CHAPTER 20 — To Slay a Dragon
When two Trainers' eyes meet, they must battle.
This certain adage had existed for ages not just in Kanto-Johto but across the whole world. No one could say for sure when or where exactly this saying originated from, but all historians unanimously agreed it came about sometime during the feudal era. In an age where kingdoms and states constantly waged war against each other, soldiers on the fields were often locked in deathmatches. The moment they saw their enemy was when the battle began. They didn't have a choice, and they couldn't look away lest they forfeit their lives to stray attacks.
Nowadays, the adage was just used to express the idea of a Trainer honoring the challenge of a battle.
Clair and I completely ignored the chaos and camera flashes happening around us. We had locked gazes, and the only thing on our minds was the imminent showdown.
Back and forth Clair and I went hammering out the details of the match in rapid fire succession.
"What time would be suitable for you?"
"Now."
"Location?"
"The Blackthorn Gym is fine. You can even broadcast it."
"Done. I will. Conditions?"
"Standard six-on-six with three switch-ins. And," I paused to smile innocently. "Mega Evolution will be allowed."
"Very well," she easily agreed. Clair suddenly gave an innocent smile of her own as she clasped her hands behind her back, looking every bit as a dignified leader. "How about we add one more condition to the match? Something fun to commemorate our meeting and… new friendship. The defeated will grant the victor one favor within reason."
I stopped myself from raising a brow, but I did smile with thinly veiled amusement. I'm sure our spectators were eating up this entire thing as a friendly battle between fellow Gym Leaders. Little did they know the poison behind every single one of Clair's words.
Clair's added suggestion was also entirely unexpected. It was quite obvious she was planning to win and take full advantage of that so-called favor, however, and whatever she asked for would not be good for me.
Unfortunately for Clair, her plans would not come to fruition as I had every intention of winning this battle and now the bet she had proposed.
"Sure. That sounds fun. Let's add it," I agreed.
There were no take backs, not when we were saying all of this in a very public setting with hundreds of eyes on us. The few reporters that had stayed this late into the afterparty were having a field day as they snapped picture after picture of me and Clair with crazed expressions.
This was probably the most dramatic thing that had happened — at the League Headquarters no less! — in a long time.
"Then let us be off to the Blackthorn Gym. Allow me to guide you there," Clair said simply, putting an end to the conversation. She spun on her heel without giving me a chance to reply and marched off. I assumed she was heading for the building's front entrance.
I would have moved to do the same, but I needed to locate dad first. Thankfully, I didn't have to. He found me almost right after Clair disappeared into the crowd, and he now stood in front of me with a shocked expression.
"Arin, what was that about?!" he whispered quietly to me. His eyes were as wide as saucers. "How did you end up getting challenged by Clair?"
I mulled over my response for a mere second.
"Bad blood. Blackthorns. Dragons versus Fairies," was what I ultimately ended up rattling off casually in a quiet whisper. Dad stared at me with increasingly wide eyes for every word I spoke.
"I… Okay, I get the gist of it, but can you give me a more detailed explanation on the ride over?" Dad sighed. "I'm coming with you."
I smiled, glad that I didn't have to ask him about that. "Sure."
The two of us headed outside while reporters and people trailed after us excitedly.
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Before Clair could leave the ballroom, Lance intercepted her and dragged her into a nearby empty meeting room. As soon as the door slammed shut behind them, he whipped around and stared at her with an absolutely livid expression.
Yep, just like she'd expected, Lance was as angry as the Incarnation of Wrath personified.
"CLAIR IBUKI," he all but exploded in a loud voice. "What in the blazes of Entei was that?! Issuing a challenge to the new Cherrygrove Gym Leader in public and at the ceremony's afterparty, really? After everything I told you yesterday, you went and pulled something like this anyway—"
"Not now, Lance," Clair hissed. She was entirely unafraid of Lance's fury as she glared at him. "I have a match to go to and a person to beat."
That just made Lance even angrier.
"Listen here, Clair, what you've just done has endangered the entire Clan's reputation. This is going to look poorly on us later!" Lance yelled. "Did the Elders even give you approval for this?"
In any other situation, Clair might have found it humorous that their roles were reversed — Lance was usually the calm one and her the angry one — but this was not one of those times. She scoffed at her cousin now.
"This was all my idea. I was supposed to be the original proctor anyway! I'm merely going to put all the rumors to rest once and for all by giving a fight that should have occurred earlier," Clair rebutted. Her eyes flashed angrily as she threw her hand out. "There won't be any issue after I win—"
"You are severely overestimating yourself, Clair!" Lance interrupted with narrowed eyes. "Did you not understand after watching the promotion test? As loath as I am to admit it, Arin's skill as a trainer is leagues above you. He's on par with Champions for Arceus's sake!"
"He beat Pryce Yanagi!" Clair cried with outrage. "A fallen Champion. That's no indication of skill at all!"
"You've never even fought Pryce before!" Lance shot back. "Stop thinking he's weak just because I managed to beat him!"
She hated that Lance was putting facts in her face. She had indeed never personally fought Pryce before, but she could estimate her strength as being close to his. Clair had not suffered through years of training together with her Dragons for nothing. Even the public thought she was as strong as Pryce.
Clair's frustration was quickly skyrocketing to an all time high as she clenched and unclenched her fists rapidly. She just wanted to defend the Clan's honor and show the world that Arin and his Fairies were not as big of a deal as people were making them out to be. Why couldn't Lance just support her on this? Did he not love the Clan as much as she did?
"Why are you making it sound like I won't win? That my Dragons will lose?" Clair finally demanded. "Do you not believe in me as a fellow Blackthorn, Lance?"
It was just a split second, but she saw him hesitate.
That was all she needed to see before she whipped around and stalked away.
"Clair! Clair, please come back here! Call off the match or do something—"
The Blackthorn City Gym Leader ignored the Champion's voice growing more and more distant behind her. Apparently, Lance did not believe in her.
That was fine.
She just needed to believe in herself and her absolute Dragons.
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Dad and I were talking and already waiting on Zuri's back when Clair finally showed up. For some reason, even though she'd left first, she arrived after us by almost several minutes.
Her lips curled back with displeasure when she spotted Zuri, but she remained silent as she sent out a Dragonite of her own and hopped on. We took off the instant they did.
Zuri flew alongside them easily even when Clair and her Dragonite pettily tried speeding up. I would have liked to see the expression on her face, but it was hidden by her hair.
The buildings of Blackthorn crested into view within minutes.
Despite the situation, I couldn't help but be impressed. Blackthorn was an entire city carved into the mountainside. Traditional houses with either thatched or black shingle roofs had been built into the cliffs across various elevated platforms. It was surely a very unique way of living and reminded me a bit of Fortree from Hoenn.
And, as if to proudly announce that they were indeed the City of Dragons, I saw several Pokemon had come to greet us in the air. Two young and nervous-looking trainers were riding on the back of a Dragonite as three Dragonair floated around them.
Clair spared no greetings for them. We all continued on our way as one big group, and I was left wondering if the people behind us were gym trainers or otherwise associated with the Blackthorn Clan somehow. I doubted they were the owners of the accompanying Pokemon. Most likely they had been lent to them by an older and higher ranking member.
We landed at the back of a large traditional building that looked more like a temple to me: the Blackthorn Gym. Its tiled roofs rose up high in the air and were covered with black ceramic pieces that glistened under the sun. Old statues of Dratini and Dragonair lined the perimeter of the grounds. I had to admit the overall atmosphere was rather imposing.
Zuri was returned to her capsule before dad and I followed Clair and the unknown trainers inside. It was now that they finally spoke to her.
"Gym Leader Clair, we heard about the match already from the Elders. What should we do about the locals? There are still people left in the stands from the gym challenge earlier—" one of them began, but Clair cut them off.
"Leader Arin, are you fine with having spectators in the arena?" she asked in a brusque voice without turning around.
"Yes. I'm fine with it."
She nodded. "Very well. The spectators can stay then," she directed the last sentence at the young trainers, and they bowed their heads. Clair stopped abruptly in front of a door and pointed at it, finally turning around to face me. "This is the waiting room. I'll have someone call you out in a few minutes when the field is set up. Your… father can be guided to the stands by my gym trainers if he so wishes."
She eyed dad briefly before looking back at me. Her eyes glittered coldly as she smiled. "I shall see you on the field."
I only offered a curt nod back. Clair disappeared down the hallway leaving us alone with her gym trainers. I turned to dad now.
"Guess I'll see you later then," I said with a strained smile. Arceus, now that I was actually here at the Blackthorn Gym, I was getting angry all over again.
Dad noticed the displeasure I was radiating and placed a hand on my shoulder comfortingly. "Try to relax, Arin," he murmured. He squeezed my shoulder lightly. "I'm not worried about you, just so you know. I know you're strong. See you in a bit."
I offered one last smile to dad before the trainers escorted him down the hall, but it came out more like a grimace instead. I entered the waiting room without delay and plopped myself down into the first chair I saw.
I tried to rein in my anger as I breathed in and out slowly. From my bag, I pulled out the stress ball Poppy had given me weeks ago and gripped it tightly. I tended to carry it around with me nowadays, but I hadn't thought I'd be using it so soon. A full minute passed of me simply doing breathing exercises and repeatedly squeezing the stress ball. When I felt like I'd calmed down enough, I spoke out loud.
"Frankly, guys, I'm pissed off. We showed that we were strong enough in the test, but apparently, some people ignored the memo," I said icily. The Pokeballs along my belt all wiggled unhappily in response. My Pokemon were listening.
"I know, it's extremely frustrating. But this is probably going to keep happening from here on out. So we'll just have to win again, and again, and again, as many times as it takes for people to realize they've chosen the wrong opponent."
The intensity of the shaking Pokeballs grew even more. We were all furious with the absurdity of the situation and more than ready to put an end to it.
Half a minute later, I heard a knock at the door. Someone had come to fetch me for the match. I wore a grim smile as I rose to my feet. I let go of my anger and allowed a more positive feeling to replace it instead: determination.
Clair Ibuki awaited me.
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I emerged from the doors to a completely silent yet packed arena.
The stands were full of people from top to bottom. Presumably, almost all of them were Blackthorn locals. I was literally right in enemy territory and surrounded on all sides by citizens who were maybe or maybe not very loyal to the Clan that had governed their city for generations.
I didn't feel nervous at all. I was looking forward to the match ahead and the punishment my Pokemon and I would dole out.
Hundreds of pairs of eyes settled on me as I took my place at one end of the field. Clair was already in position at the other end. Kadabra stood at one corner with raised spoons as they held a barrier up around the field. Near the referee, a cameraman was broadcasting the match live. They didn't look like a gym trainer, so perhaps Clair had brought in a local news company instead.
As for me and Clair… we didn't bother looking at each other. Instead, we both turned to the referee for the match introduction.
He opened his mouth at the same time that the spectators did.
It was just one boo at first, but then another followed, and another. Suddenly there were dozens of people booing at me from the crowd, and I just looked on impassively.
I almost felt like I was at the Vertress Conference in Unova all over again. The audience there hadn't been fond of me either.
"Stop."
That single word rang out powerfully and immediately caused the disruptive spectators to shut their mouths.
Surprisingly, Clair had been the one to speak instead of the referee. We had both been outfitted with microphones for the match. I watched now as the Blackthorn Gym Leader turned to face her people with a displeased expression.
"I understand you wish to support me, but do not disrespect the spirit of the Indigo League without a valid reason. A battle between two trainers is sacred, and both must be respected," Clair said with narrowed eyes. "If you cannot show common courtesy to our guest, then you should leave now."
No one moved. They'd all been cowed into respectful silence. Satisfied, Clair turned back and offered me a curt nod.
Huh. I hadn't expected Clair to do that for me. She was more noble than it initially seemed. While I still vastly disliked her, I respected that she was faithful to the spirit of battling at least and knew where to draw the line.
Now that the audience had settled down, the referee spoke.
"This match is between Gym Leader Clair Ibuki of Blackthorn City and Gym Leader Arin Watanuki of Cherrygrove City," he said in a loud voice. "This will be a six-on-six battle with three switch-ins and Mega Evolution allowed. Trainers, are you both ready?"
Clair and I responded by holding respective Pokeballs in our hands.
"Then I will count down from three. Please send out your Pokemon on one," the referee continued. "Three! Two! One!"
Shocked gasps rippled through the audience as two forms materialized on the field in flashes of scarlet light. On my side of the field, Arya rose up into the air and hovered in front of me gracefully. Her normally cheerful expression had been replaced by one of fury as she stared at Clair.
On the opposite end… when I saw which Pokemon Clair had chosen to lead with, I had to seriously refrain from laughing out loud. Clair really could not have chosen anything better for the start of her downfall.
Her Pokemon was noticeably smaller than mine, but she'd sent out an Altaria as well.
Clair's face twisted with confusion as she stared at Arya. I could practically see what she was thinking. Why had I sent out a Dragon type in a match that was supposed to determine the pecking order between Fairies and Dragons?
One of the conditions I'd suggested for the battle, Mega Evolution, had not been made without reason. No, I had proposed that because of a very specific plan of action I had in mind. Before we took off from the Indigo League, I'd even looked up what Mega Evolutions were currently known to this side of the world just to make sure my plan would truly have the shock factor I wanted.
The fact that Altaria could Mega Evolve — and into a Dragon/Fairy type no less — was not yet known in the Kinjoh Area. I was going to upend not just Clair's but the entire Blackthorn Clan's understanding of the world as they knew it.
I wasn't worried at all for this match. I hadn't seen any recordings of Clair's battles before, but I didn't need to. Her reputation and Dragons didn't scare me. My team and I had been through hell and back together over the years and felled countless opponents.
Among them had been Dragons from all walks of life. Ferocious Hydreigon and Haxorus from the Gym Leaders of Unova, old and almighty Dragons under the command of Elites such as Drasna and Hassel, ones as fast as lightning in double battles against Raihan, the list went on and on.
We'd conquered them all, and it was time to do so again.
The referee slashed a hand through the air.
"Begin!"
I instantly held up my wrist. A familiar Key Stone bracelet sparkled under the arena lights as a simple sentence left my lips, one that made Clair's eyes widen.
"Arya, we're going Mega."
Light exploded from my Key Stone and the Mega Stone hidden within Arya's wings.
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Fluff multiplied outwards from my Pokemon's back and formed a protective cloud of armor. More grew around her neck and head, and her tail feathers fused into one long streamer. Her entire body glimmered with a beautiful iridescent sheen.
As the light around Arya faded, the crowd was turned speechless by the first Mega Altaria they'd ever witnessed.
Clair was much the same. Turquoise eyes darted first to Arya, then to her own Altaria and back again. Her entire face had gone white, but not from shock.
She was absolutely furious.
"Tailwind into Flamethrower!" she shouted.
"Match it," I said calmly in response.
Gales of wind blew at the backs of our Pokemon as they flew rapidly upwards. Flames shot forward in waves in Arya's direction, but she easily dodged all of them with graceful, almost lazy maneuvers and retaliated with her own searing column.
There was no contest.
The fire she blasted was double the size of her opponent's and twice as powerful. It completely swallowed up the other Altaria's flames and surged outwards like gaping maws stretched wide.
"Speed up!" Clair barked.
Altaria immediately glowed from the effects of an Agility. With a burst of speed, it tucked its wings in and dove past the humongous flames; however, Arya was not yet done. Five more Flamethrowers followed in rapid succession. Clair's Pokemon twisted and swerved, but the flames were too big and too fast to dodge all of them. One clipped it in the wing making it stumble mid-air, and the rest of the fire descended swiftly.
Pained screeches filled the air as Altaria's feathers burned away. I didn't wait for it to recover.
"Blazing Gales. Let's turn up the heat."
It began quietly at first. Soft murmurs of wind blew at the edges of the arena. Around Arya, the smallest hints of flames flickered in and out of existence. Then cloud-like wings flapped furiously, and fierce winds mixed with white-hot flames howled into existence.
A raging inferno instantly enveloped the entire field.
The fire fed the air, and the winds fanned the hungry flames in return. Intense heat distorted every inch of the surroundings as a vortex of screaming fire and currents ripped forward. The hurricane from hell was on a one way track for Altaria, and there was no escape.
Clair and her Pokemon both knew it.
"Dragon Pulse then Rush! Make a path through!" my opponent commanded.
A turquoise orb of energy hurtled into the hurricane and forced open a small gap. Blue flames wrapped around Altaria like a protective cocoon as it quickly flew forward into the temporary hole it had made. I merely smiled to myself. They'd flown right into the trap of their own volition.
"Smother them."
Arya's eyes glowed as she beat her wings again. Sparkling winds were summoned and wrapped around the turbulent hurricane, and they shone with a thousand different lights. The flames intensified and surged wildly in response, but only for a moment. The hurricane stuttered in place.
Then it shrank down into a sealed sphere and imploded.
More than a few screams rang out in the audience as the entire stadium shook violently. The barrier broke from the shockwaves and was hurriedly reformed as fire, fire, and yet more fire went screaming through the air in every direction from the force of the rebound. They pelted the sides of the newly made barrier in rapid succession and shattered it once again.
As for the bird that had been stuck inside the pressurized storm of deadly forces…
Altaria crashed to the ground in an unmoving, charred heap.
The first match-up had barely lasted a minute.
"Altaria is unable to battle. Leader Clair, you have thirty seconds to send out your second Pokemon."
Just from that fight alone, I had a good estimation of my opponent's level of strength already and it was a poor one. Clair had severely overestimated herself when challenging me.
I didn't stop to enjoy the look of sheer anger on Clair's face. This was just the beginning.
"Lunar Grace."
An ethereal glow surrounded Arya as she weaved a short but intricate dance in the air. Faint clouds of shimmering dust were left behind her. This was a dance not of Dragons but of Fairies, and Arya was boosting her Special Attack and Speed.
Clair hurriedly recalled Altaria and sent out her second Pokemon while Arya flew around. The moment I saw a large Salamence take its place on the field and Clair raise her hand, I knew what was coming. My lips quirked upwards into a faint grin. Hopefully this match-up would be less disappointing.
"Salamence! It's time to Mega Evolve!" Clair announced firmly. Her side of the field lit up in white.
Before my eyes, Salamence grew. Front legs were tucked in and hidden behind a metallic frame that extended around its body. Its two wings melded together into a single bright red crescent, and the fins around its head elongated into sharper ends. As soon as her Pokemon had finished its transformation, Clair jabbed at the air with a finger.
"Focused Wingbeat!"
Salamence shot forward like a speeding rocket with orange energy wreathed around its streamlined body. Although it was not the fastest Mega Salamence I'd ever seen, it was still a little speedier than Arya even with her Tailwind and boost from dancing.
Glowing wingtips bashed into my Pokemon's exposed belly before she could dive out of the way and sent her spinning backwards. She quickly righted herself as Salamence made a wide u-turn. When it came hurtling toward us for round two, I snapped my fingers.
"Full defense, Arya!"
Cotton popped up around my Altaria's body and surged outwards in multiple layers. Each piece stuck tightly to one another with no gaps in their defenses, and the top surface held a faint pink sheen.
Clair just sneered. "Power through it."
Contrary to her expectations, Salamence crashed into the newly formed armor with a very muted oomph. Glowing feathers instantly poked their way out of the cotton and attached themselves to the invader. They clung to the Dragon and sapped its strength.
Salamence twisted and turned, but there was nothing it could do. Its entire left side was trapped inside the heavy mass of cotton, and a bellow of annoyance left Salamence's throat when it realized it was stuck.
"Burn it with Hyper Beam!" Clair yelled.
Swirling energy condensed into one powerful beam that blasted out from Salamence's mouth. It melted the cotton and feathers, but more regrew instantly before Salamence could tear itself away. The frustrated Dragon turned its head to the side sharply, aiming the beam at Arya herself instead.
"Blind it," I ordered.
The Hyper Beam hit Arya in the face, but she took it in stride as a wave of light burst forth from her body. A loud roar of pain filled the air as the Dazzling Gleam's glow receded. Salamence was sporting some very visible and heavy scorch marks while it whipped back and forth frantically.
I swept my hand forward.
"Hyper Song!"
Arya opened her beak, and she sang. Notes more beautiful than the heavens themselves poured out of her and filled the entire stadium. I saw hundreds of spectators in the stands break down crying because of how moved they were by Arya's singing.
Salamence?
He was in pain. A lot of pain. This was a song so beautiful that it hurt and pierced the soul, courtesy of the fairy energy imbued into Arya's voice. Pixilate-boosted sound waves were slamming into Salamence front and center, and the Dragon screamed in utter agony.
"FOCUS! Get out with Thrash, Salamence!" Clair demanded with a clenched fist.
Still writhing in pain, Salamence barely managed to comprehend the order. Its eyes became almost bloodshot as its body lit up with a silver aura. The Dragon slammed its free wingtip forward—
"Propagate."
The bladelike edge sank uselessly into cotton that was fast multiplying.
Limbs thrashed powerfully in all directions, but every movement was another death sentence for Salamence as it became more and more entangled. Cotton was spreading out like some sort of virus across its body. Feathers were added to the mix and glowed ominously as they piled up. In just seconds, Salamence became nothing more than a glorified mummy.
I smiled.
"Detach."
Still singing her deadly song, Arya shed the layers of Cotton Guard and Feather Dance around her. With so much sticky mass clinging to every part of Salamence's body, especially its wings, it had no control whatsoever.
Salamence immediately dropped like dead weight.
The still thrashing Dragon plummeted to the ground in an undignified manner and kicked up a storm of dust. While it screamed and struggled, Arya was content to boost herself with another Dance from the safety of the air. Melodious, damaging notes continued to fill the air.
"SALAMENCE!" Clair screamed. Her voice was hoarse from the strain of Mega Evolution, but she looked like she was about to pop a vein from anger. "Listen to my voice! Hyper Beam!"
The grounded Salamance did not listen. It was more like it couldn't.
The stress it was feeling both from Thrash and Arya's accursed song had stoked the massive, inherent rage a Mega Salamence normally possessed, and now it had lost all sense of reason.
I looked coldly at the Dragon pathetically flailing around on the field. I couldn't say my thoughts out loud since they would be seen as very unsportsmanlike, but Arya probably knew what I was thinking anyway.
Put it out of its misery.
"Hyper Beam!" I ordered.
An enormous beam of pink energy ripped through the air and struck Salamence almost before I finished speaking. One last scream filled the air before it abruptly cut off.
Salamence had slumped over, eyes rolled into the back of its head while steam rose from its smoking husk. Its form reverted back to normal.
"Salamence is unable to battle. Leader Clair, you have thirty seconds to send out your third Pokemon."
Clair stared at her fainted Salamence with sheer disbelief. To be honest, she looked terrible after having induced Mega Evolution. I was a bit pale-faced from Arya's own transformation, but Clair was basically sweating buckets. She probably did not have as much experience with it if I had to guess.
Above us, Arya wore a triumphant look as she flew a circle in the air again and completed a third Dance. If she had been dangerous before, now she was nigh unstoppable.
At the rate things were going, we were going to wrap up the rest of this battle very quickly.
With gritted teeth, Clair threw out an Ultra Ball. Her next Pokemon emerged to resounding cheers from the audience. A very familiar figure and the symbol of the Blackthorn Clan stood before me.
A Dragonite.
This was a Pokemon I knew like the back of my hand considering how I had trained one from a small Dratini. As the most ancient family of Dragon Tamers in the Kinjoh Area, the Blackthorn Clan probably would have had my head if I ever claimed such a statement out loud.
I wondered vaguely if Clair had grown frustrated enough with Arya that she was sending out what were probably her biggest powerhouses one after another. Since she had sent out the representative of her family's beliefs against me…
I figured I ought to return the kind gesture.
Our orders came out simultaneously.
"Dragon Dance!"
"Summon the stars!"
Dragonite began dancing erratically, but Arya ignored it. A renewed current of wind blew at her back as she ascended with incredible speed. In just a moment, she had reached the tallest point inside the barrier's confines.
The Altaria's body lit up with every color of the rainbow as she spread her wings wide. Shouts of alarm rang out in the audience as not just the sky but all space inside the barrier darkened.
Twilight had fallen over the whole arena. By now, Clair realized something was up and ordered her Dragonite to whip up a Hurricane.
It was far too late. Two words left my lips.
"Celestial Wrath."
Heaven's judgment rained down.
Dozens of meteors wreathed in raging, pink energy warped into existence above Arya's head and hurtled through the sky at dizzying speeds. Each distorted the air in its wake from their numbing heat.
And each was headed straight for Dragonite.
Clair's eyes flew open at the sight of the familiar move turned Fairy, and she roared out her next order. "FLY AND PROTECT!"
Dragonite hurriedly abandoned its half-formed Hurricane and flew away with a shield wrapped around it. Just in time, too.
Meteors crashed one after another into the ground where it had just been standing, each so powerful that they instantly cratered the earth and produced deafening bangs. More rained down on the field without discrimination. The barrier shattered multiple times from the onslaught, and I saw the Kadabra starting to sweat from all the work they had to put in to keep up.
It became a chase between a sinner and the divine as Dragonite frantically zipped around the growing hellscape. It dodged flaming meteors left and right and all over again, but it could not run forever. Arya was barely winded from the last two match-ups, and she was summoning more and more meteors with every second that passed.
A meteor eventually clipped the tiring Dragonite's shield and fractured it. Another pelted it from the front, completely shattering it. Then another slammed into Dragonite's back with enough force that it fell into a large crater in the ground, and that was the start of the end.
The bombardment of flaming, sparkling rocks descended without mercy.
Anguished screams tore themselves out of Dragonite's throat as meteors slammed into it from all sides. Each exploded on impact and melted off more of the Dragon's protective scales until they reached the more vulnerable skin beneath.
And with all the Dances Arya had stacked up, even just one of these meteors packed a hell of a punch.
Smoke obscured the arena as more explosions went off, but not for long. Arya stopped her offensive only a few seconds later. The smoke eventually dissipated enough for all to see what lay within.
The field was gouged from top to bottom. Not a single part of it hadn't been razed by the devastating meteors, and there were holes upon holes and long fissures that stretched from one end to another across the ground. It was the scene of a horrible disaster as well as the aftermath of a Fairy's fury.
At the bottom of the biggest crater, Dragonite lay charred almost beyond recognition. Hazy clouds of pink dust hovered ominously in the air around it.
"Dragonite is unable to battle. Leader Clair, you have thirty seconds to send out your fourth Pokemon."
Clair was down to half her team already, and Arya was still raring to go.
My opponent returned her prized Dragonite with a furious expression. Before Arya could set up again like she had in between match-ups, Clair sent out her fourth contender. An Aerodactyl screeched loudly as it took to the skies. It exerted its Pressure with beady eyes, but Arya merely regarded it with a cool gaze.
This was a pleasant surprise. I had been expecting Clair's famed starter next in all honesty. I'd fought some prehistoric Pokemon before but never an Aerodactyl, so I was at least grateful to Clair for the new experience.
Clair's gaze flickered to the Key Stone on her wrist. I almost raised a brow. She wasn't thinking about Mega Evolving again, was she? Even highly experienced trainers could only handle maybe two transformations at most within a short time frame. Clair was definitely not one of those judging from her rapidly deteriorating physical state. She was sweating even more than she had been earlier.
I didn't wait to find out if she would risk it.
"Dragon Pulse, hybrid," I called out.
Powerful orbs of condensed energy blasted out from Arya's beak. Each was a screaming mass of opposing draconic and fairy energies fused together, and they pulsated wildly as they flew through the air.
Clair snapped her head up. "Iron Head!"
With surprising speed and maneuverability, Aerodactyl twisted through the air and flew between the fluctuating orbs of energy. It was as fast as Mega Salamence had been.
"Defense!" I yelled.
The Cotton Guard was only half-formed when Aerodactyl's glowing head rammed into Arya. She'd felt the super effective attack, and a hiss of displeasure left her.
"Follow up with Stone Edge!" Clair barked.
"Guard again, then Lullaby!" I said at the same time.
Jagged pieces of stone embedded themselves in a more pronounced armor of cotton this time. Safe from further harm, Arya began to sing a gentle yet almost haunting melody.
Sound waves amplified by fairy energy blared outwards in a fast-moving, widespread attack. Aerodactyl immediately darted away, but the waves traveled faster than it could fly. Its eyes drooped, and its movements grew sluggish. Clair yelled out in frustration, yet there was nothing she could do.
Aerodactyl fell sound asleep and dropped right out of the sky. I grinned.
"Dragon Pulse again! Hybrid."
An endless barrage of multi-colored, swirling spheres peppered the sleeping figure once it hit the ground. No shouts from Clair could awaken Aerodactyl, and it went down soon after.
A disappointingly easy fourth win.
"Aerodactyl is unable to battle. Leader Clair, you have thirty seconds to send out your fifth Pokemon."
As I wondered what method I should use to take down the next Pokemon, a Pokeball went whizzing through the air. The fully evolved form of a famous Kanto starter announced its presence with a bloodthirsty roar. Charizard.
Now here was another familiar Pokemon to me. I may not have known what exactly this particular Charizard's style of fighting was, but I could go with a similar strategy I'd used in the past.
Arya was moving well before I spoke.
"Anti-Leon Strat Two."
(Somewhere in Galar, a certain purple-haired man with a hat and cape sneezed.)
The air around Arya's body shimmered as a protective veil snapped into place. With one flap of her wings, she summoned a Hurricane that enveloped the entire arena. Pink sparkles whipped around in the currents and colored the whole storm pink. The powerful winds were at Arya's beck and call as she looped astonishingly fast circles around Clair's Pokemon.
"Heat Wave into the storm!" Clair ordered with a glint in her eyes.
She was obviously trying to use the winds to her advantage and do something like what I'd done against her Altaria, but it wouldn't work here.
A massive wave of sweltering flames was exhaled by Charizard into the currents around it, but to both Clair's and her Pokemon's astonishment, the fire evaporated in the wind instead of growing larger. The fairy particles weaved into the wind were extinguishing any foreign attempts to invade their space.
This was Arya's storm, and it could not be quelled or manipulated.
When Arya fired off hybrid Dragon Pulses that followed the wind's path and spiraled towards their target like incoming missiles, Clair snapped out of her state of shock.
"Dragon Rush! Take the fight to them!"
Charizard bellowed furiously as it charged into the hurricane to escape the barrage. Its entire body was wreathed in blazing, draconic energy that protected it.
Moments into the storm, that coating petered out.
The fairy winds devoured their natural enemy and ate the blue aura until there was nothing left. In the end, Charizard was left exposed to battering winds that sliced viciously at its skin.
Clair's eye twitched. "Keep going! Air Slash!"
Her Pokemon gnashed its teeth together and whipped its wings. Pressurized blades of air went spinning outwards, but Arya easily navigated the winds to avoid them. This just infuriated Charizard and encouraged it to give chase. It was a strong and fast flier, but it couldn't ever hope to catch up to Arya. The Altaria had everything at her disposal: the Hurricane, a Tailwind, and her speed buffs from Dances to boot.
I nodded to myself. It was about time to wrap things up.
"Moonblast. Specialty."
Arya instantly rode a strong updraft high into the air above Charizard and snapped her beak open. Out flew a lone orb of light that traveled downwards. It didn't just fly a straight path.
It drifted and multiplied.
Like what Arya could do with cotton, the orb propagated rapidly until there were at least a dozen different copies. Each vibrated with a magical hum.
Clair's eyes widened.
"HYPER—"
She couldn't get an order out fast enough. The sea of orbs smashed into Charizard and exploded one after another.
Sound overwhelmed the world.
Each explosion let out not a deafening scream, but a symphony of choral notes so divine that even I felt my heart wrenching from how otherworldly it was. The sounds overlapped each other with startling intensity and followed what could only be called an exponential crescendo. Even for those outside the barrier, it almost became too much to bear.
It was a different story for those inside.
Charizard was screaming from excruciating pain. The roaring hurricane, the explosions burning its skin, the singing voices rattling Charizard's brain and very being— all of it was just too much sound being amplified at Arya's will.
Arya's hurricane died away as Charizard crashed to the ground. The Dragon was out cold, yet its lips had twisted into a smile — not of its own volition — from the sounds it had been subject to. Endless euphoria awaited it in dreams triggered by heavenly voices.
"Charizard is unable to battle. Leader Clair, you have thirty seconds to send out your last Pokemon."
I rolled my neck a bit and exhaled. After a series of short fights, here we finally were at the home stretch.
Any other trainer might have had a miserable expression on their face from such a one-sided match, but Clair looked as defiant as ever as she released her last Pokemon. A regal seahorse appeared in a flash of crimson light. This was Clair's famous starter and, supposedly, most powerful Pokemon.
Kingdra.
I could have swept Clair's entire team with just Arya alone, but I decided to end the match with a more dramatic finale instead. This was as much a beatdown as it was a showcase for me to brag about my Pokemon.
Before Clair could bark out an order, I revoked the Mega Evolution process, recalled Arya, and tossed out another Pokeball in one fluid transition. A massive serpent materialized on the field and instantly drew himself to his full, threatening height. Yuno stared down at the opposing Kingdra as if it was a mere speck of dust.
This would be a battle between two rulers of the sea.
"Ice Beam!" Clair yelled out.
A lightning fast beam of swirling frost was fired from Kingdra's snout at the same time that Yuno slammed his fan-like tail against the ground.
Mouths gaped in the audience as he flew all the way up to the ceiling from the Splash. Light reflected off his beautiful, multicolored scales and made it seem as if he was glowing.
We both smiled viciously.
"Submerge and drown."
The skies were covered with dark clouds in an instant. Sparkling water poured downwards in a never-ending deluge as Yuno fell back to earth. In front of me, an enormous tidal wave rose up.
It came crashing down on the field, and Yuno plunged right in.
The water level rose exponentially. In mere seconds, the entire space within the barrier had been submerged underwater from top to bottom from the Rain Dance and Surf. The Kadabra off to the sides were straining to keep the barrier up in the face of such sheer volume.
Inside, Yuno and Kingdra were swimming back and forth at incredible speeds as they circled each other. Only one of them was enjoying themselves.
This normally would have been more than an ideal environment for a Pokemon like Kingdra, but not when it was laced with the equivalent of poison for it. The whole body of water shimmered from fairy energy. Kingdra's scales were already starting to sizzle and burn away from prolonged contact.
Clair's face contorted with fury at the sight.
"Laser Beam!" she barked.
Powerful orange rays ripped through the water one after another without pause. As accurate as the shots were, Yuno still managed to stay ahead of them and weaved left and right in a mesmerizing dance.
Kingdra eventually swam forward to try and snipe my Pokemon down from a closer range. Yuno merely whipped back through the water and continued twirling out of its way. Neither Pokemon was giving the other any opportunity.
We could have played a keep-away game and let Kingdra fall to the ticking timer, but neither Yuno nor I would have been satisfied with that.
"Get closer. Burn it!" I said sharply.
"Stop it, Kingdra!" Clair ordered in response.
Kingdra traded strength for numbers as it fired off much thinner but blindingly fast Hyper Beams. Yuno fearlessly sped forward in a colorful blur. Most of the beams missed their mark, but a few slammed into him.
He simply continued on his way without so much as blinking. The shots were not as strong as they could have been, and against a defensive powerhouse like Yuno, they might as well have just been tickles.
When he got into range, Yuno made his move.
Light surged outwards in one big, concentrated wave from his body and crashed into Kingdra. The seahorse let out a gargled scream as more of its precious scales were incinerated, their paltry ashes drifting upwards around it.
"Dragon Tail! Slam it!" I ordered.
A glowing tail slammed powerfully against Kingdra before it could recover, and the seahorse went spinning backwards from the force. I snapped my fingers.
What better way to end the whole match than with a move that represented me and my Fairies?
"Moonblast, specialty."
A miniature moon was released from Yuno's mouth. It spun violently as it tore a path through the water like a speeding torpedo, and it expanded with every inch it took. Clair screamed at her Kingdra to beam it down, but it couldn't move.
Kingdra stood frozen in place, staring at the orb with a look of morbid fascination. The way it morphed and shifted made it seem alive. Insidious whispers drifted outwards from the approaching bubble and echoed through the watery tomb.
Don't look away from me, they murmured in Kingdra's ear.
And it really couldn't. The orb was so bright, so compelling, so beautiful—
Then it exploded in Kingdra's face, and the water burned.
The Moonblast burst outwards in dozens of thorns. Some exploded against Kingdra, others flew through the water, but they all burned whatever they touched. The water became a boiling, superheated mass of concentrated fairy energy that essentially cooked Kingdra alive. Its screams rang out long after the water collapsed and surged back out after the initial explosion.
The barrier shattered as a result of the pressure. Some of the sizzling water actually leaked out before the Kadabra snapped additional layers in place, and the audience breathed a sigh of relief since they were safe.
Kingdra could not say the same. The regal seahorse sank to the bottom of the field, severely burned and definitely unconscious.
"Kingdra is unable to battle. With a final score of 6-0, Gym Leader Arin is the victor of this match."
The submerged field evaporated instantly at Yuno's command as if it had never been there in the first place. Even from a distance, I could make out a mixture of emotions on Clair's face, everything from disbelief to anger to defeat. All the spectators sat in stunned silence.
I was still a bit pale-faced from invoking Mega Evolution, but I hummed to myself cheerfully.
Just another day of dragon slaying.