This battle is really coming to a climax! Only a few chapters left to go as the Commander and the Phantom pull out all the stops, trying desperately to defeat their opponent! But which side will emerge victorious? Who had the better strategy, the better flow of the battle, who wants to win more? We'll have to find out!
MikySP: Thanks!
Just a Bad Writer for Fun: Nice guess.
KedharS: Definitely, it should be.
Aquahaze675: Shadow Smeargle, only paints edgy art that no one understands and then gets mad at you for not "getting it".
Rowlets and Oshawotts: Hopefully a good twist or two will shatter that arrogance of his, maybe the Commander has some plans of his own.
Rus0804: A few more chapters and you could have binged the whole thing. But you picked a good place to come in and read daily.
Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings
Chapter 594
Sylvia leaned in, watching the match. Things were just starting to get good! She'd concealed herself among a bunch of random students and was blending in rather nicely, enjoying the match so far. She couldn't wait to see how it was going to go! Her tongue eagerly slipped past her lips as her eyes began to shine. This… oh, yes, this was going to be a surprising twist ending if ever there was one, that was for sure, especially with her knowing the coming gambit.
Sylvia couldn't help but chuckle, he would never see it coming. It was one of her favorite moves, and he would never see it coming.
The Phantom smiled, knowing that destiny bond would be the perfect way to "get" the Commander. He'd taken out his Lucario with perish song, and now he would sacrifice another one of his pokemon to take out a second, the Espeon.
"Curse, use nasty plot again," Valon ordered.
"Cofagrigus!" Curse cackled, the shadows around him flaring up again as he plotted, boosting his special attacking stat.
I'm not sure what the Phantom is planning, but it's probably best to be cautious. We'll have to prepare a little, Alden wagered. "Eifa, use shadow ball!"
"Espeon!" Eifa opened her mouth and fired a shadow ball at Curse, slamming into the pokemon, but it seemed that Eifa was incapable of scoring that one, decisive hit.
"Why isn't it working?" Lila asked. "I mean, Espeon has some really powerful special attacks, right? And Ghost type moves should be super-effective, right?"
"Definitely," Darla said. "It's clearly weakening that Cofagrigus, but between being a Shadow Pokemon and Cofagrigus's naturally high defenses, it doesn't seem like it's enough."
"Let's see if four boosts is enough," Valon mused. "Now, Curse, use shadow storm!"
"COFAGRIGUS!" Curse roared, his sarcophagus opening as widely as possible. His hands spread in all directions and he began molding the wind, sculpting it and shaping it into a massive tornado that roared across the battlefield, the shadow-infused winds tearing around and raging at high speed as it tried to suck Eifa inside.
"Espeon!" Eifa tried to run, but the tornado was too strong and too wide. She was dragged up off of the ground and sucked into the tornado, the shadows slamming against the red barrier of light that she created around her body. She tried to hold on, strengthening her barrier as best as she could, but the shadows smashing against it began to cause cracks to form along its surface.
Alden squinted into the shadows, seeing flashes of red bursting all over the tornado. Then, the red sparks grew even more intense, a bright flash of scarlet and then no red at all, followed by Eifa's screams of pain. Her light screen had been broken.
"Ah, so four was the lucky number, excellent," the Phantom mused. Eifa was flung from the tornado, badly injured, but wasn't about to go down so easily. With her new buffer of health she quickly leapt to her feet and began to glow, red light streaming down on her and recovering her wounds. She ran towards Curse, opening her mouth.
"Shadow ball!" Alden ordered. Eifa fired a shadow ball at Curse, hitting the Cofagrigus directly in the face, the pokemon letting out a cry of pain. He batted at her with his hands, but Eifa was too quick for him to make it. She jumped back, and began to glow red again. "Next, use wish!"
"Espeon!" Eifa's eyes flashed red and a crimson star streaked overhead.
"So, you're planning on healing yourself, is that it?" Valon asked, raising his eyebrow. "Well, fine then. It's not like it's something so easy, wearing down your Espeon's health. Curse, let's just keep going down the same route that we have been. Use shadow storm again!"
"Cofagrigus!" Curse roared, creating a massive tornado the size of the whole battlefield, roaring towards Eifa.
Damn, didn't want to risk this again, Alden scowled. But he had to think fast. "Eifa! Copycat!"
"Espeon!" Eifa's eyes flashed red, and then the ruby on her forehead darkened with shadows. A dark aura rose up around her, and the wind around her began to twist and shift, forming a massive tornado that burst around her and struck Curse's tornado, the two Shadow Moves colliding in a massive torrent of shadow and darkness, displacing each other.
"What a counter!" Darla gasped.
"But she used a Shadow Move!" Lila wailed.
"Eifa, are you okay?!" Alden shouted.
"Espeon!" Eifa nodded, her crimson aura returning. Fortunately, it seemed that she wasn't as vulnerable to being taken in by the corruption of Shadow Pokemon as Corin was. Probably because Lucario was a pokemon with such a hyper-connection to aura.
So that Espeon was able to resist, pity. So much for that plan to create Shadow Pokemon. Still, it's a method worth experimenting with, at least. But first, we'll have to see just how much damage we can do with what Curse is capable of. The Phantom smiled. We must, of course, give the illusion of this battle against his Espeon meaning something. Even if Curse is only a few hits away from fainting. We need to make things as optimal as possible, after all.
"Curse, we'll simply need more power. Use nasty plot once again," he ordered.
"Cofagrigus!" Curse cackled, building up his special attacking strength even higher. Now, it was as high as it could get. Which meant Eifa was in for some trouble.
But there was one thing that Eifa had over the Cofagrigus, and that was speed.
"Eifa, use calm mind," Alden ordered. "We can't boost our special attack or our special defense as fast as he can, but we can still move faster. Go!"
"Espeon!" Eifa nodded, closing her eyes, red aura shining over her as she began to concentrate, raising both of her special stats by another level.
"It's not like an extra point in special defense makes any difference," the Phantom smirked. "Blow her away with your shadow storm!"
"COFAGRIGUS!" Curse roared, sending a massive tornado of shadows roaring at the Espeon. This time, the tornado was so large it nearly swallowed the battlefield whole. Lila didn't even want to think about what would happen if it fed off of the shadows from shadow sky.
Eifa didn't even scream. The attack was so powerful it must have knocked her out immediately, the poor thing. When the raging storm finally ceased and the shadows parted, the pokemon in question was nowhere to be found.
"Must have been blown clear off the battlefield," Valon smirked, not even trying to sound apologetic. "Maybe even out of the stadium."
Alden cracked a grin. "Eifa!"
"Espeon!" Eifa broke through the metallic ground of the stadium, leaping up behind Curse. The Phantom gasped in surprise, and Lila was shocked as well. Darla smirked. Eifa's mouth was open, and a large shadow ball was forming. She fired it, hitting Curse in the back.
"Nicely done, Eifa!" Alden cheered.
"So, you hid your Espeon under the ground with a dig attack," Valon spat. "How cute. Don't think that will be enough!"
"Well, if you're attacking the sky itself, why wouldn't it be smart to hide in the ground to escape?" Alden grinned. "Now, Eifa! Calm mind again!"
"Espeon!" Eifa nodded, storing up even more psychic energy as Curse recovered. Pushing himself up with his hands, Curse turned towards Eifa and held up more shadows, preparing another tornado to attack the Psychic type with.
"Stop, Curse, there's no point to a move like that any longer," Valon ordered. "She'll just hide underground again. Change of plans!"
"Cofagrigus," Curse nodded, more than a little glum.
"A good change of pace to start with, let's get rid of this pesky sunlight," Valon growled. "Use shadow sky!"
"Cofagrigus!" Curse raised his hands, shadows seeping out of the cracks in his sarcophagus and blending into the sky, blotting out the sun and filling the stadium with darkness again.
"I'm surprised it took you so long to go down this approach," Alden mused.
"I'm no fool, Commander," Valon smirked. "I know that Espeon of yours is fully capable of using sunny day all on her own. But I'm also aware of the fact that she's rather weakened at the moment. So if she were to, say, use sunny day to brighten up the sky again, that would leave her vulnerable, now wouldn't it? Want to test it? You'll certainly move faster than we could. Maybe there IS a chance she can both use sunny day AND dodge our next hit. Would you like to test that theory? Because I'm not sure that she could survive being wrong."
"I don't think you can survive being wrong either," Alden warned him. "You're talking a big game, and your Shadow Pokemon put on a big show. But my Sense is telling me we're almost done with this. How much fight does your Cofagrigus have left in him, huh?"
Valon's eye twitched at that. The Commander was right, if Curse took another powerful hit, he would be done for. But the Phantom was doing a very, very good job of not letting it show that that was exactly what he was hoping for.
Come on now, Commander. Let's see it.
"We've got enough power stored up to really take care of you!" Alden grinned. "With three boosts to special attack and three boosts to special defense, that means a total of six stat boosts in all! And that means this one's gonna hurt! Eifa! Use stored power!"
"Espeon!" Eifa cried, ignoring the shadows swirling around her. Her eyes flashed crimson as her ruby began to shine, its red light spreading over her entire body and filling her with power, drawing on the psychic boost she had stored inside. Her psychic powers were amplified and she began to glow brighter and brighter, releasing her stored power in a massive psychic explosion aimed right for the Shadow Pokemon.
"With six boosts to her stats, that means it has a base power of… 140? Right, Darla?" Lila asked, counting on her fingers.
"That's right, Lila!" Darla grinned. "Which means right now, it's one of the strongest Psychic type moves out there! And with Espeon's naturally high special attack and the three increases to her special attack on top of that, this attack is seriously going to hurt!"
The Phantom resisted the urge to smile as the blast of psychic energy slammed into Curse, knocking him backwards. Curse let out a roar of pain, flying across the battlefield, retreating into his sarcophagus as he hit the ground hard.
But even that hadn't been enough. The shadows flared up around him, and he burst free, roaring in pain.
"I see," the Phantom smirked. "So even that wasn't enough. Now, Curse! Use shadow storm!"
"Eifa! Baton pass!" Alden shouted.
"Espeon!" Eifa nodded. She leapt back into her pokeball, and the Commander switched in Tracey, instead. The Cinderace landed on the ground, panting, still badly injured from her previous battles but ready to keep fighting.
"Sending in your little rabbit? Are you that frightened of a pokemon that just won't faint?" The Phantom asked.
"Just getting a little preparation paid off, that's all," Alden grinned. "Take a look!"
Red light streamed down upon Tracey, and she began to glow, recovering her health. Eifa's wish had come true!
"How lovely!" Lila gushed.
"Nicely done!" Darla grinned. "Now Cinderace is back in fighting form!"
"I told you before, didn't I?" Alden asked. "My pokemon have each other's backs. We work together as a team! Unlike you, who treats your pokemon like expendable tools!"
"How cute. But did you forget? You're in our territory now! Curse! Shadow hold!"
While Tracey remained in place, healing up from the wish, shadows stretched out and grabbed hold of her, pinning her in place. She struggled against them, but couldn't break free.
"Cinder?!" Tracey cried.
"Now then, no shed shell on this one," the Phantom smirked. "And that means that she's going to be stuck here for a while."
"That was always the plan," Alden said. "Tracey! Use sunny day!"
"Cinderace!" Tracey lit up the sky again, banishing the shadows away. She was still unable to switch out, but that didn't matter to her. She charged at Curse, ready to tear the Cofagrigus down.
It looks like I'll have to alter my plans slightly. At full health, that Cinderace is a much bigger threat than that Espeon, the Phantom decided. "Curse! Use shadow storm!"
"Cofagrigus!" Curse roared, generating as large of a tornado as she could, flinging it at Tracey.
"Tracey! Use heat wave!" Alden ordered. Tracey held her hands up and began glowing a bright orange. She flung her arms forward and sent a wave of hot air rolling across the battlefield, slamming into the raging tornado, the heat wave smashing through the shadow storm. The two attacks exploded.
Tracey leapt back, avoiding the burst of power of the two moves. With the boosts that Eifa had given her, her special attack stat was comparable to her physical one, and that was a nice change for once. It also opened a new avenue for attacking.
"Tracey, use work up," Alden ordered. "That way, you'll be a Normal type. He'll have to use Shadow Moves against you then!"
"Cinderace!" Tracey nodded, focusing her energy and boosting both her physical and special attack stats as she waited for Curse to attack her. But the Cofagrigus wasn't moving.
"You think I'm a fool?" Valon snorted. "I know full well that you're waiting for me to attack you with one of my Shadow Moves, but I also know that you're preparing to hit us with sucker punch. You've underestimated me in this match far too often as it is, Commander, and I think that you've forgotten that Curse's specialty isn't IN attacking moves. It's in moves like this! Curse! Use shadow panic!"
Curse's shadow aura flared up, and he released a blast of aura right for Tracey, trying to fill her with terror and confuse her. And since Tracey couldn't switch back to Eifa due to shadow hold, that was quite a risk now.
"Tracey, dodge with agility!" Alden ordered. Tracey leapt to the side, speeding up and outmaneuvering the aura with her exceptional agility. But the Phantom didn't mind that. However much of a fight that Cinderace put up, it would all end the same.
"This isn't good," Lila wailed. "Without Espeon's Magic Bounce, the Commander's pokemon are susceptible to status moves again!"
"And Cofagrigus still has crafty shield up, so the reverse isn't true," Darla agreed. "But still, even though that Cofagrigus looks to be in great shape… the Commander is right. I don't think it can take much more of this."
"Just one good hit, Tracey!" Alden called. "That's all it's going to take, just one good hit!"
His expression turned serious. "Are you sure you're willing to do it?"
"Cinderace!" Tracey nodded. The Commander's face brightened into a relieved grin.
"Excellent! Then go! Pyro ball!" Tracey charged forward, dribbling a ball of flames, and pulled her leg back. As Curse turned to face her, his shadowy aura growing, she swung her foot forward and kicked the fireball with as much force as she could, slamming into the Cofagrigus and knocking him over. Curse rolled across the field, his sarcophagus slamming shut as he lost consciousness.
"Wooo!" Cynthia cheered. "Nice!"
"Marvelous," Olivia said, taking pleasure in the defeat of the Cofagrigus.
"Cofagrigus is unable to battle!" Lila cheered. "Cinderace is-"
"Hold on, Lila," Darla said, raising her hand. "Look."
"Cinderace…" Tracey let out a wince of pain and fell over, unconscious.
"But… but how?" Lila gasped.
"Cinderace is unable to battle as well," Darla announced. "Both pokemon have fainted."
"But how?!" Lila demanded again.
"Destiny bond," Alden replied. "Isn't that so?"
The Phantom smirked, and nodded his head. "Quite right. That Cinderace of yours, another one of your strongest pokemon. I had planned to use this on your Espeon, considering how annoying she was, especially with that ability to heal herself thanks to her morning sun. But that Cinderace is possibly an even bigger threat. So when you gave me the chance, I decided to have Curse take care of her. Reckless as always, Commander."
Alden shrugged his shoulders, wearing a rueful smile.
"I figured you would have something like that up your sleeve," he admitted, recalling Tracey to her pokeball.
"…What?" The Phantom growled, narrowing his eyes as he called back his Cofagrigus.
"Destiny bond is just your type of move," Alden continued. "You, who treat pokemon as useless pawns, and have them sacrifice themselves to advance your own goals? Who doesn't respect the pokemon who fight at his side? Someone like you would obviously use a move like that. Which is why I switched out Tracey to fight him. Because I knew that she could finish your Cofagrigus off the easiest. Even if it would cost her. She did her best. We both sent our pokemon to faint, but I never lost my respect for Tracey. Not one bit. Of the three pokemon I had left… I needed Eifa and Tracey to take on your last. And Tracey was willing to make that sacrifice!" Alden's face had turned angry now, surprising the Phantom. The Commander wasn't one to lose his temper.
"So don't you dare call what she did reckless! Eifa, come back out!"
"Espeon!" Eifa emerged from her pokeball again, growling angrily.
"You think she stands a chance against Launcher because of a single Fairy type move?" Valon growled, sending out his Dragapult. The large dragon let out a roar, the stones crashing into him only increasing his fury. "This isn't like Curse, Commander. Now you're dealing with a Shadow Pokemon that can really hurt you! Launcher! Use shadow sky!"
"Oh no!" Lila cried.
"The Phantom has sent out his final pokemon, his Dragapult!" Darla said. "And right off the bat, he's making use of his high speed!"
"Dragapult!" Launcher soared up into the air, the sky swirling with shadows and blotting out the sun as the large Dragon type faded into the darkness.
"Like I just told you, this won't be the same as your battle against Curse," the Phantom replied, his eyes shining and a wide smile on his face. "Launcher has the speed to take you down. This is exactly how I expected this match to go. You, with just a handful of weakened pokemon left, against one of my strongest Shadow Pokemon, ready to tear those scraps apart. You charged in with your mediocre planning and preparation, but you have no idea what it means to fight someone on my level. That Sense of yours is meaningless. Launcher is my trump card. All you have left is… what, exactly?"
A small smile crossed Alden's face.
"Did you really think you're the only one with a trump card?" He asked quietly. "Although I must say… I didn't expect it to go this perfectly."
"What are you talking about?" Valon demanded.
"We prepared an ace of our own, just for this exact situation," Alden said. "I told you, Ricky. I needed Eifa to win. I needed her to take out your Dragapult. And here's how she's going to do it! Eifa! Use trick room!"
"What?!" The Phantom exclaimed.
"What? But…" Lila was confused.
"That's…" Darla was just as surprised as her partner, the entire stadium let out cries and exclamations of shock, with the exception of one blonde who leaned back in her seat and rested her head on her hands, cocking her feet up in front of her and smirking. She'd been right. In the end, the Phantom hadn't seen it coming at all.
"Espeon!" Eifa began to glow red, and a massive barrier spread out from her ruby and covered the battlefield in a curtain of red.
We're in the end game! The Commander has used his trump card, quite a surprising move to say the least! The Phantom's plans probably didn't account for his Espeon knowing THIS of all moves, that's for sure!