Epilogue: Champions of Hearts, Part 2
The next step was to wait again. The first fight had not been a great challenge, but even the fact that it was 3-0 was very important for the team to gain momentum. In the next duel, two teams that Polarna vatra had never fought against before competed against each other, and Team Engacabangeli prevailed. A fairly strong group, consisting of their leader Goodra, an Umbreon, a Necrozma and a Blastoise. They would be Polarna vatra's next opponents. To no one's surprise, Team Ironfist also prevailed in the subsequent duels, and were now also in the quarterfinals.

Before Polarna vatra's next duel, they were able to watch how their likely final opponents, should the group around Aurora and Kel be able to prevail against Ironfist again, dominated a second fight and made it into the semifinals. And indeed, the line-up was the same as in Polarna vatra's first big tournament. Team Radiance and Team Aralsa were in the semifinals. Now it was the six teammates' turn again. And immediately the planning began again. Aurora would definitely be there this time, both because of Goodra and because of Umbreon. Zeraora was put back in place due to Blastoise, Epsilon was ready for Necrozma. Marshadow was a risky move against Necrozma and strong against Umbreon, so he was also put in. In the second round, Polarna vatra's second team leader sat out.

Usually, many teams like to put fighters who were strong against a few opponents, but at the same time were not necessary to beat a specific opponent first. In the case of Team Polarna vatra this round, this was most true of Tyrantrum, who had no real disadvantages against anyone, but also no strengths. A similar situation arose for Necrozma on the opposing team, except that there were several weaknesses. So it was these two monsters that competed against each other in the first duel.

For now, however, the battle between rock and crystal was the focus. Aware of his opponent's strengths, the battle between the two looked very similar to the one the dragon had fought against Delphox, but the trained eye of a fighter could see that Necrozma was nowhere near as nervous as the fire Pokemon had been before. He knew that this was what Tyrantrum wanted. Instead, he used the passive behavior to make himself more resilient with Iron Defense before Tyrantrum could react. Resistance was a powerful weapon. Many of his combos were broken simply by the fact that his attacks would now deal less knockback. At the same time, beams of light were already shooting towards the dragon, which he blocked with his rock spear. Necrozma wanted to play passively, he realized that. And therefore he could not allow this. So he immediately jumped forward, his spear colliding with the thin arms of the Prism Pokemon as the attack was blocked.

Immediately afterwards, a Metal Claw missed Tyrantrum by inches. Necrozma was fully prepared for this fight, a mighty warrior. Rock spikes shot out of the ground, one of them directly between both Pokemon. After a quick jump backwards, Tyrantrum smashed them and pieces of rock flew high. Before they even reached the peak of their flight, however, Necrozma threw his arm to the ground and the shards crashed to the ground as if the earth's gravity had increased many times over. This technique also surprised his opponent, so he was not ready to dodge and the rock on his skull crumbled. It wasn't particularly strong against the dinosaur's stubborn skull, but it was not ineffective either.

Next, Tyrantrum decided to counterattack by ramming his spear into the ground. Strange lines ran through the ground. Old reliable Terraforming, but with new pitfalls. The cracks opened, releasing heat, but rock also shot out, glowing like the meteorites on the night of the moonfall. This technique seemed to surprise Necrozma, as he had only been prepared for Tyrantrum's passive main style. He had almost lost sight of the fact that it was not the only option. Once again he wanted to use the rocks for his own attacks, and once again his arm shot down. But Tyrantrum expected this and adapted. This time he immediately sprinted forward, spear in hand again, and attacked while Necrozma was busy.

He didn't even try a weak combination starter, Iron Defense would get around this. It was supposed to be a single powerful blow that sent the opponent reeling. And this is exactly what Tyrantrum noticed. His usual combinations fell away because the recoil was not enough, but his strongest blows now had exactly the effect his weaker ones do usually. It was a simple, quick realization. But one that would decide the fight! Blow by blow, Tyrantrum brought his enemy close to the danger zone, with control of the action completely on his side. Until they reached the ring's border. And Necrozma suddenly grabbed the spear during a hit. The blows did not make him stagger long enough, he had only pretended this much. While he held the spear with one hand, he pulled the other arm towards him. And as if from nowhere, all the rocks that decorated the battlefield now shot forward and hit Polarna vatra's fighter directly in the back. And so close to the edge, this meant the end for Tyrantrum. Zero to one, a deficit in a duel that should have been quite safe!

Aurora was determined to make up this deficit as quickly as possible. Of the three remaining opponents, she could easily defeat two based on typing alone. Her opponent was Umbreon, which resulted in a duel that did not need much commentary. Team Polarna vatra's leader began the fight with the advantage and kept it until the end. The favorites were back in the race. And now a 50/50 decision was imminent. If Zeraora were to fight against Blastoise, the second victory would be almost certain. But whether him or Goodra would follow... The decision ultimately fell on Epsilon, who would have a pretty good chance in both cases, through sheer strength. Because the biggest mistake a fighter can make is still to underestimate the former Plot Empress, even if she had lost her supernatural powers.

And she wanted to prove this straight away in the duel against Goodra. Her victory in this duel would almost certainly end the quarter-finals, both teams knew that. And yet it was difficult for Team Engacabangeli to have a strategy in store for this duel. Epsilon had been a league fighter for many, many years, and she had even competed against her current opponents as Zoroark many years ago, but now everyone knew that her fighting style at the time was nothing more than a deception. No one had ever seen how Epsilon really fought in this tournament, because she hadn't yet entered the ring today. But that was about to change.

"Quarterfinals three, round three, go!"

Elementareon, who was judging the duel as usual, had barely finished speaking, and before the dragon could even think about his first move, the impact of Shadow Claw had already stopped him. The less time her opponents had to plan, the harder they would be to adapt, thought the former empress. And it was a very useful tactic. After just a few seconds, the pressure exerted on Goodra was so great that the defense alone used up all of his mental capacity! And this was also important for a purely offensive Pokemon like Epsilon. If she found herself in a disadvantageous situation, the fight would quickly be over! At the same time, however, she had all the weapons she could need against almost any opponent. Her movepool extended far beyond what should be possible for her species. Her preferred attack against dragons was Ice Punch. And with this she put Goodra under immense pressure, pushing him more and more towards the danger zone. At the same time, she knew that Tyrantrum's fight had gone just like this one, and she still remembered exactly how it had turned out.

But it didn't seem as if the opponent team's leader had a similar strategy. His strength was clearly his stamina, which could only buy time if he never got to attack. Ultimately, this was an open secret, just like the following duel.

"Team Polarna vatra are the third team to advance to the semifinals! In a few minutes, the duel to see who their opponents will be will begin!"

The team gathered again in the entrance area, needing a break before their semifinal. Although they had won quite clearly, Necrozma's victory had been a warning shot for them. At the same time, they watched the duel between their next opponents, which seemed much more dominant than they had been. However, they had all expected to face Team Ironfist anyway.

"We really have to be careful not to lose the entire tournament because of a few stupid mistakes. Especially because of the new Mon.", Kel stated the obvious.

One of the reasons for Team Ironfist's dominance was their newest, fifth team member. A Tyranitar, perhaps stronger than all their previous fighters.

"Tyranitar is just a matter of luck for us. Maybe I could beat him, even if it would be difficult, or if Marshadow can fight him, then we're almost certain to win. Otherwise we'll just have to make up for it with the remaining duels.", Aurora claimed.
"And if we don't manage, then so be it. I mean, unlike last time, we have nothing to lose, right?"

Marshadow was right, even if it was a strange feeling for Aurora. Last time during this tournament, she had felt as if everything depended on these few duels. It matched the ideas of her youth, the old days when she was still sitting on the spectator benches in the arena. And yet Marshadow was right. In principle, no team that entered this ring had anything to lose. Only to win. Because this was sport, not war. Even if that was something that not only she would have to get used to still. Times had changed for the better, but even a better life can need getting used to.

"Yeah that's great and all, but did you see how I destroyed that fat dragon? I'm in great shape today! We'll win this thing easily! And tomorrow it's Team Nordika's turn! The six have been sitting on their throne for far too long anyway!"
"Don't let your victory go to your head, otherwise it will be the reason for your defeat."

Hail also joined the team from the audience stages, who was of course watching such a big event. But there were no duels of Team Polarna vatra that he didn't attend anyway. The first semi-final had already started and Sylvally had won the first round against Grimmsnarl. Which, honestly, was as much of a decision as could be.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Let me get us hyped up, the five here obviously need it! Don't let yourselves be brought down because Necrozma had a stupid trick!"
"I mean... yes, you're right. If we are pessimistic, then we're only hurting ourselves. But arrogance doesn't help anyone.", Zeraora answered his former, and now again teammate.

Kel took a quick look at the monitor, which already showed a score of two to zero in favor of Team Radiance.

"We'll have to get going again soon. So, who's going to pass against Ironfist?"

The conversation started briefly, but the focus quickly changed, if only for a moment. One of the Zoroarks had actually managed to prevent the worst for Grimmsnarl and beat Espeon. Why the hell would they even send out Espeon of they still had Shane at hand? Team Radiance started toying even with the likes of Grimmsnarl. But, to be honest... they would not lose for it. Even if Grimmsnarl beat Shane, which was already a difficult duel, the combination of him and Sylvally would overpower the opponents in a 2v2 with no problems.

The debate on who was left out actually took a while, as everyone wanted to assert themselves in this important duel.

"So, it's got to be Zeraora as we just discussed, right?"

Loud cheers from the spectators' benches interrupted the fighter's disappointed nod. An announcement rang out.

"The first semi-final is over! In an incredible twist, Team Aralsa beats Team Radiance three on two and is now in the final of the tournament!"

Silence fell for a moment. Once again, plans were thrown out the window. But Epsilon was determined.

"Alright, nevermind that. I'm sitting out Ironfist! Because I want to be at my best when I face this bastard!"