Chapter 130: A Four Way Brawl

The next night was the big event, and everyone was excited. As they approached the venue, they could see huge crowds of people eager to get in.

"Man, this is crazy! Look at how many people there are."

"Are you really that surprised? Ash is the Alola Champion, after all."

Ash looked around.

"Where's Lillie? I thought she'd meet us here."

"I don't know," Goh shrugged. "She said she wanted to surprise you."

"Maybe she's getting into her cheerleading outfit," Chloe suggested, making Ash blush.

"Y-yeah, maybe."

"Oh my gosh, it's The Masked Royal!"

Everyone turned to find the celebrity posing for his fans as they screamed in delight. But when he saw Ash, The Masked Royal gently pushed past them to meet the champion.

"Well, if it isn't my old rival! Looks like the crowd's going to get a rematch sooner than I expected."

"Hey, Kukui. Long time no see!"

"'Who is this Kukui you speak of? I am The Masked Royal!"

"Kukui, we all saw you get unmasked during the league, remember?"

"You must be mistaken, young Ash. While I am honored to be compared to the handsome Professor, I am in no way associated with him. Now if you'll excuse me, I must prepare for our battle!"

And he ran off before anyone could react, leaving Ash to shake his head.

"What was that all about?" Goh asked.

"I couldn't tell you if I tried," Ash said.

An hour later, the festivities began. Goh and Chloe squeezed into their seats, scanning the stadium for Lillie, but they still couldn't find her.

"Where is she? It's not like her to miss one of Ash's battles."

"Maybe she got lost?"

"Hi guys, do you mind if I sit with you?"

Just then, Professor Burnett walked up, clutching Lei in her arms.

"Sure!"

"Thanks. Lei's so excited to see his brother battle, aren't you sweetie?"

Lei giggled, making everyone smile.

"Say, you haven't seen Lillie, have you?"

"I'm afraid not, but I'm sure she's around here somewhere."

Suddenly, the lights dimmed, indicating that the battle was about to begin.

"Good evening, folks! We've got a good one for you tonight, a real battle of the stars! Tonight, we don't have just one, not two, but THREE high ranking competitors from the first ever Alola League!"

The crowd went wild, forcing Goh and Chloe to hold their ears.

"In the red corner, heir to the Aether Foundation, A Semi-Finalist in the Alola League, the Runner Up in the most recent Johto League, give it up for Gladion Aether!"

Gladion rose up, striking his signature pose as the crowd cheered for him.

"In the green corner, a regular at our little venue, and the runner up of The Alola League, make some noise for The Masked Royal!"

The crowd screamed louder as Kukui's alter ego rose up, striking his pose.

"We love you, Masked Royal"

"And in the blue corner, the main man himself! He's Alola's champion, and recently has moved into The Masters Eight of the World Coronation Series! All the way from Pallet Town, it's Ash Ketchum!"

"CHAMPION! CHAMPION! CHAMPION! CHAMPION!"

Ash waved to his adoring fans as he rose up to the field, smiling broadly.

"But as star studded as this matchup is, you need four people for a Battle Royal! So please give a big welcome to the youngest child of Lusamine, making her big debut tonight, Lillie Aether!"

"What?!"

"No way!"

But it was true. Lillie rose up into the yellow side of the arena, giggling when she saw everyone's reaction.

"Surprise!"

"This will be a four way battle with no time limit! Each trainer is allowed only one Pokemon, and the battle will end when only one Pokemon is left! Mega Evolution and Z-Moves are allowed, and each trainer will send out their Pokemon at the same time. Trainers, go!"

"Lucario, I choose you!"

"Let's go, Incineroar!"

"Sivally, let's show them!"

"Nihilego, I choose you!"

"Then let the battle begin!"

"Flame Charge, Incineroar!"

"Aura Sphere, Lucario!"

Incineroar charged, body enveloped in an aura of fire, only to be knocked off course by a huge Aura Sphere from Lucario, knocking him into Sivally.

"Hey, keep off!"

"All's fair, buddy! Use Brick Break!"

Incineroar quickly recovered, and slammed his fist into Sivally, making the Legendary roar in pain. Gladion smirked, before taking out a small disc.

"Alright, I was going to save this for Ash, but if that's how you want to play, then fine!"

He threw it, the disc inserting itself perfectly into Sivally's neck, causing his head and tail feathers to turn pink.

"What's that?"

"A secret weapon. Now Sivally, use Surf!"

"Darkest Lariat!"

Ash and Lillie could only stare in bemusement as their two opponents fought each other, completely ignoring the two of them.

"So what's up with that?"

"Sivally's ability allows him to change his type by inserting those special discs into him. Looks like Gladion changed him into a Fairy Type."

"They do know that we're also their opponents, right?"

"What do you say we remind them?"

Ash grinned.

"I like the way you think!"

"Acid Spray, Nihilego!"

"Lucario, Close Combat!"

"Acid Spray, Nihilego!"

The two sprung into action, Lucario forcing Incineroar away while Nihileggo launched poison at Sivally, making both Pokemon howl in pain.

"Did you forget we're here too?"

"Hardly," The Masked Royal grinned. "Incineroar, use Flamethrower!"

"Vacuum Wave!"

Lucario thrust his arms forward, creating a Vacuum shield in front of him to deflect the flames.

"Incredible! By using an attack to defend, Lucario has prevented himself from taking damage! But I'd expect nothing less from our champion."

Meanwhile, Lillie and Gladion's Pokemon were going at it. At the moment, Nihilego had Sivally in a chokehold with her tentacles.

"Venoshock, Nihilego!"

Poison started dripping down from Nihilego's body onto Sivally, making the Legendary snarl in pain. With the way Nihilego was positioned, Gladion wasn't able to use a Memory to change Sivally's type, so he had to think on his feet.

"Steel Beam, Sivally!"

The crest on his head shot up, throwing Nihilego off of him.

"Now use Flash Cannon!"

"Nihilego, use Acid Spray!"

Nihilego's attempt to defend herself did little to stop the oncoming attack, sending her flying into a wall.

"Nihilego!"

Nihilego struggled to get up, but the damage she had sustained was too much, and she fell right back down unconscious.

"Nihilego is unable to battle! Trainer Lillie has been knocked out!"

"Aw, too bad! But she gave it a great try, let's give her a big hand!"

Lillie smiled kindly as she returned Nihilego to her Pokeball, the crowd cheering her on.

"You did great, Nihilego. Get some rest."

Gladion smirked. Now he could focus on Ash and Kukui…

"Meteor Mash, Lucario!"

"Fire Blast, Incineroar!"

Suddenly, Sivally was hit by a huge stream of fire, knocking him back. But he didn't have time to recover before Lucario leapt on him, punching him over and over. By the time Lucario had stopped, Sivally was unable to stand up.

"Sivally is unable to battle! Trainer Gladion has been knocked out!"

"What a showing! Gladion thought he was on top of things, but just like that he's knocked out! Sorry Gladion, but that's how the cookie crumbles!"

Gladion sighed, but returned Sivally with a smile.

"You did well, Sivally. Get some rest."

Now that it was just the two of them, Lucario and Incineroar returned all of their attention to each other, circling each other as they tried to size up the other.

"Give up, Ash! You're at a disadvantage."

Ash chuckled, showing off his new Keystone.

"Oh really? It's time we show you our new trick! Lucario, Mega Evolve!"

Lucario howled, letting the energy transform him. Kukui grinned, impressed.

"Nice, but this won't stop us from winning! Incineroar, use Throat Chop!"

"Dodge, then use Rock Smash!"

Incineroar charged, ready to strike Lucario hard on the throat, but Lucario sidestepped it and punched Incineroar hard in the gut, making him stop his attack dead in its tracks.

"Now use Aura Sphere!"

While Incineroar was still recovering, Lucario blasted him with a point blank Aura Sphere, sending Incineroar skidding back as he clutched his gut in pain.

"Power Up Punch!"

"Fire Punch!"

Lucario charged, fists glowing with rage as sweat poured down his face. Incineroar smirked, and charged towards him with his fist glowing bright red. The two ran past each other, their attacks connecting as they reached opposite ends of the arena. They both stumbled, but they remained standing.

"Alright Incineroar, they showed us their secret weapon, now it's time to show them ours! Malicious Moonsault!"

Energy poured from Kukui's Z-Ring into Incineroar, the Fire/Dark type glowing with purple energy. Once he had built up enough, he spun around like a top, striking Lucario over and over as he spun around him. Lucario struggled to keep going, which was getting harder to do as Incineroar picked up speed.

"Don't let them win, Lucario! Counter!"

Lucario scanned the area, trying to find where Incineroar would appear again. Once he figured it out, he slammed his arm out, stopping Incineroar in his tracks. For a minute, the two stood still, but at last Incineroar collapsed to the ground, defeated.

"Incineroar is unable to battle! Lucario is the winner, which means Ash Ketchum wins!"

"There you have it, folks! It was a long, hard fought battle, but in the end our champion reigns supreme!"

"Champion! Champion! Champion! Champion!"

Ash smiled, and waved proudly to his cheering fans. He didn't know if he would beat Leon, but right now that didn't matter. Right now, he felt like he was on top of the world.