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Boom!
Dewgong, still wrapped in its Aqua Jet currents, slammed straight into the wave of Bitter Malice.
The opposing Trainer leaned forward slightly, her expression tightening with hope. Zorua's Psychic had been far stronger than expected — it had put her on the back foot immediately. But if Dewgong could knock the Zorua into the pool with Aqua Jet, the momentum would shift. Zorua wasn't a Water-type. No matter how powerful her Psychic or Special Attack might be, fighting underwater was a completely different challenge.
In the Trainer's read of things, the Zorua was a glass cannon — high offense, fragile defense. That slight build didn't suggest strong physical durability. Drag her into the water and the tide would turn.
And it wasn't purely about winning, either. Being nearly one-shot by a challenger's Pokémon in the opening exchange was embarrassing. This was a Gym challenge. She had a reputation to protect.
Unfortunately, she had misread the move.
If Zorua had thrown a Fire Spin or an Inferno, countering with Aqua Jet would have been the correct call. But Bitter Malice wasn't a fire-type attack — not truly. It manifested as violet flames, but its actual nature was spiritual: a grudge-based assault that eroded the mind rather than scorching the body. And unlike a standard burn, the secondary effect it carried wasn't heat damage. It was frostbite — a bone-deep, cold-fire chill that had no business being produced by something that looked like flame.
The opposing Trainer knew that Zorua was a Hisuian variant — any seasoned Trainer would have kept up with newly documented regional forms. But David's Zorua was something else entirely. There was only one like her in the world, and David had been careful about what information he shared. The details of her exclusive moves had never been made public. Unless a Trainer had faced her directly, they were working blind.
Dewgong hit the wave of Bitter Malice and immediately knew something was wrong. By then, it was too late.
The Aqua Jet currents around its body did almost nothing. The grudge energy tore straight past them and went directly for Dewgong's mind, overwhelming it in an instant. And then — the frostbite proc triggered. Less than a fifty percent chance, and it landed anyway.
When the violet wave receded, Dewgong was left on the platform. Its mind was heavily strained from the Bitter Malice erosion, and patches of supernatural frost had spread across its body. The only thing keeping it upright at all was Snowscape — the active weather allowing its Ice Body to slowly tick its stamina back.
It wasn't enough.
"Zorua — Extrasensory. Send it out."
Zorua barely seemed to exert herself. A gentle pulse of Extrasensory lifted the barely-conscious Dewgong and deposited it cleanly outside the arena. The medical staff moved in immediately to collect it for treatment.
First match: Zorua's win.
The opposing Trainer stood still for a moment longer than she should have. When the Rotom Referee prompted her for the second Pokémon, she didn't respond right away — still processing what had just happened. It took a second reminder before she shook herself out of it and reached for her next Poké Ball.
As David had expected, the Pokémon that emerged was a Cloyster.
Cloyster Type: Water / Ice | Gender: ♀ Energy Level: 46 — Professional Stage One Ability: Skill Link | Quality: Deep Purple Held Item: Never-Melt Ice Moves: Icicle Shard, Rest, Aqua Ring, Aurora Beam, Icicle Crash, Protect, Shell Smash, Withdraw, Blizzard, Spikes, Hydro Pump, Water Gun, Razor Shell, Iron Defense, Rock Blast, Whirlpool, Icicle Spear, Surf…
Stronger than the Dewgong — notably so. And the Never-Melt Ice confirmed it. The Dewgong had been a weather setter all along, there to lay the groundwork. This was the Pokémon meant to actually end battles.
Skill Link, Shell Smash, and Icicle Spear. David nodded to himself. A clean dragon-killing combination, if given the chance to set up. He was also fairly confident now that he could guess the Trainer's third Pokémon.
For someone running a Water-type Gym challenge, she was built more like an Ice-type specialist.
"Cloyster — Spikes."
The moment Cloyster entered the field, the Trainer had it scatter a layer of Spikes across David's side of the arena. A sensible precaution — if she could punish him for switching Pokémon, it would offset some of her positional disadvantage.
It didn't change David's plans. He hadn't been considering a switch anyway.
This wasn't like his first badge challenge at the Blazing Sun Gym, where all his Pokémon had been eager for a turn. This was a routine intermediate challenge. The Sea God's Festival was the reason he had come to Donghai City — the Gym was a side trip. There was no need to drag it out.
Since clearing the Hundred Flowers Gym, David had a clear sense of where he stood. Against ordinary Professional-class Gym Trainers, Zorua alone was more than enough.
"Zorua — Nasty Plot."
While Cloyster was still scattering Spikes, dark energy curled around the Zorua. She smirked — the same expression she always wore when she knew something her opponent didn't — and her Special Attack surged sharply upward.
"Cloyster — Icicle Spear, full barrage!"
Five sharp ice spears condensed in the frigid air in front of Cloyster. With a rapid series of hisses, they launched toward Zorua in quick succession.
Snowscape was still in effect. The weather Dewgong had set lingered over the arena — snowflakes continued to fall, the temperature held well below freezing, and scattered ice floes drifted across the pool's surface. In these conditions, Cloyster's Skill Link ability meant every hit of a multi-strike move would connect at full count. Its power was at its peak.