Once the smoke cleared, the result of the clash was plain to see.
Hydreigon had been pushed to its limit, while Chien-Pao was still standing strong.
In the end, Hydreigon's weakness to Ice had simply been too much to overcome.
Frost laughed.
"I warned you, Liora. Your Dragons don't stand a chance against my Ice-types."
Seeing Hydreigon struggling to remain airborne, he could not resist rubbing in his advantage.
"You only have the better matchup!" Liora shot back. "Don't get so full of yourself!"
Frost gave her a smug look.
"As the legendary Trainer Ash once said, a real expert wins even with a bad matchup."
He had even pulled out a famous quote just to taunt her.
"You haven't won yet!"
Liora's face flushed with anger as she looked up at Hydreigon.
"Fivey, stay with me!"
She thrust one hand toward Chien-Pao.
"Dragon Rush!"
A chorus of furious growls rumbled from Hydreigon's five throats.
"GRAAAAAH!"
Crimson energy erupted around its body, taking the shape of a raging dragon. Hydreigon folded its wings and plunged toward Chien-Pao below.
Frost's expression sharpened.
"Chien-Pao, finish it!"
He pointed toward the descending Hydreigon.
"Ice Fang!"
Chien-Pao crouched low with a savage snarl.
"GRRRAOW!"
Bone-chilling energy gathered around the ancient blade fragments forming its fangs, coating them in layers of frost.
Its hind legs exploded with strength.
BOOM!
The force of its leap blasted a crater into the snow as Chien-Pao shot into the air.
Hydreigon came crashing down in the shape of a crimson dragon.
Chien-Pao met it head-on.
CRUNCH!
BOOOOM!
Its freezing fangs sank into Hydreigon as the two Pokémon collided.
"GRAAAAGH!"
A cry of pain tore from Hydreigon's five throats.
The crimson energy around its body shattered, and it plummeted toward the arena.
BOOOOM!
Hydreigon slammed into the snow-covered ground, carving out an enormous crater and sending frost and snow flying in every direction.
Chien-Pao twisted gracefully in the air before landing atop a nearby mound.
It raised its head proudly.
"GRAAOW!"
Its triumphant feline roar echoed across the arena.
At the bottom of the crater, Hydreigon lay motionless with swirls in all five pairs of eyes.
It was unable to battle.
Liora had lost.
"Hydreigon is unable to battle!"
Blaze raised the red flag.
"Both of Liora's Pokémon are down. The winner is Frost!"
The spectators immediately erupted into excited discussion.
"That Chien-Pao is ridiculous! Even Liora's Hydreigon, with its ancestral awakening, couldn't beat it!"
"What did you expect? Chien-Pao is an incredibly rare Legendary Pokémon. Frost hit the jackpot."
"Please. Liora only lost because of the matchup. If Ice weren't super effective against Dragon, there's no way Frost would've won!"
"Exactly! Chien-Pao had a massive advantage from the start."
"A loss is still a loss. Stop making excuses. Besides, there's no shame in losing to Frost."
"You want to say that again?"
"Gladly. You think I'm scared of you?"
...
Some of the spectators were devoted Liora fans and immediately rushed to defend her.
Others supported Frost.
It took only a few sentences for the two sides to start glaring at one another as though they were about to hold a battle of their own.
Back in the arena, Frost recalled his Pokémon.
"Come back, Chien-Pao. You were incredible."
A satisfied smile lingered on his face as he turned toward Liora.
"Sorry about that. Guess I got lucky."
The smug curve of his lips made it obvious that he did not believe that for a second.
"Come back, Fivey..."
Liora's voice wavered.
She recalled Hydreigon and held the Luxury Ball tightly in both hands. Her eyes were already wet, and Frost's barely concealed gloating only made the defeat sting more.
Tears began rolling down her cheeks.
The smile vanished from Frost's face.
Wait. She's actually crying?
A terrible thought immediately crossed his mind.
If Drake finds out I made her cry, he's going to break my legs.
Drake was infamous for how protective he was of Liora.
Frost was already beginning to regret challenging her.
"Waaah..."
Liora walked over to Aaron, wiping at her tear-streaked face.
"Aaron, he bullied me! You have to avenge me!"
Aaron stared at her, the corner of his mouth twitching.
He had not expected the fifth-ranked Trainer on the Hidden Dragon Rankings to burst into tears over a loss.
For all her talent, there was something unexpectedly innocent about her. The Dragon family had clearly sheltered its little princess very well.
"All right, all right. Stop crying."
Aaron gave her a helpless smile.
"I'll wipe that smug look off his face for you."
Liora immediately stopped sobbing.
She sniffled, then bared one small fang at him.
"You'd better! Make him regret bullying me!"
Aaron could only shake his head.
He already had an agreement with Frost. Since Liora had lost, it was now his turn to accept the challenge.
Frost looked over, his earlier concern replaced by renewed fighting spirit.
"Aaron."
A grin spread across his face.
"You're up."
Aaron glanced toward the Poké Balls at Frost's waist.
"Get your Pokémon treated first. I'll still be here when you come back."
Frost paused, clearly not expecting Aaron to give him time to restore his team.
Then he nodded.
"Fair enough. I won't be long."
His opinion of Aaron improved considerably.
Without wasting another moment, Frost hurried toward the Pokémon Center with his team.
Aaron settled back into the spectator stands and chatted with the others while he waited.
...