What can I really come up with to defeat Harry? All I know was Harry having Machop and Marshtomp. There's not much information I can put to good use...

I heaved a deep sigh, I guess it's too late to think about those kinds of things. Let's just do our best against whatever we're facing later.

As I nodded to myself with determination, the P.A. system announced the end of the short break as I prepared to walk towards my side of the battlefield.

This is it.

"Welcome back to the final match of the Verdanturf Battle Tent Tournament!" The host announced at the middle of the battlefield, "After a set of thrilling battles, we finally end up with the two most well-performed trainers battling against each other for the grand prize. On the left side, we have Harry from Dewford Town!"

Harry walked towards his side of the battlefield as he waved at the audience, receiving many cheers from his fans, "Harry Waves, the trainer who managed to showcase his skills in the Indigo League last year after preparations and hardships, proved to everyone that he is more than just the Dewford Gym Leader's son. Today, he will do his best to prove this fact once again in this last match against Lows Landerson in hopes of taking away the grand reward."

"On the right side, we have Lows from Pallet Town!" Upon hearing my name, I knew it was the signal for me to start walking forward to my side of the battlefield. I took a deep breath as I walked towards my destination. While I was too socially-awkward to wave hands to the audience like what Harry did, I still received some cheers from the audience, which made me feel grateful.

"Lows Landerson, a new trainer in the rising, though just starting off, made the bold decision to explore a completely new region in hopes of obtaining different experiences to be shared with his friends. This tournament will definitely be one of them, as his journey of reaching the finals was without a doubt not easy. No matter what the result is, I'm sure he's more than ready to accept it and become stronger from here."

We stood at our side of the battlefield while exchanging glances, his cocky smile remained on his face. I tried not to let that drop my confidence as I got ready for the referee's instructions.

Finally, the referee announced, "The match between Harry and Lows will now begin! Harry and Lows, please choose your first Pokémon."

I took out my first Pokéball and threw it into the air, "Let's do this, Surfer!"

Surfer appeared in the battlefield, already familiar with the environment at that point as he was eager to battle one last time in this battlefield. Meanwhile, Harry quietly sent out his first Pokémon, Machop.

I could tell that Machop did not look forward to this battle, but I could not do anything but feel sympathetic towards the poor Pokémon as the referee announced the start of the battle.

"Surfer, use Water Gun!'

"Machop, dodge and use Mach Punch!"

As Surfer released a spiral of water towards his opponent, the male Machop tried to dodge it, but at the worst timing possible, he tripped and fell onto the ground, as a result directly taking the attack.

My sympathy only increased the moment Machop turned towards his trainer, only to receive a menacing glare from Harry. I felt like it would be better to end this quickly, "Surfer... use Water Gun, then Water Pulse."

Surfer released the spiral of water towards the Fighting type as Harry commanded, "Machop, get up and dodge!"

However, Machop struggled to get up from the ground, wincing in pain when he tried doing so as he got hit by the Water type move again. Finally, the blue ball of energy hit the vulnerable Pokémon and finished him off.

"Machop is unable to battle! Surfer wins!" I did not feel good about this victory as I took notice of the wounds on his right leg. It all made sense as I shot Machop a worried glance, while he looked at me, tears forming in his eyes as he returned to his Pokéball.

Harry quietly sent out a new Pokémon on his team: Torkoal. I assumed it was a Fire type Pokémon, which made me feel more sceptical about his decision.

He wouldn't just send out a Pokémon with the type disadvantage... I should play safe.

"Good job, Surfer! Take a short rest." I returned Surfer and sent out another Pokémon, "Do your best, Ziggs!"

The Tiny Raccoon Pokémon appeared and growled towards his larger opponent as the referee continued the match, "The battle between Torkoal and Ziggs will now begin!"

"Torkoal, start off with Ember!" Torkoal shot bolts of fire towards Ziggs as I immediately responded, "Ziggs, dodge and use Headbutt!"

He was able to dodge the flames and started rushing towards the Coal Pokémon. However, Harry remained unfazed, "Torkoal, counter with Body Slam."

As Ziggs slammed the Fire type with his head, Torkoal fought through the pain and slammed Ziggs with his body. Ziggs took the full impact from the attack, but he slowly got up, not willing to give up.

I was slightly concerned and asked, "Ziggs, are you okay? Don't push yourself too hard."

Ziggs nodded in determination as I commanded, "Ziggs, use Rock Smash!"

"Finish Ziggs off with Overheat!" Harry commanded.

Overheat...?

Torkoal suddenly opened its mouth, firing multiple white flames with red-orange flames spiraling around it towards Ziggs.The red spots on its shell lit up as it continuously released the blasts. Ziggs struggled to dodge the blasts fired at him, and finally got hit by one of the powerful blasts. He winced in pain and collapsed in the battlefield, unconscious. Torkoal stopped firing upon winning the battle and started panting heavily due to the energy used for the attack.

"Ziggs is unable to battle! Torkoal wins!"

Harry... did not have to hit Ziggs that hard.

Mixed emotions surrounded me as I ran over to my fainted Pokémon, checking his condition. I glared at Harry, which responded with a smirk on his face. I knew that emotions should not fully control me in this match, so I apologized and thanked Ziggs for his efforts and returned him.

I took out another Pokéball and threw it into the air, "I'm not gonna let you win that easily, Harry. Let's do this, Surfer!"

"I'd like to see you try, pathetic trainer." Harry remained his smirk as he saw Surfer appear in the battlefield once again, angry with what happened to Ziggs.

"The battle between Torkoal and Surfer will now begin!"

Noticing the Torkoal still panting hard, I took the opportunity to strike, "Surfer, finish Torkoal with Water Pulse!"

Surfer released a blue ball of energy towards his opponent, and Torkoal was unable to dodge the attack due to the combination of slow speed and exhaustion. It did not take long before Torkoal collapsed from the super-effective attack, Surfer slightly smiling from being able to avenge his friend.

"Torkoal is unable to battle! Surfer wins!"

"This should be the end of your luck." Harry returned Torkoal and threw another Pokéball, causing Marshtomp to appear in the battlefield.

Intending to exploit the type matchups, I returned Surfer and threw Woody's Pokéball, "Let's do this, Woody!"

Woody glanced at the familiar trainer, then examined his opponent before taking a deep breath to reassure himself.

"The battle between Marshtomp and Woody will now begin!"

"Woody, start off with Bullet Seed!" Woody quickly shot five seeds towards the Mud Fish Pokémon, but Marshtomp was barely able to dodge it. Harry immediately followed up with the command, "Marshtomp, surround Woody with Rock Tomb!"

Suddenly, giant rocks shot out of the ground and surrounded my Grass type Pokémon. I panicked, but Woody looked at me and said, "Don't worry... I'm not completely out yet."

I had a plan, but it would have some risk, "Bullet Seed on one of the boulders until it breaks!"

Woody nodded and shot the seeds from his mouth towards the boulder in front of him. Slowly but surely, cracks started to appear on the boulder, and it finally broke. Strangely, Marshtomp did not attack while Woody was taking his time breaking the boulder.

"Woody, one last shot-" Before I could finish my command, Marshtomp suddenly rushed towards Woody through the area where the destroyed boulder was supposed to be, face bright red as he sent a powerful slam towards Woody. I then came to realization that I fell into Harry's trap: Charging up Bide for the right timing to strike.

Woody fell onto the ground, using his last energy trying to get back up but to no avail. In the end, he became unconscious.

"Woody is unable to battle! Marshtomp wins!"

I ran up to him, apologizing and thanking him for his efforts. I returned him and gulped, nervous about the current situation. However, I knew the worst thing to do at that moment was to panic.

I took out another Pokéball and sent out my next Pokémon, "You got this, Surfer!"

Surfer appeared in the battlefield, still looking a little tired. However, he tried reassuring me with his usual smile as he glared at the tough opponent in front of him.

"The battle between Marshtomp and Surfer will now begin!"

"Surfer, use Water Pulse!" He aimed at his opponent and shot the blue ball of energy, hitting Marshtomp. Marshtomp shook his head, trying not to get confused by the impact.

Harry's smirk remained on his face, knowing Surfer's energy was not fully recovered, "Marshtomp, use Mud Sport to separate you and Surfer!"

Marshtomp formed the mud puddles as they appeared in the middle of the battlefield, separating the two Pokémon. I knew what Harry was going for: A ranged battle. It would be more of an advantage to Marshtomp as his attacks were more powerful than Surfer's.

But I was nowhere close to giving up. "Surfer, use Water Pulse!"

"Marshtomp, counter with Mud Shot!"

Surfer released the blue ball of energy towards Marshtomp, while Marshtomp continuously hurled mud towards Surfer. Marshtomp got hit by the attack, but still shook off the pain and continued hurling mud towards his opponent. Surfer was forced to dodge towards the corner of the battlefield, before the mud finally hit him, causing him to collapse in pain. Marshtomp panted, still able to battle after two consecutive victories.

"Surfer is unable to battle! Marshtomp wins!"

I returned Surfer and thanked him for his hard work. However, I became more nervous as I took out my last Pokéball, knowing that it would be all over after Grace fainted.

I tried to shake off the negative thoughts in my head and threw the Pokéball, "It's all up to you, Grace!"

Grace appeared in the battlefield, sensing my nervousness and smiled, "Let's try our best, Lows."

I nodded, reassured by her calmness, "Yeah, let's."

"The battle between Marshtomp and Grace will now begin!"

"Grace, use Psybeam!"

"What a weak move! Marshtomp, counter with Water Gun!"

They both released their attacks at almost the same time. The two attacks collided with one another, however it was the Water type move emerging as it destroyed the psychic rings of energy and hit Grace. Grace winced in pain, but did not seem to take as much damage as I thought.

"Grace, use Double Team!" Grace created several illusions as Harry smirked, "Marshtomp, destroy them with Mud Shot!"

Marshtomp continuously hurled more mud towards Grace and her illusions. The illusions were able to hold off the attacks for a while, but there were close calls where Grace had to teleport to another location when the mud approached her. Soon enough, the illusions were destroyed as both Grace and Marshtomp panted from using their energy in the "Hide and Seek" game.

I knew Grace's not as good at taking physical attacks, but I reassured her, "It's too late for us to back off, right? Let's do our best till the very end."

Grace smiled, but Harry sneered at my words of encouragement, "Might as well just give up now. I clearly have the upper hand here. Marshtomp, finish Grace with Mud Shot!"

"Grace, stay calm! Use Teleport!" Grace teleported away from the mud approaching her, but I knew this plan was not going to last much longer.

Harry continued the attacks, "Marshtomp, let's end this. Use Water Gun!"

Marshtomp shot a spiral of water towards Grace, in which Grace had no time to react. I thought the battle was surely over by then, but a white light surrounded Grace, destroying the spiral of water coming at her. The audience and us two trainers were all surprised by the turn of events.

I-Is she evolving too?

As the white light disappeared, the Feeling Pokémon appeared taller and had two green horns on her green hair while wearing a tutu. Her red eyes looked at me, giving me another reassuring grin. I quickly scanned her with my Pokédex, [Kirlia, the Emotion Pokémon. It is the evolved form of Ralts. A Kirlia has the psychic power to create a rip in the dimensions and see into the future. It is said to dance with pleasure on sunny mornings.]

"Lows, I can feel my energy returning. We still have a chance to win." She said with a deeper feminine voice.

"I-It won't help you to win, anyway!" Harry recovered from the shock, "Marshtomp, use Water Gun!"

As the spiral of water was released towards my Psychic type,Grace raised her hands above her head, then brought them forward and released multiple glowing light green leaves from her hands at Marshtomp. The leaves went through the spiral of water and hit the Water and Ground type, causing him to wince in pain. To add up, Grace managed to dodge the Water type move, grinning as she knew Marshtomp would be going down soon.

Magical Leaf... the perfect move to defeat Marshtomp!

Before the Mud Fish Pokémon could recover, I commanded and Grace used another Magical Leaf attack, hitting the Marshtomp once again. Finally, the bulky Pokémon collapsed onto the ground.

"Marshtomp is unable to battle! Grace wins!"

The audience was definitely looking forward to seeing what happened next. I did not let my guard down, knowing that despite the evolution, it could still be anyone's game.

Harry returned Marshtomp and threw another Pokéball, "You wasted enough time from me, Lows. Finish this, Roselia!"

A Pokémon with two rose-looking arms with different colours appeared in front of my eyes.

"The battle between Roselia and Grace will now begin!"

"Grace, let's try our best! Use Psybeam!" Grace shot the psychic rings of energy towards Roselia, but it dodged them easily.

Harry then smirked and said, "Roselia, use Magical Leaf!"

Roselia spun around quickly and released glowing light green leaves from its body at Grace.

"Grace, dodge!" As Grace barely dodged the leaves, Harry confidently commanded, "You've fallen into my trap! Stun Spore!"

Roselia released an orange powder from the flowers on its hands towards Grace, hitting her. Grace tried to fight through the paralysis as it slowly tried taking control of her.

However, things got more interesting as sparks started to emit from Roselia as well. Harry was in shock, but quickly realized it was the work of Grace's ability, Synchronize.

Both Roselia and Grace tried to fight through the paralysis, as I knew one attack could determine the final winner, "Grace, finish this with Psybeam!"

"Roselia, counter with Magical Leaf!"

Grace released the psychic rings of energy quickly while Roselia spun around, releasing the glowing green leaves. The two powerful attacks collided against each other, forming a huge layer of dust...

"Hey Lows..." Ziggs asked.

"Ziggs, what's up?" I grinned.

"You promised something before the finals... right?" He quickly followed with an expectant smile.

"Alright, alright..." I chuckled, "As a reward for all our hard work, let's head to the restaurant and have a good treat later."

My Pokémon cheered, but I quickly followed up, "Don't order too much, though..."

"Yeah, we know you need to save money, Lows." They laughed, knowing my somewhat stinginess.

However, the moment we stepped out of the PokéCentre, we saw Harry and his Machop in the distance. From their expressions, I could tell it was not good.

"Didn't Harry win the tournament? Instead of complimenting Machop, Harry seems to be mad at him." Surfer asked in confusion.

Oh, had I mentioned about us not winning the tournament? Roselia was the victorious one in the final battle, making Harry the winner. However, I learned more than I lost, so it was fine with me.

Suddenly, Harry's scream caught our attention even more, "You did terrible throughout this entire tournament! I thought you would improve after the battle against Woody, but I was dead wrong." Machop lowered his head, accepting Harry's criticism while trying to hold back his tears.

My anger only boiled further when I saw Harry throwing Machop's Pokéball towards the ground before crushing it into pieces with his shoe, "Get out of here, weakling! You no longer deserve to be in my team."

Tears fell from Machop's face, as he slowly walked away with his injuries untreated.

Harry snorted and started walking away before finally noticing me, "Oh, I guess you saw everything."

"What did you do to Machop?" I questioned Harry, trying to suppress my emotions in my voice.

"I thought you've noticed! I released Machop." He replied.

"He did not deserve that, Harry!"

"He's just too pathetic to continue battling in my team at this point. He should be grateful he even got to stay for this long."

Feeling hopeless about his attitude, I decided not to say further and started walking towards the direction Machop went, my Pokémon following me from behind.

Harry sneered. "Concerned with a Pokémon who has nothing to do with you? Sounds like you, loser."

"He might have nothing to do with me, but he deserves as much care and love any Pokémon should get." I looked back at him and said one last time, "Now, if you excuse me, I have a Pokémon to bring back here."

We then ran out of the town, hoping to find the missing Machop. He was still recovering from his wounds, so he should not be too far away from us.

To quicken the process, I commanded, "Everyone, let's split into groups and find Machop. Woody and Grace shall go search towards the right, while Surfer, Ziggs and I will search towards the left." They agreed. We got to work immediately, concerned about the whereabouts of the Machop.

As Woody and Grace walked towards the right, Grace politely asked the awkward Treecko, "Woody, how is the time in the team so far?"

"A-Ah, it has been alright. Definitely different from the years I stayed in the Adoption Centre... but it's a good kind of different."

"That's good." Grace smiled, "If you have any problems, don't hesitate to ask us, alright?"

"S-Sure... I tend to keep things to myself, though." Woody replied.

"That's alright, too. Of course, we want to know you better too, if we ever get the chance." Grace said, knowing he was still taking his time to get used to being in Lows' team. Woody responded with a slight grin on his face.

Suddenly, Grace stopped Woody from moving forward, "Wait, slow down."

"H-Huh?"

"I sensed some hostility in front of us. Do you think it could be related to Machop's missing?" Grace asked.

"I hope not... it would be bad for Machop. He already had an injury to deal with."

"We should hurry and go check it out, then." Grace suggested.

"Y-You sure? We could be in danger as well."

"The hostility didn't seem as strong as the one I sensed in Petalburg Woods, so we should be able to handle it. Let's do this, Woody." Grace reassured him, before receiving a nod from the Grass type as they hurried their steps.

Grace's prediction was right; they saw the familiar Fighting type Pokémon getting attacked by a horde of Poochyena in a patch of tall grass. Machop lied on the ground, his wounds becoming worse as the Poochyena kept attacking him.

"...!" Grace took notice of the situation and unleashed a quick Magical Leaf attack, hitting the Poochyena as they reverted their attention from Machop to the two.

"Get ready to attack, Woody. I don't think they're as strong, just that they have big numbers." Grace analyzed the situation, as Woody just got himself ready to assist the most he could.

Finally, the battle began as one of the Poochyena rushed towards Woody and got taken out by a Bullet Seed attack. After that, the Poochyena came towards them as a team, while Grace and Woody tried to single them out and defeat them.

It was going well and the number of Poochyena still able to battle slowly decreased. Just when Grace thought she was lucky to not deal with the horde alone, one of the Poochyena suddenly dashed towards the Psychic type, surprising her as it went for a super-effective Bite attack.

Knowing she had no way to dodge it, she could only hope to endure the pain. However, she felt nothing and noticed Poochyena was hit away from her and Woody was in front of her, panting as he just finished using Quick Attack.

"G-Grace, you okay?" He asked, concerned.

"I'm okay..." Grace responded, a warm feeling approached her, but she quickly took focus on the Poochyena in front of them. They continued battling, and finally, the horde of Poochyena was taken out as the two panted from exhaustion.

"That was good work, Woody." Grace complimented.

"...Thanks." Woody slightly blushed, not used to receiving compliments, "Let's go and check on Machop."

The two immediately walked towards the Superpower Pokémon and checked on his condition. He was unconscious and injured, his previous wounds worsening.

"We need to get him back as soon as possible... but my psychic powers won't be enough to carry Machop all the way to the PokéCentre."

"We should get the others, then."

"I'll stay here to make sure Machop is okay. Can you get the others?" Grace asked. Woody responded with a firm nod before running towards the direction where Lows and the others were.

Surfer, Ziggs and I were not able to find anything. Just as we decided to call it quits and search for the other two, a familiar figure ran towards me. It was Woody, and he hurriedly said upon seeing me, "L-Lows... we found Machop. We need your help!"

"Really?! Show us the way, Woody."

We followed Woody towards a patch of tall grass, where we found Grace looking after the unconscious Machop. I immediately noticed his worsening condition and said nothing as I lifted him and ran towards the PokéCentre.

Shortly, we reached our destination and let the nurse heal Machop's injuries. I waited for Machop to get fully healed, still concerned about the Fighting type.

After what felt like forever, the nurse told me, "Trainer, Machop should be alright now. It'll take a day or two before he can battle again, but he should be fully recovered in no time."

I heaved a sigh of relief, "Thanks, nurse."

Not too shortly after, the Machop was standing in front of me with bandages around his right leg. He still appeared slightly exhausted, but the timid Pokémon made an effort to thank me, "T-Thanks for your help, Lows. I would've probably gone out cold in the wild if it wasn't for you all. "

"No problem." I petted the Fighting type as he seemed to feel awkward but content with my action.

I asked, "When did you injure your leg? I could tell these wounds had been there for quite a while now."

"I... I got injured during my training after the loss against Woody. It hurts, but I couldn't just give up. Harry would've taken it as my excuse of not training harder and kicked me out of the team earlier."

"But... you didn't enjoy battling alongside Harry, did you?" I asked. Machop, initially shocked by my question, slowly nodded and lowered his head.

I felt bad for the Superpower Pokémon standing right in front of me, in the sulk of the unfortunate events that happened to him. That was why I could never understand Harry's way of treating Pokémon; they do not deserve treatment like this.

"I-I think it's time for me to leave now..." Machop sadly said.

"Where can you go? You're still unable to battle for a little while. What if something happens to you out there?" I was concerned.

"Where else can I go? I don't have a trainer anymore. While being alongside Harry wasn't any better, at least I still had some place to stay. But right now, I have to rely on myself, I suppose." He tried not to show his emotions, but I could tell he was scared of the unknown future.

At that point, I knew what I had to do.

I'll be the one to give him a better future.

"Machop..." I crouched down and faced him, "I would like you to join my team."

"R-Really?" The timid Pokémon was shocked by my offer; his confidence probably dropped lower due to Harry's treatment, "B-But... I'm not a good battler."

"That's what Harry told you, right? I know you have the potential, you just need the right trainer who can work along with you as teammates instead of one who treated you like a tool." I smiled, reassuring him, "You can try battling with me and see how it goes."

Machop seemed to be moved by my persuading, but still remained slightly hesitant, "I'm just a little scared that your Pokémon doesn't see me the same way. While they didn't dislike me, Harry's Pokémon didn't dare to bond with each other because Harry would never give us the opportunity to do so."

However, his worries were gone as he looked at my Pokémon, who seemed to welcome a new teammate's arrival. Surfer started, "We would like you to join the team and ride the waves to victory together!"

Ziggs cheered, "I'm not a strong Pokémon myself, either. But Lows accepts us for who we are, which motivated me to work harder to become stronger. We all believe in you!"

Woody and Grace did not say much, but they gave Machop light nods, implying they would like the idea of him joining the team.

Accepting the warm welcome, Machop finally nodded, "I... would like to give another try, Lows. Thanks for accepting me into your team."

I smiled and took out a Pokéball, nicknaming the male Machop, "Welcome to the team, Power."

Machop lightly smiled upon hearing the new given nickname as I threw the Pokéball towards him, hitting him lightly as he was caught in the Pokéball.

I'll give you the treatment you deserve, Power.

Thank you for believing in me.

Suddenly, I heard someone entering the PokéCentre. I looked at the direction and saw my friend, Disc, "I knew you would be somewhere here, Lows."

"Disc! What are you doing here?" I asked.

Disc smiled, "Just wanted to say goodbye before leaving Verdanturf. I still have badges to obtain, after all."

"Hopefully, we'll see each other again soon." I grinned.

"Don't worry, we definitely will. When the time comes, let's have another friendly battle."

We shook our hands, as he went out of the PokéCentre for the next step in his journey. I was sure he learned as much as I did through this tournament.

I sent out my new member and told my Pokémon, "It's been a long day. Let's enjoy the meal we deserve."

My Pokémon cheered in response, as we walked towards a local restaurant in Verdanturf to enjoy a hearty meal.

Tomorrow, we'll be heading towards Mauville.

Let's keep going forward in our journey together.

Lows' Pokémon Team:

Surfer (Wartortle, Male) Jolly Nature, moves: Withdraw, Bite, Water Pulse, Water Gun

Ziggs (Zigzagoon, Male) Naive Nature, moves: Tackle, Growl, Headbutt, Rock Smash

Grace (Kirlia, Female) Calm Nature, moves: Teleport, Magical Leaf, Double Team, Psybeam

Woody (Treecko, Male) Lonely Nature, moves: Pound, Quick Attack, Bullet Seed, Absorb

Power (Machop, Male) Timid Nature, moves: Focus Energy, Mach Punch, Karate Chop, Low Kick