Ian and Chloe have fought really hard, and both still have a few tricks up their sleeves. But Chloe's the one with special preparations, having sent out a Druddigon who's the perfect counter to Ian and his Haxorus! What will Ian do? Will he call Diamond back to use later? Or like an idiot will he let his savage Haxorus go on a rampage, fighting the Druddigon with everything he has until it's made clear which is the superior dragon? …That one. The second one. Remember to review!

KedharS: Just a little bit. But she's definitely still in the lead.

Arbiter8991: Yeah, win or lose, I don't think either one of them is likely to be of much help in future battles.

Just a Bad Writer for Fun: Indeed, there are a couple of things Ian can do to counter Chloe, the battle hasn't been decided quite yet. He's just in a pretty rough position.

Hyphenman: I think any fight between two dragons is likely to end up bloody.

Tambry96bj: Hopefully by proving that his dragon is the superior one. Nobody uses Druddigon, after all.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 1146

"Haxorus!" Diamond roared angrily, frustrated at the result of his previous attack. His claws stung from the cuts laid across them, and his trainer's orders not to press the attack was frustrating him even further.

But Ian knew better than to turn his Haxorus loose in this situation. Diamond would end up hurting himself more than he hurt the Druddigon, and he couldn't risk it, not while he had another tactic he could use instead.

"Diamond, use toxic," Ian ordered.

"Haxorus!" Diamond opened his mouth wide, spitting a big burst of venom at the Druddigon.

"Pheeew," Donoma whistled, pleased at the fact that Ian was resorting to trying to poison his opponent. "Now that's what I like to see!"

"Vritra, dodge," Chloe ordered. Her Druddigon leapt out of the way of the incoming orb of toxins, growling at Diamond. She'd anticipated that. While on the surface Diamond seemed like any other Haxorus, only capable of rampaging with physical moves, she knew better. One of the first things anyone learned about Ian's Haxorus was that, when things got serious, he had toxic for a backup plan to slowly wear down any opponents whose defenses were just too high to break through under ordinary means.

Now was the perfect example of when it was the most useful, and she wasn't about to let anything get in her way.

"Now, use taunt!" She ordered.

"Druddigon," Vritra nodded, raising his claws and smirking at the Haxorus. He beckoned the other dragon to approach and Diamond grew even more enraged. His Rivalry flared up and he let out another roar.

Chloe smirked as Diamond charged. This was exactly what she wanted. Now that the Haxorus was under taunt, Vritra wouldn't have to worry about any more poison attacks coming his way, nor would they have to deal with any dragon dances mucking things up. All Diamond could do now was rampage, and that suited their needs just fine.

Ian, on the other hand, could see the writing on the wall. With the taunt driving Diamond's aggression and the combination of the rocky helmet and Vritra's Rough Skin ability, leaving his pokemon in the battle didn't seem like a good idea.

"Diamond, return," he said, reaching for his pokeball to call his pokemon back. But to his shock, Diamond dodged the red light.

"What?!" Callie gasped in shock. "He's not returning to his pokeball?!"

"That's notable," Donoma said, surprised and a little amused. But she kept that off her face, trying to maintain an air of concern for Ian's plight.

"Diamond, what's wrong?" Ian asked his Haxorus, confused.

Diamond glanced back at him, and snarled. His eyes were burning, and Ian didn't need harmonia to understand what his pokemon wanted.

Diamond didn't want to retreat. If he went back to his pokeball, then he would be replaced by Iron. And while that might have made a more successful outcome for Ian's team, Diamond's pride couldn't stand for it. He refused to be switched out for his main rival.

Ian sighed. He knew how stubborn Diamond was. And while it might mean his loss, it just wasn't in his nature to force his pokemon to do something he was that opposed to. He nodded, reaching an understanding with his pokemon.

Diamond would be allowed to rampage as much as he wanted.

Of course, Chloe was counting on exactly this outcome. She knew all about the relationship between Ian and his pokemon, and their relationship with each other. One of the key points of tension in Ian's party was the one-sided rivalry between Diamond and Iron. The Haxorus yearned to supplant Ian's Aggron as the star of his party, and was stubborn about it to a fault.

Chloe knew that if she sent a Dragon type pokemon out to fight against Diamond, and a male at that, the Haxorus would be enraged. He would want to win more than anything, especially given Vritra's Rough Skin making it difficult to land a real blow. That frustration would only spur him further, and the taunt was the final straw.

No way would Diamond stand by and be recalled to his pokeball. And Ian was too loyal to the desires of his pokemon to force him back.

A smile crossed her lips. She had Ian and his Haxorus right where she wanted them.

"Vritra!" She shouted. "Use dragon claw!"

"Druddigon!" Vritra roared, charging across the grass with his claws raised. Violet-blue flames and crackling lightning danced in his claws as he slashed at Diamond, who didn't even bother trying to dodge.

"HAXORUS!" Diamond let out a roar, using the pain from the attack to pump himself up even further. He prepared a dragon claw of his own, slamming it right into Vritra's chest. With another roar, he practically flung the Druddigon across the field, ignoring the agonizing pain in his claws. He stomped after the dragon with murder in his eyes.

"Urrgh!" Chloe clutched her chest, doubling over in pain. This was all going according to her strategy, but if she was being honest, she hadn't expected it to hurt this much. She nearly collapsed, but she held on, focusing her harmonia and directing it towards Vritra.

Vritra rose to his feet and roared, energy surging through his claws. He prepared for Diamond to attack again, readying a counter.

"Oof," Callie winced. She was normally a fan of physical slugfests, but given the current state of things, she couldn't get engaged. Seeing Diamond tear her claws to ribbons in an attempt to win was agony to her, she couldn't bear to see any more.

"Diamond! Use dragon pulse!" Ian shouted, startling Chloe.

"Haxorus!" Diamond knew he was already being privileged by his trainer for Ian allowing him to remain in the battle. So even though every scale on his body was aching to rip into his opponent, he obeyed Ian's orders and used a move he despised.

Diamond opened his mouth wide, and fired a blast of draconic energy at Vritra, catching the Druddigon by surprise. Vritra just barely managed to dodge the blast, the energy around his claws dissipating from shock.

"What move was that?!" Chloe asked in disbelief. She'd never seen Ian's Haxorus use dragon pulse before!

"Excellent," Darla nodded, a proud smile on her face. "Dragon pulse is the perfect move to use in this situation." She'd been expecting that, actually. She knew what most Dragon types were capable of, so she knew that Diamond must know dragon pulse, at the very least, even if he might not have wanted to use it.

Which was a lot more than Chloe had expected. She had to rethink her entire strategy now that she knew Diamond had special moves.

What the hell was up with that?! Chloe thought, shaking her head. He can use dragon pulse?! Since when?! This isn't good. Vritra… Vritra can handle it, right? Yeah, of course he can. We just have to be more cautious. And given Diamond's stats, a special move like that won't do any serious damage. As long as we're prepared, we should be able to win.

She no longer felt nearly as confident, though. She focused her harmonia, directing it to Vritra to increase his speed. The Druddigon let out a roar, preparing another dragon claw as he charged at Diamond a second time. Then, he began to glare, making a wicked expression.

"That's scary face," Ian realized, seeing Diamond's speed decrease from the intimidating glare. "I see, so you're trying to slow us down, huh? Well, it won't make a difference. Diamond, hit him with dragon pulse!"

"Haxorus!" Diamond roared, firing a blast of draconic energy at Vritra. But the Druddigon didn't try to dodge this time. Instead, Vritra charged right into the blast with a howl, pushing through the pain of the shockwave.

"He leapt right into it!" Callie gasped in disbelief.

"Wow, I didn't know the stalker was so bold," Donoma said, moderately impressed.

"Aaaargh!" Chloe didn't have the attention to give to Donoma's comment. She didn't even hear it. All she could focus on was the burning pain that Vritra was in as he withstood the dragon pulse, plowing through the destructive energy blast to get even one step closer to the Haxorus.

When he broke through, Ian realized that this wasn't a feasible plan in the slightest.

"DRUDDIGON!" Vritra slashed into Diamond with a powerful dragon claw, forcing the Haxorus back. Diamond responded by swinging his tail and tusks defensively at the Druddigon, but they had little effect brushing against Vritra's sharp scales.

It was good for a gimmick, but as I feared, Diamond just doesn't have the power to do damage with dragon pulse, not as long as Chloe has harmonia, Ian was forced to admit. Staring across the field at his opponent, it was clear that Chloe was taking some serious damage from this fight herself, but like him, she refused to yield.

"Diamond, change of plans," Ian called to his Haxorus as he waited warily for Vritra's next attack. Diamond glanced back at him, having a good idea what Ian was about to suggest.

He pulled back his lips and bared his fangs in a savage smile at the thought.

"We're going to have to fight power with power, it's the only way," Ian said, even though he didn't like the idea of ordering Diamond to hurt himself. "Charge in with a dragon claw, and give it everything you have!"

"HAXORUS!" Diamond was waiting for an order like that! He wasn't the type of pokemon to stand in the back and fire off dinky little dragon pulses, his claws were aching for MEAT! (And aching from the rough scales that had sliced them)

Chloe was surprised to hear the order, but she wasn't disappointed. It looks like things were getting back on track, which was perfect for her. She knew that Vritra could take on Diamond in a direct confrontation. The rocky helmet and Rough Skin were just going to prolong her opponent's suffering at this point.

She felt a little bad, of course, but a sacrifice like this was necessary for the sake of victory. She hardened her resolve and gave an order to match.

"Don't let them get the edge on you!" She shouted. "Use a dragon claw of your own, Vritra, and tear that Haxorus apart!"

"Druddigon!" Vritra snarled, preparing a claw of fire and lightning himself. He charged at the advancing Haxorus.

Darla winced. She could see where this was going to go.

"Get back, all of you!" She shouted. "When two Dragon type pokemon with that much strength start exchanging moves, things can get a little rough!"

Not one person thought to question the Dragon type expert, so they all put some distance between themselves and the battlefield, hiding for cover behind the river bank as Diamond and Vritra raged across.

It was brutality in action. The two beasts tore at each other with claws and fangs, ripping into their foe's scaly hide with everything they had. There wasn't time for strategy or tactics in the heat of the fray, all there was to deal with was ferocity.

And the two pokemon were competing to see which of them deserved the title of most ferocious. They were both bipedal dragons from the Unova Region, whose hard scales and sharp claws and fangs were designed for devouring their prey. When pitted up against one another, their natural fighting instincts intensified, and the river soon ran red with dragon's blood.

But neither pokemon would fall.

"This is awful…" Callie whimpered. It was nothing like the martial arts fights she had with her own pokemon, these two were truly trying to hurt the other.

"This is the savagery of wild pokemon," Ange said plainly. Her face was an impassive mask. "In the wild, these two never would have met. Druddigon prefer the caves, while Haxorus live in the mountains, isn't that right, Miss Dragon?" She asked, turning to Darla.

Darla nodded tensely. "That's true. Dragons very seldom share territory with other pokemon of their type. An apex predator abhors a rival."

"As I figured," Ange sighed. "If they were wild pokemon, they would have fought tooth and claw to drive the other from their territory. You're getting a little taste of that now. It's survival of the fittest, in the purest sense."

No one else really appreciated the scene they were being shown the same way Ange did. Not even Marion, who understood a lot about the laws of nature.

Chloe clenched her jaw to keep from screaming out in pain. Every strike the Haxorus inflicted on Vritra made her feel like her internal organs were being torn out of her gut. How could they endure this?! And not only withstand it, but continue fighting in spite of it? It was a terrifying sign of the raw brutality of pokemon, something that all her studies couldn't show her.

And honestly, she wasn't sure if she was up for it.

But it didn't matter if she was or not. Samarra wouldn't allow her to yield. The woman drove her forward, spurring her on to keep going, and it was all she could do to remain composed as she watched- and felt- the two pokemon rip each other to pieces.

Just fall already! She pleaded. She might have been Ian's opponent, but even with Samarra's influence that didn't mean she wanted to see him or his pokemon suffer. As she saw Vritra's claws tear chunks of scale out of Diamond, she began to wonder if this was the right thing to do.

Samarra quickly assuaged those doubts, smothering them with determination.

"URraaaagh!" Chloe shouted, merging with Vritra nearly-completely. Now it was HER being ripped apart by Diamond's claws, and that gave her the strength to fight back. She raised her hand, not realizing that it was really Vritra's claw she was raising, and struck with everything she had.

The attack hit Diamond in the stomach, striking through his armored hide and hitting a vital area. The Haxorus roared out in pain and fell backwards, crashing hard in the water.

"Diamond!" Ian shouted.

"Haah… haah…" Chloe had to catch her breath, coming down off that brutal high. She took a step back out of reflex, wanting to put some distance between herself and the brutal display she'd just facilitated. She stared at Vritra, her chest swelling with pride.

They'd won. Her strategy and her pokemon's savagery had managed to overcome one of Ian's strongest pokemon! And now he only had- wait, what?!

"Haxorus…" Diamond rose to his feet, snarling, his eyes glowing with fury. Chloe was stunned at the display.

"N-No, no way! That should have finished you!" She shouted, unable to believe that anything could endure the assault she'd just unleashed.

"Diamond…" Ian was just as surprised as his opponent. The beating Diamond had taken was something no Dragon type pokemon should have been able to withstand. Especially not with all the damage that he'd accrued as a result of the rocky helmet and Vritra's Rough Skin ability. Even he thought Diamond would have fainted by now.

"HAXORUS!" But the dragon's savage roar made it clear that this match wasn't over just yet. Diamond stomped through the river, blood pouring down his wet scales. He didn't care about his injuries, or the pain he was in, however. His focus was entirely on the Druddigon ahead of him, and finishing the cursed pokemon off.

Vritra was stunned, but rose to the challenge, running to greet his foe with another dragon claw. This one would certainly finish off the Haxorus, right?

Wrong. Diamond took the dragon claw without even budging and swung his claw back at Vritra in return. No energy, not move being used, just a simple, ordinary punch, and it had enough force to bring the beast to his knees.

"I don't get it," Callie said, shaking her head in disbelief. "How does he still have enough strength to keep going?"

"If you knew the first thing about Dragon type pokemon you'd understand," Darla said, as if the fact that Diamond was a Dragon type was enough of a justification for this impossible display. She clarified her meaning. "Dragon type pokemon are primal forces of nature. They're ruled by the idea that they are the strongest, and refuse to yield to those they consider weaker than themselves. Even if that isn't necessarily the case. A dragon like that Haxorus won't just 'give up' to something like its injuries just because his opponent is stronger. He's going to keep struggling and fighting until he's put down, and even then, who knows?"

Darla's face was lit with pride as Diamond let out another roar, unleashing a dragon claw that smashed Vritra down into the waves.

"When it comes to a fight between dragons, well… the one with the strongest claws wins. That's just how it is," she said with a shrug.

Vritra bobbed up to the surface. He wasn't moving. The only pokemon still standing was Diamond, covered in blood.

He let out a triumphant roar.

Wow. It was a harsh and brutal battle but Diamond managed to overcome all of Chloe's strategies for the dragon showdown, and actually managed to win! Now that's something impressive! But it's unlikely he has much strength left to keep things going. At the same time, Chloe still has two pokemon left to fight with! This match isn't over yet!