Three more deep claw marks appeared across Graveler's chest, crossing over the earlier wounds in a jagged pattern. The rocky Pokemon looked like it had taken the brunt of something far worse than a simple battle.
But Sprigatito was far from done.
Graveler had been waiting for its chance. When it finally spotted where Sprigatito was going to land, it brought its massive fist down with Hammer Arm. That small, fragile-looking little cat was surely going to be crushed flat by a blow like that.
That was what Graveler thought, at least.
But the moment its fist connected, something felt off. It didn't feel like fur and flesh. It felt like solid rock.
Well, that was because it had hit rock.
Did Graveler really think Sprigatito was just going to stand there and take a hit?
"Neither Nova nor Aresdra has ever laid a hand on me," Sprigatito said, its green eyes half-lidded. "So who exactly do you think you are?"
It had used Ally Switch at the last moment, swapping one of the Geodude that had been surrounding Corviknight into its place.
Graveler lifted its fist and looked down. Its blood ran cold.
Its own nephew was lying unconscious in the small crater left by the impact, badly hurt from the blow Graveler itself had landed. His fate was unclear.
"You little pest! I'll crush you!" Graveler roared.
But Sprigatito was already moving.
Swapping itself into the middle of the Geodude group had been a bold move. The moment it landed, it didn't waste a second. It used the most powerful Grass-type move it had available at the time: Petal Blizzard.
A storm of glowing petals burst outward from Sprigatito in every direction.
Those petals looked soft and harmless, but they carried dense Grass-type energy. The moment they struck the Geodude surrounding it, they detonated in bright flashes of pink light, like fireworks going off one after another across the swarm.
Only these fireworks were anything but pretty for the ones caught in them.
Grass-type moves already did four times the normal damage to Geodude. Petal Blizzard, with a base power of 90, going off in all directions from the center of the group, was simply too much for them to take. One by one, the Geodude dropped.
Sprigatito hadn't even had time to follow up before every last Geodude in the group had fainted.
Corviknight let out two sharp cries, clearly annoyed.
"What was that?" it called out. "I was right in the middle of building up over here, and you just swept them all away. What exactly am I supposed to do now?"
Sprigatito turned its head, gave a small sniff, and looked away.
Corviknight muttered under its breath. It wasn't that it couldn't hold its own against Sprigatito. It just didn't think it was worth the trouble.
For one thing, Sprigatito was the kind of Pokemon that hit hard even against its own allies when it was in a mood. For another, pushing things too far now would only get worse once Sprigatito evolved. And more than anything, anyone watching could see plainly which Pokemon Nova favored most. Corviknight, who went by Little Blue among the team, had no interest in picking a fight that would only end badly for itself.
It wasn't that Little Blue was afraid of Sprigatito.
It really wasn't.
But if Sprigatito was going to swoop in and steal a knockout, Little Blue wasn't about to just let that go without getting something back either.
Just as it was thinking this over, the enraged Graveler that had knocked out its own nephew came charging straight at them, throwing all caution aside.
Corviknight didn't hesitate. It shot forward and swooped low over Sprigatito's head just as the little cat was winding up for another move, slamming hard into the crazed Graveler with Steel Wing.
Steel-type moves were doubly effective against Rock-types. With the sharpness that came from Corviknight's Pressure ability refining its Steel-type energy, the impact was fierce. Steel Wing wasn't known as a cutting move, but the force behind it was more than enough. The nearly level 30 Graveler was left barely standing after just that one hit.
Sprigatito spun around and hissed up at Corviknight, who was hovering overhead with a look of complete indifference.
"You don't get to do that," Sprigatito snapped. "It doesn't matter if I went first. You still can't take mine."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Corviknight replied flatly. "Maybe think about why you couldn't finish it yourself."
While those two were still going back and forth, the battle on the other side of the field was well underway. The three Pokemon that had crossed the ice were now in the thick of the remaining Gravelers.
Growlithe was the fastest of the three on its feet. Under normal conditions, it would have reached the far shore well ahead of the others. But Sprigatito had sprinted ahead using Acrobatics, and Growlithe had been carrying Mudkip on its back the whole way, which slowed it down just enough to arrive last.
Nidoking hit the ground first, and it hit hard.
It opened with Superpower, driving a low-level Graveler into the ground hard enough to crack it on the spot. Before the dust settled, it turned and used Surf, knocking two more Gravelers cold as they moved to block its path. Two Geodude that wandered too close were sent flying with Double Kick. Then Nidoking caught a Graveler by each arm, opened its jaws wide, and swept the area with Psybeam, leaving the last two Gravelers besides their leader frozen stiff where they stood.
The whole sequence took under thirty seconds.
This was what Nova had spent two years and eight months building. A Pokemon that was efficient, relentless, and truly terrifying in a real fight.
And even this was Nidoking holding back. Nova had given it clear instructions before the battle not to use Earthquake. One Earthquake and every Rock-type in the area would have gone down in a single move, and the whole point of the training session would have been lost. Sheer Force was off the table too. This fight was meant to give the rest of the team real experience, so Nidoking had to restrain itself.
Even so, the Graveler leader had seen more than enough.
There was a big difference between staring something down from across the water and watching it tear through your group right in front of you. Whatever nerve the Graveler leader had built up while glaring from the far shore had crumbled completely.
But there was nowhere to go.
Growlithe had already cut off its retreat from behind. Mudkip jumped down from Growlithe's back and moved in from the other side.
The Graveler leader was cornered from both directions.