The Contender's Ascent

by Insane Dominator

Third installment to "The Fairy Contender". Months passed since Nic and Erza finally united, but now things get really interesting. New challenges face Nic as Pokemon begin to rise, more complex foes challenge him and his powers, and something darker than darkness itself seeks Nic. With friends new and old joining forces, Nic and two worlds unite in ways unimaginable. OCxErza

94. X793 GMG Day 2: Inverse

"Lucy? Lucy?!" Klefki called from the other side of the wall that appeared moments ago. She was so startled that the Celestial Keys around her ring jingled to her fright. "Oh no, not good. Not good at all."

She knew Lucy couldn't summon her Celestial Spirits without her keys. Klefki was trusted to hold onto them, but now she was struck between a rock and a hard place. Or in this case, a wall.

'Gotta think, gotta think.' She looked around to find any shortcuts. Her attention turned towards the sky. 'Oh…yeah!'

She drifted skywards to scale over the wall…only to bump her key top on something and jerk back.

"Ow!" She clutched her head with her now separated rings. "Huh?" She looked back up and noticed ripples fading where she struck.

"Looks like Lucy's Klefki learned the hard way what happens when you try to climb over the walls." Lola announced. "As previously stated, the usage of flying and digging beneath the maze is prohibited, so magic barriers are layered to impose this limitation."

"Talk about bad timing." On the other side of the wall, Lucy heard the announcement while dealing with her own problems. The Pupitar that opposed her stood stiff, but she certainly didn't like the glare he was giving her. "Um…suppose we can work something out?"

The Pupitar's response was his eyes glowing red and projected outwards. Lucy felt a chill run down her spine as a dense blue aura enveloped her body.

'What did it do?' She wondered.

Pupitar followed up by making his own body give off a white sheen. Silver energy hung over Lucy's head that materialized into boulders. The Rock Slide came crashing down, to which Lucy made an attempt to move. But when she moved her feet, she noticed something off.

'Wait, did I just get slower?!'

Lucy brought her arms up to cover her head as the rocks pelted her. Everyone watched as hardened boulders buried the blonde beneath its rubble.

"Lucy!" Natsu leaned over the balcony in shock.

"Is she alright?!" Wendy worried.

"She should've dodged that. Why'd she move so slow?" Gray wondered. "Did she hesitate?"

Erza folded her arms. "No. Her speed was reduced." Her statement garnered her team's attention as she continued. "That move she was hit with prior, that was Scary Face."

"Scary Face?" Juvia parroted.

"That move sharply reduces a target's Speed. Meaning Lucy's slower now." Vanessa explained. She looked at the lacrima-vision with keen interest. "Which means unless she can find a way to her speed back up, she's gonna have a harder time getting through the maze."

The rubble began shifting until a boulder was pushed onto its face. Lucy emerged with dirt and dust covering her clothes. "That hurt…" She winced.

The Pupitar shuddered, expelling gas from its shell.

'I can't get use my Star Dresses without my keys, and Klefki's not here. That case…' Lucy reached back and pulled out a Great Ball. 'It's up to you!' She threw the Great Ball. "Grovyle, go!"

The Great Ball opened, expelling Grovyle midair and landed on a knee.

"What is it this time?" He grumbled, rising up to face the Pupitar. "Oh…that thing." He shrugged. "Whatever." He began shaking his wrists before clutching them. "Let's get this over with."

The Pupitar expelled gas and shot like a rocket towards Grovyle.

Lucy balled a fist. "Use Leaf Blade!"

Grovyle scoffed and crossed his arms. His leaves glowed bright green and became large, crisp blades. With fluent motion, he passed the charging Pupitar and posed behind. His blades returned to leaves as he closed his eyes.

The Pupitar's momentum was completely cut off, as was he as a green gash dispersed from his side. He fell forward with a loud thud.

"Woah, talk about a turnaround! With one move, Lucy's Grovyle took down that Pupitar!" Lola announced.

"That's our girl!" Droy cheered amongst his guildmates.

"That Grovyle of hers is something else." Jet smirked.

"Doesn't that thing have an attitude though?" Macao wondered.

Wakaba shrugged. "Sounds like the norm to me."

Lucy smiled happily. "Great work Grovyle, thanks."

Grovyle turned back towards her. "No big deal." He gazed around the maze walls. "If your plan is to wander aimlessly, telling ya right now I'm not for it."

Lucy shook her head. "No, not like that." She took another step, but she felt her movement to be very lumbar. She knew if this dragged on, her team was going to get last place for sure.

'I can't dawdle like this. We have to find Klefki, and quick!' She turned towards the wall behind her. "Klefki! If you can hear me, don't move! We'll be right there! Stay put! C'mon, Grovyle!" Lucy turned and hustled – or as close to what can be called a hustle in reduced speed – down the new path.

Grovyle saw her rate and facepalmed. "Yup, we're screwed."

---

The light from Kevin's Nest Ball receded, bringing a smirk to the Trainer's lips.

Standing between him and the opposing Magneton was a fairly large, bipedal Pokémon that had a beige, narrowed face with the fur on his body patterned similar to molten lava. Round cuffs on his claws were similar to vents, with a pipe-like tail. The Pokémon flicked his tongue, which was a flame.

"Alright!" The Fire-type clenched his yellow claws. "Let's give them the business!"

"Counting on ya, Heatmor."

"Looks like Kevin of Blue Pegasus brought his own help to his fight." Lola announced.

Dereece's eyes widened. "A Heatmor? So it is a new Pokémon!"

Joey studied the broadcast briefly before picking up his Poké Dex to run an analysis.

"Heatmor, the Anteater Pokémon. It draws in air through its tail, transforms it into fire, and uses it like a tongue. It melts Durant and eats them."

"A Fire-type. Not a bad choice against a Steel-type." Duncan admitted, leaning casually against the wall.

Kevin looked completely composed as the Magneton's magnets rotated with static charging. "Intruder numbers increasing. Intruder numbers increasing."

Heatmor turned towards Kevin and brought a claw up, like he was being hush. "Uh, Kevin. Not to be a wet blanket, but are you sure magnets are edible? I mean if its insides were filled with little Durant…" His eyes widened. "I mean, durable candies! Yeah, the crunchy kind! Hehehe…"

"Worry about your diet later. We've got business, Hetamor." He reminded him.

Heatmor shook his head and smacked the sides of his face. "Right, sorry! Game on!"

"Expunge intruders! Expunge Intruders!" Magneton's six magnets converged with a red, yellow, and blue orb. Each orb launched a stream of fire, lightning, and ice at Heatmor.

Kevin swiped his arm. "Hidden Power!"

Heatmor brought his hands together, generating a bright blue orb between his palms. He threw it at the Tri Attack and made a small explosion between them. Magneton burst through the smoke with its body swallowed in dense static.

"Incinerate!"

Heatmor careened his head back and lurched forward, unleashing a volley of fireballs with sizzling surfaces with charred black centers. The fireballs collided with Magneton and threw it back. The electricity around its body dispersed within shock.

"One more time! Incinerate!" Kevin commanded.

"Hope you don't mind feeling extra crispy for a while!" Heatmor sucked air through his tail, expelling another barrage of fireballs that flew into his stammering foe. The fireballs pelted Magenton nonstop with so much force they shoved it into the farthest wall. They watched its steaming body fall to the ground, all three eyes swirling.

Kevin smirked with folded arms. "Now that's how it's done. Nice work, Heatmor."

Heatmor turned and rubbed the back of his head. "T'was nothing."

The Trainer turned his attention towards the pathways around him. None of them looked familiar from a minute ago. He pulled up his Search Magic and checked the new layout as well as everyone else's locations.

'Looks like Rufus and Rocker are ahead of me. Lucy's moving a lot slower for some reason.' He noted the numerous icons that he bookmarked thanks to the announcer saying them. Saved him a lot of trouble and stress. "Let's get moving, Heatmor. Follow my lead."

He took off down a path, taking a sharp right, then a left. Heatmor trailed behind, lumbering while muttering to himself. "I hope there's crispy bugs for a prize."

---

Chelia panted heavily as she hurried past various turns. The new directions completely messed with her sense of direction. And it didn't help that Swoobat couldn't scout for her because of the barriers restricting their space.

"We've gotta…be there soon, right?" She questioned between breaths. It felt like she was running for hours when it was in fact minutes.

Swoobat briefly stopped. "Chelia, up ahead!"

"Huh?" Chelia noticed something beyond the corner they turned on. A light. An opening that told her all she needed to know. "That's it! We're so in, Swoobat! First place, here we come!"

The two hurried and rushed for the exit. The closer they got, the more adrenaline the Trainer felt. She never felt so accomplished the moment she stepped foot outside, feeling fresh air once again.

"Haha! Yes! Victory for Lamia Scale!"

Although, something was off that she immediately recognized.

"Hm? Hey, wait a minute. Isn't there supposed to be a winner's circle?" She looked around and saw how far over her exit was. "Something's off here…why's it feel like it's not won yet?"

Swoobat looked up, her brows drooping. "Um…Chelia?"

"Hm? Yes, Swoobat?" The petite Trainer looked to what had her partner in a state. That's when her jaw nearly dropped to the floor upon recognizing the Lamia Scale emblem for her entrance at the start of the maze.

"No way…" She sank to her knees in a loss of strength. "WE'RE RIGHT BACK WHERE WE STARTED!?"

"Uh oh! Talk about a turn for the worst! Seems what Chelia thought was the right side turned out to be the starting point." Lola reported.

"A poor judgment along with bad orientation. How unfortunate." Yajima added.

The Lamia Scale guildmembers facepalmed. As they began to wallow in their slipping chances at victory, Obaba was spinning her finger at Chelia. "Chelia! What the hell are you doing?! Get back in there and don't come back out unless it's the other side!"

Chelia bolted to her feet and bowed towards her Guild Master. "Right! Sorry! C'mon Swoobat, it's not over yet!"

The pair quickly pivoted and rushed back into the maze.

---

"Oh my, seems that our strategy just won't cut it, will it?" Rufus looked at his new surroundings, noticing new pathways and turns that he didn't recall before. It amused him a little. "If it goes like this, our Toxic Spikes decoys will only backfire on us. And my Memory Make won't be of much use if it shifts. Seems we have our work cut out for us."

He looked right, noticing the path up that direction opened in the middle. As he started for that direction, a voice called out. "Not so fast, fancy boy!"

Flanking an adjacent path, Rocker and his Hitmonlee appeared. The two glared at them and vice versa.

"Looks like we finally have contact between mages inside the maze." Lola relayed. "What happens next could be anyone's guess."

Alexa turned towards him. "Question: Is it against the rues for mages to do battle inside the maze?"

"Technically, no. Battles can happen as they please inside the maze. It can also happen between Trainers if that's the case. So, will the two compromise and work it out to clear the maze? Or will the two guilds duke it out and leave the other in the dust? Oh, the twists and turns this contest gives ya!"

"Gotta say, been having some real rotten luck inside this place." Rocker complained. "But I think we've got this one. And you ain't crashin' my victory."

Rufus raised a brow. "Is that so? Well if you insist on getting in our way…" He snapped his fingers, Tentacruel moving in front of him. "Then please try. It'll be quite amusing like your guild was the year before."

Rocker's brow twitched. That humiliation will forever stain Quatro Cerberus's name.

"You little…"

A finger tapped his shoulder. "Heads up!" Hitmonlee pointed behind them. A group of Mightyena were closing in on them.

Rufus looked over his shoulder, noticing a Marowak was glaring at him. His club was clutched tight.

"Tch, talk about bad company." Rocker scowled.

"Indeed." Rufus agreed. "Though I wonder, who can keep up with who here?"

Two of the three Mightyena raced after their prey. One Mightyena turned around and kicked up sand using his hindlegs. The dirt got into Hitmonlee's eyes, reducing his accuracy. The lack of eyesight left him open to getting rushed by one Mightyena and slammed onto his back.

"Hitmonlee!" Rocker shouted, before forced to bring his arms up to block a Mightyena that bit him with glowing fangs. He winced at the pain as he tussled on the ground.

Rufus stood against the Marowak with his trademark smirk. The Marowak threw his bone with gusto, only to pass right through him, shocking the Marowak.

"Wait…wha-?!" Rocker was able to get to his feet, only to get a harsh bone to the face, putting him back on the unforgiving ground and pounced by even more unforgiving Mightyena.

Rufus's midsection was hazy sparkles that vanished, along with the rest of his body.

Further up ahead, Rufus chuckled as he hurried along, his Tentacruel back in his Dive Ball. "I prefer to pick and choose my battles wisely. Sorry, but I left you with some extra company if you allow it."

"Why you sneaky…!"

A Mightyena bit Rocker right in his keester, causing a wild cry that was immediately silenced by Marowak clubbing his head with his bone.

"Damn, talk about brutal." Gray grimaced. He actually felt sorry for the guy. 'I knew that guy was sly, but this is next level.'

'Using his Afterimage technique while he had an opponent behind to divert attention.' Sophie's lips curled into a smirk. 'I'll have to memorize that. Thanks cousin.'

"And Rufus takes the lead in this race through the perilous maze! But how far will he be able to get?" Lola wondered.

Rufus heard the announcement and chuckled. "Why, to the winner's circle obviously!"

But when he took the next step, a green magic circle appeared beneath him. "Hmm?" He hummed his wonder before vanishing on the spot.

When he reappeared, he found himself standing elsewhere. "A trap? And I fell for it…" The realization left him tipping his hat as he sourly chuckled. "Well…suppose they put in some effort into this after all."

Around him, a number of Pokémon were already gathered. They closed in on him, but Rufus remained calm and didn't reach for any of his own Pokémon.

"But…" Instead he pointed a finger at his forehead, summoning chains of memories. A glow enveloped his body as the sky above him turned to a faux night. "They'll have to try harder! Memory-Make: Night of Shooting Stars!"

Numerous golden arrows shot into the air from his body, hailing down onto the numerous Pokémon around him. Their shrieks only served to broaden his smirk.

---

"Woah~! Het, wait a sec!" Lucy's complaints echoed down the labyrinth. Dragged against her will, she was pulled by the wrist by Grovyle, his Agility helping to pick up the slack.

"I wouldn't have too if you weren't so heavy." He argued back. "You're no picnic to drag around!"

Lucy grew visibly irritated by her Pokémon's rude mouth. 'Geez, that's harsh!'

Grovyle took a sharp left, causing Lucy's momentum to prop her feet against the wall and run a short ways back down to stable ground. He spurred faster, a red aura enveloping his body via Agility again. The greater speed increase nearly caused Lucy's feet to leave the ground.

"Just look at that!" Lola announced. "After being slowed down by that Pupitar, Lucy picks up the slack by using her Pokémon's speed!"

"Wouldn't say that's the worst method, but time's still ticking." Yajima reminded.

The pair were blitzing around corners, hurrying to where Klefki was. 'This has to be the right way.' Lucy figured. After circling around the adjacent passageways, this was the only one left. 'The maze is gonna shift again soon. No time to slow down!'

Grovyle blitzed to the end of the path and stopped where it turned left. Lucy caught herself and looked ahead at the familiar treasure chest with the key ring on top.

"Klefki!"

Klefki jerked up, jingling her keys. "Lucy! Grovyle!"

"About damn time!" Grovyle scowled. "At least now we can-!"

Before he could finish, the entire labyrinth began to shift again.

"Oh crap. Already?" Lucy worried.

"Lucy!" Klefki panicked.

Lucy didn't have to think twice. As the maze walls began descending and escalating, she reached out to Klefki as the latter shot right towards her. She managed to grab hold of her by the key horn and pull her in moments before a wall shot up in front that would've separated them again. She pivoted around to keep herself from falling and straightened out.

"Klefki…thank goodness." Lucy sighed in relief.

Klefki smiled back. "Sorry about that."

She shook her head. "No, I'm the one who's sorry. I wasn't aware of my surroundings."

"Lucy…"

Grovyle folded his arms. "Glad you're both happy and gushy. Now we gonna figure our way out of this?"

Lucy immediately got her game face on. "Right. Grovyle, great work. We'll take it from here." She recalled Grovyle back into his Great Ball, then turned towards Klefki. "Klefki, it's key time."

She nodded in understanding. She undid her key ring and exposed her selection to Lucy. The blonde took a silver key then turned it clockwise.

"Open: Gate of the Great Wolf – Lupus!"

The celestial gate opened with a resounding echo of a howl. Emerging onto his biped clawed feet, Lupus hunched forward and snarled, before straightened his spine and let out a loud howl that shook the airspace.

"Woah there, that's a new one." Wakaba whistled.

"Hang on, that isn't a Zodiac, is it?" Macao wondered.

"If it was, can't say I know it." Alzack admitted.

A smirk crossed Cana's lips upon recognizing her old furry friend. "Hell yeah! Now we're talking!"

And there were some who were less than pleased at his appearance. "Oh great…why the dog? Why not Plue instead?" Happy groaned, slightly shivering.

Natsu raised a brow at him. "Hm, why're you so worked up? He's cool, remember?"

"Says you! I hate dogs!"

"But why him? What can he do?" Juvia wondered.

"Trust me hun, you're about to see for yourself." Cana winked. She glazed at the screen with a determined smirk. "Cuz if I know our girl, she's gonna cover a lot of ground really fast thanks to him."

Lupus turned around, addressing Lucy with a meek bow. "This is your first time summoning me, Miss Lucy." He snarled.

Lucy nodded. "Yeah, can I count on you for your help, Lupus?"

He lifted his head. "Just tell me what you need."

The blonde swiped her arm and gave an order. "I need you and your pack. Find the exit to the north and get us the quickest route out of this maze, pronto!"

"Understood." The celestial wolf turned around to the more open area in front of him. He took a deep breath and let out a loud howl that echoed through the maze. Those who heard it felt a slight chill down their spine. After a few seconds, a dozen gateways opened and summoned Canes. The Beta as well as the pack corralled and stood before their leader, all of them letting out a resounding howl upon their summon.

Lupus didn't need to say anything. He simply pointed his claw ahead. The beta leader turned and barked feverishly as he raced down the corridor with the rest of the pack following behind.

In an adjacent corridor, Beth was treading carefully due to the poison her Tauros sustained earlier. He was currently in his Poké Ball to keep his health from falling. Just as she turned a corner, a pack of dogs blindsided her, causing her to flinch and press against the wall in fear. "What in tarnation?!"

Rufus watched a number of dogs run past him, much to his curiosity. "What might this be about?"

Dogs rushed past Kevin and Heatmor, the former looking shocked. "Hey now! Who let the dogs out?"

As Canes ran through the maze, the pack was starting to divide their numbers around deeper corridors. Members even started sniffing the ground as they could smell traps. They barked to alert their brethren, to which they leaped over and hurried further into the end of the maze.

"Talk about divide and conquer! Lucy's calling upon her Celestial Spirits to help find the maze's exit!" Lola gasped.

"Oh my, so that's what's called a Celestial Spirit?" Alexa awed, catching the moment on her headset. "They were summoned just like Pokémon but with keys instead. Astounding."

"That's our girl and dog!" Cana cheered. "You go catch up!"

Lupus got on all fours, allowing Lucy to hop onto his back as she pointed ahead. "Alright, now lead the way!"

"I'm not used to passengers, so you better hang on tight." Lupus warned.

Lucy didn't think twice before Lupus lunged ahead, following his pack's trail.

As Canes was spreading apart, some of the dogs were starting to come a stop near a corner. Their superb noses picked up something. They looked around snarling, not knowing that around a corner, piercing blue eyes darted at them.

…

As one of the dogs was sniffing around, he noticed something about the ground in front of him. His ears folded back as he bared his fangs. He turned around and swept his furry tail over the dirt, causing a magic seal to activate, shooting up a plume of red gas. The hound didn't take chances as he backed off as the gas dissipated.

Around a corner, Kevin and Heatmor were watching this. 'So these guys are smart enough to smell traps, huh? If we follow them, they should take us to the finish line without worrying about traps…'

Suddenly, a loud slew of howls were heard, stiffening his spine.

"What's that?! Were we spotted?!" Heatmor panicked.

The dog's ears twitched. Just as the gas dispersed, he bared his fangs and went darting towards the direction of the howling. Kevin and Heatmor noted how quick his pace was.

"C'mon, follow me." Kevin decided to tailgate the hound, hurrying to the next corner and ran further down the corridor. 'Sounds like a distress call. They in trouble or something?'

The collective howls grew, then one of Canes went flying into the wall in front of him, causing him to brake to a halt. He and Heatmor turned, their shock rising at the sight.

Four members of Canes bared their fangs at an opposing fellow canine. However, unlike the more feral disposition they had, this canine had a calm, piercing blue glare as he studied his opponents around him.

'That doesn't look like one of them.' Kevin worried. 'I wonder…' Curiosity overtaking him, he pulled out his PokéDex and ran an analysis on the opposing wolf.

"Lycanroc, the Wolf Pokémon. The sharp rocks in its mane can cut like knives. Lycanroc wears its prey own by degrees before finishing them off."

"A Lycanroc, huh?" Kevin looked at the scene with keen interest.

"Uh…you think they're getting along?" Heatmor worried.

Two members of Canes rushed at the same time. The Lycanroc stood still as they pounced, then vanished in a blur. Before their paws could touch the ground, the wolf appeared behind them, his mane glowing and expelling orbs of silver energy that became rocks that he dropped onto the two.

The two other members of the pack hurried to attack with his back turned, but the Lycanroc once again proved his ineptness by pivoting, biting down with glowing fangs on one of their necks, and threw it into the other, slamming them into the nearest wall.

Kevin couldn't help but cringe at the sight. The former mumbled, "They're gonna feel that in the morning."

The pack members were recovering when Lycanroc stood before them, their gazes showing no signs of yielding.

"ROAR!" Lycanroc opened his maw, expelling a transparent bellow that echoed through the entire area. Kevin and Heatmor could only watch as the members of the pack were immediately forced into a retreat. They howled and whimpered loudly as they rushed around the corner, completely ignoring Kevin and Heatmor.

"Well…that happened." Kevin grimaced.

Heatmor showed panicked, but then noticed something beyond the Lycanroc. "Kevin, look." He whispered, pointing a claw.

Kevin looked ahead and his eyes widened. It was the exit! They made it!

"Alright, we're just there!" He harshly cheered. His delight turned to grimace. "But that means…"

The Lycanroc's nose twitched and, much to their chagrin, he turned towards them, snarling. His blue gaze was locked onto them and told them all they needed to know.

'So much for waiting until he leaves.' Kevin steeled himself and stepped into the open. "Alright, guess we've got no choice here. Let's go, Heatmor!"

Heatmor stepped up, sucking air through his tail and flicked his fire tongue. "I can taste victory already!"

"The only thing you'll taste…" Lycanroc suddenly vanished.

Kevin and Heatmor gasped as he suddenly appeared in front of Heatmor, bashing his head into his abdomen followed by a burst of stones. Heatmor slid several feet back from the shock as Lycanroc landed on the ground.

"…is cold. Hard. Stones."

---

Lupus traversed the maze with Lucy on his back. It wasn't as soft as the Celestial Mage had liked it to be though, the prickly fur was like tint barbs against her bare skin. But for the sake of the competition – and Lupus's feelings – she stuck with it. Klefki was swift in keeping up.

Lupus's ears straightened. He stopped briefly and turned towards a direction.

"Lupus? What's wrong?" Lucy wondered.

"My pack…sounds like they ran into trouble." He spoke.

Lucy blinked, showing visible wonder at his claim. "What kind of trouble?"

The sound of hollers ran through the walls. A few members of Canes' pack rushed back to report to Lupus. They barked something to him, to which he nodded.

"Hmm…yeah, sounds like another mutt's up ahead causing a ruckus." He snarled. "But it looks like we're not far from the exit. It's right there." His fangs bared with excitement, his fur starting stand on edge. "Been a while since I threw down with another mutt."

Lucy nodded. "Then let's go. We need to be fast about this, can you speed things up?"

Lupus scoffed. "You want fast? You're speaking my language." As he spoke, his leg muscles intensified. His Sonic Magic was pumping adrenaline into him as he got low on all fours and built momentum. "Hold on tight-!"

A black aura suddenly enveloped them. Lupus went stiff as he was unable to thrust his momentum forward.

"Lupus? What's wrong?" Lucy wondered. She turned towards Klefki, who seemed stiff as well. Turning to look at her hands, the dark aura faded into her. 'Wait, was that a move? I can't run away!'

"Ke-ke-ke! Keeeee-ke-ke-ke-ke!" The echo of a cringy laughter echoed through the walls around them. The shadows blackened along the wall and expanded, revealing a Gengar. This caused Lupus to jerk back and snarl as the ghost slowly separated from the wall and floated a few meters away, still cackling.

"I thought all the traps were swept by Canes." Lucy grimaced.

The Gengar snickered. "Hard to smell a ghost! Say, I got an idea." He suggested. "Since you look so worn out, why not stick around for a while? Give me company. Sound good?"

Klefki faced him. "Too bad! We have a race to win!"

Gengar sighed. "What a pity. And here I was willing to let you go my Mean Look. But since you said no…" His dejection turned to wicked joy. "That means more fun for me! Ke-ke-ke-ke!"

Lucy gritted her teeth as she clenched Lupus tight. 'Things just keep piling up!'

---

The crowd was going wild as they saw all the contestants were on various lacrima-visions. Lucy's screen got enough recognition for Lola to comment on it. "Wuh-oh! Looks like Lucy's got spooked! Seems like she's not clearing away!"

"That has to be the work of that Pokémon she's facing, I'm certain of it." Yajima stated.

"It must be Mean Look." Alexa explained. "It's a move that prevents Pokémon from switching out, but it also keeps others from running away as well."

Cana furrowed her brow. "Great. Just when our girl finally got some momentum up again."

"Yes, but she's still well ahead of everyone. She needs to hurry and shake that Gengar somehow." Juvia informed.

"Speaking of dogs…" Gray turned towards Kevin's panel, revealing him squaring off against the Lycanroc. "That Pokémon he's facing…it kinda reminds me of that Lycanroc I fought before." He recalled his brawl with Akando back in Pokétopia and how dangerously close it was.

Juvia turned towards him. "Perhaps it's another form. Kinda like those Graveler from yesterday and Olga's. Maybe it's something like that?"

Vanessa looked at her PokéDex that showed Lycanroc's data. "It sayd here Lycanroc is amongst a number of Pokémon with different forms. The one we fought apparently was a Midnight Lycanroc. Meanwhile, the one Kevin is facing is a Midday Lycanroc."

"Eh?" Natsu raised a brow. "So what, there a difference? They're just times of days."

"Some Pokémon evolve under special circumstances." Erza explained. "For example, some Pokémon can only evolve during the day, while others evolve at night." She leered at the Lycanroc with keen interest. "As for their potential…we'll just have to see."

"C'mon, Kevin! Beat that hound and get to through the maze! For Blue Pegasus!" Ren cheered, with the others echoing the sentiment.

Ichiya folded his arms, looking dignified beside his Spritzee. "Young Kevin, this is your big moment. Your Search Magic was a big factor as to why you're here now. But now that this is a battle that you must fight, I must see…" His eyes widened. "The resolve you carry! Show everyone the strength not just our guild, but you have accumulated during your tenure here! May your parfume flourish!"

…

Kevin propped up his shades as they glinted under the sun. "Heatmor, Lick!"

Heatmor took in more air through his tail, allowing his flaming tongue to extend outwards. Despite contacts with the flames, they didn't sear Lycanroc despite dealing damage.

"Hmm, not bad. A little dry, but add some salt and-OOOW!" However, he returned the favor by opening his maw wide and used Bite on the flammable appendage. Heatmor let out a pained cry, his tongue slinging back into his mouth as he hopped to either foot.

Kevin cringed at the sight. "Ooh! That's gonna hurt." He wasn't the only one thinking that.

With Heatmor staggering, Lycanroc lunged at blinding speeds, smashing into his waist with another Accelerock. Shards of rock erupted at point-blank, dealing super-effective damage.

"Heatmor, grab him!"

Heatmor managed to get his second wind, using his claws to grab ahold of the sharp stones on Lycanroc's mane. He held the wolf far enough to where he was able to avoid his snapping jaws.

"Use Lick!"

Heatmor extended his tongue flame again, flicking up along Lycanroc's underjaw. The wolf snarled, but then started cringing as static crackled around his body. "W-what the-?!"

Kevin smirked. 'Yes, just what I was hoping for!'

"Looks like Heatmor's got Lycanroc paralyzed somehow." Lola commented in Kevin's battle.

"That's the effects of Lick." Alexa explained. "It's not a strong Ghost-type move, but there's a chance the target could be paralyzed because of it. My guess is that's what Kevin was aiming for."

"I see. Despite being a Fire-type, Kevin sure prepped his Heatmor well." Yajima admitted.

Kevin swiped his arm forward. "Alright Heatmor, use Hidden Power!"

Heatmor pivoted and built momentum before flinging Lycanroc into the air. His hands free, he brought them together to create another metallic energy sphere. He tossed the sphere at Lycanroc, landing an explosive hit that sent him crashing into the ground below.

Lycanroc grimaced as he slowly got back to his feet, shaking his head. He looked up at Kevin and Heatmor, his glare unyielding.

'Heatmor's Hidden Power is a Steel-type, so that was super effective.' Kevin thought. 'One more hit should do it. But…' He looked at Heatmor, noticing his scraped body and pants. 'Heatmor's pretty wiped. Not sure he'll be able to take another Rock-type move.'

"That case…" He reached forward. "Let's finish this fast! Heatmor, Hidden Power!"

"You bet!" He brought his hands together to create another metallic energy sphere.

Lycanroc's eyes narrowed. "Oh no, you…DOOOOOOOON'T!" He took in a sharp breath, unleashing a vicious shockwave through the air towards Heatmor. The force of the howl was propping him off his feet slowly.

Kevin covered his face with his arms. "Crap! That's Roar!"

"I…gaaaah!" Heatmor was finally lifted off his feet and became red energy that returned to the Nest Ball on Kevin's belt. A Net Ball popped open consecutively and brought out his Krabby with his checkerboard in his claws.

"Huh? Hey, wait, is it game time?" The River Crab Pokémon blinked, looking around curiously.

'Krabby?' Kevin thought about it for a moment. 'Well, guess this the next best option.' He grew determined. "Yeah, something like that. We're just a few spaces away from checkmate. It's up to you to win this game, Krabby."

Krabby saw the Lycanroc snarling at him, gingerly putting down his checkerboard. "I hope you're ready to play a few rounds with me when I win this."

"We can play all night. Now, let's get that win!"

---

Lucy cracked her whip of celestial water, hoping to land a hit on the opposing Gengar. However, he simply floated out of the way, right in front of Klefki.

"Klefki, Mirror Shot!" Lucy ordered.

Klefki's entire body became covered in a light blue aura that formulated into a sphere in front of her. "Try this one for size!" She shot the sphere at Gengar.

He turned his head and saw the bright sphere head his way. He swiveled around it and smirked at Klefki. "Try and aim better next time!"

Lucy gritted her teeth. 'He just won't stay still!'

"Now it's my turn! Confuse Ray!" He summoned purple orbs around him and launched them at Klefki.

To her shock, the orbs traveled faster than she anticipated and ended up seeing a flash, horrifying Lucy. "Klefki!"

The light faded, revealing Klefki completely dazed. She dizzily looked around, her breathing heavy as she charged for a nearby wall key first, impaling it and seemingly locking her in place.

"Haha! Got a little confused there, Keys!" Gengar clenched his fist, which surrounded in shadows with a purple aura. "Shadow Punch!"

"Lupus!" At her call, Lupus used his Sonic Magic to blitz between himself and Gengar's punch. His claws hummed as green static crackled.

"Sonic Claw!" He slashed at Gengar's ghosty fist, breaking through his defenses and forcing him to veer away to avoid the slash wave.

Lucy turned around to check on Klefki's condition. "Klefki? It's me, Lucy! You're just fine!"

"Cylu~?" Klefki viciously jingled her key ring. "My keys~! Me share with Lucy onlyyy!"

'This is bad. Can't rely on her to pass me my keys in this state.' Lucy frowned. "Sorry about this. Return, Klefki!" Klefki returned to her Poké Ball, leaving Lucy and Lupus to glare at Gengar. 'I'm too slow to get anywhere, and that Mean Look only affected Lupus. I gotta shake this guy somehow!'

Gengar maliciously snickered as he summoned more orbs, via Confuse Ray. He threw them at the duo, which Lupus was more than ready to dodge. He flipped into the air behind Gengar, but when he had his back turned, he felt a presence and kicked…only to hit nothing.

"Yoohoo~! Down here!"

"Huh?" Lupus looked straight down, his eerily black shadow shooting a Shadow Punch into his lower jaw. He buffered and shook his head while Gengar zipped around, only further aggravating him. "Grrr…this ghost is more like an annoying bug now!"

His gaze followed to behind in the air, where Gengar reappeared. His eyes unleashed two beams of Night Shade that Lupus immediately backpedaled from. Lucy held on for dear life as the canine Celestial Spirit bared his claws at the descending ghost as he cockily sneered.

'We can't escape with his Mean Look still active, and his moves are only tricking us. At this rate, the others are gonna catch up.' She started thinking rapidly at what to do in this situation. 'What is there that we could…!' Wait a minute…there was something! She felt for around her waist and touched the cute doll she got. 'Wait…that's it!' She shot a glare at Gengar. 'Alright, if that's what we git to use.'

"Lupus, listen." She instructed her Celestial Spirit. "When I say go, start running. And don't stop, no matter what."

Lupus craned his head towards her. "You sure? He's got us pinned with that move."

"Trust me, I don't how we can escape. Trust me."

The humanoid wolf went silent as he studied his master's eyes. She was dead serious about her resolve. "…heh, you've got guts. My pals and I like that in people." He spread his legs and crouched low. "Alright, then show me what you've got!"

Gengar cackled again. "This is getting fun! Night Shade!"

Lucy's eyes shrank. "Okay…go!"

Lupus snarled as his Sonic Magic electrified his muscles, causing him to disappear. Gengar's attack beamed into the ground where he was a second ago. Time slowed down as he saw a shadow lunging over him. It was Lucy and Lupus, and his face gradually contorted to annoyance as he shot up to meet them. "You think…" His fist darkened for another punch. "You can escape from me!?"

"Here! Play with this instead!" Lucy tossed the cute doll towards Gengar.

As Gengar readied to attack, he immediately caught sight of the doll. It was strange, but at that moment, he found all the fight leaving him and instead filling with wonder. His eyes glistened as the doll was hurling his way and he opened his arms to catch the doll, gleefully holding it in hand.

"Oooooh…" He floated in place, mesmerized by the doll. Almost like a child holding a present. "It even has ears like me…" His own ears twitched in delight.

Lucy looked back, a smirk crossing her face as Lupus kept running. With Gengar distracted, the Mean Look aura briefly appeared before dispersing, allowing him to spur at lightning speed further into the labyrinth.

"It looks like that whatever Lucy used to distract Gengar managed to free her from his clutches." Lola announced.

"It sure seemed quite fascinated with that doll." Yajima noted. "Though I wonder what practical use that trinket has. Alexa?"

Alexa took the floor. "Certainly. You see, what Lucy used is what's called a Poké Doll. It's a little decoy tool Trainers can use on wild Pokémon to distract them while they escape. It's not too common, but effective nonetheless."

"I see. An item to bypass Mean Look. Interesting."

Shiin watched with intense focus. 'I wondered why they were making dolls last night as part of the production plan. Now I see why.'

"I didn't realize wild Pokémon fancied toys." Gray said, mildly surprised.

"It's kinda cute." Wendy cooed.

"Yes, it certainly is." Erza agreed.

Lola continued his commentary. "Now that Lucy's back in the running, she has a lot of ground to cover. But it looks like the others aren't far behind her either. Meanwhile, not far ahead…"

---

"Krabby, Rock Smash!" Kevin shouted.

Krabby brought his pincers up as they glowed orange-red. Lycanroc didn't back down as he spurred after him via Accelerock. The two attacks centerfield, the force of the blows forcing the other away. Krabby scuttled to a stop, but Lycanroc was quicker to recover and pivoted, sending orbs of silver turning into stone.

'That's Rock Tomb!' Kevin didn't think twice and acted fast. "Metal Claw!"

Krabby's claws glowed metallic gray as he swung them at the oncoming boulders. Despite cleaving through a few, several more broke through and pummeled his face. He scuttled further back as a blue aura enveloped his body, reducing his Speed.

"Nobody…gets past me!" Lycanroc vanished again via Accelerock. His rocky mane connected with Krabby, causing him to cry out as he tumbled further backwards towards Kevin.

Kevin balled his fists and grimaced at their predicament. 'If this keeps up, we won't get past him. We gotta overwhelm him. But what do we have?' His eyes widened beneath his shades at a realization. He hurriedly scrounged for his pockets and pulled out the X Attack he achieved earlier. 'Will this be enough?'

Krabby grunted as he got his legs beneath him. "This…isn't game over yet! I have some pieces I can still use!"

"That we do. Krabby…" Kevin got his attention, showing him the X Attack. "Eat this."

Krabby blinked. "What'll that do?"

"It'll boost your power." He answered, grinning. "Just enough to win this game."

Krabby didn't hesitate. Ever since he picked up checkers, he never once lost. He took a second to look over at his checkerboard again and remembered his motivation.

"Man, Krabby. You're really good at this game." Kevin was playing the game with his freshly caught Krabby. The River Crab Pokémon had won two games in a row, which befuddled his new Trainer.

"Really?" He didn't sound so convinced. "I don't know, just feels natural to me."

"You know what that means?"

"No, what?"

Kevin leaned in, pointing an index finger to Krabby's forehead. His eyes widened when he saw his Trainer beaming an encouraging, toothy smile. "It means you've got a good brain in that shell. Battling's one thing, but you can't win it unless you put your mind to it like you do here."

His words encouraged Krabby, making him pinch his claws. "I'm not about to lose…not when we're this far! Kevin!" He paused. "Let's rock!"

Kevin eagerly smirked. "That's my crab." He popped the lid of the X Attack and held it over him. "Down the hatch!"

The small red and pink supplements went into Krabby's mouth. Once the whole container was emptied, Kevin discarded the X Attack behind him and watched as Krabby was enveloped in a dense red aura that harshly increased his Attack.

"Now…let's win this thing." Kevin reached forward. "Rock Smash!"

Krabby brandished his claws once again, this time glowing red-orange, though much harsher than before. He hissed as he scuddled towards Lycanroc. The wolf retaliated by opening his maw and lunging at him with Bite. The fangs met a pincer and caused a brief stalemate. However, unlike before, Krabby was holding on.

With a heavy grunt, Krabby began pushing harder, startling Lycanroc. He eventually got enough force to shove Lycanroc onto his back with a harsh thud. A blue aura enveloped the wolf as his Defense fell as a result of Rock Smash's effects.

Kevin gleamed at the results of the X Attack. "Yeah, now we're back in the game."

Lycanroc howled as a silver aura emanated from him. He made silver energy orbs that turned into Rock Tomb and launched at Krabby, who was more than prepared.

"Metal Claw!"

The crab's metallic energy claws met the tossed boulders, bashing them to loose rock fragments. It was like watching two maces splintering wood. Krabby looked more determined than ever as he glared down Lycanroc.

"Why you little…!" Lycanroc prepared to charge, but the static overpowered his muscles, causing convulsion and harsh grunting.

'Now!' Kevin reached forward again. "Krabby, now! Stomp!"

With Lycanroc immobilized, Krabby jumped into the air and kicked the wolf squarely in the head. The impact caused him to cringe and flinch. By the time he came to, he looked around and didn't see Krabby…but he felt something latched onto his rocky mane.

"This…is my game!" Krabby declared.

Kevin did a hammer fist downwards. "Now…Rock Smash!"

Krabby's left claw let go and rose into the air. A harsh red-orange glow came from it again that reflected in Lycanroc's blue eyes as it drew closer. "KING ME!" Krabby smashed Lycanroc square in the face with so much force that dust picked up from the force of the blow.

Kevin covered himself and waited as the dust settled. He saw two silhouettes that came into view, revealing one of them being Krabby, and beneath him was Lycanroc with swirling eyes and unconscious.

"And that's how it's done!" Krabby beamed.

Kevin smirked in pride, but remembered what the objective was. "C'mon!" He grabbed Krabby's checkerboard and ran right by them. Krabby latched a pincer onto the gameboard and was pulled along by Kevin as they ran for the exit.

"And it looks like the first to emerge first is…" Lola paused, building up anticipation.

Moments passed as everyone waited to see who would come out first. Soon enough, someone did emerge from the maze. It was Kevin and Krabby, the former reaching the winner's circle.

"It's Kevin of Blue Pegasus, and his Krabby! That's 10 points for Blue Pegasus!"

A bell went off as confetti flew into the air. The crowd cheered loudly for the results of the Mystery Maze winner.

---

At the school, all the kids in Ms. Meela's class cheered and clapped at Kevin's victory.

"Yeah! I knew he could it!" Kai cheered.

Louis scoffed. "And here I thought I had to pay him to win. Hmph, guess I didn't need to."

"That was so amazing! Kevin and his Pokémon got first place!" Anais cheered as she held hands with Carmen and jumped for joy.

Liam sighed in exhaustion, but managed a small smile. "That was really something, wasn't it."

"YEAH! I knew he'd win this! That's our Mister P!" Brien yelled. Realizing his actions, he turned and saw his classmates giving him looks. He looked startled before turning away. "I-I mean…he did alright, I guess." He muttered. "Not like I was worried or anything…"

Haunter laughed hardily. "Look at that. Mr. Tough's shell seems to have cracked a little."

"And here we thought you didn't care." Misdreavus teased, holding a hair appendage over her mouth.

"S-shut up! I never said I didn't!" Brien fretted, much to everyone's amusement.

Patrick clenched his fists with a determined smile. "I knew Krabby could do it. He's not losing to anyone but me in games! Just you wait, next time I'm gonna beat you in checkers!"

"I gotta tell my dad about this! Mister P and Krabby cookies are gonna sell like crazy after this!" Carmen beamed.

Harper came by, licking her fingers clean of what's left of the Honey she finished. "Make sure they have jelly fill and honey glaze."

Sakura chuckled with a smile. She turned towards the lacrima monitor and saw Kevin and Krabby in the winner's circle. "I hope you can hear how happy we are of you, Kevin."

---

Kevin looked up at the confetti falling into his hand. He saw himself in a monitor with the word 'WINNER' in gold underneath. The realization got soaked in like a sponge and he smirked, hands to his sides. "Heh…well I'll be damned. We actually did it." He looked down towards Krabby, "You really did a great job, Krabby."

Krabby stood motionless as he stood in the winner's circle with his gameboard. He looked up at Kevin, then straightened up with pride. "Haha, yes! King me!" He laughed.

Just then, a harsh blue light enveloped Krabby, surprising everyone.

Kevin gasped. "Krabby?!"

Lola's eyes widened as he leaned forward. "Woah! What's happening down there! Kevin's Krabby is glowing!"

"That light…I think Krabby's starting to evolve." Alexa followed up.

Shiin looked shocked, almost as much as the others spectating around him. They all awed at the enigmatic blue light that enveloped Krabby. 'That's right. Pokémon undergo evolutions through various means. This evolution…is it being sparked by the feeling of accomplishment?'

Krabby's body gradually began to expand, causing Kevin to step back a pace. A spiky crown grew out of his head, and the left pincer grew significantly. When the light faded, it revealed an even larger crustacean resembling a crab, but the lower half was a lighter tone, with the shell now an orange color. A crown with half a dozen spokes sticking out rested atop his head. His lower half had prominent fangs sticking out that pointed up. But the biggest change was that his left pincer was of far greater size that rivaled his whole body, if not more.

"I feel…like I got an upgrade." The newly evolved crab stated. He felt something heavy and his eyes almost shot out from the size of his left claw. "Woah! A huge upgrade!"

"Krabby's a Kingler now." Kevin awed at the evolution before pulling out his PokéDex.

"Kingler, the Pincer Pokémon. Its large and hard pincer has 10,000 horsepower strength. However, being so big, it is unwieldly to move."

"Such strength huh…" Kevin took the data in stride and looked back at his new Kingler. "Well I'll be damned. Talk about getting more than you bargained for, huh?"

"I'll say." Kingler agreed.

Kevin smirked. "Well then, whaddya say we play checkers tonight? You definitely earned it."

Kingler put his right claw to his face and looked up in thought. "Hmmm…nah, I'm good."

The words had more impact than a lightning strike as Kevin almost floored from shock. He recovered and adjusted his shades. "Wait…what?! Did you…actually say no to a game of checkers?"

Kingler waved his left claw back and forth. "Yeah. It's a good game and all, but now…" He used his claw to whack the black and red coins off, replacing them with black and white pieces consisting of horses, crosses, circular tops, and crowns. "I wanna learn to play chess!"

Kevin's shoulders slagged, his shades slipping partially from the disbelief and confusion washing over him. "…huh."

Meanwhile, another contestants sauntered out of the maze. Battered and bruised from misfortunate circumstances, Rocker managed to pull himself forward until he was in front of the maze's exit. "I…I did it! Yeah!" He ran up to the winner's circle, letting out a wild cry upon ending his course.

"And despite the odds, Rocker managed to endure it all and got second place!" Lola announced. "Guess grit overcomes anything it seems. Quatro Cerberus earns 8 points for this!"

Next to come out was Lucy on top of Lupus. The wolf jumped out of the maze and straight into the circle past Kevin and Rocker; although the latter was knocked over by his tail. Following them was Beth, then finally Rufus.

"And with that, the rest of the competitors have flooded in. In 3rd place, we have Lucy of Fairy Tail, followed by Mermaid Heel's Beth, and lastly Rufus of Sabertooth. And despite her best efforts, Chelia gets 0 points for her team this round."

Inside the depths of the maze, a recently tripped Chelia propped herself up upon hearing the announcement. "No way! It's already over?!" She grabbed her head and ruffled her hair. "Aw man, the hag's gonna spin me to death for this!"

Her Swoobat sighed in dejection.

Lucy let out a deep breath as she got off Lupus. "Thanks for the help, Lupus. You and Canes really helped me there."

The wolf nodded in acknowledgment. "Glad to be of help. If that's all, we'll be on our way." He started glowing, but before vanishing, he remembered something. "Oh yeah, give my regards to Nic, Greninja, Cana, and Sophie."

Lucy smiled. "Sure thing."

With that Lupus returned to the Celestial Spirit World, with the hounds comprising Canes following soon after.

Shortly after, the maze began pixilating out of existence. It faded downwards back into the ground until not a trace of it was left. Chelia and Swoobat stood in the midst of the fading maze and saw just how far behind they were, only adding fuel to their dejection.

Lola continued with the announcements. "Now, let's say we check the new scores for the guilds participating. After the results of the Mystery Maze, here are the rankings!"

1st: Fairy Tail – 26

2nd: Sabertooth – 18

3rd: Blue Pegasus – 14

4th: Lamia Scale – 13

4th: Quatro Cerberus – 13

6th: Mermaid Heel – 6

"Are you kidding me?! How does Fairy Tail have double what we have?!" Obaba outraged. "Chelia…! You better be prepared for the spinning of a lifetime!"

"I knew picking Chelia for a race was a poor choice." Yuka grimaced.

"Indeed, though it can't be helped now." Jura noted.

"He's right. What's important is the battles to come." Lyon chimed in. "Whoever we face, we make certain that Lamia Scale isn't underestimated. That's a guarantee."

"Although they didn't get 1st Place this competition, Fairy Tail is still well ahead of the pack. And despite their performance as well, Sabertooth isn't too far behind. As for Blue Pegasus, thanks to Kevin and his Kra…ahem, sorry, Kingler, they moved to 3rd Place into the double digits. Meanwhile, Quatro Cerberus and Lamia Scale are neck-and-neck for 4th Place, leaving Mermaid Heel in last place still."

"That was a very good game. It had me on my toes the whole way through." Alexa admitted. "I gotta get a scoop with all the competitors!"

"And you just might, Alexa. With that, we'll be heading into the battles portion. Day 2's battle matchups are as follows!"

Lamia Scale VS Fairy Tail

Quatro Cerberus VS Sabertooth

Blue Pegasus VS Mermaid Heel

Mato raised his arm. "Good work out there, everybody! We'll be taking a 30-minute break for the guilds to recharge themselves. Everyone, stay tuned and enjoy the concessions while you can, cuz I guarantee you won't wanna miss what's happening next!"

---

A short while later, Lucy sat on one of the bleachers inside her guild's locker room. "Man, I'm so wiped…" She groaned.

"Here." A hand with a water bottle reached out to her.

Lucy looked up, seeing Gray offering the beverage. "Thanks." She accepted the drink. It was cold to the touch. She unscrewed the cap and began sipping away, the cool liquid quenching her thirst after such a rigorous race really does a number on someone.

"Gotta say, you did pretty awesome out there. You, your Pokémon, even that big dog spirit really kicked ass out there." Elfman praised.

"Yeah, you sure did," Natsu smiled brightly.

Lucy's lips parted with the drink. "Thanks, you guys. Honestly, I was really worried after Klefki and I got separated."

"We don't blame you. None of us saw that coming." Dereece chimed in.

"Yeah, figures why they called it a Mystery Maze. Certainly lives up to the name." Cana commented.

"But it wasn't all bad." Juvia reasoned. "We're still in the lead after all this."

"Yeah, Lucy. You did amazing!" Wendy beamed.

"Yeah, third place for your first competition's not too bad, I guess." Gajeel shrugged.

Erza walked up to Lucy and smiled. "You did well despite the odds, Lucy. You should feel more proud about yourself. You've demonstrated a good understanding of your Pokémon and what they can do. And your Celestial Spirits aren't anything to scoff at."

Cana smirked. "Yeah, I'll say. Was nice to see that guy again."

"He told me to give you, Sophie, Nic, and Greninja his regards." Lucy told her, remembering what Lupus said to her before leaving.

Cana chuckled. "Thanks."

Sophie nodded. "Yeah…thanks?" If she was honest, she wasn't sure how to feel about this. From what the others had explained to her before, she was pretty close to them and a group of Celestial Spirits that saved their world. As far as she remembered, she only saw them once, and that was when her mind was freshly wiped. Still, she chose to take the matter in stride so things didn't get awkward.

"So we're up against Lamia Scale next round." Gray changed the subject as his face was painted with determination. "No telling who we'll be fighting, but I have a gut feeling of a few."

Erza turned towards him. "Remember, the number of participants isn't set in stone each round. At most, it'll likely be three. Or it could be a one-on-one match like we had yesterday." She turned towards Vanessa. "How are you feeling? Still feel like you can fight again if you're called?"

Vanessa looked as relaxed as usual. "Yeah, of course."

Joey folded his arms. "It really helps to know what we're up against here. You guys seem to know Lamia Scale's members, so what can they do?"

"They're nothing to scoff at, that's for sure." Erza explained, folding her arms. "From our experience, their mages are of high caliber. You've already seen Toby and Lyon yesterday, Yuka is a mage who can nullify magic with his…and then there's Jura, their strongest, and one of the Ten Wizard Saints."

"Wizard Saint? Hold on." Dereece paused. "You mean those titles of the strongest mages in Fiore?"

"All of Ishgar, actually." Erza corrected. "But yes, I see your reason to worry. But…" A smirk crossed her face. "He's not unbeatable. Our Guild Master, Laxus, was able to take him down at the last games we've fought. And we're even stronger since then."

Natsu clenched a fist with enthusiasm. "You bet. Bet I can melt all the earth away. Let's see him try to bury me under rubble!"

Duncan didn't have any input as he leaned against a wall in silence. If it wasn't for his fixated glare upon his peers, others would've figured he was dozing off. It was clear he was taking in everything.

"What about that Chelia girl? What magic does she have?" Dereece wondered.

"Uh, well…about that…" Wendy spoke up. "…she doesn't."

This took Joey and Dereece by surprise.

"Hold up…you're saying she, like, has nadda? Zippo? Not even a little spell or two?" Joey questioned.

Wendy shook her head. "It's kinda a long story. Sorry, but I don't wanna make this personal."

Erza hummed at Wendy's resolve. "We won't pry about what you learned about Lamia Scale while you were there. I'm sure they have their own policies like we do."

Natsu rammed a fist into his palm with excitement. "Whatever they use, we'll be sure to not hold anything back. Cuz we aim to stay on top!"

"Geez, way to steal what I was gonna say." Gray complained, smirking.

"Not my fault. You were too slow." Natsu countered.

"And you're too eager."

The two scoffed at each other, but then smirked in acknowledgment of the other.

Sophie looked at the clock over on the wall. "It's almost time. Everyone good to go?"

"Yeah!" They all cheered.

---

The stands were buzzing, even as the halftime performances were going on. The field was full of promoted singers and musicians playing alongside Pokémon to keep the audience entertained until the mages were ready.

As they performed, some of the patrons were putting in their two cents on everything so far.

"Man, these games so far are really something. I was sure Rufus would've won that."

"Really? I thought Fairy Tail had this one in the bag."

"That guy's from Pokémon Earth, isn't he? Never would've guessed he'd outdo a bunch of mages of top guilds like that."

"First those three from Fairy Tail, Nic having a sister strong enough to beat Mermaid Heel's strongest, now this?"

"Yeah. Maybe there really isn't much of a difference between us and them. I wanna catch a Pokémon and learn magic too."

The sentiments of the bystanders didn't go unnoticed by Shiin. Arms folded, he was silent as he took in everything he heard around him. 'The people are easily swayed by power. Those Trainers only won by happenstance.' He told himself.

He believed what he said, as that was a fact. But even so, he thought about how the portrayal of all the competitors did. With some being better than others, everyone worked with their Pokémon in some way or form to make their time through the maze easier. It went without say for Lucy and Kevin especially.

'…but, all things considered, it was an admirable trial.' He conceded. 'Suppose even the most elite mages would've had a hassle handling that maze.'

"Alright everyone, it's time to begin the battle portion of Day 2!" Mato announced, bringing the attention of the cheering crowd towards him. "We've had some very interesting battles yesterday, and today will be no exception either."

"That's right." Lola announced. "As previously stated, each day in the Grand Magic Games has a different event as well as a different theme to the battles that follow that day. Yesterday's theme was the standard format. For today's theme…it's called an Inverse Battle."

This surprised as well as confused the audience, as expected.

"An Inverse Battle?" Risley questioned.

"That's new to me. Wonder what that means?" Millianna wondered, putting a finger to her chin.

A monitor appeared in the center of the arena. "A unique theme that originated from the Kalos region, an Inverse Battle is where it's a Pokémon Battle, but the effectiveness of certain moves are reversed." The monitor revealed the insignia for Grass, Fire, and Water-types with arrows pointed in the direction the types were strong to in a triangular fashion. The arrows then flipped to face the other type. "This reversal is done through a special psychic power that alters the effectiveness of types. For example, Fighting-type moves are ineffective against Ghost-types. However, because of the Inverse effect, not only are Fighting-type moves able to hit Ghost-types, but will be super effective as well."

"So all our types are affected differently now because of this?" Juvia worried.

"As if it were enough to memorize all the types to begin with." Cana lamented.

"So now our type advantages become a hinderance." Erza surmised.

"This just got a lot tricker." Lucy frowned.

"Heads up guys, it looks like it's our turn." Dereece reminded everyone. They all followed his gaze towards a set of monitors that appeared overhead.

"Now, to start these series of Inverse Battles, we have our first match with Lamia Scale and Fairy Tail." Lola continued. "We'll now begin the roulette to determine how many personnel and Pokémon are allowed to be used."

"Ready? Let's go!" Mato snapped his fingers to begin the spinning.

The two monitors spun like a lottery machine, starting at a fast pace then gradually slowed down to a stop. One monitor showed the number 3, with the other showing two Poké Balls.

"And it looks like it'll be three-on-three mage action going on here, with each allowed the use of two Pokémon!" Lola declared.

"With those numbers, you can be certain we'll be doing our best to keep track." Yajima assured.

"Don't worry, I won't miss a step with my camcorder." Alexa declared, her headset already recording.

"Alright, let's see who's battling today for their guild!" As Lola declared that, the panels changed to show the cards equal to their participants' numbers orbiting two Pokémon Balls. Everyone watched as six cards shot out and plastered the profiles of the six contestants in gold star backgrounds.

"From Lamia Scale, it'll be Lyon Vastia, Yuka Suzuki, and Jura Neekis! And from Fairy Tail, it's Gray Fullbuster, Sophie Lednick, and Joey Haycliff!"

The audience screeched at this matchup, but none were more surprised than the competitors themselves.

"Gray and Lyon in the same match?" Lucy gasped.

Natsu smirked. "Déjà vu, huh?"

Gray smiled with anticipation. "Well how about that. Been a while since we've duked it out. Figured we were due for another go-around."

In Lamia Scale's corner, Lyon smirked with anticipation. "Watch out, Gray. I have no intention on losing the same way as before."

"This should be fun." Jura chimed.

"Yes, my thoughts exactly." Yuka followed.

Joey and Sophie turned towards each other, the two bumping the backs of their knuckles. "What do ya say, Soph? Let's show them how we rock it Fairy Tail style."

"I thought you'd never ask." The voluptuous blonde teased.

"Captain, best of luck. We'll be rooting for you all the way." Dereece encouraged.

The six competitors made their way towards the field, where they all stood on the outside of the Pokémon Ball-shaped perimeter. Once all stationed, Mato spoke up. "Alright, now for the fun part! Everyone, make way!"

Another person was walking onto the battlefield, this one being a rather young man with light skin. He wore a white coat with purple insides, as well as an enclosed waist. Beneath was a pair of black pants and a tight underarmor long-sleeve. The man's black hair was styled with the right bang going down, but the other going up.

"Introducing…Psychic Inver!" Pumpkaboo beamed excitedly.

"The Cambire Foundation solicited him just for this occasion, so be courteous and let him work his own kind of magic." Mato explained.

Inver gave a meek nod with a composed expression. "It's an honor to be here." He spread his feet and began concentrating. "Now…"

He brought his hands up, to which he crossed them with the right over his left. A special stance in which he focused his mental prowess. His eyes flashed open and he pushed his arms out, causing a pink telekinetic wave to expel in all directions and faded into the distance.

"And the field is set for this Inverse Battle." Lola explained. "Quite the show indeed."

Amongst the stance, Shiin remained stoic, but he was taken aback by this development. 'They use special powers to alter the effects of battle formats as well? Inconceivable…'

Nic, who was watching from the shadows of a tunnel, looked down at the field with keen interest. Once again, this was another matter the Cambire Foundation tasked him with in preparations for the games. So he had to make two stops this morning; aside from picking up Alexa in Lumiose City, he had to scout Inver on Route 18. A trivial matter for his caliber sure, but that didn't make it any less of a hassle.

Mato stepped forward, clearing his throat. "Now then, attention please! The battle between Lamia Scale and Fairy Tail will now commence! Each mage is allowed the use of two Pokémon each, and the battle will be over when all of either side's Pokémon or the mages are unable to continue. Furthermore, in the event that the 30-minute limit is reached, the match is an automatic draw. Got it? Now contestants, bring out your Pokémon!"

Everyone had their capsules ready and threw them.

"Alright Bergmite, go!"

"Salazzle, you're up!"

"Garbodor, rock this boat!"

Jura used a palm strike to launch his Poké Ball. "Come forth, Golem!"

"Cryogonal, I need your assistance!"

Yuka threw a Poké Ball last. "You're up, Mareanie!"

The first to appear was Lyon's Cryogonal, who levitated in the air. "Ready to go!" It declared.

Next up was Mareanie, his blue spiky hair raised slightly to showcase his excitement. "This should be fun…" he hissed.

From Jura's Poké Ball, the white energy turned into a massive boulder-like shell, which expelled four tan limbs and a smooth head with red eyes. The Pokémon known as Golem crashed into the ground with enough force to make the earth tremble, even more so than his deafening battle cry.

Next to appear on the field was Gray's Bergmite. He stood on his stubby limbs with his icy body glistening under the autumn sun. "Ready!"

From her Heal Ball, Salazzle emerged on all fours, rising onto her hind legs with a hand to her hip. "Kay. Let's get this shitshow over with." She whipped her burning tail.

Next up was Joey's Garbodor, who emerged onto the field with a belching roar. Almost immediately, her Stench whaffed through the area, much to the chagrin of everyone around her.

"Ugh, I didn't mean a literal shitshow!" Salazzle snarled, plugging her nostrils with slim fingers. 'That stench is strong enough to overwhelm my own aroma. That's seriously powerful stuff.'

From Fairy Tail's balcony, Natsu and Gajeel cringed as their enhanced noses caught strong whiffs of Garbodor's smell. It was enough to almost upchuck the fries and burger Natsu ate recently.

"Looks like the Captain's not playing around. He knows what he's doing using Garbodor first." Dereece remarked with confidence.

Duncan folded his arms, huffing as he watched with some degree of interest.

"I never would've guessed Lyon and Gray would be facing off like this again." Juvia admitted, her tone carrying an understandable degree of worry that Cana picked up on.

"You worried he might lose?"

Juvia feverishly shook her head. "No! That's not it at all! I have the upmost confidence in Gray!" She meant what she said, but she'd be lying is she said she wasn't worried about a certain blonde mage. She remembered well of what transpired at the last Grand Magic Games they partook. It took the combined powers of Gray and Sophie to defeat Lyon and Chelia. Just remembering it was enough to make her blood turn to boiling water. Of course, she knew better than to feel this way, especially given Sophie doesn't remember that experience. Add the fact that she's been hanging out with Joey as much as she does with Vanessa made her boiling point reduce to a simmer.

"Let's get this over with. This stench is killing me." Yuka said, holding his nose from Garbodor's overwhelming odor.

Garbodor belched, which Joey picked up on. "What you're smelling is the stench of a winner, buddy."

Yuka cocked a brow. "Boy, wonder what the smell of a loser would be like…?"

"I hope you're ready, Gray. Because we don't intend to hold anything back!" Lyon declared.

Gray opposed him with a smirk. "Was gonna say the same thing. Be feeling cheated otherwise."

Jura eyed Joey with keen interest. "I've heard some talk about certain Trainers Fairy Tail has. I must admit, that stylish young fellow intrigues me with his barriers. Think I can break them?"

"Those look pretty sturdy." Yuka chimed in. "But make no mistake…" His eyes narrowed. "For me, there's no magic that I can't stop. That's a guarantee."

Mato looked between the two parties and immediately moved off towards the side and brought his hand down in a chop. "Alright everyone, you have 30 minutes! Battle…begin!"

'First move sets the pace!' Joey took the initiative, swiping his arm. "Garbodor, Toxic Spikes!"

Garbodor belched a compliance of sorts. She opened her maw, a dark purple orb forming and fired skywards. Four spiraling trails of purple smoke followed it until the orb exploded, erupting comets of smaller orbs trailing purple smoke that spread all across the arena.

"He's starting off with Toxic Spikes right off the bat!" Happy exclaimed.

"He's cutting off their substitutions by instigating poison." Pantherlily noted.

As the projectiles showered across the terrain, Lyon looked up. "Not if I have a say in the matter." He put his arms together and faced the sky. "Ice-Make: Eagles!" From an icy-blue magic seal, a dozen eagles made of ice set off in various directions to intercept the orbs.

"Sophie!" Joey shouted.

The female blonde nodded. "Right!" She put a finger to her forehead, chains of memories formulating. "Memory-Make: Shower of Thunderous Swords!"

The clouds in the sky rapidly darkened. In a literal flash, lightning coursed through the sky and shot down hundreds of swords made of lightning. The large-scale barrage spearheaded down onto the battlefield, but Lamia Scale prepared a defense.

"Wave!" Yuka got in front and brought his hands forward, creating a blue translucent shield akin to water in front of his team. The lightning swords that made contact dispersed immediately, but the field, as well as Lyon's eagles, were pierced and discharged lightning.

In the static show and dust, the Toxic Spikes made their descent without obstruction. They all touched the ground and made purple ripples that faded into the earth.

"And the Toxic Spikes makes its landing! What a gratifying start!" Lola exclaimed. "How will Lamia Scale respond knowing their substitutions will be poisoned?"

"Great, well that's totally not a problem." Yuka chastised.

"Indeed it won't." Jura prodded. "Because we'll end this quickly!" He used hand signs and forced the earth around him to harden and morph. Half a dozen stone arches shot up from the ground and came down onto his opponents.

Joey took to the front and crossed his fingers and arms. "Barrier-Make: Dome!"

A dome-shaped barrier appeared around him, Sophie, and Gray. The pillars smashed into the barrier from all angles, but the structure didn't budge. In fact, the deflected force caused the rock pillars' blunt edges to shatter.

"Such an impressive defense…" Jura admitted.

Yuka scoffed. "Defense or not, it won't do them good against this." He brought his hand up and aimed at the barrier. Another Wave was made into a compressed sphere that launched towards Joey's barrier.

CRASH!

The sound of glass shattering echoed throughout the stadium. Fairy Tail watched in shock as Joey's barrier was shattered by Yuka's attack.

"No way!" Natsu exclaimed.

"You're kidding! Even Joey's barrier's can't work against Yuka's magic?!" Lucy gasped.

Erza narrowed her eyes. "I was afraid of this. Joey's barriers are made of magic too, so it looks like Yuka's magic can affect it after all. Which means…" She paused, the realization dawning upon her team. "We can't rely on Joey's defenses for this fight."

Watching the barrier shatter, Sophie and Gray braced themselves. Joey, however, kept a cool, stalwart expression. 'Looks like they weren't lying. My magic's no dice against him. Just like that Gremlin Lord with that big sword that absorbed magic on contact.'

With an opening, Lyon took the initiative. "Now Cryogonal, use Ice Beam!"

Cryogonal levitated at an appropriate angle as an orb of blue energy formulated in front of it. It launched several blue beams that shot into the exposed hole directed at Joey.

"Sludge Bomb!"

"Venoshock!"

Garbodor and Salazzle took aim and unleashed a barrage of brown sludge and a dense stream of purple liquid at adjacent angles. The combined attacks thwarted the Ice Beam, causing an eruption of mist to blanket the team.

"We won't give you the luxury of cover!" Jura brought his index and middle finger up. The earth around him morphed into several fists made of stone that beamed through the mist.

"Ice Make: Saucer!"

A giant saucer made of ice spun at immense speeds in an arch through the mist, cutting the rock fists by their arms. The fists dropped to the ground in front before a massive rectangular barrier formed.

"Barrier-Make: Crash!"

Joey shoved the barrier and the clumped fists back at Jura and the others at immense speeds. Jura brought his hands together as he channeled Magic Power in an instant.

"Rock Mountain!"

The ground around his team shifted before an enormous, well-detailed golem appeared and braced itself around the six. The debris collided with the makeshift bunker, albeit at the cost of the golem itself getting severely chipped.

Erza found herself surprised at the display. "Such an impressive defense."

"Guess that's to be expected from a Wizard Saint." Elfman figured. "I'm starting to worry a little. You think they'll be alright?"

Vanessa's gaze was focused on the battle. She knew from experience battling alongside the three mages on the battlefield just how resourceful they can be. Especially a certain blonde individual with a flashy fashion style. "You're forgetting something. We have some powerful mages ourselves."

Lyon brought his hands together, creating a magic seal. "Ice-Make: Water Serpent!" He launched a slender stream of ice in the shape of a serpent, its mouth gaping as it traversed towards Sophie and Salazzle.

"Mareanie, use Venoshock!" Yuka ordered. His Mareanie complied, unleashing his own stream of purple liquid alongside the serpent.

Salazzle scoffed, simply sidestepping to avoid Mareanie's attack. "Hey now, making me work too much here, aren't ya?"

The water serpent opened its maw as it closed in on Sophie. However, it simply went through her, much to Lyon's shock. "An illusion?"

"No! It's that Afterimage trick Rufus used!" Yuka gasped. "Behind you!"

Lyon turned around, seeing Sophie already creating a chain of memories. "Cryogonal, Aurora Beam!"

At its Trainer's hasty command, Cryogonal got in front and made an orb of bright energy. Suddenly, Garbodor dropped in from above, crashing into Cryogonal and flooring it, via Body Slam. Yuka readied his Wave to nullify Sophie's spell before she could activate, but with his back turned, a barrier surrounded Joey's fist.

"Barrier-Make: Pistol!"

His fist connected with the back of Yuka's head, flooring him as hard as Garbodor did with her foe. The audience cheered while others cringed at the quick-witted counter.

With the Anti-Mage incapacitated, the ground started heating up from Sophie's spell. Jura and everyone looked down at their feet and witnessed huge petals with thorny inside closing up around them like flytraps. They continued rising with thick stems, encompassing all six opponents.

"Memory-Make: Blooming Dragonbomb Garden!"

With a snap of her fingers, all six buds went off in draconic, fiery explosions. The air flared intensely as everyone watched in shock and amazement at the spell. Even Rufus, who had his hat hiding his expression, smirked in mild delight at the display. Everyone watched Lamia Scale and their Pokémon descend, and Gray saw his shot.

"Bergmite, Icy Wind!" he ordered. His Bergmite's ice spike on his forehead shined bright blue before unleashing a dense, cold air. Gray brought his arms together and projected alongside the attack. "Ice-Make: Lance!"

Several freezing lances launched with the cold air towards their opponents. A bright blue flash erupted, causing spikes of ice to erupt outwards around the opponents. Gray, Sophie, Joey, and their Pokémon regained their bearings and regrouped as the audience cheered at the attack.

"And it looks like Fairy Tail has the upper hand in this massive battle!" Lola commended. "Lamia Scale may have a strong defense, but it's not unbreakable."

"Oh no! Guys!" Chelia panicked.

Toby began hopping back and forth, raging with clenched fists. "Arf! Arf! You guys better get your acts together, ya hear me?! You're making us look like chumps!"

Chelia clenched the railing as her face fell. "Are they gonna be okay?"

"What kind of a question is that?! Huh?!" Obaba retorted, using her finger to spin both her frantic mages. As they tangled with their misfortune, their Guild Master turned back towards the field. "Hmph, like I have a reason to worry. They're my guild's strongest for a reason…and they're about to see why."

Back down in the arena, the ice spikes cracked, revealing a layer underneath.

"Hm?" Joey looked at the strange veil.

"What's that?" Sophie wondered.

More the ice began chipping away. Piece by piece, the chunks of ice dissipated into mist that blew into the wind. What stood before Fairy Tail was a large-scale barrier with hexagonal patterns. Everyone could only watch in fathom as it revealed Lamia Scale's mages and Pokémon standing behind the wall, smirking but otherwise fine, save for a few scrapes and char from Sophie's attack.

"They're fine?!" Gray exasperated.

"Way to use your eyes, Stripper." Salazzle retorted.

Yuka scoffed. "Sorry about that. You have my Mareanie's Wide Guard to thank for that." He gestured towards his Mareanie, who bowed with a sinister smile. "Your large-scale attacks won't do you much good as long as we have Wide Guard at our disposal."

"Well how about that. When Gray's attack thought to have struck the win, Yuka and his Mareanie shut that prospect down." Lola relayed.

"Anti-Magic to stop mages, and Pokémon to defend against both. Quite the pair indeed." Yajima commended.

"Such a move makes for a vital role in multi-Trainer battles. This is getting good." Alexa admitted.

Gray clicked his teeth. "Well, that isn't annoying."

"Yes." Jura chimed. "And the other benefit of the move is that it allows us to do this without further consequences." He pointed his index and middle finger outwards to usher a command. "Now, Golem! Bulldoze!"

Golem grunted. He raised one of his feet into the air and brought it down in a heavy stomp. A shockwave traversed across the ground in all directions. However, the wake around Lamia Scale was blocked by Wide Guard's effects, leaving the attack to expand towards Joey and the others.

Joey got in front and brought his arms up. "Barrier-Make-!"

"It's no use!" Yuka interrupted. "Wave Boost!"

With his hand stretched outwards, transparent energy enveloped Joey, akin to a wave. Inside the domain, he found himself unable to activate his magic. 'Crap!'

"This is payback for that sucker punch you threw." Yuka scoffed.

The shockwave continued uninterrupted. Everyone felt the ground beneath push against them. Gray, Sophie, and Joey lost their footing and fell over. Bergmite grunted from the damage he was dealt, as to where Garbodor and Salazzle managed to handle the attack better due to the Inverse effect.

However, all six of them had a blue aura envelop them, reducing their Speed.

"And Golem's Bulldoze scores a direct hit! Looks like the tides are turning in Lamia Scale's favor now!" Lola announced.

"C'mon guys, get up!" Natsu shouted.

"This isn't good. Bulldoze has an additional effect of always reducing a target's Speed." Lucy grimaced.

"Meaning we'll be at a disadvantage if we aren't fast enough." Juvia finished.

Erza nodded. "Yes. Fortunately, Garbodor and Salazzle weren't that affected by the damage. If it were a standard battle, it would've been much worse."

Joey managed to get to his feet, clicking his teeth and grunting. 'A large-scale attack that affects all parties and Wide Guard. Guess these guys have been practicing, too.' He stood up, with Sophie and Gray doing the same. "We need to take out that Anti-Mage guy and that Mareanie. That's our priority."

Lyon scoffed. "As if we'd give you that access. Cryogonal, Ice Beam on Bergmite!" His Cryogonal generated another orb of icy energy and launched three beams at Gray's Bergmite.

"Use Ice Fang!" Gray ordered.

Bergmite's front generated four fangs made of icy-blue aura. The Ice Beam spearheaded in, meeting Bergmite's attack. The stalagmite was holding on to the best of his abilities, but he slowly lost momentum before eventually pushed back with a painful grunt.

Gray snarled before bringing his hands down towards the ground. "Ice-Make: Ice Geyser!"

Beneath Cryogonal, ice erupted from the ground. It expanded skywards, enveloping the Crystallizing Pokémon square in the face. Lyon gasped as he watched the geyser shoot his Pokémon skywards and limply flip through the air. At the same time, Bergmite went sliding across the ground to a halt.

Cryogonal landed with a harsh crash some distance from Lyon. Its eyes were brimming with swirls, but unfortunately for Gray, so was Bergmite.

"Bergmite, no!" Gray gasped.

Mato brought both his arms up. "Both Cryogonal and Bergmite are unable to battle!"

Everyone cheered as the icons on the massive projection above turned to dark silhouettes for Bergmite and Cryogonal. Despite this, the crowd ate up the action.

"What an upturn! After such a back and forth, it seems Gray and Lyon are the first to get knockouts for their team." Lola stated. "Normally, Ice-type moves wouldn't be that effective, but it's clear this Inverse Battle costed both sides significant leads."

"Now Gray can only use one Pokémon." Wendy frowned. "If it gets knocked out, he's out too."

"Yes, but it's the same with Lyon. And Joey's Garbodor laid out that Toxic Spikes from before." Vanessa reminded her guildmates of Joey's opening move. "As long as the outgoing Pokémon isn't Poison, Steel, or Flying-type, they'll get poisoned."

Gray recalled Bergmite back to his Poké Ball and looked down at it. "Good work out there."

Lyon returned Cryogonal, also giving praise. "You did well. Get some rest."

"I believe this has dragged on long enough. Golem, finish this!" Jura ordered.

Golem stepped forward. "With pleasure."

"Rock Polish!" Golem's body sparked with blue static, a sharp red aura enveloping his body that increased his Speed.

Sophie frowned. 'I can't use Salazzle's Poison Gas because that Wide Guard will block it. We need to take them out!'

As Garbodor stood still, a green wave of energy enveloped her body, her Black Sludge allowing her to restore some lost energy.

'This isn't working. We're too spread thin to coordinate properly.' Joey thought about their situation. He knew that if things would go at this rate, time would run out and they'd get a draw. 'We gotta pick them out one-by-one. So that means…' His fists clenched tight, knowing what had to be done. "Okay, new plan! Soph! Gray!"

The others turned towards him in wonder.

"We aren't getting anywhere like this. We've gotta divide and conquer." He turned towards Gray. "Gray, set us up!"

Getting an idea of what Joey was going for, Gray smirked. "Fine by me!" He brought his hands together before spreading them across. "Ice-Make: Rampart!"

Giant walls of ice shot up between the members of Lamia Scale, much to everyone's shock. Thick ice sheets stood at towering heights and made three areas, all containing Lyon, Yuka, and Jura in separate domains.

"Woah! What's happening down there?!" Lola gasped.

Alexa leaned in, zooming in with her equipment. "Looks to me they're all diverging their opponents."

…

Lyon looked around the rampart walls, a smirk crossing his face. "So it's a divide and conquer strategy. Rather counterintuitive wouldn't you say, Gray?"

Standing behind him, Gray gave his rival a smirk. "Hate to admit it, but we're getting pretty desperate ourselves. Besides, you know you wanted this."

Lyon scoffed. "As expected. You know me all to well. So…" He gripped his coat. "Shall we?"

"You've read my mind." Gray grabbed his shirt.

Together, he and Lyon threw off the top-halves of their attires, leaving them shirtless. Much of crowd – especially women – were gushing over their bodies. Both men smirked as they pulled out two Poké Balls

"Snorunt, go!"

"You're up, Beartic!"

Snorunt appeared in front of Gray, jumping with excitement. "I'm ready now!"

Emerging onto the battlefield with a strong batlecry was Lyon's Beartic. He bellowed so loud that the ground shuddered beneath him.

However, the Toxic Spikes erupted beneath the giant bear, inflicting poison upon him. He grunted as a purple blush covered his face and groaned. Lyon gasped in shock.

"Forgot about the Toxic Spikes, didn't you?" Gray reminded. "Alright, let's finish this!"

"Yes!" Snorunt beamed.

…

Yuka looked around, seeing he and Mareanie were isolated from their team. "So this is their new angle." He noticed a fireball heading their way and instinctively put up another Wave shield. However, the fireball went through, landing its mark on him and sending him onto his back with a thud.

Steam billowed from the sides of a reptilian maw belonging to a large lizard that clung to the ice wall.

"Damn you…!" Yuka stood up, bitterly annoyed.

"Magic might not be effective, but we have other means to corner you." A voice called out.

Yuka turned around, seeing Sophie walk into view. She had a confident smirk as Salazzle landed beside her. "Let's finish this, shall we?"

"About damn time." Salazzle complained.

…

"A most insightful method. Choosing to isolate targets to divide the difficulty." Jura noted, casually eying his surroundings before facing forward. "But I'm curious. Do you think you can take me?"

Standing against him was Joey and Garbodor. The massive trash bag exhaled a foul breath. Joey stood behind her with his glare fixed on Jura.

"Your barriers have such an impressive defense, but I'm afraid even the sturdiest of defenses can be permeated." Jura clasped his hands together, causing the ground beneath him to tremble. "Allow me to demonstrate."

---

"Looks like we've got ourselves some serious matchups between these two guilds! This three-on-three turned into a singles division!" Lola shouted. "It's the shirtless testosterone might of Gray and Lyon going at it, with Sophie pitted against Yuka, and last but certainly not least, Iron Rock Jura against the dancing barrier-maker himself, Joey!"

"I knew I should've brought more equipment for this." Alexa cursed to herself.

"These battles certainly are getting quite innovative, that's for sure." Yajima chime, his Pansear doing backflips out of excitement.

"C'mon, guys! Go for it!" Happy cheered.

"Gray, Lyon is no pushover! But even so, both of you do your best!" Carla exclaimed.

"Lyon! You guys show them what we're made of!" Chelia waved from her guild's balcony.

"Captain…I sure hope you know what you're doing." Dereece clenched his fists, visibly worried for his friend and teammate.

Duncan glared at the screens. If one looked closely, he was fixated on the monitor with his Captain against supposedly one of the toughest mages on the continent.

Vanessa remained composed, but her relaxation lifted as she saw Sophie and Joey fighting their own battles.

Shiin kept his arms folded as he observed the ongoing struggle. He had taken a handful of photos already and had Butterfree high up in the air with the live broadcast, so all he had to do was watch as the battle unfolded. 'If this were a purely magic battle, Lamia Scale would've had an edge since they had Jura. His Magic Power is extraordinary.' He meant what he thought too…but knew that variables changed that prospect. 'The reliance and cooperation with their Pokémon…that will determine the outcome of this battle.'

---

"Beartic, Icicle Crash!" Lyon shouted. His Beartic spread his legs and expelled a cold breath towards the sky, creating dense icicles that barreled down onto Snorunt.

"Dodge it and use Icy Wind!" Gray commanded. Without delay, Snorunt grunted as he veered past an icicle, then another, and then lunged forward to avoid the last one. He rolled upright and launched a cold breath with blue sparkles.

Beartic crossed his arms and took the attack. The breeze was surprisingly dense against his fur, causing him to grunt in pain. A blue aura enveloped his body, lowering his Speed in addition to toxic purple erupting to signal poison accumulation.

Lyon, however, used a large ice arrow and rode it over the Icy Wind and arched down onto Snorunt with him distracted. Gray had ice shaped in a handheld cannon and aimed at Lyon.

"Ice Cannon!" A dense blast of ice shot from the cannon at high speeds. Lyon jumped off at the last second to avoid the blast that shattered his projectile into fragments. He flipped and landed on the ground, slamming his hands into the earth to unleash an icy geyser rushing Gray's way. Gray veered left to dodge the spout, albeit barely.

"You're slower than before." Lyon appeared behind him, ice appearing around his fist that connected with Gray's back. "Ice-Make: Panther!"

A panther made of ice passed through Gray, coming out cleanly from his abdomen. Gray gritted his teeth as he felt a weight on his front that almost made him fall over.

Lyon smirked. "Looks like we have the advantage."

He expected a witty retort or Gray to lash out…but instead he got a chuckle. "The more things change, the more they stay the same."

"What?" Confused, Lyon was shocked when he watched the ice panther turn to icy energy that was sucked into Gray's mouth. His eyes widened at the revelation. 'Is he…eating my ice?!'

From the stands, Shiin's eyes widened at the revelation. 'Isn't that the property of his…!'

With his magic revitalized, Gray pivoted and kicked Lyon into the nearest wall. "Hate to break it to ya, but your ice doesn't work on me anymore."

Lyon coughed some blood, opening an eye. "I can see that now. Beartic, Icicle Crash!"

Beartic opened his maw and aimed a cold breath skywards again. More icicles fell, albeit at a slower rate than before in part to the Speed reduction. Gray pivoted and fire arrows of ice that permeated the icicles and gave Snorunt an opening.

"Ice Fang!" Snorunt's mouth broadened, showing more of his teeth. Icy fangs made of blue aura protruded outwards as he lunged for Beartic, who grunted at the poison kicking in again.

"Hidden Power!" Lyon shouted. Beartic was quick enough to recover from the shock and brought his hands together to make a bright blue orb of energy. He fired the orb at Snorunt for him to bite down on instead. A small explosion enveloped Snorunt and pushed him back with a pained grunt. However, the poison struck Beartic yet again, depleting his health further.

Lyon recovered and got to his feet again. "Ice might not work on you anymore…" he started. "But…I doubt that's the case for your Snorunt." He brought his hands together and forced them out. "Ice-Make: Eagles!" He launched more eagles made of ice that sailed towards Snorunt.

"Ice Shard!" Gray countered. Snorunt complied by creating several clumps of ice and threw them at the eagles, causing them to cancel out. However, a few managed to get past the barrage and drew closer.

Snorunt's eyes widened and he ducked from the attack. Just when he thought it was safe to get up, a torrent of saltwater blasted him from behind, sending him flying. He forgot about Beartic from behind, with his Brine blasting his unguarded.

"Snorunt!" Gray exclaimed.

Snorunt landed, but he staggered slightly. "I'm…I'm okay." He grimaced, clearly in shock.

"It's over! This time we win!" Lyon brought his hands together, aiming at Snorunt. "Ice-Make: Snow Dragon!" He summoned a scaly serpentine dragon made of ice that rushed towards his target.

Snorunt made an attempt to move, but he saw the dragon was moving too fast for him to evade. His eyes were wide as he saw it draw near. However, the attack didn't connect.

Lyon gasped, his eyes once again widening at what he saw.

Standing before Snorunt was Gray, holding out a dense icy gauntlet that surprisingly held back Lyon's Snow Dragon. "Snorunt, listen. We can't waste anymore time." He told him. "You ready?"

Staggering back to his senses, Snorunt nodded. "Right! I'm hoping for an icy buffet after this!"

Gray smirked. "You got it." His other arm became a large gauntlet, one that he gripped Snorunt with.

"What are you…?" Lyon became speechless at what was unfolding before him.

Gray began pivoting again, building up momentum as he held Snorunt in one gauntlet and began dragging Lyon's Snow Dragon in the other. Once enough momentum was built up, he threw them with all his might.

"Ice-Make: Vambrace!"

Despite the lowered speed, the throw made Snorunt a blur as he went sailing into Beartic, and the dragon back towards Lyon. Snorunt's maw was wide as he made another Ice Fang and closed in on Beartic before the latter could launch something from his mouth. Snorunt passed the colossal adversary with streaks of icy aura following him at the same time the dragon smashed Lyon into the wall.

After a moment, Beartic was motionless from the shock. Slowly, he tried to say something. "Lyon…sorry…" He groaned, falling to his knees then slammed into the ground on his front. His eyes brimmed with swirls as he laid unconscious.

Lyon was also motionless, sitting at the base of a crater in the ice wall. It looked like he wasn't getting up anytime soon.

Using the video feed, Mato brought his arm up. "Lyon and Beartic are unable to battle!"

Both Beartic and Lyon's icons became silhouettes. The audience cheered with excitement and awe at the display.

Gray relaxed his stance and let out a deep breath he was holding in the whole time. "Well, that's taken care of." He walked over, meeting Snorunt in the middle and patted his head. "Nice work." He praised.

A groan caught their attention. They noticed Lyon lifting his head, but his body language told them he wasn't going to continue. "Seems you've pulled ahead of me again." He begrudgingly admitted with a small smirk of acceptance before being teleported to safety with Beartic.

Gray returned the expression. "Yeah…this time. Now then…" He turned towards the adjacent wall. "Let's give the others a hand."

---

"Poison Gas!" Sophie commanded Salazzle, who got on all fours and let loose dense purple gas towards Yuka and Mareanie.

Yuka smirked. "Wide Guard!" Mareanie sneered as his front tendrils lifted some. A translucent hexagonal barrier appeared between them and the gas wave, completely blocking it off.

Salazzle's eye twitched. "Well that isn't annoying."

"It's useless! I can nullify your magic, and your attacks won't reach us!" Yuka proclaimed, followed by him reaching his arm out. "Now Mareanie, Venoshock!"

Mareanie puffed his cheeks and launched a blast of purple liquid. Salazzle and Sophie sidestepped the attack as it went between them.

'We're not getting anywhere like this. That Wide Guard is going to stop Poison Gas, and my Memory-Make won't do any good as long as he can use his magic.' Sophie thought. As she thought of a plan, her eyes widened. 'But…we do have moves we can still use.'

Seeing her expression change, Yuka braced himself.

"Whatever you're thinking, let's just get this over with." Salazzle prompted. "I'm overworked as it is."

"Don't worry, just follow my lead." Sophie insisted. "Torment!"

At her command, Salazzle let out a dense hiss towards Mareanie. The Poison/Water-type lurched back at the insidious sneer, then grew agitated with several red tick marks on his head. "Why you…!"

"Now for my part." Sophie brought her finger to her forehead, a chain of memories flourishing. "Memory-Make: Field of Frozen Dreams!"

The ground beneath Yuka and Mareanie began to sprout flowers with thicks buds. When the buds began opening, they expelled a frost-like pollen that began freezing everything it touched.

"Wide Guard!" At Yuka's behest, Mareanie again created a broad barrier around them, deflecting the frost until the pollen dispersed. "I told you that it's pointless!"

"I wouldn't run my mouth if I were you." Sophie frowned. "Salazzle, Poison Gas!"

Once again, Salazzle unleashed another thick blanket of purple, poisonous gas that fanned out towards Yuka and Mareanie.

Yuka scoffed. "For someone with a good memory, you're not a good listener." He reached his arm out. "Wide Guard!"

Mareanie hissed as he brought his tendrils up to make another barrier…only nothing happened.

"Wait, what?!" Yuka gasped. With the barrier not coming up, he instinctively brought up his Wave. Alas, that too failed to stop the poison cloud and it swallowed them both. Caught off guard, they both inhaled the gas, causing purple blushes to cover their faces as a sickening feeling almost crippled them.

Yuka's knees buckled as he coughed. "Why…?" he wheezed. "What in the world happened?"

Salazzle put a hand to her hip. "Guess you lugnuts were the ones not paying attention. Did you forget about Torment?"

"Torment?" Yuka's eyes widened. He thought that was only to agitate Mareanie, he didn't really know what it did.

"Torment is a move that prevents the target from using the same move twice in a row." Sophie answered, tossing a lock over her shoulder. "And with Salazzle's Corrosion Ability, even Poison and Steel-types aren't safe from her Poison Gas."

'That was a good move by Sophie.' Vanessa admitted. She was impressed with how well the stalling game became a time limit.

"Damnit…I can't believe that I let my guard down." Yuka grimaced.

Sophie didn't bother to entertain Yuka's notion. She brought a finger to her forehead, while Salazzle opened her mouth, letting steam flourish.

"Memory-Make: Burning Soul!"

"Venoshock!"

Sophie swiped her arm, sending spiraling torrents of teal-like flames alongside Salazzle's purple stream. Yuka took the Venoshock head-on, unable to defend against it. Mareanie was engulfed by the teal inferno that erupted into an explosion. Both their screams could be heard through the two clouds enveloping them.

Sophie and Salazzle stood their ground as they watched the smoke clear. Both Yuka and Mareanie were laying on their backs unconscious.

Mato brought his arms up again. "Both Yuka and Mareanie are unable to battle! Meaning he is eliminated as well!"

Yuka and Mareanie's icons went black next. The next moment, Yuka and Mareanie's bodies were teleported outside the battlefield's boundaries to a small section where Lyon was. A barrier protected them as a medical team was immediately assisting them.

"And just like that, it's 2-0! Both Lamia Scale's Lyon and Yuka have fallen to the might of Gray and Sophie!" Lola declared.

"Yes, though there's still one more." Yajima reminded. "…and I think that one will be the toughest to come back on."

Sophie glanced over towards the ice wall on her far left. 'Joey…'

---

The battlefield was a mess. Broken stones and misshapen earth covered the boundaries within Joey and Jura's area. It was a miracle the ice barrier Gray put up only sustained minor damage despite depressions and some stone spikes speared through. For Joey, it was taking everything within him to avoid Jura's onslaught of Earth Magic, but being so close to the ground was like a Water-type in water; Jura was in his element. Still, despite the clear disadvantage in terms of experience, Joey's barriers kept him out of arm's reach…for now.

Joey stood on even ground as he and Garbodor looked skywards. Jura stood atop a cylindrical rock platform, his atmosphere like that of a stone mountain. As annoying as it was, Joey knew better than to let his emotions get ahead of himself, unlike a lot of people.

'He's like a mountain. He reminds me of Bro.' Thoughts of Broly came back to Joey's mind. He briefly wondered what would happen if his mentor and Jura faced off.

Jura used his fingers to direct. "Golem, Rock Blast!"

Golem adhered to his command as the three rocks over his head glowed bright orange while his forehead glowed silver. Four silver rocks launched from his forehead at impressive speeds. Jura only added to the attack by sending columns arching from his post.

"Garbodor, Sludge Bomb!" Joey commanded.

Garbodor gurgled as she aimed her right arm and launched several globs of sludge towards the barrage. With the Inverse Battle effect, the Sludge Bomb had an advantage over Rock-types, making the move spearhead through the silver rocks towards Golem.

"Protect!" Jura prompted.

Golem ceased firing and stood his ground as a turquoise, translucent forcefield appeared in front. The Sludge Bomb peppered the barrier, which dissipated shortly after.

"Barrier-Make: Hemisphere!" Joey manifested a barrier in the shape of a dome that covered even his and Garbodor's feet. The rocks Jura launched connected with the barrier, shattering upon impact with the indestructible force.

"Now, Barrier-Make…" Joey molded the barrier, making a sphere with numerous spikes. "Spike Ball!"

'He manipulated the shape of his active barrier?' Jura thought. 'Such control over his magic. Must have been practicing endlessly.'

Joey and Garbodor began running, causing the spike ball to build momentum as it barreled towards Jura's podium and Golem. Although, due to their reduced Speed, it wasn't so fast that the two couldn't dodge. However, Jura decided to slow them down.

"Iron Rock Wall!"

A thick slate of rock appeared in front. Joey's spiky barrier ball made impact, causing a tremendous thud. It didn't take long for the rock wall to crumble away, delaying them by only a few seconds.

"Then let's try this." Jura gestured his fingers at them again. "Iron Rock Spikes!"

As the spike ball drew closer, the ground beneath suddenly erupted with dozens of dense rock spikes that crossed. They caught the sphere and rose off the ground, trapping Joey and Garbodor.

"Woah, that's crazy!" Bickslow exclaimed.

"He was able to stop Joey's indestructible barrier attack." Freed stated. "It's clear Joey's working at a disadvantage in this fight."

"C'mon, Joey! You got this!" Lisanna and Rufflet cheered.

Joey found his balance after the bumpy rise. He and Garbodor looked down, seeing they were suspended by massive rock spikes. 'He stopped me before I could get close. I can't do much up here.'

"I might not be able to attack you while you're inside your barrier." Jura stated. "But I made certain you wouldn't either. It seems that we have once again reached a stalemate."

'The others must've had an easier time dealing with them. As south as things are for me, the very least I can do is stall until time runs out!' As disappointed as Joey was at the possibility, it was still better than giving up and letting them down.

"For a novice mage, your skills are commendable. I'm truly impressed with how well you've been able to defend against my attacks thus far." Jura praised his opponent. "But, coming from a veteran, I ask you…do you have conviction?"

Joey furrowed his brows at his question.

"I have a philosophy that I adhere to: In battle, the ones with the most conviction are the ones to obtain victory, regardless of level of skills or Magic Power. I've heard wind of the many feats that you've accomplished by far, and now I ask you…where is your conviction now?"

Joey didn't say anything. In truth, he wasn't sure whether or not conviction actually defined him. He knew other people like Kevin had conviction; he saw that firsthand back on the island. There were others he knew who had convictions as well, but…could he really call himself a man of conviction?

He didn't dwell on it as he focused on the battle. He morphed the spike ball into a dragon's head aimed at Jura. "Barrier-Make: Dragon Ram!" The ram extended, pulverizing the spikes and the platform Jura stood on.

Jura didn't think much of it as he simply landed on the ground. Joey and Garbodor landed a short distance away. He then outlined in yellow, as did the surrounding rocks around him. "Rock Avalanche!" He fired all the rocks at intense speeds, intending to crush them.

"Barrier-Make: Crash!" Joey created a massive barrier that he shoved, forcing it forward. The rocks struck the barrier and reduced to smaller rubble. But the slower rate it was traveling allowed Jura and Golem to veer in either direction to avoid the attack.

"Barrier-Make: Dome!" Joey made a barrier around Golem, encasing him to a confined point and unable to move.

'There!' Joey found an opening. "Acid Spray!"

Garbodor gagged, expelling a blast of purple acid from her maw towards Jura. The Wizard Saint created another rock wall, but to his surprise, the acid ate through it and closed in one him. He covered up using his arms, which steamed from the surprisingly sharp impact. As Jura grimaced, he stepped back, noting how his sleeves were severely corroded. A dense blue aura enveloped his body, lowering his Special Defense.

Despite this, he smiled. "Impressive. Most impressive, indeed." He admitted. "But still…" He pointed two fingers at them.

Joey gasped. A rock platform shot up, ejecting him into the air. With him positioned, he used his magic to hurl rocks at him. Joey acquiesced to dispelling Golem's barrier in exchange for making one around him. The barrier protected him from the rocks as well as the fall that came after. The barrier crashed into the ground, with Joey on a knee and looking dazed.

"Rock Blast!" Jura ordered.

Golem launched more silver rocks from his forehead, two in total that bombarded Garbodor. She staggered backwards and belched an incoherent scowl.

Joey lifted his head, scowling at his dilemmas. 'I'm not getting anywhere like this. It's just like when I fought that Don Disco guy, we're just dancing around the point…wait!' Joey's eyes widened as he got an epiphany. 'Dancing! Of course!'

During the brief week of training Joey was doing in preparations for the games, he was surprised when Nic paid him a visit. They were both standing in the middle of The Freaks' backyard, the morning sun beaming down on them.

"You said you wanted to talk to me about something?" Joey questioned.

Nic casually stood a small distance away, hands in his pocket. "Yeah. My sister told me you've been trying this new fighting style you've thought up. That right?"

Joey was taken aback by this. He honestly wasn't expecting Nic to be invested into his training. It flattered him a little. "Uh…well, yeah." He mumbled, rubbing the back of his head and looking away. "It was when I fought that Ludicolo on the island. It involved dancing, but I managed to go toe-to-toe with that disco guy." He looked down towards the ground. "Though…I haven't got much to go on other than learning from scratch."

"In that case, I think I know someone who can use as a base for what you're looking for." Nic answered.

Joey turned towards him with wide eyes. "You do?"

"…of sorts. Just from my memories." As Nic walked forward, he shifted into his Mind and Dread Form hybrid. He turned towards the side, his eyes glowing. "I'll show you."

Joey watched as Nic produced a contained illusion. From there, they saw what looked like the expanse of a wrecked boulevard, with Nic and a man dressed in a flashy manner that piqued Joey's interest some.

'This must be a memory he's showing me.' Joey concluded, though he couldn't help but wonder about something. "Who's that guy?"

A mournful smile crossed Nic's face. "…a good friend."

From there, Joey watched as Nic and Pavo had their battle. From his nimble dance moves to strikes, it was all on display for Joey to take in. Nic was initially worried he was too focused on his past self on display since Joey fanned over him, but from a glance he could tell Joey was invested on both parties.

As the battle reached its conclusion, the illusion ended. Nic turned towards Joey. "You saw the way he used his moves to fight, didn't you?"

Joey nodded. "Yeah, I did…"

"I looked into it before I came to see you. It's a style called Capoeira. It translates to dance fighting." Nic explained. "Pavo's style involved using that style in conjunction with his magic. At the very least, this should give you a foundation for what you're trying to accomplish."

"Nic, I don't know what to say…"

"You don't have to. Besides, we're guildmates. We should look out for one another." Nic brought his hand up and pressed it against Joey's forehead. A small pink glow shined at the palm that Joey felt, along with a warm sensation and a flurry of images of Pavo.

Joey blinked, stepping back to clutch his head. "Woah…what a rush."

"I've implanted the memories I have pertaining Pavo's fighting style into your head. If you really are going to dance your way to the top, then make sure you look back on it."

"Nic…"

A soft smile grew on Nic. "…I'm trusting you with his memory. I'm sure he'd be glad to know he has a good legacy."

'I've spent the whole week ingraining everything I saw that Pavo guy did. Now…it's time to put all that hard work to the test!' Joey took a particular stance with knees bent and wrists loose. "Yo, Jura guy! You asked me what my conviction was, right? Well, you were right. I'm still a novice, but I was entrusted by people who believed in me." He thought of Broly, then Camilla, then Nic, along with Fairy Tail. "What they gave me, I will use to keep moving forward while I pave my own way! That is my conviction!"

Jura's smile turned vivid. "Splendid. Then show me that conviction!"

'We don't have much time. Gonna need to go at a new angle for this one.' Joey thought. "Garbodor, you did good girl, return!"

Garbodor let out a strong belch, returning to her Poké Ball.

Joey pulled out a Nest Ball and threw it. "Alright…now, it's your turn!"

The Nest Ball shot into the air, expelling energy into a Pokémon. Landing on the ground was none other than Larvesta, her backside wagging feverishly. "Ready and willing, Mama Joey!"

Seeing Larvesta, Junior jumped for joy. "Oooh! It's Larvesta, Mama! It's her!"

Staraptor smiled. "Yes, I see sweetie. Remember, you can't teleport into the arena. You'll have plenty of time to play later."

Junior began pouting. "Okay…"

Nic watched with them, focused on Joey's battle. 'Larvesta, huh. Let's see what you've learned, Joey.'

Joey and Larvesta stood apart from Jura and Golem. The latter's Pokémon's larger stature made him look intimidating to Larvesta, but she didn't waver. In fact, she started hopping on her stubby limbs back and forth, almost like a small dance.

"Larvesta!" Joey snapped his fingers, striking a stylish pose. "Let's rock!"

Jura was impressed with the young man's confidence, but he didn't allow the ecstasy to take over. "Rock Avalanche!" He summoned rocks from the surrounding area and quickly sent them flying towards Joey and Larvesta.

As the projectiles closed in, time slowed down as Joey and Larvesta stood still. The space around them was a blank black space. They were in total focus.

Then, it began.

Joey brought his arm up, summoning a barrier that followed his swipe, protecting them from the rocks. Jura used his magic to make rocks fly from another direction, to which Joey got onto his tiptoes and extended one leg out, swiping it across to extend the barrier to sweep the rocks away. He began pivoting in place like a ballerina on ice, the barrier orbiting around him at breakneck speeds.

"Hm? This is new." Yajima commented.

"Is it me, or is Joey…dancing?" Lola commented confusedly. "Quite the peculiar time to show off dance moves, I'd say…"

"The heck's he doing dancing at a time like this?" Natsu questioned.

"Yeah. A minute ago he was fighting like a man. Did he lose some of his marbles?" Elfman berated.

"No." Dereece answered, catching his fellow teammates' attention. They saw him smiling with confidence. "This is where Joey's true strength lies."

"You call that spinning?! That's a phony!" Obaba berated. "Jura! Take him out now!"

Jura adjusted his stance. "As you wish." He thrusted his arm forward, sending another wave of Iron Rock Spikes spearheading towards Joey and Larvesta.

Joey kept spinning in place until he swiped his arm across, sending the barrier extending around the spike wave rather than straight through. Jura was taken aback by this and stepped back, avoiding the barrier making a trench in front of him. Joey flipped over Larvesta and grabbed her. He landed on a knee and had her pointed ahead.

"String Shot!"

Larvesta expelled a sticky line of thread that breached one of the spikes. She reeled herself and Joey through the spike wave like a slingshot, breaching the depths of the spikes and pulled themselves forward spike-by-spike. Along the way, a spike shot up beneath, but Joey managed to get a small barrier beneath his foot like a platform and flipped into the air, avoiding the attack. In the air, he had a perfect shot at Jura.

"Flame Charge! Now!"

As Larvesta cloaked in flames, Joey encased her in his barrier. "Barrier-Make: Dragon Ram!" He sent her beelining through the spikes, spearheading clean through row upon row. The flames propelled her as the barrier's heavy mass gave her force to blitz into Jura, taking him by surprise. He used his forearms to block, but he was still knocked back by several feet, grimacing in pain.

"Jura?" Golem looked back at his Trainer, surprised by the attack. This left him open to getting a barrier arch directed by Joey's foot coming down and striking his head, causing him to reel in pain.

Both pulled away, whereas Joey and Larvesta regrouped. The latter's body had a red aura as her Speed increased.

Lola leaned forward, his shock shared by the viewers. "My word! What just happened?!"

"Looks like he's using his magic in a more flexible manner now." Yajima noted.

Jura hummed, though the attack stung his abdomen some. 'Wasn't expecting that. But still, his movements aren't all that fast either!' He used two fingers to direct boulders that flew towards them.

"String Shot! Let's take this for a spin!" Joey ordered.

Larvesta nodded. "Here we go!" From her mouth, numerous silk tread spat out and attached themselves to the boulders heading their way. Larvesta pivoted, dragging the boulders around like wrecking balls while Joey ducked and spun on his back.

"Protect!" Jura ordered. Golem got in front and created a barrier of his own.

In his breakdancing, Joey placed his hand on the ground. "Barrier-Make: Slide!" A thin barrier slithered across the ground heading for Golem. However, the attack turned at the last second, directed by Joey's legs. When he swept in the opposite direction, they arched underneath Jura's feet, sending him into an unbalanced path far from Golem's shield.

'He slipped me up!?'

Larvesta continued spinning, dragging the rocks around and struck Jura. He cried out as he went sailing into the air.

Obaba's eyes went white. "Wait, what?!"

"He used his magic to push Jura from beneath!" Wendy gasped.

"Not a bad move." Laxus admitted.

Jura flew across the battlefield but managed to get his feet back on the ground. A smirk crossed his face. "Finally!" He grabbed his thick overcoat and threw it to the side. "Now things are getting interesting!"

Joey ceased his dancing and kneeled. He and Larvesta looked at each other, silently communicating as Jura brought his hands together.

"Iron Rock Fist!"

A yellow magic seal unleashed a giant gauntlet made of stone that extended towards Joey and Larvesta. Joey stood up and kicked upwards, making a barrier that halted the fist. He grabbed the top of the barrier and flipped over onto the fist and began a dash across it towards Jura.

With a motion of some fingers, Jura changed the course of the fist to U-turn back towards him. The fist was catching up quick towards Joey, giving his guild and the viewers anxiety. However, at the last second, he made a barrier as a small step ladder and vaulted over the fist in a graceful backflip. Using his magic, Jura made another magic seal that sent the fist deflecting skywards towards Joey.

"He reflected it again?!" Lucy gasped.

In midair, Joey saw the attack and reached his arm forward. "Barrier-Make: Board!" He manifested a board made of his barrier and placed his feet along the top half. The giant fist struck the barrier board, but with Joey's weight on top, it tipped and he began sliding down it towards Jura.

As Joey went flying over Jura's head, he raised a foot and harshly stomped, sending the barrier straight down and crushing Jura beneath him. The force was enough to put him into a crater. Joey rolled forward into a handstand in the meantime, pivoted, and flipped onto his feet smoothly.

"Unbelievable! I never would've believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes!" Lola exclaimed. "It looks like Joey caught his second wind, and is dancing his way around Jura's attacks!"

Joey tap-danced left and right as he caught his breath. 'It took me a while to find my own rhythm, but I got it down. I'm not built like a wall like Bro, but I'm more athletic and nimble. This is my new fighting style: Nimble Barrier Dance!'

Jura arose from the ground, seemingly unfazed by the attack despite the obvious scrapes. "Impressive indeed. Seems I'll have to up my game then."

Just then, a fireball launched from out of nowhere, striking Golem in the back and swallowing him in an explosion.

"What?!" Jura looked back shocked, but the Flame Burst pelted his back, stinging ever so slightly.

Joey looked shocked and saw Sophie and Salazzle, along with Gray and Snorunt.

"Sorry to keep ya waiting." Gray smirked.

"Need a hand?" Sophie chimed.

Joey smirked. "Good timing, people! Handle Golem! We need to knock out his Pokémon before time runs out!" He immediately felt wary and sidestepped, avoiding a palm strike from Jura.

The flames dissipated, revealing Jura's Golem staggering back and grunting. He faced against Sophie and Gray with a stalwart glare. His forehead glowed with silver energy as he fired another round of Rock Blast.

"Salazzle, Flame Burst!" Sophie commanded. Salazzle complied, unleashing another fireball that met the numerous rocks, melting them as the super-effective flame sped on in.

"Snorunt, Ice Shard!" Gray commanded. Snorunt summoned more fragments of ice and launched them at incredible speeds.

"Protect!" Golem was prepared as he created another forcefield, the fireball and ice diffusing on impact.

"No good. That shield's going to be a problem." Gray grimaced. "And it's not even poisoned. Think you can cover for that?"

"I think I have a better way to handle that." Sophie suggested, pulling out Salazzle's Heal Ball. "Salazzle, return for now!"

"Thank Arceus." Salazzle slumped her shoulders and groaned, quicklt returning to her capsule.

Sophie reached for another capsule – a Luxury Ball. "Tropius, you're up!"

The capsule was thrown and launched Sophie's Tropius. The Fruit Pokémon stood on the ground and flexed her wings as she stretched. "Mmmm, what a bright day." She chimed.

"And it looks like Sophie's making a substitution." Lola announced. "She brought out her second Pokémon, Tropius!"

"Tropius, you ready?" Sophie asked.

Tropius nodded. "Sure am."

"Good." She whipped her arm forward. "Then use Whirlwind!"

Tropius took flight and fiercely flapped her wings. An intense whirlwind kicked up that blasted Golem head-on. The Megaton Pokémon immediately found it difficult to maintain his foothold, gradually losing ground against the might of the storm. Eventually, it became too much for him and he retreated back into his Poké Ball.

"Golem?!" Jura was taken aback, but then saw another Pokémon coming out in place of him.

Coming out in his place was a large metallic Pokémon with an enormous red, pointed nose with an equally impressive moustache. His blue body was smooth with three mini-noses surrounding him from the sides and back. A red top was like a hat that shielded his big blue eyes.

"Huh?" The Pokémon blinked, taken aback by the sudden appearance.

"Woah, hold on folks! Gotta check the database for this." Lola said. After a few moments, he spoke again. "Okay, it looks like that Whirlwind swapped out Jura's Golem for his Probopass! And since it's an official Pokémon move, that means Jura will have to stick with him!"

Jura narrowed his eyes. "Very clever."

"Flamethrower!" Joey yelled. Larvesta took a sharp breath before expelling an intense torrent of flames at Jura.

"Iron Rock Wall!" Jura retained focus fast enough to create a stone wall to halt the flames' wake.

From above, Joey did a handstand on the top of the wall. He bend his legs and, with nimble reflexes, shot a long, cylindrical barrier from the sole of his left foot into Jura's chest, staggering him. He disengaged the barrier and landed in front of Jura, putting up another strong stance.

"Let's dance!" He boldly declared.

Jura smiled. "Such energy. Probopass, deal with the others! This one is mine!"

"Very well." Probopass took a battle stance, his mini-noses levitating around him.

"Sorry, but we won't give you that luxury." Gray retorted.

Sophie reached forward. "Tropius, use Air Slash!"

Tropius ascended into the air with her large, leafy wings as they glowed bright blue. Crescents of sky-blue energy sliced through the air, landing clean cuts into the battlefield that led up to Probopass, bombarding him relentlessly.

"GRAGH!" With the Inverse effect, the normally extremely ineffective Flying-type move was inexplicably powerful, causing Probopass to scream in shock. Add to it that he was cringing.

"He's flinching! Do it now!" Sophie shouted.

"On it!" Gray charged ahead. "Snorunt, gimme some fuel!"

"Okay!" Snorunt nodded, creating more Ice Shard shrapnel that he launched. They quickly caught up towards Gray, who took a deep inhale and sucked them all in. With fuel and his opponent off guard, he brought his hands together as the ice took a more purplish shade.

"Ice Devil's Zeroth Long Sword!"

He created an ethereal long sword of ice and passed Probopass with it, making a slash pose followed by dense mist. Probopass suffered an intense gash that bloomed with ice spouting. He couldn't handle the pressure and fell onto his back with a harsh thud, the ice continuing to envelop him, leaving his mini-noses to drop limp to the ground.

Mato raised an arm. "Probopass is unable!"

Probopass's icon turned dark as the audience cheered.

"What an upset! Just as soon as Jura's Probopass entered the fray, he was shot down in an instant! Now Jura only has one Pokémon left! Question is can he pull it off?!"

Jura recalled Probopass, taking a moment to look at his Poké Ball. "My apologies, I failed to bring out your potential this time." He brought his forearm up to block Joey's swipe. He summoned rock spikes that forced Joey to jump back. With room to spare, he brought out another Poké Ball and shot it with his palm. "Go, Golem!"

Golem emerged onto the battlefield once more, letting out a brief roar, before the Toxic Spikes kicked in and poisoned him.

"He's poisoned! Now it's a matter of time!" Natsu exclaimed.

"They only have a few minutes left." Erza warned.

"Guys, hurry up and end this already!" Cana shouted.

"No more horsing around." Gray warned. "We're ending this whole thing here and now…whaddya say?" He held up his Z-Ring, containing an Icium-Z inside.

"I'm all for that." Sophie held up hers, containing a Skyium-Z. "Joey, you?"

"Let's rock this boat!" Joey held up his Z-Ring containing a Firium-Z. "Larvesta! Let's go!"

"Yeah!" Larvesta cheered, with Tropius and Snorunt in tow.

Sensing theyw ere going for something big, Jura went on defense. "Golem, Protect!" Golem did as instructed, summoning a barrier in front of him. 'We need to hold out until time runs out. More layers!' He slammed his hands together. "Iron Rock Wall!" This time, five layers of thick stone slabs piled on in front of himself and Golem.

'A Wizard Saint's power against three Z-Moves at once?' Even Shiin was shocked by this phenomenon.

The three mages didn't falter in their momentum. They crossed their arms as an icy-blue, sky-blue, and red aura flared around their bodies. The Z-Power absorbed the light within the surroundings areas and drew them into their growing auras. They as well as their Pokémon prepared synchronized movements and the Z-Power transferred over in arches, filling them with power.

"Supersonic Skystrike!"

"Subzero Slammer!"

"Inferno Overdrive!"

Tropius ascended into the air until she was out of sight. She then came down with an immense blue aura sphere enveloping her body, kicking up an intense cyclone that stirred in her wake as she shot down.

Snorunt arose onto a large ice mountain, a massive swell of icy energy stirring at his mouth before being unleashed in a massive beam that froze the air.

Larvesta concentrated all her firepower into a massive fireball overhead. She screeched as she hurled the enormous fireball with everything she had.

All three Z-Moves barreled into the rock-solid defense, resulting in a mixture of flames spreading, followed by a layer of ice freezing it solid, and lastly all of it blown away by a harsh whirlwind that crashed from above. The entire arena shuddered as everyone watched the entire defense Jura and Golem put up was challenged in an explosive way that had them on the edge of their seats.

It took a minute for the smoke and debris to settle down. Joey, Sophie, and Gray stood in anticipation as they saw the results of their attack.

The layers of rock Jura put up were all reduce to broken slag. Smooth edging indicated being melted by the fireball. It permeated into the far back, where Golem stood with Jura. The former had his arms up as the barrier he had up was flickering, but as he uncovered, he showed more scrapes and bruises on his face. Behind him, Jura stood still, though it was clear even he was surprised by the force of that attack.

'Such powerful moves…and they all permeated through my defense without problem?' He looked at Golem with concern. "Golem, are you alright?"

Golem turned back, smirking. "Don't worry. That was…" Suddenly, his body cringed from the poison. "…nothing…" He winced, before slowly falling over with a loud thud.

Jura gasped. "Golem!"

Golem laid on the ground, his eyes filled with swirls.

"Golem is unable to battle! Which means Jura is eliminated! The winner of this match is Team Fairy Tail!" Mato shouted.

The bell sounded, followed by Golem's icon darkening. Jura's icon got a red X on it as all of Lamia Scale's side was shoved off to the side for Fairy Tail's team to take the screen with the word 'WINNER'.

The crowd exploded not cheers, all of them awestruck by the battles they had seen.

"They've done it again! Fairy Tail managed to scrape by with barely one second remaining on the clock! They've managed to knock out Jura's two Pokémon, earning them 10 points and into a whopping lead above the others!" Lola cheered.

"Only a second left?" Sophie was surprised by that fact.

"Guess we got lucky." Gray figured. "Still, even from a draw, we'd still be in 1st place."

"That's true. Better than a loss, I guess."

Fairy Tail cheered from their balcony at their fortunate outcome. Meanwhile, the members of Lamia Scale were less than pleased with this, particularly an old woman whose eyes were white pupils.

"Ah…ah…ah…" Obaba's mouth hung open from shock. "We…we lost?! HUH?!" She exasperated. "No…NOOOO!" She spun dramatically in place, scaring her guild.

"Hey, old hag! Please calm down!" Chelia pleaded.

"Crap! She's gonna spin herself to her death at this rate!" Another guildmate warned.

"Keep it together, old hag!"

"Yeah! There's still a few days left! We can make up for those points easy!"

Inside the arena, Gray dispelled the ice rampart. He turned towards Snorunt and rubbed the top of his head. "You did good today. Nice work." He praised.

Snorunt smiled. "Thanks! Now about that buffet of ice I wanted…"

Gray chuckled. "Yeah, sure thing."

"You did great as well, Tropius. Both you and Salazzle." Sophie praised Tropius, caressing her head.

The Fruit Pokémon hummed at her compliment. "Thanks."

Larvesta jumped for joy and high-fived Joey. "Did you see me, Mama Joey? Wasn't I awesome!?"

"You so were! Mama Joey's really proud of you." Joey beamed, winking.

On the other side of the field, Jura walked up towards his unconscious Golem, kneeling and placed a hand on his head. "You battled phenomenally today. You deserve a fine rest." He recalled Golem, then stood back up and smiled at his opponents, namely Joey as he was talking to Sophie about something. 'Even as a novice mage, to have the ability to adapt such defensive magic to his nimble style. That's no small feat.' A smile crossed his face as he started walking away. 'Seems these otherworlders truly are fascinating individuals. I'm looking forward to how these games turn out.'

Having recovered, Yuka sat up and looked at their scoring. "Can't believe we've lost."

"Yes. As bitter as this defeat was…it was enlightening in its own way." Lyon gracefully admitted.

"You say that, but the old hag's gonna spin us to our graves for this one."

"Yeah…unfortunately."

---

A little while later, Joey, Sophie, and Gray were in the infirmary. Even though they were well enough to not be bedridden, they figured stopping by Porlyusica wouldn't hurt, much to her chagrin.

The others soon came to see them, with some more excited than others. Juvia was one of them as she leaped into Gray's arms. "Gray, my darling!" She swooned. "You were so cool out there! I knew you wouldn't let us down!"

"Hey, take it easy." He warned, but still held onto her with a smile. "Thanks for believing in us."

Juvia nodded and turned towards Joey and Sophie. "And you two, I'm proud of you too. You've fought so well."

"You guys were all real men out there! Wait a go!" Elfman cheered.

"Yeah guys, you totally killed it out there today." Natsu bragged. Now he was more fired up than ever to get into a battle. "Man, can't wait for my turn already."

"Get in line. You'll get your turn soon enough." Gajeel scoffed. "Just after me."

Natsu angrily turned towards him. "Hey! Whoever said you get dibs before me?!"

"Huh? What, we need a ticket booth to see who goes first? It's first come first serve." Gajeel snapped back, clashing his iron forehead with Natsu's.

"In your dreams, rust breath! In fact, I can solo this whole thing myself, and you too!"

"I should arrest you for such a big ego!"

"You should be behind bars for how loud you chomp!"

They were silenced by two metal gauntlets colliding their heads together, causing them to collapse to the floor. "Quiet, both of you!" She berated. "This isn't about you. We need to show how supportive we are of our guild, remember?"

"I swear, some things don't ever change." Gray grimaced.

"Yeah, guess not." Lucy nervously chuckled.

Dereece and Duncan walked up to Joey, the former more eager. "Captain, you were incredible out there!"

"You really think?" Joey inquired.

"What are you saying? You were able to hold your own against a Wizard Saint."

"Yeah, guess we did." His gaze fell towards the ground as he thought about his battle. 'Really, it was that Toxic Spikes Garbodor laid out that got us that win. Even with my dancing, I still…' He clenched a fist. 'Am lacking experience.'

His gesticulation didn't go unnoticed by Duncan, who hummed in acknowledgment of sorts. "…guess you weren't so bad." He muttered.

Vanessa walked up towards Sophie. "How're you feeling?"

"Just fine." She answered. "We only had a few scrapes and bruises. We just ate some Sitrus Berries, so we're doing just fine."

Juvia turned towards Gray. "How is Bergmite? He went down pretty hard back there."

"Don't worry. He'll be fine." He assured. "Just gave him a Revive. Should be good for now."

"That's good."

"And after all this, we've got a seriously good chance at winning now." Cana noted. "We're already sitting at 36 points on the second day."

Erza turned to her with a smile. "That's true. We're doing pretty well with ourselves. And so far it's been the new recruits that have shown off." She turned towards the three that finished their battle. "You've all battled well. Take pride and remember that you did Fairy Tail justice by achieving this victory with your combined merits."

Gray, Sophie, and Gray took her acknowledgment to heart. Just then, the door opened again, revealing Junior hopping in. "Larvesta!"

Larvesta finished nibbling on her torched Sitrus Berry and perked up. "Junior~!" She skipped on over to meet her friend in the middle. Their hands connected as they bounced in joy.

"Did you see me out there?! Did you see me?!" Larvesta chirped.

"Yeah! You were so cool, Larvesta!" Junior jumped with her. "You so strong now!"

"Thank you! You saw me use that big fireball!?"

"Yeah! It was huge!"

As they were all giddy, Nic proceeded into the room, along with Greninja and Staraptor.

"Hey, Nic. What brings you around?" Gray asked.

"Nothing. Just wanted to congratulate you guys, that's all." Nic admitted. "Also, Junior wanted to see Larvesta, so we couldn't pass that up. How're you guys feeling?"

Joey smiled proudly. "Feeling pretty good now." He jumped back to his feet. "I feel like I can party till dawn with this momentum."

Sophie chuckled. "I wouldn't doubt that." Knowing him, he probably could. But she knew Joey was responsible enough not to do such a thing…this time.

"How's it looking out there? Quatro Cerberus and Sabertooth were facing off next, right?" Elfman reminded.

---

The crowd cheered as they watched Warcry and Nobarly fall onto their backs with loud thuds, their Luxio and Nuzleaf followed suit. Towering in front of them were Sorano and Dobengal, along with their Mantine and Ninjask respectively.

"Nobarly and Warcry are eliminated! The match goes to Sorano and Dobengal of Sabertooth!" Mato declared.

The icons of Nobarly and Warcry and their Pokémon turned dark. They were shoved off to the right side to make room for the winners that everyone cheered for.

"What an upturn! That match ended as quick as it started!" Lola declared. "Sabertooth gets 10 points, putting them at a total of 28 points! Let's hear it for our winners!"

Sorano turned towards the audience, a hand to her hip with a proud smirk. "Well isn't this a welcoming change. Never thought I'd see the day people would actually cheer for me."

Dobengal relaxed his posture. "Our merits deserve some praise, I suppose." At that notion, his Ninjask moved closer for him to pet. "You did well, my friend. Thank you for your assistance."

His Ninjask somersaulted and buzzed.

"You did lovely too, my dear Mantine." Sorano patted Mantine's head. She turned towards Sabertooth's balcony and became giddy herself. "Yukino~, aren't you so proud of your big sister? C'mon, show me some praise!"

A now red-faced Yukino pushed her index fingertips together. "Uh…oh geez…"

"She can be a little over the top, can she?" Rogue smirked.

"Maybe just a little…" she muttered. She looked at her older sister laughing and waving freely, a small smile crossed her face. "Still…I'm happy that she's enjoying herself. That's enough for me."

Minerva smiled. "They all performed admirably. With this, we've earned 12 points today. Not terrible, if I do say so myself."

"And there's still one more match left." Shou reminded. "The bigger question here is who will win it?"

"That's a good question indeed." Sting sat on a rather regal seat, his posture relaxed with his cheek resting on his knuckles. "One thing's for certain, this next match is bound to be something."

"Let's hope it lasts longer than ours was. I thought I was gonna sleep through it." Lector sneered.

Minerva smirked. "Just goes to show the difference is skills and strength out guilds have. Nothing more, nothing less."

The field was clearing away with the defeated Warcry and Nobarly moved by stretchers to get medical attention. It didn't take long for processions to move along, taking them to the next match.

"These past two matches have been something. What do you two think?" Lola asked his fellow spokesmen.

Lola nodded with a smile. "Certainly so. All the guilds have shown exceptional abilities thus far. I'd like to say that Fairy Tail in particular has been doing very well for themselves thus far."

"I agree, especially those Trainers from PokéEarth." Alexa chimed in. "Not to say that I'm biased, but if you noticed, the Trainers that recently became mages have all been standing out in their own way. Just look at today for example. Blue Pegasus won today's maze contest because of Kevin, who is from the Kanto Region, and then there's Joey, who was able to hold his own against a veteran mage, but only winning by a technicality. You have to take their own skills and experience into account from their own world. That, on top of their experience here, makes a world of difference."

Lola nodded. "That's certainly a broad perspective you have there, Alexa. Now, we'll be seeing just who ends up facing next between Blue Pegasus and Mermaid Heel."

In the arena, Mato got everyone's attention. "Alright everyone, pay attention! It's time for the last match of the day! First, let's see how many will be fighting, shall we?"

The roulette for both monitors spun again. When they slowed down, they showed a 1, along with three Poké Balls.

"And it looks like it'll be one mage each, both using three Pokémon!"

"Now to see who will be putting their guild's points on the line!" Lola declared.

A huge monitor appeared as two Poké Balls had several cards orbiting them. The members of Blue Pegasus and Mermaid Heel watched with anxious eyes as they saw two cards flying up front, revealing their choices.

"In this battle, it'll be Eve Tearm VS Julia Astor of Mermaid Heel!"

The two names called drew various attention, some of interest, and others of curiosity.

"Do your best, Eve!" Jenny cheered.

Eve gave them all a thumbs up. "You bet! I won't let the momentum Kevin gave us be in vain. Just wait and see!"

From Mermaid Heel's balcony, the girl with platinum blonde hair remained aloof as she turned to head towards the gateway tunnel. As she did, she passed by Kagura.

"Stay focused. Do that, and you'll have everything you need." The veteran mage assured.

The woman didn't say anything. With a simple nod, she acknowledged her superior and started for the exit.

The two competitors walked out onto the battlefield in preparations for their battle.

"Huh? Say, who's that chick?" Natsu asked.

"Not sure. Haven't seen her before. Maybe she's a new member?" Gray figured.

"She certainly carries herself with dignity. Just look at her strides." Juvia pointed out. Even from her perspective, she could see how steady her strides were.

Dereece turned towards Erza. "You're friends with that Kagura woman, right? Did she say anything about new members?"

"No, not from the times we've spoke." Erza leered at the newcomer. Either she was a new face, or she was a veteran guild mage. As much as she wanted to know, consulting Kagura about their guild business would've been a breach of etiquette and trust. 'Seems we weren't the only ones hiding aces.'

Vanessa remained quiet and observative of the woman. 'Her aura, something's different about it. Is she conscious of it?'

"You think she'll be alright?" Risley worried.

"I wouldn't worry about it." Millianna waved off. "She's been training with me and Kagura nonstop. Trust me, she's ready."

Beth put her hands to her hips. "If our girl says so, then okay."

"Let's hope she knows what she's doing." Arana worried.

"I hear that. We need to get some points and fast." Risley reminded them of their current standing, being the only team with single-digit points.

In the ring, the two competitors reached the two ends of the ring. Eve took this opportunity to speak to his new adversary. "Just so you know, I may be a gentleman, but don't expect me to go easy on you." He chimed. "I'll be sure not to wreck that pretty face."

The opposing Trainer, Julia, only shot a glare at him. "And playboys like you are nothing but a wreck."

Eve winced at her retort. "Ouch, that actual stung. Maybe a dinner tonight after our match so we can change that tune?"

"I'll pass."

Lola took hold of the announcements. "Eve is a veteran mage of Blue Pegasus, who's been nothing short of an accomplished mage amongst their ranks. As for Julia…oh, hold on…" He trailed off as he was reading her data. "…oh. It appears that Julia is yet another Trainer from the other world! Hailing from the Hoenn region at that!"

"Another Pokémon Trainer?" Mirajane gasped.

"So Mermaid Heel's got one in their ranks." Lisanna figured. "Wonder just how strong she is?"

"We're about to find out." Warren warned.

Shinn squinted as his focus intensified on the woman. 'Another Pokémon Trainer? First Fairy Tail, then Sabertooth, then Blue Pegasus, and now Mermaid Heel.' He brought out his camera again to take a picture. Upon doing so, it read her Magic Power. 'And she has substantial magic as well. But what kind is it?'

Down in the arena, Mato hurried towards the center with Pumpkaboo at his side. "Ahem! May I have your attention, please! The battle between Eve Tearm and Julia Astor will now begin! Both sides will have the use of three Pokémon, and the battle will be over when either all of one side's Pokémon are unable to battle, or the mage is knocked out."

Upon concluding, Inver walked out towards the field again. He took up a psychic stance and focused briefly before expelling the psychokinetic force outwards across the arena, readying the Inverse Battle.

"With that, the Inverse Battle is set." Lola announced. "Now, we just wait to see what their first Pokémon will be."

Eve went first. "Alright Panpour…" He spun around and tossed the Poké Ball with style. "Your time to shine!"

A Panpour appeared on the battlefield, doing a backflip. "Let's give them a show!" He declared.

Julia reached for a Poké Ball on her belt and prepared to throw. "You're up, Skarmory!"

The Pokémon Ball went flying with precision from her swipe. The capsule popped open, revealing a large, armored bird. Skarmory entered the battle with a meek caw.

"Woah, is that an armored bird?" Natsu wondered. He pulled up his Poké Dex to run an analysis.

"Skarmory, the Armor Bird Pokémon. Its body is draped in steel armor. It looks heavy, but it can fly at speeds of up to 185 miles an hour!"

"Sounds like one fast bird you ask me." Gajeel remarked. "Wonder what it tastes like?"

"You seriously thinking of eating that thing? Get real." Elfman groaned.

A Poké Ball opened, revealing Gajeel's Meltan. The sight of the Skarmory was enough to entice its appetite as it leaped for her…only to deflect off the barrier and back onto the balcony with a groan.

"You boys seriously think with your stomachs too much, I swear." Cana shook her head.

As the crowd cheered around her, Skarmory looked around as she showed signs of unease. "Wow…so many people watching."

"Don't focus on them, Skarmory." Julia instructed. "Your attention is on the battle."

"Right!" Skarmory nodded.

Mato moved off to the side, his arms coming down in chops. "You have 30 minutes! Let the battle…begin!"

Julia instigated by swiping her arm. "Stealth Rock!"

Skarmory cawed and began spinning, unleashing white arrows that had no intended direction. Eve and Panpour watched as the arrows became sharp rocks that embedded into the ground around their side of the field.

"And Julia's Skarmory kicks off with a Stealth Rock!" Lola exclaimed. "Just like with Joey before, Julia came into this battle with a hazard card to play!"

"That's a good move." Erza admitted. "With Stealth Rock, all incoming Pokémon on the opponent's side will sustain damage."

Eve smirked. "You think that we're scared? Try this!" A blue magic seal appeared as he projected his arm forward. "White Fury!" He unleashed a compressed blizzard from his palm at Julia.

"Water Gun!" Panpour expelled a volume of water from his mouth that traveled towards Skarmory.

Julia held her hand up. "Rock Slide!"

Skarmory spread her wings, letting out a low caw as distorted ripples appeared around her. Numerous gray boulders showered down and dropped onto the battlefield. The composites quickly built up a blockade that stopped both attacks, much to their shock.

"No way!" Eve gasped. He looked up, seeing more rocks threatening to fall on him. In a panic, he pulled away.

Panpour had it less than pleasing. He scampered around, zipping left and right to avoid rocks. He managed to get away, but quickly realized a drastic flaw – he was isolated by debris from her Trainer. "E-eve? Eve?!"

"Hold on, I'm coming!" Eve went to help Panpour, but was met with resistance in the form of Julia.

"Sorry, but you'll have to tango with me, fancy boy." She subtly declared.

Eve gave an uneasy smile. "You're really not making this easy for me, are you?" He brought both arms back in preparations for his next attack. "White Fang!"

Manipulated snow breezed through the vicinity towards Julia. The Trainer held her ground as she watched the attack head towards her. Silence fell as she closed her eyes to concentrate. She took up a fighting stance, her arms crossed as a red silhouette formed around them.

This didn't go unnoticed by Vanessa. 'Is that…?'

Just then, Julia did a karate chop, slicing the snow blasts. To everyone's shock, they watched as Julia's strike cut cleanly through the harsh winds and cold snow, leaving her unscathed.

"Wait, what?!" Eve gasped.

Bacchus smirked at what he saw. "Girl's got some martial arts training, eh?"

Julia exhaled, looking at her bewildered opponent. "That was nothing but a breeze. Skarmory, Steel Wing!"

With Eve unable to focus, Panpour looked around the rock field surrounding him, only for a blinding glare to bring his attention skywards. He immediately covered as a pair of metallic wings dove from a steep angle and stuck him. "Waaaaaaah!" He went sailing through the air from the apparent super-effective attack.

"Panpour!" Eve reached his arm out, summoning a snow blanket close by that Panpour landed in. However, he wasn't getting back up.

"Panpour is unable to battle!" Mato declared.

Panpour's icon beside Eve turned to a silhouette, followed by a cheer from the spectators.

"And it looks like Julia scores the first win!" Lola announced. "Thanks to the Inverse effect, Steel-type moves are super-effective on Water-types."

"It was a calculative victory for Julia and her Skarmory, I'll say that." Yajima added.

"I got some good shots from that. I wonder where Julia learned to chop like that?" Alexa inquired.

Skarmory descended in front of Julia, with Eve gritting his teeth in frustration. "Return, Panpour!" He recalled Panpour and pulled out a second Poké Ball. "Alright, no more pulling punches. Beauty or not, it's on!" He threw the capsule. "Vanillite, you're up!"

Appearing next was Eve's Vanillite. "Who's ready to chill out?" She chimed.

"And Eve's second Pokémon is Vanillite!" Lola shouted.

Just then, the jagged stones in the vicinity arose, startling Eve and Vanillite. The latter didn't have time to question before the stones moved to strike her, causing damage.

"No! Vanillite!" Eve shouted.

"Oof! And that Stealth Rock lives up to its name! Vanillite takes damage upon entering the field!"

"You needn't worry." Julia scoffed. "Your Vanillite didn't take much damage from that."

Vanillite emerged from the dust, shaking herself to focus. "That was cold, even for my standards." She scowled.

Julia pulled out Skarmory's Pokémon Ball. "Return, Skarmory." A red laser shot out and drew Skarmory back into the Poké Ball. "You did your part. Now leave the rest to us." She put it away and pulled out a second Poké Ball. "Go, Bellossom!"

Entering the field now was a Bellossom. She did a small twirl and raised her hands high. "Good to be out on such a lovely day." She swooned.

Lucy took liberties to scan the new Pokémon.

"Bellossom, the Flower Pokémon. A Bellossom grows flowers more beautifully if it has evolved from a smelly Gloom-the more stinky the better. At night, this Pokémon closes its petals and goes to sleep."

"From a Gloom?" Natsu questioned, the name sounding familiar. "Hold on! You mean that smelly plant me and Charmeleon fought in the preliminaries? It turns to that?!"

"Apparently. No need to get so worked up about it." Gray figured.

"Why wouldn't I? That thing smelled awful! I thought my nose was gonna fall off!"

Gajeel shrugged. "Wouldn't be any skin off our bones."

"A Bellossom, huh?" Erza put a hand to her chin in thought. "Normally Grass-types would be at a disadvantage against Ice-types. But in an Inverse Battle, Ice-types aren't that effective."

"Wonder what she's got planned with her?" Gajeel questioned.

"With how strong her Pokémon are, it's hard to say." Juvia answered.

"Yeah, her Skarmory took out Panpour in one hit. She must be strong." Lucy figured.

Duncan had arms crossed as he leaned against the wall. His eyes were glued on the battle, namely Julia. He could tell she was capable.

"White Blizzard!" Eve unleashed a white blizzard that quickly swept the area in cold, brisk snow. Julia and Bellossom stood in place as the attack brushed against them. However, Julia looked unfazed, whereas Bellossom only took minimal damage.

"That kinda tickles." She giggled.

"Yeah, bet this won't!" Eve reached his hand forward. "Icicle Spear!"

Vanillite opened her mouth and launched a barrage of icicles like spears that shot at Bellossom.

"We have our own way of making a blizzard." Julia warned. "Petal Blizzard!"

The red petals atop Belossom's head began spinning with her. "We'll blow you away!" She exclaimed. A typhoon pf pink petals erupted from her and swelled throughout the area. The Icicle Spears clashed with the petals but were unable to permeate them, leading to the maelstrom to strike Eve and Vanillite alike. They both screamed as they went soaring into the distance. Eve crashed onto his side, whereas Vanillite hit the ground beside him, eyes brimming with swirls.

Mato raised another arm. "Vanillite is unable to battle!"

Vanillite's icon turned to black beside Eve's frame, leaving only one Pokémon slot left.

"And just like that, Julia's Bellossom makes quick work of Eve's Vanillite!" Lola announced. "Which means Eve is now left with only one Pokémon remaining. Things are not looking good for Blue Pegasus's 'Holy Night'."

"C'mon, Eve! You're not out of this yet!" Jenny encouraged.

"Hard to believe that Eve's having a hard time against someone like her." Ren grimaced. "The match barely started, and she's taken out two of his Pokémon. He's gotta get a handle on this before his last one's done."

Ichiya pointed his fingers and posed with confidence. "Man! Do not fret! Eve may be down, but he is certainly not out! For he has saved the best for last."

Eve recalled Vanillite and started getting back up. That blast tore up bits of his clothes and left a few cuts on his body. He wiped some dirt on the side of his cheek with the back of his hand…only to find traces of a red offensive liquid on it. He looked visibly annoyed as he stood back up and opposed Julia.

"Okay…you're good." He admitted. "But I'm far from finished here! Time for my ace!" He threw another Poké Ball. "You're up, Glaceon!"

His final Pokémon emerged onto the field. This time, a blue quadruped mammal with dark blue feet, with lighter blue shade for a fur coat over her body. Her deep blue eyes beamed ahead as her tail swayed from side-to-side.

"And Eve's final Pokémon is a Glaceon!" Lola declared.

This time, it was Sophie analyzing the new Pokémon.

"Glaceon, the Fresh Snow Pokémon. It can instantaneously freeze any moisture that's around it, creating ice pellets to shoot at its prey."

"This one here is my trusted partner. I got through the preliminaries thanks to her." Eve boasted.

"Let's hope she doesn't disappoint." Julia countered, taking another stance. "I'd hate to waste my potential on something that's not up to par."

"Then maybe this will change your tune!" Eve held both arms out. "Glaceon, Helping Hand!"

"Good choice." Glaceon's body was surrounded in a golden aura, and the aura began transferring over towards Eve.

'She's using a support move on her Trainer?' This confused Julia, only serving to heighten her guard.

"Now have a taste of this!" Another magic seal appeared in front of Eve, only this one was of greater volume. "White Fang!" He unleashed another twisted tempest of snow by swiping his arms, sending them towards Julia.

Julia focused like she did before, causing a red silhouette to appear around her forearm. She then used a palm strike to stop the attack. However, it didn't disperse as easily, much to her shock.

'What?' To her shock, the condensed snowstorm was overwhelming her. She went flying backwards with a loud grunt, landing on her back.

"Oh no!" Beth voiced her guild's panic.

Bellossom looked back to check on her Trainer. "Julia, are you okay?" She was then blindsided from her side, the cause being Glaceon when her Quick Attack landed its mark.

The Fresh Snow Pokmon backed off with her forelimbs reared. "Shouldn't lose track of your opponents."

Julia gnashed her teeth as she got back up. "I let my guard down."

Eve didn't let the momentum falter as a blue magic seal appeared. "White Blizzard!" He summoned yet another light blizzard that blanketed the area.

Julia reached her arm out to give a command. "Bellossom, use Moonblast on Glaceon!"

"You got it!" Bellossom held firm in the snowstorm, unfazed by it as a lunar spotlight appeared above her. A pink ball of energy conjured between her hands and launched at Glaceon with impressive force.

Eve discretely smirked, as did Glaceon.

The Moonblast went on, but instead Glaceon faded out of sight, avoiding the attack.

"It missed?" Bellossom gasped.

"Now, Ice Shard!" Eve commanded.

Julia was taken aback by this, but she caught onto something bright on her left. She pulled back in time to avoid ice pellets and looked to where they came from. However, she only saw Glaceon's silhouette before she faded.

"What's their game here…?" she muttered to herself, eyes narrowing.

From Lamia Scale's balcony, Chelia leaned over. "Lyon, isn't that like…"

Lyon narrowed his eyes. "Yes. That's Snow Cloak, Beartic's Ability. Seems Eve's managed to make use of his own magic to help his Pokémon." He sounded interested. "I have to say, that's quite impressive."

Julia clenched her fists. Now was not the time to lose her cool. 'Stay calm, Julia. Remember your basic training.' She told herself. 'You need to stay calm and rationalize the situation. Glaceon's evasion is strengthened in this snowstorm. But…there is one attack I have that will hit her.' She turned towards Bellossom. "Bellossom, return for now!"

"Okay." Bellossom complied and returned to her Poké Ball.

Julia pulled out another one and threw it skywards. "It's your turn! Go, Dragalge!"

Julia's third Pokémon was a large aquatic sea dragon whose body resembled the number three. She had a light purple underbelly, with the rest of her body being a dull brown. Her headpiece as well as her limbs resembled withered kelp. Her red eyes glinted as she let out a sinister snarl-like roar.

Eve gasped in shock. "What the heck is that?!"

"I don't know, but whatever she is, she needs a makeover." Glaceon quipped.

"And Julia's third Pokémon is a Dragalge!" Lola announced.

From Fairy Tail's corner, Juvia pulled out her Pokémon Dex.

"Dragalge, the Mock Kelp Pokémon. It blends in with seaweed to ambush its prey and then takes them down with a poisonous liquid strong enough to melt metal."

Gajeel frowned, visibly disturbed with the information. "Sounds like a real piece of work to me."

"So it's a Poison-type, eh?" Cana figured.

Vanessa nodded. "Yes, but they also have Dragon-type characteristics as well. In an Inverse Battle like this, she still has the type advantage." She frowned. 'Relying on poison, just like me. If that's the case, then her next move might be…'

Dragalge snarled mischievously. "Frozen meat…how delightful."

"Dragalge, focus on Glaceon." Julia instructed, extending her arm out. "Use Toxic!"

"Great, my favorite!" Draglage reeled her head around before expelling a thick purple glob that shot through the blizzard.

Everyone watched as the glob closed in on the smirking Glaceon, but then saw the glob shift direction, much to their bewilderment. Before Eve could finish saying "What?!", the glob struck a silhouette hidden in the snowstorm. The real Glaceon hissed as dark purple bubbles erupted from her body, causing her to cringe in pain.

"Glaceon, no!" Eve panicked.

"Woah now! Look at that! Julia used her Draglage's poison to scope out Glaceon in the snow!" Lola exclaimed.

"That's a sound strategy." Alexa affirmed. "Toxic is a unique Pokémon move. It has the effects to badly poison a target, but when used by a Poison-type Pokémon, it becomes a move that doesn't miss under any circumstances."

'Looks like she's been paying attention to Vanessa's battle.' Joey turned to check on Vanessa. From how focused she was, she must have drawn the same conclusion.

Seeing Glaceon poisoned, Eve gritted his teeth. "We need to hurry and finish this now. Glaceon, Helping Hand!"

"R-right!" The quadruped hissed, but she was willing to fight. A golden aura enveloped her that transferred over to Eve. As he made another magic seal, it visibly doubled in size.

"Take this! White Fury!" He unleashed another condensed snow blast at them.

"Dragalge, Dragon Pulse!" Julia instructed.

Dragalge narrowed her eyes and scowled as multicolored draconic energy collected at her mouth. Once amassed, she expelled it in a multicolored beam with a draconic head that metaphorically, and literally, chomped down on the condensed blizzard. The mixture of the two attacks resulted in an explosion that was swept up in the snowstorm.

Julia took the initiative to dart through the obscurity to close the distance between her and Eve. 'This magic is still in effect. So to fix that…' She caught sight of Eve. 'I need to target the mage!'

She closed in on him and went low for a jab to his gut. However, she was surprised when her fist met cold, clumped snow.

She gasped, but was then blasted from the side by another blizzard, causing her to stagger a distance away. Eve was seen a distance away unscathed.

"Like my Snow Clone? It's really convincing, isn't it?" He increased the output of the snow, creating a blinding blizzard that whirled throughout the arena.

"It looks like Eve's not holding back any longer! Is this it for Julia?" Lola wondered.

'Far from it.' Kagura thought. 'This is where your hours of practice shines, Julia.'

Julia closed her eyes and focused. Despite getting flanked by snow that was blanketing her body, she knew she had to keep her breathing steady. An exhale was all it took to steady her. She zeroed in on her opponents, knowing they would be masked behind the cover of snow. She waited…and waited…and waited…

Finally, she sensed them. They were close!

'There!' Her eyes immediately darted left, seeing a silhouette rush at her.

"Take this!" Eve broke through the snow wave with a magic seal ready for a close-range blizzard blast. However, Julia had anticipated that.

Time slowed down as she pivoted and ducked beneath Eve's magic seal. Her palm was brought back as red energy formed into a sphere that she shoved into Eve's exposed torso.

"Ki Palm!"

The red sphere thrust into Eve, bursting upon impact with force strong enough to send him careening through the air. Everyone's jaws slacked at the sight, even Shiin was dumbfounded as they watched the experienced mage fumble haphazardly.

"Eve?!" Glaceon panicked.

With him out of the picture, Julia turned towards Glaceon's direction. But she managed to outpace her. "Baby-Doll Eyes!" Glaceon winked, enveloping Julia in a blue aura that lowered her strength.

"Ki Blade!" She performed a roundhouse kick, sending a red crescent towards Glaceon. The attack met its mark, sending her sliding across the ground.

"Gnnngh…that all?" Despite the poison, Glaceon put on a brave face…but lost it when a sea dragon silhouette loomed over it.

"Oh, we're only just getting started, frost pup." A sinister voice whispered.

"Venoshock!" Julia ordered.

Glaceon whipped around, meeting Dragalge face-to-face and was blasted at point-blank range by an intense stream of purple liquid. A purple smoky explosion erupted, sending her careening through the air.

Everyone watched as the snowstorm dissipated due to Eve having lost momentum. They witnessed the Snow Mage and his Glaceon plummet to the ground beside one another with loud thuds. When the dust cleared, Eve's shirt was torn and he was clutching his bare abdomen, while Glaceon was knocked out beside him.

Mato raised his arm again. "Both Eve and Glaceon are unable to battle! Match goes to Julia of Mermaid Heel!"

Eve and Glaceon's icons went dark onscreen and were promptly shoved off for Julia's icon. The crowd cheered at the victory achieved for Mermaid Heel.

"It's all over! Despite his best efforts, Eve ended up getting the cold shoulder." Lola deduced. "And with that, Mermaid Heel gets 10 points, putting them at 16 for today!"

"Yes! That's the way!" Risley pumped her fists.

"She mat still be new, but she's got skills." Arana smirked.

Millianna jumped in joy. "Meow~! Wait a go, Julia! You showed them you were pumped up!"

"Man, that's a real drag." Hibiki grimaced. "And Eve almost had them, too."

"Can't believe he lost." Ren chastised, before turning away with a small smirk. "But I guess it's fine, because he put up a good fight."

Kevin folded his arms. "Yeah, guess so. But a loss is still a loss." He smiled softly. "Ah well, at least we got some decent points today, I suppose."

"Man! Truly, you did!" Ichiya commended. "Mark my words, tomorrow, we will climb to the top with our parfume of perseverance."

The others looked at each other with slight discomfort, but chose not to say anything that could damage their morale.

Julia watched Eve and Glaceon get taken away by the medical team before turning away. "Come, Dragalge."

"Whatever you say." She drifted across the dirt, sneering lowly. "That was fun."

Julia hummed. "What matters is that we've got the win we need to climb the ranks." She said aloud, then thought about her performance. 'And this was a good opportunity to test my abilities against other prominent mages. He was good, I suppose. But still…I need someone stronger to bring out my potential.'

As she was leaving the battlefield, Fairy Tail watched her off, seeing her carry herself with dignity and composure.

"Man, I don't know what Mermaid Heel was doing hiding away someone like her." Gajeel commented.

"I know, right? Feeling kinda bad for Eve." Elfman admitted.

"That magic, did you see that?" Lucy prompted.

Erza nodded. "I did. She was able to detect Eve and timed her counter almost impeccably."

"And those spells she used." Dereece chimed in. "The way she used them, they almost remind me of…"

Everyone turned their attention towards the object of his insinuation. Vanessa stood still, her focus on Julia. For a moment, Julia stopped and glanced over her shoulder, her lavender eyes meeting Vanessa's dark blue eyes. It was like they were reading each other, studying, feeling each other. The sentiment didn't linger for very long before Julia vanished within the tunnel.

"Now that the last match is over, let's check that scoreboard." Lola announced.

1st: Fairy Tail – 36

2nd: Sabertooth – 28

3rd: Mermaid Heel – 16

4th: Blue Pegasus – 14

5th: Lamia Scale – 13

5th: Quatro Cerberus – 13

"Still holding a very strong lead above the rest is Fairy Tail with a whopping 36 points. And though they lagged a little today, Sabertooth manages to maintain 2nd Place with 28. But now in 3rd Place, Mermaid Heel manages to jump above the competition at 16 points, with Blue Pegasus not far behind at 14. And fighting for last place is Lamia Scale and Quatro Cerberus, both sitting at 13 points."

"What the hell?! We got robbed today! I want a do-over!" Obaba wailed.

"Aroof! This is so unfair! Why us?! We have a Wizard Saint on our side for crying out loud!" Toby howled.

Rocker clenched his fist. "We ain't out of this just yet! We're gonna show everyone our wild spirit tomorrow!"

"Man, Fairy Tail has over double our points now." Millianna whined. "Man, how am I gonna face Erzy now?"

"Buck up. We still have three more days. There'll be plenty of opportunities to get some points and catch up." Risley reasoned.

"Heck yeah! We're kicking butt still!" Natsu smiled at their point value.

"Well, let's just be sure it stays that way." Lucy hoped.

Erza looked at their team's scoring. While proud and relieved at how well they were doing, she couldn't shake this weird feeling she had. 'Something about this feels familiar. The year we participated, Raven Tail and Sabertooth had situations like these…' That feeling intensified. 'An omen perhaps?'

"Alright! Let's hit the pubs to celebrate!" Elfman roared.

"Right behind ya." Gray followed.

"Better pick one with some good booze!" Cana chimed.

"Wait for me!" Juvia hurried along.

Sophie turned to leave, but noticed Vanessa was staring out. "Vanessa, is everything okay?"

The Pularis girl was subtly quiet for a bit, her focus still on the tunnel. Whatever feeling she had was similar to Erza's. "…it's nothing." She turned to leave with her peers to celebrate their performance.

In the stands, thousands of people were flocking out. However, Shiin remained firm to his seat, his gaze showing genuine anxiety at the display he saw today. It was one thing expecting such skill from the legendary Fairy Tail guild, but to see Trainers from other guilds having such skills was unnerving to say the least.

'This Julia…she was able to defeat a mage of high caliber all on her own.' He grimaced. Thoughts of his recent observations came flooding back. 'First there's Nic, then his sister, The Freaks…and all these new otherworld Trainers. Mastering magic alone takes years, yet they were able to catch up within months. If they have this much potential, I can only fathom how powerful they could get within years time.'

The thought only served to make him that much more uneasy. He knew the outcome, and he could see it clear as day. Their world's most gifted mages falling to the likes of otherworld Trainers that have mastered magic of their own, with Pokémon to aid in their every desire. The fathomable just becae the unthinkable.

His fists clenched as his frown dampened. 'It may seem stable now, but there's no telling when another revolution will turn up. Would the government be able to handle it then?' His eyes widened and immediately shook his head of such doubts. 'No, it mustn't come to that. One way or another…I need to prevent this.'

---

Apologies for being late. After much deliberations, I decided to slow down this month, so that's why this update is so late within April. I intended for this to be done by Easter, but work and my health took priority. But still, hope you all found this chapter entertaining and worth the wait.

So now Kevin has a Kingler…and he's apparently grown out of checkers and into chess. New shell, new game. XD

I originally considered having the battle of Sabertooth and Quatro Cerberus being fully written, but then I realized the Fairy Tail VS Lamia Scale fight dragged out way too long, so that's why I chose to shorthand it and skip to the end.

So now you saw Julia Astor in action. More of her magic and Pokémon will be seen later on.

Day 3 is around the corner, but what will happen on the night of Day 2? With Shiin starting to see the potential and the threat these Trainer Mages are becoming, he needs to make that point clear as crystal to Nic.

I'll try my best to get the next chapter done before April ends. It'll likely be short since it'll cover the second day's evening events. Depending how much space is left, I might squeeze in the beginning of Day 3.

Please leave a review to share your thoughts. Thanks for reading!