Chapter 57:
The Grand Festival, Part II
Venesi City
"Oblivicorn, Horn Attack!" Serena ordered.
Oblivicorn neighed as she charged forward, lowering her head and aiming her front horn, which started to glow with a white light, towards one of her opponents.
"Parry it with Iron Tail, Metalynx!" Ash ordered.
The Armored Pokemon's sickle-like tail began to shimmer with a metallic glow, and swung it against the coming equine, clashing against the coming horn, producing a brief burst of sparks.
It was the second day of the Grand Festival, when the Contest Battle Round would begin. Like the Appeal Round, the Festival wouldn't resume until the afternoon, so Serena had some time to do some light training in order to ensure her Pokemon were in top shape. Thankfully, there were many battlegrounds next to the Contest Hall for the coordinators to use, and right now, she was using one in a spar against Ash.
"Coatlith, get behind Oblivicorn and use Dragon Rage!" Serena ordered.
"Quickly Frosthra, pull Metalynx to the side with String Shot!" Ash ordered.
Coatlith hovered behind her partner and unleashed a torrent of blue and pinkish flames from her beak-like mouth, which washed harmlessly over Oblivicorn but would definitely harm Metalyxn. Fortunately, Frosthra was able to latch his partner with a sticky thread and use it to pull her out of the Dragon-type move's trajectory.
"Good one, Serena! You almost had Ash!" Bonnie, sitting on a bench next to Clemont, cheered.
"Yeah. What can I say, Ash and his Pokemon are pretty fast on the uptake," Serena said.
"That means you'll be prepared against any opponent that plans to blindside you with speed," Clemont observed. "Plus, the way you took advantage of Oblivicorn's immunity to Dragon-type moves was pretty clever."
"Thanks. Though-"
"Heeeeeey!" a new, female voice called her.
Everybody turned around to see Aria, in her "Ariana" disguise instead of her usual performing outfit, running towards them.
"Aria!" Serena said, beaming with joy.
"Hello there, Serena!" Aria said, after finally catching up to her. "Whew, I thought I was never going to find you. I asked for you at the Pokemon Center and they told me that you'd be around here."
"Were you looking for Serena? Why?" Ash asked.
"Obviously, I wanted to talk with her a little after all this time!" the Kalos Queen said, her smile unwavering. "Palermo told me that you were going to do contests, but I wasn't expecting to see you in this region of all places."
"Hehe, yeah. There's a funny story behind that..." Serena chuckled as she averted her eyes.
"Anyway, I'm glad that you're here, otherwise we wouldn't have met, tehee!" Aria laughed, before her face grew more serious. "By the way, I wanted to tell you that I think that you were in the right for calling Ambrose out. Those comments were completely out of place."
"You do?" Serena gasped, surprised by such a confession.
"Of course! I worked a lot to become Kalos Queen, and only somebody who worked just as hard would be good enough to challenge me, just like you did," Aria said, shaking his head. "It's a pity you didn't come to my stage. You'd have gotten a much fairer judgment."
"That may be true, but given that there's some history between you and Serena, some might have called into question your judgment and bias," Clemont pointed out.
"Oh, bummer, you're right," Aria said, pouting a little. However, her bad mood immediately vanished upon seeing the Pokemon around them. "Oh, Tandorian Pokemon! I never had the chance to see one up close," she walked towards Oblivicorn. "I remember this one! You used her in yesterday's Appeal Round, right?"
Aria gently petted Oblivicorn on the head, and the mare let out a neigh.
"Yes. This is Oblivicorn," Serena said. "And this," Serena said, waving at Coatlith, who lowered her head to Serena and Aria's level. "Is Coatlith."
"Whoa, you're quite the big girl, aren't you?" Aria giggled, as she rubbed Coatlith under her beak.
"She is. And you should hear her sing," Serena said.
"She sings too? Oh, oh! Would you sing for me? Just something short. I love Pokemon who can sing," Aria gushed.
"What do you say, Coatlith?" Serena asked her dragon.
Coatlith didn't need any more prodding, as the jungle dragon wasted no time and began to intone a beautiful, fast paced rhythmic melody using Grass Whistle. If it lasted longer, it would have been enough to start a dance.
"You're such a good singer, Coatlith," Aria said, giggling at the dragon.
"Coooo!" Coatlith cried happily at the praise.
"Anyway, I wish I could stay and talk more, but I have to go pretty soon in order to prepare for this afternoon," Aria said. "I wanted to drop by and wish you luck for the festival, but obviously I couldn't do that when I'm currently working as a judge, but now I'm off the clock... oh well, I'll be seeing you in a few hours! I hope you do your best!"
With that, the redhead turned away and ran towards the Contest Hall.
"Well, you hear that. It would be a shame if Aria didn't see you at your best, wouldn't it?" Bonnie cheekily asked.
Serena chuckled, but nodded and resumed her training with renewed vigor.
…
Afternoon came, and with it, the beginning of the Contest Battle Rounds. Luck had it so Serena would be the very first to battle. Her opponent was a boy a few years older than her, wearing the same get-up as the Acolytes of the Dragon – and unsurprisingly, Jillian revealed he was from Snowbank Town.
Serena's Pokemon of choice were Coatlith and Pangoro, while her opponent chose a Glavinug and a Jolteon. After a tense battle, Serena managed to score a win when his opponent ran out of points. She recalled her Pokemon before thanking them, and returned to the waiting area after letting out a sigh.
"Well, one battle down, four more to go," Serena said to herself.
Once she arrived at the waiting area she was congratulated by Aisha, Vitor and Leona. The three of them, however, didn't spend much time chatting, as they had their attention on the following matches in order to study potential competition. A couple matches later, Aisha was called for the next battle.
"Well, here I go. Wish me luck, guys!" Aisha said as she jogged towards the stage.
Aisha's opponent was some green haired girl. The biker chose her Tanscure and Tubareel, and just like that time in Burole Town, Aisha had requested a water battleground for the sake of her Pokemon.
Unlike that other contest, though, Aisha was the one who won, since her opponent made the mistake of using a status move on her Tanscure. After that, the match ended pretty quickly.
"Wohooo!" she hollered upon entering the waiting area, and unsurprisingly, walked towards Serena. "Hey there! Look at that, the two of us are passing to the second round!"
"Indeed. Congratulations on your battle, Aisha. A well earned victory," Serena told her.
"Also, check out, turns out I was right," Aisha said, pointing to a screen that kept track of how the tournament was going.
"You were right about... what exactly?" Serena asked, not following her.
"It isn't obvious? If the two of us win our next matches and classify for the quarterfinals – and I know we will – then we will finally have our epic rematch!" Aisha proclaimed, her voice full of excitement.
Indeed, now that Serena took a look at the tournament brackets, her and Aisha's next match, respectively, were first and second. Meaning that if the two were to win, they'd face each other the next day on the quarterfinals.
…
The first round concluded, with both Vitor, Leona and Sayaka passing to the second. Curiously, Sayaka's match was the very last of the round, and as soon as it ended, Jillian immediately announced the beginning of the second round.
Serena's opponent this time around was a brown haired girl wearing a black and pink dress. She sent a Kinetmunk and a Gliscor, while Serena chose Syrentide and Sylveon. Her opponent took advantage of Gliscor's Ground-type to harass Serena's Pokemon with wide-area Electric-type moves such as Discharge. However, Serena was able to overcome such a tactic, and won when the timer ran out and she had more points than her opponent.
Once again, she was congratulated by her friends and rivals for passing to the quarterfinals, and almost immediately after that, Aisha was called for the next battle.
The biker chose Umbreon and Chimaconda to fight against her opponent's Jolteon and Tracton, a choice that paid off since Aisha quickly claimed a victory by KO.
That sealed it: Serena's next match will be against Aisha.
Needless to say, Aisha returned to the waiting area even more excited and happy than she had left. Not just for her victory, but because she finally had her much wanted "epic rematch" against Serena, a fact she didn't hesitate to rub into Vitor and Natalie's face.
"We can still have our rematch against Serena if she beats you," Vitor pointed out.
"Which won't happen, because not only I'm going to beat her, but I'm going to win this whole thing!" the biker proudly boasted. "But hey, you can always ask her for a spar once the Grand Festival is over!"
Serena stayed to keep watching the rest of the battles of the second round, and just like before, Vitor, Leona and Sayaka also qualified for the quarterfinals on top of Aisha, the ninja once again fighting the closing match.
Kind of funny that more than half of the top 8 were her and her four rivals.
"And with this match, the second round of the Grand Festival is complete! The quarterfinals and semifinals will be tomorrow afternoon, so be sure to come here to watch it!" Jillian reminded the audience as she closed today's phase.
…
Half an hour after today's round of battles had ended, Serena had finally changed back into her casual clothes and was heading for the exit. Ash had sent her a message telling her that he and the rest of the group would be waiting for her at the Contest Hall's main entrance.
However, as she headed for the entrance, she ran into somebody she wasn't expecting to see, but in hindsight, it made perfect sense.
"Hello, Serena. Fancy seeing you here."
"Palermo," Serena said, still stupefied over running into the Showcase producer. Then again, if Aria was here, it would make sense that Palermo had come with her.
"Say, would you mind taking a walk with me?" the woman requested.
"Uh, sure. Let me send a quick text..." Serena said, as she typed a short message to Ash via Pokegear telling him and the others not to wait for her and to head for the Pokemon Center. "Alright, done."
Palermo nodded, and motioned her to follow. "Come."
The middle aged woman led Serena to one of the Hall's backstage exits, and from there the two of them went to a small, nearby park that had a statue of a Gargryph – Serena believed this one was a statue – and sat on one of the empty benches that gave them a look towards the rest of the city, which was particularly beautiful under the gentle orange glow of the sunset.
For a few moments, adult and teenager didn't say anything, and just enjoyed the calm of the moment.
"I see that you took my advice and started doing contests," Palermo finally broke the silence. "Though if I remember correctly, I advised you to go to Hoenn, not Tandor."
"I know," Serena said a bit sheepishly, averting her gaze. "There was... a last minute change of plans."
"I can imagine. Though, in the end, if you decided to go to Tandor, Hoenn, or any other region it's irrelevant," Palermon continued. "Then again, if you didn't come here, I would have missed you seeing your performances live."
Serena held her breath. "You saw them?"
"Indeed I did. As somebody who still remembers your performances back in Kalos, the improvement is quite remarkable," Palermon said.
Serena would normally beam at the older woman's praise, but a thought crushed her fleeting joy. "Then... you saw how I lost my nerves with that judge..."
"Yes, I did. Though, I don't blame you for reacting the way you did." Palermo said, much to Serena's relief. "I've seen a fair share of strict and harsh judges – I can be one myself – but there are lines you never cross. His comments were wildly inappropriate. Had this been a Showcase, I would have had words with that man."
"Heh. Aria told me the same," Serena said.
This seemed to surprise Palermo, as the woman raised an eyebrow. "Aria? Did you talk with her?"
"She came to talk to me shortly before the battle round began. She wanted to greet me again after so long and to unofficially wish me luck," Serena said.
"Of course she did. She wouldn't be Aria otherwise," Palermo sighed, sounded a bit exasperated, but at the same time proud.
"Yeah, she's amazing, isn't she? How she's always there for others, bringing smiles beyond simple performing," Serena observed.
"That's why I decided to take her under my wing. You need something more than just talent and hard work to become Kalos Queen. People like Aria are quite the rare sight," Palermo said, contemplative.
"And that's why you decided to make me the same offer?" Serena asked.
"Indeed. When I saw you competing against Aria on the latest Master Class Showcase... even if I knew that Aria was going to win, I could tell that with enough help and more experience, you could grow into somebody who could dethrone her one day."
"Thanks for your kind words," Serena said in earnest. "But I feel that I'm still very far away from that goal."
Palermo looked at her with curiosity. "And why do you think that?"
"Well... I've been trying to make people smile too, in my own way. Most of the time I think I've been doing a good job, but..." she paused a little, grabbing the hem of her skirt as the memory of her confrontation with Sayaka in Legen Town replayed in her mind. "...but there are people that I can't make them smile no matter how hard I try. And I can't help but think that Aria wouldn't have any problems reaching them."
"This might come as a surprise to you, but Aria doesn't reach everybody either," Palermo replied. "So don't feel too bad if there are people you can't make smile. You're not perfect."
Ah, if only it were that simple. But she wasn't sure if Palermo would want to hear her long history with Sayaka, nor if she had the time to tell it in its entirety.
"Venesi City is surely beautiful, isn't it?" Palermo suddenly asked. Serena wondered if she just changed the topic not to make her feel bad. "Especially at this time of the day."
"Yeah, it's almost magical," Serena said, admiring the cityscape, and a certain, happy memory made its way to her mind. "It was in this very city, on a night like this, where Ash and I had our first kiss."
Serena realized too late what she just said when Palermo shot her another curious glance, followed by an amused smirk.
"So that's why you're in Tandor, huh? Well, that's one mystery solved," the older woman said with a light chuckle.
"I-It's not like that!" Serena was quick to raise her hands defensively, as she noticed her face heating up. "I mean, maybe it was, but it's not just-"
"Realx, dear. I'm not judging you. I may be old, but I still remember what it's like to be both young and in love. I'm not going to chastise you because of that. Yesterday's performance confirmed that you haven't been neglecting your career for him," Palermo said in a reassuring tone. "Plus, I can tell that that boy is quite the inspiration for you, isn't he?"
Serena took a couple moments to answer.
"...yes," she finally admitted.
"That's good. You may seek to inspire and support others, but everybody, Aria and you included, need someone who can inspire and support them in turn," Palermo explained. "You're still human after all."
Serena reflected on those words. Part of her realization on why she had lost to Aria so badly was because she was so used to relying on others to help her instead of helping other people. And in a way, she never really outgrew that even after coming to Tandor, given how often she turned to Ash to help her prepare for the world of contests.
But being independent didn't have to mean cutting everybody off or that you had to do everything yourself, did it?
"I think I already held you long enough. Come on, go back with your friends, I'm sure they're wondering what's taking you so long," the woman said.
"Alright," Serena said, standing up from the bench, and turning towards Palermo one last time. "It's good to see you again. I hope you enjoy seeing me tomorrow."
"I'm sure you'll more than meet my expectations," Palermo replied.
…
The next day arrived, and Serena and her friends wasted no time in getting to the Contest Hall. As it was usual, they parted ways at the entrance, with Serena taking a backdoor that would take her to the changing room, and then to the waiting area.
She couldn't help but notice how empty said room looked. During the first day it was packed with so many people, it was impossible to move without accidentally shoving someone. Even after the plus hundred people were culled by more than half, the waiting area was still relatively full the previous day. But today, there were only eight people.
"Serena," Aisha said, jolting Serena a bit. She had been so enthralled in her own thought she hadn't noticed the biker walking up to her.
"Uh, yes?" the honey blonde asked.
"So, this is it. Our epic rematch," she repeated. Serena noticed that Aisha lacked the burning excitement she was brimming with less than twenty four hours ago at the idea of battling her again. "Nervous?"
"A little," she admitted. "You?"
Aisha let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank goodness it's not just me. Because yeah, I'm kind of nervous too. I thought I wouldn't be, given that I managed to make it this far, but the idea of fighting you again... not gonna lie, you're cut above the rest. This might not be the finals, but it feels like such to me."
"You're also an incredibly skilled coordinator, Aisha. The idea of facing you again in such a high stakes scenario gives me goosebumps," Serena said, before looking the biker in the eye, her expression morphing to one of determination. "But that's not going to stop me or my Pokemon from giving our all in this battle."
This made the biker smirk, and nodded in approval. "Same. You have no idea how much I've been preparing for this moment."
It took no time for an assistant to enter and tell Serena and Aisha that it was their turn to battle.
…
"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the third day of the Tandor Grand Festival!" Jillian announced, making the whole audience roar. "Yesterday we had the first and second rounds of the Contest Battle phase, and today the quarterfinals of said phase will take place!"
"Look, there they are!" Bonnie excitedly pointed out as both Serena and Aisha walked onto the stage.
"Now, the first battle of the quarterfinals is about to begin! On my right, from Vaniville Town in Kalos, Serena!" Jillian announced, the public cheered.
"Yes! Go Serena, this battle is good as won!" Ash shouted.
"That's my daughter, people! Come on Serena, go for broke!" Grace excitedly said, pumping both her fists.
"And on my left, from Kevlar Town, Aisha!" Jillian continued, and the public cheered for the biker as well, though as it happened before, no one was louder than the Dunsparce Gang bikers, who chanted "AISHA! AISHA! AISHA!" over and over. "Coordinators, present your Pokemon!"
"Pangoro, Oblivicorn, go!" Serena said, tossing two pokeballs forward.
The two capture devices snapped open, one of them releasing a mass of golden stars, the second a torrent of green leaves. The stars and the leaves condensed into the forms of the Dark Horse and the Daunting Pokemon, respectively.
"Goro!" Pangoro said, punching the palm of his paw.
Oblivicorn neighed and stomped the ground with one hoof.
"Nice choice of Pokemon, Serena. Those shades look really sick on your Pangoro," Aisha praised, and Pangoro smiled and gave her a thumbs up in return. "And I didn't say anything before, but wow, you have an Oblivicorn! That's such a metal Pokemon! Sorry if I sound judgemental, but I always thought that you'd prefer to have a Kiricorn."
"It's okay. There's a... long story behind Oblivicorn's evolution. Once I'll be happy to tell you once the battle is over," Serena replied.
"I see. Well, as cool as your Pokemon are, they won't hold a candle to mine! Arbok, Dunseraph, gear up!" Aisha said, sending her own pokeballs.
The pokeballs opened, releasing Aisha's choice. Arbok appeared around noisy, multicolored fireworks, while Dunseraph emerged from within a torrent of purple flames.
"Huh. Aisha's Dunsparce has evolved into Dunseraph," Ash commented. He seemed to be just as surprised as Serena appeared by this fact.
"Dunseraph. I don't know that Pokemon. Is it strong?" Shauna asked, looking at the winged serpent. "Because it looks pretty strong to me."
"Pretty much. Ash has one and is quite the powerhouse, even if he has a bit of an attitude problem," Clemont explained.
"Well, if Ash has one, then Serena must have some experience fighting against such Pokemon, right?" Shauna asked. "She told me that Ash helped her train a lot and that they often sparred."
Ash and Clemont looked at each other with worry, and wondered if Serena was regretting her decision to refuse to let Ash use Dunseraph after that incident way back near the beginning of their journey when he was just a Dunsparce.
Miette, however, was looking at Aisha's Arbok with her eyes narrowed. "Is that Arbok wearing a jeweled collar?"
The bluenette's comment drew everybody's attention to the Cobra Pokemon, and they noticed that yes, Arbok was wearing a black leather collar under its head with a purple gemstone on it.
"Wait a minute... that looks like a Mega Stone!" Clemont said in realization.
"Mega Stone? Can Arbok Mega Evolve too?" Ash asked.
But before anyone could answer, Jillian officially began the match.
"Five minutes on the clock! Begin!"
~Serena (Pangoro, Oblivicorn) VS Aisha (Arbok, Dunseraph)~
"I'll be taking the first move! Arbok, Seed Bomb!" Aisha ordered.
"Shaabak!" Arbok hissed, as it opened its jaws and fired a salvo of watermelon-sized explosive seeds towards Serena's Pokemon.
"Pangoro, block it with Arm Thrust, quickly!" Serena urged.
"Goro!" Pangoro cried, taking a step forward and clenching his paws into fists, which began to glow with a white light. The Daunting Pokemon began to thrust his fists back and forth, destroying the Grass-type projectiles.
Aisha's points dropped a little.
"Yes! And now, Oblivicorn, Fairy Wind!" Serena ordered.
Oblivicorn neighed as her front horn began to shimmer with a pink light, and waved it like a magic wand, producing a gust of pink wind with white sparkles towards the pair of Aisha's serpents.
"So that's what's going to be, huh? In that case, let's fight wind with wind! Dunseraph, Air Slash!" Aisha called.
"Du, dunse!" Dunseraph cried as it beat its white wings, producing another powerful gust of wind in the opposite direction with several blades of compressed air on it.
The two attacks clashed in the middle, threatening to produce a storm, however Dunseraph's Air Slash broke through the Fairy Wind, dispelling it and hitting Serena's pair of Dark-types with a barrage of air cuts and pushing them backwards.
"Oblivicorn! Pangoro!" Serena cried. "Hold on!"
Serena's points dropped for the first time, falling below Aisha's.
"Great! Don't give them any time to breathe! Dunseraph, Thunderbolt at Oblivicorn! And Arbok, Dig!" Aisha commanded with a fist thrust.
"Shabak!" Arbok hissed as it burrowed underground.
"Se, dunse!" Dunseraph cried as the wings on its head began to crackle with electricity, before firing a yellow lightning bolt towards the equine.
"Pangoro, deflect that Thunderbolt with Thunder Punch!" Serena quickly ordered.
Pangoro quickly placed himself in front of his partner, his paw curled into a fist coated in electricity. Swinging said fist upwards, both electric attacks clashed, producing a powerful blast of yellow bolts in every direction.
For neutralizing said attack, Aisha's points dropped, once again falling below Serena's.
"Arbok, now! Poison Fang!" Aisha ordered.
A faint tremor was all the warning Oblivicorn got before Arbok emerged from underground just behind her. The Cobra Pokemon quickly lunged towards the Dark and Fairy-type Pokemon's exposed back, opening her jaws wide showing a row of long, sharp teeth glowing purple, before sinking them into Oblivicorn's flesh.
The mare neighed loudly in pain.
"A clever maneuver from Aisha in order to land a powerful hit on one of Serena's Pokemon!" Jillian praised, just as Serena's points dropped once again, this time reaching three quarters.
"Oblivicorn, quickly, get rid of Arbok with Double Kick!" Serena urged.
Pushing against the pain, Oblivicorn gritted her teeth as her back legs began to glow white, and used them to repeatedly kick Arbok until the Cobra Pokemon was pushed away from the equine.
"Alright, time for our next move! Arbok, use Dig again and come back! And Dunseraph, Flamethrower from above! Fly in circles around them!
"Shabak!" Arbok hissed, burrowing underground once again.
"Dunseeee!" Dunseraph cried, as it began to fly in circles above Serena's pair of Dark-types, as streams of fire shot from its open jaws, trapping them inside a circle of flames.
Once done, Dunseraph returned to its side of the battlefield in front of Aisha, just as Arbok emerged from underground next to it. Serena's points dropped even further.
"Clever move, Aisha, but you'll need something more than that to put us down!" Serena claimed. "Oblivicorn, Fairy Wind around yourself! Pangoro, keep your distance and get ready!"
Oblivicorn let out a loud neigh, her entire body shimmering with a pink aura, as a sparkly wind of the same color began to blow around her, forming a tornado. Said tornado began to suck the flames around them in, turning into a twister of flames.
"Oh shit, that looks no good..." Aisha observed, gulping.
"Now Pangoro, Dark Pulse into the flaming tornado!"
"Pan, pango!" Pangoro cried, smirking evilly as he cupped his paws together before thrusting them forward, launching a swirly black and purple energy beam against the fiery twister, pushing it against Aisha's Pokemon while imbuing it with dark power.
"Quickly, move out of the way!" Aisha shouted.
Aisha's pair of serpents didn't need to to be told and were already moving out of the way, but even if they weren't hit by the attack, they were caught by the blast of the ensuing explosion, sending orange flames mixed with black and purple energy strands everywhere, creating a very eerie effect.
That attack cost Aisha quite a few points as well as her advantage over Serena. Both girls had sixty percent of their original points.
"In a masterful stroke, Serena used Aisha's attack against her and bridged the gap in points!" Jillian excitedly commented.
"Hey, don't put us down like that! You haven't seen the best part yet," Aisha complained, as she seemingly fished something in one of her pockets. "I think this is a good time to break this out, then."
Aisha then lifted something above her head so the audience could see. It was a keychain with a pair of keys on it – Serena presumed one of those keys was that of Aisha's motorbike – and something small that sparkled with the light spotlights.
It was a Keystone.
"Oh my goodness, Aisha has revealed a Keystone! Does that mean what I think it means!?" Jillian asked in anticipation, her excitement matched by the audience, who began to loudly cheer and scream.
"Come on Arbok, let our bond empower you and take your strength to new heights! Mega Evolve!" Aisha shouted.
The audience suddenly grew silent as both the Keystone and the Mega Stone attached to Arbok's collar began to glow brightly, and tendrils of light shot from both stones. Said tendrils of light merged together, linking trainer with Pokemon and triggering the transformation, which ended with the Mega Evolution helix flashing in front of the snake.
"SHAAABAK!" the Mega Evolved Arbok loudly hissed.
Despite not being a big departure from its base form, Mega Arbok was quite the intimidating Pokemon. Its back was entirely black, with red seams separating it from its still purple body. Six Ekans heads sprouted from the back of its hood, as well as the tip of its tail. The markings on its hood had changed, becoming much more menacing. Its eyes were now yellow with red irises and black marks around them.
"And there you have it, folks! Aisha's Pokemon has Mega Evolved!" Jillian announced.
The audience erupted into another round of excited screams as Serena's points dropped.
"What? Mega Evolving a Pokemon alone makes the opponent lose points!?" an outraged Bonnie asked.
"So it seems," Lilia said with a shrug. "Contests are about spectacle, and Mega Evolution is quite spectacular."
"Wow. Arbok are already pretty scary, but to see their Mega Evolved version..." Shauna said, shivering a little at the sight of the multi-headed snake.
"Alright Arbok, time to put that new form of yours to good use! Arbok, Seed Bomb!" Aisha ordered.
"Shaaa!" Arbok hissed, as the six heads coming out of its hood started to fire a barrage of watermelon-sized explosive seeds at Serena's Pokemon.
The first time, Serena had tried to counter the attack with Arm Thurst, so she wisely decided to take a different course of action. "Pangoro, quickly, get on Oblivicorn's back! And Oblivicorn, dodge the attack with Sudden Strike!"
Despite Pangoro's size and girth, Oblivicorn didn't look like she was struggling to support his weight. Black sparks began to crackle around the equine before shooting forward, quickly zigzagging in order to avoid the projectiles.
Aisha once again lost points, putting her on the same level as Serena.
"Yes! Now, Pangoro, jump and Thunder Punch on Dunseraph!" Serena commanded.
"Dunseraph, counter that with Iron Tail!" Aisha ordered.
Panogoro standing on his feet on top of Oblivicorn's back caused the mare to struggle a little, but the pushback of the jump didn't throw her off balance. As the Daunting Pokemon barreled towards the angelic dragon, he clutched a paw into a fist which was quickly covered in yellow lightning. Meanwhile. Dunseraph's drill tail began to glow with a silvery sheen.
"Goro!"
"Dunse!"
Electrified fist clashed against metallic tail, neither of them being able to overcome the other, pushing both Pokemon backwards – or in Pangoro's case, downward as well, as he landed next to Oblivicorn with a loud thud.
"Arbok, get close and use Poison Fang on Oblivicorn!" Aisha ordered without missing a beat. "And Dunseraph, Thunderbolt on Pangoro!"
As Arbok quickly slithered forward, Dunseraph's head wings started to crackle with electricity as it prepared the attack.
"Don't let her, Pangoro! Stone Edge, defensive formation!" Serena called. "And Oblivicorn, counter that Thunderbolt with Charge Beam!"
"Pan, pango!" Pangoro cried, vigorously slamming both paws into the ground, and a cluster of jagged rock pillars emerged in front of him, spreading outwards like a fan.
Oblivicorn neighed as her front horn glowed an electric yellow, as a straight bolt of the same color fired from it. Both electric attacks met in the middle, resulting in an explosion followed by a rain of yellow sparks.
The scoreboard remained unchanged.
"And it seems that we've reached an impasse! Aisha's Mega Arbok gave her an offensive edge, but Serena seems to be able to keep the pace and form an impressive defense!" Jillian excitedly commented.
"If you want to see something impressive, get a load of this then!" Aisha said in a defiant tone. "Arbok, Mud Bomb! And Dunseraph, combine it with Flamethrower!"
All of Arbok's heads fired a barrage of mud missiles forward, while Dunseraph took a deep breath and showered them in fire, setting them ablaze. The burning bullets smashed against the Stone Edge wall, exploding upon crashing into it and shattering the rock pillars into a thousand shards.
Serena's points dropped, once again being equal to Aisha's. Both girls were a little less than fifty percent of their total scores.
"A pretty clever use of Stone Edge. But as you can see, that little trick isn't going to work again," Aisha said, finishing with a tongue click.
"Less than two minutes on the clock!" Jillian reminded both the audience and the coordinators.
"More than enough time to finish this off! Arbok, Poison Fang on Oblivicorn!" Aisha ordered.
"Protect Oblivicorn, Pangoro!" Serena urged.
As the Mega Evolved Pokemon slithered menacingly towards the equine, the Daunting Pokemon quickly stepped between the two. Arbok didn't seem to mind as it launched itself towards the panda, all its heads ready to sink their venom-covered teeth into his flesh.
"Arm Thrust!" Serena called. "And Oblivicorn, Horn Attack!"
As the many snake heads lunged forward, Pangoro swatted them back with a flurry of punches and paw jabs with his glowing arms. Oblivicorn dashed forward, her head lowered as she aimed her also glowing horn at Arbok.
However, before the mare could impale the cobra, Arbok's tail, which now ended on a Ekans head, shot forward and bit Oblivicorn's horn, stopping her on her tracks.
"What?" Serena asked in shock.
"Eight heads are way better than one!" Aisha boasted. "Dunseraph, Iron Tail!"
As Arbok kept Serena's Pokemon in place, the angelic dragon swooped in, twisting its body mid air in order to deliver a tail swipe with its silvery glowing appendage, knocking both Pokemon backwards.
"Pangoro! Oblivicorn! Are you okay?" Serena worriedly asked, and sighed in relief when her two Pokemon got back on their feet, or hooves in Oblivicorn's case. However, her relief was short lived once she saw her points dropping even further. She only had thirty percent of her total points.
"Now, time to rev this battle up! Dunseraph, pick Arbok up and fly into the air!" Aisha commanded.
"Seraph!" Dunseraph cried in affirmation as it swooped in and caught its Mega Evolved partner between its arms, and started to fly in circles around the battlefield.
"Pangoro, Oblivicorn, stay alert!" Serena warned her Pokemon.
Ash frowned. He himself had used this tactic against Serena before, and his girlfriend took no time to find and exploit a weak point. However, given Dunseraph's size and strength, it didn't look like the angelic dragon was struggling too much carrying the purple cobra, meaning that Serena wouldn't be able to use that to her advantage.
"Come on Serena, don't give up!" Ash cheered.
He knew that Serena would find a way to turn the battle around.
"Now Dunseraph, get close to the ground, and Arbok, use Seed Bomb!" Aisha ordered.
Arbok's many mouths opened, and watermelon-sized explosive seeds fired from them towards Serena's Pokemon.
"Pangoro, counter that attack with Dark Pulse!" Serena called.
"Sorry, but nope! Dunseraph, intercept that attack with Flamethrower!" Aisha countered.
Pangoro cupped his paws together and thrusted them forward, releasing a swirly stream of black and purple energy. Unfortunately, as he did that, Dunseraph opened its jaws, letting out a torrent of flames that clashed against the Dark Pulse, producing an explosion. The Seed Bomb projectiles simply barreled through the ensuing cloud of smoke, crashing against Pangoro and Oblivicorn.
Both Pokemon cried in pain upon taking the attack. Serena's points dropped to twenty five percent.
"The match started out pretty even, but Aisha's brutal offensive has put her way ahead of her opponent!" Jillian commented with her usual flair. "Can Serena find a way around this aerial assault?"
"Come on guys, time for a second swoop! Dunseraph, Thunderbolt!" Aisha ordered.
"Oblivicorn, counter it with Fairy Wind! And Pangoro, stay alert!" Serena replied.
As Dunseraph and Arbok approached once again, the former's head wings started to crackle with yellow electric sparks before firing a powerful lightning bolt at the Pokemon down below. Oblivicorn, meanwhile, neighed loudly as she summoned a powerful gust of pink, sparkly wind. The moment the Thunderbolt barreled into the Fairy Wind, the electric attack struggled to keep forward until it was completely dispelled, while the Fairy-type attack still had enough momentum to reach Dunseraph and Arbok, doing little damage but pushing them backwards.
Aisha's points dropped, though they were still above Serena's.
"What!?" Aisha shouted.
"Oblivicorn's part Fairy-type, while Dunseraph isn't Electric-type. Air Slash might have overpowered Fairy Wind, but I doubt Thunderbolt would do the same!" Serena told her. "And you cannot use Air Slash while carrying Arbok! Not without hurting it too!"
Ash couldn't help but smile, not only at being validated, but how proud he was of Serena's tactical acumen.
"And the clock has less than one minute left! However, despite Aisha being in the lead, Serena seems to have no intention of lagging behind!" Jillian commented.
"So, my tactic has a couple limitations, so what? We can still work around them!" Aisha boasted, ignoring the hostess' usual comments. "Dunseraph, drop Arbok and use Air Slash! Arbok, use Seed Bomb!"
"Pangoro, Stone Edge, defensive formation! Make the pillars so that they lean forward!" Serena commanded. "And Oblivicorn, hide behind Pangoro and get ready!"
As Arbok fired a barrage of mud missiles from all its mouths while Dunseraph beat its wings, producing a powerful gust with small blades of compressed air on it. Pangoro, meanwhile, slammed both paws into the ground and summoned yet another row of stone pillars that spread outwards in a fan. The Rock-type move managed to block the two attacks, even if some of the pillars cracked or went down. This cost Aisha even more points, being now only barely above Serena.
"That thing again? Well, we'll break it down no matter how many times you raise it!" Aisha boasted. "Arbok, Mud Bomb, and Dunseraph, set it alight with Flamethrower!"
"Oblivicorn, quickly! Run towards the central pillar and use Sudden Strike! Use the pillar as a ramp!" Serena ordered.
As Aisha's Pokemon unleashed their combo, Pangoro quickly stepped aside in order to leave space for the mare, who quickly galloped towards the leaning pillar. As her speed picked up, black sparks crackled around her body while leaving a fading trail of darkness behind, and jumping off the ramp only a couple seconds after it was destroyed. Oblivicorn pretty much flew towards Dunseraph like a black and crimson rocket.
"Oh shit! Dunseraph, move out of the way!" Aisha warned the God Snake Pokemon.
"Dun?"
Unfortunately, having just finished using an attack, Dunseraph couldn't move away in time and Oblivicorn smashed against the angelic dragon, letting out a loud neigh.
"Now Oblivicorn, Fairy Wind! Point Blank!" Serena ordered.
Aisha's eyes grew wide with shock as Dunseraph was blasted by a gust of pink, sparkly wind, sending him tumbling to the ground. Oblivicorn was also pushed backwards by the attack's blowback, but the equine was able to land more gracefully.
Aisha's points dropped once again.
"Arbok, use Poison Fang on Oblivicorn, quickly, now that she's wide open!" Aisha shouted, her voice sounding a bit desperate.
"Pangoro, use Dark Pulse!" Serena replied.
As Arbok slithered towards Oblivicorn with all its jaws wide open and with its fangs dripping purple venom, the Daunting Pokemon fired another stream of dark energy at the cobra. The attack struck, and while it didn't seem to do much damage, it managed to slow it down considerably.
That moment, Dunseraph was able to get back in the air after its painful fall.
"Come on Dunseraph, you have to help Arbok-"
BZZZZZZZZZZ!
"And time's out!" Jillian stated. "And the winner of the match and first semifinalist is...!"
All sights immediately went to the screen displaying the scoreboard; Aisha had only twenty percent of her points. Serena had a little more than that.
"...Serena!" Jillian announced, as the scoreboard shifted to show Serena's picture, with pictures of her two Pokemon under it, and the word WINNER in bold, capital letters.
Upon seeing the results, Serena squealed and jumped with joy, calling for her Pokemon. Aisha said something, recalled her Pokemon, and quickly left the stage.
"YES!" Ash cheered, throwing a punch into the air. "You're awesome, Serena!"
"Yes, yes! You're doing so great, Serena!" Grace cheered just as loudly as Ash.
"Boy, contests sure are intense, aren't they?" Shauna commented. "I don't think I'd be able to keep my cool as well as she did. That biker girl was so relentless!"
"Serena wasn't like that at first. Keep in mind that she has been to many contests before this one, so she has plenty of experience and opportunity to hone her mind and skills," Clemont helpfully explained.
"Two more victories, and that Ribbon Cup will be hers!" Bonnie piped in.
…
After recalling her Pokemon, Serena quickly returned to the waiting area. However, once she reached the place and saw that Aisha wasn't there, the honey blonde frowned.
"Not even Mega Evolution was enough. It seems that no matter what I do, I just can't beat you. You're so amazing, Serena."
That was the only thing Aisha said after the results were announced, right before recalling her Pokemon and turned around, not giving Serena any time to congratulate the biker for a well fought battle, even if she lost in the end. And now she felt she had to find her.
"Hey, Serena!" Vitor's cheerful voice said, as the boy walked towards her, with Leona next to him. "Congratulations on your victory!"
"Thank you," Serena said, and before either he or Leona could say anything else, she asked: "Guys, have you seen Aisha?"
"Yeah. She got here a few moments before you, but didn't stay for long," Leona explained. "Maybe she went back to the dressing room?"
"By the way Serena, my battle comes next! If I win, we will fight again in the semifinals!" Vitor excitedly said.
"I'll be looking forward to that. Good luck on your match, Vitor," Serena said, trying to be as polite as possible while conveying her sense of hurry, and quickly left for the dressing room.
However, she didn't need to get to said room to find Aisha, as she found the biker on a hallway, hand pressed against a wall, head slumped and facing the ground, and murmuring something Serena couldn't quite hear.
"...Aisha?" Serena tentatively called.
Aisha's head snapped up and looked at the honey blonde in surprise. "S-Serena? What are you doing here?"
"Well... I wanted to tell you that it was a great contest battle," Serena began. "But you kinda left in a hurry. And I was a little worried."
"Oh... yes, of course you did. And here I am, leaving so quickly that I didn't even congratulate you on your win and passing to the semifinals. That was so rude of me. Sorry for that," Aisha said. Her voice sounded chipper, but there was a forceful edge in her tone.
"It's alright," Serena said. The two girls stood there, awkwardly looking at each other, fidgeting in place for a few seconds, until Serena broke the silence again. "Aisha?"
"Yes?" the biker replied.
"Are you okay?" Serena asked, taking a step forward towards her.
"Of course I'm okay? Why wouldn't I be?" Aisha replied, crossing her arms in front of her chest, sounding as if Serena had asked something stupid.
"Well..." Serena averted her gaze and rubbed her arm. "You... you just lost a major competition."
"Yeah, I did. So what?" Aisha said, throwing her hands in the air. "What do you expect me to do? To throw a tantrum? To be like that ninja bitch and claim that you cheated or something? No! I'm somebody who knows how to take a loss with grace and dignity."
"That's all fine and good... but even then, it's almost impossible not to feel sad or disappointed after such a loss," Serena said, taking another step forward and placing a hand on the taller girl's shoulder. "You don't have to be the tough biker girl all the time, you know."
Aisha gently removed Serena's hand. "Listen girl, I appreciate your concern, but I'm fine, really!" she said, and turned her back on the honey blonde. "I lost, so what? Other people didn't even make it past the Appeal Round. I managed to make it to the quarterfinals, that's something to be proud of! So what if I was knocked out of a major competition in front of a crowd of thousands? So what if I ended up losing against you again, despite the fact that I had Mega Evolution on my side and you didn't?" Aisha sniffed, her voice cracking. "So what if all the effort I've been putting these past years has gone down the drain in a single instant? So what if I disappointed my family... who have been there for me all the way... and helping and supporting me no matter what... and... and... I couldn't..."
Serena didn't say anything. She merely grabbed Aisha by the shoulder again, spun her around and pulled her into a hug. Aisha accepted the hug, and finally not being able to hold any longer, began to weep into Serena's shoulder.
"I-I'm sorry Serena..." she wailed, tears cascading down her cheeks. "I-I should be better than this..."
"It's natural to feel sad, Aisha. I've been exactly where you are right now in the past. Don't bottle it up. Don't try to act tough," Serena said, patting the biker on the back. "Though, there are a few things that you got wrong."
Aisha let out a chuckle among the sobs. "Oh, really?"
"Yes. First of all, I'm sure your family will still feel proud of you, even if you didn't win. Because you did your absolute best," Serena said. "And second, all the effort you put into improving as a coordinator hasn't gone down the drain. It's still here. It will always be here, as part of you, forever. It didn't matter if you didn't win in the end. You learned new things, new skills, met new people, forged bonds with people and Pokemon, changed into a new person. Because nothing we do is pointless."
Aisha didn't say anything, just stayed there, silently embracing Serena for the next few minutes.
After that, the biker finally composed herself and broke the hug. She wiped her eyes, no longer swelling with tears but now noticeably reddened.
"Thank you. It still hurts but... I needed that," Aisha said.
"Like I said, I know what you're going through," Serena repeated.
"Now... may I ask you one last favor, before all this is over?" Aisha asked.
"If it's in my hand, sure," Serena said.
Aisha's expression grew fierce. "Win this thing, okay? Do it for me."
Serena's expression matched that of Aisha. "You can count on it."
Author's Note: And thus the Grand Festival begins in earnest.
Serena finally meets Aria and Palermo in person. While Aria just wanted mostly to say hi, Palermo clearly has more interest in seeing how much Serena has improved since Kalos. Given that it was Palermo who told Serena to give contests a try to begin with, I always felt that Palermo should be there when Serena's journey into Pokemon Contests reached its climax.
Hope you liked the contest battle. I felt a little bad for making Aisha lose (especially since she's the only one of Serena's rivals who had never beat her) especially after her emotional breakdown at the end, but that was necessary to show how Serena can step up and support other people in need, given that it was one of her biggest realizations at the end of Kalos.
Thanks a lot to Lipeghoul and Fox McCloude for reviewing last chapter.
Next chapter, the semifinal round, which will have not one but two contest battles! In the meantime, don't forget to drop a review with your thoughts on this chapter!