Review Responses: ZXCVBNMEM – Maybe. *Sweats and attempts to think of a plot twist unsuccessfully*

Russetwing – Your theory might have some merit. Then again, it might not. No spoilers! No matter how long it takes me to write. Though I will say that I might have a solution to the problem if what you say ends up happening. Not saying it will. Thanks again for the beta-reading!

Potayto – Thank you!

LiveandLearn2 – Yep, Samurott's a mom. A lover, not a fighter. Through she will fight if necessary. Witt is still an Oshawott. For now, anyway. Y'wanna know a funny thing about Axel? I made him before even hearing about Kingdom Hearts. Thanks for the review! It's truly appreciated.

Spyhunter7 – Actually I had this planned all along, but that was great guessing on your part. That's pretty nice of you to say that you've already become attached to Amber and Samurott. We'll be seeing some more of them in this chapter, so I hope it satisfies you.

Raikahoken – I'll try as soon as I remember how to update regularly. Sorry!

Ashley Eon – Wow… thanks. That means a great deal! Free hug if you want it!

So yeah, I started playing Black 2… and then realized I hadn't updated this thing in, like, three months. Oops. My muse is a harsh mistress, my friends. Also, my depression has kind of snuck up on me these past couple of months and I think it might have affected my writing. Let me know if this chapter is different in any way.

Speaking of the writing, we've got ourselves a beta-reader. My good friend, Russetwing, has graciously accepted my request to beta read. Check her out. Especially if you're a Pokémon Platinum, Fire Emblem, or Warriors fan. Even if you're not, read her fics anyway! She's awesome! I even have a collaboration fanfic with her called "Celestial Collision".

Also, remember, if your OC loses, these standings were made to be completely random. I had no control.

My answer to last chapter's question: Braviary.

Chapter 29: Second Round, Black vs. White

"There y'go, all fixed up," Axel Igaul said as he fiddled with my X-transceiver. After closing the device in his hand up with a screwdriver, he brought his strange pen-like device to the device and started it with a whirring noise, the tip lighting up with its usual sapphire glow. Something clicked inside the device and he then handed it back to me. With a grin on my face, I snapped the gadget around my wrist and hit the on switch, praying hard. To my joy, it turned on.

"Thanks Mr. Igaul," I said, playing with my gadget some more just to make sure it was all good. Axel sighed.

"If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times Blackster. Axel is my name."

By chance, I had run into the silver-haired champion on my way to the tournament. Battles Spire Isle wasn't just named as it was for show. There was a spire-like mountain sitting smack-dab in the middle of the island, surrounded at the base by trees. When I had encountered Axel, he had been staring at the mountain with some kind of purpose. His eyes were narrowed and his arms were crossed, as if the mountain had ticked him off in some way. But he, as he usually did, changed immediately when he saw me coming in all my fanboy-weirdness. He had offered to fix my X-transceiver and I was more than happy to accept.

"Sorry, I can't fix your pokédex. That thing's beyond my ability."

"That's okay. I don't think it's in any state to get fixed anyway," I explained, a tone of disappointment escaping my voice. Poor me and my lack of a pokédex. I loved that thing so much.

"Well, Professor Juniper's supposed to be coming around later. Maybe you can ask her about it."

"Really? Thanks! You invited her?"

"'Course I did! I need her help with something anyway."

"Does it have anything to do with why you're over here instead of where the tournament's going to start?"

"Don't think about stuff like that Black. Just go on, the proceedings start soon. You're gonna be late."

"But… it's your tournament. I'm kinda curious why you haven't shown your face yet. I mean, no disrespect or anything-"

"Hey Black," Axel began as a slight sly grin crept over him. I gulped. I knew that look. I saw it every time I watched one of his matches. This was his 'winning strategy smirk' as I had come to call it. Gulp. "I think Kenya wants to say hello."

Wait… did he just threaten to sick the Dragonite on me if I didn't leave him alone? I wasn't gonna take the chance. Sweat immediately started pouring down my face like miniature waterfalls. Axel reached for his pokéballs and I did the only thing I could think of. Run away screaming like a little girl.

"NO THANKS! I'LL TALK TO HIM LATER!" I screeched as I dashed through the woods, nearly running directly into several trees. Luckily, I still had enough of my wits about me to dodge them all as I passed through them like fire. Eventually the adrenaline shut off and I was panting my way through, but fortunately it was when I was at the forest's edge. I passed in between the last two trees of it and stepped onto a rather marshy meadow.

I raised my head up, seeing a gigantic crowd of trainers in the meadow, all of them surrounding what seemed to be an outdoor stage. A very…dilapidated wooden outdoor stage. Cracks were abundant in the wooden planks holding it up and it didn't look like it would support more than one person, let alone the giant flat-screen sitting on top of it with the words 'Battle Spire Isle Tourney' glowing on it. Creative.

"Hey Black!" I heard Ellen's voice. I glanced over at the leftmost side of the crowd, seeing Ellen waving at me and Arcade giving me a nod. I ran over, Ellen giving me the death hug when I got there. This time though, I heard her take a whiff of me and she instantly let go, pinching her nose. I gave her a quizzical look. "Sorry, it's just, you smell like wet Herdier. I'll hug Arcade instead."

"Wait wha-?" Arcade spluttered before Ellen gave him the death hug. Of course, he responded by giving me the death glare.

Thank you Samurott, I thought, gleeful that I once again managed to avoid getting my ribs crushed.

"EVERYBODY LISTEN UP!" Don George's voice broke through my Samurott praise. I looked over the stage, as well as the other tournament participants. Don George had managed to sneak his way up there without anyone noticing. Stealthier than he looked. And ironically, he didn't need a microphone to make his voice ring out through the island. Strange guy. The other fourteen in the crowd had their eyes on him as he pumped a fist in the air, his eagerness for battling reflected on his face with a giant dumb grin. "First up, congrats to all sixteen of you for making it this far! Now, there are a few ground rules we've gotta set up before we begin the fighting! First of all, even though you were able to stay in the hotel in the village, you are not permitted to go any further into the village on this island."

Murmurs broke out through the trainers. Some about the reasons why and some just complaining that they wouldn't be able to get any shopping done. A single clearing of the throat from Don George, however, shut them all up.

"The reason being is simple. I don't suppose any of you are aware of the legend of this place?"

The motions that the heads all around me took resounded to a big fat 'no'.

"It's very simple. Long ago, in ancient Unova, there was a war. A war started by mankind that threatened to burn Unova to the ground, endangering the lives of humans and Pokémon alike. However, three Pokémon stepped up to save the Pokémon. They were known as the Musketeer Trio. Cobalion, Virizion, and Terrakion. The three guided the Pokémon through the fires and the floods, guiding them to separate safe areas. One of those areas was this island. It was, apparently, originally a peninsula. However, Terrakion, the strongest of the three legendary Pokémon, destroyed the land leading to the island, staying there with the Pokémon and the native humans of the island, protecting them. To this day, Terrakion is said to still be here."

The crowd was silent. Not because we were shocked about the legend, but because we didn't expect Don George to be this coherent when talking about mythology. He didn't seem to notice.

"The people here don't take too kindly to outsiders, not letting too many people here at a time. However, this tournament takes place here because of its significance in Unova mythology. So as to honor Terrakion's strength, I hope you all show his spirit the battles of a lifetime. Usually, when it comes to battling, you should leave everything to me. But this time, I'm leaving it to you. SO GET READY!" We all jumped from the sudden outburst. "Let's get this started! Here are the matchups for round two as well as where on the island the battles will take place! The info you're about to hear will be uploaded directly with your X-Transceivers! So turn 'em on!"

Wow, I was lucky Axel was able to fix this thing on my wrist. I turned it on, seeing a signal symbol and the words 'receiving data' displayed on the tiny screen. This then switched to an overhead map of the island, eight red dots appearing on specific locations.

"The first match of round two will be-"

Every participant inhaled.

"-Trip versus Ellen!"

My eyes widened as Ellen and Trip's pictures appeared on the tv screen on stage. Simultaneously, their names popped up next to a red dot in the forest area on my mini map. I gulped and looked around for Trip, finding him smirking like a jerk near the front of the crowd. I turned to Ellen seeing how she would react. Are you surprised she was grinning with lights in her eyes? You shouldn't be.

"Next matchup! Zack versus Bianca!"

"Oh yay! I'm up second!" I heard Bianca scream.

"This'll be the last time she's up," I heard Zack snicker to Mikey near me. I sighed. Same old Bianca and same old Zack. Overly happy and overly confident. Their names appeared on a dot near the mountain on my map.

"The third pair is Yuki and Cheren."

At the mere mention of Yuki's name, I attempted to make myself shrink. If he saw me I'm pretty sure my face would be a pancake. Naturally, neither of them gloated about victory. At least, not from what I could hear.

The next matchup, however, scared me far more than Yuki ever could.

"Match four will be Black versus White!"

I don't think my lungs were functioning for the next sixty seconds. I stood stock still, nervousness rattling my spine. I hadn't seen this coming. Out of everyone here, this was what I wanted the least. I had to go up against the girl, who, for all I know, had never lost a single match. The girl who beat Burgh in five minutes. The girl who seemed to hate me more and more every time she saw me. I stared at my shoes, watching the laces blow in the breeze, my head unable to process anything else at the time. She was the hero of Unova, the bane of Plasma, the thing that scared me more than Alicia or Yuki. And I was supposed to fight her. I buried my face in my hands. One word playing over and over before my eyes.

Meep.

My X-Transceiver beeped, bringing me out of my trance. I looked, seeing that my match was to be held at the beach. Even more depressing, it was at the same beach that Samurott and Amber were at. Wonderful. Now I would be humiliated in front of my new friends. Ellen and Arcade didn't notice. Arcade was busy trying to escape Ellen's grasp and Ellen was busy trying to keep him there. So I was alone. Even better.

"Hey," I heard a cold, brooding voice slither into my ear. I jumped about ten feet in the air as I turned around, coming face to face with White, sneering as usual. "You Black?"

"Y-Y-Y-Yeah?" I answered, not even trying to remind her that we'd met before. She pointed her index finger at my nose. I rubbed it, thinking it had a smudge on it, but swiftly ceased when I realized she was just doing it to be intimidating. It was working rather well if I may say so.

"You may as well just give up. I've decided that I'm going to win this."

"You've decided that, huh?" I asked, still frightened out of my mind, but a little miffed at her arrogance. She smirked triumphantly, removing a pokéball from her belt and clutching it in her fist.

"Yep. That grand prize looks pretty nifty. And I've decided that I'll win it."

"Grand prize?" I asked, my ignorance making White scoff.

"You entered this thing and you don't even know what the winner gets?"

"Uh..."

"The winner, which'll be me, gets a Master Ball. And the option to fight against Axel Igaul."

"WHAAAT?!" I yelled at the top of my lungs, drawing the eyes of the entire crowd. My face turned crimson in an instant.

"You're kinda slow, aren't you? Whatever. Hope you put up a fight. I ain't gonna lose. I never do."

And with that, she walked off, leaving me with the knowledge that I could possibly get a pokéball that never failed to capture. Not to mention the chance to battle with my hero. Sure, I'd lose in three seconds, but it would still be awesome. I'm sure Ellen would've been equally blown away were she not trying to convince Arcade to watch her battle.

"No." Arcade said.

"C'mon! I need someone to hug when I win!"

"That's exactly why I don't want to go. Black! Do something about this!"

"If I could do something about this, I would," I replied. Unfortunately, he didn't have an overprotective Snivy to defend him. Or the scent of wet Samurott fur on his clothes. Both seem to be good at keeping Ellen hugs at bay.

I missed the calling out of the remainder of the matchups so I checked X-Transceiver for them. The last four matches were as follows.

Ash versus Iris.

Nessie versus Mikey.

May versus Apollo.

Cilan versus Mila.

"Come on Arcade, let's go! Seeya after your match Black!" Ellen said, dashing off into the forest, dragging Arcade along by the arm. I waved goodbye awkwardly, hoping Arcade would be able to withstand her wrath.

Before I would follow suit, I looked over at White. She was walking away as well, most likely towards the beach. My eyes narrowed. I felt a fiery conviction well up inside my stomach like a balloon. I didn't know if I could do it or not, but I was sure as hell gonna try and knock White off her high horse.

"Ellen, I'm perfectly capable of walking," Arcade said as she dragged him into the forest, towards her own battle.

"Yes, but you're too slow. It's much better this way," she replied, her blissfully ignorant smile on her face, as was the norm. Arcade sighed, as that was his norm.

Eventually, Ellen slowed to a walk, her eyes on the pink X-Transceiver on her wrist, letting it lead them to the battle site. She continued to tow Arcade along, despite him being able to keep up with her at this point. The pair passed through a gate of trees, finding themselves in a sunlit clearing, the mountain standing ominously in the background. Ellen and Arcade took notice of this after they took notice of the boy standing across from them with his arms crossed as if expecting them.

"Hiya Trip!" Ellen exclaimed happily, waving like a madwoman. She seemed to have forgotten the Pokémon abuse Trip had instigated in Castelia, but in all fairness, it was Ellen. Trip nodded.

"Let's get this over with," Trip stated as a Don George stepped out from the forest as well. Ellen and Arcade jumped, having not heard him at all. Every Don George was stealthy it appeared.

"Ellen. Trip. Are you both prepared?"

"Yep!" Ellen said.

"Of course," Trip followed up, clearly bored out of his mind.

"Alright then! Let the double battle begin!"

"Venipede! Blitzle! Let's go!" Ellen declared, throwing her two pokéballs. They opened wide, revealing her two choices to the world.

"Lampent! Vanillite! I choose you!" Trip proclaimed, retaliating in kind to Ellen with said choices. The two Pokémon emerged in their individual flashes of light, the ice cream scoop and the floating lamp actually managing to look a tad intimidating considering Ellen's situation. No matter what though, Ellen had finished doubting her ability when she met May. So without hesitation, she stepped up and began the fight.

"Venipede! Use Rollout on Lampent! Blitzle, use Charge Beam on Vanillite!"

"Vanillite, dodge and use Icy Wind on Venipede! Lampent, dodge and use Shadow Ball on Blitzle!"

Ellen was unwillingly subject to Trip's ploys, his two floating Pokémon easily swerving out of the way of Ellen's two troops, Blitzle grumbling and Venipede flopping onto his back pathetically. Vanillite and Lampent unleashed their projectiles, Lampent sending a Shadow Ball Blitzle's way and Vanillite blowing freezing winds out of her mouth towards Venipede. Blitzle galloped out of the line of fire just in time, but Venipede wasn't as on the ball. The force of the wind rolled him over onto his front, his antennae freezing.

"Lampent! Use Flamethrower on Venipede! Vanillite! Ice Beam on Blitzle!"

"Blitzle! Counter that with your Charge Beam! Venipede! Dodge it with Rollout!"

Vanillite fired her blue lightning at Blitzle, only to be met midair with Blitzle's yellow bolt. The two were equally matched, both fizzling into non-existence. Venipede, having dimmer reflexes, tried to roll out of the incoming Flamethrower, only managing to get himself scorched, rolling into a tree, tears of pain running like waterfalls out of his eyes. Trip, unfortunately for Ellen, was beginning to catch on.

"Lampent! Vanillite! The Venipede's inconsequential. Focus Ice Beam and Flamethrower on Blitzle!"

"Blitzle, dodge!"

Except, he couldn't dodge. Trip's Pokémon seemed to have an innate strategy for this kind of thing. Lampent launched Flamethrower to Blitzle's left, creating an impassable wall. When Blitzle attempted to dodge to the right, he was met by an onslaught of icy lightning. After tumbling from that assault, Blitzle was struck again by the altered trajectory of Lampent's Flamethrower, toasting the zebra without mercy. Needless to say, he fainted.

"Blitzle!" Ellen shouted, tension spiking within her.

"Blitzle is unable to battle! Continue as you have!" Don George made the call as Ellen sadly returned Blitzle to his pokéball. Determination burned onto her face, her eyes finding the distressed Venipede as Trip's partners closed in on him.

"Venipede! Solarbeam!"

"That's gonna take time to charge! Lampent use Flamethrower and Vanillite use Ice Bea-"

Under stress, as it turned out, Venipede was capable of incredible things. Including interrupting Trip with an instantly charged Solarbeam. Halfway out of surprise and halfway out of Venipede's strength, Vanillite and Lampent staggered midair, giving the crying Venipede enough time to get himself upright and to escape, scuttling off like an energized crap across the mossy forest floor.

"Lampent! Vanillite! After that crybaby!"

"Run Venipede!"

I don't think he would've done anything else. Lampent and Vanillite chased the insect round the clearing, spurting flame wisps and icy winds accordingly every few seconds, nearly missing him every time.

"Stand still you little wimp!" Trip yelled angrily.

That remark caused Venipede to open his eyes wide. The tears were suddenly gone. All that was left… was rage. He continued to run, but you could hear him let out an aggravated chirping, like the sound a cricket would make only somehow… threatening.

"Venipede! Venipede! VEN!" Venipede screeched, his tiny head looking at Trip as he ran past. "VENIPEDE! VENIPEDE! VEN-VEN-VEN!"

And then he began to glow.


"Are you both ready?" Another Don George asked the participants standing apart from each other. The mountain of the island stood proudly behind Don George, the two tournament combatants not paying it any heed. They were focused on each other.

"Yep!" Zack nodded, smirking triumphantly.

"Yeah!" Bianca responded, cheerful as ever.

"THEN BEGIN!"

"Let's win this quick guys! Arcane! Vincent! I choose you!" Zack declared, releasing both his Sigilyph and his Galvantula, both releasing fierce growls. Not sure how the totem pole Pokémon growled, but according to Bianca, he did, so what do I know?

"Pignite! Mincinno! Here we go!" Bianca responded in kind, throwing her pokéballs with gusto and releasing her pig warrior as well as the chinchilla. The two looked just as elated as her, though it was quite obvious Pignite was itching for a fight.

"Vincent! This'll be a piece of pie! Speaking of which, let's grab some pizza later. Anyway, use Electro Ball on Mincinno! Arcane, use Air Slash on Pignite!"

"Dodge those!" Bianca gave the order, but the two were not quite able to follow it. Pignite dodged the first slice of air Arcane sent spinning his way, but tripped just before the flying type launched the second one. The pig rolled backward, Mincinno landing on top of him after being blasted backward by Vincent's (no pun intended) lightning-fast Electro Ball. "Mincinno! Pignite!"

"Don't let her loose yet! Use Signal Beam and Psychic!"

Arcane's eye began to glow a dank crimson, and before you could say 'psychic powers' both of Bianca's Pokémon were lifted off the ground and strung up like targets by an unseen force. Both gulped as they stared at Vincent charging his pink Signal Beam.

"Mincinno! Throw his aim off using Swift!" Mincinno, still suspended off the earth, managed to flick his tail and send gold stars flying towards Zack's two Pokémon. Swift, being a sure-shot move, struck both Pokémon in their eyes. The resulting confusion forced Arcane to drop Bianca's soldiers.

"What the-?"

"Pignite, let's get ourselves some leeway with Flame Charge!"

"Wait! Wait! Wait! Which one are you-?" Zack may have needed to know which of his Pokémon Pignite would be going after, but Pignite sure didn't. The boar warrior (or maybe I could call him a boar-ior) leaped towards Arcane, moving as if launched from a cannon. After coming into contact with the Sigilyph, he bounced off him like a spring, rebounding towards Galvantula below.

"What even was that?!" Zack seethed through gritted teeth as Galvantula was crushed beneath the pig's weight.

"Oh, do you like it? It's a trick I learned from my friend Black! Fire Rocket! But since Pignite can't fly, he just uses agility! I guess we can call it a Flame Leap!"

"Grr! I'll get you and your little flame-leaping pig too! Arcane! No more playing! Use Air Cutter!"

"Mincinno! Counter it with Swift!" Mincinno didn't so much counter the move as he did match it. Arcane's sharp gusts of air passed right through the chinchilla's golden stars, both smashing directly into the opposite opponent, knocking both backward and causing Arcane to lose flight altogether. "Pignite! Finish it with Flamethrower!"

"Vincent, silence the fuzzball with Electro Ball!"

The two Pokémon did as instructed, Pignite letting loose a string of flame from his nostrils while a ball of voltaic energy built up between his mandibles. The assaults struck true, knocking their targets out of the fight.

"Sigilyph and Mincinno are both unable to battle! Call 'em back!" Don George ordered. Bianca nodded and Zack snarled, but still followed suit with Bianca, taking out a pokéball and recalling his totem Pokémon. The two opponents stared at each other catching up with the adrenaline they felt, a desire to win burning in both.

"Pignite! Flamethrower!"

"Vincent! Signal Beam!"

Fierce flames collided with the pink energy burst, sparks flying at the impact site as the pair of energies attempted to override the other. Both Pokémon turned up the juice, their strength rivaling each other until something gave out.

There was an explosion of energy. Only one was left standing.


I would tell you about Cheren's battle with Yuki, but Cheren never told me what transpired. In fact, anytime I would bring it up, his face became as red as a Darumaka's.

Yeah, the nerd got flattened. Standard fare for Yuki.

But now for the centerpiece of my island experience. I stepped out of the forest onto the familiar beach, sand being crushed beneath my feet. I looked around not noticing anyone else at present. I looked at my X-transceiver again, double-checking that I had the right place. I nodded to no one in particular. This was definitely the spot. Now, I guess I had to wait.

"Black!" I heard a friendly voice I definitely knew say my name. I looked up, a grin charging onto my face. I waved over at the secluded mini-cove, Samurott's head poking out of it and Amber sitting next to it, her tail wagging eagerly. I ran over, smile still ablaze on me. Amber leaped into my arms as I approached, an even larger grin on her face. "Didja come back to stay?"

"No, sorry. I got a battle over here."

"Battle?" Amber's tone suddenly became fearful. "Are the bad people coming back?"

"No, I'm pretty sure your mom scared them away for good." I laughed a bit, winking towards Samurott. Amber looked confused. "This battle's… for sport."

"Sport…?"

"Yeah, my pals and I fight against another team to build up our strength."

"I don't get how that's fun."

"Well… it's kinda hard to explain, admittedly. I guess when we fight our hardest… we grow a little closer together. And we kind of show the other team what we're all about too. And hopefully that helps them grow too."

"Oh…" Amber seemed to think about it and I realized how ludicrous this might sound to a wild Pokémon with no notions of trainers or battles prior to this. But, to my surprise, she looked up at me with her grin returning. "I think I understand."

"There's the spirit!" I said, my smile gaining some teeth.

"What are you doing?" I froze on the spot as that cold and unfeeling voice crawled into my ears. I whirled around, seeing a puzzled White with a quirked eyebrow as she gazed over my shoulder, looking at Samurott. "Were you…"

Oh sweet merciful Mew, don't tell me she heard all that?

"Uhhhh…" As usual, when I dealt with White, my face froze. She looked from Samurott, to Amber, back to me, then to Samurott, etc. It was a while before either of us said anything. Her, too confused to even find the words, and me, worried I was about to be committed. She was the one to break the silence, of course.

"Don't… tell me you were just talking to-"

"Okay! I will definitely not tell you that!" I responded quickly, not giving her the chance to finish. She was about to say more, but fortunately, another voice beat her to it.

"Black! White!" I looked over White's shoulder as well as White herself, both of our eyes locking onto Don George down the beach. Phew, saved by the bell. "Are you both ready?"

White shot a death glare at me, but relented. Phew, that was close. I set Amber down and followed her, making sure to keep out of arms reach White stood apart from Don George then whirled around dramatically, a smirk on her face as she glared at me. I sighed. Why was everyone taking this so seriously? I thought this would be fun.

Oh wait, that's right, there was a Master Ball on the line. Silly me.

"Black versus White! Are both of you ready?" Don George asked, his head turning to both of us alternatingly as if he were watching a tennis rally.

"You know it!" White cried out.

"Actually, can I have a few min-" I began to speak, but apparently this Don George has selective hearing.

"Then send out your Pokémon!"

"Dewott! Pansear! I choose you!" White announced, throwing two pokéballs my way. They burst open, her Dewott and a Pansear stepping onto the sands in response to her summoning. I gulped as I looked into their eyes. The phrase 'eyes of a warrior' came to mind as they reflected my very disturbed face. There was absolute confidence emanating from them as expected from Pokémon of a trainer whose loss count was non-existent.

"O-Okay then, Witt and Tony! You're up!" Whether I was ready or not, I was still in this. And if Tony and Witt were ready to go, then I would press on. Fortunately, when they appeared, they had confident smirks on their faces. If they only knew the horror that awaited us.

"AND BEGIN!"

"Witt! Use-"

"Dewott! Use Water Gun! Pansear! Flamethrower!" White pre-empted me, her Pokémon releasing their attacks in a stream of water and fire. My two Pokémon dodged, both leaping into the air to avoid the blasts as they collided harmlessly into the sands beneath us.

"Tony! Fight back with-"

"Pansear! Flamethrower!" Again, White had decided not to designate a target. As a result, I had no idea who should be blocking the attack with what. Before I knew it, Witt had been blown across the face with the river of flames, skidding to a stop in a sand pile. Tony stayed airborne with his wings, but White had already planned for it. "Aqua Jet, Dewott!"

"Tony! Fight back using Zen Headbutt!" One would think that my first utterance of an order would go well. One would then have to regret being so naïve. Dewott's body was suddenly surrounded by gushing water and he rocketed towards Tony, the Victini charging at a slower speed. The Victory Pokémon's head began to glow blue as usual just before colliding with the charging Dewott.

Tony never stood a chance. Unexpectedly, Dewott swerved out of Tony's way just in time to avoid a direct confrontation and instead dispersed the Aqua Jet just as Tony was about to breeze by him harmlessly. I tried to tell Tony to look out but White's mouth was faster than mine.

"Razor Shell!" Dewott snatched up one of his scalchops and smacked Tony downward with it mercilessly. Tony plummeted, creating a sand crater when he landed.

"Why you!" Witt cried out as he got up, grinding his teeth. Tony got up less angrily, but rubbing his head as he'd been through quite the ordeal.

"Dewott! Ice Beam!" Rather than taking the time to gloat, like most of my previous opponents, White didn't mess around. Dewott jumped up, overlooking my two grounded pals with narrowed eyes. An orb of blue energy built up between Dewott's hands, preparing to fire off some more sub-zero energy. But it was taking him time. And that gave me some inspiration.

"Wiit, use Water Pulse and aim for that Ice Beam!" Witt was more than happy to comply, building up a ball of water between his paws before tossing it. What was supposed to happen was that the Water Pulse was meant to impact the Ice Beam before it was finished to get Dewott wet and cause the move to backfire. To the credit of my never-ending misfortune, Dewott was faster than I estimated. Ice Beam activated before Water Pulse had even traversed its journey halfway. The Water Pulse transformed into a ball of ice as the blue lightning struck it. Witt's smirk faded into a look of terror as the icy ball began falling back toward him. "Gah! Tony, use Confusion to knock it out of the way!"

"Dewott! Use Water Gun on the Victini!" No chance for recovery for my team. Dewott landed and did not take a moment to prepare. With pinpoint accuracy, he launched Water Gun, Tony losing focus as he was caught up in the gushing water. He landed at my feet, Witt getting flattened under the ice orb as this occurred. I facepalmed. This was going much worse than I thought it would. And I predicted we would get creamed.

"Too easy!" White yelled out, pointing at me with a triumphant grin. I flinched slightly from the gesture. "Listen up! If you're not fighting at your best, then start, because I don't want to be fighting against someone who's not trying!"

Not trying? I'm doing my best here girlie! I thought angrily without showing a trace of it.

"If my Pokémon and I are ever gonna get to the top, we gotta fight the best! So if you're not putting up a fight, then get ready to be blown out of the way! I don't know where you came from, but you're looking at Nuvema's shining star! Not you, not Team Plasma, not any gym leader can stop me!"

Nuvema's shining star? I don't remember that nickname.

"Whoa, so you're the one fighting White?" I heard a familiar, yet annoying voice pierce my eardrums. I looked over to my left at the forest, seeing Cheren step out as he adjusted his glasses. "Geez, you should give up. If you couldn't beat me, then you don't stand a chance against her. After all, if anyone's going to beat her, it'll be me."

You mind staying out of this? I really wish I had the courage to say these things out loud.

"Yeah, I hate to say it," I grimaced as I heard another voice. It wasn't anywhere near as annoying as Cheren's, but it still didn't need to be here. I whirled around, finding Arcade and Ellen, Arcade being the one that just spoke. Though, to his credit, he at least looked like he was feeling bad about saying this. "But in terms of number of wins… I think it's better to throw in the towel than get your Pokémon hurt."

"How'd your match go, Ellen?" I asked, not even taking Arcade's words into account. He was miffed, but I knew he was right either way.

"Great. I won. And check out the reason!" Ellen said ecstatically just before stepping back, revealing something behind her. My eyes widened. It was a Whirlipede. But this Whirlipede was different from the one I had seen with Burgh. Burgh's Whirlipede had a bright purple and red rings featured on his body while Ellen's was a much darker shade of purple and green rings all over the segments of his body. I grinned back.

"Nice work! So I guess Venipede evolved, huh?"

"Yep!" Whirlipede declared happily, not bawling his eyes out for the first time. Ellen pat him like a pet Lillipup. Guess she still wasn't worried about Poison Point. "I won all by myself because Ellen believed in me."

"That's great. Good for you."

"HELLO!" White reminded me where I was and I turned around again, facing her stamping her feet angrily. I groaned. "We're fighting here!"

"Not for long." Cheren said softly. I shot him the death stare and then looked back at White. I sighed. Why was I even surprised at how much she had just wiped the floor with me? Two rounds of moves and all that I had really accomplished was that I had given her Dewott some target practice. I looked down at Tony as he tried to shake the water out of his fur and at Witt as he rolled the ice sphere off him, the sounds of his hard breathing increasing the sensation of having let him down somehow.

White was always the star. It was a pipe dream to think I could beat her as inexperienced as I was now. Hell, she was always tough. And her Pokémon simply matched. I reached for my pokéballs, opened my mouth to surrender and-

"You think so, nerd?"

Oh great Arceus, more lovely voices! This time, to add insult to injury, it was Yuki. He stepped out from the underbrush, coming up from behind Cheren and snickering sinisterly as he folded his arms. Why was he here? Was it to gloat? I think it was to gloat. Cheren disagreed. He was focused on flinching from the very sound of Yuki's overly deep voice. I got a little happier. Guess Cheren lost. Badly. That was enough to make the day a little brighter.

"I don't think you have any right to be calling anyone out on being terrible, newbie." Yuki moved in on Cheren and the geek backed off, backing into a tree. Yuki had apparently given him that brand of Yuki-fear. Even more wonderful. "After all, even the kid's put up more of a fight than you have."

Wait… was he talking about me?

"I mean, he actually got me off guard once or twice. Beating up on you was fun, nerd. But when I punish that kid over there-" He pointed at me. Gulp. "-he's going to be an absolute treat to take down. Because his dream will be harder to crush. Not much harder, but it'll still be a pleasure."

Yuki's eyes then darted to me. For a moment, the lighting was just right for me to catch the purple eyes behind the sunglasses. And was it just me… or did I see grudging respect? Must've just been me.

"So fight y'little brat!" Yuki ordered at me. I cringed, hoping he didn't have a gun on him. "No one's gonna get the pleasure of beating you senseless except for me!"

I suppose that was his definition of a pep talk. I looked from him to White, to him, to White, etc. There was only one question that would decide my next action. Who was I more afraid of?

"Yeah! Fight on, bud!" This voice was probably the least annoying of all. Twenty feet to Yuki's left, Zack stepped out, looking angered. "I can't wait to see what cool moves you whip out! After all, it takes serious skills to beat me! And I've heard some rumors about this White girl too. So this battle's gonna be awesome!"

"Wait, Zack!" Bianca's tone crept through the barrier of trees. Zack's eyes widened as Bianca passed into my vision. She handed something to him, smiling as Zack's face twitched. "You dropped this after you lost!"

No one said a word. From the look on Zack's face, if anyone said anything, they'd get a pounding.

"Awww," I heard White's Pansear speak up. The monkey shrugged smugly, giving me a look that sscreamed, 'I'm better than you'. Nearly made me kick him. "This is so adorable. I say we waste 'im. It'll be funny."

"Don't get cocky." Dewott said back. At least someone respected me. "It's in the bag, but don't get a swelled head over it."

Never mind.

"Hey, shut up over there!" Witt retorted, face completely red as he huffed smoke. Yikes. "We're the best team out there, you got that? You wanna know why?"

"I'll bite. I could use a good laugh." Pansear replied, throwing his hands behind his head. Witt barked at him.

"It's 'cause we got Bro!" Tony said, a smile on his face, despite the fact that we never landed a hit on the untouchable duo. "He's the best human ever. I was lost and all alone and really scared. And then Bro here came along and I felt like I could do anything. I'm still not really tough, but with Bro, I can be the toughest."

"That's right!" Witt picked up his cue, shouting his head off. "Bro's awesome! Three meals a day! Nice warm pokéball! Not to mention that Bro gave me a home and friends and all that good stuff! With Bro, I'm the best I can be. I may not be evolved like some jerks, but I can still kick more butt with Bro than I ever could without him!"

Both of my Pokémon then whirled their heads around to look at me, smiles broad on their faces. I was nearly in tears. These guys believed in me that much? I didn't even know they liked me all that much. Well, with Tony I did, but not Witt. These two were SO getting ice cream later.

"Right Bro?" They said simultaneously. I fought back the tears, crossing my arms and smirking.

"Yep!" I replied, nodding back. Had to appear manly. I wasn't, but I had to appear that way if anyone was ever gonna take me seriously or at least remember my name.

"Are we gonna do this?" White asked, successfully bringing me out of my stupor. I sneered at her. She yawned. "Listen, Blue, if you're giving up-"

Okay… she just crossed the line.

"SHUT UP!" I yelled, any fear I had previously had for White morphing into boiling hot rage.

You could've heard a feather drop in the sands after those words. Anyone who knew anything about White or her reputation instantly painted their faces the same colour as her name. White widened her own eyes at my ignorance. Anyone who told White to shut up was digging their own shallow grave. I didn't care though. I had officially had it.

"What…" White asked, the death glare coming to her again. "…did you just say."

"I've had it with you people!" I yelled, successfully fighting back the terror I was feeling. "I've had it with no one from my hometown even knowing my name! I've had it with everyone in the entire world telling me that I can't do it! I'm tired of everyone always thinking they're better than me! You don't KNOW THAT! You just assume! I'm not gonna take it anymore! You're the worst of them all White! You insult me, you hate me for no reason, and you don't even remember me despite the fact that I've lived next you your entire life! So y'know what? You can just SHUT UP! All this fame that you've been gathering up has made you completely conceited! Well I got news for you White! YOU'RE NOT THE CENTER OF THE UNIVERSE! Everyone has always told me: White is so great! White is the best I've ever seen! White is so much better than you, Black! Well I've had enough of it! I ain't giving up! Not when my friends are with me! Yeah, the odds are stacked against me, but there is no way you'll be winning this! Tony! Witt! Time for the comeback of the century! You guys ready?"

"Aw yeah, Bro! I'm pumped!" Witt declared, pumping a paw in the air.

"Me too!" Tony said, mimicking the Oshawott right down to the pose.

And then a miracle happened.

Both my Pokémon began radiating a blue aura. I was transfixed by the sudden light, as was White and our sudden audience. I looked over at Bianca.

"Hey Bianca! Can I borrow your pokédex?" I asked, as mine was still broken.

"Huh? Yeah, sure!" Bianca replied, removing her pokédex from her pocket and tossing it over to me. I caught it and thanked her with a nod.

"Wha-? What are you doing?" White asked furiously. "In the middle of a battle? How can you be so-?"

"Oh, can it!" I shot back, scanning both Tony and Witt. My eyes widened when I saw what I did.

"Don't you dare tell me to can it! Dewott-!"

"Witt! Tony! Trust me on this, okay?"

"Yeah, sure! Anything!" The two said in unison.

"Witt, use Water Gun on Tony! Tony! Get ready to take it!"

"WHAT?!" Every single person surrounding me cried that out. As well as White's Pokémon. Tony and Witt, contrarily, gave me one look, nodded seriously and then faced each other. With complete trust in my words, Witt didn't hesitate to shoot a gushing stream of water Tony's way. Tony dug his feet into the sand and thrust his arms in front of his face. The water splashed into him, but he held strong. Witt stopped a few seconds later out of fear that he might knock the poor Pokémon out. I felt bad for doing it, but as Tony sat there drenched and smiling, I knew he trusted me. And that was all I needed.

"Are you… sure you're not giving up?" White inquired as she stared at me dumbfounded. "That was pretty dumb."

"Says you," I replied, smirking. I then pointed at White's pair of pals. "Now Tony. Face them… AND USE REVERSAL!"

"Use what-now?" White was barely able to spout the question before Tony's body began to glow blue again. The aura burst in an explosion of energy, the energy funneling into a single blast that shot like an arrow towards White's Pansear. The Pansear was only able to widen his eyes halfway when the cobalt energy barreled into him, sending the chimp flying into White's arms, fainting on the way.

Again, you could've heard a feather drop from the silence that followed. It was understandable. I had just managed to knock out one of White's Pokémon in one move. That was reason enough to celebrate.

But it got better.

"R-Reversal?" White spluttered, not quite comprehending that she was just floored by one tiny Victini. I snickered triumphantly.

"Look it up! It's a move that gets stronger the weaker on stamina the Pokémon is! So even in weakness, Tony's as tough as they come!"

"No way! It just learned that right now?"

"And that's not all. Witt learned a little something too."

"You're still not gonna win, Blue!"

"The name is Black! And like I told you before-"

Black: There you go!
You're always so right,
It's all a big show,
It's all about you!

You think you know,
What everyone needs!
You always take time,
To criticize me!

It seems like everyday,
I make mistakes!
I just can't get it right!

It's like I'm the one,
You love to hate,
But not today!

So shut up! Shut up! Shut up!
Don't wanna hear it!
Get out, get out, get out,
Get out of my way!
Step up, step up, step up!
You'll never stop me!
Nothing you say today,
Is gonna bring me down!

There you go,
You never ask why,
It's all a big lie,

Whatever you do,

You think you're special!
But I know, and I know,
And I know, and we know,
That you're not!

You're always there to point,
Out my mistakes,
And shove them in my face!

It's like I'm the one,
You love to hate,
But not today!

So shut up! Shut up! Shut up!
Don't wanna hear it!
Get out, get out, get out,
Get out of my way!
Step up, step up, step up!
You'll never stop me!
Nothing you say today,
Is gonna bring me down!

Is gonna bring me down!

Will never bring me down!

Don't tell me who I should be,
And don't try to tell me what's right for me!
Don't tell me what I should do!
I don't wanna waste my time,
I'll watch you fade away!

So shut up! Shut up! Shut up!
Don't wanna hear it!
Get out, get out, get out,
Get out of my way!
Step up, step up, step up!
You'll never stop me!
Nothing you say today,
Is gonna bring me down!

So shut up! Shut up! Shut up!
Don't wanna hear it!
Get out, get out, get out,
Get out of my way!
Step up, step up, step up!
You'll never stop me!
Nothing you say today,
Is gonna bring me down!

Bring me down!(Shut up, shut up, shut up)
Won't bring me down!(Shut up, shut up, shut up)
Bring me down!(Shut up, shut up, shut up)
Won't bring me down!

Shut up, shut up, shut up!

"Tony! Witt! Grab each other's hands!" They did so, Witt reluctantly taking the Victini's hands. "Now! Tony use Fire Rocket! And Witt use Aqua Jet!"

"Since when does Witt know Aqua Jet?" Ellen asked from behind me. I shot her a thumbs up.

"Since right now. Fly guys!" My two friends used their attacks to propel themselves into their air, flying towards Dewott like a pair of assault planes. White wasn't going to back down from the challenge, however.

"Dewott! Fight back with your own Aqua Jet! And use Razor Shell while you're at it!" Dewott launched himself skyward as well, armor of pure gushing water forming around him. White smiled. "Sorry, but when it comes to pure power, Dewott's gonna win!"

"I know! Which is why I'm doing this! Separate guys!"

"What?!" White shrieked as my two buddies split apart midair, Aqua Jet and Fire Rocket fading away as they planted their feet on solid ground while Dewott was still charging forward. "Dewott! Look out!"

"Now's your chance Tony! Reversal!" Tony called up the blue aura once more, firing another arrow of the stuff at Dewott. The otter was a sitting duck, getting thrown for another loop and face-planting in the sand, he got up, however, angry as I'd ever seen anyone. His scalchops had separated from him mid-fall, landing next to Witt.

"THAT'S IT! Dewott! Take out that Victini once and for all! Water Gun!"

"Tony! Do-" Tony was too tired at this point to dodge, Reversal, while a powerful move, ran the risk of putting the Victory Pokémon in danger. We received the consequences of that risk as Tony fainted.

"There! How do you like that! Let's keep fighting Dewott! This battle's just getting heated up!"

"On the contrary," I said, wagging a finger at her. "I've won!"

"You clearly haven't! Dewott! Use Ice Beam!"

"Witt! Grab Dewott's scalchops and toss 'em back!"

Both Pokémon followed their commands, Witt snatching up both scalchops next to him like the former thief he was and Dewott charging up more icy energy. Witt threw the scalchops with expertise aim, like a pair of shuriken. Dewott shot Ice Beam. Fortunately, my ploy worked, the Ice Beam hitting the incoming scalchops instead of Witt, freezing the makeshift blades into sharp, jagged ice. Dewott's eyes widened just before he was struck across the face by the-

"-Sub-zero Shuriken! That's what we're calling that move!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, Dewott falling into a heap as he fainted.

Even the sounds of the waves next to us ceased at the appearance of White's gaping face. She wasn't the only one. Cheren's mouth had also fallen open. Bianca looked surprised, but it was no surprise to me that she looked cheery as ever. I myself could hardly believe what Witt, Tony, and I just did. But the ecstatic grin that was creeping onto my face gradually snapped me into reality. Witt's snickering mug was becoming just as happy as mine. The butterflies in my stomach began throwing a party. A really sweet party. Words escaped me. I couldn't find any to describe how I felt in that second of watching Dewott faint.

Oh wait, here's two: Hell. Yes.

"Witt," I said simply as I gazed at White's bewildered face. I spread my arms out after returning Tony to his Luxury Ball for rest. He'd hear the good news later. "C'mere here and give your Bro a hug!"

Witt leaped over to me and complied. I screamed at the top of my lungs. I could've deafened the otter in my arms, but I did not care in the slightest.

"You did it! You did it! WITT YOU DID IT! I'M SO FREAKING PROUD OF YOU!"

"That's great. Now how 'bout some ice cream, Bro?"

"YOU GOT IT!" He could've asked me to give him my life savings and I probably would've done it. We just did the impossible, I was too happy about that to care about little things like food or money.

"I don't believe it…" Cheren managed to gasp out.

"Dewott is unable to battle!" Don George said the words the carved one of my greatest victories into my heart. "Which means Black wins this round of the Battle Spire Isle tournament and moves onto the next one!"

"YEAH!" That wasn't me. That was Ellen. She managed to get over her distaste for how I smelled long enough to come over and hug the living daylights out of me. I didn't care. I beat White. Everything else was insignificant. Arcade came into my line of sight. I thought he was gonna give me another cold response, but on the contrary, he smiled. First one I saw from him. This was also the first and only thumbs up I ever got out of him. I grinned back. Maybe he wasn't bad after all.

"WAY TO GO BLACK!" Bianca joined the hug, making the bone crushing twice as lovingly painful. Witt avoided it by moving to my head, laughing at my misfortune all the while. I felt something push my lightly at the ankles. I looked down, finding that Whirlipede was rolling against me affectionately in congratulations. I grinned for about the seventeenth time. Life was good. "Both sides did their very best! It was so inspiring to watch!"

"Hey," the hug broke as an unexpected voice called to me. I looked between Ellen and Bianca's faces finding White. But instead of seeing a vengeful expression from which I would flee, there was instead an awkward expression about her. As if she just said her wallet tasted good and was just realizing how ridiculous it sounded. Taken aback, I said nothing. "I wanted to say…I'msorryandstuff."

"Didn't catch that." I replied.

"Look. I guess you…were kinda right. I was kinda treatin' you bad because I looked at your trainer profile before the battle and I saw that you had one less gym badge than me and…I guess I got overconfident. I was being real snobbish and I hate that. So…sorry…and stuff."

"Uh…" Never expected White the toughie herself to be so grudgingly apologetic. These words seemed to be physically uncomfortable for her to say. Two seconds later, however, and she was back to her regular self, pointing at me.

"But don't think this means that I'm admitting that you're better or anything! I just got careless. I'll train up! Then my Pokémon and I will be putting Nuvema Town on the map! Just you wait!"

"Uh…" I barely got that off before she ran off, no doubt going to train right now. I sighed. I may have beaten her, but she never lost her dedication. I suppose that was a good thing about her.

"Let's hear it for Black!" Ellen yelled, bringing me directly out of these thoughts and pumping her fist in the air. "For making it through the first round with me and Bianca! And you beat your number one rival too! I say we celebrate!"

I nodded. As did Bianca and Arcade. It was a good reason to celebrate. I just beat White, I was in round two, along with the two ladies currently crushing my ribs, and this was the first time I thought the following words.

I will make it to the top.

Unbeknownst to me, however, another spectator who had been watching the match was also celebrating for me. But for a different reason. This spectator was small, red, and currently, her eyes were shimmering with what just transpired in front of her.


"New training regiment, Dewott!" White said as she strolled through the forest, her Dewott, already recovered on her heels, keeping up with her jogging pace. "From now on, no straying from your diet. And we're training your attacks for eight hours a day! Not just six! And lastly-"

White, believe it or not, stopped talking because she saw something more interesting than her own training ideas. She looked over at Battle Spire Mountain, the base of which could be seen between the trees. Her brow narrowed as she saw two people go near the base, laying equipment down next to it. These two people were people she had encountered before, people she was more than happy to annihilate if given the chance.

Team Plasma.

She didn't stop for a second. She marched their way, getting ready to order an attack from Dewott. She was about to walk out of the forest, when from behind a tree, an arm shot out, blocking her path.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," a smug owner of that arm said from behind the tree. White snorted.

"Yeah? Why's that?"

"Because," Axel Igaul said as he poked his head out from behind the tree, grinning like the madman I'm fairly sure he was. "Then all the waiting I did for them to come out will have been for nothing."

End of Chapter Twenty-Nine.

Wow, Twenty-Nine chapters. And it only took me a year and four months to do it. Okay, so… sorry for the wait again (though you're probably used to it at this point) and I hope this chapter was worth it.

Song was Simple Plan's "Shut Up".

I would like to thank Russetwing again for beta-reading and I wish you all a pleasant day. Bye now!

Question: Favourite Pokémon type?