"Stop, stop! I was wrong! I was wrong, okay?!" Jason surrendered at once, tapping Haunter's back with a soft tendril. "I wasn't dismissing you—absolutely not! How could I ever look down on our cute Gast?"
"Really?" Haunter hiccupped, the sobbing quieter.
"Really—truer than true!" Jason vowed. "I only said that because I was worried you'd get hurt."
That line eased Haunter's heart a lot. It stopped crying, though it still floated there looking a little wronged.
"Then… then I want to fight too."
"Deal! Fight! We'll fight together!" Jason agreed immediately, terrified it would start wailing again.
He got it now—if he didn't let this little ancestor take the field, nothing else was moving forward today.
Still, he had to set terms.
"But you follow orders." Jason's tone firmed. "When the fight starts, Valiant and I take point. You hang back and support us—look for chances to harass it, got it?"
"Support?" Haunter tilted its head.
"Right—use your tricks. Make it sleepy, scare it, disrupt it—create openings for us," Jason explained.
"Oh! I'm good at that!" Haunter perked right up, twirling in midair. "Leave it to me, Jason! I'll show that big lug what I can do!"
Seeing Haunter finally crack a smile, Jason let out a long breath. Calming this ghost was tougher than dealing with Roaring Moon.
He glanced at Iron Valiant again; the android's eyes flickered as if to say, "I do not understand." What were they dawdling for? The enemy was right there.
Jason ignored it and refocused on the true threat.
Facing the Roaring Moon, he drew a deep breath. A white glow rose around him, cocooning his body as its outline warped and reformed.
"Jason's transforming again!" Nemona cried, eyes lighting up.
When the light faded, the tiny Ditto was gone—in its place stood a Tinkaton. Jason hefted the massive hammer off his shoulder; the head thudded into the ground with a boom that cracked the stone underfoot.
At the same time, Iron Valiant and the freshly-de-sniffling Haunter slid into position. Valiant took Jason's left-front, erect and poised, twin arm-blades humming—a gathered, razor aura. Haunter obeyed, going half-transparent as it slipped behind a broken stone pillar at their rear flank, only its big rolling eyes showing as it peeped at the field.
An unbreakable front hammer, a swift lethal duelist, and a hidden harrier—roles clear, a triangle instantly formed.
As they readied, Roaring Moon lost its patience.
"Roooar!"
The throat-tearing bellow wasn't just a growl now—it was a penetrating shockwave, shaking more crystal dust from the ceiling. The colossal body moved: a crouch, a detonation of leg power, a leap; those moon-sickle wings spread to blot the cave's gentle crystal light.
In an instant their battlefield lay under its shadow. Dust-laden wind hit the observers; Liko and Nemona flinched behind their forearms. With crushing presence it landed dozens of meters ahead—ground quaked as if in a small quake.
It lifted its head; those scarlet eyes brimmed with disdain for the tiny challengers. It couldn't fathom why these creatures dared to raise a hand against it. Not that it mattered—fighting was what it liked best, whether for the hunt or simple destruction.
The mingled Dragon/Dark aura felt physical, thickening the air. Haunter, tucked behind its pillar, was first to bear it—its vapor body trembled violently, a life-deep fear, the prey before an apex predator. It almost turned to flee back to Jason.
Then—Valiant's earlier glance flashed in its mind. That dismissive look.
A surge of courage flared hot enough to burn off some of the terror. No! Don't flinch! I'm Jason's Pokémon—Jason's partner! He'll only be allowed six someday—I won't be the leftover slot! I'm going adventuring with him! It clenched metaphorical teeth; though it shook, its eyes rekindled.
Center field, Jason's mind raced. Under pressure he ran the math fast.
"Dragon + Dark, four-times weak to Fairy," his voice reached Valiant and Haunter both. "That's our biggest—and only—edge. Valiant's Fairy offense is the main damage."
"But do not relax," he warned, tone grave. "Its Ability is Protosynthesis. No sun yet, but it could carry a sunlight move. If it triggers, speed or attack spikes and the field flips—fast."
"So—simple plan." Jason called it. "Valiant, you're point—frontline pressure and damage. I'm Tinkaton, timing the finisher and defense. Haunter, you're key—don't chase damage. Your objective: disrupt it at all costs—break its tempo so we can hit."
Orders set, he raised the hammer and tapped the ground — thoom.
Valiant moved on the beat. A dip, stone bursting, and the android became a streak, straight up the middle. Target clear—take aggro and strike with Fairy. Its right hand gathered pink light for Spirit Break, hoping to open with four-times STAB pressure.
Jason's Tinkaton advanced from the flank in steady, mountain-solid steps, hammer humming with gathering force—telegraphing Gigaton Hammer to pin attention and split focus.
Haunter, staring at Jason's back, whispered, "So I'm really that important?"
Lightning-fast spearpoint, grinding mountain flank—nearly perfect.
Roaring Moon answered with contempt. It didn't even shift its feet. It snarled—and snapped its wings once. "Whooom!"
A savage Hurricane manifested—compressed, spinning air into a visible wind-pillar linking floor to vault. It slotted exactly across Valiant's line, wind shear and drag halting the midair lancer, bleeding momentum to nil. One move—cleanly erased the opener.
As the dragon's focus narrowed on Valiant and it watched Jason's hammerline, the least-considered weakling seized a blink of time.
From the pillar's shadow, Haunter slid out soundlessly. Its big white eyes flashed two dizzying beams of prismatic light—Confuse Ray—lancing Roaring Moon's brow.
"Rooar?" The beast shuddered; for an instant, confusion flickered in those scarlet pupils—visions splitting, the field wobbling with ghostly doubles. It shook its head brutally to clear it, and the planned follow-up died on the vine. The daze lasted not two seconds under its feral will—but it was enough to enrage it. Its burning gaze tore off the frontliners to the pillar's edge.
Pinned in that crimson glare, Haunter froze, courage popping like a pricked balloon. "Keh!" it squeaked, flattening against cold stone, trying to be air itself, unable to peek.
Roaring Moon rumbled—a dismissive growl. That rabbit wasn't worth a bite. Which left the true threats. The quick exchange had told it these weren't mere brutes—they had a pattern: spear, hammer, gnat. Clumsy but dangerous.
So it stopped holding back. Under savage instinct, it reached the obvious conclusion—if two Fairies are a problem, elevate beyond tactics.
You like type pressure? Fine—I'll break it.
It threw its head back and screamed skyward. A blazing orb belched from its jaws, arcing high—then burst.
No shockwave—just blinding light. From the detonation's heart, brilliance swept out—draping the entire field, and further besides, in merciless Harsh Sunlight.
The world changed. Heat surged; stones warmed to smoking, air shimmered like oil.
"Hot!" Nemona fanned herself; sweat pearled her brow. Liko's cheeks flushed; the air between them and the beast warped.
Then the more terrifying shift—under the burning dome, dark-blue scales and red plumage bled into baleful crimson glow. A more primal, more violent pulse roared from within, red energy rings rippling outward.
Protosynthesis—online.
Speed spiked—hard.
"Damn!" Jason's gut dropped. The worst case—here. Its power climbed a tier, but worse was the speed. It would seize tempo—their strikes wouldn't land; theirs would.
Iono's stream lost its mind—
[Kalos Champion—Diantha: Impeccable tactical sense. It knows its highs and lows. Weather to flip the board—trainer-grade adaptation, from a wild paradox.]
[Top Gifter: Jason-God, hold! Need a rain dance? I'll send a team!]
No time. If Jason didn't answer now, Cynthia would. Then there'd be nothing left for him.
His gaze snapped to the rear flank—Haunter was plastered to a cool stone to shed heat.
"Haunter!"
Jason shouted with everything he had.
"Now—Rain Dance! Break its sun!"
~~~
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