Tears started flowing from my eyes. I let Ash down... Dragonite won.

"Lance and..."

I tried to stand up... After a few attempts, I did it! It was heavy and I was in a great deal of pain, but I did it! I knew I probably wouldn't win and that continuing this battle would only cause me more pain, but I wanted to go on until the bitter end!'

"Huh, Bayleef got up? Excuse me, people. Continue the battle!"

"This is awesome, Bayleef!" Ash shouted.

Ash had to come up with something quickly. I definitely hoped he wouldn't order me to walk or jump a lot...

"Ash, that Bayleef of yours has a lot of willpower!" Lance complimented Ash. "However, my Dragonite is simply too strong! Dragonite, use your Dragonbreath!"

Some weird, eerie attack was on their way to hit me. However, I tried to let the green stuff reach my leaf and aggressively deflected it back to that stupid dragon with my leaf, hitting him with his own attack.

"Gooooo!" Dragonite screamed. The dragon was stuck, stood still and had trouble moving.

"Oh no!" Lance screamed. "Dragonite is paralyzed by his own Dragonbreath! Now he can't avoid Bayleef's attacks anymore!"

"Bayleef, that's amazing! And that after such a blow..." Ash squealed, while his eyes started shining. "You're so awesome, Bayleef!"

When I saw my trainer's eyes shining with determination, I felt rejuvenated. I was going to win this battle! F*ck that dragon! He may be bulky and strong, but I am smarter and more tactical! And hey, maybe I might be just as powerful!

However, Lance certainly wasn't about to give up yet. "Dragonite, even if you can't walk or fly anymore, you can still hit Bayleef from a distance! Let's finish this with your Fire Blast!"

Fire Blast? Oh no! If a Fire attack like that would hit me, this battle would be over.

When the fire was shot at me, I just had to move. It would hurt, I was tired, but I had no choice. I quickly jumped away, which was enough to avoid the flames. However, my legs started feeling weaker and weaker. Ash, please think of something...

Then, Ash had a revelation. "That's it! Bayleef, use your Mud-Slap on Dragonite's face!" And so, I turned around and started digging into the ground with my hind legs, pouring mud and dirt onto the meanie's eyes and mouth.

"Oh no!" Lance screamed. He knew Dragonite was unable to see, rendering the dragon unable to aim his long-distance attacks at me. And he was still paralyzed by the Dragonbreath, so a physical attack also wasn't an option for the dragon. All those weeks of training at Oak's lab practicing my Mud-Slap finally paid off!

However, my legs were not able to handle this much longer. Please, Ash, don't tell me to use another attack that involves jumping, kicking or running...

This time, Ash understood I was almost as immobile as Dragonite and told me to use my strongest attack, Solarbeam. However, unlike the big meanie jerk, I could still see and aim. And so, I started charging, hoping Dragonite wouldn't be able to somehow hit me in the meantime.

Luckily, I didn't have to worry about that. The dragon tried striking me with a Bubblebeam, but he aimlessly sent bubbles everywhere, without hitting me.

After a few more seconds, I finished charging. From the leaf on top of my head, I shot a beam powered by sunlight at the dragon, causing him to collapse.

While Dragonite was laying on the groud and didn't move, I tried to keep standing. The Solarbeam took a lot of my energy. If I would collapse before the referee declared me the winner, all my efforts would be wasted. I might be exhausted and almost done for, but the show must go on!

However, when the referee just had the right flag in his hands, Dragonite's eyes opened! The dragon was almost done for, but somehow, he still found the energy to get up one last time.

"Bayleef, it's okay to give up. You did your best. If you can't go on anymore, you don't have to," Ash said.

However, I wanted to continue. Ash even tried returning me to my Poke Ball, but I jumped away from it, despite the pain in my legs.

And so, without any orders from Ash, I aimed one last Razor Leaf at my opponent. The sharp leaves struck that sh*tty dragon all over his body, hopefully finishing the battle once and for all. And this time, for real, no more getting up for him. Luckily, Dragonite was in a great deal of pain when the leaves struck his face, wings, stomach and limbs. The dragon fell down on the ground again. Motionless. With his eyes closed.

Please let Dragonite be defeated now, I thought... I couldn't take it anymore. I was exhausted. But despite my struggles, I was still standing. Unlike Dragonite. Finally, the referee waved a red flag, said Dragonite was no longer able to battle. Ash was the winner. No, not just the winner. Ash was the Champion of Kanto and Johto.

I did it. I f*cking did it! The audience went crazy, thousands of people even cheered for me and screamed my name. I was a star. However, I didn't care what all those people thought. I made Ash proud, that's all that really matters.

I looked at Brock. Yes, Pikachu was still in his hands, so he couldn't steal my glory! Normally, when I won a battle for Ash, Pikachu always took the spotlight and celebrated with him. But today, he couldn't. Of course I hoped Pikachu wasn't hurt too badly and of course I wanted him to recover. But not now. First, I want my well-deserved hug.

And I got it. While I finally succumbed to the pain and exhaustion, I leaned on Ash and rested my head on his lap while he sat down. He kept stroking my head. Despite my wounds and bruises, this was the best feeling of my life. This moment was not allowed to end anytime soon. I won this battle for Ash. I got praised and hugged by Ash in front of a giant audience. This wasn't Charizard's or Pikachu's battle. This was my victory. My victory...

Then, while still resting on Ash, I fell into a deep slumber...