Gyarados let out a miserable roar. After taking hit after hit, it finally collapsed to the ground, raising a cloud of dust.
"Gyarados is unable to battle. Crobat wins!" the referee declared.
That tied the score at one-to-one. Each trainer had lost one Pokémon.
"Crobat, huh…" Yozora frowned slightly.
Crobat's speed was indeed troublesome, and combined with its natural aerial advantage, it was not easy to counter. Unless one had another Pokémon equally adept at fighting in the skies, battling Crobat would be extremely difficult.
After a moment's thought, Yozora sent out Arcanine.
"Roooaaar!"
The majestic Arcanine had barely stepped onto the field when it unleashed a thunderous roar. The shockwave radiated outward like a pressure blast, sweeping across the arena—even the skies—enveloping the entire field in a menacing aura of Intimidate.
Crobat's expression changed instantly. Where once it had brimmed with confidence, now its face twisted with fear.
The Intimidate had worked perfectly: Crobat's strength and speed plummeted.
"Arcanine, Flamethrower!" Yozora ordered as the second half of the match began.
Arcanine opened its massive jaws, spewing a torrent of searing flames skyward toward Crobat.
Flamethrower blazed fast—but no matter how fast it was, Crobat should have been faster. Trainer Jon Dickson barked confidently: "Dodge it!"
Crobat, sweating profusely, tried to respond to its trainer's command. But the fear-induced stiffness slowed its reflexes.
Had it been in peak condition, Crobat could have evaded with ease.
But this time, it failed. The flames engulfed it completely.
"Crobat!" Jon Dickson gasped, stunned.
He had known Arcanine's presence was oppressive and expected Crobat to be slightly affected. But he had never imagined Crobat would suffer so greatly.
Without its proudest asset—its speed—Crobat's strength was cut in half, if not more.
The flames dissipated at last, revealing Crobat covered in burns, its flight unsteady, its breath ragged. It had clearly sustained massive damage and was nearly spent.
"Arcanine, finish it—Flamethrower again!" Yozora commanded.
"BOOM!"
Another blast of fire shot through the air, smashing into Crobat head-on. It fell from the sky and crashed to the ground.
The referee glanced over the collapsed Crobat, confirmed it had fainted, then raised the red flag toward Arcanine."Crobat is unable to battle. Arcanine wins!"
"What incredible pressure! Arcanine's overwhelming aura crushed Crobat. Under that oppressive force, Crobat couldn't even keep flying!" the announcer cried in awe.
"Return, Crobat," Jon Dickson said darkly, recalling his Pokémon.
Crobat had been one of his main forces, a crucial member of his team. He had expected it to shine here. Instead, it had been defeated swiftly and decisively. What a loss.
"Your turn. Go, Feraligatr!" Jon Dickson shouted, sending out his third Pokémon.
The massive Water-type from Johto roared onto the battlefield.
Feraligatr—one of Johto's Water-type starters—was undeniably powerful. Jon Dickson's specimen was particularly strong, trained to the level of an Elite-tier novice.
And yet…
The moment it appeared, Feraligatr began trembling uncontrollably, shivering under Arcanine's aura. Like Crobat before it, it had fallen into a state of fear—and its reaction was even worse.
Its body stiffened, its power and speed dropping drastically.
"Feraligatr! Snap out of it! Use Hydro Pump!" Jon Dickson shouted, his voice straining.
But the Feraligatr was still shaking. It forced out a Hydro Pump, but its accuracy and force were pathetic.
"Dodge, then Flamethrower," Yozora commanded coolly.
Arcanine weaved aside, dodging the watery blast, then countered with more jets of flame, burning Feraligatr repeatedly.
Water resists Fire.
Against a Water-type like Feraligatr, Flamethrower was only half as effective.
Yet, under repeated strikes, Feraligatr's condition worsened rapidly.
Seeing that his Pokémon could barely stand, Yozora gave the final command: "End it. Extreme Speed!"
Arcanine's form blurred, turning into a streak of golden light as it barreled forward, slamming into Feraligatr with unstoppable force.
"Feraligatr is unable to battle. Arcanine wins!" the referee announced without hesitation.
With a loud beep, the scoreboard dimmed the image of Jon Dickson's third powerhouse.
"Jon Dickson has lost three Pokémon! That concludes the first half!"
The announcer's voice rang out."We'll take a ten-minute intermission before beginning the second half of this 6-on-6 full battle!"
During the break, Yozora entered the waiting room, accepted a bottle of water from a staff member, drank deeply, then chewed on a slice of lemon while reclining on the sofa. He looked utterly relaxed.
And why wouldn't he be? The first half had gone overwhelmingly in his favor. He had no reason to worry. His opponent, Jon Dickson, was the one under pressure.
After the ten-minute interval, the announcer invited the trainers back into the arena. Yozora returned to his side of the battlefield, and Jon Dickson took his place opposite him.
Following the momentum of the first half, Yozora sent out Arcanine again.
Just like at the Indigo League, the Silver Conference also allowed each trainer three chances to switch out their Pokémon mid-battle. Sending out Arcanine again did not count as a switch, meaning Yozora still had all three substitutions available.
"Roooaaar!"
The golden-furred Arcanine strode forward, roaring thunderously once more.
"It's still Arcanine! Yozora's Arcanine has already proven itself immensely powerful with its terrifying aura. It has defeated two opponents already—will it continue its winning streak in the second half?" the announcer hyped up the crowd.
Sure enough, the stadium erupted into cheers. Yozora's fans, and especially those of his Shiny Arcanine, screamed their support. They firmly believed the pair would keep winning.
"Hmph. Dream on about a win streak! Go, Slowking!" Jon Dickson snapped coldly, releasing his fourth Pokémon, the first of the second half.
Slowking, the Royal Pokémon—another evolution of Slowpoke.
Unlike Slowbro, Slowking exuded an air of nobility and wisdom. Though its eyes looked vacant, its calm composure radiated kingly dignity.
It stood upright, arms clasped behind its back. Around its neck hung a red-and-white, umbrella-like frill. Upon its head rested a silver crown—once a Shellder, transformed by evolution.
The difference in bearing was staggering. Compared to Slowbro, Slowking looked infinitely more regal.
Slowpoke had two evolutionary paths.
When a Slowpoke's tail was bitten by a Shellder, the two fused to become Slowbro. That was a form of composite evolution.
But if a Slowpoke donned a King's Rock and was bitten on the head by a Shellder, it would evolve into Slowking.
Because of the King's Rock's rarity, combined with this unique method of evolution, Slowking was incredibly rare. Almost never seen in the wild, a Slowking would certainly rule over any colony of Slowpoke and Slowbro.
"Whoa! Jon Dickson's fourth Pokémon is the rare Slowking!" the announcer cried.
Gasps swept through the audience. Many spectators had never even seen a Slowking before, and their jaws dropped. They had only just learned that Slowpoke had such a majestic evolution.
Slowking's level was very high—an Elite-tier veteran, already in the upper ranges of the class. Truly formidable.
But its real advantage was that it ignored Arcanine's Intimidate.
Not because of strength. Its level alone wasn't enough to resist that aura.
The true reason was… Slowking's peculiar dullness.
Research had shown that despite Slowking's extraordinary intelligence, its emotions were as sluggish as those of Slowpoke or Slowbro.
They often didn't even feel pain properly. Fear, then, was nonexistent.
Perhaps the concept of fear simply didn't exist for them.
"Well, Yozora—your Arcanine's aura won't work this time," Jon Dickson said smugly, folding his arms as if he were in control instead of on the back foot.
"In that case—attack head-on! Arcanine, Flamethrower!" Yozora ordered.
Arcanine unleashed another torrent of fire at Slowking.
"Slowking, Light Screen!" Jon Dickson commanded calmly.
Slowking blinked once. Before it, a translucent, glass-like barrier appeared. The wall absorbed the flames, then reflected half the attack back, scorching Arcanine.
Arcanine snarled in pain, its once-fierce eyes narrowing with newfound wariness. It had realized that the "vacant fool" before it was far from harmless.
"As expected of Slowking—effortlessly turning Arcanine's power back on itself!" the announcer exclaimed.
The crowd erupted. In an instant, many shifted to cheering for Jon Dickson and his majestic Royal Pokémon.
Jon Dickson only smiled faintly. To him, this was natural. Slowking was one of his trump cards—of course it would display this level of strength.
"Crush it, Slowking! Use Water Pulse!" he commanded.
Slowking raised one hand lazily, condensing a sphere of blue energy—a dense, high-pressure orb of water. With surprising casualness, it hurled the water bomb at Arcanine.
The projectile wasn't large, but its density and pressure were terrifying. It flew like a cannonball, shockingly fast.
Arcanine reacted swiftly, leaping aside. The attack whistled past—
—but then turned in midair, arcing back around.
Just as Arcanine landed, the Water Pulse slammed into its back.
The orb exploded, unleashing waves of surging water that crashed into Arcanine, sending it tumbling across the ground.
"Psychic-enhanced Water Pulse…" Yozora muttered, face tightening.
Slowking had fused its psychic power with Water Pulse, creating a combo move that not only struck harder but could bend its trajectory freely.
Yozora recognized the technique—his own Golduck could use it as well.
"Incredible! That Water Pulse turned in midair—it's Psychic-enhanced Water Pulse! The impact was devastating. Can Arcanine even stand up after that?" the announcer cried.
Arcanine struggled. It staggered, tried to rise several times… but collapsed each attempt. It couldn't go on.
"Arcanine is unable to battle. Slowking wins!" The referee waved the red flag toward Slowking.
"Return, Arcanine." Yozora recalled his Pokémon calmly.
Arcanine's fivefold Intimidate ability had always been its greatest advantage, but against Slowking, it had been useless.
Combined with type disadvantage and level suppression, its defeat was inevitable.
Still, after two straight wins earlier, Yozora was satisfied with its performance.
"That Slowking is both stylish and terrifying," Ash muttered from the stands, his face serious.
Misty's eyes were already sparkling. As a Water-type enthusiast, she had fallen for Slowking the moment it appeared.
"It's definitely tough. But Yozora still has Ampharos—I bet he'll send it out next," Brock guessed.
But Yozora didn't send Ampharos. Instead, he chose Scizor.
It wasn't that he didn't want to use Ampharos. Rather, it hadn't been registered for this match.
In official League battles, each trainer had to register their six Pokémon in advance. No changes were allowed mid-match.
That made team selection absolutely critical.
A trainer could have a hundred Pokémon, but simply bringing the strongest six wasn't always the best strategy. Only careful study of the opponent could ensure the most effective lineup.
But opponents couldn't always be studied thoroughly—so sometimes, luck played a role. With eighteen types in existence, no six Pokémon could cover every possibility. When two trainers were evenly matched, the one with better luck in team selection often had the upper hand.
"Scizor, Quick Attack!" Yozora commanded as the battle resumed.
Scizor blurred forward like lightning, a crimson streak slicing across the arena as it lunged at Slowking.
(End of Chapter)