As soon as the referee lowered the flag, Dae's golden gaze had a new spark of determination. Before he could even start, the new trainer caught a blur of lavender traveling up at a frightening rate. As soon as the gym leader spoke those two words, the trainer yanked his buttoned sleeves up to his elbows, causing a single button to pop off. But he didn't seem to care. The venomoth was very high above them, and as he caught sight of its rapid wing beats, Dae clenched his left hand into a fist. That was sleep powder! He wasn't standing in range of the attack since he was at the edge of the battlefield, but Rogue would be caught dead in it! Would be, if Dae didn't do something about it! 

"C'mon, Rogue, let's dance!" He spoke loudly, just short of yelling. There was a hint of urgency in his voice, though it was hidden well. The bipedal dark and ice type smirked in response. There were many good things about having a brother who was so clever, and so very eager to help him out. Arguably, though, the best part was it gave Dae the push he needed to make his own strategies. Though he wasn't competition for Nova, he would be. If he worked hard enough. "Swords dance!" He roared. Rogue began to move like he was in some kind of strange ritual to lift his spirits. The cloud of sleep-inducing powder soon descended on the sneasel, who was unable to resist. The little pokemon fell down abruptly in a heap. 

However, Dae didn't seem panicked in the slightest. He rested a hand on the narrow brim of his fedora, then trailed it down the ribbon. He loved the clean feeling. "Now..." He said in a low voice. "Sleep talk!!" Suddenly, Rogue lazily stood up. Suddenly, in a flash, the little pokemon sprang up in a flash, and quickly launched an unavoidable strike so fast not even the air could part in time. It appeared Rogue used aerial ace. Just as soon as it happened, it was over. Rogue was back on the dirt floor, eyes still closed. He was standing, but was swaying a little. Dae scanned the battlefield, looking for the venomoth. He soon smiled, teeth shining when he realized that maybe he would have a fighting chance!