Disclaimer: The Boy Who Flew Too High is a famous story in Greek mythology and is not something I made up.

Just as everyone thought the match had ended, things had changed, but whether or not it was for the better was anyone's guess. On one hand, Machoke looked more confident in himself than ever before, but on the other hand, he had taken in a huge beating. To make matters worse, he had just rejected a free victory meaning if he lost this match, he and his friends would still be relocated and separated from each other as per agreement.

Talonflame wasted no time charging toward Machoke as the boy simply dodged to the side, sending a karate chop into the falcon's cheek. Unlike last time, though, Talonflame had not allowed the boy to hit him. And to make things better, Machoke was not going to waste this chance as he sent more karate chops, blows to the cheek being delivered by his right hand while his left hand dealt damage to the ribs.

The crowd went wild as Talonflame grunted, "That barely hurts!" sending his fist sideways toward Machoke only for the boy to duck under it, grabbing onto the falcon's arm before he could attempt another blow to the head like before. After that, the boy turned so his back to facing Talonflame's side and threw his arms forward, hurling the falcon over his head and sending him sideways into the mat.

The crowd was cheering even louder now as Gardevoir squeaked, "It's like he's a whole new person!" Gallade exclaiming, "Yeah, I don't know where all this power is coming from, but he's doing an amazing job!"

Keiko simply smiled as Reika said, "It's just like you said, Mom. The Mach family has a knack for coming out of the toughest scrapes."

"Well, I may not be able to give him the advice he needs, but at least he's doing a good job," Aipom said before thinking, 'That and that move he just used was one I taught him once, so I can take some credit for that.'

Just as Talonflame was tried to get up, Machoke quickly grabbed him by the head and lifted him up above his shoulders before exclaiming, "I may not be able to use my Muscle Tombstone on you, but I can still use other techniques!" Nori exclaiming, "And with little to no effort, Machoke had set up Talonflame for a brainbuster!"

But as the boy leaned back to deliver the move, Talonflame smirked and spread out his wings, placing them against the mat and stopping himself from making contact. All went silent in the crowd as the falcon proceeded to push himself up and out of Machoke's grip, the boy losing his balance and falling on his back.

Talonflame saw a perfect opportunity as he landed hard against Machoke's gut with his heels, the boy's eyes widening as he coughed up more blood. It seemed he had not yet fully recovered from all of the damage he had been dealt earlier.

"Oh no, don't tell me he's already lost his advantage," Blaziken groaned as Talonflame took to the skies again, only this time rising higher and stopping at a certain point, the highest he had ever gone and said, "It's been fun, Machoke, but I think I'll end this now."

Machoke blinked and thought, 'Why is he so hesitant to fly higher than that? When I challenged him to fly higher earlier, he actually looked scared,' Aipom shouting, "MACHOKE, GET UP BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE!"

It seemed like it might have been just that as Talonflame pointed his talons toward the boy's gut, spinning with flames surrounding his body as he spat, "SPINNING TOP INTERNO!" heading down toward the boy. But just as it seemed his attack was going to hit, Machoke quickly rolled to the side as Talonflame ended up digging his talons into the canvas, his flames leaving him as he eventually stopped spinning, now stuck in the material.

"How could I fall for something so stupid!?" he spat as the crowd resumed cheering, Lopunny smiling and saying, "Fiarrow may be strong, but he's not the smartest fighter in the world. Sure, he can come up with good strategies, but he's still full of himself and that could very well be his biggest weakness."

Gardevoir blinked and replied, "Um, you know his name is Talonflame, right?" Lopunny shrugging and saying, "He'll always be Fiarrow the liar to me."

Scizor simply held her arm out and spat, "MACHOKE, DON'T LET THIS ADVANTAGE LEAVE YOU!" the boy remarking, "As if I'd do something like that!" before sending a hard kick into the back of Talonflame's head.

The falcon grunted, trying desperately to free his talons when Machoke said, "Allow me," wrapping his arms around him and leaning backward, the falcon having been too focused on getting his feet out from the canvas to think straight, his talons soon free as his head hit the mat hard.

Machoke took a deep breath and got up, backing away from Talonflame a bit while holding up a fighter's stance and saying, "Come on, have at me!" Aipom smiling wide, so happy to see her student performing so well.

However, Talonflame laughed as he slowly rose back to his feet, saying, "I gotta hand it to you, Machoke, you really have surprised me. After all that pain and suffering, you actually managed to get a few really good hits on me, but none of this is good enough to take me down!" everyone staring as Lucario sighed, "He's right," Machoke asking, "What do you mean?"

"As you've seen, Talonflame is really strong," Lucario replied, "So much so that only a really powerful move could possibly knock him out. You could keep connecting suplexes and brainbusters all you like, but it will never be enough to keep him down. He'll just keep getting up until he finds a way around your moves."

"But then how could I possibly beat him?" Machoke asked, his fear returning as he uttered, "The Muscle Tombstone is useless against him," Aipom nodding and replying, "There is a way you can beat him."

"She's right," Blaziken stated with a smile, "and while this method may be easier said than done, I think you can do it."

Gallade and Gardevoir nodded as Gardevoir said, "I think I know what you mean," Lopunny replying, "Me too," Reika saying, "Yeah, it could work."

"What's everyone talking about?" Machoke asked as Aipom replied, "It's simple. I hate to say it, but Talonflame's right. The Muscle Tombstone is an old family move that has been seen many times. It's an easy attack to overcome for those with the right amount of power and skill, which Talonflame definitely possesses."

"So what can I do?" Machoke remarked as Aipom stated, "You have to come up with something new, your own original signature move," Machoke's eyes widening. But how could he possibly do that? He had relied on techniques he had learned from others all his life. Could he really pull such a task off?

"Are you two done talking already?" Talonflame asked, folding his arms, "Seriously, it's rude to leave your opponent waiting," the falcon then flying toward Machoke, the boy attempting to counter with a karate chop only for Talonflame to grab his wrist, grunting, "I'm not falling for that one again, kid!"

With that, the falcon proceeded to lift the boy above his head, hurling him hard into the turnbuckle. After that, he soared toward Machoke with his talons out and spun while flames surrounded his body, shouting, "SPINNING TOP INFERNO!" sending them hard into Machoke's gut as blood flew from him just like before.

However, while this attack had helped Machoke a little bit before, now that he no longer needed a wake-up call, this was one of the worst things that he could endure at the moment. And to make matters worse, Lucario was right. Talonflame had now figured out Machoke's strategy. He would need to come up with something new, but what? What could he use that was not passed down from his family tree?

He would certainly need to think up something fast as Talonflame wrapped his arms around the boy, saying, "I've had it up to here with you and your inability to stay down! I'm gonna take you down for good!" the bird taking to the air, yet strangely enough, he was not setting up for his Flare Blitz as his body had not burst into flame. Was he planning to humiliate Machoke by taking him down with a more simple move?

Whatever the case, Machoke was not going to let himself take in another devastating attack and as such, the boy shook off the pain from the Spinning Top Inferno and held his head back before reeling it forward into Talonflame's neck. This actually caused just enough pain for the bird to loosen his hold on Machoke as he proceeded to flip him upside-down.

"What are you doing, you moron?" Talonflame asked tauntingly, "You know this attack won't work, right!?" Machoke remarking, "I'm not using an ordinary Muscle Tombstone! I figured out a new signature move that I can use!"

Everyone stared in amazement as Machoke grabbed hold of Talonflame's ankles, spreading his legs over the falcon's arms and wrapping them around them, Talonflame's eyes widening as Machoke smirked, saying, "Try getting out of this one!"

With that, the boy shouted, "MUSCLE TOMBSTONE MACH TWO!" sending the falcon's head hard into the mat as the crowd went wild, the boy dropping him and taking many deep breaths, shouting, "I did it!"

"Wow, why didn't I think of that?" Aipom asked, "He sacrificed locking the head in place so he could ensure that Talonflame wouldn't be able to use his legs to escape."

But just as all was looking hopeful, Talonflame slowly recovered and rose to his feet, saying, "You didn't come up with anything new or creative!" everyone staring in shock as the falcon added, "Honestly, I'm astounded it took you this long to come up with something so obvious. That's the only reason I was unable to respond was because I was shocked by how slow you were to come up with such a tactic."

Machoke trembled, his eyes wide as his mouth hung open, Talonflame smirking and saying, "If I'd been more ready, I could have easily countered that the same way I countered the original Muscle Tombstone. This is just a minor setback and mark my words, I won't let you land that attack again!"

Machoke was now trembling again as he uttered, "Oh no, that was all I could come up with in such a short time," Aipom now concerned as she rubbed her head, groaning, "I wish I could think of something!"

"What's left for Machoke to try?" Reika asked, Gallade suggesting, "How about the Ultimate Driver? He hasn't used that yet."

Blaziken shook her head and remarked, "True, but for all we know, Talonflame probably has some kind of counter for that as well. If he can't come up with something truly original and effective, he might be doomed."

As much as it hurt the others to hear these words, Blaziken did have a point. Of course everyone wanted Machoke to win, but what could he possibly do?

Even Lucario was having trouble coming up with someone as Scizor asked, "Lucario, do you know of any weaknesses Talonflame might have? Maybe a part of him that was badly injured or a deep fear or something like that?" Lucario shaking his head and replying, "I'm sorry, but I don't. I trained with him for a long time, but even in that time, I never discovered any major weaknesses."

"None whatsoever?" Scizor asked, Lucario nodding and adding, "From what I've seen, Talonflame is the closest to a perfect fighter. So far, nothing has penetrated his mighty defence. I really hope Machoke can come up with something."

Talonflame flew toward Machoke and grabbed him by his shoulders, ramming him back-first into the turnbuckle when the boy then looked up, thinking, 'I'm sorry, Dad. I couldn't beat him. I guess I've shamed the family name,' before looking very closely at the sun. His eyes widened when he started to get an idea.

With that in mind, the boy gritted his teeth, ignoring the paint to his back and spat, "I'M NOT GOING TO LET YOU BEAT ME!" before grabbing hold of Talonflame's shoulders and sending him high into the air. After that, he waited for just the right angle, everyone wondering what was up as the boy grinned, leaping up onto the ropes and launching himself upward toward the bird. With that, he proceeded to tuck himself in, spinning vertically before hitting Talonflame's back.

He then returned to his usual formation with his arms and legs reaching back to grab hold of Talonflame's wrists and ankles. Unfortunately, the falcon was too low for this to work as he asked, "What the hell was that?" grabbing hold of Machoke's ankle and hurling him hard against the mat.

"That's a good question," Reika uttered, "What was Machoke trying to do?" Gardevoir smiling lightly and replying, "He was about to use a new finishing move. He almost got it to work, too," Gallade sighing, "No offence, sis, but almost is hardly something to smile about when the opponent's this powerful."

Despite taking in quite a bit of pain from the hit, Machoke did not seem the least bit fazed as he said to himself, "Damn, I almost got that," before looking up at the sun and thinking, 'Alright, the angle was a bit off with my timing. I'll have to lower it just the little bit when I launch myself at him again. I also should work on the timing of my arms and legs to make sure I'm not taking too long with phase two.'

"Hey, don't ignore me!" Talonflame spat before diving toward Machoke's back, hitting him hard with the heels of his feet. However, Machoke acted as if this pain meant nothing as he was so focused on getting his new move right that nothing else mattered right now.

"Got it!" Machoke exclaimed before getting back up, Talonflame barking, "ARE YOU GONNA PAY ATTENTION TO OUR FIGHT AGAIN!?" Machoke nodding as the falcon got close, the boy leaning backward and using his feet to send him flying into the air.

After that Machoke waited a bit more before launching himself off the ropes again, once again spinning like a rubber ball into Talonflame's back. Afterwards, he once again sent out his arms and legs only to just barely miss, the crowd still a bit confused as to what he was attempting. Talonflame responded by latching his legs onto Machoke's side and flipping him over, ramming his head hard into the mat for a frankensteiner.

The crowd gasped as Nori said, "I have no idea what Machoke was trying to accomplish there, but it seems it was in vain as he takes in a devastating frankensteiner from high above the mat," Weedle thinking, 'I know what you're trying to do, and I see potential there, but you'd better make it work just like your father would have.'

Machoke's face was bleeding again, but like before, the boy hardly seemed to care. All the while, he thought, 'Okay, now I see what the real problem is. It wasn't the angle but my timing. I need to launch myself just a little bit earlier, but how much earlier?' the boy's eyes widening as he finally came to the answer.

Unfortunately, it was too late to try it out as Talonflame got behind him, wrapping his arms around the boy and shouting, "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOUR CHILDISH GAMES!" everyone gasping as Aipom squeaked, "Oh no! He was so close!"

When everyone saw Talonflame's body burst into flame, they knew what was coming as he added, "I was merciful last time, but seeing as the rules no longer apply to this match, I'll make sure this next one kills you!" the falcon raising the height he had used for both Blaziken and Scyther.

Lucario winced and uttered, "It really is over, isn't it?" Scizor taking a deep breath and thinking, 'Scyther, stay strong. No matter what happens, try not to let it upset you too much.'

Everyone else was silent, Machoke's friends staring in absolute terror. Was this actually the end now? If this attack hit, would even Machoke be able to get up from it?

"Hang in there, Machoke!" came a sophisticated British voice as everyone turned and noticed, of all beings, Bisharp standing among the crowd with another standing next to him, namely Scrafty, the lizard sporting a pair of shades.

"Man, we both get an early pardon from prison for good behaviour, and this is what we come back to!?" Scrafty snapped, Talonflame stopping his attack and groaning, "Oh god, not more traitors. What are they doing here?"

Machoke's eyes widened as Gardevoir smiled wide at Scrafty, the lizard grinning and giving the girl a wave before Bisharp sighed, "Please, Sir Scrafty, focus on the matter at hand," the lizard nodding and saying, "Machoke, ya may not have been the one who defeated me, but I know how tough ya can be under the right circumstances. Talonflame is a tough one, believe me, we know, but I'm sure he has some sort of weakness ya can exploit!"

Bisharp nodded and added, "Sir Machoke, you are the greatest fighter I have met, a true miracle worker! You inspired me to join the side of good, and for that, I am grateful to you! I know you are not the kind to lose to a villain!"

The audience was shocked as Nori said, "And in a surprising turn, Scrafty and Bisharp seemed to have been released from Hero Planet's prison early and now they're trying to help Machoke! It just goes to show that the world is not completely black-and-white."

Hearing these words made Machoke want to win even more now. And just when it seemed hopeless, his eyes went wide when he remembered the sun. Not only had it inspired the idea for his new finisher, but it also helped him remember something he could try.

"Are you guys done talking yet!?" Talonflame grunted, "Because I don't wanna feel like I'm interrupting something!" the falcon just about to perform his U-turn when Machoke asked, "Why don't you go higher?"

All went silent as Blaziken asked, "Did he just suggest what I think he did?" Machoke adding, "I notice this is the highest you've ever allowed yourself to fly, but you know you can go higher than this. Why not take advantage of that? You know, really make sure your attack kills me."

"Shut up!" Reika snapped, "Don't give him ideas!" Keiko replying, "I don't think that's what's happening at all."

Lucario actually understood Machoke's words as well as he thought, 'I can't believe it. It's been staring me in the face yet it took Machoke to help me realize it, Talonflame's one weakness.'

And it showed as Talonflame looked completely unwilling to fly higher before remarking, "I'm sure I don't need to!" Machoke asking in a taunting voice, "What are you, chicken? You say Blaziken doesn't deserve the Texas Phoenix title, but you're even worse. I'm sure if she could fly, she'd be willing to take full advantage of it."

The others turned to the chicken who shrugged and replied, "Actually, he's right. I wouldn't be afraid of flying any distance," Talonflame fuming and retorting, "FINE, YOU GOT YOUR WISH, BUDDY, BUT DON'T FORGET IT WAS YOU WHO SIGNED YOUR OWN DEATH WARRANT!"

With that, the bird flew even higher into the air, but just as he was about to perform a U-turn, sweat started to run down his face as he looked down at how low the mat was to his position. His eyes were wide open as he then remembered a story he had been told as a child, 'The Boy Who Flew Too High'. He remembered how in the story, Icarus was given wings made by his father out of wax so that the two could escape from prison. However, Icarus flew too close to the sun and his wings burned.

Talonflame always wished this was not true about himself, but that story had scarred him for life when he read it. Whenever he flew, he would always stick with a certain maximum height and never exceed it in the fear that his wings might burn up as well, even though they were not made of wax and he was a fire type and probably would have handled it. He had hoped that with time, this fear would have left him but it never did.

As such, his flame stopped as he released his hold on Machoke while shouting, "NO!" his wings coming to halt as he had now convinced himself they should not have worked and started to descend shortly after Machoke did.

"I see now," Lucario said, "Machoke noticed something we didn't, and who would have guessed? All these years, Talonflame was scared of heights."

"That's right," a female in the audience said, "When we went on the elevator ride with him, he was absolutely terrified when we got to the top and started descending. I thought it was just the high momentum that scared him, not the height itself."

"No, it's more than a fear of heights," Gardevoir uttered with a light smile, "He's afraid of something else entirely, but it is connected to extreme heights."

And Machoke knew just how to take further advantage of this as he smirked, shifting his weight so he was now headed quickly toward the ropes. He could not let this chance leave him, especially with Talonflame still in complete shock, clearly unable to bring himself to retaliate just yet.

With that, Machoke managed to get to the ropes, getting the angle just right as he launched himself off and rolled up into a ball, spinning vertically toward Talonflame and hitting him hard in the back. The crowd watched in silence as the boy reverted to his regular state and finally managed to lock Talonflame's ankles and wrists in placed with his arms and legs, both fighters' backs facing each other.

With that, Machoke applied just enough force to start spinning Talonflame around, both looking like a floating wheel now as Machoke thought, 'I gotta get the timing just right,' finding the perfect moment to descend toward the mat, everyone staring as he shouted, "SUNSET SLAM!" Talonflame's belly colliding with the canvas, his eyes wide open as he coughed up blood, Machoke ending the move by releasing the falcon's legs and grabbing hold of his head, slamming it hard into the mat.

Everyone stared in silence as Aipom bit her lower lip, letting down tears and thinking, 'I can't believe it! He actually did it! He actually thought up his own finishing move!'

The audience broke out into heavy cheers as Gardevoir and Lopunny squealed with excitement, both of them hugging Gallade tightly as his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets, the boy groaning, "Can't breathe!" Blaziken whistling and shouting, "YOU'RE THE MAN, MACHOKE!"

Scrafty and Bisharp both nodded, Scrafty with a big grin on his face as he said, "Ya did it, kid," Reika and her friends along with her mother cheering the loudest of everyone.

However, everyone panicked when Talonflame slowly rose to his feet, blood coming down his face as he grinned, laughing maniacally and exclaiming, "Wow, you just never give up, do you!?" Machoke trembling as he added, "You always get back up no matter what happens! You're incredible! I want to fight you for all eternity," the falcon coughing up one last bit of blood and adding, "Unfortunately, I can't," before finally losing all consciousness and falling forward.

After a few seconds of silence, Weedle took a deep breath and nodded at Nori, the woman smiling and ringing the bell before shouting, "OUR WINNER AND CHAMPION OF THE NEXT GEN BATTLE IS MACHOKE, THEREFOR HE AND HIS FRIENDS WILL REMAIN STATIONED IN TOKYO!" the crowd bursting out into heavy cheers and applause, Machoke raising his arms in the air with a big smile on his face.

This was the most satisfied he had ever felt after winning a match, and it made sense. This was the toughest battle he had ever fought and not only had he come out on top, he had also created his own finishing move thus adding a new one to the family tree.

Aipom leapt into the ring before jumping onto Machoke's head, hugging it while squeaking, "I am so proud of you, Machoke! You're the greatest student a monkey could ever ask for!"

Reika waved her arms in the air, shouting, "YOU'RE AWESOME, MACHOKE!" Gardevoir adding, "YOU ROCK!" before turning to Gallade and asking, "It's still considered cool to say that, right?" Gallade nodding and shouting the same thing.

Blaziken also held her fist out and exclaimed, "Way to go, Machoke!" Lopunny all the while letting down light tears and sniffing, "Thank you for fulfilling your promise."

Scizor also let out a sigh of relief, knowing Scyther could no longer feel bad about having worked alongside Talonflame. Lucario also had a light smile on his face but quickly hid it as he got up from his seat, exiting the area while everyone was too distracted by the results of the fight to notice.

Of course, Weedle wasted no time calling in a group of officers from Hero Planet to bind Talonflame in chains and place him in the back of a spaceship to be sent to prison. There was no way they would give someone so dangerous a chance to escape.

Aipom eventually let go of Machoke's face when her hug had started to make him suffocate, Weedle crawling into the ring while holding a trophy with his tail. Machoke stared wide-eyed as the caterpillar said, "It's hard for me to say this, but thank you, Machoke," the boy grinning and asking, "What was that? I couldn't quite hear that."

Weedle rolled his eyes and grumbled curses before stating, "You have done a wonderful thing for the world. I was too much of a coward to even make an effort, but you singlehandedly brought one of the most dangerous criminals in the galaxy to justice. And because you're our champion, well, please accept this," the caterpillar holding out the trophy as Machoke took a hold of it with a grin.

However, Weedle held onto it tightly as the boy started applying more force. Eventually, the two started a tug of war with the trophy, Weedle still not caring enough for Machoke's family to just hand a trophy over to one of them.

Scrafty simply chuckled and said, "That guy really is something else," Gardevoir running over to him and giving him a hug, the lizard's eyes widening as he asked, "What's all this about?" Gardevoir squeaking, "You came to give your support! You really have joined the side of good!" the lizard sighing, "Are you implying that you doubted me?" the two laughing as Bisharp said, "Yes, he and I will make a good team fighting for the side of good."

And with the tournament finally having come to a close, it was time for Scyther, Lopunny and Heracross to be relocated. Since they worked together well enough, Weedle agreed to let them remain as a team and had assigned them to Los Angeles, Machoke all the while envious that they got to live in LA of all places.

"It's been really nice meeting you guys," Lopunny said, giving Gardevoir a hug and saying, "Sorry for being so rough on you," the girl giggling and replying, "That's okay. You were just doing what you had to."

"Thank you for showing me the light, Machoke," Heracross said before bowing his head, Scyther all the while apologizing for everything she had done, especially giving Gallade a permanent scar across his torso as he simply laughed and said, "Don't worry. If anything, this makes me look more badass."

And with that, the trio said their goodbyes and took off, Talonflame of course not with them now that he was behind bars and unable to bother anyone. And with that, everything was right again as Machoke and his friends would be fighting alongside each-other always and nothing would come between them again.