A Hui Hou Kākou

by BraviaryScout

As they continue on separate paths; the newly crowned champion of Alola, Elio "Sun" Northstar looks back to remember the one person who gave him the strength he needed to complete his island challenge while he awaits her return. Pokemon Moon novelization. Sun X Lillie. Hau X OC. M for later chapters. Cover art by Chocolexii. Same universe as Brendan's Journey by jmoul18.

92. Entry 88: Koa

Alola readers! After months of writing, brainstorming, rewriting and everything in between...this massive beast of a champion battle chapter is finally finished. It's been crazy busy for me this mid-year and with this, plus scraping time together to write bit by bit, given the huge significance that we are on the final stretch of actually finishing this brainchild of a fic that started 8 years ago. To think it comes down to this.

Some of you may have noticed that I have a brand new Pokemon story in the works, from the double updates a little more than a couple of months ago. A novelization of Pokemon Violet is underway titled A Life You Will Remember with a brand new wonderful cast of characters and an immersive storyline that I'll be making in a similar manner to this. More on that later.

I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. Let's just say after this, I'm done writing massive battles that require a lot of brainpower to put down for a decent bit. I'll see you all at the end for the closing AN, where I've got some updates on what I'll be working on in the future.

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This is it. I first thought that Elio would've become the champion of Alola by defeating Hala…but Professor Kukui revealed that he had to win just one more battle…against him.

I could barely take this. You've worked for everything for so long and I'm pretty sure everyone in there was screaming their lungs off at trying to will you to win.

---

For as long as it was allowed, it had felt like time itself had frozen at the top of Mauna Lanakila.

Lillie shook her head in surprise as she saw Gladion's and Hau's mouths hanging open in disbelief. Leilani, Professor Burnet and Elaine were also unable to conceal their own expressions taken aback.

"H-he, isn't the champion?" Hau asked as the crowd got to murmuring again, both in uncertainty and excitement. Back down on the court, Professor Kukui stood silently waiting, a look of slight amusement on his face as Elio's face was shown on a closeup of the screen in a mix of reactions playing across his sharp features.

---

"You?" Elio finally spoke, picked up by the microphone and carried across the arena. Lillie found herself leaning forward in her seat in anticipation, something that was being mirrored by much of the crowds.

"That's right cousin! One final matchup against yours truly! Woo! Win and you'll have that comfy champion throne all to yourself!" When Elio didn't respond or look convinced, the professor gave a laugh. "You have my word as good as a safeguard!"

"What he means is that he accepts." Hala grunted, moving forward to stand in between the two trainers. Elio shook his head, but kept that steely focused gaze. Lillie knew it as the one where he really got into battling.

The kahuna motioned to the referee on the side with his metang. "Quinn. You've earned a break in officiating today. I shall be the one to conduct this final battle."

Elio saw the ref take a bow and wave to an applauding crowd before motioning his pokemon mount to move them out of sight. He was still numbly walking back to his side of the court and turned around as Hala had raised his arms up to the air. At first he thought he heard regular chanting, but instead seemed to be some sort of prayer.

Perhaps a ritual of a rite of passage?

"Kau Ka 'Onohi Ali'i I Luna. Hu a'e ke ahi lanakila a Koa. O Ke Kahuna Wale No Ka'u Makemake."

After a few moments, Hala had cleared his throat and nodded to everyone.

"At long last have we upheld the traditions of our islands, passed onto us by our nā kūpuna who have walked before. Today we shall continue to honor that custom, bringing us to par with the rest of the world watching. All eyes will be on you as we celebrate the joy and accomplishments you have achieved in completion of your island challenge. And now…you challenge the final obstacle for the right to be known as Koa!"

At Hala's last words, the crowd had begun to thump on the bleachers, creating a rippled rumbling effect that Elio both felt and heard. A flash of light on the other side showed him that the four torches that had once held the flame to signify the Elite Four had been relit to brightly illuminate the professor's silhouette in front. He could feel the heat even from where he had stood.

Hala put his arms up again, now in the position of an officiant.

"This battle between challenger Elio Northstar and Professor Emilio Kukui for the title of Koa of Alola, is about to get underway! This will be a six on six battle with the winner clinching the match when all six of his opponents have been declared defeated! Three voluntary substitutions are allowed for each side. Trainers, do you accept these terms?"

"Yes." Elio and Professor Kukui said at the same time.

"Very good. Now, present your pokemon for due battle on my signal."

Here we go. Elio tried to shake the clamminess in his hands as he nearly fumbled Bravo's ball. It had now occurred to him that his final opponent had been observing his entire battles against the Elite Four. All his strategies, improvisations and gauging of type advantages.

He's seen it all. I wouldn't be surprised if he know's exactly how to counter everything! This isn't a battle I can win like the Elite Four by hitting hard, but by hitting smart. "Bravo, I need your help to start this off strong!"

Kukui was already throwing out his own pokemon known as Junior. Bravo stretched his wings and came to stop in front of his trainer and eyed a lycanroc on the other side. This one different from Akela and Fenris in the fact that it had light brown fur and hunched down on all fours. Rather than the infuriating smirk on its face, it held an even tempered gaze to analyze his opponent. A Midday form, just like Troy in Dallas Kahananui's ownership.

Gotta be on my toes. Especially if I'm already going at a type disadvantage. He saw Hala give the signal to commence the battle. "Bravo use tail-"

"Accelerock!" Just as his bird was beginning to whip up the air currents to blow from behind, Junior exploded forward at such incredible speed and grazed Bravo with the sharp rocks in its mane. He screeched in panic, suddenly dipping down slightly to his right while trying to stay airborne.

Holy hell, that attack hit 'that' hard and took that much outta him?

"Bravo, steel wing!"

Elio cursed under his breath as he saw Bravo sharpen his span into a metallic sheen before he wobbled in the air. Junior's accelerock had hampered his flight enough to where he was having difficulty in maintaining a sound aerial advantage.

That's fine, we'll make this a ground game. Bravo may not have been able to fly, but he skipped across the ground to instead use his wings as a deft glide.

Junior summoned a stone edge that Bravo had a tough time evading. While his legs were powerful, the lack of sustained flying limited his mobility. He was hit by a single jagged cone of rock and skid across the ground. Finding balance, he was slow to get up, swatting another aside with his still-active steel wing.

The attempt to find his opponent was difficult. Kukui kept Junior constantly moving behind the cover of the gigantic stone pillars. Bravo being slower on the ground meant he was easy to predict.

"Bravo, use the stones to get yourself a vantage point!"

His bird nodded, shaking off the growing fatigue as his claws dug into the closest stone pillar. The long imposing wings still couldn't fully stretch out thanks to the visible wound at the leading edge on the right. However they did provide a little bit of stability as Bravo's gaze immediately spotted movement to his left and locked onto Junior crouched low.

"Accelerock!" Kukui shouted just as Bravo found his target.

"Bravo, superpower! Quick!"

Elio's reflexive command came just in time. Junior had spotted Bravo within moments and had exploded forward in his quick attack with the sharp rocks in its mane outstretched to swipe at his foe. Bravo had powered himself up, only having a split second to get his feet outstretched to meet the oncoming attack. While hastily done, Junior was met by the superpower and kicked back down where he crashed into one of the stone pillars, shattering it into pebbles. The knockback still put Bravo off balance and he had lost his footing on the top of the stone pillar. Compared to his opponent, he fared much better, flaring out his wings to slow him in a landing with a slight stumble. Elio saw a dropping stat flare surround Bravo; a lowering of his physical attack and defense as a penalty for using Superpower's high damage.

And all Bravo's other attacks will also get weaker. I'll have to either pull him or use it less if I'm going to win.

"Perfect, use tailwind while he's down!"

Bravo whipped his wings forward to set a breeze, but unfortunately for him the reprieve also meant Kukui got one too. He saw Junior snarl and launch a ring of triangular shaped rocks that floated into the air and shimmered away from sight.

Stealth rock again. I hope it's not the splinter ones like we had with Olivia. Luckily, he had the means to clear them out.

Using defog though would briefly expose and leave him defenseless. Elio knew that the accelerock was more than capable of closing that gap and hitting him. Then Junior's superior agility being able to avoid any retaliatory attack.

I have to still get rid of the entry trap. This isn't good if I have to send in and switch out two other pokemon that are also weak to stealth rock.

Luckily, the tailwind was providing some help. Maybe there was enough time after all.

Elio decided to take that risk in spite of the tension. Bravo was able to fly briefly and use a defog attack. The powerful current sliced effortlessly through the air, causing the concealed stealth rock shards to reappear and crumble away to the wind's onslaught.

Just as he predicted, Junior had lunged forward in an accelerock, showing no noticeable reduction in his speed going against Bravo's tailwind. The eagle pokemon had kept his own guard up, powering a steel wing to parry the attack.

Yet Junior had some sixth sense as Bravo had prematurely lunged himself to attack him. In overextending both his wings, he had left his sides and back completely exposed. The lycanroc halted his accelerock just outside of Bravo's reach and jumped over, opening his mouth and sinking his fangs into his back in a devastating crunch attack.

Bravo screeched, suddenly surprised as Junior landed on the ground, using his own downward momentum to hurl him into the side wall with a sickening cracking noise. While he dropped to the ground and landed on his feet, the exhaustion was finally beginning to catch up and his legs gave out after a couple seconds of attempting to stay in the fight.

"Bravo is unable to battle further!" Hala's thunderous voice boomed across the court as soon as he was able to see the fainted combatant. "Junior is the winner! Six to five! Professor Kukui i mua!"

"Dammit." Though one lost pokemon, Elio already felt that same nerve wracking pressure from before. While he knew that this battle was still very much winnable, the whole stakes of him powering through the gauntlet of Alola's Elite Four and a surprise thrown in by Professor Kukui was even more suffocating now.

He hadn't seen how Professor Kukui battled and unlike the type specialists before, he fielded a guess that his team was mixed in both typings, abilities and stratagems. It'd be more like battling Hau, Gladion…or even against himself.

"Junior, ho'i." Kukui's words brought him out of his internal musings when Elio watched his opponent's pokemon disappear back into the recall pulse of his poke ball. This was no time to think about what he did wrong or mistakes that he made. Down a pokemon meant he had to step it up, otherwise he'd be left behind even more.

"Bravo return." Elio recalled his defeated pokemon back to his own ball and slipped it on the left of his belt. "Mahalo for your hard work."

He selected his next pokemon, knowing that he couldn't base it off trying to counter a withdrawn Junior.

"Let's go Akela!" On the other end, Professor Kukui threw out his next pokemon that was named Swoop. Elio blinked and almost laughed out loud as the other creature made the entire second matchup a mirrored situation except that his lycanroc was the opposite form.

Swoop was a braviary of Kukui's own. His wingspan wasn't as large as Bravo's, but Elio could see a lot more old scars and tattered feathers on his dark ventral side. All those were markings of a seasoned warrior who had seen plenty of action.

"Either this is ironic or it's a funny coincidence." Kukui remarked as Hala brought his hand down to start the battle. "Brave bird!"

Akela turned away and ran just as Swoop quickly ascended with a single flap of his wings. He sprang into an attack position, folding his body and and rocketed forward towards his opponent, quickly building up enough that he was a fearsome streak of harsh blue light.

Elio knew his pokemon's plan and went along with it, watching closely. Akela stopped running and immediately went into a forward slide, slamming his fists into the ground. Like with Junior, Akela's stone edge created an erratic pattern of wide pointed rough stones that reached Swoop's altitude. The braviary didn't slow as he weaved from side to side to avoid them in his pursuit.

However the stones also allowed Akela to quickly scale the side. As Swoop approached, Akela waited for the perfect moment and jumped.

Elio wasn't able to hear what he shouted, but Akela appeared to have heard him. His fangs opened and he clamped down firmly on the first part that he could find. Swoop was more than able to carry a car while flying and he only dropped a couple of feet with Akela's added weight. The brave bird was starting to power down as he turned and banked down. Akela was in the middle of preparing a reversal when he noticed that Swoop's trajectory had him on a direct collision course with one of his own rocks.

With no choice, he was forced to break off and allow Swoop to circle around and come in low. Elio saw him dive while folding his wings inward, keeping low to the base of the stones. Just like Bravo's, his wings flashed with a silvery metal skin. His heart skipped a beat, Kukui's braviary also knew steel wing. Even worse was that now coming from the direction of Elio's side and aided by the tailwind.

Just stay calm. Maybe we're meant to take a super effective hit.

"Akela, counter!" The words left his mouth just as Swoop had closed the distance and hit Akela with his metal wings. With a yelp, he tumbled backwards over his head. His paw lashed out and gripped the ground, getting just enough traction to stop. The darkness was nauseating, flooding the edges of his vision and it took everything he had not to give in. He couldn't let his trainer down.

Baring his teeth in defiance, Akela snarled and lashed out as Swoop made another pass. The paw had the full transfer of the physical damage he had received from the first steel wing and focused into a single hit. Because Swoop had been forced to call off its vector, Akela instead threw the blow upwards, mirroring his teammate Lochagos in an uppercut.

The strike hit home and Swoop let out an agonizing screech as his flight was interrupted, dropping in midair and quickly recovering. But it wasn't enough to stop them from crashing into the ground.

Akela was the first one up, hitting the ground and creating three distinct column waves of rock slides that battered Swoop. Though he was hit by the initial front of the attack, he sharpened his steel wing once again to cross in front of himself in order to dampen any further damage. Akela charged right in as Swoop found an opening to escape the tumbling rocks and thrust his wings forward to cast his own tailwind.

At first, the new one didn't take much effect until the one blowing behind Elio's back had died down. Swoop immediately shifted his stance and rocketed forward, this time his legs jutted out and talons extended. Superpower. Another move that was mutually shared with Elio's braviary.

Wow this is almost like fighting Bravo. In front of him, Akela gave a knowing grin in seeing the familiarity.

"He's gonna come back. Let's make him work for it. Stone edge!"

It took a second for him to perform the commanded attack and Swoop immediately banked side to side in a winding pattern as he evaded the newest barrage of stones that sprouted from the ground. On the final ones closest to Akela, Swoop went straight through, shattering them and continuing his course.

However, having to take the shortcut in forcing his way meant that he'd slow down enough to where even the tailwind was irrelevant. Akela was ready with a reversal as Swoop smashed through the closest stone edge spike. Elio stopped when he saw that his quarry was farther away and the slowing down actually worked against him. If Akela lunged too early, it would be easy for Swoop to disengage his attack and move in with another.

His pokemon moved just a hairsbreadth too late for his liking. Elio assumed that Akela was waiting right until Swoop dove for the kill past the point of no return. He had noticed while braviary were incredibly fast, they were difficult to maneuver evasively when in headlong attacks such as superpower and brave bird.

Akela's reversal hit Swoop in his upper shoulder, effectively cutting out the blazing energy from the superpower while fainting midflight. His wings stiffened and he cartwheeled through the air before hitting the ground with a solid crunching noise. The momentum was only stopped for a second when he had hit another stone edge column. Akela had to cross a little farther than he had estimated, but the reversal attack went straight for Swoop's sternum with a wet smack. As quickly as he had jumped up to attack, the braviary vanished into the swirling dust, hurtled back by Akela's gambit.

Stay down. Elio thought to himself. Akela was panting heavily and glancing left and right in case his opponent was raring for more. As the dirt began to clear, his pokemon let out a low howl of triumph at seeing Kukui's downed bird set at the corner of the court.

"Swoop is unable to battle further!" Hala declared, thrusting a hand to Elio's side. "Akela is…the winner! It is now five on five!"

Nearly instantly after the kahuna's official ruling, the crowds broke out in a mixture of cheers and buzzed talking. No doubt they were talking about how this was going to be a heavyweight fight. The battle was more than just mentally exhausting for Elio. His voice was beginning to falter after winning four of the hardest battles he'd fought back to back. He wasn't expecting a fifth.

But I should have. Just because I have a chance to be the first champion of Alola doesn't mean I'll have it any easier than someone who has to take the title from an established one. I shouldn't either.

"Well done Akela." Elio said, getting a nod of affirmation from his pokemon. "One down. Five to go."

He grinned back at him, waggling his front paws in a desire for more. The teen loved his pokemon's enthusiasm and will to go on.

"I'm keeping you in. Let's see what we're up against next."

Kukui had returned Swoop back to his ball and placed it in his lab coat pocket. "No formalities now. Uila! You are up!"

He tossed another pokemon onto the court, a massive metal skinned ovoid construct that had a single red eye glaring down at Akela. Two smaller circular objects were at each side, controlling a horseshoe magnet that swiveled back and forth. Most striking was a pair of phillips screws and a curved gold antenna that sat at the top of its domelike head.

"Is that a magnezone?" Elio asked in amazement despite the champion battle on the line. "I…I've never seen one in person before."

Maybe I can get a quick check in the 'Dex. He glanced down at it as the sensors registered the new pokemon into his database. "Magnezone. Magnet area pokemon. It is the evolved form of magneton and the final form of magnemite. There are still people who theorize magnezone originated from outer space. It uses radar to monitor its territory and dispatches intruders with powerful thunderbolts and hyper beams. Magnezone is an electric and steel type. Additional information is available upon capturing this pokemon."

"I'll begin if you don't mind." Professor Kukui flashed him a smile, causing Elio's blood to go cold. "Magnet bomb!"

Uila fired its two magnets up in the air to drop down like a pair of guided mortars. Akela was in motion before the attack started yet both projectiles shifted their trajectory midflight to follow his movements.

How the? Akela snarled and was thrown back onto the ground, taking a lot longer to roll back on his feet. It was evident that he was close to fainting and couldn't continue much longer.

Though he did see that the attack was physical and did super effective damage, which meant that it was perfect for a…

"Counter!" Is magnet bomb one of those attacks that doesn't miss?

Akela was in the middle of rushing forward with his paw drawn back when Kukui called for a move called steel beam. Several needle thin filaments flickered to life in a blooming formation. It took him just a second to see them close together and focus into a singular superpowerful beam of energy.

"Look out!" Elio tried to scream at his pokemon, cursing himself for being drawn in like that. The counter bait was a blatant trap and he had been so set on getting one off, he never realized he was compromising his own pokemon.

His pokemon may have been tired, but he still had razor sharp reflexes. Akela dug a heel into the ground to stop his charge forward and used his free hand to hit the floor for another wave of stone edge columns.

The cover was temporary though. Several spiked protrusions had zigzagged between them. One had hit Uila right as the steel beam finally finished charging and the initial aim was thrown up. Panicked gasps erupted from the stands as the silvery white attack blasted through the open air, hitting the shield of the Ward. Uila quickly righted itself, sweeping it across the field towards Akela.

Shit! The attack was effortlessly melting straight through the stone edge columns and Akela had just broken cover when it swept across him. He snarled, fainting nearly instantly as it blew him off the ground and straight through another stone pillar, shattering it into thousands of fragments.

Hala put a hand towards Kukui's side. "Akela is unable to battle further! Uila is the winner! Five on four! Kukui i mua!"

His body tensed. Don't sweat. You've still got four pokemon left to use and it's not like a magnezone is invincible. Elio called his pokemon back, thinking it over for a second.

"You're up Strongside!" In spite of his choice in using a pokemon with a clear type advantage, Elio frowned. He didn't particularly like having to use his starter pokemon this early, but his options were otherwise limited. Nani would be weak to Uila's electric attacks and Arclight couldn't do much outside her dig attack which Kukui would easily see coming.

That left Lochagos and Strongside and he knew that Kukui still had Junior the lycanroc that he had swapped out earlier.

If Strongside could beat Uila without suffering much of a hit; he might have a chance to use his toughness to brush off Junior's accelerock and put it down for good.

"Give me a surprise cousin!" Kukui told him. "And don't you hold back!"

"You want a surprise? Alright then. Strongside, overheat with everything you got!"

Kukui's smirk flashed across his face as Strongside took just a couple seconds longer than usual to unleash a devastating beam of white hot fire. Elio felt as if he was standing to its side and raised an arm to shield his face. The professor on the other side was unfazed as Uila summoned a large translucent glass pane that immediately filtered out the heavy intensity of the superpowerful fire attack.

Dammit, light screen. Elio thought to himself. Strongside was ready to jump into a flame charge that would bypass its suppressing of special attacks when his trainer called him off.

"Hold that! Taunt first!"

He had a hunch that Uila would also know reflect to similarly counteract physical attacks in the commonly used Dual Screen tactic. Elio had been right on the money as Strongside snarled, baring his teeth in an infuriating grin as he waggled his finger in an obscene gesture. While a magnezone was pure machine and unable to decipher the meaning behind it, Elio's reflexive thinking of the taunt had produced the desired effect. Uila's attempt to summon a reflect would end in failure.

"Alright now's our chance! Get at him with a flame charge and blaze kick combo!"

Uila and Kukui didn't stay stunned for long. Much faster than Elio realized. Thankfully Strongside saw the thunderbolt coming and quickly boosted ahead with his flame charge. While it had stopped just short of the magnezone, it had given him another up in speed as he powered up a blaze kick swinging it up in a roundhouse. Uila couldn't defend itself in time and went down.

Elio wondered if the hit had knocked it out, only to be disappointed when he saw that it was quick to refloat and hover precisely in front of its trainer. It had taken some damage from the super effective fire attack.

"You're not getting us that easily. Not one of my longtime partners!" Kukui smirked at him. "Steel beam!"

"Ah shit, here it comes!" Strongside had another split second to jump aside as the thin rays of light formed just in front of its eye. The synthetic noise of a laser firing sent chills down Elio's spine, almost reminiscent of an artificially generated hyper beam attack.

Uila moved the massive blast, but wasn't able to get Strongside as he dodged. Unfortunately as it dialed down the power, it had quickly summoned another large rectangular wall in front of it. In contrast to the light screen that was already shimmering a slight gold tint, the reflect barrier was instead a faint silver.

Elio growled in frustration. He had lost track of time with Uila's taunt abruptly wearing off and allowing Kukui to set it up again. With his Dual Screens active; he'd never be able to deal enough damage while Strongside exposed himself for too long. The magnezone had switched gears to adapt to something more defensive.

Maybe it's time to mix it up.

"Go for another blaze kick!" He shouted. "Jump from above!"

Strongside looked confused for a moment, but did as asked. He crouched low before vaulting up, spinning into a flip that had his feet lash out covered in flames. It was an overhead heel crush that hit Uila as it tried to fire a thunder attack. The hit jarred it so that the gigantic thunderbolt zigzagged up uselessly. Though Elio saw the reflect barrier shimmer to soak up a portion of the damage done, it was still a super effective attack. Red fire scorched Uila's smooth domed surface and it shuddered in midair.

Almost there.

"Get it off you!" Kukui had shouted on the other end of the court. "Use supersonic!"

"Strongside now!" Elio had been counting it in his head. If he was right; the light screen would fade away right as his attack would hit. "Flamethrower and give it everything you got!"

The whole thing seemed to happen all at once. Uila's twin magnets spun and it launched an eerie ringing noise that appeared concentrated in a circle. Strongside was close by and he flexed his arms in a loud snarl as a massive jet of flame erupted from his belt.

The magnezone was hardly a maneuverable pokemon when in the sightlines of its opponent and despite Kukui's shout for a thunder attack, the flamethrower's beginning reached it just seconds after the gold shimmering light screen had faded into thin air.

It had taken a beating of damage, emerging from the orange and yellow flames showing signs of it battered and heavily scorched to Elio's astonishment.

"How is this thing still standing?" Strongside would've mirrored his expression, but then his trainer noticed his stance had been off and he stumbled on his feet to remain balanced.

"Oh shit." Kukui's reflexive supersonic attack had actually paid off. Strongside was now under the effects of confusion as his steps were offbeat as if under the influence of alcohol. His growls became louder and louder as he shook his head to clear the conflicting thoughts.

"Return, Uila. This wasn't a favorable matchup." Elio saw his opponent get withdrawn back into its poke ball as Kukui used one of his voluntary switches. For a moment, he thought about doing the same.

Let's just see what else is coming. And hope it's not a mistake in giving Kukui a chance to take my first partner pokemon out.

"You're doing such a great job, but you know as well as I do that this battle is not over!" Kukui flashed him a grin. "A lot of these pokemon have been my longtime ohana that I've fought alongside back when I went to the Indigo League! Say hello to Papale!"

Elio's eyes widened and he gasped along with the crowd as a gigantic obese blue and tan creature emerged from the thrown ball and slammed into the floor hard enough that he was certain to have felt the ground tremble.

A snorlax. While he had seen them on League television for the first time, it was surreal finally being able to be this close to one in person. And now it was his opponent.

'Dex?

"Snorlax. Sleeping Pokemon. It is the evolved form of munchlax. This pokemon eats nearly 900 pounds of food in a day with a stomach that is incomparably strong. When prompted to make a serious effort, it displays awesome physical power. Snorlax is a normal type. Additional information is available upon capturing this pokemon."

Elio closed the 'Dex and bristled. Though he had the type coverage with double kick and cross chop, he had seen trainers with snorlax use some unorthodox moves such as surf and rock slide to surprise fire type foes.

Strongside was also still confused. He knelt on all fours, growling in frustration while trying to frantically blink and clear his headspace.

Kukui wasted no time in already having Papale attack. In contrast to most snorlax Elio had seen on television often lying lazily on their backs, his stood up and had a heightened awareness. It was the mark of a pokemon that was a seasoned battler and much more used to fighting than other peers of its kind.

Papale stamped its feet and sprinted forward at a speed he thought was nowhere near feasible. Wisps of energy quickly built up until he was a gigantic meteor streaking across the court. Strongside's reaction was slowed thanks to the confusion, but he managed to fire off a well-aimed flamethrower. The snorlax plowed straight through without even slowing and slammed into Strongside like a speeding car.

The blow nearly knocked him out, but he had finally blinked his eyes after a sudden sensation of pain, realizing that he was flying through the air. His feet touched the ground and he hit it with his forearms to prevent an inevitable tumble and slow himself down.

"Are you good?" Strongside had grimaced at the pain, but shook it off and readied for his next attack. The fire on his belt burned brightly and the confusion from Uila's supersonic had worn off.

"Excellent! That giga impact means he won't be able to move! Hit em again!"

As he predicted, Papale's movements had slowed down after expending significant amounts of energy for the giga impact. Strongside leapt into action, easily hitting it with a flamethrower and then jumping forth. Like before, the fire did little damage to Elio's surprise, but the following double kick had a much more noticeable effect. Papale grunted, falling on his hands and nearly collapsed. Despite his incredible strength, they were not enough to support his half ton weight.

He must have thick fat as an ability. Strongside's fire is incredibly powerful yet he's shrugging it off easily. Plus I have no idea how long he's going to be able to attack again. I need someone who hits harder to take him out.

Someone like Lochagos.

Switching out mid battle like this was going to be risky. He didn't want to bring in his substitution straight into a barrage of powerful attacks.

"Look out!" Elio had shouted on instinct. While his thoughts had processed, Papale had finally gained enough energy to stand up and barreled forward in a high horsepower attack.

Thankfully, Strongside had much better agility in avoiding. Papale's heavier weight meant that his charging forth attacks of giga impact meant he had to start his run much earlier, making for an easier telegraph of when it was coming. Strongside's footwork was impeccable as he spun aside. Another quick double kick was used, but Papale had turned so that the blows impacted the side of his body. Both of them bounced the off the flanks like rubber and did very little to slow Papale down despite their apparent super effective hits.

"Cross chop!" Elio shouted. "Don't give him another chance to counter attack!"

Up close, the big snorlax's arms swung like hammers as he formed a fist imbued with ice crystals. Though not effective, Kukui was taking advantage of Papale's surprising speed in fighting up close. The issue to overcome for Elio now was for Strongside to be able to avoid any hits while in his efforts of wearing the apparent juggernaut down.

Strongside's agile frame kept him from getting struck by the ice punch, though he moved a little too quickly at one point where Papale instead pivoted his head to follow up by smashing the crown of his skull right into Strongside's. The incineroar went down and Elio's heart stopped as he was slow to get back up on his feet. By now, Kukui's pokemon had regrouped at his end and shifted its stance so that it leaned forward for another long charge. He couldn't tell if it was high horsepower or giga impact.

Either one wasn't good.

There has to be a good way to disrupt it. Elio thought to himself, just as his partner pokemon was finished standing. His fur was battered and bruised, but he snarled in defiance with the flames on his belt burning bright. If I can get that snorlax to go full speed, a simple trip could get in enough shots until it goes down. But how long can my pokemon survive?

"Giga impact!" Kukui shouted. Papale bellowed loudly and stamped his feet, sprinting forward and picking up speed that Elio could've never imagined on a pokemon of its kind.

Strongside kept himself low to the ground, rolling to the side on all fours and spewed a flamethrower. Papale hardly slowed down after being struck directly, but he had pivoted widely for a second go-around.

At least it can't turn on a dime. By now, Strongside had gotten back on his feet and readied himself again. However now Elio was noticing that his starter was beginning to show signs of exhaustion. Just a little more and I can swap him out. I hope.

Papale's giga impact hadn't diminished when he began his second charge attempt. Instead of coming directly towards where Strongside stood, he approached in the generic direction at a slightly slower pace. The boy realized that by reducing its speed, it allowed the snorlax to have a better range of mobility to change direction when his foe tried to roll aside at the last minute.

Him moving slower suddenly spawned an idea in Elio's head. Strongside glanced back at his trainer, looking a bit puzzled at why he hadn't issued anything yet.

"Don't move yet Strongside."

Elio waited and waited, feeling a cold sweat bead on his forehead as he watched Papale close the distance. On the other side, he saw that the professor's eyes weren't focused on him or the battle, they were centered on Strongside's feet and his stance.

He's waiting to see which direction and how he's going to dodge. Well lucky for him we ARE dodging!
The mental clock in his head hit zero just as Papale was maybe three lengths away.

"Alright Strongside, flamethrower and go low!"

Elio heard the crowd let out an audible collective gasp, ignoring them best he could. Strongside fired another jet of fire from his belt that engulfed Papale. The snorlax plowed through it just as easily as the first and looking no worse.

What made this time different was the flamethrower being shot towards Papale's feet would quickly spread out and cover just enough of the court to briefly obscure Strongside's own feet.

Without being able to see the initial shift, Kukui had no idea which way Strongside was going to move when he dodged and couldn't warn Papale in time. He was only guessing it could be the left or the right.

However both those guesses would end up being wrong.

Strongside backpedaled just as Papale reached him right before he could deliver the giga impact. The snorlax grunted in protest as his opponent dove low, forming an X with his arms and driving a cross chop straight into the normal-type's gut.

Elio tried to hide his disbelief as Strongside's cross chop bounced off and Papale barely reacted as if it were a minor inconvenience.

How?

And then it suddenly clicked for him.

The reflect. He now noticed it because the shimmering pane had flickered out. This was his chance.

"One more cross chop, everything you got!"

Papale was panting heavily from the energy exerted from the giga impact, but it appeared to have enough left in it to swing an ice punch. The heel pokemon parried it, using his free hand to swiftly strike the shoulder. Without the barrier and physical damage dampening of the reflect, Papale had now noticeably staggered, the fist of the ice punch crashing down onto the court floor and blasting a huge mound of ice crystals in the center.

Both Elio and Strongside saw the opportunity at the same time. He swung around, digging a claw into the ice's surface and scaling it to the top so he stood a head above Papale when he'd stand at full height.

"Blaze kick, right down the back!"

Strongside snarled, pounding his chest and jumped off the mount. He spun in midair and lashed out down in a flaming axe kick. Elio heard an audible smack as Papale's gasp escaped its mouth. The immense weight of the creature was too much for its limbs to support and he fell stomach down onto the court.

"No way." Elio breathed. Was Papale down? As Strongside moved back to his side of the court, he was able to see that the sleeping pokemon's limbs moved slowly as it attempted to rise up again.

How the hell is this thing not out?

Professor Kukui laughed on the other end. "Oh man, I don't think Papale's had this dragon rush of a battle since the Indigo League! He may not look like it, but he's been itchin' to get this kind of action again!"

He shrugged. "Sorry to put a damper on all your efforts cousin, but this is where I shift gear this battle right back to my favor!"

Papale rumbled loudly and finally gave out in his effort to stand. He turned his head to the side and wrapped his arms underneath in a sleeping position.

Kukui's smirk never left his face and Elio wouldn't forget the look of surprise on his own.

"Hoʻohana hoʻomaha. Lawe hiamoe." At his command, Papale's narrow eyelids slid shut and his breathing slowly steadied. Elio's knowledge of Alolan escaped him on what exactly Kukui had said, but he saw the effects on the battle right away.

The gigantic snorlax's bruises and blemishes of wounds sustained from the battle quickly faded away to the point where it might've never existed. As the snorlax slept, its posture became more relaxed and it slowly pushed up after freeing an arm to roll onto its back. The scorch marks from Strongside's blaze kick were even gone.

"I know you can hear me dear friend." Kukui said to his pokemon. "Sleep talk, belly drum."

Oh no, not this again! Elio had to quickly regain his composure as a still-sleeping Papale's arms had raised up and rhythmically pounded on its thick gut multiple times. A huge rising stat flare surrounded him despite remaining asleep.

If it can move using sleep talk, there's no way I'm safe from that belly drum. Maybe I can…oh you gotta be shitting me!

Elio cursed himself for the umpteenth time for not thinking of it earlier. At his command, Strongside curled his paws and growled in a gloating manner. Miraculously in its sleep, Papale gave a disapproving rumble just as Kukui's next sleep talk command was blocked by the taunt.

"I had no idea if that was even going to work." Elio mumbled to himself. However the improvised tactic he got in doing so didn't buy him much time, since the sleep condition from rest would only keep it out for so long.

"Return Strongside." Elio clicked the buttons on the pokeball, setting it back on his belt and readying the next. He sent out Lochagos, the dragon landing on his feet and knuckles and bristling for combat. One of his switch icons winked out on the board overhead.

With Papale locked out of using any attacks with sleep talk, Elio got to work. Lochagos did two dragon dances, setting up his own attack and speed boosts. After the second one was completed, he saw that Papale's movements were more frequent as it roused itself from the slumber. Not much time.

Only thing that concerned Elio was Lochagos having to go in close to use his fighting type moves. The longer Papale was out, the more of a chance its belly drum skyrocketed attack would be able to put him in more trouble. He already knew it was capable of using ice punch.

I still have earthquake and maybe can toss in clanging scales or scale shot. There's options. At the third dragon dance, Papale finally rumbled to life as his eyes opened and he slowly stood up. Lochagos was already closing in with an attack as Elio thought it would take him more time to get ready. The snorlax's reflexes were just as quick, throwing a hastily aimed ice punch.

"Sky uppercut, deflect that ice punch!"

Lochagos was already in the midst of the attack, launching a clenched fist upwards that hooked just under Papale's own fist that was covered in ice crystals. Elio saw that this one of his opponent's attacks had looked several times stronger and a single hit was enough to do serious damage. Lochagos' arms were much longer and more dextrous, so he had no issue staying at an arm's reach away from Papale as long as he was able to deflect that close range ice punch. Kukui shouted at Papale to move closer, but Elio and Lochagos knew to move with him step for step. He was tantalizingly close, but Papale's shorter arms meant he would have to move faster in order to use it more effectively.

Which meant having to move more of his bulky weight.

"Protect!" Elio saw it coming sooner than expected, Papale throwing another ice punch with his free hand. Lochagos put the barrier up just in time, allowing it to glance off. Right as he prepped a countering sky uppercut, Papale did another headbutt that nearly sent him on the floor.

Lochagos growled at the unexpected hit, taking a second to shake himself. The snorlax stamped the ground and ran forward again. High horsepower again.

"Clanging scales!"

For a second, Elio was worried that Lochagos wouldn't be able to execute in time, but he had to rapidly vibrate his scales and crush them together with just a blink of an eye before Papale had fully barreled into him. To his surprise, the concussive sound attack had nearly stopped the sleeping pokemon in his tracks as he bellowed loudly, holding his hands towards his ears at the top of his head.

"Papale, ice punch!"

"Hurry!" Elio shouted, feeling the dryness beginning to return in his throat. "Sky uppercut! Both arms, take him out now!"

Papale staggered back from the force of the sound attack, but somehow he had heard his trainer and formed more dangerous ice crystals in his hand. Unfortunately, throwing the punch meant he couldn't cover his ears to dampen the ringing noise from standing so close. Lochagos jumped in quickly, speed aided from the earlier dragon dance and struck with two lightning uppercuts. One after the other. The first caught Papale in the stomach and actually ended up lifting his half-ton body just a couple feet off the ground. The second one connected with his sternum as Papale was in the midst of doubling over. Elio and the crowd gasped again when the ice punch from earlier was swung in a haymaker for one final attempt to get a hit in.

Thankfully the second uppercut had caused it to miss right above Lochagos' head and it knocked the snorlax down on its behind until it was sitting.

Papale rumbled loudly, shuddering as he tried to stand on his feet once again while the armored pokemon prowled in front, waiting for the next move.

It felt like an eternity until the gigantic juggernaut finally stopped moving and suddenly the rest of his body fell back onto the court. The sound resonated through the hollow open area of the stadium because Elio realized the crowd had gone mostly silent.

Hala glanced over at the fallen pokemon. "Papale is unable to battle! Lochagos is the winner! Four on four!"

Holy shit. Just about avoided disaster if Lochagos got hit by an ice punch with that belly drum. Elio sighed with relief, sharing a reassuring nod with Lochagos as Kukui returned his pokemon. We're not done yet. We've only knocked out two of his six, but the good news is that we wore down Junior and Uila.

"Papale has given a lot of other trainers a difficult battle over the years and it's great to see that he hasn't lost a step cousin." Kukui told him. "You've raised a team worthy of being the champion of the Alola region and I'm eager to see what else you can bring!"

He sent out Junior again. Elio frowned at the sight of the midday lycanroc.

He's weak to fighting and I can hit him with earthquake. Why? Unless he's faster?

Either way, Elio didn't particularly like Kukui blatantly showing off a distinct disadvantage.

"Go Lochagos, use earthquake!"

The mighty dragon roared loudly and brought his foot down to send a series of seismic shockwaves across the court. Junior countered with a stone edge that Lochagos didn't have to make an effort to dodge. Sun saw that Kukui had in a sense, copied his earlier technique with Akela in using the jagged stone peaks to climb above and jump from pillar to pillar as the shockwaves pulsed below. Each one shattered in two pulses, giving him just enough time to clear it and be within striking distance.

With a howl, he lunged in and sunk his fangs into Lochagos' left calf just as he was about to stomp for a second earthquake. Despite his furious attempts to shake him off; Junior hung on with surprising tenacity with his bite attack.

"Sky uppercut!" Elio called. "Dragon dance once he's free!"

Lochagos' left hand balled into a fist as he raised his leg again. Junior saw the strike coming and released his bite. By dropping down, he was clear of the sky uppercut and in perfect position for his subsequent stone edge.

Elio figured Kukui was going to go for that considering his own ability to get out of jams quickly. Both pokemon launched their attacks, Junior's paws hitting the ground to create a row of spiked stones while Lochagos' armor shimmered and he spun his arms and limbs in his frenetic cadence. Elio smiled as his pokemon was surrounded by another rising stat flare. One hit and Junior was most likely done.

Except this stone edge attack was different in spreading out in an irregular pattern once it got right before Lochagos. The dragon dance allowed him to use several of the dodged spikes as cover as the lycanroc dashed around the base with surprising agility.

Elio cursed to himself. Of course. Tighter corners mean someone like Junior is going to be able to get a bite or something else while Lochagos can't attack in time. The stone edges had created multiple spikes surrounding Lochagos in varying distances. His eyes darted around, never staying in the same place for long in searching for his quarry.

"Accelerock!"

Lochagos blinked and suddenly was hit from behind. Junior had used the cover of the stones to sneak around and get a shot at his blind side. As he turned to where he had been hit, the wolf pokemon quickly retreated behind cover.

"What are you going to do now cousin?" Kukui had a bit of an annoying smirk on his face and the boy suddenly realized what Guzma had meant when he was talking about the professor's irritating behavior. A cocky little smirk was just enough to infuriate any bigger opponent.

That must be how Cicindel probably had a hard time fighting Professor Kukui's pokemon. It's too big and cumbersome while someone like Junior can just move from cover to cover and do repeated strikes at weak points. Earthquake might not work if he can just jump over the stone edge like before. Elio racked his brain. If only I can lure him out.

Wait a second, that's it!

"Lochagos, I know you want out, but stay in there! Let's take these stone edge coverings out with an earthquake!"

His pokemon nodded and raised his foot, bringing it down to create another devastating quake that battered several of the stones closest to him. Elio half expected Junior to do the same by going for a bite, but the lycanroc remained out of both their sights. Kukui grimaced and leaned down to maintain focus on the other side.

Several of the stones shattered into fragments, finally revealing Junior's position in having climbed up on the stones to avoid the earthquake and now directly behind Lochagos. He dove in with an accelerock, using the edges of his mane to graze the larger dragon's side.

This time, Lochagos anticipated the blow and was able to shift his weight so as to not get felled. Junior landed in front, quickly dashing to the side to avoid a retaliatory dragon claw. The miss cost him when Junior was able to quickly turn around and lunge in for another accelerock.

"Repulse!" Elio shouted. Lochagos was still retracting his dragon claw when Junior had come back for another round. He brought his gauntlet up just in time with the force from both sides sending the much lighter pokemon hurtling backwards.

"Junior, stealth rock!" On the other side, Elio's face paled hearing that again.

Nononono! "Lochagos stop him!"

Hearing the urgency in his trainer's voice, he sprinted forward on all fours. His efforts were commendable on going double time, but he was too late.

The lycanroc summoned several sharp rocks and floated them out on the field where they shimmered before disappearing.

Kukui's eyes were closed in a knowing smirk. "And I'm fairly confident that will remain for the rest of our battle."

Elio didn't want to admit out loud that he was right. Both trainers knew it. His only workaround of entry traps was for Bravo to clear the stealth rock via defog. And he was out of the fight. Not only that, he still had Arclight and Strongside, both of which had notable rock weaknesses.

The professor was almost going all in and slowly closing the vise. Elio had to be even more careful on how he was going to manage his switches and who he sent into battle. He had no time to rest as Junior launched another barrage of stone edge attacks. Lochagos was far enough away to avoid it easily, but almost immediately afterwards; his opponent disappeared. Junior had drove low into the ground, spinning rapidly like a drill bit before shooting forward.

Drill run?! Lycanroc can learn drill run?

A solution presented itself and Elio was yelling it before it fully crossed his mind. "Earthquake again!"

Lochagos stomped the ground just as Junior's drill run had reached him. The first shockwave battered him back and caused a huge plume of dirt to erupt into the air. Junior snarled in anger at being interrupted in his attack. His limbs flailed for the half second in midair before landing in a heap in front of Lochagos.

Elio leaned forward, daring to breathe a relieved sigh in case his opponent's pokemon was out. Junior's mouth hung open; he had been preparing to use a bite in the same technique as before to stop Lochagos' earthquake. He was just too slow about it.

Few seconds elapsed until Junior finally lay still, unable to fully recover from the power of the super effective ground attack. Hala waved his hand to Elio's side, declaring Junior unfit to battle and Lochagos the matchup winner. The bout was now four on three with him in favor.

Three pokemon to knock out. Elio sighed and felt the weariness creeping into his limbs. Almost there. So close and it feels so damn far away.

His muscles ached, his throat was beginning to feel sore. The urge of wanting to fall asleep had started. After doing four back to back battles with hardly a break, Elio was completely exhausted on the final battle. The end was nearly in sight, but his body was ready to give out.

Come on! You can do this! I'm too far to stop and turn back now.

Kukui returned his pokemon whispering a fond, "Mahalo hoa kahiko." He slipped it back onto his belt and Elio saw him draw another.

"You know cousin. I was always thinking about that day when you were such a little keiki."

"That was more than a year ago." Elio said. His throat itched as he talked, but he did have a bit of appreciation for a little reprieve from the action. Lochagos' posture relaxed and he stood up while listening to his trainer converse with his opponent.

"Yes. You looked at your new journey with such wonder and eagerness. Reminds me a lot of myself oh yeah! And here you are, right on the cusp of victory to become Alola's very first champion. If you win here, the world will know and you will have your own mo'olelo written in our history."

Elio stopped, looking up at the stands. The crowds of people on the edges of their seat, falling mostly silent and taking in what Kukui had to say.

"Everyone here is ready to witness the birth of a new champion! It's not every day this happens! Woo!"

He saw the professor smile and for a second, Kukui wasn't his opponent. He was his mentor, his friend and the person that made all of this possible.

I can't lose. Not with everyone watching. Mom. Lillie. Hau. Gladion. All my pokemon.

"I know you're tired. Haggard from all those amazing battles you had with the four finest Elites I handpicked to run this. Let's finish this strong with one final gambit!"

He flipped a poke ball in his hand. "Maemae, let's go and give Elio a fight to the finish!"

The poke ball expanded to reveal a very familiar vulpine with a gorgeous icy white pelt. He felt a chill pierce the air as the alolan ninetales cooly eyed its opponent.

Ah crap. This is about as worse of a matchup on paper as can be. Considering his options, Elio didn't want to send Strongside out right away, resisting the urge to do so in a favorable type matchup. While it was inevitable he'd take some damage by the stealth rocks, he had noticed that Kukui had yet to send out his sixth pokemon. Whatever it was; he was going to need his longtime partner to pitch in to take it down.

"Lochagos return." He pulled his ball to recall him. Setting it on his hip, he drew Nani's. If he was going to use an ice and fairy type, the best thing was to face it with one that had a key resistance to one and neutral damage from the other.

Sucks that I have to pull Lochagos after so many dragon dances boosted his attack and speed. But one fairy type move like dazzling gleam and he's out. Gonna have to burn my second switch.

"Get ready Nani!" Elio threw her out in place as another swap icon winked out below his side. She unlimbered herself and stared back with an equally icy gaze as her opponent. The look of surprise on Kukui's face suggested that another reason for him in bringing out the ninetales was an act to draw out Strongside again. Nani shuddered as she was battered by a barrage of stealth rocks, but still looked very much ready.

Both pokemon launched into attacks as Hala's hand chopped down to start the battle. Nani was faster on the draw and launched a stream of steaming hot water at Maemae. The ninetales gave a rather dismissive huff, countering the oncoming attack with an ice beam that dissolved it into fine wispy steam.

She wasn't done yet. At Elio's command, Nani's next hydro pump hit home, overpowering Maemae and blasting it back. The ninetales tumbled, using the roll to regain its footing as the attack dissipated and iced the ground. Like other ice types that lived in snow and by frozen lakes, she was able to find grip with relative ease. While she didn't have an active hailstorm, Elio found it difficult in the ice steam created by the scald and ice beam to create a thick fog obscuring all angles. He had given a mock snow cloak without even realizing it.

"Time to do what you do best Maemae. Disappear and hit her from the sides."

Elio kept his composure, even as Nani's eyes shifted constantly around to find her foe. Moments later, a series of bright pinkish flashes erupted from the fog and Nani was hit by a blast of energy. She went down, quickly coiling up and spraying a hydro pump from side to side. Neither of them heard it hitting anything.

Maemae had to have remained on the move and she'd stick to the shadows or places obscured. Nani's vision wasn't great in the fog, but Elio did remember that Milotic were able to sense the emotions and feelings of another pokemon. If she was able…

"Nani, can you find it?" The fog had started to lift just a bit, but Elio didn't want to risk using another water attack. Maemae's fine ice beam would just make more steamy fog and give it even more places to hide. If he could do something to draw it out.

Nani closed her eyes, drawing in to enhance her senses to take in the emotional impulses around her. Her own determination, the joy and excitement of all the fans around. The resolve of her trainer and willingness she'd exhibit by not letting him down.

There.

Maemae was opening fire with another dazzling gleam when Nani unexpectedly turned and sprayed another scald to her left. She was hit by the fairy type attack and again quick to regain her balance with an angry hiss, but Maemae had even less time than her to dodge. The ninetales was hit in the front before being able to ready another ice beam. As it stood, the fog was starting to fade and Elio could see that Nani's scald had gotten a burn and charred bits of otherwise pristine white fur.

Now having a much better idea of Maemae's location, Nani sprung from her coil to avoid another dazzling gleam, spinning around while launching another one of her thin high-pressure hydro pumps. Maemae was blasted back yet again while attacking with a shadowy ray of sinister dark energy.

The dark pulse interrupted Nani's attack, which bought Kukui just enough time.

"Hypnosis."

Wait, a nineteales can learn that?! Maemae's eyes began to glow a bright white and Nani had been caught right in the trance. Elio's grip tightened on his side when her eyes slid shut and she gently laid her head on the ground. Her breathing rate slowed down as she settled into a rather blissful oblivious slumber.

"Nani wake up!" Elio fought the dryness in his throat to shout. I don't know how much longer I can do this before I lose my voice!

"Hmph." Kukui made a triumphant smile. "It's our turn to buff ourselves. Calm mind!"

He could only watch as Maemae did that. Twice there were two rising stat flares surrounding the snowy fox and Nani still slept soundly on his side.

"Nani."

"I'm surprised she hasn't woken up yet." The professor shook his head. "Advantages like this don't come often. Maemae, hex!"

Oh hell. Elio shouted at Nani again to wake up, but he felt the hoarseness in his voice starting to creep up. It crackled, likely barely reaching the milotic if she was able to even hear him at all. Maemae summoned a shimmering ghostly purple triangle that intensified and blasted Nani into a tangle of her serpentine body. She shuddered, but stubbornly remained asleep.

Hex does more damage if she's asleep or under some status condition. If she knows a move like this, it's likely that she'll know some to cause others. Like the ice beam.

Maemae jumped up and over, landing right in front of Nani and readying another hex attack. Elio tensed.

Nani's eyes suddenly snapped open and she fired an ice beam at the first possible moment. The shot caught both Professor Kukui and Maemae by surprise who jumped back with an audible gasp. She wasn't done attacking though. Just out of the ninetales' field of vision, Nani had used the ice beam as a distraction to buy her time. It took Elio just a couple of seconds to figure out her plan.

No sense in telegraphing what exactly it is by shouting. Just need the timing.

Her tail fins locked together into her signature blade.

"Now!"

On his command, the gigantic iron tail swung seemingly out of nowhere, catching Maemae in the side. It fell down with a yelp, shaking after just a couple seconds of laying down. By now its fur was tattered even more and fox winced harshly from the burn that was still whittling away.

Nani thrust her iron tail again, but Maemae was ready for a second strike. It jumped to the side, spraying an ice beam that caught the interlocked fins when the milotic brought it down. The sudden addition of weight and inability to effectively move her tail caused it to slam into the ground. As Nani moved to avoid the remainder of the ice beam, the frozen tail dragged across the court, leaving shaved ice crystals in a trail, greatly limiting her mobility.

"Nani, recover!" Elio fought the dryness again in his mouth and mustered the shout. She had heard him, summoning a luminous skin of refreshing green energy to stock up and bring her back from the brink of fainting.

It was a gamble, with her slower speed and rapidly declining health. Elio needed her to take a breather and rack his brain to reassess the situation. Though Maemae was doing the same on the other side with a calm mind, he knew that he had gravely underestimated this pokemon.

A flash of an incoming dark pulse interrupted his thoughts. Nani still was in the process of revitalizing herself when the wave struck before she was complete. Slithering as quickly as her iced tail would allow, she brought it up in front as a second inky black dark pulse swept in. The front of the attack fractured the ice encasing her fins and she quickly expanded them out to fully break free.

"Alright, nice job." Elio told her. "Iron tail again!"

"Dammit." Kukui cursed under his breath on the other end. "Ace in the hole here we go! Freeze-dry!"

Maemae huffed and blew out a long stream of dense cold air that quickly spread over the ground like a fine layer of oil. Nani stiffened while in the midst of thrusting her blade and Elio had two thoughts going on. The first was that somehow Nani was taking super-effective damage evidenced by how much more of a reaction she was crying out from an ice attack.

The second was how he hadn't played one of Nani's tricks.

"Attract!" Maybe this was his breakthrough.

Nani shook her head, her movements slowing as the ultra-cold ice crystallized in flashes of light. She nonetheless did as her trainer asked, winking with an eye to send a single projectile that had been shaped in that of a heart to her opponent.

Elio's own heart dropped when it hit Maemae, who promptly stopped for a couple of seconds to shake her head with no effect whatsoever. Just his luck. Or maybe his own stupidity. The ninetales was female.

The hell am I making these kind of mistakes now?! I should not be doing this!

Kukui tapped his white hat. "Think it's time to wrap this one up Maemae. Hypnosis!"

"Nani, hit her with scald!"

Though both pokemon managed to get off their attacks, Nani's was easily dodged while the hypnosis waves had spread out and lulled her back into dreamland, bypassing her efforts to close her own eyes and look away.

"Hui pū! Freeze dry and hex!"

"Nani, wake up! Please!" Elio cried. It would only take Maemae just a couple of seconds to ready her attacks. Maybe he'd get lucky and she'd snap out of it in a flash. "Hurry, she's-"

The freeze dry blasted her point blank in the blink of an eye. Nani tumbled in a flailing of her scaly body and shattered ice. Though she came to a stop at the end of the court, she continued to sleep. Maemae summoned another shape of eerie ghost energy and launched it on perfect target. Nani disappeared in a loud explosion, thrown out from underneath and her elongated head struck the ground with an audible crack.

Elio wanted to say something, but he knew right away that she was out cold.

Hala grunted, feeling just a little pang of empathy for the lost round when Elio had just been on the verge of winning. However he had to remain as neutral as possible while the acting officiant. "Nani is incapable of continuing to battle! Maemae is the winner! It is now tied with three on three each!"

The loss of that pokemon had really gotten the crowds murmuring. Elio tried to tune them out, but he was starting to feel it. The pressure of it all.

So far in this unexpected battle against Professor Kukui, he had been playing it rather safe and conservatively, holding advantage in a higher quantity of capable pokemon.

Now things were tied up again, three on three with each side having two pokemon that had seen some action and one that had yet to even enter the battle. It was far from over. His own battle wasn't completely against the other trainer. It was against his own body as the fatigue was starting to set in. Limbs felt sluggish and heavy, eyelids drooped down. Everything demanded rest, urging him to stop for just a few minutes.

I can't…I can't stop until this is over.

"Come on." Elio said quietly to himself. "Just a little more." I'll repeat this in my head if I have to.

Both Hala and Professor Kukui looked at him in concern as he returned Nani back to her ball. It was much appreciated, but they still had a battle to conduct.

Elio plucked his next choice from his belt and tossed it out. Just a little more. Ideas started branching out in his head of how this was finally an apt time to use Strongside's fire type mo-

NO!

---

"No!" Gladion hissed in frustration as he banged a fist on the counter. "What in the fuck are you doing?!"

Nearby, Hau, Lillie and Leilani had all jumped from him, but they had equally stunned and aghast reactions, all of which was also being mirrored by the crowd.

Lochagos grunted in pain as the stealth rocks materialized and pelted him from all directions. His scaly armor and fighting type characteristic meant they'd do little damage.

"This is about the worst type matchup he could have." Hau had his eyes glued to the large screen where it was apparent Elio was frustrated with himself. "Dragon and fighting against an ice and fairy type? Lochagos is done for."

Lillie pursed her lips, staring at him down on the field. The frustration was easily palpable. Could he have chosen Lochagos as a mistake? Like his hand slipped? I've never seen him do something like that.

"He's got even bigger problems than that." Gladion said. "Once he loses Lochagos…all the pokemon he'll have left are weak to,"

"Stealth rock." Lillie had finished, sharing the same thought as that of her brother.

"Professor Kukui just got a massive breakthrough and Elio just put himself in a corner with that little error."

Come on Elio. You can do this. I know even if your back is against that wall, I know you're-

"I'm not out of this yet!" As if he was able to finish her thoughts, Elio's voice steeled through its rising hoarseness to get picked up by the microphones. Lochagos roared in agreement and released his large armor scale gauntlets.

"That battle took a lot out of Maemae." Leilani said, speaking up for the first time since Nani had fallen. "She looks like she's ready to collapse."

Glancing back down on the field, they could see that she was indeed right. The alolan ninetales stepped from side to side, wincing visibly as she shuddered from the whittling burn damage from Nani's scald. That plus her rapid breathing meant she was getting close to fainting.

"Now we just have to see what Elio does. After all, he said it himself that he isn't out of this fight and I damn well believe him." On her right, Hau had made a fist and rejoined the crowd in cheering once his grandfather had chopped his hand down. The battle was promptly resuming.

Before she knew it, Lillie and the others had joined in once more as the pokemon clashed.

---

Elio suspected Professor Kukui to go straight for a kill and had Lochagos toss up a protect. Instead of the quadruple damage dazzling gleam, Maemae had opened up with a hypnosis attack that was effectively nullified by his protective shield. Though that had prevented him from falling asleep, Maemae was moving in and now actually preparing the dazzling gleam…this time for real.

"Repulse!" It was a gamble since both Lochagos' protect and repulse abilities would be on near-successive cooldowns, but he had to do whatever it took to keep Lochagos in the battle. One voluntary switch left meant that if he ended up using it and it came down to his final pokemon, either Strongside or Arclight would get battered by the stealth rocks twice.

Maemae fired the damaging flash as Lochagos closed his arm gauntlets to shield his entire body. To Elio's surprise, the repulse seemed to reflect the gleam off the scales' shiny surface. Maemae's eyes went wide before she was enveloped and struck backwards. She staggered back to her feet with a shocking show of resilience and growled in defiance. Elio smirked, knowing how easily he could rebuff the fairy attack.

This thing just won't stay down! Am I gonna have to use a Z-move to finish it off?

"Sky uppercut!"

Kukui was in action just as Elio had been, commanding an ice beam. While Lochagos' first juke evaded the most damaging part, he had lunged in with a sky uppercut that his trainer was sure would've put her down.

Instead, Maemae reacted with a startling burst of speed in leaping to the side. Lochagos' own reflexes were already adjusting, but his bulky size meant that said adjustments were lagging behind just a tad slower. As she dodged, Maemae fired another ice beam towards the ground, rapidly cooling and freezing the large patch of ground where Lochagos' hand and foot were low.

"Shit!" His dragon snarled in fury as he nearly toppled over from losing his balance. The long scaly tail struck the ground behind, acting as an extra limb since he was half standing and half kneeling from being frozen and anchored down.

What was worse was the fact his entire ventral section was unguarded. The scale armor plating overlapped and covered most of his back.

That previous repulse had repelled the highly dangerous dazzling gleam so quick that Elio thought Kukui would think twice before trying again. Yet he seemed to have gotten awareness that it was mostly from the scale armor that caused it. His suspicions were confirmed when Maemae was limping in a circle to get around for a clear shot at Lochagos' underside.

Cursing under his breath, he knew that freezing Lochagos to the ground had been a ploy to set up the coup de grace.

"Get yourself out of there now!" Elio shouted. Lochagos strained, but the ice held up incredibly well, refusing to budge or break as he used his free arm to hammer at the encased area.

Wait a second, his foot is free!

"Dazzling gleam! Finish this!"

"Lochagos, earthquake!"

His dragon stopped in confusion, but he quickly realized he had one foot that was still able to be freely moved. A huge scaly heel stomped the ground, creating a seismic shockwave just as Maemae had finished readying the dazzling gleam. Kukui's expression changed upon realization that not all of Lochagos' limbs were effectively pinned to the court's floor.

The shockwave traveled much quicker than the fairy attack and Maemae's attempt to dodge was foiled by the pesky burn condition and her growing fatigue. Even if she was able to cancel her attack to go back on the move, it would've been for naught.

She was shaken by the rumbling and impacts, keeling over on her side to faint before the earthquake had subsided. At the same time; Lochagos' free hand powered up a dragon claw and he slashed at the thick ice barriers, effectively shattering the top and allowing his foot and arm to be yanked free.

Hala threw an arm towards Elio's side. "Maemae is incapable of battling further! Lochagos is the winner! Three on two! Elio is i mua!"

No way! Elio exhaled and nearly knelt over himself in exhaustion. His own nerves were frayed and a brief bit of being relieved that he had gotten out of a potentially disastrous situation. The crowd continued to chant his name and he could only use that as a motivation and fuel to keep on going.

Just a little more. He sucked in another breath and cleared his throat. No doubt his voice was gonna take a while to recover. Two more pokemon to defeat and this battle would be over.

Lochagos rumbled lowly as he turned around and gave an affirmed nod to his trainer. He was ready for whatever came next.

"Thank you buddy. You're nothing but awesome."

Kukui had returned his pokemon to her ball. "Mahalo Maemae. Well fought." Without as much of a pause, he threw out his next pokemon. Elio was faced with the familiar sight of Uila the magnezone.

Now it was his turn to immediately suspect something was up. Uila's typing meant it was going to be immediately vulnerable to earthquake and sky uppercut.

Guess I'm going to have to figure that out as I go. Uila's taken a lot of damage, but Lochagos is starting to tire too. Hala had signaled for the battle to resume and Lochagos jumped into action. Uila's twin magnets detached, zooming over and slamming into Lochagos' side. He took no damage, only stumbling just a bit during his sprint in all fours. The magnet bomb had done nothing thanks to his bulletproof ability.

"Thunder!"

That had been the reason for it. Uila buzzed loudly before the attached magnets on the side scales sizzled with electricity and blasted Lochagos at full power. The dragon roared in agony, still moving in an attempt to get his own move off, but had slowed down while trying to fight through his pain. Lochagos' delay of closing in on Uila gave the other pokemon time to set up reflect once more and another curse under Elio's own breath. The shimmering barrier was going to absorb and dampen any physical attacks Locahgos could use.

"Use steel beam!"

He saw the smaller filaments of light start to flay and combine together. Not a lot of time. "Lochagos, sky uppercut! Hurry!"

Lochagos couldn't have waited a second longer just as he had reached Uila. A split second after his fist went down and punched upwards, Uila had completed readying its ultra powerful steel type move. His knuckles made contact with the underside of the magnezone and the blow knocked it up as it fired. Many in the crowd jumped as the errant attack lanced across the open air, harmlessly hitting a patch of the Ward where its silvery liquid veil had flared to life and absorbed the power of the attack.

"Again!"

Lochagos reared his free arm back, swinging it up as Uila detached its magnets while still firing its steel beam. As soon as they had latched on again to his armor, it was back to delivering a powerful thunder.

Elio grit his teeth, not sure if his pokemon was going to be able to keep going. Kukui was all in, so he had to be too.

"Come on! You are a wall and walls don't move! Clanging scales!"

Lochagos fought the pain, still managing to move his body so that his two largest scales could be slammed together. Without full force, it was much weaker than his normal attack, but the disruptive soundwave had knocked Uila enough where it had let off its thunder attack. What was disheartening was the flashes of static electricity coursing across his body. Lochagos had been paralyzed.

It wasn't going to be long before his mighty dragon went down. Neither him nor his trainer were content with not leaving the fight on their own terms.

"One more time!" Elio's throat felt raw as he shouted. "Earthquake with everything you got!"

Uila was already in motion as more thin beams of light were combining together. Professor Kukui was swiftly commanding a steel beam, hoping to get a similar last shot in to finish it off.

Lochagos had to stand still and stomp the ground in order to get his earthquake to hit on target. Having to focus through the paralysis also meant his arms wouldn't be free to put up a protect or a repulse to block the oncoming steel beam. He wouldn't be fast enough to dodge. Either he went down…or the both of them did.

Both heavy attacks struck each of their opponents nearly at the same time. Elio could see his dragon quickly crumple and lost his balance, tumbling back uncontrollably until he crashed into the wall, throwing up a cloud of dust in a deafening explosion. Slowly it dissipated, leaving the sight of Lochagos sprawled on the ground with battered, chipped and scorched scales.

Hala was nearly ready to step into his officiant duties when everyone heard a rattling sound from Kukui's end. Through the dust and debris thrown up that hung hazily in the air, Uila the magnezone floated out, albeit listing heavily to its left side where its own ovoid metal body was also scuffed with similar damage from the suffered hits of the intensive battle. The reflect it had cast up earlier wasn't sufficient enough to tank a quadruple effective ground move.

They heard it make a fading synthetic noise before its large central eye winked out and it crashed to the floor, rolling onto its side where it similarly remained unmoving like Lochagos across the court.

"Both pokemon. Uila and Lochagos are unable to battle! It is now two on one! Elio i mua and the chance to clinch the match upon knockout of Kukui's final pokemon."

Holy shit. One more pokemon stands between me and that champion title. For everything I've worked for and practiced and fought.

Once again, he had to tune the crowd's growing excitement. The roar permeated everything, his own hearing, he felt it tremor in the ground underneath. He may have had the numbers advantage of two pokemon to Kukui's one, but he felt as if the pressure to win was never going to be greater than it was now.

He took slow shallow breaths, trying to steady his heart rate as each side returned their pokemon. Lochagos' poke ball was given an affectionate squeeze before being slipped onto an empty socket on his left side. Only two remained in case he had to holster them in a defeat.

That's not happening today. We're going all in and winning this.

"Woo! You feel that big discharge of energy in the air?!" Kukui smiled, putting his hands on his hips broadly. His remaining switch icon had winked out, signifying that he was officially down to his final pokemon. "It's all coming down to an end! I've got one pokemon left and you've got two! Don't expect me to leave out of here without something to say about it!"

"I wouldn't dream of it." Gotta fight smart. One switch, though with both my pokemon weak to that stealth rock; I'd rather not use it.

"Dream eater! Ha! You know the drill run here! Here's the last pokemon you'll have to defeat if you want to become champion! Melody, take the stage!"

Elio saw the ball leave the professor's hand, expanding in midair to form a slender mammalian creature that had predominantly white fur with a blue posterior. Two long limbs allowed it to stand up and fixate upon him with opaque bluish eyes. It had a long snout with a pink nose and two star shaped structures to where he estimated were the creature's ears. Most striking about it were the aqua colored hair that flowed majestically behind and the pearly iridescent crown on top of its head.

He froze for a second, still a bit off guard even as he was in the middle of summoning Arclight. Though she had been hit by several of the stealth rocks upon entry, he knew his own pokemon would brush it off and keep in the fight.

A glance at the deactivated Rotom 'Dex helped elevate his hopes just a little bit. At least this was an advantageous matchup and one Kukui was forced to play as his final pokemon.

"Primarina. Soloist pokemon. It is the final evolved form of popplio. Its singing voice is its chief weapon in battle. This pokemon's trainer must prioritize the daily maintenance of its throat at all costs. To primarina, every battle is a stage and it takes on a fantastical look on moonlit nights while leading its colony in song. Primarina is a water and fairy type. Additional information is available upon capturing this pokemon."

"You may remember years back in the Hoenn League." Professor Kukui reminded him. "When the former champion Wallace Rain battled Brendan Maple for the title of Hoenn's champion." A nod from Elio confirmed that he was listening. He was very much aware of the events, having watched the historic battle on television when he was younger.

"Wallace led things off with a primarina, Harmony. Now Melody here? This…is her sister."

"So it's a powerful family."

Hala raised his hand as both trainers got into their battling stances. There was no more to be said.

The hand went down.

"Alright, let's start this out with our dig charge." Elio said. We'll wear her down and then finish this off with an electric type Z-move!

Arlight buzzed, quickly zipping to the court floor and tunneling underneath. Melody took the opportunity and split right in front of their eyes. In her place was an exact copy of the same color, size down to the finest detail. For a second, Elio had thought Melody had used a double team. The copy mirrored her movements and they interchanged so fast that he had a hard time pinning down which was the real one. Arclight wouldn't know, not having seen the transformation.

Is that substitute? A move that creates a perfect decoy, but costs a portion of health?

She burst from the ground, hitting one of the copies, but the primarina barely flinched. The reflect had flickered to life in reducing the damage. However Melody didn't look any worse at all.

Arclight twisted in midair around, launching a fully charged zap cannon back down. With the previous charge from before accelerating her next electric attack, it fired at a much faster velocity.

To Elio's dismay, the zap cannon had been aimed towards the wrong copy, causing it to explode into fine particles and crackles of leftover discharge. Melody didn't skip a heartbeat in twirling around gracefully to shoot up a single bubble to meet Arclight flying above. Elio tried to not to look blanched at seeing the bubble move nearly as fast as her zap cannon round.

The vikavolt moved to dodge and successfully did so.

Then the bubble exploded.

"Woah!" Arclight halted in surprise, using her dextrous agility to dodge as many of the oncoming bubbles. Each one popped with an explosion of mist and a strangely alluring sound that blanketed the entire air. Avoiding most of them, Arclight weaved through the maze, narrowing her eyes in concentration. However it was impossible to dodge every single one.

At her trainer's command, Melody fired a second one of the explosive balloons, a move that Elio heard was called sparkling aria. Arclight had dived down just as her wings caught enough lift to prevent an uncontrolled crash landing.

"Stay low to the ground!" Elio called out to her. "Thunderbolt!"

Arclight zagged out of the way of a gigantic oncoming moonblast before she quickly blasted it off, keeping the attack focused low enough to avoid any of Melody's oncoming successive attacks. Though it was a smart tactic; she was ready for it, summoning another half dozen sparkling arias that formed a loose barrier and slapped a pair of them to meet the thunderbolt. Both of the attacks collided in the middle, causing a bone rattling explosion and canceling one another out.

"If she's summoning them to be sort of a shield, then I'll just have to keep up an onslaught." Elio coughed from the dryness in his throat. What little moisture he had to devote to lubricate his depleted vocal cords as best he could. The battle was not over. "Bug buzz and discharge, Arclight! Stagger them!"

Melody kept her eyes fixed on Arclight through her next couple sets of sparkling aria attacks. Thankfully, the unpredictable flight patterns Arclight took made it nearly impossible to peg a hit since the vikavolt's fast reaction time plus her incredible vector flying meant she was able to gauge where the next shot was aimed and look absolutely trivial in dodging it.

Each sparkling aria, previously what he thought was a danger…was now nearly a nonfactor. After dodging yet another where only one balloon remained; Arclight opened her rear carapace shell and let loose a conical wave of damaging vibrations that cut through the misty air like a scythe. Automatically, the final balloon had suddenly shook on its own before unexpectedly bursting open. Fine droplets of water quickly obscured the fighting so thickly, everyone was only able to only see the trainers giving commands. Pink flashes from Melody's moonblast were seen, followed by the orb emerging from the soup and crashing harmlessly into the Ward shields.

Arclight's discharge went off moments later, but neither combatant seemed to have scored a hit.

Now I know what Brendan felt like with Clint battling against Melody's older sister. Elio thought to himself. Another bright flash as the mist quickly lifted and Arclight hurdled out, her wings smoking and chitin shell battered from the point blank moonblast that he wasn't able to see.

"Arclight!"

She wasn't done yet, gathering more electricity from her abdomen organ and launching it back into the fray. A cry of pain from within caused Elio to nearly jump in surprise that she had landed a hit of her own. On the other end, Melody had fallen down and gingerly picked herself back up on her elongated forelegs. Though it had been a super effective thunderbolt, it hadn't done as much damage as he had wanted.

This was his chance! "While she's down, zap cannon!"

That had gotten a look of panic on Professor Kukui's poker face. "Melody, aqua ring and use your sparkling aria to counter that zap cannon!"

Arclight zipped up and took just a couple of seconds to charge up and fire her most powerful electric attack. At the same time, Melody had slapped three of her newly formed aria balloons up towards her. Two of them exploded on impact, but the bullet shaped round of the zap cannon had effortlessly plowed through.

While that was happening; Melody took the last of the aria balloons before her and stretched it out with her arms spread wide. The water melted into a thin silvery ring that encircled her current location. Already Elio could see that the veil was beginning to ebb away at what damage he had already inflicted.

If she gets back up to near-full health or strength, Melody could use another substitute. He couldn't let that happen, especially when he had no means of passive healing for his own pokemon. The meowth and pikachu game would begin all over again.

He thought of the Z-Power ring and still the available Z-move. Melody's own attitude was bouncy and she appeared to be relishing this type of intensive matchup. Arclight on the other hand was ready as ever, but he could tell that the constant attacking and dodging to stay on her own toes was beginning to wear her down.

I could see about a Z-move, we'd just have to knock her out before the aqua ring fully finishes healing. I'm against the clock now and too far to turn back.

Arclight fired a wide discharge that didn't hit, but it had forced Melody to dodge and exit her aqua ring. He only hoped that it was enough to where she couldn't make a substitute to avoid what he was going to attempt.

Elio kept up the attacking, more discharges that were hastily aimed. In the scuffle, Arclight had scored a hit with one, but missed the second when Melody had launched a chilly breeze to knock off her aim. The icy wind slightly reduced her speed, buying her enough time to rush back into the aqua ring.

"At least I know where she's gonna be." Elio muttered to himself. Through the motions of him moving, nobody had noticed that he reached into his compartment of zenith crystals and held the electrium Z in between his fingers.

Alright, time for the little coup de grace! "Arclight, dig and charge!"

"Planning something big huh?" Kukui smirked. "Not without our approval! Right Melody?"

The primarina hunched over and eyed her opponent cooly. He thrust a hand out and pointed, "Moonblast, low!"

It took her just half a second to form and shoot the attack. But Arclight had immediately burrowed into the ground and Elio knew that she'd use the brief time underneath to build up an electrical charge. All he had to do was wait just a couple of moments and he'd execute the zenith move to finally put this battle to bed.

Almost…almost…now.

The electrium Z blazed to life as he slotted it into the socket of his ring. All around him, the crowd gasped as hundreds of people immediately took out cameras and phones to record what could potentially ice the match.

Though his ragged tiredness tore at him, Elio felt the calming rush of the zenith power surge through the ring as it responded to his call. It felt like water, but more focused and channeled.

The dance that Captain Sophocles taught him was complete, waving his arms back and forth to emulate a lightning bolt from a storm cloud before abruptly locking the pose.

"Z-move unleash!" Elio cried. "Channel zap cannon into Gigavolt Havoc!"

Upon the end of his attack call, the energy from the ring empowered Arclight in the blink of an eye. Kukui remained focused as his opponent's pokemon slammed into Melody's underside. There was no reflect to reduce the physical damage this time around, but Melody was fast to regain her balance and shoot up an icy wind to catch Arclight in the middle just as she finished readying her ultimate move. A huge and brilliant flash of electricity crackled as Arclight launched it down from her jaws, taking only seconds to travel to her target.

Elio blinked as he saw Melody wink and use one of her fins to blow a kiss?

Sweet kiss? He had seen several different moves involving such a gesture in a battle and immediately sensed just in the nanoseconds that something was wrong.

His blood ran cold as Arclight's shot ran wide, sailing harmlessly into the ground just in front of Melody and exploding. What brittle energy held the attack together had fractured, throwing up hundreds of yellow and blue lightning bolts that crackled the sky enough to send shivers up the spine. Whatever she had used was enough to cause Arclight to lose concentration and whiff her own Z-move.

He couldn't get angry at himself or rack his brain for how to have planned it better. The battle had to go on even if his own trump card had been played for nothing.

Melody stood up and Arclight had failed to notice that she was readying her own zenith move. Elio tried to warn his pokemon, but again the dryness in his throat plus the overwhelming zigzagging of lightning in front of them drowned out anything he could've said.

Kukui's own Z-Power ring emitted a harsh glow as he waved his arms in the ritualistic water dance, feeding conduits of its energy onto her standing form. Standing to her full height; Melody's tied hair had quickly come undone, flowing freely above as she quickly began to dissolve the few arias around her, all flowing up to combine into one that was even larger.

"Behold, the Z-move for primarina, our very own puolo o maluhia!" Kukui said. The water bubble continued to grow even as Melody used her hands to guide it over the battlefield. Everyone stared up at it in awe.

Arclight smartly had snapped out of her own trance and flew down to dig in an attempt to escape. Melody saw her intent and quickly blanketed the ground with an icy wind. It had happened so quick that Arclight flew right into its gale and stiffened to settle on the ground.

Oh shit! She's going to have to take a second to recover. Elio shook his head. A second she doesn't have!

"Arclight, bug buzz and discharge again! We're gonna have to go through the Z-move!"

"Channel sparkling aria into Oceanic Operetta!" The professor raised his fingers as Melody let out a loud, but alluring scream that resonated across the battlefield. Overhead, the bubble vibrated violently before it tore open in an angelic scream that dumped down buckets of torrential water.

Arclight was able to shake off the effects of the cold and quickly buzzed her wings. The bug buzz move had destroyed the closest balloon droplets that were headed for her and a successive discharge had cleared another, but the explosion had thrown arias everywhere and Arclight knew that she was going to take a hit one way or another.

The least she could do was go down fighting.

While zipping through the maze as best she could, even her own deft flying wasn't going to be enough. Her eyes went to her target in the middle of taking a bow and though she was knocked down twice from explosive balloons, she sensed an opportunity. Both Elio and Kukui were taken aback when she pressed forward, her trainer immediately catching onto her idea.

"Thunderbolt!"

More of the oceanic operetta projectiles were still raining down, but Arclight kept her focus and blasted it as quickly as she could. He would've preferred a zap cannon, but the buildup and need to precisely aim was going to end up taking too much time. She needed to get something off now.

Melody's reaction was too slow and she screeched in agony as the thunderbolt struck home. Arclight's attack concluded as she was hit by three more of the operetta balloons and she finally went down for good.

Dammit! I've hit Melody how many times with electric attacks and still no paralysis?! Kukui is getting lucky as hell.

Like before, he had no time to lament about it. The battle had to go on.

"Arclight is incapable of battling! Melody is the winner! It is now one on one!" Hala declared. "The winner of this final matchup will determine the fate of the champion of the Alola region!"

It's down to this. Me and Strongside. Though Elio wanted to converse, he saw that Melody had wandered back into the circle of her aqua ring. If he didn't go on the attack soon, she'd eventually make a full recovery from all the damage Arclight did. Her sacrifice and efforts would be for nothing.

Strangely he felt the pressure begin to ease, like he had some sort of foresight to think that this match was his to win, even when his final pokemon had a distinct disadvantage.

Like I know what I'm going to do. Strongside and I.

"It's up to us now." Elio slipped Arclight's ball onto his belt and held his final pokemon. "Strongside…if we go down…we're going down swinging!"

He tossed the ball out and allowing Strongside to stretch his limbs and snarl in readiness. Having removed him from battle earlier gave his starter a fair amount of time to rest. He wasn't fully healthy, but it was either this or him losing the match.

"Watch out for the stealth rocks!" Elio cried, attempting to warn his pokemon. Strongside's reaction was just in time as he crossed his arms and held them close to his chest. Several jagged stones materialized out of thin air and dug into his front. He had taken a fair bit of damage due to stealth rock's effectiveness against fire, but his expression took on a mask of grim determination. Elio agreed that they need to hit hard and fast.

Hala's hand went down, signaling the start of the battle.

Fight hard and fast, but smart too. Strongside doesn't have Arclight's ability to change direction in the blink of an eye. Plus water type moves are going to hit a lot harder now.

"Okay let's begin with flame charge!" Elio barely got the command out of his mouth before Melody was beginning her own attack. Another sparkling aria.

Strongside changed his course as she fired the balloon. It struck him in the center where he didn't suffer any damage, but it quenched the flames surrounding him with a hiss.

I gotta get her out of that aqua ring.

"Flamethrower!"

Elio wasn't sure it was going to be enough. Strongside stopped running and a stream of fire erupted from his belt. Melody's own attack was interrupted and the moonblast she was preparing was misfired up into the sky. Still, the attack was rather ineffective and as soon as it had subsided; the scorch marks on Melody's coat were already beginning to fade.

"Something over the top then huh? Alright, overheat! All you got!"

It was too far for him to see, but Kukui's eyebrows raised in intrigue. He muttered something under his breath just as Melody was hit again, still too fast for her to prepare a proper counter. The overheat was far more powerful than a standard flamethrower and it was powerful enough to push her back where she tumbled end over end before staggering back up on her forelimbs. Elio had to resist the look of surprise. After that she still wasn't down. And worse was the harsh stat drop of Strongside's special attack.

"How interesting." Kukui said. "Sorry Elio, but this is where we'll be wrapping things up. Melody? Encore!"

Before he could issue a taunt to prevent that from happening, the primarina twirled around gracefully from her position and clapped her hands together. Strongside had been in the middle of jumping to drive a blaze kick when the fire was inexplicably snuffed out. The surprise on his face was replaced by a grimace as Melody took advantage of her own opportunity to hit him right on target with a sparkling aria. Knocked down, Strongside was slow to get up and to his dismay, only was able to attack with overheat.

The second one was far less powerful, thanks to the special attack drop. Melody was able to meet it head on. A third overheat caused her to barely flinch. Each one had a big reduction in his overall special attack capabilities. Elio had to almost openly admire it. Taking away all Strongside's ranged capabilities meant he was going to have to fight up close.

Figured this was going to happen. Eventually.

"Okay then, flame charge and get up close!" If he wants this fight to be won in the trenches, that's what we'll do!

Strongside luckily had his encore worn off and cloaked himself in fire to rush forward. Melody fired another sparkling aria that he managed to sidestep and change course. All he'd need to do is get close to where she wouldn't be able to effectively buildup and use any of her attacks that required time to execute.

Melody had another handful of balloons close by and she launched more of them. Strongside evaded two and lowered his shoulder, barreling into the primarina. She went down with a cry, using her last available aria to dissuade him from a follow up darkest lariat.

By now, both pokemon were heavily panting, the fatigue beginning to surface. The crowd's own frenzied state refused to diminish. They all knew this battle was in the closing acts.

"You're really making me have to pull out all the ho'opunipuni I have, aren't ya?" Kukui called out, seemingly having no change in his own energy levels or attitude since the battle had begun. "It doesn't matter now…if you win or you lose. You've proven to me and everyone else here that Alola is going to be represented by a fine champion! One that we can all be proud of and bring our region into the fold of the rest of the world!"

"Maybe…maybe." Elio's voice was hoarse enough that it came out as a bit of a croak. He felt like he had one final push and he could finally rest his weary cords. Back in close. Strongside's better speed should get him to avoid Melody's attacks. A good double blaze kick or darkest lariat should be enough.

"I gotta say cousin, I'm having the greatest time! Woo! But I'm pretty sure everyone is expecting a grand finish! So put everything you have left and come at me with all you got!"

Okay. Elio nodded to resume the temporary pause in the action. Strongside lowered his head in focus, listening intently for his trainer's instructions.

"Darkest lari-"

"Attract!"

Elio's blood ran cold. Even though Strongside tried to evade it, Melody had been on a hair trigger for prepping her own attack. She winked and sent a fast moving heart shaped projectile that completely splashed over Strongside's front. The boy realized that it was the same move she had used when throwing off Arclight's aim while trying to use gigavolt havoc.

Nonononono! THIS is how I'm going out? And he had this up his sleeve the whole time? Strongside's body language immediately relaxed and his lovestruck gaze centered on Melody, who happily twirled around on the other side. She further increased her allure by casually using one of her forelegs to flip a lock of her teal undone hair.

Oh come on, that's not fair!

Though he was on the cusp of losing, Elio tried to not worry about how his heart was hammering in his chest nor the adrenaline rushing through his veins. The odds may have been stacked against him, but he wasn't out until declared out.

Think, I gotta think of something! Strongside jumped to the side to avoid a moonblast, but he stood dangerously still in his trance. Elio cursed himself yet again for not aptly preparing for a move used against him that he was familiar with on his own side.

Out of all places, he thought back to the battle he used Strongside against Acerola, where his fire had unexpectedly snapped him out of his confusion…much to his own benefit. It was possible that it could work here as well.

But attraction was different than confusion. He had no sound proof that Strongside was able to do it, or even if he was going to listen.

There's only one way to find out. And I'm not going to spend later on thinking about why I didn't at least try.

Instead of attacking; Melody had retreated back to her aqua ring to start a strenuous healing process. Elio didn't have much time to try it out if he was going to make this kind of a desperate play.

"Sparkling aria, let's finish this off!" Kukui said. Melody gathered another balloon as Strongside stood frustratingly still. Her manner of commencing the attack was as if she was making it all the more harder for him to snap out of his infatuation.

I don't know if you're in there, but if there's been any time I've needed you partner…it's now!

"Strongside, flame charge straight ahead! Hurry!" His voice seemed to die out, along with his hopes. He had no idea if…

Strongside snarled loudly, gathering a slowly growing inferno around his body that erupted all over, hot enough that Elio had to almost cover his face. In his fury, the heel pokemon had shook his head and cried out, blinking rapidly to clear his mind.

"Did it work?" There was no time to further question it, all he knew was that he had to finish the battle with the lucky break he was given. Incineroar's ability of blaze was finally kicking in, activating when his endurance and overall energy levels were low to give his fire type attacks a big increase in damage.

Looking across the court, he saw that the sparkling aria from Melody was nearly finished and that she was surrounded by a lustrous glow of her own. Fueled by the aqua ring as well as her own ability of torrent, he knew that a single one of those attacks would cost him the battle. Everything he'd have fought for was for nothing.

Strongside exploded across the court, having to lunge in the open, but there was nowhere else he could go in order to effectively get to his target. At the same time, Melody's eyes narrowed as she locked onto his charging frame to use the sparkling aria.

For just a couple of seconds, everything felt in suspense. Elio and Kukui watching with careful eyes. The crowd in a myriad of horrified, excited or aghast expressions.

Elio swore that all of the air had been sucked out of the arena.

Melody's sparkling aria splashed and detonated right as he was just another person's length away. The flame charge was quenched with a visible hiss, suddenly blanketing steam everywhere.

Except Elio saw that Strongside was still balanced on his feet. The incineroar barreled the remainder of the distance with his arms spread out in a darkest lariat. Melody's eyes widened in surprise before she was hammered back into the ground. Down, but not out.

"Attract!" Kukui's facial expression shifted to a bit of a panic. "Stop him now!"

"Taunt!" Elio had figured his opponent was going to reattempt the same thing that nearly cost him the battle and had already issued the command of an attack to prevent it. Strongside managed to curl his paw in a provocative gesture that cause Melody's wink and subsequent attract to dissipate in the air. It wouldn't be long before it would wear off, but he was safe for the time being from getting infatuated or under another encore.

Just a little more voice. I promise. "Darkest lariat, finish this with everything you got!"

Melody wasn't stunned for long. She had started to gather energy for a moonblast when Strongside's arms hit her on the shoulder. The force of the blow had knocked her into the air and she desperately launched her attack. Strongside had seen it coming, stopping his movement just for a split second to allow it to miss.

Elio raised a fist. "Blaze kick! Finish this!"

Strongside was sprinting up and he jumped into the air to meet Melody as she fell. The primarina's reflexes were still incredibly sharp and she was preparing another sparkling aria in a last ditch attempt to take her foe out.

Strongside's trajectory took him under her, airborne in an arc that caused him to pass in front to behind where she couldn't turn her head to aim without taking the time to twist. His own body shifted as his foot became engulfed in a fire that was fueled by the blaze ability. Melody was already trying to turn herself when he kicked as hard as he could. The ball of his foot connected with her lower jaw, hooking underneath and tossing her straight into the court.

"Boom." Elio heard her wail loudly and crash into the floor, the steam from earlier abruptly clearing from the bottom as Melody's limp figure slammed into the ground. She tumbled end over end, to finally come to a stop on her stomach at the court's center.

Strongside landed in front of his trainer, stumbling forward and on one knee. Elio's heart lurched, hoping that his friend could hang on for just a little longer. Just until Melody was declared out. Similarly, everyone else was holding their breath right after the final attack. Aside from the crunching noises of their pokemon's respective actions, it was eerily silent and palpable.

Hala waited just a couple of heartbeats and to Elio's astonishment, had broken out in a huge grin to wave a hand to his side of the court. "Melody is unable to battle further! Strongside is the winner! This clinches the Champion match to Elio Kai Northstar!"

Elio was still blinking in shock as the crowd went wild, as the roars of their cheers, screams and shouts were decibels over anything else he had heard in the stadium. He looked up, seeing flashes of camera, people jumping up, hugging and every sort of imaginable celebration.

I won. I WON.

He wasn't sure what had taken over his body as he joined in the screaming, whooping and hollering as he sprinted out onto the court headed straight for Strongside.

The heel pokemon barely had time to react before his trainer tackled him, crying out at the top of his exhausted lungs.

"We did it! We fucking did it! We're champions!"

Strongside tiredly managed to stand up and embrace his trainer in a hug as the two of them jumped up and down, barely able to contain his excitement and relief.

"It's over! It's over! It's over!"

---

Everyone in the Iulio Suite watched in their own stunned silence, a range of emotions playing across their faces as they leaned forward in anticipation. It was only when Hala made his final officiating when they allowed themselves to join in the celebrating.

Lillie was the first one up, followed by Elaine, then Hau and the others. Everyone whooped, hollered, jumped for joy. She hugged Elio's mother, Gladion, Hau, Leilani and too many others for her to count.

He did it! I can't believe it!

The crowd began to chant his name again and she rushed to the open window to join in. By now, Elio had been picked up by his pokemon and raised above his head while laughing and grinning from ear to ear. Though the joy was infectious, she could tell that he had been completely spent.

Next to her, Gladion frowned as he felt his phone vibrate. He grumbled in annoyance, answering the call and putting it to his ear.

"Melody, you fought and did your very best. Mahalo. That's all I can ask of you." Kukui softly said. "Return and take a well deserved rest."

She vanished in a flash of light back into her ball as he let out a relieved sigh. Not as bad as Elio was likely feeling, but the battle had taken a great deal out of him. Yet he didn't feel bothered by the slightest of the loss. Instead, he felt an inner sense of pride, having helped Alola witness firsthand the rise of a new and worthy champion.

"I couldn't win even if I went all out." Kukui smiled as Elio and Strongside heard him. "But what a refreshing feeling! Woo! To see a brand new champion before my very own eyes!"

He let out a light laugh. "It's like what I told you back in Malie Garden, cousin. The strongest and best battles a trainer can have are the ones where you believe in each other to use those perfect moves in the heat of battle when it really counts! I've said it before and I'll say it again, the pokemon trainers right here grown in Alola are truly the best! I want everyone in the whole world to know it too!"

The crowds had quieted down, allowing the professor to talk more clearly.

"Mahalo for making this dream of mine come true! We may be a young League, but we're just as fierce and tough as anyone else out there!"

He stopped in front of Elio, beaming another wide smile. The boy nodded, finally clearing his throat and allowing his voice to have just a little bit of precious time to rest.

"And mahalo to you Professor. I couldn't have done this without you."

Kukui's face turned to surprise when Elio had hugged him tightly. "Thank you for everything."

"You're welcome cousin."

Clapping was heard from the stands as the spectators made another round of applause. Behind the professor, Elio saw the other three of the Elite Four and kahuna Hala make their way over, all having similar broad smiles and applauding. The latter carried a large lei of different colored flowers and large green leaves.

"In just a few moments," Hala started. "You will be enshrined in our very own Hall of Fame! Much as the sun shines upon the moon, illuminating it so that the friends you have made along your journey are equally bright and commemorated! From that moment when you picked your very first partner on Melemele Island, to when I faced you in the grand trial…to now. You and keiki Hau have grown so much!"

Elio tried to say something, but his parched throat had finally caught up to him. Luckily, Acerola bounded forward holding out a glorious liter of bottled water. He nearly snatched it out of her hands, twisting off the cap and taking a long interrupted drink. A finger was held up for people watching to wait, except it instead caused them all to laugh out loud.

Oh hell. That feels soooo great.

"I figured he'd need something like that." Acerola proudly said, putting her hands on her hips.

He finally stopped drinking, having drained more than half the bottle in a single swig. "Sorry about that. That's what happens when you talk too much."

More laughter followed.

"You really do love your pokemon with all your heart!"

"Yes, that's precisely why he was able to secure victory so soundly even when we threw everything we had at him."

Kahili stepped forward. "Congratulations. Don't get too comfortable now, there's a lot of people all gonna be aiming for that seat of yours. I hope you're ready for some rivals."

"Oh yeah." Elio said, his voice starting to come back to him after the refreshing drink. Who knew Alolan volcanic water could taste so damn good? "I'll be waiting."

"For another time yes," Hala told him. "But for now, this calls for a celebration! One that will be so grand that the sun and moon themselves shall take notice!"

Professor Kukui took the chance to approach from behind, putting a heavy hand on Elio's shoulder.

"Alright, let's get you in the Hall of Fame and then bust a U-turn back to Melemele Island. We've got a big festival to be had tomorrow!"

"Is Li-"

"And don't you worry, I'll be sure to let Lillie know. I know she won't want to miss it for anything!"

At his insistence, Hala approached and Elio automatically bowed his head down to allow him to place the large lei over his neck.

"As the head of the Alola Elite Four, I present to you all…the very first Koa of Alola! Elio Kai Northstar!"

I can't believe this. Not just any champion, but the title of koa…the very word of champion in native Alolan.

---

The crowds hadn't dispersed even though the time had been late at night. Elio had seen the last of them when both Professor Kukui and Hala summoned a kadabra to swiftly teleport him back to the League's massive and empty building that would eventually constitute the many trainers who would take up the championship mantle.

"This here is the Hall of Fame." Kukui gestured to the incredible works of art of a rich white marble, flanked by hallways and pedestals for hundreds of spots. At the very end on the far wall was a grand display that had been elevated above the rest.

Hala saw Elio glancing at it in curiosity. "Yes. While I am aware that you're humble enough to say you don't deserve something as grand, this is a great achievement and milestone in Alola's own history. Long have we been relatively isolated from much of the world with no Pokemon League to show for ourselves on the incredible skill and talents we grow on our island home. To be brought into the fold of the rest of the world with a brand new Koa is something not to be taken lightly. As the very first one of our new League…it is rightfully yours."

Kukui guided him to a pedestal in the center where six circular slots arranged in a circle surrounded the border.

"Here. Place all of your pokemon where we will record your achievement and your own saga to be added in Alola's rich history. For now…and all eternity."

Elio nodded and did such. I'm a part of Alolan history. A champion…the Koa.

Strongside the incineroar

Nani the milotic

Akela the lycanroc

Arclight the vikavolt

Bravo the braviary

Lochagos the kommo'o

WELCOME TO THE HALL OF FAME! YOU ARE ALOLA'S FIRST CHAMPION "KOA" ELIO KAI NORTHSTAR!

---

And finally done! This was it! The main portion of the story is now declared finished! I still have maybe about 5-6 chapters left of tying up loose ends. After all, we do have a celebration to get to!

It's been an amazing journey with you all and I'm super grateful for all those that joined me along for the ride. But this is not the end...

I have started a second novelization based off the newer titles of Pokemon Violet! Five chapters of that are currently out with more expected to be completed much more quickly now that this big hurdle of the story's conclusion is finished. Be sure to check it out with comments, favorites and all the in between appreciated!

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Translations:

Koa - Warrior/Champion

Kau Ka 'Onohi Ali'i I Luna - The eyes of the Royalty rest from above.

Hu a'e ke ahi lanakila a Koa - The fire of the Champion shall rise in victory

O Ke Kahuna Wale No Ka'u Makemake - My only desire is for the Kahuna

Ho'ohana ho'omaha - Use rest

Lawe Hiamoe - Take a nap

Mahalo hoa kahiko - Thank you old friend

Mo'olelo - Saga/Tale/Story

Papale - Bastard

Maemae - Pure

Hui pū - Combine

I mua - Ahead/In Favor

Lei - Wreath. Leis are often recognized by a wreath of flowers worn around a person's neck and is often symbolic with commemorative ceremonies such as graduations, weddings, baby showers or crowning of winners.

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As always, a huge mahalo to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited and followed...as well as those who've shown their general support and love for myself and this story. It's been a massive pleasure writing this brainchild of mine from its start back in 2017 to now and although it's coming to a bittersweet end, I'm very happy for how it has turned out.

I'll see you for the next update as well as on A Life You Will Remember.

Brav