Milkweed's forfeit was not taken well by the crowd on the balcony.
"Coward!" called the Gumshoos from earlier, and he was soon followed by the other Pokemon.
Guildmaster Insight tried to calm them down. "Order, everyone. Order. Order!" The crowd went silent as Claymore returned the Cottonee to the balcony. "Now, who would like to go next?"
Mizuchi glanced at Shade. The Dreepy could only shake her head. No way! If he's that scary, I want to at least see someone last a bit longer against him.
Mizuchi, meanwhile, noticed the worry on her partner's face. I always knew that Claymore was called the King of Battle, but that was terrifying! How are we going to stay up any longer than Milkweed?
"I'll do it!" a Jolteon called, jumping right off the balcony and into the arena. However, there was a horrible crack! sound as she landed, and she was forced to leave with her partner.
Insight sighed. "Anyone else?" she asked, looking around. "Can we perhaps hope that another member of Milkweed's team has more stamina than they do?"
Both Shade and Mizuchi moved a little bit backwards. Claymore shook his head and walked into the crowd towards them.
"Ghost, I believe we should save the best battle for last. And a duel against you would likely be rather ferocious," he whispered in Shade's ear, before turning to Mizuchi. "How about you?"
The Sobble looked around, stuttering, "M-me?"
"I have known you for years. I recognize all your skills but battle, and I am curious how much of a warrior you are." The Pawniard escorted her to the arena, raising his claws in a fighting stance.
Here goes everything, Mizuchi thought, remembering what Naga taught her about fighting.
Remember, Mizu, before each fight, think about what move you should use first. You want to leave an impression on your enemy, not make them laugh at you!
The Sobble took a deep breath, considering her attacks. I could hit him with my tail, but would that do anything through his armor? Maybe I could shoot him with a water-
Her train of thought was interrupted by Claymore running up and headbutting her. He raised his claw, energizing it with dark energy. Mizuchi rolled out of the way, shooting a burst of water at the Pawniard.
"You're more of a fighter than I thought," Claymore said before trying to use Night Slash again. Mizuchi ducked under his claw, grabbing his wrist and charging up another water blast.
Mizu, you'd better not mistake a feint for an actual attack! Naga's voice returned to Mizuchi's head with a warning. Most of the time, there are certain cues that let you see whether or not your enemy's actually going to follow through on their move.
The Sobble realized that Claymore was expecting her to grab him. How did he figure out my fighting style so easily? And how was I so predictable? She quickly let go, but she was too late; the Pawniard raised his other claw to attack with an actual Night Slash. Mizuchi skidded across the arena, miraculously remaining on her feet but now with a small bit of blood running down her left cheek.
"You got me," she said, ignoring the cut to dash back at Claymore.
Naga's voice again. Don't be afraid to improvise! Sometimes, creativity is better than brute force.
Mizuchi smiled, though the crowd had no clue why. Murmurs of "what's she up to" seemed to echo around the balcony. Shade simply chuckled, knowing that there may have been a very, very good reason for that smile.
The Sobble stopped running, charging up another water attack. Claymore ran up to stop her, but she wasn't planning on hitting him. Instead, she launched the blast into the air, showering the whole arena with water. The droplets touched Mizuchi's scales, and each one they trickled down blended into her surroundings. Soon enough, she was completely invisible, and her foe dug his claws into the sand.
"Clever Sobble," he remarked, before focusing his energy into using Swords Dance. The two ethereal swords floated loyally above Claymore's head, ready to attack.
Except Claymore had a creative idea of his own, one that also involved no fighting- at least, not yet. He jumped up into the air, impacting the sand with his claws. The swords followed suit, also hitting the ground and sending a cloud of sand around in all directions. Each individual grain found a way to stick to the water on someone's body.
Including the Sobble near the stairs who was still drenched.
Claymore rushed towards her, using his Night Slash-empowered claws to dig into her scales and cause two painful-looking cuts on either side of her body. The Pawniard picked her up, throwing her to the other side of the arena.
Mizu, whatever you do, don't drop to the ground when fighting a melee-oriented foe. Don't fall. Don't fall. Don't-
Naga's words did nothing to inspire the now uncomfortably bloody and sandy Sobble. She tried to walk forward to Claymore, but the pain became a burning fire at her side.
The Pawniard walked up, kneeling down beside Mizuchi. "You fought ferociously. I think it is time for you to take a break. You were surprisingly skilled."
The Sobble smiled, before collapsing on the ground. The audience cheered with excitement.
"What a fight!" a Ninetales cheered. Her partner, a Kingler, seemed to agree, as did everyone else on the balcony.
Shade, on the other hand, was already coming to bring her partner back up. As she carried the bleeding Mizuchi up the stairs, she made eye contact with Claymore.
"Can't wait for our fight," she commented.
The Pawniard followed her up to the balcony to pick his next foe. "I hope you show at least as much spirit as your partner. Mizuchi, not the Cottonee."
That was when Shade realized something. Oh no. I never learned how to fight like a Pokemon. What will I do?
"Um… yeah. It won't be your average fight, that's for certain." The Dreepy chuckled.
"You seem quite confident. Just know that I was trained specifically to fight ghosts." Claymore looked through the crowd, abandoning the conversation.
A Jumpluff medic took care of Mizuchi's wounds as Claymore fought a Lopunny. Though she showed spirit, the Pawniard took her down quite easily.
However, the battle was of no importance to Shade, who was more focused on keeping Mizuchi safe from the stomping and shoving of the excited crowd. She took the Sobble to another part of the balcony, where a Luxio and a Meowstic had already come to get away from the rowdy Pokemon. Milkweed followed their team there, and they helped Shade keep Mizuchi comfortable.
"He's really tough," the half-unconscious Sobble mumbled.
"Listen, Mizuchi," Shade told her. "I have no clue how to fight in this new body. How do you do that?"
Mizuchi replied with a grunt of pain. A grunt that said many things, like "I can't believe I never taught you that" and "how am I going to train you if I can't fight".
Instead of those things, though, the Sobble said, "Start with a thought of what you want to do with your attack. Some attacks make use of a Pokemon's aura, while others are merely physical."
"Aura?" Shade chuckled. "Who trained you, a Lucario?"
"Aura is the basic life energy of all Pokemon," Mizuchi explained. "It's the basis of our elemental powers, and lets us fight longer than we could without one. Aura-readers, like Lucario, can pick up more things through aura, like emotion or whether someone is lying. And no, my sister taught me how to fight." She flinched after saying that last sentence, leaving Shade wondering if something had happened to the Sobble's sister.
Mizuchi taught her various tactics, like never dropping to the ground when fighting a melee opponent- not that she had a choice when that was how you lost this match- or how to tell the difference between a feint and an actual attack.
Eventually, Claymore brought a Drowzee back up to the balcony, before calling out for his final foe.
"Shade! It is time."