Alola, everyone! It's finally time to get back into "The Challenge of a Lifetime" after a couple weeks for some "Omni Force: JUSTICE" chapters! I know you're probably suffering from the angst in hardship in that story. And believe me, it won't be getting better…
So let's continue something that'll probably excite you more! Last time we left off, Calvin defeated Plumeria in what was a spectacular battle! So now, it's time for the Top 16 matches to continue!
Enjoy!
POKÉMON SUN & MOON
THE CHALLENGE OF A LIFETIME
"Madam Prez…" Plumeria uttered as Lusamine approached, folding her arms over her chest. She looked cross. The Team Skull admin wasn't the least bit intimidated though. "You mad I took part in this tournament?" she guessed, arching an eyebrow.
"I'm upset that you and your cronies are in this tournament…" the Aether Foundation president began to reply, "when you have another job to take care of…" she pointed out, narrowing her eyes. Plumeria was a little nervous, stepping back.
"I found the girl on Akala," she told Lusamine, causing her to perk up in surprise, "She had the asset, but I got stopped by a friend of hers," she mentioned.
"Is that so…?" the Aether Foundation president responded in question, putting her right hand onto her chin.
'If she's already gone to Melemele and Akala like I've heard… then she'll definitely be at Ula'ula next,' she noted through her thoughts before turning back to the Team Skull admin.
"Thank you for relaying this information to me," she said in gratitude with a smile, "I trust that Guzma will be happy to assist when that foolish child goes to Ula'ula, yes?" she inquired curiously.
"Um, yeah…" Plumeria responded, sounding somewhat nervous. Lusamine clapped her hands together.
"Wonderful!" she exclaimed, "I have no doubts that you'll see things through," she assured, walking past the Team Skull admin, "Oh, and Plumeria?" she said, catching her attention, "Who was Lillie's friend that stopped you?" she asked her. For once, an actual grin graced her lips.
"You're in luck," she remarked, "It was that pigtailed brat, Erika," she told her.
"I see…" the Aether Foundation president uttered in realization, letting off a chuckle, "Carry on your way, Plumeria," she added in farewell, giving off a wave to the Team Skull admin, "Surely, your brothers and sisters will fare better in this tournament…" she sarcastically mentioned, causing her to scoff in frustration.
"Way to go, Cal!" Hau complimented, wrapping his left arm around his male cousin's shoulders and pulling him in close.
"Heh…" he chuckled, "Thanks, Hau," he said in gratitude, "Though things ended up a lot closer than I would've liked them to…" he admitted sheepishly.
"But you pulled through in the end, dude!" Paige pointed out emphatically with a pump of her fist.
"And your Marowak learned a cool new move!" Erika added excitedly as sparkles were in her eyes.
"Yeah, that was something else…" her brother noted, remembering how the Alolan Bone Keeper Pokémon's Shadow Bone really helped him prevail against Crobat, "Oh!" he yelped as recalled something else, "Pyrrha's in the stands, too!" he told the others.
"Really?!" Erika exclaimed with a gleeful smile.
"Got over her funk, huh?" Trent guessed as he cracked a grin.
"Ahem…" Faba's voice echoed over the loudspeakers, catching everyone's attention, "We've decided that the fourth match of the Top Sixteen battles shall be Erika against another esteemed employee of the Aether Foundation, Selene!" he explained.
"Whoa, it's finally my turn!" the Ketchum girl realized, blinking rapidly.
"Good luck, Erika!" Rotom buzzed, getting her attention.
"Yeah, you're gonna do great!" Calvin assured confidently. His twin sister, jogging into the tunnel leading to the field.
"She's excited as usual," Selene blankly noted with her robotic expression, walking after her opponent.
"Good luck, Mizzz Selene!" Rotom called out, causing the trial-goers around it to blink in surprise before looking up at it suspiciously. Outside, Erika arrived at her box on the arena, stretching her arms and legs to prepare herself. Meanwhile, the Aether Foundation employee walked over to her side, taking a deep breath into her mouth before exhaling. All of a sudden, the standard dirt field before them opened up, followed by a sandy field coming up in its place.
"Trainers!" the referee called out to both girls, "You may select your Pokémon!" he told them.
"Do your best, Erika!" Pyrrha cheered from the stands. Hearing her friend be so supportive lit a fire in the Ketchum girl's eyes. She was going to do whatever it took to win, enlarging a Poké Ball in her right hand by pressing its center button.
"Let's go, Drifblim!" she called out, chucking the spherical container up into the air. It popped open, and the light that spilled out from it formed in midair, dissipating to reveal the Blimp Pokémon.
"Blimmm!" he squeaked in greeting. Selene blinked.
"The Pokémon she used when we first met…" she recalled, letting off a little smile, "Fascinating," she added while readying a Great Ball she had in her right hand, "Come on out, Dhelmise," she beckoned, lightly tossing the ball forward. As it opened up, its light came into form in midair and dissipated. Erika blinked in surprise upon seeing the opposing Pokémon. It was made up of an anchor and ship's wheel, held together by a mass of green seaweed. The anchor was a rusty brown mottled with blackish spots. The seaweed partially enveloped the thick, curved bottom of the anchor in a zigzag fashion, leaving empty spaces that looked like sharp teeth. The seaweed continued upward to cover the anchor's thin shank and the spindle of the wheel. Five individual strands of seaweed trailed off the small hub, giving it a star-shaped look.
The ship's wheel was lavender on the outside with a yellow inner rim. It was affixed to the back of the spindle by its center and able to rotate freely. The noticeably damaged wheel featured six spokes and four handles, all of which were yellow. There were two lavender stubs where the other handles should've been. A simple compass, resembling an eye, was set into a yellow ring-shaped component on one side of the wheel; mirroring this was an identical ring on the opposite side, though nothing was set into it.
"Delll…" the Sea Creeper Pokémon growled out.
"What the heck…?" Erika uttered in surprise as she blinked rapidly.
'I thought she was gonna use her Corsola…' she inwardly admitted, arching an eyebrow.
"I've never seen that Pokémon before…" Calvin said from back in the locker room. As if on cue, Rotom pulled up an image of the Sea Creeper Pokémon upon its screen.
"Dhelmise, the Sea Creeper Pokémon," it began, getting the attentions of the trial-goers as they turned to listen, "The soul of seaweed adrift in the waves became reborn as this Pokémon. It maintains itself with new infusions of seabed detritus and seaweed. Its chain-like green seaweed can stretch outward for hundreds of yards. For some reason, it gets along well with Skrelp," it explained thoroughly.
"The… soul of seaweed?" Paige repeated, completely confused.
"I'm guessing that means it's a Ghost-type…" Trent noted as he put his left hand onto his chin.
"Eri's gonna have her hands full with this one, wouldn't ya say, Cal?" he inquired to his cousin standing beside him.
"Yeah…" he agreed with a nod. He knew his twin sister well by now. Even against a new opponent, she would do her best to emerge victorious.
OPENING
Insert "Everlasting Shine" by TOMORROW X TOGETHER
The sun rises over the Alolan ocean as we see various Pokémon swimming about, all around Aether Paradise in the background.
We see Calvin standing over a cliff together with all of his current six Pokémon: Torracat, Gumshoos, Trumbeak, Araquanid, Marowak, and Steenee, all smiling at the rising sun.
Cut to a beach, where standing there is Erika, also having six of her Pokémon out.
She and her Pokémon: Brionne, Lycanroc, Oricorio, Fomantis, Drifblim, and Magby, are also smiling towards the rising sun.
Camera next cuts to a rocky shore, showing Hau, and he too is joined by his six Pokémon: Dartrix, Pikachu, Noibat, Tauros, Eevee and Crabrawler, as they enjoy the sunrise.
Finally, we cut to a side view of Akala Island, before the screen was divided three ways, each show close-ups of Hau, Calvin and Erika's determined faces, colored green, red and blue respectively. The story's logo appears.
Ash and Mirajane share a sweet kiss as they watch their youngest kids and nephew training together on the Melemele Beach, along with the Kanto Champion's Pikachu, Lycanroc and Erika's Sandygast. The Ground/Ghost type is nervously peeking from behind the adults' legs to see the fierce training session below.
Calvin and Erika share glances with each other, reflecting on how far they've both come since they started the Island Challenge. They smile at each other before being brought into a hug by Hau.
Meanwhile, Lillie is walking on a dirt road. In her arms is her duffel bag, with Nebby poking its head out from it. She gives it a soft smile before clutching the duffel bag strap tightly with worry in her eyes.
Unknown to her, she's being closely watched by Gladion, who is seated on the back of Null with his Golbat and Zorua also watching on.
The scene cuts to the Lusamine, joined by Wicke, Faba, Professor Burnet, and several Aether Foundation employees outside of the former's mansion on Aether Paradise. Lusamine looks at a framed picture in her office before she sees a blue light shine overhead. It turns out to be an Ultra Wormhole, which makes her grin ominously.
Cuts to Team Skull, with Plumeria standing in front of them alongside her Crobat, Mareanie, and Salandit, with the latter of the trio crawling onto her trainer's shoulder. They both smirk deviously, while a certain pair of figures loom in the background within the shadows.
The Ketchum twins and their cousin take ready stances, each with a Poké Ball in hand before they toss them towards the camera, opening to release bursts of light.
Paige issues a command to her Medicham, with the Fighting/Psychic type dashing forward, coating her fist in blue energy and cocking it back before trying to punch Calvin's Steenee, who parries the attack with a Double Slap.
Trent's Greninja forms a Water Shuriken in his hands, and flings it at Gladion's Null, who slices it in half with Crush Claw before retaliating with X-Scissor, which is blocked by Erika's Lycanroc as he retaliates with Counter.
Hau's Eevee uses Swift, firing several stars at Pyrrha's Quilava, who responds by using Flame Wheel, with the fire acting as a shield to protect him from the energy stars.
Calvin, Erika, and Hau each perform a Z-Move with their respective starters, who are surrounded by glowing lights: Torracat's is red, Brionne is blue, and Dartrix is green. They unleash an Inferno Overdrive, a Hydro Vortex, and a Bloom Doom respectively.
The three starters charge at each other, their bodies leaving behind streaks of energy based on their colors, before they collide in the center of the battlefield.
Everyone covers their faces to block the smoke, before looking to see the center of the battlefield in shock. Standing amidst the smoke and fiery backdrop are three larger creatures. The others can't yet make out their features since they were silhouetted, but one looks like a muscular, bipedal tiger, One looks like mermaid-like seal with long hair, and the third appears to be a hooded avian.
We cut to Calvin, Erika and Hau looking out onto the ocean horizon from Aether Paradise, each standing alongside their Pokémon as the song winds down.
END OPENING
Countering the Way to Victory!
"She's got a Drifblim!" Ash exclaimed excitedly from the couch.
"Peekah!" Pikachu squeaked. Meanwhile, Lucario stood off behind the couch, watching the match start about to get underway upon the TV.
"Hey, honey?" Mirajane called out, getting her husband's attention as he turned to see her walking over with a large bowl of popcorn in her hands, "You remember that time you accidentally fished up that Dhelmise during our honeymoon?" she inquired with a giggle, causing him to sheepishly grin.
"And my Gengar ended up scaring it away before I could catch it…" he mentioned in remembrance, "It's a really cool Pokémon though," he pointed out as his wife sat down beside him.
"And a rare one at that!" she added before popping a piece of popcorn into her mouth and chewing it, "I wonder how Erika's going to deal with it..." she said curiously with a tilt of her head.
"Well, knowing how well she's doing from what Kukui told us," Ash began to reply, "I think she'll be just fine," he assured confidently. On the battlefield of Manalo Stadium, his youngest daughter narrowed her eyes onto the Sea Creeper Pokémon floating before her Drifblim.
'Never thought I'd see a Pokémon resembling an anchor…' she inwardly confessed, 'Guess Alola's full of surprises…' she noted to herself.
"Now let the battle… begin!" the referee exclaimed, swinging his right arm down.
"Let's get this off on the right foot!" Erika yelled excitedly, pumping her right fist forward, "Drifblim, use Gust!" she commanded.
"Blimmm!" the Blimp Pokémon squeaked, inhaling a deep breath as his body pumped up.
"Be careful, Anchy," Selene advised to her Dhelmise.
"My," it responded, appearing to nod. Its opponent then exhaled a powerful rush of air onto him. Though it blew by fiercely, it was barely managing to push the Sea Creeper Pokémon back, much to Erika's surprise.
"Oh my!" the announcer exclaimed through the loudspeakers, "Even with that super effective Gust blowing hard on it, Dhelmise is practically unfazed!" he pointed out excitedly.
"Anchor Shot," Selene ordered as she simply raised her index finger forward.
"Dellll…" the Sea Creeper Pokémon growled out. All of a sudden, it started to spin around as the anchor of its body was attached to a green chain that extended outward. The anchor was then thrust through the wind, striking Drifblim square in the face.
"Drifblim!" Erika screamed, seeing the Blimp Pokémon fall onto the ground. His opponent retracted its anchor as its chain was wound up again.
"That was some power to break through that wind…" Hau admitted as he blinked rapidly.
"Anchor Shot happenzzz to be Dhelmise'zzz signature move, zzt," Rotom buzzed, getting his attention along with those of the others, "Though it'zzz actually a Steel-type attack…" it mentioned curiously.
"And Dhelmise is a Ghost-and-Grass-type…" Trent pointed out with crossed arms. Back on the battlefield, Drifblim floated back up, shaking to rid his body of the sand upon it.
"Blimm!" he squeaked angrily, determined to still fight.
"Be careful, Drifblim!" his trainer called out, grimacing a little.
'Okay, so it's strong enough to break through Drifblim's Gust of all things…' she noted nervously to herself, starting down the Sea Creeper Pokémon.
"You know," Selene began, causing her to perk up in surprise, "I caught Anchy here at the Seafolk Village on Poni Island," she told her while looking at her Dhelmise, "We were researching its habitat and the composition of its body," she mentioned robotically, "Did you know that Anchy's strong enough to take out a Wailord in a single hit?" she inquired to her opponent.
"A-A WAILORD?!" Erika stuttered in disbelief. Imagining the scene made her sweat nervously. Even Drifblim started to grow anxious.
"Anchy, use Shadow Ball," the Aether Foundation employee insisted.
"Delll!" the Sea Creeper Pokémon responded, forming a ball of purple and black energy in front of its face before firing it forward.
"Phantom Force!" Erika ordered quickly. Making his eyes shine a bright purple, Drifblim sunk himself into a thin purple portal that appeared beneath him. The energy ball harmlessly struck the ground behind him in an explosion of sand.
"Oh," Selene uttered, blinking in surprise. Her Dhelmise looked around for its foe, wondering where he could've gone. Another portal appeared behind it before the Blimp Pokémon floated out from it.
"Drrriii… BLIM!" he exclaimed as he swiped mightily at his foe, knocking it back as its anchor dug into the sand.
"Dellll…" it growled, floating back up.
"Phantom Force again!" Erika yelled in command, sticking her right hand out. Drifblim sunk into another thin purple portal beneath him, disappearing from sight.
"So that's your plan now," Selene realized as she blinked, "In that case…" she continued, sticking her right pointer finger out, "Use Whirlpool," she ordered simply. Anchy turned itself over, having its ship's wheel spin rapidly, water suddenly erupted from it, creating a torrent that swirled rapidly. The Blimp Pokémon rose up from a purple portal that appeared, prepared to swipe at his target. But suddenly, he was enveloped by the whirlpool as it spun him around.
"Drifblim, no!" Erika cried out.
"Oh, and Dhelmise's Whirlpool swallows up Drifblim!" the announcer exclaimed, "How's he gonna get out of this one?!" he wondered loudly.
"You won't escape," the Aether Foundation employee declared firmly in her usual robotic tone, "Anchy, Giga Drain," she commanded.
"Delll myyy!" the Sea Creeper Pokémon exclaimed, making its seaweed glow a bright green before energy tendrils of the same color shot out from the five points at its wheel. They shot up through the swirling whirlpool entrapping Drifblim, wrapping around his body and making it glow a bright green.
"Blimmmm…" he whimpered out in pain.
"Ergh…" Erika growled in frustration.
"And now Dhelmise is absorbing Drifblim's health with a surprising Giga Drain!" the announcer added, "I'm telling ya, Selene's got this battle all figured out from the get-go!" he pointed out excitedly.
"Darn…" Trent muttered out from the locker room.
"Yeah, Selene and her Dhelmise are basically two steps ahead…" Paige noted as she grimaced nervously.
"Come on, Eri…" Hau begged as his clenched fists trembled. Meanwhile, Calvin just watched the television screen, seeing the frustrated expression on his twin sister's face.
'What do we do?!' she asked herself frantically, gritting her teeth, 'Drifblim's already taken way too much damage and-!' She stopped herself as she remembered something. 'That's it!' she inwardly exclaimed in realization, finally letting off a confident smile.
"Drifblim, Payback!" she ordered quickly. Perking up, the Blimp Pokémon made the white, cloud-like tuft atop his head glow in a dark reddish aura. He dove into the whirlpool and struck his foe, causing the vortex to splash apart in an instant. He also sent his opponent crashing into the sandy ground.
"Drifblim counterattacks!" the announcer screamed as the sand cloud that erupted as a result of the attack slowly subsided, "With a powerful Payback, Drifblim's back in the game!" he pointed out as Anchy floated up, shaking itself to rid its body of any sand. Selene's expression didn't change.
"That was impressive, but risky," she noted to her opponent.
"That's just the way we roll, Selene!" Erika responded as she closed her right hand into a fist, "If we didn't take risks, we'd never be able to get ourselves stronger!" she pointed out emphatically as she grinned. Her words caught the Aether Foundation employee somewhat off guard as she blinked. Nevertheless, she wasn't about to let her foe emerge victorious.
"Dellll…" her Dhelmise growled, readying its anchor.
"Drifblim, Focus Energy!" the Ketchum girl called out.
"Blimmm!" the Blimp Pokémon squeaked, making an orange aura flow up around his body.
"You're looking to settle this in one hit, huh?" Selene guessed, unconsciously balling her fists, "Use Anchor Shot," she ordered simply.
"Delll… myy!" the Sea Creeper Pokémon exclaimed, firing off its anchor towards its opponent.
"Knock it back with Gust!" Erika instructed as she swung her right arm out.
"What?" Selene uttered in surprise. The last time, Drifblim's gust was easily broken through by her Dhelmise's anchor… The Blimp Pokémon inhaled a deep breath to puff his body up before exhaling a powerful gale that slammed into the incoming anchor. At first, the wind didn't seem to be affecting its trajectory. But all of a sudden, the gust actually blew it backwards!
"Dhell?!" the Sea Creeper Pokémon exclaimed in disbelief, while Selene actually widened her eyes. The anchor's chain ended up wrapping around the rest of Anchy's body, causing it to fall onto the sand.
"A-Anchy!" its trainer stuttered in surprise.
"Nice!" Hau exclaimed from the locker room.
"She had to make sure that Gust counted…" Trent pointed out.
"And it sure did," Calvin added with a nod. Back on the battlefield, his twin sister readied the Flyinium Z upon her Z-Ring.
"Hey now!" the announcer exclaimed in shock from his booth, "Are we about to witness the first Z-Move of the tournament?!" he guessed excitedly. Crossing her arms over her face, Erika made the Z-Crystal glow a bright blue.
"Let's go, Drifblim!" she called out.
"Blimm!" he squeaked in response. Together, the two of them performed the pose, with a sky blue aura building up around Erika's body before she pumped her left fist up into the air. The aura then shot out in streaks towards her teammate, merging with his body before the Z-Move symbol flashed in front of it.
"Anchy, get out of there!" Selene cried out desperately. However, her Dhelmise was unable to really move as it tried to wriggle itself free of its chain.
"Here goes!" Erika yelled. Drifblim then took off high into the air, much to everyone's amazement as they watched on with widened eyes. "SUPERSONIC SKYSTRIKE!" the Ketchum girl bellowed, making the Blimp Pokémon dive down in an instant and crash into his opponent in a fierce explosion of sand.
"WOW!" the announcer screamed over the loudspeaker, "With a collision like that, one of those two has to have bitten the dust!" he pointed out. Drifblim floated out from the cloud of sand, dirtied up and bruised. It took a moment for the cloud to fully clear. But when it did, it revealed the Sea Creeper Pokémon lying upon the ground with a swirl in the compass-shaped eye it had. The referee ran over to assess the result.
"Dhelmise is unable to battle!" he announced after a moment, raising up his left arm, "Drifblim wins!" he exclaimed, gesturing towards the Blimp Pokémon, "Therefore, the victory goes to Erika!" he added.
"Alright!" the Ketchum girl yelled happily as she pumped her fist up.
"Blimm…" Drifblim exhaled in relief. The battle had gotten too close for his liking. Meanwhile, Anchy was returned to its Great Ball in a beam of red light. Selene stared at it afterwards with a sad look on her face.
'What happened to me back there?' she wondered, 'I don't usually go off-kilter like that…' she admitted inwardly.
"Hey, Selene!" Erika called out, catching her attention, "That was a great battle!" she complimented, "Let's have one again sometime!" she insisted to her surprise as she blinked. However, a small smile slowly started to form on her lips.
"Yeah," she replied with a nod.
"And that gets us halfway through the Top Sixteen!" the announcer exclaimed, "Already we're seeing some amazing contenders head into the quarterfinals!" he pointed out. Back in one of the lounge boxes, Lusamine opened a door to enter.
"Oh, Miss President!" Wicke greeted, "I was wondering where you had gone off to…" she confessed as her superior walked by.
"I must've missed the fourth match," she realized as she walked over.
"Unfortunately, Selene was unable to best that child…" Faba grumbled with crossed arms. Lusamine looked out the window and blinked in surprise to see Erika waving to the crowd as she walked towards the tunnel, smiling all the while.
"It's her, hm?" the Aether Foundation president inquired, letting off a small grin, "Wicke, would you please see to it that Erika meets with me after today's matches?" she insisted of the assistant, catching her attention as she blinked in surprise, "I'd like to have the chance to speak with her more…" she said, putting her hand onto her chin.
"Oh, of course!" Wicke responded with a polite bow. Meanwhile, Lusamine curiously narrowed her eyes onto the Ketchum girl. She hoped that their meeting would be beneficial to her…
X
"Wow!" the announcer exclaimed through the loudspeakers as a Medicham and a Scraggy jumped away from each other on the standard dirt battlefield, "This battle between two Fighting-types has become quite the kicker!" he pointed out excitedly as both fighters glared at each other. Paige was on the side her Meditate Pokémon was upon, while her Team Skull opponent was on the other side. Her name was S.
"Gotta say, you've got some sick skills…" she admitted, brushing her long blue hair back with her right hand, "But your nothin' compared to my Scraggy!" she declared firmly.
"Skrah!" the Shedding Pokémon yelled in agreement.
"Heh," Paige chuckled, crossing her arms over her chest, "We're not gonna take comments like that lightly!" she promised.
"Chamu!" Medicham concurred with a nod. Back in the locker room, the other trial-goers watched the battle from the TV screen.
"Paige is doing pretty good so far!" Hau noted happily.
"Yeah, but that Scraggy's tough…" Calvin admitted with a slight grimace. Rotom then pulled up an image of the Shedding Pokémon upon its screen.
"Scraggy, the Shedding Pokémon," it began, "They move in small groups, walking around lazily. Anyone who makes eye contact gets smacked with a headbutt. He stretches his saggy skin up to his neck to protect himself. The saggier their skin, the more respect they garner," it explained thoroughly.
"Dad's Scraggy always did go picking fights…" Erika remembered with a sheepish chuckle, "He even went out and gave Calvin a Headbutt!" she recalled as she giggled, much to her brother's embarrassment as his face went red.
"H-Hey!" he stammered out angrily, puffing out his flushed cheeks.
"Ha, ha!" Hau laughed, "Uncle Ash really has lots of fun Pokémon!" he pointed out with a wide smile.
"Yeah, he does…" his male cousin agreed.
"Hey, check it out," Trent chimed in, catching their attentions as they turned their attentions back to the television screen. Back on the battlefield, Paige pumped her right fist forward.
"Medicham, Ice Punch!" she commanded. Closing her right hand into a fist, the Meditate Pokémon had an icy blue aura waft off from it before lunging out at her foe.
"Block it!" S called out. Lifting his shed skin as if it were a pair of saggy pants, Scraggy shielded himself from the punch as it ended up sending him sliding back a few yards. A bit of frost formed on his skin as he let it sag back down.
"Skrrraahhh…" he growled, glaring at his opponent.
"Chamoo!" Medicham shouted, taking on a ready stance.
"Heh!" S laughed, "That ain't gonna work on my tough guy," she remarked proudly, "Aside from that super stretchy skin, Scraggy's ability is Intimidate," she told her opponent, "Your attacks aren't gonna do a thing to him!" she mentioned, laughing loudly. Hearing that made Paige clench her teeth a little in frustration. However, she did manage to crack a grin.
"But all we can do is attack!" she yelled in declaration, "Medicham, Fire Punch!" she ordered, pumping her left fist forward. The Meditate Pokémon engulfed her left fist in flames as she lunged out at her opponent again.
"Same old moves, huh?" the Team Skull member guessed, "Well, we'll pay you back with Payback!" she shouted loudly. Hearing that made Scraggy have a dark reddish aura shroud his hands as he jumped out and collided fiercely with Medicham, followed by the two of them blowing each other back.
"My, oh my!" the announcer yelled, "Once again, these two are pushing each other back at every turn!" he noted excitedly.
"Come on, Paige!" Pyrrha cheered from afar, whistling for her friend. Hearing her cheers made the salt-and-pepper-haired girl crack a big grin.
"Fire Punch and Ice Punch!" she commanded, thrusting both of her fists forward.
"Med, chamm!" Medicham responded with a nod, keeping her left fist engulfed in flames and encasing her right one in an icy blue aura. She rushed forward with both of them at the ready.
"So that's your big plan, huh?!" S guessed loudly, taking on a serious expression, "Scraggy, Scary Face!" she called out.
"Skraaagggg…" the Shedding Pokémon growled as his face contorted into a rather frightening expression. However, it didn't slow down Medicham as she slammed her enflamed fist into his face, sending him tumbling back. What followed was her striking him fiercely at his stomach with her right fist encased in the icy blue aura, causing it to freeze up as he slid back several feet.
"Uh oh!" the announcer yelped, "Looks like Medicham's finally getting to Scraggy with a barrage of Fire Punch and Ice Punch!" he noted excitedly.
"You little…" S growled in frustration, balling her hands into fists, "Ah, who cares about your dumb punches?!" she shouted angrily in question, "Let's settle this with a real kick like this guy's saying!" she insisted firmly, "Scraggy, High Jump Kick!" she commanded. Breaking the ice off of his form, the Shedding Pokémon leapt high up into the air. Both of his legs glowed a bright white as he dove down towards Medicham.
"Yeah, a real kick sounds like a good way to finish this!" Paige, "Use High Jump Kick, too!" she ordered.
"Chamm!" the Meditate Pokémon responded, lunging out with her legs glowing a bright white as well. She and her opponent looked to be a collision course with their respective right knees. But unfortunately for Scraggy, he took the brunt of his foe's knee as she was much taller than him. His eyes bugged out before he crashed fiercely into the ground below in a flurry of dust.
"Sc-Scraggy!" his trainer stammered in shock. As the dust settled, the referee hurriedly ran over to assess the result. The Shedding Pokémon's eyes were in swirls as he lied upon the ground on his back, groaning in agony.
"Scraggy is unable to battle!" the referee announced, raising his left arm, "Medicham wins! And the victory goes to Paige!" he exclaimed, gesturing towards the winning team. The crowd cheered.
"And there you have it, folks!" the announcer yelled through the loudspeakers, "After eight spectacular battles, we've now got our quarterfinalists!" he pointed out as the cards of the victorious trainers appeared upon the big screen, "Now before we close out today, let's see who'll be facing who to start tomorrow's battles!" he insisted. The cards were flipped over and automatically shuffled around randomly as everyone looked on in anticipation. After a moment, four matches were set up, and the cards flipped over to reveal who would be battling. There were many gasps of surprise. Erika was going to be up against Trent, Paige and Hau would battle, and Calvin was matched with Milo. There was also another battle between an Aether Foundation member and a Team Skull member.
"Whoa, I'm up against Paige!" the ponytailed boy exclaimed from back in the locker room, balling his fists excitedly.
"Guess you'd be pumped about fighting her after that awesome match…" Calvin pointed out with a sheepish grin. Though he couldn't help but be excited himself about facing Milo. He remembered how his Larvitar had practically steamrolled past the opposing Pelipper in their battle.
"Looks like it's you and me, Trent!" Erika noted with a cheeky grin.
"Y-Yeah…" he stuttered out in response, scratching at his right cheek as he blushed a little.
"Woo!" Paige exclaimed, catching their attentions as they saw her walk out from the tunnel, "Now that was fun!" she happily said, "And tomorrow, I'll get to have more fun kickin' your butt, Hau!" she declared additionally.
"Not if we beat you first!" the ponytailed boy argued excitedly, giggling with her. Everyone seemed excited about their upcoming quarterfinal matches.
"Ahem," Faba's voice coughed through the loudspeaker, causing everyone in the locker room to perk up in surprise, "If I may have your attention, please…" he implored of the audience listening, "We've concluded the battles here at Manalo Stadium for today," he told them, "Please escort yourselves to the ferries to transport you back to Aether Paradise," he advised, "Trainers will also be able to have their Pokémon restored as well," he mentioned.
"Right, we better get going!" Hau insisted as he hurried off.
"Hey, Hau!" Calvin called out, running after him.
"Shouldn't we wait up for Pyrrha?" Paige wondered as she tailed after them, leaving Trent and Erika behind. They both blinked twice before sharing a look with each other.
"You wanna get going?" the former inquired of the Ketchum girl.
"Uh, I'm gonna try to find Pyrrha and have her come along," she answered, "I'll meet up with you guys later!" she promised as she jogged off in the opposite direction.
"She left me behind again, zzt…" Rotom pointed out in a disgruntled tone, sighing deeply. Trent chuckled. Something about Erika's bubbly behavior compared to back when they first met made him glad to know she was not only his rival, but his friend.
"Come on," he beckoned to the Pokédex, getting its attention, "I'm sure she'll be fine on her own," he assured as he walked off. Reluctantly with a sigh, Rotom floated after him. Meanwhile, the Ketchum girl was looking around the crowds of people to try and spot her friend.
"Where the heck is she…?" she wondered aloud, "Hey, Rotodex-" She turned to find that her Pokédex wasn't there.
'I forgot about it again…!' she realized as she grimaced.
"Hello, Erika!" a familiar voice greeted, catching her attention as she turned to see Wicke there, smiling happily.
"Oh… Miss Wicke!" she greeted back, respectfully bowing to the assistant, "Do you think you could help me find somebody from the crowd?" she implored of her, clapping her hands together in plea.
"Actually, I'm here to invite you to Miss Lusamine's mansion for this evening," Wicke replied.
"Huh?" Erika uttered in confusion as she arched an eyebrow.
"She wants to have the chance to talk with you more, especially since business pulled her away from seeing your match today…" she told her.
"Oh, okay!" she replied eagerly, "I'd be happy to come!" she assured with a giggle.
"Wonderful!" Wicke exclaimed as she clapped her hands together, "Then how about we head on over right now?" she suggested to the Ketchum girl's surprise.
"R-Right now?!" she stuttered in surprise.
"Of course!" the assistant responded, "It's already getting so late…" she mentioned, glancing over to see the sun setting outside the stadium.
"I… guess so…" Erika concluded. She didn't want to just leave without letting her friends know.
"Rest assured, we'll see to it that your roommates are aware of your absence," Wicke promised, getting her attention.
"Oh, okay," she replied, letting off a small smile. Part of her was curious as to why Lusamine wanted to meet with her alone, but another part was excited to get to see just what kind of dinner she had planned. She walked off with the Aether Foundation assistant, heading towards the docks.
X
"She's meeting Miss Lusamine for dinner tonight?" Hau inquired as he blinked from the room he and the boys were staying in, talking with Paige and Pyrrha. The former of the two girls nodded.
"Apparently, it was her way of saying sorry for missing Erika's match," she told the group.
"At least, that's how the people who told us described it…" Pyrrha chimed in, scratching at her right cheek.
"Lucky her…" Trent remarked with crossed arms.
"I wonder why Mizzz Lusamine didn't get to see Erika'zzz match…" Rotom buzzed curiously.
"She probably got hung up on business," Paige suggested, folding her arms behind her head, "Anyways, we better go get some food for ourselves," she insisted while looking over at the door.
"Yeah!" Hau agreed as he shot up to his feet, "I could eat a whole buffet after today!" he pointed out cheekily.
"We each only had one battle, you know…" Trent mentioned, narrowing his eyes onto the ponytailed boy. As they conversed about their eventual dinner, Calvin stared up at the ceiling in thought.
'I wonder what they're gonna talk about…' he said through his thoughts.
"Whoa…" Erika uttered in amazement as her eyes sparkled. Just upon entering the mansion at the end of Aether Paradise, she was hooked. The décor, the furniture, and the size of the home were all magnificent. She wasn't nervous before coming in. Now she was.
"Ah, Erika!" a voice exclaimed in greeting, catching her attention as she looked up to see Lusamine herself coming down the stairs, "I'm so glad you could make it!" she added happily.
"Uh, yeah!" the Ketchum girl stuttered in response, rubbing her left arm nervously. She felt very out of place. Moments later, the Aether Foundation president led her into the dining room. It was smaller than she imagined, but it was still very fancy. A plate of food had already been laid out for her with silverware beside it.
"Go ahead and enjoy," Lusamine insisted, "I know you're probably starving after today's match," she pointed out, "In fact," she continued, trotting over to where six bowls of Pokémon food laid out on the floor, "why not let your Pokémon eat with us as well?" she implored.
"Oh, sure!" she replied, reaching down to her belt to pull off her six Poké Balls, enlarging them by pressing their center buttons. She then tossed them all up, letting them pop open as their lights spilled out onto the floor, dissipating to reveal Brionne, Lycanroc, Fomantis, Drifblim, Magby, and Sandygast.
"Bree!" the Pop Star Pokémon squeaked excitedly upon being let out of her Poké Ball.
"Go ahead and eat, guys!" her trainer insisted of her and the others. Each of the Pokémon eagerly took a bowl and started chowing away at the delicious food. In the meantime, Erika and Lusamine began eating their dinner as well, with the former having removed her pork pie hat beforehand.
"Congratulations on your victory today," the Aether Foundation president said as the Ketchum girl was in the midst of chewing on a piece of a bread roll, "I know Selene is quite a fierce competitor under that seemingly robotic shell of hers," she pointed out with a giggle. Erika swallowed.
"Yeah," she agreed, "Her Dhelmise was really strong…" she mentioned while taking a bite of the lasagna on her plate, savoring the flavor it had.
"Even so, you still won from what I heard," Lusamine noted, glancing over to see Drifblim take in piece by piece of his food, "Your Drifblim really is something special to beat Selene's Dhelmise…" she pointed out.
"Actually… Drifblim wasn't my Pokémon at first," Erika admitted, catching her attention as she blinked in surprise, "He actually belonged to a little boy I met back on Akala Island," she told her, making the Blimp Pokémon perk up, "After I helped him get his Drifloon to battle in a Battle Royal, he entrusted him to me," she explained, "And the rest is pretty much history!" she mentioned with a giggle, "I mean, look at him now!" she pointed out.
"Blimm!" Drifblim squeaked happily, continuing to eat his dinner.
"So someone you had only just met gave you that trust…" Lusamine realized, letting off a grin, "You remind me so much of your father, Erika," she admitted, causing the Ketchum girl to blink in shock as she was chewing on another piece of lasagna.
"Y-You know my dad?!" she stuttered out in question. The Aether Foundation president giggled again.
"Of course!" she replied, "Aside from his well-renowned presence throughout the world, he also took part in some of the island trials here on Alola," she told her.
"Oh, that's right…" she recalled, "So… you met my dad back then?" she guessed.
"Mm-hmm," Lusamine responded with a nod, "He was actually a big help to me in conducting my research on Lycanroc," she mentioned. Hearing that made the Wolf Pokémon perk up in surprise, glancing over towards the table.
"How did my dad help?" Erika asked curiously, arching an eyebrow. Pulling out a tablet, the Aether Foundation president pressed a few icons before accessing a picture. As she set up the device's stand up to display it, Lycanroc trotted over to his trainer to see what it was. On the tablet was a picture of Ash knelt down alongside a Wolf Pokémon that resembled a combination between his Midday and Midnight Forms. The body was similar to Midday Form with same white color except with orange-gold fur. He retained the three brown claws for all four feet. The white fluffy mane resembled a sun with part of the crescent moon. He also had four rocks around his neck like a sun as well along with a single, bigger stone coming from mane over his head. The face resembled Midday Form but was orange-gold with bright green eyes.
"Ryyy…" Erika's Lycanroc uttered out in surprise, slightly widening his eyes.
"That's a Lycanroc?" the Ketchum girl guessed, receiving a nod in reply from the Aether Foundation president.
"Your father was actually the first to discover this new form of Lycanroc when his Rockruff evolved in the aftermath of a green flash," she told her.
"Green… flash?" Erika repeated, completely confused as she tilted her head to the side.
"It's a phenomenon that occurs at sunset and sunrise when conditions are favorable, and results when two optical phenomena combine," Lusamine explained, "a mirage and the dispersion of sunlight," she said, "When the sun dips below the horizon, the light is being dispersed through the earth's atmosphere like a prism, resulting in the green flash," she told her guest.
"I… think I get it…" the Ketchum girl responded, sheepishly rubbing the back of her head as she tried to retain all the information she just learned. Lusamine giggled again.
"Why don't I tell you more about the Dusk Form Lycanroc we discovered?" she insisted, taking back her tablet to read something upon it, "We discovered that he's normally calm and quiet," she read off, "Once a battle began, however, Lycanroc displayed a ferocious fighting spirit," she mentioned.
"Whoa," Erika uttered, "It sounds a lot like a mix between both the Midday and Midnight Forms," she pointed out, glancing over at the Wolf Pokémon beside her.
"Rah," he yipped in agreement as he nodded.
"That's exactly what we thought!" the Aether Foundation president exclaimed as a reply, "Your father was very influential in helping us with that discovery," she pointed out.
"Yeah, but…" Erika started to say, "didn't the Aether Foundation not start until almost a year ago?" she guessed, arching an eyebrow.
"Oh!" Lusamine yelped in realization, "No, this research was mine and my husband's at the time," she pointed out with a wave of her hand.
"Your husband's…?" the Ketchum girl repeated curiously.
"Yes…" the Aether Foundation president replied, glancing over to a display of framed pictures atop a dresser. One of them appeared to be from a wedding, with her in a beautiful dress while standing next to a blonde-haired man in a white tuxedo. The way his hair was styled seemed oddly familiar to Erika. "Before I founded Aether Paradise, my husband and I had been traveling throughout Alola in search of its many mysteries," Lusamine told her, getting her attention, "We discovered lots of things… but…" she continued, letting out a sad sigh, "it pains me to say that we ended up drifting apart…" she confessed.
"Wh-What happened?" Erika stuttered in question out of worry.
"Mohn ended up disappearing on one of his many expeditions," Lusamine replied, managing to give off a small smile, "I'm sure he's fine, wherever he may be," she noted confidently, "And he knows I'm doing my best just like he would," she added in a firm tone.
"Still, that sounds pretty shocking…" the Ketchum girl admitted, "I mean… he's your husband…" she pointed out.
"Oh, I don't worry too much about him…" the Aether Foundation president told her, "If anything, I'm worried about how our children are doing…" she confessed as she sipped her drink.
"You have kids?" Erika inquired, raising an eyebrow.
"A son and a daughter," Lusamine responded, getting up from her seat, "And they've reached a rebellious stage in their lives…" she grumbled as she trotted over to her array of pictures upon the dresser, picking up the one of her and her lost husband from their wedding, "Erika…" she continued, causing the Ketchum girl to perk up, "children should always listen to their parents, shouldn't they?" she asked of her.
"Huh?" she uttered in surprise, taken aback by the question completely.
"Disobedient children are such troublemakers…" the Aether Foundation president said bluntly, setting the picture in her hands back down, "The world would be so much more beautiful if kids would listen to their parents and follow their rules," she noted with a grin, "Don't you agree, Erika?" she inquired. Needless to say, the pigtailed girl was caught completely off guard. She hadn't expected things to come to the point where she'd need to answer a very philosophical question.
But when she thought about it, she looked back on all the times she did go against her parents' wishes. Even against Leslie's. All of it was either petty or stupid. But what it led to made her such a better person overall. She let off a grin.
"I think it's good for kids to listen to their parents," she said.
"Good!" Lusamine exclaimed, clapping her hands together, "I think-"
"But…" Erika continued, interjecting her remark, "I don't think that we should always think our folks know best," she admitted, "It's why my brother and I are on this island challenge now," she pointed out, "We're learning to make decisions for ourselves and become stronger," she told the Aether Foundation president.
"Hmm…" she hummed out, sounding somewhat disappointed. But she did let off a smile. "I think that's a good way of looking at it, Erika," she admitted, going over to sit back down in her seat, "Now why don't we finish our dinner so you can get back to your friends?" she insisted.
"Oh, sure thing!" the Ketchum girl eagerly replied, scarfing down what was left on her plate. Lusamine watched her with a curious look in her eyes.
'She may not know where Lillie is right now…' she inwardly noted, 'but she can lead me right to her,' she affirmed through her thoughts.
X
"Good morning, everyone!" the announcer exclaimed through the loudspeakers as a few fireworks went off, "Today, we're going to get into the real meat of this tournament as we'll have BOTH the quarterfinal and semifinal matches!" he explained to the cheering crowd as their voices were echoing through Manalo Stadium. In the locker room, the eight remaining trainers of the tournament were preparing themselves for the matches ahead.
"Looking forward to our battle, Calvin!" Milo admitted eagerly as he approached the capped boy.
"Same here!" he replied with a grin.
"Better not hold back on me, Hau…" Paige remarked over to her future opponent.
"I won't do anything less!" he assured cheekily. Meanwhile, Erika was standing off to the side, seemingly lost in thought over her conversation with Lusamine last night. The fact that she had such a picturesque life, yet lost so much in that time surprised her. Not to mention, the question the Aether Foundation president put onto her.
"Hey, you okay?" a familiar voice asked, catching her attention as she looked over to see Trent approach.
"Oh, I'm fine," she assured in reply, "Miss Lusamine was really nice to me last night, so I was just thinking back on it…" she confessed.
"Huh," Trent chuckled, stuffing his hands into his pockets, "Well, you better be focused when we battle today," he advised to her, "I still owe you for beating me back in that Battle Royal we had," he mentioned with a smirk. The Ketchum girl blinked twice, surprised by his attitude. But she then giggled.
"You got it, Trent," she promised with a nod.
"Ahem," Faba's voice coughed over the loudspeaker, catching everyone's attention, "If I may have your attention, please…" he implored, "we're about to randomly select the first match of the quarterfinals," he told the waiting trainers. The match cards appeared upon the screen, shuffling themselves around. Everyone watched on with anticipation, wondering which match would end up being selected. Finally, one card was brought to the center of the screen. It flipped over to reveal the match to start the quarterfinals.
"It looks like we'll be seeing Erika and Trent's match to start today off!" the announcer noted excitedly upon seeing the reveal, while the crowd murmured.
"Alright!" Hau exclaimed as he pumped his right fist up.
"Good luck, Erika," Calvin said to his twin sister, getting her attention, "You'll do great," he assured as he nodded.
"Yeah, do your best, zzt!" Rotom buzzed additionally.
"Thanks, guys," she replied in gratitude, heading down the tunnel to the battlefield. Trent walked after her. Moments later, both of them arrived. Erika took her place in her box on the right side of the field, while her rival took his place on the left side.
"Let's go, Erika!" Pyrrha cheered excitedly from the stands as she was pumping her fist up and down. Meanwhile, Lusamine and her colleagues were watching from their lodge box, with the Aether Foundation president narrowing her eyes curiously onto the battlefield, wondering what kind of match would unfold.
"Both of these trainers have made impressive showings to get this far!" the announcer pointed out over the loudspeaker, "But only one's moving on to the semis!" he mentioned excitedly, "Will it be Erika?! Or Trent?!" he wondered loudly as the crowd roared with exuberance. Meanwhile, the standard dirt field opened up, becoming replaced with one of a rocky terrain.
"Remember the first time we battled back at the Trainer's School?" the dark green-haired boy inquired of his opponent, getting her attention, "Back then, I really didn't think much of you…" he admitted as he rubbed the back of his head, "But now…" he continued, "I think you're an amazing trainer," he told her. She blinked in surprise, blushing a little. Hearing something like that from someone who would've called her weak in the past made her happy.
"I think you're amazing, too!" she pointed out, "But I'm not losing today!" she declared, pulling out a Poké Ball and enlarging it by pressing its center button.
"I don't plan on losing either," Trent retorted while readying his own Poké Ball.
"Seems you two are already aware of the rules, yes?" the referee inquired, receiving nods in reply from both of them, "Then you may choose your Pokémon!" he called out to them.
"Lycanroc, let's go!" Erika exclaimed, flinging her Poké Ball forward.
"You're up, Greninja!" Trent yelled as he threw his Poké Ball. Both spherical containers popped open, with their lights spilling onto the ground and dissipating to reveal the Wolf Pokémon and the Ninja Pokémon respectively.
"Rahhooooo!" the former howled out into the air.
"And this match will be between Erika's Lycanroc and Trent's Greninja!" the announcer loudly noted, "Gotta say, this'll be a fun one at the very least!" he pointed out.
"So he's using Greninja after all, huh?" Calvin said from back in the locker room. As if on cue, Rotom pulled up an image of the Ninja Pokémon upon its screen.
"Greninja, the Ninja Pokémon, and the final evolved form of Froakie," it began, "He creates throwing stars out of compressed water. When he spins and throws them at high speed, these stars can split metal in two. he appears and vanishes with a ninja's grace. He toys with his enemies using swift movements, while slicing them with throwing stars of sharpest water," it explained thoroughly.
"Just like Uncle Ash's…" Hau pointed out.
"And Erika's already at a big disadvantage…" Paige noted with somewhat of a grimace, "Lycanroc's not exactly the best match for a Water-type…" she mentioned worriedly.
"She'll be fine," Calvin assured confidently, catching their attentions as they looked over to him in surprise, "After all…" he continued, "Erika's the one Trent's up against," he added with a chuckle.
"Let the battle… begin!" the referee exclaimed, raising his right arm up and swinging it down.
"We'll make the first move count!" Erika declared as she balled her right hand into a fist, "Lycanroc, Howl!" she called out.
"RAHHHOOOOOOO!" the Wolf Pokémon howled mightily into the air. A reddish aura flowed up his body.
"All right then…" Trent uttered out, "Greninja, Night Slash!" he commanded as he swung his left arm out.
"Jah!" the Ninja Pokémon responded, hopping forward. He created a purple energy blade in his right hand, grasping it tightly before slicing at his opponent with it. However, he withstood the blow as he started grinning wickedly.
"Counter!" his trainer yelled. Cloaking himself in a reddish-orange aura, Lycanroc slammed his right fist into Greninja's stomach, blowing him back several yards before he brought himself to a stop by piercing his energy blade into the ground. He fell onto his left knee, glaring at his foe.
"Oh my!" the announcer exclaimed, "Already, Greninja takes a big hit from Lycanroc's Counter!" he pointed out, "What a clever play!" he added excitedly.
"Eri's not taking any chances right off the bat, huh?" Hau realized as he blinked.
"Yeah…" Calvin agreed as he nodded. He remembered how back in the Trainer's School, his twin sister stood no chance against Trent. And the matchup back then was the same as it was now, except both Pokémon they were using were fully evolved.
"Neen jah!" Greninja yelled as he rose up to his feet, letting his energy blade disappear from his hand.
"Use Water Shuriken!" his trainer commanded. The Ninja Pokémon reached down to his legs, slapping them with his hands before pulling off a pair of watery throwing stars. He flung them out at his foe, letting them spin rapidly.
"Block them with Rock Tomb!" Erika called out quickly. Lycanroc had several large rocks appear in flashes of light, having them orbit around his body before swinging his right arm out to send them crashing down in front of him. They walled off the incoming shuriken as they splashed off of the rocks in bursts of white smoke.
"Not bad…" Trent commented, letting off a nervous grin.
"Now Crunch!" the Ketchum girl ordered. Making his teeth glow a bright white and sharpen, Lycanroc leapt over the rocks and charged towards Greninja.
"Night Slash!" the dark green-haired teen yelled. The Ninja Pokémon formed another purple energy blade in his hands, dashing forward and swinging it out at his opponent. He caught it in his teeth, being at a deadlock with his foe as they glared fiercely at each other.
"Wow, oh wow!" the announcer exclaimed with excitement in his voice, "These two are really going at it!" he noted loudly.
"Use Water Shuriken!" Trent ordered quickly. With his free left hand, Greninja pulled off another watery throwing star from the marking on his leg. The Wolf Pokémon widened his eyes upon noticing.
"Dodge it!" Erika cried out. Letting go of the blade, Lycanroc leapt back to evade the water shuriken tossed towards him, landing down on his feet.
"Rrrrr…" he growled.
'We can't risk taking super effective hits too early…' the Ketchum girl told herself, sweating a little, 'Not if we wanna hold out long enough to take the hit that'll give us a shot…' she added inwardly, sharing a look with her teammate before they both nodded.
"Rock Tomb!" she commanded, pumping her right fist forward.
"Rahk!" the Wolf Pokémon barked out, making more rocks appear around himself in flashes of light.
"Greninja, Shadow Sneak!" Trent ordered, throwing his right hand out.
"Neen!" the Ninja Pokémon responded, planting his webbed left hand onto the ground. All of a sudden, a shadow of himself blackened before him and extended forward. Lycanroc had the rocks he held shoot out towards it, but it easily weaved through them as they collided with the ground. The shadow then made its way past the Wolf Pokémon before it rose up in the shape of Greninja. It swiped at its target multiple times, causing him to stumble forward.
"Rrr…" he growled again, seeing the shadow retract back to the Ninja Pokémon.
"Neen jah!" he croaked out, holding his hands together as if in the form of a seal.
"Heh," Erika laughed, "You know, Trent," she began, catching her rival's attention, "your Greninja's kinda like my dad's!" she pointed out to his surprise.
"Hm," he chuckled in response, "Yeah, but we're never gonna be able to reach that level…" he admitted with a shake of his head, "There's a reason your dad's one of the best trainers in the world…" he mentioned.
"I know," the Ketchum girl replied, "But at the same time…" she continued, balling her hands into fists, "I wanna do whatever it takes to be as strong as him!" she declared firmly, holding her right fist forward. From their vacation home in Melemele, Ash and Mirajane were watching the battle unfold upon the TV. The former of the couple smiled as he saw his youngest daughter doing her best.
"Lycanroc, Howl!" she called out.
"RAAAAAHHHHHOOOOOOOOO!" the Wolf Pokémon howled mightily into the air, causing a reddish aura to flow up his body again.
"And Lycanroc boosts his attack once more with Howl!" the announcer yelled through the loudspeakers, "Is Erika looking to finish this match here and now?!" he wondered loudly.
'Now's our chance!' Trent inwardly noted.
"Extrasensory!" he commanded quickly.
"Neen!" Greninja croaked in response. His eyes shined a bright gold before a beam of multicolored light was unleashed from the tip of his nose. It was circular in shape and had white crescents around it. The beam surrounded Lycanroc, causing him to tense up as he couldn't move.
"Lycanroc!" his trainer cried out.
"That'zzz a Psychic-type move!" Rotom buzzed out of shock.
"Boy, that Trent sure knows how to think ahead…" Paige remarked with crossed arms.
"Yeah…" Calvin agreed. His rival had plenty of strategies in mind from what he saw. With his foe trapped in his psychic hold, Greninja lifted him off of the ground before slamming him down against the rocky field in a flurry of dust.
"Lycanroc!" Erika screamed. The dust settled, dissipating to reveal the Wolf Pokémon lying upon his face as he clenched his teeth together in pain. He sat up, shaking his head before hopping onto his feet.
"Greninja sure has many surprises in that repertoire of moves!" the announcer pointed out, "Will Lycanroc even be able to counter at this rate?!" he wondered loudly.
'So Night Slash, Water Shuriken, Shadow Sneak, and Extrasensory…' Erika listed off inwardly, 'We're only gonna be able to pull off our plan if comes in with Night Slash…' she realized, 'And I doubt he'll try after we stopped him the first couple of times…' she added to herself. On the other side, Trent seemed just as anxious.
'That Lycanroc's tough…' he noted through his thoughts, 'If Water Shuriken isn't gonna do enough damage, then we'll have to stick with Extrasensory and Shadow Sneak…' he told himself, 'No doubt they're waiting for a Night Slash to use Counter on…' he concluded inwardly.
"Shadow Sneak!" he ordered, swinging his left arm out. Planting his webbed hand onto the ground, Greninja made his shadow dark and extend out past his opponent. It then shot up and swiped at him.
"Knock it away with Counter!" Erika yelled. Lycanroc took the swipe to his head, growling as his body became encased in a reddish-orange aura. He balled his right paw into a fist and punched the shadow, making it break apart as the remainder retreated back to the Ninja Pokémon.
"Greh…" he croaked out, narrowing his eyes onto his foe.
"Ryyyy…" Lycanroc growled, balling both of his paws into fists.
"Now Rock Tomb!" the Ketchum girl commanded.
"Water Shuriken!" Trent shouted. Greninja grasped several watery throwing stars from his legs, flinging them out at his foe. More rocks appeared around the Wolf Pokémon's body, being thrown onto the ground in front of himself to block off the incoming shuriken.
"One more time!" Erika cried out.
"Rahkk!" Lycanroc barked in reply, leaping over the makeshift barricade before charging out at his foe and making more large rocks appear around himself. In fact, more appeared than earlier.
"Whoa!" Hau yelped in surprise from the locker room.
"That's not Rock Tomb anymore…" Calvin started to realize as his eyes shook a little.
"It'zzz Rock Slide!" Rotom buzzed in exclamation, "Lycanroc learned a new move!" it noted excitedly.
"GO!" Erika yelled as she pumped her right fist forward.
"Ryyy… KAAANNNN!" the Wolf Pokémon roared, swinging his arms to unleash the boulders as they flew towards Greninja.
"Dodge them!" Trent called out. The Ninja Pokémon hopped around quickly, trying to evade every last boulder coming his way. But when one ended up nicking his right shoulder, he lost his balance as he grabbed at it. What followed was him being bombarded by the rest of the boulders as they piled over him in a flurry of dust.
"WOW!" the announcer exclaimed through the loudspeaker, "Lycanroc's Rock Tomb turning into a Rock Slide may have just given him and Erika a fighting chance!" he pointed out excitedly.
"Huh…" Erika exhaled, sounding relieved.
'I was worried Rock Tomb was gonna be too weak going forward…' she admitted inwardly, 'Way to go, Lycanroc,' she complimented, smiling at the Wolf Pokémon. However, that expression soon vanished as she blinked in surprise to see Greninja leap out from the pile of boulders, landing atop what remained. His body was dirtied, but still stood firmly as he glared down his foe.
"Rrrrrr…" Lycanroc growled.
"As usual, there's a Greninja's that's so resilient…" Mirajane remarked with a giggle from the couch as she and her husband watched the match continue on the TV.
"Yeah…" he agreed with a nod, "But if there's any Pokémon that Erika knows how to fight best…" he continued as he looked at the grin forming on his youngest daughter's face, "it's a Greninja," he said confidently.
"Greninja, Water Shuriken!" Trent ordered quickly. Smacking his legs with his webbed hands, the Ninja Pokémon pulled off a pair of watery throwing stars and flung them out instantly at his foe.
"Quick, dodge them!" Erika cried out. But to her dismay, the shuriken were too fast as they struck Lycanroc in a fierce explosion of white smoke.
"RRRAAAAHHHH…!" he roared out in agony as he flew back, tumbling along the ground after hitting it.
"Lycanroc!" his trainer screamed, seeing him clench his teeth as he slowly tried to get back onto his feet. She gave off a frustrated look, followed by blinking in surprise to see the blue aura building around Greninja's body. "Wait… that's…!" she started to realize.
"Greninja's Torrent…" her brother finished from back in the locker room.
"That'zzz right," Rotom responded, "Whenever Greninja'zzz low on health, Torrent activatezzz to give his Water-type movezzz a boost in power!" it explained.
"That means Water Shuriken's gonna do a ton more damage now…" Paige noted with narrowed eyes.
"Come on, Eri…!" Hau pleaded, hoping his female cousin would prevail.
"Rrrr…" Lycanroc grunted as he managed to stand back up firmly, panting heavily in exhaustion.
"We can still do this, Lycanroc!" his trainer assured, catching his attention.
"Rahk!" he barked in agreement, balling his paws into fists again. Meanwhile, Greninja hopped down from the pile of boulders as they fell apart.
"I hate to be the bearer of bad news, Erika…" Trent began, catching his opponent's attention, "but this match is gonna be over in seconds," he vowed firmly with a smirk.
"Not if we have anything to say about it!" the Ketchum girl retorted, "We worked hard to get to this point… to be as strong as so many other people in Alola…" she pointed out, balling her right hand into a fist, "We'd be letting them down if we just gave up here!" she declared fiercely.
"RAAAHHHHKKK!" Lycanroc roared in agreement. Everyone watching the battle unfold looked on with anticipation. The Aether Foundation members, those in Team Skull, her friends and rivals, and even her parents were curious to see where the battle would lead next.
"Use Extrasensory!" Trent commanded.
"Dodge and use Crunch!" Erika cried out. As Greninja made his eyes glow a bright gold, his opponent dashed forward. His teeth shined a bright white and sharpened. Meanwhile, the Ninja Pokémon had a multicolored, circular beam of light shoot out from his nose, about to entrap his incoming foe. However, he evaded the beam as he jumped forward and bit into his target's right arm.
"Grennn…!" he croaked out of pain, grimacing all the while.
"Now toss him!" the Ketchum girl instructed. With his available strength, Lycanroc lifted Greninja up from the ground in his teeth, swinging him around with a couple of spins before tossing him away, having him tumble along the ground after hitting it hard.
"Greninja, you okay?!" his trainer asked, seeing him slowly push himself back up.
"Jah!" he responded with a nod while being on his left knee.
"Then use Water Shuriken!" Trent commanded. Hopping up into the air, the Ninja Pokémon grasped a pair of watery throwing stars from the markings at his legs and threw them out towards his foe.
"Knock them away with Counter!" Erika yelled. Lycanroc blinked in surprise at the instruction, but steeled himself as his body was encased by a reddish-orange aura. He punched the pair of incoming shuriken, making them splash apart. However, he grimaced in pain, taking a step back.
"It looks like Lycanroc isn't feeling too hot despite his resilience earlier!" the announcer noted over the microphone, "But he's still hanging in there despite all the damage he's taking from a Torrent-boosted Greninja!" he pointed out excitedly.
"Come on, Erika…" Pyrrha pleaded, holding her hands together tightly.
"Ergh…" Trent growled in frustration.
'If Lycanroc can counter the Water Shuriken, then he'll just hang in there until Greninja burns himself out…' he realized, 'So we've got no choice…' he noted inwardly.
"Greninja, finish this with Night Slash!" he commanded with a swing of his right arm. Forming a long purple blade of energy in his webbed hand, the Ninja Pokémon lunged forward.
"Here he comes! Get ready!" Erika yelled to her teammate, who took a defensive stance as he held his front paws up like a boxer. Unfortunately, Greninja dashed in and slashed at his stomach, causing his eyes to jolt open in shock. He lurched back, looking like he was about to fall over backwards as everyone watched with shock and awe in their eyes. However…
"Rrrrr…" he growled out, clenching his teeth together tightly as he planted his left foot back to keep himself upright.
"No way…!" Trent gasped out.
"NOW COUNTER!" Erika roared. Cloaking himself in a reddish-orange aura again, Lycanroc balled his right paw into a fist as he reared it back.
"Quick, Water Shuriken!" Trent yelled desperately. But as Greninja reached his left hand down to his leg to grab a watery throwing star, the Wolf Pokémon's fist collided with his face. He was sent careening back in an instant, tumbling over the ground he hit before coming to a stop upon his stomach right beside his trainer. As the dust settled, the dark green-haired boy looked to see his teammate desperately trying to push himself up from the ground… only to fall down and lie there, moaning in agony. The referee ran over to assess his condition. He then raised his left hand into the air.
"Greninja is unable to battle!" he announced, gesturing to his left, "Lycanroc wins!" he declared as the Wolf Pokémon was panting with exhaustion, "And therefore, the winner of the first quarterfinal match is Erika!" he finished as the Ketchum girl blinked in surprise. The crowd erupted into a sea of cheers.
"What an incredible match to start the day!" the announcer yelled through the loudspeakers, "Lycanroc's Counters his way to victory and earns Erika the first spot in the semifinals!" he pointed out excitedly.
"Way to go, Erika!" Pyrrha cheered happily. Back in the locker room, Hau and Paige exchanged a high-five, glad to see that their friend and rival won her battle. In the meantime, Calvin smiled. He was happy for his twin sister.
"Woohoo!" Mirajane exclaimed as she and her husband embraced happily, "I can't believe she's already gotten so strong…" she admitted, wiping away a tear forming in her right eye.
"And she'll keep getting stronger…" Ash assured with a grin on his face.
"…We won?" Erika uttered out, a little discombobulated at the moment. However, she regained her focus upon seeing Lycanroc fall down onto his rear end, panting with exhaustion. "Lycanroc!" she exclaimed, quickly running over and kneeling down beside him, "Are you okay?!" she asked. He turned his head and licked her cheek affectionately in response. She giggled happily. In the meantime, Trent returned his fainted Greninja to his Poké Ball in a beam of red light. As he put it back onto his belt, he looked over at the Ketchum girl as she hugged the Wolf Pokémon.
'Guess there are still some surprises from you, Erika…' he realized, stuffing his hands into his pockets, 'Maybe that's what I like about you…' he inwardly admitted before walking off. And with that, the first quarterfinal match had come and gone.
ENDING
Insert "Blowing" by NiL
Opens with a messy-haired Erika rising up groggily from her bed. She lets out a long, deep yawn and rubs her eyes before getting up. After heading over to the bathroom, she looks in the mirror to see her unkempt appearance. While once she wouldn't care about such things, this new look suddenly horrifies her. She quickly grabs a hairbrush and starts getting her hair straightened out.
Brionne wanders into the bathroom to see her trainer struggling to undo the locks in her hair, lowering her head in defeat. The Pop Star Pokémon calls over her teammates, catching Erika's attention as she glances back to see her Pokémon wander in curiously. She smiles softly at them as they offer their help to her.
We cut to Brionne using her colorful water balloons to wet her trainer's hair, followed by Fomantis carefully cutting away any misaligned locks. As the hair is cut, Sandygast below to collect the pieces in order to prevent there from being a mess. After that, Lycanroc helps comb Erika's hair as it flows down, followed by Drifblim using Gust with the help of Magby's heat to dry her hair.
As all this happens, Erika reflects on her journey, remembering her change from a stubborn and whiny girl into an admirable island challenger. She looks back in the mirror and smiles, quickly tying her hair up into a pair of braided pigtails. She puts on her hat and grabs her bag, smiling as she's excited to start the day, with her team following her out of the room.
A while passes before she meets up with her twin brother and their rivals. Pyrrha smiles upon seeing Erika, while Trent blushes a little and looks away cutely. Erika cracks a toothy grin, wondering where the day will take her and her many friends…
The song ends with the six trial-goers venturing off into the distance…
END ENDING
Another chapter in the books! Hope everyone's enjoying the New Year! We've got a couple more awesome chapters to get through before the next arc, so you better be ready for some awesome battles ahead!
SUMMARY
As the quarterfinals continue, Calvin's faced with an uphill climb against Milo and his Oranguru. And meanwhile, Hau and Paige are engaged in what looks like an epic battle between Raichu and Medicham! Who'll move on and face off in the semifinals?!
END SUMMARY
See you guys next time!