The semi-final matchups consisted of Diantha vs Leon in the morning and Ash vs Cynthia in the afternoon. Ash was had called Professor Oak and was speaking to him about the team composition he was planning to use against Cynthia.
"So, Sceptile, Infernape, Glalie and Goodra," Samuel said.
"Right," Ash confirmed, "good thing Goodra's not needed in the Wetlands anymore."
"Yes, Keanan told me it's become a paradise when he sent him over," Samuel said, "and who will you be sending back?"
"Dracovish, Gengar and Dragonite," Ash said.
"What about Greninja?"
"Nurse Joy said Greninja needs to spend the day in the Pokemon Centre," Ash explained, "Alain's Charizard gave him a real beating."
"I see," Samuel smiled in approval, "well, give me 5 minutes."
Ash, Goh, Iris and Hop were all sitting in the front row. Now that she was out of the tournament, Iris no longer felt obligated to stay in the Champions room. Ash preferred the crowd anyway and front row seats were a privilege reserved for competitors and their friends and/or family.
Away from the crowd and the cameras, Diantha met Cynthia in the tunnel that led to her battle against the Monarch.
"Good luck," Cynthia said.
"Honestly, I think you have a better chance of beating Leon than I do," Diantha said and smiled sheepishly, "I was kind of hoping you'd be battling him in this round."
"No trainer is unbeatable," Cynthia reminded her.
Diantha nodded and stepped past her into the stadium, using her acting training to project an aura of calm confidence. Leon strode out, beaming at the crowd and Diantha wondered how much of it was acting and how much was Leon's ego.
"Dragapult, Champion time!" cried Leon, sending in his Pseudo-Legendary.
"Tyrantrum, time to act!" Diantha sent out her tyrannosaurus like Fossil Pokemon
"Dragapult, use Dragon Darts!" ordered Leon and Dragapult shot her baby Dreepy out of her head and they slammed into Tyrantrum, knocking him backwards.
"Use Rock Polish!" commanded Diantha and Tyrantrum's entire body glowed white, boosting his Speed, "Crunch!"
Tyrantrum shot across the battlefield and clamped his powerful jaws around Dragapult who screamed from the super effective, Strong Jaw boosted attack.
"Thunderbolt!" ordered Leon and Dragapult, still in Tyrantrum's mouth, electrocuted him in order to free herself, "Now Dragon Darts!"
"Rock Slide!" Diantha shouted.
Tyrantrum formed a dozen boulders and launched them at Dragapult as she fired her Dragon Darts. The Dreepy darted between the boulders and slammed into Tyrantrum but their mother was a much bigger target and thus received a direct hit from the Rock Slide. Both Dragons collapsed. The Dreepy turned and flew back into their unconscious mother's head.
"Dragapult and Tyrantrum are both unable to battle!"
Diantha breathed out a sigh as the crowd cheered. That had gone better than she was expecting.
"Great job Tyrantrum," she said as she recalled her fallen Pokemon.
"Rest up Dragapult," Leon said and flashed Diantha a grin, "Rillaboom, Champion time!"
A monkey like Pokemon with a drum appeared. As soon as Rillaboom landed on the battlefield, grass spread across it.
"What's happening?" asked Goh. On the wall in front of him, Grookey was watching his final evolution with fascination.
"That's Grassy Surge!" Ash said, "I thought only Tapu Bulu was able to use it!"
"Hah, you don't know my big brother's Rillaboom," Hop said smugly.
"Hawlucha, time to act!" Diantha sent out her Flying pro-wrestler, silently reminding herself that Hawlucha wouldn't benefit from Grassy Surge's healing effects, "Use Acrobatics."
"Acrobatics too, Rillaboom!" ordered Leon.
Hawlucha and Rillaboom were both outlined in white as they shot across the battlefield and collided. Then they continued attacking each other, with Rillaboom blocking blows with his powerful arms while Hawlucha dodged direct counterstrikes until she managed to get above the Grass type.
"X-Scissor!" Diantha ordered.
Hawlucha crossed her claws and slashed Rillaboom sending him flying back into his own drum. Thanks to Grassy Surge's healing effects, Rillaboom was back on his feet in no time.
"Use Drum Beat!" ordered Leon.
Two drum sticks emerged from Rillaboom's "sleeves" and he beat his drums causing two large roots the burst out of the ground.
"Jump on the roots then Acrobatics!" Diantha ordered.
"You too, Rillaboom!" Leon countered.
Hawlucha bounced off one root and leapt to the next only to narrowly avoid a third that burst out underneath her. Rillaboom then leapt on the third root, leaving his drum behind while Hawlucha was briefly distracted. With a powerful open palmed blow, Rillaboom sent Hawlucha crashing to the ground but the Wrestling Pokemon somersaulted back onto her feet.
"Poison Jab!" Diantha yelled and Hawlucha darted towards Rillaboom with her hand glowing purple and jabbed it into his chest. The attack knocked Rillaboom backwards but unfortunately for Diantha, it didn't poison him, "High Jump Kick!"
"Dodge, then Acrobatics!"
Hawlucha tried to slam her knee into Rillaboom but the Drummer Pokemon dodged, causing the Wrestler Pokemon to slam her knee into the ground which left her wide open to a powerful kick from Acrobatics. She somersaulted again but this time ended up lying on her belly.
"Hawlucha is unable to battle! Rillaboom wins!"
"If Rillaboom was poisoned, it should have been distracted long enough for High Jump Kick to land," Cynthia commented.
"Too bad there's no way of guaranteeing Poison Jab's side effect," said Steven.
"Sorry Hawlucha, that was my fault," Diantha acknowledged her mistake with High Jump Kick before sending out her Pumpkin Pokemon, "Gourgiest, time to act!"
"Rillaboom, Acrobatics!" ordered Leon, knowing that Grassy Surge's time was almost up.
Rillaboom darted across the battlefield and punched Gourgiest into the air before leaping after her and slamming her into the ground with a powerful kick. Unfortunately for both Pokemon, Grassy Surge wore off after Acrobatics landed, meaning that neither of them would benefit from the healing effects.
"Time's up for Grassy Surge," Ash noted as the battlefield returned to normal.
"Trick-Or-Treat!" Diantha ordered, and Gourgeist who formed a white sphere while jack-o-lanterns appeared behind her. Multiple white ghosts were released from the sphere and landed on Rillaboom, "Shadow Sneak!"
"Use Knock Off!" commanded Leon.
Gourgeist extended her shadow and struck Rillaboom with a now super effective Shadow Sneak but the Drummer Pokemon endured it and both of his fists turned black. He leapt and slammed both fists down onto Gourgiest.
"Gourgiest is unable to battle! Rillaboom wins!"
"Oh, come on!" Jessie yelled, "No fair."
"It was 2 against 1. Technically, it was unfair to Rillaboom," James pointed out only for Jessie to swell with rage and cause him to cower. Meowth sidled away to join Morpeko, who was stuffing his face.
"Goodra, time to act!" Diantha called and her Pseudo-Legendary appeared.
"Use High Horsepower!" Leon ordered.
Rillaboom's body became outlined in orange as he charged and slammed into Goodra. Then a blue glow surrounded his body and his Speed decreased.
"My Gooey Goodra," Diantha said affectionately, "Dragon Pulse!"
Goodra fired pulsing beam which turned into a dragons jaws. Rillaboom couldn't get out of the way in time due to Gooey lowering his Speed so the jaws snapped shut on him and exploded.
"Rillaboom is unable to battle! Goodra wins!"
"Excellent work, Rillaboom," said Leon as he recalled the Drummer Pokemon, "two wins in a row and I know Goodra's Ability now. Charizard, champion time!"
"Goodra, return for now," Diantha said as Leon sent out his ace, "Gardevoir, time to act!"
Diantha's own ace appeared and she pressed the Key Stone on her Mega Charm. Gardevoir transformed into her Mega form while Charizard, for the time being, stayed in his base form.
"Charizard, use Heat Wave!"
"Psychic, then Thunderbolt!"
Charizard flapped his wings and launched a blazing wind at Gardevoir but the Mega Evolved Pokemon used Psychic to split the attack before firing Thunderbolt through the wind blowing past her. Charizard roared in pain as he was electrocuted and the Thunderbolt left sparks behind.
"Wait is it paralysed?" ask Goh.
"Yep," Ash and Iris said at the same time, grinning that Diantha had gained the upper hand on Leon's ace so quickly.
"Shadow Ball!" Diantha ordered.
Gardevoir formed a shadowy orb in her hands and hurled it across the battlefield. It slammed into the paralysed Charizard who stumbled back. Then Leon recalled him and everybody knew what would happen next.
"Charizard, Gigantamax!" Leon roared as he hurled the super sized Poke Ball into the air.
Charizard burst out and grew to a colossal size as his wings transformed into flames. Diantha gritted her teeth but Gardevoir caught her eye. A silent understanding passed between them and Diantha pulled herself together.
"Gardevoir, Thunderbolt!" she ordered and Gardevoir blasted the giant Charizard with a powerful bolt of electricity.
"Max Airstream!" ordered Leon and Charizard fired a massive vortex of wind at Gardevoir who struggled to maintain her balance. Then Charizard glowed red as the Max Move boosted his Speed, "G-Max Wildfire!"
"Thunderbolt!" Diantha yelled.
Charizard's flaming wings blasted off his back and were instantly replaced with new ones. The flaming bird spun around Gardevoir who launched another Thunderbolt that couldn't break through the swirling G-Max Wildfire. The phoenix stopped circling and turned towards on the trapped Mega Evolution.
"This is bad!" cried Iris.
"Speak for yourself," Hop said clenching his fists eagerly.
"Charizard, wrap this up with Max Airstream!" Leon ordered.
"Two Speed boosts might be enough to handle the paralysis," Cynthia said.
Charizard fired another wind vortex at the swirling G-Max Wildfire as the flaming phoenix descended. Gardevoir and Diantha simultaneously realised that they only had one chance.
"Send it all back with Psychic!"
Gardevoir focussed harder than she ever had in her life. Even with the power boost from Mega Evolution, sending back G-Max Wildfire and Max Airstream simultaneously was a herculean task. She caught the flaming phoenix before it reached her and used it to block the wind tornado, ignoring the searing heat of the swirling vortex around her. She could feel Diantha in her mind, urging her on as she used the G-Max Wildfire to absorb the Max Airstream and create a combination of both Max Moves along with an extra boost from Psychic. Then she swung the triple attack back towards Charizard.
"Impossible!" Leon gasped.
"Get it, Gardevoir!" Diantha screamed.
Charizard's eyes widened in disbelief as his own Max Moves rocketed back towards him. The Gigantamax wore off and he started to shrink, briefly thinking that being a smaller target would save him but Gardevoir was having none of that. The combination landed and Charizard roared, briefly outlined by the flaming wind of the two Max Moves as well as Psychic's purple energy, before a terrific explosion blasted through the battlefield. The Aegislash the referee was riding had to use King Shield to stop the blast from hitting them.
When the smoke cleared, Charizard was lying motionless on the ground. There was a short silence.
"Charizard is unable to battle! Gardevoir wins!"
"Unbelievable!" roared the commentator while Hop's jaw dropped in disbelief and the spectators started screaming themselves hoarse, "Without Stealth Rock or any assistance from Diantha's other Pokemon, Mega Gardevoir actually defeated Gigantamax Charizard!"
"Charizard… lost?" whispered Leon, completely stunned. Then he smiled at Diantha and Gardevoir and it wasn't his usual cocky grin but an expression of genuine respect, "That Gardevoir is truly something special. Cinderace, champion time!"
"Take a break, Gardevoir. Goodra, time to act!" Diantha recalled her Mega Evolution and sent out her Pseudo-Legendary to face Leon's second Fire type, "Use Muddy Water!"
"Jump and use Pyro Ball!" Leon ordered.
"Quick, Dragon Pulse!" Diantha retaliated.
Goodra summoned a swirling stream of filthy water which spread across the battlefield but Cinderace leapt into the air to avoid Muddy Water before igniting a flaming ball which he kicked towards Goodra from above. She countered with a beam of draconic energy and the "jaws" on the end of Dragon Pulse snapped shut on the Pyro Ball, creating an explosion. Cinderace landed but although he hadn't taken any damage, Leon felt nervous for the first time in years.
"Return Cinderace," Leon recalled the Striker Pokemon, knowing that, having used up his one battle gimmick and lost his ace in the process, he couldn't afford to take any risks, "Mr Rime, champion time!" The Ice type appeared and twirled his cane, confident that a Dragon would be no problem, "Freeze Dry!"
"Dragon Pulse into the air!" Diantha ordered and Leon was bewildered by such an odd command.
Mr Rime pointed his cane and freezing wind struck Goodra who trembled from the cold but managed to fire the Dragon Pulse straight up. The pulse twisted above Mr Rime and the "jaws" opened before descending, ensuring that they could snap shut on the Ice type without being hindered or outright blocked by Freeze Dry. Mr Rime righted himself with his cane while Goodra panted, trembling from the Ice type attack.
"That's excellent control over Dragon Pulse!" Leon complimented, "But Goodra's looking rough. Freeze Dry again!"
"Disarm it with Power Whip!" Diantha ordered as Mr Rime pointed his cane. Goodra tentacles glowed green before extending towards Mr Rime. One smacked his cane out of his hand, completely disabling Freeze Dry in the process, and the other walloped him in the chest, knocking him off his feet.
"Mr Rime needs the cane to use Freeze Dry!" Ash exclaimed. Diantha had used a strategy that reminded him of his own battling style.
"Fire Blast!" Diantha ordered and Goodra shot a star from her mouth which caused a fiery explosion when it landed on Mr Rime.
"Mr Rime is unable to battle! Goodra wins!"
"I've just realised something," Iris said, "Diantha didn't use Goodra's or Gardevoir's full power against Lance. Do you think she was already planning for this battle?"
"Great point, Iris" Ash said, "Diantha was keeping a few tricks up her sleeve all along. That's Cynthia levels of awesomeness."
"Well, she screwed up with High Jump Kick," said Hop. He was disgruntled and taking it out on Diantha because seeing Leon actually struggle made him feel like his big brother's pedestal was crumbling.
"Nobody's perfect and she hadn't seen Rillaboom before," Goh pointed out.
"Inteleon, champion time!" boomed Leon and his lizard like Water Pokemon appeared to face Goodra.
"Goodra, Power Whip!"
"Deflect it with Liquidation!"
Goodra extended her Power Whip but Inteleon surrounded her arms, legs and tail with water. She smacked one tentacle away before deflecting the other. Goodra kept whipping at her but Inteleon deflected every blow.
"Gooey doesn't work unless Inteleon strikes Goodra directly," Cynthia noted.
"Plus, Liquidation gets a Same Type Attack Boost while Power Whip doesn't," added Alain.
"Well, here's Goodra's STAB attack," Lance pointed out as Diantha gave her next command.
"Dragon Pulse!"
Goodra's Dragon Pulse rocketed across the battlefield while Inteleon was distracted by Power Whip and blasted her off her feet.
"Double Ice Beam!" ordered Leon.
Inteleon rolled onto her feet and aimed her fingers at Goodra. An Ice Beam shot out of each hand, one striking Goodra in the chest while the second landed in her face. The Pseudo Legendary finally toppled.
"Goodra is unable to battle! Inteleon wins!"
"Goodra, you were absolutely fantastic," Diantha said as she recalled her fallen Pokemon, "Gardevoir, time to act!" Her Mega Evolved ace appeared, "Thunderbolt!"
"Dodge then Snipe Shot!" ordered Leon as Gardevoir fired Thunderbolt. Inteleon did a side flip to avoid it and, in mid flip, shot a Snipe Shot right into Gardevoir's chest before landing and aiming both of her index fingers, "Double Dark Pulse!"
"Hyper Voice!"
Inteleon launched two Dark Pulse's from each hand. Despite the double attack, Gardevoir had the advantage of being a Mega Evolved Pokemon with Pixilate which turned Hyper Voice into a Fairy type move and boosted it. The Fairy typed Hyper Voice overpowered Dark Pulse and knocked Inteleon out.
"Inteleon's unable to battle! Gardevoir wins!"
"Mega Evolution's the best battle gimmick," Lance asserted.
"I don't know about that," Cynthia responded.
"You're giving me quite a run for my money, Diantha," said Leon as he recalled Inteleon, "It's up to you Cinderace. Champion time!"
His final Pokemon appeared. Diantha breathed out to steady herself. She was so close but couldn't afford to get overconfident. When she entered the stadium, she was sure she would lose. Even after carefully studying Leon's battling style and keeping some of her own tricks secret whilst battling Lance, Diantha was sure that Leon would be ahead of her just like he was ahead of Steven. However, despite the mistake with High Jump Kick, her preparation and the hard work her Pokemon had put into the battle meant that she actually had a real chance of winning.
Gardevoir caught Diantha's eye knowing exactly what her trainer was thinking. Just 1 more!
"Gardevoir, Shadow Ball!"
"Cinderace, Pyro Ball!"
Two orbs, one shrouded in shadowy energy and the other a flaming ball, collided in the middle off the battlefield and exploded on impact.
"Psychic!"
"Use Sucker Punch!"
Gardevoir's eyes glowed with psychic energy while the tuft of hair on Cinderace's head turned pitch black. He shot across the battle field so quickly that he was invisible for a split second and punched Gardevoir in the face. She crashed to the ground and turned back into her normal form.
"Gardevoir is unable to battle! Cinderace wins!"
"Gardevoir, you delivered a brilliant performance today," Diantha said sincerely as she recalled her best friend, "Aurorus, time to act."
"Saving her Dual Screener for last," commented Steven as the diplodocus like Pokemon appeared.
"Diantha needed to get Mr Rime out of the way first," Cynthia pointed out.
"Use Pyro Ball!" ordered Leon
"Ancient Power!" Diantha countered.
Cinderace kicked a flaming ball at Aurorus but, just like Steven's Cradily had done, she created a shield of rocks which blocked Pyro Ball before shooting towards Cinderace.
"Smash through with Iron Head!" ordered Leon and Cinderace charged, the tuft of fur on his head turning to iron as he smashed Ancient Power easily.
"Reflect!" Diantha countered and Aurorus weakened Iron Head by creating another shield, this time a blue barrier. However, she was still knocked back several meters by the 4 times effective and, thanks to Libero, STAB Iron Head, "Earth Power!"
"Pyro Ball!" Leon commanded as the ground erupted beneath Cinderace. Unlike against Steven's Cradily, he wasn't confused so despite being blasted into the air, Cinderace was able to kick his Pyro Ball with perfect precision. Aurorus' Reflect appeared to weaken it but she still stumbled, "Use Iron Head!"
Cinderace dived, using the power of gravity to increase his momentum and smash into Reflect, the only thing between a 4 times effective and Libero boosted Iron Head and Aurorus' skull, with terrific force. He jumped away and there was a moment of silence as Aurorus stood very still. Cinderace looked impressed that she was still on her feet after such a brutal blow.
Then, with a soft moan, Aurorus collapsed.
"Aurorus is unable to battle! Cinderace wins! The victory goes to Leon!"
The crowd applauded as Leon did his signature pose, which Cinderace mimicked, but the cheering wasn't as loud as usual. Many people had gotten so invested in Diantha's performance that they really wanted her to win. They wanted definitive proof that Leon wasn't unbeatable.
"Diantha was so close," Iris said sadly.
"Yeah but that Iron Head was a Critical Hit," Ash said.
"Aurorus," Diantha said as she knelt beside her fallen Pokemon, who had regained consciousness and was looking ashamed, "Don't blame yourself. A Libero boosted Iron Head hit you from above. I'm proud that you stayed standing for several seconds." Aurorus looked up at her and Diantha knew what she was thinking, "Reflect's limitations are not your fault."
"Diantha," Leon said as he approached her. Cinderace was with him and gave Aurorus an encouraging grin and a thumbs up which caused Aurorus to smile weakly, "I've gotta admit, you had me worried. I haven't struggled so hard to win a battle in years."
"Well, no trainer is unbeatable," Diantha said as she recalled Aurorus and held out her hand. Leon shook it.
Leon sat in the locker room with Charizard's Poke Ball in his hands. Hop joined him.
"Hi Lee," he said grinning at his big brother. Leon instantly knew that something was bothering him.
"Hey little bro, what's up?"
Hop hesitated before saying, "After Gardevoir beat Charizard, I was worried. Then Goodra beat Mr Rime and I thought you might lose."
"Hop, I've lost battles before and I'll lose them again," Leon said, "it happens to every trainer."
"But you won't lose this tournament, right?" Hop said. Leon shot him a cocky grin.
"Don't worry, little bro," he said, "I'm not giving up my Monarch title yet."