"Return."
With that calm command, Paul recalled his Aggron and tossed out his final Poké Ball.
"Get ready for battle—Electivire!"
"Vireee~!"
As the sound echoed, the golden figure of Electivire burst onto the battlefield, its gaze locked onto Darkrai, flashing a broad grin from afar.
The moment Darkrai laid eyes on it, a chill crept through its body. A moment later, the lingering effects of Toxic Spikes triggered again, draining more of its strength.
"Thunder Punch!"
"Viree~!"
Electivire slammed a foot into the ground and vanished in a blur of gold lightning, charging straight at Darkrai like a bolt from the heavens.
"Dark Void!"
With a single motion of its hands, Darkrai summoned dozens of Dark Voids, sending them out in all directions to intercept Electivire's approach.
But Electivire didn't dodge or hesitate. Instead, a shimmering green barrier appeared around it—Protect—nullifying every Dark Void it encountered.
"Shadow Claw!"
Caught with no time to evade, Darkrai chose to confront the oncoming force head-on, its hands cloaked in a dark aura.
The two Pokémon collided. Darkrai's move struck first, its shadowy blow landing squarely on Electivire's gut, forcing a grunt of pain from the Electric-type.
But the next second, Electivire's voice crackled in its ears. Darkrai looked up—only to see the electrified smirk on Electivire's face and the glint of excitement in its eyes.
"Vireee~!"
Gritting through the damage from Shadow Claw, Electivire brought both of its electrified fists crashing down on Darkrai.
As the blows landed, Electivire's right arm seamlessly transitioned into a new move—Brick Break—which slammed directly into the top of Darkrai's head.
It's super effective!
Already battered from the previous rounds, Darkrai's body gave out. It slumped to the ground, eyes closed tight, signaling it could no longer continue the fight.
"Vireee~!"
Electivire gave Darkrai a disdainful kick, the glint in its eyes dripping with contempt.
This is the Legendary Pokémon? A mythical being? Seriously? That's it?
"Darkrai is unable to battle! Electivire wins the match!"
With the referee's announcement, the artificial Gravity field that had been weighing down the arena finally dissipated.
"The battle has been intense, and both sides are in rough shape."
"Trainer Tobias now has only one Pokémon left that hasn't appeared yet, while his injured Articuno is still poisoned. The rest of his team has already been defeated."
"On the other hand, Paul still has three Pokémon standing: Electivire, Drapion, and Torterra. The situation doesn't look promising for Tobias."
"Still, given the quality of both Trainers, even a single Pokémon could turn the tide. Let's see how this showdown unfolds!"
As the commentator broke down the current standings, Tobias gave a low sigh and silently recalled Darkrai.
"You deserve a good rest, Darkrai."
"…I'm counting on you now, Articuno!"
Faced with an Electivire that had just defeated Darkrai and had the ability to boost its stats continuously, Tobias hesitated for a brief moment before calling out Articuno.
While his yet-unseen Cresselia was certainly strong, if she couldn't take down Electivire quickly, a powered-up Electivire could become unstoppable.
Under those circumstances, Articuno actually had the better odds.
"Arrr~!"
With a high, clear cry, the elegant figure of Articuno soared back into the sky. But the faint purple haze clinging to its feathers and the bruises on its body were signs of its poisoned and battered condition.
"Thunder!"
This time, Electivire didn't rush into fight. Instead, following Paul's pre-battle tactics, it leapt high, putting distance between itself and Articuno. Having already secretly used Charge earlier, it unleashed a devastating Thunderbolt from above.
"Blizzard, hold it off! Then Mind Reader!"
Tobias gave his command without delay.
Articuno flapped its wings, summoning a massive Blizzard that surged forward to clash with Thunder mid-air.
Thanks to Electivire's earlier Charge boost and the sheer raw power of Thunder, it took everything Articuno had to push back the electric assault.
"Arrr~!"
When the Thunder attack was finally dispersed, Articuno's eyes glimmered with a faint glow—it had successfully used Mind Reader, locking onto Electivire's location hundreds of meters away.
"Sheer Cold!"
Tobias gave the order without hesitation.
"Arrr—!"
Articuno let out a resonant cry. Its icy, crystalline body shimmered with a menacing frost as it gathered a peculiar energy into a ball. The concentrated orb radiated a boundless chill that felt as though it could freeze even time itself.
As soon as the energy sphere fully formed, Articuno fired it off in one swift motion.
Right at that moment, Electivire unleashed another Thunder—the skies roared as lightning transformed into a draconic serpent, lashing toward Articuno like a wild beast.
But the frosty orb of Sheer Cold swallowed the thunderous dragon whole, shattering it in an instant, and surged directly at Electivire with overwhelming force.
Electivire tried to dodge, but quickly realized it was useless. Without hesitation, it threw up a Protect, bracing itself head-on against the devastating blow.
The orb of Sheer Cold slammed into the glowing green barrier like a missile striking a fortress—neither side budging at first, locked in a deadlock.
"Grrrgh…"
Electivire gritted its teeth behind the protective shield, determined not to let Sheer Cold break through.
One second… two seconds…
"Crurruuuh!!"
With a furious roar, the energy sphere exploded. A surge of frigid power engulfed both Electivire and its barrier, freezing them solid into a singular icy mass.
But within the very next moment, a thunderous burst of electricity erupted from the core—Electivire, wreathed in lightning, shattered its frozen prison and surged out in full force.
Now convinced it had powered up beyond Articuno's level, Electivire charged forward, eager to return the favor with a taste of its lightning. But to its surprise, Articuno was already ahead of it.
Articuno unleashed a combination of Blizzard and Hurricane, creating a terrifying snowstorm. With a single beat of its wings, it hurled the raging vortex straight toward Electivire.
The sight sent shivers down Electivire's spine—it reflexively triggered an instant Charge in response.
"Swift! Then Thunder!"
Electivire spun midair, unleashing a barrage of golden stars that scattered like bullet, morphing into a spiraling storm of radiant energy. Thunder erupted from within, the two attacks resonating and merging into a brilliant thunderstorm that clashed head-on with the incoming blizzard.
BOOM!
The storms collided—ice and lightning, wind and stars—crackling, grinding, building pressure until they finally burst into nothingness.
Electivire burst out of the aftermath like a thunderbolt, rocketing skyward.
Below, Articuno zipped forward using Agility, steadily closing the gap while spewing black mist from its mouth—Haze, meant to neutralize Electivire's stat boosts and erase its advantage.
Unfortunately for Articuno, the mist couldn't keep up with Electivire's speed. Even if it could, the haze was instantly dispersed by the raw electricity surging from Electivire's body.
"Mind Reader! Sheer Cold!"
Articuno attempted the same strategy again, hoping to end the fight decisively.
But this time, Electivire didn't even bother to Protect—it simply answered with a dominating Thunder, blasting through Sheer Cold's frigid force and dispersing it completely.
Sensing the tide turning, Articuno began to panic.
That's when a smirk formed on Electivire's face.
The electricity surging around its body suddenly exploded upward, crackling into the darkened sky. No one had noticed when the clouds had turned so dark, but now they glowed gold with Electivire's storm.
Jagged bolts danced through the air, writhing like divine serpents. The atmosphere was thick with power—a crucial scene, as if divine judgment was about to descend.
Startled, Articuno instinctively summoned a storm of its own—activating its hidden ability Snow Cloak and racial power to conjure Hail, hoping to mask and disperse the building thunderstorm.
But the moment the first snowflake took shape, it was immediately vaporized by lightning. The hail had no chance.
When the buildup reached critical mass, a colossal bolt—Thunder of Divine Judgment—descended from the heavens like the wrath of Arceus itself, targeting the lone ice phoenix.
"Sheer Cold!!"
In that moment, Articuno didn't even attempt to fight back. Instead, it curled its wings around itself midair, wrapping its body in a desperate defense.
A strange, tranquil frost burst from its body, sealing it into a miniature iceberg. Gentle green energy shimmered across the surface like a final protective veil.
KRRA-KRAAAAM!!
The divine thunder crashed down.
The ice cracked, the mountain shattered, the snow melted, and even the green shimmer turned golden under the intensity of the strike.
The entire sky became a hellscape of thunder. Snaking bolts writhed like demonic spirits, ravaging the fallen Articuno mercilessly.
When the lightning spirits had their fill and the clouds began to disperse, Articuno's limp form plummeted from the heavens, barely managing to stay conscious as it crashed to the ground.
The battle was essentially over. Articuno was no longer capable of fighting back, yet the Electivire who brought it down remained cautiously floating at a distance.
Trained by Paul, Electivire knew better than to approach recklessly. It had been drilled to recognize the danger of Articuno's Haze and Sheer Cold, and it wasn't about to give it even a sliver of opportunity for a surprise counterattack.
"Thunder!"
At Paul's command, Electivire unleashed one final bolt of lightning from afar, striking Articuno where it lay.
"ARRRRR—!"
Articuno screamed in agony. Though not fully knocked out, the Legendary bird had no strength left to rise.
"Return."
Tobias calmly withdrew it with his Poké Ball.
Seeing that, Electivire finally let out a heavy, gasping breath—panting, exhausted, having burned through an enormous reserve of stamina.
By now, Electivire had ascended to an incredibly high power level, and it has basically established the victory.
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