Chapter 125: Battle against Lorelei (Part 1)
Lorelei pulled out a Poké Ball and, looking across at Ryan, said, "Ryan, although we have a good relationship, I won't go easy on you in an Elite Four battle."
"I wouldn't have it any other way," Ryan said, holding up an Ultra Ball.
Then, they both threw their Poké Balls simultaneously, and onto the field appeared Zeraora and Dewgong. Ryan nodded: "I have a slight type advantage."
"Zeraora, Plasma Fists!" Ryan shouted.
Zeraora instantly transformed into a streak of light and charged at Dewgong. Its incredible speed created a sonic boom through the air, and it instantly reached Dewgong, bringing down a fierce right fist.
"Dewgong, Aqua Ring, defend!" Lorelei entered combat mode, her expression turning cold as she entered her focused "Ice Queen" state.
A ring of flowing water emanated from Dewgong's body, pushing Zeraora away, denying it a chance to close in. Then, an Ice Beam struck the wet Zeraora, freezing her into a block of ice.
"Overdrive mode," Ryan frowned.
The ice instantly shattered, and Zeraora entered an overcharged state, then launched a Thunderbolt at Dewgong. But a wall of ice instantly formed in front of Dewgong, blocking the Thunderbolt. Ryan sighed, "So this is the power of absolute zero ice!"
But the next second, a flash of orange-yellow lightning pierced through the air, penetrating the ice wall before striking Dewgong and sending it flying.
"What?!" Lorelei exclaimed in shock. How could this ice wall, formed with absolute zero techniques, be pierced so easily?
Looking toward where Dewgong had been struck, a chunk of ice fell from the crumbling wall, and Zeraora retracted her fist. Ryan smiled. As a former Earthling, he knew about railguns. The modified version provided by the system was also very powerful, but its drawbacks were obvious: it required a large amount of concentrated electricity, had a long charge time, and was easily interrupted.
But its advantages were also clear: powerful and highly penetrating. Against anything that wasn't a tank, it was practically a one-hit KO.
Dewgong, clearly a defensive Pokémon, climbed to its feet, panting heavily. Lorelei frowned and said, "Rest!"
Dewgong instantly fell asleep, its HP fully restored. Ryan didn't care; the sleeping Dewgong was just a sitting target! Zeraora's body flashed with electricity, drawing countless iron particles from the ground, forming them into a fist-sized iron ball.
Ryan smiled. Just a small amount of iron particles in the ice had been enough to nearly defeat Dewgong, let alone this concentrated iron ball!
Zeraora's right fist struck the iron ball fiercely, and the orange electric light that had pierced space reappeared, striking the immobilized Dewgong. Now, in its slumber, Dewgong had lost its ability to battle.
Ryan looked at the incapacitated Dewgong and thought to himself, "Lorelei's Dewgong is incredibly durable. Good thing I had the system grind ten iron weights into iron particles and hide them beneath this battlefield."
True, Ryan had prepared the field in advance, but who could deny that timing and terrain are crucial in combat? This match was scheduled at Ryan's location, so there was no reason not to employ some tactical advantages.
Lorelei looked at Zeraora, surrounded by iron particles, recalled Dewgong, and said, "Go, Jynx!"
"Zeraora, Electroweb!" Ryan said.
"Fake Out!" Lorelei commanded.
Jynx clapped her hands together with incredible speed, unleashing a wave of energy that struck Zeraora, interrupting her attack and making her flinch.
Before Zeraora could react, Jynx lunged forward, pressing her thick lips against Zeraora's face with Lovely Kiss. Zeraora instantly closed her eyes and fell into a deep sleep.
"Blizzard," Lorelei said.
After being put to sleep by Jynx's Lovely Kiss, Jynx hit Zeraora point-blank with Blizzard, dealing heavy damage and nearly waking her up. Then, Jynx unleashed a Wake-Up Slap, sending Zeraora flying.
Zeraora clutched her stinging face, her fury ignited. Without Ryan's command, she transformed into a blur, charging toward Jynx and engaging in Close Combat.
But Jynx instantly used Trick Room, reversing the speed mechanics. Jynx dodged Zeraora's attack, then unleashed a Shadow Ball that sent Zeraora flying, rendering her unable to battle.
Ryan recalled Zeraora, thinking to himself, "Damn!" He'd forgotten about Trick Room, a move that makes slow Pokémon faster and fast ones slower.
His speed advantage was instantly negated. Ryan considered for a moment and released Aerodactyl. Now he had to rely on Aerodactyl's Solid Origin essence to outlast the Trick Room and defeat Jynx.
"Jynx, Mean Look," Lorelei said, "then Perish Song."
Ryan frowned. Did she see through his strategy? Then there was only one option!
"Aerodactyl, Roar!" Ryan commanded.
The Mean Look struck Aerodactyl, then Aerodactyl's Roar forced Jynx back into her Poké Ball. A Weavile appeared on the field.
"Aerodactyl, Hyper Beam!" Ryan said.
Weavile was also a speed-focused attacker, not much slower than Aerodactyl, and within the Trick Room, it was no faster than Aerodactyl either. So, Ryan simply went with a turret strategy!
"Weavile, Quick Attack, Taunt!" Lorelei commanded.
Weavile, leveraging the bonus of Trick Room, moved swiftly, dodging Aerodactyl's rapid-fire Hyper Beams. At the same time, it made faces at Aerodactyl, using Taunt to prevent it from using status moves.
But Ryan didn't need status moves at all; Aerodactyl's rapid-fire Hyper Beams were his best offense!
"Icicle Crash!" Lorelei shouted.
A large number of ice spikes formed above Aerodactyl's head, then hurled themselves down at it. But Aerodactyl paid no heed. With its Solid Origin essence, type advantages were irrelevant; it only took neutral or reduced damage. The pause between Weavile's Icicle Crash gave Aerodactyl its perfect opportunity to attack.
A Hyper Beam blasted Weavile away, followed by a series of hits that left it crying out in pain.
Lorelei, seeing no other option, quickly recalled Weavile and sent out Lapras, saying, "Lapras, Mist, then Ice terrain!"
Lapras unleashed a vast expanse of white mist, covering the entire field. Then, using its absolute zero ice techniques, the entire field transformed into an icy battlefield. Watching Lapras slow down, Aerodactyl gave a predatory grin: "The Trick Room has worn off!"
"Rock Tomb, block its path!" Ryan declared.
Aerodactyl roared, and countless rocks rained down from the sky, landing on the icy battlefield. Lapras's speed on ice was incredibly fast, and none of the rocks from Rock Tomb hit it directly.
Blaine, standing outside the field, narrowed his eyes and whispered, "Ryan is incredibly tactical. The placement of these rocks has practically blocked all of Lapras's paths across the ice, instantly reducing its mobility."
Lorelei also noticed this and said, "Rain Dance!"
"Sandstorm!" Ryan had no intention of giving Lorelei any advantage.
Rain increases Sheer Cold's accuracy? Ryan smiled. "I learned that trick ages ago!"
(End of Chapter)
If you enjoyed this chapter, leave a Power Stone or Review!
P@atreon/Soulforger (45+ advanced chapters)
Buy me coffee - ko-fi*com/soulforger01