"Red, let's finish this—our final round!"
Logan had already read the determination in Red's eyes. With a low laugh, he shouted.
"Fine then, bring it on!"
Red clenched his fists tightly, answering Logan's declaration without hesitation.
Suddenly, Logan leaned forward and commanded:
"Dragonair, Hyper Beam!"
'As I thought… Dragonair's been hidden somewhere on the field!'
Red's heart skipped a beat. He immediately tried to locate Dragonair and get his Pokémon out of danger.
But—
"No… something's wrong!"
Red suddenly realized it. Dragonair hadn't appeared at all. Instead, his Eevee had evolved into Espeon, using Teleport to suddenly appear behind Red's three Pokémon. And floating above Espeon's head—a Poké Ball shimmered into existence.
"He… used psychic power to teleport Dragonair's Poké Ball?!"
At last, Red understood Logan's tactics. He had used his own psychic ability to summon Dragonair's Poké Ball to Espeon's position—then had Espeon teleport it across the field.
This strategy was utterly unpredictable. Logan's Pokémon could appear anywhere, at any time. A tactic that only a trainer with psychic powers could pull off.
In an instant, Red was caught in a pincer attack—Garchomp blocking the path ahead, and Dragonair with Espeon ambushing from behind.
"Garchomp! Hold Poliwrath and Venusaur—Outrage!"
Logan's order rang out. Garchomp obeyed, surging forward with terrifying speed. Its eyes glowed with fury, its movements savage and unstoppable. Already injured, Poliwrath couldn't withstand Garchomp's rampage. Even knowing it was a trap, Red was forced to command Venusaur to help hold Garchomp back, or Poliwrath would have been torn apart.
The moment Garchomp unleashed Outrage, Red realized—Logan had decided to end this. To let his Pokémon use such a berserk, destructive move meant he wasn't holding back anymore.
At that same moment, Dragonair materialized above Espeon, already brimming with stored power. From its horn, a Hyper Beam roared forth.
"My Pikachu's too fast—you'll never hit him!"
"Oh? Are you sure?" Logan smirked.
Even as they spoke, Pikachu darted and weaved with dazzling agility, easily dodging the initial blast. At most, it would be grazed by the reflected shockwaves when Hyper Beam struck the ground—nothing fatal.
But then—
The beam curved.
Like a serpent twisting in the air, Dragonair's Hyper Beam bent at a full 180 degrees, snaking back toward Pikachu.
"If it were anyone else's Hyper Beam, maybe not. But my Dragonair is different!"
Red's eyes widened in shock. Pikachu leapt and dodged frantically within the confined battlefield, but the glowing energy beam kept twisting and weaving, painting the air with spiraling trails like an artist's brush. Soon, Pikachu was trapped inside a glowing geometric prison of Hyper Beam's energy.
No way out. No escape.
"Pikachu, if you can't dodge… then Thunderbolt, head-on!"
"Pika—CHUUUU!!"
Electric sacs sparking, Pikachu's body surged with electricity. Like a suicide warrior, it charged directly at the oncoming Hyper Beam.
Red was the kind of trainer who always fell back on Thunderbolt. Logan, on the other hand, always relied on Hyper Beam.
But this time—
"What is this—?!" Logan's eyes widened in surprise.
BOOOOM!
The two attacks collided. The explosion was like a bomb detonating on the battlefield. A sphere of energy and lightning condensed, then burst outward, shockwaves battering against the shimmering psychic barrier surrounding the arena, sending ripples across its surface.
Out of the smoke and flashing sparks—
Pikachu flew upward.
Bloodied, battered, yet unyielding, its eyes burned with determination. Before Dragonair could react, Pikachu latched onto its serpentine body.
"Well done, Pikachu! Now—Thunderbolt, one more time!"
"PIKAAAAAA-CHUUUUU!"
Dragonair's nearly 20-meter-long body was engulfed in a storm of lightning. The sheer voltage made the very sunlight seem to vanish. With a mournful cry, Dragonair's body convulsed before crashing down onto the already shattered battlefield below.
"Yes! That's one of your Pokémon down, Logan!" Red shouted triumphantly.
"Hmph. Haven't you noticed the weather?" Logan's voice cut coldly through the roar of thunder.
"What…? Wait—those clouds?! Don't tell me…"
"Yes. Before Dragonair fell, it already shifted the skies. It changed the weather for its teammates' sake… Jolteon, Thunder!"
KRAKOOOOOOM!!
Lightning split the heavens. With Jolteon as the conductor, a bolt of divine thunder speared down—straight into Poliwrath.
Already bound by Garchomp's Outrage, Poliwrath had no way to resist. The lightning coursed through its soaked body, turning water into steam. It collapsed, smoking and unconscious.
Both trainers instantly recalled their fainted partners to protect them.
...
Dragonair had already suffered Snorlax's crushing blow, and then Pikachu's desperate assault. Though not entirely finished, Logan decided not to push it further. Dragonair and Espeon together had already eliminated two of Red's Pokémon. Espeon itself was nearly untouched—Logan was satisfied with that result.
The last Pokémon… Logan would leave to his ace, Garchomp.
Jolteon flared with light and morphed back into Flareon, its flames raging as it surrounded Venusaur. Meanwhile, Garchomp rose high into the sky.
It spread its claws, raised its head, and began to gather an overwhelming, terrible energy between its talons and fangs.
"That energy… could it be?!"
Red gripped the railing, staring in disbelief. The sheer power made the arena tremble.
"This move isn't even fully mastered yet," Logan admitted. "It takes time to charge, it's still unstable. But against your weakened Pikachu and Venusaur—this will end it."
He raised his hand.
Far away, in the Sinnoh Region, a girl suddenly stood up in shock. She accidentally knocked her table over, ignoring the shattered cups and bottles. Her eyes were locked on the television screen—unblinking, unbreathing.
Because she recognized it.
The technique Logan's Garchomp was about to unleash—
The strongest Dragon-type move.
Draco Meteor.