AOF: I know cutting out Amber's appeal made the last chapter short, but I don't regret it.
AOF: There isn't going to be as much detail into the contest scenes as there will be gym battles, because there will have to be a lot more contests participated in than gym battles. And I'm just not willing to put so much effort into what is mainly just a minor plot point.
Astro.
Several Battles Later.
It took three or four hard-fought battles, and I felt aching sore by the end of the night, but I fought hard for Amber and got us to the final round.
I didn't care as much about looking good while attacking as Amber did, but my speed and ability to dodge made up for it. Amber was willing to let me interpret her commands as I saw fit, not as she did, and it worked well enough.
Of course, Dee made it, as well. Classic Dee, never willing to let anyone ahead of her. I was waiting with bated breath to beat the snot out of her new Eevee.
"Alright!" Marian announced into her mic. "This is the last battle, to decide our winner tonight! It will last five minutes, and the coordinator with the most points at the end of that time will be the winner! And...begin!"
"Eevee, use Quick Attack!" Dee didn't waste one second of the five minutes.
Amber didn't need to tell me to dodge; I turned on my heel as Eevee barrelled towards me, his speed barely rustling my fur. Eevee put on the breaks, and stopped shortly behind me. I didn't dare leave my back exposed.
"Just look at the flawless beauty of Amber's Riolu, Astro!" Marian squealed as Dee's points depleted a little. "So well-trained, almost like a dancer!"
"Astro, use Force Palm!" Amber directly. "Close contact!"
Dee gritted her teeth as I charged. "Bite him, Eevee!"
I dashed towards Eevee to hit him directly with my energized palm, but he bit me in the leg. I howled as pain shot up my body. Eevee held fast as I slapped him in the back with my paw, singing his fur.
I heard Amber's almighty point gauge deplete.
"They're evenly matched," That Leon guy commented into his judge's mic. "Two equally rare pokemon, brawling it out old-fashioned style. Fascinating..."
I almost didn't hear Amber shout, "Shake him off!"
I smacked Eevee in the back with my paw again, balling it into a fist. I landed a blow on his head, and he let go.
"Eevee, use Shadow Ball!" Dee ordered, getting back in the swing.
"Stop him, Astro!"
Eevee opened his mouth, charge a black and violet ball of crackling energy. I swept my leg under him, stopping him. The ball disintegrated, along with more of Dee's points.
Leon had been right; we were evenly matched. Eevee kept up with me hand and foot. I never thought I would meet an equal on the battlefield, let alone a rival.
As the battle progressed, it got more down and dirty, which I preferred. More chances to take Amber's commands as fluidly as I wanted. She wasn't in control of this battle; I was.
Until, a few minutes later, Eevee tackled me to the ground and stood over me, pinning me down. We had forty-five seconds left, both Amber and Dee left with only a quarter of their points. Time to cut down to the nitty-gritty.
I needed to fight hard. Every second I let Eevee dominate me, more points drained from Amber's gauge.
Thirty seconds. I wrestled with Eevee, pushing her off of me. Dee lost points.
Fifteen seconds. I began charging a Force Palm. We were both so tired, all Eevee could manage was a weak growl.
Ten seconds. I closed my eyes, summoning all of my strength into this final attack. The aura sensors at the sides of my head raised slightly.
Five seconds. My muscules almost gave out. I couldn'find the energy to launch the attack.
Three...
Two...
One...
"Stop!" The timer dinged, and the stopwatch stopped at zero. I let go of the charge, falling to my knees.
I made too hard of an effort. I hadn't had the energy to launch the attack. I had to support myself on my paws just to keep from falling on my face.
"The winner is...Deadra!" My head pounded hard, and I sweated bullets. I couldn't breathe.
This wasn't just some form of exhaustion. This was...it had to be supernatural. Or something. Nothing could have brought me to such utter weakness.
Dee.
After the Contest.
"That battle was incredible, you guys! Me and Riolu were on the edge of our seats the whole time!"
I laughed. "I was pretty nervous, myself, when Astro started that last Force Palm..."
After I was presented with my ribbon, by Leon, we met up with Riley. He ended up carrying a passed-out Astro back to the Center, because he was too heavy for me or Amber to carry the whole way.
"Hey! You three, stop right there!"
It was Leon. He was running to catch up with us, an Umbreon at his side. It looked odd, with blue rings instead of yellow.
We stopped outside of the door. He caught up with us. He wasn't as tall as he'd looked sitting down; not more than six inches taller than Riley.
"Hey," Leon panted. "You two...the finalists, right?"
Amber offered a tired smile. "Yeah," She answered. "Look, I've gotta get my Riolu upstairs so he can sleep, so-"
"Congratulations on the win, Deadra. And that Astro, Amber, he made one hell of an effort." Leon fave a toothy grin. Locks of hairgelled bangs fell against his sweaty forehead. "Great battle, both of you. But, I want to talk to your friend."
Riley grunted, readjusting Astro on his hip like a sleeping toddler. "Me? Uh, look, mister, I don't-"
"God, don't call me mister. I ain't even twenty. Call me Lee, alright? Look, just a sec, okay, kid? Real quick. I've got a couple questions about your friends."
I raised my eyebrow. "About what?" I demanded.
Amber sighed, and Riley handed Astro off to her.
"I, uh," He stammered, blue eyes darting nervously at Lee. "I'll be right upstairs. Okay, guys?"
Lee glared at us with his dark eyes. Even Umbreon, too. What the frig was so important that a stranger needed to talk to Riley in private?
"Alright...but if you don't return Riley in the condition you borrowed him in, I'll come after you," I growled out.
Lee saluted sarcastically, as if he didn't just force us to seperate. "Yes, ma'am."
Amber and I went inside, leaving Riley with a possibly deranged Top Coordinator that dressed like a greaser. Greatest idea ever, just positively capital.