"Cacturne, enter the storm and observe using your Sand Veil ability," Ethan ordered quickly.
Cacturne's ability was perfect for this kind of situation: inside a sandstorm, it could move stealthily and detect enemies with ease.
"Cac!" Cacturne responded firmly before throwing itself into the storm. Its figure was gradually swallowed by the sand until it vanished.
Boom!
However, just a few seconds after entering, a loud explosion echoed. Cacturne's body came flying out of the storm, crashing violently against the ground.
"What happened?" Ethan ran toward him in alarm. Seeing he wasn't seriously hurt, he sighed in relief, though his expression turned serious as he looked at the raging storm ahead.
Fuuuh—
At that moment, the winds intensified brutally, raising towering columns of sand that swirled with fury.
"Yadon!"
Slowking immediately stepped forward, placing itself between Ethan and the raging winds. Its eyes lit up with a blue glow, and a thick psychic shield materialized in front of them, blocking the avalanche of sand.
"Cac!" Cacturne shouted, standing back up, its gaze fixed on the interior of the storm.
Fuuuh—
The wind became even wilder, the sand spinning into whirlwinds that rushed directly toward them. In the blink of an eye, Ethan and his Pokémon were completely engulfed in a sea of golden dust.
"There's a Pokémon inside the storm controlling the sand!" Ethan said in shock. "It can't be... one capable of manipulating the weather?"
His expression hardened.
"What kind of Pokémon could it be...?"
Sensing the danger, Cacturne sank its roots into the ground using Ingrain. Thick roots sprouted from the earth and wrapped around him like a living armor.
Boom boom boom!
The ground shook violently.
A gigantic shadow slowly emerged from the storm.
"A Gigalith!" Ethan exclaimed in surprise.
Before him appeared a Pokémon formed by a massive central rock surrounded by four dark blue blocks. Sharp-edged orange crystals jutted out of its body, and its triangular legs were connected by thick gray joints.
"A Gigalith... and it looks like it has the Sand Stream ability," Ethan said, his eyes gleaming. Not only had he found an extremely rare Pokémon, but also one capable of controlling an entire storm.
But before he could get more excited, a familiar sound made him stop.
Shhhh—
Beside the Gigalith, another identical figure emerged. And behind them, three Boldore and five Roggenrola peeked their heads out of the sand.
"A whole family... and all of them definitely have Sand Stream," Ethan said, frowning.
He now understood the origin of the storm: the phenomenon was caused by the concentration of so many weather-ability Pokémon in a single place.
In such cases, weather changes became violent and uncontrollable, which was why the Pokémon League classified these species as disaster beasts.
"This just got complicated..." Ethan muttered.
Ten Pokémon before them, and the storm intensifying.
Slowking and Shellder reinforced the psychic shield, trapping Ethan inside a protective barrier. But this time, Absol and Kingdra didn't stay inside: enduring the battering sand, they prepared to fight directly.
"Gigaltth!"
The two Gigalith roared in unison. Huge rocks began to float around them, then were fired at high speed like a rain of projectiles.
Shhh!
Shhh!
Shhh!
Kingdra reacted by opening its mouth and firing a barrage of compressed water projectiles. The impacts were so powerful they shattered the rocks midair.
At the same time, Cacturne expanded his Root Field, causing vine-like tendrils to burst from the ground and launch toward the Gigalith, Boldore, and Roggenrola.
But just before reaching them, the Gigalith roared and stone walls rose from the ground, blocking the roots.
Then the Boldore and Roggenrola counterattacked with Stone Edge, a rain of sharp blades that completely destroyed the remaining roots.
Finally, one of the Gigalith struck the ground with force, coating the entire surface in a layer of solid stone that prevented the roots from sprouting again.
"Zzzt!"
Meanwhile, Meltan had activated its defensive moves: Acid Armor, Harden, and Iron Defense. Its metallic body transformed into a shining blade that shot forward at high speed toward the Gigalith.
But just as it was about to strike, its body suddenly sank, veering downward and stabbing into the ground.
"Gravity?!" Ethan exclaimed.
The Gigalith had used Gravity, drastically increasing the weight of everything around it.
Ethan looked to the side: Absol, who had moved like an assassin toward the Gigalith, was also stopped cold. Its speed plummeted, and a rock struck it squarely, launching it through the air.
"Vibrava, use Gust!" Ethan shouted.
Vibrava flapped its wings and created a whirlwind that lifted from the ground, blocking most of the rocks aimed at Absol.
Boom!
At that moment, Slowking took over Shellder's defensive position and extended its hands. A spiraling Hydro Pump shot forward, blasting one of the Gigalith and sending it flying.
The attack was so sudden that neither the second Gigalith nor the Boldore managed to react.
However, due to the boost in Special Defense granted by the sandstorm to Rock-type Pokémon, the Gigalith quickly got back up, shaking off the dust as if it had taken barely any damage.
(End of chapter)