Lionel's gaze landed on Roselia, and its profile flashed through his mind in an instant.
[Pokémon: Roselia]
[Type: Grass / Poison]
[Category: Thorn Pokémon]
[Ability: Poison Point—when struck by a contact move, the toxic thorns may poison the attacker.]
[Moves: Poison Sting, Mega Drain, Leech Seed, Toxic Spikes, Magical Leaf, Heal Pulse…]
Lionel studied Roselia and felt a chill—this one was far tougher than Marina's Marill.
Beldum's potential was sky-high, but it had only just hatched; its stamina and energy pool were limited, so this fight wouldn't be easy.
"Beldum, be careful."
Lionel warned, his tone heavier than usual.
"Roselia, use Magical Leaf."
Anjie issued the order first, crisp and decisive.
Roselia's bloom-hands swayed gently; countless iridescent leaves condensed mid-air and, as though given life, spiraled toward Beldum.
Stranger still, those leaves traced bizarre arcs—dodged once, they suddenly doubled back, homing in from behind like a guided system that left no room to evade.
Beldum dared not slack off; its Confusion surged at full power as its silver body weaved left and right through the air.
The leaves whistled past its edges, their turbulence destabilizing its levitation, yet it clenched its resolve, red-crystal eyes locked on the chasing foliage.
"Dodging forever won't work."
Lionel quickly judged the field. "Beldum, stop those leaves with Confusion, then fling them back!"
Beldum obeyed at once; pale-blue psychic ripples spread like an invisible net toward the Magical Leaves.
The rainbow leaves jolted mid-flight, their speed plummeting—nearly half were frozen in place.
Then, under Confusion's pull, the captured blades reversed course and shot back at Roselia.
"Roselia, Magical Leaf again."
Anjie's eyes sharpened as he snapped the order.
A fresh flurry of leaves burst from Roselia's hands, colliding head-on with the psychically hijacked ones.
Swish-swish-swish—every leaf was sliced in two, drifting down like confetti.
By now Beldum hovered unsteadily; its red crystals had dimmed and the psychic glow around it thinned markedly.
Continuous Confusion—dodging and controlling—had drained the newborn; its energy neared empty, even levitation felt laborious.
Seeing Beldum couldn't last, Lionel ordered without hesitation:
"Beldum, final blow—Zen Headbutt—aim for Roselia!"
Beldum jerked its head up; resolve flashed in its ruby eyes as it mustered every last ounce of strength.
Blue psychic light flared anew.
Fainter than before, yet burning with do-or-die momentum, it rocketed like a missile running on fumes straight at Roselia.
"Roselia, sidestep right!"
Anjie shouted, a hint of tension slipping into his voice.
Psychic moves were super-effective against Poison; at Beldum's blinding speed, a clean hit could knock Roselia out cold.
Roselia reacted instantly, its slender form darting right to evade the lethal strike.
The attack seemed destined to miss—yet Beldum's crimson gaze stayed locked on target.
At the instant it would have grazed past, Beldum ignited its last reserves of Confusion; a faint blue aura flared, forcibly correcting its trajectory.
Bang—it struck Roselia squarely! The psychic advantage over poison blossomed in full force.
Roselia grunted, stumbling back three steps before steadying itself; its petals drooped, showing it had taken serious damage.
But Beldum's energy guttered out—the blue light died, its silver frame plummeting.
Thud—it hit the ground.
Unable even to levitate, it lay there panting, half-lidded red crystals glazed with exhaustion.
"Beldum is unable to battle—Roselia wins!"
Grandma Guangdai's voice rang out, tinged with regret and surprise.
Beldum shifted, unwilling to accept defeat, its little head scraping the floor.
It had never lost even when playing with Tyrunt; now, in its first real battle, it couldn't beat a flower-wielding foe.
Lionel hurried over, cradling the Pokémon gently and stroking its cool metallic shell.
"It's all right—you were amazing. You're still so tiny, yet you lasted this long and even hurt Roselia. That's beyond anyone's expectations. Once we train back home and build up your energy, we'll win next time."
Beldum nuzzled him; though still downcast, a faint gleam returned to its red eyes.
Tyrunt and Feebas crowded close; Tyrunt bumped its head against Beldum and crooned soothingly.
After comforting Beldum, Lionel set it gently on a nearby seat.
Tyrunt promptly leaned in, rubbing its head on Beldum's shell as if to say, "Watch me now."
Anjie recalled Roselia and smiled at Lionel.
"That was incredible—Roselia nearly lost. You said Beldum was only just hatched when you caught it; to perform like that is remarkable.
Roselia's pretty banged up, so we'll stop here. Next up—Haruhiko takes the field."
Haruhiko had been raring to go; he patted the head of the Linoone beside him.
"Time for us to shine."
With that, the brown-furred Linoone dashed into the arena, thick limbs pounding, whip-like tail flicking, eyes blazing with belligerence.
Lionel's eyes settled on Linoone, its data surfacing instantly in his mind.
[Pokémon: Linoone]
[Type: Normal]
[Category: Rush Pokémon]
[Ability: Gluttony—when its HP drops to half, it immediately eats its held Berry to recover.]
[Moves: Slash, Tackle, Hone Claws, Headbutt, Fury Swipes, Dig, Flail…]
After scanning the sheet, Lionel knew the score: this Linoone was no weaker than Roselia, but he wasn't worried.
He turned to Tyrunt beside him, trust shining in his eyes.
Tyrunt was no newborn like Beldum; after the rigorous grind through Petalburg Woods, it had long since become one of his core teammates alongside Feebas.
۞۞۞۞
p-atreon.com/PokeFicLord
40+ Chapters in p-atreon.com.
(Just remove the hyphen to access Patreon normally.)