krunski dragulj was the main stadium of The Institute. That was where the competitors would fight in front of their fellow students. The Krunski Dragulj was Franz Babic's design. It was shaped like a nest from a flying Pokémon, but changed colors periodically. It was filled with modern technologies which included a massive 4d Jumbotron in the middle so that everyone could watch the matches. The roof was retractable so that even if a massive storm occurred, the competition could still go on. Legend had it that Franz had spent millions of dollars constructing this stadium. It was an homage to Franz's ego. This stadium was part of his grand vision for The Institute. The battles within the Krunski Dragulj were usually the most epic where everyone would leave everything they had. This was where the infamous battle between Ava and Alex had taken place. There were other famous battles including the match between Leon and Sonya that were housed at this stadium. It was everyone's dream to reach the quarterfinals so they could battle in this crown jewel of a stadium. Of course they had to battle to make their way to the Krunski Dragulj.
The first rounds of the Institute Cup would be held in various parts of the University. Classes would be cancelled as all the students were required to participate in this Cup. No stone would be unturned to find the next great champion from the university. No one could back out of this as Bunny had found this out last year. She had tried to back out of competing, but was told to suck it up and just compete. Everyone enrolled in classes had to compete. That was why Melody had been able to sneak into the competition because she had enrolled into classes since there was a window for new students after the October break. So she would officially be competing in the cup. There was usually an opening ceremony to kick off the competition, but Franz had mysteriously been unavailable to perform the opening ceremony. This sent red flags up to Alex and his friends, but they had decided to just focus on the competition itself. That was the important thing right now and not whatever the heck Franz was planning.
Rather it would be Guzma from the Alola region who would be the master of ceremonies in Dr. Babic's stead. This made Alex, Kat, Bunny, Melody, and Ava nervous. They knew Guzman's reputation as the leader of Team Skull. That he was a hired goon and thug. If he was working with Franz then this added to the concern they all had. This was not a good sign. Of course the five students did not know that Guzma was working with JJ, Nikki and the rest. This was on purpose as Guzma did not want Franz knowing that he couldn't trust Guzma. Instead Guzma and Dexter had been spreading rumors and gossip. How Guzma wanted to start a program like The Institute in Alola. Guzma had also expressed to Franz that he admired Franz's work at the university. That Alola could use something like this brilliant master stroke from Franz. Of course Dexter and Guzma knew that stroking Franz's ego would work on Franz. He was an egomaniac so proclaiming the Institute to be a gift from Arceus would work. And it did. Franz had invited Guzma as a guest of his during the tournament. But now Guzma had been left in charge as master of ceremony. This allowed Guzma to really keep an eye on what was going on and tell the others.
Guzma just released a video for the students to watch. The lead in was his beloved Team Skull logo. Guzma and his Golisopod were in the frame as the stand in for Franz was wearing a tuxedo. "What up, it's ya boi GUZMA. I was asked to fill in for Dr. Babic as he had some important business to take care of. So I will be filling in for him during this tournament. I have to admit that I am excited to see all of you fight. Of course, you guys aren't as good as ya boi is. But still it will be good to watch you kids fight.", Guzma knew that he had to play up his overly cocky character that the students and Franz would know. This was all part of the plan. Guzman's Golisopod would nod along with Guzma's words. Guzma looked back into the camera, "now what is a master of ceremony you may ask? Well it means that I get to commentate the matches that make the quarter finals and beyond. I also get to help seed you kids. So try to impress ya boi. Oh and before I forget, I will give the winner whatever they want. Just another stipulation for you guys to really want to win.", with that the video had cut out. That was some introduction from Guzma.
The rules of the tournament were simple: it was single elimination style. A trainer could not lose or else they would be eliminated. The first four rounds would be held around the university. The draws were completely at random with trainers being seeded and reseeded throughout the competition. The freshmen would obviously be seeded at the bottom of the initial rounds. They were new afterall and would have to prove themselves. Despite being a sophomore, Bunny was seeded towards the bottom of the initial rankings. She didn't dispute that because everyone knew she wasn't into battling. So she had expected to be ranked in the bottom which meant she would have a tough first opponent. The same for Melody who was technically a new student to The Institute. The seniors, like Kuroku, would be seeded well. Kat had the overall two seed in the initial rankings which meant her path would be easier than some. Ava was seeded 5th which was fine with her. Alex was seeded 10th which pissed him off as he felt like he should be ranked higher.
Each student would get a message on their phone/Pokédex about their various matchups. Bunny was the first one to find out who her match up was against. Her opponent was a senior named Marcel Croft who Bunny really didn't know. Bunny would ask around to find out some information on this student. Ava knew of him as she had battled him last year. "He's got some pretty strong bug types.", this had made Bunny gag. She hated bug types because they were a bad match up for her grass types. Plus bug types were so gross. They were disgusting and had zero redeeming qualities. Bunny also knew that Ribes would be utterly useless in a battle with a bug type. So this made her ace utterly useless. Bunny's strategy had been based on countering bad type matchups with Ribes. But then Bunny realized that she had a Slyveon now and a flying type. If she could just use her Slyveon and Pidgeot she could win. Bunny knew that everyone would think that she only had Ribes in her arsenal. No one besides Ava knew that she had more. This would be a great surprise to the other contestants.
Melody was paired against another senior named Sara Emerson. Alex actually knew her well because she was from Unova just like him. She was a flying type master. Someone that battled very aggressively with her strategy. "She also likes to bait people into little traps she has. She likes to use leftovers when her Pokémon's health gets very low. Light clay is her favorite item. May also use terrain extender as well, but light clay is her go to.", Melody thanked Alex for the information. Melody had not come against someone that used to like items so much before. The Righteous were not the smartest of battlers so she had never really had to train against someone with this battling style. Melody had wanted to text Dexter for advice, but that would have been cheating in a sense. Melody had to do this on her own. So the female, who had dyed her hair blonde again, had decided that she would do this on her own. She actually would find Alex to be the best resource as a way of taking down Sara.
Speaking of Alex, he was drawn against Rex who was Kuroku's mentee. This was not a coincidence, but Alex accepted it. Alex had the freshmen to consult about what type of Pokémon Rex used. And of course there was only one person that Alex could really ask about Rex. Someone that he could really trust, so he called JJ. The brunette, who had been on the mend in more ways than one, rolled her eyes when Alex mentioned Rex. "Ugh, all he talks about is fossil Pokémon. His Tyrantum is probably his strongest mon. He tried to challenge me to a battle and a date once. Does that sound familiar?", Alex had to laugh at this. He thanked JJ for the information. Alex had to admit that he was a fan of fossil Pokémon himself so he was interested to see what Rex was going to throw at him. Alex had gone with Jet, his beloved Floatzel, so she would do wonders against the rock fossil types. Alex also knew that Rex would try to hurt Alex or at least damage his team so he couldn't compete in the competition. So Alex was fully prepared for this.
Kat was facing Kaspar Haaland a freshman. From what she could gather Kaspar had a wide mixture of different Pokémon. Though his strongest Pokémon was a Dusknoir. That wasn't a big deal to Kat. She had faced a Dusknoir before and beat it easily. Plus she would have home field advantage. The top seeds got to decide where their battles would be held and Kat had the perfect place. She was going to use her and Ava's makeshift field in their backyard. This would give Kat the ultimate advantage over her opponents. She knew this area better than anyone. Kat's Pokémon had trained on this ground many many times. Kat could really use the grounds to trap a few Pokémon. As for the Dusknoir, Kat had a plan to take that creature out. No one knew Kat had a mega except her friends. So springing this on her opponent would be another advantage. Kat was not worried just about her battles, but also Alex, Ava, Bunny, and Melody. She wanted all her friends to do well. And of course she wanted to make sure Kuroku won so she could beat him whenever they met.
Ava was against freshman Omar Matuidi. Given that Matuidi was not a common this raised red flags. Well to Melody at least as there was a person she knew with the last name Mutidi. She had gathered Kat and Ava in their kitchen where Melody had told them that she suspected that this Omar was related to Dries Matuidi. Melody explained to Ava what Dries had done to her in the past. Kat confirmed this as she had seen Dries in person as had Alex. If Omar was the nephew of Dries then he would be very vicious. He would probably be tied to the Righteous as well, "Ava, you need to be careful. If he is like his uncle then he will be extremely vicious and will not quit. You need to be careful when you are battling him. This was not a coincidence that you are drawn against him. You probably pissed off Franz somehow. Please, be careful when battling him." Ava ignored this. She would invite someone to try to take her out. There was only one thing Ava wanted and that was was Institute Cup so Franz could send as many Righteous morons as he wanted, she would knock them all down. She hadn't even worried about what team Omar's team, it didn't matter to Ava. All she was concentrated on was winning the cup.
After all the matchups were set the trainers were given a day to train. The four girls had decided to have a dinner together before they battled. Alex could not be assed to join them. He had said that he did not interact with the enemy which caused them all to roll their eyes. Even Melody had learned about Alex's weirdness when it came to battling. Still the girls went along with their plan and went to dinner. They shared stories and wished each other luck. They promised that nothing would separate or ruin their friendship. Melody had quickly turned into a good friend to all of them and she felt that this tournament would not ruin their friendship. The girls got a drink and toasted each other while wishing one another luck.
Bunny's first match was at 8 am. The match was to be held in the "forest arena", which confused her. Yes, she knew that Marcel was a bug trainer, but the forest arena was notoriously hot and uncomfortable. The forest arena was barely on campus as it was close to the catching area. The arena was deep in the heart of the makeshift forest in the catching area. It was a long trek from the dorms to the forest arena. Bunny had to get up at 6:30 to get dressed, prepare, and start her trek to the forest arena. This made for one cranky sophomore, "have to get you so friggan early In the morning to go face off against a freaky bug trainer." Bunny mumbled as she rode on her beloved Ribes. The Torterra, who had been happily trudging along, stopped at the mention of bugs. "Terra?", he asked Bunny, Ribes hated bugs. Bunny stroked the Torterra's side, "don't worry, Ribes. I won't put you against bug types. I know that you don't like bugs. And neither do I." The Torterra nodded as he continued to trek through the forest.
Bunny looked around as they continue used to walk through the forest. They were going deeper and deeper into the forest. Of course Bunny knew that this area was good for the bug types. It was giving her opponent an advantage as bugs liked the woodlands. So Bunny knew that she had to really come up with a plan. Luckily, Bunny had a plan which did involve Ribes. Bunny wanted everyone to think she was only using Ribes again. By having Ribes take her take her into the forest, Bunny would make Marcel think that Ribes was her only Pokémon. Then Bunny could spring her trap. Bunny knew that this just had to work. She knew people would doubt her abilities as a trainer, even her friends. Bunny knew they thought she was weak in terms of battling. She would hamper them if she continued to be weak. So Bunny wanted to prove that she was not weak and was a good trainer. She just hoped that the plan would work.
Ribes finally brought Bunny to the forest arena where Marcel was waiting. Marcel was dressed in blue overalls and a straw hat. A Pinsir stared at both Bunny and Ribes as it snapped its jaws at both of them. Marcel smiled, "well Bunny, welcome to the Forest Arena. I look forward to our battle. Especially battling your beloved Torterra. I have heard that is your only battle ready Pokémon. That is fine with me as he is weak to my bug types. This is why I selected this area for our little battle. You see my bug types love the forest. I know you prefer your garden, but the forest is much better, don't you think?", oh this guy was a dick. At least he was very cocky. His cockiness would absolutely backfire as Bunny just smiled which caused Marcel to raise his eyebrows in confusion. "Well then it appears that you are ready to battle.", Marcel looked over at his Pinsir who stepped forward onto the lofted battle floor. "Bugsy here has been eager to fight that Torterra. We have been studying your matches from last year and know that Torterra better than you probably know him.", the senior said with a laugh.
Bunny looked at Ribes, who looked terrified at the sight of the Pinsir, and gave her Torterra another pet. The small girl got a smile on her face, yes Marcel had indeed underestimated Bunny as she had intended. "It's too bad that Ribes isn't going to battle. I know you're a senior Marcel so you naturally have cockiness, but you shouldn't underestimate you're opponent. You should also do some more research into your opponent.", Marcel was angered by these comments. He was a quarter finalist last year aged only lost to Kuroku. Now this girl, who only made it to the second round last year, now wanted to insult him. Bunny could see that Marcel was steaming which was what Bunny wanted. She reached into her pokebelt as Marcel's eyes widened in realization that Bunny had more Pokémon than Ribes. Bunny picked out her love ball where Aster was held. "Aster, go!", out of the love ball came out the Slyveon that had just evolved about two months ago. It was clear that Marcel had not anticipated this at all and his face told the whole story. "Oh what's the matter? You weren't expecting a slyveon, now we're you? Shame, oh and Aster use misty terrain.", the slyveon nodded.
Pink mist started to fill the lifted platform which confused Bugsy the Pinsir, Bunny had truly outsmarted the senior as she saw him rub a hand through his blonde locks. He had not planned for this at all, he had been expecting Bunny just to her Torterra and this put a kink in his plans. Bunny knew that she could smell blood in the water as Marcel was stunned. The misty terrain had been a surprise move too as now the bug types couldn't use any status moves for at least five turns. Marcel just stood there as he was trying to get his barrings from this new twist. Bunny would not let him though, "Aster use Dazzling Gleam!" The slyveon nodded as she began to sparkle which showcased her beauty. Aster then released a powerful wave of energy at the bug Pokémon. It was a direct hit as the Pinsir cried out in pain. Bunny gave a small fist bump to herself. She would finally show what she could do.
Marcel finally shook off the confusion he had felt, "fine Ms. Bunny, if you want a real battle then here we go. Bugsy, use swords dance." Marcel was buying time to try and figure out what he could do. He had not given any of his Pokémon steel type moves that could take out this slyveon. His original strategy was now out the window, this little girl had out smarted him. That was not supposed to happen, he was Marcel the best bug trainer at the university. The one that could truly challenge Kuroku for the title. Yet his first round match up was proving to be quite annoying. He had not anticipated Bunny to be this tough. He had seen her battles last year and it was apparent that she would not be able to match him. So how did she get a Slyveon. He had used his bugs to beat fairy Pokémon before, but never a Slyveon as it was a tank of a fairy type. This was now an issue. All Marcel could do was stall with swords dance until he was ready to make a move.
Bunny wasn't going to give him that chance, "Aster use hyper voice." Aster opened her mouth as a lovely sound came out of the Slyveon. The Pinsir did not find the voice to be pleasant as the Pinsir cried out in pain. Now Bunny really had Marcel on the ropes, now Bunny needed to capitalize on this. Last year, Bunny would not have capitalized on the weakness of Marcel. The old Bunny who was not interested in battling last year would not have tried to take advantage of a clearly baffled opponent, but things had changed this year. After learning what The Institute really was, Bunny now knew she had to become a better battler. She had to protect herself and her friends. That was why she had brought Ava to Johto to her grandma. Her grandmother was the smartest battler that Bunny knew especially when it came to grass types. Grandmother had shown Bunny how to outsmart other battlers. The key was to not let up when you had the opponent on the ropes. Bunny had taken this to heart and was now going to implement that lesson.
"Aster, use Moonblast!", the moon had not set yet so it was the perfect to use the attack. Aster began to glow white as she absorbed the energy from the moon as it began to glow as well. The Slyveon was now bright white as she took aim at the Pinsir, who was still doing a Swords Dance, Bunny knew that this was the perfect time to strike. Aster was then ready as she fired off the momnblast. She had released all of the energy she had stored up into the attack as it struck the Pinsir. "Pin!", the creature cried as he skidded across the floor in front of Marcel. The bug master looked in horror as his Pinsir had been defeated. Bunny jumped up and down as did Aster. Even Ribes had to celebrate by stomping his feet. Sure the match was far from owner, but Bunny was now in a dominant position. Last year, Bunny had won by technicality. The senior she was fighting had dropped out of the competition so that was how Bunny had advanced last year. Now Bunny had finally gotten ahead of a senior on merit. She could help, but smile.
Marcel had to admit that his plan was a failure. He had underestimated this female. Why shouldn't he have? Marcel had made the quarterfinals last year whereas this girl had done poorly. He had expected to wipe out her whole team, well her Torterra, at least. Marcel only kept 3 Pokémon on his team which made what he had done last year even more impressive. But this Slyveon was an issue. Marcel looked at his pokebelt as he tried to counter what Bunny had just thrown out at him. That Slyveon was a tank and a hard hitter. Marcel needed to counter this and luckily he had the perfect Pokémon to counter the tank like Slyveon. If he couldn't land any powerful blows to the Pokémon then he could try to out speed her. Marcel grabbed the pokeball of a trusted Pokémon that he could use to beat this peaty Slyveon. "Rush, go!", Marcel threw out his pokeball and out emerged the speedy and powerful Ninjask. The buzzing creature flew around Aster as Bunny gulped. This was a bit of an issue.
Aster was a hard hitting Pokémon with high defense. She would be a sitting duck to the Ninjask though. Bunny had seen that time and time again when people battled Ribes. Bunny knew that this was going to be something that Marcel was going to try and utilize against her. Luckily, Bunny had caught a pokemon in Johto that could counter the speed of the Ninjask. Of course the Pokémon couldn't match the speed of the Ninjask, but he could at least keep the speedy Pokémon at bay. Bunny pulled out her love ball, "great job Aster. I may need to use you again later so rest up now." She recalled Aster to the love ball and then reached into her pokebelt as she was ready to match Marcel's speedy Ninjask with her own flying type. "Buckbeak, go!", out of the pokeball came a shiny version of the Pidgeot. Buckbeak immediately took into the air and looked across at the speedy Ninjask. Yes, Bunny was a big Harry Potter fan so of course she had named her new flying type after a character from the books. Bunny usually hated flying and bird Pokémon because they raided her garden, but she loved the Pidgeot breed so she had made an exception.
The two fast flying type Pokémon each would circle around each other as a way to feel one another out. The Pokémon were essentially dancing with one another. Finally Marcel got annoyed by the dance of the fast Pokémon, "Rush use bug bite on this stupid bird." Marcel's tome was beyond annoyed. It was clear that he had expected the Ninjask to have a significant advantage over whatever Bunny would throw out, but that was not the case. Her Pidgeot was quite quick and strong. Marcel had to try something to break this stalemate. He had to break the momentum Bunny now had. This had to work or else the senior was in deep trouble. Rush, the Ninjask, summoned a swarm of bugs that seemed to bite down on the wings of Buckbeak. "Pidgeot!", Buckbeak cried as feathers flew into the air, the powerful bird Pokémon had to land on the ground. Marcel smiled as the plan had worked.
Bunny was very concerned as she watched her Pidgeot pecking at his wings from the bug bites that had been inflicted on him. "Buckbeak, are you ok?", Bunny's voice was filled with worry. The Pidgeot turned his head and nodded as he flapped his wings, this signaled that he was ok to continue. Bunny looked at how the Ninjask was buzzing around like a blur. It was hard to keep up with seeing where this creature was going. Bunny was getting a headache, but she could tell that the Ninjask was preparing another attack on Buckbeak. That's when Bunny had an idea, "Buckbeak, wait for the Ninjask to come close. Don't go into the air again." Ribes and Buckbeak looked at their trainer like she was crazy, but they had to trust her. Rush, the Ninjask, was gone in a flash and Bunny knew that he would have to appear before delivering an attack which would give Buckbeak a opportunity to spring the trap. Suddenly Rush appeared a few feet in front of Buckbeak as Bunny's eyes lit up, "Buckbeak use heat wave!" It was too late for Marcel to do anything as his Ninjask was engulfed in flames.
"Rush!", Marcel cried in horror as the flames died down from the heat wave that had come from no where. When the flames were gone, the burnt husk of Rush remained. The Ninjask was burnt to a crisp. Still his wings were flapping like he wanted to continue. Bunny knew what it was like to see a Pokémon you love burned so badly, it was painful. She motioned for Marcel to recall his Ninjask back without fear of being attacked again. Marcel gave a nod as he appreciated what Bunny had done, "I must say Bunny, you have honor. I appreciate it. You have grown into a great battler. You are very smart. I can't believe that I am down to one last Pokémon." Marcel tipped his hat to Bunny who blushed. She wasn't used to compliments especially when it came to battling. Then a sick smirk crossed Marcel's face as he held his last pokeball in his hands. "But now you know the last Pokémon I have is the Empress. The master of all bug types and probably the strongest bug Pokémon you will face. Come out Empress Sonya.", Bunny began to shake. Yes, she knew exactly what Marcel was sending out.
"VOLCARONA!", the majestic fire moth that was Sonya had taken to the sky as she left charred bits of tree in her wake. Yes, this Pokémon was infamous around The Institute. When students spoke about the strongest Pokémon at the university, Sonya was always in the running. She was the very definition of an ace. Marcel had made sure to make sure Sonya was the strongest bug type at the university. Alex, Kat, and Ava had all warned about Sonya. The Volcarona was hyper aggressive. She knew she was an intimidating Pokémon and she lived up to the reputation. There was a reason why people called her the empress, because she was such a vicious Pokémon. She stared at Bunny and her Pokémon with a look of anger. Oh yes, it was clear that Sonya was not happy that she had been summoned. Now she was going to take it out on whatever Pokémon Bunny was going to summon next.
Bunny had a plan for Sonya. That was going to be send out her new Houndoom to counter her fire type moves. It was risky, but that was what Bunny had come up with. Bunny reached for the Houndoom's pokeball as she recalled Buckbeak. She could not afford Buckbeak to fight Sonya while he was hurt. That would be a disaster so she was going to stick to her plan. There was only one problem: Ribes was walking up to the battlefield to participate in the fight. In fact, he wanted to fight Sonya as the Torterra returned the Bug types stare with one of his own. Bunny was panicked, "RIBES COME BACK. Buddy this was not our plan. This is the worst possible matchup for you. What are you doing?" Sonya would kill him or at least burn him worse than he had ever suffered before. Bunny couldn't bare that, but the Torterra stomped his foot angrily as he looked into Bunny's eyes. "TORTERRA TORTERRA TOR!", because they had battlebond, Bunny could hear Ribes' words in her ears. "You don't trust me anymore. I want to fight! Please let me fight! I am not weak!", that sounded like Bunny. She knew that feeling of not wanting to feel weak. Ribes felt the same as his trainer. Bunny couldn't hold him back, she nodded to Ribes as he took his place.
"I don't know if we should be honored or insulted, right Sonya?", Marcel was confused as to why the Torterra wanted to fight the Empress. He admired the spunk, but it was dumb. Did this Torterra not know the might of Sonya? Well he would find out how wrong that assumption was. "Empress, use fiery dance.", the Volcarona began to become engulfed in flames. The tops of the trees around her caught on fire as well. Bunny coughed as some of the smoke from the burning trees and grass. Bunny could barely see and think from the smoke. This was bad. Suddenly, Sonya flew right at Ribes and smashed into the giant Torterra. The grass and ground type immediately became burned by the attack plus Sonya's flame body. Ribes cried out in pain as Sonya took back into the air. She allowed the smoke to cover her as she used it for cover. Marcel could only smile. Yes, this was why Sonya was so feared by other trainers. She was not only deadly, but intelligent.
"Terra!", Bunny actually felt the pain Ribes was in from the burn. It was part of their connection. Bunny knew that she had to do something to help Ribes as he suffered through the burn. The Volcarona was extremely powerful even more than she had expected. This was why Bunny had not wanted to use Ribes at all. This was just a really bad mat chip for him. But Bunny knew that Ribes was a fighter, she just had to help him figure out how to beat Sonya. The fire bug type also had an advantage by being in the air. If they could ground here temporarily then they would have a advantage. Bunny just had to think of something to use that could work. "Wait, Ribes knows stealth rock.", she whispered under her breath. That would be the perfect attack to ground the Volcarona. "Ribes, use stealth rock!", the Torterra started stomping his feet as rocks would be launched into the sky and then seemingly disappear. They were all around Sonya who could not see them.
"Very smart, Ms. Bunny. Stealth rock will be very effect against Sonya. Too bad your Torterra won't be able to see the fruits of his labor. Sonya, use bug buzz then use quiver dance.", Sonya opened her mouth as a piecing buzzing noise filled the forest. Ribes ears felt they were going to burst. The endless high pitched buzzing noise was taking its toll. Ribes shook his head as he tried to shake the buzz from his head. But as Sonya danced in the air, her attack got stronger. Ribes started to crumble to all fours. Marcel let out a smile, he did admire the fact that the Torterra was willing to challenge Sonya, but it was stupid. Bunny should have commanded the Torterra better. Marcel could help this girl with that. He could see that she had talent and he could help her with her Pokémon. But first, Marcel had to win this fight, but the stones that had just lodged themselves into Sonya were not helping. Luckily they had not hit her wings.
Bunny put her hands on her ears. The sound of the bug buzz was not helping. She couldn't communicate with Ribes because the smoke and now the noise from the bug buzz. Bunny didn't need to communicate with Ribes to see that he was in trouble. The Torterra was in a heap on the ground. The pain from the noise of the bug attack and the burn he had suffered earlier had taken its toll clearly. Of course Bunny knew that the Torterra would not want to return so she pulled out his pokeball. Bunny rarely kept Ribes in his pokeball, but in this case it was necessary to do so. Bunny went to recall him, but heard a voice in her head. "NO, BUNNY. I CAN STILL FIGHT. KEEP ME OUT!", Ribes started to get to his feet as he powered through the pain as he continued to stare at Sonya. Bunny sighed, she couldn't talk to Ribes when he got like this. So Bunny still had to use him. The question was what move could Bunny use with Ribes to help take down the EMPRESS. Bunny fight the sun hit her face as something came to her, "Ribes use solar beam. You won't have to charge it because the sun is out!" Bunny said through her connection with her Torterra so Marcel could not hear it. Ribes started to collect energy from the sun for the attack.
"My empress, use fiery dance to take the Torterra out.", if Sonya could knock the Torterra out then that would leave an injured Pidgeot and a tired Slyveon as Bunny's options. He could still win this, but it was critical that the Torterra fell. Sonya had done this before and she could do it again. The fiery dance attack could be the key to this. Marcel watched as Sonya was engulfed in flame. This attack would end this Torterra and put the momentum back on Marcel's side. Sonya charged at the Torterra as Marcel noticed something very interesting: the Torterra was absorbing energy from the sun. This was odd especially given that Bunny had not issued a command. So what attack could this Torterra be using? But then Marcel realized what it was: Solar Beam. Now Sonya was on a crash course with the attack. "Sonya, stop!", Marcel called, but it was too late. The Torterra had fired off the solar beam which struck the Empress head on! Sonya cried out in pain, but tried to power through it as she fired off a powerful fire attack at the Torterra.
Both Pokémon would be knocked out which meant that Bunny had won. She didn't care about this as she ran to Ribes' side. "Oh Ribes, I am so proud of you. You didn't have to fight, but you did wonderful. You took out Sonya! I'm going to get you to the Nurse Joi.", she recalled the Torterra to his pokeball. Bunny rubbed her cheek against the pokeball as a way of being so proud of Ribes. She felt a hand land on her shoulder and looked at Marcel. The defeated senior had a smile on his face, "Ms. Bunny I am honored to have fought you. I have to say that you are very talented. If I may, I would like to give you some tips for the next rounds. I think you have the potential to be something special." Bunny had Kat as a mentor, but they might come up against each other so Bunny could use some more advice. She smiled and nodded as she welcomed the advice.
Ooc: So guys I know that it took a while to get the chapter up, but I want to take time with this tournament. So chapters will be longer and will take a while to write.