Annihilape's attack missed. Togekiss completed a perfect turn, gathered Flying-type energy once more, and unleashed countless blades of wind.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Air Slash struck Annihilape, carving several wounds across its body and knocking it back to the ground.
"Togekiss, watch out for Annihilape's Rage Fist. The moment you see Ghost-type energy gathering around it, stay alert," Cynthia warned.
She knew Grey frequently had Annihilape use Rage Fist to unleash explosive bursts of power.
Rage Fist also became stronger every time its user was struck. After taking that Air Slash from Togekiss, the move's recognized base power had already risen to one hundred.
Cynthia had no choice but to warn Togekiss to remain vigilant. If a sudden Rage Fist landed, all the effort it had put into controlling the battle could be wasted in an instant.
"Toge!"
Togekiss nodded lightly. As it looked down at Annihilape, a playful gleam appeared in its eyes.
Its opponent could only move along the ground. Admittedly, it was quite good at jumping around, but when it came to true strength, Togekiss was obviously superior.
After all, it had the type advantage.
The viewers watching the stream seemed to agree that Annihilape was at a severe disadvantage.
[Gym Leader Grey keeps pulling dirty tricks. He doesn't fight like a normal human being at all!]
[Does anyone here specialize in Annihilape? Explain what Grey is trying to accomplish. Why hasn't he withdrawn it and sent out Articuno or something?]
[I think Gym Leader Grey's decisions have a deeper purpose, but I'll need to keep watching before I can figure it out.]
While the chat continued discussing the battle, Cynthia launched her next offensive.
"Togekiss, use Dazzling Gleam!"
Dazzling Gleam was a wide-range attack.
Fairy-type light shone from the red and blue markings on Togekiss's head. Multicolored energy suddenly expanded outward and swept toward Annihilape.
"Annihilape, use Phantom Force again!"
Grey was determined to keep dragging out the battle.
Annihilape disappeared from where it stood. When it reappeared, it was once again behind Togekiss, already preparing to throw a punch.
"Your first Phantom Force failed, Gym Leader Grey. Do you truly believe Togekiss will fall for the same attack the second time?"
Cynthia lightly pointed with one finger as Annihilape emerged.
"Togekiss, dodge it and use Psyshock!"
"Toge!"
Togekiss banked through the air once again. Several psychic projectiles formed beside it, locked onto Annihilape in midair, and fired simultaneously.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The glittering projectiles streaked toward Annihilape, leaving colorful trails behind them.
"Night Slash!"
Grey's sudden command rang out.
The energy around Annihilape's clenched fist transformed into a dark blade, which it swung fiercely at the incoming Psyshock projectiles.
Boom!
The attacks collided and exploded, filling the battlefield with smoke and blocking both sides' vision.
Togekiss scanned the smoke, attempting to locate Annihilape.
"Togekiss, don't worry. Use Fairy Wind," Cynthia ordered.
Her voice immediately gave Togekiss direction. It channeled Fairy-type energy into its wings and released a series of gentle gusts.
Although they appeared to be no more than a light breeze, Togekiss was exceptionally powerful. Its Fairy Wind was even more forceful than the Hurricane used by an average Pokémon.
The wind howled across the battlefield.
The smoke filling the air was instantly dispersed, revealing Annihilape.
More wounds from Fairy Wind now covered its dark body, but one of its hands was hidden behind its back in a throwing position.
"Smack Down!"
At Grey's command, Annihilape hurled the enormous rock in its hand straight at Togekiss.
The boulder was massive and incredibly fast.
Realizing that it could not evade, Togekiss released Dazzling Gleam and collided head-on with the approaching rock.
Crash!
The boulder was pulverized, scattering countless particles of dust through the air.
Togekiss immediately flapped its wings and retreated. It then fired several Air Slashes at the position where Annihilape had been standing.
It was an exceptionally smooth combination. Had Togekiss been fighting an ordinary Pokémon, its opponent would probably have already been defeated.
At the very least, its stamina would have been reduced to the point where it could no longer continue fighting.
The blades of wind struck the ground in rapid succession.
Air Slash had missed again.
Togekiss immediately sensed that something was wrong and hurriedly beat its wings in an attempt to dodge.
This time, however, it was not so fortunate.
"Anni!"
A deafening roar shook the arena.
The furious, savage-looking Annihilape descended from above and landed directly on Togekiss's back, dragging it down toward the ground.
Boom!
The entire battlefield trembled from the impact.
To prevent Togekiss from taking flight again, Annihilape instantly formed another massive rock in its palm and slammed it down against the Pokémon beneath it.
"Toge!"
Togekiss's head spun from the impact. An immense force surged through its body, leaving it feeling as though it had been filled with lead and preventing it from flying again.
In an instant, Togekiss's prized Serene Grace and Air Slash strategy was completely neutralized.
Togekiss itself was like a helpless stuffed toy, trapped beneath Annihilape and unable to resist being thrown around.
"Togekiss, use Psychic to throw Annihilape off!"
Although everything had happened in a matter of seconds, Cynthia immediately formulated a response.
"Oh, Annihilape, let Togekiss experience what it's like to have the move it needs while being unable to use it!"
Grey issued his own command.
"Anni!"
With Annihilape pinning it down, Togekiss was no longer anywhere near as agile as before.
A loud round of clapping echoed across the battlefield as Annihilape used Encore.
The Psychic energy Togekiss had only just gathered instantly dispersed.
Encore forced it to repeat Air Slash instead.
However, Togekiss was still pinned beneath Annihilape, and its wings could barely move. Being forced to flap them and use Air Slash in that position was unbearably uncomfortable.
It was like listening to the girl you liked pour out her troubles while being completely unable to comfort her, or like the clueless husband in an adult movie forced to watch his wife get a very different kind of late-night workout while he could do nothing but stare.
It hurt.
It hurt terribly.
Togekiss never imagined that Annihilape's relentless combination of moves would be so vicious.
The attacks were not dealing tremendous damage, but every single one made its current situation even more miserable.
"Annihilape, now! Use Thunder Punch!"
Grey immediately gave his next command.
"Togekiss, return!"
Cynthia raised an eyebrow and recalled Togekiss without hesitation. With her other hand, she sent her ace Pokémon, Garchomp, onto the battlefield.
"Garchomp!"
The majestic Garchomp appeared and directly intercepted Annihilape's Thunder Punch.
Annihilape's fist landed, but the Electric-type attack failed to inflict any damage whatsoever.
"Just as I expected. Your final Pokémon is Garchomp."
After seeing Cynthia withdraw Togekiss and use Garchomp as a defensive switch-in against Thunder Punch, Grey knew exactly what he needed to do next.
"Oh? Judging from your reaction, Gym Leader Grey, you already predicted which Pokémon I would use in this battle?"
The corner of Cynthia's mouth curved upward. She looked at Grey with a faint, inquisitive smile, curious to hear his explanation.
"I wouldn't call it a prediction. I merely made a few reasonable deductions," Grey answered honestly.
Against his chosen lineup, those three Pokémon offered Cynthia the highest chances of victory.
Had Grey been in Cynthia's position and known which Pokémon his opponent intended to use, he would have chosen the exact same lineup.
"And your next move will surely be to Mega Evolve Garchomp, correct?"
Grey knew which battle systems Cynthia possessed.
Under the current circumstances, she would undoubtedly Mega Evolve Garchomp.
Of course, Grey did not know whether Cynthia's Garchomp would become the familiar Mega Garchomp that lost ten points of base Speed, or transform into the newly discovered Mega Garchomp Z from Pokémon Legends: Z-A.
"Correct. Your deductions are quite accurate, Gym Leader Grey."
Cynthia took out her lipstick case, revealing the Key Stone embedded at its base, and gently touched it.
"Garchomp, soar freely! Mega Evolve!"
"Garchomp!"
A Mega Stone appeared before Garchomp and resonated with Cynthia's Key Stone.
Garchomp's form began changing within the brilliant light.
Its body became larger, while its head and shoulders grew more streamlined. Its hands and wings melted together and transformed into enormous scythe-shaped blades.
[Pokémon: Mega Garchomp]
[Type: Dragon/Ground]
[Level: 78]
[Ability: Sand Force]
[Moves: Dragon Rush, Metal Claw, Earthquake, and others]
It was Mega Garchomp.
Although Mega Garchomp lost ten points from its base Speed after Mega Evolution, its offensive power increased dramatically.
In the mainline Pokémon games, that reduction in Speed made Mega Garchomp somewhat awkward to use. In Pokémon Legends: Z-A, however, Mega Garchomp might have become one of the greatest beneficiaries of the different battle system.
The same principle applied to battles in the real world. Mega Garchomp's increased offensive power was very real.
"Garchomp, use Scale Shot!"
Garchomp might not be capable of learning Dragon Dance, but it could still learn Scale Shot.
"Garchomp!"
Upon hearing Cynthia's command, Mega Garchomp swung its scythe-shaped arms. Countless scales formed from Dragon-type energy and shot toward Annihilape.
Annihilape hurriedly dodged to the side, but several of the scales still struck it.
"Anni!"
After suffering one attack after another, Annihilape's stamina had fallen considerably. Even after dodging, it had to pause and catch its breath.
Cynthia decided to press her advantage and defeat Annihilape in one continuous offensive.
Once Annihilape was eliminated, Grey would have nothing left but an Articuno that posed little threat.
"Garchomp, use Dragon Claw!"
After using Scale Shot, Mega Garchomp was considerably faster than before. Its defense might have fallen, but that minor weakness meant little to it.
Mega Garchomp crossed the distance in an instant. Its scythe-shaped arm came crashing down toward Annihilape's head.
"Annihilape, use Counter!"
"Garchomp, stop! Switch to Dragon Tail!"
The moment Cynthia heard Grey's command, she ordered Mega Garchomp to halt its attack, unwilling to let it suffer a devastating counterattack.
"Garchomp."
Mega Garchomp nodded and dispersed the Dragon Claw it had just formed. It then swung its thick, powerful shark-like tail at Annihilape.
That brief delay gave Annihilape enough time to respond.
As Dragon Tail swept toward it, Annihilape kicked off the ground and leaped over Mega Garchomp's head, landing behind it.
A terrifying spectral fist formed around its hand.
It swung with all its strength.
Rage Fist!
At the instant Rage Fist was unleashed, Mega Garchomp's missed tail slammed violently into the battlefield.
Ground-type energy surged through its entire body and entered the floor, producing a series of powerful seismic waves that spread outward in every direction.
The two attacks reached a stalemate.
Rage Fist began to waver, while portions of the seismic wave spilled around it.
Just as the overflowing force was about to strike Annihilape, Grey raised his wrist.
A beam of red light shot from his Poké Ball and recalled Annihilape in time.
In the next instant, a bird Pokémon with sacred, elegant wings appeared on the battlefield.
"Articuno, use Blizzard!"
"Articuno!"
Articuno released a clear cry and suddenly spread its wings. A freezing blizzard swept toward Mega Garchomp.
"Garchomp, fall back! Then use Stone Edge to break through the Blizzard!"
Mega Garchomp stomped against the ground and rapidly retreated while swinging the blades on its arms.
Countless sharpened stones erupted from beneath the arena like a formation of blades. They collided with the approaching Blizzard, cutting through the freezing winds and scattered snow until the attack was torn apart.
[What the Farfetch'd? Why did that look so cool?]
[Both sides' defensive switches were flawless. Cynthia let Mega Garchomp absorb Thunder Punch, while Grey sent out Articuno to avoid the remaining shock waves from the Ground-type attack.]
[Exactly. Now it depends on whether Mega Garchomp can hit Articuno even once. If it does, Cynthia will have a very high chance of winning.]
[On the other hand, if Articuno can land several attacks on Mega Garchomp, Gym Leader Grey's chances of victory will rise dramatically.]
"Articuno?"
Articuno finally took a proper look at the opponent standing before it. When it realized that it was facing a Mega Garchomp whose strength considerably exceeded its own, it immediately began complaining to Grey.
Seriously, man? Why would you send me out against something like this? I may not be human, but you're a real Growlithe for doing this to me!
It had to fight a Mega Garchomp that was approaching battle-legend tier?
Was he serious?
"Articuno, you know how important you are," Grey said. "Of every Pokémon in the Fighting Dojo besides the major Legendary Pokémon, you pose the greatest threat to Mega Garchomp. That makes you crucial to this battle."
Seeing that Articuno was nearly ready to give up on the spot, Grey hurriedly encouraged it, emphasizing that it was the most important Ice-type Pokémon in the entire match.
Articuno was immediately delighted.
"Articuno!"
Grey, you don't have to say anything else! I already know how important I am!
Articuno grinned before angrily screeching at Mega Garchomp.
"Articuno!"
You four-times-weak-to-Ice bastard! One Blizzard from me will send you straight to the Pokémon Center!
Mega Garchomp stared at it.
This bird certainly talked big.
The two Pokémon continued glaring at each other and trading insults, but neither one made the first move.
In a certain sense, each of them was extremely vulnerable to the other.
A single Stone Edge from Mega Garchomp could send Articuno straight to the Pokémon Center.
Likewise, one Blizzard from Articuno would leave Mega Garchomp in terrible condition.
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.