"Sandslash, Sand Spin Whirl!"
Once again, Ethan gave the order.
Sandslash's figure could be seen beginning to spin around itself once more.
And once again, a sandstorm began to condense around its body.
The storm did not expand outward, but instead remained surrounding Sandslash, firmly contained by an invisible force.
At the same time, Sandslash used the move Spin Drive again and charged directly at Darkrai.
This time, it could clearly be felt that Sandslash's speed was even greater. Thanks to the sandstorm weather, its Sand Rush ability was fully displayed, doubling its speed on top of its previous base!
A red silhouette flashed past. When the spectators reacted, Sandslash's figure had already appeared in front of Darkrai, and its enormous body crashed fully into it!
"What speed!"
Stefan's pupils contracted; he had no time to react.
But Darkrai was not a Mythical Pokémon for nothing. At the critical instant, it used the move Dark Void and wrapped itself in it.
Boom!
The move Super Spin Drive, powered by the Sand Rush ability, struck directly against the move Dark Void!
In an instant, the move Dark Void exploded and Darkrai's figure was sent flying. Its body, like a fluttering cloak, stabilized in the air.
"Darkrai was pushed back!"
Seeing that scene, the spectators were once again shocked.
Suddenly, some felt that it seemed strangely familiar.
After all, hadn't Darkrai been sent flying in a very similar way in the final of the Junior World Championship, when it faced Lucario?
Was it going to lose again?
That thought appeared in the minds of many spectators, and for an instant, everyone was stunned.
"Lose? How could that happen?!"
"Darkrai, Nightmare form!"
As if he had heard the murmurs of the crowd, Stefan let out a cold snort.
Seeing that, Darkrai's gaze became even deeper.
The nightmare power emanating from it could be seen transforming into the move Dark Void.
But this time, Darkrai's move Dark Void did not expand outward, but instead wrapped around itself.
Under that wrapping, the nightmare power revolved around Darkrai, while it slowly closed its eyes.
Boom!
The moment Darkrai closed its eyes, a terrifying energy erupted with a roar.
At that instant, its Bad Dreams ability was activated to the maximum.
However, that ability was not applied to the enemy, but to itself.
With the Bad Dreams ability fully opened, all of Darkrai's power was released, transforming it into the true God of Nightmares!
"The Bad Dreams ability?"
"This really is getting complicated."
Ethan let out a long sigh.
Darkrai, in that state, was much stronger than before.
If the Mega Lucario from back then had faced a Darkrai like this, it would undoubtedly have lost.
"It seems I can no longer hold anything back!"
"Sandslash, use Defense Curl!"
Hearing Ethan's order, Sandslash nodded seriously.
Immediately afterward, it raised one hand and released an invisible force.
Under that force, the sandstorm spinning around it began to compress, forming a constantly rotating sphere of sand.
And soon, that sphere began to spin violently, becoming a sand ball that continuously attracted and absorbed the dust in the surroundings, growing larger and larger.
"Spin Drive!"
Once the sphere was formed, Ethan gave the order again.
As Sandslash consecutively applied the move Rapid Spin and the move Rollout onto the sand sphere, the entire mass began to rotate fiercely.
In the blink of an eye, that sphere created from the sandstorm became a gigantic spinning sand ball, even larger than Sandslash's own body!
This technique was precisely the result of the secondary development of the move Defense Curl, oriented toward sand control. By combining the move Defense Curl with the move Sandstorm, and adding as well the power of the moves Rapid Spin and Rollout, the strength of this spherical sandstorm had reached a terrifying level.
"Let's go, Sand Rush!"
Once the storm sphere was formed, Sandslash once again released the power of the sandstorm within itself.
Under the full activation of its Sand Rush ability, the sphere spun violently, and the power of the storm contained inside gave the feeling that it was capable of tearing apart space itself.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Seeing that monstrous sphere of sand condensed by Sandslash, Stefan hurriedly ordered Darkrai to launch the move Dark Void with all its strength.
Boom!
In an instant, both Pokémon unleashed their attacks.
Sandslash raised its arms as if holding up the weight of the world and, thanks to the Sand Rush ability, hurled the spherical storm toward Darkrai!
"Gaia Force!"
With Ethan's voice, carrying his now habitual touch of humor, the storm sphere rushed down upon Darkrai.
At the same time, Darkrai's move Dark Void in nightmare state was also launched.
In the air, both attacks collided.
And immediately, under the incredulous gaze of everyone present, the spherical storm swallowed the Dark Void and also devoured Darkrai.
"What is going on?"
Seeing that, the audience was once again left dumbfounded.
Originally, everyone had thought that, once Darkrai adopted that state, it would crush anyone.
But it had not lasted even five seconds. Its attack had been shattered head-on by Sandslash!
And, moreover, Darkrai had been devoured by that terrifying storm sphere, so its situation was completely uncertain.
"What happened to Darkrai?"
Under the tense gazes of all the spectators, the sand sphere in the sky slowly began to dissipate.
Inside it, a black silhouette fell from above and crashed heavily onto the ground.
In that instant, the entire stadium fell silent, staring motionlessly at Darkrai on the field.
On the field, the referee, after being stunned for a moment, began counting mentally, while the countdown also appeared on the big screen.
The ten seconds passed quickly.
And Darkrai still did not get up.
"Darkrai has lost the ability to battle! The victory goes to Sandslash!"
With the referee's words, the entire stadium erupted into an uproar.
After losing to Lucario, Darkrai had lost again, this time to Sandslash!
It was a Legendary, and yet now it even gave the impression of being terribly fragile!
Could it perhaps be a fake Legendary?
"But what the hell is going on?!"
On the other side, Stefan was about to go crazy.
If he had not seen Darkrai grow with his own eyes, even he himself would have begun to suspect that he had captured a cheap imitation of a Legendary.
But his reason told him clearly that it was not that his Darkrai was weak.
It was that the opponent's Sandslash was too strong!
That spherical sandstorm, reinforced by several high-level techniques, undoubtedly possessed Elite-level power. In fact, even an ordinary Elite-level Pokémon would not dare to receive such an attack head-on.
On this point, the Elite-level Trainer watching the battle from the stands was the one with the most authority to judge it: that attack, without a doubt, had already reached the level of a full-power blow from one of his main Pokémon!
(End of chapter)