"Swoobat—Air Slash!"
"Munchlax—Metronome!"
Swoobat only dared to attack from afar. Even though Munchlax had great special defense but low physical defense, Swoobat never risked charging in for Knock Off. If Munchlax grabbed him, with Swoobat's frail defense, one Thunder Punch could end it all.
Anyway, Munchlax had already lost most of his stamina. Just whittling him down from a distance would do the trick. Why gamble with a close-quarters fight? If you won, you'd just have to risk it again; if you lost, you'd be knocked out in a single punch. It just wasn't worth it.
Out on the field, Swoobat fired off an Air Slash that smacked into Munchlax's belly. (Honestly, who knows if Munchlax's belly acts like a Lightning Rod for moves. I really don't get it either.)
Munchlax wiggled his two little fingers and used Metronome. Suddenly, a wave of pink light blossomed across the battlefield, with sparkling particles flowing straight into Munchlax.
The opposing trainer was totally confused. He had no idea what move this was, but it sure didn't look like an attack.
But Auron Vale was ecstatic. Pink light—Fairy-type move! But it wasn't a terrain effect, since those would impact all Pokémon on the field. The only Fairy move like this, one that takes a turn to charge and then sharply boosts Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed, is Xerneas's exclusive Geomancy.
The other trainer didn't know what was going on, but figured he could just keep attacking from a safe distance.
"Swoobat—Air Slash!"
After Swoobat's Air Slash landed, a flash of strengthening light ran over Munchlax—his Special Attack, Special Defense, and Speed all rose two stages.
"Swoobat—Air Slash!"
"Munchlax—Metronome!"
And so it went. Swoobat would shoot off another Air Slash, and Munchlax would try his luck with Metronome. Neither could finish off the other. The opponent was getting desperate, stacking up debuffs, but still failing to bring down Munchlax.
Auron wasn't having much better luck. Munchlax's string of Metronomes had lowered the opponent's Special Attack by four stages, Special Defense by six, Attack by two, Defense by two, Speed by two, while boosting himself by two in Special Attack, two in Special Defense, one in Attack, one in Defense, three in Speed, and even healed once with Aqua Ring.
Auron felt frustrated. All those buffs would be enough to beat a Dungeon Boss, but not a single attacking move had come up! If just one attack, physical or special, had hit, it would have been an instant win.
The referee's face was dark. In all his years, he'd never seen a match like this. Was it bad luck? Every Metronome was useful, but none were attacks. If this had been a televised match, the commentators would have gone mad by now.
"Swoobat—Air Slash!"
"Munchlax—Metronome!"
Same moves again. Just when everyone thought Munchlax would get another status move, his body was suddenly wrapped in a surge of bright green energy. It lifted him into the air, then shot him like a missile toward Swoobat.
Swoobat couldn't dodge in time and was blasted off his feet, landing flat with swirls in his eyes.
Auron: ( )
Opponent: ╭(°A°`)╮
Referee: (ˊˋ)*
No one expected Munchlax to finally roll an unknown attack and one-shot Swoobat at the last moment.
Auron was ecstatic—today's luck was off the charts! Not only had Metronome rolled Xerneas's signature Geomancy, but now, in the final turn, it landed Rayquaza's exclusive Dragon Ascent. Sure, Munchlax's small frame couldn't match Rayquaza's power, but the damage was more than enough for Swoobat.
"Swoobat is unable to battle. Munchlax wins!"
As soon as the result was announced, Auron rushed into the arena, leaping up and hugging Munchlax.
"Munchlax, you're amazing!"
Munchlax was a little bewildered at first, but beamed as he caught Auron and let him hang off his shoulders.
Auron couldn't help his excitement. Back when he played the games, he loved catching a Togepi and spamming Metronome. Most of the time, you'd get some random move, and sometimes, just like in today's match, no attacks for ages. But whenever you finally rolled a Legendary's signature move, the thrill would last a whole day.
This time, though, it happened in real life! Not just one, but two signature Legendary moves in a single match—and the second one, Dragon Ascent, was the flashiest of all. No wonder Auron was so fired up.
Munchlax carried Auron out of the arena. Auron, still hyped up, kept kissing Munchlax's forehead, making the Pokémon blush.
"What are you two up to?"
Jace Rowan's curious face popped out from behind Munchlax, staring at Auron.
Auron froze, then jumped off Munchlax and tried to act calm.
"You wouldn't get it even if I explained. Why are you here?"
Jace thumped his chest. "I'm here for my eighth match. Just three more wins and I'll have a ten-win streak and qualify for the finals!"
Auron scoffed. "Oh? I already got my ten straight wins."
Jace shot Auron a look. "Well, I'm not comparing myself to a freak like you."
"Tch."
Both made a dismissive "tch" at the same time, perfectly mimicking the old Kakashi and Obito banter.
"Anyway, I'm heading in. Wanna come see me shine?"
"Sure," Auron grinned, "I'll enjoy watching you lose for once."
Neither would back down. Auron left the arena, only to double back and walk in to spectate. The referee's face darkened again.
Jace took his place on the field. Auron watched from the sidelines. The next challenger soon arrived—it was the princess-dress girl, Auron's opponent from the ninth round.
Watching her, Auron honestly didn't have high hopes for Jace. After all, she was fielding a pure Water-type Sobble, while Jace had a Fire-type Growlithe. With so few starting moves, that type advantage would be tough to overcome.
The princess-dress girl spotted Auron, clearly recognizing the one who had broken her win streak. She frowned and walked over.
"What are you doing here? Don't tell me you're my opponent again?"
Auron pointed at the field, exasperated. "No, your opponent is him. I just finished my own match here. That's my friend out there, so I thought I'd watch."
Her smile returned. "Alright, as long as it's not you!"
She bounced onto the field, certain that with Auron out of the way, her Sobble could breeze to ten wins.
The referee signaled both sides to send out their Pokémon. Jace released Growlithe, and the princess-dress girl sent out Sobble. When she saw her opponent's Pokémon, she flashed Auron a smug grin.
The flag dropped. Battle began!
"Sobble—Aqua Jet!"
"Growlithe—Agility!"
She immediately ordered Sobble to use Aqua Jet—a Water-type, priority move. But Growlithe wasn't untrained; his Agility boost let him dodge with ease.
"Sobble—Baby-Doll Eyes!"
"Growlithe—Bite!"
Noticing Growlithe's speed, the princess-dress girl quickly switched tactics, using Baby-Doll Eyes to sharply lower Growlithe's Attack and Special Attack. But Growlithe closed the gap fast, his jaws glowing with dark energy, and landed a solid Bite—even after the stat drop.
"Nice one, Growlithe! Again—Bite!"
"Sobble—Aqua Jet!"
Growlithe had just opened his mouth when Sobble's Aqua Jet sent him flying. That priority bonus was no joke.
"Sobble—Water Pulse!"
"Growlithe—Flamethrower!"
Both trainers shouted out their moves. Sobble fired a blue ring of water, Growlithe shot a thick burst of fire. The two attacks collided, turning the field into a hot mist with nearly zero visibility.
"Growlithe—Bite!"
"Sobble—Growl!"
Unable to see, the princess-dress girl had Sobble use Growl—an area attack to lower her opponent's Attack. But she forgot about Growlithe's nose. Jace capitalized, guiding Growlithe by scent straight to Sobble for another Bite.
Even so, Growl activated just before Growlithe bit, lowering his Attack another stage. But Growlithe's Bite still dealt a fair amount of damage.
Hearing Sobble's pained cry, the princess suddenly realized what was happening: Growlithe had used his nose to find Sobble. She quickly ordered,
"Sobble—Aqua Jet, knock him away!"
Jace chuckled, "Growlithe—Howl!"
Growlithe was knocked back by Aqua Jet, but then lifted his head and howled, raising his Attack by one stage. But with all the debuffs from Baby-Doll Eyes and Growl, he was still at minus one overall.
Auron let out a sigh of relief on the sidelines. Even with a type disadvantage, Jace had managed to take the upper hand with clever strategy.
(End of chapter)
Trainer's Note
Metronome: Metronome lets a Pokémon use any move in the game at random—including signature moves of Legendaries! Sometimes you get nothing useful, sometimes you get a move that turns the entire battle around.
Stat Stages: Moves like Baby-Doll Eyes, Growl, and Howl raise or lower stats by "stages." These add up, so multiple drops or boosts can swing a fight dramatically.
Signature Moves: Some moves—like Geomancy (Xerneas) or Dragon Ascent (Rayquaza)—are exclusive to Legendary Pokémon. But with Metronome, you just might see anything!
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