Man in the Mirror

Chapter 33: False God

May stared at Wallace from across the battlefield with fire in her eyes. Blaziken and Glaceon glared at Milotic and Swampert with the same intensity. The packed crowd roared as soon as Jillian, the Unova contest announcer, declared the start of the match with a five-minute timer. Ash, Serena, and Pikachu watched the faceoff with focus. The three friends knew much was on the line for the coordinator. May knew what she had to do. Losing was not an acceptable choice. The female coordinator would give this battle everything she had.

"I've been waiting a long time for this, May. Show me how far you've come," Wallace pointed at his opponent.

"You're about to find out," May smirked. "Glaceon, fire a Shadow Ball!"

"Gla," Glaceon smirked. The Ice-type charged up a ball almost twice its size. It wasn't holding back any power.

"Milotic, use Safeguard. Swampert, counter Shadow Ball with Ice Beam!" Wallace crossed his arms.

"Miiii," Milotic enveloped itself and Swampert in a green energy that faded after a few seconds. Any chance of May freezing or burning his Pokémon got reduced to zero. Milotic's beautiful display awed the audience, causing May to lose a few points.

Swampert glared at the Shadow Ball. "Swamp!" Swampert unleashed an icy beam of energy.

When the attacks clashed, smoke burst. "Now, Blaziken!" May shouted.

"Blaz!" Blaziken jumped out of the smoke with a surprise Sky Uppercut for Swampert.

"Counter with Focus Blast!" Wallace clenched his teeth.

Before Blaziken could deliver the punch, Swampert gathered a ball of energy to use as a shield against Blaziken's attack. The attacks collided, creating a static between them. "It'll take more than speedy sneak attacks to defeat me," Wallace frowned.

Blaziken and Swampert leaped backward after canceling each other's attack. May and Wallace lost a few points from the clash. "I know. I'm just getting warmed up," May taunted her mentor.

Wallace chuckled, "Enough games. Swampert, use Muddy Water!" Swampert growled when it unleashed a wave of brown water to swallow Glaceon and Blaziken. May's Pokemon braced themselves.

"Glaceon, freeze it with Ice Beam!" May shouted.

Her Ice-type froze the giant wave in its tracks. "Climb over it!" the brunette followed up as soon as the wave became ice. Blaziken and Glaceon ran up the ice to tower over Wallace's Pokémon.

"You took the bait," Wallace smirked.

"What?" May's eyes widened. Before she could do anything, Milotic fired a Dragon Pulse at the frozen wave. The sudden attack left Blaziken and Glaceon falling in the middle of their climb as the ice got destroyed.

"Dual Focus Blast!" Wallace didn't waste his opportunity. Swampert fired two Focus Blasts from its hands. The attack furiously went for Blaziken and Glaceon.

May wouldn't go down so easily. "Blaziken, counter Focus Blast with Flamethrower. Glaceon, create a shield with Ice Beam!" Blaziken and Glaceon regained their composure midfall. Blaziken unleashed a powerful stream of fire that stopped Focus Blast. Glaceon fired an Ice Beam on the ground that grew into a wall of ice. The ice built up high enough to cover Glaceon from Focus Blast. The impact between Glaceon's ice wall and Focus Blast caused ice shards to fall on Wallace's side of the field. Pellets struck Swampert and Milotic, making them wince in slight pain.

May had two-thirds of her points left while Wallace retained three-quarters. Wallace nodded with approval, "I did not expect that. Most impressive, May."

May kept her focus. She knew Wallace was holding back, but then again so was she. "Let's stop playing around, Wallace. If this is our final battle, then let's make it count." The coordinator revealed a Key Stone hanging to a purple-pink earring that matched her contest outfit. The Mega Stone on Blaziken's wristband began to glow with May's Key Stone. The pair became enveloped in a bright energy that captivated the audience.