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Idle chatter filled the PWT arena during the intermission leading to the finale of the Young Champions Exhibition. One of the finalists, Nate, was a familiar face around there. Such a familiar face, that most of the audience knows him as one of the tournament’s top battlers, with a small footnote about that time he won against the Elite Four. The other finalist, Dawn, didn’t quite have the same fame in Unova. Like all the other competitors, the crowd seemed much more interested in the exotic Pokemon than the battle itself. Regardless, some fans from Sinnoh came out to watch their champion battle.
The lights dimmed, causing a short wave of excited noise, before the crowd fell into a suspenseful silence. That moment always feels like an eternity, but the announcer broke the silence.
“This champion conquered the Elite Four’s castle, but you might know him as the king of the PWT… Unova’s champion, Nate!”
The spotlight shone on Nate as he approached the ring, and the crowd erupted into cheers for him. As always, he walked confidently, his head held high and his stride smooth. Pyrotechnics sparkled up behind him, much fancier than the typical neon lights.
“This champion is bringing the heat, and giving us chills at the same time… Sinnoh’s champion, Dawn!”
She got the same introduction as Nate, leading her to the opposite side of the ring. The crowd wasn’t as excited for her. Home advantage, probably. She did hear a few people chanting her name, which was enough to get her fired up.
The competitors stepped forward to exchange a few words before the final match.
Nate, having done this dozens of times, didn’t have many unique lines left to say. “Glad you made it to the end, but I’ll be taking the win.”
Dawn, having never done this before, didn’t have any original lines to begin with. “If I catch you holding back, I’m fining you.”
They each went back to their corner, getting themselves hyped up. With the announcer calling the start of the match, they each threw out their lead Pokemon. Nate started with his partner Serperior, while Dawn sent out her own grass-type, Carnivine.
Despite the variety of trainers he fights, Nate rarely saw Pokemon from outside Unova, let alone battled against them. He always tried to at least have a surface level knowledge of other Pokemon, but even that failed him sometimes.
“Bug or grass, bug or grass?”
“Carnivine, Crunch!”
“Serperior, swap out!”
Regardless of what Carnivine was, Serperior wouldn’t have a way to knock it out. Bisharp came out as a sturdier replacement, just in time for Carnivine’s attack. The Crunch didn’t hit all that hard, but it made a few tiny chips in Bisharp’s armor. He did not seem happy about that.
“Lash Out!” Nate called out
The attack landed by the time Nate got the second word out; Bisharp only waited for the command as a formality. The hit sent Carnivine flying to the other side of the ring. She had trouble getting back upright after an attack like that. Dawn gritted her teeth, but she kept her cool.
She figured Carnivine could get at least a little more damage off. “Hit it with Wrap!”
“Su—” Nate stopped himself, remembering Bisharp prefers acting over waiting
By the time Carnivine prepared her attack, Bisharp knocked her out with a Sucker Punch.
“Incredible! Just look at that reaction time! Bisharp takes the first K.O., putting Nate in the lead!”
As badly as Carnivine got beat, Dawn knew she wasn’t at a disadvantage yet. She returned Carnivine to her ball and sent out her next Pokemon, Medicham. Strangely, he came out facing Dawn. The trainer gave a slight nod before Medicham turned around, as if the two had an entire strategy meeting, silently, in under five seconds. Bisharp looked just as fierce as it did with Carnivine, but Medicham wasn’t fazed.
“Medicham, get up close and go for it!”
“Sucker Punch again!”
Bisharp shifted his feet to prepare for an attack, watching carefully. As soon as Medicham was a single step away, Bisharp threw out the attack, whiffing it and stumbling. At the last step, Medicham stopped and used Work Up, rather than attacking.
“Ugh, psychics…” Nate muttered
And that was his and Bisharp’s most hated part of Sucker Punch—the first one always worked like a charm, but it was too easy to adapt to. Another whiff would only let Medicham get stronger, but not going for it would let Bisharp get knocked out. By the time Bisharp regained his footing, Medicham hit him with a Force Palm, knocking him out.
“Wow, what a turnaround! Medicham K.O.’s Bisharp, bringing the battlers to an even game!”
Nate revealed his third Pokemon, Chandelure. A glimmer of smugness showed up on Dawn’s face, but she knew better than to get overconfident.
“Stay back and use Shadow Ball!” Nate called out
The smug look showed out in full force. “You do the same, Medicham!”
Nate seemed surprised by his own strategy being thrown back at him, but not shaken. While Bisharp could get stronger during a battle, Chandelure hits hard the moment she gets on the field. She and Medicham launched their attacks, to no real effect. The projectiles collided, making an intense rumble as they dissipated.
After the second time, Medicham started circling the ring, trying to attack at a different angle while getting closer. Chandelure also circled the ring, making sure Medicham stayed at the exact opposite end. Chandelure managed to match his speed—ghosts can be deceptively fast.
“Go straight in, it’s already at the edge,” Dawn said
Medicham stopped circling and took a step directly towards the opponent. Nate wasted no time making the next move.
“Will-o-Wisp!”
The blue flames floated their way to Medicham, bursting over his body. Medicham took advantage of the brief moment with no attacks being thrown at him, and got close enough to hit Chandelure with a Zen Headbutt.
The hit wasn’t all that strong, but it made Chandelure flinch. Medicham quickly hit her with another. Before he could get a third one off, a Shadow ball came at him, finally landing on its target. The strong hit knocked Medicham down. He tried getting up, but the lost strength from the burn was just enough to make him faint.
“And Medicham faints to a Shadow Ball! Dawn is down to her last Pokemon!”
“Good work, Medicham…” She grabbed her final Pokeball, caressing it with her thumb. “Alright, Empoleon, you got this!”
Empoleon stood tall, staring down the Pokemon that knocked out his teammate. Dawn already had the next move in mind.
“Take it out with an Aqua Jet!”
In a flash, Empoleon surrounded himself with water and dashed over to Chandelure, beak first, knocking her out.
“Empoleon finishes off Chandelure! We’re back to a totally even game, one on one!”
Nate tossed Serperior’s Pokeball out, finally letting him back on the field. Both pairs of finalists—the trainers and their partner Pokemon—gazed at each other. Nate narrowed his eyes at Dawn, trying to catch any signs of smugness or defeatism. Dawn looked at Nate, wondering if she should try throwing off his relieved confidence, or stick to the tried and true strategy.
Meanwhile Empoleon and Serperior were having their own competition, pushing the actual battle aside. They exchanged poses, trying their best to look regal and unbothered, yet determined and intimidating at the same time.
All four put their focus back on the match, ready to bring it to an end.
“Icy Wind!”
“Leech Seed!”
Neither side went for a powerful attack, instead trying to get the strategic advantage. Serperior was left with frost shedding from his body, and Empoleon with tiny sprouts sapping his energy. Suddenly, despite being at opposite ends of speed and bulk, the two Pokemon brought each other to equal footing.
“Giga drain!”
“Air Cutter!”
In the tension of the final stretch, the trainers got straight to the point with their calls. The Pokemon appreciated it, using their moves as quickly as they could. Empoleon’s hit first, maybe to his detriment; Serperior managed to recover most of the damage with his attack.
“Again, Serperior!”
“You too, Empoleon!”
The previous turn repeated, to the same ending, making Dawn grit her teeth. With Serperior healing as much as he was, Empoleon wouldn’t be able to knock him out. Maybe if he Aqua Jetted around, he could avoid the attacks. But even then, the Leech Seed would eventually wear him down.
Dawn inhaled deeply, then exhaled sharply. “Another Air Cutter!”
“Giga Drain again!”
The thin blades of wind flew out, at the same time as the green globs of energy launched out and returned. The Air Cutter came out especially strong, battering Serperior around, but it came just shy of a K.O. The Giga Drain was equally short of dealing the last blow, bringing the entire arena to the edge of their seats. Before the next move could even come out, the Leech Seed’s sprouts took a little more energy, then wilted away one by one—there was nothing left to drain. Empoleon slowly fell over, getting knocked out.
“Wow! It looks like the last bit of Empoleon’s health was sapped out! What an incredibly close match! With Serperior as the last Pokemon, the winner of this match and tournament is… Nate, the champion of Unova!”
Backstage, in Dawn’s waiting room, she healed her team, thanking them for fighting so well. She and her team turned to the door, hearing a single thud, supposedly a knock.
“Serp, don’t— Uh, hey. It’s Nate.”
“Oh, hey!”
Dawn opened the door, letting Nate and his team shuffle in. He sat down while Dawn tended to Empoleon.
“That was a good battle,” Nate said. “Nice team, too.”
“Same to you! You have some heavy hitters. Your Bisharp definitely did some damage.”
He shrugged, trying to stay modest. “His ability comes in handy—Defiant, you ever seen it before?”
“Hmm, once, I think.” She smirked. “Good name for it, he didn’t exactly wait for your commands out there.”
Hearing that, Bisharp quit playing with Medicham for a second. He nudged his head against Nate, carefully keeping the sharp bits pointed away.
Nate obliged, patting Bisharp’s head with a soft chuckle. “Nah, I think he likes having me as a trainer…”
Dawn covered a laugh, finding it too sweet to tease him for. She tilted her head, looking at Bisharp’s face. It’s not a scary glare, that’s just the shape of his helmet.
“Hey, do you have a Pokedex?” Dawn asked. “We should scan each other’s team. I’m not ready to hear the professor lecture me for missing out on a few rare scans.”
“Good idea.”
Dawn pulled out some folding device with two screens, way too cumbersome to use every time she encounters something new. Nate grabbed a tiny gadget that looked too fragile to survive any terrain harsher than carpet. The two raised an eyebrow at what was supposed to be the same device in the other’s hand.
Naturally, Empoleon and Serperior put themselves first in line to be scanned, resuming their pose-off. Bisharp and Medicham stood up straight next to each other, while Carnivine and Chandelure barely moved from their lazy positions.
“All done, thanks, Nate!”
“Any time. You staying in Unova much longer?”
“Just tomorrow, my mom wants to check out this thing in Nimbasa City. But hey! If you ever come to Sinnoh, there’s a place kinda like this tournament! We can even do tag teams!”
His eyes lit up. “Why wait? There’s a spot in Nimbasa that does tag teams! Uh, I mean, not to separate you from your mom…”
She shook her head. “Contests are more her thing. I can guarantee that we’ll both be sick of battling by the time she’s done.”
“Perfect, see you there, Dawn! Hope Unova’s been fun!”
“Yup, see you! And come to Sinnoh some day!”