"320 Participants, 17 days, 767 matches, 318 heartbreaks, the absolute highs and lows of emotions, and uncountable and unforgettable memories later, we are here now, for the Final of the 197th Indigo Conference!"
The Commentator's voice resounded in the Indigo Stadium.
"Who will be the winner? Who will be the better Trainer on the day? We shall find out soon..."
"Ladies and Gentlemen! We are seeing something special this year. Something straight out of dreams. For the first time in the Official Pokémon League History, a Participant has reached the Final without losing a single round in any of his matches. This is already a record for the longest run in a Conference without losing even a single round. Will he be lifting his maiden league title today? And will it be with a cherry on top?"
"On the other hand, we have a Finalist who has won the Battle Frontier of Kanto and Johto, the Orange League Challenge, and the Silver Conference this year. Is he going to claim his fourth big win of the year today? Is his streak of seventy-four wins in Official Matches going to end today? Or is he going to make it seventy-five?"
"Regardless of who wins, we are bound to see history made today..."
The crowd clapped, creating drum-like sounds that rose into the sky, echoing their enthusiasm.
"On our Eastern Grid, the Silver League Champion, the experienced, the brave, the Star who never ceases to amaze people... representing the Sandgem Laboratory, from Sandgem Town, Sinnoh... Egnar... Goodwin!!!"
"On our Western Grid, searching for his maiden league win, the flawless, the silent, the focused... representing the Blanc Palace, the Prince of the Blanc Kingdom... Aizen... Orayen!!!"
The cheers that erupted from the stadium sent everyone's heart racing, and the two finalists, under a surreal atmosphere, stepped on their grids, staring directly at each other.
They shared a polite nod, and when the countdown began, they plucked their Pokéballs from their belts and waited for the whistle at noon to reveal their choices for the first round.
As soon as the countdown ended, the Referee raised his flags, and the whistle sounded. Both Aizen and Egnar hurled their Pokéballs into the air.
And when the two Pokémon appeared in the Arena, the audience was surprised at the Silver League Champion's choice.
It was a Pokémon he had not used in any of his Official Matches. He had never before been seen using it.
"Round 1: Slaking vs Arcanine. Begin!"
Aizen stared at the Pokémon lying on the ground, seemingly not interested in fighting, yet the way its eyes occasionally glanced at Archie made it clear that it was waiting for the Orange Puppy to make the first move.
"This should be fun, Archie. Do not underestimate Slaking. He is already focusing to counter your attack."
His puppy narrowed his eyes at the terrifying opponent.
"Use Agility, and pair it with Double Team."
Under his instructions, the Pokémon got to work.
"Circle Slaking, and wait for my call to attack."
Slaking stayed lying on the ground, seemingly ignoring Arcanine, but its eyes were darting quickly, showing that it was alert.
"You know what you need to do, Slaking. I want to end this round fast," Egnar spoke to his Pokémon, who yawned and then slowly stood up.
"Get closer to Slaking. Extreme Speed."
Aizen called the move, and Arcanine turned into a blur, covering its body in flames as it brushed past Slaking twice.
"Now!"
When it came close to the Normal Pokémon for the third time, Slaking spun, and its powerful Focus Punch swung towards the puppy.
However, Arcanine had already received Aizen's signal, and suddenly he changed direction, using Iron Tail to deflect and get out of the way of the powerful Punch, exhaling a terrifying Heat Wave before being thrown back.
"Awaaarrgh!!"
Slaking roared as it was doused in Heat Wave, the flames burning into its body.
And Aizen quickly asked Arcanine to use Extreme Speed again.
Archie was shocked when Slaking, bearing the burns, blinked, and it already knew what it had to do.
Using the Double Team, Arcanine quickly dodged the Giga Impact, which shook the Psychic Shields around the battlefield, preventing Slaking from harming the crowd.
"Stay focused!" Egnar's voice reached his Pokémon and managed to calm him down.
"Flamethrower."
"Slash it, and Focus Punch in the middle of the field."
Aizen's heart skipped a beat when he saw Slaking use Slash to bisect the Flamethrower, and then the Focus Punch generated quakes across the Battlefield, causing Arcanine to lose its speed.
The next second, the giant Pokémon was right in front of the Orange Puppy, ready to use a Hammer Arm.
"Iron Tail, and use Heat Wave again!"
And to his immense relief, Arcanine managed to use his Iron Tail to take away a lot of the strength from the Focus Punch.
He unleashed Heat Wave again, quickly retreating from Slaking.
The flames made the burns on Slaking's body worse, but the Pokémon was far from finished.
It charged at Arcanine, right into the flames as Aizen called for Flamethrower, and slammed the Orange Puppy with a Crush Claw before it could fully dodge.
"Play Rough!"
Though in great pain, Archie managed to use the move, creating a cloud of sparkling smoke that irritated Slaking, and then slipped away from the monster.
The Orange Puppy was wincing, limping slightly as it created distance between itself and Slaking.
"Extreme Speed."
As soon as he heard Aizen's call, he suppressed the pain and obeyed.
He already knew what he had to do now.
Arcanine slammed into Slaking, and before the opponent's thick hands could grab him, he used Close Combat, then unleashed Flamethrower at point-blank range, which worsened Slaking's condition and made it roar in agony.
"Counter!" Egnar calmly ordered.
Arcanine did not come out unscathed from this endeavour.
Slaking managed to punch him away, sending him crashing into the battlefield.
Arcanine quickly used Morning Sun to heal some of the damage, and before the flames around Slaking cleared, he charged forward again.
"Overheat."
"Focus Punch! If not on Arcanine then on the ground!" Egnar called out, tensing up when he saw Arcanine leap into the air and then release a terrifying torrent of white flame.
The recoil from the Overheat cannon, which struck Slaking, pushed Arcanine back, out of his opponent's range. And when he landed on the ground, he was panting heavily.
When the flames cleared from Slaking, it was found kneeling on the ground, scorched, with smoke rising from its body.
"We will have to give it another attack, my Friend. Charge, and use your last attack."
Slaking did not waste time when it heard its Trainer's words. Its body began to glow with a reddish aura as it entered the state of Outrage, and it threw a terrifying double punch on the ground, which helped it rise while also generating Earthquake.
However, to its surprise, Arcanine burst forward with Extreme Speed, appearing right in front of it, and before it could react again, the Orange Puppy crashed into it and used Burn Up.
Terrifying flames filled the battlefield, and everyone held their breath.
A minute later, when the flames subsided, Slaking, unresponsive to Egnar's call, was found burned and scorched, lying unconscious inside the crater its twin punches had created.
As for Arcanine, he was struggling to get back up on his feet, still conscious, but barely.
The referee was shocked to see how stubborn it was and then glanced at Slaking. He waited for ten seconds, and just as he was about to raise his flag, the Orange Puppy forced itself upright and howled.
"Slaking is unable to battle. Arcanine wins the first round!"
The crowd stayed silent. No cheers rose, as both Pokémon were in a terrible state.
And more than anything, they were stunned at what they had just witnessed.
Aizen quickly recalled Arcanine, letting it rest, knowing well that it could not have another battle.
"Thank you," he sincerely said to his Pokémon, and then waited for his opponent to make his next pick.
Egnar was dismayed in his heart that his Slaking had lost to Arcanine, and this forced him to think carefully.
The countdown was on, and right before sixty seconds elapsed, he sent out his next Pokémon.
"Go!"
Aizen was surprised at his choice when he saw a Snorlax, and then frowned.
He was tempted to send out his Machamp, but his instincts told him otherwise.
"Be very careful, mate," he warned his Pokémon as he sent out his Blastoise, surprising the people at his choice.
"Round 2: Snorlax vs Blastoise. Begin!"
"Shadow Ball!" Egnar immediately called out the move that stunned everyone, but then Snorlax's body started to shine and change form.
It was the Silver Champion's Hisuian Zoroark, disguised as Snorlax!
The powerful Shadow Ball rushed at Blastoise, who instinctively used Protect.
"Agility. Now use Extrasensory," Egnar ordered again, and the Water Pokémon, who had retreated in its shell, was slapped up into the air. "Shadow Ball!"
"Water Spout."
And to Egnar's disbelief, the tortoise spewed a terrifying wave of water, which crashed over the entire Battlefield.
His Hisuian Zoroark almost drowned in the attack, before being hurled up with a Waterfall.
"Good job, mate. Now, Wave Crash."
"Double Team!" Egnar quickly called out, and then gritted his teeth. "Curse!"
Blastoise suddenly cried out in a lot of pain, and the Wave Crash failed.
The next moment, it was struck by a powerful Shadow Claw, crashing into the water on the field.
Zoroark fell as well, but used Aerial Ace, only to its annoyance as the Tortoise Pokémon had already retreated into its shell and used Iron Defence.
The Ghost Pokémon did not even see the Bubble attack coming, struck instead by dozens of Bubbles that escaped the shell.
"Get away!" Egnar called to his Pokémon when he saw the Tortoise start to shine, but Zoroark failed to escape as it was smashed by a Flash Cannon, which sent it crashing into the wet field.
Blastoise landed on the Battlefield too, quickly getting back on its feet.
It roared to the sky when it saw its enemy out cold.
"Hisuian Zoroark is unable to battle. Blastoise wins the second round!"
Egnar sighed at the result and recalled his Pokémon.
He had gambled, but Aizen did not send out a Fighting Pokémon or even his own Snorlax.
"Alright, buddy. I need your help here now," Egnar whispered to his Pokéball and sent out his third Pokémon.
A loud yet sweet draconic roar sounded out as a Pokémon appeared on the Battlefield.
Aizen smiled when he saw the Dragon and stared at the battlefield, now a swamp, realising how deadly this Pokémon was in such conditions.
And he chose to keep Blastoise on the Battlefield for the moment.