Chapter 22
"First Impression."
The order was so fast, Ash didn't have time to call out a counter-attack. "You alright?"
"That hurt a lot," Latios shook the dirt off his feathers and re-activated his levitation. "I'll be fine though,"
Ash could tell another hit like that would mean the end for Latios. But since Pinsir was a physical attacker, he might be able to negate some of the damage. "Use Reflect!"
"Brick Break."
Ash groaned as Pinsir smashed through the barrier Latios had set up. The move did little damage, but it smashed straight through the reflect. Time to change tactics. "Use Dragon Pulse!"
"X-Scissor, straight through,"
Ash instantly realized his mistake as Pinsir took the Dragon Pulse and slashed Latios directly in the face. The Eon Pokémon gave a final cry and fell the the ground.
So that was that. "Latios, you did amazing," Ash returned the downed eon to his Pokeball. Ash took a deep breath. "Well, you're all I have left, Latias."
"I'll do my best," Latias took a deep breath, gave Ash a light nuzzle, then uncloaked and flew onto the battlefield.
"Pinsir, use Guillotine."
"Quick Latias, dodge!" Ash yelled, knowing the move would knock her out instantly if it hit. Thankfully, Guilotine wasn't very accurate, and Latias easily dodged it.
"Use Bind."
"Dragon Claw!" But Ash's command was a moment too late. The Guillotine had only been a distraction for Pinsir to sneak up behind Latias.
Latias cried out as she tried, but failed, to break free from thick vines that tightened around her.
"Swords Dance, finish this."
"Latias, Mist Ball! Get out of there quick!" Ash went over every way Latias could escape her current predicament.
Latias fired her attack, but instead of the familiar ball of mist, a pink, fairy-like energy shot out of Latias' mouth as a powerful, sad sound rang throughout the battlefield.
The attack slammed into Pinsir before it could react, causing it to double over in pain and begin hitting itself in confusion. With Pinsir's attention diverted, Latias used her claws to tear the weakened vines to pieces.
"Latias… that was amazing!" Ash praised. "What attack was that?"
Latias shrugged. "I don't know, it just came to me, I guess."
Ash pulled out his Pokedex. "What was that attack called?"
"Alluring Voice: The user attacks the target using its angelic voice. This attack also confuses the target if its stats have been boosted recently." The device beeped.
Ash smiled. "Great job, Latias! Now, use Dragon Pulse!"
The blast of draconic energy slammed into Pinsir, throwing it against the wall.
"Not bad," Nigel pulled a gimering object out of his pocket. "But can you stand up to the power of my dark Pokémon in their mega form?" He snapped a black bracelet onto his arm, which glowed with a black, smoky energy. The top of the bracelet glinted with the rainbow DNA symbol.
Ash snapped on his own bracelet. "Ready, Latias?"
Latias held up her keystone. "Ready!"
The whole room lit up like a Flash in a dark cave. Beams of brilliant blue and yellow light shot between Ash and Latias while hazy black and purple light connected Nigel and Pinsir. Two bursts of energy exploded from both Pokémon, sending chunks of rock flying across the room. After a final blinding flash, the light dimmed, revealing both Pokémon in their mega forms.
~~~
"Why did they have to make such a mess?" Jessie looked at herself in horror. "My hair is completely ruined!"
Meowth wiped some dust out of his eye. "Did you guys see what I saw?"
"What is it?" James' stomach growled. "A snack? I'm starving,"
"Not a snack, you doofus," Meowth pointed at Nigel. "Look at that guy's Pokeballs."
"We already know about the dark balls," said James.
"No, look at how many there are," said Meowth.
"There's 6, what- oh…"
"Exactly," Meowth snorted. "He may be the leader of his so-called 'Team Void,' but he is disrespecting the villain's code of conduct. We can steal and cheat, but we never, ever, go against our word."
Jessie's eyes widened. "That's not all, look at the twerp, he only has 4 Pokeballs,"
"Hold up," said James, "does that mean…"
"Da twerp's Latias has to beat 3 of that guy's Pokemon," Meowth nodded. "Dat's not good."
"Do you really think nets are going to be enough?" James examined one of the ropes.
Jessie shook her head.. "It's time to pull out all the stops."
~~~
"That can't be right," Brock scratched out what seemed like his millionth attempt. "Any luck, Misty?"
"Nope." Misty tossed another piece of crumpled paper over her head, "If one of us takes ten minutes and one of us takes five minutes, by the time they go and one of them comes back, we'll only have two minutes left! Not to mention the five-minute person will have to cross again to get back."
Before Brock could reply, they were interrupted by a shout from Oak.
"What is it?" asked Birch, going over to him.
"I think I got it!"
"You have the answer?" Brock crossed out another incorrect solution and hurried over to them.
Oak held out a paper filled with a bunch of numbers, lines, and squiggles. "Let's say Brock has the one-minute ball, Misty has the two-minute ball, I have the 5-minute ball, and Birch has the 10-minute ball,"
"Why do I get the slowest one?" mumbled Birch.
Oak ignored Birch's comment, "If Brock and Misty go first, then it will take two minutes to get them across, and then Brock can come back with the lantern in one minute. Then Birch and I can go across the bridge together in 10 minutes."
"But that's already 13 minutes," interrupted Misty, "how will either of you get back in time to grab Brock?"
"That's where you come in, Misty. I see no reason why you can't go instead."
"That's it!" exclaimed Brock, "If Misty comes to get me, we can make it back just in time!"
The four of them high-fived and picked up their respective balls. Brock readied himself, took a deep breath, and grabbed the lantern.
~~~
"Latias, use Dragon Claw!"
"X-Scissor."
Latias' claw shone with draconic energy as Pinsir charged up the bug-type attack. In a moment, both Pokémon shot at each other, meeting in the center of the battlefield as their attacks struggled for dominance. Just then, Nigel snapped his fingers and Pinsir's attack suddenly broke through, knocking Latias to the ground.
"Now, Bind and finish it with Guillotine." Pinsir attacked before Latias could recover. She let out a cry of pain as the vines tightened around her.
"Latias, Dragon Pulse right below you!"
Latias mustered up the strength to launch her attack in the only direction she could while being strangled on the ground: down. She didn't know how this would help, but she trusted Ash. Besides, what did she have to lose? As she braced for the incoming attack, Latias heard an explosion right above her, followed by grunts of pain from Pinsir. Her attack had hit… but how?
"Great job, Latias! Finish it off with Draco Meteor!" called Ash as Latias shook off her bindings.
Exactly why her attack had worked dawned on her as she summoned one of the most powerful dragon-type moves; Draco Meteor. The holes that Skye had made during her attack on Houndoom were connected, which meant if an attack went in one hole, it would come out of the other.
Ash pumped his fist. "You did amazing, Latias!"
Latias smiled in relief and flew over to Ash. Halfway across the battlefield, however, something passed through her like a cold mist. She froze, helpless, as her energy was drained, and collapsed on the ground.
"Latias!" Ash rushed over to her. "What happened?"
Nigel laughed. "For someone who has a legendary Pokémon, I thought you would at least know Destiny Bond when you saw it."
Deatiny Bond… she should have known. Latias' vision was growing blurry. It was no use to try to stay awake.
Nigel smirked and pulled another Pokeball out. "Ready to be defeated?"
"I don't have any more Pokémon left," Ash mumbled.
"Why don't you fight me yourself, Latius?"
The rest was lost as Latias' eyes closed and she fell into darkness.
~~~
Thank you for reading!
If you've enjoyed this story so far, consider leaving a review and joining my Discord server! You can stay updated on my stories, chat with me and other fanfiction writers, or just hang out! (discord.gg/eX4k3bV2au) (link on my profile page if it doesn't work)
P.S. If you are reading this version of my story on any platform other than webnovel.com, you are at risk of a malware attack, or this story has been stolen, or both. If you wish to read this story in its original, safe, form, please go to https://m.webnovel.com/book/true-eons_33457776008937305. Thank you.