Alright, chapter 48! 4 more!

Chapter 48

Plotting a strategy to defeat Lance was a much easier mental battle to partake in when she had a Mega-Salamence in her back pocket.

Widely regarded as a dreadfully powerful Pokémon, having one on her side was going to very much even the playing field when Lance himself had a Mega-Gyarados. Lance's team was raw power and aggression, but Bianca's wasn't half bad in that department, either. This was going to be a battle of who could take the lead early, who could capture that aggression, and force their opponent onto the backfoot.

If Lance was the one put there, then Bianca knew she had the win.

Maybe that was overconfident. Delusional.

But… whether or not she was comfortable admitting it, at this point, she wanted to be the best.

And the best were delusional.

Speaking of the best, however, Bianca was currently sat amongst some of the other competitors in a private box near the actual arena. They were low to the ground, giving them a great angle of the action that was about to unfold.

The match between Cynthia and Leon.

"Are you excited, Bianca?" Wallace asked from off to her right, where he'd sat down beside her, and offered her a glass of champagne, which she declined, given she would have to be up there in roughly an hour. "This will be a match for the ages, assuredly."

That was what everyone was saying, and, in all fairness, she wasn't disagreeing, either.

"Eh, I'm about as nervous as I am excited." She admitted, and then laughed at Wallace's fake appalled expression. "Forgive me for worrying for my girlfriend."

"You are forgiven."

She rolled her eyes.

"Though in all seriousness, I do believe you've nothing to be worried about." The man smiled. "Even if she wins, you will have to defeat her yourself to claim victory here, will you not?"

It was true, in all fairness, but like most things Wallace had told her so far, it was also worth a groan. "Yes, Wallace, but I'd like her to do well. If I don't win, then I'd want her to."

"Well, either way, I do believe the match is starting soon. What can you tell me about Cynthia's strategy against Leon?"

"You'll just have to find out."

Wallace feigned being appalled a second time in a single conversation. Bianca wished she didn't snicker.

Humoring him was in none of their best interests.

"Is this man bothering you?" Steven Stone, another of Hoenn's champions, walked behind Wallace's and Bianca's seats, and leant down between them. "I know he can be very annoying."

Wallace feigned being appalled a third time, which was really pushing it.

"Egads! Is that the trainer who I eliminated in the very first round, come to talk smack?"

Steven didn't quite talk smack, but he did actually smack Wallace on the arm for that comment.

"Hah." Wallace smirked, before turning back towards the arena. "Oh, I think it's starting."

Just as they said that, the lights in the arena dimmed. It was later on in the evening, seven o'clock, and the sun had set. There was still enough light to see, but only just.

Of course, that all went out the window when a spotlight set on the middle of the arena, where a man with a microphone began loudly orating to the crowd.

"Ladies, Gentleman, and everyone else, welcome to the semifinals of the World Championships!"

The cheer was almost deafening, even through the pane of glass in front of them. It was clear immediately that, if they hadn't been the last few days, the stands were certainly full now.

The orater continued, but Bianca didn't get to hear them, on account of two more figures sitting down beside her, and distracting her.

"Hey, Bianca!" Barry laughed. "How ya' doin?"

"Oh, I'm alright." She smiled at her friend. "And is this…"

"Yep," Barry gestured towards the person sat beside her. "Bianca, this is Dawn. Dawn, meet Bianca."

"It's nice to meet you." Dawn extended a hand, and Bianca met it with one of her own, shaking it firmly. The woman smiled. "I hear you're the one that's got Cynthia so lovestruck these days."

She couldn't help blushing at that, and judging by the chuckles around her, that had been the intention of the words in the first place.

"Oh, stop it, you all."

"Sorry for teasing you," Dawn didn't seem all that sorry. "I do have to know, though; how did you manage to get a workaholic like Cynthia to even look at you in a romantic light? Because we spent a lot of time together as friends, and whenever something like this came up, she would always say something like 'I'm a solitary soul, Dawn', or 'I'm too devoted to my Pokémon, Dawn'."

Bianca considered that for a moment.

"…I have no idea."

"Huh, well, you're honest, if nothing else." Dawn laughed. "Fair, though. She just… always struck me as someone married to her work."

"Me too. She said the same thing to her grandmother."

"Oh, I haven't seen Martha in years; how's she doing?"

And so it was that Bianca somehow got wrapped into a conversation about Cynthia with Dawn, who probably knew more about her girlfriend than she did. Bianca felt that, a few months ago, that would've likely eaten at her, the same way that it had eaten at her that Hilda had sent a letter to Iris, and not either she or Cheren, before going off on such a dangerous mission.

But it didn't, now. She wasn't sure why. Maybe it was just because she was a generally more confident person, now, or maybe that was purely faith in Cynthia, that she knew her girlfriend loved her – loved her, really, and that had her giddy thinking about it – and thought the world of her.

Perhaps she would've thought she didn't deserve as such a few months ago, too, but…

Well, she loved Cynthia, and Cynthia loved her.

So, what was the problem?

They were pulled from their conversation by the audience cheering, and Bianca looked up to see that there were now two spotlights illuminating two separate figures on stage. One was Leon, champion of Galar, and the other…

The other was her beloved.

…Heh, she was being kind of corny, but it felt good.

"Let this match between champions… BEGIN!"

Bianca's eyes were glued to the match as it began to unfold, and much as everyone had been predicting, it was a sight to behold. Cynthia had decided on going for a rather aggressive approach to open the match with. She and Bianca had spent the majority of the last day and a half planning alongside one another for their respective opponents. Bianca's plan to take the Initiative early, and keep it the entire time, had rubbed off on Cynthia just a bit.

In all fairness, it was far from a bad plan. Even if Cynthia wasn't facing off against someone as aggressive as Lance, it wasn't like Leon was just going to let her sit back and twiddle her thumbs. Setting the pace early would give her an overwhelming advantage as the match continued.

She had tuned out the announcer, and was focusing solely on the match itself, irrespective of any commentary. Most of the other champions in the room with her were doing the same. While the announcers provided a rather excited and energy-filled flare to the matches, they were less experienced than any of them when it came to what was actually happening.

Bianca could read both Cynthia's and Leon's intentions, and she could see what they were doing.

"She's looking to take the pace early with Togekiss." Wallace commented from her right side, humming below his breath. "A rather bold strategy, but it seems as if she was counting on Leon opening with his Dragapult, which he has."

"A successful gambit, then." Steven smiled. "Dragapult can still utilize Ghost type moves to try and strike out against Togekiss, but I have a feeling he'll likely switch out, looking for a better matchup."

"Do you think Cynthia will have predicted that?" Barry asked.

"Almost certainly." Dawn nodded her head. "She'll have something to take advantage. It might end up being a minor advantage, but in a match up this close, that might be all she needs to take a victory at the end of the day."

It was odd how they were talking about the match as if it could have already been over, and yet, at the same time, Bianca had experienced the very same thing in her match with Barry. She had predicted his opening Pokémon successfully, taken an advantageous position, and then capitalized.

The match had seemed over from that point on.

It didn't seem quite that extreme in this case, but even so, Cynthia was going to get a free turn.

And from the looks of things, she wasn't failing to take advantage.

A wind quickened around Togekiss, and instantly, Bianca realized her strategy.

"Ah, setting up tailwind support." Dawn nodded her head. "She's looking to match her slower team against Leon's much faster one, put them on even ground, and then use her superior firepower to end the battle."

"Will it work?" Bianca found herself asking, feeling a bit nervous. She felt like she would've been able to analyze this objectively if it wasn't Cynthia up there.

"Hard to say." Steven hummed out. "I see no reason it shouldn't, but at the same time it's a rather orthodox strategy. It's definitely not going to be one that Leon hasn't faced before. Leon is relatively new to the scene, after all, and he still might be capable of falling victim to some of those older cheese strategies. Then again, when it comes to the two of them, I have a feeling neither of them wants to win in any other way than by beating their opponent fair and square."

"Why's that?" Bianca asked.

"They're both far too prideful." Dawn laughed in answer. "Leon's got all of Galar at his back, and Cynthia's… well, she's Cynthia. I assume you know what I mean."

"I kind of… don't?"

"Ah, well, she can get a bit… heated during Pokémon battles."

"Oh." Bianca hadn't heard about that. "Define heated?"

"Laughing maniacally like a Saturday-morning cartoon villain." Barry smirked. "She loves competition. Probably more than anything. Hell, the reason she quit the tournament scene was because last year, she was just in a league of her own. I think she won damn near everything. She was just kinda bored."

"Yes, well, Cynthia did have likely the best stretch of her entire career, and during it, no one could really challenge her." Wallace explained. "I can't blame her for growing a touch annoyed about that. She likely felt that if she put her all into things yet again, this year would be yet another boring one."

Bianca was surprised. "She's… that good?"

"She's always been great," Steven answered. "One of the best, a perennial top 8 contender at any tournament, but last year she was… well, close to invincible. She hasn't always performed that well. But then, as competitors, sometimes things just click. Or sometimes things just don't click. I've never been a streaky trainer like some people,"

Barry raised a hand. "I am."

Steven chuckled. "But I have had a few off years, and a few good years. Last year, for instance, I didn't even place in the top 4 a single time. It was my worst year ever. But… those things happen. This year, I won two tournaments. It's the ebb and flow of competition."

"But when she was at her best…" Bianca trailed off.

"Mm." Wallace confirmed. "There was no one to challenge her at the top. It must've been almost…"

"Lonely."

/

In the end, despite the strong start for Cynthia, the match was still rather close come the end of it, where both trainers had but a single Pokémon remaining.

If Bianca had to make a blanket statement, she would say that Cynthia had the advantage. It was close, however, and it would not have at all been shocking to see Leon manage to pull out the win.

It was Cynthia's Garchomp against Leon's Charizard.

And it was coming down to the wire.

"They're going for one final exchange." Wallace spoke, twirling a single strand of his hair with one finger. "This battle will be decided in the next minute."

"C'mon, Cynthia…" Dawn was biting down on her lower lip with worry, and Bianca was right there with her.

The match had been stressful, to say the least. Both trainers had taken turns making split second decisions that could have very easily turned the fight in their favor, just for their opponent to do the exact same thing to them mere moments later.

Despite opening strongly, Bianca would have actually said that Leon had played the better match in its totality.

Whether or not that was going to matter in the end remained to be seen.

"Ah, they're moving." Steven suddenly leaned forward.

Lo and behold, the man was right. Leon's Charizard fired off a belch of flame, which struck out at where Garchomp had just been standing mere seconds prior. It moved just quickly enough to outpace the oncoming flames, and it began to glow with a purple energy as it charged up for an Outrage.

"That's rather risky." Wallace commented. "She's betting it all on a single strike."

"That's Cynthia to a tee." Steven chuckled, but his knuckles were white on the chair he was leaning over. "Always has to show off."

Garchomp charged forward, even as Charizard's flames turned on it. It was being buffeted by them, and yet kept going, charging directly into the fire in order to get off a powerful strike.

Just when Bianca was sure that Garchomp was going to fall, it hit its mark, and sent Charizard flailing backwards. Importantly, even though the hit wasn't enough to knock it out…

It had been enough to send it careening off the side of the arena itself.

"Charizard has been eliminated by ring-out!" The announcer shouted, "The winner is… CYNTHIAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Bianca wasn't alone in standing up to cheer. Dawn and Barry both laughed and high-fived, evidently happy to see their compatriot making it to the finals. There was even an awkward moment where Bianca and Dawn hugged, jumping up and down, before remembering that they weren't really… friends.

…Eh, that was fine. She laughed, and Dawn did the same.

Funny how she was able to let such awkward moments go without a problem now.

"I would start preparing Bianca." Wallace spoke. "After all, you're up next. It'll probably only be 30 or 40 minutes until your match starts."

Oh, right. Bianca had somehow forgotten about that in the heat of Cynthia's battle; that she had a match equally as deadly on the docket.

She swallowed at some spittle at the back of her throat, before standing from her position, and looking back at the others.

"Thank you, everyone, for talking with me. For being there for me. I–"

"Uh, Bianca," Barry raised an eyebrow. "Are you about to give a speech like you're going off to die in a war?"

"Wha–" She blushed. "No!"

"You totally were." Dawn snickered.

"I was not!"

"Mhm." Wallace teased. "We all completely believe you."

"Oh, you guys suck!"

/

She had a very brief window to say hello to Cynthia before her own match began. She pressed her lips to her girlfriends, and enjoyed the feeling of love that blossomed through her every time that happened.

Gods, but she was head-over-heels for this woman.

"Good luck." Cynthia said to her. "Remember; take the momentum early–"

"And don't give it up." Bianca nodded her head. "When I can, slow things down. I know. We practiced a lot."

"Mm." Cynthia leaned forward once more, this time just to wrap her arms around Bianca and squeeze. "I believe in you."

Bianca tried to pretend that didn't make her all giddy inside. She failed. "Thank you. I love you."

"Love you too. Now, knock 'em dead!"

/

Lance was stood directly opposite her. All around her, there were adoring fans of Pokémon battling, other trainers, hell, other champions watching what was happening. This was being broadcast on television to all corners of the globe, and…

And Bianca wasn't really thinking too much about that.

She'd done her best to ignore the media insofar as she could. She hadn't watched or seen the online reaction to her interviews, for instance, or really paid much attention to anything but the reports on who had won what matches on certain days.

Honestly, her closest source on news was likely Cynthia herself.

But those were thoughts for later. Thoughts for now were how she was going to win this match; how she was going to defeat Lance, one of the greatest trainers to have ever lived.

Well, she had a plan. But then, no plan survived contact with the enemy.

She would be able to utilize the beginning, at least.

Lance wasn't exactly predictable, but at the same time, his strategy didn't leave a lot of room for heavy improvisation. He tended to lead with Scizor, utilizing its ability to either get a Bullet Punch in before anything could move, or to U-Turn out of a bad matchup. Bianca had originally thought about leading with Chandelure…

But then, Lance would be expecting that, wouldn't he?

No. Bianca was going to go for something a little more… flexible.

"Let the second match of the round of 4…" the announcer drummed up the hype, before unleashing it.

"BEGIN!"

Bianca reached back towards her Pokéball's, and grabbed one she hadn't yet led a match with.

Even so, she was confident.

Her Gallade hit the field at the exact same moment as Lance's Scizor, and the man seemed more than a little surprised to see it.

Perhaps she should've led with Chandelure after all?

No. She had planned for this possibility.

Scizor didn't want this matchup. It could utilize its Bug-Type moves to hit Gallade hard, but it could also just as easily be hit by a Close Combat and get annihilated in a single blow.

Luckily, if it was going to U-Turn, Bianca had a maneuver she could use to chip it.

"Scizor, U-Turn."

Just as expected. Then…

"Gallade, Vacuum Wave!"

Her Pokémon's move struck out first, given it had priority. A wave of fighting-type energy surged out of her Pokémon, and struck Scizor before it could make contact with Gallade. It staggered somewhat, but managed to get the hit off before returning to Lance.

All in all, he'd probably won that first exchange in terms of damage. U-Turn hit a bit harder than Vacuum Wave.

But Bianca had won in terms of tempo.

"Let's go, Aerodactyl!"

That was the Pokémon that Bianca had expected. A flying-type Pokémon to take advantage of Gallade's Fighting Typing. It did have a half-rock typing, but Bianca wasn't quite sure a Close Combat would one-shot Aerodactyl.

That was fine, however. She had no plans of getting in close, at least not yet.

"Aura Sphere, Gallade!"

"Air Slash, Aerodactyl!"

Aerodactyl had quite a bit of distance to cover before it could unleash the deadly flying-type energy gathering about its wings. Unlike Gallade, who had a straight shot to hit its opponent flying directly at it.

The Aura Sphere traveled through the air, and struck Aerodactyl dead on. It hurt it, clearly, but it wasn't going to be enough to take it out, and in just a moment, Aerodactyl would close the distance.

That was fine. Her strategy was all-out offense.

And that meant…

"Vacuum Wave, Gallade!"

She could get off one last bit of chip damage before Gallade went down.

Her Pokémon let loose that blast of fighting energy just before it was struck by Aerodactyl's Air Slash. It fell, as she'd known it would, but crucially, Aerodactyl was far from healthy, either. It was still going, but that meant that Bianca had chunked out two of Lance's Pokémon already.

She could clean both up, later.

"Come back, Gallade," She would, also, be getting a free turn out of Gallade fainting. It was a risk, and she knew that…

But this could genuinely be the key to victory.

"Milotic, you're up!"

Her Pokémon hit the field, shining as it always did with its multi-colored scales. It took in the state of the battle, and seemingly realized where they were in the plan.

Things hadn't quite gone to plan so far, but they were close enough. This had been the intent, to get Milotic in against Aerodactyl.

Because Lance would be a sitting duck against Milotic's Ice Beam's, or Blizzards.

Lance wasn't going to recall his Pokémon. Not and lose priority. No, he was going to charge with everything Aerodactyl had.

"Aerodactyl, Rock Slide!"

"Milotic, Ice Beam!"

The stones fell, but it didn't matter. Milotic took chip, but Aerodactyl was knocked out of the sky.

5 to 5.

Neither of them had taken a solid advantage. Not yet.

But the Pokémon that Lance sent out next… she knew what it would be.

"Eelektross, let's go!"

It was the only thing that made sense, and from Lance's perspective, there was no reason to do anything else.

It was time to execute the major step in her plan. If this failed… she wasn't out of it, but she was pretty damned close.

"Milotic! Blizzard!"

To Lance, it must've looked like she was merely planning on attacking Eelektross with a powerful move, looking to damage it and keep tempo as he struck out. But no, that wasn't her intention at all.

The Blizzard came to life around Milotic, for her Pokémon had aimed the move not at its opponent, but at the ground beneath it. Aerodactyl could've easily cleared the Blizzard with a single usage of a move like Hurricane or Dual Wingbeat, but Eelektross had no such easy fixes.

"Thunderbolt, Eelektross!"

The Pokémon struck out with a bolt of electricity, but just as Bianca had been counting on, it struck nothing. The cloud of snow and ice had increased to cover a range of about fifteen or so meters, more than large enough for Milotic to hug one side, or keep itself hidden away.

To be fair, Milotic couldn't see its opponent, either. It couldn't really strike back.

But that didn't matter. Not truly.

It was time to slow things down.

"Milotic, Aqua Ring!"

Lance's eyes widened, and he realized what she was doing as a frown appeared on his face.

She was going to temper his aggression as well, not just match it.

Eelektross was a special attacker, and likely favored range. But it also wasn't a Pokémon capable of sustain like Milotic was.

In a long, drawn-out battle, it was going to lose.

If it had Shockwave, it would've been able to hit Milotic even through the smokescreen. But Bianca knew every move that Lance's Pokémon possessed. It had been on the infographic she'd received two days ago ahead of their match, and she'd received an updated card this morning. Nothing had changed in terms of Lance's moves.

To be fair, he'd known about every one of her moves as well. He'd been able to see she'd packed aqua ring on Milotic.

But it was evident he hadn't expected this.

And that meant…

"Eelektross, come back!" He called out, and already, Bianca could feel her chances to win this increasing three-fold. Not yet during this tournament had Lance been forced to reactively switch. He'd only done so proactively, either with U-Turn, or by losing a Pokémon and swapping them out for another.

This was the most slowed down his aggression had been.

And Bianca was going to use that, and win.

End Chapter 48

Alright, that was Chapter 48!

We're really getting close to the end here! Chapter 50 will be a two-parter, and then 51 (and potentially 52?) will take up the remainder of the story!

Not much else to say, see you all next week!