"Whoa—! That Aegislash is insane!"
From the viewing room, Wallace couldn't help blurting out in awe.
"Indeed. Its reaction speed is incredible, and the timing of that King's Shield was flawless."
Leon also nodded, impressed.
Steven's eyes gleamed with fascination. He found Aegislash oddly stylish—tempting enough to make him want to raise one himself.
"Champion Leon, how do you think Dylan's Aegislash compares to yours?" Steven asked curiously, since Leon's Aegislash was also well-known.
Leon thought a moment, then chuckled. "Hard to say without battling it myself. But Dylan's Aegislash clearly hits like a truck."
"Exactly. Even if Lucario isn't the bulkiest, that Sacred Sword was heavy. You could see it from the way Lucario cratered the ground."
Alder nodded in agreement. "Yeah. The weight behind that slash was terrifying."
"Funny, Dylan's actually using pretty 'proper' Ghost-types today," Alder added with a smirk. "But they're still ridiculously strong."
Everyone knew Dylan's usual Ghost, Poison, or Dark-types leaned toward trickery—status, traps, and mind games.
His whole style was torment.
But Gholdengo and Aegislash? Those were straight-up, frontal combat Pokémon.
"And still just as hard to handle," Steven pointed out. "I wonder what Cynthia will bring out to counter it."
Aegislash was an absolute nightmare in battle—more so given how high-leveled Dylan's clearly was.
On the battlefield.
"Porygon-Z!"
After careful thought, Cynthia made her call, throwing her fourth Poké Ball.
Spiritomb technically had the type advantage, but it was too slow, and unlike Gholdengo, Aegislash had aerial mobility.
Light flashed—and a digital, toy-like bird Pokémon materialized before her.
Porygon-Z, the final stage of the Porygon line.
Beep~ Porygon-Z. Normal-type. Virtual Pokémon.
Ability: Adaptability.
Moves: Hyper Beam, Zap Cannon, Lock-On, Tri Attack, Recover…
Entry: Additional programming was added to improve it, but strangely, its behavior became erratic instead.
"Cynthia has a Porygon-Z?" Lillie gasped softly. She'd never even heard of that before—clearly, this was one of Cynthia's secret-trained Pokémon.
"Normal typing doesn't help much against Aegislash. She must be planning to rely on super-effective coverage."
Blue analyzed aloud. Rare as Porygon-Z was, Dylan himself owned one as well.
And she knew—Porygon-Z's special attack was monstrous.
"…Going for a head-on clash?" Dylan raised a brow.
Not that he was surprised Cynthia had a Porygon-Z—her roster had long since diverged from the original stories. Even in the Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl Champion battle, she'd carried one.
"Let's say hello then. Flash Cannon!"
Aegislash's blade gleamed with metallic light before launching a searing cannon of steel at Porygon-Z.
"Dodge it! Use Conversion!"
Cynthia commanded sharply.
Porygon-Z weaved past the blast, its surface flickering until lightning-patterns traced across its body.
Conversion—Porygon's signature move, allowing it to change its typing.
It had become Electric-type.
"Clever," Dylan chuckled. "But now you're vulnerable to Ghost moves."
He understood instantly—Cynthia was banking on Electric STAB, amplified further by Adaptability.
Her Porygon-Z's electric attacks would hit like a thunderstorm.
"I don't need immunity," Cynthia replied coolly. "I just need to overpower it. Thunder!"
A colossal lightning bolt crashed down toward Aegislash.
"King's Shield."
Dylan wasn't about to take it head-on.
A shimmering shield flared. Thunder cracked against it, sparking furiously, but failed to break through.
"Discharge!" Cynthia pressed, relentless.
Sure, King's Shield blocked—but could Dylan keep that up forever?
Sparks erupted across the field as Porygon-Z unleashed its wide-area attack.
"…Move." Dylan's tone shifted.
Aegislash slid aside in shield form, trying to dodge. But Discharge blanketed the entire arena, making evasion nearly impossible.
A Stealth Rock detonated under Aegislash as it shifted—though the damage was minor thanks to its bulk, the brief stagger gave Porygon-Z an opening.
"Flash Cannon!"
Even so, Dylan had Aegislash immediately counter, blade glowing as it fired.
Boom!!
The attacks collided in midair, exploding into a shockwave that shoved even Aegislash back.
"Thunderbolt!"
Cynthia capitalized instantly, electricity lancing forward.
"King's Shield."
Again, the barrier caught it, sparks sizzling across the shield.
"Dylan's on the defensive," Blue muttered, a bit surprised.
"Yeah. Porygon-Z's electric offense is too much right now," Giovanni observed. "Aegislash doesn't have the right tools to push back."
With Adaptability and STAB, those electric moves were absurdly strong—Porygon-Z was essentially a living artillery cannon.
Aegislash could hit hard in Blade Form, but Sacred Sword wasn't suited for stopping lightning. And as a Fighting move, it lacked STAB anyway.
"Most importantly," Giovanni added, "Aegislash can't even get close."
That was the real issue. Porygon-Z wasn't built for melee, but Aegislash simply didn't have the speed to reach it—especially not with hazards like Stealth Rock on the field.
Dylan tried forcing a push, even cleaving through a Zap Cannon with Sacred Sword—but the resulting explosion threw Aegislash back, right into the rocks, where it was promptly caught by Discharge.
"…Return." Dylan withdrew Aegislash decisively.
"Well done, Cynthia. You actually managed to pin down my Aegislash," he admitted with a chuckle. "That's no easy feat."
"Against you, Dylan, I have to push myself past my own limits," Cynthia replied with a faint smile.
"Heh. Then let's see how you handle this one."
Dylan flicked out another Poké Ball.
"Flutter Mane!"
A screech tore the air as the ancient paradox Pokémon emerged—floating like a giant, ghastly Mismagius, crimson eyes gleaming, ghostly hair writhing around it.
Beep~ Flutter Mane. Ghost/Fairy-type. Paradox Pokémon.
Ability: Protosynthesis.
Moves: Perish Song, Moonblast, Pain Split, Shadow Ball, Mystical Fire…
Entry: A mysterious Pokémon resembling a creature from an ancient book, known as Flutter Mane.
"Flutter Mane…" Cynthia's eyes narrowed.
Dylan grinned. "One of the finest Ghost-types I've ever trained. Though I haven't yet used it in an official match. Today feels like the right time."
He recalled it immediately, however—then raised his arm.
Cynthia's brows furrowed. She recognized that gesture—
The Dynamax Band on Dylan's wrist blazed crimson, energy swirling and funneling into the Poké Ball.
Once. Twice. Thrice!
The ball swelled massively, glowing with condensed power.
Energy points had been set up across every major stadium, Cynthia knew—but she hadn't expected Dylan to be the first to unleash it here.
Clearly, he was truly enjoying this fight.
"Flutter Mane."
He hurled the colossal ball skyward.
With a roar, the Ghost-Fairy emerged, body expanding, swelling, glowing scarlet until it towered monstrously over the field.
Three ominous red clouds swirled above its head as it shrieked.
"Woo—!!"
The crowd went wild, shaken by the sheer visual impact of Dynamax. Seeing a Pokémon enlarged to such scale in person was overwhelming.
"…So he's Dynamaxing."
Cynthia exhaled slowly, pressure weighing down on her chest.
Flutter Mane—already one of the strongest special attackers in existence. With Dynamax moves on top of that…
Could her Porygon-Z possibly endure?
(End of Chapter)