The air inside the Masters' Booth was tense as they observed Charizard's performance from the monitor. Charizard was stretching and warming up his limbs. He got into a battle-ready pose afterward, shooting a cocky grin Gourgeist's way.

"It's five against one," Iris said. "Is this even possible?"

"I think not," Lance said. "Charizard may be overall healthier than Diantha's team, but there's no way he can deal with all of them without coming out unscathed. He'll slip up, and it will be the end of him."

"I disagree," said Alain. "Leon and Charizard have demonstrated that they can overcome unfavourable odds. I believe this battle is closer than you think."

Ash nodded. "Right. That's what I think too." Besides, Leon can't lose now: I promised I would fight him again, and this tournament is the only shot I have at this!

Cynthia walked closer to the monitor. "Either way, I believe it's best to wait and see how things play out."

"My thoughts exactly," said Steven. "You can hypothesize about what type of rocks you can find in a mine, but until you start digging, you'll never know what you may get."

"Charizard, Dragon Pulse!"

"Seed Bomb!"

All eyes turned to the screen as the fight began. Charizard was dominating it: Through his expert parrying and dodging, he didn't let Gourgeist land a single clean hit. As the fight went on, it didn't seem like he would be able to do any harm to Charizard, but he did eventually manage to plant a Leech Seed on him.

"Ancient Power!" said Leon's voice through the speakers.

Charizard spread his wings and roared. A slew of conjured boulders appeared around him.

"Gourgeist! Do it now!"

Gourgeist's pumpkin head glowed ominously. A spectral image of him rose out of him and rushed toward Charizard. His eyes widened in shock, but before he could react, the spectre passed through him.

Charizard stumbled but caught himself. He weakly swung his arm, sending his projectiles at Gourgeist. There was no resistance from him upon contact; he fell onto his back, knocked out.

"Gourgeist is unable to battle!"

Charizard flashed a ghost of a smirk before a wince crossed his face. He collapsed to one knee, and his body began to tremble.

Ash frowned, deep in thought. "Whatever move Gourgeist used, I don't recognize it."

Cynthia provided her with an answer. "It's Curse, a move that severely strains the user's stamina in exchange for putting a heap's worth of negative effects on the targets. At least, that's how it works for Ghost pokémon."

"Well, aren't you knowledgeable," said Steven, hands on his hips.

Cynthia smiled. "I know my fair share of things."

Ash looked alarmed. "Wait, but that combined with Leech Seed means…!"

"That Leon's charizard is on a narrow time limit," Lance finished for him. "Any subsequent hit from here on out will be costly."

Ash balled his hands into fists. If Leon lost now, then… He shook his head. No. I will get to battle him. I have to believe in him! "The battle's not over yet. Let's see where it goes."

The battle continued with Tyrantrum's entrance. While he had recovered from his poison, he still looked exhausted. Charizard, panting, stood up and braced himself for the upcoming battle, although his stance was noticeably slouched.

Even though no one dared to bring it up, they knew one good hit from Tyrantrum could spell out the end of Charizard.

Their fight kicked off. One after the other, they fiercely exchanged attacks, and Charizard held the advantage. But the gradual drain from Leech Seed was evening the playing field. Neither pokémon could land a solid hit, but Charizard's stamina steadily diminished as the fight continued.

"Tyrantrum, use Stone Edge!"

"Boost yourself, Charizard! Dragon Dance!"

After finishing his dance, Charizard's vigour seemed renewed. With it, he took control of the match, toppling Tyrantrum with a swift strike of his glowing tail.

Leon wasted no time exploiting that opening. "Now, Charizard! Roost!"

Charizard landed on the ground, folded his wings, and released a deep, rumbling sigh as all tension dissipated from his muscles. A green light overtook his body, healing some of his wounds.

Ash smirked. "Ah-ha! That puts a new perspective on this whole battle."

Alain nodded. "Right. Charizard could last longer than we initially anticipated."

"Tch. That Leon," said Lance as he rubbed his temples. "What else is he hiding in that bag of tricks?"

Charizard didn't have much trouble taking out Tyrantrum afterward, except for a minor close call. However, after he had done so, he started to wobble backward. His eyes shrunk and trembled inside their sockets, and his tailflame dimmed to dangerously low levels. A few seconds later, Charizard returned to normal, but not before a blue aura of particles flowed downward around him.

"Did…did his stats just get lowered?" Iris asked. I know Cynthia said 'a heap's worth', but I didn't expect Curse to have that particular effect.

"Seems that way," Steven replied with a nod. "Though, we don't which ones yet."

"Huh?"

"It could be all of them or just some of them. It varies. But no one knows why."

After Diantha recalled Tyrantrum, Goodra made her second appearance on stage. She was still asleep from having used Rest earlier on.

"Sleep Talk!"

"Dodge it!"

The fight began. Charizard took the lead, both offensively and defensively. However, he didn't seem to have the same vigour he had displayed against Tyrantrum.

Goodra attacked with Power Whip. Charizard dodged and used that opportunity to renew his Dragon Dance. Then, he grabbed Goodra's glowing antennae, took her for a short, skyward ride, and slammed her into the ground, leaving her in a mound of dust. He landed a few metres away from her and warily observed the dust cloud.

"Goodra, use Sleep Talk!"

Charizard braced himself, waiting to react to what Goodra would do. The dust cleared up, and his eyes widened in surprise. She was preparing a Draco Meteor!

"Charizard, interrupt!"

Time was of the essence; Charizard acted on instinct. He crouched, spread his wings — They glowed as he did so — and rushed forward in a burst of speed. He passed by Goodra and slammed one of his wings into her neck. She cried out in pain as she went flying.

However, it was too late. Goodra had already released her attack. It sailed higher into the sky and exploded into a hail of meteors.

Charizard landed and gritted his teeth, scowling. An alarmed expression replaced his scowl as a shower of blue particles flowed down around him, courtesy of Goodra's Gooey.

"Ah, the undefeated champion makes a blunder at last," Lance said, sneering.

Leon punched the air. "Charizard, defend yourself!"

Charizard shot a challenging roar upward before he flew straight into the Draco Meteor downpour. Using all the tools at his disposal, he hacked and slashed at the barrage of projectiles, blasting them apart with a pulse of draconic energy, a five-pronged blast of fire, or a swing of his glowing tail or wings.

Unfortunately, his lowered speed proved to be his downfall. A single meteor flew at him at his blind side. When he turned around and noticed it, he was too slow to react. It cracked against his face. Charizard lost his focus, which allowed another slew of meteors to impact against his scales.

Charizard plummeted from the sky and hit the ground like a sack of rocks, unmoving. His tailflame dimmed to half its former blaze.

Ash, Alain, and Iris collectively gasped.

"No way!" the latter said.

Ash bit his lip. If this is where Leon bites it, then…

Lance smirked. "Well, in the end, it looks like Diantha triumphed over Leon."

Cynthia and Steven kept their eyes on the monitor, looking the scene over with thoughtful frowns etched onto their faces.

The referee came over to inspect Charizard. Meanwhile, everyone pondered the same question.

Was it over…?

Leon balled his hand into a fist and put it to his chest. "Charizard, stand up! I know you're not finished yet — This battle isn't over yet!" He shoved his fist forward. "Come on, partner! Show me your champion's resolve! I know you can do it, or else you wouldn't be my partner!"

.

.

.

Nothing happened.

With a sinking feeling in his chest, Ash lowered his head. This was really the end of his dream to fight Leon—

Charizard's tailflame exploded, making Ash jump and surprising everyone in the booth. He... He wasn't done yet?!

Charizard stood up, reared his head up, and unleashed a resounding roar. It reverberated throughout the stadium and shook the spectators to their cores. As he did so, flames burst to life around him and burned the Leech Seed vines around his torso. Afterward, they coalesced into his tail flame. Its colour shifted into a piercing, white hue, and its size settled at three times its original one.

Shifting his gaze back down, Charizard entered a battle-ready pose.

Goodra, who had already woken up at this point, was in awe. Diantha looked taken aback as well.

Back in the booth, Iris gaped at the monitor. "This is...!"

Ash completed Iris' sentence for her. "The same thing that happened against Alain!"

Alain nodded, a tense look on his face. "The last time it came up, some surprising things happened."

"Hmph. Activating Blaze at the eleventh hour..." Lance shook his head. "What a showman."

"This certainly did become a more interesting battle, didn't it?" asked Steven.

"Quite so," replied Cynthia.

"Excellent work, Charizard!" Leon punched the sky. "Now give them your champion Fire Blast!"

"Goodra, use Dragon Pulse!"

Charizard unfurled his wings and leapt into the sky. Fire gathered in his maw, its sheer heat rippling the air. A massive, star-shaped blast of fire fired out of his maw. As it headed down, Goodra took a few steps back, transfixed by the sheer power of the attack. She had to summon all her courage to muster up the strength to fire her attack: a pulse of draconic energy. It snaked across the sky and clashed against Charizard's Fire Blast.

Without slowing down, the Fire Blast continued down its path, for the difference in power was just too steep. Goodra's eyes widened in terror before the flames engulfed her.

A deafening explosion rang out. Tongues of flame flew in every which way, which the barrier for the spectators blocked. Once everything settled, the referee flew down to inspect the charred body of Goodra.

He raised his arm in the air. "Goodra is unable to battle!"

Diantha recalled the fallen pokémon.

"This is just…wow. Just how capable is this dragon?" Lance asked, in awe.

"I don't even know myself, but the thought of fighting him makes me even more excited!" Ash said.

Cynthia chuckled. "Yes, but let's not forget this battle's far from over. He still has a curse to deal with."

At that time, Charizard winced as a sickening feeling gathered in his gut. He snarled. Not this time nor ever again would he let Gourgeist's Curse affect him. He tensed his muscles and focused, making his body temperature rise. An orange glow surrounded his body, and black steam rose from his body. A few seconds later, Charizard relaxed, sighing as his body temperature returned to normal.

Iris tapped a finger on her cheek, humming. "Something tells me he won't to worry about that anymore…"

"Aurorus, you're up!"

The Ice-Rock pokémon emerged to face off against Charizard. However, the ensuing battle was short and an absolute slaughter. In two strikes, Charizard felled her. Aurorus could only react by setting up Light Screen and Reflect.

"Aurorus is unable to battle!"

"I can't believe it… The battle's even!" Iris said. "A while ago, that seemed like an impossibility."

Steven nodded. "That's what makes pokémon battles so interesting. You never know how they will end."

"I know, right?!" Ash said.

"I'm counting on you, Gardevoir!"

The Psychic-Fairy pokémon emerged onto the field. The stage was set for the final battle: Leon's charizard versus Diantha's gardevoir. The outcome of this fight would determine who would have their place secured in the finals.

Diantha grabbed her Key Stone pendant. "Let's make this final performance unforgettable!" She activated Gardevoir's Mega Evolution. A few seconds later, the light dispelled around Gardevoir to reveal her in her mega-evolved form.

Leon smirked as he lifted Charizard's pokéball. "Well, Charizard? You heard them. Let's give them a performance they won't soon forget!"

Charizard roared in approval before a red light sucked him back into his pokéball. Leon activated his Dynamax. He chucked the enlarged pokéball, and it released Charizard, who underwent a Gigantamax.

The air grew thick with tension as the two pokémon stared each other down.

"So..." Iris began. "Charizard has activated Blaze and Gigantamax, while Gardevoir has her Mega Evolution, Light Screen, and Reflect. Who do you think will win?"

"I'm confident Diantha will clutch up this match," Lance said. "Mega Gardevoir even trumped my Dynamax. Who's to say it won't happen again?"

"Diantha isn't infallible, though." Cynthia shook her head. "And I doubt Leon will simply let Gardevoir run circles around Charizard and him."

"Hmph. I guess we'll see."

The battle commenced. Charizard's superior firepower set the pace of the battle: He piled the damage on Gardevoir while not letting her hit him. But Gardevoir, although wracked with pain, persevered. She used her ESP and turned Charizard's G-Max Wildfire against him. Even when he tried to dispel it with Max Airstream, she didn't let him. She used that wind to fuel the G-Max Wildfire and attacked him with it. Charizard staggered backward, each massive step he took sending quakes across the ground.

"Incredible!" Ash was practically bursting with excitement. Pokémon battles are so amazing. It never gets tiring to watch them, no matter how many battles I've been through!

Steven hummed. "So, this is what Diantha and Gardevoir can do when they get serious."

Cynthia nodded. "This battle is rapidly heading toward a rousing finale!"

Charizard shrunk back to his original size.

The two pokémon were panting from exhaustion but were still ready to battle. The battle began anew, just as fierce as it was before. Clash after clash, trade after trade, the two battlers dodged, weaved, and danced around each other, giving it their all for the sake of their trainers.

Ultimately, Gardevoir pinned Charizard to the ground with her psychic powers. She began charging a huge Moonblast, an attack that would put a definite end to this battle.

Iris took a step back. "Okay, that attack is huge, and Charizard has no way of escaping it. What exactly are his odds of withstanding it?" Close to zero, if it's not already in the negatives.

"It's not over yet!" Ash motioned at the monitor. "Just look at Charizard! He hasn't given up yet!"

"Poppycock!" Lance exclaimed. "It's just false bravado. Charizard has no way out of this situation. Unless there's some trick he hasn't played yet?"

It was Alain who replied to him. "Perhaps. With Leon, we never know what might happen."

Cynthia and Steven just watched in silence. The battle would play out and give an answer; there was no point in idle theorizing.

Charizard was grinning, despite everything. He relished in the challenge, to push himself to his very limit and overcome any hurdle, no matter how insurmountable they seemed!

He roared, his entire body igniting with the flames of determination. Gardevoir's psychic grip on him broke, and he stood up, ready to face Moonblast head-on.

"I feel you, partner. Let's show them why we're worthy of our title of undefeated!" Leon pointed upward. "Fire Blast!"

Charizard gaped his maw wide open, gathering a blazing inferno of emotions in front of it. The star-shaped blast of fire he released clashed against Gardevoir's Moonblast. With both titanic moves equal in power, they entered a stalemate.

Charizard was not having it. He shifted his stance, wings glowing white. He soared into the sky and, with the aid of Dragon Dance, spun like a corkscrew. He plunged right into his attack and combined with it. It created a flaming, spiral arrow that sailed through Gardevoir's Moonblast, piercing it like dough. Then, it punched through Gardevoir herself, who looked wracked with disbelief in the face of her imminent defeat.

Charizard halted his spin, dispelling his flaming cloak. Everything behind him exploded in a shower of glitter and smoke, heavy gusts of wind lashing out every which way.

Once it settled, silence overtook the battlefield. Gardevoir's form plummeted from the sky and thudded against the ground. Meanwhile, Charizard glided back down, arms crossed, ever smirking. The only thing he was waiting for, just like everyone else, was the referee's call.

And when it came…

"Gardevoir is unable to battle! As such, the winner is Leon!"

The crowd went wild with applauses, cheers and whistles!

"Wow…" Ash was at a loss for words. "That was…amazing." A grin slowly spread on his face. "That was incredible! Leon won! Alright!" He started cheering. Looks like I really will get my chance to battle Leon!

"Hmph, that Leon…" Lance shook his head. "He's a mighty foe—the mightiest we could ever face, even."

Steven nodded and put his hands on his hips. "No matter what he's up against, no matter how hard he gets pushed into a corner, he can always bounce back and surprise his opponent."

"In any case," Alain said. "we know Leon will be in the finals, but his future opponent has yet to be decided."

All looks turned to Ash and Cynthia.

The former composed himself as the situation caught up to him. Right. If I want to face Leon, I first have to defeat Cynthia! He shot her a determined look. "I'm ready to face you anytime!"

Pikachu, from Ash's shoulder, gave a few cries of support.

She nodded. "Then shall we go prepare ourselves?"

He nodded back "Yeah."

They began making their way out.

"Good luck to you both. And may the best trainer win," Steven said.

"Give us a battle worthy of your champion titles!" Lance said.

"Ash, you have my vote of confidence, so give it your all!" Alain said.

"Do your best, you two!" Iris said. "And Cynthia, don't go easy on Ash, 'kay?! Give him a run for his money!"

Ash chuckled. Whose side is she on?

Cynthia chuckled. "I'll make sure to give it my all in this battle."

#

I'd like to give a shout-out to TheBlazingButterfly777 for requesting that I do this. It was a fun writing exercise to present (a part of) the battle in a different context. I reworded some things so that it wasn't just a copy and paste of what I had already written. I also had months of hindsight, so I was able to tweak some segments in kind.

This Thursday, part 1 of Ash vs Cynthia releases, so make sure you're there to see it! Bye!