Inside the cave, only Cradily was still holding on with great difficulty. Without any teammates, it was nothing more than a thick-skinned tank, no longer a real threat. All that was left was to slowly wear it down.
After ten minutes of relentless "bombardment" from the four Pokémon, Cradily finally collapsed under the pressure.
Due to its frequent use of Recover, it had consumed far more vitality than the other three Pokémon, making it unlikely to regain consciousness anytime soon.
With that, the battle was over!
Sato slowly withdrew the Dark Energy, then dropped to the ground, exhausted, gasping for breath.
The auras of Zoroark and the others quickly faded, returning to their original Ace levels.
…But only moments later, their auras began to rise again. Each of them had leveled up!
Zoroark, Peak Ace…
Tyranitar, Peak Ace…
Sharpedo, High Ace…
Hydreigon, High Ace!
Sato clenched his fist with excitement. He hadn't expected his partners to come through this strong!
But then again, after these days of nonstop battling, they had already built up enough, just lacking that final push.
And facing down and defeating an Elite Four level opponent? That was the perfect push!
In that sense, Zoroark and the others' breakthroughs were only natural!
"Nice job!"
Sato got up and walked over to the four Pokémon, sincerely praising them.
The four Pokémon were just as happy. If not for their size, they would've rushed into Sato's arms and affectionately clung to him…
"All of you rest for now. I'll leave the rest to our other partners!" Sato said, recalling the tired Zoroark and the others back into their Poké Balls. Gengar then floated out on its own, silently standing by Sato's side.
"Jealous?"
"…Gen."
Gengar paused for a moment, but eventually nodded honestly.
"Don't worry. Even if Dark Energy doesn't work on you, I'll do everything I can to keep you moving forward with me!" Sato said with a smile, full of conviction.
Gengar's golden eyes locked with Sato's for a long moment. Then it finally curled its eyes and gave a loooong-lost mischievous grin.
"Gengengengengengen~Gar!"
"Alright, let's keep going!"
"Gen~"
The battle was over. All four E4 level "bosses" of the underground cave lay unconscious, and the entire cave had fallen into an eerie silence.
Sato had just taken two steps forward when he hesitated, then turned back and tossed out four Dusk Balls, capturing Claydol and the rest of them.
Dusk Balls are more effective at capturing Pokémon in dark places like caves or at night…
Venturing deeper, Sato came across the small Baltoy that had first tried to stop them.
But now, Baltoy was curled up in a corner, trembling, its eyes full of fear as it looked at Sato.
Claydol's defeat had shaken the young Baltoy to its core. Even someone as powerful as a leader could one day lose so miserably…
Sato shook his head and turned away.
The fearless little Baltoy was gone. All that remained was a normal Pokémon filled with fear of the strong, even if it possessed Ace level Psychic potential.
---◓---
Gengar and Sato continued onward into the depths of the cave, one in front, one behind. They didn't encounter any more Pokémon along the way.
But the area was littered with messy footprints and signs of Pokémon living there; clearly, they had all just fled.
The human and his Pokémon companion were happy to enjoy the peace, not needing to waste any more energy.
After another turn, a long-lost light appeared ahead in the cave. Sato and Gengar were overjoyed and quickened their pace without hesitation.
In an instant, the entire cave opened up wide!
Just as Sato had predicted, there was indeed an underground space beneath the desert. And it already had a fully functional ecosystem, completely capable of sustaining itself.
Looking further up, there was a massive crack in the dome above, and the light poured down from there, illuminating the entire underground cave.
However, the light filtering down through the crack was clearly no match for real sunlight, so most of the cave below was covered in shrubs and grassy terrain.
There was also a vast area that remained a barren wasteland with sparse vegetation; though still better than the desert above. But this kind of environment was ideal for Pokémon like Rhyperior and Claydol to live in.
"Let's go check it out."
"Gen!"
Confident in his strength, Sato walked boldly into the underground world, with Gengar closely following at his side.
Wherever the human and Pokémon passed, all wild Pokémon fled and hid. Once they were gone, the Pokémon slowly emerged from the caves, watching them from afar.
Eventually, Sato reached the wasteland. Stepping into a territory belonging to a group of Rhyhorn.
These armored rhinos didn't scatter and flee. Instead, they gathered together, glaring warily at Sato and Gengar.
Soon, several Ace level Rhydon came rushing out. But instead of looking at Sato first, they anxiously scanned the area in all directions.
"Gen~Gengen~" 'They're looking for their leader. It should be that Rhyperior from earlier.'
Sato nodded to show he understood. He had already more or less guessed it.
From past experiences… he knew that Elite Four level Pokémon usually possessed quite a bit of treasure.
Having finally taken down that Rhyperior and its "crew", he wasn't about to walk away empty-handed.
Even if captured, most fully grown Elite Four level Pokémon wouldn't obey a Trainer's command.
Occasionally, you might find a submissive one; but after living wild for so long, their battle style was fully set, and a Trainer's orders would only get in the way.
But the reason Sato had captured Claydol and the others just now… was because he figured those four Pokémon held high status in the underground cave!
So why not let them buy their freedom… WITH TREASURE!?
"Gardevoir. Rhyperior."
A flash of red light… Gardevoir appeared at Sato's side, and Rhyperior looked around in confusion as it suddenly found itself back in front of its tribe.
The last thing it remembered was being in a very comfortable place, where its injuries healed at an astonishing rate.
Then in the blink of an eye, it was back out again…
And all its wives were rushing toward it with joy on their faces!
But in the next moment, Rhyperior felt a suction force from behind, and it was dragged right back into that comfy place again.
Still, no matter how cozy the Dusk Ball was… it couldn't compare to the importance of being with its waifus!
Rhyperior began thrashing wildly, having no idea how to get out.
At the same time, the Rhydon were equally confused. Watching their leader-husbando~ suddenly appear, then vanish again.
Looking at the direction the Poké Ball beam had come from, even the slowest of them realized that Sato had captured their mate…
"RHY~DOOOOON!"
A chaotic uproar erupted, and the group of Rhydon stampeded furiously toward Sato, determined to reclaim their husbando.
Sato shrugged; he had expected this, which is exactly why he had summoned Gardevoir ahead of time.
"Calm them down a bit. Magical Leaf."
"Voir~"