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Pokemon, Asylum of the Damned

Chapter LXXI

Saga XIII- Master Battles Saga

Chapter XIII- Judgement Day

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The Butterfrees in Tom's stomach felt like they had just blasted his insides 
with Stun Spores. The sky was a clear blue, and the arena was cast in the 
sun's warm rays, throwing shadows all over the field. Looking down at 
Porygon Two, Tom could tell that it was every bit as nervous as he.

A pair of hands suddenly wrapped around his shoulders from behind him, and 
began to massage his collar. "Nervous?" A feminine voice behind him asked.

"Oh, I'm nervous all right, Claire," said Tom, rolling his shoulders forward 
as Claire continued to massage them.

"Yeah, I'd be pretty nervous too," she said, rubbing the base of Tom's neck. 
"But don't worry about losing," she said softly, resting her chin on Tom's 
shoulder, "I'd still like you either way."

Porygon Two turned his head. "And you said you were just freinds," it 
teased.

Claire's cheeks turned bright red as Tom quickly placed his foot on Porygon 
Two's face. "He doesn't know when to quit," said Tom, trying his best to 
fight back a blush of his own.

"Tom and Claire, sitting in a tr-"

Tom pressed his boot harder into Porygon Two's face. "Like I said," Tom 
murmured sheepishly, "He doesn't know when to shut up."

"Hey Tom, maybe we should've saved that trainer suite for another week-"

"Shut up already," Tom quietly hissed, pressing harder on Porygon Two.

Suddenly, the loud rock music filled the stadium, and Tom took a deep, heavy 
breath. "There's my cue," he said as Claire took her hands off of his 
shoulders.

"Good luck, Tom," she said wishfully, "I'll be here the whole time."

"I'll win, Claire, just you watch," Tom said, placing his hand on Claire's 
shoulder. "And when I do, how's dinner sound tonight?"

Claire grinned. "I'd like that," she said, taking Tom's hand off of her 
shoulder and holding it in both of her hands, "Now go win that 
championship."

Tom and Porygon Two turned and walked out onto the field, with Claire 
watching them all the way to Tom's trainer box.

"The following contest is for a yet to be announced total of falls," said 
the unseen announcer's voice blaring all over the stadium, "and it is for 
the World Pokemon League Undisputed Championship! Introducing the 
challenger, from Yorin Town, earning a total of ten badges, he is the 
Pokemon League's people's champion, Tom Simms!"

As the music died away, Tom leaned forward on the guard rail, taking another 
deep breath, staring at the other end of the battlefield as the stadium was 
left in total silence.

Suddenly, a barrage of guitar chords echoed all over the stadium, and the 
crowd erupted with cheers. "And from Canyon City," the announcer declared, 
"earning a total of seventy-two badges, she is the reigning World Pokemon 
League Undisputed Champion, Ivy Lee!"

A tall, slim woman walked out onto the field, quickly climbing the ladder to 
her trainer box. And as soon as she and Tom had their headsets on, she said, 
"So, you're Tom Simms, huh?"

"Ivy Lee, right?"

Ivy's entrance music died away. "I've had my eye on you for quite some time, 
Tom," said Ivy, running her fingers through her short, fluffy silver hair, 
"I've had lots of flavors of the month challenge me, but there's something 
about you that I like."

"Really?" Tom asked, "What?"

Ivy paused to chuckle cruelly. "Ever since the last tournament, you're the 
only trainer I've ever seen with a backbone in them."

Tom smirked back at Ivy. "You really think so, huh?"

"Oh, I do," said Ivy. "You won the Finalbadge, you nearly got beaten to 
death last time, and here you are coming back for more. And not only that, 
you won the first ever two-on-two-on-two. Impressive for just your second 
run."

"I'm sure you've got a lot to say about yourself too," said Tom, "but let's 
just get started."

"So soon?" asked Ivy. "Fine, suit yourself. What kind of match do you want?"

Tom paused, thinking hard to himself. "How about a three-on-three?" he 
asked.

Ivy thought Tom's proposal over. "No," she said at length.

"Why not?"

"Come on, Tom," said Ivy, "It's no secret that we're both the most powerful 
trainers in the world, and those people in the stands came to see the most 
incredible match in history. And you want just a three-on-three?"

Tom rolled his eyes. "Fine," he said, "What do you want?"

Ivy was silent again. Then, after a long train of thought, she said, "A 
ten-on-ten."

Tom nearly gagged. "Are you serious?" He asked, suprised.

"Do you see me laughing?" Ivy asked seriously. "Well? Do you want to have 
just another match, or the greatest battle in Pokemon League history?"

Porygon Two whistled. "She drives a hard deal," it said.

Tom grimaced, bit his lip, and then sighed. "All right, Ivy," he said, 
"you're on."

"I thought you'd see things my way," said Ivy with a chuckle, "Now collect 
your team."

As Ivy fished out her Pokeballs, Tom snapped off all six Pokeballs from his 
belt, placing them on the rail in front of him. Digging out his Pokedex, Tom 
fiddled with the buttons, and two more Pokeballs materialized into his 
hands. Tom stuffed his Pokedex back into his jeans' pocket as Ivy held all 
ten of hers. Tom then tossed all eight of his Pokeballs onto the field, and 
after one brilliant collective flash, Pinsir, Hitmonlee, Machamp, Skarmory, 
Typhlosion, Girafarig, Kangaskhan and Rhydon took form on the field. Tom 
looked down at Porygon Two, who took its cue and joined the rest of the team 
on the field. Then, looking up into the sky once more, Tom covered his 
mouthpiece and yelled, "Moltres!"

The crowd cheered wildly at Tom's word, and soon, a blazing fireball shot 
from up over the stadium walls, into the arena, and landed gently in the 
line of Tom's Pokemon. Moltres stretched his flaming wings, eagerly awaiting 
Ivy's Pokemon.

"So that's Moltres, huh?" said Ivy, tossing her Pokeballs on the field, 
"Well look at my team!"

Another blinding flash later, a new line of Pokemon faced Tom's. A 
Hitmonchan, Steelix, Aerodactyl, Aggron, Gardevoir, Exploud, Armaldo, 
Walreign, Crawdaunt, and a Tyrantiar were soon glaring back at Tom's 
Pokemon.

"Ref!" Ivy barked at the referee, "Ten falls. Now."

The referee quickly spoke into a tiny microphone attached to his collar. 
"Ladies and gentlemen," the unseen announcer's voice declared over the 
stadium, "I've just been informed that this match is now scheduled for a 
total of ten falls. The trainer to defeat all ten of his or her opponent's 
Pokemon will be the winner of this World Pokemon League Undisputed 
Championship match!"

Both Tom and Ivy lined their empty Pokeballs along their trainer box's 
railing, with each set to zap a defeated Pokemon back inside automatically. 
The crowd cheered as Tom nervously bit his lip. And looking in Ivy's eyes, 
Tom could tell that she was every bit as nervous as he. The referee took the 
field.

"Trainers ready," The referee declared.

Both Tom and Ivy trembled.

"Pokemon ready..."

They grit their teeth.

"Begin!"

"Skarmory, Moltres, to the air!" Tom ordered. "Everyone else, attack!"

"Aerodactyl, into the air!" Ivy ordered. "The rest of you, attack!"

The resulting melee was nothing short of confounding to their eyes. Fire and 
water seemed to shoot from out of nowhere all over the battlefield, and the 
small rectangle failed to contain all twenty Pokemon as they fought the 
other team, spilling out and fighting all over the arena floor. With 
everyone's eyes focused on the war on the ground, no one noticed Moltres and 
Aerodactyl vanish up into the sky. Pinsir and Crawdaunt matched claw 
strength against each other as Steelix snapped his jaws in the air, trying 
to catch Skarmory flying around his head, pecking him with every turn. As 
Kangaskhan and Tyranitar tried to push each other down with Body Slams, only 
two Pokemon were left in the center of the field.

Hitmonlee glared at the Hitmonchan, who glared back at him. Growling and 
exchanging threats, the two Pokemon lunged at each other. Feet and fists 
flew in a furious flurry, with Hitmonlee's Double Kicks fighting against 
Hitmonchan's Comet Punches. A lucky kick caught Hitmonchan on the cheek, and 
his head snapped backwards. Swivelling on his heel, Hitmonlee lashed his leg 
out, whipping Hitmonchan on his side. Hitmonchan gasped and weezed, cradling 
his ribs. Another kick from Hitmonlee smashed into his chest, and a third 
drove into his gut a second later, leaving Hitmonchan weezing and dizzy. 
Arching his heels, Hitmonlee hopped forward on one leg, shooting out his 
foot at Hitmonchan's chin. Hitmonchan quickly snapped out of his daze, and 
managed to snare Hitmonlee's foot in his arms. Winding back his shoulder, 
Hitmonchan unloaded punch after furious punch into Hitmonlee's face faster 
than a machine gun. With nowhere else to go as Hitmonchan pummeled his face, 
Hitmonlee leapt up into the air, thrashing his free leg into the side of 
Hitmonchan's head. Hitmonlee's foot smacked Hitmonchan square in the 
temples, stunning him instantly. Hitmonlee's foot slipped from Hitmonchan's 
grip, and Hitmonchan wobbled about, finally collapsing to the ground in a 
daze. As Hitmonchan struggled to get back to his feet, Hitmonlee wound his 
leg back for a Mega Kick, lining his foot up with Hitmonchan's ribs. And 
just as he threw his foot forward, Hitmonchan grabbed Hitmonlee's ankle 
again, quickly rolling back to his feet with Hitmonlee's foot in his arms 
once more. And with a sharp spin on his heel, Hitmonlchan threw Hitmonlee 
through the air, flinging him into the melee on the sides of the arena.

No matter how hard he pushed, Rhydon could not topple Aggron. Their hands 
were locked and arms agaist each other, struggling with all their might to 
out-Strength the other. As Ryhdon finally felt Aggron's wrists bend, Aggron 
suddenly lurched forward, snapping his jaws down on Rhydon's snout. Rhydon 
roared in pain as he felt Aggron's teeth sink into his soft pallate, while 
Aggron winced as his teeth chipped when he bit down on Rhydon's armor-like 
skin. Rhydon shook his head back and forth, trying to shake Aggron out of 
his mouth. Aggron held on tightly with his jaws, tasting Rhydon's blood gush 
all over his tongue as he clamped down harder. Rhydon began to whimper as 
Aggron kept a firm snare on his mouth, slowly feeling Aggron force his arms 
back, driving Rhydon to his knees. With Rhydon near defeat, Aggron released 
Rhydon from his jaws, spitting out Rhydon's blood as he bent Rhydon's hands 
backwards, slowly pressing Rhydon into the ground. And just as Aggron was 
seconds away from breaking Rhydon's wrists, Rhydon suddenly angled his horn 
to Aggron's belly and shot his body upwards, plunging his drill-like horn 
into Aggron's iron belly. Aggron winced as Rhydon withdrew his horn, feeling 
his steel skin all but punctured. As soon as Rhydon felt Aggron's grip on 
his hands loosen, Rhydon tore his arms away, and thrust his hard head into 
Aggron's jaw. Aggron's skull snapped backwards, and he stumbled into the way 
of the warring Armaldo and Machamp. As Armaldo lunged his body forward at 
Machamp, Machamp threw a wild Mega Punch at Armaldo, only to have Aggron's 
cheek catch the blow. Aggron was crushed between Machamp's fist and 
Armaldo's body, leaving him staggering and dazed as he stumbled about the 
battlefield.

With Aggron out of the way, Machamp wound back his arms and delivered a 
fierce Cross-Chop to Armaldo's head. Armaldo stumbled a bit, and then 
charged into Machamp's gut with a Double-Edge. Machamp was sent crashing to 
the ground as Armaldo landed on top, pinning him to the ground. Armaldo 
brought his hand back, ready to Slash Machamp in the nose. Suddenly, Porygon 
Two shot from out of the middle of the melee, throwing its body into 
Armaldo's ribs and knocking both to the floor. As Porygon Two bounced back 
to its feet, Exploud tackled Porygon Two back down as Armaldo struggled back 
to his feet. Armaldo had just rightened himself when Machamp threw a Mega 
Punch into his back, sending a jolt through Armaldo's spine, and they were 
trading blows again within seconds.

Just as Steelix finally caught Skarmory in his jaws, Hitmonlee crashed into 
her back. Steelix howled in surprise, releasing Skarmory from her jaws. 
Hitmonchan threw himself on top of Hitmonlee and soon as he hit the ground, 
and began thowing furious Comet Punches into his face. Feeling like his face 
could cave in at any moment, Hitmonlee kicked his knees up into Hitmonchan's 
gut. Hitmonchan weezed as Hitmonlee jabbed his knees into his stomach again, 
and with one short kick, Hitmonlee flipped Hitmonchan over his head and onto 
the ground. Quickly springing back to his feet, Hitmonlee threw out a savage 
Rolling Kick at Hitmonchan's back, only to have Hitmonchan whip around and 
catch his foot again, Hitmonchan only managed to throw one punch before 
Hitmonlee smacked his other foot into Hitmonchan's ribs once more. 
Hitmonchan yowled in agony, releasing Hitmonlee again. As Hitmonlee shot his 
foot at Hitmonchan's chest, Hitmonchan weaved to his right, avoiding the 
Mega Kick and jabbing Hitmonlee in the eye with a Mega Punch. Hitmonlee 
grabbed Hitmonchan's wrist, stopping his fall as he pulled agaist 
Hitmonchan. Whipping his foot into the air, Hitmonlee lashed his foot over 
Hitmonchan's arm, smacking Hitmonchan in the jaw. Still holding on to 
Hitmonchan's wrist underneath his legs, Hitmonlee completed his Double Kick 
when he threw his leg back over Hitmonchan's arm, bashing his heel into 
Hitmonchan's forehead. The blow was so fierce that Hitmonlee lost his grip 
on Hitmonchan's arm, leaving Hitmonchan to bounce on the ground. Still 
finding strength to roll back to his feet, Hitmonchan springboarded himself 
at Hitmonlee, throwing another vicious Mega Punch into his face. As 
Hitmonlee staggered backwards, Hitmonchan threw another volley of furious 
Comet Punches at Hitmonlee. After a barrage of dizzying punches, Hitmonlee 
quickly dodged to his right, and viciously kicked his leg upwards at 
Hitmonchan's chin. The Jump Kick snapped Hitmonchan's jaw shut, sending 
Hitmonchan into the air and crashig back down, As Hitmonlee prepared a 
Rollig Kick as Hitmonchan struggled back to his feet, Skarmory had jabbed 
his beak into Steelix's throat. Steelix roared with agony, whipping at 
Skarmory with an Iron Tail. Blinded by pain, Steelix missed Skarmory by a 
meter, lashing his tail instead into Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan with brutal 
velocity. Within a heartbeat, Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan were sent sailing 
over the stadium walls and into the crowded parking lot below. Hitmonlee 
plummeted face-first into a truck's windshield, and Hitmonchan bounced off 
of the roof of a small car, completely crushing it as a small alarm was set 
blaring.

A sudden cry pierced the insides of the arena, and Girafarig had already 
keeled over at Walreign's feet. Within seconds, Girafarig was zapped back 
into his Pokeball on Tom's railing. Tom bit his lip nervously as the 
Pokeball belonging to Kangaskan activated and zapped Kangaskhan back inside. 
Before Tom could even think of something to say, Typhlosion was zapped back 
inside of his as Ivy's Gardevoit was instantly recalled.

"You're losing, Tom," Ivy taunted.

Tom only grit his teeth and watched the melee continue to unfold before his 
eyes. Seconds later, an unconscious Skarmory and a battered Machamp hit the 
ground, and were zapped inside of their Pokeballs. As eight of the nine of 
Ivy's remaining Pokemon glared at Porygon Two, Pinsir, and Rhydon, an odd 
calm fell over the field. "What are you standing around for?" Tom yelled, 
"Fight!"

Rhydon suddenly collapsed to his knee, and groaned weakly, rubbing away the 
gushes of blood streaming from his mouth. Pinsir sagged and her claws 
drooped, and she gave tired moan. "They say their too tired," Porygon Two 
said, struggling to stay standing, "and so am I."

"You can't be too tired!" Tom yelled back. "Come on! You can't give up now!"

"But Tom," Porygon Two winced, "There's only three left of us and eight of 
them. We're good as done."

Tom was seconds away from collapsing from anger and shame. "After all we've 
been through, you just want to quit?"

The battlefield remained calm. "So that's it, huh?" Tom muttered. "After all 
that, you just want to quit. Fine, go ahead and quit. I'm sorry I ever 
wasted my time with you pack of losers!" Tom yelled.

Porygon Two, Rhydon, and Pinsir looked at Tom in a sudden dismay. "Look at 
you," Tom snarled, "nothing but whiny quitters! When the going gets tough, 
you just lay down and die, is that the idead? Is it?"

Tom paused to let his lungs recover from his furious, heavy breathing. 
"Sure, we're outnumbered, but we've fought against worse before. Hell, we 
fought worse and we won! Why?"

Tom paused to let his question sink in.

"Because we wanted to win, that's why!" He yelled. "We never said die and we 
never gave up! When we wanted something we went and took it! It looks bad 
right now, I know, but we've gone too far to give up like this! We've kicked 
a lot of ass and we've gotten our asses kicked as well, but we wouldn't have 
gotten this far if we just felt like quitting. Look where we are! Pokemon 
League! We broke every God damn bone in our bodies to get here, and we're 
only this far away from taking it all!"

Tom suddenly stopped, and hung his head low. "There's only one time I've 
ever said it, but mark my words, I'm sure as hell never going to say it 
again. And that's I quit!" Tom roared. "We can turn the tables now if we 
only believe we can! And if we believe we will, then we can!"

And Tom glared at Ivy straight in the eyes. "You hear me? We're not going to 
just quit! We're going to fight you until the bitter end, and if we lose, 
fine! We lose! But at least we'll go down in a blaze of glory! Not like a 
bunch of spineless quitters!

And then, Tom sucked in the deepest breath he had ever taken in his entire 
life, held it in for awhile, and then exclaimed, "Never say die!"

Tom's screamed words echoed all over the stadium, and everything was dead 
silent. Ivy's Pokemon wore a stare of surprise to match their trainer's 
stunned look. Porygon Two, Pinsir, and Rhydon also looked at Tom in shock, 
feeling a stir deep within them. And then, without any warning at all, 
Rhydon spun around to Ivy's line of Pokemon and unleased a savage Fire 
Blast. Porygon Two quickly followed with a Tri-Attack, driving Ivy's 
starstruck Pokemon into a panicked frenzy as a storm of fire, ice, and 
lightning roared around them. With a feral yell, Pinsir charged into the 
mess, throwing Double-Edges into anyone in her way. Porygon Two and Rhydon 
charged into the melee as well, levelling anyone in their path. And within 
only a minute, Exploud, Walreign, and Crawdaunt were lying in a heap on the 
battlefield, being quickly zapped back into their Pokeballs. Porygon Two and 
Rhydon matched blows with Tyranitar and Aggron, while Pinsir tried to catch 
Steelix in her claws.

"Nice speech," said Ivy, ingoring the melee below as she slowly clapped her 
hands for Tom, "Let's see if you can live up to your words."

"I will," said Tom, "just you watch. Porygon, Rhydon, Pinsir, crush them!"

"Steelix, Aggron, Tyranitar," Ivy ordered, "Attack!"

Even out in the parking lot, Tom's speech was heard as Hitmonlee and 
Hitmonchan kept brawling. Nothing was safe from either Pokemon as they threw 
punches and kicks at each other, demolishing anything that got in their way. 
Craters the size of cars littered the pavement, and traffic signs lay in 
shattered shambles as the two Pokemon continued to fight.

Unbeknownst to either one, Jen had slipped out of the stadium and snuck up 
behind the two Pokemon. "Um, excuse me?" She asked meekly, careful to stay 
clear of the two battling Pokemon as they kept fighting anyway. "Excuse me?" 
She asked again, once more receiving no reply.

"STOP FIGHTING!"

Jen's scream halted both Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan instantly, and they both 
looked at her.

"Hi, sorry to bother you guys," said Jen, "I know you really want to get 
back to beating each other's brains out, but can you just do me a little 
favor?" She asked. "See, my car's that red one over there," she said, 
pointing to the shiny red convertible behind the two Pokemon, "I've already 
fixed it two times and it cost a lot of money, so I would really, really 
appreicate it if you tried your best not to destroy it. Please?"

Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan stared at Jen, and Jen gave them a weak grin in 
return. And with nothing more than a shrug, both Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan 
went back to trading furious blows.

As the battle between them waged back and forth all over the lane, Jen bit 
her lip nervously. "I sure hope they don't hit my car..."

Almost as soon as Jen closed her mouth, Hitmonlee was knocked onto the hood 
of Jen's car, and Hitmonchan threw down a vicious Mega Punch upon him. 
Hitmonlee rolled out of the way just in time to avoid the Mega Punch, and 
Hitmonchan's fist smashed a giant hole in Jen's car. As soon as Hitmonchan 
pulled his fist free, Hitmonlee sent a Rolling Kick into Hitmonchan's face, 
knocking him backwards. The two Pokemon battled their way to the edge of the 
lane before spilling out onto the sidewalk as a flame burst out from 
underneath the smashed hood of Jen's car.

Jen felt her lower lip begin to tremble, and suddenly, she just gave a tired 
sigh. "You know what?" Jen sighed to herself as she leaned up against the 
front of her car by the fire, "I'm just not going to care anymore."

Jen watched Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan batter each other senseless in the 
streets as she dug out a box of cigarettes from her jacket pocket. Taking 
out one cigarette, Jen lit the end with the flame from her ruined car, and 
took a deep puff. Jen whistled as she blew out smoke from her lips, rattling 
her fingers listlessly against the headlights as she watched the bloody 
battle before her.

Rhydon had just keeled over from Aggron's Mega Punch, and Rhydon slowly fell 
flat on his face. Rhydon's Pokeball zapped him back inside immediately, and 
Tom nervously bit his lip.

"You're losing again," Ivy jeered.

Suddenly, Pinsir snagged Steelix's midsection in her claws, and with a 
snapping pivot, she Seismic Tossed Steelix's body into the ground, smashing 
Steelix's jaw with brutal force. Steelix's massive body was quickly recalled 
back into her Pokeball, and Tom chuckled cruelly. "You were saying?" Tom 
taunted back as Porygon Two and Pinisr glared back at the glaring Aggron and 
Tyranitar.

Suddenly, Hitmonlee's Pokeball opened, and zapped Hitmonlee back inside from 
the parking lot, while Hitmonchan's Pokeball remained closed.

"Yes, as I was saying," said Ivy, laughing, "You're still losing."

A pair of figures suddenly bolted down into the ground between them hitting 
the floor with a ground-shaking boom. Dust and debris kicked up all over the 
arena, and Tom could hear one of Ivy's Pokeballs zap one of her Pokemon back 
inside. And when the dust settled, the crowd gave a deafning cheer.

"Moltres!" Tom exclaimed with joy. Moltres nodded, flexing his flaming 
wings. Hitmonchan quickly leapt over the arena walls, re-joining his team 
from the parking lot.

Tom quickly noticed Aerodactyl was absent from the field, and then shot a 
smirk at Ivy. "Now how about that three on three?" Tom asked.

"Let's go for it," said Ivy. "Everyone, charge!"

"Porygon, Pinsir, Moltres," Tom commanded, "charge back!"

The two lines of three Pokemon immediately rushed at each other. And with a 
bone-shattering thud, they smashed themselves into the other team, and the 
melee swelled and exploded again. After stunning Pinsir, Hitmonchan ran 
towards Moltres' back as Moltres fought off Aggron. After pecking Aggron to 
the ground, Moltres whipped his fiery wing around, smashing into 
Hitmonchan's chest. Hitmonchan was sent flying into the arena walls, 
demolishing a quater of the barriers in a heartbeat. Hitmonchan was 
immediately zapped back into his Pokeball as Moltres and Pinsir ganged up 
together on Aggron. Hoisting the stunned Aggron up in her claws, Pinsir held 
the struggling Aggron tightly as Moltres sucked in a deep breath. And with a 
mighty screech, Moltres sent a blazing Fire Blast into Aggron's face, 
scorching his steel skin instantly. Aggron was zapped back into his Pokeball 
as Pinsir rubbed the top of her scorched scalp.

Before Tom could jeer Ivy, Tyranitar stampeded over Porygon Two and sent his 
body smashing into Pinsir's back with a Take Down. Before anyone could even 
think, Tyranitar swivelled back at Porygon Two, opened his mouth, and 
unleashed a massive Hyper Beam. Porygon Two took the full front of the Hyper 
Beam, and it was sent blasting against the arena walls, destroying another 
quarter of the barriers. Pinsir was zapped back into her Pokeball, and 
Porygon Two lay motionless amongst the rubble.

Both Tom and Ivy took a deep breath, cleared their bedazzled minds, and 
steadied their reacing hearts. Standing amongst the numerous bloodstains and 
craters on the battlefield, Moltres and Tyranitar locked eyes with each 
other at the same time as Tom and Ivy.

"Only one Pokemon left, Ivy," said Tom.

"As do you, Tom" she quickly replied. "Tell me something," said Ivy with a 
grin, "are you feeling lucky?"

Tom smirked back at Ivy. "Are you?"

They both gazed at each other in a long silence. And as soon as Moltres and 
Tyranitar reached their ends of the battlefield, both Tom and Ivy screamed 
an order at the top of their lungs.

"Tyranitar, Hyper Beam!"

"Moltres, Fire Blast!"

And within a blink of an eye, Moltres and Tyranitar had both unleased their 
fierce attacks upon each other.

The intense Hyper Beam and blazing Fire Blast collided with each other in a 
brilliant flash. Shoots of flames and bolts of energy sprayed all over the 
arena, forcing Tom and Ivy to take cover behind the thin railings of their 
trainer boxes. When the dazzling assault of fire and light dissolved, 
Moltres was propped up on his wing, huffing and weezing heavily. Tyranitar 
was down to one knee, wincing and winded. Both Tom and Ivy began to fidget 
with their fingers on the railings, feeling like they could suddenly die of 
anxiety at any moment as Moltres and Tyranitar finally regained their 
composure. What was left off the arena was now smoking and charred black, 
smoking wildly as Tom and Ivy barked out more commands.

"Moltres, Wing Attack!"

"Tyranitar, Double-Edge!"

Moltres sped towards Tyranitar as Tyranitar charged at Moltres. Moltres' 
wingtip smashed into Tyranitar's gut, and Tyranitar's crossed arms bashed 
themselves into Moltres' neck at the same time. Tyranitar crashed to the 
ground, cradling his belly as Moltres collapsed, hacking and weezing madly 
as his throat began to swell. As soon as Tyranitar was back on his feet, he 
collapsed back to his knees and violently wrenched, vomiting a glob of blood 
onto the blackened battlefield. Ivy winced as Tyranitar staggered back to 
his feet, watching Moltres barely find enough energy to hover above the 
ground. "Tyranitar," Ivy ordered, "Double-Edge again!"

"Moltres, Flamethrower!"

Tyranitar charged at Moltres again, and Moltres sucked in another deep 
breath. Suddenly, Moltres gagged and sputtered, collapsing to the ground as 
Tyranitar rushed in upon him, smashing his body against Moltres, sending 
both to the ground. Moltres squawked loudly, spitting up a dribble of blood 
down his beak and face as Tyranitar rolled off of him.

"Come on, Moltres!" Tom urged desperately, "get up!"

"Don't give him a chance to breathe!" Ivy ordered as Moltres weakly 
struggled back to his feet, "Bite attack!"

As soon as Moltres was back on his feet, Tyranitar clamped his jaws on 
Moltres' shoulder. Moltres screeched in agony as Tyranitar bit down harder, 
spilling more of Moltres' blood. "Moltres," Tom ordered, Fire Blast!"

With another ear-splitting shriek, Moltres opened his beak to Tyranitar's 
head and unleashed a furious blast of fire. Tyranitar screeched as Moltres 
roasted his rocky skin, releasing Moltres from his jaws immediately. While 
Tyranitar furiously patted his scorched scalp, Moltres whined in pain as he 
licked his bloody shoulder wound clean. "Fight the burning off, Tyranitar!" 
Ivy ordered, "Hyper Beam again!"

"Quickly, Moltres!" Tom ordered, "Charge up for a Sky Attack!"

As Moltres braced himself for the worst, Tyranitar lunged his body forward 
and opened his jaws, firing another massive Hyper Beam. Moltres folded his 
wings against his body like a shield, feeling the Hyper Beam pummel against 
his body as a sudden surge of energy swelled up withing him. And as soon as 
Tyranitar's assault ceased, Moltres shot into the air. Winded and all but 
exhausted, Tyranitar collapsed to his knee again and began weezing wildly 
from the massive Hyper Beam. Suddenly, Moltres dove back down to the 
battlefield, speeding with all the energy he had left upon Tyranitar. And 
with one roaring swoop, Moltres sent his body smashing into Tyranitar's 
chest, sending both Pokemon spilling to the ground. They lay on the field in 
a heap on top of each other, both winded and weezing. With groans of fatigue 
and agony, Moltres and Tyranitar pulled themselves back to their feet, 
struggling to keep their balance as the battlefield seemed to spin around 
them.

"Shake it off, Moltres!" Tom ordered, "Fire Blast!"

"Pull yourself together, Tyranitar!" Ivy commanded, "Double-Edge!"

With a hazing mind, Tyranitar blindly flung himself into Moltres as Moltres 
unleashed another might blast of flames. Tyranitar charged through the Fire 
Blast and smashed into Moltres' chest so recklessly that it floored Moltres 
immediately and sent Tyranitar tumbling head over heels back to Ivy's end of 
the battlefield.

Both Tom and Ivy could tell that the end was near. By just looking at their 
beat-down and tired Pokemon, they knew that they could barely take one more 
attack before passing out. "This ends now, Ivy!" Tom declared as Moltres 
struggled to rise again.

"Take your best shot, Tom!" Ivy barked back as Tyranitar staggered back to 
his feet. And as soon as Moltres and Tyranitar were facing one another 
again, Tom and Ivy ordered their last command.

"Moltres, Wing Attack!"

"Tyranitar, Take Down!"

Moltres struggled though the air as he sent himself hurdling at Tyranitar, 
and Tryranitar stumbled a charge at Moltres. They met in the center of the 
field, and collided with a bone-shattering crash. They both stunned each 
other, with Tyranitar left wobbling and Moltres clumsily dropping to the 
ground on his feet. Both Pokemon lolled their heads in a dizzy haze, moaning 
loudly. And with a sudden gag, Tyranitar fell flat on his face while Moltres 
dropped to his wingtips.

Tom's heart nearly stopped when Tyranitar was immediately zapped back into 
his Pokeball.

"And the winner of this match, and the new Undisputed Pokemon League World 
Champion," the referee and announcer declared together, "Tom Simms!"

Tom gazed at the remains of the battlefield in stunned awe as his music 
blared all over the stadium with the thousands of fans screaming and 
cheering. "I won..." Tom murmured in disbelief. Then, Tom screamed with joy, 
"Oh my God, I won!"

Tom heard Ivy sigh defeatedly to herself. "Wow, now that was a match," she 
said with a heavy breath, leaning up against the railing of her trainer box. 
Quickly collecting her Pokeballs, Ivy quietly laughed. "Congratulations, 
Tom," she said, "You're one hell of a trainer."

"And so are you," said Tom, his head beginning to dizzy with the flashing 
cameras and wild cheering.

As soon as Tom slid down the ladder to his trainer box, the first thing he 
saw was Claire dashing towards him. She leapt into Tom's arms, quickly 
ensnaring him in a tight hug. "Oh my God, you won!" Claire cheered joyfully.

"I said the same thing," Tom murmured.

Within seconds, another pair of arms wrapped around Tom's shoulders. "I 
can't believe you won!" A familiar voice cheered in his ear.

"Neither can I, Jen," said Tom as Jen quickly withdrew her arms.

Moltres quietly hobbled over and nudged Tom's cheek with his beak. "Thanks, 
Moltres," said Tom, barely able to fight back tears as a mob of reporters 
and interviewers swarmed around him.

"Way to go, Tom!" Tom heard Sabre cheer from somewhere in the sea of 
newscasters in front of him. Looking over his shoulder, Tom saw Ivy quietly 
walk out of the arena, giving him a quick wave and a grin before she 
disappeared.

Tom waved back, wearing a wide grin of his own with his friends at his side.

-End......?

*********