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Part two: On Her Own

As the new day dawned, the Nexus Team, along with many other teams, was led to the arena.  The first battles would begin soon, pitting one of the team members against a member of an opposing team.  A restless energy charged the air around the arena as the roars of the crowd soon became apparent.
Soon, the team was underneath the giant arena.  Their locker room was marked by their team insignia.  As Charm glanced around the room, Eevee made sure that everyone else was ready.
"Alright guys, we've faced off tough opponents before." Eevee said, pacing before the rest of the chosen Nexus Team, "But I won't lie to you, this will be different.  Usually, we get to fight as a team, relying on each other to cover our own weaknesses and support the others strengths.  For this round of the championship, we're on our own."
Latias looked away when Eevee said this.  Her heart sunk into her gut, realizing that no one would be there to help her if she got into trouble.
"But we're still strong." Eevee continued, "Physically we'll be divided, but we're all together in spirit.  Think strong and think fast, don't let the roars of the crowd get to you.  I have a good feeling that today is our day.  Now, let's show these other teams what the Nexus Rescue Team is capable of!"
The others nodded in agreement as Latias looked back at her friend.  Eevee smiled to her.
"You'll do fine, Latias." Eevee said gently, "Don't worry, ok?"
Latias nodded and hugged Eevee close.
Smiling, watching the two, Charm sat back and looked at Mewtwo, who was busy equipping his modified armor to Gardevoir.  The charmander knew that Eevee was a terrible public speaker.  But even he was a bit surprised at what Eevee had said.  Oddly enough, Charm felt a lot better about the day than he had the day before.
As Latias set Eevee back down, an exploud, dressed in a referee's uniform, came into the locker room.
"Alright, here's the bracket of who will be against who." The exploud explained, handing it to Charm, "Your chosen strategist will have to look it over."
"This should be simple enough." Mewtwo stated, taking it from Charm and looking it over.
"Your first battle is in a few minutes." The exploud stated, "Get ready, one hold item allowed."
As the exploud walked out, Mewtwo glared at him and then glanced back to the chart.  As he did, Eevee looked up at the psychic type.
"So who's up first?" Eevee asked.
Mewtwo set down the chart on a table, "Latias."
The psychic/dragon type glanced over at Mewtwo, "Yes?"
Mewtwo glanced at her, "You are up first for our team."
Latias swallowed gently, nervousness rising up within her as her mouth went dry, "I-I am?"
Mewtwo nodded, "You are against a lower ranked pokémon, an arcanine."
Charm looked up, "How is that lower ranking?  Arcanines are a final evolution form.  Latias is a single form."
Mewtwo glared at him, "Lower rank as in lower than our team ranking.  They are a gold rank team, we are a platinum rank team."
"Oh." Charm replied, and then the fire lizard got up and paced, "Latias, you'll be up against a strong fire type.  Take it from me, they're nothing to underestimate.  Arcanines are fast and powerful."
Mewtwo nodded, "Agreed.  To beat one, you must be faster and stronger than it is."
"A-and if I cannot do that?" Latias asked, fear in her voice.
"Then pray I can watch over you to help." Mewtwo stated with a glare, "Arcanine are known to be able to use dark type attacks.  Avoid those at all costs."
Eevee hopped up onto the locker beside Latias and smiled, "You're strong Latias.  Don't worry about it, everything will be alright."
"Eevee is right." Gardevoir said, "Just remember what your training has taught you, and you should be alright."
Latias smiled and nodded as the others agreed.  As long as the others believed in her, Latias felt that she stood a chance.
*           *          *
The arena itself was not what Latias had expected it to be.  The combat area already had two others going at it, fighting for the chance to move on.  The crowd was protected by a large dome over the combat arena, protecting them from any attacks that strayed from their targets.
But no matter where Latias looked, she heard the roar of the crowd.  At this point, there were sixteen rescue teams.  Eight would emerge from this round to move on.
As she looked around, a huge, orange wolf-like pokémon walked over to her.  Latias took a deep breath when she noticed his approach, realizing that this was possibly her opponent.  As the wolf sat down in front of her, it bowed it's head.
"So, you are my opponent?" the arcanine asked calmly, "Latias of the Nexus Rescue Team."
Latias bowed in return, "I-I am.  It is good to meet you."
As they stepped back from each other, an exploud dressed in the same referee uniform as the last one approached them.  The fight before theirs was finally over, but the crowd roared for more.
"Alright you two, let's have a good, clean fight put there, yeah?" it stated, "The only outside help you can receive is information from your strategist, one hold item only, and fight until one can no longer continue.  That means either you run out of energy to fight or get K.O.ed.  Once one of you is down, the fight stops only if they concede or are declared out by me.  Sound good?"
"Sounds like fun." The arcanine smiled.
"I guess that seems fair." Latias agreed.
The two followed the referee out to the arena.
*           *          *
As the three entered the arena, Latias's ears were met by the deafening roar of the crowd.  Fearfully, the psychic/dragon type looked around to find the stands surrounding the arena filled with thousands of other pokémon of all kinds.  Shaking her head, the latias tried to remember what Eevee had said only minutes ago.  As his words came to her mind, Latias felt a bit more relaxed, taking a deep breath as the exploud walked to the center of the arena, the arcanine passing him as he proceeded to the opposite side.
"This fight is between two rescue teams members!" the exploud shouted to the crowd, "Remember, at this stage, even if one loses, their team is not disqualified until another member loses in a separate fight!  Now, welcome our combatants!"
The crowd roared in anticipation!  The echoing cries of thousands of pokémon thundered into the air as Latias trembled.  Her fear had grown to a high level, unused to being watched by so many.
"Over on my left," The exploud shouted, gesturing to Latias, "from the Nexus Rescue Team of Pokémon Square, is a strong dragon/psychic mix.  Her appearance may be the first time many of you have ever seen her species!  Please welcome, Latias!"
Fearfully, Latias waved to the crowd when something caught her eyes.  Looking up at the stands closest to her were three faces she knew!  Her brother had come to watch his little sister fight!  Beside Latios were both Eevee and Charm.  Eevee was smiling as Charm flashed her a thumbs-up.  Seeing them, Latias felt better, knowing that there was at least three pokémon who believed in her.
"To my right," the exploud continued, pointing at the arcanine across from her, "is a fiery member of Team Fire Storm of Mount Blaze!  Say hello to Pyro the arcanine!"
The arcanine reared back his head, letting out an echoing howl!  As the crowd cheered, Latias suddenly felt more afraid.
"Do not let him intimidate you." A familiar voice said in her mind, "You must focus."
"Mewtwo?" She asked in return.
"I am allowed to keep a mental link with you to keep you updated as the fight progresses." Mewtwo explained, "Now, do as I say and focus!"
Latias nodded and took a deep breath, letting her fears flow out of her as she exhaled.  The latias closed her eyes for a second, allowing herself to focus, feeling the psychic energy within her to rise to the surface.  Within her, the Soul Dew Jewel increased her strength to protect itself.
"Team Fire Storm ready?" the exploud asked.
Pyro nodded, moving into a combat stance.  His feet spread equally apart as the arcanine lowered his head, growling menacingly.
"Team Nexus ready?" the exploud asked.
Latias opened her eyes, feeling stronger knowing that she had her friends near by to support her.  With that thought in mind, she nodded.
"Begin!" the exploud shouted!
For a second, the two pokémon just stared at each other, sizing their opponent up.  Then, before Latias could react, the arcanine attacked!  His mouth opened wide to reveal a ball of flame within, ready to fire!  Seeing this, Latias dodged aside as the arcanine let loose a powerful pillar of flame, feeling the intense heat as it passed where she had been only a second ago.
"Go high!" Mewtwo ordered.
Latias took off without a second though, skimming the protective barrier between her and the crowd as she rose up quickly.  Then, out of the corner of her eye, Latias saw another burst of flames.  With a cry of fright, the pokémon rolled sideways just as the flame reached her, watching as the flames smashed against the barrier!
Fear took over for a second as Latias dodged another flamethrower attack, ducking under it just as the flames passed where her head had been a second ago.  But as she did, Latias felt her strength suddenly increase!  Another burst shot by her as Latias dove down at the arcanine, spheres of shifting electric energy building in her hands.  The spheres crackled loudly as Latias focused on her attack, suddenly stopping to roll away from another flamethrower.
"Shockwave!" Latias cried out, crossing her arms across her chest.
Latias spread her arms wide, flaring her wings and allowing the energy to flow out of her body.  The crackling bolts of lightning rained down from above, arcing away from her as each bolt locked in on the enemy arcanine!
The arcanine tried to dodge the dangerous lighting bolts as the electric energy rained down, leaping aside as one of the bolt slammed into the ground where his foot had been a second ago.  Dodging aside again to avoid a second bolt, the arcanine felt the third bolt strike his side, forcing him to the ground!  He rolled once, landing on his feet as the arcanine shook it off.
"Is that all you've got?" he taunted, "That was barely a tingle!"
"Ignore him." Mewtwo stated calmly, "He is simply trying to, as Charmander would so blatantly put it, 'rattle you'."
"Right." Latias replied, hovering above the arcanine.
The arcanine suddenly howled loudly, his eyes glowing red.  Latias tried to focus, brining a happy memory to mind.  As she focused on the memory, Latias cupped her hands, feeling her energy rushing to them as she powered up an attack.  But before she could fire it off, Latias felt the arcanine grab her wing in his jaw!  With a cry of pain and surprise, Latias slammed into the ground, the pain racing through her body.
She rolled quickly to avoid the arcanine as he unleashed a blast of flames at where she had been.  Her wing throbbed as the pokémon tried to take off again.  Unfortunately, the damage was too much for her to handle.  Latias crashed back onto the ground again, her wing too injured allow her to fly.  Helplessly, Latias cried out in pain as a jet of flames scorched her back!
She tried to get up, but a she did, Latias felt the arcanine slam into her, his giant paws pushing her aside as if she were nothing more than ragdoll!
"Get up!" Mewtwo commanded in her mind, "Get up and recover!"
Latias tried to push herself up off the ground again.  Somehow, Latias found the strength to rise up off the ground, her body battered from the last combination of attacks.  But as she tried to focus her energy to recover, Latias saw another jet of flames aimed at her!
Leaping aside, Latias fired off an instinctive blast of energy, but the arcanine easily avoided it!  With that blast of energy, Latias felt weak.  She tried to escape again to the skies, but her wing throbbed badly, the pain too great for her.
In her mind, Latias felt terrible.  To her, she had let down everyone.  The team, her brother, even her beloved eevee.  She couldn't fight back anymore, her energy was gone.  It was all over…
Seeing this, the arcanine inhaled deeply, exhaling a thick, choking smokescreen.  As the smoke engulfed Latias, the arcanine moved in.  In his mind, the fight was over.  But now was the time to finish his opponent off for the final K.O.
*           *          *
In the crowd, Eevee cringed as Latias had fallen.  Now, the thick smokescreen was making it impossible for anyone to see what was happening!
"This is my fault." Eevee thought to himself angrily, "I should have trained her harder!  If I had she would have stood a chance!"
Seeing Eevee's frustration with himself, Charm patted his friend's shoulder.  When Eevee looked up at him, Charm smiled.
"How many times have we ended up in this situation?" Charm asked.
"A lot." Eevee replied, still remembering many of his fights, "We've been badly beaten before…"
"And?" Charm asked with a smile.
"And we always pull through." Eevee replied, "But Latias is not us, Charm.  We were forced into those situations.  We had each other.  She's alone down there for the first time."
"I have a feeling this fight is not over yet." Charm replied with a smirk, "Just wait and see."
Suddenly, Latios cringed with a groan!  As the psychic/dragon type moaned softly, Eevee remembered that Latios and the Soul Dew Jewel within Latias still had a connection, even after Latios was successfully returned from it!  Charm and Eevee immediately moved to help, but Latios waved them off.
"It's the Soul Dew." Latios groaned with another cringe, "It's…It's ready."
"Is it moving to you?" Charm asked fearfully.
"N-no." Latios replied shakily, "I-It's going to protect my sister."
Suddenly, the crowd cheered around them!  Eevee watched fearfully as orange bursts of light glowed from within the cloud of smoke still enveloping Latias and the enemy arcanine.
But as they did, something else happened.  The smoke was suddenly blown away!  With a blinding flash of light, the dark smoke was banished from the arena.  But, in the middle of the glow, was Latias!
*           *          *
The arcanine couldn't believe it!  He had thrown several of his most powerful attacks at this pokémon!  He was so certain that he had defeated Latias that, when she had suddenly reopened her eyes, he became startled.  With that, Latias's eyes had begun to glow with a golden power, completely enveloping her eyes.  As she rose up, the glow engulfed her entire body, reflecting his Fire Blast attack back at him!
Latias had waved her hands, removing all of the blinding smoke from the arena!  And now the psychic/dragon type seemed to have locked in on him again.  Now, the arcanine backed up as the latias rose up, crossing her arms and curling up as she closed her eyes tightly.  Ribbons of energy were thrown off of her glowing body, digging small craters into the ground as they struck!  Her energy built up quickly as Latias opened her glowing eyes.  As she did, the arcanine knew who had just won the round.
Without hesitation, Latias flung her arms apart, uncurling as twin balls of energy twirling into two spheres as Latias cried out the only attack capable of ending this fight in her favor.
"For those who are counting on me, this ends now!" Latias stated in an echoing voice, "SOUL SURGE!!"
With that, Latias struck!  Quicker than anyone's eyes could track, Latias had struck the arcanine several times with her wings, flying past at an incredible speed, before flinging him up into the air.  As the fire type fell, Latias unleashed a final strike, launching a blast of energy from her hands!  The giant ball of energy slammed into the arcanine, sending him flying backwards before slamming into the ground!  The arcanine groaned once and tried to get up, but fell back.
Silence fell across the arena.  No one was sure what had just happened.  Quickly, the referee ran out and checked him, and then looked up at the crowd.
The exploud raised his arms and announced, "Pyro has been knocked out!  Team Nexus wins!"
With that, the crowd exploded into cheers!  Latios smiled, watching his sister as the glow subsided back into her body.  Eevee sighed, relieved that Latias's attack had saved both her and the team.  Charm cheered happily!
In the arena, Latias looked up, not sure of what had just happened.  The last thing she remembered was her conscious slowly fading away.  And now she was looking up at everyone, the arcanine defeated.  She smiled softly, but felt so tired.  Without warning, Latias collapsed to the ground!
*           *          *
When Latias reopened her eyes, she found herself lying on a warm bed of straw.  Startled, the pokémon looked up, quickly trying to assess where she was.  But as she did, Latias felt an armored hand on her back gently rubbing.
Latias looked up to find Nidoqueen smiling gently, "From what I saw, you really took a beating, Latias.  But you'll be alright soon."
The latias looked down at herself, finding her wing wrapped in medical tape.  It still hurt a bit when she tried to move it, but Latias was simply happy to be awake.
"You've been out for a long time." Nidoqueen explained as she wrung out a wash cloth, "Most of the day, in fact."
Latias looked up at her again, clearly startled, "Most of the day?  What happened to the others?"
"Everyone did very well." A new voice stated gently, "We're through to the next round."
Latias glanced to the source of the voice, finding Gardevoir lying nearby.  The psychic pokémon pushed herself off of the straw bed beside Latias, stretching quickly as Mewtwo walked by, carrying its armor.
Glancing to her other side, Latias was relieved to see Charm and Eevee basically unhurt.  Eevee trotted to her side and gently nuzzled Latias's neck.  As he did, Latias saw that the eevee had medical tape wrapped around his middle.  When Eevee saw her concern, he smiled.
"Don't worry, I'm fine.  But how're you feeling?" the eevee asked gently.
Latias touched his nose with hers, "Much better now."
Charm was sitting on one of the other beds, his tail flame protected by the clear orb he carried with him, "So that was the Soul Surge, huh?  It was pretty cool!"
Latias tried to remember what had happened, but the last few moments of the match were still blank for her.
"I-I don't really remember.  Did I use it?" Latias asked.
Eevee smiled, "Yeah, you won because of it.  It was a pretty rough attack based on what I've seen of your controlled one, but that was it, alright."
"Unfortunately, it also sapped so much of your energy you basically fainted yourself using it." Mewtwo observed in its usual, emotionless tone, "Luckily, it seems to only be a last resort move."
Nidoqueen wet the rag once more, gently laying it across Latias's forehead, "Right now, it would be best to simply get some rest.  Your body is recovering very well, but tomorrow you need to be at full strength."
Eevee nodded, "That's right.  Tomorrow is our second round."
Charm nodded in agreement, "The two on two fights."
"We figure out who is with who tomorrow." Gardevoir said, sitting down and crossing her legs, "Once we find that out, we can plan shortly before we enter the arena."
Latias nodded and laid her head back down.  As she did, Latias felt relieved that everything had turned out alright for the team.  But she had a feeling that tomorrow's battles would be another challenge she was not fully ready for.

Description
Part two: On Her Own

As the new day dawned, the Nexus Team, along with many other teams, was led to the arena.  The first battles would begin soon, pitting one of the team members against a member of an opposing team.  A restless energy charged the air around the arena as the roars of the crowd soon became apparent.
Soon, the team was underneath the giant arena.  Their locker room was marked by their team insignia.  As Charm glanced around the room, Eevee made sure that everyone else was ready.
"Alright guys, we've faced off tough opponents before." Eevee said, pacing before the rest of the chosen Nexus Team, "But I won't lie to you, this will be different.  Usually, we get to fight as a team, relying on each other to cover our own weaknesses and support the others strengths.  For this round of the championship, we're on our own."
Latias looked away when Eevee said this.  Her heart sunk into her gut, realizing that no one would be there to help her if she got into trouble.
"But we're still strong." Eevee continued, "Physically we'll be divided, but we're all together in spirit.  Think strong and think fast, don't let the roars of the crowd get to you.  I have a good feeling that today is our day.  Now, let's show these other teams what the Nexus Rescue Team is capable of!"
The others nodded in agreement as Latias looked back at her friend.  Eevee smiled to her.
"You'll do fine, Latias." Eevee said gently, "Don't worry, ok?"
Latias nodded and hugged Eevee close.
Smiling, watching the two, Charm sat back and looked at Mewtwo, who was busy equipping his modified armor to Gardevoir.  The charmander knew that Eevee was a terrible public speaker.  But even he was a bit surprised at what Eevee had said.  Oddly enough, Charm felt a lot better about the day than he had the day before.
As Latias set Eevee back down, an exploud, dressed in a referee's uniform, came into the locker room.
"Alright, here's the bracket of who will be against who." The exploud explained, handing it to Charm, "Your chosen strategist will have to look it over."
"This should be simple enough." Mewtwo stated, taking it from Charm and looking it over.
"Your first battle is in a few minutes." The exploud stated, "Get ready, one hold item allowed."
As the exploud walked out, Mewtwo glared at him and then glanced back to the chart.  As he did, Eevee looked up at the psychic type.
"So who's up first?" Eevee asked.
Mewtwo set down the chart on a table, "Latias."
The psychic/dragon type glanced over at Mewtwo, "Yes?"
Mewtwo glanced at her, "You are up first for our team."
Latias swallowed gently, nervousness rising up within her as her mouth went dry, "I-I am?"
Mewtwo nodded, "You are against a lower ranked pokémon, an arcanine."
Charm looked up, "How is that lower ranking?  Arcanines are a final evolution form.  Latias is a single form."
Mewtwo glared at him, "Lower rank as in lower than our team ranking.  They are a gold rank team, we are a platinum rank team."
"Oh." Charm replied, and then the fire lizard got up and paced, "Latias, you'll be up against a strong fire type.  Take it from me, they're nothing to underestimate.  Arcanines are fast and powerful."
Mewtwo nodded, "Agreed.  To beat one, you must be faster and stronger than it is."
"A-and if I cannot do that?" Latias asked, fear in her voice.
"Then pray I can watch over you to help." Mewtwo stated with a glare, "Arcanine are known to be able to use dark type attacks.  Avoid those at all costs."
Eevee hopped up onto the locker beside Latias and smiled, "You're strong Latias.  Don't worry about it, everything will be alright."
"Eevee is right." Gardevoir said, "Just remember what your training has taught you, and you should be alright."
Latias smiled and nodded as the others agreed.  As long as the others believed in her, Latias felt that she stood a chance.
*           *          *
The arena itself was not what Latias had expected it to be.  The combat area already had two others going at it, fighting for the chance to move on.  The crowd was protected by a large dome over the combat arena, protecting them from any attacks that strayed from their targets.
But no matter where Latias looked, she heard the roar of the crowd.  At this point, there were sixteen rescue teams.  Eight would emerge from this round to move on.
As she looked around, a huge, orange wolf-like pokémon walked over to her.  Latias took a deep breath when she noticed his approach, realizing that this was possibly her opponent.  As the wolf sat down in front of her, it bowed it's head.
"So, you are my opponent?" the arcanine asked calmly, "Latias of the Nexus Rescue Team."
Latias bowed in return, "I-I am.  It is good to meet you."
As they stepped back from each other, an exploud dressed in the same referee uniform as the last one approached them.  The fight before theirs was finally over, but the crowd roared for more.
"Alright you two, let's have a good, clean fight put there, yeah?" it stated, "The only outside help you can receive is information from your strategist, one hold item only, and fight until one can no longer continue.  That means either you run out of energy to fight or get K.O.ed.  Once one of you is down, the fight stops only if they concede or are declared out by me.  Sound good?"
"Sounds like fun." The arcanine smiled.
"I guess that seems fair." Latias agreed.
The two followed the referee out to the arena.
*           *          *
As the three entered the arena, Latias's ears were met by the deafening roar of the crowd.  Fearfully, the psychic/dragon type looked around to find the stands surrounding the arena filled with thousands of other pokémon of all kinds.  Shaking her head, the latias tried to remember what Eevee had said only minutes ago.  As his words came to her mind, Latias felt a bit more relaxed, taking a deep breath as the exploud walked to the center of the arena, the arcanine passing him as he proceeded to the opposite side.
"This fight is between two rescue teams members!" the exploud shouted to the crowd, "Remember, at this stage, even if one loses, their team is not disqualified until another member loses in a separate fight!  Now, welcome our combatants!"
The crowd roared in anticipation!  The echoing cries of thousands of pokémon thundered into the air as Latias trembled.  Her fear had grown to a high level, unused to being watched by so many.
"Over on my left," The exploud shouted, gesturing to Latias, "from the Nexus Rescue Team of Pokémon Square, is a strong dragon/psychic mix.  Her appearance may be the first time many of you have ever seen her species!  Please welcome, Latias!"
Fearfully, Latias waved to the crowd when something caught her eyes.  Looking up at the stands closest to her were three faces she knew!  Her brother had come to watch his little sister fight!  Beside Latios were both Eevee and Charm.  Eevee was smiling as Charm flashed her a thumbs-up.  Seeing them, Latias felt better, knowing that there was at least three pokémon who believed in her.
"To my right," the exploud continued, pointing at the arcanine across from her, "is a fiery member of Team Fire Storm of Mount Blaze!  Say hello to Pyro the arcanine!"
The arcanine reared back his head, letting out an echoing howl!  As the crowd cheered, Latias suddenly felt more afraid.
"Do not let him intimidate you." A familiar voice said in her mind, "You must focus."
"Mewtwo?" She asked in return.
"I am allowed to keep a mental link with you to keep you updated as the fight progresses." Mewtwo explained, "Now, do as I say and focus!"
Latias nodded and took a deep breath, letting her fears flow out of her as she exhaled.  The latias closed her eyes for a second, allowing herself to focus, feeling the psychic energy within her to rise to the surface.  Within her, the Soul Dew Jewel increased her strength to protect itself.
"Team Fire Storm ready?" the exploud asked.
Pyro nodded, moving into a combat stance.  His feet spread equally apart as the arcanine lowered his head, growling menacingly.
"Team Nexus ready?" the exploud asked.
Latias opened her eyes, feeling stronger knowing that she had her friends near by to support her.  With that thought in mind, she nodded.
"Begin!" the exploud shouted!
For a second, the two pokémon just stared at each other, sizing their opponent up.  Then, before Latias could react, the arcanine attacked!  His mouth opened wide to reveal a ball of flame within, ready to fire!  Seeing this, Latias dodged aside as the arcanine let loose a powerful pillar of flame, feeling the intense heat as it passed where she had been only a second ago.
"Go high!" Mewtwo ordered.
Latias took off without a second though, skimming the protective barrier between her and the crowd as she rose up quickly.  Then, out of the corner of her eye, Latias saw another burst of flames.  With a cry of fright, the pokémon rolled sideways just as the flame reached her, watching as the flames smashed against the barrier!
Fear took over for a second as Latias dodged another flamethrower attack, ducking under it just as the flames passed where her head had been a second ago.  But as she did, Latias felt her strength suddenly increase!  Another burst shot by her as Latias dove down at the arcanine, spheres of shifting electric energy building in her hands.  The spheres crackled loudly as Latias focused on her attack, suddenly stopping to roll away from another flamethrower.
"Shockwave!" Latias cried out, crossing her arms across her chest.
Latias spread her arms wide, flaring her wings and allowing the energy to flow out of her body.  The crackling bolts of lightning rained down from above, arcing away from her as each bolt locked in on the enemy arcanine!
The arcanine tried to dodge the dangerous lighting bolts as the electric energy rained down, leaping aside as one of the bolt slammed into the ground where his foot had been a second ago.  Dodging aside again to avoid a second bolt, the arcanine felt the third bolt strike his side, forcing him to the ground!  He rolled once, landing on his feet as the arcanine shook it off.
"Is that all you've got?" he taunted, "That was barely a tingle!"
"Ignore him." Mewtwo stated calmly, "He is simply trying to, as Charmander would so blatantly put it, 'rattle you'."
"Right." Latias replied, hovering above the arcanine.
The arcanine suddenly howled loudly, his eyes glowing red.  Latias tried to focus, brining a happy memory to mind.  As she focused on the memory, Latias cupped her hands, feeling her energy rushing to them as she powered up an attack.  But before she could fire it off, Latias felt the arcanine grab her wing in his jaw!  With a cry of pain and surprise, Latias slammed into the ground, the pain racing through her body.
She rolled quickly to avoid the arcanine as he unleashed a blast of flames at where she had been.  Her wing throbbed as the pokémon tried to take off again.  Unfortunately, the damage was too much for her to handle.  Latias crashed back onto the ground again, her wing too injured allow her to fly.  Helplessly, Latias cried out in pain as a jet of flames scorched her back!
She tried to get up, but a she did, Latias felt the arcanine slam into her, his giant paws pushing her aside as if she were nothing more than ragdoll!
"Get up!" Mewtwo commanded in her mind, "Get up and recover!"
Latias tried to push herself up off the ground again.  Somehow, Latias found the strength to rise up off the ground, her body battered from the last combination of attacks.  But as she tried to focus her energy to recover, Latias saw another jet of flames aimed at her!
Leaping aside, Latias fired off an instinctive blast of energy, but the arcanine easily avoided it!  With that blast of energy, Latias felt weak.  She tried to escape again to the skies, but her wing throbbed badly, the pain too great for her.
In her mind, Latias felt terrible.  To her, she had let down everyone.  The team, her brother, even her beloved eevee.  She couldn't fight back anymore, her energy was gone.  It was all over…
Seeing this, the arcanine inhaled deeply, exhaling a thick, choking smokescreen.  As the smoke engulfed Latias, the arcanine moved in.  In his mind, the fight was over.  But now was the time to finish his opponent off for the final K.O.
*           *          *
In the crowd, Eevee cringed as Latias had fallen.  Now, the thick smokescreen was making it impossible for anyone to see what was happening!
"This is my fault." Eevee thought to himself angrily, "I should have trained her harder!  If I had she would have stood a chance!"
Seeing Eevee's frustration with himself, Charm patted his friend's shoulder.  When Eevee looked up at him, Charm smiled.
"How many times have we ended up in this situation?" Charm asked.
"A lot." Eevee replied, still remembering many of his fights, "We've been badly beaten before…"
"And?" Charm asked with a smile.
"And we always pull through." Eevee replied, "But Latias is not us, Charm.  We were forced into those situations.  We had each other.  She's alone down there for the first time."
"I have a feeling this fight is not over yet." Charm replied with a smirk, "Just wait and see."
Suddenly, Latios cringed with a groan!  As the psychic/dragon type moaned softly, Eevee remembered that Latios and the Soul Dew Jewel within Latias still had a connection, even after Latios was successfully returned from it!  Charm and Eevee immediately moved to help, but Latios waved them off.
"It's the Soul Dew." Latios groaned with another cringe, "It's…It's ready."
"Is it moving to you?" Charm asked fearfully.
"N-no." Latios replied shakily, "I-It's going to protect my sister."
Suddenly, the crowd cheered around them!  Eevee watched fearfully as orange bursts of light glowed from within the cloud of smoke still enveloping Latias and the enemy arcanine.
But as they did, something else happened.  The smoke was suddenly blown away!  With a blinding flash of light, the dark smoke was banished from the arena.  But, in the middle of the glow, was Latias!
*           *          *
The arcanine couldn't believe it!  He had thrown several of his most powerful attacks at this pokémon!  He was so certain that he had defeated Latias that, when she had suddenly reopened her eyes, he became startled.  With that, Latias's eyes had begun to glow with a golden power, completely enveloping her eyes.  As she rose up, the glow engulfed her entire body, reflecting his Fire Blast attack back at him!
Latias had waved her hands, removing all of the blinding smoke from the arena!  And now the psychic/dragon type seemed to have locked in on him again.  Now, the arcanine backed up as the latias rose up, crossing her arms and curling up as she closed her eyes tightly.  Ribbons of energy were thrown off of her glowing body, digging small craters into the ground as they struck!  Her energy built up quickly as Latias opened her glowing eyes.  As she did, the arcanine knew who had just won the round.
Without hesitation, Latias flung her arms apart, uncurling as twin balls of energy twirling into two spheres as Latias cried out the only attack capable of ending this fight in her favor.
"For those who are counting on me, this ends now!" Latias stated in an echoing voice, "SOUL SURGE!!"
With that, Latias struck!  Quicker than anyone's eyes could track, Latias had struck the arcanine several times with her wings, flying past at an incredible speed, before flinging him up into the air.  As the fire type fell, Latias unleashed a final strike, launching a blast of energy from her hands!  The giant ball of energy slammed into the arcanine, sending him flying backwards before slamming into the ground!  The arcanine groaned once and tried to get up, but fell back.
Silence fell across the arena.  No one was sure what had just happened.  Quickly, the referee ran out and checked him, and then looked up at the crowd.
The exploud raised his arms and announced, "Pyro has been knocked out!  Team Nexus wins!"
With that, the crowd exploded into cheers!  Latios smiled, watching his sister as the glow subsided back into her body.  Eevee sighed, relieved that Latias's attack had saved both her and the team.  Charm cheered happily!
In the arena, Latias looked up, not sure of what had just happened.  The last thing she remembered was her conscious slowly fading away.  And now she was looking up at everyone, the arcanine defeated.  She smiled softly, but felt so tired.  Without warning, Latias collapsed to the ground!
*           *          *
When Latias reopened her eyes, she found herself lying on a warm bed of straw.  Startled, the pokémon looked up, quickly trying to assess where she was.  But as she did, Latias felt an armored hand on her back gently rubbing.
Latias looked up to find Nidoqueen smiling gently, "From what I saw, you really took a beating, Latias.  But you'll be alright soon."
The latias looked down at herself, finding her wing wrapped in medical tape.  It still hurt a bit when she tried to move it, but Latias was simply happy to be awake.
"You've been out for a long time." Nidoqueen explained as she wrung out a wash cloth, "Most of the day, in fact."
Latias looked up at her again, clearly startled, "Most of the day?  What happened to the others?"
"Everyone did very well." A new voice stated gently, "We're through to the next round."
Latias glanced to the source of the voice, finding Gardevoir lying nearby.  The psychic pokémon pushed herself off of the straw bed beside Latias, stretching quickly as Mewtwo walked by, carrying its armor.
Glancing to her other side, Latias was relieved to see Charm and Eevee basically unhurt.  Eevee trotted to her side and gently nuzzled Latias's neck.  As he did, Latias saw that the eevee had medical tape wrapped around his middle.  When Eevee saw her concern, he smiled.
"Don't worry, I'm fine.  But how're you feeling?" the eevee asked gently.
Latias touched his nose with hers, "Much better now."
Charm was sitting on one of the other beds, his tail flame protected by the clear orb he carried with him, "So that was the Soul Surge, huh?  It was pretty cool!"
Latias tried to remember what had happened, but the last few moments of the match were still blank for her.
"I-I don't really remember.  Did I use it?" Latias asked.
Eevee smiled, "Yeah, you won because of it.  It was a pretty rough attack based on what I've seen of your controlled one, but that was it, alright."
"Unfortunately, it also sapped so much of your energy you basically fainted yourself using it." Mewtwo observed in its usual, emotionless tone, "Luckily, it seems to only be a last resort move."
Nidoqueen wet the rag once more, gently laying it across Latias's forehead, "Right now, it would be best to simply get some rest.  Your body is recovering very well, but tomorrow you need to be at full strength."
Eevee nodded, "That's right.  Tomorrow is our second round."
Charm nodded in agreement, "The two on two fights."
"We figure out who is with who tomorrow." Gardevoir said, sitting down and crossing her legs, "Once we find that out, we can plan shortly before we enter the arena."
Latias nodded and laid her head back down.  As she did, Latias felt relieved that everything had turned out alright for the team.  But she had a feeling that tomorrow's battles would be another challenge she was not fully ready for.