigglytuff but Fairy types as a whole now.

Pryce picked his next Pokemon a lot faster than the last round. A Weavile revealed itself amid a flash of crimson light and shifted quietly into a battle stance. It didn't say anything, but the Pressure it radiated was immense. It felt like something invisible was bearing down on my shoulders. Without realizing it, I had tensed up.

I was on high alert for this one. I hadn't seen Pryce with it before, but I was pretty sure this was probably the man's famous Sneasel that he must have evolved sometime after the Sinnoh region officially linked up with Johto.

It was obviously going to be a lot stronger now that it had evolved.

I'd never fought a Weavile before, but I knew they were fragile. Their incredible speed more than made up for their weak defensive capabilities though.

I made my choice within seconds. Freya appeared on my side of the field, announcing her presence to the world with a regal gaze. Her expression quickly hardened when she caught sight of her opponent. The Pressure Weavile emanated did not faze her in the slightest. She had never fought or seen a Weavile before, but she recognized deep within her bones that it was her archenemy and a Pokemon that she had to destroy at all costs. Weavile were known to hunt Alolan Vulpix in other regions. Snarling, Freya fanned her wispy tails as her hidden ability came into play.

Pryce looked up with confusion as clouds formed once more in the sky and spit out snow furiously. He hadn't told his Weavile to do so, and he now looked back at the field with his gaze shifting between his own Pokemon and Freya. I don't think he'd ever seen an Alolan Ninetales before, but he'd probably caught on to the fact that she was part Ice type. For some reason, he scowled.

I wondered if he considered it arrogant of me to use an Ice type against an Ice Master, but I hadn't done it out of spite. I was simply confident in myself and Freya.

All pre-existing thoughts were shoved out of my head as I called out to my Alolan Ninetales.

"Blizzard, Fairy Snow version," I said. She and I shared a feral smile. "It's time to hunt."

Similar to what Pryce had done with his Delibird, Freya summoned a storm that enveloped the entire field in an instant. There were only two differences. There was actually some visibility left for the trainers, and the snow had traces of pink.

It swirled around like a raging tornado, but it also shimmered slightly with a pink sheen. Fairy energy had been weaved into every particle and every cutting wind. As time passed, it would continuously chip away at Weavile's health.

Weavile ignored the fairy-infused weather biting at its skin and whipped its head around in search of Freya instead. She was nowhere to be found. She had already long disappeared into the snowstorm thanks to her Snow Cloak ability.

"Hone Claws. Find it," Pryce ordered in an icy tone. "Strike with Metal Claw when you do."

Weavile's claws lit up with an ominous red hue as they were sharpened. Without further delay, it darted forth silently into the storm to seek out its target. Its steps were incredibly light and nimble. In just a few jumps, it crossed a third of the field.

While it ran, an aurora appeared in the sky. Freya had set up a protective veil from somewhere on the field. Weavile didn't pause to look and kept going.

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It only managed to take two more steps before the ground blew up.

Explosions of intense light rocked the field as Weavile inadvertently set off mines — miniature orbs of highly condensed Dazzling Gleam attacks — that had been planted under the snow by Freya. A pink haze filled the air as clumps of snow flew everywhere.

A few mines blew up in Weavile's face, but it managed to dodge most of them with an impressive display of natural acrobatics as it did everything from twirls and running jumps to somersaults and backflips.

It was in the middle of pirouetting away from an explosion when a pink beam of energy nailed its shoulder, and it tumbled backwards. Two more beams were fired from within the snowstorm, but Weavile was ready for them this time. It weaved back and left to avoid them and hissed. Its eyes were locked onto the barely visible form hidden among the snow.

Beautiful yet baleful blue eyes stared back at it. Freya had been waiting to snipe Weavile down.

"Metal Claw!" Pryce roared.

Weavile lunged forward like lightning and swiped viciously with glowing claws. They gouged across Freya's fur making her howl with pain, and Pryce ordered his Pokemon to keep going. Sharp claws slashed once, twice, and many times over without pause. Freya's screams soon became mere whimpers as she sank to her knees.

"Finish it," Pryce ordered. A triumphant look filled his eyes as Weavile pounced again.

Then an orb of moonlight exploded against its back, and Weavile was the one screaming with pain this time.

Pryce's look was one of complete shock as he stared at the Alolan Ninetales that had appeared behind his Pokemon. His gaze flew to where Freya should have been, except… all that remained was a ghostly outline shimmering with pink dust that faded away with the wind.

It had simply been an illusion brought to life and made real with the power of a Fairy.

I couldn't help but smirk a bit as I strained my eyes and saw Pryce's expression contorting into one of sheer fury. Freya was good at what she did, and I wouldn't have wanted to be on the receiving end of it either.

Pryce's next words came out in a hiss. "Metal Shards."

Weavile leaped up from the ground with a glare. With one flick of its hand, bits of steel with edges as sharp as blades flew forward in a wave. There was no time for Freya to dodge. I threw my hand out.

"Shield!" I barked.

My Pokemon moved well before I even finished speaking. Ice crystals burst forth from her very fur and instantly formed a protective wall in front of her. Most of the incoming projectiles buried themselves in it with heavy thuds. Several had been fired fast enough to pierce through and nail Freya, however, and she winced from the impact.

"Bullets. Return fire."

The shield broke apart into condensed balls of hardened ice. Fairy type energy was added to them, and then they sped forward. Weavile darted to the right to dodge them, but then it and its trainer discovered a problem.

The fairy ice bullets followed Weavile.

They had been made of ice crystals produced from Freya's own fur and enhanced with fairy aura. She could manipulate them however they wanted, and she was using them now as homing missiles. They followed closely at Weavile's back and gradually closed in.

Pryce made a loud tch sound as he slammed his cane against the ground. "Get rid of them with Ice Spinner!"

In one smooth motion, Weavile spun around and kicked out powerfully with its feet. Ice flew out and shattered the majority of the bullets, but several whizzed through the gaps and embedded themselves in their target. Weavile snarled angrily.

At this point, Pryce gave an order that took me by complete surprise. "Agility! Ice Steps! Dash into the storm and create distance!"

I had expected Pryce to have his Weavile keep applying pressure to Freya since it was a close-range fighter. Now he was running away to bide time or attempt to hit us from a different angle?

I wasn't going to let him. We were the hunters in this situation and not the hunted.

Weavile's speed grew exponentially after it finished glowing. It jumped up and dove into the thick of the blizzard, quickly leaving Freya and the scene of battle behind. A u-turn was made as it deceptively circled back. It looked like Weavile was sprinting across the snow, but in reality it was running along thin ledges of crystals suspended in the air made from Ice Spinners on its feet. The Pokemon was leaving no traces for Freya to follow.

It didn't have to. Freya found Weavile anyway.

Light exploded forth in a blinding wave without warning and slammed into Weavile from its front. It screamed in agony and stumbled back, clawing at the scorch marks it had gained. Freya chose that moment to reveal herself and appeared from between the falling snow. Her lips curled in a vicious smile.

Like I had mentioned previously, this was a hunt, and we were the hunters. The Fairy infused Blizzard Freya had whipped up at the very beginning of the match had one more purpose aside from chipping away at an opponent's health.

Every single shimmering particle that fell and flew and settled inside the Blizzard was a part of Freya's fairy domain.

All of it was part of her sphere of influence. So long as she willed it, she could find out where her prey was. Nothing could escape her gaze. She stood now in front of Weavile, ready to put an end to things.

Pryce would not have any of it. "Stay sharp and check your surroundings! Metal Claw!"

Both trainer and Pokemon were wary of another illusion. Weavile darted forth and made an especially powerful slash at Freya with its claws. It jumped back as soon as it made contact. They had, unfortunately, guessed right. It was another illusion, and this one crumbled more easily than the first had.

Weavile instantly swiveled its head and caught sight of the real Freya. I almost couldn't believe my eyes as it made a superhuman jump, narrowly avoiding a condensed beam of Fairy energy. Its reflexes were still insane despite how much running and damage it had taken already.

"Keep up the pressure!" I barked.

More beams of Fairy energy were fired off in rapid succession, but Weavile dodged all of them and dashed forward in between shots. Freya roared as Weavile finally slashed elongated claws against her real self's delicate fur. It nailed three separate Metal Claws before Freya lit her entire body up with a Dazzling Gleam, and Weavile stopped attacking to quickly somersault backwards. Its left leg got clipped before it fully got out of range.

Freya was in pain from the super effective Steel types moves that she had a quadruple weakness to, but her eyes burned with determination to go on. Weavile was more hurt than it was letting on, and the scent of victory was on the horizon.

"Metal Shards!" Pryce commanded.

"Bullets into Moonblast, Illusive version!" I roared.

The air was filled with sharp cracking noises as projectiles were fired from both sides. They spun through the air and collided with each other in small bursts of energy, and others sailed through to the opposing casters. Weavile was busy running around and trying to get homing bullets off its back, and Freya had put a crystallized shield up in front of her as she concentrated. Even as bullets got past her shield and ripped into her fur, she kept her focus.

A spiraling wave of hazy pink energy formed in her mouth. Freya waited until she'd cornered Weavile by having her homing bullets attack from all sides. As soon as Weavile jumped up to kick them away with Ice Spinner, she released the Moonblast.

It hurtled towards Weavile.

"Slash it!" Pryce shouted.

In yet another display of extreme skill, Weavile twisted in midair and swung its arm down in time. A powerful swipe of its claws slashed the Moonblast clean in two, and the splintered halves dissipated in the howling winds.

Weavile jumped down to the ground. At least, that was what should have happened.

A fully formed and very powerful orb screaming with fairy energy exploded in its face.

Freya had layered an illusion around her Moonblast. The one Weavile cut had been the illusive layer, a mirage, and the real Moonblast had flown out afterwards.

Weavile crashed to the ground with a charred face. It did not get up.

"Weavile is unable to battle. Leader Pryce, you have thirty seconds to send out your fourth Pokemon."

Freya let out a victorious howl as Weavile was recalled. Pryce was now down to half his Pokemon. Just three more knockouts until I etched the Cherrygrove Gym and my own name in the annals of Johto's history.

Another Pokeball whizzed through the air. For his fourth selection, Pryce had gone with what must have been a new addition for him in the last decade: an Abomasnow. Its powerful, bulky figure stood at about seven and a half feet tall. It let out a roar as snow began blasting downwards from its own Snow Warning ability and mixed with Freya's storm. It was practically impossible to see anything now.

"Hide in the snow and attack from far," I told Freya. I couldn't see her, but I assumed she disappeared into the snowstorm after my command.

"Earth Power, Abomasnow!" Pryce barked.

This time, Pryce's Pokemon was the one who caused the earth to explode.

All over the field, explosions went off as the ground erupted. Pillars of orange energy burst forth and shot into the air so high that they touched the barrier's ceiling. This Abomasnow packed some serious power compared to Pryce's other Pokemon that relied more on speed or technique.

Faint flashes of pink illuminated the field in between all the snow and exploding geysers of energy, so I knew Freya had engaged Abomasnow in a skirmish.

Sadly, when the aurora in the sky and Fairy-infused Blizzard died down, I also knew who had won the fight. Freya lay unconscious in the snow with multiple bruises and scorch marks. Abomasnow had wounds all over its front from Freya's powerful onslaught, but strangely the Pokemon did not look affected in the slightest.

I immediately understood why when I saw what was hidden in the snow around it. Countless glowing roots had stabbed through the ground. Pryce's Pokemon was healing everything with Ingrain.

"Leader Arin's Pokemon is unable to battle. Leader Arin, you have thirty seconds to send out your third Pokemon."

I made my decision instantly in order to restart the battle as fast as possible. A green-skinned Pokemon sporting long, dark purple hair appeared with a theatrical bow on the field.

Pryce scoffed at the sight. "Blizzard."

Powerful winds mixed with sharp ice and snow rushed outwards from Abomasnow, but I calmly gave my order.

"Start setting up, Grima."

My Grimmsnarl immediately snapped to attention. With impossibly fast movements, he weaved two different barriers of shimmering light in the air around him — Reflect and Light Screen — and simultaneously released pink mist again onto the field. Among all my Pokemon, Grima was the fastest at setting up the field due to his inherent Prankster ability.

He smirked now as he flexed his muscles. Abomasnow's Blizzard slammed into him, but Grima did not flinch or stumble. His entire body tensed and rippled as a red aura began to emanate from him. Before my very eyes, Grima's body shifted outwards as he grew in size from the Bulk Up.

"Blizzard—"

"Torment!" I interrupted Pryce.

A loud and mocking laugh reverberated in the air from the Dark type energy that enhanced it. Grima threw his arms out dramatically, locking eyes with the Abomasnow right as it gathered cold air in its mouth. The Blizzard died out before it even truly began. I wanted to force Pryce to alternate between moves so that he couldn't get into a rhythm.

"Get in close!" I told my Pokemon. We had finished setting up, and now it was time to take the fight to Abomasnow. "Rip those roots away."

Someone snarled, and it wasn't Abomasnow.

"Alternate between ice and normal. Beam it down," Pryce said with a livid expression.

Beams of energy came one after the other in a steady barrage as Grima dashed forward through the snow. He leaped over cratered earth and twisted to the sides to avoid the Ice and Hyper Beams, but he was not the fastest at running. Several attacks nailed him in the shoulders and midriff. He simply shrugged them off and kept running with a huge grin on his face.

"Ice Punch!" Pryce roared when Grima got within range. Abomasnow obeyed faithfully and encased its fist with swirling ice. With a yell, it swung it forward like a looming hammer. I shouted a command.

"GRAB IT!"

Grima laughed darkly as hair shot forth from his body like vines.

They wrapped around the incoming fist and locked it in place. Abomasnow bellowed and swung with its other fist wreathed in grass, but more hair surged outwards and grabbed that, too. No matter how hard Abomasnow twisted its limbs, it couldn't do more than shake within Grima's hold. The hair of a trained Grimmsnarl was strong enough to contest even the strength of a Machamp when ensnaring opponents.

"Spirit Break!" I yelled before Pryce could make a move. Snatches of pink light poured out of Grima's torso as he threw a glowing fist back.

He snapped his wrist forward, and the world rippled.

Light exploded against Abomasnow's chest, and Grima let go as the hulking Pokemon roared with intense pain and jerked back. The air screamed as rays of flickering light distorted every inch of the atmosphere in a frantic dance of chaotic energy. This was an attack that transcended the physical plane. It affected not only the physical body, but one's very being.

The Spirit Break shook Abomasnow to its core.

Its eyes grew bloodshot from a mixture of stress and fury as it whipped back and forth in a restless state. While Abomasnow was distracted, Grima ripped all the Ingrain roots out of the ground with a Dark Pulse. They couldn't grow back because of the Dark type energy leaking through the snow, acting as a void that severed the connection between Abomasnow and nature.

"FOCUS!" Pryce screamed in frustration. He had to slam his cane a few times before Abomasnow settled down from its rattled state. "All in on offense! Wood Hammer and Ice Punch!"

This was about to turn into a slugfest. Grima and I both braced ourselves.

"Sucker Punch and Play Rough!" I ordered.

Grima leaped forward to meet the charging Abomasnow, and the ensuing collision from their fists caused smoke and snow to fly everywhere.

Back and forth Grima and Abomasnow went trading powerful blows that would have instantly knocked out any other Pokemon. Hardened ice met waves of pink in wide swings. Fists that grew as large as tree stumps slammed down on Grima's head like the fists of Arceus Himself, and surprise uppercuts were launched in return with energy as dark and foreboding as the endless night.

Grima had the natural power to match Abomasnow. He might not have been as bulky as his opponent, but he made up for it with the defensive setups he'd created way in advance. I watched on as he kept up with Abomasnow's brute force in a prolonged fight.

But all things must come to an end.

A particularly powerful Wood Hammer caught Grima off guard and sent him spinning across the snow. He picked himself up with heavy breaths as Abomasnow limped towards him. Both Pokemon sported heavy bruises and marks from the countless punches they had exchanged, and they were on their last legs.

Abomasnow tiredly lit up its fist in an Ice Punch as it approached. With much effort, Grima dipped his head and allowed his shoulders to droop.

Then countless hairs laced with darkness shot outwards from Grima's back and speared through Abomasnow's arms and shoulders, and I barely held back a smirk.

False Surrender.

Pryce — and especially his Pokemon — had not expected this at all. Abomasnow fell face forward in the snow with a loud crash. It was knocked out cold.

"Abomasnow is unable to battle. Leader Pryce, you have—"

The referee broke off as Grima gave one last actual bow with an outstretched arm. He managed to flash a small smile and a thumbs up in my direction, and then he toppled over. The Grimmsnarl had hung on long enough past the brutal slugfest to ensure his opponent's downfall.

It was another double knockout. The referee quickly amended his previous statement.

"Abomasnow and Leader Arin's Pokemon are both unable to battle. Leader Pryce, you must send out your Pokemon first. You have thirty seconds to send out your fifth Pokemon…"

Admittedly, I was a bit confused when I saw a Jynx come out next on Pryce's side. It was not a Pokemon he had commonly used in the past, so I had not expected him to pull it out here. I vaguely remembered watching an old match before where it froze opponents and locked them in place with Psychic, but that was it. Grima would have been the perfect choice here to negate any Psychic type attacks, but he was out of commission.

There was another Pokemon I had in mind, though, and one that I figured was the perfect lead-up into the finale of this long match.

Zuzu appeared in a flash of crimson. She saw the beyond messed up field of upturned earth, snow, and craters before her, and she just gave a determined smile.

"Refresh the field," both Pryce and I ordered our Pokemon. The second the mist and snow came back online, I gave my next order. "Belly Drum."

We were going all in from the get-go.

Pryce's eyes widened just a miniscule amount. "Ice Beam! Interrupt it!"

A blindingly fast ray of ice shot out and slammed into Zuzu's chest making her totter, but she gritted her teeth and refused to let her concentration break. The foreboding sound of two slaps against her stomach resounded through the arena as Zuzu traded health for power. All she did was merely shift her weight to one foot, and the earth below her fractured instantly.

"Psychic! Lock it!" Pryce screamed.

"Aqua Jet! Play Rough!" I shouted at the same time.

Jynx waved her hands with glowing eyes as Zuzu rocketed forward in a spiraling column of water. Even if she was proficient with Psychic type attacks, Zuzu's momentum was so fast and powerful that Jynx did not have the strength to keep my Pokemon from advancing.

Realizing that Zuzu was too fast to hold in place with Psychic, Pryce switched strategies. "Ice Wall! Layers!"

Multiple sheets of hardened ice rose up in front of Jynx like protective shields just before Zuzu made contact.

She smashed through them like they were butter.

Gaping holes were punched through the frozen walls as they toppled like dominos. Zuzu tore a destructive path right towards her target. Jynx blew out a raging Blizzard, but Zuzu quickly let go of the water around her, hurtled through the storm with just her own body, and wrapped herself in a screaming mass of Fairy type energy.

She slammed into Jynx so hard that Pryce's Pokemon flew back into the barrier and broke it from the sheer force of its impact. The League Alakazam rapidly patched the forcefield, but it didn't need to hurry quite so much.

Jynx lay still on the ground. Pryce's fifth and very fragile Pokemon had gone down in just one hit.

"J-Jynx is unable to battle. Leader Pryce, you have thirty seconds to send out your last Pokemon…" the referee stammered in shock.

One last Pokemon. That was all that stood between me and the end of this test.

It was now that I saw Pryce's careful expression begin to crack. Throughout the match, there had been some traces of anger and surprise, but he had always carefully smoothed it back out every time. Now?

Pryce was stewing in cold fury. Perhaps he had not expected me to get this far, or perhaps he was just angry at all the choices he'd made during our series of match-ups. I had no way of knowing.

The former champion wordlessly recalled his fallen Jynx, and I watched with bated breath as his hand went down to the one Ultra Ball among his belt of capsules.

I knew what Pokemon was going to come out even before it materialized.

The crimson light from the Ultra Ball's release mechanism grew and grew and grew as a behemoth slowly appeared on the field.

It slammed onto the field with a roar. The earth under its feet instantly cratered from its incredible weight. At a whopping ten foot stature, it towered over Zuzu and stared at her as if she was a bug. Tusks made of pure, solid ice curved outwards into sharp, pointed ends that glittered under the arena's lights. Just by breathing, it expelled clouds of ice crystals and snow into the air around it.

It had evolved into its final form sometime during the last ten years, but this was Pryce's famous starter. Mamoswine.

This… this was a true titan, and both the best and worst last obstacle.

I had never fought a Mamoswine before. A normal person might have felt nervous about facing such a monster for an important test, but me?

All I felt was excitement. My mind was already coming up with ways to fight this beast and take it down.

I felt the thrill of a challenge.

The snow fell around us, and pink mist swirled at our feet. Zuzu and I stared with determination at the last thing standing between us and the future. A moment of silence passed, and then—

"Blizzard!"

"Defense Roll!"

Orders came flying out of our mouths.

Another storm of ice and wind flew across the field. The sheer power and speed of it spoke volumes of Mamoswine's experience. Even after Zuzu had hardened her body, and even with her Thick Fat ability, the Blizzard cut deeply and would have frozen her solid if not for the mist brushing comfortably against her fur. She was already halfway there to being knocked out because of her earlier Belly Drum, and this was not helping.

Zuzu bravely rolled forward right into the thick of the storm and began closing the distance between her and Mamoswine. Her normal go-to for quick travel was Aqua Jet, but I couldn't use that here without risk of the water freezing from sudden Blizzards or other ice attacks.

"Earthquake!" Pryce demanded.

I quickly threw my hand forward. "Bounce!" I said urgently.

Mamoswine simply raised one foot and smashed it against the floor, but the effect was devastating.

The earth ruptured instantly. Entire fissures formed in the space leading from Mamoswine to Zuzu. Snow disappeared in their gaping maws and rocks went flying everywhere from the intense rumbling and pressure.

Zuzu had slammed her tail hard against the ground the moment I gave my command. She went spinning upwards diagonally through the air on a one track course for her target, safely above the growing hellscape below her.

"Play Rough!"

Zuzu tucked herself into a ball and then sprang back out with flailing limbs as soon as she neared Mamoswine. Pink energy swirled around her body as she punched and kicked powerfully upon impact. Mamoswine tanked the hits with just a grunt of annoyance, and it spewed out globs of mud that were more like speeding bullets as Zuzu fell to the ground. Several slammed into her in rapid succession making her reel back from the pain.

"Ice Slam!" Pryce barked.

I clenched a fist. "Endure!"

Zuzu barely managed to brace herself before Mamoswine slammed into her with all the force a seven hundred pound monster could bring. Instead of flying away, she stubbornly clung onto Mamoswine's tusk. She looked extremely haggard and on the verge of passing out from that one attack alone, but the Endure had bought her just a bit more time.

Zuzu would go down soon, but she would go down fighting.

"SUPERPOWER!" I yelled.

"SMASH IT TO THE GROUND!" Pryce roared.

My Azumarill swung herself up into the air and screamed as her body lit up in a brilliant orange glow. She poured every last ounce of energy in her body into one final attack, and the Huge Power and Belly Drum boosted Superpower did not disappoint.

She lashed out rapidly with her fists and uppercutted Mamoswine into the air.

Granted, the behemoth did not fly up far, just a few yards or so, but it was still a testament to Zuzu's strength that she was able to temporarily lift a Pokemon of such sheer size and weight. Mamoswine actually bellowed in pain from the super effective attack. A yell from Pryce made it compose itself and come crashing back down with Ice Shards coming out of its mouth.

Zuzu fell to them immediately.

"Azumarill is unable to battle. Leader Arin, you have thirty seconds to send out your fifth Pokemon."

Zuzu had done the best she could, and now it was time to pass the baton.

I passed it to the partner that had been with me since the very beginning.

Vel landed softly on the ground. His eyes locked with the contemptuous gaze of the titan before him, and he snarled viciously in response. His feelers swirled around him at the ready.

No one looked down on a Fairy.

"Earthquake!" Pryce yelled.

Once again, Mamoswine raised a foot, and I yelled out my own command.

"FAIRY STEPS!"

Most of the field was already fucked, and it worsened as Mamoswine slammed his foot down again. Existing fissures opened even wider and new ones spread instantly along the ground Vel was standing on.

He calmly jumped up and flew.

More accurately, he was stepping on condensed ledges of Fairy energy that he formed underneath his paws as he ran across the air unhindered. The scene of destruction below could not touch this flying fairy.

"Nasty Plot!" I shouted. Mamoswine was as tanky as they came, and we needed to start stacking buffs now. It was going to take more than a few hits to defeat this beast.

"Knock it down with Earth Power!" Pryce snapped.

Mamoswine took what Abomasnow did and made it look laughable in comparison as humongous geysers made of pure, erratic energy exploded out of the fissures below Vel. The Sylveon barely had time to buff himself before he used Quick Attack and blurred left and right to avoid the deadly geysers. One nailed him right in the stomach and sent him flying, but Vel quickly caught himself with a burst of shimmering wind and landed on his feet in the air again.

"Hyper Beam, Split Homing version," I said quickly as Vel dodged another roaring geyser.

A huge orb of Pixilate-boosted light charged up in Vel's mouth before it exploded outwards in a dozen smaller rays. Vel's eyes glowed as he continued running through the air. He controlled each individual ray as they homed in on Mamoswine.

Three instantly slammed into Mamoswine before it could move.

"Counter with Earth Shards!" Pryce commanded.

Pieces of rock tore themselves out of the ground around Mamoswine's feet and went hurling through the air to meet the split Hyper Beams. Each collision between the attacks rocked the field violently. Some of the shards flew past and slammed into Vel, but he kept his balance.

In the end, only three more beams managed to hit Mamoswine. The rest had been deflected.

That was fine, though. They had bought time for Vel to get in range.

"Jump! Draining Snare!"

With a burst of speed from Quick Attack, Vel jumped onto Mamoswine's head. Feelers instantly shot out and wrapped around Mamoswine's ivory tusks. The moment they made contact, they glowed bright pink and began sapping health away from Pryce's Pokemon.

Vel went one step further and began to boost himself up with a second Nasty Plot simultaneously.

"Ice Shards! Get it off!" Pryce barked.

Mamoswine roared in agreement, furious over the fact that something had dared to step on it. Razor sharp slivers of ice were expelled from the fur on its body and stabbed into Vel's fur, but he hung on tight and bore with the pain. The second Nasty Plot was finished, and his feelers continued healing him even as more shards sliced at his fur.

Pryce changed plans. The Ice Shards weren't enough, so he went for something bigger. "Ancient Ice!"

Entire boulders were ripped out of the ground and frosted over with ice before they were sent flying towards Vel. The Sylveon hurriedly uncurled his feelers and jumped off, but he wasn't fast enough. A gigantic rock slammed into him and threw him into the barrier.

"Now freeze it! Icy Wind!"

Air colder than the frigid north blew outwards from Mamoswine. Vel's ears pinned back as it swept over him, and he hissed with pain. It would slow down his movements, but he would not freeze. The constant Misty Terrain ensured that.

"One more Nasty Plot!" I yelled.

"Make it stronger! FREEZE them already!" Pryce shouted with a hint of annoyance. I would have felt bad for him and how he had failed to freeze any of my Pokemon in any other situation, but not this one.

Vel bunkered down as the wind grew stronger. It was so powerful that it threatened to sweep him off his feet and into the barrier again, but he dug his heels into the ground and saw his last Nasty Plot through to the end.

As soon as his eyes finished glowing, I threw a hand forward.

It was time to go on the offensive.

"Dazzling Gleam!" I barked.

The most blinding light I'd seen all day rushed out from Vel's body in a silent wave. It was as bright as the sun, and I had to jerk my head away as it enveloped the entire field. An ear splitting scream of pain rang out from Mamoswine when the light exploded against it. I hurriedly looked back as the light died away, but I still had to blink away black spots from my vision.

Mamoswine had been completely blinded by the light and was stumbling backwards as it shook its head. I took advantage of its disorientation.

"Moonblast, Gravity versions. Take it down," I said firmly.

Vel was moving even before I finished. A huge orb of energy as large as his own body charged up in his mouth, and he fired it with practiced ease.

"Earth Blizzard!" Pryce roared with urgency. Even he could tell this was a bad situation for his Pokemon.

Mamoswine's eyes were still squeezed shut from the earlier Dazzling Gleam, but it didn't need to see to unleash a raging storm. Rocks and snow alike whipped around him like a tornado and exploded outwards.

The Moonblast grabbed everything that flew toward it.

Everything that had been in the storm orbited around the shining orb of energy instead. Within seconds, it had swelled to half of Mamoswine's size from all the debris gravitating around it.

The small moon made contact with the behemoth and slammed it back into the barrier. Mamoswine awkwardly fell to its feet from the impact.

"Get up!" Pryce screamed.

Vel didn't wait for anyone. He fired off more Moonblasts like it was nobody's business. Each ripped out chunks of earth from the ground in their gravitational pull as they flew towards Mamoswine. The titan rose to its feet only to get hit in the face again and again by more miniature moons.

Pryce tapped his cane against the ground almost anxiously. "Protect and Ice Pillars! Tank the hits and knock that Pokemon down!"

He had switched his strategy to try and take out Vel instead of the Moonblasts.

Mamoswine grunted and braced itself for the incoming onslaught by forming a protective shield in front of it. He stomped with one foot. In an instant, ice pillars shot out of the ground around Vel's feet. The Sylveon had to let his latest Moonblast go early as he screamed in pain from the pillars stabbing him from all sides. His half-formed orb was still powerful enough that it fractured Mamoswine's Protect when it made contact.

"Burn with Dazzling Gleam!" I ordered with a clenched fist. "Then glamour and Moonblast!"

Vel screamed and let light shoot outwards, scorching the ice pillars down into melted stubs. As soon as he was freed, Vel darted forward.

He vanished.

He had wrapped himself inside a fairy bubble and temporarily turned himself invisible, and Pryce actually panicked.

"BLIZZARD!"

Icy gales surged forward in a widespread attack. This would have worked ordinarily to locate Vel's hidden form, but he had already formed a Gravity Moonblast and let it fly.

It appeared out of thin air as it left Vel's bubble of influence and roared, pulling the approaching Blizzard into its embrace. Mamoswine's Protect shattered into hundreds of pieces the moment the orb touched it.

More followed. Mamoswine was getting beaten down by the barrage of Moonblasts, and there was nothing it could do.

Pryce refused to give in and shouted out for more Blizzards and other custom moves, but they were all swept up by the gravitational pull of the Nasty Plot boosted Moonblasts. Mamoswine was fast approaching its end.

"Ice Walls!" Pryce finally snapped out of desperation. "Wait for the next one and freeze it with a concentrated Ice Beam instead!"

Sturdy walls of ice rose up in front of Mamoswine in a last ditch effort of protection. In its mouth, it readied an orb of frigid air.

"Moonblast," I said quietly.

It was time to end things.

It was time to take down once and for all this monster that had taken beating after beating, and it was time for the world to remember our names.

I knew Vel would still hear me wherever he had his invisible self hidden on the field.

"Silent version."

The barrage of Moonblasts stopped, and the arena went deathly silent.

Debris rolled around on the field, but it made no noise. Not even breathing could be heard. It was like all sound had been removed from the world for the briefest of seconds. Mamoswine was startled but readied itself, yet it couldn't react in time.

A massive Moonblast that put the previous ones to shame appeared so suddenly and silently in front of Mamoswine that it was like it had just popped into this plane of existence.

It exploded in its face.

The entire field shook from the explosion, and for the nth time that day, the barrier cracked into pieces and had to be reformed.

My heart was beating at a million miles an hour as I waited for the smoke to clear. When it did, I saw Vel's form ripple back into existence as he removed the fairy dust around him. I followed his gaze to the other side of the field.

There, a titan lay felled at the barrier's edge.

Mamoswine was on the floor, and it was not moving.

"Mamoswine is unable to battle. With a final score of 6-4, Gym Leader Arin is the victor of this match."

I barely heard the referee's words.

Vel had turned back to look at me. He was battered and bruised, but he didn't look tired at all. His eyes shone as brightly as they had on that day I found my calling as a Fairy Specialist.

I raised my fist high above my head in a silent but powerful cry of victory for all to see. Blood roared in my ears from the high of our achievement.

My team and I had done it. We had crossed the starting line.

We had just made history.