Draco: Was just informed about the Project Voltage crossover and squeed like a fangirl. This gratuitous fangame might not be quite as absurd as I had thought.

PRE-SUBMIT EDIT: Yes, I started writing this chapter shortly after the project began. Summer sucks, okay? END PRE-SUBMIT EDIT

NEW EDIT: This chapter has been revised due to a change of heart concerning which battle format would be more appropriate. You may have previously read this chapter as Double Battles. END NEW EDIT

Pokémon and all related properties © Nintendo. Virtual Singers of Piapro Studio © Crypton Future Media.

Drinks on Me

There was an island off the east coast of Pokétopia, with forestry surrounding the base of an active volcano. Jeanne had been rather surprised to hear that the next Colosseum was built upon the volcano's slope - near enough to the peak that there was a series of expansive lifts to carry challengers or spectators to and from the Colosseum - and still more surprised when she heard that it had been constructed to replace a Colosseum that had formerly been stationed above the peak. As she rode the lift, she did everything in her power not to draw attention to herself... and though she wasn't completely successful, the only person who seemed to recognize her was courteous enough not to make a scene of it.

There were separate lobbies here for challengers and spectators - the reasoning for which became clear when Jeanne stepped into the former. There was a small table set up in the middle, with a couple chairs sitting around it; a tea set was laid out on the table, and a brunette woman dressed in red was seated with a drink. On seeing Jeanne arrive, she lowered her cup with a smile. "Well, hello there. Your timing is excellent."

"Hi," Jeanne returned. "Does that mean I have the hour right?"

"Yes," Meiko confirmed. "But more importantly, I just finished the pot." Jeanne double-took as Meiko got to her feet. "That leaves me good and ready for what's to come. Hope you give me a good show, and a better battle!"

"I can try my best," Jeanne promised, and Meiko grinned as she started towards the battlefield entrance.

+x+x+x+

"Pokétopia, can you hear me?!"

A loud roar in the affirmative echoed from the crowd in response to Meiko's call; the sun was shining down intensely on the battlefield as Jeanne eyed up her opponent's Battle Pass on the screen. "No way... that's gotta be bait, right?" A Charizard, Incineroar, and Cinderace were staring off of the lineup next to a Lucario, Greninja, and Decidueye, and Jeanne couldn't help but observe that this was the first Trainer she'd seen in a Colosseum who seemed to have a type specialty. Remembering that Rotation Battles called for at least four Pokémon, she made a point to have Primarina on her team but not in the vanguard, just in case.

"Glad to see the heat hasn't ruined your mood!" Meiko praised. "Keep it up - our combatants are ready to get your blood pumping with some amazing battles, and I want you to show them your appreciation!"

The crowd cheered in joy.

Meiko swept a hand skyward with a flourish. "Then let's see some action!"

She started towards the red corner as the doors opened; Jeanne dashed out to the edge of the rotating platform as her opponent - a tall figure in white whose pass had identified him as Handel - stepped before his own. A sinister laugh emerged from him as he raised his hands, and Jeanne noted that a pristine white glove covered each as he brandished his Poké Balls - two seized from above with a solid grip, one resting in his palm with his fingers curled around it at erratic angles.

"...Creepy," Jeanne muttered, readying her own Poké Balls.

The two sent out their Pokémon; two of her opponents were Fire-types, but the one on point could've had the type advantage if she'd sent out Primarina. "For the blue corner: Archeops, Goodra, Volcarona! For the red corner: Charizard, Lucario, Incineroar!" The Aura Pokémon took a ready stance, and blue burned on his palms as barriers rose up around the Fire-types and Goodra. "Let's have it!"

"Ready?" Handel had a dominating voice, and thrust a finger forward. "Go!"

Lucario drew his arms back, and aura welled between them between them; Jeanne quickly moved her feet, activating the controls for the rotating platform. A barrier rose up around Archeops before Lucario could make striking distance, and her half of the stage rotated to put Volcarona on the receiving end of the Metal Claw. Without any hesitation, the Sun Pokémon leapt forth, but phantoms of Double Team spread out around Lucario, into which he vanished before the Fiery Dance could batter him.

He looked like he didn't want to try his luck with a second set of steps; Handel's platform promptly carried him away before Volcarona could follow up, and Charizard lunged forward with a wreathe of flame, slamming a Flare Blitz into Volcarona hard enough to fling her back onto Jeanne's platform. The Flame Pokémon elected to Fly heavensward to build up for the second blow, and Jeanne rotated the Bug-type away to put Goodra on point; the Dragon Pokémon unleashed a bolt of Thunder, and the blast was enough to knock Charizard straight out of the sky.

"Thunder claps down!" Meiko called. "The blue corner has already pulled ahead!"

Handel withdrew the unconscious Fire-type and sent out Greninja to take his place, then swiftly rotated his platform to put Incineroar on point. Jeanne rotated her own platform to have Archeops take the Darkest Lariat that came their way; the First Bird Pokémon retaliated with a Rock Slide to batter the Fire-type, leaving him reeling. Handel moved him aside so that Greninja could take point, flinging a bombardment of Water Shuriken in Archeops' direction.

The stars were much less effective in the sunlight, but they were enough to knock out the Rock-type; Jeanne withdrew him and sent out Primarina to take his place. She and Handel moved their platforms simultaneously, and both of the Water-types were wrapped in barriers as they were carried away; Lucario lunged out of his barrier with an Extreme Speed, battering Volcarona before he even realized the Fire-type was there.

A sheepish grin appeared on the Aura Pokémon's face before a Fiery Dance battered him with embers, empowered by the sunlight. The Steel-type stood no chance, and Handel withdrew him before rotating Incineroar to face the music; the Heel Pokémon gave an annoyed grimace, but nonetheless charged forward, determined on fighting to the end even as Primarina was rotated to face him.

Her Sparkling Aria was cut off by a Throat Chop, but she promptly retaliated with a Hydro Pump that flung him backwards onto Handel's platform... yet didn't quite knock him out, weakened by the sun as it was. Glaring, the Soloist Pokémon stood up on her tail, and an ephemeral moon appeared above her; Incineroar tried to brace himself for the blow, yet in his current state, nothing would make a difference. A blast of Fairy magic slammed into him and left him tumbling backwards, skidding on his face until he came to a stop in front of his Trainer.

"Shone down with a Moonblast!" Meiko mused; Handel gave a yell of pain as though he had been the one struck, falling to his knees even as he held out his last Poké Ball to withdraw Incineroar. "And with that, the blue corner claims a definitive victory!" With a grin, Jeanne dashed forward, high-fiving Primarina's fin and one of Volcarona's wings before fist-bumping Archeops' talons. "Here's hoping to see the challenger keep it up in the battles to come!"

"Definitely!" Jeanne called out, withdrawing her Pokémon. "We're going all the way!"

+x+x+x+

The battles that followed were much closer victories than her first one, but Jeanne was able to make good on her promise all the same - culminating in Froslass finishing off her last opponent with a hellish Blizzard, leaving her alone on the battlefield.

"And down they go!" The Snow Land Pokémon curtsied to the crowd as the battle ended, though Jeanne called her back with a muttering of 'Showoff' when she started blowing kisses. "The blue corner just barely claimed this victory! Which," Meiko added as Jeanne made to return, "if I count correctly, means that it's time for the final match!"

Healing up her team, Jeanne glanced at the Battle Pass displayed for her opponent, wondering what she might expect from this one.

"She's all yours."

"Thank you!" called a male voice that Jeanne recognized as Kaito's; she quickly reclaimed her team from the healing machine and started out into the battlefield. "It's time for our Colosseum Leader to take the stage! Her opponent: the challenger who has overcome all who stood in her way!"

Meiko brandished a Poké Ball in each hand, and the light gleamed off the Z-Power Ring on her left wrist. "Better be ready," she taunted. "I'm about to bring the heat."

"Can't be worse than that first match!" Jeanne taunted back.

The two hurled their Balls forward; the Soloist Pokémon found herself staring down a cursed teapot, while her backup found themselves eyeing up a mess of gears and a fire-burning titan. "Primarina, Lucario, Archeops for the blue corner! Polteageist, Klinklang, Coalossal for the red corner!"

"Let's mix it up!" Meiko taunted.

"Don't serve me anything watered down!" Jeanne retorted.

Primarina had no intention of wasting her time on the field, unleashing a Hydro Pump that carved a line across the Colosseum and slammed into Polteageist. To her displeasure, the Black Tea Pokémon immediately retaliated with a Giga Drain, energy flowing out of Primarina and unmaking a good deal of the damage she'd taken; then Meiko rotated Klinklang to the fore, and the Gear Pokémon began spinning viciously to charge up a Zap Cannon. Jeanne rotated Primarina out of the path of fire, putting Lucario up in her place; Klinklang loosed the blast all the same, only to watch it soar past the Aura Pokémon to strike the wall of the Colosseum.

Lucario took the opening to fling an Aura Sphere in retaliation, and the blast rang true, leaving its gears knocking; Meiko promptly sent Coalossal forward to loose a blast of his own, singing Lucario with an Incinerate. Jeanne rotated him away to put Primarina up front, but Klinklang was sent back to the fore, and this time the Zap Cannon fired true, slamming into the Soloist Pokémon mercilessly.

"Blasted by Zap Cannon!" Kaito called. "The blue corner takes the first knockout of the battle!"

Jeanne withdrew Primarina, sent out Goodra to take her place, and quickly triggered her platform again; Meiko did the same, only to put Polteageist on the receiving end of Lucario's Dark Pulse. The wave of black aura knocked out the Black Tea Pokémon in a single swift blow, and Meiko elected to rotate Klinklang to the front and then switch her knockout. Jeanne didn't know a Rotation Battle platform allowed for that; it certainly kept her attention off of the replacement as Klinklang focused a Charge Beam on the Fighting-type.

Lucario took the blow and charged forth for a Close Combat to finish off the Gear Pokémon; that was of small comfort as Coalossal was rotated forward, leaping into the air before his barrier even receded. The Coal Pokémon was wreathed in flames, and Lucario had no chance to react before he was landed on, knocked out without a prayer.

"Melted down by Heat Crash!" Kaito sounded like he'd felt that one. "The red corner is determined to cling to a lead!"

Jeanne followed Meiko's lead by rotating Archeops forward before withdrawing Lucario; the First Bird Pokémon descended talons-first to unleash an Earthquake, and even as the tremors left Coalossal shaking, the barriers protected both Goodra and Meiko's remaining Pokémon.

No, Jeanne realized as she finally spared the field her attention - an Ultra Beast, skinny and insectoid, with wings that flowed down behind her like a human woman's hair. The Pheromosa narrowed her eyes haughtily at the battlefield, and as Archeops lifted into the air, Jeanne saw the Ultra Beast raise a Z-Crystal in one hand, rolling it across her fingers.

"Oh, Mulch."

Coalossal unleashed a barrage of Rock Blasts, battering Archeops until Jeanne moved him aside; then she raised a Poké Ball towards Goodra, withdrawing the Dragon Pokémon and then swinging the Ball back to set off her Dynamax Band. Power flowed into the Ball, and its form enlarged in her grip; the rotated of its own volition per the terms, Archeops being locked at the halfway point between the two reserve slots to make sure that Goodra was the active Pokémon for the entirety of his Dynamax.

Jeanne turned back to the battlefield, aiming one hand forward. "Wreck them!"

Coalossal had no intention of letting them do anything of the sort; he loosed a vicious Tar Shot that slammed into Goodra even as a Max Wyrmwind wreathed him in painful force. It was enough to knock him out, and Meiko rotated Pheromosa to the fore, withdrawing the Coal Pokémon with a smirk. "Let's see what you've got!"

With a screech, the Lissome Pokémon charged forward, barrelling straight at the supersized Dragon Pokémon without hesitation. Before Goodra could even react, a vicious Lunge slammed into him, leaving him stumbling despite the Dynamax; he swiftly retaliated with a ferocious Max Strike that left the Ultra Beast stumbling back. She soared over the barrier encompassing Archeops and landed at Meiko's side, glancing back at her Trainer with a glare.

Meiko nodded, and then glared at Jeanne. "Alright, then! No more playing around!"

"Oh!" Kaito's yell of surprise echoed around the Colosseum as Meiko crossed her arms before her, and her Z-Power Ring shone as she thrust them forward. "Looks like our Colosseum Leader isn't pulling any punches!"

Meiko brought her hands back and then swung them forward again, this time with her fingers interlocked with each other like fangs as she pulled them apart. Z-Power gathered around Pheromosa, and dragon mist swarmed around her legs as she twisted into a flurry of kicks, flinging forth a drake of pure energy. The figure twisted through the air before zeroing in on Goodra, and as it made contact it burst with enough light to consume his Dynamaxed form - and a blast of light emerged from Goodra himself as the Dynamax wore off.

He was still shrinking when Jeanne's platform rotated Archeops forward and dropped the barrier; the Ultra Beast realized too late that the battle wasn't over, and found herself bombarded with agile blows from the First Bird Pokémon until she was flung to the ground. Meiko's jaw fell open as she realized her ace in the hole had been knocked out, and Jeanne withdrew the knocked-out Goodra with a grin.

"Outmaneuvered by Acrobatics!" Kaito exclaimed. "The battle has ended, and the blue corner has seized victory from the jaws of defeat!" Meiko withdrew the unconscious Pheromosa as he continued, "And that, ladies and gentlemen, means the challenger has overcome Volcano Colosseum!"

With a groan, Meiko stepped forward with a sigh. "I'm gonna need a drink after that," she mused. Offering her hand; "Well-earned."

"Says the one who made me work for it," Jeanne retorted, accepting the hand and shaking it.

Draco: Just as a toothpick substitutes for Ujiyasu's pipe in Conquest, I'm having tea substitute for Meiko's sake in Grand Stage. (She does run a café in Street Sekai, so "Meiko with a hot drink" has precedent.)

Shamelessly going to admit that 'Handel' is a giant Smash reference. Lucario, Charizard, Greninja, and Incineroar are, of course, the fully-evolved non-legendary Pokémon fighters. Decidueye and Cinderace, on the other hand, are the Pokémon I wish had gotten in as fighters. Decidueye is probably the more reasonable of the two, because it was in the running before they settled on Incineroar; Cinderace MIGHT have gotten in as a DLC fighter if Decidueye had been the Alola representative, but Incineroar makes two Fire-types already.

Arena details - Volcano Colosseum may randomly have harsh sunlight, Camouflage will make your Pokémon a Fire-type, Nature Power will turn into Lava Plume, and Secret Power may inflict a burn on the opponent. Colosseum Mode battles take place in broad daylight; you need to earn your first win in Rotation Battles, because that way Meiko is "mixing her drinks".

Meiko's team consists of Polteageist, Sableye, Klinklang, Alomomola, Coalossal, and a Pheromosa with a Dragonium-Z.