After Ethan Black and Sarah Anderson arrived at the battlefield, very soon, under the staff's organization, they released Cacnea and Cubone.
Then, the staff took out a device similar to headphones and placed it on both Cacnea and Cubone, also handing a walkie-talkie to Ethan Black and Sarah Anderson.
"Looks like we'll have to give commands from a distance," commented Ethan Black, somewhat surprised, while fiddling with the walkie-talkie in his hand and watching Cacnea and Cubone being guided toward the battlefield.
Shortly after, as more and more participants arrived, several Pokémon began entering the field and, under the remote direction of their trainers, each took position.
"All participants, get ready! The battle... begins now!"
With the referee's announcement, shouts and cheers erupted among the crowd.
However, after the initial euphoria, the spectators saw that the Pokémon on the field weren't moving, instead looking around cautiously.
Evidently, the rules of a free-for-all battle meant that no trainer dared to act first, for fear that their Pokémon would become the target of a joint attack and be instantly defeated.
Even so, some Pokémon, though seemingly doing nothing, had already started using boosting moves like Focus Energy under their trainers' orders, secretly strengthening themselves.
Cacnea was no exception. Under Ethan Black's instructions, it quietly used Ingrain. At the same time, Sarah Anderson had Cubone position itself in front of Cacnea to protect him and cover any anomaly caused by the Ingrain move.
Then, Cacnea's roots began spreading across the field, slowly covering the ground.
"Damn, that Scyther's using Swords Dance! Quick, everyone, focus it before it's too late!"
At that moment, a trainer shouted, attracting everyone's attention.
Seeing that Scyther was indeed boosting itself, all the trainers began ordering their Pokémon to surround it.
Immediately, a barrage of attacks fell upon the poor Scyther, sending it flying through the air until it was knocked out in seconds.
"Scyther is unable to battle!" announced the referee without delay.
Right after, a Grumpig that was guarding at the edge of the field used the move Psychic to remove Scyther from the field.
Scyther's trainer's partner, resigned, also returned their Pokémon to its Poké Ball.
Such were the rules of this competition: if one partner's Pokémon was knocked out, both were eliminated.
Boom boom boom!
Scyther's entry into battle was like lighting the fuse of a bomb: Pokémon began clashing in impromptu duels, and crossfire attacks flew all over the field.
This led to many collateral hits, and more Pokémon began to lose control, attacking any opponent in sight.
In that chaos, a Persian that didn't know what it was doing charged directly toward Cacnea and Cubone, using the move Slash.
"Cacnea, use roots!" ordered Ethan Black, his expression turning serious. He wasn't about to let Persian get close.
From the ground, hidden roots quickly emerged, stretching toward Persian to entangle it.
"Persian, use Slash to tear through those roots!" shouted its trainer upon seeing it trapped, mistakenly thinking it was the move Vine Whip.
But before Persian could swing its claws, Cubone had already leapt into the air. Its bone club glowed brightly as it brought it crashing down right on Persian's head.
Boom!
With a thud, Persian's eyes rolled white and its head spun like a top.
"Absorb!" ordered Ethan Black, taking advantage of the enemy's daze.
Cacnea activated Absorb at full power. The roots grew nonstop, quickly stealing Persian's energy.
When Cacnea released its roots, Persian had already fainted. The referee immediately declared the result: another two trainers eliminated!
"That Cacnea is trouble, we have to focus it down now!" shouted a trainer upon seeing how easily Cacnea and Cubone had defeated Persian.
His Golduck launched Water Gun at Cubone as the opening strike.
But just as the water jet was about to hit, three roots burst from the ground, intertwining to successfully block the attack.
"Bonemerang!" ordered Sarah Anderson.
Cubone hurled its bone like a boomerang wrapped in Ground-type energy, striking Golduck hard and sending it flying.
Right after that, Cacnea fired a barrage of Magical Leaf at the same target.
But Golduck's trainer's partner didn't sit still. In a flash of fire, a Magcargo used Flamethrower, burning the leaves to ashes.
"Golduck with Magcargo... you two are strong as well," said Ethan Black with a mocking smile as he looked at the rival duo.
The other trainers, upon hearing his words, changed expressions. Without saying anything, they began retreating little by little, leaving the field open for the two teams to fight each other.
From their point of view, both the Cacnea-and-Cubone pair and the Golduck-and-Magcargo pair were too powerful.
If they could let them clash first and then swoop in to finish off, that would be the best strategy.
"Looks like there's no other choice," said Ethan Black. "Sarah, have Cubone look after himself. I'll take care of this."
At that moment, Cacnea began glowing with a green light. Several roots extended from the ground.
To everyone's astonishment, eight roots burst from the soil, suddenly wrapping around Golduck.
Golduck, with no time to react, was completely ensnared. The roots began glowing green: Absorb had activated, draining its life force without pause.
(End of Chapter)