Lionel then took insect repellent powder from his backpack and sprinkled it in a neat circle around the tent. The white powder blended into the sand, keeping mosquitoes and bugs away.
After finishing outside, he crawled into the tent and dug out an inflatable fish tank he hadn't used in ages.
Camping in the desert now, it finally came in handy; having a few Pokémon sleeping beside him made the night feel safer.
After a simple dinner, Feebas swam lazily in the inflatable tank for a while, then settled down to rest.
Beldum hovered quietly by Lionel's pillow, faint psychic light dancing around it, staying alert even while resting.
Tyrunt lay near the tent's exit, pressed against the canvas. Even with eyes closed it kept watch, silently taking the night shift as guard.
Night deepened; the desert wind wailed past the rock walls, but inside the tent all was quiet.
Accompanied by the steady breathing of his Pokémon, Lionel closed his eyes; the weariness of the day melted away. Tomorrow would be a brand-new day… At first light, the desert's first sunbeam pierced the clouds and painted the rock wall gold and crimson.
Already packed, Lionel stepped out, looked at Tyrunt and Beldum, and called:
"From today, we start special training!"
Feebas stayed in the inflatable tank, eyes fixed on a video downloaded to the phone inside the tent.
It was Wallace's Milotic dazzling in a Contest.
Watching it strengthened Feebas's resolve to evolve into Milotic and let it secretly study how Milotic combines moves with grace and ingenuity.
Later it would refine those ideas and make them its own.
"Ao!"
Tyrunt growled excitedly, tiny claws raking shallow lines in the sand, red scales flashing in the morning light.
It could hardly wait; even in its dreams last night it had been rehearsing today's drills, paws still swinging.
Beldum floated overhead, its red crystalline eyes sparkling like freshly polished rubies, faint psychic ripples around it, brimming with anticipation for the so-called training.
Lionel already had Tyrunt's training plan mapped out; the rocky area nearby offered the perfect natural gym.
Boulders of every size lay scattered beneath the cliff; the biggest were two men tall, polished smooth by wind-blown sand—perfect for Tyrunt's opening warm-up.
"Warm-up starts now."
Lionel looked straight at Tyrunt:
"Your first job is to build stamina. Whether it's Sandstorm or Dragon Dance, you need endurance; if you run out of energy halfway through a move, you'll never be a top fighter."
Tyrunt gave an only-half-understanding "Ao," scraped its claws in the sand, eyes blazing, as if to say "bring it on."
Lionel pointed to the huge stones half-buried nearby.
These oval monoliths, worn smooth by years of wind, felt cool to the touch.
"See those rocks? Push them: run from the tent to that cliff wall and back, and keep going until I say stop.
Remember, no moves to break the stone—body power only. Got it?"
It was the simplest, most effective endurance drill.
Tyrunt tilted its head at the boulder, then at Lionel, lowered its head, pressed its forehead against the rock's side, and drove with all four limbs, grunting.
The boulder inched forward, leaving a shallow furrow; grains of sand squeaked beneath it.
Tyrunt's stubby legs moved steadily, each step sinking deep into the sand, every muscle engaged.
"Good, keep that rhythm."
Lionel encouraged from the side.
After all, Tyrunt had already eaten Pokémon Energy Bars and enhancers; these drills would help it quickly adapt to its strengthened body and master the changes.
Gritting its teeth, Tyrunt pushed the boulder back and forth along the edge of the oasis.
As the sun climbed, desert heat rose; beads of sweat soon dotted its scales, its breathing grew heavy, but its steps never faltered.
Beldum had its own matching training plan.
"Beldum, come here."
Lionel pointed at the boulder Tyrunt was pushing,
"Float in front of it and use Confusion to resist its movement—give Tyrunt extra resistance, like a game."
Beldum wiggled excitedly, zipped in front of the rock, red eyes locking on, a faint blue psychic glow spreading outward.
Confusion formed an invisible net that wrapped the boulder, pushing against Tyrunt's force.
Treating it as play, Beldum did its best to hinder the boulder's advance.
Tyrunt instantly felt the drag; the boulder moved only half as fast.
With an indignant "Ao," as if to say "you're making it harder," it dug in even harder.
Tyrunt's stamina drill had become an interactive game, the difficulty far higher than expected.
But Beldum wasn't having an easy time either.
Newly hatched, its energy reserves were limited; at first it had great fun and its Confusion control looked solid.
After twenty minutes, though, its red eyes dimmed and the psychic waves weakened—it was clearly running out of steam.
"Can't keep up?"
Lionel noticed, chuckled, and waved it over. "Come back and rest; you can play again in a bit."
Beldum floated back as if pardoned, eyes full of complaint, silently saying "I'm exhausted."
With the resistance gone, Tyrunt felt the boulder light as a feather, sped up, and glanced back triumphantly, tail held high in smug pride.
After a ten-minute rest, Beldum's energy had recovered; it zipped back, ready once more to "sabotage" Tyrunt.
This time it got smart, no longer pushing nonstop but timing sudden bursts of resistance that constantly broke Tyrunt's rhythm and forced constant adjustments.
It inadvertently honed Tyrunt's control over its own strength.
An hour later, Lionel finally called a halt:
"Alright, take a break."
The instant the words left his mouth, Tyrunt dropped its forehead from the boulder and flopped onto the sand.
Its chest heaved; scorching breath stirred the grains in front of its snout.
Beldum was equally spent, hovering motionlessly beside Tyrunt, crystalline eyes half-lidded, barely enough psychic power left to stay aloft.
Red eyes half-shut, it lacked even the strength to spin, maintaining only the minimum levitation.
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