Chapter 42: Dragon Power

                                    

                                          
Charizard glared down at Glaceon, and she actually took a step back in fear. He was...very intimidating. "Don't let him get to you, Glaceon," I reassured. "Remember what kind of trainer Ash is."
                          
Glaceon straightened up, nodding and swishing her tail. "Glae."
                          
"Flamethrower!" Ash yelled. Glaceon barely made it, skating in a zigzag to avoid the hot flames. I could hear Natsu chuckling in happiness. Glaceon skidded to a stop when the flames vanished. But I realized too late what Charizard did. The entire arena of ice was reduced to water. "Again!"
                          
"Dodge it!" Glaceon tried to jump out of the way, but she was covered in fire before she could get anywhere. She screeched in pain, which was something I hadn't heard in a long time.
                          
Lucy heard it too, and gasped. "Glaceon!"
                          
"No, Lucy!" I snapped, glaring at her. "Your job is to stay quiet."
                          
"But..." I blinked, warning her again. She looked down in defeat. "Okay, fine."
                          
"Remember this is a battle, a test of strength. No one can interfere but me and Ash." She nodded, but looked at Glaceon again, worried. I went back to the battle, seeing Glaceon struggling on her feet and covered in burns. She also had tiny flares on some parts of her body. "No way..." I said in surprise. "She's actually burned!"
                          
"Well of course she's burned!" Natsu said with a grin in his tone. "She just got roasted by that fire!"
                          
"Way to be compassionate, Natsu." Wendy said in annoyance.
                          
"No, she means the status Glaceon is in." Serena replied to them. "It's an ability that some moves have. Pokémon can get burned, frozen, and even paralyzed or fallen asleep. Glaceon got burned from Charizard's Flamethrower, so now she'll get weaker as it stays on her."
                          
"Are you saying it's temporary?" Levy asked her.
                          
"Most of the time, yes. Really it depends on the Pokémon affected. Glaceon's an ice type though, so it could be awhile for her..." Gray humphed at that.
                          
Glaceon strained, but kept herself on her feet. I honestly was now worried about her. "Let's do this quick. Ice Beam!" She opened her mouth, and spat the Ice Beam forward. Charizard was gone though, flying in the air almost as fast as a Dragonite. Even fairies would be impressed with his speed. "Damn it..." I cursed under my breath.
                          
Charizard did not hold back, and Glaceon couldn't dodge him as Ash called it. "Seismic Toss!"
                          
I panicked. "Blizzard, Glaceon!" But she couldn't hear me. Charizard was just too fast and he already was flying the circle over and over to charge up the attack. Glaceon also couldn't let out one last Ice Beam. I closed my eyes and Charizard zoomed to the ground, throwing Glaceon into the dirt. The dust cloud covered all of us in the field.
                          
Lucy screamed in fear at what she just saw, but I kept my stance and sighed in frustration. "Well...you did it." The dust cleared, and Glaceon was down for the count.
                          
Lucy looked down at her with fear in her eyes. "Glaceon..."
                          
"Lucy." I told her again.
                          
She blinked at me, and straightened up again. "Glaceon is unable to battle!" She pointed at Ash. "Charizard wins!"
                          
"You're kidding me!" Gray yelled. "That fire breathing machine beat Glaceon?!"
                          
"That fire breathing machine won fair and square!" Natsu yelled back. "Did you freaking see his flying?! He really is like a real dragon with that speed!"
                          
"Yeah, yeah." Gray started to pout again. "Don't roast your brain with excitement."
                          
I grinned, and pulled out her blue Pokéball. "Return, Glaceon." Ash kept staring at me, but this time he had his arms crossed and a grin on his face. "I have to say, Ash..." I closed my eyes. "No one has ever beaten even one of my Pokémon in a battle with me for a very long time." I opened my eyes again. "But that just means you're in for a real battle now."