"Return, Venusaur."
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Drake recalled Venusaur into its Poké Ball and tossed out another.
"Go, Electivire!"
His Dragonite was powerful, but when it came to tracking an invisible Froslass, even that might not be enough. And even if Dragonite did manage to locate her, there was always the risk of Destiny Bond. It was just too risky.
Only Electivire had the tools to reliably force Froslass into the open.
"Rain Dance!"
"Eleeeeec~!"
Electivire appeared on the battlefield, grinning broadly. Even before the surrounding Stealth Rock could strike, it hurled a condensed orb of water into the sky. The orb exploded, summoning dark clouds above as rain began to fall.
Froslass hovered in front of Paul but didn't vanish like before.
Still, Drake didn't let his guard down. After all, who knew if this Froslass was the real one?
"Thunder!"
With the rain established, Drake gave a sharp order.
"Eleeec!"
Electivire cried out as Stealth Rock struck its body, then unleashed a surge of electric power skyward. Yellow lightning arced violently among the storm clouds, converging before crashing down like divine retribution toward Froslass.
Paul simply stood there in silence, watching. Only when the lightning descended did he finally speak.
"Shadow Aura."
Froslass spread her arms. Her eyes gleamed as swirling multicolored energy formed several rings around her, expanding and contracting erratically. They didn't look like they had any offensive or defensive properties.
But when the thunderbolt struck, it didn't even pierce the aura. Instead, the rotating rings diverted the lightning, dispersing it completely without leaving a mark.
"Thunder Punch!"
Drake gave his next order without hesitation.
Electivire launched forward in a streak of lightning, appearing before Froslass in an instant and slamming a glowing fist into the surrounding rings.
BOOM!
The battlefield trembled as the rings quivered under the impact, seemingly on the verge of breaking apart.
But in the very next moment, a look of disbelief flashed in Electivire's eyes.
"Psychic!"
Froslass' eyes flared with bright blue light. A powerful telekinetic force seized Electivire midair, freezing it in place.
The control lasted only a second, but that was enough for Froslass to transfer all her energy rings onto Electivire, trapping it completely.
By the time Electivire realized the Psychic hold was gone and tried to move, it was already too late. The rings, despite their appearance, immobilized it completely. Electivire couldn't attack or break the rings, and even moving became an overwhelming struggle.
Electivire thrashed wildly.
But then—
"Will-O-Wisp."
Paul's quiet command was followed by a flickering blue flame released from Froslass' hand, slipping through the gaps in the aura to strike Electivire.
Burned.
"It's over, misfortunes never come alone."
Paul didn't give his opponent another chance. Froslass raised her arms, conjuring a cluster of Will-O-Wisps above the field. With a gesture, she sent them one after another toward Electivire.
When the first flame made contact with the Shadow Aura, an unusual reaction occurred. Both the flame and the ring detonated simultaneously, engulfing Electivire in a cloud of smoke.
When the smoke cleared, Electivire was sprawled on the ground, motionless.
"Electivire is unable to battle. Froslass wins!"
The referee announced.
"That's it? Electivire lost just like that?"
"Is Froslass really that hard to deal with?!"
"It's okay, the Champion still has Dragonite! Dragonite is unbeatable!"
"Unbeatable my foot! Froslass is still in play! Don't forget she can use Destiny Bond."
"Exactly! Even if Paul switches out, as long as Froslass is his safety net, Dragonite has no chance!"
"Wait… don't tell me the Champion is going to lose again?"
Dragonite had yet to appear, but both the online and live audiences could already see where this was going. Few still held out hope for Drake's victory.
Unless Paul suffered a sudden lapse in judgment and issued a series of ridiculous commands, Drake and his Dragonite stood no chance.
But given that Paul had driven Drake to the brink using just three Pokémon—was that likely?
Clearly not. Drake understood that too.
He took a breath and said frankly, "Paul, you and your Pokémon far exceeded my expectations. It'll be hard for me to win this match. I only ask one thing: could you let my Dragonite battle your Garchomp?"
Drake's request was simple. Since Dragonite was finally making an appearance, it would be a shame if it fell to Destiny Bond. At the very least, he wanted a rematch with the Garchomp he'd seen last time. Even if they lost, it would still be worthwhile.
Paul understood what he meant, but—
"Sorry. I didn't bring Garchomp with me this time."
His voice was calm.
"Then what about Electivire?"
If he couldn't face Paul's twin dragons, then battling Electivire—his strongest partner would be a fair consolation.
"Sorry. Didn't bring him either."
Disappointment.
Paul hadn't brought either of his aces.
"What? You're up against the famed Drake and you didn't bring your strongest Pokémon?"
"Isn't that arrogance?"
"What do you mean by arrogance? That is self-confidence. Didn't he use the other three Pokémon to force Drake into a desperate situation?"
As the audience buzzed with discussion, all eyes returned to the battlefield to see whether Paul would switch his Pokémon for a clash against Drake's Dragonite.
...
On the field—
"Then…"
Drake began, but stopped himself.
Suggesting Torterra or another of Paul's team just felt wrong. Most of them had poor matchups against Dragonite to begin with.
Asking Paul to choose another felt like begging for mercy. As the Champion of the Orange League, Drake couldn't bring himself to do that.
If he was going to lose, he would lose with dignity. Seeking pity would only cheapen that.
"You're up. Give it your best."
Drake steadied his breath, then unclipped the Poké Ball he always wore close to his chest and tossed it out.
"Fwooooh~!"
With a clarion cry, the sturdy and dependable Dragonite entered the field.
But what Drake didn't expect was that Froslass, instead of staying to battle, turned and gracefully flew back to Paul's side.
"Take a rest."
"Eeno~"
Paul gave Froslass a simple command, then pulled out a new Poké Ball and threw it.
He hadn't brought Garchomp, but he did bring another kind of dragon.
"Drapion, prepare for battle!"
(End of Chapter)
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