Vexing, if anything, was what would describe the situation Seth found himself in. Steel blue eyes stared back at him as he met Korrina's gaze. The group had all gathered inside the Tower Of Mastery where the gym was located. Standing between Seth and Korrina was Gurkinn, her grandfather and instructor. The man bore an impressive set of eyebrows that were fixed in a neutral expression as he looked between the two competitors. Seth could feel the years of experience emanating from the man at a mere glance. It was no wonder Korrina was so disciplined.
While Seth could match his strength to hers in a spar, an actual Pokémon battle was an entirely different story. Back inside the cave he saw a Mega Stone embedded into a band on Lucario's left wrist. And after reviewing his team lineup, he realized quickly that this fight was going to be one of, if not his most difficult challenge out of all the leaders to come.
"To tell you the truth, I was eager to do this yesterday. But my itch to throw hands overshadowed that by a long shot!" Korrina grinned while cracking her knuckles. "But now I'm ready."
A trickle of sweat slid down Seth's face at her statement.
"You certainly have a strong will to fight, don't you?" Seth replied, slightly nervous as he reached for Carbink's ball and snapped it off.
Glad one of us is ready. My strategy for her is patchy at best. To be honest, if she leads with Lucario I'm screwed...
"Don't try to act like you don't love a good fight. You were as happy as a child being handed a double fudge Castelia Cone, with sprinkles!" Korrina reminded him, pointing an accusatory finger his way.
"Guilty as charged I suppose," Seth laughed.
Korrina playfully stuck out her tongue.
"If you two are ready, we can begin," Gurkinn spoke up.
"Oh I'm ready alright. So Seth, you can handle yourself well in a scrap," Korrina paused, reaching for her first choice amd expanding the ball. "But how well will you do in a battle?"
Seth locked eyes with Korrina as he gripped his partner's ball.
"Both sides ready!?" Gurkinn's voice rang out, earning a nod from both sides.
"Then send out your first Pokémon!"
"Mienfoo, let's battle!"
"Carbink, battle's on!"
"Are you certain that you're okay with this? I know it's nothing fancy or anything but—"
"It's alright Grayson. Really, it is. Honestly it would have surprised me more if you didn't want to come here," Allie replied, waving him off dismissively.
"Being as it is our last day, I wanted to take us somewhere we both liked growing up," Grayson said with a nervous chuckle.
Allie smiled broadly and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Like I said, I don't mind at all," Allie insisted.
Grayson smiled and reached for the double doors of the Battle Chateau.
"Well then, after you princess," Grayson grinned.
"Merci!"
Grayson walked in behind Allie and the two made their way to the arena outside where dozens of trainers awaited.
"Looks like we made it just in time," Grayson observed, his eyes shifting to see two competitors waiting to begin their challenge.
"In time for what? if you don't mind me asking," Allie inquired, her bright pink hues shifting to see the two trainers in the arena.
Her eyes popped the moment she saw who was in the arena. The two trainers weren't the everyday, run-of-the-mill kind. One of them bore a rapier at her hip and a fierce set of icy blue eyes. The other had short brown hair and a white dress that would be likened to that of an Audino. She too bore a strong countenance and a fire in her eyes.
"Now... when you mentioned that you wanted to come here, you didn't tell me we were going to see them!" Allie exclaimed quietly.
"Sounds like I'm not the only one who is a fan of these two," Grayson replied with a smirk.
"But of course! Diantha is the pinnacle of class, not to mention the fact that she is the Champion. And then we have The Chevalier! She reached the level of Duchess in a single day by challenging every rank in a single fight. Because of how strong she was, she was able to request a battle with Diantha at any time. However—oh listen to me... I'm so embarrassed you had to hear me go on like that... " Allie blushed.
"You know, even though we're old friends, I still feel like there's a lot more that I don't know about you," Grayson admitted, prompting a nervous laugh from Allie.
"Well, that is the purpose of this competition, no? to get to know me, woo me, and possibly convince me to marry you?" Allie smirked. "And part of that is learning things that I like. And what most don't know, is that I'm a battling enthusiast," Allie disclosed. "But you already knew that, it's up to them to figure it out."
Grayson rolled his eyes.
"Well yeah, but we also know you're a bit too into yourself," Grayson pointed out.
Allie huffed and crossed her arms.
"You sound like a certain someone I'd rather not mention," Allie retorted.
"That certain someone saved your life. I'm not quite sure I fully understand why you don't like him," Grayson replied with a raised brow.
"Grayson, we went over this. He saved me, but then had the audacity to insult me. Who does that!?" Allie cried in exasperation.
Grayson sighed and shook his head. He was certain there was more to it than that. For now, he'd relent an focus on why he brought Allie to the Battle Chateau, which was to spend some time with her and to watch two of the strongest trainers in Kalos, battle it out for supremecy, or as it looked... a one on one between two of their best.
"It's been a while Diantha. Had any recent challenges as of late?" Mathilde inquired, stroking her chin with an amused expression.
Diantha smiled faintly and placed a hand on her hip.
"Not recently, no. However, this year's Lumiose Conference might prove to be fruitful. A lot of strong new trainers are surfacing, and that gets me excited," Diantha replied. "And then there's that contest hosted by princess Allie. Several names on that list intrigue me..."
Mathilde couldn't help but grin at the mention of said contest.
"Well, my disciple is in there after all. I'm sure that when he becomes strong enough, he'll be able to give you the same challenge you seek from me."
"That's true. From what you've told me, this disciple of yours is quite promising. What was his name again? Seth?" Diantha asked, getting a nod from Diantha.
"So I overheard correctly," Grayson mused. "Interesting..."
Allie blinked. She wasn't sure if she'd heard Diantha correctly.
The Chevalier has a disciple? and it's Seth!? Allie exclaimed mentally, her mind flashing back to the moment Seth snatched her from certain death.
Now that she thought about it, the distance he needed to clear was not something any ordinary individual could accomplish without any help. Now that she thought about it, the last time she saw him, he had a similar sword on his hip as well. Still, why was it that everywhere she went, Seth's name seemed to pop up? why not Charles, or Thomas? those two were well known and highly respectable, so why not?
"He's promising indeed, albeit a bit stubborn and sometimes too overconfident in his own skill. But, some things you just can't change unless they do it themselves," Mathilde grinned. "But that aside, I think I did a pretty good job training him..."
"Perhaps I may test him sometime soon. In the meantime, why don't we get down to it? Goodra, to battle!" Diantha cried out, releasing the sticky Dragon from her chamber.
"Starting with one of your heavy hitters eh? okay then, I'll unleash mine! Tyranitar, engarde!" Mathilde roared, unleashing her towering pseudo-legend from his capture device.
The massive titan roared upon release, the arena shaking under the pressure from it. Goodra stared down her rival with a mischievous grin. Many times had they clashed, and with every battle, a different outcome. Tyranitar smirked in response, his eyes locking into a determined expression.
"Goodra, use Dragon Pulse!"
"Tyranitar, Dark Pulse!"
Both contenders unhinged their Jaws and unleashed intense beams of energy that pushed against one another, causing tremors through the entire Battle Chateau. The explosion from the blasts canceling each other out only intensified the vibrations, causing nearly everyone to steady themselves so as not to fall over.
Following the beam clash, Tyranitar and Goodra were seen at odds with Goodra lashing out with Power Whip, while Tyranitar fended the assault off with Dragon Claw.
"Iron Tail!" Diantha roared.
Goodra whipped around and slashed her tail at Tyranitar, coating it with a thick layer of steel before connecting.
"Riposte! Payback!" Mathilde shouted as Tyranitar was struck hard in the abdomen.
The Armor Pokémon powered up his right claw with pitch black aura and launched it at Goodra with such force, Goodra was catapulted backwards through the air, skidding to a halt near her trainer. The dragon snarled and pushed herself up and retaliated with an Ice Beam that sent Tyranitar sliding along the ground on his back.
"Outrage!" Mathilde ordered.
Rising to a stand, Tyranitar roared, a crimson and black aura flaring up around him as he rushed towards Goodra.
"Superpower!" Diantha riposted.
Goodra bellowed her challenge and rampages after Tyranitar, her body ablaze with an intense orange glow. Fists and claws flew, and in a blinding flash, the two titans fell forward and simultaneously passed out.
"Pawniard, guard with Shadow Claw!"
Seth was backed into a corner in his match against Korrina. His troubles began the moment her Mienfoo evolved in the middle of the first match. Not even Cerise had been of much use due to the superior power and speed of Mienshao.
Pawniard crossed his blades and guarded himself against a power driven Force Palm that was thrust his way. Digging in, he managed to force her back a little. Even still, Pawniard knew he was in trouble.
"That Pawniard is lasting far longer than I expected. You trained some strong Pokémon, Seth," Korrina commended. "However... that strength won't be enough here, I'm afraid."
She's right, Seth grimaced, knowing he had his back against the wall. Even if I do win this round, she has two more Fighting-types with Lucario included. Still... even if I might not win, that doesn't mean I am just going to make it easy for her...
" You have a point, however... Pawniard and I have been in tough situations before and have come out of them stronger each time. This," Seth paused as he drew his blade and pointed it towards Korrina in a challenging manner, "is no exception! Aerial Ace!"
"That's right, come at me! Drain Punch!" shouted Korrina fiercely.
Pawniard channeled the power of the wind into his blades and rushed towards the oncoming freight train that was Mienshao, the two coming to blows in the center of the arena. It seemed, for the moment, a stalemate... until the sound of steel was heard, crashing to the ground.