An icy white gale swept across the entire arena, scattering white snowflakes and ice crystals into every corner. Snow settled grain by grain upon the rocks. This Blizzard created a noticeable resistance against Heracross's charge, forcing its speed to drop slightly, though the effect was limited. As the distance closed, the Stone Edge launched by Nidoking arrived. Sharp stones struck Heracross's head and horn in rapid succession; their sheer number and velocity dealt a fair amount of damage.
Fortunately, Heracross's natural defense was high enough to endure the onslaught during its charge. Combined with its existing momentum, the drop in speed remained manageable. A dense thicket of jagged rocks had coalesced in front of Nidoking, and as they fired, they looked like a massive brown wave surging toward Heracross. Perhaps feeling insecure, Nidoking stomped the ground once more, generating even more stones to launch at its foe.
Bang! Bang!
Innumerable rocks were shattered upon impact. Heracross's speed was impacted as it plowed through the stone barriers, finally reaching Nidoking's face. Seeing Heracross about to collide, Asen spoke:
"Nidoking, Shadow Claw! Catch it!"
"Niga~!"
Auras of energy swirled around Heracross. When it was only a few meters away, Nidoking felt the oncoming pressure of the energy fluctuations. Nidoking tilted its body slightly as the claws on its arms suddenly transformed into giant talons of black energy. It slashed twice in front of its chest, forming a black cross in the air.
The black cross flashed briefly just as Heracross finally slammed in. Nidoking thrust its claws forward, meeting Heracross's horn head-on. With its muscles bulging, Nidoking swung its claws with all its might to intercept the horn.
Thud!
Heracross's horn was blocked by Nidoking's massive black claws, but Nidoking felt a titanic force transfer through its arms. Suddenly, its body was no longer under its own control.
No, I must hold on! I have to stand my ground!
No matter how Nidoking roared in its heart, its body was still repelled by the counterforce. Its feet carved two deep furrows into the ground as it slid back four or five meters before stopping. A dull ache radiated through its arms, and its head throbbed.
Nidoking wasn't the only one suffering; Heracross felt the recoil as well. Its head was buzzing and in pain, but Eichi, watching from the sidelines, was not about to let this opportunity slip away.
"Heracross, Horn Attack!"
Heracross shook its head to clear its mind, then buzzed its wings to charge Nidoking again.
"Nidoking, Fire Blast!"
Asen remained perfectly calm; even with Nidoking being pushed back, he showed little reaction.
"Niga~!"
A massive sphere of red energy gathered in Nidoking's mouth. It stretched its body, tilted its head toward the incoming Heracross, and spat the energy out. The sphere traveled only a few meters before bursting into a "大" shaped flame. Heat waves rolled toward him, and Eichi felt that Heracross might not actually be able to block this.
"Heracross, Double Team!"
Sensing the scorching heat, Heracross instantly multiplied from one into many. Countless copies of Heracross formed a circle, surrounding Nidoking. The Fire Blast struck one of the illusions, causing it to vanish instantly while the flames flew off into the distance and dissipated. In the blink of an eye, the gap was filled by other copies.
"Heracross, Swords Dance and Horn Attack!"
The numerous illusions began to spin rapidly as they closed in on Nidoking. Nidoking looked left and right, unable to distinguish which Heracross was the real one.
"Nidoking, cover the field with Stone Edge!"
Hearing its master's order, Nidoking stopped panicking. It slammed its foot heavily onto the ground.
Thump!
Countless stones splashed upward, automatically sharpening themselves as they shot out toward every copy of Heracross in the vicinity. One by one, the illusions vanished upon being hit. The number of copies dwindled rapidly. Within seconds, nearly all of them were gone.
In Nidoking's eyes, every Heracross had vanished. At that exact moment, Asen's voice rang out.
"Nidoking, behind you!"
Nidoking stiffened and immediately tried to turn. It had only turned slightly when a sudden, sharp pain erupted from its back. Unable to bear it, Nidoking let out a roar of agony, which simultaneously triggered its survival instincts. Its eyes bulged with rage as it spun around violently, using immense strength to grab Heracross's horn.
"Thunderbolt!"
Electricity surged from Nidoking's body, madly striking Heracross. This hit dealt massive damage. While it wasn't as potent as Sato's Electivire, the power was still extraordinary.
Eichi frowned. Something is wrong. The power of that Thunderbolt was too high, just like the earlier Flamethrower. Looking at Nidoking's move execution, its accuracy wasn't great, suggesting its mastery over move control wasn't particularly high.
Is it the Sheer Force ability? Eichi noted the repeated use of secondary-effect moves. He guessed that this Nidoking was likely built for a "Sheer Force Special Attacker" strategy. The Sheer Force ability removes secondary effects of moves to boost their raw power, which would explain why the Flamethrower and Thunderbolt were so devastating.
"Yakkuru!"
Heracross was heavily wounded. Eichi knew it was time for a final gamble, or Heracross would certainly lose.
"Heracross, Close Combat!"
Heracross looked at Nidoking with a distorted, ferocious expression. Images of its training in the Battle Hall flashed through its mind. It saw itself being besieged by four robots, its own attacks becoming faster and more ruthless without tire. Since it couldn't fly in those simulations, it had to endure constant attacks, its body covered in wounds. No matter how much pain it felt, it couldn't lose consciousness for even a second. It had to counterattack with maximum force in the shortest time possible. In that memory, the wounded Heracross erupted with a massive energy surge, slammed its horn into a robot to toggle its switch, and then turned to the others. In just over ten seconds, it had shut down all four robots.
Back in reality, Heracross's entire body erupted with immense energy. Power gathered in its horn and hands, and a red shroud of energy enveloped its body. With a violent swing, its arms became a blur of afterimages. With one strike, it knocked Nidoking's arms aside and lunged into its chest.