A/N: Damn, we're already at the penultimate league battle, huh? Time for Hop and Gloria to have their big battle!
Breakfast was, in a word, awkward and surprisingly uneventful. Upon arrival to the restaurant, Leon pulled Hop and me aside as Rose strode into the building, completely unaware. "Don't talk about what I know you want to talk about," he said sternly, specifically looking at me as he spoke. I brought my fingers to my chest and made my best scandalized impression before attempting to skirt around him, but he grabbed tightly onto my shoulder, refusing to let go until I promised to behave. Finally, the three of us followed Rose into the restaurant.
The food itself was fine. Mountains of egg and fruit scattered around the table, though a glimpse at the prices on the menu almost made me white in shock. I managed to put down some toast and yoghurt, but I quickly realized that my stomach was beginning to churn. Nerves for the battle ahead, or nerves from the present company, I wondered. Hop, usually a vacuum cleaner of an eater on most days, also spent more time prodding the food on his plate than bringing it to his mouth. My phone buzzed and I checked it: I had received a text from Marnie:
you coming down? gonna be late for the match
I unlocked my phone and frantically typed my response: at breakfast w/ everyone's favorite billionaire apocalypse-starter. apparently it's tradition? I'll meet u at the pitch i guess. I placed my phone on the table and glanced over at Rose himself. He was eating like normal, completely unbothered and amicably trying to make conversation with Oleana. Oleana was looking as unexpressive as ever, though she brought her eyes over to meet mine, bringing with her gaze a familiar coldness. My phone buzzed again with Marnie's response:
omg gloria pls dont kill him, let me do it
I snorted into my orange juice and slid my phone over to Hop, who promptly did the same. No one else at the table noticed.
When we finally arrived at the stadium complex, a massive crowd was already there to meet us. Fans from all over Galar were shouting and screaming for us, and aside from Eddie and Sam, who I waved to excitedly, I didn't recognize a single face until we made it almost to the door. There stood a long line of pink-haired punks, glowering at the group as a whole and shoving them further away from the prime real estate that was right next to the stadium door, effectively blocking them off from a much more familiar set of faces standing behind a waist-high metal barricade. Marnie, Victor, Sonia, Piers, and Nessa stood, not paying much mind to the wall of Team Yell, but behind them, and looking very concerned about their newly appointed bodyguard were Hop's parents, Professor Magnolia, and, looking especially uncomfortable, Mum. As soon as she saw Hop and I arriving, she broke from the pack and leaned over the barricade. "Quite the, er, eccentric bunch you've met on the journey," she said shakily.
"What of it?" Piers asked, walking up and hopping the barrier like it was nothing. "We got you all the bloody elbow room in Wyndon you could ask for, you want us to take it back?"
"No, no, that's not what I meant at all!" Mum backpedaled, flushing. "Er, I don't mean anything by it, and…"
"Piers, lay off," Marnie sighed, jumping the barricade as well, in the same fashion her brother had. "She's a good egg, but we can't crack her too hard yet."
Mum blinked. "I…I don't think I know or like that turn of phrase," she said. Piers rolled his eyes, but Marnie stifled a bemused snicker and pulled me into a hug.
"He still a piece of work?" she asked, eyeing Rose, who had turned away and was heading to his private box with Oleana.
"He mostly just talked about himself for an hour while I was trying to eat," I admitted, pulling her face to mine and giving her a quick peck.
"I mean what I said, I want to be the one to kill him if that's the game plan," she said bluntly.
"Maybe no murder just yet," I said, walking over to Mum to greet her as well.
"You ready for the battle?" she said as she hugged me over the barricade.
"Honestly?" I said, "I don't feel like it."
She ended the hug but continued to grip my shoulders, staring at me up and down. "I know you'll make me proud. You already have. So much."
"Thanks, Mum."
"And heavens," she said, her voice faltering. "You do remind me so much of your father now. You and your brother both."
"Do your best, Gloria," Hop's dad said, sidling up to us with a wide grin on his face. "I know our boys battle hard, but you do too!"
"Of course, Mr. N," I said, glancing at Hop, who was struggling to get out of his mum's sobbing embrace. For once, my mother was keeping it cool. I left quickly before she could turn into a crying mess herself, grabbing Hop by the collar along the way. Those who had competed in the tournament, alongside Sonia, per Nessa's request, slipped into the doors, letting them close behind us.
Hop and I were the first battle, set to begin right at noon on the dot. Though there were only a couple hours between our arrival and our entrance to the stadium, time passed in an instant. We were cordoned off to separate locker rooms, small and cozy yet large enough for a full team of six Pokémon. Marnie offered to stay with me, but I shooed her away, saying I wanted some time to decompress and possibly think of a strategy that Hop wouldn't expect. I called out my full team; Cinderace, Boltund, Bewear, Flygon, Rapidash, and Sneasel, and all immediate plans to build a strategy quickly fizzled. I was far too nervous, pacing the entire length of the locker room, and as Cinderace had a keen link to my mental state, he also wandered restlessly. My other four teammates spent the better part of our time together relaxing or resting, though I could see that Sneasel and Rapidash seemed to understand the intensity of the upcoming battle more than the others. With each passing minute, my heart beat faster and harder, until an official, in a tight bun and sporting reflective shades and a tight-fitting white Macro Cosmos-labeled outfit, opened the door to the pitch and nodded. It was time.
I returned my team to their Pokéballs and took a deep breath before following her out. As soon as I stepped through the door, I could hear the noise of the crowd. Though it was echoing weakly through the walls of the tunnel, I could already sense the hunger of the audience. Even though the unbeatable Leon, a longtime crowd favorite, would not be battling until later this afternoon, the energy of the crowd was already frenetic. Had Hop's and my celebrity really come this far? And would it continue for both of us after the battle? After all, only one of us could advance to the finals. I walked behind the official, but I couldn't feel my feet touch the ground.
The tunnel snaked, turning left once, and then right once, before opening up into the pitch itself. Already, there were camera feeds trained onto me. I put my best game face on, waved for the cameras, and then jogged to my spot on the edge of the pitch. As I did, I saw Marnie and Victor. I think they were saying something, but I didn't hear a word. There could have been other challengers, but after I nodded at my girlfriend and my brother, I turned my head to the pitch and that green turf was all I could see. Even the roar of the crowd seemed distant. Far at the other end, I saw Hop standing at the edge of the turf. I heard my name announced, but the words were far away, as if I were ten feet underwater. I took one more sharp inhale and jogged out there.
It was as if a bomb had exploded right next to me as an entire stadium's worth of fans bellowed my name. The stands were filled to the top, and if there were any empty seat, I never would have been able to notice it, even if I had the ability to turn my head around to search. Instead, my head was trained on Hop as he jogged out to join me. After a run that felt both far too quick and far too long at the same time, we met at the center of the pitch. I held my hand out to shake, but he blinked, and then smiled at me.
"You alright, mate?" I asked.
He shook his head in disbelief. "It's just…I just had this sort of flashback, you know. Remember? Back when we were still in Postwick."
"Like when we first started out?"
"Yeah," he said. "You know, when we got our Pokémon from Sonia that day, I never would've dreamed that I'd end up standing here…facing you, of all people."
"Kinda fitting, innit?" I replied with a grin.
"I would've never gotten nearly as far as I did without you and Vic and Marnie in my corner," he continued. "Mostly you. I dunno if I ever got a chance to thank you for stickin' with me through it all, mate."
"You know I'd do it again in a heartbeat, Hop," I replied, wiggling my still-outstretched hand.
Hop laughed and clapped his hand into mine, squeezing it and giving me a vigorous handshake. "But it's time I finish what I started that day, got it? I didn't think I could before, but now I know, the one who'll become champion is me."
I pulled him close to me. "Wishful thinking, Nambarek," I teased. "To the bitter end?"
He nodded. "To the bitter end."
We let go of each other's hands and jogged back to our respective ends of the pitch. I whirled around to see that he had made it to his spot first, holding aloft his first Pokéball. I narrowed my eyes. Though I had a guess as to who it could be, I knew it could be any one of his Pokémon in there. I had to keep him from building momentum right away, and I had just the Pokémon that could do that. I snatched Flygon's Pokéball from my belt and held it high above my head. An official, the same woman who brought me into the match, took to the side of the pitch and held her hand up. The entire stadium, once loud and boisterous, fell to a silence that hurt my ears as much as its noisy cacophony from before had. It was so quiet that I could hear the light click and hiss of the vents at the edge of the pitch open up and begin to dispense Dynamax energy across it. After a couple seconds, I felt the buzz on my wrist telling me I was ready to Dynamax at any time, and then the ref brough her arm down.
"BEGIN!" she bellowed.
We threw out our Pokéballs and all hell broke loose. As the crowd roared, Flygon zoomed around the pitch at breakneck pace, glancing down and seeing Dubwool, poised and ready for anything. So, he was starting with him, then. I grinned. The pinball strategy of his wouldn't work if Flygon simply stayed in the air.
"Alright, Flygon, don't go too low unless you have to!" I ordered. Flygon made one more loop around the pitch and brought himself to a hover, flapping his wings mightily.
"You can't stay up there forever!" Hop warned. "Dubwool, Cotton Guard!"
"Earthquake!" I roared. As Dubwool tucked his head into the thick wool along his side and braced himself, Flygon flew up and then back down in a perfect arc. At the last moment of flight, he slammed his scaly tail into the ground, sending a tremor in every direction.
"Use that momentum! Reversal!" Hop cried, and Dubwool hopped into the air, bolstered by all the shaking, and crashed into Flygon's flank before he could fly too far away. The dust from the earthquake settled, and both our Pokémon stood strong, ready to go at each other again.
"Dragon Claw!" I cried, and Flygon sped toward his opponent, but Hop was quick on the trigger, and when Flygon reached his opponent, slicing out with his claws, he did not attack Dubwool at all. Instead, his claws scraped weakly against the steely feathers of Hop's Corviknight.
"Alright, you wanna fight in the sky?" Hop yelled. "Then we fight in the sky!"
I grimaced. Corviknight, being a steel type, could handle just about any type of attack from any of my Pokémon, especially Flygon. Not only that, I couldn't knock it out with an Earthquake if the damned bird never touched down anyway! Fortunately, I knew it wouldn't be able to do too much to Flygon either.
"Screech!" I yelled as Hop commanded Corviknight to go for a Drill Peck. Corviknight sped toward Flygon, but he held his ground, roaring in an incredibly high register that made Hop and me both cringe as we heard it. Corviknight powered through, landing the attack and sending Flygon spinning away, but as he was shaken by all the sounds, he ruffled his thick feathers and started to fly low.
"Stay up!" Hop cried. "Another Drill Peck!"
"Screech again!" I yelled, bringing my hands up to my ears. Corviknight snapped back towards Flygon and flew at him, but everything played out the exact same way. Flygon took the hit like a champ and then Corviknight, once landing the hit, flew slow and low, a bit disoriented. I took a glance at Flygon as he flew past me. He was still going strong, and I thanked Arceus that Corviknight was far better at taking hits than dishing them out, but he looked like he was ready for a break. We made eye contact and I nodded.
"Don't let it get to you! One last Drill Peck oughta do it!" cried Hop.
"Fly fast and low, once around the pitch! No screeching!" I said. Flygon dove to the ground and sped in a circle around, Corviknight in hot pursuit. As they flew off to the right side of the pitch, I snuck a glimpse at Hop. He was fully focused on our two flyers. I grabbed a second Pokéball. I'd have to make this one quick.
"Hook a left and come towards me!" I cried, just as Flygon was about to reach Hop. Flygon adjusted his wings and sped towards me, Corviknight almost caught up. Now was my best chance. I held up Flygon's Pokéball in my left hand and returned him, while tossing out Boltund's Pokéball with my right. In a flash too quick for Corviknight or Hop to realize, Boltund stood where Flygon once flew. Corviknight pecked at her, but Boltund bristled with static electricity and looked like she could go a few more rounds of drill pecks than Flygon could. Corviknight reared backwards, surprised at the new target, and I saw Hop's eyes widen as he realized he had been tricked.
"Wild Charge!" I yelled.
"Out of the way!" Hop shouted, but it was too late. With a rowdy bark, Boltund took maybe ten bounds and jumped, letting electricity flow all over her body, crashing into Corviknight and sending the bird tumbling to the ground. It pulled itself up, frazzled and weak, but still able to battle.
"Finish it with Nuzzle!" I cried. Hop yelled for another attack, but it wasn't enough. Corviknight toppled over again, and I had the first advantage of the match.
Hop wasted no time getting back into the action, and soon, Corviknight's limp body was replaced with the hulking Snorlax. "High Horsepower!" he cried, and Snorlax started running towards Boltund.
"Nuzzle!" I cried. Fighting Snorlax would be a long battle no matter who I had on the pitch, so any way I could aid my Pokémon as they battled him would keep me afloat. Boltund, with her incredible speed, managed to get her attack in before Snorlax could hit her, and I saw the telltale jerks of the arms and legs that came with paralysis, but it didn't faze Snorlax enough to stop his momentum, and with a surprisingly quick motion, he body-checked Boltund with his rotund stomach, sending her skidding. Boltund did not get up.
"Boltund is unable to battle!" the ref yelled.
"Eye for an eye, mate!" Hop cried from his end of the pitch as I recalled Boltund.
"Thanks for everything Boltund," I muttered to her in her Pokéball. "You deserved a good rest." I clipped her Pokéball back onto my belt and frowned. Bewear, being a fighting type, would be the easiest choice to bring in and take care of Snorlax, but I recalled teaching Hop's Snorlax the Hammer Arm move. No doubt he'd use that against Bewear at the first opportunity. I sighed. It seemed I didn't have any better option. I pulled Bewear's ball out and threw it onto the pitch. Bewear appeared and roared, looking Snorlax dead in the eye. He already knew what was going to go down.
"Hammer arm!" I cried.
"You too!" Hop yelled.
Both our Pokémon rushed each other, swinging their fists wildly. Bewear had the slightest speed advantage due to Snorlax's paralysis slowing him down, but with each set of blows traded, both of them looked slower and weaker. Admittedly, this part of the battle was far from the flashy moves that started off the match, but after the third swing, it was clear that Bewear was pulling ahead, maintaining his composure while Snorlax's swings seemed to lose their energy. Still, Hop egged Snorlax on, and I did the same with Bewear until finally, as Snorlax was seized with one last burst of paralysis, opening up a clear hit for Bewear.
"Drain Punch!" I cried, and instead of pounding downwards with another hefty Hammer Arm, Bewear switched it up and jabbed with his left paw, dealing the final blow and restoring a small amount of his own vitality in the process. Snorlax wobbled and then crashed to the ground with a definitive thud, and the audience roared. The ref threw up her arms again, confirming that Snorlax was out for the count, but I didn't celebrate. I couldn't afford to. This match was far from over.
"How ya feelin' over there?" Hop called out from his end of the pitch. He didn't seem to have a care in the world; as intense as the battle had been, he was entirely in his element, with the same bravado on his face that he had back when we had our battle on the North Motostoke bridge.
"We're just getting warmed up!" I called back. "Isn't that right, Bewear?" Bewear rumbled in agreement, but I could see that his breathing had become ragged from his bout with Snorlax. The Drain Punch might have kept him standing, but he couldn't take too much more. I hoped desperately that Hop wouldn't call our bluff.
"Well, why don't I give you something to really throw you off?" Hop grinned. "Cramorant, go! Drill Peck!"
I swore under my breath, wishing that Bewear had gotten a couple more Drain Punches in while fighting Snorlax. "Stick it out and use Counter!" I cried – it wasn't Bewear's best hope against a Pokémon that was not only much faster than him, but had a type advantage over me as well, but I had to make sure Cramorant was close before I went in for the KO. It was a bold and probably dumb strategy, but I hoped it would turn out in my favor. Bewear braced himself and leaned forward as Cramorant flew like a bullet towards him. There was a muffled crack as Cramorant landed its attack, sinking into Bewear's thick, fluffy, fur. It wasn't quite enough to take Bewear out though, and before Cramorant could disengage, Bewear clasped his paws together and brought them down on the bird, knocking him to the ground. Cramorant sputtered, and the two stumbled backwards, reeling at the powerful hits they both took.
"Come on, Bewear! Thunder Punch!" I cried, and Bewear leapt at Cramorant, his paw sizzling with static electricity.
"Cramorant, don't let him do it! Throat chop!" Hop called, and just before Bewear brought his paw down, Cramorant snapped to and jumped up, slashing its wing just under Bewear's jaw. Bewear's momentum was halted in the exact moment, and as Cramorant flapped its wings quickly to back up, the gust from the breeze guided Bewear backwards as he fell to the ground, unconscious.
"Damn it," I grumbled, recalling Bewear to his Pokéball. I held it in my hand for a brief second, trying not to dwell on the fact that using Thunder Punch first could have kept Bewear in the battle. I shook it out of my mind and kissed the top shell of Bewear's Pokéball. He single-handedly took out Hop's bulky Snorlax, a Pokémon I had been prepared to lose at least two of mine to take down. I couldn't have asked more from him.
"Getting cold feet, Gloria?" Hop taunted from the other end of the pitch. I blinked; had I really been standing there that long? I clipped Bewear's ball back to my belt and thought hard. Flygon could keep this battle in the air, but he was hurt pretty bad dealing with Corviknight, and most of his attacks wouldn't do much against Cramorant anyway. There was a nonzero chance that Flygon wouldn't have made it out of this matchup, and I was depending on him to keep Dubwool's pinball strategy at bay. I grabbed Sneasel's Pokéball instead. We would see how quickly Cramorant could fly away.
"Let's go, Sneasel!" I cried. "Fake out!"
"Fly up!" Hop cried, but before Cramorant even had a chance to react, Sneasel was on it, slashing with her claws and disorienting the bird.
"I'm done playing around now, Hop!" I shouted. "Ice Shard!"
"Steel Wing!" Hop commanded, but again, before Cramorant could make a move, Sneasel had shot a sharp icicle at Cramorant, crashing directly into the bird's chest. Cramorant shook it off and speak towards Sneasel, who hopped out of the way just in time.
"Icicle Crash!" I called out, and Sneasel raised her arms into the air, but with a flash of red, Cramorant had disappeared entirely. The icicles crashed to the turf of the pitch harmlessly. Weavile spun around quickly and saw herself face to face with Dubwool, who was back in, looking fresh-faced.
"Don't let it get to you! Ice Shard!"
"Double Kick!" Hop cried as an icicle whizzed at Dubwool, sticking into its wool and staying there. Dubwool jumped forward and rolled at Sneasel, who again dodged out of the way, but just as it landed, Dubwool pulled out of his roll and kicked with his hind hooves twice, the first knocking Sneasel to the ground and then second knocking her to the ground again just as she was getting up.
"Sneasel, Icicle Crash again!" I cried, but Hop had already called for a Double-Edge, and Dubwool was rolling at full-speed towards her. Sneasel shook herself to her senses and tried to dodge again, sending more spears of ice at her attacker, but they also bounced harmlessly off Dubwool's wool and with one final hit, Dubwool rolled to a stop while Sneasel was on the ground.
"Sneasel is unable to battle!" the ref cried.
Dammit, Hop had taken the lead from me entirely now. I recalled Sneasel and thanked her for the help. I weighed my options. Flygon again? Or Rapidash? Maybe Cinderace? I liked option three the best, so I grabbed his Pokéball. "Alright, buddy, you know the deal with Dubwool, more than anyone else. Kick that thing like the football it is!" I roared as I tossed the Pokéball out.
"Cotton Guard!" Hop cried, and as Cinderace took to the field and was distracted by the loud screams from thousands of admirers, Dubwool hunkered down for the second time, ready for whatever Cinderace could do to him. Finally, Cinderace locked onto his target, hopping from side to side. Dubwool stared him down, waiting for Hop's command. They stood for two, three seconds as I waited for Hop to make the play, and finally he caved, ordering another Double-Edge.
"High Jump Kick!" I shouted, and with his powerful legs, Cinderace launched himself into the air, somersaulting once, and then speeding downwards at Dubwool, knees leading his descent. Dubwool shifted to the side at the last second, hoping to feint instead of actually go through with his attack, but Cinderace managed to catch the trick before it was too late, and as Dubwool skidded around, Cinderace kicked out, knocking Dubwool all the way to the end of the pitch, bouncing past the sidelines and almost ending up in the dugout where I could see a couple trainers jump out of the way just in case. "Sorry!" I called out, though I wasn't too upset. Dubwool shakily stood up and balled up again, rolling back to the pitch and straight for Cinderace, who was once again bouncing from side to side, ready for anything.
"Double-Edge!" Hop roared.
"Pyro Ball!" I roared in return. As Dubwool hopped up into another rolling attack, Cinderace performed his signature move, kicking up a clod of dirt and igniting it. Dubwool rolled closer and closer as he dribbled the slowly expanding fireball, waiting for his opening. Finally, when Dubwool was only a dozen yards away, Cinderace lashed out, kicking the fireball and sending it shooting directly into Dubwool. The fire exploded outward when it made contact, and Dubwool rolled weakly off to the side, well out of the way from Cinderace, who screeched with excitement at the landed attack. The ref raised her arm, and just like that, Dubwool was out of the battle. I had tied it back up at three.
"Hope you weren't getting complacent," I bragged as Hop returned his trusty partner. He frowned, calculating something quickly in his mind before picking up his next Pokéball. There was a burst of white light, and Cramorant took the field again, yelling for it to attack with a Liquidation attack. "Absolutely not," I muttered under my breath, recalling Cinderace immediately as Cramorant's feathers took on a watery blue sheen and it sped forward to attack. In the blink of an eye, Rapidash appeared and took the attack herself. She stumbled back with a surprised whinny, but quickly shook the water off of her mane and dug her hooves into the turf, ready to battle.
"Steel Wing!" Hop cried, and Cramorant swung around in the air and sped towards Rapidash again.
"Disorient it with Dazzling Gleam!" I yelled. Rapidash whipped her head up and her horn exploded in a burst of white light. Squinting, I could see that Cramorant, though injured from sustained damage, was still locked onto Rapidash. I cursed under my breath again as it slammed into Rapidash's flank, knocking her to the ground. Why had I been so careless about Boltund earlier in the match?
Rapidash stood up a bit shakily. The Steel Wing attack had really done a number on her. But I was confident she could still fight, and I knew I could finally knock Cramorant out with a strong enough blow.
"Let's finish this up! Liquidation again!" Hop called out.
"Zen Headbutt!" I yelled. Cramorant, slick with another water attack prepped, and Rapidash, with her head down and horn out, charged at each other. They collided in the center of the pitch. Cramorant was instantly down on the ground, while Rapidash held her head up high. The ref confirmed, and just like that, I had taken back my tiny lead. I looked closely at Rapidash and swore a third time under my breath. She stood as proud as ever, but I could tell from her heavy breathing and the glint in her eye that it was a façade. Any more damage and she would be done for. That meant all I had left was Cinderace and Flygon, while Hop had Pincurchin and Rillaboom. I felt a wide grin forming on my face. With Cramorant out of play, I was at a huge advantage.
"Think you've got me backed into a corner, then?" Hop asked, his eyes still gleaming with confidence.
"So it would seem!" I taunted.
He shook his head and laughed. "No way! This'll just make my victory all the better! Go, Pincurchin! Bubble Beam!"
I moved quickly, returning Rapidash and sending Flygon back out to battle, but I wasn't quite quick enough. Flygon was met by a wall of bubbles, which all popped on contact, far louder and more aggressively than any bubbles had any right to. Flygon reared back in surprise, and I was shocked to see that the attack had done as much damage as it did. But dragons are not ones to be put down by bubbles, and Flygon was no exception. He brought his head back down and glared at Pincurchin, eyes narrowed, ready to attack. "Nothing fancy, Flygon, use Earthquake and get it over with!"
"Bubble Beam again!" Hop said, but even he had to have known that it wouldn't get a chance to go. I glanced at him and saw that he was focused on Flygon as he flew up into the air, and even as Flygon came down to cause the Earthquake, I saw him grin.
"What are you planning…" I said under my breath, but his grin only widened as Flygon crashed into the ground. A wild tremor shook the pitch, just like before, and when the dust settled, Pincurchin was out for the count and Hop returned him, beaming.
"Have you finally cracked, Hop?" I asked, confused.
"Nah, mate," Hop smirked. "It's just, did you notice that Flygon was moving a bit slow, just now?"
I blinked. I hadn't even noticed, but I felt my heart sinking as Hop reached for his final Pokéball. Bubble Beam must have slowed Flygon down somehow, and that meant…
"Alright, Rillaboom, let's show Flygon some real speed!" Hop cried. "Grassy Glide!"
Rillaboom burst onto the pitch, and I gulped. Somehow, I had never gotten a chance to really face Rillaboom at his full power. Sure, Hop and I had done some sparring in the month we spent at Postwick, but I had never watched him completely let loose before. Sure, I knew Cinderace would be able to deal with a Grass Type no matter what, but it had beaten Cinderace before, back as a Raboot on the Motostoke Bridge, and if it could knock Flygon out before Flygon could get a move in, he could very easily do it again. And as Rillaboom beat his chest heartily, I noticed the turf inexplicably begin to grow taller, wilder, and a faint green aura began to lift up off the ground. But as soon as I noticed that, Rillaboom began his charge, roaring the whole way to Flygon
"Flygon, dragon claw! Hit him with all you've got!" I cried. Flygon reared his claws, but he never had a chance. Rillaboom was already on him, and all it took was that one hit. Rillaboom grabbed him and threw him to the ground, kicking up a mass of green spores. Flygon tried to right himself but his energy was spent. He fell back down to the ground with a groan.
"Flygon is unable to battle!" the ref said.
"To the bitter end!" Hop cried, his eyes wide with excitement. I returned Flygon to his ball. I supposed I could try bringing Rapidash out to do some amount of damage, but as fast as Rillaboom was on this grassy terrain, and as much damage as she had already taken, I knew that I was effectively down to just Cinderace. I laughed emptily. Fitting that it would end with the Pokémon we began our journey with. But I quickly wiped the smile off my face. It would end with me winning, I just knew it. I grabbed Cinderace's Pokéball and slapped it to the Dynamax Bracelet on my wrist. Hop saw what I was doing and recalled Rillaboom, doing the same. I felt the energy transfer into Cinderace's Pokéball and I brough it up to my face.
"I'm counting on you, bud," I said simply. Even as it expanded it my hand, I felt the Pokéball twitch. Cinderace could feel me right there next to him, and was ready to give it his all. "Hop's got something up his sleeve, so you have to make this one count." And with another twitch of the now fully Dynamaxed Pokéball, I threw it forward.
"To the bitter end!" I roared.
Clouds covered the sky in darkness as Cinderace and Rillaboom reappeared in their Gigantamaxed and Dynamaxed states, respectively. Cinderace quickly kicked up a massive fireball and hopped on, rolling on it to increase the ball's size and speed, while Rillaboom just grew taller and taller and taller. He was easily three times larger than Cinderace in his Dynamaxed form, and his roar was nearly enough to make the earth shake like one of Flygon's earthquakes.
"Max Quake!" Hop yelled, his voice so much smaller now that our giant Pokémon were centerstage.
So that was his plan. And with Rillaboom's speed and power, there was no way Cinderace could stick around long enough to get hit with another. It had to be this one. "G-Max Fireball!" I called out.
Everything moved in slow motion as Rillaboom brought one bus-sized fist to the ground. A thundering earthquake shook the pitch, nearly knocking Cinderace of his still-growing fireball. Spikes of stone and dirt rose up from the ground in a line directly at Cinderace, and the attack hit its mark dead on, shooting Cinderace and the fireball up into the air.
Cinderace was caught by surprise, it seemed, and lost his footing. The fireball pushed into his back, singing his fur but otherwise doing no additional harm, but as he and the fireball hung suspended in the air, it almost looked like he would not be able to correct himself. I felt my breath leave my body. All the sound of the stadium escaped, sucked into a vacuum. All I could hear was my heart beating.
After what felt like a lifetime, Cinderace's ball reached the apex of its arc and began to drop. Cinderace blinked once to catch his bearings and contorted his body as best as he could, spinning around in a circle. As he came back around, he locked eyes on the ball and with the mightiest roar I had ever heard him make, he kicked.
Time snapped back to regular speed. The ball shot from Cinderace's foot directly into Rillaboom and exploded on contact. Cinderace crashed hard onto the ground, sending another small shockwave out in every direction, but he quickly pulled himself back up, ready for anything, but all we could see was thick, black smoke.
"Stay on your toes!" I shouted, or at least I tried to shout. I couldn't hear my own voice. I couldn't even tell if I said anything. Finally, the clouds lifted, and I could make out two small figures. The first was Hop, standing, observing, his arms at his side. And the other was Rillaboom, knocked out of his Dynamaxed form, in a heap on the ground.
Suddenly, every bit of sound that I hadn't been hearing exploded into my ears. I wobbled on my feet but stay standing. The ref held her hand up, but among the chaos all around me, I couldn't hear a word she said, but I didn't need to. I had done it. I was moving onto the finals. Cinderace expelled the Dynamax energy and rushed to Rillaboom, just as Hop snapped out of the surprise and began to jog over himself. I shook my entire body and broke into a jog as well. Cinderace got there first, and he held his arm out for Rillaboom to grab. Rillaboom meekly brought his arm up and after a brief struggle, he was able to stand with one bulky arm wrapped around Cinderace. The audience roared at the show of good sportsmanship as Hop and I slowed down and met each other right next to our partners. Hop looked exhausted and just shook his head with a weak smile. "Thanks for the battle, mate," he said, his voice just barely loud enough to be heard over the roar of the crowd. "I'm glad it was you that were here for this."
"Don't go into another spiral, now," I joked, holding my hand out for a shake.
Hop looked down at my hand, then back to me, his smile growing in strength. "Not on your life." He clapped his hand into mine and pulled me into a tight hug. We stood there, slumped into each other for a good couple of seconds until I started to feel the exhaustion sink in. I pulled myself away from Hop and turned to Cinderace. Rillaboom had regained enough strength to stand on his own, so Cinderace was waiting, arms crossed expectantly. "Alright, you big lug, get in here!" I laughed, and for the first time since he was just a little Scorbunny, he hopped into my arms, promptly knocking me down as I couldn't bear his weight.
"C'mon, mate," Hop said. "I feel like I haven't eaten in weeks." My stomach agreed with a mighty rumble, which both made us laugh. We returned our Pokémon and walked off the pitch, waving to the still screaming fans. At the end of the pitch, everyone was waiting for us: Leon and Victor, both too proud to show it but holding back tears of pride in both of us, Piers and Nessa, both of whom were thoroughly overwhelmed by both Hop and me nodding in support, Sonia, already two beers in and screaming, and Marnie, who had abandoned her bored front yet again, patiently waiting for Hop to get clear of me before she could tackle me to the ground like Cinderace did.
Hop clearly must have noticed Marnie staring at me as well, so he made sure to put a good arm's distance between us so he wouldn't be caught up in it, but before he did, he leaned over and muttered into my ear. "Between you and me, I think it's time we had a new champion," he said. "And if there's anyone in all of Galar who can beat Lee, it's you." I glanced at Leon and he grinned at me. But it was not the usual smile he gave me, the polite smile one would give to your brother's friend. It was a smile that I had just seen Hop give me at the start of our battle. That excitable, wild grin of a man ready to throw down. Of course, it ran in the family.
A/N: Wow, I think I mentioned it before, but now it's finally starting to feel real. We're in the home stretch now, folks. If my outline stays intact, there are only 8 chapters left to go, but they're eventful chapters to say the least, so hopefully there's quite a bit of ride left for y'all. Thanks again to everyone who's followed/faved/reviewed, hope you're ready for the conclusion!
NEXT WEEK: THE DAY OF FINALS