"GOOD MORNING KALOS ACADEMY!"

The next morning, everyone had gathered at the main arena for the competition. The student body was eager to get started, as evidenced by the wild cheers. Seulgi stood next to Wendy, her hands over her ears. "I'm Professor Kim Dongwan, headmaster of the Academy and I'll just be going over the rules for today."

He pointed to a large scoreboard which was currently blank. "All competitions are a little bit different, but today we're starting off with a battle royale, a classic Academy battle format! The winning team gets points added to their team's scoreboard. There will be battles and contests going on all morning and afternoon as well, and at the end of the day, the dorm with the most points is the winner!"

Seulgi cheered. This was shaping up to be one amazing day. Dongwan looked down at his tablet and tapped a few buttons. The scoreboard set itself up, a little chibi Groudon, Kyogre and Rayquaza appearing on the board, with a huge zero underneath them. "The boards have been set, and let the opening battle begin. Would Kang Seulgi, Moon Byulyi and Son Seungwan please come to the arena? I'd also like Jung Wheein, Ahn Hani, Kang Daniel, Park Jihyo, Yoo Jeongyeon and Son Chaeyoung to come on down."

Seulgi looked awestruck. "You're battling too? I can't believe it!"

Wendy grinned. "Yeah, Moonbyul saw footage of our tag battle against Yeri and Joy and wanted us to battle with her. I hear it's a great honor."

"It's not going to be easy though, have you heard the names of the others? Daniel's an undefeated Unova coordinator and Jihyo's an amazing breeder."

"Relax, dude, we've got a Champion on our side. We're gonna mop the floor with these guys to set Dorm One off on the right track."

Seulgi nodded and they walked to the center arena to meet with Moonbyul and shake hands with their opponents.

Moonbyul waved to them, looking determined. "Wendy. Seulgi. I'd like to formally introduce you to two of the other dorm captains, Kang Daniel and Park Jihyo."

The two girls shook their hands, still vibrating with excitement. Seulgi couldn't wait. Once pleasantries (and thinly veiled threats) were exchanged, they split up to talk strategy for a few minutes while the arena was prepared.

Moonbyul cleared . "Now I'm not sure how familiar you are with triple battles, but in essence it's just a three on three match. However, we've changed it since there are three dorms competing. So now it's a three on three on three match. Teamwork is absolutely essential here, as with nine Pokémon on the field, it can get pretty hectic. It’s basically a battle royale."

Seulgi listened intently, wishing she had brought her notebook to write down every word the Hoenn Champion was saying.

"I like the teamwork you and Seulgi brought in that double battle earlier this week Wendy, so that's why I asked you. You should have no qualms about using the environment and enemy position to your advantage. The fight is over when the other team's Pokémon get knocked out. So it's more about sustainability in this fight than brute power."

Seulgi snapped her fingers in understanding. "That's why you wanted my Bewear. They're known for being a tankier Fighting-type. Mine especially can take quite a few hits, after all, he trains regularly with my Garchomp and Tyranitar."

Moonbyul nodded. "Wendy, I know a lot of your Pokémon have high sustainability, so all I ask is that you don't pick Marowak. Its defense is a little lackluster for what I have planned."

Wendy grinned and pulled out a Pokeball. "No worries, you want defense? I'll go Sawsbuck then. Mine has multiple moves that can leech health from opponents. Who will you choose?"

Moonbyul thought about it for a moment. "Do you guys think you can protect my partner if I send him out there? He's a lot more fragile but his sheer speed and attack power could really make this team work."

"What about defense, like you said?" Wendy looked confused.

"The fight is only over once the other six Pokémon are unable to battle. I figure if the two of you can protect my Pokémon while he takes out a good chunk of the opposition before falling, it'll make the fight a whole lot more manageable."

Seulgi’s eyes widened. "You'd be willing to sacrifice your Pokémon to make sure we have a shot?"

"It's a risk I'm willing to take. Now come on, strategy time's over. It's time to beat the crap out of the other two dorms. Can I count on you two to pull through?"

"Hell yeah!"

"Of course, Moonbyul."

XXX

Moonbyul, Seulgi and Wendy stood on one side of the arena. It had changed shape during the strategy session to better support the teams playing. To their left stood Daniel, Hani and Wheein, and to their right were Jihyo, Jeongyeon and Chaeyoung.

The crowd had gone silent, as if waiting on pins and needles for the game to begin. Nobody knew who would win, with such strong looking contenders on both sides. Professor Kim, Nurse Ji-Eun and Yongsun sat at a raised platform, as they were to be the commentators for the battle. Professor Kim made one last adjustment on his tablet and the scoreboard turned into a countdown timer.

Five.

Seulgi breathed. She could do this, Moonbyul was counting on her.

Four.

Wendy was grinning, confident that her Sawsbuck and Seulgi’s Bewear could enact the plan Moonbyul had concocted. Her roommates Joy and Yeri were on the sidelines, cheering her on. Yeri was holding up a handmade sign that read ‘Go, Wendy!’ while Joy held up one cheering on Seulgi.

Three.

Moonbyul looked up at Yongsun and the two shared a smile. She had to win, had to show Solar what she could do.

Two.

Irene saw the arena in the distance as she got in the car to go meet with Leeteuk. Time for damage control.

One.

"Go, Bewear!"

"Sawsbuck, let's mess them up!"

"Houndoom, go!"

XXX

It was absolute chaos. Nine Pokémon on the field at once. Seulgi looked closely at her opponents and noted their strategies.

Daniel had sent out a Pidgeot, which could spell trouble for Bewear if it wasn't dealt with quickly. Hani had a Krookodile, and it was busy poking a claw at Wheein's Manectric.

They seemed to be going for a good mix of offensive and defensive power, and Seulgi was wary about what strategy they had under their sleeves.

Dorm Three had gone all out offensively. Jeongeyon's Bisharp was pacing back and forth, analyzing weaknesses. Jihyo had gone with an Alaka