Weathering The Storm... (A Pokemon OC Story)

Chapter 67: Battle of Two Friends!

"Leaf Blade!"

"Flame Charge!"

"Dragon Claw!"

"Shadow Ball!"

The final four moves of the top 8. And, now, there were only four. Harry, Alex, Lucas, and some random guy that I can't be bothered to write a personality for :). Anyways, the matches could officially be announced now for the top 4. Despite being knocked out by Alex in the previous round, Ellie still hung around the table like she was still in the tournament. Not that anyone minded. She deserved her spot there, after the work and time she had put into her battling. They didn't really have all too much to discuss until the matches were officially announced. The board suddenly flared to life and revealed the matches.

Harry and Lucas. Alex and Side Character.

Harry and Lucas immediately stared at each other and knew what it would mean. They had to now fight. Secretly, both competitors had been hoping for a chance to battle all out at their max potential. But, now that it came to both of them, it felt extremely daunting to be up against each other. It was likely that it would happen, but it felt too early to fight each other. Yet, both were somewhat happy, despite how unnatural it felt.

"Well, I suppose we're gonna be fighting.", Lucas said, breaking the silence between them. Harry nodded with a smile and said,

"Feels like its forever since we've last fought. And, this time, I'm gonna win!"

"We'll see about that!", Lucas responded energetically. Alex and Ellie both watched the rivalry unfold in silence, Alex thinking about how he will go against his opponent in the next round while Ellie's mind fluttered back to her and Harry's conversation the day she fought Alex. She could've told Lucas about it, but she figured that Harry would not appreciate that in the slightest. So, she kept her mouth shut, at least for now. Really, all that she had to do now was to watch the matches, so she didn't think about much other than the match between Harry and Lucas. What Pokemon would they use? What strategies would they use? Who would ultimately win? But, there was nothing much she could do to predict it since they were as dead even as it gets. Really, the four young trainers at the table were at the same level. Matches between any combination of them could go either way. It just depended on which was the best on the day...

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The sun rose above the stadium, as Lucas waited in one of the stray rooms of the stadium for the match to begin. It had started at the crack of dawn, as they wanted the entirety of the last few matches done in one day. So, Lucas and Harry both had to wake up quite early to even make it to the match. Both didn't mind much, especially Lucas, who was usually the one up and about earlier than everyone else. And, while the official staff got the battlefield sorted and ready, Lucas paced across the floor, his three chosen Pokemon darting after him as he paced. Then, he finally decided to say something. Torchic, Vibrava and Breloom each sat on the table, as Lucas started passionately,

"This is the battle of our lives! I want every single one of you guys to give it all you've got and hold nothing back! It may be our friend who we are up against, but for this battle, he is a rival! And, we've got to fight through it! Now, let's go!"

Breloom and Torchic cheered, with Vibrava giving more of a scoff, as Lucas scooped up his backpack, letting it flow through his arms. Then, he dashed out of the door, his Pokemon following behind him as he went through the darkened tunnel, with their hope for victory high and their spirits higher. He found as he looked through the tunnel that they had just started to let the audience through to their seats. Immediately, he spotted Ellie, Seijo and Alex all watching from the crowd. He noticed Ellie with a smile on her face, seemingly the first one that she had since she had been knocked from the tournament. Lucas smiled back and waited for them to officially call them to take centre stage.