Thunder rolls in and the rain comes down harder. It is nearly impossible to see either of them now through the haze and the spray as it smacks against the ground.

What she can see, however, is that her little Dratini is still struggling to overcome her fear. Once again, she is knocked to the ground by the Flapple's ROLLOUT. Dirt clings to her skin and she shivers with fear and with pain.

It truly seems as though the battle is coming to a close, but Remi clenches her fists and shakes her head. This wasn't a battle, this was pathetic.

"Qi'ra! What would Teddiursa think if she saw you right now?"

She cups her hands over her mouth to project her voice through the downpour. It works, because the Dratini raises her head weakly from her flattened position in the dirt and grass, unsteady as she fights for strength. But the mention of her friend and her hero seems to spark something inside of her.

And on the other side of the field, Remi's words strike a chord in herself, too.

What would Roman think if he saw me now? If he saw the person I had become, a criminal, a deadbeat?

That's why she was here though, wasn't it? That's why she was fighting, and pushing herself. It was why she was challenging gyms, challenging herself.

"We're stronger than this!"

And just like that, the woman stirs something, a second-wind, maybe, in the little wyrm. Just as the Flapple comes back around for another rollout body-slam, the Dratini begins to undergo a full-body change. She glows, a pure-white haze in the rain, and manages to intercept and deflect that final blow.

When the white light fades, she is much, much bigger. Her body has doubled, maybe tripled in size. She is regal, beautiful, and floating.

"Qi'ra, you're flying!"

With a rapid twist of her body, she slaps the Flapple backward with a powerful, rain-boosted AQUA TAIL before rising higher in the air, body twisting and turning as she looms over the Flapple. She trills, confidence renewed with her evolution.

Alexei Ivanov

☉

The impact of the Dragonair's tail is incredible. It times itself perfectly with the thunderclap above. Water sprays wildly as the Pokemon's impressive tail smashes against the Flapple. If it were baseball, that surely would have been a home run.

"Holy."

Before her very eyes, her child has blossomed into a beautiful serpent of the sky. It made the elaborate tattoo between her showers tingle with anticipation, with intensity. It took her breath away, positively.

Remi snaps herself back to attention with rapid-blinks at Alexei's shout. It might be the first thing he's said since the battle started. That must mean something, right?

Qi'ra twirls, righting herself clumsily after the aqua tail smooths out. But, given her extravagant and invigorating evolution, she has regained strength and pride. She is beautiful, she is powerful, and would not be bested by a pathetic slap and flap of the wings! Her own wings extend on the crown of her head, flaring defiantly.

The serpent composes herself, coiling and trembling with rage - not real rage. In one breath, the Dragonair unleashes an OUTRAGE, her voice causing the rain to scatter and the puddles to jump in fear.

Alexei Ivanov

☉

By now, the rain has begun to go from a downpour to a drizzle. The clouds peel back to reveal the sun once more and yet the storm has only just begun. Dragonair's OUTRAGE continues with a vengeance. She rips right through the wing attack and into the Flapple, the magnitude of her draconic power overwhelming.

She continues to thrash and bellow, soundwaves crashing over and over and over.

So much so that the Dragonair does not even feel it when the GRAV APPLE strikes her and pins her tail tip to the ground. She is so long and out of control that she doesn't even notice that she is fastened to the end of her rope. She merely continues to OUTRAGE, lashing out with impossible power.

Alexei Ivanov

☉

Now exhausted, the Dragonair comes to a halt, dizzy and confused after her outrage comes to a halt. She slumps, unsteady on her feet, not that she had any to stand on, and Remi is caught staring at the beast wide-eyed until she notices Alexei hobbling over.

It takes her a moment, but she lurches forward to assist the man, albeit awkwardly, and appears genuinely stunned when the man holds out his hand. Glittering in the palm of his hand lies a beautiful gold and blue badge. It leaves a lump in her throat as emotion threatens to bubble over the surface of her always-stoic face.

She keeps it together.

"Thank you. We uhh.. keep it tight."

Thank you, Roman.

Alexei Ivanov

☉