Alright! Chapter 36 - the battle with Cheren!
Not a ton to say. Let's get into it!
Start Chapter 36
"Leavanny! Use X-Scissor!"
"Liepard, Fake Out!"
Liepard struck first, its paws smacking against the sides of Leavanny's head and jolting her Pokémon out of its intended move. Bianca clicked her tongue, but gave her earlier order a second time.
This time, the X-Scissor struck dead on, even as Liepard answered the hit with a Play Rough. Both Pokémon were knocked backwards, but Liepard was clearly more injured than Leavanny, which put Bianca ahead.
Cheren was no fool. He reached out with his Pokéball, and recalled the Pokémon back. He sent out his Unfezant, and Bianca knew that was her moment to switch as well.
"Leavanny, U-Turn!"
Her Pokémon charged forward, bounced off of Unfezant, doing a minimal amount of damage, and then returning to Bianca's Pokéball. She reached down towards her waist, and drew out Milotic's Pokéball.
"Let's go!" She shouted as she threw the water-type out. It slithered about on the ground for a moment, before taking a proud pose as its shiny coloration reflected the light of the sun.
"Hm." Cheren hummed, seemingly considering his next moves carefully. "Unfezant, Hurricane! After that, gain some height!"
Unfezant summoned up a deadly gale, one which ripped around it and began gathering energy, before firing out at Milotic. Bianca did the same thing Cheren just had; considering her options carefully. She had a lot less time than him, however, but she felt she had a decent answer.
"Milotic, Ice Beam on the tornados!"
Her Pokémon didn't question the odd order, instead doing just as she'd asked. The ice struck the wind true, and froze the air into great towers of ice that rose a good five or so meters off of the ground.
It had stopped the Hurricane from striking Bianca's Pokémon, but more than that, it had opened up a method of attack.
"Milotic, forward! Wrap yourself around the ice and use it to avoid Unfezant's moves!"
Her Pokémon answered with a cry of assent as it did just that. It slithered forwards, before coiling around one of the two towers of ice. Unfezant flew higher in the air as Cheren told it to, but it didn't seem to know what was going on. Neither did Cheren, in fairness.
Good. He won't see this coming, then.
"Milotic, Blizzard up at Unfezant!"
Cheren reacted quickly enough as the torrent of ice and snow swept away at where his Pokémon had been just moments prior. Even so, as Unfezant tried to get an angle from which to strike at Milotic, its attention was drawn away from the sky above it, where the earlier cold was beginning to rain back down.
"Huh!?" Cheren looked up too late to notice.
It was a largely inconsequential thing; the way that the snow fell from the now cooled sky. The blizzard had shot a flurry of ice and snow above, which was now raining back down in the form of hail, albeit a light one.
Far more importantly, however, that hail was cutting off Unfezant's line of sight towards Milotic.
And it was also giving Milotic a far more accurate attack with which to end this.
"Milotic, another Blizzard!"
Cheren tried to have Unfezant react in time, but he wasn't able to. The Blizzard didn't just emerge from out of Milotic's maw; it gathered itself from the ice and snow around Unfezant as well, becoming stronger, hitting far harder than it would have otherwise.
Unfezant never stood a chance against that power.
6 to 5.
Cheren recalled it with a few whispered words of encouragement, even as his eyes narrowed, and he reached back for the next member of his team. In another scenario, where the ice and snow hadn't been gathering, he would have sent out his ace. But given that it was, he couldn't exactly risk a Grass type against the gathering storm.
Instead, he reached back, took a breath, and threw out Liepard once again.
Cynthia gave the signal for them to resume, and Bianca wasted no time.
"Another Blizzard, Milotic!"
She had the advantage; both in terms of positioning and the weather she'd managed to summon up. It was a pseudo-weather, not a true hail, but it was enough to strengthen both the power and accuracy of Milotic's Blizzards.
Liepard, however, was quicker than her own Pokémon. It led with a Fake Out, just as it had against Leavanny, scoring a free hit where her Pokémon couldn't respond, and it was enough time without Bianca being able to refresh to Blizzard hanging in the air that it fell away entirely, and her Pokémon was revealed.
"Alright," Cheren was back on even footing now. "Liepard, move in and Play Rough!"
"Milotic, retreat and hit it with a Hydro Pump!"
Both Pokémon followed their owners' directions. Liepard leapt forward, far faster than Milotic, and while it had the definite disadvantage still in terms of overall positioning, and in having been damaged by Leavanny already, it made up for in sheer grit. It stayed on target, even as Milotic threatened to annihilate it with a Hydro Pump.
At the last possible moment, Liepard leapt to the side, dodging the torrent of water, which slammed into the training field and kicked up a great deal of dirt.
Liepard's own Play Rough hit its mark, and though Milotic was more than bulky enough to tank the hit, it was still unanswered damage. If Bianca had to guess, Milotic was at around half health.
She would have to play things more carefully. Milotic wasn't her only answer to Cheren's ace Pokémon, but it was certainly the answer she was more familiar with. For now, she would play things safe, and retreat.
It was only as she was recalling Milotic into its Pokéball that she realized her mistake. She had but a moment to agonize over it before Cheren smirked, and called out, "Liepard, Pursuit!"
As the red laser recalled Milotic back, Liepard landed one final blow. Doubled in power by Milotic not at all expecting the hit, it wasn't able to stand up against the Pursuit. Bianca recalled her fainted Milotic cursing her own failure.
It wasn't a mistake she felt she would've made in a normal scenario, and that was perhaps why she was so frustrated. When she looked across at the man standing opposite her on the field, she knew for a fact that it was him, not anything he'd done, but he himself, that had caused the error.
She was facing her own personal boogeyman – whether or not that boogeyman was generally a pretty nice guy and also a total nerd.
5 to 5.
She took a breath, forced herself to calm down, and then drew Leavanny once more. She brought it out, and waited to see how Cheren would react.
He couldn't rely on Fake Out again, given that he'd just done so, which meant that he would have to get crafty about this. Bianca considered waiting for him to move, and react accordingly, but ultimately decided that she wanted to simply brute force through an opponent that she was confident her Pokémon could defeat.
"Leavanny, X-Scissor!"
Leavanny did just as she told it to, charging forward with its claws glowing. Liepard had evidently been expecting it however, for Cheren called out, "Liepard, Sucker Punch!"
His Pokémon, once more, acted before Bianca's could. Liepard slammed itself into Leavanny, leaving yet another sizable chunk of damage in her Pokémon. Bianca bit down on her bottom lip, but ultimately held through.
Leavanny could handle it.
She was proven correct when, in the next moment, Leavanny swung with both its arms, and knocked Liepard backwards. The Pokémon came to a stop a few meters back, and laid still.
5 to 4.
Cheren called back his fainted Pokémon, and that gave Bianca some time to take stock of the battle.
She was up a Pokémon – albeit the sixth member of her team was sort of hastily placed there. She'd not been able to come up with a truly good member to slot into the spot, and had eventually settled on Stoutland. But even if it was powerful, it didn't particularly cover any niche that her team needed.
It was just strong; apropos of nothing.
The other five made up a more coherent unit, however, and those were the five that Bianca was banking on. Milotic was out for the count, and that stung, but she still had Leavanny, Shellgon, Gallade, and…
And the fifth member of her team, who she was saving for later.
She zoned back in as Cheren reached back, and threw out another Pokéball. This time, it was Bianca's turn to be surprised.
Cheren had already turned to his ace.
Serperior stood to its full height as it coiled and slithered across the ground. It let out a powerful cry, and Cheren seemed immediately more confident to have his starter on the field of battle.
Bianca wasn't jealous. She had been for a very long time; that Cheren still had that Pokémon most precious to him. But she'd realized somewhere along the way how pointless an endeavor that jealousy really was.
She'd grown up.
She would not have wished that Cheren's starter, like hers, was lost to him. Such would have been monstrous.
…She was thinking such errant thoughts while there was a battle going on. She couldn't afford to. Let her worry about such things later.
"Leavanny, X-Scissor!"
She could have tried to recall Leavanny, but in truth, Leavanny did match up well, and she had options for dealing with the eventual Simipour she was going to be faced with. Shellgon could handle such without issue, easily resisting its attacks, and trading damage with Serperior now would only benefit her team later.
"Serperior, Outrage!"
Bianca swore as purple flame erupted from out of Serperior's form. Leavanny couldn't dodge all of it, and the flames washed over it. Her Pokémon held on, injured but unwilling to give up. It helped of course that neither of the moves it had taken – apart from the initial Fake Out – had the benefit of being from a Pokémon the same type as the move.
They were all weakened rather severely because of that.
Leavanny, on the other hand, would do a severe amount of damage if it could get in range to strike with X-Scissor. It moved forward, trying its best to press against the fire of Outrage. It only continued; the Pokémon locked into the move. Once it was confused by it, Bianca could swap Leavanny out, and throw in…
She realized that her initial plan to take on Serperior had been Milotic. Blizzards and Ice Beams from long range, similar to what she'd used against Unfezant. That was out the window, however.
Then perhaps she should pivot, and use her newest intended team member?
The moment Leavanny connected with X-Scissor, Bianca recalled it back. It had to be running on fumes, but even so, it still stood. She likely wouldn't be able to use it for anything but a faster, safer pivot later, but that would have to work.
For now, she took hold of another Pokéball on her waist, took a breath, and then threw it out.
"Let's go, Chandelure!"
Her Pokémon struck the field and floated out of the red aura, letting out an assured cry as it hovered above the ground. Its inner flame burned brightly, and Bianca felt a certain warmth within her chest just seeing it.
It felt a bit like a dream; in the same way that being with Emboar and the others had in the past, when she'd been stopping Dialga.
But no… this was reality.
She had her team back. Not all of them, never again all of them, but…
She nodded her head.
"Chandelure, Flamethrower!"
Serperior was still locked into Outrage, which meant that it wasn't going to be able to retreat until it had been confused. At that point, Cheren could swap it out for a Pokémon that wasn't as injured; likely Haxorus, given the resistance it would have against Chandelure's primary method of attack.
Still, the initial Flamethrower couldn't be avoided, but then, neither could Chandelure avoid the Outrage that followed. She wasn't sure if it was a blessing or a curse that Serperior was confused on only the second Outrage, instead of the third. It allowed Cheren to swap out quickly, instead of being locked into the move.
"Go, Haxorus!"
Just as she'd thought, here came Cheren's own Dragon. It wasn't to be a clean switch-in – Haxorus would be taking the Flamethrower that had been meant for Serperior, and whether or not it resisted the attack or not, it was going to hurt.
Haxorus let out a great huff as the flames parted around it. Chandelure wasn't the best matchup against Haxorus, but then, that was fine. Bianca reached up, and recalled Chandelure.
It was somewhat tedious; the way that the two of them pivoted continuously around one another. That was simply how battles were fought amongst the highest echelons of the world, however. Keeping a Pokémon in a disadvantageous position was an unnecessary danger, although, to be fair, switching recklessly could be just as much of a problem.
Case in point, Bianca sent in Leavanny. She held no delusions that the Pokémon would be able to survive a hit from Haxorus, but it would be able to buy Bianca a clean switch in for something else.
Haxorus struck Leavanny, knocked it out, and Bianca sent in another Pokémon to handle the issue.
4 to 4.
"Let's go, Stoutland!"
Stoutland was, funnily enough, the Pokémon among her number that she'd had the longest. She'd gained him shortly after leaving Nuvema, on her very first route. Suffice it to say that the two of them – she and Stoutland – knew one another's capabilities.
"Stoutland, Superpower!"
Her Pokémon barked out its assent as it began to glow with an ethereal energy. It charged forward, rocketing towards Haxorus.
"Haxorus, Dragon Breath!"
Bianca knew Cheren's strategy there. Dragon Breath was a move with low offensive power, but with the chance to cause Paralysis when it struck its target. If Stoutland got paralyzed, well…
Her Pokémon was going to be at quite the disadvantage.
Luckily for her, that didn't happen. Stoutland took the blow, and, while not looking particularly happy about it, followed through with its own attack, striking against Haxorus with a mighty blow. The opposing Pokémon was knocked backwards, slamming into the ground and kicking up a great deal of dirt and dust.
"Stoutland, Double Edge! Finish it!"
"Haxorus, another Dragon Breath!"
Stoutland moved in, but its offenses had been weakened by Superpower. She was banking on Double Edge having enough strength to end this particular stage of the battle, but unfortunately, that didn't so much as become relevant.
Because this time, the extra effect of Dragon Breath hit its mark, and Stoutland found itself shaking in place, unable to quite bring itself to move.
"Stoutland!" Bianca called out helplessly.
Cheren grinned, even as he held his hand out and shouted, "Finish it, Haxorus! Draco Meteor!"
The move was perhaps overkill, but it was clear that Cheren wanted to eliminate Stoutland before she could recall him. Her options were to let Stoutland, already paralyzed and likely out of the fight, be knocked out, or switch with another Pokémon…
Another Pokémon who, quite likely, wouldn't be able to handle that Draco Meteor very well, either.
Had she a Fairy type, she could have pivoted and completely absorbed the blow, but she didn't.
She bit down on the inside of her cheek, even as she allowed what was happening to happen. Stoutland was knocked to the ground, and he fainted then and there.
3 to 4.
Cheren had the advantage now.
Still, Haxorus was injured, barely hanging on. She reached back towards her Pokémon, and drew out her own first. Not in general, but from this journey.
"Let's do this, Shellgon!"
Her Pokémon hit the dirt and reared back, taking a proud stance. Haxorus wasn't keen to go on the offensive, on account of the fact that it had been injured by both Chandelure's Flamethrower, and Stoutland's Superpower.
It had to be hurting. A single good hit…
"Shellgon, Dragon Claw!"
"Haxorus, Draco Meteor!"
It was clear Cheren saw the writing on the wall as well. There was no point trying to conserve Haxorus' strength. Not when the Pokémon was hurt, and already weakened. Instead, he unleashed everything it still had in the form of yet another Draco Meteor, which rained down, threatening to hit Shellgon.
Bianca was faster, however.
"Hide behind the ice pillars, Shellgon!"
Her Pokémon cried out in assent as it did just that, briefly stopping behind one of Milotic's ice pillars to allow the raining meteors to strike it. The Pillar's themselves were both destroyed, but Shellgon was untouched.
"Haxorus–"
"You're too late!"
Shellgon was on Haxorus before it could make another move, striking down at it with its Dragon Claw, and knocking the Pokémon out for the count.
3 to 3.
Cheren grimaced, but recalled his own Pokémon. He reached towards his belt, but hesitated.
It seemed he wasn't entirely certain whom he wanted to send out. In his defense, Bianca didn't think she knew exactly what she wanted to do about Cheren's remaining Pokémon, either.
He still had Gigalith, Serperior, and Simipour.
Gigalith would've been easy to deal with had she Leavanny or Milotic, but both had already been knocked out. Simipour, also, would've been quite simple with Leavanny alive. She'd sacrificed it earlier to buy a clean switch. It had seemed like a good move at the time, but now…
She bit down on the inside of her mouth.
She wouldn't regret her choices. She simply had to play the situation out from here.
She reached out, and recalled Shellgon as well. By doing so, she was effectively giving Cheren a free opportunity to do whatever it was he wanted, but she also knew that she had one Pokémon he couldn't expressly counter in any way.
"Go, Gallade!"
Gallade had a number of advantages over Cheren's final three Pokémon. For one, it was a fighting type, which would allow its Close Combat's to decimate Gigalith. It's Psychic's, meanwhile, would do neutral damage to all three of his remaining Pokémon, which meant that Cheren didn't have a clean switch to counter it.
Bianca was confident. She would win from here.
She just knew it.
"Let's go, then, Gigalith!"
The Rock type Pokémon hit the field, a low rumble coming from out of it as it stomped its feet on the ground below. The movements had Bianca vibrating in place, and she swallowed as she thought about her next move.
It seemed simple to use Close Combat, and annihilate Gigalith before it could do anything, but clearly, Cheren would have been considering that. Not to mention Gigalith did possess a frightening defensive profile, making it difficult to cut through on that end.
Would a Psychic necessarily be better? Perhaps not, but it wouldn't put Gallade at any risk, either.
"Gallade, Psychic!"
"Gigalith, Rock Polish!"
Bianca swore beneath her breath as the Pokémon began to shine, even as the Psychic wracked its form, clearly damaging it. It had already become far quicker than it was before, and that meant–
"Gigalith, Stone Edge!"
Cheren's Pokémon acted before her own could process it, and great clumps of rock shot out from the ground around it, knocking it up into the air. Bianca bit down on her bottom lip. She'd gotten careless; not wanted to use everything Gallade had in the same way Haxorus had.
"Gallade, Psychic again!"
Her Pokémon followed her lead, looking down and tensing. Its eyes glowed as Gigalith was raised into the air, and then slammed down on the earth below.
It was hurt; bad. But it wasn't down.
"Gigalith, another Stone Edge!"
"Gallade, another Psychic!"
Both Pokémon used their moves…
And both Pokémon fainted when the others connected.
Bianca clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth.
2 to 2.
"Forgive me, Gallade," She whispered as she recalled her Pokémon, letting loose a terrible sigh. "Alright, it's you up next, Chandelure!"
Her Pokémon hit the field, and Cheren's eyes widened. She knew why, of course. She'd presented him a golden opportunity on a silver platter.
And he knew it was a trap.
But did he have any better options than to spring that trap? The simple answer, at least in Bianca's mind, was that no, he did not. If he sent out the injured Serperior against Chandelure, he could do nothing against its Overheat. But if he sent out Simipour…
It sounded so simple. Simipour would use its natural type advantage and defeat its opponent.
But was it that simple?
That was for Cheren to find out.
"Simipour," Cheren evidently wasn't happy as he threw out Simipour's Pokéball, but even so, he did just that. "You've got this!"
His Pokémon hit the field some few seconds later, stretching somewhat lazily as it inclined its head, getting an idea of the field of battle.
Her gambit – if it could even be called such a thing – was not expressly a trap. As much as she did have a plan to deal with Simipour, it was far from an assured thing. She'd actually been hoping that Cheren might read too far into her bluff, and send out Serperior, thinking that she had a plan for Simipour.
That hadn't worked.
So, she'd just have to hope what she did have would work.
"Chandelure, Energy Ball!"
Her Pokémon gave a cry of assent as energy gathered around its central flame. Simipour was already moving as well, not at all planning on sitting still.
"Simipour, Scald!"
The two moves both launched at the same time, the boiling water of Scald, alongside the grassy energy of Energy Ball.
They collided with each other in the center of the arena, and…
And they kicked up steam.
A lot of steam.
Bianca's brow furrowed instantly. Cheren and his Pokémon both were entirely obscured by the mist, and Bianca couldn't help but think that hadn't been an accident at all. No, Cheren had read her intent. If she was right, then he'd purposefully used already burning water so as to make it easier for it to turn into steam.
After all, near-boiling water would evaporate with little added energy.
And she'd done just that; added energy.
"Chandelure, pull back!"
She may still have been playing into Cheren's plans then and there, but she didn't want to lose sight of Chandelure, and the mist was encroaching, advancing ever further from the point where the two moves had collided.
Her Pokémon cried out its assent, and began to slowly float back towards her, not taking its eyes off the cloud of mist.
There was a flicker of movement out of the corner of Bianca's eye, and she shouted out for Chandelure, hoping it would be able to notice the same thing.
It did, but not quite fast enough.
Simipour darted past, riding atop an Aqua Jet. It struck against Chandelure's form, knocking it back and to the ground, even as it retreated back into the fog, disappearing once more from the battle.
Bianca took stock of the situation immediately. Had she a move like Defog, that would've made this easy. She did not, however, possess Defog, and thusly, she had no choice but to either allow things to continue to play out…
Or disperse the fog another way.
It was a risk; she would be overextending Chandelure, but the alternative was barely worth considering, allowing things to continue playing out like this.
So…
"Chandelure, Overheat!"
Her Pokémon glowed red, and then, a moment later, the flame inside of its glass center erupted outwards, scorching the battlefield. It also, crucially, dispersed the fog, causing it to rise into the air.
And Simipour was revealed.
It had had managed to dodge the Overheat entirely, it seemed. Bianca swore under her breath, especially given that Chandelure's power would be significantly nerfed now that it had used Overheat.
Chandelure would need to land a clean Energy Ball to defeat Simipour.
Chandelure, even so, didn't back down, or give any indication towards Bianca that it thought it might lose. All in all, Simipour was Cheren's final Pokémon in any good health. Serperior was weakened rather heavily by the barrage of hits it had taken. To be fair, that was true of Shellgon as well, but…
Well, she believed in her team.
"Chandelure," She called out, "Energy Ball!"
"Scald, Simipour!"
The same strategy a second time. Bianca wasn't going to play into that.
"Aim at the ice shards on the ground, Chandelure!"
Her Pokémon didn't seem to know what she was getting at, and in all fairness, she wasn't entirely positive it was going to work, either. Even still, the residual pieces of Milotic's ice pillars still laid upon the ground.
And Bianca was planning on utilizing them.
The Scald was barely dodged by Chandelure, who had speed enough even still to avoid it. As it did, it aimed an energy ball at the icy terrain beneath, and fired.
As the grassy energy struck, it diffused upon the ice…
And suddenly, an aura of green surrounded the battlefield.
"Wha–" Cheren reacted.
Bianca felt a surge of confidence. Her idea had worked.
She'd set up a Grassy Terrain.
She watched as energy filtered back into Chandelure; its health being returned to it by the restorative effects of the terrain. The same was, to be fair, true of Simipour as well…
But Cheren's Pokémon hadn't yet taken damage, which meant it got nothing out of this arrangement as of yet.
Now, Simipour was on somewhat of a clock to take Chandelure out before it could be restored to full strength. Unfortunately, Chandelure's Energy Ball was out of the question in terms of what she could use to strike back at Simipour.
But Chandelure did possess one final move that could be utilized.
"Chandelure! Shadow Ball!"
Her Pokémon gathered ghastly energy about its glass face, and then sent it flying forward. Simipour evaded the attack upon the back of an Aqua Jet, which it used to approach Chandelure's position.
"Float upwards, Chandelure!"
Her Pokémon followed her orders, evading any counterattack from Simipour. Unfortunately, by flying into the air, it also avoided the restorative effects of the Grassy Terrain.
She understood Cheren's game. Pelt Chandelure with long range attacks while dodging Chandelure's own via Aqua Jet.
It was a solid strategy to outlast her, and in truth, if she ever did land a hit, it would have to be enough to knock Simipour out in one go; else the Grassy Terrain that she'd set up would put in work for it.
Bianca cursed Cheren for his quick thinking under her breath, even as she did her best to evaluate her options.
In her head, there was really only one. She believed that, in a one on one, Shellgon would be able to defeat Serperior.
Except…
Bianca felt stupid yet again. She'd set up a Grassy Terrain to heal her own Pokémon…
But a Grassy Terrain would only benefit Serperior in a drawn-out conflict against Shellgon.
This… again, she was making uncharacteristic mistakes. Mistakes she was confident she wouldn't have made at any other time. Cheren was just…
When she looked over, and saw her opponent, she felt weaker; less capable. Cheren's words played over and over in the back of her head, telling her that she wasn't cut out for this, that she should go back to Professor Juniper's lab and shelve any such dreams of grandeur.
She wasn't willing to listen to those words. No matter how much a part of her, an increasingly small, but still existent part of her, continued to believe him.
She looked off to her left, where, lo and behold, Cynthia was still there. She'd been mostly silent the entire battle, officiating without saying a word. Neither she nor Cheren were the type to ever make an illegal move, or to question the legality of the others moves, and so she had no reason to step forward.
But still, she looked to Cynthia, and it must've shown on her face just how she was feeling, because…
Because Cynthia looked back, and she smiled so warmly, so gently, that Bianca felt a surge of energy rushing up within her.
She… she could do this. She would do this.
"Chandelure!" She shouted out. "Close the distance!"
Cheren's eyes widened, evidently not having expected what was about to happen. Technically, she still had all the time in the world to make a decision. Cheren's Pokémon wasn't getting any of the benefits of the Grassy Terrain…
But still, she wanted to catch him off guard.
And it had, seemingly, worked.
"Simipour–"
"Energy Ball, Chandelure!"
"Aqua Jet!"
Her Pokémon didn't allow Simipour to get far. It did its best to create distance, but such was pointless. The grassy energy again gathered at its glassy face, and then blasted out, striking Simipour right along the back.
"Simipour! Hydro Pump!"
Ah. There it was. The kill shot. Her Energy Ball wasn't as strong as it could've been, because even if Chandelure had been recovering well thanks to the Grassy Terrain, it hadn't regathered all of its strength from the earlier Overheat.
Simipour was likely at less than half strength, but even so…
"Chandelure, curve your Energy Ball around it!"
Her Pokémon must've understood what she intended. It did as she asked, charging its Energy Ball even as the Hydro Pump aimed right for it. It shot the blast of grassy energy off just in time to avoid being absorbed by the water, and it hooked in midair to strike against Simipour's side.
Both moves hit at nearly the same moment.
And both moves knocked their opponents out once more.
1 to 1.
This was it, then. Shellgon against Serperior.
She took a breath, forcing herself to calm down. She was on edge due to her own failures. She'd been antsy, and careless, and it had cost her Pokémon dearly thus far.
She refused to allow such to be the case any longer.
She needed to steady herself.
"Alright, Shellgon," She whispered into the Pokéball as she held it up just before her lips. "Let's do this."
She threw it out at the same moment Cheren threw out Serperior, and the two hit the field a few seconds later.
Both Pokémon were posed proudly as they stared their opposite down. Serperior was certainly the more injured of the two of them, but unfortunately, the Grassy Terrain that was still in effect would be helping with that. Shellgon, on the other hand, would be getting much less out of it.
She had to end this, and quickly, or else her Pokémon was going to be brought into a long, drawn-out brawl.
One she was certainly not going to succeed in.
Which meant…
"We end this quickly, Shellgon!"
Her Pokémon cried its ascent, and their assault began.
Shellgon launched itself forward, its claws glowing with dragon-typed energy. Cheren's Pokémon responded by conjuring up sharp leaves, which Shellgon only barely managed to evade. The Dragon Claw, too, was evaded. Neither had taken damage during the first exchange.
That was good for Cheren.
She couldn't allow it to continue.
"Forward, Shellgon! Hit it with Dragon Breath!"
"Dodge, Serperior!"
Their Pokémon, once more, danced around one another. The longer this went on, the more even things became. Bianca bit down on her lower lip.
And then, just when Bianca was sure she had the strategy from Cheren's side understood…
He threw a curveball.
"Serperior! Leaf Storm!"
Bianca's eyes widened, even as a great gust, carrying hundreds, perhaps thousands of razor-sharp leaves shot across the battlefield, and briefly enveloped Shellgon. She cried out to them, and when the storm faded, Shellgon was only barely standing.
Under normal circumstances, such a maneuver for Cheren would've been foolhardy. Leaf Storm was a powerful finishing move, when one didn't have to worry about a move after, due to its inherent power, but it came at a cost. It weakened the Pokémon that used it.
Or, at least, that was the case for most Pokémon.
But Serperior worked contrary to that.
Instead of losing power, it gained it. It radiated a deadly aura, and with another shot of Leaf Storm, she was assured that Shellgon would fall.
Then… how did she keep him standing?
She had to protect him… or, no…
He had to protect himself.
Another Leaf Storm came, and Shellgon turned towards her, awaiting her orders. For just a moment, she hesitated, wondering if there was something else that she should do, if she had already failed, if she was too late–
"Bianca!"
She snapped from out of her own head in time to shout, "Shellgon, Protect!"
A blue force field surrounded her Pokémon, protecting it from the razor-sharp leaves that swirled around it as the wind gradually died down. Bianca let out a breath of relief, even as she tried to keep her head in the game. She'd nearly been caught up in it, lost in her emotions.
Now wasn't the time. She had to be there for Shellgon.
She had to be there to win, most of all.
She'd come too far. Too long had she traveled, too strong had she become.
She would not fall here.
She looked towards Shellgon, who still stood there, evidently exhausted, even with the Grassy Terrain below him working to heal him up, and Bianca…
She gazed into his eyes; into his heart.
And she nodded her head.
She wasn't sure why, but there was a sound then, inside her head.
Like a chain being snapped in two.
And then Shellgon glowed white.
She heard a gasp from off to her side, saw the confident look on Cheren's face falter. She, herself, felt assured.
She'd somehow known this would happen, she felt. The Bagon she'd gotten in Professor Juniper's lab, who'd wanted so badly to fly, had grown along with her. It had struggled, and fought, and bled just as she had.
And now, just as she was…
It was as strong as it was ever going to be.
A great and powerful Salamence emerged from the white energy, and it let loose a roar that shook the arena around them. Bianca found the energy within her breast spiking, her blood boiling.
She could do this.
They could do this.
They would do this.
"Salamence!" She wasted no time, "Flamethrower!"
Her Pokémon hadn't had access to such a move just a few seconds ago, and yet, she knew for a fact that Salamence's could spit fire from the very moment of their evolutions. Her own did not disappoint.
Flame erupted from out of its maw, spilling over Serperior and causing the Pokémon to shrink back, slithering out of range before it could be more badly burned. Cheren didn't falter; of course he didn't, he was too strong himself to do such.
"Serperior! Leaf Storm!"
It wasn't going to be a very effective attack; doubly so now that Salamence was part Flying type, but even so, it would boost the power of Serperior's future moves by quite a bit, and that meant Outrage, what Cheren was likely planning to finish the battle with, could hit for much more damage.
But Bianca had no intention of allowing things to go on that long. She was going to end this, right here, right now.
"Salamence, fly up into the air!"
Yet another move that Salamence learned upon evolution; Fly. She planned on utilizing it, and its super effective strength, right there and then.
Her Pokémon acquiesced, soaring into the air upon its freshly evolved wings. Serperior tried to strike it with a Leaf Storm, but it missed.
Still, it served to strengthen it. A single hit from anything would likely be enough.
Bianca – Salamence – wasn't going to allow that hit to come.
It streaked towards the ground at what seemed a ludicrous speed, and then deftly positioned itself on a collision course with Serperior.
The Pokémon tried to react, tried to dodge, but it was too late.
Glowing energy surrounded her Pokémon, and it struck with a fury unlike anything Bianca had ever seen from it.
Serperior was sent flying back, over the head of Cheren, who looked back at his own Pokémon in grim realization.
He already knew, even before the Pokémon hit the ground, what had just happened.
He knew he'd lost.
"Serperior is unable to battle!" Cynthia called out, and though she was supposed to be impartial, she looked like she was on cloud nine. "The winner is… Bianca!"
It was strange how much that moment, despite everything Bianca had gone through, somehow meant more than any of it. She'd saved the world. She'd improved as a person. She'd won so many important battles, and yet…
This was different. This was more… personal.
Because she'd done it.
She'd conquered her own personal demon.
And before she knew it, Bianca had her hands held high in the air, her jaw clenched more firmly than it had ever been…
And she was letting out a roar triumphant.
End Chapter 36
Bianca claims victory, and it means a lot more to her than she thought it would. Her own person demon defeated, and her final gym badge collected!
Next chapter, the final bits of wrap-up before we move into the final arc of this story (which makes it sound like it's ending soon, but we've still probably got fifteen or so chapters left lol!)
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