If Xia You had not switched Pokémon and had sent Greninja out again, Darach would still have had a fighting chance.
After all, after two battles, Darach was already very familiar with Greninja's abilities. With Greninja's stamina severely depleted as well, victory was not impossible.
But all of that vanished when Xia You replaced Greninja with Lucario.
Darach knew nothing about this particular Lucario's abilities, which meant he had to observe this Pokémon afresh and probe its strength and fighting style.
With the situation so unfavorable, his chances of turning defeat into victory were dwindling.
In contrast to Darach, Xia You seemed far more composed.
However, he did not launch a fierce assault on Staraptor right away. Instead, he let Lucario slowly adjust to this level of battle and gave it as much freedom as possible, only occasionally issuing commands when Staraptor's attacks posed a genuine threat.
With that kind of support, how could Lucario possibly lose?
Even though Darach and Staraptor gave it their all and attempted several attacks, they were either blocked by Lucario or easily dealt with by Xia You.
Finally, after more than a dozen exchanges, Staraptor made one last desperate attempt to take Lucario down with it using Brave Bird. Lucario aimed carefully and unleashed Dragon Pulse, engulfing Staraptor and snuffing out its attack before it could get going.
Before the tourists around them could feel sorry for Staraptor, Darach had already staked everything on his last remaining Pokémon, Empoleon.
Empoleon had plenty of stamina. It had taken no damage during the first battle, and after resting through two more battles, it had essentially returned to full condition.
Darach intended to pit Empoleon against Lucario, but Xia You already understood almost all of Empoleon's capabilities. How could a Pokémon he had seen through possibly cause