Diantha gauged the scene in front of her, that confident smile of hers never vanishing. She was entering this fight with an extreme advantage: Cynthia had no clue she was facing against another Champion, and it showed. Diantha was being underestimated, even if it was not done on Cynthia's part intentionally. There's a difference between being a challenger and being a fellow Champion… and boy, Cynthia was in for a rude awakening.

"D'accord, Hawlucha… Flying Press, va!" Diantha commanded.

Hawlucha leaped into the air, spreading her wings before engulfing herself in a brilliant white aura. She jettisoned downwards, diving into Togekiss in a blink of an eye and letting that aura explode upon contact.

Cynthia had to blink in astonishment. That speed was incredible… and once the dust cleared, it was obvious that Togekiss sustained a lot of damage from that attack. Cynthia's expression turned serious, and her jaw clenched tight. This was not at all what she was expecting.

"When you're ready, use Air Slash." Cynthia said with a calmness and understanding to her voice that conflicted with her rough expression, "Make it so that they won't even see it coming."

Togekiss's speed was nothing to be glanced over either. He sealed the distance between himself and the enemy Hawlucha and began to glow a bright blue before Togekiss fired a narrow crescent of wind from its wings point-blank. Hawlucha skidded against the ground after being hit by the wind, and once she stopped, she lifted a wing over her head, shaking.

"What…?" Diantha looked over her Hawlucha, concerned, "Please, rise!"

Cynthia regained her composure after that, noticing how Air Slash managed to make Diantha's Hawlucha flinch. Taking advantage of Hawlucha's inability to act, Cynthia pointed at Hawlucha on the ground and instructed Togekiss to attack, "Fly!"

Togekiss's body illuminated with that blue aura again, and he took to the air before flipping over and diving back down towards the ground to gain momentum from the gravity. He clashed right into Hawlucha, and Togekiss flew back over to his side of the field once he finished his attack.

When the dust cleared, Hawlucha was shown to be sprawled out on the ground, swirls for eyes. Gardenia lifted her hand towards Cynthia's side of her field, "Hawlucha is unable to battle! Togekiss prevails! The score is one to zero, favoring the Champion!"

"Naturally." Cynthia laughed to herself, "Great work, Togekiss! Exactly the right foot I wanted to start on!"

Diantha recalled Hawlucha into its Pokéball, closing her eyes and lifting the capsule close to her mouth, "Thank you for your hard work. That successful attack from earlier will not go to waste. Repose-toi." She exchanged that Pokéball for another, tossing it onto the field, "Tyrantrum, the spotlight's on you!"

Tyrantrum appeared in a flash of light- no Seal this time. Just a giant dinosaur, slamming down onto the ground once called out.

"Good god..." Cynthia stared at the Tyrantrum in disbelief. That thing was huge. "You know, I have to apologize for pegging you wrong. I thought an actress as pretty as yourself would settle for the cutesy type of Pokémon. This one is a beast."

Diantha grinned widely at that, looking smug and mischievous, "You think I'm pretty?" She teased, perking up.

Cynthia cast her gaze aside, face turning red despite the fact she forced herself to look agitated, "Tch… Togekiss, save me here. Aura Sphere!"

Togekiss set his sights on Tyrantrum, concentrating deeply to form a sphere of energy in front of him before firing it off. Tyrantrum tanked the blow, and even though it was super effective, Tyrantrum only looked slightly fazed.

"...Uh oh." Cynthia grimaced, taking a step back.

It was Diantha's turn to have the tides in her favor. "Head Smash."

Tyrantrum broke out into a run, a powerful energy gathering at his head.

"Togekiss! Stop it with Water Pulse!" Cynthia commanded.

"Don't let it stop you!"

Togekiss sent out rings of water one after the other to keep Tyrantrum at bay; while Tyrantrum faltered at first, it braved through the water to reach Togekiss and headbutt the Flying type straight into the ground. Even the trainers could feel the ground rumble from the force of the impact. Togekiss was down for the count, no question about it.

"Togekiss is unable to battle! Tyrantrum prevails!" Gardenia directed her hand at Diantha's side of the field, "The score is one all!"

"Yikes…" Cynthia muttered to herself, calling Togekiss back into his Premier Ball, "You put us in the lead. Thank you for that. I won't let that go to waste! Roserade, battle dance!"

Roserade landed on the field in Togekiss's place, staring down the foe that towered over it.

Diantha looked Roserade over for a moment to formulate a plan of attack, and eventually she kneeled and placed a hand on the ground, "Earthquake!"

Tyrantrum raised a leg in the air before stomping down onto the ground, causing tremors to reverberate throughout the entire battlefield. Cynthia stumbled a few times before regaining her balance, Gardenia outright fell off her platform, but Diantha braced herself and was perfectly composed throughout the duration of the tremors. Roserade looked shaken and had fallen over, and Diantha looked ready to use this to her advantage.

"Dragon Claw!" Diantha shouted to her Tyrantrum.

"Extrasensory!" Cynthia shot back with.

As a diversion, Roserade fired off a golden beam of light out of one of her bouquets, using the strange and unusual power to not only hurt Tyrantrum but daze him for a few key moments.

"Follow up with Energy Ball!"

Roserade used her other bouquet to gather the energy and rocket the sphere towards Tyrantrum.

"Your strategies are quite impressive. Looks like I too will have to be smart about this. Use that Dragon Claw to bat it away!" Diantha snapped her fingers.

Rearing back its limb shrouded with a dark energy, Tyrantrum swung his arm at the Energy Ball to redirect it to the ground off to the side. Rubble and dust kicked up off the ground when the Energy Ball made its impact, signifying just how strong the attack would have been if it had actually struck true to its mark.

"Then try it again!" Cynthia ordered, "Energy Ball!"

Roserade used both bouquets this time to amass the green energy before hurling the sphere at Tyrantrum, finally making its mark and pushing the huge dinosaur back.

"Finish him off with Sludge Bomb!"

The gorgeous flowers at its hands gradually took on a purple shade while Roserade leaped into the air. Throwing its limbs down towards Tyrantrum, a purple acid poured from out of Roserade's flowers right onto Tyrantrum's head. Tyrantrum let out a pained roar from the burning acid, stumbling backwards until falling to the ground.

Gardenia called it, "Tyrantrum is unable to battle! Roserade prevails! The score is two to one, favoring the Champion!"

Tyrantrum was returned to its Pokéball, and Diantha sadly hung her head, "You made things even. We'll carry on from here. Merci. Aurorus, the spotlight's on you!"

The elegant dinosaur landed gracefully on the battlefield, letting out a surprisingly pleasant roar.

"I get the feeling that I won't be able to recognize any of the Pokémon on your team." Cynthia placed a hand on her hip, shaking her head, "I suppose that's what you get, battling someone of another region."

"You don't get out much, do you?" Diantha teased, "Well, here. If you must know, Aurorus is an Ice/Rock type."

Cynthia looked between the Aurorus and her own Roserade. Her Roserade was injured from the previous Pokémon and was at a type disadvantage, "...Perfect."

Diantha took the initiative to resume the battle, "Reflect!"

Aurorus shifted onto its hind legs, summoning a translucent, pink barrier in front of itself before the energy vanished, and Aurorus was on all fours again.

Cynthia let out a deep sigh, thinking things over in her head before closing her eyes, "Toxic. Yeah, let's go with that."

Roserade summoned a purple circle beneath Aurorus, and then Aurorus's features took on an uneasy shade of green.

Cynthia's tactics were elusive to Diantha at that point. Poison-type moves were practically useless on a Rock type. What could she be thinking? "Blizzard!"

Aurorus let out another roar, kicking up a snowstorm in a heartbeat. The pellets of snow clashed against Roserade despite it shielding itself with its bouquets, but soon Roserade was swept off its feet, being unable to steel itself any longer. Swirls were in its eyes, and Roserade was down.

"Roserade is unable to battle! Aurorus prevails!" Gardenia shouted, "The score is two all!"

Cynthia already had Roserade's Pokéball out, foreseeing the inevitable the second Aurorus was sent out, "Don't worry, I have a plan. Spiritomb, battle dance!"

The ghoulish Pokémon swayed when it was released, an evil look in its eye. Gardenia instantly shrieked at the sight, hopping down from the platform and cowering behind it with speeds incomprehensible to the human eye.

"Erm…" Diantha uneasily looked at Gardenia, who was shivering with fear, "Is she alright…?"

"She's terrified of ghosts." Cynthia explained with a sigh, "Come on, Gardenia. I told you that Spiritomb won't hurt you."

Gardenia peered over the top of the platform, one eye open and maybe considering to stand back up. That changed when Spiritomb turned towards her and stuck out its tongue, frightening her back behind the platform.

"Spiritomb! None of that!" Cynthia shook her head, fed up with the antics, "We've talked about this!"

Spiritomb only swayed more, not listening to a word Cynthia said.

"What a peculiar bunch…" Diantha said to herself, tapping her chin, "Alright, Aurorus! Let's continue things with Thunder!"

Aurorus looked to the skies, casting down a large bolt of lightning upon Spiritomb. Spiritomb's eyes closed in a grimace, but after the lightning subsided, it was still standing and able to fight.

"Rock Tomb!" Cynthia commanded, throwing her hand out towards Aurorus.

Spiritomb rocked backwards before extending its neck out at Aurorus, summoning and hurling a plethora of boulders at the other Pokémon and burying it beneath the rock. Aurorus broke free a few moments later with a loud roar, its defenses heightened from Reflect earlier and being seemingly okay until it hung its head with a terrible look on its face. Cynthia only grinned at the sight.

"Aurorus!" Diantha called out, concerned, "What is it?" Then it hit her. The poison from before was starting to become stronger with every passing second. Even if the poison was weak and barely effective before, now it was starting to become a real problem with Aurorus's battle waging on longer. "Try and hold it together for a little while longer! Blizzard again!"

Aurorus uneasily kicked up another snowstorm, this one weaker than the last. Spiritomb floated around, evading most of the snow spheres but still sustaining a bit of damage.

Cynthia quirked an eyebrow, sporting a devious look just like the one perpetually on Spiritomb's face, "Shadow Ball!"

Spiritomb formed a large sphere of darkness in front of itself, and it threw the ball right at Aurorus's chest. Aurorus fell to the ground, eyes closed out of pain.

Gardenia peered over the platform at the loud noise, "Yeah… Aurorus is down…" Suddenly Spiritomb stretched out its neck and appeared right in front of the platform, startling Gardenia and making her hide again, "Okay! Okay! Spiritomb wins! The score is three to two, favoring the Champion yet again! AND I WOULD REALLY APPRECIATE IT IF THE CHAMPION RETURNED THE GHOST RIGHT ABOUT NOW!"

Cynthia shook her head at that, "I'm afraid I can't do that just yet."

Diantha looked guilty as she readied her next Pokéball, "...I'm so sorry. Gourgeist, the spotlight's on you!"

"ACK! ANOTHER GHOST!" Gardenia curled up into a ball, shielding herself from the two Ghost types out on the field.

"...I feel terrible." Diantha wrapped her arms around herself, eyes focused on the ground.

Cynthia blew some stray hairs out of her face and looked over at Gardenia, "...She'll be fine. I'll make this quick for her. Shadow Ball!"

As Spiritomb gathered darkness again, Diantha put in forward her plan of attack, "Phantom Force!"

Just when the Shadow Ball was about to hit Gourgeist, Gourgeist vanished into thin air and evaded the attack.

"Clever…" Cynthia threw up her hand to halt Spiritomb from moving, "But your strategies can't top mine! Wait it out, Spiritomb!"

Spiritomb did what it was told (for once) and just stayed on the lookout, turning every once in awhile as it waited for Gourgeist to turn up. When it finally did, a smug look crossed both Spiritomb's and Cynthia's features. They both knew what the other was thinking.

"Sucker Punch!"

While Gourgeist tried its attack, Spiritomb retreated back into the Odd Keystone and used that form to lunge at Gourgeist, knocking Gourgeist straight in the body before Phantom Force could hit. Diantha's eyes widened at being outsmarted yet again. Cynthia was certainly an intelligent foe, and it was no wonder Cynthia reigned undefeated for so long. Sure, her team was strong, but her tactics were what made her intimidating.

"Gourgeist! Shadow Sneak!"

Taking to the shadows, Gourgeist rushed at Spiritomb before unearthing itself and kicking Spiritomb into the air. Spiritomb landed harshly, stunned from the impact and the attack. The super-effectiveness coupled with the injuries it sustained from before, it was understandable that Spiritomb was struggling at this point.

Fueled by her fear of ghosts, Gardenia rushed to making a hasty call, "Spiritomb is thankfully unable to ba-"

"Hold it!" Cynthia interrupted, "Spiritomb isn't down yet!" And she was right. Spiritomb gradually got up, eyes a little wonky but generally alright.

"That's right!" Cynthia laughed to herself, clenching her fist, "Feint Attack!"

Diantha rushed to make a decision for the next attack, "Seed Bomb!"

Spiritomb lunged at Gourgeist, now shrouded in a black aura. Gourgeist summoned a large seed over its head and it rushed at Spiritomb as well. They both met in the center of the arena, the Gourgeist's seed exploding in that moment and Spiritomb's black aura erupting along with it. Smoke and debris clouded the two Pokémon, so Cynthia and Diantha were forced to wait it out before everything cleared and they can see what happened.

Gardenia even poked her head up, spotting how both Pokémon were knocked out, "Hooray! Both Pokémon are unable to battle! I'm free!" Gardenia hopped back up onto the platform, "Any more ghosts, and there will be a harsh penalty, got that?! The score is now four to three, favoring the Champion!"

Diantha and Cynthia both returned their Pokémon, and Cynthia threw her head back at the brief respite. This battle was dragging on quite a bit, and it has been neck-and-neck the entire time with Cynthia barely managing to come out in the lead every once in awhile. It's been a long time since she ever had a hard battle like this- one that genuinely started to make Cynthia feel exhausted the more it waged on.

Diantha picked up on this, and she had a smile on her face, "Don't tell me you're giving up on me."

Cynthia shook her head, forcing a grin back, "In your dreams… I just… I can't remember the last time I've had a battle this tough before. You're something else, you know. I never thought an actress who pursued battling as a side-interest would ever mirror me in strength."

"Strength is easy to match. My team and I go way back. They've had time to grow strong like yours." Diantha placed her hands on her hips, "Your power draws from strategy. You're an intelligent woman, Cynthia. Your impeccable mind is nearly unrivaled." She paused, tilting her head, "I'll have you know, though… I took up acting as the side-interest to my battling. Just to clarify things."

"My mistake…" Cynthia laughed, leaning forward and resting an arm behind her back, "Just so you know... I'm saving my best for last. I wouldn't so easily say that I rely solely on strategy yet. You've yet to see my best partners."

Diantha raised her hand, bending her fingers back at herself and beckoning Cynthia to come at her, "Then show me."

Cynthia's confidence was back in full display as she toyed with a Pokéball behind her back, "Oh, I will… This battle's only just begun!"