Pokémon Swirl & Spiral

Chapter 20: Fahrenheit

"Still not out?" Taylor asked.

Kairi sighed as she laid her uniform onto the desk. "I used all the soap that was left."

"Maybe one of the Admins can get you a new one." He suggested.

Kairi shook her head. "It's fine." The material had been mostly cleaned yet a large pink stain remained.

The four of them were sitting together in Kairi's room, Taylor and Andrew having passed their trial only an hour before. Both of them were still wearing their uniforms.

"That was mad." Andrew stated, laying back in the desk chair. "If Null hadn't evolved, we would've been fucked."

"Not to mention Rhyperior getting the critical on that horde." Taylor mentioned.

"How many teams have passed anyway?" Andrew asked.

"All of them except one." Taylor replied. "Everyone's getting so strong."

"Doesn't matter, they'll get out soon. Me and You are still the strongest out of everyone here." Andrew declared. "Mostly of course thanks to me, but you're not too shabby."

"You guys looked like you were having way more trouble than we were." Dakota scoffed. "Right, Kairi?"

Kairi was staring at her uniform, then at her League Ball.

Zoroark.

The image of him collapsed outside of Luxen Stadium continued to linger in her mind ever since it had happened. That night afterwards was torturous, with Kairi having to wait for the medics to completely patch Zoroark's wound before placing him into the healer. Her pillows were still marked with tears when she woke up that morning.

Kairi was beyond thankful that, for the most part, Zoroark had recovered. Glalie^A's horn hadn't pierced too deep.

I've never seen such a lethal attack before. How are those amplified Pokémon so powerful?

For the next few days, Kairi continued to grind at the training Chambers with the others. All four of their Pokémon were fully evolved, and combined as a unit, comprised quite a force against any foe they encountered.

The week ended as fast as it started, and soon Kairi found herself with Dakota once again outside Luxen Stadium.

"Tonight's and tomorrow's Elite Trial will have a time limit of only 45 minutes!" Cassidy had announced earlier. "At the very center of Luxen Stadium, inside of the arena is a structure known as the Tower. Both challengers must use their Pokémon to destroy the Tower before their time runs out!"

They were the final group of the night. While none of the other challengers were able to spectate any live footage of the previous rounds, both of them were told that every other pair before them had all successfully passed. It gave them equally both hope and pressure.

Luxen Stadium, on the outside, was normal. It's interior, however, appeared as if it were in the middle of war. An orange hue ran throughout its interior.

Multiple piles of broken rock and destroyed walls dwelled around them. Kairi couldn't tell whether they were decorations or results from the previous challengers. Their main priority was to get to the arena where the Tower was, but the usual entrances leading to it were blocked by rubble, making the search for another opening much more tedious.

The worst part was the heat.

Kairi could feel the sweat already accumulating. Like the previous Trial, the stadium's temperature had been altered, only this time going the opposite direction. Before the buzzer rang, every challenger was given multiple Fresh Waters to carry with them in order to cool each other. Kairi held Zoroark's League Ball in one hand, carrying one of the bottles against her forehead in the other.