Serena stood outside her tent, her Pokémon cuddled around her as they watched the sun rise. She had become an early riser during her travels with her friends but I'd given the choice, she'd still prefer to stay in bed until much later.

But today was different. She had barely been able to sleep last night and she had come out an hour early just to put her mind at ease. Those that didn't help much. She hadn't been this nervous since her second Pokémon Showcase!

Today she challenged a trainer who was at a level so far above her, it felt almost comical that it was happening!

Even when she challenged Zinnia, she had been doing everything in her power no to show fear. And that continued until last night where her members finally got the better of her and she couldn't keep her courage up anymore. At least sitting out here with a blanket draped over her she could pretend her shaking was from the cold.

Zinnia, for all her fun little quirks, scared her. Not just because of how skillful in battle she was, but also what had happened before. The image of Arnold floating helplessly in the air as he was crushed by Zinnia's Pokémon was still fresh in her mind. And the knowledge that she would be rendered even more powerless if Zinnia turned on her was frightening!

But, she didn't regret her choice to stand up to the girl. She wouldn't stand by and let her slander Ash, no matter what! That was something she doubted ever would change.

"No regrets." Serena murmured to herself as she watched the sun paint the sky pink. Tightening her hands into fists, she took a few deep breaths, steeling her nerves. "That's right. If I lose here, we'll still be one step closer to our dream. And one day, we'll stand together once again!"

Looking at her Pokémon, she saw the same determination in their eyes. She gave them a smile as they stood together, ready for today's trail! It might be the biggest challenge they faced yet, but Serena was confident that they would find a way to prevail.

"Right, let's win this battle!"

As her Pokémon cheered with her, Zinnia, who had been pretending to sleep at the tree line like always, opened an eye as she watched the blonde. The girl fascinated her. Despite the massive gap in skill, she still believed there was a chance for her victory.

A week ago, she probably would have called her either incredibly naïve or just plan stupid. But back when she had been about to step in during the poacher battle, the girl had surprised her by not only holding her own, but also being the linchpin in his defeat!

Slowly, a grin spread across Zinnia's face as she lay there watching the blonde. She was actually starting to get pumped herself!

"Here's the rules! I'm only going to say them once, so listen up!" Zinnia yelled as she stood in a clearing. Across from her were Serena and Wally. Both had their game faces on and were ready for battle. Yesterday after dinner, the two of them had gone off to strategize. And while she didn't know what their plan was, they seemed pretty happy with it.

"Since your best match against me is off the table, I'll only be using one Pokémon! Knock him out and victory is yours!" She called confidently. "Meanwhile, you both get to use your hood teams, meaning you have five Pokémon total! When I knock them all out, I'll win! Aside from that, all moves are allowed! Switching, running into the trees, exacter! But if the Pokémon is out of the area for five minutes without any attacks, you forfeit and I win! So no hiding!"

Zinnia shifted her weight to cock her hips as she pulled a Pokéball off her belt and grinned at her opponents. "Last chance to back out! Once the Pokémon hits the floor, it's do or die time!"

Both Wally and Serena responded by taking their own Pokéballs out and tossing them into the air. Battle time it was!

"Pancham, I chose you!"

"Magnemite, go!"

The Pokéballs split open and the two Pokémon hit the floor! Pancham beat his chest as he let out a tiny roar! Beside him, Magnemite glared at its opponent, electricity cracking from the ends of its magnets.

With a chuckle, Zinnia tossed her Pokéball into the air with her own shout.

"Salamence, I need you!"

The second it opened, both of the other Pokémon and their trainers were blown off their feet as her dragon shot passed them like a jet! It flew to the trees, causing them to shake from the wind it generated as it did a full lap of the clearing!

But all that happened in a second! And as her opponents were still getting to their feet, her oldest partner flew down, landing right in front of her.

"Ready?!" Zinnia called, a grin spread across her face. "I see you're still not over Salamence's intimate ability! Want to switch out? I can wait!"

"We're fine!" Serena shot back, as she got back up, dusting herself off. "I don't need advice from my opponent either! We're battling! Act like it!"

Zinnia let out a bark like laugh as she grinned at the blonde. "I am!" She yelled back. "But I'm still giving you a bit of a head start! I'm not a bully! No fun in battle when I know I'm going to win! So I'll let you two take a crack at me first! I get the feeling you're going to need it!"

Serena and Wally exchanged a look, then turned back to their opponent, eyes shining with determination! Looks like things were finally getting interesting!

"Go Magnemite! Fly high!" Wally called and his Pokémon immediately took off, flying high into the sky above the other trainers and their Pokémon.

"You must be joking." Zinnia thought. "Distracting an opponent with an obvious move to draw attention away from your partner was teamwork two-on-one. Did they honestly think this was going to work?"

Despite feeling insulted, she decided to humor them. She looked up at the electric type, making sure to keep an eye on the fighting type on the ground. And sure enough, as soon as she was looking up, the panda charged forward, a hard expression on his face.

"Magnemite, Supersonic go!"

The electric type let out a horrible high pitched scream that seemed to distort the area around it. The sound was meant to pull all Zinnia's attention skyward, a feeble attempt to distract her from Pancham who was still closing distance.

At this point the dark haired girl was starting to feel insulted. Did they really think so little of her to actually believe something like this would have an effect on her?

"Salamence!"

Reacting immediately, the dragon let out a deafening roar, effortlessly drowning out the Supersonic!

Serena and Wally clamped their hands over their ears trying to shut out the sound! As the blonde looked up at the dragon trainer, she saw her arms were crossed as she was smirking at them. She was just showing off now! Let them know how easy it was to beat them back.

And while that did anger the Performer, she also knew this was probably their only chance to win!

"Pancham, use Stone Edge!" Serena cried and immediately the fighting type slammed his fist into the ground, causing a trail of sharp, glowing rocks to shoot off the ground moving towards the dragon.

Zinnia rolled her eyes at the attack. Of course that was what they'd use. Salamence was a flying type so rock was their best chance. But this Stone Edge was nothing more than pretty little stepping stones then an offense.

But it pays to be careful.

"Up, Salamence!"

At her command, the dragon shot skyward with a single beat of his wings. Flying up so fast the attack hadn't even come close to landing. Now high in the sky, safely out of Pancham's reach, Zinnia's and her Pokémon looked down at Serena with cocky smirks. If she wanted a fight, she'd have to try much harder than that!

But then they saw the blonde smile, eyes burning with confidence as she looked back at Zinnia, making the dark haired girl's eyes widen in surprise! She knew this wouldn't be enough and had planned something! But wha-?!"

"No!" Zinnia cried, head shooting up to see Magnemite was practically on top of Salamence! They had played her! She underestimated them and they had used it to their advantage! Which meant-!

"Thunder Wave, go!" Wally yelled and immediately lightning shot from it's body and slammed into the dragon! Powerful jolts of electricity ran over his entire body paralyzing him and causing him to tumble out of the sky several feet before he crashed into the ground kicking up enough dust that he became hidden from view!

"Yes! It worked!" Serena cried, punching the air in excitement! Yesterday, when they had been making plans, Wally had pointed out that Zinnia's Pokémon were fully evolved meaning they would struggle to keep pace with them.

That was when the blonde had suggested status attacks to weaken them. She knew raw power wasn't unbeatable if you could find the right strategy. And she knew she'd have to be smart if she wanted to win. Ash had shown her so many different ways to battle and she knew she'd have to use everything she had learned. Like it or not, Zinnia was one of the strongest trainers around! And the blonde planned to defeat her!

As she high-fived Wally, she turned her attention back to her dark haired opponent, and she felt her heart drop as she saw her grinning back.

"Well done!" She said in a cheerful tone, her eyes shining along with her grin. "That was impressive! You now only predicted my moves, but also we're able to guess how I'd react to your attacks! That's something even some high level trainers struggle with! And you managed to get me on your first try!"

Serena took a step back instinctively. She knew that wasn't going to be enough to beat Zinnia, but the girl's complete lack of concern was unnerving her.

"I'll admit, I underestimated you two. You're way better than I was expecting." Zinnia said, eyes closed as she grinned right at them. "Sorry! That sounded a bit condescending, didn't it. I'm just really happy! Not every day I get to cut loss and have some real fun!"

Zinnia rubbed the back of her head sheepishly as she let out a laugh. Then she opened her eyes staring straight at Serena, and the blonde saw fierce determination burning in them. And in that moment, suddenly Zinnia vanished and a massive dragon dwarfing the blonde stood in her place!

Flames licked the sides of its mouth with each breath and its piercing eyes stared the blonde down with intense pride and ferocity! Its claws were extended and its wings spread as it looked down at the blonde, a grin spread across its lips!

"You're strong! I see that clearly now!" The dragon said with Zinnia's voice. Steam pouring out of its mouth with each word. "I hope you're ready! Cause this time I'm bringing the heat! Stay on your toes! Head on a swivel! And don't let your guard down even for a second! Let's have some fun as we dance the day away! Salamence!"

Suddenly, the vision, or whatever that was, disappeared! At the same second, Zinnia's dragon shot off the ground and back into the sky!

Snapping back to reality, Serena immediately looked up at the dragon as he shot past Magnemite and flew even higher into the sky!

As she watched him, Serena noticed that, while much slower then before, Salamence was still flying faster than any of her Pokémon could hope to match! She'd have to keep an eye on him at all times or otherwise he would take her out in a heartb-!"

"Gah!" Serena cried as Salamence flew past the sun, blinding both her, Wally and both their Pokémon! And giving Zinnia the opening she wanted!

"Melt 'em down with Fire Fang! Go!" She cried and immediately, Salamce's mouth became engulfed in flames! He shot down so fast none of his opponents had time to react letting him ram full force into Magnemite sending them both crashing into the ground!

And as he leapt away, flying back into the air out of Pancham's range, he blew the dust from the impact away revealing the steel type lying on the ground unconscious.

"And that's one down." Zinnia said as Wally recalled his Pokémon. "What's next? We're still raring to go! So send out your next Pokémon and let's keep this party rolling!"

Wally didn't reply to the dark haired girl. Instead, he looked down at the steel type's Pokéball and spoke in a very gentle tone.

"Well done, Magnemite. You were amazing." He said as he clipped the ball to his belt. That's phase one done, time for phase two! Marill, let's go!"

He tossed his next Pokéball out and with a burst of light, the water type landed next to Pancham.

"A fairy type huh." Zinnia said, crouching down her grin growing wider. "I can't wait to see what this big plan of yours is. After all, that thing might be a fairy type, but I think you'll find that's not enough to win!"

"Oh I know!" Wally said confidently. "Marill, Aqua Ring!"

Immediately water began swirling around the Pokémon making it glow with energy. Giving Serena the signal it was go time!

"Pancham, go!" She yelled and immediately both Pokémon charged at the dragon. Ready to enact their next plan!

Unfortunately Zinnia had a good idea what was coming.

"First, Stone Edge." She whispered to herself, eyes fixed on her opponents as they entered attack range.

"Now, use Stone Edge!" Serena called and immediately the panda Pokémon punched the ground causing large rocks to shoot up forming stairs leading towards the dragon, making the dark haired girl smirk. This was too easy!

"Now Marill,-" Wally called. "Use the stones to jump!"

"Use the stones to jump." Zinnia said at the same time, her voice too quiet to be heard by anyone but her Salamence. Both of them had seen this coming. Now that their guards were raised, Serena and Wally would have to try much harder if they wanted to last much longer in the battle!

As the water type leapt up the stones, both Zinnia and her Pokémon waited, pretending to be caught off guard as it got closer. Then, right before it entered attack range, they launched their counter attack!

"Salamence, Fire Fang! And add a spin!" Zinnia yelled and immediately flames shot for the dragon's mouth! Without any other warning, it shot at high speeds towards the ascending Marill catching both trainer and Pokémon by surprise! Given Salamence paralyzed state, they had expected her to retreat, not attack! Meaning their counter attack was useless!

But what happened next made their jaws drop!

As he shot forward, spinning like a drill! This combined with his momentum caused the flames from his mouth to wrap around his body as beautiful streams of fire trailed behind him! Turning his attack into a…fire Aqua Jet!

Seeing the attack coming and with no way to dodge in his position, Wally immediately took a step back in fear and awe of the attack, struggling to figure out a counter!

"Marill, Water-!"

Too late! The flaming dragon smashed into the water type, forcing it backwards towards the ground as it was trapped in the beast's flaming maw!

"Rilll!" She cried in pain as she was burned by the flames as well as from the powerful impact! Together, the two flew in a controlled descent towards a certain spot on the ground. Namely, where Pancham was standing.

Serena's eyes widened as she saw where they were heading. Horror filled her stomach as she watched the attack battling towards her Pokémon.

"Dod-!"

Too late again! Pancham let out a scream as he was rammed into by the flaming battering ram! Now with both Pokémon trapped, Salamence flew through the ground, his force digging a trench as he ripped up the earth to pelt his opponents while barely slowing himself down!

With incredible speed, he shot past both trainers, still carrying their Pokémon, and into the trees! Smashing into a huge boulder several feet back (that the two didn't even know was there!) breaking it into pieces instantly before taking to the sky's once again with a single beat of his wings!

"Pancham!" "Marill!" The two trainers cried, rushing to the remains of the boulder to find both Pokémon very unconscious.

"Hey! Salamence! What the hell?!" Zinnia yelled angrily at her Pokémon. "We're trying to win the battle, not kill our opponents! What's the matter with you?!" The dragon type let out a huff at his scolding and turned his nose into the air, prompting his trainer to send a volley of creative insults at him.

Meanwhile, Serena and Wally recalled their Pokémon and made their way back to the battlefield, making the dark haired girl stop her yelling to turn to them.

"Hey, let's stop there." She said, rubbing the back of her head awkwardly. "You don't have to admit I'm right or whatever. I'll just count this as a draw. Salamence has a bad habit of taking things way too far. Sorry about-."

"No."

Zinnia looked over at the two trainers, surprised to see fire still burning in their eyes. They hadn't given up. In fact, they looked more ready than ever before!

Zinnia let out a chuckle, shaking her head despite the big grin across her face. "Hehe. Right. Never give up and all that, I remember." She said, then looked up at them, her game face back on. "If you're so sure you want to continue, then bring it on! But remember, I can't guarantee your walk away without injury!"

"Don't worry about us! You should be more concerned about yourself!" Serena shot back as she and Wally throw their Pokéballs into the air where the spilt open with a pop!

With a cry, Kirlia and Braixen appeared in front of their trainers, eyes narrowed at their opponent.

"Ready?!" Serena called to Zinnia. "This is where the real battle begins! Braixen, Fire Blast!"

Spinning her wand as she danced forward, the foxy fire type launched a powerful blast of flames towards the dragon in the form of an X. It raced across the ground at an impressive speed and smashed into the dragon, engulfing him in flames!

"Alright! That's our opening!" Wally cried. "Kirlia, use Dazzling Gleam!" Immediately the psychic type's horns began to glow a bright pink. Then it released a blinding light, showering both Zinnia and Salamence in its beautiful radiances! At the same time, Braixen launched a continuous Flamethrower attack, hammering away at the dragon as well! Pushing him back from the strength of the combination attack and his paralyzed status!

But even as the attack pounded away at the dragon, Zinnia let out a disappearing sigh.

"Is that it?" She asked irritatedly. "All that talk and this is the best you can come up with? I misjudged you."

Serena took a step back in surprise at the girl's sudden shift in tone. What was she talking about!? They had trapped her Pokémon stopping him from moving forward! That should at least put her on-!

"Dragon Dance."

Immediately dragonic power erupted from the Pokémon body! Its entire body becoming empowered by the move as if it had hit a second wind!

Suddenly, the combination attack stopped pushing the dragon back as it was now not only able to stand his ground, but also to the horror of his opponents, took a step forward!

"Dragon Rush, Now!" Zinnia bellowed and immediately her Pokémon shot forward! It's body wrapped in dragonic power! The combination move now doing little more than slowing him down as he shot towards the two other Pokémon!

"Kirlia, intercept with Reflect!" Wally screamed and immediately the fairy slid in front of his partner, arms raised as he created a barrier between them!

"Braixen! Psychic! Slow that thing down!" Serena yelled and immediately her Pokémon's eyes lit up as it focused her mind on the dragon shooting towards them! But…

"Don't mock us!" Zinnia bellowed, a ferocious look in her eyes! And immediately the battlefield vanished!

Now Serena and Wally weren't looking at a trainer and her Pokémon, but a single massive dragon so big, its face alone blocked everything else out! Flames trailed from its mouth, scorching the earth turning it into freshly smelted glass!

Its scales were gray and its teeth pure white and razor sharp! Any one capable of impaling both of them in a heartbeat! Though the heat from the that filled it's mouth would probably reduce them to ash king before it got close enough to land a killing blow!

The dragon's piercing red eyes fixed on both trainers and it let out a deafening roar that blew away the forest behind them! All its fury and power focused on the two trainers, yet they could both tell it wasn't looking at them like a threat, more like someone who had offended it! Like a fly that finally broke the Camarupt's back, just a small insignificant pest that it had finally grown tired of and was going to squash with more power then necessary!

A scream filled Serena's throat, but she found she couldn't make a sound. Pure terror had left her paralyzed! Unable to even scream!

Beside her, Wally's legs gave out and the boy started to fall! But before he had even hit the ground, there was an explosion right in front of them! Snapping them out of their trance!

Immediately they saw their Pokémon laying on the ground badly injured, but still conscious. Above them, Salamence was already high in the sky, safely out of attack range.

"Braixen!"

"Kirlia!"

Both trainers rushed onto the field, sliding to their knees next to them as they struggled to get to their feet. Unfortunately, they were struggling. Kirlia had a large bruise on his stomach. And while the dragonic flames hadn't damaged him, the massive dragon slamming into him with the force of a tank did! It was clear to everyone that he was no longer in any fit condition to battle.

As for Braixen, she had been burned by the supernatural power, but was hit noticeably lees hard by the dragon. She was still winded and injured, but was still conscious, those on her last legs.

"Let's call it there."

Immediately Serena whipped her head up as Zinnia began walking across the field towards them. Speaking in a calm, but slightly annoying voice.

"Continuing this battle would be pointless. I know I'm a biased judge, but anymore fighting will do nothing but hurt your Pokémon. I don't want to severely hurt anyone. If we continue, I can't guarantee that won't happen." Zinnia now stood directly over them, looking down at Serena with disappointment clear on her face.

"You fought well, but it's over." She said tonelessly. "Give up. You can't win. And if im being honest, it was stupid to try. You never stood a chance. I simply let both your ego and mine carry things way out of peroration. Enough's enough. I'm calling it here."

Serena opened her mouth to retort, but stopped herself as she realized what she had been about to do. Zinnia was right, the battle was over. She couldn't push her Pokémon to fight just because of her pride and devotion to Ash. That was wrong. And she refused to endanger her Pokémon for something as trivial as her pride.

"You're right." Serena said in a defeated tone. "I lost. I… we can call it."

Gently, Serena placed a hand on her Pokémon's side, gently petting her as the fire type stared up at her trainer eyes filled with sadness. Both could feel the weight of their failure and it stung.

"Good. Now admit Ash Ketchup is a hack and let's move on with our lives." Zinnia said, turning and beginning to walk back towards their campsite. "I'd like to treat everyone and be back on the road before noon. We can still make some progress today. But first, I wanna hear you say it. Call that loser a hack!"

"You're still making her go through with this?!" Wally yelled, jumping to his feet. "Why make her talk Damon about someone obviously cares for! She already lost! Can't that be enough! Or do you need to hear someone down play him because of personal reasons?! If so, I'll happily call him a hack in her-!"

"She agreed!" Zinnia snapped, glaring over her shoulder at Wally making immediately take a step back in fear. "As for my personal beef with Ketchup, let's just say the person did more than just ruin a perfectly good burger! So hurry up and say it so we can move on!"

A long silence followed as neither trainer spoke. Then, slowly, Serena clenched her fist and turned away from both Wally and Zinnia.

"A-Ash isn't as great as I made him out to be." She said through a trembling voice. "H-he's reckless! Impulsive! And a-a kn-knocked head who c-can't win a Pokémon league!" Each word felt like a stab in the heart for Serena as she fought back tears. She reminded herself that Ash wasn't the type to care what others said about him. That as long as he stayed true to himself and protected what was important, he would still be the same person she looked up to. It didn't matter what these empty words were, she'd always see him as a hero!

But that didn't ease the pain and as she continued to slander her love, she found herself completely breaking.

"H-he c-can't progress b-because of his stubbornness! He'll a-always f-fail because o-of his lack of p-planning! A-and-!" Serena couldn't hold back anymore. Tears started to stream down her face as she began sobbing, but she pressed on, because this was for her Pokémon!

"And h-h-he'll n-never r-reach his d-dream of b-being h-he-!" She clutched her chest as the words hurt her so deeply! She didn't mean any of it, but to be made to speak them out-load was still unimaginably painful!

"I-I…" Swallowing hard, she began composing herself to say the last thing she really didn't want to. "He's n-not good enough to-!"

Smack!

Serena was cut off mid sentence as Braixen pulled herself up and slapped her across the face hard!

"Braix! Braixen!" The fire type angrily protested to her trainer, tears filling her eyes making the blonde stare wide eyed at her. Then her face softened with understanding. She wasn't the only one who loved and respected Ash.

She gently pulled the fire type into a hug, Ignoring her angry protests.

"It's okay. I'll be fine." She murmured into her Pokémon's ear making her stop squirming. "I know it hurts to hear people say bad things about him. I know, but I still have to do this. I know he'd understand, so we have to as well." As she spoke, she could feel tears streaming down Braixen's face. Both of them missed the raven haired and hated hearing people speak Ill of him.

But now, seeing her own Pokémon so deeply hurt by this, Serena was starting to understand something. Her duty as a trainer was to lead her team, and be strong when they needed support. And while Ash had been her support, he was gone now. And it was time for her to step up and become the pillar to support her team without him.

After all, she had to love and support herself before she could begin to love and support him!

"I know. I wish I didn't have to say this either, but I promise is a promise. Remover what he taught us? Once we give our word, we can't take it back. But it's okay. Even if it hurts now, it will heal and make us that much stronger. After all, this is nothing. We will always remember what he truly is."

That's right. Everyone, all of her Pokémon, her friends and the people whose lives he touched, they 're going to remember Ash for who he was, a mentor, a rival, a brother, a friend, a lover, and the most amazing trainer in the world! Who cares what Zinnia thinks of him?! That didn't matter! What did matter was the people who lived and cared for him, not the opinions of people who didn't know him.

Slowly, Serena pulled away, tears were still streaming down her face as well as Braixen's. But both still held their strong resolve.

"I promise, this is just one more obstacle in our path. One more thing we have to overcome to reach our dream. It's painful, but I'm going to go through with it. Because otherwise, I'd be actually harming his memory by not being true to myself." She smiled through her tears as she gently rubbed the crying Pokémon's head. "You were wonderful. I couldn't ask for a better partner, but this is something I have to do alone. So rest, you've earned it. I can-."

Serena stopped mind sentences as Braixen, slowly and on shaky legs, began to stand back up and turn towards Zinnia and Salamence!

"Braixen, what are you doing?!" The blonde cried jumping up and trying to force the Pokémon to sit. "You're going to hurt yourself! It's okay! We battled as hard as we could! You don't need to push yourself! I can-!"

Serena stopped herself as Braixen turned and she saw the fire still burning in her eyes. She was determined to keep going, willing to risk it all for her teammates and her friends. Even at her own risk!

"Braixen, are you sure? You know there's no going back if we do." She asked, those she hardly needed the nod from her partner to know the answer. Even those she could barely stand, Braixen. No. All of her Pokémon were being strong for her and her dreams, just as she would be for them. And together they would make those dreams reality.

"Right. If you're sure." She said standing up and turning to face the dark haired girl. "Zinnia! We're continuing the battle! We still have some fight left! So let's resume the battle!"

Zinnia rested her face in her palm at Serena's choice. "Oh for the love of-! Didn't you hear me?! I can't promise your Pokémon won't be badly hurt if we continue! You might get your partner so hurt she won't be in fit condition for the contest! If she even recovers at all! Do you now understand what that-?!"

"I know." Serena said, her eyes filled with her determination. "I know we might get hurt, but we still want to battle! After all, we haven't given up yet! So bring it on! Because we're not going down without a fight!"

Zinnia pointy rolled her eyes at the blonde, letting out a sigh of irritation at her opponent.

"Fine. Hit Salamence with an attack and we'll say the battle is still on!" She called back, though she didn't move and made no effort to hide belief that wasn't going to happen. "But if you can't, then your first forfeit is finalized and I can move on with my day. Because I really didn't want to add murder to my long list of petty crimes!"

Braixen and Serena both nodded, that was more than fair in their opinion.

"Okay, Braixen, Hidden Power!" Serena yelled, but as her Pokémon tried to force out the attack, she tripped and fell onto the ground, the little energy she built up shattering instantly. And when she tried to get back up, she fell back down without making it off her knees.

"Okay, that's enough!" Zinnia said, exasperatedly. "This battle is over! I'm not killing your partner just to protect your bruised ego! Just-! Let this one go! It's not worth dying over!"

Serena bit her lip as she knelt by her Pokémon. Gently she reached out and began stroking Braixen again. "You don't have to push yourself. I'm okay with admitting defeat here." She said gently. "After all, we've already got something important out of this. Our bond is stronger than ever. So don't feel you need to prove anything. I already know,"

She smiled down at her Pokémon and even with tears still running down her face, it seemed to shine radiantly to her partner. "You're the best partner I could ever have!" She said, her voice heavy with emotion and pure honesty. "And no matter what happens, that's something nothing will ever change!"

At her words, Braixen's body started to glow red. Embers slowly began flowing out of her furry as she tightened her hands into fists and once again began pulling herself back up.

First she got on all fours, then to her knees, before finally standing up straight, looking slightly ahead at the dragon and his trainer. Eyes burning with the same passion as her trainer!

Then something miraculous happened.

"Braixen!" The Pokémon cried as flames shot from the tip of her tail! Burn a brilliant blue as red embers flew off her body! At the same time, that same lure flames ignited on the tips of her ears! Burning just as brightly as heat shot from her body a shockwave that caused Wally to shield his face with his arms.

Then, without a warning, Braixen twirled her wand, the end also burning with blue flames, and pointed it at the dragon!

Immediately blue flames shot out of the wand! Racing towards the dragon so fast that in his paralyzed state, he couldn't dodge or block! Forcing Zinnia to cartwheel out of the way as the flames blasted her partner several feet into the sky!

"What's happening!?" Wally cried slack jawed at the sudden power that engulfed the Pokémon.

"Blaze." Zinnia murmured, her face also one of shock and disbelief. "It's an ability triggered when a Pokémon is pushed to their absolute limits. As a last ditch effort, they can draw on long dormant power that far surpasses what they could do without it."

"Blaze?" Wally echoed, confusion in his voice. "But it looks so different. How can that be the same power as May's Blaziken?" He wondered.

And he wasn't the only one analyzing it.

As Braixen glared access the field at her opponents, Zinnia's eyes darted to the grass around her that had burned away, then to the dragon flying high in the sky, a noticeable burn on his chest.

"Somethings not right." Zinnia thought as she surveyed the damage. "Blaze might bring out a Pokémon's hidden strength, but it's supposed to make the glow with embers that are normally just fur being burned off. I've never seen it like this before. What's more, it's only supposed to raise power by 1.5 percent on average, 1.7 max. And given Braixen's level, it shouldn't be enough to move Salamence, let alone damage him like that!"

Her gaze followed the Pokémon as she turned around, offering her hand to her trainer. What was this? Not once in all her travels had she seen this. Not even hyper skilled trainers like Gary Oak or Professor Kukui had something like this.

Yet here it was, in the hands of a girl who had next to no battle experience or shocking history. How was this possible?! Zinnia had studied every genealogy and astrophysics for pity's sake! And she couldn't explain this phenomenon!

Was this little girl's feeling for that annoying kid really inspired this awakening in her Pokémon?

"Braixen?" Serena asked, eyes wide as she stood by her empowered Pokémon, the heat flowing from her body warming the girl in a way she had never felt before. It was like the warmth was filling every part of her body, making any aches or uncertainties fade away into the background.

And as her Pokémon looked over her shoulder at her trainer, Serena saw both love and confidence in her eyes, but she could also smell her fur burning and see her sweaty. This told the blonde everything she needed. Braixen was fine and still wanting to do battle! But she wouldn't be able to maintain this…form for long. So they had to hurry!

"Right. Thank you, Braixen." Serena said as she took a few steps back so she stood behind her Pokémon. "Now let's go win our battle! Zinnia! I hit your Pokémon, so the battle is on! My forfeit is nullified and we're still rearing to go! So take your best shot!"

Zinnia let out a low chuckle, her eyes shut as a grin spread across her face.

"My best shot, huh?" She asked in a quiet tone, then her head shot up and Serena saw the intense fire burning in the girl's eyes! A burning desire to win! Or more accurately, a refusal to lose!

"Well if you insist! I was going to go easy on you because due to the gap in our experience, but since you asked, I'll give it to you!" With that, she slid into a crouching down position, her arms dangling loosely as she grinned at Serena in a way the girl found unsettlingly familiar.

But she didn't have time to try to figure it out! The real battle had just started!

"Salamence, retreat! Then power up with three stacks of Dragon Dance!"

At his trainer's command, the dragon Pokémon flew high into the air where he began releasing a huge amount of Dragonic power that wrapped around him, making his eyes glow red and a bit of that power leaked from his mouth! Veins stretched across his body as it filled with this power giving him an eerie red glow!

This battle would be decided in the next few attacks!

"Braixen, Hidden Power barrages!"

Dancing forward, the fire type began spinning her wand, blasting the attack over a wide area at a faster pace then she ever had before! And as the balls of energy filled up the sky, Serena found herself struggling to even see Salamence through the glowing spheres!

Gritting her teeth, Zinnia glared up at the scene. Salamence had only used two Dragon Dances. Unfortunately they were out of time! It would have to do!

"Plow through the attack with Fire Fang!" She yelled and almost immediately the dragons blasted through the center of the barrage, body wrapped in flames as he shot towards his opponents, doing that spinning move again!

Serena took a step back. It was even faster than before! She knew Braixen wouldn't be able to dodge in time! She just wasn't fast enough!

Then, her mind went to another one of Ash's battles! She remembered how he would always use them in a creative manner, so he always had an option! What would he do under these circumstances? Would he…

That was it!

"Braixen! Dodge with Psychic!"

Immediately understanding what to do, the fire type claps her hands and focuses her mind, causing her own body to glow! Then with tremendous speed, she shot to the right, just barely dodging both the attack and the blast wave as the dragon smashed into the ground!

Upon realizing he hadn't finished the fight, Salamence tried to flap his wings to escape back into the sky, but his numb body combined with being staggered from impact left him struggling to move properly!

"There!" Serena cried, seeing her opening! "Now! Counter with Flamethrower-!"

"Dragon Claw, let's go!"

Braixen had just directed her wand at the dragon before his claw shot out, catching her in the stomach! The force of the attack sent the fox Pokémon flying backwards! The wind knocked out of her sails!

However, right before impact, both trainers had spotted a glowing red screen of light appear around the fire type, slowing the attack making what would have been a KO into a painful but endurable attack! Reflect was still active! And it might have just changed the outcome of the battle!

"Xen!" The fire type cried, blasting a huge jet of blue flames that engulfed Salamence! Burning him and making him cry out in pain!

But as she landed a few feet away, Braicen stumbled, falling to one knee gasping for breath! She was on her last legs! And it was obvious! They had to finish this fast!

But across the field, something else was happening!

Salamence had become wrapped in blue fire despite the fact Braixen wasn't still blasting it! It had been burned by her last attack! And as he roared in pain, Serena realized everything hinges on the next move!

"Braixen, Fire Blast! Full power!"

"Braix!" Directing her wand at the dragon, Braixen let out a cry as she focused all her power into it! The flames on her ears and tail ignited, more blue flames bursting forth as the tips turned white! Even her wand was glowing as it shook trying to contain all the power!

"Xen!"

With that final cry, a massive blast of blue fire shot from her wand! It took the form of an X, but was so large it could have engulfed an entire cave entrance! It scorched the earth as it raced towards the Salamence with a roar of fury and power! All the emotions of both trainer and Pokémon bared down on the dragon trainer with the strength of a hurricane and the heat of the sun!

Baring her teeth, Zinnia took a step forward, hands clenched into fists! "No more games! End this once and for all! Dragon Rush NOW!" She yelled, her own power manifesting! And once again, both her and Salamence vanished and in their place was a massive dragon! His entire body was engulfed in unholy dragonic power that bloated out the sky and everything beyond them!

With a roar that could shatter the world, it launched itself forward, tearing everything that stood before to pieces! At the same time, Serena realized that Salamence was the dragon in her vision yet somehow not! It was both Zinnia and Salamence somehow, those she wasn't sure.

But somehow she knew exactly what the dragon Pokémon was doing. He was empowering himself with dragons power and shooting towards at full speed, adding that spin of his to increase his power!

As Salamence dove into the flames, he disappeared from sight as he tried to drill right through the attack! His only protection was the power he was wrapped in! If it failed, he wouldn't be able to escape and would eventually lose consciousness in the flames! But if he made it through, well, Braixen had put all her strength into the attack. She wouldn't be able to dodge. And one good hit would end the fight!

Both Serena and Zinnia clenched their teeth! Neither knew who would win this fight! But they both had put their all into this final act! Everything rode on this! And as they both stared at the huge X of fire, they could feel the others drive! Their refusal to lose!

Before her, Serena saw her journey with Ash flashing before her eyes. Everything she had learned and the advantages she had. The good times and the bad, all of it appeared before her. And seeing all of the time they had spent together strengthened her resolve.

She didn't regret challenging Zinnia. Not even a little. She knew if she had kept quiet, it would have been something that wouldn't leave her for a very long time. Both her and her Pokémon would have. They had chosen to stand up for their friend and idol, and that wasn't something they'd never regret.

And now, standing here in Hoenn on her own, looking back on her life up to this point, she was done thinking about things she should have done! She was going to press forward no matter what came her way! May that be Lisia, more poachers, or even Zinnia! She'd face them all with her head held high! That was her new promise to Ash, to herself, and to her Pokémon!

Serena looked out at the flames, the bright blue reflecting in her blue eyes as her fingers trailed up and touched her blue ribbon. That's right, she was doing this for her and her team as much as for Ash. She had to if she wanted to achieve all her dreams. And she would achieve them all!

At that moment, the outcome of the battle was decided. And taking a deep breath, both Serena and Braixen let out a breath they were holding as they closed their eyes and a sense of satisfaction washed over them.

"So that's that." Serena thought as she relaxed her hand. "How satisfying. We gave it our all. That's more than enough. Now our next big adventure is on the horizon and I can't wait to see what it holds."

That was all the time Serena had for pondering as the next second, Salamence ripped through the rest of the flames and shot towards Braixen, still wrapped in dragonic power. And as he slammed into the fire type, a single tear ran down Serena's cheek.

The battle was over. She had lost.

"You know, before I thought I was reckless. But you put a whole new meaning to the word." Zinnia said as she wrapped bandages around Braixen. She had just finished treating all the other Pokémon and they were doing fine now. The fox was the last one. And the dark haired girl had chosen to give her a lecture.

"If we hadn't pulled our attack at the last second, you'd be in the same state as your fairy friend. So next time how about you not just stand there right before getting hit by a powerful attack?" She patronized as she pulled the bandage tight enough to stop any bleeding, but leaving it loose enough to avoid stopping blood flow.

As Serena watched Zinnia work with incredible precision, she had to admit the girl really knew her stuff. Serena definitely knew her way around treating wounds, but Zinnia was leagues better. Clearly she was used to traveling alone.

A little ways away, Wally sat on a rock. Watching with a tense expression on his face. Nobody was saying a word about what the outcome of the battle meant. And it was clear he was very on edge as a result.

A few more minutes passed in silence, broken only by Zinnia making commentary on Braixen's injuries as she dressed them. Yet even she didn't seem to want to talk about it, or even gloat about her victory. In fact, given her idol babble, it was almost like she was the one who most wanted to avoid the topic.

But after steeling her nerves, Serena cleared her throat drawing all eyes to her.

"So, I guess I have to hold up my end of the deal. Do you want me to start at the beginning or-?"

"Forget it."

Serena stopped, eyes wide at what Zinnia had just said. Surely she didn't mean…

"You already gave me that speech before. It'd be boring to hear it again." She said without looking up. In fact, she seemed even more intent on keeping her gaze on the injured fox Pokémon. (Who was also looking up at her in confusion.)

"Besides, it's pretty clear how much you care for Ash ketchup. Even I'm not mean enough to force you to talk trash about your boyfriend." Zinnia chuckled as she saw Serena turn scarlet out of the corner of her eye. Did she really think she wouldn't have guessed after listening to the way she spoke about him? Now that was insulting.

"I got to see something new today. And I had a blast battling you! So we can call it even. In fact, I almost feel like I lost from that battle. If you had more battle experience, I'm not sure I could have won!"

"Oh stop it!" Serena said, blushing even more from the compliments. "I'm nowhere near as good as you! You didn't even use your Mega Evolution. If you had, we'd have lost way sooner!"

Zinnia sent a smirk at the girl as she reached down and brushed her fingers against her anklet.

"It's not that I didn't use my Mega Evolution, it's that I can't." She confessed quietly, face turned to the ground. "Right now, that power is beyond us. And no matter how much we train, it seems we will never get any closer."

Serena's eyes widened in confusion. Zinnia couldn't use Mega Evolution? Why? And what did she mean she never seemed to get closer no matter how much they trained? Was there something stopping them?

But before she could ask, Zinnia's head shot back up, her trademark grin carved into it.

"Anyway, enough of that gloomy, serious stuff. Let's get going!" She said standing up and dusting her hands off. "We burned a lot of daylight during both the battle and aftermath. Fortunately for you, I know a shortcut. If we take it, we can shave a good three days off our trip!"

Calmly she walked over to Serena and put her hand on her shoulder, then whispered into her ear so nobody else could hear her.

"And I'm sorry for what I said last night. From now on, I'll try to be considerate. But for now, let's just agree to disagree on Ash Ketchup, okay?"

At her words, Serena felt her chest full with warmth. This was obviously an olive branch being offered, one she was more than willing to accept.

"It's Ketchum." She said respectfully, yet sternly. "But sure. We don't need to agree to everything. I understand that you can't see his amusingness, but that's fine. He never was the type to care about that stuff. I know he'll stay true to himself and I intend to do the same. that's far more than our public appearance."

Zinnia paused for a second, her eyes staring intently at Serena with an unreadable, but powerful and painful emotions behind them. She hadn't hit a nerve or something, had she?

Immediately Serena opened her mouth to ask if Zinnia was okay, but before she could, the dark haired girl walked past her and grabbed the blonde's bag off the ground.

"Glad we got that worked out! I did not want to have to deal with you pouting for the rest of our trip." She joked as she tossed the Coordinator her bag, her eyes now completely devoid of those emotions. "Now how about we start packing up? As much as I love the outdoors, best not to linger in one spot these days. That battle will definitely have drawn attention. Probably some we don't want."

Her sudden change in tone made Serena wonder if she had imagined the pain behind the girl's eyes. But chose not to press the subject. She wasn't going to pry, especially if she didn't know the nature of the girl's pain. So instead she recalled Braixen as she turned to Wally.

"Wally. It's probably best if we travel together. Not that long ago we ran into some poachers who were very tough. Safety in numbers after all!"

The green haired boy quickly gave a nod of acceptance as the two made their way over to their tents (which had blown over during the fight.) and began packing up together. Leaving Zinnia to grab the cooking utilizes and put out the fire completely.

And as the dark haired girl was putting several bowls into a bag, she caught sight of Aster staring disapprovingly at her.

"Oh come on! I feel bad enough without you judging me!" Zinnia said exasperatedly. "I don't like playing the bad guy anymore than you! But throw me a bone here! After everything that meddling kid did, I'm allowed to be petty!"

When Aster's face didn't change, Zinnia let out a sigh and picked her up. Then, after quickly glancing over her shoulder to make sure Serena and Wally weren't paying attention to her, she hugged her against her chest.

"I know how you feel, but what else was I supposed to do? Rayquaza isn't coming down on its own. I did what I had too so I could be ready." She said softly, rocking the whisper Pokémon in her arms. "All those sins are mine to bear. You were- are innocent. So please try to remember, I'm trying to protect this world and most importantly, you. The signs have already started to appear. Mictlantecuhtil will soon walk among us. And once he does, this world will end as a great evil descends! And I must now stop it on my own."

A bitterness filled Zinnia's voice as she remembered that day, and her frustration and powerlessness as she watched that stupid kid and his rat undo two years worth of work and plots!

She had expected resistance from the champions or the now retired G-men, but that fact that her plans had come undone because a kid and sheer dumb luck infuriated her! If she had her dragons back then, things would have been so different! She could have changed everything! She could have fought! She would have won!

But they were busy keeping those people away! And while she had a couple Pokémon on her, they just weren't capable of taking a champion! She wouldn't even be able to slow him down! And now…

"If Ketchup hadn't interfered, I'd have bonded with Rayquaza all those years ago and we wouldn't be in this fix! But time's up and I'm all out of ideas. And whatever destroyed is coming, we now face it alone. And I don't know if I'm strong enough to stop it."

At this, she saw Aster looking up at her, the judgment gone form her face. Wordlessly, the dark haired girl buried her face in the Pokémon fur, her body shaking slightly as she let out boastful persona drop and her fears take over.

Everything was riding on her and so far she had done nothing but fail. All her achievements had come crashing down on top of her and she had nowhere left to go.

As she tightened her grip on the only friend she had left, she felt warmth wrapped around her neck, as if a person was hugging her from behind. This sent a familiar comfort spilling into her chest and she carefully moved her hand to her shoulder where she could still feel the person's arm.

But just as every time before, she was met with nothing but air. Yet despite that, a small smile spears across her face.

"That's right. You wouldn't fail, would you?" She murmured, making Aster look up at her in confusion. But Zinnia didn't bother elaborating. Instead, she whipped the tears that had started to form in her eyes away and looked up as the glowing white figure hugging her disappeared.

"Wait for me, Aster. I'm going to save this world." She said quietly to herself. "I promised you that I would and intend to keep it. I'll find a way even if it kills me! And once I'm done, we can finally see each other again."

Looking at the sky, Zinnia might not be able to see the stars yet, but she had already done her calculations. She knew where the Mictlantecuhtil would appear shortly and without hesitation she reached up until her hand was covering the place.

There she tightened it into a fist, imagining herself crushing it. Yet her face remained somber as she stared up at her fist.

"Wait for me Aster." She murmured. "I'm coming soon."