Chapter 106: Calling for Backup
Basalt looked up and saw a small vortex of air swirling beneath Murkrow's wings, holding it aloft even without flapping.
"Doesn't seem that strong, but he's certainly arrogant," Basalt chuckled, looking at his opponent.
He didn't even need to give a command. The moment Tailwind appeared, Bronzor's psychic energy had already swept across the field.
Vwoom!
An invisible magnetic field suddenly descended, covering half the arena.
Gravity!
Within the field, the force of gravity was instantly increased by sixty percent.
"Murkrow!" the Pokémon cried out in alarm. It suddenly felt a massive force pulling it downwards. While the pull wasn't overwhelmingly strong, it had come too fast, too suddenly.
BAM!
Caught completely off guard, the Murkrow slammed into the ground.
"Huh? What happened?" The challenger's arrogant laughter died in his throat. Since Basalt hadn't called out a move, he had no idea what was happening. He just stared, his face a mask of disbelief.
"Gyro Ball!" Basalt finally gave a command, pressing his advantage to seal the victory.
Whirrr!
Bronzor began to spin, reaching an incredible speed in the blink of an eye. It shot forward like a cutting blade, unstoppable. The Murkrow on the ground was struggling to take off again, but it was too late. It had only managed to get half a meter off the ground when Bronzor was upon it.
All it could do was watch as the spinning Bronzor sliced into it.
Slice!
With Bronzor's terrifying 150kg weight behind it, the slender Murkrow was sent flying, crashing into the barrier and shedding a cloud of feathers.
"Krow..." By the time everyone looked again, the Murkrow was already unable to battle.
The arena fell silent. The crowd was stunned by the sudden turn of events.
Only Basalt stood with his arms crossed, thinking to himself, It seems Bronzor's Gravity is still a bit too weak. The Murkrow almost managed to take off.
His eyes narrowed. He estimated that at its current level, Bronzor's Gravity could only make it difficult for flying Pokémon to fly and would drain their stamina faster. To completely ground them, he'd need to reach at least 2.0x. Birds were just too light, and their wings were too strong. They could handle a 1.6x load.
Back to the training room after this.
The victorious Bronzor on the field had no idea that its future training schedule had just been filled to the brim by its trainer.
After a few seconds, the crowd began to react.
"What just happened? Why did the Murkrow suddenly fall?"
"It must have been the move Gravity. It can ground flying Pokémon. I saw a flash in Bronzor's eyes right before it fell."
"Gravity is a Psychic-type move, so it makes sense that a Bronzor would know it."
"This guy is insane. That's a six-win streak. Is he actually going to make it to ten?"
As they were talking, Basalt's seventh challenger stepped onto the stage. He was a handsome, slender young man with fair skin, his looks rivaling Basalt's own.
"Whoa, it's Pierce from Metro City High."
"It really is! He's a big shot at our school. I heard he's incredibly strong, just a hair below the geniuses who got into the training camp."
"I heard he buckled down and trained like crazy for two weeks and already passed his Novice-Rank exam."
"He's already a Novice-Rank Trainer? That's amazing!"
"And he's so handsome. So many girls have a crush on him."
"But, uh, that new guy, the champion... he's even more handsome than Pierce."
The conversation began to drift off-topic.
"Go, my warrior!" Pierce threw his Poké Ball.
"Roar!" With a fierce cry, a dinosaur-like Pokémon with bright eyes and a horn-like protrusion on its head appeared. It had powerful limbs and a long tail tipped with a burning flame. It was the evolved form of Charmander, Charmeleon.
"Seems like a big deal," Basalt thought, hearing the crowd's reaction. He smirked. Trying to counter me with a Fire-type? His Bronzor, having consumed the fire-resistant metal, was far more resistant to fire than a typical Steel-type.
"Both trainers, ready! Battle, begin!"
"Charmeleon, use Incinerate!" Pierce commanded first.
BOOM!
A jet of scorching flames shot from Charmeleon's mouth towards the floating Bronzor.
"Bronz..." Bronzor was unfazed. The heat from this Charmeleon's flames was a full tier weaker than Finch's Houndour's. With its newfound fire resistance, it was no threat at all.
"Gyro Ball!" Basalt commanded.
Bronzor began to spin, once again becoming a high-speed cutting machine. It sliced through the flames as if they were tofu, its momentum completely unchecked.
The crowd was stunned. A Steel-type Pokémon charging through fire? Was that even possible?
Slice!
Gyro Ball hit its mark. Despite its size, the Charmeleon was no match for Bronzor's weight and was sent flying, a deep gash left on its body.
"Leon..." Charmeleon struggled to its feet, its eyes filled with fear. Who am I? Where am I? What am I doing? The world doesn't make sense anymore! Fire isn't effective against Steel anymore?
"Damn it! Don't get cocky!" Pierce gritted his teeth. "Dragon Rage!"
His Charmeleon had a strong Dragon-type lineage and had learned Dragon Rage as a Charmander, though it rarely used it. But now, he was desperate.
"It even knows Dragon Rage?" Basalt was surprised, but then he shook his head. "Too slow. Bronzor, finish it with Bulldoze!"
BOOM!
While Charmeleon was still gathering its Dragon-type energy, Bronzor's Bulldoze had already struck. In terms of energy control, Basalt's Pokémon were leagues ahead. His opponent's battle sense was poor; did he really think he'd have time for such a slow move? With skills like that, he's not even at the level of the Group D trainees. No wonder he didn't make it into the camp.
"Charmeleon is unable to battle! The winner is... Basalt!" the referee declared.
A seven-win streak. Just three more wins to go.
But now, the announcer's expression changed. He knew this Basalt was the real deal. If they didn't do something, he might actually win the grand prize.
"Quick, report this to the supervisor," he whispered to a staff member. "Have him send one of the club's trainers over. And hurry! This Basalt is strong; the regular challengers won't last long."
"Right away," the staff member nodded and disappeared into the crowd.
This was the unwritten rule of the tournament. If an opponent was too strong, the club would send in one of their own elite trainers for the final one or two matches to ensure the prize money wasn't easily won.
Deep Sea Club, Deluxe Training Room.
A young man was training with his Pokémon, his forehead beaded with sweat.
Click.
The door opened, and a burly, bearded man walked in. "Cael, there's a strong challenger at the tournament. Go take care of it."
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