The third round, narrowing from seven to four competitors, was up next. Unfortunately, Auron wasn't lucky enough to draw a bye, and his opponent was a Bonsly.
Pokémon: Bonsly
Gender: Male
Type: Rock
Ability: Rock Head (prevents recoil damage from moves that usually cause it)
Potential: Green
Basic Moves: Fake Tears, Mimic, Thrash, Rock Throw
Egg Moves: Headbutt, Rollout
Seeing Bonsly's move set, Auron was immediately on alert. Rock Throw would hit Zubat for double damage—no matter how well he'd trained her, there was no way she could withstand three Rock Throws.
And then there was Mimic, a truly frustrating move. Whatever you used, Bonsly could copy and throw it right back at you. It was honestly annoying to face.
"Hahahahahaha—hic!"
Before the referee could even drop the flag, a burst of loud laughter erupted from below the stage, catching the attention of all three competitors.
"Jace, Serena, what are you two doing down there?"
Auron rolled his eyes, seeing Jace and Serena cracking up just below the stage.
Noticing the stares, Serena's cheeks flushed red and she quickly stepped behind Jace, who was completely unfazed—he only laughed even louder as more people looked his way.
"What are you even doing?"
Jace finally wiped away his fake tears and answered,
"Nothing really. We just both got byes this round, but you have to battle, so we couldn't help ourselves."
Auron groaned. "You two are ridiculous…"
What happened was: Jace had come to check on Auron after drawing a bye, only to spot Serena at his stage. Turns out, she'd also lucked into a bye, leaving Auron the only one still fighting. Jace just couldn't hold in his laughter.
Auron waved at the referee, "Don't mind them. Let's get started."
Swish!
The flag dropped—battle began!
"Zubat, go high!"
"Bonsly, Mimic!"
But since Zubat hadn't used a move yet, Mimic failed.
Auron smirked. "Knew you'd try that."
"Zubat, Mean Look!"
"Bonsly, Mimic again!"
A black light shone from Zubat's eyes. Bonsly tried to imitate the move, firing back a similar glare.
The opposing trainer frowned. Twice in a row, Auron had predicted his moves. Most people would attack after a failed Mimic, but Auron doubled down on status moves. Frustrated, the trainer decided he had to attack first.
"Bonsly, Rock Throw!"
"Zubat, dodge! Then, Confuse Ray!"
Now that Bonsly wasn't using Mimic, Auron relaxed a little. Zubat easily dodged the slow Rock Throw and unleashed a purple-red Confuse Ray, aiming straight for Bonsly.
"Bonsly, Mimic it, quick!"
The other trainer was desperate. He knew if Bonsly was hit by Confuse Ray, it would almost be over—Bonsly was too slow to dodge, so his only hope was to copy the move and confuse Zubat in return.
But Bonsly's reaction was too slow—Confuse Ray landed before Mimic could go off, sending Bonsly stumbling into confusion.
"Alright, Zubat, Air Slash—let's finish this!"
Auron exhaled in relief, finally no longer worried about a comeback. Zubat cut through the air, slamming Bonsly with a decisive Air Slash.
"Nice job, Zubat!"
Auron scooped her up and gave her a scratch behind the ears, praising her as they stepped down from the stage to join Jace and Serena.
"Were you two really that happy just to get a bye?"
"Of course!" Jace laughed. "Especially when you didn't—made it even better."
Auron rolled his eyes. "Shouldn't you check out your own stage, in case there's someone to watch out for? Don't get too smug until the finals are over."
"Don't worry, I scoped it out already—my stage is probably the weakest of the twenty. But get this—Stage Four was crowded with spectators, so I went to check it out. Guess what I saw?"
Auron smirked. "Not guessing. Spill it or don't."
Jace shrugged. "You know that rich kid from Class Two?"
"Yeah, the one who sent Serena all those love letters. What about him?"
Serena nervously glanced at Auron, "I haven't read a single one of those, okay? Don't get the wrong idea."
Auron gave her a quizzical look. "And?"
Serena pouted, "Never mind, whatever."
Jace continued, giving Auron a sympathetic look. "That rich kid's Pokémon turned out to be a Dratini. Nobody ever heard about it until today's tournament."
"A Dratini?!"
Auron's face went serious. Everyone knew—Dratini's Thunder Wave was a god-tier control move early on. It inflicts paralysis, drops speed, sometimes even prevents movement. Plus, Dratini resists fire, water, grass, and electric attacks. Ice is its only real weakness, and Dragon or Fairy attacks are rare early on. Dratini's shed skin cures status, and its hidden Marvel Scale boosts defense when statused. Munchlax might manage, but Zubat would have a tough time against it.
"What do you think—can you handle it?"
Auron shook his head. "Not much confidence. I'll need a few things—help me out later?"
Jace gave a thumbs-up. "Got it. That'll improve your odds, but it'll still be tough."
"Don't worry. I believe in you. If you can annoy me to death, you can do this too!"
"Get lost! The next round's about to start—you're still standing here?"
Laughing, Auron watched Jace and Serena head back to their stages.
"First semi-final! Auron Vale versus Lena Marlowe —both contestants please prepare for battle!"
Auron hugged Zubat close and walked up to the stage, where his opponent, a girl named Lin Jia from Class Three, was already waiting.
"Release your Pokémon!"
Auron released Zubat, who soared into the air. Lena's partner was a Corsola—a Pokémon with no evolutions, but very powerful in the early stages.
Pokémon: Corsola
Gender: Male
Type: Water, Rock
Ability: Hustle (higher attack, but lower accuracy)
Potential: Blue
Basic Moves: Harden, Tackle, Water Gun, Aqua Ring, Endure
Egg Moves: Water Pulse, Confuse Ray
Auron eyed the Corsola, thinking, "Looks familiar…"
Swish!
The flag dropped—the match began.
"Corsola—Water Pulse!"
"Zubat, dodge, then Air Slash!"
Corsola's Water Pulse was clearly unpolished—slow to launch and poorly aimed. Zubat dodged easily. Auron wondered how this girl had made it this far.
Thwack!
Corsola staggered as Air Slash hit. Without water to swim in, dodging was nearly impossible for a Water-type.
"Corsola—Aqua Ring!"
"Zubat—Supersonic!"
A ring of water shimmered around Corsola, slowly healing it over time.
"No wonder she's made it this far. With Aqua Ring's healing and that defense, she could outlast most early-game attackers—too bad you're up against me."
Auron's Zubat unleashed Supersonic, hitting Corsola cleanly and sending it into confusion—but the healing had already started.
Lena relaxed, thinking, "As long as Aqua Ring is up, I'm fine." She stopped giving orders and just waited for confusion to pass.
"Zubat—Poison Fang!"
Zubat swooped in, fangs glowing purple, and bit Corsola—but it didn't get poisoned this time.
"Zubat—again, Poison Fang!"
Still dazed, Corsola took another hit—this time, purple energy shimmered over its body. Poisoned. The poison damage neatly canceled out Aqua Ring's healing. The girl panicked and resumed shouting orders.
"Corsola—Endure!"
Corsola grit its teeth through the pain and used Endure, but with so much HP left, it didn't make much difference.
"Zubat—Pursuit, finish it!"
Auron sighed. "Poor girl's going to have a rough time on the entrance exam…"
With two more furious Pursuits, Zubat knocked out Corsola.
"Corsola is unable to battle. Zubat wins!"
Lena, looking crestfallen, recalled Corsola and hurried off to the makeshift Pokémon Center for treatment.
The second semi-final on Auron's stage was next—Cherubi versus Diglett. Cherubi's Sleep Powder, Stun Spore, and Razor Leaf quickly took down Diglett, earning the win.
Then it was Auron versus Cherubi. But before Cherubi could even get off a Stun Spore, Zubat's Air Slash ended the fight—double Flying-type damage and Cherubi's weak defense meant it couldn't survive even one hit.
With that, Auron became the Stage 2 champion. On Stage 7, Serena's Feebas ("Beauty") also quickly dispatched her opponent's Geodude—Water Gun's four-times effectiveness left no chance.
Then the two of them went to Stage 5 to check on Jace's battle, which turned out to be a bit of a grind.
Jace's opponent's Cherrim was especially annoying—Sleep Powder, Tackle, Defense Curl, Morning Sun, Razor Leaf, Sweet Scent. Over and over, it spammed Sleep Powder and Razor Leaf, barely scratching Torkoal. But with no special attacks, it just kept trying to chip away while putting Torkoal to sleep. Even the referee looked like he was about to doze off.
Finally, Cherrim missed a Sleep Powder, and Jace's Torkoal ended it with a Flamethrower.
Jace stomped off the stage, grumbling,
"That was the most annoying fight ever! Could've finished in one move, but he had to keep using Sweet Scent to drop my evasion—if a breeze hadn't blown through, we'd still be out there."
Auron patted him on the shoulder.
"Hey, at least you're moving on to the finals. Let's go eat before the championship round this afternoon."
"Yeah, let's go."
The three friends headed off to the cafeteria. By the time the battles finished, it was already lunchtime. The finals would be held that afternoon—not on the main stage, as they were pretty draining. It was important to eat well and be ready for the big showdown.
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