Mega Blaziken took a massive stride forward, its legs igniting with a distinctive "whoosh" that sounded like someone had just lit a propane tank. Completely ignoring the Gallade-shaped imprint it had left in the wall, Blaziken charged straight toward Craig himself.
Wild Fighting rules meant one thing: defeating the trainer ended the match, no questions asked, no refunds available.
"Crabhammer!" Craig shouted, desperation edging his voice as he hurled another Pokeball into the path of destruction.
A crimson Crawdaunt emerged in a flash of light, its massive pincers immediately wreathed in swirling water as it prepared to meet Mega Blaziken's incoming Blaze Kick head-on.
BOOM!
The collision sounded like someone had dropped a piano from the roof of a skyscraper.
For a split second, it appeared the two might be evenly matched, until Crawdaunt shot backward as if fired from a cannon, nearly colliding with Craig. At the critical moment, Craig's Bronzong materialized from its Pokeball unbidden, using Teleport to yank its trainer out of the incoming crustacean missile's path.
Without Bronzong's intervention, Craig would likely have become the world's first human Crawdaunt backpack.
"That power..." Craig muttered, genuine confusion in his voice. He'd witnessed Mega Blaziken battling Gallade just moments before and had mentally calculated its approximate strength.
Even accounting for type disadvantages, his Crawdaunt shouldn't have been so thoroughly outclassed. It couldn't even hold its ground for two seconds!
Of course, what Craig didn't understand was that while Blaziken's previous Double Kick had been enhanced with Force Palm, this Blaze Kick carried the devastating bonus of Strength, a technique that sacrificed stamina for overwhelming first-strike power.
Crawdaunt's strength was respectable, but against Mega Blaziken's Machamp-enhanced kick, it was like bringing a plastic spoon to a tank battle. The fact that Crawdaunt wasn't embedded in the nearest solid surface suggested Mega Blaziken had used perhaps thirty percent of its true strength.
"Houndoom, Mega Evolution!" Craig called out, his voice revealing that the time for playing games had passed.
With two Pokemon dispatched like annoying flies, Craig finally unleashed his trump card. Houndoom leapt from its Pokeball wreathed in obsidian flames, immediately enveloped in the prismatic light of Mega Evolution. When the light faded, Mega Houndoom stood ready for battle.
The transformation had added gleaming white armor across its chest and shoulders, giving it the appearance of a hellhound that had raided a knight's closet. It looked like exactly what it was, an infernal guardian that had taken a wrong turn at the gates of the underworld and ended up in a Pokemon battle.
But instead of facing Mega Blaziken's fiery assault, Mega Houndoom found itself staring down a towering wall of water that seemed to materialize from nowhere, a Surf attack over ten meters high bearing down like a liquid apocalypse.
While Mega Blaziken had been occupying Craig's attention, John hadn't been idle. He'd released Greninja, who had quietly summoned an azure curtain of water that now threatened to drown half the arena.
Mega Blaziken reacted instantly, its powerful legs propelling it skyward in a perfect Bounce, simultaneously avoiding the flood while positioning for an aerial attack.
Craig hurriedly escaped upward via Bronzong's Teleport, finding himself caught mid-air by his massive Totem Honchkrow's outstretched wings. His Gallade, just peeling itself from its wall impression, Teleported to safety as well.
Which left only Crawdaunt and Mega Houndoom to face the incoming tidal wave.
Crawdaunt, with its dual Water/Dark typing, would suffer only half damage from the Surf. But Mega Houndoom? Its Fire typing made water attacks devastatingly effective, while its Dark typing prevented it from being Teleported to safety. It had no choice but to confront the wave directly.
"Hyper Beam!" Craig commanded, opting for the nuclear option.
Mega Houndoom planted its feet and launched a concentrated beam of destructive energy that blazed like a miniature sun. The blast seemed powerful enough to vaporize anything unfortunate enough to stand in its path, including several cubic tons of incoming water.
But in the next heartbeat, a streamlined blue figure shot from within the wave, riding the Hyper Beam like a surfer on a light-based pipeline. Greninja, using the Surf attack as mere cover, had propelled itself forward with Aqua Jet and was now executing a perfectly timed Cut attack.
The ninja frog Pokemon struck Mega Houndoom directly in the chest, its water-infused blade making contact with the armored plating with a sound like someone striking a gong with a sledgehammer.
CLANG!
The impact sent both combatants reeling, Mega Houndoom staggering backward, Greninja repelled by the shock of striking such dense armor. As Greninja's body began to fall back into the collapsing wave, five gleaming stars of compressed water materialized in its webbed hands.
"Water Shuriken," John commanded softly, as if suggesting a dinner option rather than ordering a finishing move.
The throwing stars whistled through the air with the refined sound of steel cutting wind. Each one struck Mega Houndoom with surgical precision, targeting the exact same spot on its chest armor repeatedly.
The assault was too much. Mega Houndoom's Mega Evolution faded in a flash of light, leaving the regular Houndoom standing, though "standing" might be generous. The Pokemon was still conscious but had entered a state of "flinching" that rendered it temporarily paralyzed with fear.
Seizing the opportunity, Mega Blaziken tucked into a dive from its aerial position, aiming a finishing Blaze Kick at the vulnerable Houndoom.
Craig wasn't about to let his Pokemon fall so easily. "Hurricane!" he commanded his Honchkrow.
The massive bird Pokemon beat its wings powerfully, generating a Twister that intercepted Mega Blaziken's descent. Forced to defend itself, Blaziken unleashed a mid-air Blaze Kick that collided with the swirling vortex, neutralizing both attacks in a spectacular display of elemental conflict.
But the diversion came too late for Houndoom. While attention had been focused on the aerial ballet, a modest Aura Sphere, nothing like the spiral version but effective nonetheless, had quietly found its target.
Launched by Hariyama, the fighting-type move struck the dark-type Houndoom with double effectiveness. Even weakened by Craig's earlier Parting Shot, the attack was more than enough to finish what Greninja had started.
Houndoom collapsed, unable to continue.
It wasn't alone in defeat. Crawdaunt, which had believed itself capable of weathering the Surf attack, had severely underestimated Mega Blaziken's power. Though the fire-type Blaze Kick should have dealt only half damage to the water-type Pokemon, the sheer force behind it had left Crawdaunt with serious injuries and triggered a burn status. The Surf that followed was merely insult to injury, Crawdaunt had never even had the chance to face it.
Without pursuing further advantage, Mega Blaziken bounded back to John's side with casual grace.
White mist rose from the battlefield as the massive wave, partially pierced by Houndoom's Hyper Beam, crashed onto the scorched earth. The water evaporated on contact with a chorus of sizzling hisses, like a thousand steaks hitting a grill simultaneously.
Craig descended from the air with Honchkrow, landing on the battlefield with what remained of his team. Four Pokemon still stood at his command: Honchkrow, Weavile, Bronzong, and Gallade, a thoughtfully balanced combination of Dark types and Psychic types, designed to cover each other's weaknesses.
John assessed the situation, preparing to launch his next assault. But before he could issue a command, Craig raised a white flag with the resignation of someone who had done the math and found the answer thoroughly depressing.
"I surrender!" he called out, his voice echoing across the now-steaming arena.