Up until now, Gardevoir was basically on par with Charizard in terms of power level. However, in terms of actual combat power, Charizard had always been stronger. He possessed the power of Sacred Fire and could transform it into his own exclusive power, the Amaterasu Flame.
With Amaterasu Flame, Charizard's ability to fight above his tier was greatly enhanced. Even at Champion level, he still possessed ample combat capability.
In contrast, Gardevoir, apart from Psyshock that Mewtwo had taught her and her wide range of learnable moves, lacked other means of fighting above her tier. A wide move pool at the same level did reduce the opponent's room to maneuver, but if the opponent's overall strength was one tier higher than Gardevoir's, then even a wide move pool wouldn't give her any real advantage.
After all, while Gardevoir had breadth, she also had a fatal flaw: she lacked any one particularly devastating move. The only ultimate technique she could use was Mewtwo's Psyshock.
Therefore, in terms of overall combat capability, Gardevoir was inferior to Charizard, especially Charizard after awakening his Amaterasu Flame.
However, Gardevoir wasn't the type to stand idly by while other Pokémon on the team slowly pulled ahead. Besides her gentle and pleasing side, she also possessed a fierce competitive nature. She was still one of the team's top-tier Pokémon.
So she forged her own path. Using the breakthrough from Psyshock, which transformed special attacks into physical-defense calculations, she'd comprehended the power of combining special and physical energy. Spirit Force.
Normally, Gardevoir's physical attack should be low, but Ash's Gardevoir was different. Even in her Ralts form, she could use ThunderPunch in close combat, and after growing into Gardevoir, she possessed genuine physical strength on top of her psychic power.
Therefore, the combination of these two powers had a 1+1 greater than 2 effect. This was also Gardevoir's real edge for fighting above her tier.
"Regirock, Lock-On." Brandon once again ordered Regirock to use its locking ability. Without a precise lock, directly attacking Gardevoir would be too difficult. An invisible force surged from Regirock's body, attempting to lock onto Gardevoir.
At that moment, Gardevoir suddenly vanished without a trace, and the Lock-On lost its target.
"The same trick won't work twice on us that easily. Gardevoir, Hydro Pump!" Ash called out.
A second later, Gardevoir appeared above Regirock, her deep black arms held in front of her, a powerful Water-type force condensing before her, forming a massive water sphere.
The Hydro Pump poured down from Gardevoir's position. It wasn't an ordinary Hydro Pump, but one condensed from Spirit Force. A faint, flickering fluorescence could be seen within the water, a perfect fusion of psychic and physical power, proving its strength far surpassed the Champion Beginner standard.
Regirock had just finished its Lock-On attempt and missed. Before it could make any defensive movements, the Hydro Pump struck it squarely on the head.
The water washing over the rocky surface of its body produced a deafening grinding sound. Regirock's enormous body was forced to kneel on one knee by the terrifying force, and the ground around it cracked and collapsed in all directions.
The already cracked rocky armor began to peel away in chunks under the sustained impact, and pieces of rock fell from its body, revealing an even weaker layer of stone within.
"Regirock!"
For the first time, worry flickered in Brandon's voice. He hadn't expected Regirock to miss the Lock-On. This move was invisible and activated by thought. Normally, Pokémon wouldn't be able to dodge it. But Gardevoir was a Psychic-type Pokémon. She could sense the intent before it formed, which was why she'd dodged.
The failed Lock-On also cost Regirock a turn. Brandon had prepared to withstand the opponent's attack this turn, but he hadn't prepared for the Lock-On to fail entirely. So the moment it lost its target, he was momentarily stunned, and Regirock was hit directly by the Hydro Pump.
"She even knows Hydro Pump." Brandon muttered to himself. Hydro Pump could basically only be learned by Pokémon deeply proficient in the Water element. In other words, it all but required the Water type.
Other types found it extremely difficult to learn. Gardevoir, a Pokémon that could barely learn basic Water-type moves, was now using Hydro Pump. What else could this be but a monster?
"Gardevoir."
Gardevoir elegantly retracted her hands, and the Hydro Pump's impact finally stopped.
Regirock remained kneeling on one knee, its entire body battered. Its originally sharp, angular rocky body was now uneven, with several places showing penetrating cracks.
But it still didn't fall. Legendary Pokémon possessed far more willpower and stamina than ordinary Pokémon. If an ordinary Pokémon had taken this many super-effective hits, it would have probably collapsed long ago.
But Regirock seemed to have only about a third of its strength left. Simply unbelievably stubborn.
This was still under the premise that Gardevoir possessed Spirit Force. If it were purely a special attack, Regirock's remaining strength would surely be more than half its original total. Legendary Pokémon really were that terrifying.
However, Brandon clearly wouldn't just sit and wait. "Regirock, Rock Slide!"
Brandon's voice calmed down again. As a veteran Trainer, confusion might appear, but it was important to suppress it. Otherwise, the battle would be over the moment you prolonged your panic.
Regirock's body tensed. Seven rhombus-shaped points of light flashed on its head, and its fists slammed violently into the ground. The entire battle arena shook violently again. Countless boulders rained down from the ceiling like a meteor shower, hurtling toward Gardevoir.
Those boulders were even larger than the previous Stone Edge, and their range was much wider. Gardevoir, being in the air, was basically unable to dodge.
"Gardevoir, Teleport!" Ash ordered without hesitation. Facing such a large-scale attack, the only option was to Teleport to a gap in the arena. For Gardevoir, this wasn't difficult.
In an instant, Gardevoir vanished from the sky, and the next moment reappeared on the ground in a spot untouched by the collapsing rocks.
"Lock-On!" Brandon's command was immediate. The seven gems on Regirock's chest simultaneously lit up, and an invisible locking wave instantly sealed onto Gardevoir, who had just completed her Teleport.
"So that's it! Regirock's Rock Slide was to force Gardevoir to dodge into a gap, allowing Brandon to pinpoint exactly where Gardevoir would land after Teleporting. In that narrow window, Gardevoir would have no way to avoid Lock-On." Seeing this, Brock immediately understood Brandon's plan.
Brandon knew Gardevoir could sense Lock-On early.
So without any feints, it was fundamentally impossible to land a Lock-On on Gardevoir. Therefore, Brandon chose to use a large-scale attack to force Gardevoir to flee, then Lock-On to seal her landing position, setting the stage for the follow-up.
As expected of the strongest among the Frontier Brains, he'd immediately found a way to counter Gardevoir's Teleport.
"Giga Impact!" Brandon delivered his final verdict.
Giga Impact, a Normal-type ultimate move, left the user immobile for a period after use. If this move failed to take down Gardevoir, Regirock would be left at the opponent's mercy. Brandon was going all-or-nothing.
Regirock's remaining stamina was entirely transformed into Giga Impact energy. Its ravaged, rocky body was enveloped in white light, like a meteor hurtling toward Gardevoir. Wherever it passed, the ground was gouged into a deep trench, and the air itself was torn apart and distorted by the destructive shockwave.
If this attack landed, even Gardevoir at peak condition couldn't withstand it, let alone a Gardevoir already depleted of stamina. Furthermore, this time, Gardevoir couldn't use Reflect to further bolster her defense.
While Giga Impact was slightly weaker than a Rock-type attack in terms of type advantage, its real strength was that it sent Regirock's massive body charging directly at Gardevoir. Protect could block the first shockwave, but if Regirock continued to press with its body, it would become a battle of stamina.
And to put it bluntly, Regirock, with only a third of its stamina remaining, still had more stamina than Gardevoir. Once Gardevoir entered a passive defensive state, her defeat was practically inevitable.
Therefore, no matter what, this attack could only be met head-on.
"Gardevoir, Spirit Shatter!" Ash's voice echoed through the pyramid.
Of course. The opponent wanted to risk everything, so they would fight to the end.
Gardevoir clasped her hands together in front of her, and an energy completely different from Giga Impact began to condense. It was her exclusive technique learned from Mewtwo: Psyshock.
But this time, Gardevoir's Psyshock was different from before. Within the Psyshock, a special kind of light was mixed in. The light of Spirit Force.
Spirit Force originated from the breakthrough of merging psychic and physical energy. Using this combined force to enhance a mental attack also carried unique effects. Beyond greatly increasing the power of a psychic attack, Gardevoir could now decide for herself which type of defense calculation the attack would target.
Theoretically, Gardevoir could make the mental attack hit as a special attack, or as a physical attack.
Between Gardevoir's hands, a semi-transparent energy sphere was rapidly expanding, its interior shimmering with gold and silver light, like a miniature star system rotating.
"Let's go!"
"Gardevoir!
" Ash and Gardevoir's voices rang out almost simultaneously.
The dazzling white Giga Impact and the gold-and-silver intertwined Psyshock collided with a thunderous roar in mid-air.
The entire pyramid shook violently. It wasn't just the structure shaking. The entire space was trembling. Mewtwo's shield, which had been deployed around the arena, emitted a deafening creaking sound. These two attacks clashing had actually made even Mewtwo's barrier react.
Inside its Poké Ball, Mewtwo's expression froze. Although it had merely casually set up a shield, the fact that the collision could shake its barrier indicated that the combined impact force of these two attacks had approached god level.
A truly terrifying duel. Mewtwo thought to itself, silently increasing the release of its psychic abilities, stabilizing the shield completely.
At the center of the collision, the two energies clashed for less than two seconds. The Psyshock began to gradually surpass the Giga Impact.
Gardevoir gritted her teeth, veins even bulging on her forehead. This was her first time using Spirit Force to enhance Psyshock in actual combat, and the drain on her mental and physical strength was immense. Doubling the power also meant doubling the consumption.
But she couldn't lose. Charizard had already secured a victory. As the team's co-ace, how could she possibly perform worse than Charizard? Moreover, she absolutely couldn't let Ash down.
"Gardevoir!"
Gardevoir let out a resounding cry, the power within her body completely erupting at this moment. The energy sphere shattered by her Psyshock suddenly expanded, like a miniature sun, and completely devoured the Giga Impact.
"What?" Brandon's eyes widened.
A dazzling golden-silver beam of light erupted, illuminating the entire battle arena as if it were daytime. Even Misty and the others in the stands couldn't help but close their eyes. Within that light, a gigantic dark shadow could be vaguely seen being forcibly blown backward.
Regirock's shattered body, like a cannonball, flew backward at incredible speed, crashing violently into Mewtwo's transparent shield. Visible ripples appeared on the barrier, and the entire arena shook violently from the impact.
The moment Regirock's rocky body collided with the shield, countless fragments of rock flew out from it, and then it slid helplessly down, falling heavily to the ground, creating a huge crater.
Amidst the swirling dust, the legendary Regirock lay motionless at the bottom of the crater. Its fate was arguably even worse than Registeel's.
Meanwhile, in another part of the arena, Gardevoir wasn't in much better shape either. She knelt on one knee, gasping for breath, the light from her Mega Evolution receding like a fading tide. Her jet-black flowing dress transformed back into pristine white, and her long blue hair returned to its original length. Mega Evolution, reversed.
Gardevoir's reaction was practically identical to Charizard's. The Mega Evolution had dropped, but she hadn't lost her fighting ability. Her opponent had been beaten just as badly.
The referee was stunned for a moment before finally reacting to the shouts of Misty and the others.
"Regirock is unable to battle. Gardevoir wins!"
In the second match, Ash had won again. Moreover, the price paid was far less severe than in the first match. Gardevoir was only exhausted. Her body hadn't suffered any physical injuries.
In contrast, Charizard had been able to keep standing only thanks to his incredibly strong willpower. Otherwise, both he and Registeel would have lost their fighting ability simultaneously.
Now, Brandon only had one Pokémon left, and Ash's situation was almost the same. Gardevoir and Charizard were technically still available, but not in much better shape than defeated. Continuing the fight with them would be extremely difficult. Theoretically, the 3v3 had now turned into a 1v1.