"Metagross is very tenacious, but it hasn't managed to land a single effective attack. If this keeps up, it's only a matter of time before it goes down," the announcer explained.
Metagross had already taken three clean hits from Gardevoir. Even with its high resistance and a Light Screen reducing the damage, there was no way it could hold on forever.
"Metagross, rotate your body and use Flash Cannon," Tyson ordered.
Bang!!
Metagross spun its body and fired Flash Cannon, trying to sweep the entire field so Gardevoir would have nowhere to run—and so its Double Team clones would be wiped out at the same time.
"Use Psychic to reflect Metagross's attack back. Aim for the gap on its head."
Gardevoir unleashed a massive surge of psychic power, bending the Flash Cannon back on itself and slamming it into Metagross's forehead.
Boom!!
"What?!"
Tyson looked horrified, his eyes nearly popping out of his head. He couldn't believe Gardevoir had used Psychic to reflect Metagross's own move back at it. That required an enormous amount of mental strength.
"Mystical Fire!"
Gardevoir followed up with Mystical Fire, and the flames engulfed Metagross mercilessly.
Bang!!
Metagross groaned in pain, its stamina steadily reaching its limit. When the flames finally dissipated, Metagross lay collapsed on the ground, its eyes spinning in circles.
"Metagross is unable to battle. Gardevoir wins!" the referee announced.
"A Pokémon has finally been defeated—what a fierce battle this is!" Even the announcer had broken a sweat.
Nearly ten minutes into the first half, only one Pokémon had gone down. The match looked incredibly tense.
Gary didn't think much of it. If Tyson hadn't kept swapping his Pokémon out, one of them would have fallen long ago.
Among Tyson's team, only Metagross and Meowth were worth Gary's attention. The rest could be handled easily. Losing Metagross was a huge blow for Tyson.
"Sceptile, please!" Tyson threw his Poké Ball.
[LV49 Sceptile / Gym]
Tyson's Sceptile was one of his main Pokémon, but unfortunately it only had Gym-level potential. Its level had already hit that ceiling, leaving no room for further growth.
"Gardevoir, Future Sight," Gary ordered.
Gardevoir immediately gathered psychic energy with Future Sight and cast it into the future. Tyson seized the moment. "Now! Quick Attack—get in close and use Leaf Blade!"
Swoosh!!
Sceptile shot forward, trailing a band of white light behind it. The blades on its wrists flared to life, and the glowing edge of condensed plant energy slashed toward Gardevoir.
Gardevoir's eyes were closed. Just as the Leaf Blade was about to connect, she suddenly slipped aside, and the blade cut through empty air before striking the ground.
Sceptile was startled, but there was no time to be surprised. It hurriedly swung its Leaf Blade again, but Gardevoir stepped back quickly and dodged once more.
Seeing Sceptile winding up for another strike, Gary ordered, "Psychic."
The Leaf Blade was about to come down on Gardevoir's head when her eyes snapped open—and the blade froze in midair, locked in place.
"Quick! Use Bullet Seed!" Tyson shouted urgently.
But it was too late. Sceptile had barely opened its mouth when a powerful burst of psychic force erupted, blasting it backward.
Sceptile hit the ground, pain shooting through its back. It didn't have Metagross's high resistance, and its defenses weren't as sturdy, so the damage was far more serious.
"Mystical Fire!" Gary ordered.
Gardevoir traced a circle with her right hand, and scorching flames poured from the ring, forming a ball of fire that raced toward Sceptile.
"Double Team!"
Sceptile used Double Team to evade the Mystical Fire and prepared to close in on Gardevoir for a counterattack.
Crack!!
Just as Sceptile charged, a bolt of energy fell from the sky like lightning and struck it dead-on—Future Sight had arrived.
"Zhaa!!"
Sceptile cried out, staggered to a halt, pitched forward, and collapsed to the ground, its eyes spinning.
"Sceptile is unable to battle. Gardevoir wins!" the referee announced.
Two of Tyson's Pokémon were down, leaving him with four. The Hariyama and Altaria he'd sent out earlier were both at a disadvantage against Gardevoir, so he would most likely bring out something new.
"Hariyama, back onto the field!" Tyson sent Hariyama out again.
"Hari…" After resting in its Poké Ball for a while, Hariyama's breathing had steadied considerably, but the damage it had taken earlier hadn't recovered.
"He wants to save his fighting strength for the second half," Gary remarked.
Tyson was trying to preserve his strongest pieces for later, but it was pointless. He'd have been better off committing his best Pokémon to the first half—then he might at least have taken down one of Gary's.
Spread out evenly like this, Tyson wouldn't get the chance to defeat even a single one.
"End this. Psychic," Gary ordered.
Gardevoir used Psychic, and the powerful psychic blast slammed into Hariyama, hurling its massive body clear off its feet.
Bang!
Hariyama crashed to the ground, eyes spinning, already unconscious.
"Hariyama is unable to battle. Gardevoir wins!"
"Three of Tyson's Pokémon are unable to battle. We now begin the halftime break."
The first half was over.
In the stands—
"Tyson's no match for Gary at all. He couldn't even take down one Pokémon," Max said helplessly.
Max admired Gary, but he knew Tyson personally and had hoped he'd put up a better showing. Unfortunately, the entire first half had passed without Tyson defeating a single one of Gary's Pokémon.
"Don't worry, Tyson's Meowth hasn't come out yet. Right, Ash?" May said.
"I'd like to see Tyson do better too, but he's definitely losing this match," Ash said.
Even though he hadn't battled Gary's current Pokémon himself, Ash knew exactly where Tyson's strength stood, and he didn't think Tyson could win.
"Man, Gary's just too strong. With him in the Conference, the other competitors barely stand a chance," Brock sighed.
Brock had watched all three of Gary's League Conferences and found him genuinely well-rounded. Even his newly raised Pokémon were stronger than most of the Conference's competitors.
The ten-minute break ended, and the second half began.
"Gary completely dominated the first half. Can Tyson stage a comeback in the second? Let's see what field awaits us!" the announcer said.
On the big screen, the cursor spun around the venue wheel before finally stopping on a snowflake icon.
An ice field.