"Doublade has lost the ability to battle, Cyclizar wins. All of Elite Four Wikstrom's Pokémon have lost the ability to battle, therefore the challenger Silas is victorious."
The referee stepped forward to confirm the result, then waved the flags in his hands and loudly announced the outcome.
"Well done, Cyclizar."
Letting out a breath, Silas praised the Cyclizar that had run back and extended his hand toward it.
Cyclizar leaped up and bumped its head against him, then circled around him while chattering excitedly, its happy growls sounding nonstop.
"Let's see. If it's suitable, I'll send you out again later," Silas did not immediately agree, his gaze falling toward the entrance of the passage.
The third opponent had arrived.
Pink hair, orange sunglasses, remember the name Malva. She was a highly regarded news anchor in Kalos and also one of the Elite Four, while secretly being a member of Team Flare.
Her outfit was bold and striking. Her upper body was clad in a uniquely cut cropped top that exposed her waist, outlining her slender figure. Below she wore black and red ripped jeans, paired with black high heels with red soles that made crisp sounds as she walked. With every step she swayed, completely unrestrained in showing off her figure to everyone present.
Malva stepped onto the opposing platform, spinning a Poké Ball in her hand. "Handsome guy, go easy on me later. I only just became an Elite Four member a couple of days ago."
"Cyclizar, hit her hard," Silas said quietly to the Pokémon at his side.
His girlfriend was watching from the audience. If he did not go all out here, he would probably be kneeling on a washboard when he got back.
"Cyc!" Guaranteeing the mission.
The battle began quickly. Silas still led with Cyclizar, which had not yet had its fill of fighting.
Malva threw her Poké Ball, releasing a Pokémon commonly seen in Kalos.
It was the final evolution of the regional bird, Talonflame, but…
"That Talonflame is huge…" Steven exclaimed. The Talonflame on the field had a wingspan of about five meters by visual estimate, more than twice the size of a normal one. With a casual flap of its wings, it stirred up winds that formed into small tornadoes.
Professor Oak said, "This belongs to a very rare category among Pokémon. It is weaker than Totem Pokémon, but stronger than ordinary Pokémon in its normal state. In academia, we call them Alphas. They are often the leaders of their groups."
"According to field researchers, Totem Pokémon are evolved from Alpha individuals, though how that transformation happens is still unknown," Professor Kukui added.
When it came to research on Totem Pokémon, Alola ranked first. There had even been cases where a Totem Pokémon chose to follow a trainer and left, only to revert back into an Alpha. Totem status seemed more like a product of natural selection.
"Screeee!"
At that moment, the Talonflame let out a sharp cry that seemed to pierce the sky, making the air tremble.
Cyclizar lifted its forelimbs, pried up a chunk of rock, and hurled it straight at Talonflame to interrupt it. The noise was simply too annoying.
The rock was crushed into powder by Talonflame's metallic claws before it even got close, and the battle ignited instantly.
Malva curled her lips into a confident smile, crossing her arms and then shifting her posture as if her arms felt heavy. "So, Silas, what do you think? This Talonflame took me a lot of effort to find. Its strength is far beyond ordinary."
"It is impressive," Silas said calmly as he observed.
He had even larger Pokémon himself, but there was no need to bring them out now. With a snap of his fingers, he said, "Cyclizar, Shift Gear."
"Cyc!"
Cyclizar entered its battle form. The tire around its neck seemed to spin, and the twin gears connected on its back began to grind against each other, producing sharp metallic clicking sounds.
Starting off with a boost, Silas's intention could not be clearer. He simply did not take Talonflame seriously.
This was both a provocation and a signal. He was preparing to accelerate and sweep through the team.
After using Shift Gear, Cyclizar's attack rose and its speed surged dramatically. At this speed, none of Malva's Pokémon could keep up. They would not even be able to smell the exhaust behind it.
To be fair, her position as a Fire-type Elite Four member was not entirely stable. She herself was still half a step away from fully solidifying that level and should ideally have spent more time refining her strength. It was simply that the previous holder had grown tired of battling and passed the position on to her.
The moment the battle began, Malva felt an invisible pressure bearing down on her, pressing directly onto her mind.
She knew her opponent had set a trap, yet she had no choice but to charge in. She could not just stand there and watch him continue boosting.
"Flame Charge!" Malva commanded.
Talonflame lived up to its name as flames ignited along its wings, quickly spreading across its entire body and wrapping it in fire.
It then shot forward like a blazing arrow, its speed so fast that the air screamed.
Golden electricity crackled loudly, because Cyclizar was not ordinary.
Electric-type moves that were difficult for other Cyclizar to master came as naturally to it as eating and drinking.
Without needing Silas to give an order, Cyclizar had already understood his intention.
Its body erupted with electricity, turning it into a glowing golden figure.
In an instant, it dashed forward to meet the incoming Talonflame.
Its speed rivaled Extreme Speed, almost as if it were instantaneous.
Boom!
Talonflame was sent flying back at an even faster speed than it had come in, crashing outside the field. Its entire body crackled with electricity, knocked out in a single strike.
Cyclizar landed and continued its Shift Gear enhancement as if nothing had happened.
The battle ended so quickly that no one, not even the referee, had reacted yet. Only after a moment did the referee belatedly announce the result.
In the audience, Cynthia, Steven, and the others wore serious expressions.
With the speed Cyclizar had just displayed, even they were not confident they could evade it.
If you were weak to Electric-type attacks and got hit by that lightning-fast charge, you would be instantly defeated.
Everyone had thought Registeel and Greninja were already extremely strong.
Who would have expected that this seemingly goofy Cyclizar was the real monster, with a near instantaneous electric moves. Who would dare stand before it if they were weak to electricity.
"This… I… what…?" Malva stammered, momentarily at a loss for words. The gap in strength made a sense of helplessness well up inside her.
Next, she sent out two more Pokémon.
Under another round of Shift Gear enhancement, they could not even catch Cyclizar's shadow.
Delphox and Pyroar, the female form, had no means of resistance at all.
Under Cyclizar's relentless Dragon Claw attacks, like batting balls back and forth, they were defeated one after the other.
Meanwhile, Cyclizar grew more excited with each fight, showing not a single scratch on its body.
The gap was simply too great. This was a completely one sided battle.
"Huff… huff…" Malva took deep breaths, beads of sweat forming on her forehead. Silas had just completed the final lesson she needed in challenging the Elite Four.
After a while, she gradually regained her composure and threw out her fourth Pokémon.
It was another Fire-type Pokémon, one that often lived in old mansions disguised as a chandelier, Chandelure.
The central lantern and its pair of curved black arm like supports burned with eerie purple flames.
These strange flames could not only hypnotize opponents, but if someone was surrounded by them, their soul would be burned away and absorbed, leaving behind a hollow body like a walking corpse.
Malva took out a ring embedded with a Key Stone. This had originally been her trump card when she challenged for the Elite Four position, and now she was finally using it.
(End of Chapter)